It was late before the firing ceased, and Major Cobbe's column came in, with the wounded on hammocks and stretchers. The first two signal shots had slightly wounded Major Cobbe and a white colour sergeant. After a prolonged fight, the former had finally turned the right of the enemy's position, with two companies of the Central African Regiment; but lost heavily, owing to the thick grass and slow progress.

Meanwhile the West African company had engaged a stockade similar to the one we had rushed, but horseshoe in form. Thus our men had been almost completely surrounded by a circle of fire. When, however, the flanking movement had at last been completed, the enemy were charged simultaneously from the front and flank, whereupon they broke and fled. The large war camp behind had been looted and burnt, and the stockade pulled down. The guns had failed to penetrate this, and the defenders were only driven out at the point of the bayonet, after a fight of two hours' duration.

The loss had been heavy. Half a dozen white officers were wounded, and seventeen Sikhs had been killed or wounded, out of a total of fifty who had gone into action. The total casualties mounted up to seventy.



Chapter 18: A Night Surprise.

With the exception of replenishing the supplies of ammunition, cleaning rifles, and burying the dead, nothing further was done that afternoon. In the evening a consultation was held, in the fort, among the principal officers. The situation was a difficult one. An immense amount of ammunition had been expended, and it was decided that it was out of the question to draw upon the supplies that had been sent up for the garrison. There were still two strongly-entrenched positions, and strong opposition was anticipated to the clearing of the main road. Every round would, therefore, be required for this work. This seemed to preclude the idea of taking the other two stockades.

The choice therefore remained of making the assault upon these, and then returning through Pekki; or of leaving them and going back by the main road, the route laid down in their instructions. Neither of these plans was satisfactory, for each left half the programme undone.

It was suggested that a night attack might be attempted. In that case, not a shot must be fired, and the attack must be made by the bayonet alone. The moon rose early, and it was almost high at eight o'clock.

Of course, it was extremely risky to venture upon such a plan, with superstitious black troops. The object of assault, however, could be located the next day, and the danger of losing their way would thereby be reduced to a minimum. Further, it was decided that no dependence, whatever, be placed on any native guide. Finally, it would be eminently undesirable to leave Coomassie again in a state of siege.

It was clear that only one of the stockades could be carried in this manner, as the other would be placed on its guard. It was therefore decided that the one on the Accra-Coomassie road was the most suitable; first because it joined the main road to Cape Coast, and secondly because the capture of the stockade would isolate the remaining one on the Ejesu road, which the Ashantis would probably abandon, as both the adjacent camps had fallen into our hands.

As the result of this decision Captain Loch was sent out, at twelve o'clock on the following day, to reconnoitre the position. His men, by creeping through the tall grass and clambering among the tall trees, succeeded in reaching a large cotton tree within seventy yards of the enemy's entrenchment. Climbing this, they obtained a good view of the enemy's stockade and camp behind it.

At that moment a roar of voices was heard, and hostile scouts poured out from the camp. The object of the expedition, however, had been attained; and the soldiers retired rapidly, without casualties.

At five in the afternoon the officers assembled at Colonel Burroughs's quarters. Here the details of the work were explained to them. They were to fall in at eight o'clock, and deliver the attack between nine and ten. The Maxims were to follow in rear of the infantry, and no other guns were to be taken.

Only five hundred men were selected to go. Captain Loch's company were to take the lead, as a reward for the scouting they had done in the morning. Major Melliss' company was to follow. The companies in the rear were to move to the flanks, when the stockade had been taken, so as to guard against an attack from the other war camp.

An early meal was taken, and then the officers sallied out for a last inspection of the company; which was, by this time, assembling outside the fort gate. Silently the troops fell into their allotted position. Then the word was passed down the line that all was ready. The officers gave their final orders to the men—no smoking, no talking, no noise, no firing, bayonet only. As if nothing unusual was occurring, the bugle from the fort sounded the last post.

At the start the pace was for some time good but, after passing Prempeh's palace, the road became a tortuous track and, at every yard, the tall grass became thicker and, here and there, a fallen tree lay across the path. The dead silence that prevailed rendered every one nervous. At last they came in sight of the great cotton tree. Here all halted, and crouched down.

Two leading companies formed up and were awaiting orders when, suddenly, two signal guns were fired and, instantly, the line of timbers was lit up by a glare of fire, and a crashing volley of slugs was poured in. Lieutenant Greer, who was in front of the column, fell, seriously wounded. Then, with a shout of rage that almost drowned the order, "Charge!" they leapt to their feet and dashed forward.

Nothing could stop the impetuous charge and, when they reached the stockade, they scaled it and poured headlong over it. In front of them was the war camp, through which ran a road, now crowded with the panic-stricken defenders. As the enemy ran from their huts, they were cut down in numbers with swords and bayonets. The din was tremendous; yells, shouts, and groans rent the air. The path was strewn with corpses.

The headlong race continued. Three villages had been passed, but there was a fort behind. This also was carried. Then there was a halt, on account of the exhaustion caused by the speed with which all had run. There was no fear that the panic-stricken foe would rally; but there was the possibility of a counter attack, by the Ashantis from the war camp to the left; for it was not known that the panic had spread to these, also, and that they too had fled in disorder, never to return.

The four camps were burnt, one after another; the stockades pulled down; and the force, still half mad with the excitement of the fight, marched back to the fort. The number of casualties was very small. Hardly one, indeed, had taken place, except those caused by the first volley of the enemy.

In one of the houses they entered, a child was found asleep. It had been left behind, and had not been aroused by the noise. Terrified as it awoke, it clung to a white man for protection, and was taken by him to a place of safety.

The force reached camp at eleven o'clock, having accomplished their work with a success altogether beyond expectation. At eight o'clock next morning, the column paraded for its march down. All the wounded who were unfit for duty were left in the fort.

Not long after the start, the scouts sighted another stockade. The troops formed up for the attack; but they found, to their surprise, that it was deserted. Both the stockade and the war camp behind were destroyed, without opposition.

Pressing forward they passed entrenchment after entrenchment, but all were deserted. River after river was forded, breast high, but no enemy was met with; although some of the entrenchments were exceedingly formidable, and could not have been carried without very heavy loss.

The scouts captured a young girl, from whom valuable information was obtained. She had been sent out, like many of the other women, to get supplies for the army at Ejesu, where the queen mother was. It appeared that the queen had been greatly upset by the night attack, and the capture of all the entrenchments; and had collected all her chiefs to decide what had best be done, now that the siege of Coomassie had been raised. Then it was understood why the advance had not been opposed. But for this council, we should have found every stockade occupied in force.

The expedition pushed on, and arrived at Bekwai without having to fire a shot. The garrison there was formed up to receive and cheer them and, what was still more appreciated, a ration of fresh meat and another round of medical comforts were served out.

"Well, Bullen," Hallett said, the next morning, "here we are again. I wonder how long we shall get to rest our wearied bodies."

"For my part," said Lisle, "I sha'n't be sorry when we are afoot again. It has been hard work, and there has been some tough fighting; but anything is better than being stuck in one of these dreary towns. Fortunately we have both escaped bullets, and have merely had a slight peppering of slugs and, as we have both been put down in the reports as slightly wounded, on three occasions, we may feel grateful, as it always does a fellow good to be mentioned in the casualty list; and it should help you to attain that position we spoke of, the other day, of commander-in-chief."

"I renounce that dream utterly, and aspire to nothing higher than colonel. It must really be an awful bore to be commander-in-chief. Fancy having to go down to your office every morning, and go into all sorts of questions, and settle all sorts of business. No, I think that, when I get to be a colonel, my aspirations will be satisfied."

"I don't know that I should care even about being a colonel, Hallett. Long before I get to that rank, I am sure that I should have had quite enough of fighting to last for a lifetime, and would be quite content to settle down in some little place at home."

"And marry, of course. A fellow like you would be sure to be able to pick up a wife with money. My thoughts don't incline that way. I look forward to the Rag as the conclusion of my career. There you meet fellows you know, lie against each other about past campaigns, eat capital dinners, and have your rub of whist, regularly, of an evening."

"But, my dear Hallett, think how you would fatten out under such a regime!"

"Oh, hang the fat, Bullen; it would not matter one way or another, when you haven't got to do yourself up in uniform, and make tremendous marches, and so on. I should not want to walk, at all; I should have chambers somewhere close to the club, and could always charter a hansom, when I wanted to go anywhere. Besides, fat is eminently respectable, in an elderly man."

