Chapter 12: A Tribal Fight.
Two days after Lisle's return he was sent for by General Lockhart,who requested him to give him a full account of his capture andescape.
"This is the second time, Mr. Bullen, that your conduct has beenbrought before me. Your defence of that hut, when you were unableto make your retirement to the camp, with a handful of men, was asingularly gallant affair. I lost one of my aides-de-camp in thelast fight, and I am pleased to offer you the vacancy. You may takepossession of his horse until we return; when it will, of course,be sold. I shall be glad to have a young officer of so much courageand resource on my staff."
"Thank you, sir! I am extremely obliged to you for the offer, whichI gladly accept; and feel it a very high honour, indeed, to beattached to your staff."
"Very well, Mr. Bullen, I will put you in orders, tomorrowmorning."
On his return to the regiment, Lisle was warmly congratulated whenthey heard the honour that had been bestowed on him; but there weremany expressions of regret at his leaving them.
"It will not be for long," he said, "for I suppose that, in anotherfortnight, we shall be across the frontier. If it had been at thebeginning of the campaign, I should certainly have refused toaccept the general's offer; for I should much rather have remainedwith the regiment. As it was, however, I could hardly refuse."
"Certainly not," said one. "It is always a pull having been on thestaff, even for a short time. The staff always get their names inorders, and that gives a fellow much better chances in the future.Besides, in a campaign like this, where the division gets oftenbroken up, there is plenty of work to do.
"Well, I hope you will soon be back with us again."
Next morning Lisle took up his new duties, and was soon fullyoccupied in carrying messages from and to headquarters. One day hereceived orders to accompany one of the senior members of thestaff, to reconnoitre a pass two miles from camp. It was a levelride to the mouth of the gorge. They had scarcely entered it when,from behind a rock a hundred yards away, a heavy volley was fired.The colonel's horse was shot dead and he, himself, was shot throughthe leg. Lisle was unwounded, and leapt from his horse.
"Ride for your life, Bullen!" the colonel said. "I am shot throughthe leg."
Illustration: 'My horse must carry two, sir,' Lisle replied.
"My horse must carry two, sir," Lisle replied, lifting the officer,who was not wholly disabled, and placing him in the saddle.
"Jump up!" the officer said.
But the tribesmen were now within twenty yards, and Lisle drew hissword and gave the animal a sharp prick. It was already frightenedwith the shouting of the tribesmen, and went off like an arrow.Lisle, seeing that resistance was absolutely useless, threw downhis sword; and stood with his arms folded, facing the natives. Anorder was shouted by a man who was evidently their leader and,pausing, those who were armed with breech loaders fired after theflying horseman; totally disregarding Lisle, who had thesatisfaction of finding that his sacrifice had been effectual, forthe horse pursued its way without faltering.
When it was out of range, the chief turned to Lisle. The Afridisvalue courage above all things, and were filled with admiration atthe manner in which this young officer sacrificed himself for hissuperior. He signalled to Lisle to accompany him and, surrounded bythe tribesmen, he was taken back to the rock from which they hadfirst fired. Then, guarded by four armed men, he was conducted to alittle village standing high among the hills.
"This is just my luck," he said to himself, when he was taken to aroom in the principal house. "Here I am a prisoner again, just asthe troops are going to march away. It is awfully bad luck. Still,if I ever do get back, I suppose the fact that I have saved ColonelHoughton's life will count for something in my favour. It wasunlucky that there was not time for me to jump up behind him, butmy horse was in bad condition, and we should have been a good deallonger under fire.
"However, I ought not to grumble at my luck. I believe I am theonly officer who has been taken prisoner and, as it looks as if Iam to be kept as a hostage, my life would seem to be safe. Icertainly expected nothing but instant death when they rushed downupon me. I have no doubt that, by this time, a messenger hasreached camp saying that they have got me; and that, if there isany farther advance, they will put me to death. As I know that thegeneral did not intend to go any farther, and that every day is ofimportance in getting the troops down before winter sets in inearnest, I have no doubt that he will send back a message sayingthat, if any harm comes to me, they will, in the spring, return anddestroy every house belonging to the tribe.
