Preface: Olivia Manning was primarily a novelist and wrote non-fiction only when she had no novel to write.

Chapter One: "Dear Emin, It is all up with me here; everyone has joined the Mahdi, and his army takes charge of the Mudireh the day after to-morrow. What I have passed through the last few days no one knows. I am perfectly alone. The man who brings you this will give you all particluars. I hear that an army was never so totally defeated as was that of General Hicks. Out of 16,000 men only fifty-two are alive, and they are nearly all wounded. Look you out; some 8,000 to 10,000 men are coming to you well armed. hoping that we shall meet, Yours truly, F. Lupton." This letter, written on April 25th, 1884, and received by Emin a month later, was the last word to come out of Bahr-el-Ghazal.