The road now dropped down to the river bed, and ran along the foot of some cliffs three or four hundred feet sheer above the roadway; there was about a mile of this, and then two miles of narrow path along the face of steep shale slopes and cliff face high above the river.  Any force once caught in this place could be cut off to a man.  The path was so narrow that in many places the gun ponies could not have turned round.

Colonel Kelly, however, was not to be caught in this way, so the advance guard was ordered to go right through this part of the road till they reached the maidan on the farther side, to hold that, and send back word that they had done so, the main body halting in the meantime till a clear road was announced.  Half-way through, the advance guard found the road broken, but it was soon mended, and the end of the road under the cliff reached.  Here there was a flattish bit of maidan for about fifty yards before the path ascended, and crossed the face of slope and cliff.  The officer in command of the advance guard, thinking this was the maidan mentioned in his orders, sent back word that he was through the defile, and the road clear.  Accordingly the main body advanced with a flanking picket on the cliff above.  I was with Colonel Kelly at the head of the column, when, turning a corner, we came slap on top of the halted advance guard.  There was no time to stop now, and the advance guard was hurried on to allow the main body to, at least, get clear of the cliffs and on the slopes.  We got at last on to the slopes, but found the road broken in several places, which delayed the column considerably; luckily, I knew the Levies were on ahead, but I was glad when we reached the end of the bad track.

When we were once more on the move, I went ahead to join the Levies, and find out about the reported enemy.  I found the Levies on the maidan that our advance guard should have occupied in the first place, and with them two men who had come out from the village of Mori, now only some two miles away.

These men reported that Mahomed Issar had left about 7 A.M. for Khogazi, taking all his following with him, and that he would defend a position known as the Goland Gol, just in front of that village.

I now went ahead with the Levies, and we swept through the village till we saw clear open country ahead, and satisfied ourselves that there were none of the enemy left.

I then ordered the Levies to ransack every nook and cranny for supplies, and went myself in search of a camping ground.  That was not a very difficult job, and I soon came upon a nice garden and orchard, with big shady mulberry trees, and a stream flowing down the centre.  On one side was the house that Mahomed Issar had occupied, and belonged to one of Sher Afzul’s leading men.  It was a well-built house, and inside we found some thirty sacks of caraway seeds, the stuff they put in what are called “wholesome cakes for children.”