Fix Bay'nets Part 40

Here they come; they must be half in by now. There's some on 'em close under the winder, sir. Hear 'em puffing and breathing?"

"Yes, yes; I can hear them there quite plainly, Gedge. I hope they will secure them now, for every one's sake."

"So do I, sir; but they're not caught till they're all in and the gates is shut. Our sheep in London's wild enough when they take fright, while these things is more like goats, and you know how they can run up among the rocks. Oh, steady, steady, out there; look sharp and shut those gates," whispered the listener. "Oh, do mind! If I sees all them legs o' mutton cutting their sticks off to the mountains I shall go mad."

"What's that?" cried Bracy, as in the wild flush of excitement that flashed through his brain it seemed as if he had received a galvanic shock, and he sat right up in his bed, to keep in that position, gazing wildly towards the darkened window.

Gedge doubtless replied, but his voice was drowned by the wild, warlike yell of triumph which rose from the court--a yell which told its own tale of the success of a _ruse_. The sheep had been driven into the court through the mist and darkness--a great flock; but with them fully a hundred tulwar and knife armed Dwats in their winter sheepskin-coats, who had crept in with the quiet sheep on all-fours, the placid animals having doubtless been accustomed to the manoeuvre, thought out and practised for weeks past, with a so far perfectly successful result.

The yell was answered by the Colonel's voice shouting clearly the order for the gates to be shut; but the ma.s.sacre had begun, the mad Mussulman fanatics who had undertaken the forlorn hope being ready to do or die; and, as the rattle of the moving gates began, an answering war-cry came from not far away, the rush of a large body of men making for the opening being plainly heard.

"Taken by surprise!" shouted Bracy wildly as he realised the horror.

"Gedge, it means the slaughter of the poor women and our wounded comrades in the ward. Here, quick, my sword! my revolver! Quick! get one yourself."

"I've got yours, sir, here," cried Gedge excitedly as he s.n.a.t.c.hed them from where they hung. "Don't--don't move, sir; you're too weak and bad, and I'll keep the window and the door, sir. They shan't come near yer while I'm alive. After that--here, ketch hold, sir--your pistol, sir-- after that you must lie still and shoot."

The light had been extinguished, so that the sheep should not be scared by a glare from the window; and in the darkness, amidst the howls, yells, and shouts in the courtyard, Gedge felt for the bed so as to thrust the loaded revolver into Bracy's hand. But, to his astonishment, a strong hand was laid upon his shoulder, and the sword was s.n.a.t.c.hed from his grasp, while Bracy cried in a voice the lad hardly knew:

"Keep the pistol, close that door and window, and come on. Gedge, lad, we must try and keep the ward, before these savages get in."

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

GHAZIS AND CUNNING.

As Bracy, closely followed by Gedge, made for the door, the noise and confusion in the darkness were horrible. There were nearly a score of sick and wounded in the two rows of beds, some of whom were groaning and appealing for help; but the majority were making brave efforts to get on some clothes, and one man was shouting for the nurse to go to the armoury and bring as many rifles and bayonets as she could carry. But there was no answer to their appeals, as Bracy, tottering at first, but growing stronger as he pa.s.sed between the two rows of beds, struggled for the door at the end, and pa.s.sed through into a little lobby, from which another door led at once into the court, a mere slit of a window at the side admitting a few faint rays of light.

"Ha!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Bracy in a tone of thankfulness. "The door's fast, Gedge, lad, and we must defend it to the last. We can do no good outside."

"Who's this?" cried a harsh, sharp voice. "Bracy, my dear boy, you here?" cried the Doctor almost simultaneously.

"Nurse!--Doctor!" panted the young officer.

"Yes, here we are, my boy, on duty; and bless this woman! she's as plucky as half-a-dozen men."

"Nonsense!" said Mrs Gee harshly. "You don't suppose I was going to stand still and let the wretches ma.s.sycree my patients--do you, Doctor?"

"No, my dear, I don't think anything of the kind, and certainly I won't.

Have you got plenty of cartridges?"

"A dozen packets, and there's four rifles with fixed bayonets behind the door."

"I'll have one, my la.s.s. I was afraid I should have to take to my surgical instruments. But, look here, Bracy, my boy, you can do no good, so go back to bed and send that scoundrel Gedge here. He's hiding under one of the beds. He could load for nurse, here, and me, while we fired."

"If you warn't like one o' my sooperior officers," snarled Gedge, "I'd say something nasty to you, Doctor. Give us one of them rifles, old lady; I'm better with them and a bay'net than with this popgun. You take your pistol, Mr Bracy, sir."

"No, no--yes, yes," said the Doctor hurriedly. "You may want it, my boy. Now, then, go back to your bed. You'll be in the way here."

"In the way of some of these yelling fiends, I hope, Doctor," said Bracy, thrusting the revolver into the waistband of his hurriedly dragged on trousers. "Now, then, where will they try to break in?"

"The first window they can reach, when they fail at this door. You, Gedge, watch that window. No one can get in, but some one is sure to try."

