“Next would come another act in the tragedy.  Out from the hither side of the schanse would pour such of its defenders as were left alive, perhaps three or four and perhaps a dozen, running for dear life, with the war dogs on their tracks.  One by one they would be caught, then up flashed the great spear and down fell the pursued—­dead.  I saw ten of our men leap into one large schanse, but though I watched for some time nobody came out.  Afterwards we inspected the place and found these men all dead, together with twenty-three Matukus.  Neither side would give in, and they had fought it out to the bitter end.

“At last they neared the second line of fortifications, behind which the whole remaining Matuku force, numbering some two thousand men, was rapidly assembling.  One little pause to get their breath, and Nala’s men came at it with a rush and a long wild shout of ‘Bulala Matuku’ (kill the Matuku) that went right through me, thrilling every nerve.  Then came an answering shout, and the sounds of heavy firing, and presently I saw our men retreating, somewhat fewer in numbers than they had advanced.  Their welcome had been a warm one for the Matuku fight splendidly behind walls.  This decided me that it was necessary to create a diversion; if we did not do so it seemed very probable that we should be worsted after all.  I called to the captain of our little force, and rapidly put the position before him.

“Seeing the urgency of the occasion, he agreed with me that we must risk it, and in two minutes more, with the exception of my own men, whom I left to guard the wounded, we were trotting across the open space and through the deserted town towards the spot where the struggle was taking place, some seven hundred yards away.  In six or eight minutes we reached a group of huts—­it was a head man’s kraal, that was situated about a hundred and twenty yards behind the fortified wall, and took possession of it unobserved.  The enemy was too much engaged with the foe in front of him to notice us, and besides, the broken ground rose in a hog-back shape between.  There we waited a minute or two and recovered our breath, while I gave my directions.  So soon as we heard the Butiana impi begin to charge again, we were to run out in a line to the brow of the hogback and pour our fire into the mass of defenders behind the wall.  Then the guns were to be thrown down and we must charge with the assegai.  We had no shields, but that could not be helped; there would be no time to reload the guns, and it was absolutely necessary that the enemy should be disconcerted at the moment when the main attack was delivered.

“The men, who were as plucky a set of fellows as ever I saw, and whose blood was now thoroughly up, consented to this scheme, though I could see that they thought it rather a large order, as indeed I did myself.  But I knew that if the impi was driven back a second time the game would be played, and for me at any rate it would be a case of the ’Thing that bites,’ and this sure and certain knowledge filled my breast with valour.