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 GAYLORD RG 
 
FOE NAME AND FAME 
 
 OR, 
 
 THEOUGH AFGHAN PASSES. 
 
 BY 
 
 G. A. HENTY, 
 
 Author of " True to the Old Flag," " St. George for England," " In Freedom's Cause," 
 •■' With Olive in India," "By Sheer Pluck," " Facing Death." &c. &c. 
 
 WITH EIGHT FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS 
 BY GORDON BROWNE. 
 
 ^Lufcm IiibniJ- 
 
 ^.- crw 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 SCRIBNER AND WELFOED 
 
 743 & 745 BROADWAY. 
 
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 7 
 
 fry) 
 
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 o PREFACE. 
 
 My dear Lads, 
 
 In following the hero of this story with the 
 British army during the last war in Afghanistan, you 
 will be improving your acquaintance with a countr}^ 
 which is at present, and is likely to be so for a long- 
 time, of supreme interest to Englishmen. Afghan- 
 istan stands as a dividing line between the two great 
 empires of England and Russia, and is certain, sooner 
 or later, to become the scene of a tremendous struo-o-le 
 between these nations; possibly the struggle may 
 have begun before these pages are read by you. Hap- 
 pily, at the present time the Afghans are on our side. 
 It is true that we have lately warred with and 
 beaten them, but our retirement after victory has at 
 least shown them that we have no desire to take their 
 country; while, on the other hand, they know that 
 for those upon whom Russia has once laid her hand 
 there is no escape. In these pages you will see the 
 strength and the weakness of these wild people of the 
 mountains; their strength lying in their personal 
 bravery, their determination to preserve their freedom 
 at all costs, and the nature of their country. Their 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 weakness consists in their want of organization, their 
 tribal jealousies, and their impatience of regular habits, 
 and of the restraint necessary to render them good sol- 
 diers. But when led and organized by English officers 
 there are no better soldiers in the world, as is proved 
 by the splendid services which have been rendered by 
 the frontier force, which is composed almost entirely 
 of Afghan tribesmen. Their history shows that defeat 
 has little moral effect upon them. Crushed one day, 
 they will rise again the next; scattered, it would seem 
 hopelessly, they are ready to reassemble and renew 
 the conflict at the first summons of their chiefs. 
 Guided by British advice, led by British officers, and, 
 it may be, paid by British gold, Afghanistan is likely 
 to prove an invaluable ally to us when the day comes 
 that Russia believes herself stronof enous^h to move 
 forward towards the goal of all her hopes and efforts 
 for the last fifty years, the conquest of India. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 G. A. HENTY. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. Page 
 
 I. The Lost Child, 9 
 
 II. The Foundling, 26 
 
 III. Life on a Smack, 43 
 
 IV. Pa-N Down, 60 
 
 V. The Castaways, 76 
 
 VI. The Attack on the Village, 92 
 
 VII. The Fight with the Pkahus, 103 
 
 VIIL The Torpedo, 119 
 
 IX. The Advance into Afghanistan, 136 
 
 X. The Peiwar-Khotal, 152 
 
 XL A Prisoner, 168 
 
 XII. The Advance up the Khyber, 183 
 
 XIII. The Massacre at Cabul, 196 
 
 XIV. The Advance upon Cabul, 213 
 
 XV. The Fighting round Cabul, 230 
 
 XVI. The Fight in the Pass, 248 
 
 XVII. At Candahar, 265 
 
 XVIIL On the Helmund 282 
 
 XIX. The Battle of Maiwand, 294 
 
 XX. Candahar, 314 
 
 XXI. The Battle of Candahar, 330 
 
 XXII. At Home at Last, 348 
 
ILLUSTEATIONS. 
 
 Page 
 Sam Dickson finds little Willie Gale, . Frontispiece. 27 
 
 Will and Hans in Search of a Shelter, 85 
 
 Captain Herbert saved, 159 
 
 William Gale in the Hands of the Afghans, .... 196 
 
 "One of the Gunpowder ^Magazines had exploded," . 237 
 
 Letters from the General, 270 
 
 Will saves Colonel Ripon, 284 
 
 Gundi carried by the Bayonet, 330 
 
FOE NAME AND FAME: 
 
 A TALE OF THE AFGHAN WAE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE LOST CHILD. 
 
 « 
 
 Y poor pets!" a lady exclaimed sorrowfully; 
 " it is too bad. They all knew me so well, 
 and ran to meet me w^hen they saw me 
 coming, and seemed really pleased to see me even when 
 I had no food to give them." 
 
 " Which was not often, my dear," Captain Ripon, her 
 husband, said. "However, it is, as you say, too bad, 
 and I will bring the fellow to justice if I can. There 
 are twelve prize fowls worth a couple of guineas 
 apiece, not to mention the fact of their being pets of 
 yours, stolen, probably by tramps, who will eat them, 
 and for whom the commonest barn-door chickens would 
 have done as well. There are marks of blood in two 
 or three places, so they have evidently been killed for 
 food. The house was locked up last night all right 
 
10 THE LOST FOWLS. 
 
 for yon see they got in by breaking in a panel o£ the 
 door. Robson, run down to the village at once, and 
 tell the policeman to come up here, and ask if any 
 gypsies or tramps have been seen in the neighbour- 
 hood." 
 
 The village lay at the gate of Captain Ripon's park, 
 and the gardener soon returned with the policeman. 
 
 " I've heard say there are some gypsies camped on 
 Netherwood Common, four miles aAvay," that func- 
 tionary said in answer to Captain Ripon. 
 
 "Put the gray mare in the dog-cart, Sam; we will 
 drive over at once, they will hardly expect us so soon. 
 We will pick up another policeman at Netherwood; 
 they may show fight if Ave are not in strength." 
 
 Five minutes later Captain Ripon was travelling 
 along the road at the rate of twelve miles an hour, 
 with Sam by his side, and the policeman sitting 
 behind. At Netherwood they took up another police- 
 man, and a few minutes later drove up to the gypsy 
 encampment. 
 
 There was a slight stir when they were seen ap- 
 proaching, and then the gypsies went on with their 
 usual work, the women weavino- baskets from osiers, 
 the men cutting up gorse into skewers. There were 
 four low tents, and a wagon stood near, a bony horse 
 OTazimj on the common. 
 
 "Now," Captain Ripon said, "I am a magistrate, 
 and I daresay you know what I have come for. My 
 fowl-house has been broken open, and some valuable 
 
A GYPSY CAMP. 11 
 
 fowls stolen. Now, policeman, look about and see if 
 you can find any traces of them." 
 
 The gypsies rose to their feet with angry gestures. 
 
 "Why do you come to us?" one of the men said. 
 " When a fowl is stolen you always suspect us, as if 
 there were no other thieves in the world." 
 
 " There are plenty of other thieves, my friend, and 
 we shall not interfere with you if we find nothing 
 suspicious." 
 
 " There have been some fowls plucked here," one of 
 the policemen said; "here is a little feather" — and he 
 showed one of only half an inch in length — "and 
 there is another on that woman's hair. They have 
 cleaned them up nicely enough, but it ain't easy to 
 pick up every feather. I'll be bound we find a fowl in 
 the pot." 
 
 Two of the gypsies leapt forward, stick in hand; 
 but the oldest man present said a word or two to them 
 in their own dialect. 
 
 "You may look in the pot," he said, turning to 
 Captain Ripon, " and maybe you will find a fowl there 
 with other things; w^e bought 'em at the market at 
 Hunston yesterday." 
 
 The policeman lifted the lid qf^ the great pot which 
 was hanging over the fire, and stirred up the contents 
 with a stick. 
 
 " There's rabbits here, two or three of them, I should 
 say, and a fowl, perhaps two, but they are cut up." 
 
 " I cannot swear to that," Captain Ripon said, exam- 
 
12 A PIECE OF EVIDENCE. 
 
 ining the portions of fowl, " though the plumpness of 
 the breasts and the size show that they are not ordinary 
 fowls." He looked round again at the tents. " But I 
 can pretty well sw^ear to this," he said, as he stooped 
 and picked up a feather which lay half concealed 
 between the edge of one of the tents and the grass. 
 "This is a breast-feather of a Spangled Dorking. 
 These are not birds which would be sold for eating in 
 Hunston market, and it will be for these men to show 
 where they got it from." 
 
 A smothered oath broke from one or two of the 
 men. The elder signed to them to be quiet. " That's 
 not proof," he said insolently. " You can't convict five 
 men because the feather of a fowl which you cannot 
 swear to is found in their camp." 
 
 " No," Captain Ripon said quietly. " I do not want 
 to convict any one but the thief; but the proof is suf- 
 ficient for taking you in custody, and we shall find out 
 which was the guilty man afterwards. Now, lads, it 
 will be worse for you if you make trouble. Constables, 
 take them up to Mr. Bailey; he lives half a mile away. 
 Fortunately, we have means of proving which is the 
 fellow concerned. Now, Sam, you and I will go up 
 with the Netherwood constable to Mr. Bailey; and do 
 you," he said to the other policeman, "keep a sharp 
 watch over these women. You say you can find 
 nothing in the tents, but it is likely the other fowls 
 are hid not far off, and I will put all the boys of the 
 village to search when I come back." 
 
A FOOTMARK. 13 
 
 The gypsies, with sullen faces, accompanied Captain 
 Ripon and the policeman to the magistrate's. 
 
 "Is that feather the only proof you have, Eipon?" 
 Mr. Bailey asked when he had given his evidence. 
 " I do not think that it will be enough to convict if 
 unsupported; besides, you cannot bring it home to any 
 one of them. But it is sufficient for me to have them 
 locked up for twenty-four hours, and, in the mean- 
 time, you may find the other fowls." 
 
 " But I have means of identification," Captain Ripon 
 said. " There is a footmark in some earth at the fowl- 
 house door. It is made by a boot which has got hob- 
 nails and a horse-shoe heel, and a piece of that heel 
 has been broken oflf. Now, which of these men has got 
 such a boot on? Whichever has he is the man." There 
 was a sudden movement among the accused. 
 
 " It's of no use," one of them said when the policeman 
 approached to examine their boots. " I'm the man, I'll 
 admit it. I can't get over the boot;" and he held up 
 his right foot. 
 
 "That is the boot, sir," the constable exclaimed; 
 " I can swear that it will fit the impression exactly." 
 
 "Very well," the magistrate said. "Constable, take 
 that man to the lock-up, and bring him before the 
 bench to-morrow for final committal for trial. There 
 is no evidence against the other four. They can go." 
 
 With surly threatening faces the men left the room, 
 while the constable placed handcuflfs on the prisoner. 
 
 " Constable," Mr. Bailey said, " you had better not 
 
14 A VISITOR. 
 
 put this man in the village lock-up. The place is of 
 no great strength, and his comrades would as likely as 
 not get him out to-night. Put him in my dog-cart; 
 my groom shall drive you over to Hunston." 
 - Captain Ripon returned with his groom to Nether- 
 wood, and set all the children searching the gorse, 
 copses, and hedges near the common by the promise of 
 ten shillings reward if they found the missing fowls. 
 
 Half an hour later the gypsies struck tlieir tents, 
 loaded the van, and went off. 
 
 Late that afternoon the ten missing fowls were 
 discovered in a small copse by the wayside, half a mile 
 from the common on the road to Captain Ripon's park. 
 
 " I cannot bring your fowls back to life, Emma," that 
 gentleman said when he returned home, " but I have 
 got the thief. It was one of the gypsies on Nether- 
 wood Common. We found two of the fowls in their 
 pot. No doubt they thought that they would have 
 plenty of time to get their dinner before anyone came, 
 even if suspicion fell on them ; and they have hidden 
 the rest away somewhere, but I expect that we shall 
 find them. They had burnt all the feathers, as they 
 thought; but I found a breast-feather of a Spangled 
 Dorking, and that was enough for me to give them in 
 custody. Then, when it came to the question of boots, 
 the thief found it no good to deny it any longer/' 
 
 That evening Captain Ripon was told that a woman 
 wished to speak to him, and on going out into the hall 
 he saw a gypsy of some thirty years of age. 
 
A THREAT. 15 
 
 " I have come, sir, to beg you not to appear against 
 my husband." 
 
 "But, my good woman, I see no reason "wh}^ I 
 should not do so. If he had only stolen a couple of 
 common fowls for a sick wife or child I might have 
 been inclined to overlook it, for I am not fond of send- 
 ing men to prison; but to steal a dozen valuable fowls 
 for the pot is a little too much. Besides, the matter 
 has gone too far now for me to retiact, even if I 
 wished to, which I certainly do not." 
 
 " He is a good husband, sir." 
 
 " He may be," Captain Bipon said, " th-ough that 
 black eye you have got does not speak in his favour. 
 But that has nothing to do with it; matters must take 
 their course." 
 
 The woman changed her tone. 
 
 "I have asked you fairly, sir; and it will be better 
 for you if you don't prosecute Reuben." 
 
 "Oh, nonsense, my good woman! Don't let me 
 have any threats, or it will be worse for you." 
 
 " I tell you," the woman exclaimed fiercely, " it will 
 be the worse for you if you appear against my Reuben." 
 
 " There, go out," Captain Ripon said, opening the 
 front door of the hall. " As if I cared for your ridicu- 
 lous threats ! Your husband will get what he deserves 
 — five years, if I am not mistaken." 
 
 "You will repent this," the gypsy said as she 
 passed out. 
 
 Captain Ripon closed the door after her without a word. 
 
16 A NERVOUS WIFE. 
 
 "'Well, who was it?" his wife inquired when he 
 returned to the drawing-room. 
 
 " An insolent gypsy woman, wife of the man who 
 stole the fowls. She had the impudence to threaten 
 me if I appeared against him." 
 
 "Oh, Robert!" the young wife exclaimed apprehen- 
 sively, " what could she do ? Perhaps you had better 
 not appear." 
 
 " Nonsense, my dear!" her husband laughed. " Not 
 appear because an impudent gypsy woman has threat- 
 ened me? A nice magistrate I should be! Why, half 
 the fellows wdio are committed swear that they will 
 pay off the magistrate some day, but nothing ever 
 comes of it. Here we have been married six months, 
 and you are wanting me to neglect my duty, especially 
 when it is your pet fowls which have been stolen. 
 " Why, at the worst, my dear," he went on, seeing that 
 his wife still looked pale, "they could burn down a 
 rick or two on a windy night in winter; and to satisfy 
 you I will have an extra sharp look-out kept in that 
 direction, and have a watch-dog chained up near them. 
 Come, my love, it is not worth giving a second thought 
 about, and I shall not tell you about my work on the 
 bench if you are going to take matters to heart like 
 this." 
 
 The winter came and went, and the ricks were un- 
 touched, and Captain Ripon forgot all about the gypsy's 
 threats. At the assizes a previous conviction was 
 proved against her husband, and he got five years' 
 
 ( 274 ) 
 
A BLOOD-MARK. 17 
 
 penal servitude, and after the trial was over the matter 
 passed out of the minds of both husband and wife. 
 They had indeed other matters to think about, for soon 
 after Christmas a baby boy was born and monopolized 
 the greater portion of his mother's thoughts. When in 
 due time he was taken out for walks the old women of 
 the village, perhaps with an eye to presents from the 
 Park, were unanimous in declaring that he was the 
 finest boy ever seen, and the image both of his father 
 and mother. He certainly was a fine baby, and his 
 mother lamented sorely over the fact that he had a 
 dark blood-mark about the size of a threepenny piece 
 upon his shoulder. Her husband, however, consoled 
 her by pointing out that, as it was a boy, the mark did 
 not matter in the slightest, whereas, had it been a girl, 
 the mark would have been a disfigurement when she at- 
 tained to the dignified age at which low dresses arew^orn. 
 
 "Yes, of course, that would have been dreadful, 
 Robert; still, you know, it is a pity." 
 
 "I really cannot see that it is even a pity, little 
 woman; and it would have made no great difference if 
 he had been spotted all over like a leopard, so that his 
 face and arms were free; the only drawback would 
 have been he would have got some nickname or other, 
 such as ' the Leopard,' or ' Spotty,' or something of that 
 sort when he went to bathe with his school-fellows. 
 But this little spot does not matter in the slightest. 
 Some day or other Tom will laugh when I tell him 
 what a fuss you made over it." 
 
 (274) B 
 
18 TOM ripon's progress. 
 
 Mrs. Ripon was silenced, but although she said noth- 
 ing more about it, she was grieved in her heart at this 
 little blemish on her boy, and lamented that it would 
 spoil his appearance when he began to run about in 
 little short frocks, and she determined at once that he 
 should wear long curls until he got into jackets. 
 
 Summer, autumn, and winter came and passed. In 
 the spring Tom Kipon was toddling about, but he had 
 not yet begun to talk, although his mother declared 
 that certain incoherent sounds which he made were 
 quite plain and distinct words; but her husband, while 
 willing to allow that they might be perfectly intelligible 
 to her, insisted that to the male ear they in no way 
 resembled words. 
 
 " But he ought to begin to talk, Robert," his wife 
 urged. " He is sixteen months old now, and can run 
 about quite well. He really ought to begin to talk." 
 
 " He will talk before long," her husband said care- 
 lessly. "Many children do not talk till they are 
 eighteen months old, some not till they are two years. 
 Besides, you say he does begin already." 
 
 " Yes, Robert, but not quite plainly." 
 
 " No, indeed, not plainly at all," her husband laughed. 
 " Don't trouble, my dear, he will talk soon enough, and 
 if he only talks as loud as he roars sometimes, you will 
 regret the hurry you have been in about it." 
 
 "Oh, Robert, how can you talk so? I am sure he 
 does not cry more than other children. Nurse says he 
 is the best child she ever knew." 
 
A PRODIGY. 19 
 
 "Of course she does, my dear; nurses always do. 
 But I don't say he roars more than other children. 
 I only say he roars, and that loudly; so you need not 
 be afraid of there being anything the matter with his 
 tongue or his lungs. What fidgets you young mothers 
 are, to be sure!" 
 
 " And what heartless things you young fathers are, 
 to be sure ! " his wife retorted, laughing. " Men don't 
 deserve to have children, they do not appreciate them 
 one bit." 
 
 "We appreciate them in our way, little woman, but 
 it is not a fussy way. We are content with them as 
 they are, and are not in any hurry for them to run, or 
 to walk, or to cut their first teeth. Tom is a fine little 
 chap, and I am very fond of him in his way, princi- 
 pally, perhaps, because he is your Tom; but I cannot 
 see that he is a prodigy." 
 
 " He is a prodigy," Mrs. Ripon said, with a little toss 
 of her head, "and I shall go up to the nursery to 
 admire him." So saying she walked ofi' with dignity, 
 and Captain Ripon went out to look at his horses, and 
 thought to himself what a wonderful dispensation of 
 providence it was that mothers were so fond of their 
 babies. 
 
 " I don't know what the poor little beggars would 
 do," he muttered, "if they had only their fathers to 
 look after them; but I suppose we should take to it, 
 just as the old goose in the yard has taken to that 
 brood of chickens whose mother was carried off by the 
 
20 TOM MISSING. 
 
 fox. By the way, I must order some wire-netting; I 
 forgot to write for it yesterday." 
 
 Another two months. It was June; and now even 
 Captain Eipon allowed that Tom could say " Pa " and 
 "Ma" with tolerable distinctness, but as yet he had 
 got no farther. He could now run about sturdily; and 
 as the season was warm and bright, and Mrs. Eipon 
 believed in fresh air, the child spent a considerable 
 portion of his time in the garden. One day his mother 
 was out with him, and he had been running about for 
 some time. Mrs. Ripon was picking flowers, for she 
 had a dinner-party that evening, and she enjoj^ed 
 getting her flowers and arranging her vases herself. 
 Presently she looked round, but Tom was missing. 
 There were many clumps of ornamental shrubs on the 
 lawn, and Mrs. Ripon thought nothing of his disap- 
 pearance. 
 
 *' Tom," she called, " come to mamma, she wants you," 
 and went on with her work. 
 
 A minute or two passed. 
 
 "Where is that little pickle?" she said. "Hiding, I 
 suppose;" and she went off in search. Nowhere was 
 Tom to be seen. She called loudly, and searched in 
 the bushes. 
 
 "He must have gone up to the house. Oh, here 
 comes nurse. Nurse, have you seen Master Tom? he 
 has just run away," she called. 
 
 " No, ma'am, I have seen^nothing of him." 
 
 "He must be about the <iarden then, somewhere. 
 
AN ANXIOUS SEARCH. 21 
 
 Look about, nurse; where can the child have hidden 
 itself?" 
 
 Nurse and mother ran about, calling loudly the name 
 of the missing child. Five minutes later Mrs. Ripon 
 ran into the study, where her husband was going 
 throuo'h his farm accounts. 
 
 " Oh, Robert," she said, " I can't find Tom!" and she 
 burst into tears. 
 
 "Not find Tom?" her husband said, rising in sur- 
 prise. " Why, how long have you missed him?" 
 
 "He was out in the garden with me; I was picking 
 flowers for the dinner- table, and when I looked round 
 he was gone. Nurse and I have been looking every- 
 where, and calling, but we cannot find him." 
 
 " Oh, he is all right," Captain Ripon said cheerfully; 
 "do not alarm yourself, little woman; he must have 
 wandered into the shrubbery; we shall hear him howl- 
 ing directly. But I will come and look for him." 
 
 No better success attended Captain Ripon's search 
 than that which his wife had met with. He looked 
 anxious now. The gardeners and servants were called, 
 and soon every place in the garden was ransacked. 
 
 " He must have got through the gate somehow into 
 the park," Captain Ripon said, hurrying in that direc- 
 tion. " He certainly is not in the garden or in any of 
 the hothouses." 
 
 Some of the men had already gone in that direction. 
 Presently Captain Ripon met one running back. 
 
 "I have been down to the f^'ate, sir, and can see 
 
22 AN OMINOUS DISCOVERY. 
 
 nothing of Master Tom; but in the middle of the drive, 
 just by the clump of laurels by the gate, this boot was 
 lying, just as if it had been put there on purpose to be 
 seen." 
 
 "Nonsense!" Captain Ripon said. "What can that 
 have to do with it?" Nevertheless he took the boot 
 and looked at it. It was a roughly made heavy boot, 
 such as would be worn by a labouring man. He was 
 about to throw it carelessly aside, and to proceed on 
 his search, when he happened to turn it over. Then 
 he started as if struck. " Good Heaven ! " he exclaimed, 
 '' it is the gypsy's." Yes, he remembered it now. The 
 man had pleaded not guilty when brought up at the 
 assizes, and the boot had been produced as evidence. 
 He remembered it particularly because, after the man 
 was sentenced, his wife had provoked a smile by asking 
 that the boots might be given up to her in exchange 
 for a better pair for her husband to put on when dis- 
 charged from prison. Yes, it was clear. The gypsy 
 woman had kept her word, and had taken her revenge. 
 She had stolen the child, and had placed the boot where 
 it would attract attention, in order that the parents 
 might know the hand that struck them. Instantly 
 Captain Ripon ran to the stable, ordered the groom to 
 mount at once, and scour every road and lane, while 
 he himself rode off to Hunston to give notice to the 
 police, and offer a large reward for the child's recovery. 
 
 He charged the man who had brought the boot to 
 carry it away, and put it in a place of safety till it 
 
ENERGETIC MEASURES. 23 
 
 was required; and on no account to mention to a soul 
 where he put it. 
 
 Before riding off, he ran in to his wife, who was half 
 wild with grief, to tell her that he was going to search 
 outside the park, and that she must keep up her 
 spirits, for no doubt Tom would turn up all right in 
 no time. 
 
 He admitted to himself, however, as he galloped 
 away, that he was not altogether sure that Tom w^ould 
 be so speedily recovered. The woman would never 
 have dared to place the boot on the road, and so give a 
 clue against herself, unless she felt very confident that 
 she could get away or conceal herself. 
 
 " She has probably some hiding-place close by the 
 park," he said to himself, "where she will lie hid till 
 night, and will tlien make across country." 
 
 He paused at the village, and set the whole popula- 
 tion at work by telling them that his child was miss- 
 ing, and had, he believed, been carried off by a gypsy 
 woman; and that he would give fifty pounds to any- 
 one who would find him. She could not be far off, as 
 it was only about half an hour since the child had 
 been missed. 
 
 Then he galloped to Hunston, set the police at work; 
 and, going to a printer, told him instantly to set up 
 and strike off" placards ofi'ering five hundred pounds 
 reward for the recovery of the child. This was to be 
 done in an hour or two, and then taken to the police 
 station for distribution throughout the country round. 
 
24 A CHEERING REFLECTION. 
 
 Having now done all in his power, Captain Ripon 
 rode back as rapidly as he had come, in hopes that the 
 child might already have been found. 
 
 No news had, however, been obtained of him, nor had 
 anyone seen any strange woman in the neighbourhood. 
 
 On reaching the house he found his wife prostrated 
 with grief; and, in answer to her questions, he thought 
 it better to tell her about the discovery of the boot. 
 
 " We may be some little time before we find the 
 boy," he said, " but we shall find him sooner or later. 
 I have got placards out already, ofi"ering five hundred 
 pounds reward; and this evening I will send adver- 
 tisements to all the papers in this and the neighbour- 
 ing counties. Do not fret, darling. The woman has 
 done it out of spite, no doubt; but she will not risk 
 putting her neck in a noose by harming the child. 
 It is a terrible grief, but it will only be for a time; we 
 are sure to find him before long." 
 
 Later in the evening, when Mrs. Ripon had some- 
 what recovered her composure, she said to her husband: 
 
 " How strange are God's ways, Robert; how wicked 
 and wrong in us to grumble! I was foolish enough to 
 fret over that mark on the darling's neck, and now the 
 thought of it is my greatest comfort. If it should be 
 God's will that months or years should pass over before 
 we find him, there is a sign by which we shall always 
 know him. No other child can be palmed off* upon us 
 as our own; when we find Tom we shall know him, 
 however changed he may be!" 
 
NO NEWS. 25 
 
 "Yes, dear," her husband said, ''God is very good, 
 and this trial may be sent us for the best. As you say, 
 we can take comfort now from what we were disposed 
 to think at the time a little cross. After that, dear, 
 we may surely trust in God. That mark was placed 
 there that we might know our boy again; and were it 
 not decreed that we should again see him, that mark 
 would have been useless." 
 
 The thought, for a time, greatly cheered Mrs. Ripon ; 
 but gradually the hope that she should ever see her 
 boy again faded away, and Captain Ripon became 
 much alarmed at the manifest change in her health. 
 
 In spite of all Captain Ripon could do, no news was 
 obtained of the gypsy or Tom. For weeks he rode 
 about the country asking questions in every village, or 
 hurried away to distant parts of England, where the 
 police thought they had a clue. 
 
 It was all in vain. Every gypsy encampment in the 
 kingdom was searched, but without avail; and even 
 the police, sharp-eyed as they are, could not guess that 
 the decent-looking Irishwoman, speaking — when she 
 did speak, which was seldom, for she was a taciturn 
 woman — with a strong brogue, working in a laundry 
 in a small street in the Potteries, Notting Hill, was the 
 gypsy they were looking for; or that the little boy, 
 whose father she said was at sea, was the child for 
 whose discovery a thousand pounds was continually 
 advertised. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE FOUNDLING. 
 
 VJiT was a bitterly cold night in January. The 
 wind was roaring across the flats and fens 
 ■J of Cambridgeshire, driving tiny flakes of 
 snow before it. But few people had been about all 
 day, and those whose business compelled them to face 
 the weather had hurried along mufiied up to the chin. 
 It was ten at night, and the porter and his wife at 
 the workhouse at Ely had just gone to bed, when the 
 woman exclaimed, " Sam, 1 hear a child crying." 
 
 ''Oh, nonsense!" the man replied, drawing the bed- 
 clothes higher over his head; "it is the wind; it's been 
 whistling all day." 
 
 The woman was silent but not convinced. Presently 
 she sat up in bed. '' I tell ydu, Sam, it's a child; don't 
 you hear it, man? Its a child outside the gate. On 
 such a night as this too. Get up, man, and see; if you 
 won't I will go myself." 
 
 " Lie still, woman, it's all thy fancy." 
 
 "You are a fool, Sam Dickson," his wife said sharply. 
 " Do you think I have lived to the age of forty-flve. 
 
THE WORKHOUSE GATE. 27 
 
 and don't know a child's cry when I hear it ? Now 
 are you going to get up, or am I ?" 
 
 With much grumbling the porter turned out of bed, 
 slipped on a pair of trousers and a greatcoat, took 
 down the key from the wall, lighted a lantern, and 
 went out. He opened the gate and looked out. There 
 was nothing to be seen, and he was about to close the 
 gate again with a curse on his wife's fancies, when a 
 fresh cry broke on his ears. He hurried out now, and, 
 directed by the voice, found lying near the gate a child 
 wrapped in a dark-coloured shawl, which had pre- 
 vented him from seeing it at his first glance. There 
 was no one else in sight. The man lifted his lantern 
 above his head and gave a shout. There was no an- 
 swer. Then he raised the child and carried it in, 
 locked the door, and entered the lodge. 
 
 "You are right for once," he said. " Here is a child, 
 and a pretty heavy one too. It has been deserted by 
 some one; and a heartless creature she must have 
 been, for in another half-hour it would have been 
 frozen to death if you had not heard it." 
 
 The woman was out of bed now. " It is a boy," she 
 said, opening the shawl, " about two years old, I should 
 say. Don't cry, my boy — don't cry. It's half-frozen, 
 Sam. The best thing will be to put it into our bed, 
 that has just got warm. I will warm it up a little 
 milk. It's no use taking it into the ward to-night." 
 
 Ten minutes later the child was sound asleep, the 
 porter, who was a good-natured man, having gone over 
 
28 THE WAIF. 
 
 to sleep in an empty bed in the house, leaving the 
 child to share his wife's bed. 
 
 In the morning the foundling opened its eyes and 
 looked round. Seeing everything strange it began 
 to cry. 
 
 " Don't cry, dear/' the woman said. " I will get you 
 some nice breakfast directly." 
 
 The kindness of tone at once pacified the child. It 
 looked round. 
 
 ''Where's mother?" he asked. 
 
 " 1 don't know, dear, we shall find her soon enough, 
 no doubt; don't you fret." 
 
 The child did not seem inclined to fret; on the con- 
 trary, he brightened up visibly. 
 
 "AVill she beat Billy when she comes back? " 
 
 '' No, my dear, she shan't beat you. Does she often 
 beat you ? " 
 
 The child nodded its head several times emphatically. 
 
 '' Then she's a bad lot," the woman said indignantly. 
 
 The child ate its breakfast contentedly, *and was 
 then carried by the porter's wife to the master, who 
 had already heard the circumstance of its entry. 
 
 'It's of no use asking such a baby whether it has 
 any name," he said; "of course it would not know. 
 It had better go into the infants' ward; the guardians 
 will settle what its name shall be. We will set the 
 police at work and try and find out something about 
 its mother. It is a fine-looking little chap, and she 
 must be either a thoroughly bad one, or terribly 
 
THE DEAD TRAMP. 29 
 
 pressed, to desert it like this. Most likely it is a tramp, 
 and in that case it's odds we shall never hear further 
 about it. Any distinguishing mark on its clothes?" 
 
 " None at all, sir. It is poorly dressed, and seems 
 to have been very bad treated; its skin is dirty, and 
 its little back is black and blue with bruises; but 
 it has a blood-mark on the neck, which will enable its 
 mother to swear to it, if it's fifty years hence; but I 
 don't suppose we shall ever hear of her again." 
 
 That afternoon, however, the news came that the 
 body of a tramp had been found frozen to death in a 
 ditch near the town. She had apparently lost her 
 way, and when she had fallen in was so numbed and 
 cold that she was unable to rise, and so had been 
 drowned in the shallow water. When the master 
 heard of it he sent for the porter's wife. 
 
 " Mrs. Dickson," he said, " you had better take that 
 child down and let it see the tramp they have found 
 frozen to death. The child is too young to be shocked 
 at death, and will suppose she is asleep. But you will 
 be able to see if he recognizes her." 
 
 There was no doubt as to the recognition. The 
 child started in terror when he saw the woman lying 
 in the shed into which she had been carried. It 
 checked its first impulse to cry out, but struggled to 
 get further off*. " Moder asleep," he said in a whisper. 
 " If she wake she beat Billy." 
 
 That was enough. The woman carried him back to 
 the house. " She's his mother, sir, sure enough," she 
 
30 WILLIAM GALE. 
 
 said to the master, " though how she should be puzzles 
 me. She is dressed in pretty decent clothes, but she 
 is as dark as a gypsy, with black hair. This child is 
 fair, with a skin as white as milk, now he is washed." 
 
 "I daresay he takes after his father," the master, 
 who was a practical man, said. ''I hear that there is 
 no name on her things, no paper or other article which 
 would identify her in her pockets; but there is £2, 12s. 
 in her purse, so she was not absolutely in want. It 
 w^ill pay the parish for her funeral." 
 
 An hour later the guardians assembled, and upon 
 hearing the circumstances of the new-comer's admis- 
 sion and the death of the tramp, they decided that the 
 child should be entered in the books as " William 
 Gale," the name being chosen with a reference to the 
 weather during which he came into the house; and 
 against his name a note was written to the effect that 
 his mother, a tramp, name unknown, had, after leaving 
 him at the door of the workhouse, been found frozen 
 to death next day. William Gale grew and throve. 
 He was a quiet and contented child; accustomed to be 
 shut up all day alone, while his mother was out wash- 
 ing, the companionship of other children in the Avork- 
 house was a pleasant novelty, and if the food was not 
 such as a dainty child would fancy, it was at least as 
 good as he had been accustomed to. The porter's wife 
 continued to be the fast friend of the child whom she 
 had saved from death. The fact that she had done so 
 gave her an interest in it. Her own children were 
 
A WARM FRIEND. 31 
 
 out in service or at work in the fields, and the child 
 was a pleasure to her. Scarce a day passed then that 
 she would not go across the yard up to the infants' 
 ward and bring Billy down to the lodge, where he 
 would play contentedly by the hour, or sit watching 
 her and sucking at a cake while she w^ashed or pre- 
 pared her husband's dinner. 
 
 Billy was seldom heard to cry. Perhaps he had 
 wept all his stock of tears away before he entered the 
 house; he had seldom fits of bad temper, and was 
 a really lovable child. Mrs. Dickson never wavered 
 in the opinion she had first formed, that the dead 
 tramp was not Billy's mother; but as no one else 
 agreed with her she kept her thoughts to herself. 
 The years passed on, and William Gale was now no 
 longer in the infants' ward, but took his place in the 
 boys' school. Here he at once showed an intelligence 
 beyond that of the other boys of his own age. The 
 hours which he had each day spent in the porter's 
 lodge had not been wasted. The affection of the good 
 woman had brightened his life, and he had none of the 
 dull, down-cast look so common among children in 
 workhouses. She had encouraged him to talk and 
 play, had taught him the alphabet, and supplied him 
 with an occasional picture-book with easy words; 
 indeed she devoted far more time to him than many 
 mothers in her class of life can give to their children. 
 The guardians, as they went in and out to board- 
 meeting, would delight her by remarking: — 
 
u2 MRS. Dickson's belief. 
 
 "That is really a fine little fellow, Mrs. Dickson; he 
 really does you credit. A fine sturdy, independent 
 little chap." 
 
 The child of course wore the regular uniform of 
 workhouse children; but Mrs. Dickson, who was 
 handy with her needle, used to cut and alter the 
 clothes to fit him, and thus entirely changed their 
 appearance. 
 
 "He looks like a gentleman's child," one of the 
 guardians said one day. 
 
 "I believe he is a gentleman's child, sir. Look at 
 his white skin; see how upright he is, with his head 
 far back as if he was somebody; he is difi'erent alto- 
 gether from the run of them. I always said he came 
 of good blood, and I shall say so to my dying day." 
 
 "It may be so, Mrs. Dickson; but the woman who 
 left him here, if I remember right, did not look as if 
 she had any good blood in her." 
 
 " Not likely, sir. She never came by him honestly, 
 I am sure; I couldn't have believed she was his 
 mother, not if she had sworn to it with her dying 
 breath." 
 
 Mrs. Dickson's belief was not without influence 
 upon the boy. When he was old enough to under- 
 stand she told him the circumstances of his having 
 been found at the workhouse door, and of the dis- 
 covery of the woman who had brought him there; and 
 impressed upon him her own strong conviction that 
 this was not his mother. 
 
GOOD ADVICE. 33 
 
 "I believe, Billy," she said over and over again, 
 "that your parents were gentlefolk. Now, mind, it 
 does not make one bit of ditierence to you, for it ain't 
 likely you will ever hear of them. Still, please God, you 
 may do so ; and it is for you to bear it in mind, and to 
 act so as, if you were to meet them, they need not be 
 ashamed of you. You have got to earn your living 
 just like all the other boys here, but you can act 
 rio'ht and strai^rht and honourable. Never tell a lie, 
 Billy, not if it's to save yourself from being thrashed 
 ever so much; always speak out manful and straight, 
 no matter what comes of it. Don't never use no bad 
 words, work hard at your books and try to improve 
 yourself. Keep it always before you that you mean 
 to be a good man and a gentleman some day; and, 
 mark my words, you will do it." 
 
 "You're spoiling that child," her husband would 
 say, " filling his head with your ridiculous notions." 
 
 "No, I am not spoiling him, Sam; I'm doing him 
 good. It will help keep him straight, if he thinks 
 that he is of gentle blood and must not shame it. 
 Why, the matron said only yesterday she could not 
 make him out, he was so different from other boys." 
 
 "More's the pity," grumbled the porter; "it mayn't 
 do him harm now — I don't say as it does; but when 
 he leaves the house he'll be above his work, and will 
 be discontented, and never keep a place." 
 
 *' No, he won't," his wife asserted stoutly, although 
 in her heart she feared that there was some risk of her 
 
 (274) c 
 
34 willy's master. 
 
 teaching having that effect. So far, however, there 
 could be no doubt that her teaching had been of great 
 advantage to the boy, and his steadiness and diligence 
 soon attracted the attention of the schoolmaster. 
 Schoolmasters are always ready to help pupils for- 
 ward who promise to be a credit to them, and William 
 Gale's teacher was no exception. He was not a learned 
 man, very far from it. He had been a grocer who had 
 failed in business, and having no other resource had 
 accepted the very small salary offered by the guardians 
 of Ely workhouse, as the only means which presented 
 itself of keeping out of one of the pauper wards of that 
 institution. However, he w^as not a bad reader, and 
 wrote an excellent hand. With books of geography 
 and history before him he could make no blunders in 
 his teaching, and although he might have been failing 
 in method, he was not harsh or unkind; and the boys, 
 therefore, learned as much with him as they might 
 have done with a more learned master of a harsher 
 disposition. He soon recognized not only William's 
 anxiety to learn, but the fearlessness and spirit with 
 which he was always ready to own a fault and to bear 
 its punishment. On several occasions he brought the 
 boy before the notice of the guardians when they came 
 round the school; and when questions had to be asked 
 before visitors, William Gale was always called up as 
 the show boy. This prominence would have made him 
 an object of dislike among the other lads of his own 
 age, had it not been that William was a lively good- 
 
A boy's library. 35 
 
 tempered boy; and if, as sometimes happened on these 
 occasions, a sixpence or shilling was slipped into his 
 hand by some visitor who was taken by his frank open 
 face and bright intelligent manner, it was always shared 
 among his school-fellows. At one of the examinations, 
 the wife of a guardian, who was present with her hus- 
 band, said on returning home: 
 
 "It must be very dull for those poor boys: I will 
 pack up some of the boys' books and send them. Now 
 they have gone to college they will never want them 
 again, and they would make quite a library for the 
 workhouse boys. There must be twenty or thirty of 
 them at least." 
 
 If ladies could but know what brightness they can 
 infuse into the lives of lads placed like these in Ely 
 workhouse, by a simple act of kindness of this kind, 
 there would not be an institution in the kingdom with- 
 out a well-supplied library. 
 
 The gift infused a new life into the school. Hitherto 
 the world outside had been a sealed book to the boys. 
 They knew of no world save that included within the 
 walls of the house. Their geography told them of other 
 lands and people, but these were mere names until now. 
 Among the books were "Robinson Crusoe," "Midship- 
 man Easy," " Peter Simple," three or four of Cooper's 
 Indian tales, Dana's " Life before the Mast,'' and several 
 of Kingston's and Ballantyne's books. These opened 
 a wonderland of life and adventure to the boys. The 
 schoolmaster used to give them out at twelve o'clock, 
 
36 THE CHOICE OF A TRADE. 
 
 and they were returned at two when school re-com- 
 menced; and only such boys as obtained full marks for 
 their lessons were allowed to have them. In this way, 
 instead of the "library" being a cause of idleness, as 
 some of the guardians predicted when they heard of 
 its presentation, it was an incentive to work. Cer- 
 tainly its perusal filled the minds of most of the boys 
 with an intense lono^ino- to o'o to sea, but as there is 
 always a demand for apprentices for the Yarmouth 
 and Lowestoft smacks, the guardians did not disapprove 
 of this bent beino- o-iven to their wishes; indeed, as no 
 premium had to be paid with apprentices to smack- 
 owners, while in most trades a premium is required, a 
 preference was given to the sea by the guardians. 
 
 When William Gale reached the age of fifteen, and 
 was brought before the board to choose the trade to 
 which he would be apprenticed, he at once said that 
 he would go to sea. There were applications from 
 several smack-masters for apprentices, and he, with the 
 five other boys brought up with him, were all of one 
 opinion in the matter. 
 
 " Mind, lads," the chairman said, " the life of an 
 apprentice on board a North Sea smack is a hard one. 
 You will get a great many more kicks than halfpence. 
 It will be no use grumbling when you have once made 
 your choice. It is a rough hard life, none rougher or 
 harder. When you have served your time it will be 
 open to you either to continue as smacksmen or to ship 
 as seamen in sea-going ships. Sailors who hail from 
 
THE LAST DAY. 37 
 
 the eastern fishing ports are always regarded as amongst 
 the best of our seamen. Still it is a rough life and a 
 dano'erous one; the hardest life on shore is easy in com- 
 parison. There is time to change your minds before 
 you sign; when you have done so it will be too late. 
 Are you all determined?" 
 
 None of them wavered. Their signatures were at- 
 tached to the indentures, and they w^ere told that the 
 porter would take them to Yarmouth on the following 
 day. William Gale obtained leave to spend his last 
 evening at the porter's lodge, and there he talked very 
 seriously with Mrs. Dickson over his future prospects. 
 
 " I know," he said, " from Dana's book, that the life 
 is a very rough one, but that will not matter. A sailor, 
 when he has been four years at sea, can pass his exa- 
 mination as a mate, and I mean to work hard and pass 
 as soon as I can. I don't care how much I am knocked 
 about, that's nothing; there's a good chance of getting 
 on in the end." 
 
 "You will meet a great many bad boys. Bill; don't 
 you let them lead you into their w^ays." 
 
 " Don't be afraid of that," he answered, " I w^on't do 
 anything I should be ashamed of afterwards. You 
 have taught me better." 
 
 " I suppose the guardians gave j^ou a Bible to-day ; 
 they always do when boys goes out." 
 
 Will nodded. 
 
 " Be sure you read it often, my boy. You read that 
 and stick to it, and you w^on't go far wrong. You know 
 
38 A PROMISE. 
 
 what the parson said last Sunday, ' No one is strong 
 in himself, but God gives strength.'" 
 
 "I remember," Will said. "I made up my mind 
 then that I'd bear it in mind and act upon it when I 
 could. I think the thought of God, and the thought 
 that I may meet my parents, and they must not be 
 ashamed of me, will help me to be honest and firm." 
 
 " I hope, Bill, you will come sometimes and see me 
 when you are ashore." 
 
 " I shall be sure to do that when I can," he answered. 
 ''But, of course, I shall have no money at first; and it 
 may be a long time before I can pay my railway fare 
 here; but you may be sure I will come. Whoever may 
 be my real mother, you are the only mother I ever 
 knew, and no mother could have been kinder. AVhen 
 I grow to be a man, and go to sea in big ships, I will 
 bring you all sorts of pretty things from abroad; and 
 if ever you should want it, you may be sure that my 
 wages will be quite as much yours as if I had been 
 really your son!" 
 
 Sam Dickson gave a snort. It was very good of the 
 boy, but he considered it his duty to snub him in order 
 to counteract what he considered to be the pernicious 
 counsels and treatment of his wife. 
 
 " Fine talk," he said, " fine talk. W^e shall see." 
 
 " You ought to be ashamed of yourself, Sam Dick- 
 son," his wife said wrathfully. " The boy means what 
 he says, and I believe him. If anything was to happen 
 to you, and that boy was growed-up, I believe he 
 
WILL STARTS IN LIFE.. oy 
 
 would come forward to lend me a helping hand, just 
 as he says, as if he were my son. The gals is good 
 gals, but gals in service have plenty to do with their 
 wages, what with dress and one thing or another; we 
 must never look for much help from them; but if Bill 
 is doing well, and I ever come to want, I believe as his 
 heart would be good to help a bit." 
 
 " Well," the porter said dryly, " there's time enough 
 to see about it yet. I ain't dead, you ain't a pauper, 
 and he ain't a man, not by a long way." 
 
 " Well, you needn't go to be short-tempered over it, 
 Sam. The boy says as he'll be as good as a son to me 
 if the time ever comes as how I may want it. There 
 is no call for you to fly out as if he'd said as he'd 
 poison me if he'd the chance. Anyhow, you'll write 
 to me regular, won't you. Bill?" 
 
 " That I will," the boy said. " Every time I gets 
 back to port I'll write; and you'll write sometimes, 
 won't you? and tell me how you are, and how every 
 one is, schoolmaster and all. They have all been very 
 kind to me, and I have nothing to say against any of 
 them." 
 
 The next morning William Gale laid aside for ever 
 his workhouse dress, and put on a suit of rough blue 
 cloth, fitted for his future work. Then, bidding adieu 
 to all his friends, he, with his five fellow-apprentices, 
 started by rail under charge of Sam Dickson for Yar- 
 mouth. The journey itself was to them a most excit- 
 ing event. They had in all their remembrance never 
 
40 AT YARMOUTH. 
 
 been a mile from the workhouse, and the swift motion 
 of the train, the changing scenery, the villages and 
 stations, were a source of immense interest. As they 
 neared Yarmouth their excitement increased, for now 
 they were nearing the sea, of which they had read so 
 much, but could form so little idea. They were dis- 
 appointed, however, inasmuch as no glimpse was 
 obtained of it as they crossed the flat country leading 
 to the town; but, failing the sea, Yarmouth itself — 
 the town which was henceforth to be their head- 
 quarters — was in the highest degree interesting. 
 Presently the train reached the station, and then Sam 
 Dickson, who had made many annual journeys to Yar- 
 mouth on the same errand, at once started off" with 
 them to the smack-owners who had written to the 
 workhouse. These lived at Gorleston, a large village 
 on the south side of the river. Walking down from 
 the station, the boys caught a glimpse of the river, and 
 were delighted at the sight of the long line of smacks 
 and coasters lying by the wharves opposite. 
 
 Presently they left the road and made their way 
 down to the river side. Their guardian had great 
 difficulty in getting them along, so interested were they 
 in the smacks lying alongside. Presently they stopped 
 at a large wooden building, over w^hich was the name 
 of " James Eastrey." 
 
 " Here we are," Sam Dickson said. " Now stop 
 quietly outside, I will call three of you up when I have 
 spoken to Mr. Eastrey." 
 
will's master. 41 
 
 Presently the porter re-appearecl at the door, and 
 called three of the boys in. William Gale was one of 
 the number, James Eastrey being the name of the 
 owner to whom he had signed his indentures. A smell 
 of tar pervaded the whole place. Nets, sails, and 
 cordage were piled in great heaps in the store; iron 
 bolts and buckets, iron heads for trawls, and ships 
 stores of all kinds. 
 
 Mr. Eastrey came out from a little wooden office. 
 
 " So," he said, " you are the three lads who are going 
 to be my apprentices. Well, boys, it is a rough life; 
 but if you take the ups and downs as they come, it is 
 not a bad one. I always tell my captains to be kind 
 to the boys; but when they are at sea they do not 
 always act as I wish them. When you are on shore, 
 between the voyages, I give you eight shillings a week 
 to keep yourselves, or I put you in the Smack-boys' 
 Home and pay for you there. The last is the best place 
 for you, but some boys prefer to go their own way. 
 I suppose you are all anxious to go to sea — boys always 
 are for the first time. One of my boats is going out 
 to-morrow. You," he said, pointing to William Gale, 
 " shall go in her. What is your name?" 
 
 " William Gale, sir." 
 
 " Very well, William Gale, then you shall be off first. 
 The others will only have a day or two to wait. I can 
 only send one new hand in each smack. The others 
 will go to the Home till the smacks are ready. I will 
 send a man with them at once. They can have a day 
 
42 SCATTERED. 
 
 to run about the town; I shall find plenty of work for 
 them afterwards. You, Gale, will stop on the smack. 
 I will take you on board in half-an-hour when I have 
 finished my letter." 
 
 The three lads said good-bye to their comrades and 
 to Sam Dickson. A sailor was called up and took two 
 off to the Smack-boys' Home, and Will Gale sat down 
 on a coil of rope to wait till his employer was ready to 
 take him down to the craft to which he was henceforth 
 to belono-. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 LIFE ON A SMACK. 
 
 OW come along, Gale," Mr. Eastrey said at 
 last, " the Kitty is close by." 
 
 Following his master the lad went out 
 from the store, and along the wharf, and presently 
 stepped upon a smack on which several men and a boy 
 were at w^ork. 
 
 " Harvey," Mr. Eastrey said, " I have brought you a 
 new lad. He will sail wath you to-morrow. I have 
 a very good account of him, and I think you will find 
 him quick and ready." 
 
 " So as he's not up to tricks I shall do very well with 
 him, I don't doubt," the skipper said ; " but boys are an 
 awful trouble the first voyage or two. However, I will 
 do my best for him. Are you ready to begin work at 
 once, young 'un? what is your name?" 
 
 " William Gale, and I am quite ready." 
 
 " Very well. Bill, chuck off your jacket then, and pass 
 those bao^s alono- from the wharf." 
 
 The boy was soon hard at work. He was a little 
 disappointed at finding that the skipper was in dress 
 
44 TAKING IN STORES. 
 
 and manner in no way superior to the rest of the crew. 
 The Kitty was a yawl of forty-five tons, deep in the 
 water and broad in the beam. Her deck was dirty 
 and at present in disorder, and she did not come np to 
 the perfection of neatness and cleanliness which William 
 Gale had read of in the pages of his favourite author. 
 However, as he told himself, there must of course be a 
 good deal of difference between a man-of-war, where 
 the crew have little to do but to keep things neat and 
 bright, and a fishing-smack. The work upon which he 
 was at present engaged was the transferring of the 
 provisions for the voyage from the quay to the hold. 
 These consisted principally of barrels of salt meat and 
 bags of biscuits, but there were a large tin of tea, a 
 keo^ of suo'ar, a small barrel of molasses — or treacle — 
 two or three sacks of potatoes, pepper and salt. Then 
 there was a barrel of oil for the lamps, coils of spare 
 rope of different sizes, and a number of articles of 
 whose use William Gale had not the most remote idea. 
 
 After two hours' work the skipper looked at his 
 watch. "Time to knock off* work," he said, "and we've 
 got pretty near everything on board. Now be sure 
 you are all here by six in the morning. Tide will 
 begin to run out at eight, and I don't want to lose any 
 of it. Bill, you are to come home with me for the 
 night." 
 
 It was but a hundred yards to the sailor's cottage, 
 which stood on the edge of the sharp rise a short dis- 
 tance back from the river. 
 
A SNUG HOME. 45 
 
 "Here, wife," he said as he entered, "I've got a new 
 apprentice, and I expect he's pretty hungry; I am, I 
 can tell you, and I hope tea's ready. His name's Bill, 
 and he's going to stop here to-night." 
 
 "Tea is quite ready, John, and there's plenty of 
 mackerel. I thought you would not be getting them 
 again for a spell. Do you like fish ?" she asked the boy. 
 
 " I don't know, ma'am — I never tasted them." 
 
 "Bless me!" the woman cried in astonishment; "never 
 tasted fish! To think now!" 
 
 "I've been brought up in a workhouse," William 
 said, colouring a little as he spoke, for he knew the 
 prejudice against the House. 
 
 "Ah!" she said, "we have had a good many of that sort, 
 and I can't say as I likes 'em for the most part. But 
 you haven't got the look about you. You don^t seem 
 that sort." 
 
 " I hope I shall turn out none the worse for it," the 
 boy said ; " at any rate I'll do my best." 
 
 "And none can't do more," the good woman said 
 briskly. " I like your looks. Bill, and you've a nice 
 way of talking; well, we shall see." 
 
 In a few minutes tea was upon the table, and Will sat 
 down with the skipper, his wife, and two daughters, 
 girls of ten and twelve. The lad enjoyed his meal im- 
 mensely, and did full justice to the fish. 
 
 "You will have plenty of them before you eat your 
 next tea on shore. We pretty nigh live on them when 
 we are on the fishino- oTounds." 
 
46 THE skipper's wife. 
 
 "The same kind of fish as this?" 
 
 " No, mackerel are caught in small boats with a dif- 
 ferent sort of gear altogether. We get them sometimes 
 in the trawl, not shoals of 'em, but single fish, which 
 we call horse-mackerel." 
 
 After tea the skipper lit his pipe, and his wife, after 
 clearing up, took some knitting and sat down and 
 began to question the new apprentice. 
 
 " It's lucky for you, you found such a good friend," 
 she said when he had finished his story. " That's how 
 it is you are so difierent from other boys who have 
 been apprenticed from the House. I should never 
 have thought you had come from there. And she gave 
 you good advice as to how you should go on, I'll be 
 bound." 
 
 "Yes, ma'am," Will said, "and I hope I shall act 
 up to it." 
 
 "I hope so. Bill; but you'll find it hard work to 
 keep yourself as you should do among them boys. 
 They are an awful lot, them smack-boys." 
 
 " Not worse nor other boys," her husband said. 
 
 "Not worse than might be looked for, John, but 
 they are most of 'em pretty bad. The language they 
 use make my blood run cold often. They seems to 
 take a delight in it. The hands are bad enough, but 
 the boys are dreadful. I suppose j^ou don't swear, 
 Will; they look too sharp after you in the House; but 
 if you take my advice, boy, don't you ever get into the 
 way of bad language. If 3^ou once begin, it will grow 
 
BEWARE OF DRINK. 47 
 
 on you. There ain't no use in it, and it's awful to 
 hear it."' 
 
 " I will try not to do so,'"' Yv ill said firmly. " Mother 
 — I always call her mother — told me how bad it was, 
 and I said I'd try." 
 
 " That's right, Will, you stick to that, and make up 
 your mind to keep from liquor, and you'll do." 
 
 "What's the use of talking that way?" the skipper 
 said. " The boy's sure to do it. They all do." 
 
 "Not all, John; there's some teetotalers in the 
 fleet." 
 
 "I won't say I'll never touch it," Will said, "for I 
 don't know yet how I may want it; they say when 
 you are cold and wet through at sea it is really good; 
 but I have made up my mind I'll never drink for the 
 sake of drinking. Half the men — ay, nineteen out of 
 twenty in the House — would never have been there, 
 I've heard mother say, if it hadn't been for drink ; and 
 I told her she need never fear I'd take to that." 
 
 " If you can do without it on shore, you can do with- 
 out it at sea," the skipper said. " I take it when I'm 
 on shore, but there's not a drop goes out on the Kitty. 
 Some boats- carries spirits, some don't. We don't. The 
 old man puts chocolate on board instead, and of a wet 
 night a drink of hot chocolate's worth all the rum in 
 the world. As for giving it up altogether, I see no 
 call for it. There are men who can't touch liquor but 
 they must go on till they get drunk. That sort ought 
 to swear off and never touch it at all. It's worse than 
 
48 will's resolutiois 
 
 poison to some. But for a man who is content with 
 his pint of beer with his dinner, and a glass of grog of 
 an evenino' I see no harm in it." 
 
 " Except that the money might be better spent, 
 John." 
 
 " It might be, or it might not. In my case the saving- 
 would be of no account. The beer costs threepence, 
 and the rum as much more. That's sixpence a day. 
 I'm only at home ten days once every two months, so 
 it come to thirty shillings a year, and I enjoy my 
 dinner and my evening pipe all the better for them." 
 
 " The thing is this. Will, you don't know, when you 
 begin, whether you are going to be one of the men 
 who, like my John, is content with his pint of beer 
 and his glass of grog, or whether you will be one of 
 them as can't touch liquor without wanting to make 
 beasts of themselves. Therefore the safest plan is, 
 don't touch it at all — leastways till you've served your 
 time. The others may laugh at you at first, but they 
 won't like you any the worse for it." 
 
 " Thank you, ma'am. I will make up my mind to 
 that — not to touch liquor till I am out of my appren- 
 ticeship. After that, I can see for myself." 
 
 " That's right, lad. When you come back from your 
 first trip, you can join the lodge if you like. I and 
 my girls are members." 
 
 "Thank you, ma'am," Will said; "but I won't take 
 any pledge. I have said I will not do it, and I don't 
 see any use in taking an oath about it. If I am so 
 
A PRESENT. 49 
 
 weak as to break my word, I should break my oath. 
 I don't know why I shouldn't be able to trust myself 
 to do as I am willed, in that way as in any other. If 
 I'd a craving after it, it might be different; but I 
 never have tasted it, and don't want to taste it; so I 
 don't see why I can't trust myself." 
 
 "Yes, I think as how you can trust yourself, Will," 
 the woman said, looking at him; "and I've noticed 
 often that it isn't them who say most as do most. Now, 
 I daresay, you are sleepy. There's my boy's bed for 
 you. He is fourth hand in one of the smacks at sea." 
 
 The next morning Will was out of bed the instant 
 he was called, excited at the thought that he was 
 going really to sea. The skipper's wife had tea made 
 and the table laid. 
 
 " Here," she said, " are some oilskin suits my boy has 
 given up. They will suit you well enough for size; 
 and although they are not as good as they were, they 
 will keep out a good deal of water yet. You will get 
 half-a-crown a week while you are at sea, so by the 
 time you get back you will have enough to buy your- 
 self a fresh suit." 
 
 Half an hour later Will was at work getting two 
 spare sails and the last of the stores on board. 
 
 " Now, Bill, come below," the skipper said. " I will 
 show you your bunk." 
 
 The cabin was larger than Will had expected. It 
 was about twelve feet square, and lofty enough for a 
 tall man to stand upright. By the side of the com- 
 
 (274) " D ' 
 
50 THE "KITTY." 
 
 panion stairs was a grate, on which a kettle was boil- 
 ing; and this, as he afterwards learned, was a fixture, 
 except when cooking was going on, and the men could 
 have tea whenever they chose. Round three sides of 
 the cabin extended lockers, the tops forming seats. 
 Above were what looked like cupboards running round 
 the sides, but the skipper pushed open a sliding door 
 and showed a bed-place. 
 
 '' That is your bunk," he said. " You see there are 
 two at the end, and one each side, above, and as many 
 under them — eio-ht bunks in all. You will have to 
 help Jack, that is the other boy, in cooking, and make 
 yourself useful generally in the day. The crew are 
 divided into two watches, but you will not have much 
 to do on deck. If the night is clear you can sleep, 
 except when the trawl is being got up. Of a thick or 
 stormy night you will keep your watch. Now, as the 
 other lad is more handy on deck than you are, you can 
 take charge here. All you have to do is to see that 
 the kettle is kept boiling. You can come on deck and 
 lend a hand if wanted, but you must come down some- 
 times and see the fire is all right." 
 
 After inspecting the contents of the kettle, and see- 
 ing that it was full. Will climbed up the steep ladder 
 again, and was soon working away coiling down the 
 ropes with the other lad, while the crew hoisted sails 
 and got the boat under weigh. 
 
 " Are there only two hands under the captain ? " he 
 a'^kpd the other I'ov. 
 
A BAD BEGINNING. 51 
 
 " There are two others," the boy said. " They will 
 come on board after we get out of the river, and you'll 
 see they will be just as drunk as they can stand." 
 
 "What, drunk at this time in the morning?" 
 
 " Yes, they got drunk last night, and as they won't 
 have fairly slept it off they will be beginning again 
 this morning. The old man will look them up and get 
 them off." 
 
 " Who is the old man?" 
 
 " Old Eastrey, of course, stupid. I wish they were 
 all on board. There's a fine breeze, and I hate wasting 
 four or five hours o& the bar waiting for the hands to 
 come off." 
 
 " I wonder the old man stands it," Will said. 
 
 " He can't help it," the other answered. " Scarce a 
 smack goes out of Yarmouth without half the hands 
 being drunk when she starts. They don't get much 
 chance afterwards, you see, and they sleep it off by 
 night, so it don't make any odds. Our skipper is 
 always sober, and that's more than many of them are. 
 I have gone out when me and the other boy were the 
 only two sober on board." 
 
 "But isn't it very dangerous?" 
 
 " Dangerous! no," the boy said; " one of them is sure 
 to be sober enouo^h to manaoje to stand at the helm, 
 and though I've bumped pretty heavy on the sands 
 sometimes we generally strike the channel. There is 
 no fear of anything else. We never start if a gale is 
 blowing, and the smacks are safe in anything but a 
 
52 AT SEA. 
 
 gale. They are too deep to capsize, and at sea there's 
 no more drinking." 
 
 The smack dropped down the river, and stood off 
 and on near its entrance. Will was delighted with the 
 bright sea, dotted with ships and fishing-craft. The 
 sun was shining, and there was just enough wind to 
 send the smack along briskly through the water 
 without raising any waves sufficiently high to give her 
 a perceptible motion. At eight o'clock the captain 
 went on shore in the boat with a man to look after the 
 absent sailors, leaving only one hand and the two boys 
 on board. At ten the boat was again seen coming out. 
 
 " One, two, three, four," the boy said, " he has got 
 them both. Now we shall be off." 
 
 The boat was soon alongside, the two drunken men 
 were helped on board, and at once went below to sleep 
 themselves sober. Then the boat was hoisted on board, 
 and the second hand taking the helm, the Kitty started 
 fairly on her way. 
 
 " Now," the captain said, " let us get her a little tidy." 
 
 It took some hours' work before the deck was washed, 
 the ropes coiled down, and everything ship-shape. By 
 the time all was done the low coast of Norfolk had 
 sunk below the horizon, and the smack was far out at 
 sea. There was more motion now, but the wind was 
 still light. The skipper was pleased with the earnest- 
 ness and alacrity which the new apprentice showed. 
 
 '' Now, Jack," he said to the other boy, " take Will 
 below with you and show him how to make tea." 
 
MAKING TEA. 53 
 
 The process of tea-making on board a smack is not 
 a difficult one to master; the sole operation consisting 
 in putting a few more spoonfuls of tea into the kettle 
 boiling over the fire when it begins to get low, and 
 filling up with fresh water. But simple as the thing 
 was, William Gale did not learn it on that occasion. 
 He had been feeling somewhat shaky even while on 
 deck, and the heat of the cabin and the smell of some 
 grease which Jack had just put in the frying-pan pre- 
 paratory to cooking some fish brought off from shore, 
 completed the effect of the rising sea. Until next 
 morning he was not in a condition to care even had 
 the tea remained unmade to the end ol time. He did 
 not go below, but lay under the shelter of a tar- 
 paulin on deck. In the morning the skipper roused 
 him up. 
 
 " NoW; lad, just take off your coat and shirt; here is 
 a bucket of water, put your head in that, and give your- 
 self a good sluice, and then come down and have a cup 
 of tea and a bit of biscuit, and you will find yourself 
 all rio'ht again." 
 
 Will followed the instructions and found himself 
 wonderfully better. 
 
 " Now, lad, lend a hand in tidying up on deck; there 
 is nothing like work for keeping off sea-sickness. Jack 
 shall cook for to-day." 
 
 The boy set to work with a will, and felt so re- 
 freshed that by one o'clock he was able to go below 
 and take his share of the dinner. At present, while 
 
54 THE FISHING FLEET. 
 
 on their way to the fishing-grounds, their meals were 
 taken at the same time as on shore; but once at work, 
 there were only two meals a day: of these the first 
 was taken when the fishing was over, the fish cleaned, 
 picked, weighed, and packed — the hour varying be- 
 tween nine and eleven. The second meal was taken 
 before the trawl was lowered at six or seven o'clock in 
 the evening. 
 
 After five days' sailing the smack arrived off the 
 fishing-ground, but another two days were spent in 
 finding the fleet, as the fishing-grounds extend over a 
 distance of some hundreds of miles. When they came 
 up with it William Gale was astonished at the vast 
 number of boats that dotted the sea. 
 
