it;

In

the Mahsud headmen solemnly | would be offered by the Mahsuds to the bound themselves to renounce looting work of the commission, provided that the Powindah caravans as they strag- a sufficient military escort was furnished gled down the pass, and to accept for his safety. Arrangements were accompensation in money instead. cordingly made. A brigade of native addition, Mahsud levies were enlisted troops twenty-five hundred strong was to garrison some of the posts and act as detailed for escort purposes, and conescorts or guides to traders. Superfi-centrated in a corner of the Wana plain cially the new arrangement worked on October 24, last, whilst a reserve of well at first-at least official reports equal strength was held in readiness at said so. The experiment of setting Derah Ismail Khan, a British cantonthieves to catch thieves, wolves to ment on the Indus about one hundred guard lambs, was pronounced a suc-heavy miles to the east of Wana. cess. The dreaded pass was now as This Wana is as large as Haddington. safe as Bond Street. In July, 1893, an Rightfully it was the property of the overseer named Kelly was sent up it, Darwesh Wazirs, but their hungry slenderly escorted, and was of course cousins the Mahsud Wazirs coveted shot. Other outrages followed. We its scanty grass and brushwood for demanded satisfaction, and after long their own goats, and so it had become negotiations the Mahsuds surrendered a sort of No-man's Land, and had long the men accused of Mr. Kelly's mur- been on occasion a battle-field between der, on the condition that they should the two tribes. It is as profitless and have a fair trial by jirga (jury), à la forbidding a bit of country as any part mode Mahsud. To the surprise and of that abomination of desolation, consternation of their friends, three of Baluchistan. Wherein, then, lay its the accused were condemned to seven attraction? Had it inhabitants, vilyears' imprisonment each. The blood lages, vegetation? It had none of of the clans was up at such a travesty these things, and yet three years ago of justice. What! for shooting a Sahib we nearly went to war with the ameer and his two orderlies three free mountaineers were to be shut up for long years in a furnace-like gaol in the plains, and were possibly to be subjected to the indignities of leg-irons and grinding corn the task-work of common women! Such a sentence was intolerable was beyond the powers of a jirga. A fine was the right sentence; that they could have paid in women and goats, but imprisonment with hard labor was a disgrace to free men.

The malcontents bided their time, and their time soon came, for the government decided to delimit the Waziri boundary in conjunction with the representatives of the ameer of Afghanistan. It was to be a peaceful delimitation, for government abhorred the idea of carrying out by force a measure which was for the good of all concerned -Wazirs, Afghans, and ourselves. After some negotiations with the Mahsud chiefs, the government was assured by Mr. Bruce, its boundary commissioner, that no organized opposition

for sending levies down to occupy it, and the Mahsud and Darwesh Wazirs have fought for the last fifty years for its possession. It lay between the Mahsud highlands and the Gumal Pass, hence marauding gangs had to traverse it to reach the pass. It was thus chiefly valuable as a route, and in a secondary sense as a grazing-ground. It has, however, potentialities, for a stream called Toi runs through it, and where there is water in that thirsty land crops can be grown.

The work of delimitation was to begin at a place called Domandi, the point of junction of the Gumal and Kundar streams. But instead of marching direct there, the commissioner and his "escort," went north, and established themselves in a standing camp in a corner of the Wana plain, forty miles away from Domandi. The idea seems to have been that Wana not being de jure Mahsud territory, but close to it, that law-abiding tribe would not attack us outside their own limits,

intentions of the wily Mahsuds, and took precautions against a surprise.

whilst our camp would be conveniently "escort," had less faith in the good near their homes to permit of jirgas or large deputations visiting Mr. Bruce in fact, instead of ordering the Mahsuds to come in to us or take the consequences, we obligingly treated them as Mohamed did the mountain, and went to them. An amicable arrangement having been concluded, Mr. Bruce was to start for Domandi with an escort of a few hundred sepoys and carry out his demarcation work, whilst the main body of the "escort" would remain intrenched where they were, or would move along on inner lines as the commissioner worked northwards — thus forming a sort of shield and strong defence for him against possible attack from Mahsud-land.

