CHAP. XVII. 
THE BOOMAH PASS. 
139 
moment still more painful. On this point, however, I 
was enabled to relieve his mind, for in pointing to my 
jacket I asked him what the spots were ; and on his 
seeing that it was human brains, I told him that they 
came from Stewart’s head; nevertheless, he could not 
overcome the agonising thought of having been obliged 
to leave the wounded men. 
This has taken me some time to tell, but all this 
time Dr. Fraser was dressing my wounds; that is to 
say, he was plugging up the holes and adjusting the 
tourniquet. Before he had finished, however, a man 
ran up to say that Captain Catty was badly wounded 
and dying; so I told the Doctor to go at once; but he 
soon returned, saying he could not help Catty, and from 
indications he thought nothing could save him—three 
balls appeared to have entered his right side and passed 
into the intestines. 
While the troops were halted on the open a very 
large body of Kafirs were massed on the top and sides of 
a conical hill immediately on our right; and I pointed 
out to Colonel Mackinnon, who was standing close to 
me, that unless he sent out some men they would out¬ 
flank us. The Colonel replied that he had already done 
so, and had extended the Kafir police on our right 
flank. 
This circumstance saved us from a heavy fire from 
the enemy, as from their commanding height they 