 In the Yarmouth fleet there are between four and 
 five hundred vessels; and, were it not that the most 
 perfect order and discipline reign, the number of acci- 
 dents which would occur, from so many boats fishing 
 close to each other at night, would be terrible. The 
 fleet is commanded by one of the most experienced 
 skippers, who is termed the admiral. His authority is 
 absolute: he leads the fleet to the grounds he selects for 
 fishing, and by signals by day and rockets by night 
 issues his orders: — when the nets are to be lowered 
 down and drawn up, the course which is to be steered, 
 and the tack on which they are to stand. 
 
 The fishing is entirely done at night. The trawls 
 are let down about dusk, and the fleet attached to 
 these moving anchors forge slowly ahead and to leeward 
 
LIFE ON BOARD. 55 
 
 until daybreak. Then the trawls are got in and the 
 fleet sail in a body to the spot where the admiral de- 
 cides that fishino* shall be continued in the eveninor. 
 
 o o 
 
 At 10 o'clock at night the trawls are hauled in and the 
 nets emptied. All hands are called up for this opera- 
 tion; when it is concluded the trawl is again lowered 
 and the fish cleaned and packed, by the light of a torch 
 formed of rope dipped in tar. The watch who have 
 hitherto been on deck, turn in, and the others remain 
 on deck until mornincr, when the nets are ap:ain 
 hauled in. 
 
 There is not, indeed, much for the watch to do, as 
 the smack needs no steering, and the attention of the 
 men on deck is directed chiefly to see that no other 
 smack drifts down upon them. Should there appear 
 any danger of this, a flare is lit to warn the other 
 smacksmen. The trawl rope is slacked out or hauled 
 in as the case may require, and generally volleys of 
 strong language pass between the respective crews. 
 The trawd-beam is a heavy pole, some 30 or 35 feet 
 long; at each end are fitted strong iron hoops of about 
 three feet in diameter. These keep the pole from 
 touching the ground and keep open the mouth of the 
 net, one side of which is attached to the pole while the 
 other drao's alono- the bottom. 
 
 The net resembles in shape a long deep purse, and 
 has various pockets and other contrivances by which, 
 when a fish has once entered its mouth, it is prevented 
 from returning. 
 
OQ THE CONTENTS OF THE NET. 
 
 The trawl-rope, which is from 40 to 80 yards in 
 length, according to the depth of water, is hauled in 
 by means of a winch, and its great weight taxes the 
 united strength of the crew to get it level with the 
 bulwark. When it is up, the net is hauled on board, 
 the small end is opened, and the fish tumble on to the 
 deck; they are then separated and packed in trunks, 
 as the wooden cases in which they are sent to market 
 are called. Soles fetch by far the highest price, and 
 fortunate are the crew who get a good haul of this 
 fish, for the men work upon shares, an account being 
 kept of all the sales made during the fishing trip. The 
 owner deducts the cost of the provisions and stores 
 which have been put on board and takes one or more 
 shares for the vessel. Each man has one share, the 
 skipper and mate receiving rather a larger proportion 
 than the others; thus the men have a lively interest 
 in each haul, and great is the satisfaction when the 
 net comes up well filled, and there is seen to be a good 
 proportion of soles among the contents. 
 
 The coarse fish, as they are called, include brill, 
 haddock, hake, ling, whiting, and many others. Turbot 
 are also caught. 
 
 In each haul there would probably be a vast number 
 of objects which would delight the heart of a naturalist. 
 Dog-fish, too, are sometimes taken, as are conger-eels 
 and horse-mackerel; stones and oysters too come up 
 in the nets, and the latter are the hetes-noirs of the 
 fishing. Sometimes when the fleet gets over a bed of 
 
A smacksman's fare. 57 
 
 oysters a score of nets will be lost in a single night; 
 for when the bag becomes full of oysters, its weight 
 is so great that the utmost power of the fishermen's 
 exertions on the winch is insufficient to lift it from the 
 bottom, and there is nothing to be done but to cut the 
 rope and abandon trawl and net. Upon these occasions 
 the language applied to the admiral is scarcely of a 
 kind for polite ears. 
 
 The food of the crews, when once upon the fishing- 
 ground, consists almost wholly of fish. With the 
 exception of soles, each man may select any fish he 
 fancies from the glistening mass upon the deck, and 
 the amount which each consumed at a meal at first 
 astonished William Gale, accustomed as he was to 
 meagre workhouse rations. He soon, however, found 
 himself able to keep up with the rest, but the operation 
 of frying seemed sometimes interminable, so many 
 times had the pan to be filled and emptied. 
 
 Hard biscuits were eaten with the fish, and the 
 whole washed down with copious draughts of tea with- 
 out milk. Two or three times a week the men would, 
 as a chancre, have a meal of salt meat; and on Sun- 
 days a dufi' or pudding of flour and currants was 
 made. 
 
 A few days after joining the fleet the weather 
 changed, the sky became gloomy and threatening. The 
 wind blew hard and a heavy sea got up. Will found 
 that keeping watch at night, which was pleasant 
 enough on a fine star-light night, was a very different 
 
58 WATCH AT SEA. 
 
 thing now. It was no joke looking ahead with the 
 wind blowing fiercely and showers of spray dashing 
 into the eyes; and yet a vigilant watch must be kept, 
 for if the rockets which ordered the hauling of the 
 trawl were not noticed, some other smack moving 
 rapidly when released from the drag of its net might 
 at any moment come into collision with the smack. 
 
 Still more important was it to notice upon which 
 side the trawl was to be lowered, after being emptied, 
 and upon which tack the vessel was to proceed. For 
 a mistake in this respect would be certain to bring the 
 smack across another, in which case the trawl-ropes 
 would become entangled, involving, in a heavy sea, the 
 certain loss of one or the other. Many of the smacks 
 carry dogs, and it is found that these become even 
 better watchers than their masters; for they can be 
 relied on to call the attention of the watch, by sharp 
 barking, to the letting up of the rocket, however 
 distant. 
 
 A rocket may seem to be an easy thing to see, but 
 in a large fleet the sternmost smacks may be three or 
 four miles away from the leaders, and in a dark thick 
 night it is exceedingly difficult to make out even a 
 rocket at that distance. 
 
 The wind increased to a gale; the trawls were up 
 now, and the fleet lay-to. It may be explained that 
 this operation is performed by bringing a ship nearly 
 into the eye of the wind, and then hauling the foresail 
 across, and belaying the sheet. The aft sail or mizen 
 
LAYING-TO. 
 
 59 
 
 is then hauled tight, and the tiller lashed amidships. 
 As the fore-sail pays the vessel off from the wind, the 
 after sail brings her up again, and she is thus kept 
 nearly head to sea, and the crew go below and wait 
 till the storm abates. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 EUN DOWN. 
 
 ^(^v^^^ iiILLIAM GALE was astonished at the fury 
 ^*^'| of the tempest and the wildness of the sea. 
 S]| Although at the workhouse he had often 
 heard the wind roaring round the walls, there was 
 nothincr to show him the force that was beinor exerted. 
 There were but few trees in the neio-hbourhood, and 
 William had hardly ever been without the walls except 
 in fine summer weather. He was, therefore, almost 
 bewildered by the force and fury of the gale, and by 
 the noise as it shrieked throuo-h the rioforino- and howled 
 across the water. The occasional flapping of the sails 
 and the rattling of the heavy blocks added to the din, 
 and it seemed to him that the Kitty, which, like all 
 fishing-smacks, was very deep in the water, must be 
 completely engulfed by the great waves which swept 
 down upon her. 
 
 Several times, indeed, he was obliged to leap down 
 into the cabin to avoid being swept away by the great 
 masses of green water which, pouring over her bows, 
 swept aft, carrying away all before them. 
 
FTNE WEATHER. 61 
 
 But the Yarmouth smacks are admirable sea boats, 
 and, pounded and belaboured as she was, the Kitty 
 always shook off the water that smothered her, and 
 rose again for the next wave. In twenty-four hours 
 the gale abated, the scattered fleet were assembled, 
 each flying its flag, and it was found that three were 
 missing, having either foundered, or been driven away 
 from their consorts. 
 
 With the return of fine weather the fishino^ be2:an 
 again, and William thoroughly enjoyed his life. The 
 skipper was kind and forbearing; he neither ill-treated 
 the boys himself nor permitted any of the crew to do 
 so, and everything went on regularly and comfortably. 
 There were a few books on board, and of an evening 
 after the trawl was lowered, and before the watch 
 below turned into their bunks, William, who was the 
 best reader on board, would be asked to read aloud for 
 an hour. Sometimes there were songs, and as the 
 Kitty was fortunate, and her taking of fish good, the 
 men were all cheerful and good-tempered. 
 
 Once every three or four days the collecting steamer 
 came in sight, then there was a general race in the 
 fleet to put the trunks of flsh on board her. Each did 
 his best to be in good time, for when the catch had 
 been heavy the steamer was sometimes unable to take 
 the whole of it, in which case the portion left behind 
 would be wholly spoilt before the arrival of another 
 steamer. 
 
 The whole of the fleet, therefore, ran down towards 
 
62 THE COLLECTING STEAMER. 
 
 the steamer as soon as she was seen; the heavy boats 
 were tossed overboard, and the trunks lowered into 
 them, and two hands jumped in to row them to the 
 steamer. Round her a swarm of boats would soon be 
 collected, each striving to get alongside to deliver the 
 fish. 
 
 In calm weather the scene was simply amusing, but 
 when the sea was high it was exciting and even 
 dangerous; indeed, in the course of a year more lives 
 are lost in the process of taking the fish from the 
 smack to the steamer than in vessels foundered by 
 gales. 
 
 Sometimes the fleet will be joined by Dutch trading- 
 smacks, who exchange fresh bread and meat, tobacco, 
 and spirits, for fish. This traffic is the cause alike of 
 loss to the owners by the fish thus parted with, and 
 of injury to the men by the use of spirits. Fortunately 
 the skipper of the Kitty, although not averse to the 
 use of spirits on shore, was a strict man at sea, and 
 saw that no one took more than a single glass of grog 
 of an evening. 
 
 Over and over aofain Will congratulated himself 
 that he had the good fortune to make his first voyage 
 under such a skipper, for he shuddered at the stories 
 Jack told him of the cruelties and barbarities with 
 which apprentices are treated on board some of the 
 smacks. Although, however, there is no doubt many 
 brutal skippers hail from Yarmouth, the fleet from 
 that town bears a good reputation in comparison with 
 
A COLLISION. 63 
 
 that of Grimsby, where the number of apprentices 
 returned as drowned each year is appalling. 
 
 One night when the wind was high and the fleet traw- 
 ling lower down the North Sea than usual, Will, who 
 was on deck, was startled at seeing a great ship bearing 
 down upon the smack. He gave a shout of terror and 
 warning, which was joined in by the crew on deck. 
 One ran for the hatchet to cut the trawl, and thus give 
 steerage- way to the smack. It was too late; in another 
 moment the great ship bore down upon them with a 
 crash, and the Kitty sunk beneath the waves. 
 
 The bowsprit of the vessel projected across the deck, 
 just at the point where William Gale was standing; 
 and in a moment he caught at the bob-stay, and quickly 
 hauled himself on to the bowsprit. Climbing along 
 this he was soon on board. Two or three sailors were 
 leaning over the bows, peering into the darkness. 
 They had not seen the smack, until too late to avoid 
 it; and the collision which had proved fatal to the 
 Kitty had scarcely been felt by the ship. Will was at 
 once taken to the captain, who spoke English ; the boy 
 implored him to turn back, but the captain shook his 
 head. 
 
 "It would be useless," he said; "the sea is heavy, 
 and in these long boots " — and he pointed to the sea- 
 boots up to the thigh which all fishermen wear — "no 
 man could swim for two minutes, nor would there be 
 a chance, if they could, of our finding them on so dark 
 a night. I am very sorry, my lad, but it cannot be 
 
64 ON BOARD A dutchma:n-. 
 
 helped; it would take half-an-hour to bring the ship 
 about and go back to the spot where the smack sunk, 
 and we might not get within hal£-a-mile of it. You 
 know that as well as I do." 
 
 Will had been long enough at sea to recognize the 
 truth of what the captain said. As he was led forward 
 he burst into tears at the thought of the loss of his 
 kind friend the captain, and the rest of his mates. 
 The sailor who accompanied him patted him on the 
 back, and spoke cheeringly to him in a foreign language, 
 and he was soon between decks with the crew. Several 
 of these could speak English, and Will found that he 
 was on board a Dutch merchantman, bound with troops 
 for Java. The wind got up, and in the morning it 
 was blowing a heavy gale from the east, and the 
 vessel with reefed topsails was running for the straits 
 between Dover and Calais at twelve knots an hour. 
 After breakfast the captain sent for William. 
 
 "I am sorry, for your sake, that the state of the 
 weather will prevent our communicating with any ship 
 we may meet. But I promise you that if the gale breaks 
 before we are fairly out from the channel, I will heave 
 to and put you on board a homeward-bound ship." 
 
 Such a chance did not occur. For four or five days 
 the gale continued with great severity, and before it 
 ceased the ship was well down the coast of Spain on 
 her way south. When the captain saw that there was 
 but small chance of his being able to tranship his 
 involuntary passenger, he said to him: 
 
SHIPPED AS A HAND. 65 
 
 " Look you, my lad. I fear that you will have to 
 make the voyage with me, for we shall not touch at 
 any port until we arrive at our destination. If you 
 like, I will ship you as a hand on board as from the 
 day of the collision. A hand, more or less, will make 
 no difference to the owners, and the money will be 
 useful to you when you leave the ship. Of course, 
 you can return in her if you think fit; but it is likely 
 enough that when we reach Java, we may be sent up 
 to China for a homeward cargo, in which case I will 
 procure you a passage in the first ship sailing for your 
 home." 
 
 Will gladly accepted the offer. He was, however, 
 by no means penniless ; for upon the morning after his 
 coming on board, the Dutch ofiicers and passengers, 
 hearing what had happened in the night, made a col- 
 lection among themselves, and presented the boy with 
 a purse containing fifteen pounds. 
 
 It was a long voyage, but not an unpleasant one foi 
 William; his duties were not very heavy — he had far 
 less to do than had been the case on board the smack. 
 A month on board the Kitty had done much towards 
 making a sailor of him, for there are no better seamen 
 in the world than the Yarmouth smacksmen. Going 
 aloft was at first a trial, but he soon learned his duties; 
 and being a strong and active lad, he was quickly able to 
 do efficient work, and speedily gained the good opinion 
 of the Dutch sailors by his good temper and anxiety 
 to please. 
 
 (274) B 
 
65 A NEW FRIEND. 
 
 They ran some little distance to the south of the 
 Cape before shaping an easterly course, to avoid the 
 bad weather so frequently met with there; and, beyond 
 encountering two or three gales of no exceptional 
 severity, nothing occurred to break the monotony of 
 the voyage, until the coasts of Java were in sight. 
 Upon their arrival in port they found no vessel there 
 about to sai] for Europe, and the captain's expectation 
 was fulfilled, as he found orders awaiting him to 
 proceed to China when he had landed the troops and 
 discharged his cargo. Will determined to continue his 
 voyage in her to that place. 
 
 Among the ship-boys on board was one between 
 whom and Will Gale a great friendship had been 
 struck up. He was a year or two Will's senior, but 
 scarcely so tall; upon the other hand he was nearly 
 twice his girth. He talked but little, but his broad 
 face was ever alight with a good-tempered grin. He 
 spoke a few words of English, and Will had, when 
 first picked up, been given specially into his charge. 
 Will's superior activity and energy astonished the 
 Dutch lad," whose movements were slow and heavy; 
 while Will, on his part, was surprised at the strength 
 which Hans could exert when he chose. 
 
 One day v/hen Will had been plaguing him, and 
 ventured within his reach, the lad had seized and held 
 him out at arm's-length, shaking him as a dog would 
 a rat, till he shouted for mercy. 
 
 The two were soon able to get on in a queer mixture 
 
A STORM BREWING. 67 
 
 of Dutch and English, and when words failed, they 
 would eke out their words by gestures. The vessel 
 had sailed but a few days from Java, when there were 
 signs of a change of weather. Hitherto it had been 
 lovely; now a slight mist seemed to hang over the sea, 
 while overhead it was clear and brio-ht. There was 
 not a breath of wind, and the sails hung listlessly 
 against the masts. Will, who was leaning against the 
 bulwarks chatting to Hans, observed the captain, after 
 looking round at the horizon, go into his cabin; he re- 
 appeared in a minute, and spoke to the officer, who 
 immediately shouted an order for "all hands to shorten 
 saU." 
 
 "What is that for?" Will said, wonderingly; "there 
 is not a breath of wind." 
 
 "I egzpect captain haz looked at glass," Hans said; 
 " find him fall; I egzpect we going to have ztorm; very 
 bad ztorms in dese zeas." 
 
 Will ran aloft with the sailors, and in ten minutes 
 every inch of canvas, with the exception of a small 
 stay-sail, was stript from the ship ; still there was not 
 a breath of wind. The sea was as smooth as glass, 
 save for a slight ground-swell. Although the mist did 
 not seem to thicken, a strange darkness hung over the 
 sky, as if high up a thick fog had gathered. Darker 
 and darker it grew, until there was little more than a 
 pale twilight. The men stood in twos and threes, 
 watching the sea and sky, and talking together in low 
 tones. 
 
68 A BIG STORM. 
 
 "I don't like this, Hans," Will said. "There is 
 something awful about it.'' 
 
 "We have big ztorni," Hans replied, " zyclone they 
 call him." 
 
 Scarcely had Hans spoken when the sky above 
 seemed to open with a crash, a roar of thunder louder 
 than ten thousand pieces of artillery pealed around 
 them, while at the same moment a blinding flash of 
 lightning struck the mainmast, shivering it into splin- 
 ters, and prostrating to the deck five seamen who were 
 standing round its foot. As if a signal had been given 
 by the peal of thunder, a tremendous blast of wind 
 smote the vessel, and, stripped though she was of sails, 
 heaved her over almost to the gunwale. 
 
 For a moment the crew were paralysed by the 
 suddenness of the catastrophe, stunned by the terrible 
 thunder, and blinded by the lightning. None seemed 
 capable of moving. Will had instinctively covered his 
 eyes with his hands — it seemed to him for a moment 
 that his sight was gone. Then the voice of the cap- 
 tain was heard shouting: 
 
 "Helm hard up; out axes and cut away the wreck 
 at once!" 
 
 Those who were least stupefied by the shock sprang 
 in a dazed and stupid way to obey the order. Will drew 
 out his knife, and, feeling rather than seeing what he 
 was doing, tried to assist in cutting away the shrouds 
 of the fallen mast — it had gone a few feet above the 
 deck. Presently he seemed, as he worked, to recover 
 
A NEAR SQUEAK. 69 
 
 from his stupor, and the power of sight came back to 
 him. Then he saw that the vessel, taken on the broad- 
 side by the gale, was lying far over, with several feet 
 of her lee deck under water. 
 
 So furious was the wind that he could not show his 
 head over the weather bulwark. The sea was still 
 smooth, as if the water was flattened by the force of 
 the wind. The stay-sail had been blown into ribbons. 
 In order to get the ship's head off the wind the head 
 of the jib was hauled up a few feet. It happened to 
 be a new and strong one; and, although it bellied 
 and lashed as if it would tear itself into fragments, 
 it still stood. Again the captain gave an order, and 
 the sail was hauled up to its full height. Still fur- 
 ther the vessel heaved over, and Will expected every 
 moment that she would capsize; then gradually her 
 head paid off, and slowly she righted and flew before 
 the gale. 
 
 " That was a near squeak," Will said. 
 
 "What is zqueak?" Hans shouted. 
 
 " I mean a close shave/' Will replied. 
 
 Hans' blue eyes opened wider than usual. 
 
 "A zhave!" he repeated; "what are you talking 
 about zhaving?" 
 
 " No, no," Will said laughing, " I mean a narrow 
 escape of being capsized." 
 
 Hans nodded. There was no time for talk, for 
 orders were given for getting preventor stays on the 
 foremast. The jib, having done its work, had been 
 
70 THE CYCLONE. 
 
 hauled down the instant the ship payed off, and a 
 small storm-sail set in its place. The men now had 
 time to attend to those who had been struck by light- 
 ning: three o£ them were found to be dead, but the 
 other two, who were stunned and senseless, still lived, 
 and were lifted and carried below. 
 
 Serious as the disaster had been. Will felt that the 
 stroke of lightning had saved the ship. The pressure 
 of the wind upon two masts and hull had nearly suf- 
 ficed to capsize her; had the main-mast stood, he felt 
 that she must have gone over. The sea got up in a 
 very few minutes, but being now only in light ballast, 
 the vessel rose easily over them. Four men were at 
 the helm, for the waves soon became so high that the 
 ship yawed dangerously on her course. 
 
 The gale seemed to increase rather than diminish in 
 fury, and the sea, instead of following in regular 
 waves, became a perfect chaos of tossing water, such 
 as Will had never before seen. He understood it, 
 however, when half an hour after the outburst of the 
 gale, he heard one of the men, who had just been re- 
 lieved at the wheel, say that in that time the ship had 
 already run twice round the compass. She was there- 
 fore in the very centre of the cyclone, and the strangely 
 tossed sea was accounted for. The motion of the ship 
 was extraordinary, sometimes she was thrown on one 
 side, sometimes on the other. Mountains of water 
 seemed to rise suddenly beside her, and tumbled in 
 great green masses over the bulwarks. So wild and 
 
THE MIZEN CUT AWAY. 71 
 
 sudden were her movements, that even the oldest 
 sailors were unable to keep their feet, and all clung on 
 to shrouds or belaying-pins. 
 
 Will and Hans had lashed themselves by the slack 
 of a rope to the bulwarks close to each other, and 
 there clung on; sometimes half drowned by the waves 
 which poured in above them, sometimes torn from 
 their feet by the rush of green water as the ship 
 plunged head-foremost into a wave or shipped one 
 over her poop. 
 
 -Presently there was a crash that sounded even above 
 the fury of the gale — the fore topmast had gone at the 
 cap. The axes were again called into requisition, for 
 a blow from the floating spar would have instantly 
 stove in the side. While engaged upon this the cap- 
 tain called two of the men with axes aft. These were 
 set to work to chop through the shrouds of the mizen, 
 and in a minute later the mast snapped asunder on 
 the level of the deck and went over the side with a 
 crash, carrying away several feet of the bulwark. 
 
 This act was necessitated by the loss of the fore- 
 topmast, as the pressure of the wind upon the mizen 
 would have brought her head up and laid her broad- 
 side to the gale. 
 
 The motion of the vessel was now considerably 
 easier, and there was no longer any difiiculty in keep- 
 inof her dead before the wind. She was now describ- 
 ino' much larojer circles in her course, showino^ that she 
 was farther removed from the centre of the cyclone. 
 
72 BREAKERS AHEAD. 
 
 After five or six hours the extreme violence of the 
 wind somewhat abated, and it seemed to settle down 
 into a heavy gale. 
 
 For two days the vessel ran before it. She had 
 made a good deal of water from the opening of the 
 seams by straining, and the pumps were kept going. 
 They were, they found, able to prevent the water from 
 gaining upon them, and all felt that they should 
 weather the tempest, provided that they were not 
 dashed upon any of the islands in which this portion 
 of the ocean abounds. 
 
 The crew had had no regular meals since the gale 
 began, for the caboose had been broken up and washed 
 overboard soon after the commencement of the storm, 
 and they had been obliged to be content with biscuits; 
 there was little to be done on deck, and the watch 
 over, they passed their time in their bunks. 
 
 In the afternoon of the third day of the tempest the 
 cry was raised of "Breakers ahead!" Will, with his 
 comrades of the watch below, sprang from their berths 
 and hurried on deck. 
 
 Far ahead, as the vessel lifted on the waves, could 
 be seen a gleam of white water. In anticipation of 
 such a danger, a small spar had been erected upon the 
 stump of the mizen and steadied with strong stays. 
 Sail was now hoisted upon this, and an effort was made 
 to bring the vessel's head to wind. Watching for a 
 favourable moment between the passage of the heavy 
 seas, the helm was put down and slowly her head 
 
THE LAST CHANCE. 73 
 
 came up into the wind. Under such sail the captain 
 had no hope of being able to reach out in the teeth of 
 the gale ; but he hoped to be able to claw off the shore 
 until clear of the land which lay to leeward of him. 
 
 That hope soon vanished. One of the mates was 
 sent to the top of the foremast, and descended with 
 news that as far as could be seen the line of breakers 
 stretched away, both on her beam and quarter. As 
 the minutes went by the anxious crew could see but 
 too clearly that the ship was drifting down upon the 
 land, and that she must inevitably be wrecked upon it. 
 
 The outlines of the shore could now be seen — a 
 forest of tossing trees, behind which high land could 
 be made out through the drivino- clouds. Orders were 
 now given to prepare to anchor; but all knew that the 
 chances were slight indeed. The water is, for the most 
 part, deep close alongside the islands of the Eastern 
 Archipelago; and even were the holding-ground good, 
 hemp and iron would hardly hold the vessel head to 
 the gale and tremendous sea. 
 
 When within a quarter of a mile of the breakers the 
 man with the lead proclaimed a depth of ten fathoms. 
 This was better than they had expected. The jib was 
 lowered and her head brought dead to wind. The 
 captain shouted " cut," and in an instant the stoppers 
 were severed and two heavy anchors dropt into the 
 sea. One had a heavy chain-cable, the other hemp, and 
 these were allowed to run out to the bits. The vessel 
 brought up with less shock than could be expected. 
 
74 ON THE ROCKS. 
 
 A wave or two passed under her and still her cable 
 held. 
 
 A gleam of hope began to reign, when a mountainous 
 sea was seen approaching; higher and higher it rose, 
 and just as it reached the ship it curled over and 
 crashed down upon her deck. The cables snapped 
 like pack-thread, and a cry of despair arose from the 
 crew. The captain was calm and collected, and shouted 
 orders for the jib to be again hoisted and the helm put 
 up, so as to run her head-nrst on to the shore. 
 
 As they neared the line of breakers they could 
 see heads of jagged rocks rising among them, while 
 beyond a belt of smooth water, a quarter of a mile 
 wide, extended to the land. The ship's head was 
 directed towards a point where no rocks appeared 
 above the surface. Everyone held their breath, and 
 clinging to the bulwarks awaited the shock. 
 
 The vessel lifted on a great wave just as she came 
 to the line of broken water, and as she settled down 
 struck with a tremendous crash. 
 
 So great was the shock that she broke in two 
 amidships as if she had been made of paper, the por- 
 tion aft going instantly to pieces, and at once the sea 
 around was covered with fragments of wreck, bales, 
 boxes, and casks. Another oTeat sea followed, fillinof 
 the now open ship, forcing up the deck, and sweeping 
 everything before it. 
 
 William Gale and Hans had gone as far forward as 
 possible. "Come out to the end of the bowsprit," Will 
 
CAST ON SHORE. 75 
 
 said to Hans, and the two lads crawled out to^-ether 
 and sat on the end of the spar. 
 
 The sea beneath them was white as milk with the 
 foam which poured over the reef, but AVill thought 
 that they were beyond the rocks. Every sea which 
 struck the wreck added to the disaster, until a larger 
 one than usual struck it and broke it into fragments. 
 The lads clung to the spar as it fell; it sank deep in 
 the water, but they retained their hold until it came 
 to the surface, and Will looked round. They were 
 safely beyond the edge of the reef. The sea was still 
 rough and broken, but it was quiet compared to that 
 beyond the reef. He saw that the fore-mast was 
 floating near, and to it several were clinging. 
 
 In a quarter of an hour the spar floated to land, the 
 boys felt the bottom with their feet, and soon scram- 
 bled ashore. A few minutes later the fore-mast also 
 drifted up, and several men clinging to fragments of 
 the wreck were also cast ashore. In all eleven men, 
 including the first mate, were saved. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE CASTAWAYS. 
 
 FTER waiting on the shore until all hope 
 that any more of their shipmates sur- 
 vived was at an end, the party, by the 
 mate's orders, detached a sail from a yard that had 
 drifted ashore, and carried it well into the wood, 
 where they were sheltered to some extent from the 
 force of the gale. A stout pole was then cut and 
 lashed between two trees; the sail was thrown over 
 this and pegged down at both sides. A fire was lit 
 with some difficulty; then a quantity of ferns and 
 branches of trees were cut: these made a soft and 
 elastic bed, and the whole party slept heavily until 
 the morning. Then they went back to the shore; it 
 was littered thickly with fragments of wreck, casks, 
 boxes, and other articles: here too were nearly a score 
 of the corpses of their shipmates. The first duty was 
 to dig a long shallow trench in the sand, beyond high- 
 water mark, and in this the bodies of their drowned 
 comrades were laid. 
 
 The storm w^as now breaking, glimpses of blue sky 
 
THE CHANCES OF ESCAPE. 77 
 
 were visible overhead, and the wind had greatly abated. 
 The sea upon the reef was, however, as high as ever. 
 Setting to work they hauled a large number of boxes 
 and bales beyond the reach of the waves. One of the 
 casks contained biscuits, and, knocking in the head, 
 they helped themselves to its contents, and sat down 
 to talk over their position. 
 
 " I am not sure," the mate said, "that our poor com- 
 rades there" — and he nodded towards the grave — 
 "have not the best of it. The inhabitants of most of 
 these islands are bloodthirsty pirates, who if they find 
 us will either cut our throats at once or keep us as 
 slaves. Our only hope is that we may not be discovered 
 until we have time to build a boat in which to sail 
 away to Singapore or back to Java. Had we been 
 wrecked further south things would have been more 
 hopeful, for the Papuans are friendly and inoffensive 
 people. These islands here are inhabited by Malays, 
 the most bloodthirsty pirates in the world. However, 
 we must hope that we may not be found before we 
 have finished a boat. My chest is among those which 
 have been washed up, and there are a few tools in it. 
 I always had a fancy for carpentry, and it's hard if in 
 a fortnight we cannot make some sort of craft which 
 will carry us. Indeed, if we content ourselves with a 
 strong framework covered with canvas we may be 
 ready in four or five days." 
 
 The men set cheerfully to work under his directions. 
 In his chest was a hatchet, saw, and chisels. With 
 
78 PROGRESS OF THE BOAT. 
 
 these, young trees of flexible wood were cut down and 
 split; a keel was laid 25 feet in length; cross-pieces 
 12 feet long were pegged to this by trenails — nails 
 formed of tough and hard wood. The cross-pieces were 
 then bent upwards and fastened to the strips wdiich 
 were to form the gunwale. Strengthening pieces were 
 placed along at distances of 7 or 8 inches apart, and 
 firmly lashed. When the whole was finished after three 
 days' labour the framework of a boat 25 feet long, 
 3 feet deep, and 7 feet in beam stood upon the beach. 
 A barrel of oil had been thrown ashore, and with this 
 the mate intended thoroughly to soak the canvas with 
 which the frame was to be covered. The boat would, 
 he calculated, carry the whole of the men with an 
 ample store of food and water for the voyage. 
 
 Upon the morning of the fourth day, as on their 
 way to work they emerged from the wood upon the 
 open beach, the mate gave a low cry and pointed along 
 the shore. There, between the reef and the island, was 
 a large Malay prahu. The party instantly fell back 
 among the trees. The Malays were apparently cruis- 
 ing along the reef to see if the late storm had thrown 
 up the wreckage, which might be useful to them; and 
 a loud shout proclaimed their satisfaction as they saw 
 the shore strewn with the remains of the Dutch ship. 
 The prahu was rowed to the shore, and fifty or sixty 
 Malays sprang from the bows on to the sand. 
 
 Scarcely had they done so when a shout from one of 
 them called the attention of the others to the frame- 
 
CHASED BY MALAYS. 79 
 
 work of the boat. There was a minute's loud and ex- 
 cited chatter among them. Then they dashed forward 
 to the wood, the deep footsteps in the sand showing 
 plainly enough the direction from which the builders 
 of the boat had come and gone. The latter, as the 
 Malay boat neared the shore, had retired further into 
 the wood, but from the screen of leaves they were 
 able to see what was going on. As they saw the Malays 
 rush in an excited and yelling throng towards the 
 wood, the little party took to their heels. 
 
 " Scatter," the mate said; ''together, they are sure to 
 overtake us; singly, we may escape." 
 
 "Let us keep together, Hans," Will said as they 
 dashed along through the wild jungle. Torn by thorns, 
 often thrown down by projecting roots and low creepers, 
 they kept on, their pace at times quickening as shouts 
 and screams told them that some of their comrades 
 had fallen into the hands of the Malays. Presently 
 they came upon the little stream which flowed into 
 the sea close to where they had been cast ashore. 
 
 "Let us follow this up," Will said; "they can track 
 us through the forest, but the water will set them off 
 our scent." 
 
 For a quarter of a mile they followed the course of 
 the stream, stopping breathlessly many times as they 
 heard voices in the wood not far off. Presently Will 
 pointed to a tree rising from a clump of bushes close 
 to the bank. 
 
 " Let us get through those bushes," he said; "be care- 
 
80 IN THE THICKET. 
 
 ful, Hans, not to break a twig as you go ; we can climb 
 that tree ; there are plants with stems like cords wind- 
 ing round it. The top is so thick and bushy that I 
 don't think they can see us there." 
 
 Yery carefully they parted the bushes that overhung 
 the stream, and entered the thicket; then they made 
 their way with great difficulty to the foot of the tree. 
 It was a very large one, with a trunk fully 15 feet in 
 diameter, rising some forty feet without a branch, 
 then a number of great arms grew out at right angles; 
 these were covered thickly with parasitic vegetation. 
 Round the trunk, like a snake embracing its victim, a 
 great climber had wound itself; its main stem was 
 as thick as a man's arm, and there were dozens of 
 smaller cord-like climbers. Thus the lads had no diffi- 
 culty in climbing to the point where the branches grew 
 out. Above these was a mass of foliage completely 
 covered by the climbers, whose drooping sprays and 
 clusters gave the tree the appearance of a solid mass 
 of verdure. The boys continued to climb until they 
 were nearly at the top of the tree. 
 
 "There!" Will said, wiping away the perspiration 
 which streamed from his face, "if they do not track us 
 through the bushes to the very foot of this tree, I defy 
 them to find us." 
 
 For some hours the wood was alive with noises; the 
 Malays were evidently beating every foot of it, and 
 were determined that none of their victims should 
 escape. Several times parties of men came up the 
 
A SNUG HIDING-PLACE. 81 
 
 stream searching the banks on both sides; but, hap- 
 pily, even their sharp eyes did not detect the spot 
 where the boys had entered the bushes, and gradually 
 the noises ceased, and at night a great glare by the sea- 
 shore told the lads that their enemies had gathered 
 again there, and were continuing by fire-light the work 
 of breaking open and examining the treasures which 
 the sea had cast up for them. 
 
 " What do you zay. Will ? Zhall we get down and 
 go furder into wood, or zhall we wait here?" 
 
 " I think anyhow we had better wait till to-morrow 
 night," Will answered. "They may search again to- 
 morrow, and might come upon our tracks. If they 
 don't find us they may suppose that they have caught 
 us all, or that we have escaped right into the interior. 
 If they find no traces of us they will likely enough set 
 sail before night." 
 
 There was no difficulty in finding a place in which 
 they could sleep, for the cord-like climbers from bough 
 to bough formed natural cradles, in which they lay as 
 securely as if in a hammock on board a ship. In the 
 morning they were woke at daybreak by the cries of 
 the many birds which throng the forests of the Eastern 
 Archipelago. No one approached them during the 
 day, and they doubted not that the Malays were all 
 hard at work on the shore. 
 
 That night there was no reflection of a fire on the 
 beach. In the morning they descended from their 
 perches and made their way carefully, and as noise- 
 
 (274) F 
 
82 DEVASTATION. 
 
 lessly as possible, through the wood, to a point upon 
 the shore a mile distant from the point where they 
 landed. Going to the edge of the trees they were 
 enabled to take a view along the shore. It was de- 
 serted; the Malay prahu was gone. 
 
 Confident that none of their enemies would have 
 remained behind, they walked boldly along the shore 
 to the spot where the Malays had landed. Every box 
 and barrel had been broken open, and the contents 
 carried away; planks and beams had been split asunder 
 to obtain the copper bolts and fastenings. The frame- 
 work of the boat had been destroyed, and every por- 
 tion of canvas and rope carried away. The lads sat 
 down on the shore. 
 
 "What shall we do next, Hans?" 
 
 Hans shook his head. 
 
 "Perhaps some of the others may have got away 
 and may join us here to-day or to-morrow. If any are 
 alive they would be certain to come back here when 
 they thought the Malays had left." 
 
 Hans grunted an assent. 
 
 " Anyhow, the first thing to do," Will went on, " is 
 to gather up the pieces of biscuits; they have wasted 
 lots in breaking open the barrels, and I am famishing." 
 
 Hans rose with alacrity, and they soon were at work 
 collecting pieces of biscuits. 
 
 "Let us gather up all the pieces carefully; there are 
 a good lot altogether, and we may want them badly 
 before we have done." 
 
ALONE. 83 
 
 In half an hour they had collected about 30 pounds 
 of biscuits, and having gone to the stream and taken 
 a drink they made for the spot where their tent had 
 stood. As they expected, they found the canvas was 
 gone. They set to work with their knives, and cutting 
 a number of boughs, erected a shelter sufficient to 
 shield them from the night air. All day they hoped, 
 but in vain, that some of their comrades would return, 
 and listened eagerly to every sound in the forest, but 
 no call or footstep met their ears. They had no means 
 of lighting a fire, the first having been lit by the mate, 
 who, beinor a smoker, had had a small tin-box of 
 matches in his pocket. This had fitted closely and 
 kept out the water. 
 
 "What had we better do if no one comes back?" 
 Will said as they sat in their little hut. 
 
 "Build anoder boat," Hans answered. 
 
 " But how are we to do that, Hans ? We might make 
 the framework, but we have no canvas to cover it with; 
 besides, even if we had, I have no idea of the direction 
 of Singapore, and I doubt if we could find our way 
 back to Java." 
 
 Hans had no further suggestion to offer. 
 
 "I suppose we could live in the forest for some 
 time," Will said. "I read a book called Robinson 
 Crusoe, and a sailor there lived on a desert island 
 for years; but then he had a gun and all sorts of 
 things. There are plenty of birds, but even if we 
 could make bows and arrows I suppose we should be 
 
84 DWINDLING OF FOOD. 
 
 months before we could shoot straight enough to hit 
 them." 
 
 Several days passed; the lads found plenty of fruit, 
 but the season was advancing, and Will said one day 
 to Hans: 
 
 "What on earth are we to do when the fruit and 
 biscuits are all finished?" 
 
 Wandering in the woods they found the bodies of 
 the whole of their companions. All were headless, the 
 Malays having carried off these coveted trophies. They 
 did not attempt to bury the bodies, for in such a 
 climate decomposition sets in rapidly, and swarms of 
 insects complete the work. In the grass near the hut 
 they found one treasure — the mate's axe — which had 
 evidently fallen from his belt in his flight, and had 
 been overlooked by the Malays. 
 
 "I tell you what, Hans," Will said one day, "fruit is 
 getting scarcer and scarcer, and there are not more 
 than five or six pounds of biscuits left. I vote that we 
 make through the forest into the interior of the island ; 
 there must be some villages scattered about. If we 
 enter one boldly they may not kill us. I don't know 
 whether they have any respect for the laws of hospi- 
 tality as some savages have; but even if they did kill 
 us it's better than being starved to death here. It's a 
 chance anyhow. What do you say, Hans?" 
 
 " I don't zay noding," Hans answered. " I don't have 
 no obinion at all; if you dink zat is ze best plan let us 
 do it." 
 
WILL AND HANS IN SEARCH OF A SHELTER. 
 
THE INTERIOR. 85 
 
 So saying Hans collected the biscuit, tied it up in 
 his handkerchief, and was ready to start at once. 
 
 "There is no hurry, Hans," Will said laughing; "still, 
 if we are to make a start, we may as well go at 
 once." 
 
 Turning their backs upon the sea they struck into 
 the wood. They had never before gone farther than 
 a mile from the shore. After an hour's walking they 
 found that the character of the forest was changing: 
 the ground rose rapidly, the thick tangled undergrowth 
 disappeared, and they were able to walk briskly for- 
 ward under the shade of the large trees. The hill 
 became steeper and steeper as they advanced, and 
 Will knew that they were ascending the hill that they 
 had seen from the ship when she was coming towards 
 the shore. Three hours after leaving the coast they 
 were upon its top. The ground was rocky here, and 
 in some places bare of trees. Inland they saw hill 
 rising behind hill, and knew that the island must be a 
 large one. 
 
 " Look, Hans, there is smoke curling up at the foot 
 of that hill over there; don't you see it? It is very 
 faint, but it is certainly smoke. There must be a house 
 there, and most likely a village. Come on, we shall 
 get there before the sun sets. I don't think it can be 
 more than a mile and a half away." 
 
 Hans as usual assented, and in about half an hour 
 they arrived at a Malay village. 
 
 The aspect was curious, each hut being built in a 
 
86 A MALAY VILLAGE. 
 
 tree. At the point where the lower branches started 
 a platform was made; the tree above this was cut 
 down, and on the platform the hut was erected, access 
 being obtained to it by a ladder. Several of the 
 inhabitants were walking about; these, upon seeing 
 the lads, uttered cries of warning, and instantly flying 
 to the ladders, which were constructed of light bamboo, 
 climbed to the huts and raised the ladders after them. 
 Then at every door men appeared with bent bows and 
 pointed arrows threatening the invaders. Will had 
 cut a green bough, and this he waved as a token of 
 peace, while Hans threw up his hands to show that he 
 was unarmed. Then they bowed several times almost 
 to the ground, held out their arms with outstretched 
 hands, and finally sat down upon the ground. 
 
 The Malays apparently understood that their visitors 
 came in peace. They held a long conversation among 
 themselves, and at last the ladder of one of the huts', 
 which appeared larger and better finished than the 
 others, was lowered and four men descended. One of 
 these carried a kriss in his hand, his bow was slung 
 behind his back; the others kept their bows bent in 
 readiness for instant action. 
 
 The chief was a tall and well-built man of about 
 forty years of age. He, like his followers, was dressed 
 only in a loin-cloth ; he had copper bracelets round his 
 wrists. As he approached, the lads rose and bowed 
 deeply; then Will held out to him the axe, and placing 
 it in his hand motioned to him that it was a present. 
 
KINDNESS OF THE PEOPLE. 87 
 
 The chief looked pleased at the gift, placed his hands 
 on Will's shoulder and nodded, and performed the 
 same gesture to Hans; then he led them towards his 
 hut and motioned to them to sit down at the foot of 
 the tree. 
 
 Curious faces were watching from every hut, and 
 as soon as it was seen that peace was established, the 
 ladders were lowered and a swarm of men, women, 
 and children soon surrounded the visitors. At the 
 chief's order a woman approached them bringing a 
 dish of food. This was composed, the boys found, 
 principally of birds cut up and stewed with some sort 
 of vegetable. The dish was by no means bad, and 
 after living for nearly a fortnight upon biscuit and 
 fruit, they much enjoyed it. 
 
 Presently women brought bundles of dried fern and 
 spread them at the foot of the tree, and soon after it 
 was dark the boys lay down upon them. It was long, 
 however, before they went to sleep; for the din and 
 chatter in the village continued until far into the night. 
 The lads guessed that the reason and manner of their 
 coming was warmly debated, and judged by their re- 
 ception that the prevailing opinions were favourable, 
 and that the visit from the two white men wa-s con- 
 sidered to be a fortunate omen. 
 
 The next day they were again amply supplied with 
 food, and were constantly surrounded by a little group 
 of women and children, to whom their white skins 
 appeared a source of constant wonder. Their move- 
 
88 A NIGHT ATTACK. 
 
 inents were entirely unchecked, and they were evi- 
 dently considered in the light of guests rather than 
 prisoners. 
 
 The next night the village retired to rest early. 
 The boys sat talking together for a long time, and 
 then lay down to sleep. Presently Will thought that 
 he heard a noise, and looking up saw in the moonlight 
 a number of savages stealthily approaching. They 
 carried with them ladders, and intended, he had no 
 'doubt, to surprise the sleeping villagers. They were 
 already close at hand. Will shook Hans, who had 
 already gone off to sleep, and pointed out to him the 
 advancing foes. These w^ere already in the village, 
 and separating, fixed a ladder against each of the huts. 
 So far the boys, who lay in the shadow of the hut, had 
 not been noticed. The Malays, who belonged to a 
 hostile village, began to climb the ladders, when the 
 lads, grasping the heavy sticks which they always 
 carried, and springing to their feet with loud shouts, 
 ran to the ladders before the Malays could recover from 
 their astonishment at the approach of the white-faced 
 men rushing upon them. 
 
 Half a dozen of the ladders were upset, the men who 
 had mounted them coming heavily to the ground. 
 Some of these as they rose at once took to their heels; 
 others, drawing their krisses, rushed at their assailants. 
 But the lads were no longer alone. At the first shout 
 the doors of the huts had opened, and the inhabitants 
 rushed out with their arms, the remainino- ladders 
 
DEFEAT OF THE ASSAILANTS. 89 
 
 were instantly overthrown, and a shower of arrows 
 poured upon their assailants. 
 
 Will and Hans knocked down the foremost of their 
 assailants, and the whole body, foiled in their attempted 
 surprise, discomfited at the appearance of the strange 
 white-faced men, and exposed to the arrows of the 
 defenders, at once darted away, several of their number 
 having already fallen under the shafts from above. 
 With exulting shouts the w^arriors of the village poured 
 down their ladders from the huts and took up the pur- 
 suit, and soon no one remained in the village save the 
 white lads and the women and children. Towards 
 morning the warriors returned, several of them bring- 
 ing with them gory heads, showing that their pursuit 
 had not been in vain. 
 
 The village w^as now the scene of great rejoicings; 
 huge fires were lighted, and a feast held in honour of 
 the victory. The chief solemnly placed the white men, 
 one on each side of him, and made them a speech, in 
 which, by his bowing and placing his hand on their 
 heads, they judged he was thanking them for having 
 preserved their village from massacre. Indeed, it was 
 clear, from the respectful manner of all towards them, 
 that they were regarded in the light of genii who had 
 come specially to protect the village from the assaults 
 of its enemies. 
 
 After the feast was over the chief, after a consulta- 
 tion with the rest, pointed to a tree close to that in 
 which his own hut was situated. The whole village 
 
90 SNUGLY HOUSED. 
 
 set to work, ladders were fixed against it, and the men 
 ascending hacked away with krisses and stone hatchets 
 at the trunk. Hans, seeing their object, made signs to 
 the chief to lend him his axe, and ascending to the tree 
 set to work with it, doino- in five minutes more work 
 than the whole of the natives employed could have 
 accomplished in an hour. After working for some 
 time he handed the axe to one of the natives, who con- 
 tinued the work. 
 
 The tree Avas not a large one, the trunk at this 
 point being about 18 inches in diameter. Half an 
 hour's work sufficed to cut it through, and the upper 
 part of the tree fell with a crash. In the meantime 
 the women had brought in from the forest a quantity 
 of bamboos, and with these the men set to work and 
 speedily formed a platform. Upon this a hut was 
 erected, the roof and sides being covered with palm- 
 leaves laid closely together, forming a roof impervious 
 to rain. Two large bundles of fern for beds were then 
 taken up, and the chief ascending solemnly invited 
 the boys to come up and take possession. 
 
 A woman was told off to prepare food for them and 
 attend to their wants, and by nightfall the lads found 
 themselves in a comfortable abode of their own. Pull- 
 ing up the ladder after the manner of the natives they 
 sat down to chat over their altered prospects. They 
 were now clearly regarded as adopted into the village 
 community, and need have no further fear as to their 
 personal security or means of living. 
 
AN UNPLEASANT PROSPECT. 91 
 
 "For the time we are safe," Will said; "but as I 
 don't want to turn Malay and live all my life with no 
 other amusement than keeping my own head on and 
 hunting for those of the enemies of the village, we 
 must think of making our escape somehow, though, at 
 present, I own I don't see how." 
 
 ^^^ 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE ATTACK ON THE VILLAGE. 
 
 DAY or two later a Malay ran at full speed 
 into the village, and said a few words 
 which caused a perfect hubbub of excite- 
 ment. The men shouted, the women screamed, and, 
 running up the ladders to their tree abodes, began 
 gathering together the various articles of value in 
 their eyes. The chief came up to the boys, and by 
 signs intimated that a large number of hostile natives 
 belono'ino' to several villao-es were advancino^ to attack 
 them, and that they must fly into the interior. 
 
 This was very unwelcome news for the lads. Once 
 removed farther from the sea the tribe might not 
 improbably take up their abode there, as they would 
 fear to return to the neighbourhood of their enemies. 
 This would be fatal to any chance of the lads being 
 taken off by a passing ship. 
 
 After a few words together they determined to 
 oppose the movement. Will, in a loud voice and with 
 threatening gestures, intimated that he disapproved of 
 the plan, and that he and his companion would assist 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR DEFENCE. 93 
 
 them in defending their village. The Malays paused 
 in their preparations. Their faith in their white 
 visitors was very great, and after a few minutes' talk 
 among themselves they intimated to the boys that 
 they would obey their orders. Will at once signed to 
 a few men to stand as guards round the village to 
 warn them of the approaching enemy, and then set the 
 whole of the rest of the population to work cutting 
 sharp-pointed poles, boughs, and thorny bushes. With 
 these a circle was made around the trees upon which 
 the village was built. 
 
 Fortunately the hostile Malays had halted in the 
 forest two or three miles away, intending to make 
 their attack by night; and as the news of their coming- 
 had arrived at noon, the villagers had, before they 
 ceased work late in the evening, erected a formidable 
 hedofe round the villao^e. Some of the women had 
 been set to work manufacturing a number of torches, 
 similar to those used by them for lighting their dwel- 
 lings but much larger. They were formed of the 
 stringy bark of a tree dipped in the resinous juice 
 obtained from another. Will had one of these fastened 
 to each of the trees nearest to the hedge. They were 
 fixed to the trunks on the outside, so that their flame 
 would throw a light on the whole circle beyond the 
 hedo'e, while within all would be shadow and darkness. 
 
 It was very late before all preparations were com- 
 pleted. Will then placed a few men as outposts some 
 hundred yards in the forest, in the direction from 
 
94 AWAITING THE ASSAULT. 
 
 which the enemy were likely to approach. They were 
 ordered to give the alarm the moment they heard a 
 noise, and were then to run in and enter the circle by 
 a small gap, which had been left in the abbatis for the 
 purpose. Many of the men then took their posts, with 
 their bows and arrows, in the trees near the hedge. 
 The others remained on the ground ready to rush to 
 any point assailed. 
 
 For several hours no sound, save the calls of the 
 night birds and the occasional distant howls of beasts 
 of prey were heard in the forest; and it was not until 
 within an hour of morning — the hour generally selected 
 by Malays for an attack, as men sleep at that time the 
 heaviest — that a loud yell at one of the outposts told 
 that the enemy were close at hand. 
 
 Two or three minutes later the scouts ran in, and 
 the gap through which they had entered was at once 
 filled up with bushes, which had been piled close at 
 hand for the purpose. Aware that their approach 
 was discovered, the enemy abandoned all further con- 
 cealment, and advanced with wild yells, intending to 
 strike terror into the defenders of the village. As 
 they advanced the torches were all lighted, and as the 
 assailants came within their circle of light a shower 
 of arrows from the Malays on the ground and in the 
 trees above was poured into them. 
 
 Yells and screams told that the volley had been a 
 successful one; but, discharging their arrows in turn, 
 the Malays with demoniac yells rushed against the 
 
THE ATTACK. 95 
 
 village. The advance, however, was arrested suddenly 
 when they arrived at the abbatis. From behind its 
 shelter so deadly a rain of arrows was poured in that 
 they soon shrank back, and bounded away beyond the 
 circle of light, while taunting shouts rose from its 
 defenders. 
 
 For a time they contented themselves by distant 
 shouting, and then with a wdld yell charged forward 
 again. Several dropped from the fire of arrows from 
 "those in the trees and behind the abbatis; but, dis- 
 charging their arrows in return, the assailants kept on 
 until they again reached the impediment. Here they 
 strove furiously to break through, hacking with their 
 krisses and endeavouring to pull up the stakes with 
 their hands; but the defenders in the shade behind 
 sent their arrows so fast and thick that the assailants 
 again shrank back and darted aw^ay to shelter. 
 
 Throughout the nio-ht there was no renewal of the 
 attack, and in the morning not a foe was visible. Two 
 or three scouts went out to reconnoitre, but no sooner 
 did they enter the forest than one of them was shot 
 down and the rest sent flying back. 
 
 " I believe the scoundrels are going to try to starve 
 us out," Will said. " Let us speak to the chief and 
 ask how much provisions they have got." 
 
 After much pantomime Will succeeded in conveying 
 his meaning to the chief, and the latter at once ordered 
 all the inhabitants to produce their stock of food. This 
 was unexpectedly large, and Will thought that there 
 
96 NO WATER. 
 
 was sufficient for a fortnight's consumption. He now 
 made signs of drinking, but the reply to this was dis- 
 heartening in the extreme. A few gourds full of 
 water were brought forward, and tAvo or three of the 
 close- woven baskets in which water is often carried in 
 this country, there was, in fact, scarce enough to last 
 the defenders for a day. 
 
 The stream from which the village drew its supply 
 of water was about a couple of hundred yards away; 
 consequently the villagers fetched up their water as 
 they needed it, and no one thought of keeping a store. 
 Will looked in dismay at the smallness of the supply. 
 
 " If they really intend to starve us out, Hans, we 
 are done for. No doubt they reckon on our water 
 falling short. They would know that it was not likely 
 that there would be a supply here." 
 
 The natives were not slow to recognize the weak 
 point of their defence. One or two of the men, taking 
 water baskets, were about to go to the stream, but 
 Will made signs to the chief that they must not do 
 tliis. 
 
 The only hope was that the enemies would draw 
 off; but if they saw that water was already short, they 
 would be encouraged to continue to beleaguer the 
 place. Will was unable to explain his reasons to the 
 chief, but the latter seeing how great was the advantage 
 that they had already gained by following the counsel 
 of their white visitors in the matter of the hedge, 
 acquiesced at once in their wishes. 
 
will's plan. 97 
 
 Will then ascended to one of the huts, and carefully 
 reconnoitred the whole ground. There was, he saw, 
 at the end farthest from the stream a slight dip in the 
 land extending into the forest. Beckoning the chief 
 to join him, he made signs that at night the warriors 
 should issue silently from the village at this point, 
 and make noiselessly through the wood; they would 
 then take a wide circuit till they came upon the 
 stream, and would then, working up it, fall upon the 
 enemy in the rear. 
 
 The chief was dubious, but Will made an imperative 
 gesture, and the chief in a humble manner agreed to 
 do as he was ordered. The day passed slowly, and 
 before nightfall the supply of water was entirely 
 finished. Once or twice scouts had gone out to see if 
 the enemy were still round the village, but returned 
 each time with the news that they were there. 
 
 The last time, just before nightfall. Will directed 
 two or three of them to take water-buckets, and to go 
 in the direction of the stream; signing to them, how- 
 ever, to return the moment they saw signs of the 
 enemy. They were soon back; and, as Will had ex- 
 pected, the sight of the water-buckets showed the 
 enemy that the garrison of the village were badly 
 supplied in that respect, and taunting shouts arose 
 from the woods asking them why they did not go 
 down to drink. 
 
 Will felt certain that the Malays would now draw 
 the greater part of their number down to the side of 
 
 (274) " G 
 
98 A NIGHT SORTIE. 
 
 the stream, and that there would therefore be the more 
 chance of the garrison making their way out at the 
 other end of the village. 
 
 Three hours after it was dark the chief mustered all 
 his men, they were about five-and-forty in all. Will 
 signed that each should take with him a water-basket 
 or large gourd, so that, in case they failed in defeating 
 the enemy and breaking up the blockade, they might 
 at least be able to bring a supply of water into the 
 village. Will then, with much difficulty, explained to 
 the chief that the old men, boys, and women remaining 
 in the village were, the moment they heard the sound 
 of the attack upon the enemy's rear, to shout and yell 
 their loudest, and to shoot arrows in the direction of 
 the enemy. 
 
 A few sticks had already been pulled up at the 
 point of the hedge through which Will intended to 
 make a sally, and the band now passed noiselessly out. 
 The chief himself led the way, the white boys following 
 behind him. Lying upon their stomachs they crawled 
 noiselessly along down the little depression, and in 
 ten minutes were well in the wood without havino- 
 
 o 
 
 met with an enemy, although they had several times 
 heard voices among the trees near them. They now 
 rose to their feet, and, making a wide detour, came 
 down, after a quarter of an hour's walk, upon the 
 stream. Here the gourds and baskets were filled; and 
 then, keeping along by the waterside, they continued 
 their march. 
 
A SURPRISE. 99 
 
 Presently they saw a number of fires, round which 
 many Malays were sitting. They crept noiselessly up 
 until within a few yards, and then with a yell burst 
 upon the enemy. Numbers were cut down at once, 
 and the rest, appalled by this attack on their rear, and 
 supposing that the inhabitants of some other village 
 must have arrived to the assistance of those they were 
 besieging, at once fled in all directions. Those remaining 
 in the village had seconded the attack by wild shouts, 
 so loud and continuous that their besiegers had no 
 reason to suppose that their number had been weak- 
 ened. 
 
 For a few minutes the pursuit was kept up; then 
 the chief recalled his followers with a shout. The 
 water-baskets, many of which had been thrown down 
 in the attack, were refilled, and the party made their 
 way up to the village, where they were received with 
 shouts of triumph. 
 
 The panic of the Malays had been in no slight 
 degree caused by the appearance of the two boys, who 
 had purposely stripped to the waist, and had shouted 
 at the top of their voices, as, waving the ki-isses which 
 they had borrowed, they fell upon the foe. 
 
 The idea that white devils were leao-ued with the 
 
 o 
 
 enemies against them had excited the superstitious 
 fear of the Malays to the utmost, and when in the 
 morning scouts again sallied from the village, they 
 found that the enemy had entirely gone, the fact that 
 they had not even returned to carry ofi" the effects 
 
100 A TERRIBLE MESSAGE. 
 
 which had been abandoned in the first panic, showing 
 that they had continued their flight, without stopping, 
 to their distant villages. 
 
 The chief, like an able politician, took advantage of 
 the impression which his white visitors had created, 
 and the same day sent off messengers to the villages 
 which had combined in the attack against them, saying 
 that the white men, his guests, were very angry; and 
 that unless peace was made and a solemn promise given 
 that there should be no renewal of the late attempts, 
 they were going to lay a dreadful spell ujDon the vil- 
 lages. Women and children would be seized by disease 
 and the right arms of the warriors wither up. 
 
 This terrible threat carried consternation into the 
 Malay villages. The women burst into prolonged 
 wailings, and the bravest of the men trembled. The 
 messenger said that the white men had consented to 
 abstain from using their magical powers until the fol- 
 lowing day, and that the only chance to propitiate 
 them was for deputations from the villages to come in 
 early the next morning with promises of peace and 
 offerings for the offended white men. 
 
 It was not for some time afterwards that the lads 
 learned enough of the lano'uao:e to understand what 
 had been done, but they guessed (from the exultation of 
 the chief and the signs which he made that their late 
 enemies would shortly come in, in an attitude of 
 humiliation) that he had in some way succeeded in 
 establishing a scare among them. 
 
A SUBMISSIVE DEPUTATION. 101 
 
 On the following morning deputations consisting of 
 six warriors, and women bearing trays with fruit, 
 birds, and other offerings, arrived at the village. The 
 men were unarmed. At their approach the chief made 
 signs to the boys to take a seat at the foot of the prin- 
 cipal tree ; and then, accompanied by his leading w^ar- 
 riors, led the deputation with much ceremony before 
 them. The women placed their trays at their feet, and 
 the men addressed them in long speeches and with 
 many signs of submission. The boys played their part 
 well. As soon as they saw what was required of them 
 they signified with an air of much dignity that they 
 accepted the offerings, and then went through the 
 ceremony of shaking hands solemnly with each of the 
 warriors. Then they made a speech, in which with 
 much gesticulation they signified to the visitors that a 
 terrible fate would befall them should they again ven- 
 ture to meddle with the village. 
 
 Much awed and impressed the Malay's withdrew. The 
 boys made a selection from the baskets of fruit for 
 their own eating, and then signified to the chief that 
 he should divide the rest among the inhabitants of the 
 village. When this was done the boys ascended to 
 their tree and passed the day there quietly, the vil- 
 lagers indulging in feasting, singing, and rejoicing over 
 their victory. 
 
 " The worst of all this is," Will said to Hans, "that 
 the more they reverence us, and the more useful they 
 find us, the more anxious they will be to keep us 
 
102 NATIVE SUPERSTITION. 
 
 always with them. However, there is one comfort, we 
 are safe as lons^ as we choose to remain here, and that 
 is more than we could have hoped for when we first 
 landed from the wreck. It is curious that the Malays, 
 who have no hesitation in attacking English ships and 
 murdering their crews, have yet a sort of superstitious 
 dread of us. But I suppose it is something the same 
 wav as it was in England in the days of the persecution 
 of old women as witches: they believed that, if left to 
 themselves, they could cast deadly spells, and yet they 
 had no hesitation in putting them to death. I suppose 
 that it is somethino' of the same feelino^ here." 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE FIGHT WITH THE PEAHUS. 
 
 ERY frequently, in the days that followed, 
 William Gale and his friend Hans talked 
 over the possibility of effecting an escape, 
 but the difficulties appeared almost invincible. The 
 various villages which, so far as the boys could under- 
 stand, were scattered at some distance apart, had little 
 dealings with each other, and indeed were frequently 
 engaged in feuds. The particular people with whom 
 they lived had nothing whatever to do with the sea. 
 They used — at least so the boys understood by their 
 signs — to fish at one time; but they had been robbed 
 of their boats and maltreated by some of the cruising 
 tribes who lived in villages on the coast or on creeks 
 and rivers. 
 
 The possibility of escape seemed small indeed. To 
 escape they must get on board a ship, and to do this 
 they must first go out to sea, and this could only be 
 done in a boat of their own or in one of the piratical 
 prahus. The latter course could not be thought of, 
 for the coast pirates were bloodthirsty in the extreme; 
 
104 PLANS OF ESCAPE. 
 
 and even could they change their residence to one of 
 the sea-side villages, and gain the friendship of the in- 
 habitants, they would be no nearer to their end. For 
 as these go out to attack and not to trade with Euro- 
 pean ships, there would be no chance of escaping in 
 that way. 
 
 Upon the other hand, they might build a boat of 
 their own; but they considered it improbable that the 
 Malays would allow them to depart, for they evidently 
 regarded their presence as a prodigy, and revered 
 them as having miraculously arrived at the moment 
 when a great danger threatened the village; but, even 
 should they be allowed to build a boat and depart, 
 they knew not whither to go. They knew nothing of 
 navigation, and were ignorant of the geography of the 
 Archipelago, and the chances of their striking upon 
 the one or two spots where alone they could land with 
 safety were so small that it would be madness to under- 
 take the voyage. 
 
 For six months they lived quietly in the Malay 
 village. The people instructed them in the use of their 
 blow -guns, in which they are wonderfully skilful, 
 being able to bring down a bird sitting on a lofty 
 bough of a tree with almost an unerring accuracy. They 
 also taught them to shoot with the bow and arrow, and 
 they found that the natives used the roots of various 
 kinds of plants for food. The time did not pass un- 
 pleasantly, and had they known that it would last but 
 a few months only, they would have enjoyed it much. 
 
THE FIRST STEP. 105 
 
 At last, after much deliberation, they determined 
 that they would, as a first step towards escape, con- 
 struct a little boat under pretence of wanting to fish. 
 Accordingly, one day when out with the chief and two 
 or three of his men in the direction of the sea, they 
 pointed there and signified that they wished to go 
 there, for they had picked up a good many Malay 
 words. The chief shook his head, but they insisted in 
 so authoritative a manner that he gave way and fol- 
 lowed them. 
 
 When they reached the shore they made signs that 
 they wanted to construct a boat. Again the chief shook 
 his head vehemently, and enforced his meaning by 
 pointing along shore and going through the action first 
 of rowing, then of fighting, intimating that they would 
 certainly be killed, if they ventured out, by the fierce 
 coast tribes. The boys nodded to show that they 
 understood what he wished to say; but pointing to 
 the water a few yards from shore, went through the 
 action of fishing; then, burdening themselves with 
 imaginary fish, they pointed to the village and showed 
 that they would supply it with food. 
 
