In the grip of the Mullah: A tale of adventure in Somaliland

  CHAPTER X

  FIGHTING THE TRIBESMEN

  Standing in the shadow cast by the cliff on his right, Jim looked outupon the brightly lit plain, and watched the tribesmen coming to theattack. There was no need for them to remain silent, for they alreadyknew that their design of capturing the zareba was known; and,therefore, they marched forward, shouting loudly to one another, andbrandishing their weapons above their heads. A few, carried away bytheir excitement, even fired their guns, as if already in sight of theiropponents, as indeed they were, if only they had known it. Nearing theentrance of the gorge, they gathered together, and then, at a shout fromtheir leader, halted for a minute.

  "We must slay the infidels this time," he called out. "Let each manprepare now for the fight, and when I give the word, rush forward at hisfastest pace. In that way only can we hope to escape the shower of rocksfrom above. Some I have already told off to climb the cliffs and pickoff the defenders, and they will carry out their commands at once. Areyou ready? Then, in Allah's name, forward!"

  At his words a storm of cries and of fierce shouts burst from theSomalis, and some three hundred of them came rushing towards the ravine,eager to be the first to reach the farther end and come to closequarters with the men who had given such a bitter blow to their pride.Well might the little band of defenders tremble at the sight and at thenoise, for on the former occasion the tribesmen had advanced incomparative silence, and their defeat and subsequent retreat had beenswift and but the matter of a few minutes. Now, however, it was adifferent matter. Here were the enemy rushing upon them in numberssufficient to overpower them, indeed, to sweep over them and tramplethem underfoot without feeling their presence. For the moment thehopelessness of their case appealed to Jim, and he felt as though allwere lost, and that his hopes of saving his father from slavery, orworse, were destined to be shattered at the very beginning. Then asudden determination to conquer came upon him, and he turned quietly toAli.

  "Call gently to the men, and tell them to hold their fire and keep wellunder cover until they hear me shout," he said. "I shall wait till theenemy is within fifty yards, so that our volleys may have good effect.Let them know also that they are to reload at once, and that if thenatives do not retire after the first volley, they are to open upon themwith the magazine, and continue firing till they fly. How thankful I amthat we took the precaution two days ago of showing them how to managetheir rifles."

  Ali at once carried out his master's orders, first telling those who laybehind the barricade of stones, and then going to inform the remainderwho had been posted upon the ledges. That done, he returned to Jim'sside, and stood there awaiting the attack, determined to help him as faras in him lay, for the bravery of this young Englishman appealed to him.Indeed, he was lost in wonderment to find this lad, who had had noexperience of this sort of life, and who had had no dealings withnatives, so calmly placing himself at the head of his followers, andleading them against odds which would have appalled many a grown-upman.

  By now the tribesmen were within eighty yards from them, and, led bytheir sheik, they came rushing pell-mell towards the entrance of theravine, expecting to find it open, and never dreaming that the enemywhom they were bent on attacking already occupied it. All their thoughtsand all their energies were occupied in the race to reach the fartherend, each one striving to be there before his fellows, to strike one ofthe few blows which they told themselves would be necessary to conquerthese impudent people.

  "Death to the infidels!" shouted the sheik. "Fear not their bullets, butrush upon them and slay them ere they can lift their weapons to do youharm."

  Crowded together in a surging mass, his followers advanced towards thegorge, shouting defiance. A minute more and they were within thedistance which Jim had mentioned, looking as though nothing could stopthem, so great was their eagerness, and as though they would overrun thewall of stones and scatter it to right and left in their impetuosity.