It was a pretty idea, but it was not business. A standing camp pitched amidst ravines and close to the mouths of the passes leading into the Mahsud highlands was certain to invite attack, and was the surest possible, though unintentional, device for forcing the hand of government and bringing on an expedition. To suppose that a hungry crowd of hereditary robbers would swarm day after day about an extended and badly placed camp and not make plans for getting possession of the good things with which that camp was full, was to credit the Mahsuds with powers of self-denial which would have done honor to civilized Westerns. In that camp were hundreds of baggage-camels, rows upon rows of horses and mules, hundreds, nay thousands of breechloaders, and, it was believed, many chests full of rupees, all loot worth risking life for in the eyes of Mahsuds. However, Mr. Bruce had faith in the assurances of his motley groups of visitors, and believed their headmen, who said that their people were led by them; and had not these leaders promised to let the delimitation be peacefully effected?

From the 24th to the end of October there were few signs that mischief was brewing-some prowlers did a little suiping at night into the camp, that was all. The general was assured, even up to the end of October, that no attack in force was to be apprehended. He was then advised that a holy impostor called Moolah Powindah had collected some hundreds of malcontents in the Khysara glen, about twelve miles from the camp, but that the Moolah and his followers were discountenanced by the tribe generally; and even if their numbers increased to one thousand, what could they do against twenty-five hundred soldiers?

General Turner was not convinced. He had long experience of the frontier tribes, and knew how silently and rapidly their "fiery cross" system could be worked. There might be as yet only a few hundred malcontents in a valley a few miles from his camp, but these numbers might grow in a night from five hundred to five thousand and yet the political officers know nothing about it. By the 1st of November even Mr. Bruce had grown less confident; the holy Moolah's following was undoubtedly growing, might now number one thousand, or at the outside twelve hundred; he meant mischief, and he had with him hundreds of sympathizers with overseer Kelly's murderers, all thirsting for revenge; yet still, what could they do, only twelve hundred of them at most? So Mr. Bruce did not change the position of his camp, and slept amidst his Mahsuds, outwardly trustful, but inwardly nervous that, after all, serious mischief was impending. General Turner was now sure of it. He doubled his outlying and inlying pickets, strengthened the weak places of his camp with So confident was he that there would breast works, arranged rallying-centres, be no serious combination against us, and assigned his post to every man in that, to be more easily accessible to his camp should an attack be attempted. visitors, he had his own tents pitched In particular he ordered all the troops well to the rear of the main camp. to be under arms at 4 A.M. in their General Turner, who commanded the tents.

The night of November 1st passed | guine. They did not believe in night quietly, though it was noticed that surprises, when troops were forewarned jackal cries outside the pickets were and ready to meet the attack. By more numerous towards dawn than nightfall the discussion had got no usual. "forrarder," so young and old lay down with orders to be armed and accoutred at 4 A.M., but in their tents. No patrols were to go round the pickets, as the men stumbling in the dark over the stones would warn an approaching enemy of their own whereabouts as well as of the position of the pickets.

When day broke and nothing had happened, and the November sun had warmed man and beast into activity once more, young soldiers felt that they had a grievance. There had been no row after all, and they had missed their morning sleep, sat wakeful, revolver ready to hand, and, after all, nothing not even a rifle thief in the Down in the shadeless gloom of the camp; not a shot fired; they supposed wind-swept Khysara glen, but a few it would be the old cry of "wolf, wolf," rough miles from where our soldiers and that it would go on for the next watched or slept, a very different scene month or two. The Mahsuds were no was being enacted. There sat and fools; they knew that we were ready stood amongst the rocks and boulders for them, and who but madmen would of that wild gorge a great conclave of attempt to rush an intrenched and ex-gaunt, excited men. A Mahsud parpectant camp? Why, with an outer liament was in session a parliament and inner ring of pickets, the enemy's of desperate, vengeful men, some inapproach would be detected amidst flamed by the prospect of plunder, those loose stones half a mile off, and others, but the smaller number, by a every man would be at his post long fanatical thirst for infidel blood. That before they had rushed the pickets. big, heavily built fellow in the centre of the rings of the sitters, standing nearest the bonfire, is both leader and speaker of the house. He is Moolah Powindah, whose amulets can turn aside bullets, whose touch can cure disease, whose intercession with Allah will to-night bring victory and loot to his hearers. Round him are circle upon circle of silent listeners, who nod their heads or shake their heads, or mutter deep-toned responses of approval, as he tells them what Allah will do for them that night.