"I think I may consider myself safe, and shall find plenty ofemployment in learning their language, which may be useful to me atsome time or other. I expect that, as soon as we leave, the peoplehere will go down into one of their valleys. The cold up here mustbe getting frightful and, as there is not a tree anywhere near,they would not be able even to keep up fires.
"As to escape, I fear that will be impossible. The passes will allbe closed by snow, and I have no doubt that, until they are sure ofthat, they will keep a sharp lookout after me."
Later in the day the tribesmen returned. The chief came into theroom and, by means of signs and the few words that Lisle had pickedup, when he was before a prisoner, he signified to him that if heattempted to make his escape he would at once be killed; butotherwise he would be well treated. For four or five days avigilant watch was kept over him. Then it was relaxed, and he feltsure that the army had marched away.
Then preparations for a move began. Lisle volunteered to assist,and aided to pack up the scanty belongings, and filled bags withcorn. The chief was evidently pleased with his willingness and,several times, gave him a friendly nod. At last all was inreadiness; and the occupants of the village, together with theiranimals--all heavily laden, even the women carrying heavyburdens--started on their way. It was five days' journey, and theyhalted at last at a small village--which was evidently privateproperty--down in the plains at the foot of the mountains and, asLisle judged, at no very great distance from the frontier line.
Lisle now mixed a good deal with the natives, and thus he began topick up a good many words of their language. Now that they weredown on the plains, two men with rifles were always on guard overhim, but he was allowed to move freely about, as he liked.
A fortnight after they were established in their new quartersanother party of natives arrived, and there was a long and angrytalk. As far as Lisle could understand, these were the permanentoccupants of that portion of the plain, and had been accustomed toreceive a small tribute from the hill people who came down to them.It seemed that, on the present occasion, they demanded a largelyincreased sum in cattle and sheep; on the ground that so many ofthe hill tribesmen had come down that their land was eaten up bythem. The amount now demanded was larger than the hill people couldpay. They, therefore, flatly rejected the terms offered them; andthe newcomers retired, with threats of exterminating them.
For the next few days, the tribesmen were busy in putting thevillage in a state of defence. A deep ditch was dug round it, andthis was surmounted by an abattis of bushes. Fresh loopholes werepierced in the tower, and stones were gathered in the upper story,in readiness to throw down on any assailants.
As soon as the work was begun, Lisle signified to the chief that hewas ready to take part in it, and to aid in the defence. The chiefwas pleased with his offer, and gladly accepted it. Lisle workedhard among them. He needed to give them no advice. Accustomed totribal war, the men were perfectly competent to carry out the work.There were but three towers capable of defence, and in these thewhole of the villagers were now gathered. Men and women alikeworked at the defences. Their sheep and cattle were driven into theexterior line, and were only allowed to go out to graze under astrong guard.
A fortnight passed before there were any signs of the enemy, andthen a dark mass was seen approaching. The cattle were hastilydriven in, and the men gathered behind the hedge. Lisle asked thechief for a rifle, but the latter s
hook his head.
"We have not enough for ourselves," he said. "Here is a pistol wetook from you, and a sword. You must do the best you can with them.It is probable that, before the fight goes on long, there will berifles without masters, and you will be able to find one. Are you agood shot?"
"Yes, a very good one."
"Very well, the first that becomes free you shall have."
The assailants halted five hundred yards from the village. Then onerode forward. When he came within a hundred yards he halted, andshouted:
"Are you ready to pay the tribute fixed upon?"
"We are not," the chief said. "If you took all we have it would notbe sufficient and, without our animals, we should starve when wegot back to the hills; but I will pay twice the amount previouslydemanded."
"Then we will come and take them all," the messenger said.
"Come and take them," the chief shouted, and the messenger retiredto the main body; who at once broke up, when they learned theanswer, and proceeded to surround the village.
"Do you think," the chief said to Lisle, "that you could hit thatman who is directing them?"
"I don't know the exact distance," Lisle said, "but I think that,if I had two or three shots, I could certainly knock him over."
