seen. Not Marius amid
Carthage ruins was more careless of the desolation around him. With him
was Culverwell, adjutant of the same battalion. They hailed me with
joyous affection, and we drank the waters and swapped the news. General
Davies came up and asked, 'Have the Leicesters taken any prisoners?' I
told him 'No.' He seemed disappointed; then added, 'We've taken over
two hundred prisoners, including nine officers and three machine-guns.
What were your casualties?' 'About twenty, sir,' I said. 'The 53rd have
had thirteen men wounded,' said the Brigade-Major. 'Fifty will cover
the casualties for the whole brigade. It's been a most successful
action.'

Marner's loss was greatly felt. 'I hear you've lost a good officer,'
said the Brigadier; and the Brigade-Major added, 'He was the brigade's
great stand-by for maps and drawings. I don't know how we can replace
him.'

Then for a moment we fell to jape and jesting; foolishly, for the Gods
are always listening, and the Desert-Gods have long ears. 'You're last
from school,' said Brigade-Major McLeod. 'You know Napier's
message--"_Peccavi_, I have Sind." Give me a wire for Corps, "I have
B-led."' '"_Sanguinevi_,"' I said, 'if such a verb exists. Let's call
it very late Latin.'

As we spoke, the enemy shortened his range; a shell skimmed the roof,
and burst at the embankment bottom, directly under two Sikhs who were
cooking. It hurled one man into the air and the other to one side. A
great dust went up. Before most people realized what had happened,
Wilson and Stones were carrying the men up the bank. This was an
extremely brave deed, for a second shell was certain, and, as a matter
of fact, a second and a third came just as they had reached our wall.
Stones, like many medical officers, was a missionary; he had come from
West Africa. He had one of the noblest faces I ever saw; a very gentle
and courteous man, fearless and with eager eyes. He served with the
56th Rifles.

One of the stricken men was a mass of bleeding ribbons, the top of his
head blown off. A cloth was drawn over his face; he was dead. The other
had his left leg torn off below the knee, his right heel blown away,
and wounds in his head and stomach. He died that evening. Now he lay
with scarcely a moan, while Sikhs gathered round and gave such
consolation as was possible, an austere, brave group.

[Illustration: SKETCH MAP FOR ACTION FOR BELED STATION.]

The Turkish gunners now concentrated on the stat