110 
ACHIEVEMENTS OF FIELD ARTILLERY. 
About an "hour after starting, when seven miles had been covered, 
the enemy were sighted in position some three miles away covering the 
hills on our left and on a col over which the road to the front led. The 
dense masses stretched round on the right also, so as to envelop our 
force as it moved forward. 
General Stewart's dispositions were soon made. The Horse and 
Field Batteries were sent forward to take up a position opposite to 
where the roads crossed the hills, General Hughes's brigade being 
deflected to show a front towards the spur running parallel to the line 
of advance which was strongly occupied by the enemy. The cavalry 
and Horse Artillery being possessed of greater mobility than the other 
troops, outmarched their comrades while advancing into their posi¬ 
tions. When, therefore, the Horse Artillery unlimbered the slower 
moving battalions were still so far behind them, that the two escort 
companies of the Head-quarter Staff were at first the only infantry 
within half-a-mile. 
It was not anticipated that the enemy would at once assume the 
offensive in the manner he did, and, therefore, the artillery were 
ordered to get within 1500 yards, but not to open fire until the infantry 
had caught them up. Leisurely, therefore, did they bring their guns on 
to a tempting hillock, and, while the cavalry was moving to guard the 
rear of either flank, proceeded to set about finding the range in the 
orthodox fashion of the day. It was not at first realised that the 
enemy's line extended so much on our right flank as it did, and the 
chief danger was looked for naturally from the left, for we were in fact 
making a flank march in the presence of the enemy. Hardly, however, 
had the trails touched the ground when the inert mass on the hill tops 
became violently agitated, and with much shouting, tom-toms beating 
and banners waving, dense swarms of the foe, both horse and foot, 
came rolling down upon the head of our column. Both their flanks 
were thrown forward after the fashion of a Zulu impi, and our right 
was rapidly enveloped by the same crowded masses as our left. Taking 
ranges when the target was thus rushing onwards was of course futile, 
and, indeed, the difficulty was to shorten the lengths of the fuzes 
with sufficient rapidity. For a brief period the Horse Artillery had 
alone to stem the rush, then “ G " Battery, 4th Brigade, 1 2 galloped into 
action alongside them. Twelve guns were thus opposed for some 
minutes to the charge pushed home with fanatical contempt of death of 
a force of Ghazis, which has been variously estimated at figures vary¬ 
ing between 3000 and 5000 men. 3 Considering the difficulty so 
rapidly moving a target must have presented, both guns and rifles 
made excellent practice, and the evidence of officers engaged stoutly 
maintains that the artillery need never have shifted their ground had 
1 Under the command of Major Sir John Campbell, Bart. 
2 A letter, dated the 21st of April, 1880, from Lieutenant (now Major) P. F. Hamilton, R.A., 
who was with the two right guns of “ A ” Battery, “ B ” Brigade, thus describes this phase of the 
action:—“Although twelve field guns were making most excellent practice, and the two com¬ 
panies were laying many low before them, the advance was in no way checked, and I was laying a 
gun at a hundred yard’s range at some Ghazis when our Major rode up and said, * Why don’t you 
limber up P’ I then saw that the centre and left divisions had limbered up, and that there was 
no time to lose. We bad just time to limber up and gallop to a hill 120 yards in rear ; action rear 
again, and hard at it with case and shrapnel.” 