Such was the prevailing opinion, but the old soldiers shook their heads; there had been too many jackals about last night, and they knew what that meant. It meant Mahsud scouts answering and encouraging each other; it was a repetition of the tactics so successfully followed in 1860, when General Lumsden's camp was surprised. Some grass sandals and a knife had been picked up in front of one of the pickets of the 3rd Sikhs. That side of the camp had evidently been approached; but the cautious Sikhs were "Yes," he says, stretching out his intrenched behind good stone breast- long arms, "before cock-crow that works, so the enemy had retired. sleeping camp will be in our hands, They would try another and less pro- and those three innocent martyrs to tected side that night or next. They the faith, who slew that foolhardy Fewere bound to do something. Their ringhee, will be avenged. Your malik food-supplies would not last more than betrayed you in surrendering them. two or three days, and after coming and betrayed you a second time in asfifty miles or more they would not re-senting to their imprisonment in the turn empty; why, if they did, all the tribes on the frontier, from the Kurram River to Solomon's Throne, would laugh at them as cowards.

So said the old soldiers who knew, but the young ones were not so san

accursed Feringhees' jail. We are over two thousand here, and more are coming every hour, and they," pointing towards our camp, "are three thousand, but they are clogged with tents and stores, and animals by the

A wrangle ensued, for all these were

thousand. They are dogs and sons of your tenth share of the loot, no dogs, those Feringhee Kafirs. They doubt," called out some sceptic ironlove eating and drinking and sleeping. ically. They cannot fight in the dark. We have examined every part of their not from Makin, the Moolah's part of camp. We know where the horses the country, and his presumption was and mules are, and where the treasure intolerable to the young bloods, who boxes are lying. Our scouts found the still believed in their maliks, and who Sikhs too alert and protected by stone were only going into the fight from the ramparts last night; but those black prospect of plunder and for the fun of pigmies with the pig faces and black the thing. caps, Kafirs like the Sahibs, they are not protected, and the ravines run right up to their tents. They must be first surprised."

"But they fight like Rustums. We fear them 1 more than the white Kafirs," shouted some faint-hearted

one.

"What! you fear them, do you? They fight like Rustums, do they ?" shouted the Moolah. "Fools, they cannot fight in their tents, and we shall be upon them before they get out."

“Wah! wah! and the priest will lead us," jeered some irreverent young blood from out of the darkness beyond the rings of sitters.

There was no more haranguing after that. The sitting was dissolved hurriedly; the stern business of preparation for battle was taken in hand by some old warriors who had been young in 1860 when General Lumsden's camp was surprised. The forces were split up into two bodies- the fanatics or Ghâzis under Moolah Powindah, some eight hundred in number; and the rest, chiefly Nanakhels and Abdul Rahman Khels, under their sectional leaders. The latter, all told, were the larger number. They were intent on murder and loot, and preferred whole skins to martyrdom and its rewards.

It was agreed that the rush of the fanatics should be made a quarter of an The Moolah turned angrily in the hour before dawn, so that martyrs direction whence had come the inter- might have daylight for their journey ruption and roared at the top of his to Paradise. The others, who prevoice, "What matters death to a Be-ferred whole skins to Paradise, were to liever when Paradise is his reward? attack the rear of the camp as soon as Yes, I will lead you, and pray for you too."

"And the Moolah will kneel down to pray when the first shot is fired! Bravo, Moolah ! And you will claim

1 The battalion was the 1-1st Gurkhas. The hill tribes of our north-west frontier fear Gurkhas even more than Sikh or British soldiers. The Gurkha is himself a highlander, a born sportsman and a good climber. His powers of stalking and taking advantage of cover are remarkable. In the

1-1st battalion, and I believe in most of the other Gurkha battalions as well, about fifty men per battalion are specially trained as scouts. The best shikaris are selected, practised in point-topoint running over rough ground, and occasionally told off with blank ammunition to stalk each other on the hillside. Each man fires whenever he sees his enemy, and he is held to be the victor who first

shouts out the name of his opponent correctly to the officer superintending the training. In a hill campaign such practised scouts are specially useful. They enjoy the excitement of stalking and

shooting the snipers who prowl round our camps

on the lookout for a shot.

the Moolah's rush upon the Gurkhas had created confusion. There was a sort of tacit understanding that the tents of the kindly and trusting commissioner, whom many of them knew by sight or repute, should not be rushed. Besides, neither breechloaders nor treasure were to be got there, and many had friends in Mr. Bruce's camp, some of whom would probably join the plunderers and possibly show where the commissariat treasure was.

