It was the greatest relief to be rid of the animals: thus we marched on
merrily at about two and a half miles an hour, through the usual narrow
path amidst gigantic grass (now about nine feet high) and thick forest.
In about an hour and a half we arrived at a descent, towards a bottom in
which there was a broad, open swamp, with a stream running through the
centre.
The advance-guard was not more than a hundred yards from the bottom, and
the line was descending the hill in close order, when a sudden uproar
broke out, as though all the demons of hell were let loose. Yells,
screams, drums, horns, whistles from many thousand concealed enemies,
for an instant startled the troops! A tremendous rush in the grass gave
notice of a general attack from an immensely powerful ambuscade. The
officers did their duty.
Every load was upon the ground, and in a moment alternate files were
facing to the right and left, kneeling just as the lances began to fly
across the path. The bugles rang out "fire," and the fight commenced on
our side.
I saw several lances pass within an inch or two of my wife's head;
luckily we were kneeling on one knee. The file-firing was extremely
good, and the sniders rattled without intermission. The grass was so
dense, that simple buck-shot would be reduced to a very limited range,
although excellent at close quarters. The servants quickly handed the
elephant breechloaders, and a double shot to the right and left was
followed by the loud explosion of the picrate of potash shells against
some unseen objects, either men or trees.
A quick repetition of the picrate shells seemed to affect the spirit of
the attack. I imagine that the extremely loud explosion of the shells in
the midst, and perhaps also in the rear of the enemy, led them to
suppose that they were attacked from behind.
It is difficult to say how long the attack continued, but a vast amount
of ammunition was expended before the lances ceased to fly through the
line, and the drums and horns were at length heard at a greater distance
in the rear. The bugle at once sounded the "advance," and I marched the
men forward, crossing the stream at the bottom, and gained the open,
where we found ourselves in a kind of swampy field of about ten acres.
"Ha!" exclaimed many of the soldiers, "if we could only get them on a
clear space like this."
The men were mustered. Poor Howarti was dead, and they had left him in
the grass by the roadside, as it was impossible to transport him.
The rear-guard had been hotly pressed, and the natives had rushed upon
the path close to the sniders, which had punished them severely.
