Throughout this month of August, our heroic revels moved from the Matumbi Hills in the southern part Tanzania and attacked German garrisons throughout the colony. The attack on Ifakara, on August 16, destroyed the small German garrison and opened the way to the key fortification at Mahenge. Though the southern garrison was quite small, their fortifications and modern weapons gave them an advantage. At Mahenge, several thousand of our warriors, led by another spirit medium, marched on the German cantonment, which was defended by Lieutenant von Hassel with sixty African soldiers, a few hundred loyal tribesmen, and two machine guns. The two attacking tribes disagreed on when to attack and were unable to co-ordinate.
The first attack was met with gunfire from 1000 meters, and after the tribesmen had stood firm for about a quarter hour they broke and retreated. After the first attack, a second column of 1,200 men advanced from the east. Some of these attackers were able to get within three paces of the firing line before they were killed.
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