  Clash! Bang! At Jim's order, a stream of flame spurted from the ambush,and from the ledges to right and left, as the men opened fire, sending ahail of bullets into the centre of the mass. At such a short range, andwith these modern rifles which threw bullets of the smallest calibre andof the greatest penetrating force, every missile flew on till it wasstopped by the sheer weight of the mass before it. Not one, but many menwere struck down by the shower of lead, and falling headlong upon theground, lay there sprawling in all directions and in every attitude, atrap for the feet of those who followed. But if the surprise of thetribesmen had been great during their first attack, when they discoveredthat the opening from the ravine had been closed, it was now more thandoubled. They were dumfounded at the trick played upon them, and as therifles flashed out vengefully, they came to an abrupt halt, as if bymutual consent, and stood there, breathless, their weapons still heldabove their heads, staring into the darkness beyond them, as if theywished to penetrate into the depth of the gorge and learn what washappening. For more than a minute they paused, while the defenders,taking advantage of the breathing-space, opened the breeches of theirweapons. Shooting out the empty cartridges, they replaced them withfresh ones, and closed the locks with a snap and bang which told, asplainly as if they had mentioned the fact, that they, too, meantbusiness, and that nothing but the absolute defeat of their enemieswould satisfy them.

  "They give back! They fly! Death to the dags!" shouted Ali Kumarexcitedly, at this moment, noticing that a few of the leaders hadsuddenly turned, and were endeavouring to thrust their comrades asideand find a means of escape. "See, master, you have already taught themthe lesson of which you spoke."

  "Wait!" answered Jim sharply. "It is only those who have no stomach forthe fight who are returning. The majority will fight it out; of that Iam sure. Ah, here they come!"

  As he spoke, the sheik, whose astonishment had at first beenoverpowering, suddenly recovered his wits, and, rendered desperate bythe position in which he found himself, and fearful of losing creditwith his following, suddenly sprang to the front, and, turning towardshis men, shouted loud words of encouragement.

  "Are you then afraid?" he cried. "Shall these few infidel dogs turn usfrom our purpose? On! Let not the flash of their weapons terrify youand rob you of your bravery. Forward! Death to the enemy!"

  Swinging round until he faced the gorge once more, he levelled his gunat it, and pulled the trigger. Then he tossed it to one side, knowingthat it would be useless in a hand-to-hand conflict, and drawing a long,double-handed sword from his waist with the quickness of a flash, hecharged at the defenders.

  Taking encouragement from his words and action, the tribesmen at oncesprang forward and joined him, following close on his heels, and settingup a fierce shout which awoke the echoes, and almost deafened thedefenders. "Kill them!" they shouted. "Slay the infidels!"

  Pressing forward at their fastest pace, they were soon within sometwenty yards of the barrier. But at that moment the rifles flashed outagain, and a storm of bullets was poured into their midst. Throwing outthe catch of their magazines, Jim's followers sent missile after missileinto their midst without cessation, and, pausing only to replenish them,opened again, rising in their excitement from behind their shelter, soas to obtain a better aim.

  Three times did the tribesmen win their way to within a few paces of thewall of stones, but on each occasion the rifles of the defenders beatthem back. Then they retired sulkily, and, taking up their posts behindboulders and scraps of cover, which existed here and there, open astinging fusillade upon the ravine.

  "Order the men to lie down behind the rocks!" cried Jim; "and tell themthat they are to reserve their shots until they are certain that theycan see one of the enemy. They are then to take careful aim, and pickhim off without wasting a cartridge. Let them show these tribesmen thatrecklessness will not pay, and that the instant one rises from hisshelter he will be slain."

  Obedient to the orders which were repeated to them by Ali Kumar, thenative followers lay down upon their ledges, and kept a careful watchupon the
tribesmen. But all the while each held his rifle to hisshoulder, and closely scrutinizing the moonlit plain beyond, endeavouredto discover the whereabouts of lurking tribesmen. Then, taking carefulaim, and waiting till the man he covered rose to empty his weapon in thedirection of the ravine, he pressed his trigger gently and sent hisbullets home. Not once, but many times, did the defenders pick off oneof the enemy, and, when an hour had passed, quite twenty had paid thepenalty for their boldness.

  "Their volleys seem to be getting heavier," remarked Jim, some twentyminutes later, when a perfect storm of slugs whistled and shriekedthrough the entrance of the ravine, striking against the rocks on eitherside to glance off them and ricochet into space with a characteristicnote to which an old soldier would have been quite accustomed. Othersstruck the hastily built wall of stones, and, smashing to pieces there,sent a shower of fragments in all directions. Indeed, so heavy andwell-aimed was the tribesmen's fusillade, that a number of the smallgarrison were wounded, but only to a slight extent, thanks to the natureof the missiles used.