Lisle laughed merrily.

"My dear Hallett, it is useless to look forward so far into the future. Let us content ourselves with the evils of today. In spite of your grumbling, you know that you like the life and, if the bullets do but spare you, I have no doubt that you will be just as energetic a soldier as you have shown yourself in this campaign; although I must admit that you have sometimes taken it out in grumbling."

"Well, it is very difficult to be energetic in this country. I think I could be enthusiastic, in anything like a decent climate, but this takes all the spirit out of one.

"I think I could have struggled over the snow in the Tirah, as you did. I can conceive myself wearing the D.S.O. in European war. But how can a man keep his pecker up when he is wet through all day, continually fording rivers, and exposed all the time to a pelting rain and, worse than all, seeing his friends going down one after another with this beastly fever, and feeling sure that his own turn will come next?

"I should not mind so much if we always had a dry hut to sleep in, but as often as not we have to sleep on the drenched ground in the open and, consequently, get up in the morning more tired than when we lie down. I have no doubt that, after all this is over, I shall become a cripple from rheumatism, or be laid up with some other disorder."

"I don't suppose you will do anything of the sort, Hallett. Of course this fever is very trying but, although men are being constantly sent down to the coast, the number who die from it is not great. Only some six or seven have succumbed. I expect myself that we shall both return to our regiments in the pink of condition, with our medals on our breasts, and proud of the fact that we have gone through one of the most perilous expeditions ever achieved by British troops; and the more wonderful that, except for a handful of English officers and non-commissioned officers, it has been carried through successfully by a purely native army.

"I don't think we quite recognize, at present, what a big affair it has been. We have marched through almost impenetrable bush; we have suppressed a rebellion over a great extent of country, admirably adapted for the mode of warfare of our enemies; and we have smashed up an army of well-armed natives, in numbers ranging from six, to ten to one against us."

"Yes, yes, I know all that; and I don't say that it has not been a well-managed business; and I dare say I shall look back on it with pleasure, some day, when I have forgotten all the miseries we have suffered. Besides, though I do grumble, I hope we are not going to stick here long. I could do with a week of eating and drinking—that would be the outside. It is wretched enough tramping through swamps, but I think I should prefer that to a prolonged stay in this hole."

"For once I agree with you thoroughly, Hallett. It is bad enough to march in West Africa, but it is worse to sit still. It is only when you try to do that, that you find how much you are pulled down; and the longer you sit still, the less disposed you are to get up; whereas, on the march, you are so full of the idea that you may be ambushed, at any moment, that you have no time to think of your fatigues."

"Yes, there is no doubt of that, Bullen; so I mean to spend all the time I have to spare here on my back; and sleep, if I can, continuously."

"Don't flatter yourself that you will be allowed to do that. You may be sure that they will find ample work for lazy hands to do. Now it is time to buckle on our swords, and go out and inspect our fellows. I can see that they are mustering already."

"I wish those white non-commissioned officers would not be so disgustingly punctual," Hallett grumbled. "They are splendid when it comes to fighting, but they never seem to know that there is a time for work and a time for play—or, at any rate, they never let others play."

"They are splendid fellows," Lisle said. "I really do not know what we should have done without them. There would be no talking of lying down and going to sleep, if they were not there to look after the men."

"I don't think it would make any difference to you," Hallett said, "for it seems to me that you are always looking after your men."

"So are you, Hallett. You are just as keen about getting your company into order as I am, only you always try to look bored over it. It is a stupid plan, old man, for I don't think that you get the kudos that you deserve."

"My dear Bullen, you may argue forever, but if you think that you can transform me into a bustling, hustling fellow like yourself, I can tell you that you are mistaken. I know that I do what I have to do, and perhaps may not do it badly, but I don't go beyond that.

"When they say 'Do this,' I do it; when they don't say so, I don't do it; and I fancy it comes to about the same thing, in the end."

"I suppose it does," Lisle laughed, as they issued from their hut.

"These poor fellows look as if they wanted a rest more than we do, don't they?"

"They look horribly thin," Hallett said.

"Yes, it is well that the blacks have such good spirits, and are always ready to chatter and laugh when the day's work is over—that is, if it has not been an exceptionally hard one.

"Well, though I don't care about staying long here, myself, I do hope they will give the poor fellows time to get into condition again, before starting. I fear, however, that there is very little chance of that."

This, indeed, turned out to be the case. Two days later, reinforcements arrived from the coast, to increase the total strength available for punitive expeditions. Two strong parties then started, under Colonel Haverstock and Colonel Wilkinson. They were to travel by different routes, and to join hands in the neighbourhood of the sacred fetish lake, where large numbers of Ashantis and Kokofu were reported to have assembled. The Hausa companies did not accompany them, the columns being largely composed of the newly-arrived troops—who were, of course, eager to take their share of the fighting.

Lisle and Hallett did a little grumbling, but they really felt that they required a longer period of rest, and they could not help congratulating themselves when the columns returned, ten days after, without having exchanged more than a shot or two with the enemy.

They found that the country round the lake was thickly inhabited. Many of the villages had been burnt and, in all cases, the sacred trees had been cut down. It was quite clear that the spirit of the enemy was greatly broken, and that the end was approaching.

"We must certainly congratulate ourselves upon having a comfortable time of it, here," Lisle said, "instead of a ten days' tramp, without any great result. We can manage to keep ourselves dry in this hut, now that our men have covered it thickly with palm leaves; whereas they have had to sleep in the open, pretty nearly every night."

"It was good for them," Hallett said; "the fellows looked altogether too spick and span, when they marched in. It is just as well that they should get a little experience of the work we have been doing, for months. I saw them, as they marched in, look with astonishment at the state of our men's garments—or rather, I may say, their rags. They would have grown haughty, if they had not had a sample of the work; and their uniforms looked very different, when they came back, from what they were when they marched away. There is nothing like a fortnight's roughing it in the bush to take a man, whether white or black, a peg or two down in his own estimation.

"I was amused, the first day they arrived, when I saw their faces at the sight of their rations. It was quite a picture. Thank goodness we have had nothing to grumble about, in that way, since we got our box from the coast. Chocolate for breakfast, brandy and water at dinner, preserved meat, are quite a different thing from the stuff they manage to give us—two or three ounces of meat, about once a week. Those boxes of biscuits, too, have been invaluable. The ration biscuits were for the most part wet through, and there wasn't a wholesome crunch in a dozen of them. We have certainly improved a lot in appearance, during the last fortnight; and I believe that it is due to the feeding, more than the rest."

"It is due, no doubt, to both," Lisle said; "but certainly the feeding has had a good deal to do with it."

"Those tins of soup," said Hallett, "have been really splendid. I believe I have gained seven or eight pounds in weight, in spite of this sweltering heat."

"You have certainly filled out a bit. I was rather thinking of asking you to hand over all the soups to me, so that you should not gain weight so fast."

"That would have been a modest request, indeed, Bullen!"

"It was a case of true friendship," Lisle laughed. "I know how you have appreciated your loss of flesh."

"You be blowed!" Hallett said. "If they would run to half a dozen tins a day, I can tell you I would take them, whatever the consequences."

"Well, really, I do think, Hallett, those few cases have saved us from fever. I felt so utterly washed out, when we arrived here, that I began to think I was in for a bad attack."

"Same here, Bullen. I fought against the feeling because I dreaded that hospital tent and, still more, being carried down country."

"Yes; we certainly did a clever thing, when we bought up everything we could, that day we were in Cape Coast. Our servants, too, have turned out most satisfactory. Poor beggars! though the weather has been so bad, there has scarcely been a night when they have not managed to make a little fire, and boil water either to mix with our tot of rum, or to make a cup of tea."

"Yes, they have turned out uncommonly well. We must certainly make them a handsome present, when this is all over. It was awfully lucky we brought up a good supply of tea with us, and condensed milk. I am certain that the hot drink, at night, did wonders in the way of keeping off fevers."

"That is so, Lisle; there is nothing that will keep the wet out, or at least prevent it from doing harm, like a cup of hot tea with the allowance of rum in it. I am sure I don't know what we should have done, without it. That tea and milk were all that we could bring, especially as our carriers were cut down to one man, each."