 The Malays talked for some time among themselves. 
 They had so vast a respect for the white men that they 
 did not like to thwart their wishes. The thought too 
 of a supply of fish, of which they had been long de- 
 prived owing to their feuds with some of the coast vil- 
 lages, also operated strongly in favour of their yielding 
 an assent; and at last the chief made signs that he 
 
106 MAKING A CANOE. 
 
 agreed, and pointing to the village intimated that as- 
 sistance should be given in building a boat. 
 
 The next day, accordingly, ten or twelve men came 
 down to the shore with them. A tree was felled, 
 the ends were pointed, and the whole formed roughly 
 into the shape of a canoe; fires were lighted on the 
 top, and by dint of flame and axe a hollow was dug- 
 out. The operation lasted three days, the men having 
 brought provisions with them so as to avoid making 
 the journey — two and a half hours long — to and from 
 the village each day. The boat when finished was but 
 a rouo'h construction, and would have excited the 
 mockery of any of the coast villagers, as they are 
 expert boat-builders; still, it was amply sufiicient for 
 the purpose for which it was intended, namely, for 
 fishinoj inside the line of reefs. 
 
 It was heavy and paddled slowly, and the lads had 
 a strong suspicion that the Malays had purposely 
 made it more clumsy and unseaworthy than need be 
 in order that they should have no temptation to at- 
 tempt a distant journey in it. There was no diffi- 
 culty about lines, the Malays being skilled in making 
 string and ropes from the fibres of trees. The hooks 
 were more difficult ; but, upon searching very carefully 
 along the shore, the lads found some fragments of one 
 of the ship boats, and in these were several copper 
 nails, which, hammered and bent, would serve their 
 purpose well. The lines were ready on the day the 
 canoe was finished, and as soon as she was launched the 
 
SUCCESSFUL FISHING. 107 
 
 chief and one of the other Malays and the hoys took 
 then- seats in her. 
 
 The natives paddled her out nearly to the edge of 
 the reef; four lines, baited with pieces of raw birds'- 
 flesh, were thrown overboard. A few minutes passed 
 rather anxiously for the lads, who were most desirous 
 that the fishing should be successful so as to afford 
 them an excuse for frequently pursuing it. Then there 
 was a Ijite, and Hans, who held the line, found that it 
 taxed his strength to haul in the fish which tugged and 
 strained upon it. When it was got into the boat it 
 proved to be some fourteen pounds in weight. By 
 this time two of the other baits had been taken, and in 
 less than an hour they had caught upwards of thirty 
 fish, nTOst of them of considerable size. 
 
 The natives were delighted; and, paddling to shore, 
 the burden was distributed among the whole party, 
 with the exception of the chief and the two whites. 
 Before starting, a young tree was cut down and chopped 
 into lengths of a few feet each, and on these rollers the 
 canoe was hauled high up the beach. Then the party 
 set out for the village, where their arrival with so 
 large a supply of food occasioned great rejoicing 
 
 After this the boys went down regularly every day 
 to fish. At first three or four of the natives always 
 accompanied them, under pretence of carrying back 
 the fish, but really, as they thought, to keep a watch 
 over them. To lessen their hosts' suspicions, sometimes 
 one or other stayed in the village. As time went on 
 
108 LULLING SUSPICIONS. 
 
 the suspicion of the Malays abated. The number of 
 the guard was lessened, and finally, as the men disliked 
 so long a tramp, some of the boys wore told off* to ac- 
 company the white njen and assist in bringing back 
 their fish. They were in the habit of starting soon 
 after daybreak, and of not returning till late in the 
 evening, accounting for their long absence by pointing 
 to the sun. 
 
 The fishing was always performed immediately they 
 reached the coast. When they had caught as many as 
 they and the boys could carry, these were placed in a 
 laro^e covered basket, which was sunk in the water 
 close to the shore to keep the fish in good condition 
 until they started. Then they would paddle about 
 within the reef; or, during the extreme heat of the 
 day, lie in the boat, shaded by bunches of palm leaves. 
 
 The Malay boys, who were set on shore after the 
 fishing, were left alone, and amused themselves by 
 bathing, or passed the time asleep under the trees. 
 
 After the first day or two it had struck the boys 
 that it was dano-erous to leave the canoe hio^h on the 
 sand, as it would be observed even at a distance by a 
 passing lorahu. Consequently, a deep trench had been 
 dug from the sea, far enough up to allow the canoe, when 
 floating in it, to lie below the level of the beach. Before 
 leaving her she was each day roughly covered with 
 sea-weed, and might therefore escape observation by 
 any craft passing at a short distance from the shore. 
 
 In their expeditions along the reef the boys dis- 
 
A SAIL. 109 
 
 covered a passage through it. It was of about double 
 the width of a ship, and of amply sufficient depth to 
 allow a vessel of any size to cross. At all other points, 
 for a distance of a mile or two either way, which was 
 the extent of their excursions, the reef came very near 
 to the surface, its jagged points for the most part show- 
 ing above it. 
 
 Several months passed, and still no sail which pro- 
 mised a hope of deliverance had shown over the sur- 
 face of the sea. Scarce a day passed without their 
 seeing the Malay pr alius passing up and down the 
 coast, but these always kept some distance out, and 
 caused no uneasiness to the fishermen. They had 
 during this time completed the hollowing out of the 
 boat, until her sides were extremely thin, and she was 
 so light that she could be paddled at a high rate of 
 speed. 
 
 They were both now expert with the paddle, and 
 felt that if in a light wind a vessel should be seen off 
 the coast, they would be enabled to row out and reach 
 her. It might be, they knew, months or even years 
 before such a ship could be seen. Still, as there were 
 many vessels trading among the islands, at any moment 
 an occurrence might arise. 
 
 One afternoon they had been dozing under their 
 leafy shade, when Will, who first awoke, sat up and 
 uttered a cry. Almost abreast of them, and but a 
 quarter of a mile outside the reef, was a large brig. 
 The wind was light, and with every stitch of canvas 
 
110 CHASED BY PIRATES. 
 
 set she was making but slow progress through the 
 water. 
 
 Hans leaped up, echoed the cry, and, seizing their 
 paddles, they rowed with all their strengh away to the 
 opening through the reef, passed through, and headed 
 for the ship. They now saw what they had not at 
 first observed. At a distance of some three miles 
 astern were five large pr alius with their sails set, and 
 the banks of oars rising and falling rapidly. The brig 
 was chased by the pirates. The boys rested on their 
 paddles for a moment. 
 
 " They are more than a match for her, I am afraid," 
 Will said. " What do you say, Hans, shall we go on 
 or not?" 
 
 Hans made no reply. He was never quick at coming 
 to a decision. 
 
 " We had better go," Will went on. " We can see 
 whether they mean to fight or not." 
 
 The boys were naked to the waist, for the thorns of 
 the forest had long since torn in pieces the shirts which 
 they had on when they landed from the wreck, and 
 their skins were bronzed to a deep copper colour. 
 Still they diftered in hue from the natives of the 
 island, and the men on board the brig regarded them 
 with some surprise as they approached it. 
 
 "Throw us a rope!" Will shouted as they neared 
 her. 
 
 There was a cry of surprise from the crew at being 
 addressed in English, but a rope was thrown and the 
 
LONG ODDS. Ill 
 
 boys soon sprang on board. They saw at once that 
 the ship was an English one. 
 
 "Hallo! where do you spring from?" asked the 
 captain. 
 
 " We were shipwrecked here ten months ago," Will 
 said, " and have been living with the natives." 
 
 " At any other time I should have been glad to see 
 you," the captain said; "but just at present, if you 
 will take my advice, you will get into your canoe and 
 row on shore again. As you see," and he pointed to 
 the 'pralins, "we are chased; and although I mean to 
 fight to the last, for there is no mercy to be expected 
 from these bloodthirsty scoundrels, I fear the chances 
 are small." 
 
 Will looked round and saw that the six cannons 
 which the brio- carried — for vessels tradinor in the 
 
 o o 
 
 Eastern Archipelago are always armed — had already 
 been loosened ready for action, and that a group of 
 men were at work mounting a long gun which had 
 just been raised from the hold. Knowing the number 
 of men that the jrjralais carried Will felt that the 
 chance of a successful resistance was slight. 
 
 There were about eio-hteen men on deck, a number 
 larger than the brig would carry in other seas, but 
 necessary in so dangerous a trading ground as this. 
 The 'prahiis, however, would each carry from eighty 
 to one hundred men, and these attacking at once from 
 opposite sides would be likely to bear down all opposi- 
 tion. Suddenly an idea occurred to him. 
 
112 A VANTAGE POST. 
 
 " Look, sir, there is a passage through the reef there, 
 with plenty of water and width enough for your ship. 
 I can take her through. There is no other passage for 
 some distance. If you take her inside and lay her across 
 the channel the 'prahus can only attack on one side, 
 and you can place all your guns and strength there." 
 
 The captain at once saw the advantage of this 
 scheme. 
 
 "Capital!" he exclaimed. "Take the helm at once, 
 my lad. Ease off the sheets, men." 
 
 They were now nearly opposite the entrance, and 
 the lio-ht wind was blowing: towards the shore. The 
 captain ordered all hands to reduce sail, only keeping 
 on enough to give the vessel steerage- way. Two boats 
 were lowered and an anchor and cable passed into 
 each, and as the brig passed through the opening the 
 rest of the sail was lowered. 
 
 The boats rowed to the reef, one on either side. 
 The anchors were firmly fixed into the rock, and one 
 being taken from the head and the other from the 
 stern, the crews set to work at the capstan and speedily 
 had the vessel safely moored, broadside on, across the 
 entrance to the reef. 
 
 The Malay boats were now about a mile astern. 
 They had ceased rowing when they saw the vessel 
 headed for the land, supposing that the captain was 
 about to run on shore. When, to their astonishment, 
 they saw her pass the reef with safety, they again set 
 to at their work. The guns were now all brought 
 
THE ATTACK BY THE PRAHUS. 113 
 
 over to the side facing the entrance and ^Yere loaded 
 to the muzzle with bullets. A number of shots be- 
 longing to the long gun were placed by the bulwarks 
 in readiness to hurl down into the prahus should they 
 get alongside. 
 
 The sailors, thouo-h determined to fio-ht till the last, 
 had, when the boys came on board, been making their 
 preparations with the silence of despair. They were 
 now in high spirits, for they felt that they could beat off 
 any attempt of the enemy to attack them. When the 
 Malays were abreast of the ship they ceased rowing 
 and drew close together, and evidently held a consul- 
 tation. 
 
 The brig at once opened fire with her long gun, and 
 the first shot hulled one of the jprahiis close to the 
 water's edge. 
 
 " That's right, Tom," the captain said, " stick to the 
 same craft: if you can sink her there is one the less." 
 
 Several more shots were fired, with such effect that 
 the Malays were observed jumping overboard in great 
 numbers and swimminof towards the other boats, their 
 own beino' in a sinkino- condition. The other four 
 prahus at once turned their heads tow^ards shore, and 
 rowed with full speed towards the ship. 
 
 They knew that the entrance, of whose existence 
 they had been previously unaware, was an exceedingly 
 narrow one; and, as they neared the shore, could see 
 by the line of breaking surf that it could at most be 
 wide enough for one to pass at a time. Accordingly^ 
 
 (274) H 
 
114 A HEAVY CANNONADE. 
 
 one drew ahead, and discharging the cannon which it 
 carried in its bow, rowed at full speed for the entrance, 
 another following so close behind that its bow almost 
 touched the stern. 
 
 " Train the guns to bear on the centre of the channel," 
 the captain said; "let the three bow-guns take the first 
 boat, the other three the second. Do you, Tom, work 
 away at the two behind." 
 
 The prahus came along at a great rate, the sweeps 
 churning up the water into foam. The leading boat 
 dashed through the channel, the sweeps grating on the 
 rocks on either side; her bow was but two yards dis- 
 tant from the side of the ship when the captain gave 
 the word. The three cannon poured their contents 
 into her, sweeping her crowded decks and tearing out 
 her bottom. Great as was her speed, she sank below 
 the water just as her bow touched the side of the ship. 
 Ten seconds later the command was again given, and 
 a broadside as destructive was poured into the second 
 boat. The damage done was somewhat less, and her 
 bow reached the side of the ship. 
 
 A dozen Malays sprang on board as their boat sank 
 under their feet ; but the sailors were ready, and with 
 musket, pistol, and cutlass fell upon them, and either 
 cut down or drove them overboard. The sea around 
 was covered with swimmers, but the ship was too 
 high out of the water for them to attempt to board 
 her, and the Malays at once struck out for the shore, 
 the sailors keeping up the musketry fire upon them 
 
THE DEFEAT OF THE MALAYS. 115 
 
 until out of range. The other two boats had not fol- 
 lowed: the mate had plumped a shot from the long gun 
 full into the bow of the first; and, seeing the destruc- 
 tion which had fallen upon their leaders, both turned 
 their heads and made for sea, the mate continuing his 
 fire until they were out of range, one shot carrying 
 away the greater part of the oars on one side of the 
 boat previously struck. 
 
 When at a distance of upwards of a mile they ceased 
 rowing and for some time lay close together. The men 
 of the injured boat were observed to be stopping the 
 yawning hole in her bows a few inches above the water 
 level, the other started ofi* at full speed up the coast. 
 It was now evening, and there was scarcely a breath 
 of wind. The men crowded round the lads and 
 thanked them warmly for having been the means of 
 saving them from destruction. 
 
 "I am afraid you are not out of danger yet," Will 
 said, as the captain shook him by the hand. "No doubt 
 that boat has gone ofi" with the news, and before morn- 
 ing you will have half a dozen fresh enemies coming 
 down inside the reef to attack you." 
 
 " If we had but a breath of wind we might do," the 
 captain said. 
 
 "I fear you will have none before morning; then it 
 generally blows fresh for two or three hours. I don't 
 know how far it is to the village, which is the head- 
 quarters of the pirates. As far as I could make out 
 from the Malays with whom we have been living it is 
 
116 THE PROSPECT OF ESCAPE. 
 
 about six hours' walking, but the boats will row twice 
 as fast as a man would walk through the forest. In 
 that case you may be attacked at two or three o'clock 
 in the morning, and you won't get the breeze till after 
 sunrise." 
 
 " Are there any other channels through the reef ? " 
 the captain asked. 
 
 "I do not know," Will replied. "We have never 
 explored it very far either way; but as I should think 
 from the action of the Malays that they did not know 
 of this, they might not know of any other did it exist." 
 
 " Then," the captain said, " I will warp the brig out 
 through the channel again, and anchor her, stem and 
 stern, across it outside. They will find it as hard to 
 attack us there as they did before. Then, when the 
 breeze comes, we will slip our cable and run for it. 
 She is a fast sailer, and can, I think, get away from 
 the pirates even with their sails and oars; besides, by 
 shifting the long gun and two of the others to her 
 stern we can give it them so hot that even if they are 
 the fastest we may sicken them." 
 
 "I do not know, sir," Will said. " They would be 
 likely to hang about you until the breeze drops, and 
 then to attack you on all sides at once. If we could 
 but keep them from coming through the channel in 
 pursuit we should be safe." 
 
 "Ah! but how on earth are we to do that?" the cap- 
 tain asked. 
 
 William Gale was silent for a minute or two. 
 
will's proposal. 117 
 
 "Have you plenty of powder on board the ship, 
 sir?" 
 
 " Plenty — we use it for barter." 
 
 "It seems to me" — AVill went on — "that if, before 
 sailing, you could sink a couple of barrels of powder 
 in the channel, with a fuse to explode them a few 
 minutes after we had left, the Malays would be so 
 astonished at the explosion that they would not ven- 
 ture to pass through." 
 
 "Your idea is a capital one," the captain said warmly; 
 "but how about a fuse which would burn under water? 
 What do you think, Tom; could it be managed?" 
 
 " I should think so, sir," the mate answered. "Suppose 
 we take one of those empty SO-gallon beer casks, and 
 fill that up with powder — it will hold ten or twelve 
 of the little barrels; and then we might bung it up 
 and make a hole in its head. Over the hole we might 
 fix a wine-bottle with the bottom knocked out, and so 
 fastened with tow and oakum that the water won't 
 get in. Then we might shove down, through the 
 mouth of the bottle and through the hole below it into 
 the powder, a long strip of paper dipped in saltpetre 
 to make touch-paper of it. I don't know as a regular 
 fuse would do, as it might go out for want of air; but 
 there would be plenty to keep touch-paper alight. We 
 could sling three or four 18-pounder shots under the 
 bottom of the cask to make it sink upright. Just 
 before we slip our cables, we might lower it down with 
 the boats, liditingj the fuse the last thing, and sticking 
 
118 A TORPEDO. 
 
 in the cork. If we don't put too much saltpetre it 
 might burn for some minutes before it reached the 
 powder." 
 
 "It's worth trying, at any rate," the captain said, 
 " but I fear it would not burn long enough. I think 
 that, instead of a bottle, we might jam a piece of iron 
 tube, six or eight feet long, into the head of the cask, 
 and cut a bung to fit it. In that way we could get a 
 o^ood length of fuse." 
 
 This plan was carried out. A large cask was filled 
 with powder, and an iron tube three inches in diameter 
 and six feet long, fitted into it, and made water-tight. 
 A long strip of paper, after being dipped in water in 
 which gunpowder had been dissolved, was then dried, 
 rolled tight, and lowered down the tube until it touched 
 the powder. A bung was cut to fit the top of the 
 tube, a piece of wash-leather being placed over it to 
 ensure its being perfectly water-tight; the top of the 
 fuse was then cut level with the pipe. Several bits of 
 iron were lashed to the lower end of the cask to make 
 it sink upright, and the cask was steadily lowered into 
 a boat lying alongside the ship, in readiness for use. 
 
 The sailors entered into the preparations with the 
 glee of schoolboys, but the machine was not ready 
 until long after the ship had been towed out again 
 through the channel, and moored broadside to it just 
 outside. 
 
CHAPTER YIII. 
 
 THE TOKPEDO. 
 
 IT was about two o'clock in the morning when 
 the watch awoke the crew with the news 
 that they could hear the distant sound o£ 
 oars coming along the shore. All took their places in 
 silence. After a time the rowing ceased and all was 
 quiet again. Half an hour passed and then there was 
 a slight sound close alongside, and in the channel they 
 could dimly make out a small boat which was rapidly 
 rowed away into the darkness again; several musket- 
 shots being fired after it. 
 
 " They have sent on ahead to find if we were lying 
 in the same berth," the captain said. " I expect they 
 will be puzzled when they hear that we are outside 
 and that the entrance is guarded. I should not be 
 surprised if they did not attack before morning. They 
 had such a lesson yesterday, that I don't think they 
 will try to force the channel in our teeth again; but 
 will play the waiting game, sure that they will secure 
 us sooner or later." 
 
 So it turned out. The hours passed slowly on, but 
 
120 THE PIRATE FLEEl. 
 
 no sound was heard. Then in the dim morning light 
 a pirate fleet of eight prahus was seen lying at a 
 distance of half a mile within the reef. As the day 
 broke, the breeze sprang up, the sails were hoisted, and 
 the captain prepared to slip his cables. A similar 
 preparation could, through the glasses, be observed on 
 board the Malay fleet. 
 
 " That will do very well," the captain said. " Those 
 fellows will be along in about eight or ten minutes 
 after we have started, and the fuse, according to the 
 experiments we made as to its rate of burning, will 
 last about seven. Now, quick, lads, into the boat. Tom, 
 you take charge of the sinking." 
 
 In another minute the boat was rowed to the 
 channel and the cask lowered over the side. It was 
 held there for a minute while the mate struck a light 
 and applied it to the touch-paper. Then he pressed 
 the bung firmly into the top of the tube, the lashings 
 of the cask were cut, and the boat rowed back to the 
 ship. The anchors were already on board, and the brig 
 was getting way on her as the boat rowed alongside. The 
 men jumped on board, and the boat was suff*ered to tow 
 behind, while all hands set the whole of the sails. The 
 vessel was soon running briskly before the land-breeze. 
 
 The pirate fleet was instantly in motion. Every eye 
 in the ship was directed towards them. 
 
 " They will be there in less than ten minutes from 
 the moment I lowered the cask," the mate said, looking 
 at his watch. 
 
THE EXPLOSION. 121 
 
 " Not much," the captain said, " they are rowing fast 
 now, but the trees keep off the wind and their sails 
 do not help them. They were a minute or two behind 
 us in starting." 
 
 It was just eight minutes from the time when the 
 cask had been lowered, that the first of the Malay 
 boats rowed out through the channel. 
 
 " I hope nothing has gone wrong," the mate growled. 
 
 " I am not afraid of that, though we may be wrong 
 a minute or two as to the length of the fuse." 
 
 Another boat followed the first; the third was in 
 mid-channel, when suddenly she seemed to rise bodily 
 in the air, and then to fall into pieces. A mighty 
 column of water, a hundred feet high, rose into the 
 air, mingled with fragments of wood and human bodies. 
 A deep, low report was heard, and the brig shook as 
 if she had come into collision with some floating body. 
 
 Although they were nearly a mile away, the yell of 
 astonishment and fright of the Malays reached the 
 ship. The jjvahus still inside the reef were seen to 
 turn round mid row away along the coast at the top 
 of their speed; while those which had passed the 
 channel, after rowing wildly for some distance, lay on 
 their oars, the crews apparently stupefied at what had 
 taken place. The craft which had been injured the 
 day before, still lay seaward on watch, but now turned 
 her head and rowed towards the shore to join her 
 consorts. 
 
 The Sea Belle left the coast. The Malays attempted 
 
122 WILL gale's, plans. 
 
 no pursuit, but, so long as they could be seen, remained 
 inactive near the scene of the sudden and, to them, 
 inexplicable catastro^^he which had befallen their 
 consort. Once fairly freed from all fear of pursuit, 
 the captain invited the two lads into his cabin, and 
 there heard from them an account of all the adventures 
 through which they had passed. When they had 
 finished he questioned them as to their plans. Hans 
 said that he intended to take the first ship bound for 
 Holland. 
 
 "And you?" he asked Will. 
 
 " I have no particular plan," Will said. " I am in no 
 hurry to return to England, having no relatives there. 
 After being so long absent — for it is now a year since 
 I sailed from Yarmouth — I should not care to return 
 and take up my apprenticeship as a fisherman." 
 
 "Will you ship regularly on board the Sea Belief 
 the captain asked. 
 
 " Thank you, sir, I think I would rather not decide 
 upon anything until we get to Calcutta. I have £30 
 in money, £15 of which were given me on board the 
 Dutch ship, and the rest I received as wages for the 
 voyage from England to Java. I carried the money 
 in a belt round my waist, and have kept it ever since. 
 So I need not be in any great hurry to settle upon 
 what I shall do; but certainly, after a regular sea life, 
 I should not like to go back to being a fisherman. I 
 am now past sixteen, and in another three years 
 shall be able to earn more waofes." 
 
AT CALCUTTA. 123 
 
 "I should have taken you for at least two years 
 older," the captain said ; " you are as big and strong 
 as many lads of eighteen." 
 
 " I have done a good lot of hard work in the last 
 two years," Will said; "for on board the Dutch ship, 
 although, of course, I was only rated as a boy, I used 
 to do man's work aloft." 
 
 Other people would have been deceived as well as 
 the captain. Hard work and exposure to the air had 
 done much to age the boy. He had been tall and slight 
 for his age when he left the workhouse, and while he 
 had not ceased growing in height, he had widened out 
 considerably ; and, had he asserted himself to be eigh- 
 teen years of age, few would have questioned the state- 
 ment. 
 
 The Sea Belle for some time kept south, touching at 
 some of the islands where a trade was done with the 
 Papuans; then her head was turned north, and after 
 an eventful voyage she reached Calcutta, where the 
 captain had been ordered to fill up with 'cotton or grain 
 for England. 
 
 The captain at once landed, and proceeded to the 
 ofiice of the agent of the firm who owned the Sea Belle. 
 He was shown into that gentleman's private room, 
 where at the time two gentlemen were seated chatting. 
 The agent was personally acquainted with the captain, 
 and asked him to sit down and smoke a cigar. 
 
 " This is Captain Mayhew of the Sea Belle," he said 
 to his friends. "He has been trading for the last 
 
124 THE "SEA BELLES ADVENTURES. 
 
 three months down among the islands. These gentle- 
 men, Captain May hew, are Major Harrison and Captain 
 Edwards, who have just arrived from China with their 
 regiment in the EuiDlirates. Has your voyage been a 
 pleasant one, captain ? " 
 
 " Pleasant enough, sir, on the whole ; but we were 
 attacked by the Malay pirates, and I should certainly 
 not be here to tell the tale at present had it not been 
 for the quickness and shrewdness of a lad who had 
 been shipwrecked on the coast." 
 
 "How is that, Mayhew? Tell us all about it." 
 
 Captain Mayhew related the whole story of the fight 
 with the pirates, saying that, unquestionably, had it 
 not been for Will's pointing out the passage through 
 the reef in the first place, and his idea of burying a 
 submarine mine in the second, the Sea Belle would have 
 fallen into the hands of the pirates. 
 
 "But where did the boy spring from? how on earth 
 came he to be there?" 
 
 Captain Mayhew then related the story of William 
 Gale's adventures as he had them from his own lips. 
 
 " He must be a cool and plucky young fellow, in- 
 deed," Major Harrison exclaimed. " I should like to 
 see him. What style and type is he, captain? a rough 
 sort of chap?" 
 
 " By no means," the captain answered. " He is sur- 
 prisingly well-mannered. Had I met him elsewhere, 
 and in gentleman's clothes, I do not think that I should 
 have suspected that he was not what he appeared. His 
 
AN INVITATION. 125 
 
 features, too, somehow or other, strike one as being 
 those of a gentleman; which is all the more singular 
 when, as a fact, he told me he had been brought up in 
 a workhouse." 
 
 " In a workhouse !" Major Harrison repeated. "Then 
 I suppose his parents were farm labourers." 
 
 "No," the captain answered; "he was left at the 
 door on a stormy night by a tramp who was found 
 drowned next morning in a ditch near. He had, when 
 found, a gold trinket of some kind round his neck; 
 and he tells me that, from that and other circum- 
 stances, it was generally supposed by the workhouse 
 authorities that he did not belong to the tramp, but 
 that he had been stolen by her, and that he belonged 
 at least to a respectable family." 
 
 " All this is very interesting," Captain Edwards said. 
 "I should like much to see the boy. Will you come and 
 dine with us this evening on board the Euphrates — 
 Mr Reynolds here is coming — and have the boy sent 
 on board, say at nine o'clock, when we can have him 
 in and have a chat with him ? " 
 
 Captain Mayhew readily agreed. William was even 
 then waiting outside for him, having landed with him; 
 and the captain, when he entered the office, had told 
 him to walk about for an hour and amuse himself with 
 the sights of Calcutta and then return and wait for 
 him. He said nothino- about his beino^ close at hand, 
 as he did not wish the officers to see him in the rough 
 outfit which had been furnished him on board ship. 
 
126 RECOGNITION OF SERVICES. 
 
 intending to surprise them by his appearance in decent 
 clothes. Accordingly, on leaving Mr. Reynolds' office 
 he took him to one of the numerous shops in the town 
 where clothes of any kind can be procured. 
 
 "Now, Will," he said, "I want you to get a suit of 
 shore-going clothes. You can get your sea outfit to- 
 morrow at your leisure; but I want you to show up 
 well at the mess this evening, and a suit of good clothes 
 will always be useful to you." 
 
 Captain Mayhew had intended to pay for the outfit 
 himself, but this Will would not hear of, and Captain 
 Mayhew was the less reluctant to let the lad have his 
 own way, as he had in the course of the interview 
 with the ao'ent ao-reed that the lad's services deserved 
 a handsome recognition from the firm, and that the 
 sum of one hundred guineas should be given to him at 
 once. The agent felt no doubt that the firm would 
 thoroughly approve of the payment. Twenty pounds 
 were to be given to Hans for his share of the services ; 
 but the two suggestions which had saved the Sea 
 Belle had both originated with Will. 
 
 By Captain Mayhew's advice Will purchased a suit 
 of dark-coloured tweed, a black tie, and some white 
 shirts and collars. At other shops he bought some 
 boots and a panama straw -hat. Having completed 
 their purchases they walked for some hours about Cal- 
 cutta, Will being delighted with the variety of the 
 native costumes and the newness and singularity of 
 everything which met his eye. 
 
WILL IS "RIGGED OUT." 127 
 
 On their return to the ghaut, as the landing-stage 
 is called, they found their various purchases already 
 stowed in the Sea Belles boat, which had about an 
 hour before come to shore to fetch them off. At 
 seven o'clock Captain Mayhew went otf to the Eu- 
 'phrates, leaving orders that the boat was to bring 
 Will over at nine. At that hour the lad was dressed 
 in his new clothes, which fortunately fitted him 
 well. 
 
 "By jingo, \Yill," the fii'st mate said as he entered 
 the cabin, "you look a tip-topper, and no mistake." 
 
 The n:ate was right; the lad with his sun-burnt 
 face, quiet manner, and easy carriage, looked thoroughly 
 at home in his attire. 
 
 "I don't know who your parents were, but I would 
 bet a month's pay that the old tramp you were telling 
 us of had nothing to do with it; for you look every 
 inch a gentleman from head to foot." 
 
 \Yill found, on gaining the deck of the Euphrates^ 
 that orders had been left by the officer in command 
 that he was to be shown into the saloon cabin upon 
 his giving his name to the sergeant, who came up at 
 the sentry's call. He was at once conducted below. 
 For a moment he felt almost bewildered as he entered; 
 the size of the cabin, the handsomeness of its fittings, 
 the well-laid table decked with fragrant flowers, so far 
 surpassed anything he had ever seen or thought of. 
 He was conducted to the head of the table, where 
 Major Harrison, with Mr. Reynolds on one hand and 
 
128 THE MESS ON THE TROOPSHIP. 
 
 Captain Mayhew on the other, sat, near the colonel 
 commanding the regiment. 
 
 Captain Mayhew, who had already told the outline 
 of the story, smiled quietly to himself at the expres- 
 sion of surprise which crossed the faces of the major 
 and Mr. Reynolds, as well as of the other officers sit- 
 ting near, at the appearance of the lad he introduced 
 to them. The colonel ordered a chair to be placed 
 next to himself, and told the servant to fill a glass of 
 wine for Will, and entered into conversation with him. 
 
 " I think, gentlemen," he said after a minute or two, 
 seeing that the lad did not touch the wine that was 
 poured out for him, " it will be pleasanter on deck ; for 
 it is terribly hot here, and I see that most of you 
 have finished your wine." An adjournment was at 
 once made to the deck. Here cigars were lighted, and 
 the colonel and senior officers taking their places in 
 some of the easy-chairs which were still about, the rest 
 gathered round to hear the story, which Major Harri- 
 son had promised them would be an interesting one. 
 
 Captain Mayhew first gave his account of the fight 
 between the Sea Belle and the pirates, beginning at 
 the point when, as he was hotly chased and despairing 
 of making a successful defence, the canoe with the two 
 lads in it came out to him. Then Will was called upon 
 to explain how he came to be there at that moment. 
 He told briefly how the fishing-smack was sunk, how 
 he had saved himself by clinging to the bob-stay 
 of the Dutch Indiaman, and how he had sailed in this 
 
INTERESTED AUDITORS. 129 
 
 vessel to Java, and was on his way in her to China, 
 when wrecked in the cyclone. Here his audience in- 
 sisted upon his giving them full details; and he ac- 
 cordingly told them the manner in which he and a few 
 of the crew had escaped; how, when they were build- 
 ing a boat, they had been attacked by Malays, and all 
 — except another lad and himself, who were hiding in 
 a tree — were massacred by the pirates; how they had 
 gone inland to a village, where, having aided the 
 natives when attacked by a hostile tribe, they had 
 been most kindly received; how they had finally ob- 
 tained a canoe and spent their time in fishing in hopes 
 of seeing a passing sail, until the Sea Belle, chased by 
 the Malay pirates, had appeared ofi* the shore. 
 
 There was a genuine murmur of approval from those 
 thickly clustered round as the lad finished his story, 
 and the colonel warmly expressed his approval of his 
 conduct under such exciting circumstances. 
 
 " What are you going to do now i " he asked. 
 
 " I have not made up my mind, sir," the lad said. "I 
 expect that I shall ship in some vessel sailing for Eng- 
 land shortly." 
 
 " Major Harrison," the colonel said, '' will you and 
 Captain Mayhew come with me to my cabin ? I should 
 like to have a few minutes' private chat with you," 
 he went on, putting his hand on Will's shoulder. A 
 minute or two later the three gentlemen and Will were 
 seated in the private cabin. 
 
 "Look here, my boy," the colonel said; "I have 
 
 ( 274 ) I 
 
130 A KIND OFFER. 
 
 heard from Major Harrison what you had told Captain 
 Mayhew concerning your birth; and certainly your 
 appearance and manner go far to sustain the belief 
 that the tramp who left you was not your mother, and 
 that your parents were of gentle birth. I do not say 
 that a man's birth makes much difference to him; still, 
 it does go for something, and in nine cases out of ten 
 the difference both in face and figure is unmistakable. 
 Unless I am very wrong your father was a gentleman. 
 However, that is not to the point: it is your quickness 
 and activity, your coolness in danger, and the adven- 
 tures which you have gone through which interest us 
 in you. Now I think it is a pity that a lad who has 
 shown that there is so much in him should remain a 
 sailor before the mast. You have not been so long at 
 sea as to become wedded to it, and to be unable to 
 turn your hands to anything else. Now, what do you 
 say to enlisting? In the ranks are men of all sorts — 
 gentlemen, honest men, and blackguards. The steady 
 respectable man is sure to rise. You can, the captain 
 tells me, read and write well. There is a chance of 
 active service at present, and when there is active ser- 
 vice a man who distinguishes himself gets rapid pro- 
 motion. The regiment land to-morrow and go straight 
 through by train to the North. There is trouble in 
 Afghanistan, and an ultimatum has just been sent to 
 the Ameer that if he does not comply with our terms 
 it will be war, and we hope to be there in time for the 
 beginning of it. I can only say, that if you like to join, 
 
THE OFFER ACCEPTED. 131 
 
 Major Harrison and myself will keep our eyes upon 
 you, and if you deserve it you may be sure of rapid pro- 
 motion. You have greatly interested me in your story, 
 and I should be very glad to give a helping hand to so 
 deserving a young fellow. It is not usual, certainly, for 
 a regiment to take recruits in India, but I don't sup- 
 pose that there can be any objection to it." 
 
 " Thank you very much," Will said when the colonel 
 ceased. " I am greatly obliged to you for your kind- 
 ness. I have never thought about the army, but I am 
 sure that I cannot possibly do better than accept your 
 kind offer. The only thing, sir, is about my age." 
 
 " Tut, tut!" the colonel interrupted, "I don't want to 
 know anything about your age. When you go up for 
 attestment you will say that you are under nineteen, 
 which will be strictly true. I will give a hint, and no 
 further questions will be asked. Neither I nor anyone 
 else know that you are not past eighteen, and in time 
 of war no one is particular as to the age of recruits 
 as long as they are fit to do their duty. You must 
 work hard to pick up enough knowledge of drill to 
 enable you to take your place in the ranks. There is 
 neither parade work nor difficult manoeuvring in the 
 face of an enemy, and you can finish up afterwards. 
 Are you quite agreed?" 
 
 "Quite, sir," Will said joyously, "and am indeed ob- 
 liged to you." 
 
 " Come on board then to-morrow at eight o'clock, 
 and ask for Sergeant Ringwood." 
 
132 
 
 William Gale left the cabin with a new prospect of 
 life before him. He had of late rather shrunk from 
 the thought of again taking his place as a ship-boy; 
 and the prospect of adventures, to say nothing of the 
 advancement which might befall him through the in- 
 terest taken in him by the colonel, was delightful to 
 him. 
 
 The last words the colonel had said when he left the 
 cabin were: "Say nothing about the workhouse, and 
 as little as possible of anything which happened before 
 you were wrecked on the island, in the barrack-room." 
 
 When William and Captain Mayhew had left the 
 cabin Colonel Shepherd sent for Sergeant Ringwood. 
 
 " Sergeant," he said, "a young fellow will come on 
 board to-morrow at eight o'clock to join the regiment 
 as a recruit. Take him at once to the surgeon and get 
 him passed. I know we shall be able to give him but 
 little drill before we get to the frontier; but do all you 
 can for him and I will make it up to you. He is a 
 smart young fellow, and I have a good deal of interest 
 in him. He was on his way to China and was wrecked 
 among the Malays, and has gone through a good deal. 
 Finding himself here with nothing to do, and with a 
 prospect of active service on the frontier, he has decided 
 to enlist; and, as he is a gallant young fellow, I do not 
 wish to balk his fancy." 
 
 The sergeant saluted and took his leave, impressed 
 with the idea — although the colonel had not said so — 
 that the new recruit was a young gentleman who had 
 
WILL ENLISTS. 133 
 
 joined the service simply for the sake of taking part in 
 the war. 
 
 The next morning Will took leave of his friend Hans, 
 who had the previous day shipped on board a Dutch 
 ship homeward bound, and who was a few hours later 
 to shift his berth to her, after he had been on shore to 
 fit himself out in clothes. Hans was much affected at 
 saying good-bye to his companion, and the two pro- 
 mised to correspond with each other. On bidding fare- 
 well to his friend the captain of the Sea Belle, the 
 latter informed Will that Mr. Reynolds had, on behalf 
 of the owners of the Sea Belle, paid £100 to his account 
 into the Bank of Hindustan, and that this or any por- 
 tion of it would be paid to his order, as the captain 
 had furnished the agent with a slip of paper upon 
 which Will had at his request signed his name. This 
 had, with the money, been deposited at the bank, so 
 that his signature might be recognized and honoured. 
 
 On reaching the Euphrates Will was at once taken 
 charge of by Sergeant Eingwood, who took him before 
 the doctor, to whom the colonel had already spoken. 
 The medical examination was satisfactory, the doctor 
 remarking : 
 
 " You are rather slight yet, but you will fill out in 
 time." 
 
 The age was asked, and given as under nineteen, and 
 eio'hteen was inscribed acfainst him in the books. Then 
 he was taken before the colonel and attested, and was 
 from that moment a member of the regiment. A uni- 
 
134 A JOURNEY BY TRAIN. 
 
 form was served out to him, and the usual articles of 
 kit. The sergeant saw that his belts were put on pro- 
 perly and his knapsack packed; and half an hour after- 
 wards he fell in, with his musket on his shoulder, 
 among the troops paraded on the deck of the Euijlirates 
 prior to embarkation. 
 
 So quickly had it all been managed that Will could 
 hardly believe that he was awake, as, feeling strangely 
 hampered by his belts and accoutrements, he descended 
 the accommodation ladder and took his place with his 
 new comrades on board one of the great native boats 
 and rowed to the shore. 
 
 The regiment was marched direct to the railway- 
 station, where the heavy baggage had been sent on the 
 previous day. The men took their places in the long 
 train which stood in readiness, and half an hour later 
 steamed north from Calcutta. 
 
 Hitherto none of his comrades had spoken to Will. 
 In the bustle of landing all had enough to do to look 
 to themselves, and it was not until he" found himself 
 with eight comrades and a corporal in the railway- 
 carriage that he was addressed. 
 
 "Well, young 'un," one said, "what's yer name, and 
 where do you come from? Calcutta isn't much of a 
 place for recruiting." 
 
 "I was on my way to China," Will replied, "and 
 got wrecked among the Malays; then I got picked up 
 by a vessel, and we had some hot lighting. Then I 
 was landed at Calcutta, and seeing nothing much to do. 
 
A POPULAR CHARACTER. 135 
 
 and hearing that there was a chance of a fight with the 
 Afghans, I thought the best thing to do was to enlist. 
 My name is William Gale." 
 
 "I wasn't quite sure that you were an Englishman; 
 you are pretty nigh as dark as them copper-coloured 
 niofcrers here." 
 
 " So would you be," Will laughed, "if you had been 
 living, as I have, for ten months among savages without 
 even a shirt to your back." 
 
 " Tell us all about it," the soldier said. " This is a 
 bit of luck, mates, our having someone who can tell us 
 a tale when we have got such a long journey before us." 
 
 Will made his story as full as he could, and it lasted 
 a long time. When it was finished the men expressed 
 their opinion that he was a good sort; and Will having 
 handed over to the corporal a sovereign to be expended 
 on drinks by the way, as his footing in the regiment, he 
 became quite a popular character, and soon felt at home 
 in his new position. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE ADVANCE INTO AFGHANISTAN. 
 
 HERE was but little talking in the middle 
 of the day in the train, for the heat was 
 excessive. All the men had taken off their 
 coats and sat in their shirt-sleeves. But they were, 
 nevertheless, bathed in perspiration. Late at night the 
 train arrived at Allahabad. Here there was a stop till 
 morning. The men alighted from the train, and lay 
 down on their folded blankets, with their knapsacks 
 for pillows, on the platform or in the waiting-rooms. 
 A plentiful supply of water had been prepared for their 
 use at the station, and outside were several water- 
 carriers, and many of the men stripped off their shirts 
 and had water poured over their heads and bodies. 
 
 Will Gale was among these, and, greatly refreshed, 
 he enjoyed some fruit and cakes which he purchased 
 from native vendors ; and then lying down on a bench 
 in the station was soon asleep. Four days' travelling 
 brought them to the end of the railway. They were 
 ferried across the Attock, and then their real work 
 beean. 
 
A HOT MARCH. 137 
 
 Although it was now late in September the heat was 
 still intense. Tents were struck an hour before day- 
 break, and by eleven o'clock each day the column 
 was at its halting-place. It was, however, hours before 
 the tents and baggage arrived. Many of the draft 
 cattle were very poor, forage was scarce, and the ar- 
 rangements far from good. The consequence was that 
 great numbers of the oxen broke down and died, and 
 many of the troops were often obliged to sleep in the 
 air owing to the non-arrival of their tents. The defects 
 of the transport were aggravated as the time went on, 
 and the Norfolk Rangers fared much better than some 
 of the troops which followed them. 
 
 The regiment was destined to operate in the Khuram 
 valley under the command of General Roberts. The 
 advanced column of this division consisted of the 7th 
 company of Bengal Sappers, the 2.3d Bengal Pioneers, 
 a battery of horse artillery, one of Royal Artillery, and 
 two mountain batteries, a squadron of the 10th Hussars, 
 and the 12th Bengal Cavalry. The first brigade of 
 infantry comprised the 2d battalion of the 8th Foot, 
 the 29th Bengal Native Infantry, and the 5th Pun- 
 jaub Infantry. The second brigade consisted of the 
 72d Highlanders, the 21st Native Infantry, the 2d 
 Punjaub Infantry, and the 5th Goorkhas. The place of 
 assembly was Kohat. The Norfolk Rangers were to 
 act as a reserve. 
 
 It was on the 2d of October that the Rangers ar- 
 rived at Kohat, heartily glad that their march across 
 
138 HEAVY DRILL. 
 
 the sandy plains of the Punjaub was at an end. The 
 other regiments comprising the force poured in rapidly, 
 and on the 9th the general arrived and assumed the 
 command. The next day the Punjaub regiments were 
 sent forward to Thull. It was not until the middle of 
 November that the European regiments followed them, 
 and the six weeks were by the Rangers for the most 
 part employed in drill; for, after their voyage and 
 journey up the country, their commianding officer con- 
 sidered it necessary to work them hard to get them to 
 the highest state of discipline. 
 
 William Gale was worked exceptionally hard, as he 
 had in that short time to learn the manual and platoon 
 exercises, and to pick up enough of drill to enable him 
 to take his place in the ranks. Fortunately he carried 
 himself well and required far less drilling than the 
 majority of the recruits. By the time that the regi- 
 ment moved forward he was able to take his place in 
 his company, and had mastered all the movements 
 which were likely to be necessary in the campaign. 
 
 The road between Kohat and Thull runs in a valley 
 between mountains, those on the right being inhabited 
 by the Waziries, a fierce and independent tribe. The 
 regiment which had first marched had exercised every 
 precaution against an attack. The convoys of stores 
 and provisions sent forward had always been accom- 
 panied by strong escorts, and orders were issued that 
 officers going forward on duty should not travel without 
 protection. The Waziries, however, contrary to expec- 
 
ON THE MARCH. 139 
 
 tation, remained quiet, probably waiting to see the 
 turn which matters took ; for had we suffered a repulse 
 they would assuredly have taken part at once against 
 us, and would have aided in massacring fugitives and 
 robbing baggage- waggons. 
 
 The march to Thull occupied five days, which were 
 very pleasant ones to William Gale. His heavy work 
 at drill was now over: he was no longer considered a 
 recruit, but ranked as a soldier. The marches were not 
 long, and for many hours in the afternoon the high 
 hills threw the valley in shade; and the soldiers, after 
 pitching their tents, were able to stroll about or to lie 
 under the trees in which the valley abounded. The 
 regiment reached Thull on the 18th of November, and 
 on the morning of the 21st the column advanced. 
 
 The river, whose bed was 500 yards wide, was for- 
 tunately now low, being reduced to a stream of 40 
 yards wide by 3 deep. A trestle-bridge had been 
 thrown across it for the use of the infantry. The river 
 was distant a mile and a half from the town. No op- 
 position was expected; but as a small Afghan garrison 
 was stationed in a fort at Kapizang, a short distance 
 beyond the river, an attempt was to be made to cap- 
 ture it. The 29th Punjaub Infantry first crossed the 
 river at the bridoe. The 10th Huzzars forded the 
 river and extended in skirmishing order to cut oft' the 
 retreat of the garrison. When they reached the fort, 
 however, which was a square inclosure with round 
 towers at the corners, it was found that the garrison, 
 
140 ACROSS THE AFGHAN FRONTIER. 
 
 who had doubtless received warning from spies in Thull, 
 had abandoned the place in the night. 
 
 The cavalry were now sent forward to reconnoitre, 
 the infantry following, and the advanced force halted 
 at Ahmed-I-shama for the night. Not a single habi- 
 tation was passed during the nine miles march. The 
 road was generally a mere track, 6 feet wide, passing 
 through tangled brakes of dwarf pahns, intersected by 
 stony gullies except when it ran along the steep bank 
 of the river. 
 
 The following day the rest of the first brigade 
 marched up to Ahmed-I-shama, while the advanced 
 force under Colonel Gordon moved on to Hazir-pir. 
 The Rangers were with the first brigade, but not with 
 the advanced party. This was composed wholly of 
 native troops, consisting of the Pioneer regiments and 
 the Sappers and Miners; these had hard work, for the 
 road, which was fifteen miles in length, was scarcely pas- 
 sable for wheeled carriages, and the guns could not be 
 taken along until the boulders and blocks of stone 
 which strewed the way were removed or blasted into 
 pieces. 
 
 On the 28d the Rangers, with the Horse Artillery 
 battery and two native regiments, marched towards 
 Hazir-pir; but the diflSculties of the road were so great 
 that they had to camp for the night four miles short 
 of that place. General Roberts and the headquarters 
 went forward the same day. 
 
 As the general passed along the road the head-men 
 
THE KHURAM VALLEY. 141 
 
 of all the villages near came and paid their respects, and 
 the villagers lined the roads as the troops passed, offer- 
 ing fowls, eggs, milk, and dried fruit for sale. As 
 William Gale had brought a supply of money with him, 
 he was able to indulge in all those luxuries; and, indeed, 
 as the men had had few opportunities of spending 
 money at Thull, all were well supplied with cash. The 
 halt at Hazir-pir was then a very pleasant one. Sup- 
 plies of grass, fuel, and provisions were brought in in 
 considerable quantities there; but much difficulty arose 
 in settling the terms of purchase, as coin w^as almost 
 unknown in the valley, and therefore there was no 
 established price; one native being ready to sell for a 
 few coppers, articles for which another demanded as 
 many pieces of silver. On the hills around a consider- 
 able number of sheep were seen grazing, but the natives 
 did not care about selling these, which indeed be- 
 longed for the most part, not to the Turis, the tribe 
 which inhabit the valley, but to nomad Ghilzais, who, 
 like the Swiss shepherds, move about with their 
 charo'es amono- the mountains wherever fodder is to be 
 obtained. Khuram valley itself is bare and monoto- 
 nous. With the exception of fruit-trees planted round 
 the villages, scarce a tree is to be found; but each vil- 
 lage is marked by a huge chunar or oriental plane, be- 
 neath which the villagers rest during the noonday heat. 
 But if the valley itself was bare and desolate, the 
 scenery around was lovely. The great range of moun- 
 tains known as the Safaid-Koh bound the valley on 
 
142 A STONY VALLEY. 
 
 the east and north. This range averages 14,000 feet 
 high, from which spurs run out at right angles, in- 
 closing narrower valleys with broiling torrents rushing 
 through boulders. The slopes of these valleys are 
 covered with luxuriant vegetation till the limit of trees 
 is reached at a height of about 11,000 feet, above 
 which in winter the snow lies thick, while in summer 
 it furnishes the finest pasture to the Ghilzai flocks and 
 herds. 
 
 The valley lands and the lower slopes of the hills 
 are laid out in terraces, and irrigated rice-fields extend 
 near the rivers. Valley and hill are alike covered 
 with stones and boulders, Afghanistan being probably 
 the most stony country in the world. 
 
 On the 24th the headquarters with the cavalry and 
 two regiments moved forward ten miles and encamped 
 at the south end of the Darwazi Pass, the road leading 
 to open broad valleys covered with dwarf palms and 
 wholly uncultivated. On the 25th the advanced force 
 crossed the pass, which was a gentle slope and offered 
 no great difficulty, and at night encamped at the 
 Khuram fort, which had been evacuated by the enemy. 
 The buildinojs, which would have been useful for the 
 troops, had however been wrecked by the Turis, who 
 have a deadly hate for the Afghans their masters, and 
 who were also animated in their work of destruction 
 by a desire to obtain wood, which is exceedingly scarce 
 there. 
 
 At Khuram there are two forts, the one 120 yards 
 
RECONNOITRING. 143 
 
 and the other 100 yards square. Inside these were 
 quarters for the governor, and huts for the garrison 
 and officers, and in the smaller forts were stables for 
 the cavalry forces. This place was made the head- 
 quarters of the forces in the Khuram valley. The 
 general now rode on with two squadrons of the 12th 
 Bengal Cavalry to reconnoitre in the direction of the 
 Peiwar-Khotal, towards which the enemy were sup- 
 posed to be retreating, and where they were expected 
 to make a stand. As they approached the village of 
 Peiwar two villages were seen in flames, and news 
 was brought in that three Afghan regiments, with 
 twelve guns, had lately passed through. 
 
 The natives reported that they were encumbered by 
 their guns, and that forced labour was procured for 
 the purpose of removing them. Later on a rumour 
 came that the twelve guns were stuck in the ravine at 
 the foot of the Khotal or pass. 
 
 With but a small force of cavalry at his command 
 the general could do nothing, and so returned to 
 Khuram and determined to hurry up the troops faster 
 than he had intended so as to capture the guns re- 
 ported — as was afterwards proved falsely — to have 
 been left behind by the Afghans. The sick and all 
 superfluous baggage were left behind at Khuram, and 
 on the 28th the troops moved at daybreak, the two 
 brigades marching in parallel columns. 
 
 The cold was now severe at night although it was 
 hot in the daytime. It had been intended to halt at 
 
144 THE ADVANCE TOWARDS THE PASS. 
 
 Halid-Kitta, four miles from the Khotal ; but the intel- 
 ligence arriving that the Ameer's troops had aban- 
 doned their guns and were in disorderly retreat, de- 
 cided the general to push forward at once to the Pei- 
 war-Khotal, seven miles further, instead of waiting 
 and giving the enemy time to strengthen their position. 
 A mile from the foot of the actual ascent of the Khotal 
 lies the village of Turrai, two miles and a half beyond 
 Peiwar. Turrai is situated in a valley, the ground at 
 whose entrance is very much broken up by the shoul- 
 ders and spurs of the hill. The left column — the 
 5th and 29th Punjaub in advance, with the 2d bat- 
 talion of the 8th, and the 23d Pioneers, the Rangers, 
 and two guns of the No. 1 mountain battery in support 
 — were sent to the left with instructions to turn a ridge 
 forming the south boundary of the valley, and to seize 
 the village of Turrai. They were also to follow up 
 closely any body of retreating Afghan troops that they 
 might come across. The light brigade were to march 
 up the regular road to the Peiwar, thus supporting the 
 attack of the left brigade. 
 
 The left brigade followed out its orders, except that 
 the regiment in support did not go round the southern 
 side of the spur, but kept to the north. No enemy was 
 seen on the south side of the spur, so when a track 
 leading across to Turrai was reached the troops moved 
 down towards the village, the regiments in support 
 advancing at the foot of the open on the north side. 
 The mountain path that the advanced troops were now 
 
THE SKIRMISH AT TURRAI. 145 
 
 filing clo^Yn did not lead directly to the village, but 
 fell into the valley ahead of it at a point where it 
 widens out into what was known as the "punch-bowl 
 valley" at the foot of the Peiwar-Khotal. 
 
 As soon as the head of the column reached this spot 
 they came in sight of the Afghans, who showed them- 
 selves in great numbers on the crest of the mountain 
 far above their heads. • As the troops had no orders to 
 attack so formidable a position, they fell back towards 
 Turrai, which was about a quarter of a mile to the 
 rear. At the sight of this movement the Afghans 
 swarmed down a spur of the hill and commenced an 
 attack on the regiments that were moving towards the 
 village. The 29th Punjaubees climbed the hill, and a 
 sharp skirmish ensued, the two mounted guns coming 
 into action. 
 
 While this was going on, the main body of the troops 
 arrived at Turrai. The advanced troops were recalled 
 and the 5th Ghoorkas were advanced to cover the move- 
 ment. As it was now seen that the story of the aban- 
 donment of the guns was false, orders were given to 
 pile arms in the village and to encamp there. This 
 step was an imprudent one, as the Afghans speedily 
 showed. While our men were sitting or lying upon 
 the ground waiting for the baggage to arrive the 
 Afghans brought up a mountain-gun from the main 
 ridge, about three-quarters of a mile distant, to the 
 point of the spur overlooking the village of Turrai, and 
 opened fire at 1700 yards range. 
 
 (274) ^ K 
 
146 SHELLED OUT OF CAMP. 
 
 The astonishment of the troops when the first shell 
 fell among them was great. Every one jumped to his 
 feet and seized his rifle, and the guns of the Ro^^al 
 Horse Artillery were brought at once into action. It 
 was four o'clock in the afternoon when the Afghans 
 opened fire. Had they waited for a few hours, brought 
 up another gun or two, and made a night attack imme- 
 diately after opening fire, it is morally certain that the 
 imprudence of camping in such a position would have 
 been punished by a disaster which might have vied 
 with that of Isandula. Huddled together in a small 
 village surrounded by scrub, and impeded as the troops 
 would have been by the basfSfaire animals and native 
 followers rushing in terror in all directions, our men 
 would have been taken at an immense disadvantasre. 
 Fortunate was it that the enemy opened fire before the 
 darkness set in. The troops were at once ordered to fall 
 back a mile and a half and to pitch on fresh gi'ound. 
 
 There was much confusion in the retreat, as the road 
 in the rear was crowded with the baofaao-e animals. 
 The spot chosen for the camp was a rough one, for the 
 ground was covered with scrub and a scattered growth 
 of hill oak and thorny bushes, and was broken by the 
 remains of some ancient terraces, but as the jungle and 
 broken ground extended for three and a half miles, 
 there was nothing for it but to take up the best posi- 
 tion possible under the circumstances. The troops 
 bivouacked on the ridge of a ravine with steep banks 
 which formed a line of defence in front of the camp. 
 
A WRETCHED NIGHT. 147 
 
 while the view in every other direction was obscured by 
 trees. The regiments passed a wretched night on the 
 rough ground. Most of them were unable to find their 
 baggage, which was wandering in the scrub in the dark, 
 and the greater part of the troops lay down on the 
 bare ground and went supperless to sleep after their 
 fatiguing march of twenty-one miles. 
 
 In the morning both men and cattle were greatly 
 exhausted by their long marches and almost sleepless 
 nights, and General Roberts determined to wait for a 
 day or two to reconnoitre the formidable position of 
 the enemy before undertaking its attack. The camp 
 was shifted to a more secure site, the brushwood and 
 trees were cleared away, the tents pitched, and the 
 troops were again comfortable. 
 
 A reconnaissance was made by Colonel Perkins, 
 comn^anding the Royal Engineers, with two companies 
 of the Pioneers. He ascertained that a deep ravine 
 lay between the ridge on which they were encamped 
 and the Khotal itself, and that it was impossible to 
 direct an attack on that side. Major Collett also, with 
 two companies of the 23d, proceeded to reconnoitre the 
 route known as the Spingawi or Cow Pass. This, in- 
 stead of going straight up the hill in front, wound 
 round its foot to the right of the valley. 
 
 Ascending the mountain at a point some three or 
 four miles to the east of the Peiwar-Khotal, the recon- 
 naissance reached the summit of a ridge about five 
 miles distant from the camp and overlooking the 
 
148 THE SPINGAWI PASS. 
 
 Spingawi-Kliotal. It was ascertained that the road 
 up the pass seemed easy and practicable for all arms, 
 that the top of the pass appeared to be on the same 
 ridge as the Peiwar-Khotal, and that a force working 
 from it towards the Peiwar would pass over a series of 
 dominating positions. It did not appear to Major 
 Collett that the enemy held the Peiwar-Khotal in force, 
 although there was a gun on a commanding knoll on 
 the south, and there seemed to be one at the top of the 
 pass. The road from the village of Peiwar to the top 
 of the Spingawi Pass seemed perfectly easy for troops 
 of all arms. 
 
 The next two days were spent in clearing the camp, 
 and so far as possible improving its military position ; 
 but it was still surrounded by thick oak jungle, which 
 would have afforded cover for an enemy making a 
 sudden attack. A further reconnaisance was made of 
 the Spingawi Pass, and as the examination confirmed 
 Major Collett's report it was determined to attack by 
 it. Orders were issued on the 1st of December for a 
 march that night. The regiments which were to form 
 the main attack by the Spingawi plateau route were 
 the 29th Punjaub Infantry and the 5th Ghoorkas, com- 
 manded by Colonel Gordon in advance; these were to 
 be followed by the mountain battery, a wing of the 
 72d Highlanders, a company of the Rangers, the 2d 
 Punjaubees, and the 23d Pioneers, under Brigadier- 
 general Thelwell. Four guns on elephants were to 
 proceed with the column. The 5th Punjaub Infantry, 
 
A WELL-KEPT SECRET. 149 
 
 the 8th Regiment, two guns Royal Horse Artillery, 
 three guns Royal Artillery, and the 5th Bengal Cavalry, 
 the whole under the command of Brigadier-general 
 Cobbe, were to make an attack on the Peiwar-Khotal 
 direct. 
 
 The rest of the force was to remain to guard the 
 camp, and in order to convince the enemy that a front 
 attack upon the Peiwar-Khotal Avas intended, a party 
 of pioneers with an engineer officer, and a covering 
 party of the 8th Regiment, were to construct a battery 
 near the village of Turrai. Frequent reconnoitring 
 parties had also been sent out in this direction, and so 
 well was the secret of the general's intention to attack 
 by the Spingawi Khotal kept that everyone in camp 
 who had not been let into the secret was confident that 
 the Peiwar-Khotal would be stormed on the morrow. 
 The enemy, although those in camp were ignorant of 
 the fact, were reinforced on the 1st by four regiments 
 of infantry with a mountain battery, and on their side 
 were meditating an attack upon the British camp. 
 
 The regiments which had freshly arrived were, how- 
 ever, fatigued by their long march, and the assault on 
 our camp was postponed until the next day, and the 
 chance of its coming off was therefore lost for ever. To 
 William Gale's great satisfaction a company of the 
 Rangers, that to which he had been posted, was the one 
 selected by the colonel to accompany the column march- 
 ing up the pass. He did not indeed know that this 
 was the route by which they were to advance, but he 
 
150 THE EVE OF THE CONFLICT. 
 
 was pleased at not being left behind with the regiment 
 in charge of the camp. 
 
 " Well, young 'un," a corporal said to him that even- 
 ing, "we are going to be under fire at last, and a nice 
 climb we shall have of it; it puts one out of breath to 
 look at that steep road running up the hill, and when 
 it comes to fighting one's way up it, with cannon and 
 Afghans on the top, we shall find it hard work." 
 
 "I expect," William answered, " that we sha n't go up 
 it at any extraordinary pace; if we skirmish up, as I 
 expect we shall, from rock to rock, we shall have plenty 
 of time to get our wind at each halt. We are not to 
 take our knapsacks, so we shall fight light, and we 
 have not much extra weight to carry. What with the 
 heat and what with the long marches, I should think 
 I must have lost a stone in weight since we landed in 
 Calcutta." 
 
 " I don't think you have lost weight at all," the cor- 
 poral said; "it seems to me that you have grown and 
 widened out in the two months; and only yesterday, 
 when I was sizing the company, I had to move you two 
 men higher; for a young 'un you stand the fatigues 
 well." 
 
 " I am all right," Will said, " except that I have got 
 some frightful blisters on my feet. I was not going to 
 say an} thing about it, because I should have been kept 
 in hospital and left behind at Khuram, but I have 
 hardly known how to march the last few days. I 
 don't think I could possibly have managed it if I had 
 
PUTTIES. 151 
 
 not adopted the native dodge of wearing putties, which 
 I have greased well on the inside, and wear instead of 
 stockings." 
 
 Putties, it may be said, are slips of woollen cloth 
 about two and a half yards long and three inches 
 wide, with a tape sewn into one end. They are wound 
 round and round the leg, from the ankle to below the 
 knee, and secured by the end being tied with the tape. 
 Nearly every one, officers and men, wore them through 
 the campaign. For a long march there could be no 
 doubt that these bandasjes, wound round the foot in- 
 stead of stockings, are very preferable, as they obviate 
 the liability to foot-sores. Even with well-made boots 
 all pedestrians may at times suffer from sore feet, but 
 the liability is immensely increased when, as in the 
 case of the British soldier, the boots are coarse, roughly 
 sewn, and frequently ill-fitted. 
 
 ^:^ 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE PEIWAR-KHOTAL. 
 
 T ten o'clock at night on the 1st of Decem- 
 ber the troops detailed for the attack mus- 
 tered in the camp. The assembly took 
 place without sound of bugle, and even the necessary 
 words of command were given in a low tone. Through 
 the still night air the Afghans on the hills, little more 
 than two miles away, would have heard the stir. It 
 was a very dark night although the stars shone clear. 
 
 "Where can we be going?" William Gale asked the 
 soldier next to him. " We are going right away from 
 the pass instead of towards it." 
 
 " So we are ! " the soldier replied. " I am blest if I 
 know what we are up to, and it's so precious dark that 
 I can scarcely see the file before me. I hope we ain't 
 going to fight in the dark, anjdiow. What would be 
 the good of being a marksman when you cannot see the 
 end of your own rifle, let alone the man you are firing 
 at?" 
 
 " Oh ! we can't be going to attack in the dark," Will 
 said. " I expect we have got a long march before us, 
 
A NIGHT MARCH. 153 
 
 and are going to work round somehow and take them 
 in rear." 
 
 " Well, I hope whoever is acting as guide can see 
 better in the darkness than I can, else we are safe to 
 lose our way, and may find ourselves anywhere in the 
 morning. Confound it!" the exclamation was elicited 
 by the speaker stumbling over a boulder and nearly 
 going on to his head. 
 
 " Silence in the ranks there!" an officer said close by. 
 
 Each regiment was followed by its ammunition 
 mules and hospital doolies, the latter being covered 
 stretchers or palkies carried by natives; besides these 
 were dandies or chairs slung upon mules. This greatly 
 added to the difficulty of a night march ; for, even in 
 the daytime the presence of baggage animals in a 
 column upon a narrow road greatly hinders the troops, 
 and at night the delays occasioned by them are natur- 
 ally very much greater. For the first three and a half 
 miles the column marched away from the enemy upon 
 the Khotal, and the surprise of the soldiers increased 
 at every step they took. 
 
 At the end of that time they arrived at the village 
 of Peiwar. Here they turned to the left, and after 
 crossing several ravines and stony water-courses, ar- 
 rived on a cultivated terrace and kept along this till 
 they reached a very stiff nullah twenty feet deep. The 
 night was bitterly cold, the bank of the nullah was 
 extremely slippery, and the boulders in the water- 
 course below coated with ice, the difficulty of getting 
 
154 TROUBLES IN THE DARK. 
 
 the loaded animals across in the darkness was therefore 
 very great. The passage of the various water-courses 
 caused great delays, and it was difficult to keep the 
 column together in the dark. At each passage the 
 rear was immensely delayed while the leading troops 
 were passing, and these again had to be halted while 
 those behind them struggled over the difficulties. 
 