When all was ready, the Moolah and his followers set out-a compact body of silent, determined men. Some had matchlocks, but most had only swords or knives, or both. The others followed, marching in looser order, each band under their chosen leader. They had matchlocks, swords, daggers, and

forty to fifty had drums. Though the Suddenly three rifle shots were heard, night was still and the young moon instantly followed by a terrific din had set, the march was almost without the yelling and shouting of six hundred sound, for Mahsuds on the war-path Ghâzis, as they swept through the can be nimble as goats and noiseless as outlying pickets of the Gurkhas; the cats. Occasionally a stone was dis- wilder shrieking and howling of the placed, or one of the long matchlocks, fifteen hundred or two thousand faintwhich were slung at pleasure across hearts who faced the camp; the fusilade the men's backs or carried in the of hundreds of matchlocks and the tomhands, knocked against a rock. A toming of two score drums. Every whispered hush from some greybeard sleeper was awake and up in an inwould make the unwary one more cau- stant, groping for his arms, and making tious. The force pushed on for four or his way towards his alarm-post or five hours at a speed of two and a-half rallying-point. But though these three miles an hour, and was halted when the commissioner's camp was perceived by the leading scouts. Orders were now quietly passed from band to band; the stars scanned to make sure of the time; and the prey clearly marked down by sounds now audible from the camp, for sound travelled far in the still, frosty night. The dying glow from the embers of some camp-fires was also visible; otherwise the camp was in complete darkness, and, but for the whinny of a mule or the noise of iron-shod hoofs striking against the stones, there was perfect silence in it.

The Mahsuds, though once again in motion, were still more noiseless. Most of them wore grass sandals; but the feet of some were naked, their soles being hard and horny-hooflike, in fact. Moolah Powindah and his men were now picking their way, silent as ghosts, amongst the loose boulders of the two ravines which led up to and past the left flank of the Gurkhas' camp, and thence along the left rear of General Turner's position. When within two hundred yards of a small outlying picket, the Moolah paused in his advance and massed his men. A Gurkha sentry coughing had disclosed the fact that the ravine was here being watched. After a short halt the Ghâzi host was put in motion again. The boldest led. Whilst they stole up the ravine, intending to pass the picket unobserved, the mass of the attacking bands had moved off to the right, and were spreading themselves out so as to face the front of the camp and partially overlap it.

shots had given the main camp two precious minutes of notice, the swarm of fanatics had already rushed through or passed by the outlying Gurkha pickets, and were racing over the six hundred yards between them and the Gurkha camp, before men or officers could get out of their tents. The darkness was intense; friend or foe was indistinguishable at two yards off; each officer and sepoy fought his way towards his appointed place as best he could. Our men kept silence, forming groups as they concentrated; whilst the enemy, like devils let loose, were yelling and hacking at everything they encountered. Numbers of sturdy Gurkhas and several of our officers were cut down as they were getting out of their tents. All order or colesion amongst the fanatics, who had penetrated into the Gurkha camp, was at an end. They swept along like wild beasts, singly and in bands of ten or twenty; they came dancing down the main street of the camp, brandishing their swords and knives, and cutting at whatever they met.1 Some swerved

1 Five of their swordsmen encountered Lieutenant Macaulay, R.E., as he was making his way towards his post. He was afterwards found lying dead beside two of his opponents, both of whom he had shot with his revolver. He was a splendid height, always keen for rough service, and, when specimen of a Scotchman, six feet four inches in last seen by me, quietly enthusiastic at the prospect of a long spell of survey work beyond the chief in my home at Rawalpindi, just before he started on boundary delimitation work, from which he was never to return. He was a grandnephew of Lord Macaulay, and a son of Colonel Macaulay, now governor of Ayr Jail, who had been for eleven years deputy commissioner of

border. He received his last instructions from his