  "Yes, it is certainly becoming heavier, and I should not be surprised ifthey made another rush before very long. Sing out to the men to beprepared, Ali, and tell them that on this occasion I shall not give thecommand to open fire until they are considerably closer, for they willhave had their warning, and will most likely come on in open order, inwhich case we could not hope to inflict much loss, for the light isuncertain, and makes accurate aiming difficult. But they are bound tocome together within a few yards of this, and that is the moment we mustselect for blazing into them."

  "The advice is good," was Ali's answer. "These men who have so rashlyattacked us are burning to avenge their defeat, and they will not restuntil they have slain us, or we have chastised them so severely thatthey recognize the hopelessness of their cause. Therefore, if ten, iftwenty, fell to the earth, shot down by our bullets as they rush to theattack, the remainder would not pause, would not hesitate for a moment,but would come on at their fastest pace. It is a clever plan, therefore,to wait until they are within easy range and packed close together, for,seeing that our guns are silent when they had expected them to openheavily upon them, they will, perchance, imagine that we have retired,and have prepared another ambush for them. I should advise, master, thatyou order the men at once to lie down, for they are now having littlesuccess, as the tribesmen have been warned by the death of theircomrades, and are careful not to expose themselves."

  "You can do as you suggest, Ali, and I feel sure that our silence willmake them wonder. Perhaps they will hold a council of war, and then comeon warily, imagining that we have retreated to our old barricade. Callto our followers, and explain the situation to them. Then let them knowthat they are on no account to make a sound until I give the signal byfiring my rifle."

  Ali at once turned to the natives, who had so gallantly supported theiryoung English leader, and hastily communicated Jim's words to them. Thenall knelt, or lay at full length behind the cover each one hadselected, and remained there, eyes fixed upon the plain beyond and uponthe figures of the tribesmen which flitted hither and thither, nowrushing from one thorn-bush to another, and now creeping along someshallow trench cunningly scooped from the sand with their hands, toreach a site which seemed more favourable. It was evident that all hadtaken the lesson to heart, and had felt the bullets of the defenders,for up to a little while ago they had, in the manner of Eastern people,recklessly and defiantly exposed themselves, standing fully erect todischarge their weapons. But as many of these bold men had fallen, shotthrough the head or chest, the remainder began to learn that the sightof a shoulder or of a head peering from behind a boulder was the signalfor the instant snap of a rifle and the swish of a bullet close at hand.And now their crafty sheik had had time to recover his self-possession,and from his position in the centre of his men, sent messengers crawlingto right and left with instructions for the next attack.

  "I fancy I can see something moving over there," said Jim, some tenminutes later, as he stood behind the barricade, silently looking outupon the plain. "Is it the moonlight which alters objects or are thosethorn-bushes getting slowly nearer to us? Look! There is a large one outthere in the very centre, and I declare that, five minutes ago, it wastwenty paces or more from the rock close beside which it now stands."

  He stared anxiously over the sandy waste, and pointed with his finger toindicate the bush to which he wished to draw Ali's attention, quiteforgetting that he himself, together with all the defenders, wereshrouded in the inky darkness with which the entrance of the ravine wasclad. But Ali's eyes were as sharp as a ferret's, and long residenceamongst the natives had given him powers of sight far more acute thanthose usually possessed by more civilized people. A glance into the openshowed him the large bush, and instantly his attention became rivetedupon it.

  "It moves!" he whispered breathlessly. "See, master, a moment ago it wasbeside the rock of which you spoke, and now it stands in front of it, sothat I can scarcely see its outline. And--look! There are others toright and left which are creeping forward. It is a ruse, a cunning planto get close to us before making the final rush. Each one of thosethorn-bushes conceals one or more of the tribesmen, all with their eyesfixed upon the central bush, and all slowly, steadily, but insensibly,drawing nearer. Soon they will have approached as close as they deempossible, and then casting the cover aside, they will spring to theirfeet, and come rushing upon us. What shall we do?"

