CHAPTER XX

THE GOD OF THE ELEPHANTS

At the end of the half hour a tempest of noise arose from the village;
tom-toms were beaten, conch-shells blown and vigorous cheering was
heard. Then from the huts long lines of coolies carrying weapons of
every sort, rifles, old muskets, spears, and swords streamed out and
encircled the bungalow at a distance. A little later the Rajah's twenty
horsemen rode out of the village on their raw-boned stallions, followed
by a hundred infantry soldiers who, Dermot observed, were now armed with
rifles in place of their former muskets.

The dismounted troops formed up before the bungalow but half a mile away,
in two lines in open order. But the cavalry kept together in a body; and
the officer, turning in his saddle to speak to his men, pointed to the
house with his sword.

"I believe they're going to charge us," said Dermot.

He had divided up the garrison to the four sides of the bungalow; but now,
leaving one man with the shot gun to keep a watch on the back, he collected
the rest on the front verandah. Noreen was inside, feeding the hungry
children and consoling the mothers.

"Now, Daleham, don't fire until they are close, and then aim at the
horses," said the Major, repeating the instruction to the servants in Urdu.

The Punjaubis grinned and patted their rifles.

The cavalry advanced. The _sowars_ ambled forward, brandishing their curved
sabres and uttering fierce yells. Dermot, knowing Sher Afzul and another
man to be good shots, ordered them to open fire when the horsemen were
about four hundred yards away. He himself took a steady aim at the
commander and pressed the trigger. The officer, shot through the body,
threw up his arms and fell forward on his horse's head. The startled animal
shied and bolted across the furrows; and the corpse, dropping from the
saddle, was dragged along the ground, one foot being caught in a stirrup.
The cavalry checked for an instant; and Dermot fired again. A _sowar_ fell.
The rest cantered forward, yelling and waving their _tulwars_. Sher
Afzul and the other servants opened fire. A second horseman dropped from
his saddle, a stallion stumbled and fell, throwing its rider heavily.
The firing grew faster. Two or three more horses were wounded and
galloped wildly off. The rest of the cavalry came on, but, losing their
nerve, checked their pace instead of charging home.

Dermot, loading and firing rapidly, bringing a _sowar_ down with each sho