"Give me your rifle," the chief said, to one of the tribesmenstanding near him.
"Now, sahib, let us see what you can do."
Lisle took the rifle, and examined it to see that it was all right;and then, leaning down on a small rise of ground that permitted himto see over the hedge, he took steady aim and fired. The man heaimed at fell, at once.
"Well done, indeed!" the chief exclaimed, "you are a good shot. Iwill lend you my rifle. It is one of the best; but I only got it ashort time since, and am not accustomed to it."
"Thank you, chief! I will do my best." Then, waving his arm round,he said, "You will do more good by looking after your men."
The chief went up to his house, and returned with an oldsmooth-bore gun and a bag of slugs.
"I shall do better with this," he said, "when they get close."
A heavy fire was opened on both sides; but the defenders, lyingbehind the hedge, had a considerable advantage; which almostneutralized the great superiority in numbers of the assailants, whowere in the open. Lisle, lying down behind the bank from which hehad fired, and only lifting his head above the crest to take aim,occupied himself exclusively with the men who appeared to be theleaders of the attack, and brought down several of them. Theassailants presently drew off, and gathered together.
It was evident to Lisle, from his lookout, that there was aconsiderable difference of opinion among them; but at last theyscattered again round the village and, lying down and takingadvantage of every tuft of grass, they began to crawl forward ontheir stomachs. Although, as the line closed in, several werekilled, it was evident that they would soon get near enough to makea rush.
The chief was evidently of the same opinion, for he shouted anorder, and the defenders all leapt to their feet and ran to thethree fortified houses. There were only three-and-twenty of them,in all. Lisle saw with satisfaction that they had evidentlyreceived orders, beforehand, from the chief; for seven were runningto the chief's house, making up its garrison, altogether, to ninemen; and seven were running to each of the others.
As the enemy burst through the bushes, which were but sometwenty-five yards from the houses, the defenders opened fire fromevery loophole. At so short a distance every shot told; and theassailants recoiled, leaving more than a dozen dead behind them,while several of the others were wounded.
They now took up their places in the ditch, and fired through thehedge. Lisle at once signed to the chief to order his men to ceasefiring, and to withdraw from the loopholes.
"It is no good to fire now," he said. "Let them waste theirammunition."
The chief at once shouted orders to his men to cease firing, and totake their place on the lower story; the walls of which, beingstrongly built of stone, were impenetrable by bullets; while thesepassed freely through the lightly-built story above. The enemycontinued to fire rapidly for some time; and then, finding that noreply was made, gradually stopped. There was a long pause.
"I think they are waiting till it is dark," Lisle said. "Tell themen to make torches, and thrust them out through the loopholes whenthe enemy come."
The chief nodded, after Lisle had repeated the sentence in a dozendifferent ways. He at once ordered the men to bring up ropes, andto soak them with oil; and then in a low voice, so that theassailants should not hear, repeated the order to the men in theother houses.
The ropes were cut up into lengths of three feet, and then therewas nothing to do but to wait. The attack had begun at three in theafternoon, and by six it was quite dark. A loud yell gave thesignal, and the enemy rushed through the hedge and surrounded thethree houses. All had walls round them and, while the assailantsbattered at the doors, which had been backed up with earth andstones, the defenders lighted their torches and thrust them out,through loopholes in the upper stories, and then retired again tothe ground floor.
The doors soon gave way to the attacks upon them, and theassailants rushed in, in a crowd. As they did so, the defenderspoured in a terrible fire from their magazine rifles. The heads ofthe columns melted away, and the assailants fell back, hastily.
"I do not think they will try again," Lisle said. "If they havelost as heavily, in the other two houses, as they have here, theirloss must have been heavy, indeed."
The torches were kept burning all night, but there was norepetition of the attack and, in the morning, the assailants wereseen gathered half a mile away. Presently a man was observedapproaching, waving a green bough. He was met at the hedge by thechief. He brought an offer that, if the Afridis were allowed tocarry off their dead and wounded, they would be content that thesame tribute as of old should be paid; and to take oath that itshould not, in the future, be increased. The chief agreed to theterms, on condition that only twenty men should be allowed to passthe hedge, and that they should there hand over the dead to theircompanions.