The keen point of a bayonet was held within a few inches of the opening the next moment, and then the little party, awaiting the attack, stood listening to the terrible sounds from without. It was hard work to distinguish one from the other, for the confusion was now dreadful; but, from time to time, Bracy, as he stood quivering there as if a strange thrill of reserved force was running through every vein, nerve, and muscle, made out something of what was going on, and primarily he grasped the fact, from the loud clanging, that the great gates had been closed and barred against the entrance of those who were rushing forward to the support of the fanatical Ghazis who had been so successful in their _ruse_.

Then came other sounds which sent a ray of hope through the confusion; first one or two shots rang out, then there was a ragged volley, and a more or less steady fire was being kept up from the towers and walls.

But this was doubtless outward, begun by the sentries, and aided by the two companies that rapidly mounted to their side by the orders of their officers, who felt that it would be madness to begin firing in the dark upon the Ghazis raging about the court, for fear of hitting their unarmed friends.

It was some minutes before the Colonel could reach the guard-room, which was held by the relief, and he had a couple of narrow escapes from cuts aimed at him; but he reached the place at last, in company with about a dozen unarmed men, and in a few minutes there was one nucleus here ready with fixed bayonets to follow his orders. Other men made a rush for their quarters from the walls where they had flocked, unarmed, to be spectators of the capture; but to reach them and their rifles and ammunition they had to cross the court, which was now one tossing chaos of cutting and slashing fiends in human form, rushing here and there, and stumbling over the frightened sheep, which plunged and leaped wildly, adding greatly to the din by their piteous bleating, many to fall, wounded, dying, and struggling madly, beneath the sword-cuts intended for the garrison. These were flying unarmed seeking for refuge, and often finding none, but turning in their despair upon their a.s.sailants, many of whom went down, to be trampled under foot by those whom they sought to slay.

The firing now began to rapidly increase, the flashings of the rifles seeming to cut through the dense mist, now growing thicker with the smoke, which, instead of rising, hung in a heavy cloud, mingling with the fog, and making the efforts of the defenders more difficult as it increased. For some time every one seemed to have lost his head, as, in spite of the efforts of the officers, the panic was on the increase, and the Ghazis had everything their own way. Colonel Graves, as soon as he had got his little force together, gave the word for a rush with the bayonet, and led the way, his men following bravely, but the difficulties they encountered were intense. It was almost impossible to form in line, and when at last this was roughly achieved in the darkness, and the order to advance was given, it was upon a ma.s.s of struggling sheep mingled with the yelling fiends; and, to the horror of the line of st.u.r.dy men, they found that to fire, or advance with the bayonet, would be to the destruction of friend as well as foe.

To add to the horror, the wild and piteous shrieks of women arose now from the portion of the fort containing the officers' quarters; and at this Roberts, who was firing with his men down into the seething ma.s.s of fresh a.s.sailants swarming at the gates and striving, so far vainly, to mount the walls, gave a sharp order.

"Here, cease firing, my lads," he yelled. "Drummond--Drummond! Where's Mr Drummond?"

"Gone, sir," came from one of the men.

"What! down?" cried Roberts.

"No, sir; he said something about go on firing, and hooked it off along the ramp."

An angry groan arose, and Roberts muttered something about his friend before shouting again.

"Sergeant," he cried, "take the command of your men, and keep these dogs from mounting the gate. I am going to lead my company to the officers'

quarters. Ready, my lads? No firing. The bayonet. We must save those women, or die."

A loud, sharp, snapping hurrah rang out, seeming to cut through the mist, and then at Roberts's "Forward!" they dashed after him at the double, to reach the next descent into the court, which meant right among the yelling Ghazis, but at the opposite end to that where Colonel Graves and the Major--who had reached them now with a couple of dozen men, mostly armed with the Indians' tulwars--had managed to struggle into line.

Very few minutes elapsed before the shouting of Captain Roberts's men, as they dashed down, two abreast, cutting into the ma.s.s below, added to the wild confusion, and for a time it seemed as if the struggle would become hopeless, as the brave fellows' strength began to yield to exhaustion, for the power to combine seemed gone, and the _melee_ grew more a hand-to-hand fight, in which the savage Ghazis had the advantage with their keen swords, their adversaries wanting room to use their bayonets after a few fierce and telling thrusts.

"This is useless, Graham," panted the Colonel at last; "these sheep hamper every movement. We can do nothing in this horrible darkness. I am going to give the order for every man to make for the walls, where we must defend ourselves with the bayonet as the fellows attack us. We must wait for morning, and then shoot them down."

"And by then they will have slaughtered every woman and non-combatant in the fort," growled the Major savagely.

"No; we must each lead a company or two for the quarters. You take as many as you can collect straight for the ladies' rooms."

"Roberts has gone ten minutes ago, and is fighting his way across."

"Go round by the walls on the other side and get in behind. I am going to rush for the hospital. Bracy and all those poor fellows must be saved."

"Too late," said the Major bitterly. "Two of the men here left a score of the hounds fighting their way into the ward. Oh, if we only had a light!"

Strange things occur when least expected, and there are times when, as if by a miracle, the asked-for gift is bestowed.

"G.o.d bless you, Graves!" whispered the Major; "if we don't meet again, I'll do all that man can do."

"I know it, Graham. You'll save the women, I'm sure. Ah! what's that?"