e camp lying many hundred feet below them. There was
considerable bustle going on, and the Kaffir drivers were hastily
collecting the cattle which were grazing round, and were driving them
into camp.

"There is going to be a fight!" Dick exclaimed, as they gained their
look-out; "there are crowds of Zulus out there on the plains."

Could the boys have looked over the hills a mile away to their right,
they would have seen that the number of Zulus down in the valley in
front was but a small proportion of those gathering for the attack; for
15,000 men had moved up during the night, and were lying quietly behind
those hills, 3000 or 4000 more were taking the road to Rorke's Drift, to
cut off any who might escape from the camp, while as many more were
showing down the valley. Altogether some 24,000 of the enemy had
gathered round the little body in the camp. To the boys, however, only
the party down the valley was visible.

At eleven o'clock Colonel Durnford came into camp with his 350 mounted
men from Rorke's Drift, and advanced with them to meet the enemy
threatening the left flank, while two companies of the 1st battalion of
the 24th moved out to attack their right. The Zulus, now reinforced
from behind the hills, moved forward steadily, and Colonel Durnford with
his cavalry could do little to arrest them. For an hour the infantry
stood their ground, and the two field-pieces swept lines through the
thick ranks of the enemy. The Zulus advanced in the form of a great
crescent.

"Things look very bad, Dick," Tom said; "what do you think we had better
do?"

"I think we had better stay where we are, Tom, and wait and see what
occurs; we have a splendid view of the fight, and if our fellows meet
them we shall see it all; but if--oh, look there, Tom!"

Over the hills on the left thousands of Zulus were seen pouring down.

"This is terrible, Tom. Look here, I will crawl along over the crest,
so as not to be seen, and look behind to see if it is clear there. If
it is, I vote we make a bolt. It is of no use our thinking of going
down for a couple of horses; the Zulus will be in the camp long before
we could get there."

Five minutes later he again joined his friend.

"They are coming up behind too, Tom. They have really surrounded us.
Look, they are close to the camp!"

It was a scene of frightful confusion. Nothing could be seen of the
companies of the 24th, which had gone out to meet the Zulus. The great