On returning to his house, he made Lisle understand that, after theheavy loss they had inflicted on their assailants, there wouldforever be a blood feud between them; and that, in future, theywould have to retire for the winter to some valley far away, andkeep a constant watch until spring came again. When Lisle had, withgreat difficulty, understood what the chief said, he nodded.
"I can understand that, chief," he said, "and I think you shouldkeep a very strong guard, every night, till we move away."
"Good man," the chief said, "you have fought by our side, and areno longer a prisoner but a friend. When spring comes, you shall goback to your own people."
It took some hours to remove the dead, of whom there wereforty-three; and the badly wounded, who numbered twenty-two--butthere was no doubt that many more had managed to crawl away.
Lisle now set to work to learn the language, in earnest. A boy wastold off by the chief to be his companion and, at the end of twomonths, Lisle was able to converse without difficulty. The chiefhad already told him that he could leave when he liked, but that itwould be very dangerous for him to endeavour to make his way to thefrontier, especially as the tribe they had fought against occupiedthe intervening country.
"When we get among the hills, I will give you four men to act asyour escort down the passes; but you will have to go in disguisefor, after the fighting that has taken place, and the destructionof the villages, even if peace is made it would not be safe for awhite man to travel among the mountains. He would certainly bekilled."
Every precaution was taken against attack, and six men werestationed at the hedge, all night. Two or three times noises wereheard, which seemed to proceed from a considerable body of men. Theguard fired, but nothing more was heard. Evidently a surprise hadbeen intended but, directly it was found that the garrison were onwatch, and prepared, the idea was abandoned; for the lesson hadbeen so severe that even the hope of revenge was not su
fficient toinduce them to run the risk of its repetition.
Lisle did not fret at his enforced stay. He was very popular in thelittle village, and was quite at home with the chief's family. Thechoicest bits of meat were always sent to him; and he was treatedas an honoured guest, in every way.
"When you return to your people," the chief said, one day, "pleasetell them that, henceforth, we shall regard them as friends; andthat, if they choose to march through our country, we will do allwe can to aid them, by every means in our power."
"I will certainly tell them so," Lisle replied, "and the kindnessyou have shown me will assuredly be rewarded."
"I regret that we fought against you," the chief said, "but we weremisled. They will not take away our rifles from us, I hope; forwithout them we should be at the mercy of the other tribes. Thesemay give up many rifles, but they are sure to retain some and,though there are other villages of our clan, we should be an easyprey, if it were known that we were unarmed."
"I think I can promise that, after your friendly conduct to me, youwill not be required to make any payment, whatever; and indeed, forso small a matter as twenty rifles, your assurances, that thesewould never again be used against us, would be taken intoconsideration."
When Lisle had been in the village about three months, one of themen came up to him and spoke in Punjabi.
"Why, how did you learn Punjabi?" he said, in surprise; "and whydid you not speak to me in it, before? It would have saved me animmense deal of trouble, when I first came."
"I am sorry," the man said, "but the thought that you could speakPunjabi did not enter my mind. I thought that you were a youngwhite officer who had just come out from England. I learnt itbecause I served, for fifteen years, in the 32nd Punjabis."
"You did?" Lisle said; "why, the 32nd Punjabis was my father'sregiment! How long have you left it?"
"Six years ago, sahib."
"Then you must remember my father, Captain Bullen."
"Truly I remember him," the man said. "He was one of our best andkindest officers. And he was your father?"
"Yes. You might remember me too, I must have been eleven or twelveyears old."
The man looked hard at him.
"I think, sir, that I remember your face; but of course you havechanged a good deal, since then. I remember you well, for you oftencame down our lines; and you could speak the language fluently, andwere fond of talking to us.
"And your father, is he well?"
"He was killed, three years ago," Lisle said, "in an attack on ahill fort."
"I am sorry, very sorry. He was a good man. And so you are anofficer in his regiment?"