"That was your idea, Lisle, and I agree that it has been the saving of us. I was rather in favour of bringing spirits, myself; but I quite admit, now, that it would have been a great mistake. Besides, half a dozen pounds of tea does not weigh more than a couple of bottles of spirits; which would have been gone in four or five days, while the tea has held out for months. I never was much of a tea drinker before. It is all very well to take a cup at an afternoon tea fight, but that was about the extent of my indulgence in the beverage. In future I shall become what is called a votary, and shall cut down my spirits to the narrowest limit."

"That would be running to the opposite extreme, Hallett. Too much tea is just as bad as too much spirits."

"Ah! Well, I can breakfast with coffee or cocoa. The next time I go on the march, I shall take two or three pounds of cocoa in my box. Many a time I have longed for a cup, when we have started at three o'clock in the morning, and have felt that it would be well worth a guinea a cup. Now I shall have the satisfaction of always starting with a good warm drink, which is as good for hunger as thirst. I have often wondered how I could have been fool enough not to bring a supply with me."

"Yes, it would have been very comforting," Lisle agreed; "we shall know better, another time."

"I trust that there will never be another time like this for me. I shall be ready to volunteer for service in any part of the world, bar Western Africa. They say that the troops at the Cape are going through a hard time, but I am convinced that it is child's play in comparison with our work here. Why, they have hours, and indeed days, sometimes, without rain. Just think of that, my dear fellow! Just think of it! And when the rain does fall, it soon sinks into the sandy soil and, if they lie down at night, they only get wet on one side, and have waterproof sheets to lie on. Just think of that! And yet, they actually consider that they are going through hardships!

"They say, too, that the commissariat arrangements are splendid. They get meat rations every day—every day, mind you—and I hear they even get jam. It is enough to fill one with envy. I remember I was always fond of jam, as a boy. I can tell you that, when I get back to civilization, one of my first cries will be for jam. Fancy jam spread thickly on new bread!

"And men who have all these luxuries think that they are roughing it! Certainly human ingratitude is appalling!"

Lisle laughed.

"But you must remember that there are compensations. We get a fight every two or three days, while they have often to tramp two or three hundred miles, without catching sight of an enemy at all."

"There is certainly something in that," Hallett said. "I must admit that that is a great consolation; and it is satisfactory, too, that when we do fight we are fired at principally with slugs; which we both know from experience are not pleasant customers, but at any rate are a great improvement upon rifle bullets, pom poms, and shells of all sizes.

"Yes, I don't even grudge them the jam, when I think how awful it must be to be kept, for months, at some miserable little station on the railway, guarding the roads. We get restless here at the end of three or four days, but fancy spending months at it!"

"Besides, Hallett, in such places they get their rations regularly, and have nothing to do but to eat and get fat. If you were living under such conditions, you would be something awful at the end of six months of it."

"There is a great deal in that," Hallett said, thoughtfully. "Yes; I don't know that, after all, the gains and advantages are not with us; and indeed, if we had our time to go over again, we could make ourselves fairly comfortable.

"In the first place, I should purchase a large ground sheet, which I might use as a tent. I would have a smaller one to lie upon, and the biggest mackintosh that money could buy. Then, as you say, with a good supply of tea and chocolate, I could make myself extremely happy.

"I cannot think why the authorities did not point out the necessity for these things, before we started. They must have known it was going to rain like old boots, all the time. I don't mean, of course, the authorities at Cape Coast, because I don't suppose any of these things could have been picked up there; but we should have been told, when we got our orders, that such things were essential. Really, the stupidity and thoughtlessness of the War Office are beyond belief."

"I should advise you to draw up a memorial to them, pointing out their want of thought and care; and suggesting that, in every room, there should be a printed reminder that mackintoshes and ground sheets are essential, in a campaign in Western Africa in the wet season."

"Yes, and cocoa and tea," Hallett said, with a laugh. "I should like to hear the remarks of the War Office, when my communication was read. It would flutter the dove cot, and the very next steamer would bring out an intimation that Lieutenant John Hallett's services were no longer required."

"No doubt that would be the case, Hallett; but think what an inestimable service you would have done, in campaigning out here!"

"That is all very well, Bullen, but I should recommend you to try your eloquence upon someone else. Perhaps you might find someone of a more self-sacrificing nature who would take the matter in hand."

"Perhaps I might, but I rather fancy that I should not. The only man who could do it is Willcocks. After the victories he has won, even the War Office could hardly have the face to retire him from the service for making such a suggestion. Besides, the public would never stand it; and he is just the sort of fellow to carry out the idea, if he took to it."

"I agree with you, Bullen, as in the end I almost always do, and should suggest most strongly that you lay the matter before him. No doubt, if he applied, the War Office would send out a hundred waterproofs and two hundred ground sheets, for the use of the officers, by the next ship sailing from England."

"I might do it," Lisle laughed, "if it were not that the rainy season will be at an end before the things arrive here."

"That is a very good excuse, Bullen; but I hope that, at any rate, you will carry out your idea before the next wet season begins—that is, if we are kept on here, as a punishment for our sins."

At this moment one of the non-commissioned officers came in with a letter, and Hallett opened it.

"Oh dear," he said, in a tone of deepest disgust, "we are off again!"

"Thank goodness!" Lisle said. "You know we were just agreeing that we have had enough of this place."

"I often say foolish things," Hallett said, "and must not be taken too literally. Here is an end to our meat rations, and to all our other little luxuries. Besides, I have been getting my tunic washed, and it will certainly take three or four days to dry in this steaming atmosphere."

"Well, my dear fellow, you can put it on wet, for it is certain to be wet before we have gone a quarter of an hour. My tunic has gone, too, but at any rate they will both look more respectable for the washing.

"Well, I suppose we had better go across to headquarters and find out what the route is, and who are going."

As they went out, they saw the return of the Central African Regiment. They had been more fortunate than the other regiments, having captured and razed Djarchi. They had taken the enemy by surprise, and run them right through the town, with only a single casualty. They had ascertained that the enemy had been commanded by the brother of the Ashanti commander-in-chief, and that he had been killed in the fight.

A very large amount of spoil had been captured, the first haul of any importance that had been made during the campaign. Among the loot were the king of the Kokofu's iron boxes, containing much official correspondence; union jacks, elephant tails, and other symbols of royalty, together with gold ornaments, gold dust, and two hundred pounds of English money; numbers of brass-nailed, vellum-backed chairs, part of the Ashanti chief's regalia; robes, guns, ammunition, drums, and horns, and also sheep and poultry.

A company was at once despatched to the Sacred Lake, to join Major Cramer's levies, which had been told off to act as locusts and eat up the country. Colonel Wilson was ordered to go to Accra, to reorganize and recruit the remnant of the Gold Coast Force; so that, when the campaign was over, they could again take over the military control of the colony. It was also decided that Bekwai could no longer be occupied, and that all the stores there should be removed to Esumeja, as the whole main road up to Coomassie would shortly be open.

At last all was in readiness for the general and final advance. All the Adansi country to the south, and Kokofu to the east had been conquered, and the roads cleared. The next step was to clear Northern Ashanti; neglecting altogether, for the present, the parties of the enemy between the southern boundaries of Ashanti territory and their capital.

It was therefore decided to move the whole of the headquarters staff and the advance base to Coomassie, Esumeja being selected as the point, between it and Kwisa, to be held in force. The general plan was to send up all the stores, carriers, and troops via Pekki, as had been done on both previous occasions. This would reduce the chance of attack and loss to a minimum while, simultaneously, a fighting column with the smallest possible transport would follow the road through Kokofu and take Ejesu, which was the residence of the queen mother, and the headquarters of the remnant of the Ashanti army.

The general opinion was that it would be the last fight of the year. Colonel Brake, who was the last arrival, having had no chance of a fight hitherto, was selected for the command. The whole force was to advance, and five thousand carriers were required to effect the movement.

There was general joy when it was known that Bekwai was to be evacuated. It was a dull, dirty place, surrounded by dense, dark forests, and was in a terribly insanitary state. Europeans were rapidly losing their strength, and an epidemic of smallpox was raging among the natives, of whom a dozen or more died daily.

On the 28th of August Colonel Burroughs left Bekwai, with seven hundred and fifty men, and three thousand carriers taking ammunition and baggage. The column was fully two miles long. They had an extremely heavy march, and did not arrive at their destination till night. The carriers returned to Bekwai the next day, so as to be ready to march out at daylight, on the 30th, with the second column.

The troops at Pekki being in enforced idleness, half of them marched out to attack the enemy's war camp, which had for so long threatened Pekki. The place was found to be evacuated, and it and the bush camps on the way were all burnt.

