For Name and Fame; Or, Through Afghan Passes

by G. A. Henty

  Chapter 9: The Advance Into Afghanistan.

  There was but little talking in the middle of the day, in thetrain, for the heat was excessive. All the men had taken off theircoats, and sat in their shirt sleeves. But they were, nevertheless,bathed in perspiration.

  Late at night, the train arrived at Allahabad. Here there was astop, till morning. The men alighted from the train; and lay downon their folded blankets, with their knapsacks for pillows, on theplatform or in the waiting rooms. A plentiful supply of water hadbeen prepared for their use, at the station; and outside wereseveral water carriers; and many of the men stripped off theirshirts, and had water poured over their heads and bodies. Will Galewas among these and, greatly refreshed, he enjoyed some fruit andcakes which he purchased from native vendors; and then, lying downon a bench in the station, was soon asleep.

  Four days' traveling brought them to the end of the railway. Theywere ferried across the Attock, and then their real work began.Although it was now late in September, the heat was still intense.Tents were struck an hour before daybreak and, by eleven o'clockeach day, the column was at its halting place. It was, however,hours before the tents and baggage arrived.

  Many of the draft cattle were very poor, forage was scarce, and thearrangements far from good. The consequence was that great numbersof the oxen broke down and died, and many of the troops were oftenobliged to sleep in the air, owing to the non-arrival of theirtents. The defects of the transport were aggravated, as the timewent on; and the Norfolk Rangers fared much better than some of thetroops which followed them.

  The regiment was destined to operate in the Khuram valley, underthe command of General Roberts. The advanced column of thisdivision consisted of the 7th company of Bengal Sappers, the 23rdBengal Pioneers; a battery of horse artillery, one of RoyalArtillery, and two mountain batteries; a squadron of the 10thHussars, and the 12th Bengal Cavalry. The first brigade of infantrycomprised the 2nd battalion of the 8th Foot, the 29th Bengal NativeInfantry, and the 5th Punjaub Infantry. The second brigadeconsisted of the 72nd Highlanders, the 21st Native Infantry, the2nd Punjaub Infantry, and the 5th Ghoorkas. The place of assemblywas Kohat. The Norfolk Rangers were to act as a reserve.

  It was on the 2nd of October that the Rangers arrived at Kohat,heartily glad that their march across the sandy plains of thePunjaub was at an end. The other regiments comprising the forcepoured in rapidly and, on the 9th, the general arrived and assumedthe command. The next day the Punjaub regiments were sent forwardto Thull. It was not until the middle of November that the Europeanregiments followed them; and the six weeks were, by the Rangers,for the most part employed in drill for, after their voyage andjourney up the country, their commanding officer considered itnecessary to work them hard, to get them to the highest state ofdiscipline.

  William Gale was worked exceptionally hard; as he had, in thatshort time, to learn the manual and platoon exercises, and to pickup enough of drill to enable him to take his place in the ranks.Fortunately he carried himself well, and required far less drillingthan the majority of the recruits. By the time that the regimentmoved forward, he was able to take his place in his company; andhad mastered all the movements which were likely to be necessary,in the campaign.

  The road between Kohat and Thull runs in a valley betweenmountains, those on the right being inhabited by the Waziries, afierce and independent tribe. The regiment which had first marchedhad exercised every precaution against an attack. The convoys ofstores and provisions sent forward had always been accompanied bystrong escorts, and orders were issued that officers going forwardon duty should not travel without protection. The Waziries,however--contrary to expectation--remained quiet; probably waitingto see the turn which matters took for, had we suffered a repulse,they would assuredly have taken part, at once, against us; andwould have aided in massacring fugitives, and robbing baggagewagons.

  The march to Thull occupied five days, which were very pleasantones to William Gale. His heavy work at drill was now over. He wasno longer considered a recruit, but ranked as a soldier. Themarches were not long and, for many hours in the afternoon, thehigh hills threw the valley in shade; and the soldiers, afterpitching their tents, were able to stroll about, or to lie underthe trees in which the valley abounded. The regiment reached Thullon the 18th of November and, on the morning of the 21st, the columnadvanced.

  The river, whose bed was 500 yards wide, was fortunately now low,being reduced to a stream of 40 yards wide by 3 deep. A trestlebridge had been thrown across it, for the use of the infantry. Theriver was distant a mile and a half from the town. No oppositionwas expected but, as a small Afghan garrison was stationed in afort at Kapizang, a short distance beyond the river, an attempt wasto be made to capture it.

  The 29th Punjaub Infantry first crossed the river, at the bridge.The 10th Hussars forded the river and extended, in skirmishingorder, to cut off the retreat of the garrison. When they reachedthe fort, however--which was a square enclosure, with round towersat the corners--it was found that the garrison, who had doubtlessreceived warning from spies in Thull, had abandoned the place inthe night.