"No," Lisle said, "I left the regiment in the march to the reliefof Chitral. They wanted to send me home, so I darkened my skin andenlisted in the regiment, by the aid of Gholam Singh; and wentthrough the campaign without even being suspected, till just at theend."
"You went as a soldier?" the man said, in surprise; "never beforehave I heard of a white sahib passing as a native, and enlisting inthe ranks. You lived and fought with the men, without beingdiscovered! Truly, it is wonderful."
"I did not manage quite so well as I ought to have done; for Ifound, afterwards, that I had been suspected before we got toChitral. Then Colonel Kelly took me out of the ranks and made me atemporary officer, and afterwards got a commission for me."
"It is truly wonderful," the man repeated.
From that time the native took every pains to show him respect andliking for the son of his old officer; and the account he gave, tothe others, of the affection with which the young sahib's fatherwas regarded by the regiment, much increased the cordiality withwhich he was generally treated. Spring came at last, and the snowline gradually rose among the distant hills and, at last, the chiefannounced that they could now start for their summer home.
The news was received with general satisfaction, for the nightwatches and the constant expectation of attack weighed heavily uponthem all. The decision was announced at dawn and, three hoursafterwards, the animals were packed and they set out on the march.They had started a fortnight earlier than usual for, if they hadwaited till the usual time, their old enemies would probably haveplaced an ambush.
They travelled without a halt, until they were well among thehills. Then the wearied beasts were unladen, fires were lighted,and a meal cooked. But even yet they were not altogether safe fromattack; and sentries were posted, some distance down the hill, togive notice of the approach of an enemy. The night, however, passedquietly; and the next evening they were high among the hills, andcamped, for the first time for three months, with a sense ofsecurity.
It was determined to rest here for a few days, for they had almostreached the snow line. This was receding fast, under the hot raysof the sun, but it was certain that the gorges would be full offierce torrents; and that, until these abated somewhat, they wouldbe absolutely impassable. A week was extended into a fortnight. Asthe snow melted the grass grew, as if by magic; and the animalsrapidly regained condition and strength. Then they started againand, after encountering no little difficulty and hardship, arrivedat their mountain home.
"Now, sahib," the chief said the next morning, "I will keep mypromise to you, and will send four of my men with you to Peshawar.The sun and the glare from the snow have browned you almost to ourcolour, so there will be no occasion for you to stain your faceand, in Afghan costume, you could pass anywhere. Besides, you speakour language so well that, even if you were questioned, no onewould suspect that you are not one of ourselves."
"How many days will it take, chief?"
"In five days you will be at Peshawar. I know not whether you willfind an army assembled there, to march again into our country; butI hope that peace has been settled. It will take the tribes all theyear to rebuild their houses. It will be years before their flocksand herds increase to what they were before and, now they havefound that British troops can force their way through theirstrongest passes, that they can no longer defy white men to entertheir lands, they will be very careful not to draw down the angerof the white man upon themselves. They will have a hard year of itto repair, in any way, the damages they have incurred; to saynothing of the loss of life that they have suffered. They have alsohad to give up great numbers of their rifles; and this, alone, willrender them careful, at any rate until they replace them; so I donot think that there will be any chance of fighting this year, orfor some years to come. I am sure I hope not."
"I hope not, also," Lisle said. "We too have lost heavily, and theexpense has been immense. We shall be as glad as your people tolive at peace. I think I may safely say that, if the country isquiet, a messenger will be sent up from Peshawar with the general'sthanks for the way in which I have been treated; and withassurances that, whatever may happen, your village will berespected by any force that may march into the country. Probablysuch an assurance will be sent by the men who go with me."
Another fortnight was spent in the village, for the rivers werestill filled to the brim; but as soon as the chief thought that thepasses were practicable, Lisle, in Afridi costume, started withfour of the men. All the village turned out to bid him goodbye;several of the women, and many of the children, crying at hisdeparture.
The journey down was accomplished without adventure; the men givingout, at the villages at which they stopped, that they were on theirway to Peshawar, to give assurances to the British there that theywere ready to submit to terms. On nearing Peshawar, Lisle abandonedhis Afridi costume and resumed his khaki uniform.