The second column had now well started. The downfall of rain continued without intermission, and the roads became worse than ever. The day after the first column left Pekki, Colonel Brake started with eight hundred men and two guns.

The news came in that the king of Akim had been asked, by a number of the Kokofu, to intercede on their behalf for peace; and a messenger with a flag of truce came in from the Djarchi district. The appearance of the messenger was singular. He was completely clad in white, even his skin being painted that colour, and he carried an enormous white flag. He was well received, but was sent back with a message that the chiefs must come in themselves.

On the 30th Colonel Willcocks arrived and, the next day, the whole force started in fighting formation for Coomassie, where they arrived after twelve hours' march. The distance was only twelve miles, so the condition of the roads may be well imagined by the time the column took to traverse them.



Chapter 19: Lost In The Forest.

On the way up, Lisle met with a very unpleasant adventure. He and Hallett had been sent out, with a small party of men, to enter the bush and drive out any of the enemy who might be lurking, for the purpose of attacking the carriers and rear guard. They went some distance into the bush but, though they came upon tracks that had recently been cut, they saw none of the enemy. Some men were planted on each of these paths; and the two officers, who had followed one a little distance farther into the bush, were on the point of turning, when they heard men cutting their way through the undergrowth behind them.

"Hide, Hallett!" Lisle exclaimed, "they must be enemies."

Illustration: They saw a strong party of the enemy crossing the road.

As noiselessly as they could they took refuge in the thick bush and, a minute later, saw a strong party of the enemy crossing the road that they had just passed along. There were several hundred of them. Some thirty or forty halted on the path. The others continued to cut a track through and, in five minutes, a scattered fire was opened, showing that they had come in contact with the troops. The fire was kept up for some time, and then died away; whether because the troops had retired, or because the natives had turned off and taken some other line, they could not be sure. Later they heard very heavy firing abreast of them, and guessed that the Ashantis had followed some other path, and come down on the convoy.

Peering through the bushes, from time to time, they found that those who had halted on the path were still there, probably in waiting for some chief or other who was to take command of them.

"We are in a nice mess, Bullen," said Hallett. "By the sound the convoy is still moving on, so how we are to rejoin them, I don't know."

"Yes, we are certainly in a hole and, if these fellows stop here till night, I see no chance of our being able to move. The slightest rustle in the bushes would bring them down upon us, in no time. The firing is getting more and more distant every moment and, no doubt, a big body of the enemy have engaged our fellows.

"I have been in a good many tight places, but I think this is the worst of them. Our only course, so far as I can see, is to wait till nightfall; and then, if these fellows still stick here, get into the path again, and follow it up till we come to some path going the other way. Then it will be a pure question of luck whether we hit upon the enemy, or not. If we do, of course we must fight till the last, keeping the last shot in our revolvers for ourselves. I have no intention of falling into their hands alive, and going through terrible tortures before I am put to death."

"That really seems to be the only thing to be done, Bullen. However, we must hope for the best."

When night fell, a fire was lit by the party on the path.

"The beggars evidently mean to stay here," Lisle said, "and even if they moved away we should be no better off for, as the column will be ten miles away by now, we should really have no chance of regaining it."

When night fell they crept out of the bush, taking the greatest care not to make any noise, for the natives were but thirty yards away. They crawled along for forty or fifty yards and then, a turn in the path hiding them from sight, they rose to their feet and pushed on.

They found, however, that it was no easy matter to make headway. It was pitch dark, owing to the canopy of leaves, and they had to feel their way at every step. The path, moreover, was constantly turning and twisting. After travelling for upwards of two hours, they came to a point where two paths met and, without knowing, they took the one that led off to the left. This they followed for some hours, and then lay down to rest. They awoke at daybreak.

"I wonder where we have got to," Hallett said.

"I am afraid somehow we have gone wrong," Lisle exclaimed, after looking round, "and the light seems to be coming from the wrong quarter, altogether. We must have turned off from the main path without knowing it, and tramped a long distance in the wrong direction."

"I believe you are right, Bullen. What on earth are we to do now? Retrace our steps, or push on and chance it?"

"We have the choice of two evils, Hallett, but I think it would be better to go on than to turn back. In the first place, however, we must search for something to eat. We crossed several little streams on our way, so I don't think we are likely to be hard up for water; but food we must have. The natives are always able to find food in the forest and, if we cannot do that, we may come upon some deserted village, and get some bananas. We might even steal some, at night, from a village that is not deserted. At any rate, it is useless to stay here."

They set out at once, moving cautiously, and stopping frequently to listen for the soft trail of naked feet. They came at last to the spot where they had left the other track. Here they held another council, and decided that there was too much risk in turning on to the main path again; as that was sure to be occupied by the enemy, who would be burying their dead, or examining any loot that they had captured from the carriers. After proceeding two or three miles, they came upon another path on the right.

"This path," said Lisle, "will take us in the proper direction."

"I doubt if we shall ever get there," Hallett said. "I am feeling as hungry as a rat, already; and we have seen nothing to put between our lips since we started out, yesterday morning."

"It is a little rough," Lisle said cheerfully, "but we must hit upon a village, presently."

"I should not mind, if the path went on straight," Hallett said, "but it zigzags so much that we can never feel certain that we are going in the right direction."

"Well, you see," said Lisle, "we have passed two tracks to the left, since we struck into this road. I cannot help thinking that these must lead to villages, and that the one we are following is a sort of connecting link between them. I vote that we stop at the next one we come to."

"All right, old man! It seems to me that it will make no great difference which way we go. Indeed, so far as I can make out, by the glimpses we get of the sun, the path has turned a great deal, and is now going right back to that from which it started."

"I am afraid you are right, Hallett. However, there is one thing certain. The Ashantis don't cut paths through their forests without some reason, and I should not be surprised if we come to some large village, not far ahead."

After walking for another half hour, they found the bush getting thinner, and they could soon see light ahead. They went very cautiously now and, at last, stood at the end of a large clearing, in which stood an Ashanti village.

"Thank God there is something to eat ahead!" said Hallett. "There are lots of bananas growing round the village and, when it gets dark, we will get two big bunches. That should last us some time."

Utterly exhausted, they both lay down just inside the bush. Many villagers were moving about and, twice, native runners came in. The afternoon passed very slowly; but at length the sun set, and darkness fell quickly. They waited a couple of hours, to allow the village to get comparatively quiet; then they crept forward, and cut two great bunches of bananas from the first tree they came to and, returning to the forest, sat down and ate a hearty meal.

"I feel very much better," Hallett said, when he had finished. "Now, let us talk over what we had better do next."

"I should say we had better keep along by the edge of the bush, and see if we can strike some other path. It would be useless to go back by this one, as it would simply take us to the place we started from."

Hallett readily agreed to this suggestion, and the two officers started and gradually worked round the village. Presently they struck another path. Turning up this they again pushed forward, each carrying his bunch of bananas. After walking two hours, they lay down. The darkness was so dense that their rate of progress was extremely slow.

In the morning they went on again but, after walking for some hours, they came suddenly upon four of the enemy. As soon as these saw them, they rushed on them with a yell, firing their guns as they did so. Both were struck with slugs; and Lisle was knocked down, but quickly jumped to his feet again, revolver in hand. The Ashantis charged with their spears, but the revolver bullets were too much for them and, one by one, they dropped, the last man being shot just as he reached them. Two were only wounded, but Lisle shot them both.

"It would never do," he said, "for any of them to get to a village, and bring all its occupants upon us. We are neither of us fit to do much running, and the beggars would be sure to overtake us."

"It is horrid," Hallett said, "though I admit that it is necessary."

For four days they wandered on. The path never seemed to run straight. Though they found a plentiful supply of bananas, their strength was gradually failing.

On the fourth day they came upon a sheet, doubtless a portion of some officer's baggage that had been looted. Hallett, who was walking fast, passed it contemptuously. Lisle, however, picked it up and wound it round his body.

"We can lay it over us, Hallett, at night. It will at least help to keep the damp off us."

"We sha'n't want it long," Hallett said; "I think the game is almost up."

"Not a bit of it," Lisle said, cheerfully. "In spite of the turns and twistings we have made, I think we cannot be far from Coomassie, now. I thought I heard the sound of guns this morning, and it could have been from nowhere else."

Late that afternoon they came suddenly upon a great war camp and, at once, sat down in the bushes.

"What is to be done now?" Hallett said. "We cannot go back again. We are neither of us fit to walk a couple of miles."

