Sir James Fergusson writes an excellent letter to Monday's Times
a propos of the extremely mistaken charges conveyed by Mr. Scott's questions as to the conduct of our officers and troops at Omdurman. He wonders that Mr. Scott. does not give British officers credit for the efforts they make to guard against the revengeful impulses often shown by native troops, and he recalls the examples of heroism and humanity so constantly shown by our officers. " What," be asks, "would Mr. Scott think of an officer who had taken part in every action in the last three years on a recent occasion, when a child belonging to the prisoners had fallen into the Nile and was being carried away by the current, though himself Buffering from malarial fever at the time, plunging in and reselling it?" Of course officers cannot tell such stories about themselves in public, nor even about their brother- officers, and as often as not such acts have no witnesses, Yet they are, apparently, completely ignored by the people who believe the vague charges of excitable critics. Bnr, at the same time, we do not really very much regret such criti- cism_ as our troops have lately been. subjected to.. It only brings out more clearly the fact that they are not savages and ruffians, but men not a bit more callous to suffering than a similar number of civilians.
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