I have
given a somewhat long description of this gallant ride, because it shows
that there are few obstacles that can stop brave men and good horses.
Captain Wright now assumed command of Chakdara, but the direction of the
defense he still confided to Lieutenant Rattray, as fighting behind
walls is a phase of warfare with which the cavalry soldier is little
acquainted.
At 11.30, in the heat of the day the tribesmen attacked again. They
surrounded the north and east sides of the fort, and made strenuous
efforts to get in. They suffered heavy losses from the musketry of the
defence, and their dead lay scattered thickly on the approaches. Nor
were they removed till nightfall. Many Ghazis, mad with fanaticism,
pressed on carrying standards, heedless of the fire, until they fell
riddled with bullets under the very walls.
To communicate with the Malakand was now almost impossible. To
heliograph, it was necessary that the operator should be exposed to a
terrible fire. In the evening the signal tower was surrounded by men in
stone sungars, who kept up an incessant fusillade, and made all
exposure, even for an instant, perilous.
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