was similar to his mocking remark when told of the habits of bestiality (with a mare) on the part of a certain gallant officer of the army; "So? And what, pray, have I to do with his—love-affairs?"
The hero of Khartoum, General Gordon, a soldier-like type, if ever one was, and a devout almost superstitious, Christian, was Uranian. Incidents of this inner life of Gordon used to be narrated in his Chinese days and later. His bond with Lord Arthur Hamilton was of the truly hellenic colour. An Uranian-nature has long been attributed to another contemporary English soldier whose name is linked popularly with Egyptian campaigning; along with his exceptionally persistent "woman-hating".
Within a few weeks of the time when these pages are written, England, and Continental Europe were shocked by a notable loss to the British army, and by a melancholy social tragedy—the death in Paris of Major-General Sir Hector Macdonald, who died a suicide in consequence of uranistic intimacies, while commanding officer of the British forces stationed in Ceylon. Personal friends of Macdonald long had been aware of his homosexualism. In course of his long service, there had been relationships that were open secrets. But in Afghanistan, India, the Sudan and South Africa alike, Macdonald had fought with great distinction. Clandestinely pederastic, after being stationed in Ceylon, occured incidents in connection with native youths that invited official investigation. The affair might nevertheless have escaped further consideration had not a member of the legislative council in Ceylon brought charges. The governor of Ceylon judiciously attempted to suppress them, but the effort was vain. Summoned to London to answer accusations against his private character at the War Office, Macdonald made a hurried and secret journey to England. He had interviews with a few friends, including Lord
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