Lisle sat for some minutes without answering him, and then said suddenly:

"I have an idea. I will cut down a sapling, seven or eight feet long; and fasten the sheet to it, so as to make a flag of truce. Then we will walk boldly into the village, and summon it to surrender. It is a bold stroke, but it may succeed. We know that most of them are getting tired of the war. We can give out that we have lost our way in the bush and, if the fellows take it kindly, well and good; but if not, we shall have our revolvers, and shall, of course, use them on ourselves."

"I am game to carry it out, Bullen. Your idea is a splendid one. Anyhow, it is our last chance. I really don't think I could go a mile farther. We know enough of their language to make ourselves understood."

"Yes. What with our servants, the Hausas, and the carriers, we have both picked up a good deal of the language."

With renewed spirits they cut down a sapling, stripped it of all its leaves and branches and, fastening the sheet to it, walked straight down towards the camp. There was an immediate stir in the camp. Many of the Ashantis ran for their arms but, when they saw that the two officers were alone, they calmed down. Presently two chiefs advanced, followed by some twenty warriors.

"Now, Bullen, muster up your knowledge of the language, and address them. Lay it on pretty thick."

"Chiefs," Lisle said, "we are come to you from the governor of Coomassie. He says that it must be clear to you, now, that you cannot stand against the white man; and that you will only bring ruin upon yourselves, and your country, by further resistance. They have therefore sent us to say that, if you will surrender, a small fine only shall be imposed upon you; and that your soldiers may retire to their villages, after having laid down their arms. While you are talking about this, we shall be glad if you will give us some provisions; for we have lost our way in the bush, coming here, and need food."

"If you follow me into the village," one of the chiefs said, "provisions shall be served to you, while we talk over what you say. We shall be glad of peace; for we see that, however strongly we make our stockades, your soldiers always take them. Our men are beginning to long to return to their people, for they have fought many times, and already have begun to complain. Do you guarantee our safety, if we return with you to your fort?"

"I can promise that," Lisle said. "We respect brave men, and are anxious that there should be an end to this fighting. When it is over, you will again live under the protection of our government, and the past will be forgotten. You attacked us without reason, and have suffered heavily for it. This is the third time that we have had to come up, and we hope that it will never be necessary to do so, again. We recognize each other's valour; we have each made sacrifices; and we hope that, when this war is over, we shall live together in peace. Had we only been armed as you are, the fortunes of war might have gone differently; but we have rifles and guns, and these must always give us victory, in the long run."

"We will talk it over," the chief said. "While we do so, you shall have food."

So saying, he turned and led the way to a house in the village, where food and native spirit were set before them.

"Your dodge has succeeded admirably," Hallett said, as they were waiting for the meal. "I think they will surrender."

"I hope they will," Lisle said; "but at any rate, I think they will treat us as coming in under a flag of truce; and will perhaps send an escort with us back to the camp. However, they are preparing a meal for us and, if the worst comes to the worst, it is much better to die full than fasting."

In a quarter of an hour two women entered; one carrying a bowl with four chickens, and a quantity of rice; the other a large jug of water, and a smaller one of native spirit. Not a word was spoken, while the meal was being eaten. At the end, nothing but bones remained of the four chickens.

"Thank God for a good dinner!" Hallett said, after the meal was over. "I feel, at present, at peace with all men; and I can safely recommend the chiefs, when they arrive at Coomassie, as being first-rate fellows; while I am sure that the chief will be greatly pleased that we have secured the submission of their tribe. It will be a big feather in our caps. When I came in here, I thought I could not go another mile to save my life; now I feel perfectly game for a seven or eight mile march to Coomassie."

At this moment, they noticed that there was a great hubbub in the camp. Half an hour later, the chiefs entered.

"We accept the terms you bring," one of them said, "and will go with you on condition that, if the terms are not as you say, we shall be allowed to return here, unmolested."

"That I can promise you," Lisle said. "We have not come here without reason, and the terms we offer are those that you can accept without dishonour. I can assure you of as good treatment as you have given us; and permission to leave the fort, and return to your people, if you are dissatisfied with the terms."

A quarter of an hour later the party—consisting of the two chiefs, ten armed followers, and the two officers—set out. The camp was, they learned, about six miles from Coomassie. After a march of three hours, they emerged from the forest into the cleared space round the fort. When they reached the outlying sentries they were challenged, but a word from Lisle sufficed to pass them on.

As they approached the fort a number of soldiers gathered round them and, when they neared the entrance, Colonel Willcocks himself came out.

"You remain here with the chiefs, Bullen. I will go on, and explain matters to the chief."

Lisle nodded, and Hallett hurried forward, while the others halted.

"Why, Mr. Hallett," Colonel Willcocks said, "we had given you up for dead; you and Mr. Bullen, whom I see over there. Whatever have you been doing now?"

Hallett gave a brief account of their adventure.

"You will probably be annoyed at us for acting as your messengers but, as we have induced the two leaders of the large war camp to come in, I trust that we shall be forgiven. We have promised them permission for their force to return, unmolested, to their villages; and I may say, from the formidable stockades they have made there, this result could not have been achieved, otherwise, without very heavy loss.

"I wish to say that the idea was entirely Bullen's. It seemed to be the only chance of getting through; for we were both utterly exhausted, when we reached the village."

"I think you have done extremely well, Hallett. I was about to send a force to capture that camp; and I am glad, indeed, of being relieved of the necessity of doing so. It means, perhaps, the saving of a couple of hundred lives. Besides, we should probably not have caught quarter of them; and the rest would have taken to the bush, and continued to give us trouble.

"Tell me exactly what the terms are, upon which they are willing to surrender."

"Simply the lives and freedom of the chiefs; and permission to their men to retire, unmolested, to their villages."

"Those are exactly the terms I have offered to some of their chiefs, who had sent in to ask for terms. Now, I will speak to them myself."

He accordingly walked forward, with Hallett, to where the chiefs were standing.

"I am glad, indeed, chiefs," he said, "that you have decided to take no further part in the war. You will stay here with us, until I hear that your camp is broken up; and you will then be at liberty to return to your own grounds. I thank you for receiving my messengers so kindly; as a reward for which I shall, when you leave, present you each with five hundred dollars. Henceforth, I trust that you will always remain on good terms with us, do all you can to aid us by sending in carriers, and will accept our rule frankly and truly.

"Now, I will ask you to come into the fort; where you will be treated as guests, until I hear of the dispersal of your camps."

The chiefs were much gratified by their reception; and sent off the escort, at once, to order the camp to be abandoned and burnt, and the stockades to be pulled down. Then they followed Colonel Willcocks into the fort, where a room was assigned to them, and everything done for their comfort.

As soon as the governor had retired with them, the other officers flocked down round Hallett and Lisle, to learn their adventures. Both were warmly congratulated upon their safe return; and Lisle came in for a large share of their congratulations when, in spite of his protestations, Hallett insisted on giving him the largest share of credit for the manner in which he had suggested the scheme, and had unquestionably been the means of saving their lives.

"Hallett had everything to do with it, except that," he said; "and that was only an accidental idea. We mutually helped each other, during those long days of tramping; and it was most fortunate for me that he was with me for, had I been alone, I don't think I should have had the strength of mind or body to hold on, when the prospect seemed altogether hopeless."

As they went down to the lines of their company, they were surrounded by the delighted blacks; who continued to cheer so heartily that it was some time before they could get an opportunity to tell what had taken place. Cheers again broke out, when the stories were finished. The men insisted on shaking their hands, and then started a war dance to show their satisfaction.

Then both retired to a shelter erected for them and, lying down, slept for some hours. When they awoke they ate a hearty meal; after which they agreed that, in a day or two, they would be fit for duty again.

"I shall mention your conduct in my despatches," the colonel said, next day. "You have not only saved your own lives; but have rendered very important service, in inducing those two chiefs and their followers to submit. From the information that we have been able to get, their camp was very strongly fortified, and could only have been taken after hard fighting; and even then, as has happened on all previous occasions, the main body would have escaped, rallied again a short distance away, and given us all the trouble of dispersing them, once more. As it is, I have no doubt that the influence of their chiefs will keep them quiet and, indeed, scattered as they will be among their villages, it will be difficult to persuade them to take up arms again.

"On second thoughts, I allowed them to leave this morning, with a column that was starting to collect the arms of the garrison. They seemed quite in earnest; and will, I have no doubt, succeed in inducing their men to part with their arms, without a squabble."