 The men suffered much from cold, as the pace was 
 so slow that they could not warm themselves, and the 
 mounted officers specially suffered in their hands and 
 feet. At midnight the ravine leading up to the Spingawi 
 Pass was reached; but so dark was it that the 2d Pun- 
 jaubees, separated by a few yards from the regiment 
 in front of them, marched straight on instead of turn- 
 ing up it; and the 2'2d Pioneers and the four artillery 
 guns carried on elephants, being behind them, naturally 
 went astray also. 
 
 Brio'adier- general Thelwall, who commanded the 
 column, was at the head of his brigade, and was for 
 some time unaware of the absence of two of his regi- 
 ments; but, after halting and finding that they did 
 not come up, sent back a mounted officer, who, after a 
 two-mile ride, came up with the missing troops and 
 guided them back to the point where they had left the 
 route. 
 
 From the foot of the ravine to the top of the pass is 
 six miles in distance; and, dark as it was in the open, 
 it was still more so in the ravine shadowed by the 
 steep hills on either side. As the ascent continued 
 
TREACHEROUS SHOTS. 155 
 
 the road became worse, the boulders beino- laro-er, and 
 the holes and dried-up pools deeper. The darkness 
 and the prevailing white colour of the stones prevented 
 the difference of level being observed, and many of the 
 men had heavy falls, as the steep sides of these pools 
 were often from two to four feet deep. 
 
 After marching for a mile and a half up the ravine 
 the report of a rifle was heard in the ranks of the 
 29tli Punjaubees, who were leading the column, fol- 
 lowed instantly by another discharge. Colonel Gor- 
 don commandino' the reoiment halted, and he and the 
 
 O CD ' 
 
 general tried in vain to discover who had fired. No 
 one could or would identify them, and this seemed 
 clearly to prove that the rifles had been fired as a signaJ 
 to the enemy, for they had not been loaded before the 
 column started. 
 
 The Punjaubee regiments contained many hill tribes- 
 men — men closely connected by ties of blood and 
 religion with the enemy whom they were marching to 
 attack. A non-commissioned officer and several of the 
 men who were just about the spot where the guns 
 had been fired were placed under arrest and sent back. 
 It was afterwards found that two of their rifles had 
 been discharged, and the men who fired and their non- 
 commissioned officer were tried by court-martial for 
 treachery, and were hung. 
 
 After these men had been sent back, the othGhoorkas, 
 the company of Rangers, and two companies of the 
 7:^d, passed the 23d Punjaubees and took their places at 
 
156 A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE. 
 
 the head of the column. In the course of the march a 
 good many other men of the 2.3d left the column in 
 the dark and made their way back to camp. It turned 
 out afterwards that the Afghan sentries at the top of 
 the pass heard the reports and woke up the commander 
 of the post, who, hearing no further cause of alarm, 
 took no action in the matter. 
 
 Had the traitors waited until the column was within 
 a mile of the top of the pass, the Afghans would as- 
 suredly have taken the alarm; but, firing at a distance 
 of four and a half miles, they failed in the desired 
 effect. The advance was resumed up the bed of the 
 stream for another mile and a half. About three in 
 the morning the main water-course was quitted, the 
 road now entering a ravine to the left, up which three 
 miles further on was the summit of the pass. The 
 column continued its weary way up the ravine, slowly 
 stumblino- along in the dark. 
 
 One incident occurred in this part of the road show- 
 ing the necessity in night marching for the regiments 
 to keep close to each other. In one place a fir-covered 
 island lay in the middle of the ravine, the torrent's 
 bed lying on either side of it. When the two com- 
 panies of the 72d Highlanders, who had been following 
 close to that of the Rangers, came to the spot they were 
 surprised to find that the troops in front had suddenly 
 vanished. No explanation could be given as to the 
 cause of this disappearance, so the company were halted 
 until the mystery was solved. The leading regiment 
 
IN FACE OF THE FOE, 157 
 
 had taken the passage to the right of the island, while 
 the 72d had gone to the left, the separation of the 
 roads being unnoticed in the dark. Had the roads 
 diverged instead of reuniting, much inconvenience 
 might have been caused by the delay in collecting the 
 separated portions of the force. 
 
 At last the foot of the Khotal was reached, where 
 the track left the ravine and turned up the spur. The 
 two guides, natives of the country, who had led the 
 head of the column to this point, refused to go any 
 further; and as the column was now at the point 
 where the fighting might begin, they were allowed to 
 depart. It was about six o'clock when the Ghoorkas 
 began to climb the spur. The morning had broken, 
 but it was still dark, and the path was almost invisible 
 in the shadow^ of the trees. 
 
 The Ghoorkas, their rifles loaded now, made their 
 way quietly up the hill. Presently the challenge of 
 the sentry was heard, followed by two shots. It 
 was a relief to the men, after ten hours of weary 
 stumblino^ along in the cold and darkness, to know 
 that they were at length face to face with their foe. 
 Cold and fatigue were at once forgotten, and with eyes 
 strained through the darkness, and rifles ready for use, 
 every man pressed forward. Fifty yards up the hill, 
 behind the sentry who had fired, was the first stockade 
 of the enemy, formed by several large trees, which had 
 been felled so as to completely block up the road, pre- 
 senting an obstacle of about eight feet high to the at- 
 
158 THE STOCKADES CARRIED. 
 
 tacking force. The Afghan pickets lining the stockade 
 poured a volley into the Ghoorkas, who, led by Major 
 Fitzhugh and Captain Cook, made a rush at the place. 
 
 For a few minutes there was a fierce fight at the 
 trees; but as fresh assailants momentarily poured up, 
 the obstruction was scaled, and the Afghans retired on 
 a second stockade eighty yards back. Here another 
 stand was made, but the spur being a little wider, the 
 Ghoorkas were able to work round, and taking the 
 defence in flank soon drove the Afghans back. Beyond 
 this point the ground was clear of trees, and the road 
 ran in short zigzags up the steep hill to the breast-work 
 w^hich lined the edge of the top zigzag. 
 
 A mountain gun at this point swept the approach 
 to the position, while the hill at its back was now 
 covered with Afghans, who opened a heavy fire upon 
 the troops as in the dim morning light they issued 
 from the trees. By the time that the Ghoorkas and 
 the Rangers had cleared the second stockade, the wing 
 of the 72d Highlanders, ascending by the right flank, 
 had made their way up to the front, and the whole 
 now advanced together. As quickly as possible they 
 pushed up the hill under the heavy fire of the enemy. 
 The latter fought well, and a number of them were 
 killed before retiring. At the defence erected at the 
 top of the zigzag so obstinately did the Afghans in 
 front hold their ground that their comrades behind 
 were enabled to remove their mountain gun. 
 
 To the right of the enemy's position was a knoll, and 
 
CAPTAIN HERBERT SAVED. 
 
A HAND-TO-HAND STRUGGLE. 159 
 
 the 72d at once took possession of this, and t^YO moun- 
 tain guns were brought up to their assistance. The 
 Afghans were seen in great numbers in the broken 
 ground ahead. The Ghoorkas and the little body of 
 Rangers pushed on against them. Presently the enemy 
 gathered and made a rush down upon them, and a 
 desperate hand-to-hand tight took place for a few 
 minutes. The men were scattered among the trees and 
 each fought for himself. William Gale had just re- 
 loaded his rifle when he saw Captain Herbert, who 
 commanded his company, fall to the ground, and three 
 Afghans spring forward to finish him. With a bound 
 Will reached the side of the officer. Two of the Afghans 
 had already discharged their pieces, the third levelled 
 and fired. So close was he that the flash almost burnt 
 the soldier's face, and he felt a sharj^ pain as if a hot 
 iron had passed across his cheek. In an instant he 
 shot his assailant dead, and then with bayonet stood 
 at bay as the other two Afghans rushed upon him. 
 They had drawn their tulwars and slashed fiercely at 
 him; but he kept them off with his bayonet until a 
 Ghoorka, running up, cut down one of them with his 
 kookerie, a heavy sword-like knife which the Ghoorkas 
 carry, and which they always employ in preference to 
 the bayonet in fighting at close quarters. The remain- 
 ino^ Af orhan at once took to flio^ht. 
 
 The 29th Punjaubees had now come into action, and 
 the Afghans, disheartened at the loss of their position, 
 fell back and withdrew into the woods which cover the 
 
160 FEELING THEIR WAY. 
 
 plateau. At half -past seven o'clock the Avhole force, 
 except the elephant guns, had reached the plateau; and 
 General Roberts was able to flash the news of the suc- 
 cessful capture of the enemy's first position to Brigadier- 
 general Cobbe, who was in command of the force which 
 was to operate direct against the Peiwar-Khotal. A 
 rest was given the troops after their long march, and 
 at half-past nine they again fell in for the attack upon 
 the pine-covered slopes in the direction of the Peiwar- 
 Khotal. How strong were the enemy who might be 
 lurking there they knew not. But it was certain that 
 he would fight obstinately, and in so dense a forest 
 much of the advantage gained by drill and discipline 
 is lost. 
 
 A chano'e was made in the order of the advance. 
 
 o 
 
 The troops who had before led the advance and had 
 done the fighting were now placed in the rear, and the 
 23d Pioneers led the way, followed by the 2d and 29th 
 Punjaubees. The column crossed the plateau without 
 opposition, and began the ascent towards the enemy's 
 position in the woods. Considerable caution was 
 needed, as no one had any knowledge of the country, 
 and all were ignorant of the position and numbers of 
 the enemy, who might, for aught they knew, be mass- 
 ing in great numbers for an attack upon the front or 
 one of the fianks. The line of skirmishers entered the 
 pine- wood near the rocky hillside, and a rolling fire of 
 musketry soon told that they were engaged from end 
 to end of the line. It was slow work, for fallen trees, 
 
A FIGHT ON THE HILLSIDE. 161 
 
 rocks, and bushes everywhere hampered the advance. 
 Still the skirmishing line, reinforced from behind, 
 pushed forward steadily, and presently cleared the 
 Afghans off the hillside. 
 
 When the troops reached the top they found a valley 
 in front of them, and from the woods on the opposite 
 side so heavy a musketry fire w^as kept up that it was 
 evident the Afghans intended to make a desperate 
 stand here. The valley, or rather ravine, was a narrow 
 one: fifty yards wide at its foot, and scarce three times 
 as much from brow to brow. The enemy, hidden among 
 the trees, could not be made out except by their con- 
 tinual fire. They did not content themselves, how- 
 ever, with the mere defence of their side of the hill, 
 but from time to time large numbers charged down 
 and tried to force their way up that held by the British. 
 
 Each time, however, when they attempted this the 
 Punjaubees drove them back with slaughter. It was 
 clear that the Afofhans were in o-reat numbers, for their 
 line extended for a mile and a half along the hillside. 
 Major Anderson of the 2.3d Pioneers, after repulsing 
 one of these attacks, led four companies to the assault 
 of the Afghan position, and drove the enemy back 
 for some little distance; but Major Anderson fell and 
 the party retired. 
 
 Colonel Curry, who commanded the regiment, again 
 led the men forward, and for a time a hand-to-hand 
 fight took place. For two hours the rifle contest 
 continued without cessation. The storm of bullets 
 
162 THE DIRECT ATTACK. 
 
 was tremendous, but no very great execution was done 
 on either side, both parties lying behind the shelter 
 of trees. So far no advantage had been gained by 
 the British, and General Roberts felt that, with the 
 force under his command, it would be rash to attempt 
 to carry so strong a position held by a greatly superior 
 force. In the meantime the attack upon the Peiwar- 
 Khotal from the valley had commenced. Before day- 
 light Brigadier-general Cobbe, with the 5th Punjaub 
 Infantry and the 8th Regiment left camp, his object 
 being to co-operate with the flank attack. The 8th 
 Regiment moved directly towards the pass, while the 
 5th Punjaubees climbed one of the principal spurs be- 
 tween the Peiwar and Spingawi Khotals. 
 
 The ascent was extremely difficult, and it took the 
 troops six hours to reach the summit. During the last 
 portion of the ascent they came under -the Are of the 
 enemy. When near the summit Major Macqueen of 
 the 5th Punjaubees saw, through an opening in the 
 pine-wood, the Afghan camp, with their baggage ani- 
 mals, which were placed for shelter in the glade behind 
 the Peiwar-Khotal. Two mountain guns were at once 
 brought up and a fire opened upon the Afghan camp. 
 In a few minutes the tents caught fire, the animals 
 stampeded in all directions, and the enemy in front, 
 seized with a panic, began rapidly to retreat. The 
 Afghan troops facing General Roberts' column, when 
 they found their comrades on their right retreating, 
 began to draw off, and the fire sensibly diminished. 
 
DIFFICULT GROUND. 163 
 
 The movement was accelerated by the four elephant 
 guns, which had at length come up, opening fire into 
 the pinewood forest. As the fire slackened, a recon- 
 naissance of the hill was made by General Ptoberts 
 and his staff"; but the result showed that the mountain 
 was so covered with pines and brushwood that it 
 formed an almost impenetrable barrier to the advance 
 of troops, for the growth was so thick that it was 
 impossible to say in which direction any movement 
 should be made. The experience gained in the last 
 six hours of hard fio-htino; had shown how difficult it 
 was to keep command over troops scattered along a 
 front of half a mile lono- in the forest where nothino- 
 could be seen beyond a radius of a few yards. 
 
 The general therefore determined to desist from the 
 attempt to force his way direct to the top of the 
 Peiwar-Khotal, and to march to his left, and so by 
 menacing the Afghan line of retreat to hasten the 
 movement towards the rear which had evidently 
 begun. The men were therefore brought back to the 
 plateau to the east of the ravine. 
 
 Here they were halted for a time, and the contents of 
 their haversacks furnished them with a meal. At two 
 o'clock they again drew up on the Spingawi plateau. 
 The 2d Punjaub Infantry being left on the hill to op- 
 pose the Afghans should they again advance in that 
 direction, the rest of the column entered the defile 
 leading into the Hurriab valley, far in the rear of the 
 Peiwar-Khotal. 
 
164 A HALT FOR THE NIGHT. 
 
 As soon as the enemy, who were still opposing the 
 2d Punjaub Infantry, saw the head of the column 
 enter the defile they were seized with a panic lest their 
 retreat should be cut off, and began to retreat with the 
 greatest haste, as they had to make their way across 
 two mountain ridges before they could pass the spot 
 towards which our troops were moving. The advance 
 of the column, however, was necessarily slow, as the 
 woods and side valleys had to be carefully examined 
 lest a flank attack should be made upon them. 
 
 In two hours the head of the column emero-ed from 
 
 o 
 
 the forest on to the open slopes above the highest cul- 
 tivated point in the Hurriab valley. It was now four 
 o'clock. The short December day was drawing to a 
 close ; no enemy were in sight, for their line of retreat 
 was hidden in the bed of the stream a couple of miles 
 further on, and no one knew where they were to be 
 found. The troops were much exhausted with the 
 want of rest and with their heavy work, for they had 
 now been marching and fighting for eighteen hours, 
 and they were glad to receive the order to bivouac, 
 although they had no tents or food, and the cold, as 
 might be expected on a winter day at an elevation of 
 over 9000 feet above the sea, began to be very severe. 
 A number of the nearest trees were felled by the 
 pioneers, and huge fires were soon alight. There was 
 still some uneasiness, as no one knew where the force 
 under General Cobbe was, or whether the attack on 
 the Peiwar-Khotal had been successful or not. 
 
THE ADVANCE OF THE 8TH. 165 
 
 While the 5th Punjaub Infantry had been mounting 
 the spur half-way between the Peiwar and the Spinga\Yi 
 Khotal, the 8th Regiment had moved directly upon 
 the pass. The Afghans, who had expected an attack, 
 had remained under arms until three in the morning, 
 when, hearing no sounds in our camp, they had been 
 dismissed to rest. 
 
 Three guns of the Ro^^al Artillery and two of the 
 Royal Horse Artillery took up their post 800 yards 
 in front of our camp, where their fire at the crest of 
 the pass would assist the advance of the 8th. These, 
 after two hours' march, found themselves at seven in 
 the morning on the last spur, which is separated from 
 the Peiwar- Khotal by a deep ravine. When it became 
 daylight a few minutes later the enemy caught sight 
 of our artillery in the valley, and at once opened fire. 
 Although they had six field-pieces at the top of the 
 hill, only three had been placed in position to command 
 the valley and the ascent, and the mountain battery 
 which had arrived the afternoon before was not 
 brought to the front. 
 
 The three field-pieces and the mountain gun on the 
 spur kept up a continuous fire on our battery of five 
 guns. These w^ere, however, almost beyond their 
 range, and but little damage was done. On our side 
 the fire was chiefly directed against the mountain gun 
 at the end of the spur, and at any bodies of men who 
 showed themselves. 
 
 The artillery duel went on for four hours, and in 
 
166 AN AFGHAN ADVANCE. 
 
 the meantime the infantry were engaged sharply with 
 the Afghans. These had taken up their position in 
 the woods on the other side of the ravine, and kept 
 up a continuous fire upon the 8th. The distance, how- 
 ever, was too great for much execution on either 
 side, especially as both parties were sheltered in the 
 woods. 
 
 About ten o'clock the Afghans were seen gathering 
 in streno'th, as if to come down across the road leadino- 
 up to the Khotal to attack the 8th in the rear. A 
 squadron of the 18th Bengal Cavalry charged up the 
 valley, and the enemy retired up the hill again; and, 
 seeing that they could not cross the road without the 
 chance of being cut up by the cavalry, they did not 
 try to repeat the experiment. 
 
 At eleven o'clock Brigadier-general Cobbe was 
 wounded in the leg, and Colonel Barry-Drew succeeded 
 him in the command, receiving the orders which had 
 been given to General Cobbe that the Khotal was 
 not to be attacked till there was some evidence that 
 the flank attack had shaken the enemy's defence in 
 front. 
 
 At twelve o'clock, the guns with the 2d Punjaub 
 Infantry alarmed the Afghans by their fire upon the 
 camp, and although the Afghan guns in front kept 
 up their fire, the musketry fire decreased considerably. 
 Seeing this. Colonel Drew ordered the artillery to 
 be brought up nearer. When, after advancing 300 
 yards, they came to a ravine crossing the road, the 
 
THE END OF THE STRUGGLE. 167 
 
 Afghans, who had come down the hill to meet them, 
 opened a heavy fire; and the road being narrow, only 
 the leading gun could come into action. However, 
 the two companies of the 8th, which were acting as 
 an escort to the o^uns, advanced in skirmishino- order, 
 and drove the Afghans up the hill. The panic among 
 the Afghans on the plateau having now spread to the 
 troops at the Khotal, their fire entirely ceased, and 
 the 8th Reo'iment descended the defile, and beo-an to 
 climb the path to the Khotal. Not a hostile shot was 
 fired, and at half-past two they reached the enemy's 
 camp, which they found deserted. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 A PRISONER. 
 
 HE panic which had seized the Afghans 
 when they found their retreat menaced 
 had been thorough and complete, and 
 when the 8th Regiment entered the camp they found 
 that the tents w^ere standing ; food had been left ready 
 cooked, and every possession had been abandoned. 
 In the artillery camp the gunners had left their 
 silver-mounted brass helmets and caps, as well as their 
 guns and carriages. A body of friendly Turis had 
 accompanied the column making a demonstration on 
 its flank, and these arriving upon the spot plundered 
 the Afghan camp of everything of the smallest value. 
 
 No one knew what had become of the main body 
 under General Roberts. 
 
 The Bengal Cavalry scouted for some distance in 
 advance, but found no signs of the enemy. Strong 
 pickets were set in case the Afghans should rally and 
 return. The tents were brought up from the camp 
 below, fires were lit, and the 8th encamped for the 
 
 night. 
 
 In the morning communication was established 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR WINTER. 169 
 
 between the two camps, and it having been ascertained 
 that the enemy had fled in the greatest disorder 
 towards the Shatur-gardan Pass leading down to 
 Cabul, there was no prospect of further fighting. The 
 Afghans had abandoned all their guns, and even thrown 
 away a great quantity of muskets, in their rapid 
 retreats. Great stores of flour and other provisions 
 were discovered in the various villao-es and were 
 divided among the troops. 
 
 The winter was now setting in, and the Shatur- 
 gardan Pass might any moment be closed by deep 
 snow; there was therefore no prospect of a renewal 
 of hostilities before the spring. Preparations were 
 made for hutting a regiment on the top of the Khotal. 
 The rest of the force were to winter at Khuram. 
 General Ptoberts, with an escort of cavalry, rode to the 
 Shatur-gardan Pass, and assured himself that the 
 whole of the Afghan army had fled beyond this point. 
 
 The troops were for some time kept hard at work 
 lowering the captured guns and ammunition down to 
 the valley. A portion of the troops advanced as far 
 as Alikheyl, the principal town of the plateau. The 
 Jajis, the inhabitants of the country, had hitherto 
 been extremely hostile; but, cowed by the defeat of 
 the Afghans, they submitted without resistance. 
 
 On the 12th all the preparations for the return 
 were complete. It was known that there was another 
 pass from Alikheyl into the Khuram valley by the 
 south: this had never been explored by any European, 
 
170 THE SAPPIR DEFILE. 
 
 but General Roberts determined to return by it with 
 a portion of his force, as the pass might be found 
 valuable in future operations. The force detailed for 
 the march through the SajDpir defile was composed of 
 the 8th Ghoorkas, a wing of the 72d Highlanders, a 
 company of the Norfolk Rangers, the 23d Punjaub 
 Pioneers, and a mountain battery. 
 
 The country through which the march was to be 
 made was inhabited by the Mongals, a turbulent 
 robber tribe. The column marched at nine in the 
 morning, and after their down march arrived at the 
 village of Sappir at mid-day. The road lay down the 
 Hurriab river till the Khuram river was reached, and 
 then along the right bank, passing through the village 
 of Kermana, after which it turned up a narrow road 
 for two miles, till an open plateau was reached, at the 
 farther end of which stood the village of Sappir. It 
 was reported here that the Mongals intended to defend 
 a defile and hill pass two miles farther on. The 23d 
 Pioneers were therefore pushed on to occupy the pass 
 and bivouac there; the remainder of the troops camped 
 in the village. 
 
 No signs of the enemy were seen either by the 2od 
 Pioneers or in the vicinity of the camp. The troops 
 were to march at three in the morning and the tents 
 were struck an hour after midnight. The track up 
 the pass was excessively steep and very difficult for 
 the camels. The cold was bitter, and in places where 
 water had crossed the road there were slippery sur- 
 
THE MANJIAR PASS 171 
 
 faces of ice, which hindered the camels considerably, 
 and it was past eight o'clock before the rear-guard 
 arrived at the top of the pass. From a commanding 
 position overlooking the defile and surrounding waste 
 of rugged and barren mountains not an enemy could 
 be seen, and it was hoped that the report of the 
 intended attack was a false one. The trooj)s now 
 began to descend the defile, which was known as the 
 Manjiar Pass. Troublesome as the ascent had been, 
 the descent was infinitely more so; and it was with 
 difficulty that the camels could be made to go down 
 the deep and slippery roads. 
 
 The gorge was five miles in length. The track for 
 the first part ran through a deep ravine of perpen- 
 dicular walls, which narroAved in places to a few yards, 
 overhanging the path until they seemed to meet and 
 form a tunnel, through which it ran. Had an attack 
 been made on the column as it struggled with its 
 difficulties through this portion of the pass the result 
 would have been disastrous; for it would have been 
 impossible to place troops on the heights to cover the 
 advance. Here and there side ravines broke into the 
 road, in any of which ambushes might have been laid. 
 
 It was not, however, until the difficult part of the 
 road had been passed, and a comparatively open valley 
 reached, that any of the natives were seen. Then a 
 few men were observed on the heights, but as they 
 were supposed to be shepherds no notice was taken of 
 them. Believino^ that all dano-er of attack was now 
 
172 AN ATTACK ON THE COLUMN. 
 
 over, tlie general ordered all the troops, with the ex- 
 ception of the baggage guard, which was composed of 
 the Sd Ghoorkas, and a few of the 72d Highlanders 
 and Norfolk Rangers, to march forward to the camp, 
 which was to be pitched at a village called Keraiah in 
 the open valley. This, as the result proved, was a 
 very rash move. Before the head of the column had 
 extricated itself from the ravine numbers of the 
 country people were seen collecting in small detached 
 parties; by degrees they closed in, and were soon within 
 hfty yards of the convoy. 
 
 Captain Goad, in charge of the baggage, was close 
 to a small guard of 72d Highlanders, when suddenly 
 a volley was fired by the Mongals. Captain Goad fell, 
 his thigh-bone broken by a bullet. Sergeant Green, 
 with three privates of the 72d, picked him up, and 
 having placed him under cover of a rock, turned to 
 defend themselves. They Avere but four men against 
 a large number, but they stood steady; and, firing 
 with careful aim, and picking off" their man each time, 
 they kept the enemy at bay until help arrived. Sim- 
 ultaneously all along the line of the baggage column 
 the Mongals attacked. 
 
 From the heights on both sides a fire was kept up 
 while the more daring swept down in parties upon 
 the rear-guard of Ghoorkas commanded by Captain 
 Powell. The baggage-guard all behaved with great 
 steadiness, defending the path on both sides, while the 
 baggage animals continued their way along it. 
 
SAFE THROUGH THE DEFILE. 173 
 
 William Gale was on duty with the party, and was, 
 like the rest, busy with his rifle; a sergeant next to 
 him was hit in the leg, and Will, laying down his 
 rifle, stopped one of the camels, and assisted the 
 wounded man to mount it. The attack of the Mongals 
 became more furious as they saw their anticipated 
 prey escaping them in spite of all their efforts; but 
 their attempts to close were in vain, and the convoy 
 made its way down to the village with the loss of one 
 killed, and two officers and eight men wounded. Captain 
 Powell and Captain Goad both died from the effects of 
 their injuries. 
 
 The enemy's loss must have been considerable, as 
 the fire of the troop was steady and accurate, and the 
 distance small. After a halt for a day or two the 
 column marched to Khuram, where it encamped. 
 
 Captain Herbert had reported to the colonel the 
 manner in which Private Gale had defended him when 
 wounded and attacked by three Afghans; the incident, 
 too, had been observed by many of his comrades, and 
 as a reward the young soldier was promoted to the 
 rank of corporal; and the colonel told him that, had 
 not similar acts of bravery been performed in the 
 hand-to-hand action on the Spingawi-Khotal, he 
 would have been mentioned for the Victoria Cross. 
 
 The mountain tops were now deep in snow, but in 
 the valley the temperature was very agreeable, and 
 the troops enjoyed their rest much. This was not, 
 however, to be of lono- duration. From the lower end 
 
174 THE KHOST VALLEY. 
 
 of the Khuram valley, runs off another valley known 
 as the " Khost." This was an entkely unknown 
 country to the Europeans, but it was said to be ex- 
 tremely hostile. Parties had come down and carried 
 off cattle; and at any time a formidable raid might 
 have taken place, and our line of communication been 
 entirely cut. 
 
 The country was ruled by an Afghan governor, 
 who sent in to say that he was willing to hand it over 
 to us. There was, therefore, no expectation that 
 there would be any resistance; and the expedition 
 was designed rather to overawe the country and to 
 obtain information as to its extent and capabilities, 
 than with any idea of permanent occupation. The 
 column consisted of a squadron of the 10th Hussars, 
 the 5th Bengal Cavalry, the 21st and 28th Punjaub 
 Infantry, two mountain batteries, a wing of the 72d 
 Highlanders, and two companies of the Norfolk 
 Rangers. This force marched from Hazir-pir, and 
 halted for the night at Jaji-Midan at the head of tlie 
 valley leading to the Darwiza Pass, through which the 
 track runs into the Khost valley. 
 
 At eight o'clock next morning the troops moved 
 forward. The ground was difficult, for the road ran 
 between terraced fields on the side of the ravine, and 
 obliged men and animals to pass in single file, it was 
 not therefore until twelve o'clock that the rear-guard 
 moved out of the camp. Beyond this point the road 
 up the pass was not difficult; from the summit a wide 
 
ARRIVAL AT MATUN. 175 
 
 view was obtained. At the end of the valley, six 
 miles distant, the plain of the Khost country was seen. 
 It was seen that, owing to the slow progress the troops 
 were makino- the bao-o-ao-e-lrain, consistino- of 1000 
 camels, would not be able to reach the proposed 
 camping-ground at the lower end of the valley before 
 dark; the general, therefore, ordered it to halt at the 
 top of the pass, where the ground was open. The 21st 
 Punjaubees and a mountain battery were to stay 
 there for its protection, and bring it on next day. 
 The mules with the regimental baggage went on with 
 the troops. 
 
 The column met with no opposition. It halted 
 near the village of Bakh, half a mile from the 
 foot of the hills, where the valley widened into a 
 plain six miles long and four broad. The force en- 
 camped here on the 4th, to allow the convoy to come 
 up. The following morning the column marched to 
 the other end of the valley, and the next day the 
 Afghan governor of Matun, the chief place of the 
 Khost, rode in to welcome the general. 
 
 On the 6th of January the force marched to Matun. 
 They found that this fort was a square-walled in- 
 closure 100 yards each side, with circular corner 
 bastions. There was a central square inclosure with 
 round towers at its angles. As the fort was ap- 
 proached, its garrison, which consisted of 100 local 
 militia, were formed up in two lines at a mosque out- 
 side the fort. The general, with his staff, rode in, and 
 
176 THE MONGAL HORDES. 
 
 a long interview took place between him and the 
 governor. The troops encamped outside; in the even- 
 ing information came in from the villages in the 
 plain that large numbers of the Mongals, who inhabi- 
 ted the hills, were meditating an attack. Strong 
 pickets were posted, and the night passed quietly. In 
 the mornino: laro^e numbers of tribesmen flocked down 
 into the villages and gradually surrounded the camp. 
 At one o'clock the troops fell in. The cavalry were 
 sent out against the enemy in the north-west direction, 
 followed by the 28th Punjaubees and No. 2 mounted 
 battery. The Mongals at once fell back to the hills. 
 The squadron of the 10th Hussars were dismounted, 
 and ordered to skirmish up a small knoll to the west. 
 From this they drove the enemy, who gathered again 
 on a spur opposite. 
 
 Here they were charged by the 5th Punjaub Cav- 
 alry, and fell back higher up the ridge. The mountain 
 guns and infantry now arrived and speedily drove 
 them over the crest. General Roberts with his staflf 
 rode out to watch the skirmish; and, soon after he 
 had left, the enemy, who occupied the village to the 
 north-east, showed in force. Two of the mountain 
 guns opened upon them. On the south they now 
 approached, under the cover of the old Afghan cavalry 
 lines, to within half a mile before being perceived, and 
 also occupied a walled village there. The other two 
 guns in camp shelled the village, and soon drove the 
 enemy out. 
 
THE ATTACK REPULSED. 177 
 
 When the general returned to camp at half-past 
 two he found the attack driven off in all directions, 
 and ordered the 21st Punjaubees, the 7 2d Highlanders, 
 and the Norfolk Rangers to follow up the enemy to 
 the east and south-east with the mountain guns, and 
 to burn the villages which had sheltered the enemy. 
 The first village was found deserted; at another, a 
 quarter of a mile behind, the enemy made a stand, but 
 were shelled out, and the plain beyond the Matun 
 river was soon covered with fugitives. Major Stewart, 
 with forty men of the 5th Punjaub Cavalry who 
 accompanied the column, charged 400 of them and cut 
 down many, until checked by the heavy fire of match- 
 lock men from the high bank. 
 
 No more fighting took place. The combination of 
 tribes which had attacked the camp were estimated at 
 GOOO men. Eighty prisoners were taken. These, two 
 nights afterwards, took advantage of a night alarm to 
 attempt to escape, and attacked the guard. The 
 attempt, however, was frustrated, but only after 
 several of the prisoners had been shot down. Some 
 days passed quietly. Reconnaissances were made up 
 the valley. While waiting here the news of the 
 capture of Candahar by General Stewart arrived. 
 Parties of engineers surveyed the country, and all 
 passed oflf quietly. 
 
 On the 25th a portion of the force marched back to 
 Hazir-pir. On the 2Gth of January the general deter- 
 mined to withdraw this force altogether, as no advan- 
 
 ( 274 ) M 
 
178 CALLED BACK. 
 
 tage was gained by its retention, and the garrison 
 would be constantly exposed to the attacks of the 
 natives, who were already threatening it. The fort 
 was handed over to Sultan Jan, a man of good family, 
 who was appointed to govern the Khost temporarily. 
 He had under him the guard of the former governor, 
 and some fresh natives, being in all SOO men. The 
 head-men of the villages were called together, and 
 these promised to obey his rule. Some of the chiefs 
 of the Mono-als and other neighbourino- tribes came in ; 
 sheep were given to them, and they were told that, so 
 long as they desisted from interference in the valley, 
 no steps would be taken against them. 
 
 The troops, however, had only made one day's march 
 when a messenger arrived from Sultan Jan, saying 
 that immediately the troops had marched, the Mongals 
 had come down to attack the fort. A strong party 
 were therefore marched back at once. After destroy- 
 ing the stores and setting fire to the fort they drew oft' 
 the governor and marched back to camp, the Mongals, 
 although in great force, not venturing to offer any 
 resistance. On the return of the force to the Khuram 
 valley, a wing of the Norfolk Rangers was sent up to 
 reinforce the troops stationed on the top of the Peiwar- 
 Khotal, as the Jajis and Mongals had been gathering 
 in large numbers, and threatening an attack on that 
 post. 
 
 William Gale was with his company stationed at 
 Alikheyl. The enemy abstained from any open attack, 
 
A NIGHT PICKET. 179 
 
 but they often harassed the sentries. One night Will was 
 corj^oral in charge of a picket of eight men posted at a 
 hut half a mile from the village. The object of the 
 picket was to prevent any sudden attack being made 
 upon the company, who were in a small village a 
 (quarter of a mile in the rear where a large quantity of 
 grain was stored. Two men were posted as sentries 
 some hundred yards in advance of the hut. Will had 
 visited the sentry to the right, and finding all was well 
 here moved across to the left. 
 
 "Is everything quiet?" he asked the sentry. 
 
 " I don't know, corporal. Two or three times I have 
 thought that I heard noises, and twice I have chal- 
 lenged." 
 
 " What sort of noise?" 
 
 " Once it seemed to be a crack like a dried stick 
 when some one treads on it. The other time it was as 
 if a stone had been dislodged." 
 
 " I will wait with you," Will said. " Two pairs of 
 ears are better than one." 
 
 Ao'ain there was a slio'ht sound heard. 
 
 "I don't like to fire," Will said. "The alarm would 
 spread and the whole camp get under arms. There is 
 something moving, I am convinced, but it may be only 
 a stray bullock. I will go forward and see if I can 
 make it out, and do you stand ready to fire if I am at- 
 tacked. After doing so fall back on the picket at once. 
 If the enemy are in force hold the hut to the last. In 
 ten minutes you will have help from the village behind." 
 
180 AN AMBUSH. 
 
 Holding his rifle advanced, in readiness to fire, 
 William Gale made his way forward cautiously towards 
 the spot whence the noise seemed to proceed. When 
 he was some forty yards in advance of the sentry a 
 number of figures rose suddenly from some bushes and 
 fired. 
 
 Will fired, and saw the man at whom he aimed go 
 down; but at the same instant three or four guns 
 were discharged, and he fell to the ground shot through 
 the leg. There was a rush of men towards him. A 
 tulwar was waved and fell with a crushing blow on 
 his shoulder, and he became insensible. When he re- 
 covered consciousness he was being carried along, a 
 man holding his arms and another his legs. The pain 
 was excruciating, and he fainted again, after hearing, 
 during his brief period of consciousness, a sharp fusi- 
 lade of musketry, which told him that his comrades 
 were defending the hut against the enemy. When 
 again he came to his senses it was daylight. He was 
 lying in a small room, and an old woman was applying 
 bandages to the sword-cut on his shoulder. Although 
 he did not know it he was ten miles from the spot 
 where the attack had been made. Among those who 
 had taken part in it was the head of a small Jaji 
 village lying behind the hills. 
 
 This chief was a crafty old savage, who had been 
 desirous of remaining neutral in the strife. The de- 
 termination of his people to join in the attack by the 
 tribes had forced him to consent to their so doing. 
 
A PRISONER AMONG THE AFGHANS. 181 
 
 Before starting he had, however, made them swear that 
 any wounded men who fell into their hands should 
 not, in accordance with the Afghan custom, be in- 
 stantly despatched, but should be brought back to the 
 villao'e. His intention was to have some hostages. If 
 the English repulsed the attack and in the spring again 
 advanced he would be able to prove his good-will to 
 the cause by handing the soldiers whom he had pro- 
 tected over to them. 
 
 Upon the other hand, should the British fall back 
 and the Afghans advance in the spring, he could hand 
 the prisoners over to them, or send them down to Cabul 
 as a proof that his people had fought against the British. 
 He had himself accompanied his men, and seeing after 
 Will had fallen that he was still living, had at once 
 ordered two of his men to carry him off to the village. 
 
 The attack upon the guard-house proved unsuccess- 
 ful; the six soldiers defended themselves until the 
 company from the village behind came up to the rescue. 
 Several other attacks at various points took place. But 
 the British were on the alert, and the hillsmen, finding 
 that their enemies were not to be taken by surprise, 
 scattered again to the village. The ball had fortunately 
 passed through William Gale's leg without either break- 
 ing a bone or cutting an artery ; but the wound in the 
 shoulder was more serious, and the efiect of the strain 
 upon it in carrying him brought on violent inflamma- 
 tion; fever set in with delirium, and for weeks the lad 
 lay between life and death. 
 
182 WILL SENT TO CABUL. 
 
 The old woman who nursed him was, like most of her 
 country people, skilled in the treatment of wounds. The 
 bandages were kept bathed with water, snow was con- 
 stantly applied to his head, and a decoction of herbs 
 given him to drink. His good constitution was in his 
 favour, and at last he recovered his senses, to find him- 
 self convalescent, but as weak as an infant. In April 
 the snow melted, and the chief, having by this time 
 found that the English were not likely to advance 
 beyond Alikheyl, thought that it would best benefit 
 his interest to send his prisoner down to Cabul. 
 
 The Ameer was reported to be about to conclude 
 peace with the British, and the chief thought that he 
 was more likely to receive a reward from him for the 
 care he had bestowed upon the prisoner than from the 
 English. Moreover, it would have been difficult to send 
 him into the English camp through the hostile villages, 
 while no unfavourable comment would be incited by 
 his sending his prisoner down to Cabul. 
 
 Will Gale was far too weak to perform the journey 
 on foot, he was therefore placed on a camel. The chief 
 "himself and four of his head-men accompanied him as 
 an escort, and a week after the pass was open they 
 started up the valley to the Shatur-gardan, and thence 
 descended into the Logan Valley below on the way to 
 Cabul. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE ADVANCE UP THE KHYBER. 
 
 OTHING has yet been said of the doings 
 of the other columns, that under General 
 Browne advancing by theKhyber Pass upon 
 Jellalabad, that under General Stewart by the Bolan 
 Pass upon Candahar. General Browne's force had been 
 gathered at the frontier line at the mouth of the pass 
 awaiting the reply of the Ameer to the British ultima- 
 tum. Xone having been received up to the night of 
 the 20th of November, the advance took place in the 
 morning at the same hour at which General Roberts 
 advanced from Thull in the Khurum valley. 
 
 The principal defence of the Khyber Pass was the 
 fort Ali-Musjid. This fort stands on a most command- 
 ing position on a rock jutting out from the hillside 
 far into the valley, which its guns commanded. It 
 was flanked by batteries erected on the hillsides, and 
 was a most formidable position to capture. It was 
 situated about six miles up the valley. 
 
 The force under General Browne was divided into 
 four brigades. The first, under General Macpherson, 
 
184 THE BRITISH COLUMNS. 
 
 consisted of the 4th battalion of the Eifle Brigade, 
 the 20th Bengal Infantry, the 4th Ghoorkas, and a 
 mountain battery. These were ordered to take a 
 mountain road, and, led by a native guide, to make 
 a long circuit, and so to come down into the pass at a 
 village lying a mile or two beyond Ali-Musjid. 
 
 The second brigade, under Colonel Tytler, con.^ist- 
 ing of the 1st battalion of the 17th Foot, the infantry 
 of the Guides, the 1st Sikhs, and a mountain battery, 
 were also to take to the hills, and working along on 
 their crests to come down upon the batteries which the 
 Afghans had erected on the hillside opposite to Ali- 
 Musjid, 
 
 The third brigade, consisting of the 81st Kegiment, 
 the 14th Sikhs, and the 24th Native Infantry; and 
 the fourth brigade, composed of the 51st Regiment, 
 6th Native Infantry, and the 45th Sikhs, were to ad- 
 vance straight up the valley: with them was a moun- 
 tain battery, a battery of Horse Artillery, one of Royal 
 Artiller}^, and a battery of 40 -pounders drawn by 
 elephants. 
 
 These brigades marched forward until they reached 
 some rising ground in the valley, whence they could see 
 Ali-Musjid at a distance of a mile and a half in front 
 of them. The enemy at once opened fire. The gunners 
 in the fort had been practising for some weeks, and 
 had got the range with great accuracy, and their shot 
 and shell fell thick along the slope. The column was 
 therefore marched back behind its crest and there 
 
A PICTURESQUE SCENE. 185 
 
 halted; and the men were allowed to fall out and eat 
 their dinners, as it was desired that the flanking columns 
 of Macpherson and Ty tier, which had very much further 
 to go, should reach the positions assigned to them 
 before the attack beo-an. 
 
 The artillery, however, took up their position on the 
 crest, and opened fire on the fort. The effect of the 
 light guns was but slight, but the 40-pounders pro- 
 duced considerable effect on the face of the fort. After 
 a halt for some time the troops were ordered to advance. 
 The 45th Sikhs were first thrown out upon the hillside, 
 and, working their way along on the right of the valley, 
 opened a heavy musketry fire against the Afghans in 
 the batteries there. Presently the 51st and 6th Native 
 Infantry joined them; while the 81st, the 24th, and 
 14th Sikhs worked alonsc on the left. 
 
 The scene was one of the most picturesque ever wit- 
 nessed in warfare. From the fortress standing^ on the 
 perpendicular rock in the centre of the valley the flashes 
 of the great guns came fast and steadily, while the 
 edges of the rock and fort were fringed with tiny puffs 
 of musketry. From the rising ground in the valley 
 the smoke of the British guns rose up in the still air, 
 as, steadily and fast, they replied to the fire of the 
 fort. Both sides of the steep hill slopes were lined 
 with British infantry, the quick flash of the rifles 
 spurting out from every rock and bush; while con- 
 tinuous lines of lioht smoke rose from the Afo-han en- 
 trenchments which faced them. Gradually the British 
 
186 A TOILSOME MARCH. 
 
 skirmishers advanced until they were close to the 
 Afghan entrenchments on the hillsides abreast of the 
 fort. 
 
 So far there was no sign that Macpherson's brigade 
 had reached the post assigned to it high up on the 
 hill, or that Tytler had worked round to the village in 
 the enemy's rear. Some attacks which were made upon 
 the Afghans were repulsed with loss. Major Birch and 
 Lieutenant Fitzgerald were killed and Captain Maclean 
 wounded, and between thirty and forty of the rank 
 and file were killed or wounded. As the fort and its 
 defences could not have been carried by direct attack 
 without immense loss of life, it was determined to 
 cease operations until morning in order to give the 
 flanking columns time to reach tlie positions assigned 
 to them; a winof of a resjiment from each briojade was 
 ordered to remain on the hillside facing the Afghan 
 entrenchments; the rest of the troops fell back a 
 short distance and lay down as they were for the 
 night. 
 
 In the meantime the brigades of Macpherson and 
 Tytler had encountered enormous difficulties on the 
 line of march. The roads they had taken were mere 
 tracks, and there were many places where it was 
 almost impossible to get the mountain guns along. 
 From daybreak until late at night the troops laboured 
 unceasingly. They knew by the dull roar echoed and 
 re-echoed among the mountains that their comrades 
 below were engaged; and the thought that a failure 
 
THE POSITION TURNED. 187 
 
 might ensue, o^Ying to their absence from the contest, 
 nerved them to continued exertions. 
 
 Late at night, however, Macpherson with his brigade 
 arrived on the top of the hill facing Ali-Musjid, and 
 Tytler with his column came down into the Khyber 
 valley in rear of the fort. But, though unopposed, their 
 march had not been unnoticed, and late in the evening 
 the news reached the Afghans that the British were 
 marching down into the valley behind them. A wild 
 panic instantly seized them. Clothes, ammunition, 
 guns, everything that could impede their flight, were 
 thrown away, and the garrison of Ali-Musjid and the 
 Afghans in the hillside entrenchments fled, a herd of 
 frightened fugitives, up the valley. 
 
 Hasty as was their retreat they were not in time. 
 Tytler with his column debouched into the valley before 
 they had passed the spot where the mountain path 
 descended into it, and large numbers were taken pris- 
 oners. As at the Peiwar-Khotal, the Afghans proved 
 themselves capable of defending a strong position 
 valiantly, but were converted into a mob of panic- 
 stricken fugitives by their line of retreat being threat- 
 ened. 
 
 A European army under like circumstances would 
 have fallen back in good order. Their force was amply 
 suflScient to have swept aside the little column which 
 barred their retreat, and they would have occupied a 
 fresh position farther to the rear and renewed the con- 
 flict. Not so the Afghans. The capture of Ali-Musjid 
 
188 WINTER QUARTERS. 
 
 brouo'ht with it the entire demoralization of the Aforhan 
 army, which a few hours before had been fully confi- 
 dent in its power to repulse any attack which might 
 be made upon it. 
 
 The British continued their advance, passed through 
 the Khyber Pass, and entered the broad valley near 
 whose head stands the town of Jellalabad. Beyond 
 a few shots fired at them by tribesmen high up on 
 the mountain side they experienced no opposition 
 whatever, and a week after the fight in the Khyber 
 entered Jellalabad and encamped around it. Further 
 than this it was not intended to go for the present. 
 Winter was now close at hand. Between Jellalabad 
 and Cabul were a series of most difficult passes; an 
 army advancing up them would have immense diffi- 
 culty to encounter, and might find itself cut off" from 
 India by the snoAvs. 
 
 In the Jellalabad valley the weather is mild, large 
 stores of provisions were obtainable, and here it was 
 determined to remain through the winter, and to re- 
 commence the campaign in the spring with the advan- 
 tage of the Khyber Pass, one of the keys of Afghan- 
 istan, being in our hands. But a day or two after 
 reaching Jellalabad, having defeated and dispersed one 
 of the two Afghan armies, the news arrived of the 
 capture of the Peiwar-Khotal,the second key of Afghan- 
 istan, and the utter rout of the army defending it. 
 Thus, in little more than a week after the commence- 
 ment of the campaign, Sheer- Ali, the Ameer, saw the 
 
SHEER- ALIS POSITION. 189 
 
 entire overthrow of the army which he had for so 
 many years been occupied in organizing and training. 
 
 The positions which he had deemed impregnable had 
 both been taken after a single day's fighting, and his 
 capital lay virtually at the mercy of his conquerors. In 
 one short week his hopes and plans had been scattered 
 to the winds. Sheer-Ali was not wholly to be blamed. 
 He had for many years received an annual present of 
 money and arms from the British government; but 
 upon the other hand he saw Russia marching with giant 
 steps towards his northern frontier, and contrasting the 
 energy and enterprise of the great northern power with 
 the inactivity which ho may have supposed to prevail 
 among the men who governed England, he became 
 more and more anxious, and asked the English de- 
 finitely to state whether he could rely upon them for 
 assistance should he be attacked by the Russians. 
 
 He received a reply from the Duke of Argyle, the 
 British minister for India, of a doubtful nature, couched 
 in terms which seem to have aroused his resentment. 
 From this moment there can be no doubt that the 
 Ameer's course was decided upon. He was between the 
 hammer and the anvil, and as he could obtain no 
 guarantee of assistance from England he determined 
 to throw himself into the arms of Russia. 
 
 Letters were exchanged between him and General 
 Kaufmann, the Russian viceroy in Turkestan, and the 
 latter gave him the warmest promises of support if he 
 would ally himself with Russia. 
 
190 A FATAL MISCALCULATION. 
 
 Although he had for jea^rs declined to accept a Bri- 
 tish resident at Cabul or to allow Englishmen to enter 
 the country, he now, believing in the power and willing- 
 ness of Russia to help, received the visit of a Russian 
 general and staff at Cabul. 
 
 Unfortunately for the Ameer the government of 
 England had now changed hands, and the ministry 
 at once sent to Sheer-Ali to demand that he should 
 receive a British resident. It was late in the year, 
 and the Ameer, acting no doubt on the advice of his 
 Russian friends, sought to gain time by evasive 
 answers. The British government, who saw through 
 the ruse, ordered the envoy to advance with a strong- 
 escort. This obliged the Ameer to come to a final 
 decision, and the die was cast by the escort being 
 stopped by force on its arrival at Ali-Musjid. 
 
 There is no doubt that the Ameer and his friends 
 calculated that it was already too late in the season 
 for the English to gather a sufficient force on the 
 frontier to force the passes held by the Afghan army 
 before the snows. The promptness of action of the 
 English government, the valour of their troops, and 
 the unusually late setting in of the winter combined 
 to overthrow the Ameer's plans. Had the campaign 
 been delayed till the spring there can be little doubt 
 that the British in their advance would have found 
 themselves opposed, if not by a Russian army, at least 
 by an army led and officered by Russians, with Russian 
 engineers and artillerymen. The promptness of their 
 
THE DEATH OF THE AMEER. 191 
 
 advance, and the capture of the passes and the disper- 
 sion of tiie Afghan armies within a week of the open- 
 ing of the campaign, altogether altered this position. 
 
 Sheer-Ali found himself a king without an army. 
 The plains of Cabul were thronged with the panic- 
 stricken fugitives from the Khyber and Peiwar, and 
 Sheer-Ali started at night from his capital with his 
 Russian friends and made for the north, sending letter 
 after letter ahead of him to General Kaufmann im- 
 ploring the promised aid of Russia. The rapid course 
 of events, however, had entirely disconcerted the Rus- 
 sian plans. 
 
 In the spring a Russian army might have advanced 
 and co-operated with that of the Ameer,.but the winter 
 had set in, the distance was immense, and the Russians 
 unprepared for instant action. The appeals of the 
 unfortunate prince were responded to with vague gen- 
 eralities. He was no longer a powerful ally, but a 
 broken instrument; and heart-broken with disappoint- 
 ment and failure the unfortunate Sheer-Ali was seized 
 by fever and died in an obscure village almost alone 
 and wholly uncared for. His son Yakoob Khan, who 
 had in his youth proved himself a brave and able 
 soldier, but who having incurred his father's displea- 
 sure had been for years confined as a prisoner at Herat, 
 was now liberated and took his place as his father's 
 successor. He saw at once that with a broken and 
 disorganized army he could not hope to resist the 
 advance of the three British armies which, coming 
 
192 THE SIGNATURE OF PEACE. 
 
 from Jellalabad, from the heights of the Shatur-Gardan, 
 and from Candahar, would simultaneously advance 
 upon his capital as soon as the snows melted. 
 
 He therefore opened negotiations, and early in May 
 himself descended from Cabul and had an interview 
 with General Browne at Gundamuk, wdien the pre- 
 liminaries of peace were arranged and signed. The 
 terms insisted upon by the British were not onerous. 
 Yakoob was recoQ-nized as the Ameer of Afohanistan, 
 the annual subsidy paid to his father was to be con- 
 tinued. The Khyber Pass and the Khurum valley as 
 far as the Peiwar-Khotal were to remain in the hands 
 of the British, and a British minister was to be stationed 
 at Cabul. When peace had been signed the greater 
 portion of the British army retired to India, and the 
 Khurum column, leaving two or three regiments in 
 that valley, also fell back. 
 
 While the first and second divisions had been gain- 
 ing victories in the Khyber and Khurum valleys, the 
 column under General Stewart had met w^ith difficulties 
 of another kind. 
 
 Between the Indus and the foot of the range of 
 mountains through which the Bolan Pass leads to 
 the lofty plateau land above, a great waste of sand 
 stretches. In the wet season this tract of country is 
 overflowed by the Indus, in the dry season it is a 
 parched and bare desert with its wells few and far 
 apart. There were great difiiculties met with in cross- 
 ing this inhospitable plain, and the losses among the 
 
A TERRIBLE PASS. 193 
 
 bagcrage animals were oTeat; but the labours up to 
 this point were as nothing to those which had to be 
 undergone on the way up the Bolan Pass. 
 
 This pass, whose ascent occupies three days, is in 
 fact the mere bed of a stream, covered deeply with 
 boulders and stones of all sizes, in which the baggage 
 and artillery horses sank fetlock deep. The difficulties 
 encountered were enormous, and vast numbers of 
 camels, horses, and bullocks died by the way. Even 
 with a double complement of horses it was almost im- 
 possible to drag the guns up the deep shingly pass, 
 and great delays were experienced before the force in- 
 tended for operations against Candahar were assembled 
 at Quettah. So far the advance had taken place 
 through British territory, as Quettah has long been 
 occupied by us. 
 
 When the advance began it was rapid. No opposi- 
 tion was experienced by the way until the column 
 arrived within a few hours' march of Candahar, and 
 then the enemy's attack was feeble and easily repulsed. 
 On the 9th of January General Stewart entered the city. 
 
 Candahar, though not the capital, is the chief town 
 of Afghanistan; it stands in a slightly undulating 
 plain, and was at one time a city of great importance 
 and wealth. Its position is the most imj)ortant in 
 Afghanistan. It bars the road to an enemy advancing 
 from the north through Herat, and threatens the flank 
 and rear of one advancing against India through Cabul. 
 
 The country around is extremely fertile, and were 
 
 (274) N 
 
194 CANDAHAR. 
 
 irrigation properly used and a railway constructed to 
 India, Candahar and the surrounding country would 
 again become one of the gardens of the world. The 
 authorities of the city made their submission as the 
 column approached it, and the army settled down to 
 quiet occupation, broken only by isolated attacks upon 
 individual soldiers by fanatical Ghazis. 
 
 When peace was concluded one of the conditions 
 distinctly insisted upon by the British general and 
 agreed to by the Ameer was that Candahar should 
 remain in our possession. The alleged advantage thus 
 gained, and the territory thus acquired, were after- 
 wards abandoned by the British government succeed- 
 ing that which had so vigorously carried out the war. 
 The occupation of Candahar by the British had been 
 insisted on at first, on the ground that if Russia should 
 make an advance against India the British nation 
 would have ample cause to rue the cession of Candahar, 
 for it was declared that with this city strongly fortified 
 and surrounded by outlying works 10,000 British 
 troops there could arrest the progress of an invading 
 army however large, until England had had full time 
 to put forth all her strength and to assemble an army 
 amply sufficient to secure the safety of the most valu- 
 able of our possessions — the empire of India. 
 
 It was said that whatever allies Russia might have 
 prepared for herself by intrigues among the princes of 
 India, these would not think of moving so long as they 
 knew that the fortress of Candahar remained as a 
 
CHANGE OF POLICY. 195 
 
 British l3ulwark aoainst an invadino^ force. It was re- 
 presented that so long as this place held out England 
 would be able to devote her whole force towards re- 
 pelling the foreign invader, instead of being obliged 
 simultaneously to oppose him and to put down a for- 
 midable rising in India itself. It was, however, not 
 the universal opinion that the best policy of England 
 was to occupy this territory by an armed force, and 
 subsequent events, with the change of government in 
 England, led to a different determination. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE MASSACRE AT CABUL. 
 
 T each villao-e throuo-li which William Gale 
 and his escort passed the inhabitants 
 turned out and hooted and yelled at the 
 prisoner, and it was with the greatest difficulty that the 
 chief protected him from personal violence. William 
 himself was scarce conscious of what was passing. The 
 swino'inof action of the camel added to his OTeat weak- 
 ness, and he would not have been able to keep his seat 
 on its back had not his captors fastened him with 
 ropes to the saddle. Although the snow had only just 
 melted on the Shatur-Gardan Pass, in the valleys below 
 the heat of the sun was already great, and often as it 
 poured down upon him he lapsed into a state of semi- 
 consciousness and drowsily fancied that he was again 
 in his canoe tossing on the tiny waves in the shelter of 
 the reef. 
 
 On the sixth day after the start a shout from his 
 guard aroused him as they emerged from a steep ascent 
 amongst some hills. Before him an undulating ground 
 dotted with villacres stretched for three or four miles. 
 
WILLIAM GALE IX THE HANDS OF THE AFGHANS, 
 
A PRISONER AT CABUL. 197 
 
 At the foot of some steep hills to the left of a wide 
 valley was a large walled town which he knew to be 
 Cabul. 
 
 On the hillside above it was a strono- buildino- half 
 fort, half palace. This was the Bala-Hissar, the abode 
 of the Ameer, and the fortress of Cabul. In addition 
 to the king's residence it contained barracks, store- 
 houses, magazines, and many residences. Towards this 
 the cavalcade made its way. 
 
 They halted two miles from the town, and the chief 
 sent his son forward to the Ameer to inform him that 
 he had brought in an English prisoner, and to request 
 that an escort might be sent out lest he should be 
 killed by the peoj)le on approaching the town. An 
 hour after the man had left, a troop of cavalry sallied 
 out from the gate of the Bala-Hissar and rode rapidly 
 to the spot where the party had halted. Surrounding 
 the camel on w^hich William Gale was mounted, they 
 conducted it to the fortress. 
 
 When he was lifted down from his camel Will was 
 unable to stand. Fever had set in again, and he was 
 conveyed to an apartment in a house near the royal 
 residence. The Ameer was already negotiating with 
 the British, and orders were consequently given that 
 the prisoner should receive every attention. The king's 
 own doctor was ordered to attend him, and two atten- 
 dants were told off to take charge of him. The old 
 chief received a recompense for the care which he had 
 taken of the prisoner, which fully answered to his 
 
198 A FAITHFUL ATTENDANT. 
 
 expectations, and he returned home well satisfied with 
 the success of his policy. 
 
 For weeks Will lay between life and death, and he was 
 a mere skeleton when, two months after his arrival, he 
 was able for the first time to sit up at the window and 
 look across the valley. Very gradually he recovered 
 strength. He was well supplied with food, and espe- 
 cially enjoyed the delicious fruits for which Cabul is 
 celebrated. His attendants were an old man and his 
 son, the latter a lad of some fifteen years of age. The 
 father did his duty because ordered to do so, but his 
 scowlino' face often showed the hatred which he felt 
 of the Kaffir. The lad, however, took kindly to his 
 patient. He it was who for hours together would, while 
 Will was at his worst, sit by his bedside constantly 
 changing the wet cloths wrapped round his head, and 
 sometimes squeezing a few drops of the refreshing- 
 juice of some fruit between his parched lips; and as 
 his patient turned the corner and became slowly con- 
 valescent his pleasure over the life he had saved by his 
 care was very great. 
 
 Like most soldiers in the expeditionary force Will 
 had picked up a few words of Afghan, and had greatly 
 increased his stock during the time he lay in the hut 
 in the mountains. Alone now all day with the boy, 
 with nothins: to do but to look out on the town below 
 and the wide valley beyond, he made rapid progress, 
 and was, by the time he was strong enough to walk 
 alone across the room, able to hold some sort of con- 
 
THE BRITISH MISSION. 199 
 
 versation with his friend; for so he had come to regard 
 his devoted attendant. One morning the boy came 
 into the room in a state of great excitement. 
 
 " Enghsh officers are coming," he said, " with sol- 
 diers." 
 
 "But I thought it was peace," Will exclaimed de- 
 lighted; " you told me peace had been signed at Gunda- 
 muk two months ago." 
 
 "Yes, it is peace," the boy said; "the officers are 
 coming in friendship to be here with the Ameer." 
 
 Will was greatly moved at the news. When he had 
 heard, six weeks before, that peace w^as signed he had 
 begun to hope that some day or other he should again 
 be able to return to India, but the news that some of his 
 countrymen were close at hand almost overcame him. 
 The next day, wdiich was the 24th of July — although 
 Will had lost all account of time — he saw vast numbers 
 of people out on the plain, and presently far away he 
 lieheld a large body of horsemen. These, the lad told 
 him, were the Ameer and his body-guard accompanied 
 by the English officers. 
 
 Cannon were fired in salute, and the garrison of the 
 Bala-Hissar stood to their arms, and presently Will 
 saw a cavalcade riding up from the gate of the for- 
 tress. First came some Afghan cavalry, then rode a 
 tall and stately man w^hom the boy told him was the 
 Ameer. But Will had no eyes for him; all his thoughts 
 were centred on the white officer who rode beside him, 
 Major Sir Lewis Cavagnari, the English envoy. Behind, 
 
200 MAJOR CAVAGNARI. 
 
 amonof the chiefs of the Ameer's suite, rode two or three 
 other Eno'lish officers, and then came a detachment of 
 some twenty -five cavahy and fifty infantry of the 
 Guides, a frontier force consisting of picked men. 
 
 As they passed near his window Will stood up with 
 his hand to his forehead in salute. Major Cavagnari 
 looked up in surprise and spoke to the Ameer. The 
 latter said a few words in reply, and then the caval- 
 cade rode on to the palace. Ten minutes later two of 
 the Ameer's attendants entered and told Will to follow 
 them. 
 
 He had that morning, for the first time since his 
 arrival in Cabul, put on his uniform. He was still 
 very weak, but, leaning one hand upon his attendant's 
 shoulder, he followed the messengers. He was con- 
 ducted to a large room in the palace, where the Ameer 
 and his adviser and the British officers were sitting. 
 
 "Well, my lad," Major Cavagnari said kindly, "I 
 hear you have had a bad time of it. The Ameer tells 
 me that you were taken prisoner near Ali-Kheyl, that 
 you were badly wounded, and that after the snow 
 melted you were brought down here. He says he gave 
 orders that everything should be done for you, but that 
 you have been very ill ever since." 
 
 "I have been treated very kindly, sir," Will said, 
 " and I am now getting round. I owe my life chiefly 
 to the care and attention of the lad here, who has 
 watched over me like a brother." 
 
 Will's words were translated to the Ameer, who ex- 
 
AMONG FRIENDS. 201 
 
 pressed his satisfaction, and ordered a purse of money 
 to be given to the boy in testimony of his approval of 
 the care he had taken of his patient. As Major Cava- 
 g-nari saw that the young soldier was almost too weak 
 to stand he at once told him to retire to his room, 
 adding kindly: 
 
 " I will ask the Ameer to assign you quarters in the 
 same house with us; we will soon bring you round 
 and make you strong and well again." 
 
 The same evening Will was carried over — for the 
 fatigue he had undergone had been almost too much 
 for him — to the large house assigned to Major Cava- 
 gnari, his officers and escort. It was built of wood, 
 surrounded by a court-yard and wall. A room was 
 assigned to Will on the same floor as that occupied 
 by the officers. The Afghan lad had received orders 
 to accompany his patient and remain with him as long- 
 as he stayed in Cabul. 
 
 Will's progress towards recovery was now rapid. He 
 had no longer any cause for anxiety. He was care- 
 fully attended to by Dr. Kelly, the surgeon of the 
 Guides, who had accompanied the mission as medical 
 officer. The escort was commanded by Lieut. Hamil- 
 ton, and Sir Lewis Cavagnari was accompanied by Mr. 
 William Jenkyns of the Indian Civil Service as his 
 secretary. The care of Dr. Kelly and the influence of 
 quinine and tonics quickly added to Will's strength, 
 but his best medicine was the sound of English voices 
 and the kindness which was shown to him. 
 
202 TJIE HERATEE REGIMENT. 
 
 In a fortniofht he was able to ejet about as usual, and 
 the doctor said that in another month he would be as 
 strong as ever. For two or three weeks after Major 
 Cavagnari's arrival in Cabul all went well; and it 
 appeared as if the forebodings of those who had pre- 
 dicted trouble and danger to the little body who had 
 gone up, as it were, into the lion's den, were likely 
 to be falsified. That the mission was not without 
 danger the authorities and Major Cavagnari himself 
 were well aware; but it was important that the pro- 
 vision in the treaty of Gundamuk by which England 
 secured the right of maintaining a resident at Cabul 
 should be put into operation; besides, the Ameer had 
 himself given the invitation to Major Cavagnari, and 
 had pressed the point warmly, giving the most solemn 
 promises of protection. At any rate for the first two 
 weeks the soldiers of the escort moved freely in the 
 city without molestation or insult, and it appeared as 
 if the population of Cabul were content with the terms 
 of peace, which indeed imposed no burdens whatever 
 upon them, and was supposed to have inflicted no 
 humiliation on their national pride. 
 
