ding and occupying the two zarebas
before night, and therefore decided to form one only on an open space
that the troops had reached about 10:30 a.m. Up to this time no sign of
the enemy had been seen, but all precautions were taken to prevent a
surprise. The force was drawn up as follows: the Indian troops occupied
three sides of a hollow square, the open side being towards the bush
through which the column had just come; outposts of infantry, and beyond
them of cavalry, were placed in advance on the three sides; and the road
to Suakin in the rear was patrolled by the Lancers, and all the convoy
was drawn up in the square. All hands at once proceeded to form the
zareba. The idea was to form a zareba with its north-east corner
pointing to Suakin, and its south-west to Tamai, and at each of these
corners to form a minor zareba or redoubt to contain two Gardner guns
apiece, and to leave these garrisoned by the Berks, the marines, and the
bluejackets, who would thus be able to guard the main zareba, all sides
of which could be swept by their fire. The work proceeded merrily, and
by three o'clock was nearly finished. At that time the marines had got
inside the north-east zareba, and half the Berkshire were having their
dinner outside, behind the camels, which, by this time having unloaded,
were filing out of the square at the rear of the open side; the other
half of the Berkshire were busy cutting bush, leaving their arms piled
in the south-west zareba, with half the bluejackets and the two Gardner
guns, and the central zareba was nearly completed.

Suddenly a yell was heard, some cavalry videttes came galloping in, and
in a moment 5000 Arabs were rushing upon the unclosed square.

The outposts got together and stood back to back, forming rallying
squares which the enemy could not break; the Berkshire men who were
cutting bush rushed back to the zareba where the small naval brigade was
suffering severely, for the guns not being in position the enemy got
into the square, but so quickly did the Berks men follow them and
recover their weapons, that, though 124 Arabs got into the square no
Arab came out again. The other half of that regiment formed square, and
with a steady fire kept the Arabs at bay, and eventually gained the
north-east zareba without losing a man. But amongst the transport
animals the state of affairs was very different. The 17th Native
Infantry fell back before the rush, and the enemy, following the