the edge of the hills, we struck up a side nullah, took a slant across
it, and then began the climb. By this time it was broad daylight. We
kept climbing and gradually working round the face of the hill to the
right, until we struck the snow line, and I calculated we were pretty
well as high as any sangar the enemy might have on the hill. My idea was
to get above them, and I didn't want my party swept into space by a
stone avalanche. Still, to make matters secure, I detached ten men to go
higher up still, and I had five minutes' halt to give them a start.

It was now about 7.30 A.M., and I wanted to push on, so as to be well on
the right rear of the enemy by nine o'clock. Once there, we could time
our attack at our leisure. Events, however, worked out somewhat
differently. The ground now got very bad, and presently we came to a
stone shoot which extended high up above us, while ending in a cliff a
little below. This we crossed carefully, one man going at a time. Each
step set the whole slide in motion and brought stones bounding down from
above. The best way was to take it at a rush. We got safely across that,
and the ground got worse and worse, and finally we were brought to a
halt. I sent men to find a path above and below, the remainder sat down
under cover, while I examined the ground in front with my glasses. It
was eight o'clock now, and I was congratulating myself in having got so
far, as another half-mile would bring us on to a spur which ran down on
the right flank of the enemy's line.

As I was looking at this spur, I noticed that there was a nice grassy
slope just about level with us, and below that the cliffs went almost
sheer down into the river. Once on that slope, we could pretty well play
skittles with the sangars below, as we could even now see clearly into
them. Unfortunately, the ground between looked frightful, a series of
ridges like the teeth of a saw, the northern faces being covered with