  The cavalry were now sent forward to reconnoiter, the infantryfollowing; and the advanced force halted at Ahmed-I-shama for thenight. Not a single habitation was passed, during the nine milesmarch. The road was generally a mere track, 6 feet wide; passingthrough tangled brakes of dwarf palms, intersected by stonygullies, except when it ran along the steep bank of the river.

  The following day the rest of the first brigade marched up toAhmed-I-shama; while the advanced force, under Colonel Gordon,moved on to Hazir-pir. The Rangers were with the first brigade, butnot with the advanced party. This was composed wholly of nativetroops, consisting of the Pioneer regiments and the Sappers andMiners. These had hard work, for the road--which was fifteen milesin length--was scarcely passable for wheeled carriages, and theguns could not be taken along until the boulders and blocks ofstone, which strewed the way, were removed or blasted into pieces.

  On the 23rd the Rangers, with the Horse Artillery battery and twonative regiments, marched towards Hazir-pir; but the difficultiesof the road were so great that they had to camp, for the night,four miles short of that place. General Roberts and theheadquarters went forward the same day.

  As the general passed along the road, the headmen of all thevillages near came and paid their respects; and the villagers linedthe roads as the troops passed, offering fowls, eggs, milk, anddried fruit for sale. As William Gale had brought a supply of moneywith him, he was able to indulge in all those luxuries and, indeed,as the men had had few opportunities of spending money at Thull,all were well supplied with cash.

  The halt at Hazir-pir was, then, a very pleasant one. Supplies ofgrass, fuel, and provisions were brought in, in considerablequantities, there; but much difficulty arose in settling the termsof purchase, as coin was almost unknown in the valley and,therefore, there was no established price--one native being readyto sell, for a few coppers, articles for which another demanded asmany pieces of silver. On the hills around a considerable number ofsheep were seen grazing; but the natives did not care about sellingthese which, indeed, belonged for the most part, not to theTuris--the tribe which inhabit the valley--but to nomad Ghilzaiswho, like the Swiss shepherds, move about with their charges amongthe mountains, wherever fodder is to be obtained.

  Khuram valley, itself, is bare and monotonous. With the exceptionof fruit trees planted round the villages, scarce a tree is to befound; but each village is marked by a huge chunar--or orientalplane--beneath which the villagers rest during the noonday heat.

  But if the valley itself was bare and desolate, the scenery aroundwas lovely. The great range of mountains known as the Safaid-Kohbound the valley on the east and north. This range averages 14,000feet high, from which spurs run out at right angles, enclosingnarrower valleys, with broiling torrents rushing through boulders.The slopes of these valleys are covered with luxuriant vegetation,till the limit of trees is reached at a height of about 11,000feet;
above which, in winter, the snow lies thick while, in summer,it furnishes the finest pasture to the Ghilzai flocks and herds.The valley lands and the lower slopes of the hills are laid out interraces, and irrigated rice fields extend near the rivers. Valleyand hill are alike covered with stones and boulders, Afghanistanbeing probably the most stony country in the world.

  On the 24th the headquarters, with the cavalry and two regiments,moved forward ten miles and encamped at the south end of theDarwazi Pass--the road leading to open, broad valleys, covered withdwarf palms, and wholly uncultivated. On the 25th the advancedforce crossed the pass, which was a gentle slope and offered nogreat difficulty and, at night, encamped at the Khuram fort, whichhad been evacuated by the enemy. The buildings--which would havebeen useful for the troops--had, however, been wrecked by theTuris; who have a deadly hate for the Afghans--their masters--andwho were also animated in their work of destruction by a desire toobtain wood, which is exceedingly scarce there.

  At Khuram there are two forts, the one 120 yards and the other 100yards square. Inside these were quarters for the governor, and hutsfor the garrison and officers; and in the smaller forts werestables for the cavalry forces. This place was made theheadquarters of the forces in the Khuram valley.

  The general now rode on, with two squadrons of the 12th BengalCavalry, to reconnoiter in the direction of the Peiwar-Khotal;towards which the enemy were supposed to be retreating, and wherethey were expected to make a stand. As they approached the villageof Peiwar, two villages were seen in flames; and news was broughtin that three Afghan regiments, with twelve guns, had lately passedthrough. The natives reported that they were encumbered by theirguns, and that forced labor was procured for the purpose ofremoving them. Later on, a rumor came that the twelve guns werestuck in the ravine at the foot of the Khotal, or pass.

  With but a small force of cavalry at his command, the general coulddo nothing; and so returned to Khuram, and determined to hurry upthe troops faster than he had intended, so as to capture the gunsreported--as was afterwards proved, falsely--to have been leftbehind by the Afghans. The sick and all superfluous baggage wereleft behind at Khuram and, on the 28th, the troops moved atdaybreak; the two brigades marching in parallel columns.