The detachment, indeed, returned in the evening. The success of their mission had been complete; and the natives had handed over their arms, and started off with their chiefs into the forests, after burning the camp and razing the stockades. They all seemed highly pleased that they should not be called upon for more fighting, and had individually taken an oath that they would never again fight the white men.

Several other flags of truce came in, and many chiefs surrendered. The Queen Mother, the most important of the leaders, tendered her submission. Colonel Willcocks gave her four days in which to prove the truth of her submission by coming in, in person. Shortly, however, before the truce expired, she sent in an impudent message that she would fight till the end.

Some of the chiefs who had been foremost in their opposition, and who had personally taken part in the torture and death of those who fell into their hands, were tried by court martial; and either shot or hanged, it being necessary to prove to the natives that even their greatest chiefs were not spared, and that certain punishment would be dealt out to those who had taken part in the murder of soldiers, or carriers, who had fallen into their hands.

The greatest tragedy of this campaign became known, on the 8th of September, through a letter from a native clerk who was with the Akim levies, which were commanded by Captains Willcox and Benson. These levies had worked up on our right flank, as we advanced from the south, in the same way as the Denkeras had done on the west. They were as cowardly, and as terrified of the Ashantis, as all the other neighbouring races. In fact, the only work they were fit for was living in deserted villages, or cutting crops and eating up the produce.

Three thousand of these levies were ordered to cooperate with Colonel Brake's column. They were met by the Ashantis, and bolted as soon as the latter opened fire; and Captain Benson, deserted by his cowardly followers, fell. In a letter he had sent home, a few days before his death, he expressed in the strongest terms his opinion of the men under his command, saying:

"If it comes to a real show, after all, Heaven help us! Three-quarters of my protective army are arrant cowards, all undisciplined, and quite impossible to hold."

The native levies cannot be compared with the disciplined troops. They were simply a motley mob, armed with stray guns, arms, and powder, and their pay is what they can loot; whereas the African private's drill and duties are identical with those of the British private. His orders are given to him in English, and his knowledge of our language is probably superior to that of most Indian or Egyptian soldiers; while the British soldiers in West Africa are rarely able to understand the language of their men.

A column had started, at once, to Captain Willcox's assistance. They returned, however, in ten days, having been unable to come up to him, as he had retired fifty miles farther to the east. They had no fighting, the enemy having gone north; but they ascertained that all the country immediately to the south was free from rebels and desirous of peace. The spot where Captain Benson's action had been fought was strewn with dead bodies, baggage, and rifles; evidence of the disordered flight. It seemed that the levies bolted, as soon as they were fired on. Then, with a few trained volunteers, the white men hastily entrenched themselves; and held out till late in the afternoon when, their ammunition having run short, they were compelled to retire, which they did fighting. It was during the retreat that Captain Benson was shot.

Another column came in on the following day, after five days' reconnaissance. It had gone by the same road by which the governor had broken out, on the 23rd of June. The road was entirely deserted, the villages destroyed, and the crops burnt. They made no attempt to search the bush but, on the path, they found ninety-eight headless skeletons; a painful testimony of the number of soldiers and carriers who had died of privation, and hardship, during the retreat.

Information now came in that, to the north, the most reckless of the Ashantis had again concentrated, and were determined to make another stand. On the 16th there was a big review of the seventeen hundred troops and the nine guns of the garrison. The heavy guns were exercised on a stockade, similar to those of the enemy. Hitherto they had not been altogether successful; as it was found that, owing to the large bursting charge, the range had to be estimated at double its real distance. Six shots smashed a barricade which was six feet high by six feet thick.

Friendly chiefs, who were invited to witness the experiment, were profoundly impressed; and there can be no doubt that the feat was reported to the enemy in the field, for they raised no stockade in the future, and reverted to their old plan of bush fighting.

The heavy and continuous rains were now rapidly bringing on sickness, and the officers were attacked in forms that were quite novel to them.

"I don't know what is the matter with me," Lisle said, one morning, "but I am swollen all round the neck. I once had mumps, when I was a little boy and, if it were not so ridiculous, I should declare that I had got them again."

Hallett burst into a fit of laughter.

"I expect you are going to have all your old illnesses again—scarlet fever, measles, whooping cough, and the rest. We must see that the hut is fitted up for you, with something as much like a bed as possible, and a fire for making a posset, or whatever they give you."

"It is all very well for you to laugh, Hallett, but look at my neck."

"Well, it is swollen," Hallett agreed; "and I expect that you have caught a cold, when we were wandering about in the bush. Seriously, I should advise you to put a piece of warm flannel round your neck, or else go across and consult the doctor."

"I think I will do so, Hallett. It hurts a good deal, I can tell you and, as you see, I can hardly drink my tea."

After breakfast was over, he went to the tent of the principal doctor.

"I have come, sir," he said, "to ask you about my neck."

"You don't say so, Bullen! Why, yours is the third case I have seen this morning! Let me look at it.

"Yes, the symptoms are just the same as in the others. If this were England, I should say that an epidemic of mumps has broken out; but of course it cannot be that.

"Well, I have sent the other two into hospital, and you had better go there, too. Is it painful?"

"It is rather painful, and I can hardly swallow at all."

"Well, when I come across to the hospital, I will put you in with the others. I certainly cannot make out what it is, nor why it came on so suddenly. The only thing I can put it down to is the constant rains that we have been having, though I really don't see why wet weather should have that effect. I should advise you to keep on hot poultices."

In the evening another patient came in, and Lisle burst out laughing, when he saw that it was Hallett.

"Oh, you have come to the nursery, have you? I hope you have made up your mind to go through scarlet fever, or measles, Hallett?"

"Don't chaff. It is no laughing matter."

"No? I thought you took it quite in that light, this morning. Well, you see we have all got poultices on; and the orderly will make one for you, at once. My face is bigger than it was this morning, and what it is going to come to, I cannot imagine. Although the doctor said, frankly, that he did not understand it; he seemed to think that there was nothing very serious about it."

The next day the swelling had abated and, two days later, both of them were discharged from the hospital; to their great delight, for they heard that a column was just going to start, and that their companies were included in it.

On the following day the column started. It was nearly a thousand strong, with guns, and rations for twenty-eight days. This force was to penetrate into the northwestern country. The enemy here had sent an impudent message that they would not surrender; and that, if they were attacked, they intended to revert to their former tactics, and direct all their efforts to shooting down the officers and, when these were disposed of, they would have little difficulty in dealing with the native troops.

On the second day, when twenty-five miles from Coomassie, the enemy were met with in force; and it was found that the message they had sent was true, for there was no stockade, and the enemy resorted entirely to sniping. They were commanded by Kofia, one of the most turbulent and determined of their chiefs. The attack did not come as a surprise for, the day before, a number of Ashantis had been found in a village which was rushed. The active allies now searched the woods thoroughly, and succeeded in ascertaining the spot where the enemy had their war camp. They had been careful that the Ashantis had no notion of our approach, and a number of them were shot down by the Maxims and rifles.

The enemy, who held a strong position on the hilltop, rushed down and attacked our front and flank. Their number was estimated at four thousand. Three companies on each side entered the bush, and soon succeeded in pressing the enemy into a path; where they were fiercely charged by the West African Field Force, under Major Melliss. That officer was wounded; and Captain Stevenson, who was close to him, was shot in the chest.

For a moment the soldiers wavered but, almost immediately, dashed on again to avenge the loss of their officers. The charge was very effective. Those of the enemy who gradually assembled were bayoneted, and the rest fled.

Captain Stevenson's death was greatly regretted. He and Captain Wright, of another company, had asked for leave to accompany the force. As the one had no better claim than the other, Colonel Willcocks suggested that they should toss for it. They did so, and Captain Stevenson won; but what he deemed his good fortune cost him his life.

After the fight was over, there was a short pause to reorganize the force; and an advance was made to a village, three miles ahead, the intention being to attack the next morning. That evening, however, a flag came in, with an offer to surrender. Word was sent back that the offer would be accepted, if made unconditionally; and at seven o'clock in the evening a chief, a large number of men, four hundred guns, and some sheep arrived. They said that Kofia was holding a village, farther on; and would again give fight there. The force returned with them to Coomassie.

