k with all
their accustomed dash and intrepidity. In a short time the troops
and Maxims on the left and front were hotly engaged, whilst the
enemy's riflemen, taking up positions on the slopes of Jebel
Surgham, brought a long-range fire to bear on the zereba, causing
some casualties, and their spearmen, continually reinforced from
the rear, made attempt after attempt to reach our lines.

Shortly after 8.0 a.m. the enemy's main attack was repulsed. At
this period a large and compact body of dervishes was observed
attempting to march round our right, and advancing with great
rapidity they soon became engaged with our mounted troops on the
Kerreri ridge. One of the gunboats which had been disposed to
protect the river flanks at once proceeded down stream to afford
assistance to the somewhat hardly-pressed mounted troops, and
coming within close range of the dervishes inflicted heavy loss on
them, upwards of 450 men being killed in a comparatively
circumscribed area. The Artillery and Maxims on the left face of
the zereba also co-operated, and the enemy was forced to retire
again under cover of the hills.

All attacks on our position having failed, and the enemy having
retired out of range, I sent out the 21st Lancers to clear the
ground on our left front and head off any retreating dervishes
from the direction of Omdurman. After crossing the slopes of Jebel
Surgham they came upon a body of dervishes concealed in a
depression of the ground; these they gallantly charged, but
finding, too late to withdraw, that a much larger body of the
enemy lay hidden, the charge was pressed home through them, and,
after rallying on the other side, they rode back, driving off the
dervishes, and remaining in possession of the ground. Considerable
loss was inflicted on the enemy; but I regret to say that here
fell Lieutenant R. Grenfell (12th Lancers) and twenty men.

Meanwhile I had ordered the army to follow in echelon of brigades
from the left. At 9.30 a.m. the front brigades having reached the
sand ridge running from the west end of Jebel Surgham towards the
river, a halt was ordered to enable the rear brigades to get into
position, and I then received information that the Khalifa was
still present in force on the left slopes of Surgham; a change of
front half-right of the three leading bri