line, and, breaking
through, routed them utterly.

While this dashing operation was carried out on the river flank the
Dervish cavalry, following up the retirement, also delivered an attack
towards the guns. Thereupon Captain Baring with two squadrons galloped
from the desert flank across the front of the artillery, and, riding
through the advancing enemy, repulsed them with loss. The charge was
good and effective, but the shock and confusion broke both squadrons,
and, although successful, they came through the Dervishes and back on
to the river flank in some disorder. Persse and Le Gallais, who had just
rallied, at once dismounted their men and opened carbine fire on the
retreating Dervishes. Their action not only checked the enemy, but
prevented, by getting the troopers off their horses, any chance of their
being involved in the disorder of the squadrons who had just charged.

Although their horsemen were thus sharply checked, the Dervish infantry
continued in spite of losses to advance rapidly, and for a few minutes
a hot musketry fire was exchanged by the Arab riflemen and the two
dismounted squadrons. Captain Persse was severely wounded, and several
other casualties occurred. But the whole force was drawing away from
the enemy, and by eleven o'clock it had passed through the gap to
the north-east and had shaken off all pursuit. The casualties in the
operation were fortunately small. One British officer was wounded; six
Egyptian troopers were killed and ten wounded; and about thirty horses
were lost or disabled.

The details of the enemy's defences were now known; his strength was
estimated from trustworthy information. It was evident from the frequent
desertions that his army was disheartened, and from his inactivity that
he was scarcely hopeful of success. The moment for destroying him had
arrived. At daybreak on the morning of the 6th the whole army broke camp
at Abadar and marched to the deserted village of Umdabia, where they
bivouacked close by a convenient pool of the Atbara and seven miles
nearer the Dervish camp.

CHAPTER XII: THE BATTLE OF THE ATBARA

April 8, 1898

In the evening of Thursday, the 7th of April, the army at Umdabia
paraded for the attack on Mahmud's zeriba. The camp lay in the scrub
which grows by the banks of the Atbara, as by those of the Nile, and
in order to profit by the open, level ground the four infantry brigades
moved by parallel routes into the desert, and then f