"That settles it at once," he said. "Here have I been telling myself it
was all my fancy; but now you hear it I feel it must be fact."
"I hear it; so does my man, and the trooper who rides next to me."
"Yes; and we can all hear it now," said the Sergeant. "Well, it's plain
enough. We're in a tight place, my lad, for there's only one answer to
it, and it explains why the Colonel hasn't sent us some support, for he
must have heard the firing."
"What do you make of it, then?"
"That the Doppers are better soldiers than we give them credit for
being, and they've got round to the Colonel's rear somehow, and shut him
in this giant hogs'-trough of a valley."
"Think so?" I said anxiously, as I thought of the Lieutenant.
"I'm sure of it. Now then; that's not our business. Halt! Right
about! Take position behind those stones. Dismount and cover the
retreat. Here they come."
The clatter of the horses of the other party came plainly to our ears as
we took our places ready to reply to the Boers' fire. I had intended to
have another look at the wounded man before this took place, and was
therefore much disappointed; but there was no help for it, and I stood
with Sandho fairly well sheltered behind a stone five feet high, upon
which my rifle rested. Then the party we were to relieve cantered by,
with two men wounded and supported on their horses; and as I watched the
puffs of smoke and listened to the bullets spattering and splaying the
rocks, with the buzz of the high shots now sounding so familiar, I
wondered at being able to take it all so coolly.
"I suppose it's because I'm beginning to get used to it," I thought.
Then I began to speculate as to what would happen now if the sergeant
was right, and we were to be attacked front and rear; and what it would
feel like if I were hit, as seemed very likely now that the enemy were
getting so near. But I glanced right and left at my companions, just in
time, to see the Sergeant start back, to stand shaking his right hand
vigorously, and directly after I saw the blood beginning to drip from
his finger-ends.
"Much hurt?" I asked, hurrying to his side, dragging out my
handkerchief the while.
"No!" he roared; "only a scratch. Back to your place, sir! Who told
you to leave? Here; stop! As you are here you may as well tie that rag
round it."
He said these last words more gently, and smiled as I rapidly bound up
his injury as well as I could.
"Thank ye, my lad," he said. "I must preserve discipline, and we're
getting pressed. Taken off a bit of the middle finger--hasn't it?"
"Half of it, I'm afraid," I said.
"What have you got to be afraid of? Might have been worse. Suppose it
had been the first finger; then I shouldn't have been able to draw
trigger--eh? That'll do--won't it? I'm in a hurry."
"I haven't stopped the bleeding," I replied.
"Never mind. Mother Nature will soon do that. Now then, back you go.
Show them how you young farmers can shoot."
I was on my way back to my place when the clattering of hoofs made me
turn my head, and I saw a man in the Light Horse uniform come galloping
up, utterly regardless of the danger he ran from obstructing stones.
"Back!" he shouted. "Retire on the main body as fast as you can go.
Colonel's orders."
We were in full retreat at once, after emptying our rifles upon the
steadily advancing enemy, who came on, running from stone to stone,
cleverly taking advantage of every bit of cover. We soon came in sight
of the men we had relieved, who were hurrying to the rear as fast as
they could get their wounded men along; while, to my great satisfaction,
there was Joeboy striding along at a tremendous rate: it was a walk, but
such a walk as would have compelled me to trot to keep up with him. He
could not have kept it up much longer, I could see, for the perspiration
was streaming down his face and neck, and he was breathing hard; but at
the end of another quarter of a mile, as the firing in front grew louder
and louder, I saw about a couple of dozen of the troopers coming to our
help, four of whom dismounted, giving up their horses to comrades, and
quickly spreading a blanket upon the ground.
It struck me at once that Joeboy would refuse to give up his load; but I
got up to him just in time, and at a word from me the young officer,
still perfectly insensible, was lifted from the big black's shoulders,
laid upon the blanket, and then the four men took the corners in a good
grip and trotted off at the double. Joeboy, grinning with satisfaction,
now took hold of my saddle-bow and ran by my side till we reached the
strong position in a great notch in one side of the valley, where the
Colonel was defending himself against a large body of the enemy coming
on from the plains below.
It was a capitally chosen spot, as I soon saw, for there was a smooth
open part in front of the notch, which backed right into the side; and
the stones across the path, front and rear, formed capital breastworks
for the dismounted men who lined them, all the horses having been turned
into the gap in the huge wall, where they were quite out of the line of
fire.
"Splendid!" said the Sergeant to me, as we waited to take our turn at
the defence.
"But we shall be attacked on both sides," I said. "Oughtn't we to get
in there with the horses?"
"No, you recruit, you," said the Sergeant. "We shall be between two
fires; but don't you see how the enemy will be crippled? Every shot
that goes over us, whether it's upward or downward, goes among the
Doppies. They're firing at us, but at their own friends as well."
"Of course," I replied. "I did not see that."
"I didn't at first," he said; "but our Colonel's got his head screwed on
the right way, and the position is famous. Well, why don't you say
`Hurrah!' or `Bravo!' or something of the sort?"
"Because I don't feel satisfied," I said.
"You young fellows never are," said the Sergeant. "What's the matter
with you now?"
"We can hold out, of course," I said, "as long as our ammunition lasts;
but what about afterwards?"
"Bother afterwards!" he said sharply; "a hundred things may happen
before it comes to afterwards."
"Then, if they determine to hold on, they can force us to surrender."
"Never," said the Sergeant; "so no more croaking."
"But what about provisions?"
"Every man has his rations in a satchel."
"But water?"
"Every man has his bottle well filled, my lad."
"But when the water-bottles are empty and the food is done? What about
feeding the horses? What about watering them?"
"Yah!" growled the Sergeant savagely. "Call yourself a volunteer? What
do you mean by coming here prophesying all sorts of evil? Do you want
to starve the horses and see 'em die of thirst? Here, I say, my lad,"
he whispered, "don't let any of the boys hear that. You've hit the weak
point of the defence a regular staggerer. You're quite right; but we
must hold on, and perhaps after a good peppering they'll draw off. If
they don't, it means forming up and making a dash, and that's what the
Colonel won't do if he can help it, on account of the loss."
I had no more time for talking, for directly after I was ordered to take
my place behind one of the stones to make the best use I could of my
rifle in keeping back the enemy, who were now descending the pass in
great numbers, while the firing from the rear was so furious that it was
plain enough that the ascending force was stronger than the one with
which they were trying to join hands.