 On the 5th of August several regiments marched in 
 from Herat. These troops, which were considered the 
 flower of the Afghan army, had, in consequence of the 
 distance of Herat from the seat of war, taken no part 
 whatever in the struggle. Upon the very day after 
 their arrival they scattered through the town, and were 
 loud in their expression of hostility to the terms of 
 
COMING TROUBLES. 203 
 
 peace. Had they been there, they said, the Kaffirs 
 would have been easily defeated. Why should peace 
 have been made at the very first reverse, and before 
 the best fio-htino- men had come to the front ? 
 
 That evenins: Will Gale's youno- attendant came to 
 him in his room looking very serious. 
 
 "What is the matter, Yossouf?" 
 
 The lad shook his head. " Trouble is coming," he 
 said. "The Heratee men are stirring up the people, 
 and the Budmashes are threatenino- that they will kill 
 the English." 
 
 " But the Ameer has promised his protection," Will 
 said ; " he has sworn a solemn oath to stand by them." 
 
 "Yakoob Khan is weak," the boy said; "he was 
 a great warrior once, but he has been in prison for 
 many years and he is no longer firm and strong. 
 Some of the men round him are bad advisers. Yakoob 
 Khan is no better than a reed to lean upon." 
 
 The next day there were riots in the town. The 
 Heratee men taunted the people of Cabul with cowar- 
 dice, and the excitement spread in the city. The 
 soldiers of the escort could no longer stroll quietly 
 through the bazaars, but were hooted at and abused, 
 although of the same religion and race as the people 
 around them — for the Guide regiments were recruited 
 from Pathans and other border tribes. Day after day 
 the position became more threatening. The men of 
 the escort were ordered no longer to go down into the 
 town, where their presence was the occasion of tumults. 
 
204 THE DANGER INCREASES. 
 
 A native officer of one of our cavalry regiments who 
 was spending his furlough at a village near Cabul 
 came into the Bala-Hissar and told Major Cavagnari 
 that he feared, from rumours that reached him, that 
 the Heratee regiments would break into mutiny and 
 attack the embassy. The officer, who was a man of 
 immense courage and coolness, replied quietly: 
 
 " If they do, they can but kill the three or four of 
 us here, and our deaths will be revenged." 
 
 He, however, made representations to the Ameer as 
 to the threatening behaviour of the Heratee troops; 
 but Yakoob assured him that he could rely thoroughly 
 upon his protection, and that even should the Heratee 
 troops break out in mutiny he would at once suppress 
 the movement with the Cabul regiments. Yossouf 
 became daily more anxious. Going into the town to 
 buy fruits and other necessaries he heard more of what 
 was going on than could the members of the embassy. 
 
 " Things are very bad," he said over and over again. 
 "It would be better for you all to go away. Why does 
 your officer stop here to be killed?" 
 
 " It is his duty to stay at his post," Will said. " He 
 has been sent here by the commander-in-chief. He is 
 like a soldier on outpost duty, he cannot desert his post 
 because he sees danger a.pproaching; but I wish with 
 all my heart that an order would come for his recall, 
 not only because of the danger, but because I am 
 longing to be back again with my regiment; and 
 althouo-h I am stronor enouo^h to ride down to the Pun- 
 
 C3 O O 
 
WILL gale's position. 205 
 
 jaub now, I cannot go except with Sir Lewis and his 
 escort. Although it is peace a single Englishman could 
 not travel down to Jellalabad through the passes." 
 
 Will had from the first week after the arrival of the 
 mission fallen into the position of an orderly-room 
 sergeant. His duties were little more than nominal, 
 but he acted as assistant to Mr. Jenkyns, and made 
 copies and duplicates of reports and other documents 
 which were from time to time sent down to Jellalabad. 
 Being the only Englishman there with the exception 
 of the four officers, these greatly relaxed the usual dis- 
 tance prevailing between an officer and a corporal, and 
 treated him as a civilian clerk when in office, and with 
 a pleasant cordiality at other times. Except, indeed, 
 that he messed alone and kept in his own room of an 
 evening, he might have been one of the party. Each 
 day he reported to Sir Lewis the rumours which 
 Yossouf had gathered in the town. In his reports to 
 headquarters Major Cavagnari stated that trouble 
 had arisen from the conduct of the Heratee troops, but 
 he scarcely made enough of the real danger which 
 threatened the little party. Had he done so, the 
 embassy would probably have been recalled. 
 
 "What have you got there, Yossouf?" Will asked 
 one day when his follower returned with a larger 
 bundle than usual. 
 
 " I have brouo'ht the uniform of an Af Mian soldier," 
 the boy replied, " which I have purchased from the 
 bazaar; it is for you. I am sure that soon you will be 
 
206 yossouf's anxiety. 
 
 a^ttacked. The English are brave, but there are only 
 four of them. Their soldiers will fight, but what can 
 they do against an army? When the time comes you 
 must dress yourself in these clothes and I will try to 
 conceal you." 
 
 " But I cannot do that, Yossouf," AYill said. " It is 
 very good of you to try and aid me to escape; but I 
 am a soldier, and must share the fortunes of my officers 
 whatever they may be. If they fight I shall fight. 
 If they are killed I must be killed too. I cannot run 
 away and hide myself when the danger comes." 
 
 The lad hung his head. 
 
 "Then Yossouf will die too," he said quietly; "he 
 will not leave his white friend." 
 
 "No, no, Yossouf," Will said warmly; "you have 
 nothing to do with the business. Why should you 
 involve yourself in our fate? You can do me no good 
 by sacrificing your life." 
 
 Yossouf shook his head. 
 
 "If," he said presently, "the time comes, and you 
 see that it is of no use any longer to fight, and that 
 all is lost, would you try to escape then?" 
 
 "Yes," Will said, "certainly I would. When all 
 hope of further resistance is gone, and fighting is use- 
 less, my duty would be at an end, and if I could manage 
 to escape then I should be justified in trying to save 
 my life." 
 
 Yossouf looked relieved. "Very well," he said, "then 
 at the last I will try and save you." 
 
A WARNING. 207 
 
 " Still, Yossouf," Will said, " we must hope that it i^ 
 not coming to that. The Ameer has sworn to protect 
 ns, and he can do so. The Bala-Hissar is strong, and 
 he can easily hold it with one or two of his Cabul 
 reo'iments ao-ainst the Heratee men. He has three or 
 four of these regiments here. He cannot be so false 
 to his oath as to allow his guests to be massacred." 
 
 Yossouf made a gesture which expressed his utter 
 disbelief in the Ameer, and then again went about his 
 duties. On the 2d of September, on his return from 
 the town, he reported that there was great excitement 
 among the people, and that he believed that the night 
 would not pass off without trouble. ^lajor Cavagnari, 
 to whom Will reported the news, sent in a message to 
 the Ameer, whose palace was within two or three 
 hundred yards, and begged him to take measures to 
 secure the Bala-Hissar against any attack by the 
 Heratees. 
 
 The members of the escort available for the defence 
 of the residency were but about fifty men. Most of the 
 cavalry were away; some were down the pass with 
 despatches, the rest were stationed a short distance off 
 in the plain, as forage was difficult to obtain in the fort. 
 The Ameer returned a curt message to Major Cava- 
 gnari, saying that there was no cause for uneasiness. 
 The latter, however, doubled the sentries at the gate of 
 the little inclosure. 
 
 Just as the officers were about to retire to rest 
 Yossouf, who had a short time before gone out again, 
 
208 THE ATTACK ON THE MISSION. 
 
 telling Will that he would bring back news of what 
 was fi^oino^ on, ran in. 
 
 " The Heratees are coming," he said. " The gates of 
 the fort have been left open. The Cabul men are all 
 in their barracks. They are pouring in at the gates; 
 do you not hear them?" 
 
 William Gale ran to the window, and could hear a 
 loud and confused noise of yelling and shouting. He 
 ran in to the envoy's room and warned him that the 
 Heratees were at hand. Without the loss of a moment's 
 time Lieutenant Hamilton got his men under arms, 
 and posted them at the upper windows of the house, 
 where their fire would command the approaches to the 
 gate. Quickly as this was done the Afghans were close 
 at hand by the time that each man was at his post, 
 and instantly opened a scattering fire at the residency, 
 shouting to the soldiers to come out and join them, and 
 to bring out the Kaffir officers to be killed. The 
 Pathans were, however, true to their salt, and in reply 
 opened a steady fire upon the mass of the enemy. With 
 wild 3'ells the Afghans rushed at the gate, but so 
 steadily and rapidly did the defenders shoot from the 
 upper windows and loopholes cut in the gate that the 
 assailants were forced to fall back. 
 
 " That's right, my lads," Major Cavagnari said cheer- 
 fully to his men; "we can hold the place for some 
 time, and the Ameer will brinof the Cabul reoiments 
 down in no time and sweep away these rascals." 
 
 The Af ohans, now some thousands strono-^ assisted by 
 
A DESPERATE RESISTANCE. 209 
 
 all the Budmashes and turbulent portion of the popu- 
 lation of Cabul, surrounded the house on all sides, and 
 kept up a heavy and incessant fire, which was coolly 
 and steadily returned by the Guides. After an hour's 
 fighting there was a sudden roar above the rattle of 
 musketry, followed by another and another. Simul- 
 taneously came the crash of shells. One burst in the 
 house, the other tore through the gate. Still there was 
 no siofn of the Cabul reo-iments. 
 
 Eight or ten guns were brought to play on the little 
 garrison. The gate was broken down, and nearly half 
 the force of the house were already killed or wounded 
 by the musketry and shell fire. Still they continued 
 the defence. Over and over again the Afghans swarmed 
 up close to the gate, only to fall back again before the 
 steady fire of the Snider rifles of the Guides. Major 
 Cavagnari went from room to room encouraging the 
 men, while the other officers and AYill Gale, taking- 
 rifles which had fallen from the hands of men no longer 
 able to use them, set an example of cool and steady 
 firing to their men. 
 
 For four hours the unequal contest continued; then 
 a cry arose from the men that the house was on fire. 
 
 It was but too true. A shell had exploded in the 
 lower part of the house and had ignited the woodwork, 
 and the fire had already obtained so firm a hold that it 
 was impossible to extinguish it. A few of the men 
 continued their fire from the windows to the last, while 
 the rest carried their wounded comrades out into the 
 
 (274) 
 
210 A LAST STRUGGLE. 
 
 court-yard. As the flames shot out from the lower 
 windows the yells of the Afghans rose higher and 
 higher, and a fearful storm of lead and iron swept 
 down upon the little band, who were now plainly visible 
 in the light of the flames. Even now the enemy did not 
 dare, although numbering hundreds to one, to come too 
 close upon them, though they flocked up close to the 
 gate. 
 
 "Now, lads!" Major Cavagnari exclaimed, "let us 
 rush out and die fighting hand to hand; better that 
 than to be shot down defenceless here." 
 
 Thus saying he led the way, and charged out upon the 
 crowded foe. There were but Lieutenant Hamilton and 
 eio'ht men to follow him, all the rest had fallen. Dr. 
 Kelly had been shot in the house while dressing the 
 wound of one of the soldiers. Mr. Jenkyns had fallen 
 outside. Will Gale had twice been wounded, but was 
 still on his feet, and, grasping his musket, he rushed 
 forward with his comrades. A figure sprang out just 
 as he reached the gate, and with a sudden rush carried 
 him along for some paces. Then he stumbled over a 
 fragment of the wall, and fell just at the corner of the 
 gate, which had swung inward when burst open by the 
 enemy's shell. Confused and bewildered he struggled 
 to regain his feet. 
 
 "Keep quiet, master!" Yossouf's voice said in his 
 ear. " It is your only chance of safety." 
 
 So saying he dragged Will into the narrow space 
 between the gate and the wall; then as he rose to 
 
WILL gale's escape. 211 
 
 his feet he wrapped round him a loose Afghan cloak, 
 and pressed a black sheepskin cap far down over his 
 face. In a minute there was the sound of a fierce 
 struo-o'le without. The shots of the revolvers of the 
 two English officers rang out in quick succession, 
 mingled with the loud report of the Afghan muskets. 
 The savage yells rose high and triumphant. The last 
 of the D'allant band who had for hours defended the 
 embassy had fallen. Then there was a rush through 
 the gate as the Afghans sw^armed into the court-yard, 
 till the space around the burning house was well- 
 nigh full. 
 
 Unperceived Will Gale and Yossouf stepped from 
 behind the gate and joined the throng, and at once 
 made their way into the stables, where several of the 
 Budmashes were already engaged in their work of 
 plunder. Yossouf caught up three or four horse-rugs 
 and made them into a loose bundle, and signed to Will 
 to do the same. The young soldier did so, and lifted 
 them on his shoulder so as to partly hide his face. 
 Then he followed Yossouf into the court-yard again. 
 
 Already there was a stream of men with saddles, 
 rugs, muskets, and other plunder making their way 
 out, while others were still thronging in. Joining the 
 former Will and his guide were soon outside the inclo- 
 sure. At any other time his disguise w- ould have been 
 noticed at once, but in the crowd his legs were hidden, 
 and all were too intent upon plunder and too excited 
 at their success to notice him. 
 
212 THE DISGUISE. 
 
 Once outside the wall he was comparatively safe; 
 the light thrown over the court-yard by the blazing 
 house made the darkness beyond all the more complete. 
 Keeping carefully in shadow Yossouf led him along to 
 a clump of bushes in a garden a hundred yards from 
 the house. Stooping here he pulled out a bundle. 
 "Here," he said, "is the uniform. Put it on quickly!" 
 It was but the work of a minute for Will to attire 
 himself in the uniform of the Afghan soldier. He had 
 still retained the musket which he had in his hand 
 when Yossouf had leapt upon him, and as he now went 
 on with his guide he had no fear whatever of being 
 detected. He still carried the bundle of rugs on his 
 shoulder. As they walked round towards the lower 
 gate of the Bala-Hissar they met numbers of villagers 
 and townspeople thronging in. These had waited to 
 hear the issue of the attack before leaving their homes; 
 but now that the arrival of the plunderers from the 
 residency and the cessation of the fire told of the 
 successful termination of the assault, they flocked up 
 to join in the rejoicings over the annihilation of the 
 Kaffirs. 
 
CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 THE ADVANCE UPON CABUL. 
 
 HROUGHOUT the long hours of the night of 
 the 2d of September, while the roll of mus- 
 ketry and the roar of cannon had gone on 
 without a moment's pause just outside the walls of his 
 palace, Yakoob Khan had made no movement whatever 
 to protect his guests or fulfil his own solemn promises. 
 Silent and sullen he had sat in his council-chamber. 
 
 The disgrace of a broken promise is not one which 
 weighs heavily upon an Afghan's mind, and it is not 
 probable that the thought of his tarnished honour 
 troubled him in the slightest degree ; but he knew that 
 the massacre which was being perpetrated at his door 
 would be avenged, and that the English troops which 
 had so easily beaten the army which his father had 
 spent so many years in preparing would be set in move- 
 ment against Cabul the moment the news reached 
 India. He cannot but have dreaded the consequences. 
 But he apparently feared even more to incur the hos- 
 tility of the Heratee regiment by interfering to save 
 their victims. 
 
214 THE PLANS OF THE FUGITIVES. 
 
 Again and again during the night his wisest coun- 
 cillors besought him to call upon the loyal Cabullee 
 reo'iments to act asjainst the Heratees, but in vain. It 
 is doubtful whether Yakoob was previously informed of 
 the intended massacre, but there is strong reason to 
 believe that he was so; the proofs, however, were not 
 clear and definite. His conduct cost him his throne, 
 and condemned him to remain to the end of his life a 
 dishonoured pensioner and semi-prisoner in India. 
 
 Many eager questions were asked of Will and his 
 companion as they made their way down to the gate 
 of the Bala-Hissar. Yossouf took upon himself to an- 
 swer them, and they passed through the gate without 
 the slightest suspicion. 
 
 " Which way now ?" 
 
 " I think it will be safest to go into the city. We 
 might lie hid for a few days in some deserted hut, but 
 sooner or later our presence there would excite com- 
 ment. It will be best, I think, to go into the city. 
 In the quarters of the Parsee merchants there are 
 assuredly some who would give you shelter. Domajee, 
 who was the contractor for the supply of the mis- 
 sion, would, I should think, be best to go to. There is 
 little danger, for none will suspect your presence there; 
 his servants are all Hindoos." 
 
 " That is the best place, Yossouf. I have been down 
 several times to. Domajee, and he is certainly devoted 
 to the English; we can but try him." 
 
 The first dawn of morning was breaking when Will 
 
AN ASYLUM. 215 
 
 and his faithful friend arrived at the door of the 
 Parsee trader in the Hindoo quarter of Cabul. The 
 doors were fastened and barred, for it was impossible 
 to say whether the attack upon the mission which had 
 been heard going on all night might not be followed by a 
 fanatic outbreak against the Hindoo and Parsee traders 
 in the Hindoo quarter, therefore there was little sleep 
 that night. Yossouf knocked gently at the door. 
 "Who is there?" a voice at once inquired from within. 
 ''I come on urgent business with Domajee," Yos- 
 souf replied; "open quickly, there are but two of us 
 here." 
 
 There was a slight pause, and then the door was 
 opened, and closed immediately the two visitors had 
 entered. A light was burning in the large ante-room 
 as they entered it, and several Hindoos who had been 
 lying wrapped up in cloths on the floor rose to their 
 feet to inspect the new-comers. A moment later the 
 trader himself came down the stairs from an apartment 
 above. 
 
 "What is it?" he asked. He did not pause for an 
 answer. The light from the lamp he carried fell upon 
 Will's face, now white as a sheet from loss of blood. 
 With the one word, "Follow," the Parsee turned on his 
 heel and led the way upstairs. 
 
 "Has the mission been captured?" he asked, as they 
 entered an empty room. 
 
 "Yes," Will replied, "and I believe that I am the only 
 survivor." 
 
216 THE PARSEE TRADER. 
 
 The fatigue of climbing the stairs completed the 
 work caused by prolonged excitement and loss of 
 blood; and as he spoke he tottered and would have 
 fallen had not Yossouf seized him, and with the assis- 
 tance of the Parsee laid him on a couch. 
 
 In a few words Yossouf informed the trader of what 
 had happened, and satisfied him that no suspicion could 
 arise of the presence of one of the British in his house. 
 As the residency had been burnt down, and the bodies 
 of those who had fallen within it consumed, no one 
 would suspect that one of the five Englishmen there 
 had effected his escape, and it would be supposed that 
 Will's body, like that of Dr. Kelly, had been consumed 
 in the flames. 
 
 The Parsee was sure that Cabul would soon be reoc- 
 cupied by the British, and putting aside his loyalty to 
 them he felt that his concealment of an English sur- 
 vivor of the massacre would be greatly to his advantage, 
 and would secure for him the custom of the English 
 upon their arrival at the town. He first descended the 
 stairs, and warned his Hindoo followers on no account 
 whatever to breathe a word of the entry of strangers 
 there. Then he again returned to the room, where 
 Yossouf was sprinkling water on Will's face, and was 
 endeavouring to recover him to consciousness. 
 
 "There is blood on the couch," the trader said; "he 
 is w^ounded, and is suffering from its loss. Seel the 
 sleeve of his coat is soaked with blood, but I see no 
 mark on the cloth." 
 
IN GOOD HANDS. 217 
 
 " No," Yossouf replied; " he has put on that uniform 
 since the fight." 
 
 "Go down-stairs," the trader said; "my wife and 
 daughter will see to him." 
 
 As soon as Yossouf left the room Domajee's wife 
 and daughter entered with many exclamations of sur- 
 prise and alarm. They were at once silenced by the 
 trader, who bid them cut off the wounded man's uni- 
 form and stanch his wounds. Will had been hit in 
 two places. One ball had passed through the left arm, 
 fortunately without injuring the bone; the other had 
 struck him in the side, had run round his ribs and 
 gone out behind, inflicting an ugly-looking but not 
 serious wound — its course being marked by a blue line 
 on the flesh behind the two holes of entry and exit. 
 The wounds were washed and bound up, some cordial 
 was poured between his lips, and ere long he opened 
 his eyes and looked round in bewilderment. 
 
 "You are safe and among friends," the Parsee said. 
 " Drink a little more of the cordial, and then go off 
 quietly to sleep. You need have no fear of being dis- 
 covered, and your friends will be here ere long." 
 
 Four of the Hindoo servants now, at the order of the 
 trader, came upstairs, and, lifting the couch, carried 
 Will to a cool and airy chamber in the upper story of 
 the house. Here a soft bed of rugs and mattresses was 
 prepared, and Will was soon in a quiet sleep, with 
 Yossouf watching by his side. 
 
 It was but twenty-four hours after the massacre 
 
218 PREPARATIONS FOR VENGEANCE. 
 
 that a well-mounted native 'from Cabul brought the 
 news over the Shatur-Gardan Pass into the Khurum 
 valley; thence it was telegraphed to Simla, and in a 
 few hours all India rang with it. Not an instant was 
 lost in making preparations for avenging the murder 
 of the British mission. On the same day orders were 
 sent to Brigadier-General Massy, at that time com- 
 manding the field force in the Khurum valley, to move 
 the 2Sd Punjaub Pioneers, the 5th Ghoorkas, and a 
 mountain battery to the crest of the Shatur-Gardan 
 Pass, and to intrench themselves there. 
 
 A day or two later the 72d Highlanders and the 
 5th Punjaub Infantry ascended the Peiwar-Khotal to 
 Ali-Kheyl, to secure the road between the Khotal and 
 the pass. The 72d then moved forward and joined 
 the 23d Pioneers and 5th Ghoorkas on the Shatur- 
 Gardan, and on the 13th General Baker arrived there 
 and took the command ; but some time was needed be- 
 fore the advance could commence. As is usual with 
 the British, the great transport train which had with 
 such pains been collected and organized for the war, 
 had been dispersed immediately peace was signed, and 
 the whole work had now to be recommenced. 
 
 Vast numbers of animals had been used up during 
 the campaign, and there was the greatest difficulty in 
 obtaining the minimum number which was required 
 before the troops could move. At last General Roberts 
 managed to collect in the Punjaub 2000 mules and 700 
 camels and bullocks. The tribes in the Khurum valley, 
 
THE aiheer's messages. 219 
 
 too, who had been kindly treated and were well satis- 
 fied with the change of masters, furnished many 
 animals for the transport of stores as far as the Shatur- 
 Gardan. 
 
 The news had thrown the Gilgis and other tribes 
 among the mountains beyond the Peiwar-Khotal into 
 a state of ferment, and several determined attacks were 
 made by them upon convoys on their way up to the 
 head of the pass. These, however, were always suc- 
 cessfully repulsed by the baggage guards with con- 
 siderable loss to the assailants, and on the 26th Sep- 
 tember, three weeks from the date of the massacre. 
 General Roberts joined the troops at Ali-Kheyl and 
 moved forward to the Shatur-Gardan. 
 
 Durinof this time two or three letters had been re- 
 ceived from the Ameer, who wrote to General Roberts 
 deprecating any advance of the British troops, and 
 saying that he was trying to restore order, to put 
 down the mutinous Heratee troops, and to punish them 
 for their conduct. 
 
 As, however, the details which had been received of 
 the massacre showed that the Ameer had behaved in 
 a most suspicious if not in a most treacherous manner 
 at the time of the massacre, and that if he possessed 
 any authority whatever over the troops he had not 
 attempted to exercise it, no attention was paid to his 
 letters. 
 
 The advanced party of the invading force moved 
 do^vn from the Shatur-Gardan Pass. It consisted of 
 
220 THE ADVANCE. 
 
 the 12th and 14th Bengal Cavalry, two guns of the 
 Royal Horse Artillery, two companies of the 72d 
 Highlanders, and the 5th Punjaub Native Infantry. 
 The road was found to be extremely steep and diffi- 
 cult, jand much labour was necessary before it could 
 be made practicable for guns and wheeled carriages. No 
 enemy was encountered, and the little force encamped 
 at night in the Logan valley, over which the cavalry 
 skirmished far ahead, but found no foes awaiting 
 them. 
 
 On the following day they made another march for- 
 ward, the brigades of Generals Baker and Macpherson 
 descending from the pass into the valley. The advance 
 force halted at Zerghun-Shah, and soon after they had 
 done so some of the cavalry rode in with the surpris- 
 ing news that the Ameer was close at hand. 
 
 Half an hour later Yakoob Khan, attended by some 
 of his principal nobles, rode into camp. He was re- 
 ceived with the honour due to his rank, but personally 
 General Roberts greeted him with great coldness. The 
 Ameer stated that he came into camp because he could 
 not control the soldiery of Cabul, and that therefore 
 he had left the place and come in to show his friend- 
 ship for the English. 
 
 Whatever may have been the motives for his coming, 
 they were never fully explained; circumstances which 
 afterwards occurred strongly confirmed the suspicion 
 that he meditated treachery. He was treated honour- 
 ably; but the guard of honour which was assigned to 
 
EXCITEMENT AMONG THE TRIBES. 221 
 
 him was in fact a guard over him, and from that time 
 he was virtually a prisoner. 
 
 General Roberts declined altogether to discuss with 
 him the events of the massacre of Cabul, saying that this 
 was a matter which could not now be entered into, 
 but would be fully investigated on the arrival at the 
 Afghan capital. The following day the brigades of 
 Generals Baker and Macpherson joined the advance at 
 Zerghun-Shah. 
 
 The amount of transport available was only suffi- 
 cient for half the baofo-ao-e of the armv, and it was 
 necessary, therefore, to move forward in two divisions 
 — the one advancing a day's march, and then halting 
 while the animals went back to bring up the baggage 
 of the second division on the following day. 
 
 A proclamation was now issued by the general and 
 sent forward among the people of the valley, saying 
 that the object of the expedition was only to punish 
 those concerned in the massacre at Cabul, and that all 
 loyal subjects of the Ameer would be well treated. On 
 the 3d of October Macpherson's brigade, with the cavalry, 
 reached SufFed-Sang. Here they halted while the bag- 
 gage animals went back to bring up General Baker's 
 brigade. 
 
 The attitude of the people of the valley had now 
 become very threatening. Great numbers of hill- tribe- 
 men had come down, and on this day an attack was 
 made upon the rear-guard, but was beaten off with 
 loss. That the natives w^ere bitterly hostile was un- 
 
222 THE AFGHAN POSITION. 
 
 doubted, but they were for the most part waiting to 
 see the result of the approaching fight. The Heratee 
 and Cabul regiments were confident that they would 
 defeat the approaching column. They had a great 
 advantage in numbers, had been drilled in European 
 fashion, were armed with Enfields, and had an enor- 
 mous park of artillery at their disposal. They were 
 able to choose their own fighting ground, and had 
 selected a spot which gave them an immense advan- 
 tage. They were therefore confident of victory. 
 
 Had the British troops been beaten the inhabitants 
 of the Logan valley were prepared to rise to a man. 
 The Ghilzais and other hill-tribes would have swept 
 down upon the line of retreat, and few if any of the 
 British force would have returned to tell the tale. 
 
 The next day Baker's division had the post of hon- 
 our, and made a short march to Chaurasia. Beyond this 
 village the enemy had taken up their position. Three 
 miles beyond the village the valley ends, a mass of 
 hills shutting it in, with only a narrow defile leading 
 through them to the plain of Cabul beyond. 
 
 Upon both sides of the defile the enemy had placed 
 guns in position and lined the whole circle of the hills 
 commanding the approach to it. Mountaineers from 
 their birth, they believed that although the British 
 infantry might possess a superiority in the plain, they 
 could be no match for them on the steep hillside; 
 and they no doubt thought that no attempt would be 
 made to storm so strong a position, but that the British 
 
A DIFFICULT ALTERNATIVE. 223 
 
 column would march straight up the valley into the 
 defile, where they would be helplessly slaughtered by 
 the guns and matchlock men on the heights. Judging 
 from their owm tactics they had reason for the belief 
 that their position was an impregnable one. 
 
 In their hill fio-hts the Afo-hans never come to close 
 quarters. Posted behind rocks and huge boulders, the 
 opposing sides keep up a distant musketry duel, last- 
 ing sometimes for days, until one side or the other 
 becomes disheartened with its losses or has exhausted 
 its ammunition. Then it falls back, and the other 
 claims the victory. The idea that English soldiers 
 would, under a heavy fire from their concealed force, 
 steadily climb up the broken mountain-side and come 
 to close quarters, probably never entered into their 
 calculations. 
 
 At daybreak on the 6th a working party were sent 
 forward to improve the road towards the defile. But 
 they had scarcely started when the cavalry patrol in 
 advance rode in and announced that the enemy were 
 in great strength on the hills, and had guns in position 
 to command the road. 
 
 General Eoberts had now a choice of two courses — 
 he could either attack the whole Afghan force with 
 the one division at hand, or he could wait until joined 
 by Macpherson's brigade next morning. The feat of 
 carrying such a position in face of an immensely 
 superior force with only half of his little command 
 was a very serious one; but upon the other hand every 
 
224 THE ADVANCE AGAINST THE AFGHANS. 
 
 hour added to the number of hiUmeii who swarmed 
 upon the flanks of the army just beyond musket range. 
 A delay of twenty-four hours would bring the whole 
 fighting force of the tribesmen into the valley, and 
 while attacking the enemy's position in the front he 
 would be liable to an assault upon his rear by them. 
 
 Confident in the valour of his soldiers he chose the 
 first alternative, and at eleven o'clock his little force 
 marched out from the camp to attack the Afghan army. 
 
 By this time the enemy's position had been recon- 
 noitred, and it was found to be too strong for a direct 
 attack. It was therefore resolved to ascend the hills 
 on both flanks and so to drive their defenders back 
 beyond the defile. This in any case would have been 
 the best mode of assault, but a^jainst semi-savao^e ene- 
 mies flank attacks are peculiarly efifective. Having 
 prepared for an assault in one direction, they are dis- 
 concerted and disheartened by finding themselves at- 
 tacked in a difierent manner, and the fear of a flank 
 being turned and the line of retreat thereby menaced 
 will generally sufiice to cause a rapid retreat. 
 
 General Baker himself took the command of the 
 left attack. His force consisted of four guns of No. 2 
 Mountain Battery, two Gatling guns, the 7th com- 
 pany of Sappers and Miners, a wing of the 72d High- 
 landers, six companies of the 5th Ghoorkas, 200 men 
 of the 5th Punjaub Infantry, and 450 of the 23d 
 Pioneers. This was the main column of attack. The 
 left column, under the command of Major White 
 
THE BATTLE OF CHAR A SI A. 225 
 
 of the 72d Highlanders, consisted of a wing of that 
 regiment, 100 men of the 2od Pioneers, three guns of 
 the Royal Artillery, and two squadrons of cavalry. 
 This attack was intended only as a feint, and to dis- 
 tract the attention of the Afghans from the main at- 
 tack. A strong reserve was left in Chaurasia to guard 
 the bao-o'ao^e and to overhaul the tribesmen. 
 
 As General Baker's column reached the foot of the 
 hills, the 23d, who led the advance, thrown out in 
 skirmishing line, began to climb the ascent. The enemy 
 were armed with Sniders and Enfields, and their fire 
 was rapid and continuous; fortunately it was by no 
 means accurate, and our losses were small. 
 
 The Afghans in their hill fighting are accustomed to 
 fire very slowly and deliberately, taking steady aim 
 with their guns resting on the rocks, and so fighting 
 they are excellent shots. It is probable, however, that 
 the steady advance of our men towards them flurried 
 and disconcerted them, and that they thought more of 
 firing quickly than of taking a correct aim. The 72d 
 pressing up the hill were assisted by the fire of the 
 mountain guns and Gatlings, and by that of the Pun- 
 jaubees in their rear. Gradually the upper slopes of 
 the hills were gained, and the British troops pressing- 
 forward drove the Afghans back along the crest. 
 Several times they made obstinate stands, holding 
 their ground until the 72d were close to them. 
 
 These, however, would not be denied. The massacre 
 of the mission at Cabul had infuriated the soldiers, and 
 
 (27i) p 
 
226 THE CAPTURE OF THE DEFILE. 
 
 each man was animated with a stern determination 
 to avenge our murdered countrymen. For an hour and 
 a half the fight continued, and then the Afghans aban- 
 doned the ridge and fled in confusion. They rallied 
 upon some low hills 600 yards from the rear, but the 
 mountain guns and Gatlings opened upon them, and 
 the whole line advancing to the attack, the enemy 
 fell back. Major White's column had been doing ex- 
 cellent service on the rio^ht. Althouo-h the attack had 
 been intended only as a feint it was pushed forward 
 so vigorously that it met with a success equal to that 
 which had attended the main column on the left. The 
 enemy were driven ofi" the hills on the right of the 
 defile. Twenty guns were captured, and the direct 
 road cleared of the enemy. 
 
 Unfortunately our cavalry was in the rear. The 
 road through the pass was difficult, and before they 
 could get through into the plain on the other side 
 the masses of Af o^hans had fallen back into the stronof 
 
 CD O 
 
 villages scattered over it, and could not be attacked by 
 cavalry alone. The enemy had from 9000 to 10,000 men 
 upon the ridge, including thirteen regiments of regular 
 troops. They left 300 dead upon the field, and besides 
 these carried oflf large numbers of killed and wounded 
 during the fight. Upon our side only 20 were killed 
 and 67 wounded. 
 
 Had General Roberts had his whole force with him, 
 he could after capturing the hills have at once pushed 
 forward and have attacked the enemy on the plain, and 
 
DISPERSAL OF THE AFGHAN ARMY. 227 
 
 the Afghans, disheartened and panic-stricken, would 
 have been completely crushed. With so small a force 
 in hand, and the possibility of a serious attack by the 
 tribes on his rear, General Roberts did not think it 
 prudent to advance farther, and the regiments which 
 had taken the principal part in the massacre of Cabul 
 marched away unmolested. 
 
 Enormously superior as they still were in numbers 
 they had no thought of further resistance. The cap- 
 ture of positions which they deemed impregnable by 
 a force so inferior in number to their own had utterly 
 disheartened them, and the Heratee regiments, which 
 but the day before had been so proudly confident of 
 their ability to exterminate the Kaffirs, were now ut- 
 terly demoralized and panic-stricken. In the night the 
 whole of the Afghan troops scattered and fled. Our 
 cavalry, under General Massy, swept along the plain 
 of Cabul, and, skirting the town, kept on as far as the 
 Ameer's great intrenched camp at Sherpur, three miles 
 further along the valley. Here 75 guns were captured. 
 
 In the morning Macpherson arrived. General Ro- 
 berts now advanced with his whole force of infantry 
 and found that he had no longer a foe before him. 
 The Afghan army had disappeared. There was no 
 longer any occasion for haste, and the column halted 
 until all the baggage had been brought up through the 
 difficult defile. The total defeat of the Afghan army 
 had overawed the tribesmen, and these at once retired 
 to their hills ao-ain. 
 
228 THE ENTRY INTO CABUL. 
 
 The villagers, however, were bitterly hostile, and 
 seized every opportunity of firing at small bodies of 
 troops on cavalry patrols. This continued for some 
 time, and General Roberts at last was obliged to punish 
 it with severity, and in such cases aH found with arms 
 in their hands were at once shot. On the 11th of Oc- 
 tober Sir Frederick Roberts and his staff with a cavalry 
 escort rode into the Bala-Hissar, and the next morning 
 the British troops marched into the fort. The gates of 
 Cabul stood open, and a column was marched through 
 the town and formal possession taken of it. 
 
 During the first ^ve weeks which elapsed after the 
 massacre of the mission William Gale remained almost 
 prostrate in the house of the friendly Parsee trader. He 
 had barely recovered his strength after his prolonged 
 illness when the attack was made, and the events of 
 that night, and the great loss of blood which he had 
 suffered, had reduced his strength to that of an infant. 
 Under the care of the Parsee and his family, however, 
 he slowly but steadily regained strength. For the first 
 month but little news from without reached him ; then 
 a report came that the British had assembled in con- 
 siderable force on the crest of the Shatur-Gardan, and 
 were going to move on Cabul from that direction. 
 Then day by day the tidings came in of the advance 
 of the force. 
 
 It was reported generally that the Ameer had gone 
 out to meet them, with the intention of leaving them 
 when the decisive moment arrived and taking com- 
 
AN ANXIOUS DAY. 229 
 
 mand of the tribesmen, who would fall upon and annihi- 
 late them. On the 6th the town was unusually quiet, 
 and Will heard that the Afghan army had moved out 
 to occupy the hills commanding the approach through 
 the defile, and that with the aid of the tribesmen the 
 British army was to be exterminated there. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THE FIGHTING ROUND CABUL. 
 
 LL day long on the 6tli of October William 
 Gale sat at an open window in the upper 
 story of the Parsee's house facing west, and 
 listened to the distant roar of the battle, while all Cabul 
 was in a state of wild excitement in the sure anticipa- 
 tion of victory. Will felt equally confident as to the 
 result of the battle. He knew that, well led, a British 
 force could be trusted to carry any position held by the 
 Afghans, and he felt sure that even should he fail to 
 carry it by direct attack the English general would sooner 
 or later succeed in turning it by flank movements. 
 
 About two o'clock in the afternoon William noticed 
 a chancre in the character of the sounds in the town. In 
 the Hindoo quarter all had been quiet, for the inhabi- 
 tants greatly feared that, in a burst of fanaticism fol- 
 lowing a victory achieved over the British, the Afghans 
 might sack the Hindoo quarter and murder its inha- 
 bitants. Yossouf, however, had been all the morning 
 out in the town, and had from time to time brought in 
 a report of the rumours current there. 
 
CONFLICTING EMOTIONS. 231 
 
 At first it was said that the British were being ut- 
 terly routed, that they were being exterminated by 
 the Afghan fire, that the hill -tribes were sweeping 
 down upon their rear, and that not a man would escape. 
 Presently the reports became more contradictory. The 
 firing was still heard, but it was no longer one con- 
 tinuous roll. Some said that the British were anni- 
 hilated; others that, repulsed in their attack, they had 
 fallen back to their camp; but soon after two o'clock 
 Yossouf rushed up to William's room with the news 
 that the Afghans had been driven from the heights, 
 and that the British were in possession of these and of 
 the defile through them. Yossouf had throughout the 
 morning been swayed by conflicting emotions and 
 wishes. At one moment he hoped that his countrymen 
 might conquer; then the fear that after victory the 
 Hindoo quarter might be sacked and his English friend 
 discovered and killed, overpowered his feeling of pa- 
 triotism. 
 
 It must be remembered that Afghanistan has for 
 centuries been rather a geographical expression than 
 a country. Its population is composed of a great 
 number of tribes without any common feelings or in- 
 terest, and often engaged in desperate wars and con- 
 flicts with each other. The two leading tribes, the 
 Ghilzais and Durances, had long struggled for ascen- 
 dency in the cultivated portion of the country. For 
 a long period the Ghilzais had had the supremacy, 
 but the Durances were now lords of the country. 
 
232 THE AFGHAN TRIBE. 
 
 The mountain tribes for the most part held them- 
 selves entirely independent, and although in time they 
 gave a nominal allegiance to the Ameer of Cabul, yet> 
 as had been shown in the Khurum valley, they hated 
 their native masters with an animosity far exceeding 
 that which they felt towards the British. That 
 throughout the war the tribesmen were ready when 
 they saw an opportunity to attack English convoys 
 and small columns is true, but they were animated by 
 a love of plunder rather than of country; and over a 
 considerable area of Afghanistan, notably at Candahar, 
 the people in general would have infinitely preferred 
 the mild and just rule of the English to the military 
 tyranny of Cabul. 
 
 Thus Yossouf had grown up without understanding 
 the meaning of the feeling which we call patriotism. He 
 had, it is true, been taught to hate the unbelievers, but 
 this feeling had disappeared on his acquaintance with 
 Will Gale, and he now ranked the safety and happiness 
 of his friend far before any national consideration. 
 
 How weak is the feeling of patriotism among the 
 Afghans is shown by the fact that most of the British 
 frontier troops consist of Afghan hillmen, who are 
 always ready, when called upon, to fight desperately 
 against their countrymen and co-religionists. Examples 
 of treachery, such as that exhibited by the two 
 Pathans who fired their guns to warn their country- 
 men of the British advance up the Spingwai Pass, are 
 almost unknown. 
 
WILL REJOINS THE TROOPS. 233 
 
 It was then with a feeling of joy that Yossouf related 
 to his English friends the news of the defeat of the 
 Afghan army. Throughout the Hindoo quarter there 
 was deep but suppressed gladness at the news of the 
 British victory, and this increased when, as the night 
 went on, it was known that the Afghan army was 
 totally dispersed, that the troops remaining in Cabul 
 had fled, and that the city was virtually open for the 
 entrance of the English. 
 
 When, on the 12th, with bands playing and colours 
 displayed, the British troops marched through Cabul, 
 Will would fain have gone out and joined his coun- 
 trymen. But the Parsee pointed out to him that 
 this would draw the attention of the Afghans to the 
 fact that he had been concealed by him, and that in 
 case at any time the British should evacuate Cabul 
 and return to India he would be a marked man for 
 the vengeance of the Afghans. Will, therefore, wrapped 
 up in a long cloak and accompanied by Yossouf and 
 the Parsee, left the house after dark, and proceeding to 
 the gate walked out to the Bala-Hissar. 
 
 Explaining who he was Will was soon passed through 
 the sentries which had been set at nightfall, and was 
 conducted to the quarters of the general. The latter 
 was greatly surprised when he was told that an Eng- 
 lish soldier who had been present at the attack upon 
 the mission wished to speak to him, and at once 
 ordered Will to be brought before him. Great was his 
 surprise when he learned from the young soldier that 
 
2 Si SURPRISE OF THE GENERAL. 
 
 he had fought under him at the taking of Peiwar- 
 Khotal, and having been made prisoner near Ali-Kheyl 
 had been brought to Cabul, and had joined the party of 
 Sir Lewis Cavagnari on its arrival at that city. Still 
 more that, having been in the residency when the 
 attack upon it was commenced by the Heratee soldiery, 
 he had managed to escape from the massacre of that 
 night. 
 
 After having first heard a complete outline of Will's 
 story the general called in several of his staff, who 
 had just finished dinner, and then requested Will to 
 give a full and detailed description of his adventures. 
 After he had concluded, Yossouf and the Parsee were 
 called in, and the general warmly expressed his grati- 
 fication at the kindness that they had shown to a 
 wounded English soldier at the risk of their lives. 
 
 He ordered that a handsome present should be made 
 to Yossouf, and told the Parsee to call again in the 
 morning, when the quartermaster-general would be 
 told to arrange with him for the supply of such articles 
 as the country afforded for the use of the troops. 
 
 " Your regiment," he said to Will, " is at present at 
 Jellalabad; whether it will come up here I do not yet 
 know, but in the meantime you will be promoted to 
 the rank of sergeant, which is the least we can do after 
 what you have gone through, and you will take your 
 place with my staff orderly sergeants." 
 
 He then sent for one of the sergeants and gave Will 
 into his charge, telling him he would speak further 
 
YOSSOUF FOLLOWS WILL. 235 
 
 with him when he had arranged the pressing business 
 which the occupation of Cabul entailed upon him. 
 
 Yossouf remained with Will, being at his urgent 
 request placed upon the roll as a native follower, of 
 whom a considerable number accompany each regiment 
 in India. His duties were but nominal, for when Will's 
 story was well known Yossouf became a most popular 
 character among the sergeants of the staff. The money 
 which he had received, in the first place from the 
 Ameer and now from General Roberts, would secure his 
 future. In Afghanistan animals are cheap, and the 
 owner of a small herd of oxen, sheep, or even goats, is 
 regarded by his neighbours as a wealthy man. There- 
 fore Yossouf would, on the departure of the British, be 
 able to settle down in a position of comparative affluence. 
 
 Two days later General Roberts being one evening 
 diseno^ao-ed sent for William Gale. He had been much 
 struck with the bearing and manner of the young 
 soldier, and now requested him to give him a full 
 history of his antecedents. 
 
 " You have had a curious and eventful history," he 
 said when the young sergeant had finished, " and 
 appear to have conducted yourself with great discre- 
 tion, readiness, and courage. From what you tell me 
 of your conversation with Colonel Shepherd I have no 
 doubt that he formed the same impression that I do 
 from your manner and appearance, that you are of a 
 respectable if not of good family, and I trust that you 
 will some day discover a clue to your parents. It 
 
236 A COMMISSION PROMISED. 
 
 seems to me that had the authorities of the place 
 where you were left properly bestirred themselves 
 they ought to have been able to find out who you are. 
 However, that is not to the point now. It is sufficient 
 for me that from your manner and address you would 
 not be out of place in any position. I shall, of course, 
 report the fact of your having fought by Major Cava- 
 gnari's side in the attack upon him here, and shall 
 strongly recommend that a commission be granted you. 
 I am sure that from your conduct hitherto you will 
 never do discredit to any position in which you may 
 find yourself. Say nothing to your fellow sergeants 
 of what I have told you. It is possible, although 
 not probable, that my recommendation may not be 
 acted upon, and at anyrate some months must elapse 
 before an answer can be received." 
 
 William Gale returned to his quarters in a state of 
 extreme delight. The communication which General 
 Roberts had made to him was altogether beyond his 
 hopes. He had indeed from the very day that he 
 enlisted often hoped that some time or other he might 
 win for himself a commission, and take his place in the 
 rank to which he had from his childhood believed that 
 he was by birth entitled. The words and manner of 
 his colonel had encouraged this hope, but he had never 
 dreamed that his promotion might be attained so soon. 
 It was but a year since he had enlisted, and five was 
 the very earliest at which he had even dreamed that 
 a commission might possibly be gained. 
 
ONE OF THE GUNPOWDER MAGAZINES HAD EXPLODED." 
 
A TERRIBLE EXPLOSION. 237 
 
 The next day he had been sent from the orderly- 
 room with a note to the colonel of the 67th, which was 
 the regiment now in quarters in the Bala-Hissar, the 
 rest of the force being encamped in the plain below. 
 As he was walking across the open he was suddenly 
 hurled to the ground with tremendous violence, and at 
 the same moment a roar as loud as that of thunder 
 sounded in his ears. Bewildered and half stunned he 
 rose to his feet, while showers of stones, beams, and 
 other debris fell around him. 
 
 One of the gunpowder magazines had exploded. It 
 had been known that very large quantities of powder 
 were stored in various buildings at the Bala-Hissar, 
 and at the moment of the explosion a body of engineers 
 under Captain Shafto were examining the buildings 
 in which it was stored, and making preparation for 
 the removal of the powder. Singularly enough no 
 soldiers of the 67th were killed, but of the Ghoorkas 
 who were on guard at the arsenal at the time twelve 
 were killed and seven wounded. Shafto was unfor- 
 tunately killed. The 67th were at once called out 
 and set to work to extinguish the flames which had 
 been kindled by the explosion, great damage being 
 done. The southern wall of the arsenal had been 
 blown down and several buildings set on fire. Ex- 
 plosion followed explosion, and the work of extin- 
 guishing the flames was an extremely dangerous one. 
 In the afternoon another magazine blew up; fortunately 
 no troops were in its neio^hbourhood at the time, but 
 
238 A BELEAGUERED GARRISON. 
 
 four Af o-lians were killed and several soldiers hurt at a 
 
 o 
 
 distance of three or four hundred yards from the spot. 
 
 Although it was never proved, it was strongly be- 
 lieved that these explosions were caused by the Afghans, 
 and as large quantities of powder still remained in the 
 Bala-Hissar it was determined that for the present the 
 place should be evacuated. The general therefore 
 with his staff and the reo-iment in o-arrison left the 
 place and joined the camp in the plain. 
 
 The little force at Cabul was now isolated. Troops 
 were slowly coming up the Khyber Pass to Jellalabad, 
 where a division was to be formed, destined in the 
 spring to join the force at Cabul should it be necessary 
 to carry on further operations. 
 
 Between Cabul and the Shatur-Gardan the natives 
 were in a restless and excited state. Two attacks by 
 SOOO men had been made on the garrison holding the 
 crest of the latter position, 300 in number. These 
 bravely sallied out, attacked the enemy in the open, 
 and killed large numbers of them. Still great num- 
 bers of the tribesmen were gathered round, and General 
 Gough with the 5th Punjaubee Cavalry, the 5th Pun- 
 jaubee Infantry, and four guns, was therefore sent from 
 Cabul to bring down from the Shatur-Gardan the gar- 
 rison and all the stores accumulated there. The pass, 
 which would shortly be closed by snow, was then to be 
 deserted. 
 
 Several executions now took place at Cabul of men 
 who were proved to have shared in the attack on the 
 
ABDICATION OF THE AMEER. 239 
 
 embassy. Some of the leading men of the place, who 
 had instigated the troops to the attack, were among 
 those executed. Many of the villagers were also hung for 
 shooting at detached bodies of our troops. A proclama- 
 tion had been issued by the general on his first arrival, 
 warning the people that any attempt against our 
 authority would be severely punished, forbidding the 
 carrying of w^eapons within the streets of Cabul or 
 within a distance of five miles of the city gates, 
 and ofierino^ a reward for all arms belono-inoj to the 
 Afghan troops, which should be given up, and for the 
 surrender of any person, w^hether soldier or civilian, 
 concerned in the attack on the embassy. 
 
 The position of the British force at Cabul was that 
 of a body holding only the ground they occupied in 
 the midst of a bitterly hostile country. 
 
 The Ameer was powerless, and indeed his good-will 
 was more than doubtful. He had from his arrival in 
 the camp been regarded as a prisoner, although treated 
 with courtesy; and after the battle of Charasia, feeling 
 his own impotence, and being viewed with hostility by 
 both parties, he resigned his position as Ameer, and 
 asked to be sent to India, which was done. The 
 abdication of the Ameer really took place on the day 
 the troops entered Cabul, but it was not publicly 
 known until the end of the month, as nothing could 
 be done on the subject until his desire was communi- 
 cated to the Indian authorities and their views concer- 
 ning it ascertained. 
 
240 THE SHERPUR BARRACKS. 
 
 From the moment of his arrival at Cabul General 
 Roberts had set to work to prepare for the winter. 
 He would for four or five months be entirely cut ofi", 
 and would have to rely upon himself alone. He had 
 before him the terrible catastrophe which had on the 
 same ground befallen General Elphinstone's army, and 
 knew that it was possible, and indeed probable, that, 
 with the memory of that success before them, the 
 Afghans would unite in another great effort to anni- 
 hilate the little force shut up in the heart of their 
 country. 
 
 Fortunately he had in the Ameer's barracks at 
 Sherpur a position which he was confident he could 
 hold against any attacks that could be made upon him. 
 These extensive barracks had been erected by Sheer- 
 Ali for the use of his cavalry, but had never been used. 
 They consisted of a large square, three sides of which 
 were surrounded by a lofty wall, an isolated and rocky 
 steep hill rising at the back and closing the fourth 
 side. The buildings were amply large enough to con- 
 tain the whole of General Roberts' force, and there 
 was abundant room for the stores, basfo-agfe animals, 
 and waggons; the only fault was, indeed, that the 
 extent of wall to be defended was too long for the 
 force at his disposal. Round two sides the outer wall 
 was complete, but on the third it had not been taken 
 to its full height, nor had it been continued so as to 
 join the hill behind it. 
 
 Great efforts were made to bring in sufiicient provi- 
 
PREPARING FOR WINTER. 241 
 
 sions and forage for the winter, and expeditions were 
 made up the Logan, Maidan, and other valleys for the 
 purpose. Winter was fast setting in. Snow had begun 
 to fall upon the hills, and ice formed on the pools 
 every night. The natives of the valleys near were 
 ready enough to sell their grain, straw, and fuel, but 
 few supplies came in from a distance, as armed bands 
 stopped all supplies on their way. However, a suffi- 
 cient amount of food and fuel was obtained and stored 
 in Sherpur. Grain, too, was procured for the winter, 
 and the only article of which the supply was insuffi- 
 cient was chopped straw, of which a very large quantity 
 was required. 
 
 The attitude of the natives grew daily more hostile. 
 Their priests were preaching a revolt to the death, and 
 recalling to the people how their fathers had annihi- 
 lated a British force thirty years before. Urged alike 
 by fanaticism and a desire for plunder, the natives 
 over the whole country were seething with excitement, 
 and General Roberts saw that a crisis was approaching. 
 
 The Afghans could assemble at least 100,000 men, 
 and among these would be included all the troops of 
 the Ameer's disbanded armies, armed with weapons 
 equal to our own, and burning to revenge the defeats 
 which had been inflicted upon them. To oppose them 
 the English general had less than 6000 men. But 
 though prepared for trouble, the storm, when it came, 
 burst suddenly upon the English. The enemy were 
 known to be collecting in great numbers in the Maidan 
 
 (274) Q 
 
242 THE AFGHAN OUTBREAK. 
 
 valley, and two columns were sent out to attack them. 
 One was commanded by Macplierson, the other by 
 Baker. Although they were to strike simultaneously 
 at the enemy their route of march lay up different 
 valleys, with a lofty mountain range between them, so 
 they could in no way co-operate with each other. After 
 they had started. General Massy was directed to move 
 out with a small force of cavalry and a battery of horse 
 artillery, and co-operate with General Macpherson. 
 
 An hour after the cavalry had started General 
 Roberts himself rode out. He was accompanied by his 
 usual escort, and by two mounted orderly sergeants. 
 One of these was William Gale. They had only pro- 
 ceeded a short distance when they heard some distance 
 ahead of them the guns of the Royal Horse Artillery 
 with Massy at work, and the general at once rode 
 forward at a gallop. 
 
 General Macpherson had found Mahomed Jan, one 
 of the principal leaders of the Afghans, with 10,000 
 men near Chard eh, 
 
 A fight ensued. The guns shelled the enemy, but 
 the water-courses prevented the cavalry with Mac- 
 pherson acting, and Mahomed Jan, moving across the 
 hills, placed himself between Macpherson and Cabul. 
 Shortly afterwards General Massy, who had with him 
 three troops of the 9th Lancers and forty-four men of 
 the 14th Bengal Lancers, with four guns under Major 
 Smith- Wyndham, came in sight of a portion of Ma- 
 homed Jan's force. 
 
GENERAL MASSY'S ACTION. 243 
 
 It was clear that these had in some way interposed 
 themselves between the little force and Macpherson's 
 column, and Massy supposed that they w^ere a party 
 of fugitives flying before the force of Macpherson or 
 Baker. As they came streaming down the hill he got 
 his guns into action. After a few shells had been 
 fired, the enemy advanced in full force. Four thousand 
 men were extended in the shape of a crescent, advanc- 
 ing in fairly good order, while behind was an irregular 
 mob of some six thousand men. 
 
 The ground upon which General Massy found him- 
 self at this time was singularly unfitted for the action 
 of artillerj^ It was cut up by deep water-courses, and 
 anything like rapidity of movement was impossible. 
 It would have been prudent had Massy, when he saw 
 how large was the force opposed to him, at once 
 retired until he came to ground where his guns could 
 be rapidly manoeuvred; but relying upon the efiect of 
 the shell, he remained in the position in w^hich he had 
 first discovered the enemy. The shell pitched rapidly 
 into the thick of the Afghans, but no effect was pro- 
 duced in checking their advance. They did not 
 waver for a moment, but came steadily on. The 
 enemy's bullets were now dropping fast among the 
 cavalry and guns. Thirty of the 9th Lancers were 
 dismounted and opened fire with their Martini carbines, 
 but the enemy were too numerous to be checked by so 
 small a body of men. 
 
 At this moment Sir Frederick Roberts arrived upon 
 
244 A SPLENDID CHARGE. 
 
 the spot. The position was serious, and to retire the 
 guns in safety it was absokitely necessary to check the 
 advance of the enemy. General Roberts therefore 
 ordered Massy to send his cavalry at the enemy. 
 Colonel Cleland led a squadron of the 9th full at 
 the advancing mass, the Bengal Lancers following, 
 while Captain Gough with his troop of the 9th charged 
 the enemy's left flank; but even the charge of Bala- 
 clava was scarcely more desperate than this. Two 
 hundred and twenty men, however gallant, could not 
 be expected to conquer 10,000. The three bodies of 
 cavalry charged at full speed into the midst of the 
 enemy's infantry, who received them with a terrible 
 fire which killed many horses and men. The impetus 
 of the charge bore down the leading ranks of the 
 Afghans, and the cavalry tore their way through the 
 mass until their progTess was blocked by sheer weight 
 of numbers. 
 
 A desperate mel^e took place, the troopers fighting 
 with their sabres, the Afghans with knives and clubbed 
 muskets. Many of the soldiers were struck from their 
 horses, some were dragged to their feet again by their 
 comrades, others were killed upon the ground. The 
 chaplain of the force, the Rev. Mr. Adams, had ac- 
 companied the troopers in the charge, and seeing a 
 man jammed under a fallen horse he leaped from his 
 saddle and extricated him, and brought him off" in 
 spite of the attack of several Afghans. For this act of 
 bravery he received the Victoria Cross, being the first 
 
THE GUNS ABANDONED. 245 
 
 chaplain in the army who had ever obtained that de- 
 coration. 
 
 When the dust raised by the charging squadrons 
 had subsided it was seen that the enemy were still ad- 
 vancing. The Lancers had fallen back, and as the men 
 galloped in they rallied behind Captain Gough's troop, 
 which had kept best together, and had formed up 
 again between the guns and the enemy. Lieutenants 
 Hersee and Ricardo and sixteen of their men had been 
 left dead upon the ground. Colonel Cleland, Lieu- 
 tenant Mackenzie, and seven of the troopers were 
 wounded. 
 
 A second charge was ordered, but this time it was 
 not pushed home, as a wide water-course checked the 
 advance. Under cover of the first cavalry charge 
 Major Smith- Wyndham had ordered two of the guns 
 to be taken off, and as he now fell back with the other 
 two one of them stuck in the water-course. The 
 greatest efforts were made with the horses which still 
 remained uninjured to get the gun out, but the enemy 
 were pressing close on. Lieutenant Hardy was killed 
 by a shot through the head, and the gun was aban- 
 doned. The other three guns were retired 400 or 500 
 yards farther, but here they became hopelessly bogged 
 in a channel deeper than any that had hitherto been 
 met with. They were spiked and left in the water, 
 and the drivers and gunners moved off with the 
 cavalry just as the enemy poured down upon them. 
 
 Seeing the danger of the situation and the large 
 
246 A CALL FOR AID. 
 
 force of the enemy, General Roberts had, on his first 
 arrival, sent off a trooper at full gallop to General 
 Gough, who commanded at Sherpur, ordering him to 
 send out two hundred men of the 7'2d Highlanders at 
 the double to hold the gorge leading direct from the 
 scene of conflict to Cabul. There was but a very small 
 garrison of British troops in the city, and had the enemy 
 made their way there the townspeople would have risen 
 and a serious disaster taken place. After leaving the 
 guns behind them the cavalry retired steadily towards 
 the village at the head of the gorge, keeping up a hot 
 fire with their carbines on the enemy who pressed 
 upon them. 
 
 " Ride back, Sergeant Gale," the general said, " and 
 meet the 72d. Hurry them up at full speed — every 
 minute is precious." 
 
 William Gale rode back at full speed. Until a fort- 
 night before he had never been on a horse, but the 
 animal which he rode was well trained and steady, 
 and hitherto he had had no difficulty in keeping his 
 seat as he trotted along with the escort. It was a 
 different thing now, for the ground was rough and the 
 horse going at a full gallop, and he clung on to the 
 pummel of the saddle to steady himself. As he passed 
 through the village he saw the Highlanders coming 
 along at a trot half a mile further on, and was soon 
 beside Colonel Brownlow, who commanded them. 
 
 " The enemy are pressing the cavalry back, sir," he 
 said as with difficulty he pulled up his horse. " The 
 
JUST IN TIME. 247 
 
 general desires you to use the greatest possible speed, 
 as every moment is precious." 
 
 Panting and out of breath as the Highlanders were 
 they responded to Colonel Brownlow's shout, and rush- 
 ing forward almost at racing speed reached the village 
 while the Afghans were still 100 yards beyond it. 
 They instantly opened such a fire upon the enemy that 
 the latter ceased their advance and soon fell back, and 
 Cabul was for the moment safe. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE FIGHT IN THE PASS. 
 
 HE Afo'han force, after half an hour's effort 
 to carry the village held by the High- 
 landers, moved off to their left, and work- 
 ing along the hills took post on the heights beyond 
 Bala-Hissar. In the meantime General Macpherson, 
 having dispersed a strong body of the enemy up the 
 valley, marched back towards Cabul, and coming 
 across the scene of the late action brought in the 
 bodies of the dead officers. The guns had already been 
 carried off, for as the enemy advanced Colonel Mac- 
 gregor, collecting a handful of lancers and artillery- 
 men, worked round to their rear, and, dispersing a small 
 body of the enemy who had lingered at a village near 
 the guns, succeeded in extricating the cannon from the 
 swamp and carried them off to Sherpur. 
 
 From the signal-post established above Bala-Hissar 
 an order was flashed to General Baker, who was many 
 miles away, to inform him of what had occurred, and 
 to order him to march back with all speed. Late that 
 evening he arrived with his column, and the British 
 
STORMING THE HEIGHT. 249 
 
 force was again united. The next day 560 men of 
 Macpherson's brigade, composed of portions of the 
 67th, the 72d, the Sd Sikhs, and 5th Ghoorkas, were 
 sent out to attack the enemy, wlio had established 
 themselves upon a lofty peak south of Cabul. 
 
 The Afghans occupied the crest in strength, and hidden 
 behind the hill had 5000 or 6000 men lying in wait to 
 attack the assailing party in the rear as they pressed 
 upwards. The position was, however, too strong to be 
 carried. After several hours of fighting the little British 
 force had driven the Afghans from the lower part of 
 the hill, but were unable to mount towards the crest, 
 for ammunition was running short, and the enemy were 
 too strongly posted. General Roberts therefore ordered 
 Macpherson to hold the ground which he had gained 
 until next morning, when more troops would be sent. 
 At eight o'clock in the morning, accordingly, General 
 Baker moved out from Sherpur with a strong force and 
 attacked the enemy's position in flank, while Macpher- 
 son continued his advance in front. The Afghans 
 fought desperately, and clung to their position until 
 the British were close up, when a desperate hand-to- 
 hand struggle took place, and the British became mas- 
 ters of the position. 
 
 While the fighting had been going on great masses 
 of the enemy had come down from the end of the 
 valley and threatened the road between Sherpur and 
 Cabul. The 9th Lancers made a magnificent charge 
 among them, broke them, and drove them back. 
 
250 THE ENEMY REINFORCED. 
 
 Several other brilliant charges were made, and the 
 plain was kept clear of the enemy. Captain Butson, 
 however, who commanded, was killed, and two other 
 officers wounded. With each hour that passed the 
 position grew more serious, as immense bodies of the 
 enemy were seen advancing from all sides. The city 
 was now in open revolt, and the small garrison there 
 with difficulty held their own. One more effort was 
 made to drive the enemy off the hills. 
 
 Early on the 15th General Baker, with 1200 infantry 
 and eight guns, left the cantonment. After very severe 
 fighting the enemy were driven from their lowest posi- 
 tions, but as Baker advanced a body of from 1 5,000 to 
 20,000 of the enemy marched out across the plain 
 towards the position just captured. Steadily they ad- 
 vanced, and the shells which our mountain guns sent 
 among them, and the volleys poured down from the 
 face of the hill, did not suffice to check them in the 
 slightest. Reassured by their own enormous numbers, 
 and feeling that success was in their grasp, they pressed 
 forward and desperate fighting took place. 
 
 A position held by the 5th Punjaub Infantry was 
 carried by their attack and two guns were lost, but 
 the rest of the positions were maintained. Seeing that 
 it was impossible to hold the Bala-Hissar and Cabul 
 in the face of the hordes opposed to him, which 
 were estimated by the general himself as numbering 
 80,000 men, but wdiich the Afghans themselves after- 
 wards acknowledged were between 100,000 and 1 20,000, 
 
SAFE IN THE CANTONMENTS. 251 
 
 General Roberts determined to concentrate his troops 
 at Sherpur. Eaker was ordered to maintain the posi- 
 tion he held at all costs until the troops from the Bala- 
 Hissar were withdrawn. This he did; and although 
 as he fell back the Afghan hordes swarmed round him, 
 he fought his way back to Sherpnr, and by nightfall all 
 the British force were safely gathered in the canton- 
 ments there. 
 
 Two days previously General Roberts had tele- 
 graphed for the regiments most advanced in the passes 
 below to come forward; they arrived on the morning 
 of the 16th, and the general had no longer any anxiety 
 as to his ability to hold the cantonments for months, 
 if necessary, against the attacks of the Afghans. Had 
 these attacked on the morning following what was vir- 
 tually a victory, whilst still flushed with triumph and 
 excitement, it would have needed all the efforts of the 
 English to hold their position against so formidable 
 an attack. The Afghans, however, contented them- 
 selves with occupying several walled villages near 
 the cantonment and keeping up an incessant fire 
 upon it. 
 
