d to keep it. It was not obtained without
some fighting, where Lake and Pollock greatly distinguished themselves.
Hugo James and Captain Wilmot Christopher accompanied Lieutenant
Edwardes into the field, and greatly assisted him in carrying orders.
The latter rode about with a long sea-telescope under his arm, just as
composedly as if he had been on the deck of his own vessel. Encamping
within shot of the enemy's walls is unheard of in regular warfare; and
the irregulars soon found it anything but pleasant. One Sunday, during
the service held by the Chief for the benefit of all the Christians
under him, the little congregation was disturbed by about twenty shot
falling round the tents in the space of a very few minutes; and when at
length one found its billet, and smashed a man's thigh at the door, a
general rush was made to the guns, and the whole strength of the
artillery bent upon the Bloody Bastion until its fire was silenced.

On another occasion, Major Napier had one night gone over to visit
Edwardes. They were sipping tea and breathing the cool night air, while
Lake, exhausted with his day's work, was fast asleep in his bed, under
the same awning as themselves, when, the rebel gunners seeming to awake,
one shot buried itself hissing in the sand by Napier's side, and then
another passed close by his friend.

A third fell at the head of Lake's bed, and his servant immediately got
up, and with great carefulness turned his bed round. Lake gave a yawn,
and asked sleepily, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing," replied the bearer; "it's only a cannon ball!" Lake went to
sleep again. Five minutes later another fell at his feet, when the good
bearer again shifted his master's bed. Once more Lake asked, half
asleep, "What's the matter _now_?" and was told in reply, "_Another_
cannon ball--nothing more!"--on which he said, "Oh!" and returned calmly
to the land of dreams. Various plans were suggested for carrying on the
siege against the place, which, it was discovered, was very formidable,
and not easily to be taken. Constant skirmishes took place. The
European soldiers took the night duty in the trenches, to avoid the heat
of the day. On the night of the 9th of September, it became necessary
to dislodge the enemy from a position they had taken up among some
houses and gardens in front of the trenches; and four companies of Her
Majesty's 10th Regiment, a wing of the 49th Native Infantry, the rifle
company of the 72