e direction of
the firing. What surprised him most was that he heard no report of the
Krupp guns, no whish of rockets, no continuous grinding of machine-guns.
Why did they not use their artillery?

Half an hour brought him to rocks, herbage, and palm-trees, and here
were empty preserved meat cans and other _debris_, showing that the
force had bivouacked there the night before. And here, too, deep down
in a rocky dell, he found a well of clear, bright, sweet, cool water!
He flung himself down, plunged his face in the delicious liquid, and
sucked in large draughts of the life-inspiring elixir. When he could
drink no more he filled his water-bottle, and then, removing his pith
helmet, he unbound the bandage which he had tied over his head. It had
of course stuck, and the attempt to remove it was painful, but by
wetting it freely he got it off, and then bathed his head and face,
saturated his pocket handkerchief, and tied that on as a fresh bandage.

Then, much refreshed, he again hastened forwards, guided by the sound of
the still continued firing. The character of the country was now
completely changed. It became hilly, and the hills were precipitous and
covered with inky black rocks, which lay so thickly about that it seemed
as if a shower of enormous aerolites had fallen there.

Harry threaded his way amongst these, some way up a ravine, which wound
to the right. The firing now seemed quite close; indeed, he could see
smoke floating up to the dear sky. But surely El Obeid could not be
there, in the middle of a mountain pass, commanded on all sides by
higher ground! The army must surely have been attacked on the march.

He turned a corner, from which the valley ran for some distance
straight, and came suddenly on volumes of smoke, pierced by incessant
flashes of fire, not a thousand yards in his front, while every now and
then a spent bullet came pattering against the rock behind which he
crouched, trying to make out whether those nearest him were friends or
foes.

Firing was also going on from the higher ground to right and left, and
one or two of these points were visible from Harry's present position.
He had no field-glass, but he carried a small pocket telescope of great
power, and adjusting this, and holding it steadily with some difficulty
against the rock side, for the field of vision was very small, and his
hand shook with excitement, he made out that the men holding these were
certainly Arabs.

A