 Meanwhile their main body indulged in wild excesses 
 in Cabul, sacking the Hindoo quarter and plundering 
 all the shops without much distinction of nationality. 
 Thus three days elapsed, the British making the most 
 of the time afforded them by strengthening the weak 
 points of their defences. Lines of waggons were placed 
 in the gap between the unfinished wall and the foot 
 
252 THE AFGHAN ASSAULT. 
 
 o£ the hill. Wires were stretched in all directions and 
 chevaux-de-frise erected beyond. 
 
 On the 18th the enemy came down in force, and for 
 some hours a tremendous musketry fire was kept up 
 at the position; but the fire of the musketry and 
 guns from the walls was so hot that they did not 
 venture upon an attack. The following day General 
 Baker sallied out and attacked a fortified post a few 
 hundred yards from the wall. From this place the 
 enemy had greatly annoyed the garrison. After some 
 severe fighting the Afghans were driven out and the 
 place blown up. 
 
 On the evening of the 22d the general received news 
 that the Afghans, having prepared a great number of 
 ladders for the assault, intended to attack that night. 
 There had been several similar warnings, but this time 
 the news proved correct. A signal fire was lit upon 
 one of the heio'hts at four in the morninof, and at five 
 o'clock the plain was covered with the enemy. Quietly 
 they crept up in the darkness towards the walls, and 
 at six o'clock a prodigious shouting was heard, and 
 from the villages, orchards, and inclosed ground upon 
 all sides the enemy dashed forward to the as- 
 sault. 
 
 As they approached they opened fire on all sides, 
 pressing chiefly towards the weak point near the foot 
 of the hills. But tremendous as was the roar of the 
 Afghan fire it was drowned by the roll of musketry 
 which broke from the whole circuit of the walls where 
 
REPULSE OF THE ATTACK. 253 
 
 the British troops, rifle in hand, had been lying for 
 three hours waiting the attack. 
 
 So terrible was the storm of lead that swept the 
 plain that the Afghans paused in their advance. For 
 two hours they remained around the walls, yelling, 
 shouting, and firing heavily; but all the efforts of their 
 leaders could not induce them to rise from the ground 
 and hazard a charge. Many dropped within eighty or 
 ninety yards of the wall, but beyond that the bravest 
 dared not advance. 
 
 When mornino' broke, the welcome news was brouo-ht 
 down from the outlook on the top of the hill that 
 far across the plain could be seen the tents of the 
 force of General Gough, who was coming up through 
 the passes to the relief of the garrison. The news had 
 reached the assailants also. Considerable bodies of the 
 enemy were observed moving out from Cabul, as if 
 with the intention of attacking the relieving force. 
 The assailants of the British position, finding their 
 inability to produce the smallest impression, were now 
 beoinninoj to waver, and General Gouo-h ordered the 
 cavalry and horse artillery to go out by the road which 
 led through a gorge in a hill behind, and to sweep 
 round and take them in the rear. This they did with 
 immense success. At the moment that they fell upon 
 the enemy the British infantry sallied out from the 
 cantonment and attacked them in front. A panic 
 seized the Afghans; in a few mintites the whole plain 
 was covered with flying fugitives, among wJiom our 
 
264 DISPERSAL OF THE TRIBES. 
 
 cavalry swept backward and forward, cutting them up 
 in all directions, while the fire of our infantry and of 
 the guns on the walls searched them through and 
 through whenever they attempted to gather in a knot 
 and make a stand. 
 
 By nightfall the whole of the Afghans had either 
 fled to the hills or were driven into Cabul. Upon the 
 following day General Gough's force marched in; but 
 before their arrival it was found that the enemy had 
 again evacuated the city, and the British were, as 
 before, masters of the position. 
 
 After the decisive defeat which had been inflicted 
 upon them, and the dispersion of the great force which 
 had gathered confident of victory, there was little fear 
 of any further attempt on the part of the enemy. They 
 had brought their whole force into the field, and as 
 this was defeated and dispersed before the arrival of 
 General Gough with his reinforcements it was evident 
 that success could not be hoped for against the united 
 strength of the English. 
 
 The time passed quietly now. The Bala-Hissar and 
 Cabul were reoccupied, and as the natives were cowed 
 by the crushing defeat they had experienced, there 
 was no longer any repetition of the insolent and defiant 
 manner which they had before manifested. 
 
 On the Sd of January a message was brought to 
 the orderly-room that the general wished to see Ser- 
 geant Gale. Upon his presenting himself at the 
 general's quarters Sir Frederick Roberts, to his sur- 
 
THE COMMISSION. 
 
 255 
 
 prise, at once advanced and shook him warmly by the 
 hand. 
 
 "Mr. Gale," he said, "I am very happy to inform you 
 that the Horse Guards have acted upon my recom- 
 mendation, seconded by that which was sent in by 
 your colonel, who wrote at once upon receiving a noti- 
 fication from me of the step I had taken, saying that 
 you had distinguished yourself very highly in the 
 attack upon the Peiwar-Khotal, and that he was con- 
 vinced that you would make in all respects an excellent 
 officer. With my despatches that have just come in I 
 have received a notification that my request has been 
 attended to, together with a copy of the Gazette, in 
 which you are appointed to the 66th Regiment. I have 
 to congratulate you, sir; you are now an officer, and 
 will, I am quite sure, do every credit to my recom- 
 mendation." 
 
 The young soldier was for a moment too moved at 
 the tidings to speak coherently, but he murmured his 
 thanks to the general for his kindness. 
 
 " Do not say anything about that," the general said 
 heartily; "it is a pleasure to me to have been able 
 to advance a promising young soldier. I am only 
 sorry that you are not gazetted to a regiment in my 
 own division. The 66th are at Candahar, and unfor- 
 tunately they will not, I understand, form part of a 
 column with which General Stuart will advance in the 
 spring up the valley through Ghuzni to this place. 
 Had it been so it would have been best for you to wait 
 
256 A KIND OFFER, 
 
 their arrival here ; but as it is you had better go down the 
 pass to India and work round and join your regiment. 
 It is a long road, but it is always best for a young officer 
 to be with his regiment, especially when in the field, and 
 it is possible that they may have their share of fighting- 
 round Candahar, And now there is one thing more. 
 You will have to get an outfit, and there will be the 
 expense of your travel until you join your regiment. 
 There will be no difficulty about an outfit. This you 
 can procure easily on the sale of some officer's efiects. 
 By the by, poor young Thompson, who died yesterday, 
 was about your size, and you had better bid a lump 
 sum for the whole of his kit. I shall be happy to be 
 your banker for that and the needful sum for your 
 travelling expenses. When you join your regiment 
 you will, of course, be able to draw your pay from the 
 date on which you were gazetted." 
 
 Will thanked the general very heartily for his ofi'er, 
 but said that he had £100 standing at his account at 
 the bank of Hindostan, which had been presented to 
 him by the owners of the vessel in which he arrived 
 there, and that this would be more than sufficient for 
 all his needs if the general would kindly authorize 
 the staff" paymaster to cash his drafts upon the bank. 
 
 This request was at once granted. The paymaster 
 of Lieutenant Thompson's regiment estimated that the 
 effects of the young officer would sell at auction for 
 about £20, and this sum William Gale gladly paid, 
 thereby obtaining a complete outfit of regimental and 
 
DOWN THE PASS. 257 
 
 civilian clothes and under linen of all descriptions. An- 
 other £30 bought him a horse and saddlery; while for £5 
 he obtained a rough pony for the use of Yossouf, who 
 steadily refused to leave him, although Will pointed 
 out to him that, glad as he should be to have him with 
 him, it would be far more to his advantage to remain 
 among his people at Cabul, where he had means of 
 settling comfortably. 
 
 Upon the following day, having obtained his new 
 uniform, which he found required no alteration to fit 
 him fairly, William Gale dined with General Roberts, 
 who had kindly invited him in order to introduce him 
 in his new position to the officers of his staff. He was 
 obliged to remain three or four days longer at Sherpur 
 until a strong escort with sick was going down through 
 the passes to Jellalabad. His baggage was stowed upon 
 a camel, and after a kind adieu from General Roberts, 
 and a very cordial one from the staff sergeants, among 
 whom he had worked for three months, he started 
 with the convoy for the lower valleys. The escort con- 
 sisted of a hundred men of the infantry of the Guides. 
 The way down the pass was difficult, but no snow had 
 fallen for three weeks, and the roads were fairly 
 beaten down by passing parties. Still their progress 
 was slow, and late on the afternoon of the second day 
 after starting they were still four miles from the fort 
 of Jugdulluk, which was held by a British force, and 
 where they were to halt for the night. 
 
 The Guides were on the alert. A party of four men 
 
 (274) ^ -^ R 
 
258 THE ATTACK ON THE CONVOY 
 
 were 200 yards ahead o£ the little column, which was 
 commanded by Captain Edwards. Presently a shot 
 rang out from the front followed by a scattered dis- 
 charge. William Gale was at the moment riding by the 
 side of Captain Edwards; he had already placed himself 
 under that officer's orders in case of any emergency. 
 
 " Mr. Gale," Captain Edwards said, " will you ride 
 forward at once with six men to the advanced party. 
 When you get there take such measures as you may 
 think fit, and send me back word as to the streno^th 
 and position of the enemy." 
 
 With six of the Guides Will at once rode forward, 
 while Captain Edwards halted until the little column 
 was gathered closely together, the camels and dhoolies 
 with sick men in the centre, the soldiers in readiness 
 for action around them. A soldier now ran up with a 
 slip of paper upon which Will had scribbled in pencil: 
 " The enemy are apparently in considerable force. The 
 defile opens here. They are disposed among rocks and 
 boulders on either side." 
 
 Will on arriving at the advanced party had found at 
 once that the force of the enemy was too strong for 
 him to attempt to move forward at present. He had 
 posted the men behind boulders by the wayside, order- 
 ing them to pick ofi" any man that showed himself, and 
 they were soon engaged in a sharp musketry skirmish 
 with the enemy. One of their number had fallen at 
 the first discharge, and Will, taking his rifle, used it 
 with effect until the head of the convoy arrived. 
 
THE FIGHT IN THE DEFILE. 259 
 
 It was now fast becoming dark, and the flashes of 
 the enemy's fire from behind the rocks showed how 
 numerous were the assailants. 
 
 " There must be a couple of thousands of the 
 scoundrels," Will said to Captain Edwards as the latter 
 came up to ascertain the state of affairs. " Hampered 
 with the convoy, the position is an awkward one. It 
 is fortunate they attacked where they did, for we can 
 hold our own here; while, if they had waited till we 
 got fairly down into this comparatively open valley and 
 then attacked us on both flanks, it would have been 
 very awkward. We must try and clear them out; we 
 cannot stop here all night. It is freezing very sharp 
 now, and the cold will be intense in an hour or two." 
 
 "I will take thirty men," Captain Edwards said, 
 "and skirmish along among the rocks on the left. Do 
 you take as many more, and move along the right of 
 the path. The remaining forty shall stay here under 
 my sergeant to guard the convoy from an attack in 
 rear in case any of the enemy should come down the 
 defile behind us.'' 
 
 The fight soon became exceedingly hot. Making 
 their way along the rocks on either side of the path, the 
 Guides slowly drove the enemy before them. It was 
 hard work, however, for the tribesmen fought steadily, 
 and as those in front fell back upon those lower down 
 the valley their resistance became every moment more 
 obstinate. Eight of Will's party had already fallen; 
 but although, sword in hand, he was leading them, 
 
260 HEMMED IN. 
 
 encouraoino^ them with voice and sjesture, not a bullet 
 had as yet struck him. Presently Captain Edwards, 
 having crossed the valley, stood by his side. 
 
 " We are at a standstill," he said. " Nine of my 
 men are killed or wounded already, and the fellows 
 are as thick as peas. I am afraid we shall never be 
 able to force our way through. There," he exclaimed, 
 as a sound of firing was heard in the rear, " they have 
 come down on the convoy from behind. We had 
 better, I think, fall back a bit, and take post near the 
 mouth of the defile. We must defend ourselves as best 
 we can till mornino-." 
 
 o 
 
 The movement was steadily executed, the wounded 
 men being carried with them as they retired. The tribes- 
 men advanced as they fell back, not venturing to press 
 them, however, for the rear-guard kept their faces to- 
 wards them, and any who ventured to show themselves 
 instantly paid the penalty of their rashness. For an 
 hour the fio^ht went on. It was nioht now, and dark 
 as pitch in the deep valley in which the fight was 
 going on, the position of the combatants being only 
 indicated by the fiickering flashes of the muskets. 
 The Afghans were gradually creeping nearer, as the 
 Guides could see by the flashes. 
 
 " If the fellows only make a determined rush at us," 
 Captain Edwards said to Will, " it will go hard with 
 us. Fortunately they are as much in the dark as we 
 are, and will find it difficult to gather for a rush." 
 
 " I think we may hold out till morning, but by that 
 
WILL gale's offer. 261 
 
 time news that we are blockaded here will spread 
 throughout the hills, and we may have 10,000 of them 
 down on us. I think, if you will give me leave, the 
 best plan will be for me to try and make my way 
 down to Jugdulluk to bring up help from there." 
 
 " You would never get through," Captain Edw^ards 
 advised. " It is a brave offer, Gale, but could not be 
 done." 
 
 "I think it might be done," Will said. "It is as 
 dark as pitch. I will take my lad with me, and will 
 borrow a native cap and cloak from one of the bearers 
 — there are some Afghans among them. I will take 
 off my patrol jacket and leave it behind me, and my 
 boots. We will crawl along in the dark. If, as is 
 likely enough, we stumble against some of them, we 
 will say we are w^ounded and are making our w^ay to 
 the rear. They cannot see us in the dark, and my 
 Afghan will pass muster, and Yossouf will certainly 
 not be suspected. If I am discovered and killed he 
 will go forward and deliver the message." 
 
 The plan seemed to offer every possibility of success, 
 and Captain Edwards, seeing how serious the position 
 was, consented to allow Will to attempt it. 
 
 A few words to Yossouf sufficed to inform him of 
 the task Will was about to undertake, and he at once 
 agreed to share the danger. A rough sheepskin cap 
 was obtained for Will from one of the camel men. 
 His tunic w^as thrown off, and a posteen or Afghan 
 sheepskin coat was put on in its place. He took a 
 
262 A DESPERATE MISSION. 
 
 long matchlock which the camel man carried slung 
 over his shoulders, took off his boots, and thrust a pair 
 of loose Afghan shoes into his belt. Yossouf needed no 
 preparations beyond borrowing a matchlock. Wring- 
 ing Captain Edwards' hand. Will stooped on his hands 
 and knees, and, with Yossouf a pace or two ahead, 
 began to crawl down the path. 
 
 Before starting the orders had been sent round to 
 the soldiers to fire at the rocks on either side of the 
 path, but on no account to fire down the road itself. 
 As he expected. Will found this clear of Afghans for a 
 considerable distance. A heavy fire had, previous to 
 their starting, been directed down this path to prevent 
 the Afghans from gathering there in the darkness pre- 
 paratory to making a rush. They came across several 
 dead bodies, but the enemy were all behind rocks on 
 one side or other of the road. 
 
 When they had crawled a hundred yards they were 
 past the front line, from which the Afghans were 
 keeping up a heavy fire; but Will knew that from their 
 numbers they must extend far back down the valiey, 
 and indeed from almost every rock the flashes of the 
 matchlocks blazed out as the lurking tribesmen fired 
 in the direction of the mouth of the defile. They were 
 nearly a quarter of a mile down when an Afghan, who 
 had been crouching behind a rock close to the path, 
 advanced into the road to fire, when he stumbled 
 against Yossouf. 
 
 ''What are you doing?" he exclaimed. 
 
THE BRITISH POST. '2G3 
 
 "We are both wounded by the Kaffirs," Yossouf 
 answered, " and are making our way back to bind up 
 our wounds. I think my arm is broken, but I mean to 
 come back ag-ain to have a few more shots at the in- 
 fidels." 
 
 "Good!" the Afghan replied. "How goes it in 
 front?" 
 
 " Their fire is lessening," Yossouf said. " We must 
 have killed many. We shall finish with them in the 
 morning if not before.'' 
 
 The Afghan fired, and then retired behind his rock 
 to load again, while Will and Yossouf continued their 
 way. A few hundred yards farther they rose to their 
 feet. Will slipped on the Afghan shoes, and they then 
 proceeded at a rapid pace down the pass. Several 
 times they withdrew from the road and hid beside it 
 as they met parties of tribesmen hurrying up to join in 
 the attack, but in an hour after starting they heard the 
 welcome challenge of the sentry at Jugdulluk. Saying 
 who he was, Will was at once passed forward into the 
 fort and taken to the quarters of the officer in com- 
 mand. 
 
 "I am Lieutenant Gale, of the C6th," Will said, 
 " and was on my way down the pass with the convoy 
 of wounded and 100 men of the Guides under Captain 
 Edwards. They have been attacked at the lower end 
 of the defile, some four miles above, by a very strong 
 body of tribesmen. They are attacked front and rear. 
 I have made my way through to ask you if you can 
 
264 A RELIEVING PARTY. 
 
 despatch a force to their rescue. Were the tribesmen 
 attacked in their rear now they might be scattered 
 easily enough, but they are assembling very fast, and 
 in the morning it will be a difficult matter to reach 
 them." 
 
 "We have fancied," the officer said, "for the last 
 two hours that we heard distant firing, but we could 
 not be sure, for any noise echoes so in these mountains. 
 I will set out at once with you with as many men as I 
 can spare." 
 
CHAPTER XYII. 
 
 AT CANDAHAE. 
 
 HE garrison of Jugdulluk consisted only of 
 220 Sikhs. The officer in command left 
 seventy of these in charge of one of his 
 subalterns, with the injunction to exercise the most 
 extreme vigilance in his absence. Then with 150 men, 
 a subaltern, and Will Gale he started up the path to 
 effect the rescue of the beleaguered convoy. The road 
 wound and turned frequently among the spurs of the 
 lofty hills which had cut off the sound of firing from 
 the garrison, and only a faint and distant murmur was 
 audible when they started. After marching two miles, 
 however, the rattle of the musketry became clear and 
 distinct. Upon the way the officer in command learned 
 from Will the exact position of things in front and the 
 situation of the Afghans. 
 
 When within half a mile of the scene of action jB.fty 
 men were thrown out on either side of the road, while 
 the other fifty advanced very slowly along the centre. 
 The orders to the flankers were to search among the 
 rocks as they advanced, and to bayonet or shoot every 
 
266 THE CONVOY RELIEVED. 
 
 Afghan they found among them. It was not long 
 before they came upon the enemy. Then the rifles 
 cracked out, and the wild shouts of the Afghans be- 
 tokened their astonishment at being thus unexpectedly 
 assailed in rear. 
 
 Numerous as they were they offered but a slight 
 resistance. Their one thought was to effect their escape ; 
 and they hurried rapidly away as the relief advanced, 
 climbing the steep sides of the valley by paths only 
 known to themselves, and then from the hillside far 
 above opening a scattered fire at random down into 
 the valley. 
 
 In five minutes all resistance had ceased. The flank- 
 ing parties were ordered to shelter themselves behind 
 the rocks and to return the fire of the natives on the 
 hillsides, to retain the position until the convoy passed 
 through, and then to close behind it as a rear- 
 guard. 
 
 With the fifty men in the road the officer then 
 pushed forward, and was soon greeted by a shout of 
 welcome from the defenders of the defixle. There was 
 not a minute to be lost, for the Afghans, when they 
 recovered from their first scare, would renew the 
 attack; and the party pressing down the defile on 
 their rear, ignorant of what had taken place below, 
 were still keeping up an incessant fire. Twenty-eight 
 of the Guides were already killed or wounded. 
 
 Several of the sick men in the dhoolies volunteered 
 to walk down to the fort and to give up their places to 
 
safp: in the fort. 
 
 267 
 
 those of the wounded men who were unable to walk, 
 and in a few minutes the convoy moved forward. 
 
 The fifty men of the relieving party placed them- 
 selves in their rear; and as the tribesmen who had 
 been attacking them from behind rushed down through 
 the defile with exulting shouts, believing that they 
 were now secure of their victims, the Sikhs opened so 
 heavy a fire on them that they fell back up the defile 
 in disorder. As the convoy wound down the valley 
 the enemy again assembled on the hills and pursued 
 them hotly. But the Sikhs and Guides kept up so 
 steady a fire that they did not venture to approach to 
 close quarters, and with a loss of eighteen more men 
 the convoy reached the shelter of the fort. Conscious 
 of their inability to attack this position the Afghans 
 drew off". 
 
 On returning to his friends Will had resumed his 
 uniform, and now on reaching the fort Captain Ed- 
 wards expressed to him his warmest thanks for the 
 hazardous adventure that he had undertaken. 
 
 "I shall, of course," he concluded, "furnish a full 
 report of the affair to the general, and I should think 
 he would recommend you for the Victoria Cross. If 
 any fellow ever deserved it you do so, for it seemed to 
 me almost certain death to venture through the pass. 
 I never expected to see you again, and I was never 
 more glad in my life than I was when the firing began 
 down below in the valley, and knew that help was 
 at hand; for had you failed it would have been all up 
 
268 MEETING OLD FRIENDS. 
 
 with US. I doubt if we should have seen the morning, 
 and at any rate few of us would have been left by that 
 time." 
 
 The convoy reached Jellalabad without further ad- 
 venture, and Captain Edwards reported to the general 
 the events of the march. He was requested to give a 
 full written report of the affair, and the general stated 
 that in forwarding it he should certainly append a 
 recommendation that Lieutenant Gale should receive 
 the Victoria Cross for his gallantry in venturing 
 through the Afghans to fetch assistance or the convoy. 
 
 Will himself, as soon as he reached Jellalabad, hur- 
 ried away to the cantonment of the Norfolk EangerS; 
 who were in a village a mile distant from the town. 
 He was not recognized as he passed through the sol- 
 diers scattered about the village street, and was soon 
 at the principal house where the colonel had his quar- 
 ters. On sending in his name he was at once shown 
 into the room where the colonel was at work. 
 
 " I am indeed glad to see you," the latter said, rising 
 and shaking him heartily by the hand, " and I con- 
 gratulate you most warmly on your promotion. I 
 promised to do what I could for you when you joined, 
 but I did not expect that it would be so soon." 
 
 " I am indeed obliged to you, colonel, for your kind- 
 ness," Will said, " and am conscious how much I owe 
 to you." 
 
 " Not at all, my boy, not at all ; it was General 
 Eoberts himself who recommended you for your com- 
 
A HEARTY RECEPTION. 269 
 
 mission, and I was only too glad to back up his recom- 
 mendation to the best of my power. We all thought 
 you were gone when you were reported as missing 
 at Ali-Kheyl, and we heard from the sentry that, 
 having gone forward to investigate the origin of a 
 noise he had reported to you, you were suddenly fired 
 upon, and that he saw no more of you as he ran back 
 to the picket. I was glad indeed when the report was 
 received from poor Cavagnari that upon his arrival at 
 Cabul he had found you there just recovering from 
 your wounds. Then, of course, we gave you up again 
 when we heard of the massacre of the mission; and it 
 seemed like a resurrection from the dead when I got a 
 letter from Koberts saying you were found again, and 
 that he was recommending you for a commission. I 
 see by the Gazette you are appointed to the 66th, and 
 we were expecting to see you on your way down. Had 
 you any difficulty in getting through the passes?" 
 
 "The convoy was attacked, sir, by the tribesmen 
 when near Jugdulluk, but the garrison came out to our 
 rescue and we got through safely. But we had thirty 
 men killed or wounded." 
 
 "A smart affair !" the colonel said. ''And now of course 
 you will take up your quarters with us for a day or 
 two before you go on. The officers will all be glad to 
 ,see you, and you will be able to tell us all about the 
 attack on the mission and the recent fighting. Roberts 
 has been having some hot work there. We have been 
 grumbling horribly at our bad luck. We thought at 
 
270 AN INVITATION. 
 
 the time we were fortunate at being sent back to India 
 when peace was signed, instead of being kept in the 
 Khurum valley. But the consequence has been that 
 we have been out of it all. However, we must look 
 upon you as our representative." 
 
 Will hesitated about staying, but the colonel over- 
 ruled his objection, saying that as there would be no 
 fighting until the spring there could be no particular 
 hurry for him to join his regiment. A spare room 
 was placed at his disposal in the colonel's quarters, and 
 Will was soon made at home. The officers flocked in 
 upon hearing of his arrival, and all congratulated him 
 most warmly upon his promotion. An hour later a 
 mounted orderly rode up to the colonel's quarters. 
 
 "Is Lieutenant Gale here?" he asked. Will went 
 forward. 
 
 "A note from the general," the orderly said, and 
 handing it to him; "also one for Colonel Shepherd." 
 Will's note was simply an invitation to dine that 
 evening with the general. The colonel's letter was 
 as follows: — 
 
 " Dear Colonel Shepherd, — As Lieutenant Gale 
 was promoted from your regiment I think it is likely 
 that he has found his way to you. I have written to 
 ask him to dinner; please spare him to me. I hope 
 you will do me the pleasure of accompanying him. He 
 has performed a most gallant action, and I have just 
 had the pleasure of writing a despatch recommending 
 him for the V.C." 
 
1 — i '!'"i''|i,'!lii|||,'|j|| 
 
 LETTERS FROM THE GENERAL. 
 
WILL TELLS HIS STORY. 271 
 
 Will and the colonel at once wrote notes accepting 
 the invitation. When these had been sent out to the 
 orderly the colonel read aloud to the officers present 
 the note he had received from the general. 
 
 "Now," he said, turning to Will, "what is that you 
 have been doing ? You told us the convoy had been 
 attacked and sharply pressed, but you said nothing of 
 your share in the affair. What was it ?" 
 
 "It was simple enough, sir," Will answered, colour- 
 ing hotly. "We were surrounded just at the mouth of 
 the defile. The enemy held the valley in front in great 
 force, and another party were pressing on our rear. 
 Things looked awkward, and so I volunteered with 
 my faithful Afghan boy to get through the fellows in 
 front and make my way down to Jugdulluk, which was 
 four miles away, to bring the garrison up on their 
 rear. It was simple enough, and in fact there was 
 Jess danger than in remaining with the convoy to be 
 popped at by the Afghans. The night was very dark, 
 and down in the bottom one could hardly see one's 
 hand. The Afghans had been cleared pretty well off 
 the road by our fire, so there was no difficulty what- 
 ever in making our way down. We were, in fact, only 
 questioned once ; and my boy's statement, that we were 
 wounded and were going to the rear, was accepted at 
 once." 
 
 "The fact that you succeeded," the colonel said, "does 
 not detract from the pluck required to attempt such 
 an adventure. To my mind there is more courage re- 
 
272 EARNING A V.C. 
 
 quired in venturing alone through the midst of the 
 Afghans at night than there would be in charging 
 any number of them in hot blood in the light. You 
 have earned the V.C. well, Gale, and I am sure we 
 all feel proud of you, though you do not belong to us 
 now." 
 
 There was a chorus of approval from the officers 
 around. 
 
 "I don't belong to you now, sir, but," Will said 
 earnestly, "I shall always feel, whatever regiment I 
 may be with, that the Norfolk Rangers are my corps. 
 It is the kindness which was shown me here which 
 has put me in the way of rising, and I shall never 
 forget it." 
 
 It was now time to dress for dinner, and Will for 
 the first time arrayed himself in full-dress uniform. 
 The buttons and facings he would of course get altered 
 when he joined the regiment. The general received 
 Gale with great kindness. He had a large party to 
 dinner; among them was Captain Edwards; and after 
 the table was cleared the latter, at the general's request, 
 gave a full account of the attack upon the convoy, and 
 Will was then called upon to relate the part which he 
 had taken in it, which he did very modestly and 
 quietly. 
 
 For two days longer he stopped at Jellalabad, and 
 then with a hearty farewell to the officers of the 
 Rangers he started down the pass. He again journeyed 
 with a convoy; for although the tribes below Jellalabad 
 
ON THE WAY TO CANDAHAR. 273 
 
 were cowed into submivssion many attacks were made 
 by the mountaineers upon small parties going up or 
 down the passes, and stringent orders had been issued 
 that no officer should go down except when accom- 
 panied by an escort. 
 
 After a week's travelling Will arrived with Yossouf 
 at Peshawur, then he rode by easy stages until he 
 reached the Indus, where, taking his place on a steamer, 
 he travelled down the river to Sukkur, where he dis- 
 embarked and started for the weary march across the 
 desert to the foot of the Bolan. 
 
 Alono' the road laro-^ numbers of coolies were at 
 work constructing a line of railway which was now 
 almost complete to the foot of the pass. It did not 
 ascend this, but turning to the right wound up the 
 hills to the plateau. It was intended to be taken on 
 to Candahar, and its completion would have been an 
 immense boon both to that city and to India, as it 
 would have opened a great trade to the north, and 
 have enabled the inhabitants of the fertile plain around 
 Candahar to send their corUj fruit, and other products 
 down to India. Unhappily, with the subsequent aban- 
 donment of Candahar the formation of the railway 
 was stopped, and the whole allowed to go to ruin. The 
 work has, however, been recently taken in hand again. 
 
 Will and his follower ascended the Bolan, stopped a 
 day or two at Quettah to rest their horses, and then 
 proceeded on through the fertile plains of Pisheen and 
 over the Kojak Pass, and thence on to Candahar. Here 
 
 (274) s 
 
274 will's new position. 
 
 Will joined his new regiment and was well received by 
 its officers. 
 
 In every regiment in the service an officer risen from 
 the ranks is invariably received with special courtesy 
 and kindness. Every endeavour is made to place him 
 at his ease in his new position. This is specially so 
 when, as in Will's case, the promotion has been earned 
 by distinguished services in the field. 
 
 In most instances officers promoted from the rank 
 of sergeant are a good deal older than the young 
 lieutenants among whom they find themselves. Being 
 often married men, and having nothing but their pay 
 to depend upon, they find themselves, therefore, un- 
 able to take much part in the pleasures and gaieties 
 of the regiment. 
 
 In India, however, as the rate of pay is much higher, 
 an unmarried officer can live very comfortably on his 
 pay; and as in the field the expenses are far less than 
 when a res^iment is in cantonments at a laro-e station, 
 where there is much gaiety, Will found that he was 
 able to ifve very comfortably on his pay in the same 
 style as that of his comrades. They on their part were 
 pleased to find in Will a young fellow of the same age 
 as the other junior lieutenants, and withal a pleasant 
 gentlemanly young man. The fact, too, that he had 
 seen so much service, had gone through stirring adven- 
 tures, and had fought by the side of Cavagnari in the 
 Bala-Hissar, made him quite a hero among them, and 
 Will was soon thoroughly one of themselves. When 
 
WILL IMPROVES HIS MIND. 275 
 
 it Avas known that the regiment was likely to remain 
 at Canclahar for some time many luxuries had been 
 brought up from India, together with means of passing 
 away the time, such as the necessary appliances for 
 cricket, racket, and other games. 
 
 Among these too were several boxes of books, and 
 Will, who had at first a little amused his comrades by 
 his absolute ignorance of cricket, but who soon became 
 a promising recruit at that game, steadily devoted 
 three hours a day to reading in order to improve his 
 mind, and to obtain a knowledge of the various matters 
 which were topics of conversation among his comrades. 
 Above all he diligently studied the newspapers, great 
 parcels of which arrived every week, in order to obtain 
 some knowledge of the political state of affairs in Eng- 
 land, the position of parties, and the various matters 
 occupying public attention. 
 
 He had at first found his ignorance of these matters 
 a great drawback to him in general conversation; but 
 he discovered that newspapers rather than books are 
 useful in enablinof a man to mix with his fellows in 
 social talk, and that the current events of the day form 
 ninety-nine hundredths of the subjects of conversation. 
 The fact that all his mess-mates had been thoroughly 
 posted in the history of Rome and Greece, that they 
 could read these lano^uages almost as well as Encrlish, 
 that they had been coached in high mathematics, and 
 had a knowledge of French and German, gave them. Will 
 found, very little advantage in general conversation; 
 
276 THE ADVANTAGE OF EDUCATION. 
 
 and he was surprised to discover how entirely useless 
 from a practical point of view is much of the instruc- 
 tion which must be mastered by young men before 
 obtaining a commission. 
 
 Many times, when talking with the young officers 
 with whom he was most intimate, he inquired of them 
 what good they found the learning they had obtained 
 during their many years of schooling, and was sur- 
 prised at the universal reply, "No good whatever!" 
 He found, however, that some of the more thoughtful 
 of them admitted that they had gained increased powers 
 of thought and reasoning from their training. 
 
 "That is the good of education, Gale," Captain 
 Fletcher, who commanded Will's company, said to him 
 one day. "A certain time must be spent upon education, 
 and the course of study is intended to strengthen and 
 improve the mental powers. As far as soldiers are con- 
 cerned it would certainly be of more practical use if the 
 time we spent at school on Greek and mathematics had 
 been expended in acquiring three or four European and 
 Indian languages. But you see boys educated at the 
 same school must all Avork together and study the 
 same books, whatever the profession for which they 
 are intended is. Our practical, that is, our professional 
 education, only begins when we go to Woolwich or 
 Sandhurst. Perhaps some day a different system will 
 be emploA^ed. There will be special schools for lads 
 intended for various professions and careers. Till that 
 is done we must all work upon a common basis, which 
 
GENERAL STEWART'S COLUMN 277 
 
 has at least the advantage of forming the mind for the 
 after work of acquiring the special branches of know- 
 ledge required by us in the careers we may adopt. If 
 you ask my advice I should not at your time of life 
 dream of setting to to learn the dead languages or to 
 study mathematics. Read the histories of Rome and 
 Greece, and study that of your own country. Read 
 books of travel and the biographies of great men, and 
 keep yourself well posted, as you are doing, in current 
 public events. You will then find yourself able to take 
 part on equal terms in any conversation which may be 
 going on. You will indeed be considered by strangers 
 an exceptionally well-informed young fellow, and you 
 may pass through life without any person having a 
 suspicion that Latin, Greek, and mathematics, the car- 
 dinal points of an ordinary education, are wholly un- 
 known to you." 
 
 Will was cheered by the advice, and henceforth 
 directed his studies only in the direction which Cap- 
 tain Fletcher had indicated. At the beginning of April 
 a large diminution had taken place in the force sta- 
 tioned at Candahar, as General Sir Donald Stewart 
 marched with the greater portion of the force for Cabul. 
 The route led through a country which was the strong- 
 hold of the fanatical party, the important town of 
 Ghuzni containing the most fanatical population in all 
 Afghanistan. This had been the centre whence the 
 attacks on General Roberts had been organized, and it 
 was deemed necessary to march a strong force through 
 
278 THE BATTLE OF AHMED-KHEL. 
 
 the country to overawe the tribesmen and break up 
 their organization. 
 
 The march was uneventful as far as Shahjui, the 
 limit of the Candahar province. At this point the 
 Taraki country begins. The Mollahs here had been 
 actively preaching a holy war, and several thousand 
 men were reported as having collected. The villages 
 were found to be deserted, and everything betokened 
 an active opposition to the advance. 
 
 When the head of the column arrived at Ahmed- 
 Khel a body of the enemy, estimated at from 12,000 to 
 15,000, were seen clustered on a semicircle of hills 
 beyond the village. The baggage of the column 
 stretched far along the road, and it was all-important 
 to prevent the enemy from falling upon this long line. 
 General Stewart therefore determined to attack them. 
 
 The two batteries of artillery opened fire upon the 
 enemy, who at once in reply rushed down to the 
 assault. The charge was led by some 3000 or 4000 
 Ghazis, as they were called, fanatics who had sworn 
 to give their lives in carrying out their object of 
 exterminating the hated infidel. Some of these men 
 were armed with rifles and matchlocks, some with 
 heavy swords, knives, and pistols; others again with 
 pikes made of bayonets or pieces of sharpened iron 
 fastened upon long sticks. Some were on foot and 
 some on horseback. 
 
 With wild yells the mass rushed down upon our 
 troops, and so sudden and unexpected was the attack, 
 
A HAND-TO-HAND STRUGGLE. 2t'J 
 
 SO swiftly did they cross the 400 or 500 j^ards of 
 intervening ground, that they came upon the British 
 before preparation could be made for their reception. 
 At the moment when they charged, some of the 
 cavalry were moving across in front of the infantry, 
 and these, before they could be got into a line for a 
 charge, were surrounded by the enemy. In an instant 
 they were lost to sight in the cloud of dust and smoke. 
 It was a hand-to-hand struggle, and in the confusion 
 a troop charged to the right in rear of the main line 
 of the infantry and burst into the midst of the 19th 
 Punjaub Infantry, wdio were in reserve in rear of the 
 position occupied by the general and his staff. In a 
 moment all was confusion. 
 
 The ammunition mules were stampeded, riderless 
 horses dashed hither and thither, and close behind the 
 cavalry the Ghazis with a furious rush dashed in 
 among the broken infantry. Upon the left flank, too, 
 the Ghazis swept round in the rear of our infantry 
 line, and for a time it seemed as if the whole British 
 formation was broken up, in which case the numbers 
 of their foes must have prevailed. Colonel Lister, Y.C., 
 however, who commanded the Sd Ghoorkas, threw 
 his men rapidly into company squares, and poured a 
 tremendous tire into the fanatics. 
 
 All along the line the attack raged, and so hurriedly 
 liad the battle commenced that many of the men had 
 not even fixed bayonets. Desperate was the hand-to- 
 hand lighting, and valour more conspicuous than that 
 
280 REPULSE OF THE FANATICS. 
 
 of the Ghazis was never shown. Furiously they threw 
 themselves upon the line of their opponents, clutch- 
 ing their muskets and trying to wrench them from 
 their hands, while they strove to cut down their 
 holders. 
 
 Many of them threw themselves upon the fixed 
 bayonets and died in the endeavour to cut down the 
 soldiers with their swords, but the three regiments 
 which formed the line — one British (the 59th), one 
 Ghoorkas, and one Sikhs — alike held their own and 
 poured rolling volleys into the ranks of the enemy. 
 
 Desperately the Ghazis strove to capture the guns, 
 which were firing case and shrapnel into them at a 
 distance of thirty yards, mowing them down in hun- 
 dreds. Not even would this terrible slaughter have 
 checked them had not the 2d Punjaub Cavalry most 
 gallantly charged them again and again. The general, 
 surrounded by his escort, was in the midst of the fight, 
 the enemy having burst in between the guns and the 
 59th Foot, and officers and troopers had alike to fight 
 for their lives, several of the escort being killed and 
 wounded. At last, however, the Ghazis fell back from 
 the terrible fire. 
 
 The 1st Punjaub Cavalry coming up from the rear 
 joined the 2d in a hot pursuit; and our native allies 
 the Hazaras, seeing^ the Af o-hans in retreat, also rushed 
 out after them, and the rout of the enemy was com- 
 plete. The fighting had lasted about an hour, and the 
 enemy left over a thousand dead on the field, besides 
 
THE FIGHT AT GHALEZ. 281 
 
 the bodies which had been carried off Their wounded 
 of course, Avere far more numerous. 
 
 Ghuzni surrendered without opposition when the 
 column reached it, the fighting men having been 
 engaged in the battle of Ahmed- Khel, and having had 
 enough of hostilities. On the 2.3d of April a force 
 under Brigadier-general Palliser advanced against a 
 large body of natives who had assembled near the vil- 
 lage of Ghalez, again led by the Ghazis. These rushed 
 to the attack with a courage and desperation equal to 
 that shown by the fanatics in the previous battle. Our 
 men, however, were this time prepared, and were able 
 to inflict very heavy losses upon the enemy without 
 allowing them to get to close quarters. 
 
 This was the end of the Afghan resistance. General 
 Stewart moved on to Cabul without further fighting, 
 and eftected a junction thure with the force under 
 General Roberts. 
 
CHAPTER XVIIT. 
 
 ON THE HELMUXD. 
 
 ITH the junction of the forces of Generals 
 Stewart and Roberts, what may be called 
 the second period of the Afghan war came 
 to an end. All opposition had ceased, and it appeared 
 probable that there would be no more fighting. Abdul- 
 Rahman, a prince of the royal house who, after for 
 some time fighting against Sheer Ali, had been defeated 
 and obliged to fly the country, had for a long time 
 been a resident among the Russians. 
 
 Upon the abdication of Yakoub he had crossed the 
 frontier and had entered at the north of Afghanis- 
 tan, assuming the title of Ameer. He had been Avell 
 received in that part of the country, and as no other 
 competitor for the throne appeared to have chances 
 equal to his, and as the British government were most 
 anxious to withdraw their forces from the country, his 
 authority was recognized by us. Negotiations were 
 opened with him, and it was arranged that as he ap- 
 proached Cabul the British force would retire. 
 
 The summer had passed not unpleasantly at Can- 
 
AN ATTACK BY GHAZIS. 
 
 283 
 
 dahar: the country was peaceful, cricket-matches were 
 got up between the various regiments, and horse-races 
 established. Candahar was governed by a protege 
 of the British named Wall Shere Ali. He had organ- 
 ized a native army to support his authority upon our 
 withdrawal. The only circumstances which occurred 
 to mar the pleasing time were isolated attacks upon 
 British officers and men by Ghazis. 
 
 These attacks were sometimes made in broad day- 
 light in the streets of Candahar, where the escape of 
 those who perpetrated them was impossible; these 
 fanatics regarding their own life with indifference, so 
 that they could but kill one or more of the British 
 before being cut down. 
 
 One day as William Gale was walking in the prin- 
 cipal street of Candahar at a short distance behind 
 Colonel Bipon, an Indian official of very long standing 
 and experience who had come up on a special mission 
 to arranoe with the Wali the details of the civil 
 government of the province, he saw three Afghans who 
 were loiterino- in the road draw their lono- tulwars 
 and dash upon that officer. The first who readied him 
 delivered a sweeping blow, which the colonel, taken 
 by surprise, partly received on his uplifted arm, but 
 was struck to the ground. Another of the Ghazis 
 raised his sword; but before it could fall Will Gale, 
 who saw at once that he was too far behind to inter- 
 pose between the assailant and the victim, drew his 
 revolver from his belt, and, taking a hasty aim, fired. 
 
284 A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 
 
 The shot was an accurate one, the bullet striking the 
 Afghan on the forehead just as he was about to strike. 
 He fell forward on the colonel, receiving as he did so 
 a tremendous blow which the third Ghazi was aiming 
 at the prostrate man. 
 
 Before the blow could be repeated Will had bounded 
 forward and, sword in one hand and revolver in the 
 other, faced the two Afghans. Another shot freed him 
 of one of his assailants just as the other, rushing reck- 
 lessly forward, aimed a blow at him which he was not 
 quick enough to parry. His right arm fell to his side; 
 but in an instant he threw himself upon his foe, and 
 the two fell heavily to the ground, the Afghan striving 
 desperately to shorten his sword so as to use the point, 
 while Will strove to liberate his left arm, which was 
 under the man, and so use his revolver, which he still 
 grasped. 
 
 At this moment some soldiers of the 66th ran up, 
 and one of them with his bayonet, which since these 
 attacks began were always carried at the belt, brought 
 the conflict to a conclusion by running it through and 
 through the Ghazi's body. Will soon rose to his feet. 
 Colonel Ripon had already freed himself from the body 
 of the dead Ghazi and had strusfo'led to his feet, the 
 blood streaming from his head and arm. 
 
 "I have to thank you for my life, sir," he said 
 warmly. "Had your aid come but two seconds less 
 promptly they would have finished me. But I fear 
 you are severely wounded." 
 
WILL SAVES COLONEL RIPON. 
 
PLEASANT QUARTERS. 285 
 
 "Oh, no!" Will answered; "it is only a flesh wound 
 from my shoulder to my elbow. Luckily my sword 
 partly caught the blow. I was aiming at the other 
 fellow, and had not time to parry fairly. I shall be 
 none the worse for it in a week's time. My wound 
 is less severe than yours, sir." 
 
 "We are both bleeding pretty freely," the colonel 
 said. " My quarters are close at hand, and as the 
 principal medical officer lives in the same house, you 
 cannot do better than come in with me." 
 
 In a few minutes their wounds were bandaged, the 
 doctor saying that no serious harm had been done in 
 either case, but that care and quiet lest fever should 
 supervene would be necessary for a week or two. As 
 the house was much more airy and commodious than 
 that in which Will was quartered, the colonel begged 
 him so strongly to move his quarters thither until able 
 to return to duty that Will agreed to do so, and was 
 soon installed, with Yossouf in attendance, in the 
 colonel's quarters. 
 
 He was greatly pleased with the old officer, whose 
 manner was most kind and courteous, and who from 
 his long experience in India was full of anecdotes and 
 information concerning the country. Ten days after 
 the struggle the doctor told them that there was no 
 longer any occasion for his services. 
 
 Their wounds were healing favourably and all fear 
 of fever had passed. At the same time it would still 
 be some time before either could take their arms from 
 
286 A SINGULAR LIKENESS. 
 
 their slings. The following day, in honour of his con- 
 valescence, Colonel Ripon invited several friends to 
 dinner, among them General Burrows and Colonel 
 Galbraith of the 6Gth. All had of course heard the 
 details of the attack on Colonel Ripon, and Will was 
 congratulated warmly upon the promptness that he 
 had showed. 
 
 " Do you know, colonel," General Burrows said as 
 they were smoking their cigars after dinner, " there is 
 a wonderful likeness between you and Lieutenant Gale. 
 I should have taken j^ou for father and son any- 
 where." 
 
 The other officers agreed with the remark. The 
 likeness was certainly strong. Both were men of six 
 feet in heiofht. The colonel's hair and moustache were 
 grizzled, and his face bronzed with the sun of many 
 Indian summers ; he was thin and spare of habit, but 
 his shoulders were broad, and it was evident that in 
 his j^outh he must have possessed much of the muscular 
 strength which was apparent in Will's more rounded 
 liuibs. But it was in their eyes that there was the 
 greatest similarity. Both were gray and of nearly the 
 same shade; both had a simple, straightforward, and 
 kindly expression; both were shaded by straight and 
 rather heavy eyebrows. The men looked at each 
 other. 
 
 " I suppose he is like me," Colonel Bipon said; " still 
 more like, I fancy, what I remember myself at his age; 
 but curiously enough he has ever since I met him been 
 
AYOUB KHAN. 287 
 
 recalling some one else to my mind;'' and a shade passed 
 over his face. 
 
 Seeing that Colonel Ripon was not disposed to talk 
 further on the suhject a fresh topic of conversation 
 was started. There was news that Ayonb Khan, the 
 brother of Yakoob, who was governor at Herat, was 
 marchinof south at the head of a laro-e force with the 
 intention of opposing Abdul-Rahman and again reseat- 
 ing Yakoob on the throne. He had also preached a 
 holy war against the British. 
 
 " I fear that the trouble is serious," General Burrows 
 said. " The troops Ayoub is bringing with him have 
 not yet met us in the field. The population on the 
 road is wild and fanatical in the extreme, and will no 
 doubt join him to a man. On the other hand, the 
 troops of the Wali are not to be depended upon, and 
 the brunt of the fighting is sure to fall upon us." 
 
 Three days later the order was issued by General 
 Primrose that the G6th Regiment, the Bombay Grena- 
 diers, and Jacob's Rifles, together w^ith the 3d Scinde 
 Horse and 3d Bombay Cavalry with a battery of artil- 
 lery, were to move out with the Wall's army towards 
 Girishk on the river Helmund, which formed the 
 boundary between the province of Candahar and that 
 of Herat 
 
 After the long period of inactivity at Candahar, 
 Will Avas delighted at the thought of taking part in an 
 expedition with his regiment; but when they reached 
 the Helmund, life was for some time exceedingly mono- 
 
288 ON THE HELMUND. 
 
 tonous. The news of Ayoub's advance greatly excited 
 the population, who had been further worked up by 
 agents widely distributed through the country, and by 
 the exhortations of the Mollahs and Ghazis; conse- 
 quently rambling at any distance from the camp was 
 forbidden, and the shooting parties, which had been one 
 of the great resources of their life at Candahar, w^ere 
 peremptorily put an end to. 
 
 Colonel Eipon had accompanied the force as the 
 Wall's adviser. Both he and Will had recovered com- 
 pletely from their wounds. When the regiment first 
 marched, indeed, the surgeon had strongly recom- 
 mended Will to remain behind until his wound had 
 completely healed, but the young officer had so strongly 
 begged to be allowed to accompany the regiment that 
 the surgeon had consented. 
 
 His colonel had for a time relieved him from all 
 duty and he rode in rear of the regiment, but within 
 a fortnight of their arrival at the Helmund he was 
 able to lay aside his sling and to take his turn of regu- 
 lar duty. The officers did all that they could to make 
 existence tolerable on the sandy shores of the Helmund; 
 they got up foot-races and athletic sports for the men, 
 played cricket on the sands, and indulged in a bath 
 twice a day in the river. 
 
 Will often spent the evening in Colonel Ripon's tent. 
 A warm friendship had arisen between the two officers, 
 and each day seemed to bring them closer together. 
 All this time Ayoub's army was known to be approach- 
 
THE WALl'S TROOPS. 289 
 
 ing. It had been delayed by want of transport and 
 by the difficult nature of the country over which it 
 had to pass. The guns, too, of which it was reported 
 to have a large number, had greatly hampered it; but 
 by the second week in July it was near at hand. For 
 some time the Wall's troops had been showing signs 
 of insubordination, and little doubt was entertained 
 that they had been tampered with by Ayoub's emis- 
 saries. 
 
 The question of disarming them was several times 
 discussed, but the Wall maintained his faith that they 
 would remain true to their salt; and the British force 
 was so small that it was deemed imprudent to take any 
 step to diminish their strength by dispensing with the 
 services of a strong body of men who might after all 
 be faithful at the critical moment. Moreover, it was 
 doubtful whether they would submit, to be disarmed 
 by a force so inferior to their own. Should the attempt 
 to disarm them succeed they must either be escorted 
 back to Candahar by a strong detachment of the British, 
 or be permitted to disperse, in which case they would 
 assuredly swell the advancing army of Ayoub. 
 
 One day Will arranged to start the next morning at 
 daybreak for a day's shooting with four other young 
 officers — Hammond and Fortescue of Jacob's Rifles, 
 and Plater and Lowther of the Grenadiers. The country 
 round the camp had been already shot over, so they 
 were to go some miles out. Will's colonel, in giving 
 him leave off parade for the day, had asked him to 
 
 ( 274 ) " T 
 
290 A HUNTING PARTY. 
 
 endeavour to ascertain at any village he might enter 
 the state of the feeling of the natives respecting Ayoub, 
 and their disposition towards the British, points on 
 which a deplorable ignorance existed in the camp. 
 
 The party started before daybreak, putting their 
 wiry little tats, or native ponies, into a gallop so as to 
 reach the spot, eight miles distant, wdiere they were 
 to begin to shoot, as early as possible, so as to get two 
 or three hours' sport before the heat of the day really 
 set in. After an hour's ride they overtook their ser- 
 vants, Avho had gone on ahead with the guns and 
 luncheon. The sun was but just above the horizon and 
 the morning air was cool and pleasant. 
 
 Dismounting, they handed over the ponies to the 
 servants, and taking the guns and ammunition set out 
 on foot. The servants were to go on with the ponies 
 and lunch to a village in the hills four miles distant, 
 and to get tiffin ready by eleven o'clock. 
 
 The young officers set out on foot, keeping a short 
 distance apart. Two of their servants accompanied 
 them to carry the game, the other three went with the 
 two Syces who looked after the ponies. The ground 
 was broken and stony, and altogether uncultivated 
 except in the neighbourhood of the villages. They 
 had better sport than they expected, for hares darted 
 out in numbers from behind the rocks. Some of these 
 were bowled over, while others escaped, and there was 
 much bantering and laughter among the young men, 
 none of whom were first-class shots. 
 
yossouf's caution. 291 
 
 As the sun rose hio-her the o-ame became more scarce, 
 and by ten o'clock the party turned their faces towards 
 the village where they were to lunch, and which lay, 
 they calculated, a mile or two away on their right. 
 The sun was now blazing down upon them, and they 
 were glad indeed when they came in sight of the vil- 
 lage, which was not perceived until they were close to 
 it, as it lay in a deep and rocky valley. 
 
 Yossouf met them as they entered the village. 
 
 "Well, Yossouf, where have you laid the tiffin?" 
 
 " I have spread it, sahib, on a level piece of ground 
 in the shade of the chiefs house. He did not seem 
 disposed to be civil, and indeed I thought that it would 
 be more pleasant out of doors in the shade than inside." 
 
 " Much more pleasant, Yossouf; and these forts, as 
 they call them, are generally stuffy places with small 
 windows. What is the feeling of the people here?" 
 
 " They are looking forward to Ayoub's coming, sir, 
 when they say a holy war will be preached, and every 
 man will rise against the infidels. When they found 
 I was a countryman they talked freely enough before 
 me, especially as I led them to believe that I had been 
 taken prisoner at Cabul and forced to accompany you 
 as a sort of slave. I should recommend that as soon 
 as tiffin is over you should start for the camp, for I 
 don't think it is quite safe here." 
 
 " They would never think of attacking us, Yossouf, 
 with our force within an easy day's march." 
 
 " I don't know, sir," Yossouf said doubtfully. " They 
 
292 A TEMPTING LUNCH. 
 
 say that the Wall's men are all with them, and that 
 these alone are qnite sufficient to eat up the three 
 British regiments." 
 
 " They will find out their mistake if they try it. 
 However, Yossouf, I will let the others know what 
 you think." 
 
 By this time they had arrived at the spot where the 
 lunch was laid out, and very tempting it looked to 
 hungry men. 
 
 A great dish of curry made with some fowls pur- 
 chased in the village was the principal dish; but there 
 were some fish which Yossouf had caught in the Hel- 
 mund on the previous day, a roast of young kid, and 
 several dishes of fresh fruit. A large vessel of porous 
 clay containing the drinking water stood close by, and 
 the necks of some bottles of claret peeped out from a 
 tub full of water, while a pitcher of cold tea was ready 
 for those who preferred it. The young men set to with 
 a vigorous appetite, and when the meal was over pipes 
 and cigars were lighted, and they prepared tc; enjoy a 
 rest until the heat of the day was past. Will now 
 told them what Yossouf had said. 
 
 " Oh, nonsense. Gale !" Hammond said. " Your boy is 
 an Afghan, and these fellows are always dreaming 
 about treachery. They are scowling, sulky-looking 
 brutes," he said, looking at a group of natives who 
 stood watching them with lowering eyes, "and of course 
 they hate us as infidel dogs; but as to attacking us, it's 
 all nonsense." 
 
fortescue's confidence. 293 
 
 " Well, you know, Hammond, these Ghazis do attack 
 us in all sorts of places, as I have found to my cost, 
 and these villages abound with these fanatics." 
 
 " Oh, yes," Fortescue said lazily, "of course they do; 
 but we have got our revolvers handy, and our guns 
 are within reach of our hands. AVe should make pre- 
 cious short work of any Ghazis who were to run amuck 
 among us. Well, I for one don't mean to move till it 
 gets a bit cooler. If these fellows want to attack us 
 they have got the chance now, and there is no more 
 reason they should do it three hours hence than when 
 we are having our breakfast quietly." 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF MAIWAND. 
 
 HE servants were squatting in a circle near 
 their masters and enjoying their share of 
 the breakfast. The two Syces were Be- 
 loochees, the others were men from the Deccan, the 
 reo^iment havino; been stationed at Poona before oroino^ 
 up into Afghanistan. Of these the Syces alone under- 
 stood the Afghan language. 
 
 After the men had finished their meal Yossouf 
 strolled away by himself into the village. When he 
 returned Will saw that he wished to speak to him, 
 so rising carelessly from the ground he walked to the 
 ponies, which were tied up near, and called Yossouf as 
 if to give him some instructions respecting them. 
 
 " Well, Yossouf, what is it ? have you learned any- 
 thing?" 
 
 " No, sir, nothing. But the people no longer speak 
 to me freely. They must have guessed when they 
 saw me speaking to you that I was warning you; but 
 I don't think things are right. The children are all 
 in the houses instead of playing about in the street. 
 
AN UNPLEASANT POSITION. 295 
 
 A few of the women are standing at their doors, but 
 most of them are inside too." 
 
 " But if the men are thinking of attacking us why 
 shouldn't they do so at once?" 
 
 "There are not above twenty or thirty men here, 
 sahib. They may not think they are strong enough. 
 Perhaps they have sent to some of the villages for help." 
 
 " Likely enough, Yossouf , I did not think of that. 
 Do you go up above the village and have a good look 
 round. I will try and persuade my friends to be 
 moving." 
 
 Yossouf moved off at once, and Will stood for a 
 minute or two thinking what was the best to do. The 
 position was not pleasant. Yossouf 's suspicions might 
 be altogether unfounded, but Will had found him to 
 be so uniformly right on former occasions that he did 
 not like to neglect his advice now. After a little further 
 thought he joined his companions. 
 
 " Come," he said, " we had really better be moving. 
 I believe w^e are in real danger." 
 
 The earnestness with which he spoke roused the 
 others, who were all lying at full length on the ground. 
 
 "But as we said before. Gale," Fortescue urged, "why 
 shouldn't they now attack us if they wanted to? We 
 have been here more than an hour." 
 
 "Perhaps they may think we shall all take a nap 
 after our tiffin," Will replied; "perhaps, as Yossouf 
 thinks, they have sent off to some other villages for 
 assistance. He has gone up the hillside to look out. 
 
296 THE PARTY ALARMED. 
 
 Anyhow, I can assure 3^011, I think we had better be 
 moving." 
 
 " It is beastly hot," Hammond said, getting up and 
 stretching himself; "but as you are so earnest about 
 it. Gale, perhaps we had better make a move. As 
 you say you know no end more of these fellows than 
 we do, and you certainly ain't a fellow to get into a 
 funk about nothing. Come on, boys, we had better 
 do as Gale tells us." 
 
 " That's right;' Will said cheerfully. "And look here, 
 if we get away from here without any disturbance 
 and find it all rioht, we can halt aiiain at the first 
 shady place we come to, and stop there for two or 
 three hours till it gets cool." 
 
 "Wait a moment," he went on, as Hammond was 
 about to order the ponies to be saddled. " Just let us 
 settle what we had best do should they attack us, 
 which, if they mean it, they will do when they see we 
 are movino* off*. I have been thinkingr it over. We 
 have all got bullets in our pockets to di'op into our 
 guns over the shot in case of necessity. But these 
 smooth-bore fowling-pieces are of no good except at 
 close quarters, while the Afghan matchlocks will carry 
 straight a long way; therefore if we had to make a 
 running fight of it we should get the worst of it, for 
 these fellows could keep up with us easily, besides 
 there are the servants; therefore if a shot is fired, my 
 advice is that we should make a dash at the chief's 
 house. Seize that, and hold it." 
 
PRECAUTIONARY STEPS. 297 
 
 " Yes, that would be a good plan," Fortescue said, 
 for they were all sobered now by AVill's gravity, and 
 convinced that there must be good grounds for his 
 belief in danger. 
 
 " Look here. Gale, we are all senior to you in the 
 date of our commissions, but you have seen no end of 
 service and adventure, therefore I vote that you shall 
 be commanding oflScer until we get back to camp." 
 
 The others willingly agreed. 
 
 " Very well," Will said; " I will do my best. Ham- 
 mond, will you tell your servant to get ready for a 
 start at once. Speak to him quietly and carelessly. 
 Then as the men move up more towards the ponies, tell 
 them in Hindustanee to go about their work quietly, 
 but in ,caae of any trouble with the Afghans to out 
 with their swords and join us in a rush at the chief's 
 house." 
 
 Hammond carried out his instructions. The two 
 Beloochees were not taken by surprise, for they as 
 well as Yossouf had been feeling uneasy at the dis- 
 appearance of all women and children from the scene. 
 The other men looked startled, but they were stout 
 fellows, and as all the native servants were armed 
 with swords to enable them to resist sudden attacks 
 by the country people, and as they had unbounded 
 faith in their masters, they went about the work of 
 packing up the plates and dishes, and preparing for a 
 start quietly enough. 
 
 As the Syces began to put the saddles on the tats 
 
298 AFGHAN DECEIT. 
 
 tlie Afghans spoke quickly and angrily together. Two 
 or three minutes later Yossouf arrived. He had evi- 
 dently been running, for his breath came quick, but 
 he now walked forward in a leisurely way. 
 
 " Two large parties are coming, master, one down 
 the valley and the other across the hills. They have 
 got flags with them, and I am sure they are going to 
 attack us." 
 
 Just at this moment an Afghan lad joined his seniors 
 and spoke rapidly to them. Will judged at once that 
 he also had been placed on the watch. The chief of 
 the village, accompanied by two or three of his men 
 now stepped forward. 
 
 "Ask the sahibs," he said to Yossouf, "why they are 
 in such a hurry, why they want to start in the heat 
 of the day; they had better wait till it is cooler." 
 
 Will did not wait for Yossouf 's translation, but 
 answered direct: 
 
 "We have duties at the camp and must return at 
 once." 
 
 The chief was surprised that one of the young 
 officers should speak his tongue so fluently. 
 
 " It looks as if you were not pleased with the hospi- 
 tality of our village," he said, " that you should hurry 
 away so quickly." 
 
 "We are content with it so far, but we must be oft 
 now. Bring up the ponies quickly," he said to Yossouf. 
 " Never mind those things, there is not a moment to be 
 lost." 
 
THE PARTY ATTACKED. 299 
 
 Yossouf and the servants brought up the ponies. 
 The chief laid his hand on one of the bridles and drew 
 a pistol. 
 
 " Kaffir dogs," he said, "you shall not leave us at all." 
 
 Will's hand was already on his revolver, and before 
 the chief could level his pistol he fired and the Afghan 
 fell dead. 
 
 There was a shout of rage from the others, and their 
 long matchlocks were levelled. It was well the party 
 were prepared, or all might have been shot down at 
 once; but the instant Will fired, his friends raised their 
 double-barrelled guns to their shoulders and let fly the 
 contents among the Afghans, who, thrown into con- 
 fusion by the sudden and unexpected attack, fired 
 wildly, several of them dropping from the efi'ects of 
 the shot. 
 
 "Now," Will shouted, "to the house everyone of you!" 
 
 There was a rush, and before the Afghans knew 
 what had happened the little party had burst through 
 those standing at the door of the house, and had barred 
 and bolted it within. There were but two men inside, 
 and these running upstairs leaped from the windows. 
 A wild screaming was heard from the women and 
 children. 
 
 " Yossouf, tell these women that we don't want to 
 hurt them, but that they must be silent and keep the 
 children quiet. We have got enough to think about 
 without this frightful row inside. Then when you 
 have got them quiet put them all in one room together 
 
300 FORTESCUE KILLED. 
 
 upstairs, and keep guard at the door. See that none 
 of them leave the room, for they might steal down 
 and open the door to admit their friends while we are 
 busy. What! Fortescue, are you hit?" 
 
 "I am done for!" the young officer replied faintly; 
 "one of their bullets has gone through my body; but 
 never mind me now." As he spoke he tottered, and 
 would have fallen had not the others supported him 
 and gently laid him down on a heap of skins which 
 served as an Afghan bed. Then leaving his servant to 
 attend to him for a minute, the others ran upstairs 
 to see what was going on without. 
 
 "Be careful!" Will exclaimed; "don't show a head 
 above the roof or at a loophole or you will get a bullet 
 in your brain to a certainty. Stand well back so that 
 they can't see you." 
 
 Already a pattering fire of musketry had broken out 
 round the house, but not an Afghan w^as to be seen, 
 every man having taken his position in shelter. 
 
 "There is nothing to do at present," Will said. 
 "When the other parties arrive they may make an 
 attack, but I don't think they will do so till night. 
 Hammond, you had better go down to Fortescue at 
 present. One of the Syces can take Yossouf 's place on 
 guard over the women, and he can help you. The lad 
 is a good nurse ; but I fear there is nothing to be done 
 for the poor fellow." 
 
 A few minutes later a wild outburst of shouts and 
 yells, and a great firing of guns, announced that the 
 
A GLOOMY PROSPECT. 301 
 
 other parties had arrived, and the cracking fire of the 
 matchlocks around the fort became incessant. 
 
 The defenders did not attempt to return it; it would 
 only have been throwing away lives uselessly to ap- 
 proach any of the loopholes. In a quarter of an hour 
 Hammond rejoined his companions. 
 
 "He is gone, poor fellow!" he said; "he never spoke 
 again. The bullet went close to the heart. I think 
 he has bled to death internally. I have handed his 
 revolver to one of the Syces, and his gun to the other. 
 Your man Yossouf has a revolver." 
 
