# XXIX: Colonel Trench Assumes a Knowledge of Chemistry explained — The Four Feathers

> Chapter companion for The Four Feathers by A. E. W. Mason.

## What happens

Trench falls ill with typhus fever just as escape seems possible, and Feversham nurses him through the crisis. The opportunity to flee with Abou Fatma is lost, and a wall is built around the prison, sealing them in. After months of despair, they are summoned to the Khalifa and assigned to work in a gunpowder factory, where Trench falsely claims knowledge of chemistry to gain a chance at escape.

## Themes in this chapter

### Friendship and Loyalty

Feversham's unwavering devotion to Trench, nursing him through illness and refusing to leave without him.

### Suffering and Endurance

The prolonged imprisonment, illness, and the building of the wall that seals their fate.

### Hope and Despair

The oscillation between hope of escape and despair as the wall rises and months pass.

## Character check-ins

### Harry Feversham

Nurses Trench through typhus, sacrifices his escape opportunity, and remains steadfast in hope.

### Colonel Trench

Falls gravely ill, recovers, and boldly claims expertise in gunpowder to secure a new chance.

### Ibrahim

Assists in nursing Trench, provides remedies, and offers grim prognosis.

### Abou Fatma

Waits with camels but is forced to leave without the prisoners; later returns with supplies.

### Idris es-Saier

Prison keeper who reports to the Khalifa and oversees the prisoners.

## Key lines

> The thousand nights of the House of Stone had done their work.

Years of harsh imprisonment had taken a toll on Trench's health.

_Highlights the cumulative physical and mental strain of captivity._

> We have been building our own coffin, that's the truth of it.

Trench realizes that the wall they built themselves has sealed their doom.

_Symbolizes the irony of prisoners constructing their own prison._

> Will they never come up the Nile, the gunboats and the soldiers? Have they forgotten us in England?

Trench cries out in despair, wondering if rescue will ever arrive.

_Reflects the isolation and abandonment felt by the prisoners._

## Links

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- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_four_feathers_se/chapters