The next day, some scouts brought in the news that the enemy had again concentrated, and their numbers had been raised to four thousand by their junction with another fighting tribe. Kofia was in command, and a big war camp had been established some twelve miles away on the Berekum road. Berekum itself, which was a hundred and forty miles to the north, was reported to be invested, and had asked for help but, as so large an Ashanti force was near at hand, no men could be spared for the purpose.

A column twelve hundred strong, with five guns, and every available man in the garrison who could carry a gun, moved out early on the 29th, to give battle. It was followed by a supply column, and the bulk of the carriers.

Nine miles were accomplished without any opposition. Then a small Adansi outpost retired on their approach. The commandant decided to halt, for the night, at a deserted village. It was a miserable place. The huts had all been burnt by the rebels; so that the troops had to sleep in the open, in a steady downpour of rain. The Europeans tried to get rest in some hastily-constructed shelters, but a perfect tornado of wind was blowing, and swept the ground on which they were built.

Next day the troops marched, in their drenched clothes, through a heavy rain. Between seven and eight, however, this ceased and, almost at the same moment, a tremendous fire burst out upon them. The advance guard and support at once became engaged, but the enemy clung with such determination to their position, and contested every foot of the ground so stoutly, that two companies of reinforcements had to be called up.

Two companies were sent out into the bush, and eventually succeeded in getting partly behind the enemy, and forcing them to retreat. More troops were sent out on the left; and a company was instructed to move through the bush, on an extended line. In this way the enemy were driven out of the jungle, and forced to retire slowly up the hill.

Then the main column started, led by Major Melliss and headed by the Sikhs. The enemy, however, did not fly; and Major Melliss dashed into the thick of them, with the few men he could collect. An Ashanti fired at him, at close quarters; but a native soldier ran the man through. As they struggled on the ground, another Ashanti fired at Major Melliss, hitting him in the foot. He was practically unarmed, as he could use neither his sword nor his revolver; and would have been killed, had not another officer come up and shot the wounded Ashanti.

As the head of the column reached the spot, a heavy fire was directed upon the enemy, who were soon in headlong flight. The village in the rear of the position was taken, at the point of the bayonet. One hundred and fifty of their dead were found, lying on the battlefield; and it was learned, from prisoners, that over five hundred had been wounded.

The defeat was a crushing one. Several of their most determined chiefs were found among the dead. So hopelessly demoralized were the enemy that they never rallied again.

The victory had been achieved with very small loss, owing to the excellence of Colonel Willcocks' force. The casualties consisted only of two officers severely, and two slightly wounded; and twenty-six rank and file killed and wounded.

When the wounded had been dressed, and the scattered units collected, an advance was made to the next village; where the wearied troops slept, as it was still doubtful whether the rebels might not rally. Major Cobbe was sent on, next morning, with eight hundred men. He was to go as far as he could, but to return the next evening.

The march was a very trying one, the weather terrible. After going four miles they reached the bank of an unfordable river, some forty yards wide. The Pioneers, although they had no technical equipment, succeeded in making a rough bridge by the afternoon; and Major Cobbe decided to push on to Kofia. At ten o'clock they reached this place and, to the general relief, it was found to be deserted. The troops, therefore, marched in and turned into the huts, amid a howling tornado.

The return journey, next day, was even worse. The tracks, in many parts, were now covered with between two and three feet of water. The bridge, though submerged, had fortunately not been carried away; and the troops were able to cross, and march into camp the same evening, having carried out their orders without encountering the smallest opposition.



Chapter 20: At Home.

It was now found necessary to give the worn-out troops a long rest. They had been on constant service, for months; the stream of invalids that had been sent down to the coast daily increased, and the sick list had already reached an appalling length. The want of fresh rations was very much felt, and any large combination of troops not only caused great discomfort, but engendered various diseases, smallpox among them. In addition to this, as the black soldiers always go barefooted, their feet had got into a deplorable state.

The halt, however, had a good effect; and there was general satisfaction that it was unlikely that they would be called upon to make further efforts, as no news came of fresh gatherings of the enemy.

Colonel Willcocks now saw that the time was come to issue a proclamation promising, henceforward, to spare the lives of all rebels that surrendered. This was done, with the result that large numbers of the enemy came in. Almost all of them declared that they would have surrendered, long ago, had they not feared to do so.

On October 6th, the Commandant and British Resident held a state levee. It was attended by all the friendly and submitted kings. These vied with each other in their pomp; they were dressed in gorgeous robes and carried their state umbrellas, while their attendants danced round them, beating drums and blowing horns. After the palaver was over, target practice took place, with the guns. Canvas dummies were riddled with bullets by the Maxims; and stockades, specially constructed for the purpose, were demolished by the big guns. The natives retired, greatly impressed.

Two days later, Colonel Willcocks got up a rifle meeting for a cup; and he himself took his place among the competitors.

Five days later, news came that a fresh force of the enemy had gathered. Two columns were sent out—one of seven hundred and the other of five hundred men—but, though they traversed a wide stretch of country, they had no fighting. They received, however, the submission of a number of chiefs and villages.

The new commander of the Ashanti force was captured, tried, and hanged. The queen also was caught and, on the 24th of April, a telegram was sent home with the words:

"The campaign is at an end."

There can be no doubt that this expedition will lead to great results. The natives of Ashanti and the surrounding tribes have received a lesson that will not be forgotten for a great number of years and, long before that time, it may be hoped that civilization will have made such strides there that there will be no more chance of trouble. They have been taught that they are absolutely unable to stand against the white man; that neither distance, the thickness of their forests, stockades, nor weather can check the progress of British troops; and that resistance can only draw down upon them terrible loss, and the destruction of their villages and crops.

They had received no such lessons in the previous expeditions. That of Governor Sir Charles M'Carthy had been entirely defeated, and the governor himself killed. Another expedition, in 1867, met with a total failure. Sir Garnet Wolseley, in 1873, marched to Coomassie but, though he burnt the place, he had at once to fall back to the coast. In 1895 Sir Francis Scott led an expedition which, for some reason or other, met with no resistance.

Now Ashanti had been swept from end to end, and fire and sword had destroyed the major part of the villages. Garrisons were to be left, at Coomassie, strong enough to put down any local risings; and the natives had been taught that, small as our army might be in their country, it could at any time be largely augmented, at very short notice. Most of all, they had learned that, even without the assistance of white soldiers, the native troops—whom they had hitherto despised—were their superiors in every respect.

The completion of the railway to Coomassie has enabled troops to be sent up from the coast, in a few hours, to the heart of the country; and the numerous companies formed to work the gold mines will, in themselves, prove a great check to trouble as, no doubt, the miners will, in future, be well armed.

Colonel Willcocks left the headquarters staff a few days after the despatch of his telegram. He rode through a two-mile avenue of troops and friendly natives and, on arriving at Cape Coast, had a magnificent reception. Major C. Burroughs remained in command of Coomassie, with a strong garrison.

A few days later, the rest of the force moved down to the coast. Lisle and Hallett were carried down in hammocks, for both were completely worn out by the hardships of the campaign and, as there was no limit to the numbers of carriers that could be obtained, they gladly acquiesced in the decision of the medical officer that they ought to be carried. Both, indeed, had the seeds of fever in their system and, when they arrived at Cape Coast, were laid up with a sharp attack. As a result they were, like the great portion of the officers who had gone through the campaign, invalided home.

A day after his arrival in London, Lisle was visited by his friend Colonel Houghton, at whose house he had spent most of his leave when he was last in England.

"I saw your name in the paper, yesterday, as among the returned invalids; and thought that I should find you in the hotel where you stayed before."

"I wrote yesterday afternoon to you, sir."

"Ah! Of course, I have not got that letter. And now, how are you?"

"I am a little shaky, sir, but the voyage has done wonders for me. I have no doubt that I shall soon be myself, again."

"You have not seen the last gazette, I suppose?"

"No, sir."

"Well, there was a list of promotions, and I am happy to say that you have got the D.S.O. for your services. I dare say you know that you succeeded to your company, just six months ago?"

"No, I did not know that. I knew that I stood high among the lieutenants, and expected to get it before long; but I am proud, indeed, of the D.S.O."

"To have won the V.C. and the D.S.O. is to attain the two greatest distinctions a soldier can wear.

"Now, you had better come down with me to my place in the country; the air of London is not the best, for a man who has been suffering from African fever."

"I certainly want bracing air, and I shall be only too glad to go home with you; for I feel it is more my home than any other in England."

As soon as Lisle began to recover a little, Colonel Houghton introduced him to his neighbours, who made a good deal of the young soldier. Five years had elapsed, since he had started with the Pioneers for Chitral, and he was twenty-one.