  For the first time since the tribesmen had attacked Ali showed somesymptoms of fear. His lips trembled involuntarily as he asked Jim thequestion, and unconsciously he grasped the lad by the arm.

  "What shall we do, Ali? Why? What else but watch them carefully, andsend our volleys swishing into them when they do rise for their attack?I've been thinking the matter out, and I feel sure that the plan we haveagreed upon is a wise one. For ten minutes not a shot has been firedfrom our side, and though they have certainly been listening with alltheir ears, they have not heard a sound. But still they creep forward,only half suspecting at present that we have withdrawn. Soon, however,they will begin to think that, if we are still here, we are blind, forwe could not fail to have discovered the moving bushes. That will setthem wondering, and it will never cross their minds that we have chosento prepare another surprise for them. They will be quite sure that alltheir trouble in creeping forward in this way has been useless, and theywill rise to their feet and advance towards the ravine, fully expectingto find us gone. But we will teach them to be more sensible. Now is ourtime to give them a blow from which they will never recover. Cheer up,Ali! Things are not half so desperate as they seem."

  Jim's words had the desired effect upon his native follower, for thelatter at once straightened himself, and, standing erect behind thebarricade, looked out upon the enemy with far more determination andcourage than he had shown before. As for Jim, though he leant thereapparently unmoved and unconcerned, he was far from feeling as sanguineas he had expressed himself, for there was no doubt that he and hislittle band of followers were in an extremely precarious situation, fromwhich they could not hope to escape without severe and desperatefighting. Indeed, when he considered the odds, and remembered the fierceshouts with which the enemy had previously attacked, he was bound toconfess to himself that the position was almost without hope. Could heand these few men, well armed though they were, expect for the thirdtime to beat back a crew of fanatical tribesmen who were bent uponslaying them, and who, taught to think that they were the only truebelievers, considered that death earned in slaying an infidel was wellearned indeed? Against such men effectual resistance was difficult, and,unless reinforcements were at hand, or great success attained at thebeginning, could not possibly be continued for very long.

  "But we'll do it," said Jim doggedly, to himself. "I've come out tothis country for a certain purpose, and have done no harm to thesepeople. Indeed, I was prepared to be the best of friends with them. Butthey have thought fit to attack me in the hope of obtaining loot, andmust just take the
consequences."

  With that his lips closed firmly together, and, lifting his rifle oncemore, he felt softly at the lock to see that all was in readiness.

  "Nothing but the magazine this time," he murmured. "We must sweep themaway, and mow them down before they can get within reach of us."

  By now the line of moving bushes had drawn sensibly nearer, and as eachman of the garrison kept his eyes fixed upon them, he was able toobserve figures crawling behind them. To those of Jim's followers wholay upon the ledges above, the whole plan was now quite evident, forfrom their elevated position they could easily see over the tops of thebushes, and could even count the number of the enemy. In suchcircumstances the temptation to select some individual, to raise therifle ever so quietly to the shoulder, and gently to press the triggerwhen certain of the aim, was great indeed. Breathlessly, withfast-beating hearts, and hands glued to the stocks of their weapons,they stared out from the darkness into the space lit up by the rays ofthe moon, and longed for the order to fire, for to lie motionless,without attempting to defend themselves when they knew that men werethere hungering for their lives, was a sore trial to all of them.Impetuous and excitable by nature, they would, had they been alone, atonce have emptied their magazines, and then either fled down the ravine,or died fighting where they were. But they had confidence in their youngleader, who had already shown his fitness to command them, and, in spiteof their longing to begin the engagement, remained in absolute silence.

  "They have stopped!" whispered Jim some few minutes later, noticing thatthe line of thorn-bushes had come to a halt. "Look! There is a mancreeping from the right-hand side towards the centre, and another isfollowing him. They are going to have a talk, and decide upon someaction."

  "Others are coming from the left, master," added Ali, catching him bythe sleeve; "and now someone has risen from behind the bush which standsin the middle. It is the sheik, for I know him by his great height. Heis pointing towards us, and talking to the others."