 "What on earth are we to do now. Gale?" Plater 
 asked. "You have been right thus far, and if it hadn't 
 been for you putting us up to make a rush here w^e 
 should have been done for lono^ asjo; but we are not 
 much better off; for here we are cooped up, and the 
 bettino; is a hundred to one ao^ainst our beino- rescued 
 in time. No one will know where to look for us, and 
 though we may beat them off two or three times, in 
 the end it is likely to go hard with us." 
 
 " Couldn't we send a messenger with the news of the 
 fix we are in?" Lowther asked; "though I don't see 
 how any one is to get through." 
 
 "That's what I have been thinking about ever since 
 I first planned coming here," Will said; " but I am sure 
 no one could get through. The Afghans know the im- 
 portance of it, and wdien it gets dark they will be so 
 thick round the place that a mouse coiddn't make its 
 way through them unobserved." 
 
302 WILLS PLAN. 
 
 The situation was gloomy enough; but there was 
 no lack of good spirits among the young officers, the 
 danger causing their blood to course rapidly through 
 their veins. 
 
 Will sat on the floor apart from the others. They 
 had made him their commanding officer, and the re- 
 sponsibility of thinking for them devolved upon his 
 shoulders. Suddenly a thought struck him, and he 
 leapt to his feet with a shout. "I've got it!" 
 
 "You will get it if you don't mind," Hammond said 
 dryly, as a bullet passed through one of the loopholes 
 and struck the wall an inch or two from Will's head. 
 "But what is it?" 
 
 " When it gets quite dusk we will call a parley and 
 tell them we don't want to keep the women here, they 
 are only in our way and eat up the food, so we will 
 open the door and let them go." 
 
 "But what will you do that for, Gale? You were 
 saying a short time ago that the women could be kept 
 as hostao'es." 
 
 o 
 
 " So they might, Hammond ; but it will be more useful 
 to us to let them go. There are seven women here. 
 Six of them shall go out, and with them, in the clothes 
 of the seventh, Yossouf." 
 
 "Capital! capital!" the others exclaimed. "Don't 
 you think they will notice him?" 
 
 "No," Will said; "we won't do it till dusk, and 
 some of these women are as tall as he is. They will 
 hurry them away as quickly as possible so as to re- 
 
A TRUCE CALLED FOR. 303 
 
 commence the attack, and wrapped up as these Afghan 
 women are no one could see the difference. Once 
 fairly away we can trust Yossouf for finding an oppor- 
 tunity of slipping away and bringing us help." 
 
 Will now laid the plan before Yossouf, who at once 
 agreed to attempt it. 
 
 The day passed slowly, the fire of the enemy being 
 kept up without intermission. 
 
 "Now," Will said at last, "it is o-ettinoj dark enouo-h, 
 let us put the plan into operation. In the first place 
 the women must be separated, and taken into separate 
 rooms, the one Yossouf has fixed upon as nearest his 
 height into a room by herself. Then Yossouf must 
 tell the old mother of the chief that they are to be 
 released, and that she must show herself on the roof 
 and make them stop firing till they have gone out. 
 While she is doing that he can slip down and dress 
 himself in the robes of the woman. She must be o-acro-ed 
 to prevent her screaming or making a row as her com- 
 panions go out." 
 
 Greatly surprised was the old woman at being told 
 that she was to be released. These Kafiirs must be 
 mad, she thought, to give up their hostages. How- 
 ever, she at once proceeded to carry the orders into 
 effect. 
 
 Before raising her head above the roof she uttered 
 a loud quavering cry, the cry of welcome of the Afghan 
 women. The firing without instantly ceased. Again 
 raising the cry she stepped out on to the roof and 
 
304 THE WOMEN RELEASED. 
 
 shouted that the English did not want to keep the 
 women, and that the door would be open for them to 
 come out, providing the Afghans promised that no at- 
 tempt to enter should be made, and that none should 
 move from their present places until the women had 
 fairly left. 
 
 There was a shout of surprise and satisfaction, and 
 one of the chiefs rose to his feet and gave the promise 
 in the name of his companions. 
 
 "How many are there of you?" he asked. 
 
 " Seven," the woman answered. 
 
 "Are the children to come?" 
 
 "We may take away the babies, but the three boys 
 are to remain behind." 
 
 Five minutes later the door of the fort opened, and 
 seven figures came out. Not a shot was heard until 
 they had passed down the street of the village, and 
 had entered a house at the further end; then the rapid 
 fire commenced ao-ain. Twice durino- the eveninof did 
 the Afghans attempt to storm the little fort, but were 
 each time repulsed with loss, the fire of the five double- 
 barrelled guns, loaded with shot and bullets, and of 
 the revolvers, proving too much for them. The second 
 attack was made about eleven. 
 
 A quarter of an hour later wild shouts were heard 
 outside; there was an instant cessation of the enemy's 
 fire, and then in the silence the deep thundering sound 
 of galloping horses was heard. 
 
 "Hurrah!" Will shouted; "liere they are." 
 
THE PARTY RESCUED. 305 
 
 A minute later the Third Bombay Cavalry clashed 
 up to the fort. The door was thrown open and the 
 little garrison ran out. 
 
 " All safe ? " the officer in command asked. 
 
 "All safe, except Fortescue, who was killed at the 
 first attack," 
 
 "So we heard from your boy," the officer said; "he 
 has ridden back with us as guide. Now, lads, dis- 
 mount and clear the village. Shoot every man you 
 find, turn the women out of the houses, and then set 
 them on fire. Don't waste any time over it, for the 
 rascals are swarming round the place. Captain Lawson, 
 you take your troop and dismount it as skirmishers 
 round the place, and keep them off till we have done 
 here. Here, you four men who brought the powder 
 kegs, carry them inside this fort. We are going to 
 blow it up to give them a lesson." 
 
 Ten minutes later the cavalry were again in their 
 saddles. Spare horses had been brought for the four 
 officers, and the servants mounted the tats, which would 
 be able to keep up with the cavalry. The flames 
 were already bursting out brightly from the houses. 
 
 The yells of the Afghans rose high, and their bullets 
 flew thickly over the village, but they kept at a re- 
 spectful distance. The officer in command gave the 
 word and the party set off at a trot. 
 
 Before they had left the village a deep roar was 
 heard, and they knew that the Afghan fort was de- 
 stroyed. Two hours later they arrived safely in camp, 
 
 (274) " V 
 
306 PURSUIT OF THE MUTINEERS. 
 
 where the four rescued officers were warmly con- 
 gratulated on their narrow escape by then' friends. 
 
 On the 14th of July the conspiracy among the Wall's 
 troops came to a head. They openly mutinied and 
 marched out with their cannon and arms from the 
 camp. This was situated at a short distance from that 
 of the British, and Colonel Ripon was the first to 
 gallop in with the news. 
 
 Unfortunately the British commander was not a 
 man endowed with promptness of decision, and no 
 steps were taken until the mutineers had proceeded a 
 considerable distance; then the cavalry and artillery 
 were despatched in pursuit. Had the order been given 
 at once there can be no doubt that the Wall's force 
 would have been completely cut up, and those who 
 escaped would have arrived a mere horde of fugitives, 
 for the most part without arms, at Ayoub's camp. 
 
 Late as was the pursuit it was not ineffectual. Six 
 British guns opened fire upon the Wall's artillery, 
 which was in rear of the retreating column, with such 
 effect that the gunners were seized with a panic, and 
 cutting the traces fled for their lives. A good many 
 were cut down by the British cavalry, and the six guns 
 deserted by them were brought into camp. 
 
 Colonel Burrows' little force now stood alone, for 
 he had with him but 1500 infantry, 500 cavalry, and 
 six of his own guns besides those taken from the 
 mutineers — a force altogether disproportioned to that 
 with which Ayoub was advancing, swelled as it was 
 
THE ENEMY AT HAND. 307 
 
 by the accession of the Wall's army. A message was 
 sent to General Primrose at Candahar asking for re- 
 inforcements ; but that officer, althouo'h he had a con- 
 siderable force at his disposal, declined to despatch 
 any reinforcements whatever. News now arrived that 
 Ayoub, instead of marching direct upon Girishk, had 
 crossed the Helmund higher up and was moving across 
 the country by a line parallel with the road from Can- 
 dahar to Girishk. By this movement he would have 
 the option of placing himself either between Colonel 
 Burrows' force and Candahar, of marching direct upon 
 the latter city, or of keeping to the north and coming- 
 down upon the road between Candahar and Shahpur, 
 and then marchinof direct for Cabul. Under these cir- 
 cumstances General Burrows determined to fall back 
 at once to a spot where he might oppose Ayoub's ad- 
 vancing force. Accordingly the brigade marched from 
 the Helmund to a village called Khusk-I-Nakhud and 
 there encamped. General Nuttal with the cavalry 
 made reconnaissances in the direction of the enemy. 
 
 The people of the country held altogether aloof, and no 
 accurate information was obtained as to the strength of 
 Ayoub's army, which was believed by General Burrows 
 to be very much smaller than it really was. Early in the 
 morning of the 26th it was known that ilyoub was march- 
 ing upon Maiwand, a village farther to the north, and 
 at half-past six the troops moved out to intercept him. 
 
 It was at this time believed that it was only the 
 enemy's cavalry with whon:i we should have to deal. 
 
308 ayoub's advance. 
 
 Upon arriving near Maiwand, however, news was 
 brought in by spies that the whole of the enemy were 
 at hand. The force was at once halted in a position 
 singularly ill adapted for a fighting ground. Deep 
 ravines ran both to the right and to the left of the 
 ground occupied by the British. By these the enemy 
 could advance under shelter until within a short dis- 
 tance. On either side were ranges of hills completely 
 commanding the position. 
 
 It is difficult to imagine a more unsuitable position 
 than that which General Burrows prepared to hold 
 with a mere handful of troops against an enormously 
 superior force. What was the total strength of Ayoub's 
 army was never exactly known, as it was swollen by 
 enormous numbers of Ghazis and tribesmen from the 
 villages. These were in fact far more formidable oppo- 
 nents than the regular Afghan troops, as their tre- 
 mendous rushes, and indifference to the loss inflicted 
 upon them, were trying in the extreme for even the 
 best-trained troops to withstand. 
 
 The morning was thick and but little could be seen 
 of Ayoub's army. His cavalry, indeed, were found to 
 be movino* about in laro-e masses, but these fell back 
 at our advance. Lieutenant Maclean, with two horse- 
 artillery guns and a small cavalry escort, galloped out 
 on the extreme left and opened fire on the Afghan 
 cavalry. His infantry at once appeared in force 
 swarming down towards the guns, and these were 
 withdrawn to a position nearer to our line. 
 
AN OVERWHELMING ATTACK. 309 
 
 The British infantry were formed in the following 
 order: — The 66th were on the right, the Bombay Grena- 
 diers in the centre, and Jacob's Rifles on the left. Two 
 guns were placed in position to support the 66th on 
 the right; the remaining four British guns, and the 
 six smooth-bore guns captured from the Wall's mu- 
 tineers, were placed between the Grenadiers and 
 Jacob's Rifles. The 3d Scinde Horse and 3d Bombay 
 Light Cavalry were formed in the rear of the line. 
 
 As the enemy advanced, our guns opened a heavy 
 fire upon them, but it was fully an hour before their 
 artillery replied. Then thirty guns were unmasked 
 and opened fire upon the British line. Under cover 
 of this heavy fire swarms of the enemy's irregulars 
 advanced towards our position. When within 600 or 
 700 yards of the 66th the British opened with their 
 Martini rifles, and the shower of lead at such an unex- 
 pected distance checked the advance of the enemy. 
 
 For some time the artillery duel continued, but the 
 enemy's guns were then moved on to the hills on either 
 side of the British position and a terrible cross-fire was 
 opened from both flanks. At about two o'clock the 
 smooth-bore guns began to get short of ammunition. 
 Only sixty rounds had been captured with them, and 
 there being no reserve of ammunition fitting them 
 they ceased fire. The position now became most seri- 
 ous. From the ravines on either side the Ghazis 
 swarmed up in vast numbers. The artillery thundered 
 from the heights upon our troops. Some of their bat- 
 
310 THE RUSH OF THE GHAZIS. 
 
 teries were brought up to within very short distances, 
 and great numbers of the enemy, keeping along the 
 ravines sheltered from our lire, came up in the rear 
 and seized the villages there. The companies of Jacob's 
 Rifles on the left, after resisting for some time the 
 furious attacks of the Ghazis, began to waver. The 
 enemy's cavalry swept down in heavy masses, Avhile 
 our cavalry, for some reason which has never been 
 explained, remained inactive. The general has stated 
 that he ordered them to charge, but that they would 
 not do so; the cavalry affirm that they never received 
 orders. Anyhow, at this critical moment the 3d Scinde 
 Horse and the 3d Bombay Cavalry remained inactive. 
 The confusion amid Jacob's Rifles rapidly grew in spite 
 of the efforts of the officers to rally them. The Ghazis 
 swept down upon them and the Rifles bi'oke in con- 
 fusion and rushed among the Bombay Grenadiers, who, 
 hitherto fighting steadily, also fell into confusion, as 
 the Rifles and Ghazis burst into their ranks. 
 
 "This is hot work," Will Gale said to his captain 
 when the enemy's guns on the heights on either side 
 began to play on the line of the G6th with their flank fire. 
 
 " It is, indeed," the officer answered, " and the fire of 
 the enemy from the edge of that ravine is very trying. 
 I wish to heaven the general would move us farther 
 back; he has made a hideous mistake in fighting on 
 such ground as this." 
 
 " It would be difficult to withdraw now," Will said. 
 " It would shake the confidence of the men. I think 
 
A BAD LOOK-OUT. 311 
 
 myself that we ought to advance and drive the enemy 
 before us till we take up some really defensible posi- 
 tion; but I doubt if the Afghans would wait for that. 
 In all our history a British charge against an Indian 
 enemy has always been successful, no matter how great 
 the odds." 
 
 " It is a bad look-out/' the captain said as a shell 
 burst close by him, killing and wounding five or six 
 men. " It is quite evident that if we stay where we 
 are we must in time be annihilated. Our fellows will 
 stand, no doubt; they are English soldiers and well 
 officered. But how can one expect the two Indian 
 regiments, with only three or four white officers each, to 
 remain steady under such a fire as this and with these 
 desperate charges of Ghazis upon them?" 
 
 Very steadily the 66th held their ground in spite of 
 a flanking fire of artillery and musketry. Every time 
 the enemy gathered at the edge of the ravine for a 
 rush the heavy fire of the company on the flank, which 
 was wheeled back at a rioht ano-le to the line so as to 
 face them, drove them back to shelter again. The 
 regiment had suffered very heavily, still the officers 
 felt that they could endure till nightfall. Of victory 
 there was now no idea; for to conquer, men must act, 
 and here they were only called upon to suffer. Pre- 
 sently a wild tumult was heard to the left, and then 
 the men of the scattered native regiments burst in a 
 tumultuous mass into the ranks of the 66th. 
 
 "Steady, men, steady!" shouted the officers. 
 
312 A TERRIBLE SLAUGHTER. 
 
 But it was of no avail. All was in hopeless confu- 
 sion. The artillery fired until the Ghazis were within 
 a few yards of them ; then they hastily limbered up 
 and fell back. But the Ghazis were too close at hand, 
 and two of the guns were lost. Even now had the 
 cavalry charged upon the Afghans time would have 
 been given to the broken infantry to form again into 
 a solid mass and to draw off from the field in good 
 order. But the cavalry remained inactive. Both these 
 regiments had a record of good service in the field, but 
 their conduct on this occasion was little short of dis- 
 graceful. Among the infantry all order was lost, and, 
 mixed up in a confused mass hemmed in on all sides 
 by the enemy, they fell back, each man fighting for 
 himself, upon the village behind. Here in the walled 
 enclosures the G 6th and the Grenadiers rallied and fought 
 nobly. Each house was used as a fortress and only 
 carried after a desperate struggle. Here Colonel Gal- 
 braith and nine other officers of the 66th were killed, 
 and the greater portion of the regiment shared their 
 fate. 
 
 Some bodies of the troops entirely cut ofi" from the 
 rest in their retreat stood their ground in the open and 
 fought desperately to the end, surrounding themselves 
 ere they died with a ring of slaughtered enemies. So 
 desperate was the defence in some cases that, outnum- 
 bering them fifty to one, the enemy never dared to 
 come to close quarters with the gallant band, which 
 kept up a rain of fire on them till the last man had 
 
THE RETREAT. 313 
 
 fallen. So long and stoutly was the village defended 
 that the great majority of the broken fugitives had 
 time to pass out behind. General Burrows, who had 
 done his best to stem the rout, drew off the shattered 
 remains and fell back with them in fair order. 
 
 Will Gale's company was in the right flank of the 
 regiment, and therefore farthest from the point where 
 the line was broken by the rush of the native troops. 
 Seeing what was taking place the captain formed his 
 men into company square and fell back to the village 
 in fair order. The company then threw itself into a 
 house with a walled garden to the right of the village, 
 and its steady fire in no slight degree helped to keep 
 back the Afghans and cover the retreat. This they 
 did until General Burrows himself rode up and ordered 
 them to fall in. 
 
 " Your company has done good service, sir," he said 
 to Captain Fletcher, " and it is for you now to cover 
 the retreat." 
 
 Slowly and in good order the company fell back, 
 and joining the troops who still retained their forma- 
 tion retired slowly, facing about and pouring volley 
 after volley into the Afghans as they came out through 
 the village. For two miles the enemy pressed closely 
 upon them; but their loss had already been immense 
 and all desired to join in the plundering of the British 
 camp, therefore the pursuit slackened, and three miles 
 from the village the rear-guard were ordered to the 
 main body at quick march. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 CANDAHAPt. 
 
 HANK God that is over/' Captain Fletcher 
 said as he lifted his cap and wiped the per- 
 spiration from his forehead, " but the 
 reo'iment is almost annihilated." 
 
 o 
 
 " I fear the worst is yet to come," Will said. " We 
 are fifty miles from Candahar, and when we came out 
 we had to carry water with us, for there was none to 
 be found on the way. We have a fearful march before 
 us. What on earth has become of the cavalry? They 
 have done nothing to cover the retreat." 
 
 " They have ridden on ahead," the captain said bit- 
 terly, "without having drawn a sword in this day's 
 fiu'ht, and will ride into Candahar to-morrow mornino' 
 without losino' a man, save the few who were knocked 
 over by the artillery." 
 
 Presently an officer rode up. 
 
 "Ah! Gale," he exclaimed, "thank God you are safe. 
 I rode back to see." And Colonel RijDon shook hands 
 warmly with the young officer. 
 
THE REAR-GUARD. 315 
 
 " I am glad to see that you are safe, sir," AVill 
 answered. " This has been a terrible day." 
 
 " It has, indeed," the colonel said mournfully, " ter- 
 rible! There has been nothing like it since the retreat 
 from Cabul in 1848. And how many of these poor 
 fellows will reach Candahar God only know^s! The 
 water-bottles were emptied hours ago. The men are 
 already exhausted with the long day's work and 
 parched with thirst, and we have fifty miles' tramp be- 
 fore us. Have you any w^ounded men here with you?" 
 
 " Several, sir, some of them badly hurt." 
 
 " Put one of the worst on my horse," Colonel Ripon 
 said, dismounting; "and push on briskly, lads. There 
 are some carts ahead. We will turn out the stores 
 and put the wounded in. You had better let the men 
 throw away their knapsacks and all useless encum- 
 brances," he said to Captain Fletcher. " You will have 
 to march and perhaps fight all night, and must husband 
 your strength." 
 
 Steadily the rear-guard followed the broken column. 
 It consisted of men of the 66th and Grenadiers 
 mingled together, and well did they carry out their 
 arduous duties. A portion were thrown out on each 
 flank, while the rest kept to the road. This was 
 strewn with arms and accoutrements of all kinds. 
 The men's hearts were wrung to the core by the sight of 
 the number of wounded who had dropped by the road- 
 side, and who implored them as they passed not to leave 
 them to be murdered by the enemy. Many of them 
 
316 THIRST. 
 
 were lifted and placed in carts, everything else being 
 turned out to make way for them, but many had to 
 be left behind, for it would be impossible to carry 
 them on such a march. Slowly the long night passed. 
 All along the line ahead a scattered fire of musketry 
 could be heard as the villao-ers shot down the fugitives 
 who in hopes of finding water straggled from the road. 
 Sometimes sharp volleys rang out as the troops stood 
 at bay and drove back the natives when they pressed 
 upon them. Several times the rear-guard were hotly 
 engaged as the Afghans, furious at seeing their prey 
 slipping from their fingers, mustered and fell upon 
 them ; but each time they were repulsed and the column 
 held on its way. Will was in command of a mixed 
 band of some forty men which moved to the right of 
 the road. Colonel Ripon kept by his side, but few 
 words were spoken through the long night. 
 
 The men were half mad with thirst, and had there 
 been water near nothing could have restrained them 
 from rushing to it; but they knew that none could be 
 obtained until they reached Candahar. Many, in utter 
 despair at the distance before them, threw themselves 
 down on the ground to die. But the others kept on, 
 stumbling and staggering as they marched stupid and 
 half-blind, rallying only when the order came to turn 
 and repulse the enemy. 
 
 Two or three times in the night the rear-guard halted 
 for a few minutes and the men threw themselves down 
 on the sand, where they picked the scattered herbage 
 
A HALT. 317 
 
 within their reach and chewed it to quench their 
 burning thirst. Daylight was a welcome relief. They 
 knew indeed that with the rising of the sun their tor- 
 ments would grow still greater; but the change from 
 the long dreary darkness cheered them, and they could 
 now see from the nature of the country that they were 
 within fifteen miles of Candahar. They marched on 
 for two more hours, and then the officer in command 
 of the little body saw that they could do no more. 
 
 He therefore led them to a village on rising ground 
 a short distance from the road and halted them there. 
 The exhausted men threw themselves down in the 
 shade of the houses. They had the long day yet to 
 pass and their thirst seemed unendurable; still the halt 
 was \velcome, for there was not a man but felt that 
 his strength was at an end and that it would have 
 been an impossibility to reach the city. 
 
 Captain Fletcher picked out a few of the least ex- 
 hausted men and placed them in the outskirts of the 
 village to call the rest to arms in case the Afghans, 
 numbers of whom were hovering round, should venture 
 upon an attack. For the first hour after reaching the 
 village not a man moved from the spot where he had 
 thrown himself down. The officers had searched the 
 houses and found some jars of water. These they carried 
 round and doled out a few mouthfuls to each man. 
 Small thouofh the amount was, the relief afforded was 
 immense; and as soon as their first exhaustion had 
 subsided the men scattered through the gardens pluck- 
 
318 A WELCOME RELIEF. 
 
 ing the vine leaves and chewing them, and fortunately 
 discovering a few gourds, which were cut up into small 
 fragments and divided. 
 
 The day wore on, and at one o'clock there was a 
 shout of joy, for a body of cavalry were seen approach- 
 ing at a rapid trot from the town. Soon they rode up, 
 and proved to be a regiment which had been despatched 
 from the town for the relief of the stragglers. At day- 
 break the cavalry, riding in many miles ahead of the 
 infantry, brought the news to the city of the defeat, 
 and something very like a panic at first ensued. 
 
 It was some time before anything was done to suc- 
 cour the exhausted fugitives who were pressing for- 
 ward to the city. But at last a force was sent out 
 with wao'cvons and bullocks with water-skins, and thus 
 hundreds of lives which would otherwise have been 
 sacrificed were saved. The cavalry had come out with 
 full water-bottles, and relief was soon afforded to the 
 worn-out rear-guard, who at once fell into rank and 
 resumed their march towards Candahar, the cavalry, 
 who had brought a few light carts with them, pursuing 
 their journey for some distance further to succour and 
 collect those who had fallen on the road. 
 
 The sun was just setting as the rear -guard of 
 General Burrows' brigade reached Candahar, after 
 having marched since the previous morning sixty 
 miles without food, and with only a few mouthfuls of 
 water, and having fought for nearly twenty-four hours 
 of that time. Every preparation was made in the city 
 
YOSSOUF REJOINS HIS PIASTER. 319 
 
 for the expected attack. The defences were streng- 
 thened; the lower portion of the populace, who would be 
 likely to declare against them, were turned out of the 
 town, and provisions were collected from the country 
 round. Fortunately ample time was afforded them for 
 these preparations. Ayoub's army had been to a great 
 extent demoralized by the tremendous losses which it 
 had sustained in the defeat of this handful of British 
 troops, and some days elapsed before it moved forward 
 from Maiwand. Then by easy marches it approached 
 Candahar, and took up its position in the plain to the 
 north of the city. 
 
 Just as the rear-guard of General Burrows' force 
 were starting from their halting-place for their last 
 march into the city, Will Gale was delighted at see- 
 ing Yossouf approaching. He had not seen him since 
 the regiment marched out from Kusk-I-Nakhud. 
 The young Afghan had remained with the other fol- 
 lowers in the villag^e behind Maiwand durino^ the 
 battle, when, while the resistance of the British was still 
 continuing, the Afghans had worked round by the 
 ravines and entered the village. 
 
 Yossouf had been obliged to join in the retreat, 
 which was at once commenced by the baggage train. 
 Full of anxiety for the fate of his master, he had hur- 
 ried forward at his best speed to Candahar, reaching 
 the city only an hour or two after the arrival of the 
 cavalry. In spite of the distance he had already per- 
 formed he did not delay for an instant, but set out 
 
320 THE NEWS BEACHES INDIA. 
 
 again with some provisions, and a bottle o£ wine and 
 one o£ water hidden away in his dress. He had re- 
 solved to push forward at all hazards until he had 
 either joined his master, whether on his retreat or as 
 a prisoner in Ayoub's army, or had discovered his body 
 on the field of battle, and given him burial. 
 
 Passing through the throng of fugitives, and ques- 
 tioning any of the men of the G6th he met, he made 
 his way forward. He had learned that Will's company 
 had withdrawn in a body from the battle-field to the 
 village, but further than this none of the fugitives 
 could tell him; and his delight was exuberant when he 
 saw Will marching along with his company. 
 
 The little supply which he had brought was at once 
 served out among the men who most needed it, and 
 Will, who had been in a state of great uneasiness con- 
 cerning the safety of his faithful follower, was greatly 
 cheered by finding him alive and unhurt. 
 
 The news of the defeat of Maiwand produced an 
 immense sensation in India, and measures were at 
 once taken for the relief of Candahar. A stronof 
 division was ordered to march from Cabul through 
 Ghuzni, while General Phayre, who commanded the 
 force at Quettah, was also ordered to advance to the 
 assistance of the garrison. General Phayre, however, 
 although comparatively close to Candahar, was unable 
 to advance for some time. The same miserable economy 
 which had dispersed the transport train after the signa- 
 ture of the Treaty of Gundamuk, and had so delayed 
 
CANDAHAR BLOCKADED. 321 
 
 the advance of General Roberts towards Cabul after 
 the massacre of the mission, again paralysed the 
 action of the British troops, the whole of the transport 
 train, collected at so much cost and difficulty, having 
 been dismissed to their homes as soon as the negotia- 
 tions with Abdul-Rahman held out a prospect of 
 peace. 
 
 Many weeks elapsed before a sufficient number of 
 baggage animals could be collected to enable General 
 Phayre to advance with his relieving column. In Can- 
 dahar things passed quietly. The enemy from time to 
 time fired shot and shell into the city from distant 
 positions; but believing that no relief could reach the 
 garrison before the supplies of food were exhausted, and 
 that it must therefore yield to hunger, Ayoub's army 
 contented themselves by watching the city from a dis- 
 tance, and by keeping a cordon of troops round its 
 walls to prevent the country people from bringing in 
 provisions. 
 
 Detached bodies, indeed, often crept up near the 
 walls and kept up a musketry fire at any troops show- 
 ing themselves there. But no attempts were made to 
 batter down the walls or to make anything like a 
 resolute assault. Ayoub's army had indeed greatly 
 lost heart. If 1500 British soldiers attacked under 
 circumstances of the crreatest disadvantage, had killed 
 COOO or 7000 of their assailants, what might not be 
 the slaughter which a greatly superior force would 
 inflict when sheltered behind stone walls? 
 
 ( 274 ) X 
 
322 GENERAL ROBERTS' COLUMN. 
 
 From one village, situate half a mile from the eastern 
 gate of the city, so constant and harassing a fire was 
 maintained by the enemy that General Primrose re- 
 solved to make a sortie to capture it. The affair was, 
 however, badly planned, and resulted in failure. The 
 Afghans, sheltered in the strongly-built houses, kept 
 up so severe a fire upon the assailants that these were 
 obliged to fall back with a considerable loss. 
 
 After that no further sorties were attempted, and 
 the city remained in quiet until the relieving columns 
 were close at hand. 
 
 The force selected to march from Cabul to the relief 
 of Candahar under the command of General Roberts 
 consisted of the 92d Highlanders, 2od Pioneers, 24th 
 and 25th Punjaub Infantry, the 2d, 4th, and 5th 
 Ghoorkas, the 72d Highlanders, 2d battalion of the 
 60th, the Norfolk Rangers, the 2d, 3d, and 15th 
 Sikhs. There were three batteries of artillery and 
 four cavalry regiments, the 9th Lancers, the 3d 
 Bengal Cavalry, the 3d Punjaub Cavalry, and the 
 Central India Horse. This gave a total of about 
 10,000 fio-htino' men. There were, in addition, 8000 
 followers to feed, 7000 horses, and some 8000 transport 
 and artillery mules and ponies. 
 
 The Ameer did his best to assist the force, which 
 was indeed going to fight his battle as well as their 
 own. The question was whether so large a force 
 would be able to subsist on the road, and in order to 
 assist them to do so he sent orders to all the tribes alon^: 
 
FROM CABUL TO CANDAHAR. 323 
 
 the line of march to aid the column in every way. 
 In consequence, no difficulties were met with, and 
 scarce a shot was fired on the way down. In seven 
 days after starting Ghuzni was reached, and in fifteen 
 Khelat-I-Ghilzai, where Colonel Tanner with a small 
 garrison had been besieged by the local tribes since the 
 advance of Ayoub. Khelat-I-Ghilzai stood near the 
 lower end of the valley down which the column was 
 advancing, and was but three days' march from 
 Candahar. 
 
 From the day of their leaving Cabul to their arrival 
 at Khelat-I-Ghilzai the troops had marched a distance 
 of fifteen miles a day — not an extraordinary distance 
 for a single regiment to perform, but a wonderful feat 
 for a force containing some 18,000 persons and 9000 
 bao-aaofe animals marchino- throucvh mountains and 
 valleys. As the relieving force approached Candahar 
 Ayoub drew off his troops from around the city, and 
 took up a strong position on some hills a few miles to 
 the north. On the 27th of August Roberts' cavalry 
 were near enough to establish heliographic communi- 
 cation with the town, and on the 31st the column 
 entered Candahar. 
 
 During the siege the duties of the garrison had been 
 heavy. A strong force was always held ready to get 
 under arms instantly in case of an attack by the enemy. 
 The number of sentries on the walls, magazines, and 
 lower important points was large. The town had to 
 be kept in order and the inhabitants strictly watched. 
 
324 THE BESIEGED CITY. 
 
 House-to-house requisitions were made for provisions, 
 and the greatest economy was used in the distribution 
 of these, as the garrison had no means of knowing how 
 long a time might elapse before any could arrive. 
 The death of ten officers of the 66th, all of senior 
 standing to himself, had placed Will Gale at the top 
 of the list of lieutenants, and as several officers were 
 disabled by wounds he was now performing captain's 
 duty, and was in charge of a company. There were, 
 indeed, but three companies now in the 66th Regiment, 
 so great having been the loss that the whole of the 
 survivors now made up but this number. 
 
 Among the other duties of the troops was that of 
 protecting the many houses which had been left vacant 
 by the hasty retirement of many of the native mer- 
 chants and traders at the approach of Ayoub's force. 
 Colonel Primrose, anxious to lessen the number of 
 mouths to be fed, encouraged the exodus, promising to 
 take charge of all property left behind. This duty 
 proved a troublesome one, as the lower class, which still 
 remained in the city, were constantly endeavouring to 
 break into and loot the houses thus left vacant by their 
 proprietors. In order to protect these as much as pos- 
 sible many of the officers were directed to move from 
 their quarters in the barracks and take up their resi- 
 dence in them, an order which was gladly obeyed, as 
 the exchange from hot confined quarters to the roomy 
 dwellings of the merchants was a very pleasant one. 
 Will Gale was one of those who so moved, and with 
 
AFGHAN THIEVES. 325 
 
 Yossouf and two native followers had been quartered 
 in the house of a wealthy silk merchant. 
 
 One night he was aroused from sleep by Yossouf. 
 
 "Sahib!" the latter whispered, "I hear people moving 
 below, I think there are thieves in the house." 
 
 Will rose noiselessly, slipped on his trousers and 
 shoes, and taking up a revolver in one hand and a 
 sword in another stole down-stairs, followed by Yos- 
 souf with his lono^ Afghan knife in his hand The door 
 of the warehouse was open, and within it Will saw, by 
 the faint light of a lamp which one of them carried, 
 four Afghan ruffians engaged in making up silks 
 into large bundles in readiness to carry off. His ap- 
 proach was unnoticed, and on reaching the door he 
 levelled his pistol and shouted to the Afghans to sur- 
 render as his prisoners. In reply they dropped the 
 lamp, and made a sudden rush at him. He fired his 
 pistol hastily in the darkness, but in an instant the 
 Afghans were upon him. The first man he cut down, 
 but he was knocked over by the rush of the others. 
 Two fell upon him, but Yossouf bounded upon them 
 like a tiger and buried his knife to the hilt in their 
 backs in quick succession. The last of the party, 
 without staying to see what was the fate of his friends, 
 at once took to his heels, and rushing to the door lead- 
 ing to the street made his escape. Yossouf raised Will 
 to his feet, 
 
 "Are you hurt?" he asked anxiously. 
 
 " Nothing to speak of," Will replied. '' I am a bit 
 
326 A NARROW ESCAPE. 
 
 shaken and bruised by the fall. Those fellows in the 
 darkness were upon me before I could see them. 
 Thanks to you, I have escaped without hurt, Yossouf, 
 and had it not been for your aid they would as- 
 suredly have made an end of me. My pistol had fallen 
 from my hand as they knocked me down, and on the 
 ground I could not have defended myself with my 
 sword for an instant. Once more, Yossouf, I owe my 
 life to you." 
 
 So many attempts similar to that made upon the 
 house occupied by Will Gale took place that sentries 
 were posted at ten o'clock at night at the entrances to 
 the various streets in which the houses left deserted 
 by the native traders were situated, and orders were 
 given that no natives should be out of their houses after 
 that hour unless provided with a pass signed by the 
 commandant of the city. Several messengers were from 
 time to time sent out to endeavour to get through the 
 enemy's lines and to carry to General Phayre the news 
 of what was going on in the city. A few of these suc- 
 ceeded in getting through, but none returned, so that 
 until the sio^nal-liofhts were seen flashing from the dis- 
 tant hills in the direction of Khelat-I-Ghilzai the 
 garrison were unaware of the steps which were being 
 taken for their rescue. Even had unforeseen obstacles 
 prevented the advent of either of the relieving columns 
 it is probable that the garrison of Candahar w^ould 
 finally have freed itself. Colonel Primrose had at his dis- 
 posal a force more than double that which had fought 
 
INACTIVITY OF THE GARRISON. 327 
 
 at Mtiiwancl, and had the British advanced into the 
 plain and offered battle to Ayoub on a fair fighting- 
 ground they should without difficulty have defeated his 
 army, whose long delays and hesitation showed how 
 immensely their morale had been aflfected by the pre- 
 vious battle. Thus it was that S^le, after sustaining a 
 long siege in Jellalabad, finally sallied out and com- 
 pletely defeated the besieging army before the arrival 
 of the force marching to his relief. 
 
 The Candahar force was not commanded by a Sale; 
 but had it been given a. chance to retrieve Maiwand, 
 there can be little doubt of what the issue would have 
 been. Over and over again the subject was discussed 
 at the messes of the various regiments, and immense 
 indignation was felt at the force being kept cooped up 
 in Candahar when the history of India recorded scores 
 of examples of victories won by British troops against 
 greater odds than those now opposed to them. 
 
 It must be said, however, that the native portion of 
 the army in Candahar was of very inferior fighting 
 quality to that which operated in Eastern Afghan- 
 istan. Those regiments were for the most part either 
 Ghoorkas, Sikhs, or Punjaubees, than whom no braver 
 men exist. The Ghoorkas are small active men, moun- 
 taineers by birth, and to whom war is a passion. The 
 Sikhs and Punjaubees, upon the contrary, are tall 
 stately men, proud of the historical fighting powers of 
 their race. They had fought with extreme bravery 
 against the English, but once conquered they became 
 
328 THE BOMBAY ARMY. 
 
 true and faithful subjects of the English crown, and it 
 was their fidelity and bravery which saved England 
 in the dark days of the mutiny. The Bombay troops, 
 upon the other hand, w^ere drawn from races which had 
 long ceased to be warlike. They possessed none of the 
 dash and fire of the hardier troops; their organization 
 was, and still is, defective; and the system of officering 
 them was radically bad. The contrast between the 
 two was strongly shown in the conduct of the Sikh 
 and Ghoorka regiments with General Stewart when 
 attacked by the sudden rush of the Ghazis at Ahmed 
 Khil, and that of the Bombay Grenadiers and Jacob's 
 foot under precisely similar circumstances at Maiwand. 
 There is no doubt, however, that the main reason why 
 General Primrose did not sally out and give battle on 
 the plain of Candahar was that in case of defeat the 
 populace of the city would assuredly have closed their 
 gates against the army, and that nothing would have 
 remained but a disastrous retreat across the Kojak 
 Pass, a retreat of which very few would ever have 
 survived to tell. Their enforced idleness in Candahar 
 made the time pass slowly and heavily, and it was 
 with the greatest joy that the garrison hailed the entry 
 of the columns of General Roberts. 
 
 Upon his arrival the general lost no time in recon- 
 noitring the position of the enemy. 
 
 It was well chosen for defence. His army was en- 
 camped behind the range of hills known as the Baba- 
 Wali Hills. A road ran direct over these hills, and 
 
ayoub's position. 329 
 
 here a strong force was stationed supported by artillery 
 in position. The last hill of the range on the south- 
 west was known as the Pir-Paimal Hill, and by turn- 
 ing this the camp of Ayoub's army would be taken in 
 flank and the defences in front rendered useless. The 
 reconnaissance which was made by the cavalry, sup- 
 ported by the 15th Sikhs, advanced close to the central 
 hill. The enemy unmasked five guns and opened upon 
 them, and the Afghans poured down to the attack. 
 
 There was, however, no intention on the part of the 
 British commander of bringing on a battle, and the 
 troops accordingly fell back in good order to the main 
 body. A mile and a half from the city stood a low 
 ridge of rock called the Picket Hill, in the line by 
 which the column would have to move to turn the 
 Pir-Paimal Hill, and this was at once seized. A number 
 of Ghazis stationed here fought, as usual, desperately, 
 but the 4th Ghoorkas repulsed their charge and cleared 
 the ridge of the enemy. The general determined to 
 attack the enemy's position with his whole force on the 
 following day. 
 
CHAPTER XXL 
 
 THE BATTLE OF CANDAHAR. 
 
 HE plan of action upon which General Ro- 
 berts determined was simple. The 1st and 
 2d brigade were to advance abreast, the 
 Sd to follow in support. As the 6Gth were to take 
 no part in the fight, Will Gale obtained leave to ride 
 out with General AVeatherby with the 3d division. 
 The enemy were well aware of the weak point of the 
 position which they occupied, and they had mustered 
 thickly in the plain, in which were several villages, 
 with canals cutting up the ground in all directions, 
 and abounding with hedges, ditches, and inclosures; 
 altogether a very strongly defensible position. 
 
 It was at 10 o'clock on the 1st of September that 
 the British force advanced. The first division on the 
 ricrht advanced ao^ainst the laroe walled villaoje of 
 Gundi, which was strongly held by the enemy. 
 Against this General Macpherson sent the 92d and 
 the 2d Ghoorkas, and stubbornly as the enemy fought 
 the place was carried by the bayonet. On the line 
 taken by the 2d division under General Baker, three 
 

 GUNDI CARRIED BY THE BAYONET. 
 
THE DEFEAT OF THE AFGHANS. ' 331 
 
 villages had successively to be carried, Abasabad, 
 Kaghanary, and Gundigan. The 72d Highlanders and 
 the 2d Sikhs advanced to the attack of these. The 
 resistance of the Afghans was stubborn in the extreme, 
 but they were driven out. The fighting line of the two 
 divisions kept abreast, and for two miles had to fight 
 every inch of their way from wall to wall, from garden 
 to garden, and here and there from house to house, and 
 from lane to lane. 
 
 Once or twice the attack was checked for a few 
 minutes by the desperate resistance of the Afghans at 
 the crossing places of canals and in walled inclosures; 
 and again and again the Ghazis rushed down upon the 
 troops. The Sd Sikhs and the 5th Ghoorkas joined 
 the fighting line, and step by step the ground was 
 won until the base of the hill vras turned and the 
 attacking force saw in front of them the great camp 
 of Ayoub's troops. Up to this point the enemy had 
 fought with the greatest bravery, but a sudden panic 
 seized them now they saw that their line of retreat 
 was threatened by our cavalry, for an Afghan always 
 loses heart under such circumstances. As if by magic 
 the defence ceased, and the enemy, horse and foot, 
 abandoning their guns and throwing away their arms, 
 fled up the Argandab valley. Everything was aban- 
 doned. 
 
 There was nothing more for the infantry to do but 
 to sack Ayoub's camp and to park the captive guns, 
 thirty in number. The amount of stores and miscel- 
 
332 ayoub's camp. 
 
 laneous articles in the camp was enormous, arms, 
 ammunition, commissariat, and ordnance stores, hel- 
 mets, bullock huts crammed with native wearing 
 apparel, writing materials, Korans, English tinned 
 meats, fruit, and money. Here, in fact, was all the bag- 
 gage which the army had brought from Herat, together 
 with all the spoil which they had captured at Maiwand. 
 
 The cavalry took up the pursuit. Unfortunately 
 they had met with great difficulties in advancing 
 through the broken country in rear of the infantry. 
 Had they been close at hand when the latter fought 
 their way into Ayoub's camp, very few of the fugitives 
 would have escaped. As it was, they did good service 
 in following up the rout, and driving the enemy, 
 a dispersed and broken crowd, into the hills. To the 
 fury of the men, they found in Ayoub's camp the body 
 of Lieutenant Maclaine, who had been taken prisoner 
 at Maiwand, and who was barbarously murdered a few 
 minutes before the arrival of the English troops. The 
 battle cost the lives of three officers: Lieutenant- 
 colonel Brownlow, commanding the 72d Highlanders; 
 Captain Frome of the same regiment; and Captain 
 Straton, 2d battalion of the 22d. Eleven officers were 
 wounded, 46 men were killed and 202 wounded. 
 
 The enemy left 1200 dead on the field. Ayoub's 
 regular regiments scarcely fired a shot, and the British 
 advance had been opposed entirely by the irregulars 
 and Ghazis, the reo^ular reoiments havino: been drawn 
 up behind the Pir-Paimal Pass, by which they expected 
 
THE END OF THE WAR. 333 
 
 our main attack to be made, a delusion which was kept 
 up by our heavy fire from early morning upon the 
 Afghan guns on the summit of the pass. When our 
 troops appeared round the corner of the spur upon 
 their flank they lost heart at once, and for the most 
 part, throwing away their arms, joined the body of 
 fugitives. 
 
 " It would have been hard work, sir," Will Gale said 
 to Colonel Ripon as they rode forward in rear of the 
 fighting brigade, " to have taken this position with the 
 Candahar force alone." 
 
 "It could not have been done," Colonel Ripon replied; 
 "but no one would have dreamed of attempting it. 
 The Afghans say that the force which Roberts brought 
 down from Cabul was so large that they stood on the 
 defensive, but they would have ventured to attack us 
 had we sallied out and offered battle on the level plain 
 round the city. Then I have no doubt we could have 
 beaten them. However, all is well that ends well. 
 Roberts has come up in time, and has completely de- 
 feated the enemy; still it would have been more satis- 
 factory had we retrieved Maiwand by thrashing him 
 single-handed. Well, I suppose this is the end of the 
 Afghan war. We have beaten Ayoub, I hope so effec- 
 tually that Abdul-Rahman will have no difficulty in 
 dealing with him in future ; and if he really means the 
 professions of friendship which he has made us, we 
 may hope for peace for some time. Probably the next 
 time we have to fight in this country it will be against 
 
334 RAPID PROMOTION. 
 
 the Russians and Afghans united. There are men in 
 England who persist in shutting their eyes to the cer- 
 tain consequences of the Russian advance towards the 
 northern frontier of Afghanistan; but the time will 
 come when England will have to rue bitterly the in- 
 fatuation and folly of her rulers. When that day ar- 
 rives, she w411 have to make such an effort to hold her 
 own as she has never had to do since the days when 
 she stood alone in arms against Europe." 
 
 Upon the following day Will paid a visit to his 
 friends in the Rangers. 
 
 "So you got through Maiwand safely!" the colonel 
 said. " Upon my word I begin to think that you have 
 a charmed life. I hear one of your captains died last 
 night. That gives you your step, does it not?" 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 "You are the luckiest young dog I ever heard of. 
 You got your commission within a year of enlisting; 
 and now by an extraordinary fatality your regiment 
 is almost annihilated, and you mount up by death 
 steps to a captain's rank nine months after the date 
 of your gazette. In any other regiment in the service 
 you would have been lucky if you had got three or 
 four steps by this time." 
 
 " I am fortunate indeed, sir," Will said. " I can 
 scarcely believe it myself." 
 
 "Ah! whom do I see here?" the colonel exclaimed as 
 a mounted officer rode through the camp. " My old 
 friend Ripon! Ah! Ripon, how are you?" 
 
TWO OLD FRIENDS. 335 
 
 The colonel reined in his horse, and the two officers, 
 who had not met for some years, entered into a warm 
 conversation, while Will strolled away to talk to some 
 of the yoimo-er officers, who cono-ratulated him most 
 heartily on the luck which had in a few months taken 
 him over their heads. 
 
 In the afternoon Will received a note from Colonel 
 Ripon asking him to dine with him, as Colonel Shep- 
 herd was going to do so. Will replied that he would 
 gladly dine, but must be excused for a time afterwards, 
 as he Avas on duty and would have to go the rounds in 
 the evening. There were three or four other officers 
 at dinner, as Colonel Ripon had many friends in the 
 relieving column. When dinner was over, Will made 
 his excuses and left, promising to look in again in a 
 couple of hours when he had finished his rounds. Soon 
 afterwards the other young officers left, Colonel Shep- 
 herd only remained. 
 
 " That is a singularly fine young fellow — young- 
 Gale, I mean," Colonel Shepherd said, " and a singu- 
 larly fortunate one. I feel quite proud of him. It 
 was upon my advice that he enlisted; but if any one 
 had told me at the time that he would be a captain in 
 two years I should have said that it was absolutely 
 impossible." 
 
 " Yes," Colonel Ripon replied, " his luck has been 
 marvellous; but if ever a fellow deserved it, he did. I 
 have a very warm liking, I may say an aflfection, for 
 him. He saved my life when I was attacked by some 
 
336 will's history. 
 
 Ghazis here, and must have been killed had it not 
 been for his promptness and coolness. He was wounded 
 too, and we were nursed together here. Since then I 
 have seen a great deal of him, and the more I see 
 him the more I like him. Do you know anything of 
 him previous to the time of his enlisting? You told 
 me he joined your regiment on the day when it 
 arrived at Calcutta. 1 know nothing of his history 
 before that. The subject never happened to occur in 
 conversation, and it was one upon which I naturally 
 should have felt a delicacy in asking any questions, 
 though I have sometimes wondered in my own mind 
 how he came to be penniless in Calcutta, as I suppose 
 he must have been to have enlisted. Did you happen 
 to hear anything about it ? " 
 
 " Yes, indeed," Colonel Shepherd answered. " Curi- 
 ously enough he was by no means penniless, as he had 
 just received £100 reward for the services he had 
 rendered in preventing a ship from being captured by 
 the Malays. I happened to meet its captain on shore 
 the day I landed, and heard from him the story of the 
 affair, which was as follows, as nearly as I can recol- 
 lect." 
 
 Colonel Shepherd then related to his friend the 
 story of the manner in which the brig, when chased 
 by Malays, was saved by being brought into the 
 reef by Will. " Naturally," he went on, " I was greatly 
 interested in the story, and expressing a wish to see 
 the young fellow, he was brought off that evening after 
 
COLONEL RIPON's SURPRISE. 337 
 
 mess to the Euphrates, and told ns how he had been 
 wrecked on the island in a Dutch ship, from which 
 only he and a companion were saved. I was so struck 
 with his conduct, and I may say by his appearance and 
 manner, that I took him aside into my own cabin and 
 learned from him the full particulars of his story. I 
 don't think anyone else knows it, for when he expressed 
 his willingness to take my advice and enlist I told him 
 that he had better say nothing about his past. His man- 
 ner was so good that I thought he would pass well as 
 some gentleman's son who had got into a scrape, and 
 as I hoped that the time might come when he might 
 step upwards, it was perhaps better that it should not 
 be known what was his origin." 
 
 " But what was his origin. Shepherd ? I confess you 
 surprise me, for I have always had an idea that he 
 was a man of good family, although in some strange 
 way his education had been neglected, for in fact he 
 told me one day that he was absolutely ignorant of 
 Latin." 
 
 " Well, Eipon, as you are a friend of the young 
 
 fellow, and I know it will go no further, I will tell 
 
 you the facts of the case He was brought up in a 
 
 workhouse, was apprenticed to a Yarmouth smackman, 
 
 and the boat being run down in a gale by a Dutch 
 
 troopship, to which he managed to cling as the smack 
 
 sank, he was carried in her to Java. On her voyage 
 
 thence to China he was wrecked on the island I spoke 
 
 of." 
 
 (274) y 
 
338 A MOMENTOUS CONVERSATION. 
 
 " You astound me," Colonel Ripon said, '' absolutely 
 astound me. I could have sworn that he was a gentle- 
 man by birth. Not, mind you, that I like or esteem 
 him one iota the less for what you tell me. Indeed, 
 on the contrary, for there is all the more m^rit in his 
 having made his way alone. Still you astonish me. 
 They tell me," he said with a smile, "that he is won- 
 derfully like me; but strangely enough he reminds 
 me rather of my wife. You remember her. Shepherd, 
 for you were stationed at Meerut at the time I mar- 
 ried her there ? " 
 
 Colonel Shepherd nodded, and for a few minutes the 
 two friends sat silent, thinking over the memories 
 which the words had evoked. 
 
 " Strange, is it not," Colonel Ripon went on, arous- 
 ing himself, "that the child of some pauper parents 
 should have a resemblance, however distant, to me and 
 my wife ? " 
 
 *' Curiously enough," Colonel Shepherd said, " the 
 boy was not born of pauper parents; he was left at the 
 door of the workhouse at Ely by a tramp, whose body 
 was found next morning in one of the ditches. It was 
 a stormy night, and she had no doubt lost her way 
 after leaving the child. That was why they called 
 him William Gale. Why, what is the matter, Ripon? 
 Good heavens, are you ill ? " 
 
 Colonel Shepherd's surprise was natural. The old 
 officer sat rigid in his chair with his eyes open and 
 staring at his friend, and yet apparently without see- 
 
A STARTLING IDEA. 339 
 
 ing him. The colour in his face had faded away, and 
 even through the deep bronze of the Indian sun its 
 pallor was visible. Colonel Shepherd rose in great 
 alarm, and was about to call for assistance when his 
 friend, with a slight motion of his hand, motioned to 
 him to abstain. 
 
 " How old is he ? " came presently in a strange tone 
 from his lips. 
 
 " How old is who ? " Colonel Shepherd asked in sur- 
 prise — "Oh, you mean Gale! He is not nineteen yet, 
 though he looks four or five years older. He was 
 under seventeen when he enlisted, and I rather strained 
 a point to get him in by hinting, that, when he was asked 
 his age, he had better say under nineteen. So he was 
 entered as eighteen, but I know he was more than a 
 year younger than that. But what has that to do 
 w4th it, my dear old friend? What is the matter with 
 you?" 
 
 " I believe, Shepherd," Colonel Ripon said solemnly, 
 " that he is my son." 
 
 " Your son ! " his comrade exclaimed, astonished. 
 
 " Yes, I believe he is my son." 
 
 " But how on earth can that be ? " his friend asked. 
 "Are you sure that you know what you are saying? 
 Is your head quite clear, old friend ? " 
 
 "My head is clear enough," the colonel replied, 
 " although I felt stunned at first. Did you never hear 
 of my having lost my child?" 
 
 "No, indeed," Colonel Shepherd replied, more and 
 
340 COLONEL RIPON'S STORY. 
 
 more surprised. For lie had at first supposed that 
 some sudden access of fever or delirium had seized his 
 friend. " You will remember that a week or two after 
 you were married my regiment was moved up to the 
 north, and we remained three years longer in India. 
 When I got back to England I heard that you had 
 lost your wife a short time before and had returned. 
 I remember our ships crossed on the way. When we 
 met again the conversation never turned on the past." 
 " I will tell you the story," the colonel said, " and 
 you will see that at any rate the boy may be my son, 
 and that being so the double likeness proves to me 
 incontestably that he is. I had, as you know, been ill 
 before I left India. I had not been home for fifteen 
 years, and got two years' leave. As you may know, 
 I had a good fortune irrespective of the service, and I 
 took a place called Holmwood Park, near Dawlish,and as 
 I had thought of retiring at the end of my leave I was 
 put on the commission of the peace. My boy was born 
 a few months after I got home. Soon after I took 
 the place some gipsy fellows broke into the poultry- 
 yard and stole some valuable chickens which were great 
 pets of my wife. I chased them, and finally brought 
 home the guilt of the theft to one of the men in 
 whose tent a lot of their feathers were found. He 
 had been previously convicted, and was sentenced to a 
 term of penal servitude. Before the trial his wife, also 
 a gipsy, called upon me and begged me not to ap- 
 pear against her husband. This of course was out 
 
A BROKEN-HEARTED MOTHER. 341 
 
 of the question, as he had already been sent to trial. 
 When she found that her entreaties were useless, she 
 in the most vindictive tone told me that I should 
 repent it, and she certainly spoke as if she meant it. 
 I heard nothing more of the matter until the boy was 
 sixteen months old; then he disappeared; he was 
 stolen from the garden. A clue was left, evidently 
 that I might know from whom the blow came. The 
 gipsy had been convicted partly on the evidence of 
 the feathers, but principally from the fact that the 
 boot which he had on had half the iron on the heel 
 broken off, and this tallied exactly with some marks 
 in my fowl-house. An hour after the child w^as gone 
 we found in the centre of the drive in the park a boot, 
 conspicuously placed there to catch the eye, and this 
 boot I recognized by the broken iron as that which 
 had transported the gipsy. That the woman had 
 stolen the child I had not the least doubt; but neither 
 of her nor it could I ever gain the slightest clue. I 
 advertised in every paper in the kingdom. I offered a 
 reward of £1000, and I believe the police searched every 
 gipsy encampment in England, but without success. 
 My wife had never been strong, and from that day 
 she gradually sank. As long as there was hope she 
 kept up for a time. I hoped all would go well, but 
 three months afterwards she faded rapidly, and ere 
 six months had passed from the loss of the child I 
 buried her and came straight out to India. I went 
 home once for two or three months upon business con- 
 
342 THE MEANS OF RECOGNITION. 
 
 necfced with my property there some seven years since. 
 That was when we last met, you know, at the club. 
 With that exception I have remained here ever since." 
 
 " The trouble will be, I fear," Colonel Shepherd 
 said, " for you to identify him. That vindictive gipsy 
 woman who stole your child is not likely to have left 
 any marks on its clothing by which it might be iden- 
 tified at any future time and her revenge on you 
 frustrated." 
 
 "Thank God!" the colonel said earnestly, "if it be 
 my son he bears a mark by which I shall know him. 
 That was one of his poor mother's greatest comforts. 
 The child was born with an ugly blood mark on its 
 neck. It used to bother my wife a good deal, and she 
 consulted several surgeons whether it could not be re- 
 moved, but they all said no, not without completely 
 cutting out the flesh; and this, of course, was not to 
 be thought of. After the child was lost I remember 
 as well as if it had been spoken to-day, my wife say- 
 ing, ' How strange are God's ways ! I was foolish 
 enough to fret over that mark on the darling's neck, 
 and now the thought of it is my greatest comfort; and 
 if it shall be God's will that years shall pass away 
 before we find him, there is a sign by which we shall 
 always know him. No other child can be palmed off 
 upon us as our own. When we find Tom we shall 
 know him, however changed he may be.' Listen, 
 Shepherd! that is his step on the stairs. May God 
 grant that he prove to be my son!" 
 
A STRANGE REQUEST. 343 
 
 "Be calm, old friend," Colonel Shepherd said; "I 
 will speak to him." 
 
 The door opened and Will entered. 
 
 " I am glad you have not gone, colonel — I was afraid 
 you might have left, for I have been longer than I 
 expected. I just heard the news that the 66th are in 
 orders this evening to march the day after to-morrow 
 for Kurrachee to sail for England, where we are to be 
 reorganized again." 
 
 " Gale, I am going to ask you a rather curious thing. 
 Will you do it without asking why?" Colonel Shepherd 
 said quietly. 
 
 " Certainly, colonel, if it is in my power," Will said 
 somewhat surprised. 
 
 "Will you take off your patrol jacket, open your 
 shirt, and turn it well down at the neck ? " 
 
 For a moment Will looked astounded at this request. 
 He saw by the tone in which it was made that it was 
 seriously uttered, and without hesitation he began to 
 unhook his patrol jacket. As he did so his eye fell 
 upon Colonel Ripon's face, and the intense anxiety and 
 emotion that it expressed caused him to pause for a 
 moment. Something extraordinary hung on w^hat he 
 had been asked to do. All sorts of strange thoughts 
 flashed through his brain. Hundreds of times m his 
 life he had said to himself that if ever he discovered 
 his parents it would be by means of this mark upon 
 his neck which he was now asked to expose. The 
 many remarks which had been made of his likeness to 
 
344 FATHER AND SON. 
 
 Colonel Ripon flashed across his mind, and it was with 
 an emotion scarcely inferior to that of the old officer 
 that he opened his shirt and turned down the collar. 
 The sight was conclusive. Colonel Ripon held out his 
 arms with a cry of — 
 
 "My son, my son!" 
 
 Bewildered and delighted Will felt himself pressed 
 to the heart of the man whom he liked and esteemed 
 beyond all others. 
 
 With a word of the heartiest congratulation Colonel 
 Shepherd left the father and son together to exchange 
 confidences and tell to each other their respective 
 stories and to realize the great happiness which had 
 befallen them both. Their delight was without a 
 single cloud, save that which passed for a moment 
 through Colonel Ripon's mind as he thought how his 
 wife would have rejoiced had she lived to see that 
 day. 
 
 His joy was in some respects even greater than that 
 of his son. The latter had always pictured to himself 
 that if he ever discovered his father he should find him 
 all that was good; but the colonel had for many years 
 not only given up all hope of ever finding his son, but 
 almost every desire to do so. He had thought that if still 
 alive he must be a gipsy vagabond, a poacher, a liar, a 
 thief, like those among whom he would have been 
 brought up. From such a discovery no happiness could 
 be looked for, only annoyance, humiliation, and trouble. 
 To find his son then all that he could wish for — a 
 
DEEP HAPPINESS. 345 
 
 gentleman, a most promising young officer, the man, 
 indeed, to whom he had been so specially attracted — 
 was a joy altogether unhoped and unlooked for. Morn- 
 ing had broken before the newly united father and son 
 had done their long and happy talk, and they separated 
 only to take a bath to prepare them for the day's 
 work. 
 
 The astonishment of everyone was unbounded when 
 Colonel Ripon announced on the following morning 
 that in Captain Gale of the 66th, who it was known 
 had risen from the ranks, he had discovered a son that 
 had been stolen from him as a child. No one enter- 
 tained a doubt for an instant that any mistake had 
 arisen, for the likeness between the two men as they 
 strode down the street together on their way to General 
 Roberts' quarters was so marked that — now that men 
 knew the relationship — none doubted for a moment 
 that they were indeed father and son. 
 
 The warmest congratulations poured in upon them 
 from all sides, and from none more heartily than from 
 the general, who was more than ever pleased that he 
 had been the means of Will's obtaining his commission 
 from the ranks. The same day Colonel Ripon sent off, by 
 a mounted messenger carrying despatches, a telegram 
 to be sent from the nearest station of the flying line, 
 which the engineers advancing with Colonel Phayre's 
 force had already carried as far as the Kojak Pass, to 
 the government of India, asking leave to go home at 
 once on the most urgent and pressing family business. 
 
346 yossouf's determination. 
 
 Yossouf 's grief when he heard that his master was 
 o'oinn to leave for Eniiland was very e^reat. At first 
 he begged that he might accompany him; but Tom 
 pointed out that, much as he should like to have him 
 with him, his position in England would be an uncom- 
 fortable one. He would meet wdth no one with whom 
 ne could converse, and would after a time long for his 
 own country again. Yossouf yielded to his reasoning, 
 and the picture which Will drew of his own loneliness 
 when in Cabul separated from all his own people aided 
 greatly in enforcing his arguments on his mind. He 
 said, however, that at any rate he w^ould not return to 
 Afghanistan at present. 
 
 "It will be long," he said, "before things settle 
 down there, and it will be useless for me to put my 
 money into a herd which might be driven off by plun- 
 derers the next week. Besides, at present the feeling 
 against the English will be strong, so many have lost 
 men of their family in the fighting. If I returned I 
 should be a marked man. It is known that I threw 
 in my lot with the English, and it will be cast in my 
 teeth even if no worse came of it. No, I wall enlist in 
 the Guides; I shall be at home with them, for most of 
 them belong to the Afghan tribes. I am young yet, 
 not fully a man, and I have my life before me. 
 Some day, perhaps, if things are quiet and prosperous 
 at home, I will go back and end my days there." 
 
 So it was arranged. One of the officers of the Guides 
 had accompanied General Roberts as interpreter, and 
 
ENROLLED FN THE GUIDES. 347 
 
 Will handed over Yossoiif to him, telling him how well 
 the lad had served him. The officer promised to enroll 
 him in the corps as soon as he rejoined it, and also that 
 he would not fail to report his conduct to the colonel 
 and to obtain his promotion to the rank of a native 
 officer as soon as possible. From Will Yossouf would 
 accept nothing except his revolver as a keepsake, but 
 Colonel Ripon insisted upon his taking from him a 
 present which would make him a rich man when he 
 chose to return to his native country. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 AT HOME AT LAST. 
 
 ^^Sl HE next day Colonel Eipon started with the 
 J^^: 66th, and at the end of the first day's march 
 ^^#*^:| met a messenger, who, among other de- 
 spatches, carried a telegram granting him at once the 
 leave he asked for, and which indeed had been due had 
 he asked for it many years before. His intention was 
 to accompany the 66th to Kurrachee and to sail with 
 it to England. This intention was carried out, and 
 the remnant of the regiment safely reached England. 
 
 One of Colonel Ripon's first steps was to accompany 
 Will, or, as he ought now to be called, Tom, to the 
 Horse Guards, and to procure an insertion in the 
 Gazette stating that Captain William Gale of the 66th 
 would henceforth be known by his true and proper 
 name of Thomas Ripon. The colonel purchased a fine 
 estate in Somersetshire, and retiring from the service 
 settled down there. There was a considerable discus- 
 sion between father and son as to whether the latter 
 should remain in the army. Colonel Ripon was un- 
 w^illing that his son should relinquish a profession of 
 
OLD FRIENDS. 349 
 
 which he was fond, and in which, from his early pro- 
 motion, he had every chance of obtaining high rank 
 and honour; but Tom, who saw how great a pleasure 
 his society was to his father, and how lonely the 
 latter's life would be without him, was resolute in his 
 determination to quit the service. He had already, as 
 he said, passed through a far greater share of adven- 
 ture than usually falls to one man's lot, and the 
 colonel's property was so large that there was not the 
 slightest occasion for him to continue in the service. 
 
 Not long after his return to England Will paid a 
 visit to Ely workhouse. He was accompanied by the 
 colonel, and the two men walked together up to the 
 gate of the workhouse. He rang at the bell, and a 
 woman opened the door. She curtsied at seeing two 
 tall soldier-like gentlemen before her. 
 
 "Your name is Mrs. Dickson, I think?" the younger 
 said. The woman gave a violent start and gazed ear- 
 nestly at him. 
 
 "It is Will Gale!" she exclaimed, drawing back a 
 step. " They said you were dead years ago." 
 
 " No, I am very much alive, Mrs. Dickson, and glad, 
 most glad, to see an old friend again." 
 
