in order to enable the wings to slip round unawares
and outflank Twala. Well, so be it; at any rate, it will be a man's
death. Good-bye, old fellow. God bless you! I hope you will pull
through and live to collar the diamonds; but if you do, take my advice
and don't have anything more to do with Pretenders!"

In another second Good had wrung us both by the hand and gone; and then
Infadoos came up and led off Sir Henry to his place in the forefront of
the Greys, whilst, with many misgivings, I departed with Ignosi to my
station in the second attacking regiment.

CHAPTER XIV

THE LAST STAND OF THE GREYS

In a few more minutes the regiments destined to carry out the flanking
movements had tramped off in silence, keeping carefully to the lee of
the rising ground in order to conceal their advance from the keen eyes
of Twala's scouts.

Half an hour or more was allowed to elapse between the setting out of
the horns or wings of the army before any stir was made by the Greys
and their supporting regiment, known as the Buffaloes, which formed its
chest, and were destined to bear the brunt of the battle.

Both of these regiments were almost perfectly fresh, and of full
strength, the Greys having been in reserve in the morning, and having
lost but a small number of men in sweeping back that part of the attack
which had proved successful in breaking the line of defence, on the
occasion when I charged with them and was stunned for my pains. As for
the Buffaloes, they had formed the third line of defence on the left,
and since the attacking force at that point had not succeeded in
breaking through the second, they had scarcely come into action at all.

Infadoos, who was a wary old general, and knew the absolute importance
of keeping up the spirits of his men on the eve of such a desperate
encounter, employed the pause in addressing his own regiment, the
Greys, in poetical language: explaining to them the honour that they
were receiving in being put thus in the forefront of the battle, and in
having the great white warrior from the Stars to fight with them in
their ranks; and promising large rewards of cattle and promotion to all
who survived in the event of Ignosi's arms being successful.

I looked down the long lines of waving black plumes and stern faces
beneath them, and sighed to think that within one short hour most, if
not all, of those magnificent veteran warriors, not a man of whom was
under forty years of age, wou