  Eagerly did Jim and his followers watch the scene going on before them;and as they looked, first one, and then all, of the leafy screens whichthe tribesmen had carried before them with such craft and trouble weretossed aside with disgust, and those who were hiding behind them rose totheir feet, giving vent to exclamations of annoyance and anger.

  "Once more these dogs have made fools of us!" cried the sheik, shakinghis fist towards the gorge. "First they poured their bullets into usfrom the farther end, and then, when we advanced for the second time,expecting to find them there, they lay hiding like foxes close in frontof us. And now, when after infinite care and caution we have, as wethought, come within such easy reach of them that a few moments wouldhave seen us triumphant, we discover that they are gone, that they havemelted into the air. It is hard to fight with such men, and were it notfor the losses we have suffered, I should counsel that we retire."

  "And what then?" shouted one of his followers indignantly. "Do you askus to return to our wives and children and admit defeat? We cannot doit. They would not receive us, but would drive us out with laughter andjeers. Think for a moment. Our trouble may not be thrown away, forseeing that victory was certain to fall to us, it may well be that theseinsolent people have fled for their lives. Even now they may bereturning to the coast as quickly as their beasts will take them,leaving their camels and their baggage to us. Be not down-hearted, forwhether they have fled or remain to fight, our numbers are great, andmake success certain in the end."

  The man who had spoken strode some paces to the front, and turned as heharangued his brethren. Then he went to the sheik and spoke quietly inhis ear.

  "Abdullah Rishmar is right," cried the latter, after a few minutes."Rather than despair we should be filled with exultation, for it isevident that the enemy has taken flight. We have discussed the matter,and are still of opinion that the best plan will be to move forward, andwhen we reach the farther end of the ravine, rush down upon the zareba.Then if we find, as seems probable, that the infidel has fled, we willreturn to our homes, and to-morrow, at the first streak of daylight, ourfleetest camels shall convey a band of fighting men in pursuit. We knowthe lowlands well, and by nightfall should come up with those whom weseek. Then punishment shall be meted out for their insolence. As forthose who are dead, does not Allah reward the true believer who falls intaking part in such a cause?"

  At the old man's words the tribesmen gave vent to a loud shout, and,gathering together, ran swiftly towards the ravine.

  "Another minute and we shall let them have it," said Jim quietly. "Callgently to all the men to make ready."

  Raising his rifle to his shoulder, he aimed for the centre of the massof struggling humanity, and pressed the trigger. An instant later a lineof flame flashed from behind the barricade and from the ledges on eitherside. So rapidly did the men open and close the breeches of theirweapons, that the volley seemed to be an endless one. Here and there itwould stop for a few seconds, as the magazine was emptied, but within avery short while it broke out again, spurting into the darkness, tillthe opening of the ravine was almost as light as the plain outside. Atthe first discharge the tribesmen had stood aghast, thunderstruck at theaudacity of their enemies. Then rage took hold of them, and they cameon, this time in silence, their eyes blazing with hate, and their mindsmade up to kill their opponents, whatever happened. Surging forward, inspite of their losses, they reached the rocky entrance of the gorge, andbecame almost wedged. Then a few, breaking from their comrades, dashedat the barricade, and at once joined in a fierce hand-to-hand contestwith Jim and the six men who stood beside him. To the last moment Jimkept on firing, and then, when there was no cartridge left in hisweapon, he grasped it by the barrel, and leaping, in his excitement uponthe wall of stones, dashed it down upon the heads of the attackers.Indeed, he seemed to be endowed with extraordinary strength, for heswung his rifle as if it had been a roll of paper, and brought it downwith a force which could not be broken. Ali Kumar did his utmost tosupport his young leader, while the five remaining men, tossing theirguns to one side, drew their swords and threw themselves upon thetribesmen with a fury equal to their own.

  And all the while the men who were stationed on the ledges above kept upa terrible fire, sending their bullets swishing into the huddled massesof the enemy. But in spite of all the efforts of the garrison, itseemed at first as though the enemy would prove victorious, for nothingseemed able to check them. In another place, indeed, they would havebeen successful, without a doubt, but here their very numbers hamperedthem, and prevented more than a few from closing with the defenders atone moment. Had Jim and the natives who were with him given way, thetide of tribesmen would have surged over the barricade, and not a manwould have lived to tell the tale. But they clung to their position withdesperate bravery, and finally drove their assailants back.

