118 
ACHIEVEMENTS OP FIELD ARTILLERY. 
flank. The extreme heat of the day, and the labour entailed in run¬ 
ning up guns between each round in the heavy sand, rendered the 
labours of the gunners very arduous, and several men succumbed, 
overpowered by the sun’s rays. Yet the pluck and endurance of those 
who remained made up for paucity of numbers; the fire of our two 
guns never slackened, and its steady continuance was of most invalu¬ 
able service to our force. The official account thus recognises the 
gallantry of the detachments :— 
“ The extreme heat of the day, to which one man after another 
succumbed, and the severe labour entailed upon the gunners in keeping 
up a constant fire against a very superior force of artillery in very 
favourable positions, were the greatest dangers to which the troops 
were exposed. For there could be little doubt that if our guns had 
been even for a time silenced, either because one of the shells which 
were constantly passing from both directions just over the heads of 
gunners, drivers, and horses, every now and then killing a horse or 
breaking a leg, had exploded in a wagon, or if the labour of pushing 
up the guns after each recoil through the heavy sand had so exhausted 
the men as to prevent their replying promptly to the Egyptian artillery, 
the enemy would have acquired a confidence which would have induced 
him to try his greatly superior numbers in a close attack, which we had 
barely sufficient numbers to meet.” 1 
As time went by, however, the situation grew more favourable to us. 
At 1 o’clock the infantry from Nefisha made their appearance, and 
we possessed a substantial reserve. At about a quarter to three o’clock, 
however, two shells in succession had taken effect in our brave little 
battery, killing ou the spot two men and several horses, and some 
Marine artillerymen were sent by General Willis to the aid of the 
division, 2 or section as it is now termed, which had been in action for 
five hours against six times its strength in guns. And it is to be 
recorded that when the gunners were faint and weary the drivers 
volunteered to take their turn at the wheels. Otherwise it would have 
been impossible for their comrades to have borne the strain as long as 
they did. As it was, not only did the drivers share their labours, 
but a well-arranged system for bringingwaterfrom the canal was adopted, 
and by pouring it over the heads of exhausted men, keeping as many 
as possible under the shade of the wagons, and only exposing to the 
sun those who were indispensable, the strength of the little band was 
husbanded. Such was the spirit which animated it that it was not 
willingly that the aid of the Marine artillerymen was accepted. These 
last, whose aid was indeed indispensable, bore their share of the labour 
with most cheerful alacrity for the remainder of the day. 
For it was not until past 6 o’clock, when the Guards, after a most 
trying march, arrived, that the two 9-prs. were relieved by the remain¬ 
ing four guns of “N” Battery, “A” Brigade. 
An hour earlier our cavalry had received a reinforcement of 350 
sabres, and as his chances grew visibly less, the enemy’s attacks became 
more hesitating, until they completely died away towards evening. 
1 “ The Campaign of 18S2 in Egypt,” page 49. 
2 Lieutenant (now Major) S. C. Hickman was in command of these guns. 