Soon after he went to the colonel's, he was speaking to him of his friend and constant companion in the late campaign; and the colonel at once invited Hallett down. Hallett accepted the invitation, and soon joined them. He had pretty well recovered, and the campaign had knocked all his little laziness and selfishness out of him. He also had received the D.S.O.

"I am sure, Colonel Houghton," he said one day, "that I owe a tremendous lot to Lisle. He was always cheerful, and his unmerciful chaffing kept me alive. I am quite sure I should never have got through that time, when we were lost in the forest, if it hadn't been for him. I was a confirmed grumbler, too; but he never let me indulge my discontent. Altogether you have no idea, Colonel Houghton, how much he did for me."

"Well, you know, Captain Hallett, how much he did for me."

"No, sir," Hallett said, in surprise; "he has often spoken to me of you, and of your kindness to him; but he did not tell me about anything he had done for you."

"Well, he saved my life at the risk of his own. If he has not told you the story, I will."

And he related the manner in which Lisle had won his V.C.

"Why did you not tell me about it, Bullen? It was a splendid thing to do. You did tell me, I remember, how you got the V.C. by helping to get an officer out of the grasp of the Afridis, but you gave no details."

"There was nothing to tell about it, Hallett. I only did what I am sure you would have done, in my case."

"I am by no means sure of that," Hallett said. "I am always slow in making up my mind about anything; and should never have thought of putting a wounded officer on my horse, and sending him off, while I remained to be cut to pieces. I hope I should have stood by him, and been cut down with him; but I am certain that I should not have thought of the other thing, with the Afridis rushing down upon me, only thirty yards away.

"You ought to have let me know about it. You did bully me a great deal, you know; and though it was all for my good, still I think I should have put up with it better, if I had known that you had done such a thing as that."

"I think you put up with it very well, Hallett. Chaffing you, and getting you sometimes into a rage—which was pretended, rather than real—did me a lot of good. I am sure I should have given in, several times, had you not acted as a sort of tonic; and had I not been sure that it did you as much good as it did me."

A month after Hallett's arrival, the colonel said, one morning:

"Good morning, Lisle! I am going out with the hounds, tomorrow. They meet near here. As you are not great riders, I won't press you to go with me but, at least, you will ride with me to the meet. It is sure to be a good gathering, and you will probably meet some nice girls; who will, no doubt, have much greater attractions, for young fellows like you, than a gallop round the country."

"They have no particular attraction for me, sir," Lisle laughed. "It will be time enough for that, in another eight or ten years. It is more in Hallett's line."

"But we shall be chaffed, if we don't ride after the hounds, Colonel," Hallett said.

"Not at all," the colonel replied, "you have a first-rate excuse. You are only just recovering from fever. That would get you no end of commiseration and pity."

"In that case," Lisle said, "I think I should prefer staying at home. I don't feel that I need the least pity, and don't want to get it on false pretences."

"It won't be false pretences," the colonel said. "I have taken care that all the ladies I shall introduce you to should know what you did for me, and how you did it."

"I am sorry to hear it, Colonel. It is really hateful, being regarded as a man who has done something, especially at my age. However, I shall leave Hallett to bear the brunt of it. I know that he is on the lookout for a wife."

"I don't think you know anything of the sort, Lisle. It will be time for that when I get my majority."

"Ah! That is all very well, Hallett; I know you took a good half-hour dressing your hair, previous to that dinner party last week."

"It has to be brushed. It was nearly all cut off, when we were in Cape Coast, and one doesn't want to go out looking like a fretful porcupine."

So, laughing and joking, they started the next morning. There was, as the colonel had predicted, a large meet. Many ladies came on horseback, and others in carriages. The two young officers were soon engaged, chatting and laughing, with the latter.

"Do you mean to say that you are not going to ride, Captain Bullen?" one of the ladies on horseback said.

"In the first place, Miss Merton, I am an infantry officer and, except for a few weeks when I was on the staff of Colonel Lockhart, I have never done any riding. In the second place, I am forbidden to take horse exercise, at present. Moreover, although no doubt you will despise me for the confession, I dislike altogether the idea of a hundred men on horseback, and forty or fifty dogs, all chasing one unfortunate animal."

"But the unfortunate animal is a poacher of the worst kind."

"Very well, then, I should shoot him, as a poacher. Why should a hundred horsemen engage in hunting the poor brute down? Bad horseman as I am, I should not mind taking part in a cavalry charge; but hunting is not at all to my taste."

"You like shooting, Captain Bullen?"

"I like shooting, when there is something to be shot; in the first place, a dangerous animal, and in the second, an animal that is able to show fight. I have several times taken part in tiger hunts, and felt myself justified in doing so, because the animals had made themselves a scourge to unarmed villagers."

"I am afraid that you are a sort of Don Quixote," the girl laughed.

"Not quite that, Miss Merton; though I own I admire the good knight, greatly. We are going to move off, now, to the covert that has to be drawn; and I know I shall shock you, when I say that I sincerely hope that nothing will be found there."

The whole party then moved off, and the hounds were put into a covert. Five minutes later, a whimper was heard. It soon spread into a chorus, and then a fox dashed out from the opposite side; followed, in a couple of minutes, by the whole pack.

"Well, that is fun, is it not, Captain Bullen?" said a girl, to whom he was talking, in one of the carriages.

"It is a pretty sight," he said, "and if the fox always got away, I should like it. As it is, I say honestly that I don't."

The meet now broke up, and the carriages dispersed. Hallett and Lisle accepted an invitation to lunch with the ladies to whom they were talking. Two hours later, Lisle was on the point of leaving, when a groom rode up at full speed.

"Is Captain Bullen here?" he asked.

With a presentiment of evil, Lisle went out.

"The colonel has had a bad accident, sir. He was brought in, half an hour ago, by the servants. I understand that he asked for you; and three of us at once rode off, in different directions, to find you."

Lisle called Hallett and, in five minutes, they were mounted and dashed off. As they entered the house, they were met by the surgeon.

"Is he badly hurt'?" Lisle asked, anxiously.

"I fear that he is hurt to death, Captain Bullen. His horse slipped as it was taking a fence, and fell on the top of him. He has suffered severe internal injuries, and I greatly fear that there is not the least hope for him."

"Is he conscious?" Lisle asked, with deep emotion.

"Yes, he is conscious, and I believe he understands that his case is hopeless. He has asked for you, several times, since he was brought in; so you had better go to him, at once."

With a sinking heart, Lisle went upstairs. The colonel was lying on his bed.

"I am glad you have come in time, my dear boy," he said faintly, as Lisle entered. "I am afraid that I am done for, and it is a consolation for me to know that I have no near relatives who will regret my loss. I have had a good time of it, altogether; and would rather that, as I was not to die on the battlefield, death should come as it has. It is far better than if it came gradually.

"Sit by me, lad, till the end comes. I am sure it will not be long. I am suffering terribly, and the sooner it comes, the better."

The ashy gray of the colonel's face sufficed to tell Lisle that the end was, indeed, near at hand. The colonel only spoke two or three times and, at ten o'clock at night, passed away painlessly.

Upon Lisle devolved the sad work of arranging his funeral. He wrote to the colonel's lawyer, asking him to come down. Hallett had left the house at once, though Lisle earnestly begged him to stay till the funeral was over. The lawyer arrived on the morning of the funeral.

"I have taken upon myself, sir," Lisle said, "to make all the arrangements for the funeral, seeing that there was no one else to do it."

"You were the most proper person to do so," the lawyer said, gravely, "as you will see when the will is read, on our return from the grave."

When all was over, Lisle asked two or three of the colonel's most intimate friends to be present at the reading of the will. It was a very short one. The colonel made bequests to several military charities; and then appointed his adopted son, Lisle Bullen, Lieutenant in His Majesty's Rutlandshire regiment, the sole heir to all his property.

This came almost as a surprise to Lisle. The colonel had indeed told him that he had adopted him, and he was prepared to learn that he had left him a legacy; but he had no idea that he would be left sole heir.

"I congratulate you, sir," the lawyer said, when he folded up the paper. "Colonel Houghton stated to me, fully, his reasons for making such a disposition of his property and, as he had no near relations, I was able to approve of it heartily. I may say that he has left nearly sixteen thousand pounds. The other small legacies will take about a thousand, and you will therefore have some fifteen thousand pounds, which is all invested in first-rate securities."