When he arrived at the town, he went at once to headquarters. Thesentry at the door belonged to his own regiment; and he started,and his rifle almost fell from his hand, as his eye fell uponLisle.
"I am not a ghost," Lisle laughed, "but am very much alive.
"I am glad to see you again, Wilkins," and he passed in at thedoor.
"Is the general engaged?" he asked the orderly who, like thesoldier at the door, stood gazing at him stupidly.
"No, sir," the man gasped. br />
"Then I will go in unannounced."
General Lockhart looked up from the papers he was reading, and gavea sudden start.
"I have come to report myself ready for duty, sir," Lisle said,with a smile.
"Good heavens! Mr. Bullen, you have given me quite a turn! We hadall regarded your death as certain; and your name appeared in thelist of casualties, five months ago.
"I am truly glad to see you again," and he heartily shook Lisle'shand. "There is another in here who will be glad to see you."
He opened the door, and said:
"Colonel Houghton, will you step in here, for a moment?"
As the colonel entered the room, and his eye fell upon Lisle, hestood as if suddenly paralysed. The blood rushed from his cheeks.
"I am glad to see that you have recovered from your wound, sir,"Lisle said.
The blood surged back into the colonel's face. He strode forwardand, grasping both Lisle's hands in his own, said in brokenaccents:
"So it is really you, alive and well! This is indeed a load off mymind. I have always blamed myself for saving my life at the expenseof your own. It would have embittered my life to the end of mydays.
"And you are really alive! I thank God for it. I tried in vain tocheck my horse, but it got the bit between its teeth and, with mywounded leg, I had no power to turn him. As I rode, I pictured tomyself your last defence; how you died fighting.
"How has this all come about?" and he looked at the general, as ifexpecting an answer.
"I know no more than yourself, Houghton. He had but just enteredwhen I called you in."
"Now, Mr. Bullen, let us hear how it happened."
"It was very simple, sir. The Afridis were but twenty paces away,when I started the colonel's horse. I saw that fighting would behopeless, so threw down my sword and pistol. I should have been cutup at once, had not their chief shouted to them to leave me alone,and to fire after Colonel Houghton. This they did and, I was happyto see, without success."
"Then the chief sent me off, under the guard of four men, to hisvillage; with the intention, as I afterwards heard, of holding meas a hostage. A week later we moved down to the plain. When we hadbeen settled in our winter quarters for about two months, we wereattacked by a neighbouring tribe.
"By this time I had begun to pick up enough of the language to makemyself understood. I volunteered to aid in the defence. The chiefgave me his rifle, and I picked off a few of the leadingassailants, and aided in the defence of the village. The enemy werebeaten off with very heavy loss, and the chief was pleased toattribute their defeat to my advice.
"He at once declared that I was to regard myself no longer as aprisoner, but as a guest. I spent the next three months in gettingup their language, which I can now speak fluently enough for allpurposes.
"All this time, a vigilant watch had been kept against anotherattack and, as soon as the snow began to melt, we returned to themountains. There we remained until the passes were open; and thenthe chief sent me down, with an escort of four, and I arrived herea quarter of an hour before I reported myself.
"I believe that I owe my life, in the first place, to the Afridi'ssurprise at my sending off Colonel Houghton on my horse."
"No wonder he was surprised, Mr. Bullen. It was a splendid action;and in reporting your death, I spoke of it in the warmest terms;and said that, had you returned alive, I should have recommendedyou for the V.C.
"I shall, of course renew the recommendation, now that you havereturned."
Turning to Colonel Houghton, he said:
"You no doubt wish to have a further chat with Lieutenant Bullenand, as there is no special work here today, pray consider yourselfat liberty to take him down to your quarters."
"Thank you, sir! I shall certainly be glad to learn further aboutthe affair."
"If you please, General," Lisle said, "I have a message to giveyou, from the chief. He says that, henceforth, he will be friendswith the British; and that if you ever enter his country again, hewill do all in his power to aid you. He hopes that you will allowthem to retain their rifles and, as they only amount to some threeor four and twenty fighting men, I was tempted to promise him thatyou would."