  "Now for the magazines!" shouted Jim. "Fill them up, and open again!"

  Though they could not understand a word, his men saw his meaning at aglance, for he turned upon them, and flinging the lock of his rifleopen, began to slip cartridges into it. Then, waiting until they, too,were ready, he brought his weapon to his shoulder, and once more theline of fire spurted from behind the barricade. A minute later Jimsprang over the breastwork, and rushed forward. But his intention wasnot to throw himself upon the assailants, but to commit an act ofbravery; for suddenly one of the men posted upon the ledge upon hisright had risen to aim at the enemy, and overbalancing himself, had comecrashing to the ground, where he lay within a few paces of the wall ofstones, at the mercy of the enemy. With an agile leap Jim was beside himalmost as soon as he touched the ground, and catching him by the arm,dragged him towards his friends. Then, tossing his weapon to Ali, wholooked on speechless with astonishment, he caught the native up in hisarms, and scrambled back amongst his comrades with him. The whole hadbeen the work of a few moments only, and was completed before thetribesmen could take advantage of the opportunity so suddenly presentedto them. It proved, indeed, a turning-point in the conflict, for,
filledwith exultation at their young leader's bravery, the defenders set up ashout which set the rocks ringing, and then dashed forward to theattack, Jim joining them. Filled with consternation as these men, whoseemed more than mortal, closed with them, the tribesmen turned aboutwith one accord, and bolted into the plain, leaving their opponentsproud masters of the scene.

  "And now let us see who is hurt," said Jim breathlessly, sitting upon aboulder to rest for a few moments after the fray. "Line the men up, Ali,and tell me if any are killed."

  "We have had great fortune," answered the native headman. "I havealready been amongst the following, and I find that two only are killed,the one being Rigba Hamah, who fell from the cliff above, and the secondAli Tumbi, who fell at the last assault. As for wounds, we all have oneor more to show, but they are nothing, and will be well in a week."

  "Then I'll ask you to tie up my arm," said Jim quietly. "I fancy that aslug has ploughed a big hole through it."

  Leading his master into the light, Ali at once examined his wound, andgave a cry of consternation when he saw the condition of the arm, for itwas red with blood, while a stream was gushing from a ragged hole closeabove the elbow.

  "How long is it since you received this?" he asked sharply. "It musthave been some time ago, for you have lost much blood. Look at thecondition of your clothing."

  "A slug struck me as the tribesmen advanced for the last time," answeredJim faintly. "I scarcely felt it in the excitement of the moment, but itsmarts now. Give me something to drink, for I feel dizzy."

  Running across to the cliff, down the steep slope of which a tinystream trickled, Ali quickly procured a handful of water, and at oncepoured it down Jim's throat.

  "Ah, that's better; and now I feel less likely to make a fool of myselfand faint," said the latter gratefully. "Now tie it up for me like agood fellow, and let us see what our next step is to be."

  "We shall return to the zareba, master, and spend what is left of thenight in peace," replied Ali with assurance. "The tribesmen arethoroughly beaten, and will not venture to advance again until we havewithdrawn. Then they will collect their dead and wounded, and when themorning comes they will slink away into the plain and hide. This hasbeen an evil time for them, and they will remember it for many a day tocome."

  "I think you are right," Jim agreed, "and I propose that you shout outto them that we will not interfere with them if they like to send in forthe bodies. Tell them that we will retire to the pass below the ravine,and that they are on no account to attempt to approach us, or we willhunt them up to-morrow and burn their camp. When you have done that, weshall get back to the zareba, leaving three of our men as sentries untilthey can be relieved by those who have remained behind."

  Accordingly, when Ali had seen to the comfort of his leader, he strodeout into the plain, and shouted to the tribesmen, giving them Jim'smessage. Then the gallant band, who had fought so well in the gorge,retired, and within an hour were with their friends again.