 "Good Lord!" the woman exclaimed, "it is the 
 boy himself, sure enough;" and for a moment she 
 seemed as if she would have rushed into his arms, and 
 then she drew back, abashed at his appearance. Tom, 
 however, held out his arms, and the woman fell sobbing 
 into them. 
 
350 sam's astonishment. 
 
 " Why, you did not think so badly of me," he said, 
 " as to think that I shoukl f'oro-et the woman who was 
 a mother to me. Father," he said — " for I have found 
 my real father, Mrs. Dickson, as you always said I 
 should some day — it is to this good woman that I 
 owe what I am. But for her I might now be a 
 labouring man; but it is to her kindness, to her good 
 advice, to her lessons, that I owe everything. It was 
 she who taught me that I should so behave that if my 
 parents ever found me they should have no cause to be 
 ashamed of me. She was indeed as a mother to me, 
 and this lodge was my home rather than the work- 
 house inside. Ah! and here is Sam!" 
 
 Sam Dickson, coming out at this moment, stood in 
 open-mouthed astonishment at seeing his wife stand- 
 inoj with her hand in that of a o'entleman. 
 
 "Oh, Sam! who do you think this is?" Sam made 
 no reply, but stared at Tom with all his eyes. 
 
 " If it warn't that he be drowned and dead long- 
 ago," he said at last, " I should say it was Will Gale 
 growed up and got to be a gentleman. I shouldn't ha' 
 knowed him at first, but when he smiles I don't think 
 as how I can be far wrong." 
 
 " You are right, Sam. I am the boy you and your 
 wife were so kind to from the time you picked him up 
 just where we are standing, and whom you last handed 
 over to go aboard a smack at Yarmouth. She was, as 
 you have heard, run down in the North Sea, but I was 
 saved in the ship which ran over her and was taken 
 
APPOINTMENTS FOR LIFE. 351 
 
 out to the East. There, after being wrecked again, 
 and o-oino- throuoh lots of adventures, I went to India, 
 enlisted there, and fouo'ht throuo-h the Afo-han war. 
 I am a captain now, and my name is no longer Will 
 Gale, but Tom Eipon, for I have found my real father, 
 this gentleman, Colonel Ripon." 
 
 " Who feels," Colonel Ripon went on, " how much 
 he and his son owe to your kindness and that of your 
 good wife here, and who, as you will find, is not un- 
 grateful. I have just bought an estate down in Somer- 
 setshire, and I mean to install you and your wife in a 
 pretty lodge at the gates, with enough to live upon 
 comfortably to the end of your lives." 
 
 Mrs. Dickson cried with joy as Colonel Ripon entered 
 into details of what he intended to do for them, and 
 Sam, although, as was his way, much less demonstrative 
 in his gladness, was yet greatly delighted. There was 
 a good garden to the lodge; they were to have the 
 keep of a cow, and thirty shillings per week as long 
 as they lived. Before the colonel left, Sam Dickson's 
 resignation of his post was handed in to the master. 
 
 The colonel told them that at the end of the month, 
 when Sam's notice would expire, they were to sell off 
 what furniture they had, as it would cost more to con- 
 vey it so long a distance than it was worth, and he 
 would take care that they should find everything com- 
 fortable and ready for occupation at the lodge upon their 
 arrival. Tom called upon the master and matron and 
 schoolmaster, and thanked all for the kindness that 
 
352 CONCLUSION. 
 
 they bad shown him when a boy; and Colonel Ripon 
 left a cheque with the master to be expended in tobacco, 
 tea, and suo^ar for the ao^ed inmates of the house. - 
 
 No words can express the delight of Sam Dickson 
 and his wife when, a month later, they arrived at their 
 new home. Tom had spared no trouble in seeing that 
 it was comfortably and cosily furnished. The garden 
 had been thoroughly dug up and planted, and Mrs. 
 Dickson could scarcely believe that she was the mis- 
 tress of so pleasant a home. Tom was forgetful of 
 none of his old friends, and he w^rote to an address 
 which Hans, his companion among the Malays, had 
 given him when they separated, and forwarded to him 
 a handsome watch as a souvenir of his comrade. 
 
 There is no more to be told. Captain Ripon, still a 
 very young man, is living with his father the colonel. 
 He is one of the most popular men in his county, and 
 there is some talk of his standino; for one of its borouofhs 
 at the next election, and it is rumoured that he is likely, 
 ere long, to bring home a lady who will be the future 
 mistress of Burnham Park. 
 
 He is quite content that he has left the army, though 
 he fidgetted a little, while the Egyptian war was going 
 on, and could not help feeling a little regret that he 
 did not take part in the storming of Tel-el-Kebir. 
 
"More suitable books, especially for boys, it would be impossible to imagine. Whether 
 of adventure, school life, or domestic interest, every story is alike marked with those wholesome 
 and robust characteristics which form so valuable a feature in juvenile literature." — Christinas 
 Bookseller, i8S6. 
 
 CRIBNER & HELFORD'S 
 
 Catalogue of Books 
 
 FOR 
 
 YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 INCLUDING NEW WORKS 
 
 BY 
 
 G. A. HENTY, G. M. FENN, HARRY COLLINGWOOD, F. FRANKFORT MOORE, 
 
 ROSA MULHOLLAND, SARAH TYTLER, SARAH DOUDNEY, 
 
 ALICE CORKRAN, AND OTHER POPULAR AUTHORS. 
 
 743 BROADWAY, NEW YORK. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOU^'G PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 " Here we have Mr. George Heuty— the Boys' Own Author. 
 
 -Punch. 
 
 THE LION OF ST. MARK: 
 
 A Tale of Venice. By G. A. Henty. With 10 fuU-page Illus- 
 trations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, 
 olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 A story of Venice at a period when her strength and splendour were put 
 to the severest tests. The hero, the son of an English trader who has 
 taken up residence in the city, displays a fine sense and manliness which 
 carry him safely through an atmosphere of intrigue, crime, and bloodshed. 
 In his gondola on the canals and lagunes, and in the ships which he rises 
 to command, he is successful in extricating his friends and himself from 
 imminent dangers, and contributes largely to the victories of the Venetians 
 at Porto d'Anzo and Chioggia. He is honoured by the state, and finally 
 wins the hand of the daughter of one of the chief men of Venice, to whom 
 he has rendered important services. 
 
 BONNIE PRINCE CHARLIE: 
 
 A Tale of Fontenoy and Culloden. By G. A. Henty. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1'50. 
 
 The adventures of the son of a Scotch officer in French service who had 
 secretly married the daughter of a noble. The boy, brought up by a 
 Glasgow bailie, is arrested for aiding a Jacobite agent, escapes in a Dutch 
 ship, is wi'ecked on the French coast, reaches Paris, and serves with the 
 French army at Dettingen. Having discovered the convent in which his 
 mother is imprisoned, he establishes communication vsdth her, and succeeds 
 in obtaining through Marshal Saxe the release of both his parents. He 
 kills his father's foe in a duel, and escaping to the coast, shares the ad- 
 ventures of Prince Charlie, but finally settles happily in Scotland. A book 
 of the most stirring incident and of historic value. 
 
 "Eonald, the hero, is very like the 
 hero of Quentin Durivard. The lad's 
 jom'ney across France with his faith- 
 ful attendant Malcolm, and his hair- 
 breadth escapes from the machinations 
 of his father's enemies, make up as 
 good a narrative of the kind as we have 
 ever read. For freshness of treatment 
 and variety of incident, ilr. Henty has 
 here surpassed himselt."— Spectator. 
 
 "It is the Scottish adventure of the 
 prince that has been chosen as the 
 framework of the story; and never has 
 
 that romantic episode in the Preten- 
 der's life been more accurately or 
 vividly delineated. . . . While his 
 book is really a painstaking and con- 
 scientious historical study, it has the 
 swift-flowing vivacity and vigour of his 
 most spontaneous and stirring stories." 
 — Christian Leader. 
 
 " A historical romance of the best 
 quality. Mr. Henty has written many 
 more sensational stories than Bonnie 
 Prince Charlie but never a more artistic 
 one."— Academy. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOU^G PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 'Mr. Henty is one of the best of story-tellers for young people."— 5pec<aeor. 
 
 CAPTAIN BAYLEY'S HEIR: 
 
 A Tale of the Gold Fields of California. Bj G. A. Henty. 
 With 12 full-page Illustrations by H. M. Paget. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 A frank manly lad and his cousin, who is of the plausible scheming type, 
 are rivals in the heirship of a considerable property. The former falls into 
 a trap laid by the latter, and while under a false accusation of theft fool- 
 ishly leaves England for America. He works his passage before the mast, 
 becomes one of the hands on a river trading-flat, joins a small band of 
 hunters, crosses a tract of country infested with Indians to the Califoi-nian 
 gold diggings, and is successful both as digger and trader. He acquires a 
 small fortune, is at length proved innocent of the charge which drove him 
 from home, and returns rich in valuable experiences. 
 
 THE LION OF THE NOBTH 
 
 A Tale of Gustavus Adolphus and the "Wars of Eeligion. By 
 G. A. Henty. With 12 full-page Illustrations by John 
 ScHONBERG, in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, 
 olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 In this story Mr. Henty gives the history of the first part of the Thirty 
 Years' War, a struggle unprecedented in length, in the fury with which it 
 was carried on, and in the terrible destruction and ruin which it caused. 
 The issue had its importance, which has extended to the present day, as 
 it established rehgious freedom in Germany. The army of the chivalrous 
 King of Sweden, the prop and maintenance of the Protestant cause, was 
 largely composed of Scotchmen, and among these was the hero of the 
 story. The chief interest of the tale turns on the great struggle between 
 Gustavus and his chief opponents Wallenstein, Tilly, and Pappenheim. 
 
 vus Adolphus. Mackay, Hepburn, and 
 
 "As we might expect from Mr. Henty 
 the tale is a clever and instructive 
 piece of history, and as boys may be 
 trusted to read it conscientiously, they 
 can hardly fail to be profited as well as 
 pleased."— TAe Times. 
 
 "A praiseworthy attempt to interest 
 British youth in the great deeds of the 
 Scotch Brigade in the wars of Gusta- 
 
 Munro live again in Mr. Henty'spages.as 
 those deserve to live whose disciplined 
 bands formed really the germ of the 
 modern British simiy." —Athenceum. 
 
 "A stirring story of stirring times. 
 This book should hold a place among 
 the classics of youthful fiction."— United 
 Service Gazette. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 'Mr. Henty's books never fail to interest boy readers."— .4cademj/. 
 
 FOB THE TEMPLE: 
 
 A Tale of the Fall of Jerusalem. By G. A. Hentt. With 10 
 full-page Illustrations by S. J. Solomon: and a coloured Map. 
 Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 Few boys have failed to find the story of the revolt of the Jews of 
 thrilling interest when once brought to their notice; but there has hitherto 
 been little choice between sending them to books of history and supply- 
 ing them with insipid fictional transcripts of the story. Mr. Henty sup- 
 plies a distinct want in this regard, weaving into the record of Josephus 
 an admirable and attractive plot. The troubles in the district of Tiberias, 
 the march of the legions, the sieges of Jotapata, of Gamala, and of 
 Jerusalem, form the impressive and carefully-studied historic setting 
 to the figure of the lad who passes from the vineyard to the service of 
 Josephus, becomes the leader of a guerrilla band of patriots, fights bravely 
 for the Temple, and after a brief term of slavery at Alexandria, returns to 
 his Galilean home with the favour of Titus. 
 
 WITH CLIVE IN INDIA: 
 
 Or the Beginnings of an Empire. By G. A. Henty. With 
 
 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 The period between the landing of Clive as a young writer in India and 
 the close of his career was critical and eventful in the extreme. At its 
 commencement the English were traders existing on sufferance of the 
 native princes. At its close they were masters of Bengal and of the greater 
 part of Southern India. The author has given a full and accurate account 
 of the events of that stirring time, and battles and sieges follow each other 
 in rapid succession, while he combines with his narrative a tale of daring 
 and adventure, which gives a lifelike interest to the volume. 
 
 " In this book Mr. Henty has contrived 
 to exceed himself in stirring adventures 
 and thrilling situations. The pictures add 
 greatly to the interest of the book."— 
 Saturday Review. 
 
 ' 'Among writers of stories of adventure 
 for boys Mr. Henty stands in the very 
 first rank, and Mr. Gordon Browne occu- 
 pies a similar place with his pencil. . . . 
 Those who know something about India 
 
 will be the most ready to thank Mr. 
 Henty for giving them this instructive 
 volume to place in the hands of their chil- 
 dren. " — A cademy. 
 
 " He has taken a period of Indian His- 
 tory of the most vital importance, and he 
 has embroidered on the historical facta 
 a story which of itself is deeply interest- 
 ing. Young people assuredly will be de- 
 lighted with the volume."—- Scotsman. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 'Surely Mr. Henty should understand boys' tastes better than any man living. 
 
 —The Times. 
 
 THE YOUNG CARTHAGINIAN: 
 
 A Story of the Times of Hannibal. By G. A. Henty. With 12 
 full-page Illustrations by C. J. Staniland, E.I. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 Boys reading the history of the Punic Wars have seldom a keen appre- 
 ciation of the merits of the contest. That it was at first a struggle for 
 empire, and afterwards for existence on the part of Carthage, that Hanni- 
 bal was a great and skilful general, that he defeated the Romans at Trebia, 
 Lake Trasimenus, and Cannae, and all but took Rome, represents pretty 
 nearly the sum total of their knowledge. 
 
 To let them know more about this momentous struggle for the empire of 
 the world Mr. Henty has written this story, which not only gives in graphic 
 style a brilliant description of a most interesting period of history, but is a 
 tale of exciting adventure sure to secure the interest of the reader. 
 
 "The effect of an interesting story, 
 well constructed and vividly told, is 
 enhanced by the picturesque quality of 
 the scenic background. From first to 
 last nothing stays the interest of the 
 narrative. It bears us along as on a 
 stream, whose current varies in direc- 
 
 tion, but never loses its force."— Safur- 
 day Review. 
 
 "Ought to be popular with boys who 
 are not too ill instructed or too dandi- 
 fied to be affected by a graphic picture 
 of the days and deeds of Hannibal."— 
 Athenceum. 
 
 WITH WOLFE IN CANADA: 
 
 Or, The Winning of a Continent. By G. A. Henty. With 12 
 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, cloth 
 elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 In the present volume Mr, Henty gives an account of the struggle be- 
 tween Britain and France for supremacy in the North American continent. 
 On the issue of this war depended not only the destinies of North Ame- 
 rica, but to a large extent those of the mother countries themselves. The 
 fall of Quebec decided that the Anglo-Saxon race should predominate in 
 the New World; that Britain, and not France, should take the lead among 
 the nations of Europe; and that English and American commerce, the 
 English language, and English literature, should spread right round the 
 globe. 
 
 "It is not only a lesson in history as 
 instructively as it is graphically told, 
 but also a deeply interesting and often 
 thrilling tale of adventure and peril by 
 flood and fie\±"— Illustrated London 
 News. 
 
 " A model of what a boy's story-book 
 should be. Mr. Henty has a great power 
 of infusing into the dead facts of his- 
 tory new life, and his books supply 
 useful aids to study as well as amuse- 
 ment."— 5cAooZ Guardian. „ 
 A 2 
 
£OOES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 '' The brightest of all the living writers whose office it is to enchant the boys." 
 
 —Christian Leader. 
 
 THROUGH THE FBAY: 
 
 A Story of the Luddite Eiots. By G. A. Henty. With 12 full- 
 page Illustrations by H. ]SI. Paget, in black and tint. Crown 
 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1'50. 
 The author m this story has followed the lines which he worked out so 
 successfully in Facing Death. As in that story he shows that there are 
 victories to be won in peaceful fields, and that steadfastness and tenacity 
 are virtues which tell in the long run. The story is laid in Yorkshire at the 
 commencement of the present century, when the high price of food induced 
 by the war and the introduction of machinery drove the working-classes 
 to desperation, and caused them to band themselves in that wide-spread 
 organization known as the Luddite Society. There is an abundance of 
 adventure in the tale, but its chief interest lies in the character of the 
 hero, and the manner in which by a combination of circumstances he is 
 put on trial for his life, but at last comes victorious "through the fray." 
 
 "Mr. Henty inspires a love and ad- 
 miration for straightforwardness, truth, 
 and courage. This is one of the best of 
 the many good books Mr. Henty has 
 produced, and deserves to be classed 
 with his Facing Death."— Standard. 
 
 " The interest of the story never flags. 
 Were we to propose a competition for 
 the best list of novel writers for boys 
 we have little doubt that Mr. Henty's 
 name would stand &rst."— Journal 0/ 
 Education. 
 
 TRUE TO THE OLD FLAG: 
 
 A Tale of the American War of Independence. By G. A. 
 Henty. With 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, 
 in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cl. elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 In this story the author has gone to the accounts of officers who took part 
 in the conflict, and lads will find that in no war in which American and Bri- 
 tish soldiers have been engaged did they behave with greater courage and 
 good conduct. The historical portion of the book being accompanied with 
 numerous thrilling adventures with the redskins on the shores of Lake 
 Huron, a story of exciting interest is interwoven with the general narrative 
 and carried through the book. 
 
 "Does justice to the pluck and deter- 
 mination of the British soldiers during 
 the unfortunate struggle against Ameri- 
 can emancipation. The son of an Ameri- 
 can loyalist, who remains true to our flag, 
 falls among the hostile redskins in that 
 very Huron country which has been en- 
 deared to us by the exploits of Hawk- 
 eye and Chingachgook." — The Times. 
 
 " Mr. G. A. Henty's extensive personal 
 experience of adventures and moving 
 incidents by flood and field, combined 
 with a gift of picturesque narrative, 
 make his books always welcome visitoi-s 
 in the home circle." — Daily News. 
 
 " Very superior in every way. The book 
 is almost unique in its claas in having 
 illustrative maps." — Saturday Review. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUyO PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 ■ Mr. Henty is the king of story-tellers for hoys."— Sivord and Trowel. 
 
 IN FREEDOM'S CAUSE: 
 
 A Story of "Wallace and Bruce. By G. A. Henty. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, |1'50. 
 
 In this story the author relates the stirring tale of the Scottish "War of 
 Independence. The extraordinary valour and personal prowess of Wallace 
 and Bruce rival the deeds of the mythical heroes of chivalry, and indeed 
 at one time Wallace was ranked with these legendary personages. The 
 researches of modern historians have shown, however, that he was a living, 
 breathing man— and a valiant champion. The hero of the tale fought under 
 both Wallace and Bruce, and while the strictest historical accuracy has 
 been maintained with respect to public events, the work is full of "hair- 
 breadth 'scapes " and wild adventure. 
 
 "Mr. Henty has broken new ground 
 as an historical novelist. His tale is full 
 of stirring action, and will commend 
 itself to boys." — Aihenceum. 
 
 "It is written in the author's best 
 style. Full of the wildest and most 
 remarkable achievements, it is a tale of 
 great interest, which a boy, once he has 
 
 begun it, will not willingly put on one 
 side. " — The Schoolmaster. 
 
 "Scarcely anywhere have we seen in 
 prose a more lucid and spirit stirring 
 description of Bannockburn than the one 
 with which the author fittingly closes his 
 volume." — Dumfries Standard. 
 
 UNDER DRAKE'S FLAG. 
 
 A Tale of the Spanish Main. By G. A. Henty. Illustrated 
 by 12 full-page Pictures by Gordon Browne, in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 A story of the days when England and Spain struggled for the supre- 
 macy of the sea, and England carried off the palm. The heroes sail as lads 
 with Drake in the expedition in which the Pacific Ocean was first seen by 
 an Englishman from a tree-top on the Isthmus of Panama, and in his great 
 voyage of circumnavigation. The historical portion of the story is abso- 
 lutely to be relied upon, but this, although very useful to lads, will perhaps 
 be less attractive than the great variety of exciting adventure through 
 which the young adventurers pass in the course of their voyages. 
 
 "A stirring book of Drake's time, and 
 just such a book as the youth of this 
 maritime country are likely to prize 
 highly." — Daily Telegraph. 
 
 " Ned in the coils of the boa-constrictor 
 is a wonderful picture. A boy must be 
 
 hard to please if he wishes for anything 
 more exciting." — Pall Mall Gazette. 
 
 ' ' A book of adventure, where the hero 
 meets with experience enough one would 
 think to turn his hair gray." — Harper's 
 Monthly Magazine. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOU^'G PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 Mr. Heuty's books for boys are always admivahle."— Birmingham Post. 
 
 THE CAT OF BUBASTES: 
 
 A Story of Ancient Egypt. By G. A. Henty. With 8 full-page 
 Illustrations by J. R. Weguelin. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, 
 olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 In availing himself of the pictured records of Egyptian life and history, 
 Mr. Henty has produced a story which will give young readers an unsur- 
 passed insight into the customs of one of the greatest of the ancient peoples. 
 Amuba, a prince of the Rebu nation on the shores of the Caspian, is carried 
 with his charioteer Jethro into slavery. They become inmates of the house 
 of Ameres, the Egyptian high-priest, and are happy in his sei'vice until the 
 priest's son accidentally kills the sacred cat of Bubastes. In an outburst 
 of popular fury Ameres is killed, and it rests with Jethro and Amuba to 
 secure the escape of the high-priest's son and daughter. After many 
 dangers they succeed in crossing the desert to the Red Sea, and eventually 
 making their way to the Caspian. 
 
 THE DBAGON AND THE RAVEN: 
 
 Or, The Days of King Alfred. By G. A. Henty. With 8 full- 
 page Illustrations by C. J. Staniland, R.I., in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 In this story the author gives an account of the desperate struggle 
 between Saxon and Dane for supremacy in England, and presents a vi-vdd 
 picture of the misery and ruin to which the country was reduced b}'' the 
 ravages of the sea-wolves. The hero of the story, a young Saxon thane, 
 takes part in aU the battles fought by King Alfred, and the incidents in 
 his career are unusually varied and exciting. He is driven from his home, 
 takes to the sea and resists the Danes on their own element, and being 
 pursued by them up the Seine, is present at the long and desperate siege 
 of Paz-is. 
 
 "Perhaps the best story of the early 
 days of England which has yet been 
 told." — Court Journal. 
 
 "A well-built superstructure of fic- 
 tion on an interesting substratum of 
 fact. Treated in a manner most attrac- 
 tive to the boyish reader."— J. f/ie?ice?«m. 
 
 "A story that may justly be styled 
 remarkable. Boys, in reading it, will be 
 surprised to find how Alfred persevered, 
 through years of bloodshed and times 
 
 of peace, to rescue his people from the 
 thraldom of the Danes. AVe hope the 
 book will soon be widely known in all 
 our schools. "—Schoolmaster. 
 
 "We know of no popular book in 
 which the stirring incidents of the reign 
 of the heroic Sa.\on king are made ac- 
 cessible to young readers as they are 
 here. Air. Henty has made a book which 
 will afford much delight to boys, and is 
 of genuine historic valwe."— Scotsman. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 'Mr. Henty is one of our most successful Avriters of historical tales. '—Scotsman. 
 
 IN THE REIGN OF TERROR: 
 
 The Adventures of a Westminster Boy. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 full-page Illustrations by J. Schonberg. Crown 8vo, cloth 
 elegant, olivine edges, $1"50. 
 
 Harry Sand with, a Westminster boy, becomes a resident at the chateau 
 of a French marquis, and after various adventures accompanies the family 
 to Paris at the crisis of the Revolution. Imprisonment and death reduce 
 their number, and the hero finds himself beset by perils with the three 
 young daughters of the house in his charge. The stress of trial brings out 
 in him all the best English quaUties of pluck and endurance, and after 
 hair-breadth escapes they reach Nantes. There the girls are condemned 
 to death in the coflBn-ships Les Noyades, but are saved by the unfailing 
 courage of their boy-protector. 
 
 "Harry Sandwith, the ^Yestminste^ 
 boy, may fairly be said to beat ilr. 
 Henty's record. His adventures will 
 delight boys by the audacity and peril 
 they depict. . . . The story is one of 
 Mr. Henty's best." — Saturday Revieiv. 
 
 "The interest of this story of the 
 Reign of Terror lies in the way in 
 
 which the difficulties and perils Harry 
 has to encounter bring out the he- 
 roic and steadfast qualities of a brave 
 nature. Again and again the last ex- 
 tremity seems to have been reached, 
 but his unfailing courage triumphs 
 over all. It is an admirable boy's 
 hook."— Birmingham Post. 
 
 ST. GEORGE FOR ENGLAND: 
 
 A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers. By G. A. Henty. With 8 full- 
 page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. 
 Crown Svo, cloth elegant, $1-50. 
 
 No portion of English history is more crowded with great events than that 
 of the reign of Edward III. Cressy and Poitiers laid France prostrate at 
 the feet of England; the Spanish fleet was dispersed and destroyed by a 
 naval battle as remarkable in its incidents as was that which broke up the 
 Armada in the time of Elizabeth. Europe was ravaged by the dreadful 
 plague known as the Black Death, and France was the scene of the terrible 
 peasant rising called the Jacquerie. All these stirring events are treated 
 by the author in St. George for England. The hero of the story, although 
 of good family, begins life as a London apprentice, but after countless 
 adventures and perils, becomes by valour and good conduct the squire, 
 and at last the trusted friend of the Black Prince. 
 
 "Mr. Henty has developed for him- 
 self a tj-pe of historical novel for boys 
 which bids fair to supplement, on their 
 behalf, the historical labours of Sir 
 Walter Scott in the land of fiction."— 
 Standard. 
 
 "Mr. Henty as a boy's story-teller 
 stands in the very foremost rank. W'ith 
 plenty of scope to work upon he has 
 produced a strong story at once in- 
 structive and entertaining."— G^Zas^row 
 Herald. 
 
10 
 
 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 Mr. Henty is the prince of story-tellers for boys. "— SAe/^eW Independent. 
 
 A FINAL BECKONING: 
 
 A Tale of Bush Life in Australia. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 full-page Illustrations by W. B. Wollen. Crown 8vo, cloth 
 elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 In this book Mr. Henty has again left the battlefields of history and has 
 written a story of adventure in Australia in the early days of its settlenaent. 
 
 The hero, a young English lad, after rather a stormy boyhood, emigrates 
 to Australia, and gets employment as an oflBcer in the mounted pohce. 
 
 A few years of active work on the frontier, where he has many a brush 
 with both natives and bush-rangers, gain him promotion to a captaincy, 
 and he eventually settles down to the peaceful life of a squatter. 
 
 "Mr. Henty has never published a 
 more readable, a more carefully con- 
 structed, or a better written story than 
 this."— Sipec^a tor. 
 
 "Exhibits Mr. Henty's talent as a 
 story-teller at his best. . . . The draw- 
 ings possess the uncommon merit of 
 really illustrating the text." — Saturday 
 Review. 
 
 "All boys will read this story with 
 eager and unflagging interest. The 
 episodes are in Mr. Henty's verj' best 
 vein — graphic, exciting, realistic ; and, 
 as in all Mr. Henty's books, the tend- 
 ency is to the formation of an honour- 
 able, manly, and even heroic character. " 
 —Birmingham Post. 
 
 THE BRAVEST OF THE BBAVE: 
 
 Or With Peterborough in Spain. By G. A, Henty. With 
 
 8 full-page Illustrations by H. M. Paget. Crown 8vo, cloth 
 
 elegant, $l"oU. 
 
 There are few great leaders whose lives and actions have so completely 
 
 fallen into oblivion as those of the Earl of Peterborough. This is largely 
 
 due to the fact that they were overshadowed by the glory and successes 
 
 of INIarlborough. His career as General extended over little more than 
 
 a year, and yet, in that time, he showed a genius for warfai-e which has 
 
 never been surpassed, and performed feats of daring worthy of the leaders 
 
 of chivalry. 
 
 " Mr. Henty has done good service in 
 endeavouring to redeem from oblivion 
 the name of the great soldier, Charles 
 Mordaunt, Earl of Peterborough. The 
 young recruit. Jack Stihvell, worthily 
 earns his commission and tells his tale 
 with spirit."— Athenoeum. 
 
 "Mr. Henty never loses sight of the 
 moral purpose of his work — to enforce 
 the doctrine of courage and truth, 
 mercy and lovingkindness, as indispens- 
 able to the making of a gentleman. 
 
 Lads will read The Bravest of the Brave 
 with pleasure and profit; of that we are 
 quite s,\xve." —Daily Telegraph. 
 
 "In describing the brief, brilliant, 
 most extraordinary campaigns of this 
 chivalric and picturesque commander 
 Mr. Henty is in his element, and the 
 boy who does not follow the animated 
 and graphic narrative with rapture 
 must sadly lack spirit and pluck."— 
 Civil Service Gazette. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 11 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 "Among writers of stories of adventure for boys Mr. Henty stands in the very 
 first TAnk."— Academy. 
 
 FOB NAME AND FAME: 
 
 Or, Through Afghan Passes. By G. A. Henty. With 8 full- 
 page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. 
 Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 This is an interesting story of the last war in Afghanistan. The hero, 
 after being wrecked and going through many stirring adventures among 
 the INIalays, finds his way to Calcutta, and enlists in a regiment proceed- 
 ing to join the army at the Afghan passes. He accompanies the force 
 under General Eoberts to the Peiwar Kotal, is wounded, taken prisoner, 
 and carried to Cabul, whence he is transfen-ed to Candahar, and takes 
 part in the final defeat of the army of Ayoub Khan. 
 
 "Mr. Henty's pen is never more eflfec- 
 tively employed than when he is de- 
 scribing incidents of warfare. The best 
 feature of the book — apart from the 
 interest of its scenes of adventure— is 
 its honest effort to do justice to the 
 patriotism of the Afghan people."— 
 Daily Xeivs. 
 
 "Here we have not only a rousing 
 
 story, replete with all the varied forms 
 of excitement of a campaign, but an in- 
 structive history of a recent war, and, 
 what is still more useful, an account of 
 a territory and its inhabitants which 
 must for a long time possess a supreme 
 interest for Englishmen, as being the 
 key to our Indian Empire."— G'^as^row; 
 Herald. 
 
 BY SHEEB PLUCK: 
 
 A Tale of the Ashanti War. By G. A. Henty. With 8 full-page 
 Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. Crown 
 8vo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 The Ashanti Campaign seems but an event of yesterday, but it happened 
 when the generation now rising up were too young to have made them- 
 selves acquainted with its incidents. The author has woven, in a tale of 
 thrilling interest, all the details of the campaign, of which he was himself 
 a witness. His hero, after many exciting adventures in the interior, finds 
 himself at Coomassie just before the outbreak of the war, is detained a 
 prisoner by the king, is sent down vnih. the army which invaded the British 
 Protectorate, escapes, and accompanies the English expedition on their 
 march to Coomassie. 
 
 " Mr. Henty keeps up his reputation as 
 a writer of boys' stories. ' By Sheer Pluck ' 
 will be eagerly read." — Athenmi.m. 
 
 " The book is one which will not only 
 sustain, but add to Mr. Henty's rei^uta- 
 tion." — Tfu Standard. 
 
 "Written with a simple directness, 
 force, and purity of style worthy of De- 
 foe. Morally, the book is everything that 
 could be desired, setting before the boys 
 a bright and bracing ideal of the English 
 gentleman." — Christian Leader. 
 
12 
 
 WOES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 "Mr. Heuty's books are always welcome visitors in the home circle."— DaiZy 
 News. 
 
 FACING DEATH: 
 
 Or the Hero of the Vaughan Pit. A Tale of the Coal Miues. 
 By G. A. Henty. With 8 full-page Illustrations by Gordon 
 Browne, in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, 1 1-50. 
 
 " Facing Death " is a story with a purpose. It is intended to show that 
 a lad who makes up his mind firmly and resolutely that he will rise in life, 
 and who is prepared to face toil and ridicule and hardsliip to carry out his 
 determination, is sure to succeed. The hero of the story is a typical British 
 boy, dogged, earnest, generous, and though "shamefaced" to a degree, is 
 ready to face death in the discharge of duty. His is a character for imita- 
 tion by boys in every station. 
 
 " The tale is well written and well 
 illustrated, and there is much reality 
 in the characteTS."— Athenaeum. 
 
 "If any father, godfather, clergyman, 
 
 or schoolmaster is on the look-out for a 
 good book to give as a present to a boy 
 who is worth his salt, this is the book 
 we would recommend."— Standard. 
 
 OBANGB AND GBEEN: 
 
 A Tale of the Boyue and Limerick. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1'50. 
 
 The history of Ireland has assumed such immediate interest that Mr. 
 Henty's fictional treatment of one of its important crises will be welcomed 
 by all who desire that the young should realize vividly the sources of many 
 of its troubles. The story is the record of two typical families — the 
 Davenants, who, having come over with Strongbow, had allied themselves 
 in feeling to the original inhabitants ; and the Whitefoots, who had been 
 placed by Cromwell over certain domains of the Davenants. In the chil- 
 dren the spirit of contention has given place to friendship, and though 
 they take opposite sides in the struggle between James and William, their 
 good-will and mutual service are never interrupted, and in the end the 
 Davenants come happily to their own again. 
 
 "An extremely spirited story, based 
 on the struggle in Ireland, rendered 
 memorable by the defence of 'Derry 
 and the siege of Limerick. "Saturday 
 ■Review. 
 
 "The work is not only amusing and 
 instructive, but it is also one, as all 
 Mr. Henty's books are, likely to make 
 any lad desire to be a noble and use- 
 ful member of society, whether he be 
 
 a soldier or aught else."— Practical 
 Teacher. 
 
 " The narrative is free from the vice 
 of prejudice, and ripples with life as 
 vivacious as if what is being described 
 were really passing before the eye. . . . 
 Orange and Green should be in the 
 hands of every young student of Irish 
 history without delay. "—Morning News 
 (Belfast). 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 13 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY. 
 
 "Mr. Henty as a boys' story-teller stands in the very foremost rank." 
 
 —Glasgow Herald. 
 
 STURDY AND STRONG: 
 
 Or, How George Andrews made his Way. By G. A. Henty. 
 
 With 4 full-page Illustrations by Egbert Fowler. Crown 
 8vo, cloth extra. 
 
 The aim of the story is to show how steadfastness, truth, and watchful- 
 ness may aid a lad to win his way through the greatest difficulties and be 
 of assistance to others in the endeavour. 
 
 George Andrews is an example of char- 
 acter with nothing to cavil at, and 
 stands as a good instance of chivalry 
 in domestic life."— TAe Empire. 
 
 "The liistory of a hero of everyday 
 life, whose love of truth, clothing of 
 modesty, and innate pluck, carry him, 
 natiu-ally, from poverty to affluence. 
 
 YARNS ON THE BEACH. 
 
 By G. A. Henty. With 2 full-page Illustrations. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth extra. 
 
 "This little book should find special 
 favour among boys. The yams are spun 
 by old sailors, and while full of romance 
 and adventure, are admirably calcu- 
 lated to foster a manly spirit."— i^c/io. 
 
 "We hope Mr. Henty will keep his 
 spinning-wheel going briskly as long as 
 we can have such yarns as ' Surly Joe,' 
 with its genuine pathos and rich full- 
 bodied humour."— Da i7y Telegraph. 
 
 BY PROFESSOR CHURCH. 
 
 TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO: 
 
 Or, The Adventures of a Eoman Boy. By Professor A. J. Church. 
 With 12 full-page Illustrations by Adrien Marie. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 Prof. Church has in this story sought to revivify that most interesting 
 period, the last days of the Roman Republic. The hero, Lucius Marius, is 
 a young Roman who has a very chequered career, being now a captive in 
 the hands of Spartacus, again an officer on board a vessel detailed for the 
 suppression of the pirates, and anon a captive once more, on a pirate ship. 
 He escapes to Tarsus, is taken prisoner in the war with Mithradates, and 
 detained by the latter in Pontus for a number of years. 
 
 " Adventures well worth the telling. " Entertaining in the highest degree 
 
 The book is extremely entertaining as from beginning to end, and full of ad- 
 well as useful: there is a wonderful venture which is all the livelier for 
 freshness in the Roman scenes and its close connection with history." — 
 characters. "—Times. Spectator. 
 
u 
 
 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn is in the front rank of writers of stories for hoys."— Liverpool 
 Mermry 
 
 DICK 0' THE FENS: 
 
 A. Eomance of the Great East Swamp. By G, Manville Fenn. 
 
 With 12 full -page Illustrations by Frank Dadd. Crown 
 
 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1'50. 
 A tale of boy life in the old Lincolnshire Fens, when the first attempts 
 were made to reclaim them and turn the reedy swamps, and wild -fowl 
 and fish haunted pools into dry land. Dick o' the Fens and Tom o' 
 Grirasey are the sons of a squire and a farmer living- on the edge of one 
 of the vast wastes, and their adventures are of i;nusual interest. Sketches 
 of shooting and fishing experiences are introduced in a manner which should 
 stimulate the faculty of observation and give a healthy love for country 
 life; whUe the record of the fen-men's stealthy resistance to the great 
 draining scheme is fuU of the keenest interest. The ambushes and shots 
 in the mist and dark, the incendiary fires, the bursting of the sea-wall, 
 and ^.bp long-baffled attempts to trace the lurking foe, are described with 
 Mr. Manville Fenn's wonted skill in the management of mystery. 
 
 "We should say that in Dick o' the 
 Fens Mr. Manville Fenn has very nearly 
 attained perfection. Life in the Fen 
 
 country in the old ante-drainage days 
 is admirably reproduced. ... Al- 
 together we have not of late come 
 
 across a historical fiction, whether in- 
 tended for boys or for men, which de- 
 serves to be so heartily and unreservedly 
 praised as regards plot, incidents, and 
 spirit as Dick o' the Fens. It is its au- 
 thor's masterpiece as yet." — Spectator. 
 
 BBOWNSMITH'S BOY. 
 
 By George Manville Fenn. With 12 full-page Illustrations 
 by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth 
 elegant, olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 The career of " Brownsmith's Boy" embraces the home adventures of 
 an orphan, who, having formed the acquaintance of an eccentric old gar- 
 dener, accepts his offer of a home and finds that there is plenty of romance 
 in a garden, and much excitement even in a joiiraey now and then to 
 town. In a half -savage lad he finds a friend who shows his love and fidelity 
 principally by pretending to be an enemy. In "Brownsmith's Boy " there 
 is abundance of excitement and trouble within four walls. 
 
 "Brownsmith's Boy excels all the 
 numerous 'juvenile' books that the 
 present season has yet produced."— 
 Acadbmy. 
 
 "jMt. Fenn's books are among the 
 best, if not altogether the best, of the 
 stories for boys. Mr. Fenn is at his 
 best in Brownsmith's Boy. The story 
 
 is a thoroughly manly and healthy 
 one." — Pictorial World. 
 
 "Brownsmith's Boy must rank among 
 the few undeniably good boys' books. 
 He will be a very dull boy indeed who 
 lays it down without wishing that it 
 had gone on for at least 100 pages 
 more." — North British Mail. 
 
BOOEH FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 15 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 " sir. Manville Fenn may be regarded as the successor in boyhood's affections 
 of Captain Mayne 'SiQi&."— Academy. 
 
 QUICKSILVER: 
 
 Or a Boy with no Skid to his Wheel. By George Manville 
 Fenn. With 10 full-page Illustrations by Frank Dadd. 
 Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 Dr. Grayson has a theoi-y that any boy, if rightly trained, can be made 
 into a gentleman and a great man; and in order to confute a friendly 
 objector decides to select from the workhouse a boy to experiment with. 
 He chooses a boy with a bad reputation but with excellent instincts, and 
 adopts him, the story narrating the adventures of the mercurial lad who 
 thus finds himself suddenly lifted several degrees in the social scale. The 
 idea is novel and handled with Mr. Manville Fenn's accustomed cleverness, 
 the restless boyish nature, with its inevitable tendency to get into scrapes, 
 being sympathetically and often humorously drawn. 
 
 DEVON BOYS: 
 
 A Tale of the North Shore. By George Manville Fenn. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 The adventures of Sep Duncan and his school friends take place in the 
 early part of the Georgian era, during the wars between England and France. 
 The scene is laid on the picturesque rocky coast of North Devon, where the 
 three lads pass through m.any perils both afloat and ashore. Fishermen, 
 smugglers, naval ofl&cers, and a stem old country surgeon play their parts 
 in the story, which is one of honest adventure with the mastering of diffi- 
 culties in a wholesome manly way, mingled with sufficient excitement to 
 satisfy the most exacting reader. The discovery of the British silver mine 
 and its working up and defence take up a large portion of the storj-. 
 
 "An admirable story, as remarkable 
 for the individuality of its young heroes 
 —the cynical Bob Chowne being especi- 
 ally good— as for the excellent descrip- 
 tions of coast scenery and life in North 
 Devon. It is one of the best books we 
 have seen this season." — Athenceum. 
 
 " Mr. Fenn writes up to a standard 
 of excellence that is by no means com- 
 mon to juvenile literature, and equal 
 praise must be given to Mr. Gordon 
 
 Browne's \igorous and expressive illus- 
 trations If we do not envy the 
 
 boy made happy by Mr. Fenn's story, 
 it is because it enables us to share 
 and anticipate his delight."— Safwrday 
 Review. 
 
 " We do not know that Mr. Fenn has 
 ever reached a higher level than he has 
 in Devon Boys. It must be put in the 
 very front rank of Christmas books. "— 
 Spectator. 
 
16 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 "There is a freshness, a buoyancy, a heartiness about Mr. Fenn's writings."— Siandarrf. 
 
 TBU GOLD UN MAGNET: 
 
 A Tale of the Land of the Incas. By G. Manville Fenn. 
 With 12 full-page Pictures by Gordon Browne, in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 This is a story of adventure such as will be sure to be attractive to most 
 lads of quick imagination, and like most of ]\Ir. Fenn's stories it contains 
 genuine descriptive passages and accurate touches of natural history, 
 which not only increase its interest but enhance its value. The tale is of 
 a romantic lad who leaves home where his father conducts a failing busi- 
 ness to seek his fortune in South America, first by finding his uncle, who 
 is owner of a coffee plantation on the banks of the Orinoco, and secondly 
 by endeavouring to discover some of that treasure which legends declare 
 was ages ago hidden by the Peruvian rulers and the priests of that myste- 
 rious country, to preserve it from the Spanish invaders. The hero of the 
 story is accompanied by a faithful companion, who, in the capacity both 
 of comrade and henchman, does true service, and shows the dogged courage 
 of the British lad during the strange adventiu-es which befall them. The 
 plot of the story is simple, but the movement is rapid and full of strange 
 excitement. There are few lads who will not follow it with keen enjoy- 
 ment from beginning to end. 
 
 BUNYIP LAND: 
 
 The Story of a Wild Journey in New Guinea. By G. Man- 
 ville Fenn. With 12 full-page Illustrations by Gordon 
 Browne. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, |l'60. 
 
 "Bunyip Land" is the story of an eminent botanist, who ventures into 
 the interior of New Guinea in his search for new plants. Years pass away, 
 and he does not return; and though supposed to be dead, his young wife 
 and son refuse to believe it ; and as soon as he is old enough young Joe 
 goes in search of his father, accompanied by Jimmy, a native black. Their 
 adventures are many and exciting, but after numerous peinls they discover 
 the lost one, a prisoner among the blacks, and bring him home in triumph. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn deserves the thanks of 
 everybody for ' Bunyip Land ' and * Meu- 
 hardoc,' and we may venture to promise 
 that a quiet week may be reckoned on 
 whilst the youngsters have such fascinat- 
 ing literature provided for their even- 
 ings' amusement."— -Spec^a^or. 
 
 "One of the best tales of adventure 
 produced by any living writer, combining 
 the inventiveness of Jules Verne, and the 
 solidity of character and earnestness of 
 spirit which have made the English vic- 
 torious in so many fields of labour and 
 research. " — Daily Chronicle. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 17 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 "Our boys know Mr. Fenn well, his stories having won for him a foremost 
 place in theii estimation."— PaH 3Iall Gazette. 
 
 IN THE KING'S NAME: 
 
 Or the Cruise of the Kestrel. By G. Manville Fenn. Illus- 
 trated by 12 full-page Pictures by Gordon Browne, in black 
 and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 "In the King's Name" is a spirited story of the Jacobite times, con- 
 cerning the adventures of Hilary Leigh, a young naval officer in the 
 preventive service off the coast of Sussex, on board the Kestrel. Leigh 
 is taken prisoner by the adherents of the Pretender, amongst whom is an 
 early friend and patron who desires to spare the lad's life, but will not release 
 him. The narrative is full of exciting and often humorous incident. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn has won a foremost place 
 among writers for boys. 'In the King's 
 Name' is, we think, the best of ali his 
 productions in this field."— Daiiy News. 
 
 "Told with the freshness and verve 
 which characterize all Mr. Fenn's writ- 
 ings and put him in the front rank of 
 writers for boys." — Standard. 
 
 MEN II ABB OC: 
 
 A Story of Cornish Nets and Mines. By G. Manville Fenn. 
 With 8 full-page Illustrations by C. J. Staniland, E.I., in 
 black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1-50. 
 
 The scene of this story of boyish aspiration and adventure is laid among 
 the granite piles and tors of Cornwall. Here amongst the hardy, honest 
 fishermen and miners the two London boys are inducted into the secrets of 
 fishing in the great bay, they learn how to catch mackerel, pollack, and conger 
 with the line, and are present at the hauling of the nets, although not with- 
 out incurring many serious risks. Adventures are pretty plentiful, but 
 the story has for its strong base the development of character of the three 
 boys. There is a good deal of quaint character throughout, and the 
 sketches of Cornish life and local colouring are based upon experience in 
 the bay, whose fishing village is called here INIenhardoc. This is a thor- 
 oughly English story of phases of life but little touched upon in boys' 
 literature up to the present time. 
 
 "They are real living boys, with the 
 virtues and faults which characterize the 
 transition stage between boyhood and 
 manhood. The Cornish fishermen are 
 drawn from life, they are i-acy of the soil, 
 salt with the sea-water, and they stand 
 out from the pages in their jerseys and 
 
 sea-boots all sprinkled with silvery pil- 
 chard scales." — Spectator. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn has written many books in 
 his time ; he has not often written one 
 which for genuine merit as a story for 
 young people will exceed this." — Scots- 
 man. 
 
18 
 
 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 " No one can find his way to the hearts of lads more readily than Mr. Fenn." — 
 Nottingham Guardian. 
 
 PATIENCJE WINS: 
 
 Or, War in the Works. By G. Manville Fenn. With 8 full- 
 page Illustrations by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. 
 Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 This is a graphic narrative of factory hfe in the Black Covmtry. The 
 hero, Cob, and his three uncles, engineers, machinists, and inventors, go 
 down to Arrowfield to set up "a works." They find, however, that the 
 workmen, through prejudice and ignorance, are determined to have no 
 new-fangled machinery. After a series of narrow escapes and stu-ring 
 encounters, the workmen by degrees find that no malice is borne against 
 them, and at last admiration takes the place of hatred. A great business is 
 built up, and its foundation is laid on the good-will of the men. 
 
 •'An excellent story, the interest be- 
 ing sustained from first to last. This 
 is, both in its intention and the way 
 the story is told, one of the best books 
 of its kind which has come before us 
 this yenr." —Saturday Review. 
 
 " Mr. Fenn is at his best in ' Patience 
 Wins.' It is sure to prove acceptable 
 to youthful readers, and will give a good 
 idea of that which was the real state of 
 
 one of our largest manufacturing towns 
 not many years ago."— Guardian. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn has written many a book 
 for boys, but never has he hit upon a 
 happier plan than in writing this story 
 of Yorkshire factory life. The whole 
 book, from page 1 to 352, is all aglow 
 with life, the scenes varying continu- 
 ally with kaleidoscopic rapidity." — 
 Pall Mall Gazette. 
 
 NAT THE NATURALIST: 
 
 A Boy's Adventures in the Eastern Seas. By G. Manville 
 Fenn. Illustrated by 8 full-page Pictures by Gordon Browne, 
 in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1-50. 
 
 This is a pleasant story of a lad who has a great desire to go abroad to 
 seek specimens in natural history, and has that desire gratified. The 
 boy Nat and his uncle Dick go on a voyage to the remoter islands of 
 the Eastern seas, and their adventures there are told in a truthful and 
 vastly interesting fashion, which will at once attract and maintain the 
 earnest attention of young readers. The descriptions of Mr. Ebony, their 
 black comrade, and of the scenes of savage life, are full of genuine humour. 
 
 " Mr. Manville Fenn has here hit upon 
 a capital idea. . . . This is among the 
 best of the boys' books of the season."— 
 The Times. 
 
 " This sort of book encourages inde- 
 pendence of character, develops resource, 
 and teaches a boy to keep his eyes open." 
 — Saturday Review. 
 
 "We can conceive of no more attrac- 
 tive present for a young naturalist." — 
 Land and Water. 
 
 "The late Lord Palmerston used to 
 say that one use of war was to teach 
 geography; such books as this teach it 
 in a more haiinless and cheaper way." — 
 Athenaeum. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 19 
 
 BY GEORGE MANVILLE FENN. 
 
 "Mr. Fenn is in the front rank of writers of stories for ooy^."— Liverpool 
 Mercury. 
 
 MOTHER CARETS CHICKEN: 
 
 Her Voyage to the Unknown Isle. By G. IVIanville Fenn. 
 With 8 full -page Illustrations. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, 
 olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 A stirring story of adventure in the Eastern seas, where a lad shares the 
 perils of his father, the captain of the merchant ship The, Petrel. After 
 touching at Singapore, they are becalmed off one of the tropic isles, where 
 the ship is attacked and, after a desperate fight, set on fire by Malay 
 pirates. They escape in a boat and drift ashore upon a beautiful volcanic 
 island, where, after sundry adventures, they come upon the half-burned 
 remains of the ship, out of whose timbers they construct a small vessel, 
 but when on the point of sailing are discovered by the Malays. They are 
 in great peril, when a volcanic eruption, while increasing their danger, 
 relieves them of their enemies, and they finally escape and reach a civilized 
 port. 
 
 "Jules Verne himself never con- 
 structed a more marvellous tale. It 
 contains the strongly marked features 
 that are always conspicuous in Mr. 
 Fenn's stories — a racy humour, the 
 
 manly vigour of his sentiment, and 
 wholesome moral lessons. For any- 
 thing to match his realistic touch we 
 must go to Daniel DqIoq."— Christian 
 Leader. 
 
 YUSSUF THE GUIDE: 
 
 Being the Strange Story of the Travels in Asia Minor of Burne 
 the Lawyer, Preston the Professor, and Lawrence the Sick. 
 By G. Manville Fenn. With 8 full-page Illustrations by 
 John Schonberg. Crown Svo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 Deals with the stirring incidents in the career of La'wrence Grange, a 
 lad who has been almost given over by the doctors, but who rapidly 
 recovers health and strength in a journey through Asia Minor with his 
 guardians "The Professor" and "The Lawyer." Yussuf is their guide; 
 and in their journeyings through the wild mountain region in search of 
 the ancient cities of the Greeks and Romans they penetrate where law is 
 disregarded, and finally fall into the hands of brigands. Their adventures 
 in this rarely-traversed romantic region are many, and culminate in the 
 travellers being snowed up for the winter in the mountains, from which 
 they escape while their captors are waiting for the ransom that does not 
 come. 
 
 " Takes its readers into scenes that 
 will have great novelty and attraction 
 for them, and the experiences with the 
 brigands will be especially delightful to 
 the boyish imagination."— o'cotsman. 
 
 •'This story is told with such real 
 freshness and vigour that the reader 
 feels he is actually one of the party, 
 sharing in the fun and facing the dangers 
 with them."— PaZZ Mall Gazette. 
 
20 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY SARAH DOUDNEY. 
 
 UNDER FALSE COLOURS. 
 
 By Sarah Doudney. With 12 full-page Illustrations by 
 G. G. KiLBURNE. CrowD 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 A story, which, while it is eminently suitable for girls' reading because 
 of the purity of its style, its genuine pathos and healthy sentiment, has in 
 it so strong a dramatic element that it will attract readers of all ages and of 
 either sex. The incidents of the plot, arising from the thoughtless indul- 
 gence of a deceptive freak, are exceedingly natural, and the keen interest 
 of the narrative is sustained from beginning to end. It is worthy of the 
 high reputation attained by the author as a writer of stories interesting as 
 novels and destined for the delight of the home circle. 
 
 BY ROSA MULHOLLAND. 
 
 GLANNETTA: 
 
 A Girl's Story of Herself. By Eosa Mulholland. With 
 
 8 full-page Illustrations by Lockhart Bogle. Crown Svo, 
 
 cloth elegant, $1-50. 
 
 The daughter of an Anglo-Irish gentleman, who had married a poor 
 
 Swiss girl, was stolen as an infant by some of her mother's relatives. The 
 
 child having died, they afterwards for the sake of gain substitute another 
 
 child for it, and the changeling, after becoming a clever modeller of clay 
 
 images, is suddenly transferred to the position of a rich heii-ess. She 
 
 develops into a good and accomplished woman, and though the imposture 
 
 of her early friends is finally discovered, she has gained too much love and 
 
 devotion to be really a sufferer by the surrender of her estates. 
 
 GLRL NELGHBOURS: 
 
 Or, The Old Fashion and the New. By Sarah Tytler, author of 
 
 " Citoyenne Jacqueline," &c. With 8 full-page Illustrations 
 
 by C. T. Garland. Crown 8vo, cloth extra, ^1*50. 
 
 A story specially adapted for girls, told in that quaint delightful fashion 
 
 which has made Miss Tytler's former books so popular and attractive. 
 
 The characters of the Gui Neighbours, who may be said respectively to 
 
 illustrate the old and the new fashioned method of education, are admirably 
 
 delineated ; and the introduction of the two young ladies from London, who 
 
 represent the modern institutions of professional nursing and schools of 
 
 cookery, is very happily effected. 
 
 " One of the most effective and quiet- 
 ly humorous of Miss Tytler's stories. 
 Girl Neighbours is a healthy comedy, 
 
 not so much of errors as of prejudices 
 got rid of, very healthy, very agreeable, 
 and very well written." — Spectator. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUyO PEOPLE. 21 
 
 BY HARRY COLLINGWOOD. 
 
 Mr. G. A. Heuty has found a formidable rival in Mr. Colling^ood."— Academy. 
 
 THE LOG OF THE ''FLYING FISH.'' 
 
 A Story of Aerial and Submarine Peril and Adventure. By 
 Harry Collingwood. With 12 full-page Illustrations by 
 Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, cl. elegant, olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 In this story the aim of the author has been, not only to interest and 
 amuse, but also to stimulate a taste for scientific study. He has utilized 
 natural science as a peg whereon to hang the web of a narrative of absorb- 
 ing interest, interweaA-ing there\sath sundry very striking scientific facts 
 in such a manner as to provoke a desire for further information. 
 
 Professor Von Schalckenberg constructs a gigantic and wonderful ship, 
 appropriately named the Flying Fish, which is capable of navigating not 
 only the higher reaches of the atmosphere, but also the extremest depths 
 of ocean ; and in her the four adventurers make a voyage to the North 
 Pole, and to a hitherto unexplored portion of Central Africa. 
 
 In common with all this author's stories, "The Log of the Flying Fish" is 
 thoroughly healthy and unexceptionable in tone, and may be unhesitatingly 
 placed in the hands of "our boys," who will enjoy in its perusal a literary 
 treat entirely after their own hearts. 
 
 "The Flying Fish, that marvellous 
 achievement of science, actually sur- 
 passes all Jules Verne's creations; with 
 incredible speed she flies through the 
 air, skims over the surface of the water, 
 and darts along the ocean bed. We 
 strongly recommend our school-boy 
 friends to possess themselves of her 
 log. "— ^ the nceum. 
 
 "Is full of even more vividly re- 
 counted adventures than those which 
 charmed so many boy readers in Pirate 
 Island and Congo Rovers. . . . There 
 is a thrilling adventure on the preci- 
 pices of Mount Everest, when the ship 
 floats off and providentially returns by 
 force of 'gravitation.'"— J. cademy. 
 
 MISSING: 
 
 A Tale of the Merchant Marine. By Harry Collingwood. 
 With 8 full-page Illustrations by W. H. Overend. Crown 
 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1*50. 
 
 A fine Australian cUpper is seized by the crew ; the passengers are landed 
 on one desert island, the captain and a junior ofiicer on another ; and the 
 young hero of the story is kept on board to navigate the ship. The muti- 
 neers refit the ship as a pirate vessel at an island which affords them con- 
 venient shelter, and in which Ned makes the discovery of an old-world 
 treasure-hoard. At length, with the aid of a repentant member of the 
 crew, Xed succeeds in carrying off the ship. In the meantime the captain 
 and his associates have succeeded in rejoining the passengers, and they are 
 after many adventures found by Ned. 
 
22 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY HARRY COLLINGWOOD. 
 
 •' Mr. CoUingwood has established his reputation as a first-rate writer of sea- 
 stories. "Scotsman. 
 
 THE ROVER'S SECRET: 
 
 A Tale of the Pirate Cays and Lagoons of Cuba. By Harry 
 CoLLiNGWOOD. With 8 full -page Illustrations by W. C. 
 Symons. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, olivine edges, |l-50. 
 
 The hero of the Rover's Secret, a young officer of the British navy, nar- 
 rates his peculiar experiences in childhood and his subsequent perils and 
 achievements: the nautiny on board the Hermione; his escape with a com- 
 panion to La Guayra, their seizure by the Spaniards, their romantic flight, 
 and the strange blunder which commits them to a cruise to the head- 
 quarters of the notorious pirate Merlani, whose ultimate capture and con- 
 fession come about in a way as exciting as unexpected. 
 
 " The Rover's Secret is by far the best 
 sea-story we have read for years, and is 
 certain to give unalloyed pleasure to 
 boys. The illustrations are fresh and 
 vigorous."— /Saiwrday Review. 
 
 "A book that will rejoice the hearts 
 of most lads. We doubt whether, since 
 
 the days of Captain Marryat, there has 
 arisen a writer who combined fertility 
 of invention in stirring episodes, with 
 practical knowledge of seafaring life, 
 in the degree to which ilr. CoUing- 
 wood attains in this volume." — Scottish 
 Leader. 
 
 THE F IRATE ISLAND: 
 
 A Story of the South Pacific. By Harry Collingwood. Illus- 
 trated by 8 full-page Pictures by C. J. Staniland and J. E. 
 Wells, in black and tint. Crown 8vo, cloth elegant, $1*50. 
 
 This story details the adventures of a lad who was found in his infancy 
 on board a wreck, and is adopted by a fishennan. By a deed of true gal- 
 lantry his whole destiny is changed, and, going to sea, he forais one of a 
 party who, after being burned out of their ship in the South Pacific, and 
 experiencing great hardship and suffering in their boats, are picked up 
 by a pirate brig and taken to the " Pirate Island." After many thrilling 
 adventures, they ultimately succeed in effecting their escape. The story 
 depicts both the Christian and the manly wtues in such colours as will 
 cause them to be admired— and therefore imitated. 
 
 "A capital story of the sea; indeed 
 in our opinion the author is superior 
 in some respects as a marine novelist 
 to the better known Mr. Clarke Rus- 
 sell."— TAe Times. 
 
 " The best of these books. . . . The 
 events are described with minuteness 
 and care. The result is a very amusing 
 book."— -Saturday Review. 
 
 "Told in the most vivid and graphic 
 language. It would be difficult to find a 
 more thoroughly delightful gift-book." 
 —The Guardian. 
 
 " One of the very best books for boys 
 that we have seen for a long time: its 
 author stands far m advance of any 
 other writer for boys as a teller of 
 stories of the sea. "—The Standard. 
 
BOOKS FOR rOU^'G PEOPLE. 
 
 23 
 
 BY HARRY COLLINGWOOD. 
 
 " Stands far in advance of any other writer for boys as a teller of sea stories." 
 
 —Sta7idarcU 
 
 THE CONGO B OVERS: 
 
 A Tale of the Slave Squadrou. By Harry Colling wood. 
 With 8 full-page Illustrations by J. Schoxberg, in black and 
 tint. Crown 8vo, cloth extra, $1-50. 
 
 The scene of this tale is laid on the west coast of Africa, and in the 
 lower reaches of the Congo; the characteristic scenery of the great river 
 being delineated with wonderful accuracy and completeness of detail. 
 The hero of the story — a midshipman on board one of the ships of the slave 
 squadron — after being effectually laughed out of his boyish vanity, develops 
 into a lad possessed of a large share of sound common sense, the exercise 
 of which enables him to render much valuable service to his sujDerior officers 
 in unmasking a most daring and successful ruse on the part of the slavers. 
 
 one that boys will be sure to read 
 throughout with pleasure, and with ad- 
 vantage, also, to their morals and their 
 imaginations." — Academy. 
 
 " Xo better sea story has lately been 
 written than the Congo Rovers. It is 
 as original as any boy could desire." — 
 Morning Post. 
 
 "Mr. Collingwood carries us off for 
 another cruise at sea, in 'The Congo 
 Rovers,' and boys will need no press- 
 ing to join the daring crew, which seeks 
 adventures and meets with any number 
 of them in the forests and pestilential 
 fogs of the Congo."— r/ie Times. 
 
 "We can heartily recommend it as 
 
 BY F. FRANKFORT MOORE. 
 
 UNDER HATCHES: 
 
 Or Ned "Woodthorpe's Adventures. By F. Frankfort Moore. 
 With 8 full-page Illustrations by A. Forestier. Crown 8vo, 
 cloth elegant, olivine edges, $1-50. 
 
 In rescuing another lad from drowning, Ned Woodthorpe is compelled 
 to take refuge in a hght-ship, fi-om which he is involuntarily transferred to 
 an outward-bound convict-ship. After a series of exciting events, in which 
 Bowkitt, an innocent convict, plays a brilliant part, the convicts and 
 mutinous crew obtain the mastery under the leadership of a fanatical 
 gold-seeker. The officers, Ned, and Bowkitt are set adrift in the cutter, 
 and eventually land on a desert island, to which also the mutineers find 
 their way. By the want of discipUne of the latter, opportunity is afforded 
 for the daring recapture of the ship, and Ned and his friends escape from 
 the island. 
 
24 BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. 
 
 BY ALICE CORKRAN. 
 
 DOWN THE SNOW STAIRS: 
 
 Or, From Good-night to Good-morning. By Alice Corkran. 
 With 60 character Ilhistrations by Gordon Browne. Square 
 crown 8vo, cloth elegant, gilt edges, $1*50. 
 
 This is a remarkable story : full of vivid fancy and quaint originality. 
 In its most fantastic imaginings it carries with it a sense of reality, and 
 derives a singular attraction from that combination of simplicity, origi- 
 nality, and subtle humour, which is so much appreciated by lively and 
 thoughtful children. Children of a larger growth -nill also be deeply 
 interested in Kitty's strange journey : and her wonderful experiences 
 amidst the extraordinary people whom she meets. The work is profusely 
 illustrated by an artist whose facile pencil has portrayed alike the grace- 
 ful and the grotesque, the images of goblin and fairy land and the 
 semblances of child hfe. 
 
 upon every one of its pages the signet 
 mark of genius. ... All is told with 
 such simplicity and perfect natural- 
 ness that the dream appears to be a 
 solid reality. It is indeed a Little Pil- 
 grim's Progress."— CAr?'s«ian Leader. 
 
 "A fascinating wonder-book for chil- 
 dren. "—A theticexim. 
 
 "Among all the Christmas volumes 
 which the year has brought to our 
 table this one stands out facile prin- 
 ceps—a gem of the first water, bearing 
 
 BY ASCOTT R. HOPE. 
 
 THE WIGWAM AND THE WAR-PATH: 
 
 Stories of the Eed Indians. By Ascott E. Hope. With 8 full- 
 page Pictures by Gordon Browne, in black and tint. Crown 
 8vo, cloth elegant, $r.50. 
 
 The interest taken by boys in stories of the North American Indians is 
 probably as keen as ever. At all events the works of Fenimore Cooper and 
 other writers about the red men and the wild hunters of the forests and 
 prairies are still among the most popular of boys' books. "The Wigwam 
 and the War-path" consists of stories of Red Indians which are none the 
 less romantic for being true. They are taken from the actual records of 
 those who have been made prisoners by the red men or have Hved among 
 them, joining in their expeditions and taking part in their semi-savage but 
 often picturesque and adventurous life. 
 
 "Mr. Hope's volume is notably good: 'wam and the War-path as the name of 
 
 it gives a very vivid picture of life a collection of all the most scalping 
 
 among the Indians."— Spectofor. stories, so to speak, of the North Ame- 
 
 " So far, nothing can be better than rican Indians we have ever heard." — 
 
 Mr. Ascott Hope's choice of The Wig- Saturday Eevieiv. 
 
1 
 

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University of 
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