Slowly,and without the slightest appearance of haste or excitement,the three columns crept on.When within about five hundred yards of us,the main or centre column halted at the root of a tongue of open plain which ran up into the hill,to enable the other two to circumvent our position,which was shaped more or less in the form of a horseshoe,the two points being towards the town of too,their object being,no doubt,that the threefold assault should be delivered simultaneously.
"Oh,for a gatling!"groaned Good,as he contemplated the serried phalanxes beneath us."I would clear the plain in twenty minutes.
"We have not got one,so it is no use yearning for it;but suppose you try a shot,Quatermain;see how near you can go to that tall fellow who appears to be in command.Two to one you miss him,and an even sovereign,to be honestly paid if ever we get out of this,that you don't drop the ball within ten yards."This piqued me,so,loading the express with solid ball,I waited till my friend walked some ten yards out from his force,in order to get a better view of our position,accompanied only by an orderly,and then lying down and resting the express upon a rock,I covered him.The rifle,like all expresses,was only sighted to three hundred and fifty yards,so,to allow for the drop in trajectory,took him half-way down the neck,which ought,I calculated,to find him in the chest.He stood quite still and gave me every opportunity,but whether it was the excitement or the wind,or the fact of the man being a long shot,I don't know,but this was what happened.Getting dead on,as I thought,a fine sight,I pressed,and when the puff of smoke had cleared away I,to my disgust,saw my man standing unharmed,while his orderly,who was at least three paces to the left,was stretched upon the ground,apparently dead.Turning swiftly,the officer I had aimed at began to run towards his force,in evident alarm.
"Bravo,Quatermain!"sang out Good;"you've frightened him."This made me very angry,for if possible to avoid it,I hate to miss in public.When one can only do one thing well,one likes to keep up one's reputation in that thing.Moved quite out of myself at my failure,I did a rash thing.Rapidly covering the general as he ran,I let drive with the second barrel.The poor man threw up his arms and fell forward on his face.This time I had made no mistake;and -I say it as a proof of how little we think of others when our own pride or reputation are in question -I was brute enough to feel delighted at the sight.
The regiments who had seen the feat cheered wildly at this exhibition of the white man's magic,which they took as an omen of success,while the force to which the general had belonged -which,indeed,as we afterwards ascertained,he had commanded -began to fall back in confusion.Sir Henry and Good now took up their rifles and began to fire,the latter industriously "browning"the dense mass before him with a Winchester repeater,and Ialso had another shot or two,with the result that,so far as we could judge,we put some eight or ten men hôrs de combat before they got out of range.
Just as we stopped firing there came an ominous roar from our far right,then a similar roar from our left.The two other divisions were engaging us.
At the sound the mass of men before us opened out a little,and came on towards the hill up the spit of bare grass-land at a slow trot,singing a deep throated song as they advanced.We kept up a steady fire from our rifles as they came,Ignosi joining in occasionally,and accounted for several men,but of course produced no more effect upon that mighty rush of armed humanity than he who throws pebbles does on the advancing wave.
On they came,with a shout and the clashing of spears;now they were driving in the outposts we had placed among the rocks at the foot of the hill.After that the advance was a little slower,for though as yet we had offered no serious opposition,the attacking force had to come up hill,and came slowly to save their breath.Our first line of defence was about half-way up the side,our second fifty yards farther back,while our third occupied the edge of the plain.
On they came,shouting their war-
Twala!Twala!Chielé!Chielé!(Twala!Twala!
Smite!smite!)."Ignosi!Ignosi!Chielé!Chielé!"answered our people.They were quite close now,and the tollas,or throwing knives,began to flash backward and forward,and now with an awful yell the battle closed in.
To and fro swayed the mass of struggling warriors,men falling thick as leaves in an autumn wind;but before long the superior weight of the attacking force began to tell,and our first line of defence was slowly pressed back,till it merged into the second.Here the struggle was very fierce,but again our people were driven back and up,till at length,within twenty minutes of the commencement of the fight,our third line came into action.
But by this time the assailants were much exhausted,and had,besides,lost many men killed and wounded,and to break through that third impenetrable hedge of spears proved beyond their powers.For a while the dense mass of struggling warriors swung backward and forward in the fierce ebb and flow of battle,and the issue was doubtful.Sir Henry watched the desperate struggle with a kindling eye,and then without a word he rushed off,followed by Good,and flung himself into the hottest of the fray.
As for myself,I stopped where I was.
The soldiers caught sight of his tall form as he plunged into the battle,and there rose a cry of -"Nanzig Incubu!"(Here is the Elephant!)"Chielé!Chielé!