  The cold was now severe at night, although it was hot in thedaytime. It had been intended to halt at Halid-Kitta, four milesfrom the Khotal; but the intelligence arriving--that the Ameer'stroops had abandoned their guns, and were in disorderlyretreat--decided the general to push forward at once to thePeiwar-Khotal--seven miles further--instead of waiting, and givingthe enemy time to strengthen their position. A mile from the footof the actual ascent of the Khotal lies the village of Turrai, twomiles and a half beyond Peiwar. Turrai is situated in a valley, theground at whose entrance is very much broken up by the shouldersand spurs of the hill.

  The left column--the 5th and 29th Punjaub in advance, with the 2ndbattalion of the 8th and the 23rd Pioneers, the Rangers, and twoguns of the Number 1 mountain battery in support--were sent to theleft, with instructions to turn a ridge forming the south boundaryof the valley, and to seize the village of Turrai. They were alsoto follow up, closely, any body of retreating Afghan troops thatthey might come across. The light brigade were to march up theregular road to the Peiwar, thus supporting the attack of the leftbrigade.

  The left brigade followed out its orders, except that the regimentin support did not go round the southern side of the spur, but keptto the north. No enemy was seen on the south side of the spur so,when a track leading across to Turrai was reached, the troops moveddown towards the village; the regiments in support advancing at thefoot of the open, on the north side. The mountain path that theadvanced troops were now filing down did not lead directly to thevillage, but fell into the valley ahead of it, at a point where itwidens out into what was known as the "punch bowl valley," at thefoot of the Peiwar-Khotal.

  As soon as the head of the column reached this spot, they came insight of the Afghans; who showed themselves in great numbers on thecrest of the mountain, far above their heads. As the troops had noorders to attack so formidable a position, they fell back towardsTurrai, which was about a quarter of a mile to the rear. At thesight of this movement, the Afghans swarmed down a spur of thehill, and commenced an attack on the regiments that were movingtowards the village. The 29th Punjaubees climbed the hill and asharp skirmish ensued, the two mounted guns coming into action.

  While this was going on, the main body of the troops arrived atTurrai. The advanced troops were recalled, and the 5th Ghoorkaswere advanced to cover the movement. As it was now seen that thestory of the abandonment of the guns was false, orders were givento pile arms in the village, and to encamp there.

  This step was an imprudent one, as the Afghans speedily showed.While our men were sitting or lying upon the ground, waiting forthe baggage to arrive, the Afghans brought up a mountain gun fromthe main ridge--about three-quarters of a mile distant--to thepoint of the spur overlooking the village of Turrai, and openedfire at 1700 yards range.

  The astonishment of the troops, when the first shell fell amongthem, was great. Every one jumped to his feet, and seized hisrifle; and the guns of the Royal Horse Artillery were brought atonce into action. It was four o'clock in the afternoon when theAfghans opened fire. Had they waited for a few hours, brought upanother gun or two, and made a night attack immediately afteropening fire, it is morally certain that the imprudence of campingin such a position would have been punished by a disaster, whichmight have vied with that of Isandula. Huddled together in a smallvillage surrounded by scrub; and impeded, as the troops would havebeen, by the baggage animals and native followers, rushing interror in all directions, our men would have been taken at animmense disadvantage.

  Fortunate was it that the enemy opened fire before the darkness setin. The troops were at once ordered to fall back a mile and a half,and to pitch on fresh ground. There was much confusion in theretreat, as the road in the rear was crowded with the baggageanimals. The spot chosen for the camp was a rough one; for theground was covered with scrub, and a scattered growth of hill oakand thorny bushes, and was broken by the remains of some ancientterraces but, as the jungle and broken ground extended for threeand a half miles, there was nothing for it but to take up the bestposition possible, under the circumstances. The troops bivouackedon the ridge of a ravine, with steep banks; which formed a line ofdefense in front of the camp, while the view in every otherdirection was obscured by trees.

  The regiments passed a wretched night on the rough ground. Most ofthem were unable to find their baggage, which was wandering in thescrub in the dark; and the greater part of the troops lay down onthe bare ground, and went supperless to sleep, after theirfatiguing march of twenty-one miles.

  In the morning, both men and cattle were greatly exhausted by theirlong marches and almost sleepless nights; and General Robertsdetermined to wait, for a day or two, to reconnoiter the formidableposition of the enemy before undertaking its attack. The camp wasshifted to a more secure site, the brushwood and trees were clearedaway, the tents pitched, and the troops were again comfortable.

  A reconnaissance was made by Colonel Perkins--commanding the RoyalEngineers--with two companies of the Pioneers. He ascertained thata deep ravine lay between the ridge on which they were encamped andthe Khotal itself, and that it was impossible to direct an attackon that side.

