The savages, for so I call them, although I admit that cannibals or not, they looked more like high-class Arabs than savages, came on in perfect silence, hoping, I suppose, to catch us asleep.  When they were about fifty yards away, running in a treble line with spears advanced, I called out “Fire!” in Zulu, and set the example by loosing off both barrels of my express rifle at men whom I had picked out as leaders, with results that must have been more satisfactory to me than to the two Amahagger whose troubles in this world came to an end.

There followed a tremendous fusillade, the Zulus banging off their guns wildly, but even at that distance managing for the most part to shoot over the enemy’s heads.  Captain Robertson and Hans, however, did better and the general result was that the Amahagger, who appeared to be unaccustomed to firearms, retreated in a hurry to a fold of the ground whence they had emerged.  Before the last of them got there I loaded again, so that two more stopped behind.  Altogether we had put nine or ten of them out of action.

Now I hoped that they would give the business up.  But this was not so, for being brave fellows, after a pause of perhaps five minutes, once more they charged in a body, hoping to overwhelm us.  Again we greeted them with bullets and knocked out several, whereon the rest threw a volley of their long spears at us.  I was glad to see them do this although one of the Zulus got his death from it, while two more were wounded.  I myself had a very narrow escape, for a spear passed between my neck and shoulder.  Each of them carried but one of these weapons and I knew that if they used them up in throwing, only their big knives would remain to them with which to attack us.

After this discharge of spears which was kept up for some time, they rushed at us and there followed a great fight.  The Zulus, throwing down their guns, rose to their feet and holding their little fighting shields which had been carried in their mats, in the left hand, wielded their axes with the right.  Umslopogaas, who stood in the centre of them, however, had no shield and swung his great axe with both arms.  This was the first time that I had seen him fight and the spectacle was in a way magnificent.  Again and again the axe crashed down and every time it fell it left one dead beneath the stroke, till at length those Amahagger shrank back out of his reach.

Meanwhile Robertson, Hans and I, standing on some stones at the back, kept up a continual fire upon them, shooting over the heads of the Zulus, who were playing their part like men.  Yes, they shrank back, leaving many dead behind them.  Then a captain tried to gather them for another rush, and once more they moved forward.  I killed that captain with a revolver shot, for my rifle had become too hot to hold, and at the sight of his fall, they broke and ran back into the little hollow where our bullets could not reach them.