"You were quite right, Mr. Bullen. I suppose the men whoaccompanied you are still here?"
"Yes."
"Tell them not to go away. I will myself send a message to theirchief."
"We will write him a letter, Colonel Houghton, thanking him for hiskindness to his prisoner; sending him a permit to retain his arms,and a present which will enable his tribe to increase their flocksand herds."
"Thank you very much, sir! I shall myself, of course, send apresent of some sort, in return for his kindness."
"You talk the Pathan language with facility?"
"Yes, sir. I was five months with them, and devoted the chief partof my time to picking it up."
"You shall be examined at the first opportunity, Mr. Bullen; andthe acquisition of their language, as well as your proficiency inPunjabi will, of course, greatly add to your claim to be placed onstaff appointments; and will add somewhat to your income.
"I hope you will dine with me, this evening; when you can give me afull account of your life in the village, and of that fight youspoke of. It will be highly interesting to learn the details of oneof these tribal fights."
Lisle accompanied Colonel Houghton to his quarters with a littlereluctance, for he was anxious to rejoin his comrades in theregiment.
"Now, Bullen, tell me all about it," the colonel said. "I know thatyou lifted me on to your horse. I called to you to jump up behind,as the Afridis were close upon us; and I have never been able tomake out why the horse should have gone off at a mad gallop, withme; but no doubt it was scared by the yells of the Afridis."
"When I lifted you up, sir, I certainly intended to get up behindyou; but the Afridis were so close that I felt that it wasimpossible to do so, and that we should both be shot down before wegot out of range; so I gave the horse a prod with my sword and, asI saw him go off at a gallop, I threw down my arms, as I told you."
"As it has turned out," the colonel said, "there is no doubt thatthe tribesmen, valiant fighters themselves, admire courage. If youhad resisted, no doubt you would have been cut down; but youraction must have appeared so extraordinary, to them, that theyspared you.
"I have often bitterly reproached myself that I was unable to shareyour fate. You are still young, and I am old enough to be yourfather. I am unmarried, with no particular ties in the world. Youhave given me new interest in life. It will be a great pleasure forme to watch your career.
"If you have no objection I shall formally adopt you; and shall,tomorrow, draw out a will appointing you heir to all I possess--whichI may tell you is something like fifteen thousand pounds--and shallmake it my business to push you forward."
"It is too much altogether, Colonel."
"Not at all, Bullen; you saved my life, when certain death seemedto be staring you in the face; and it is a small thing, when I haveno longer need of it, that you should inherit what I leave behind.
"In the meantime, I shall make you an allowance of a couple ofhundred a year, as my adopted son. Say no more about it; you arenot stepping into anyone else's shoes, for I have no near relation,no one who has a right to expect a penny at my death; and I havehitherto not even taken the trouble to make a will. You will, Ihope, consider me, in the future, as standing in the place of thebrave father you lost, some years ago."
Lisle remained chatting with the officer for an hour, and then thelatter said:
"I won't keep you any longer, now. I am sure you must be wanting tosee your friends in the camp."
As soon as Lisle neared the lines of the regiment, he saw thesoldiers waiting about in groups. These closed up as he approached.The sentry to whom he had spoken had been relieved, and had toldthe news of his return to his comrades and, as he came along, thewhole regiment gathered round Lisle, and cheer after cheer went up.He had gone but a few paces when he was seized an
d placed upon theshoulders of two of the men; and carried in triumph, surrounded bythe other men, still cheering, to the front of the mess room. Hewas so affected, by the warmth of the greeting, that the tears wererunning down his cheeks when he was allowed to alight.
The officers, who had, of course, received the news, gathered atthe mess room when he was seen approaching. Before going up to themLisle turned and, raising his hand for silence, said:
"I thank you with all my heart, men, for the welcome you have givenme; and the proof that you have afforded me of your liking for me.I thank you again and again, and shall never forget thisreception."
There was a fresh outburst of cheering, and Lisle then turned, andascended the four steps leading up to the mess room.