  Major Collett also, with two companies of the 23rd, proceeded toreconnoiter the route known as the Spingawi--or Cow--Pass. This,instead of going straight up the hill in front, wound round itsfoot to the right of the valley. Ascending the mountain at a pointsome three or four miles to the east of the Peiwar-Khotal, thereconnaissance reached the summit of a ridge about five milesdistant from the camp, and overlooking the Spingawi-Khotal. It wasascertained that the road up the pass seemed easy and practicable,for all arms; that the top of the pass appeared to be on the sameridge as the Peiwar-Khotal; and that a force, working from ittowards the Peiwar, would pass over a series of dominatingpositio
ns. It did not appear to Major Collett that the enemy heldthe Peiwar-Khotal in force; although there was a gun on acommanding knoll on the south, and there seemed to be one at thetop of the pass. The road from the village of Peiwar to the top ofthe Spingawi Pass seemed perfectly easy, for troops of all arms.

  The next two days were spent in clearing the camp and, so far aspossible, improving its military position; but it was stillsurrounded by thick oak jungle, which would have afforded cover foran enemy making a sudden attack.

  A further reconnaissance was made of the Spingawi Pass and, as theexamination confirmed Major Collett's report, it was determined toattack by it. Orders were issued, on the 1st of December, for amarch that night. The regiments which were to form the main attack,by the Spingawi plateau route, were the 29th Punjaub Infantry andthe 5th Ghoorkas--commanded by Colonel Gordon--in advance; thesewere to be followed by the mountain battery, a wing of the 72ndHighlanders, a company of the Rangers, the 2nd Punjaubees, and the23rd Pioneers, under Brigadier General Thelwall. Four guns, onelephants, were to proceed with the column. The 5th PunjaubInfantry, the 8th Regiment, two guns Royal Horse Artillery, threeguns Royal Artillery, and the 5th Bengal Cavalry--the whole underthe command of Brigadier General Cobbe--were to make an attack onthe Peiwar-Khotal direct.

  The rest of the force was to remain to guard the camp and--in orderto convince the enemy that a front attack upon the Peiwar-Khotalwas intended--a party of pioneers, with an engineer officer and acovering party of the 8th Regiment, were to construct a batterynear the village of Turrai. Frequent reconnoitering parties hadalso been sent out in this direction and, so well was the secret ofthe general's intention to attack by the Spingawi Khotal kept, thateveryone in camp who had not been let into the secret was confidentthat the Peiwar-Khotal would be stormed, on the morrow.

  The enemy--although those in camp were ignorant of the fact--werereinforced, on the 1st, by four regiments of infantry, with amountain battery and, on their side, were meditating an attack uponthe British camp. The regiments which had freshly arrived were,however, fatigued by their long march; and the assault on our campwas postponed until the next day, and the chance of its coming offwas, therefore, lost for ever.

  To William Gale's great satisfaction, a company of theRangers--that to which he had been posted--was the one selected bythe colonel to accompany the column marching up the pass. He didnot, indeed, know that this was the route by which they were toadvance; but he was pleased at not being left behind, with theregiment, in charge of the camp.

  "Well, young 'un," a corporal said to him, that evening, "we aregoing to be under fire, at last; and a nice climb we shall have ofit. It puts one out of breath, to look at that steep road runningup the hill and, when it comes to fighting one's way up it, withcannon and Afghans on the top, we shall find it hard work."

  "I expect," William answered, "that we sha'n't go up it at anyextraordinary pace. If we skirmish up--as I expect we shall--fromrock to rock, we shall have plenty of time to get our wind, at eachhalt. We are not to take our knapsacks; so we shall fight light,and we have not much extra weight to carry. What with the heat, andwhat with the long marches, I should think I must have lost a stonein weight, since we landed in Calcutta."

  "I don't think you have lost weight at all," the corporal said; "itseems to me that you have grown and widened out, in the two monthsand, only yesterday, when I was sizing the company, I had to moveyou two men higher; for a young 'un, you stand the fatigues well."

  "I am all right," Will said, "except that I have got some frightfulblisters on my feet. I was not going to say anything about it,because I should have been kept in hospital, and left behind atKhuram; but I have hardly known how to march, the last few days. Idon't think I could possibly have managed it, if I had not adoptedthe native dodge of wearing putties--which I have greased well onthe inside, and wear instead of stockings."

  Putties, it may be said, are slips of woolen cloth, about two and ahalf yards long and three inches wide, with a tape sewn into oneend. They are wound round and round the leg, from the ankle tobelow the knee, and secured by the end being tied with the tape.Nearly every one, officers and men, wore them through the campaign.For a long march there could be no doubt that these bandages--woundround the foot instead of stockings--are very preferable, as theyobviate the liability to foot sores. Even with well-made boots allpedestrians may, at times, suffer from sore feet; but the liabilityis immensely increased when--as in the case of the Britishsoldier--the boots are coarse, roughly sewn, and frequently illfitted.