These carried picrate of potash
shells that were immensely powerful. Very little would have been left of
the body of a man had one of such shells struck him in the chest.
The cattle began to cause much trouble as soon as the march commenced,
and we slowly descended the knoll upon which the station stood, and in
single file entered the extremely narrow path which led down to a small
swamp.
Crossing the swamp, through deep mud, we arrived on firm ground, and
continued to march slowly, on account of the cattle. I felt sure they
would have to be abandoned. The cows strayed to the right and left, and
Morgian the Bari, and Abdullah Djoor the cook, who were the drovers,
were rushing about the grass in pursuit of refractory animals, that
would shortly end in being speared by the enemy.
We thus marched for about a mile before a hostile sound was heard. We
then distinguished the tumultuous voices of the natives in the rear, who
had been attracted to the station by the general conflagration.
The slow march continued, through grass about eight feet high, and
occasional forest. The rain now descended steadily, and I feared that
the old muzzle-loading muskets would miss fire.
The sound of drums and horns was now heard throughout the country, as
the alarm spread rapidly from village to village. We could hear the
shouts of natives, and drums that were now sounding in the forest upon a
hill on our right.
