rwhelm the defenders by sheer weight of numbers.
Gerrard, rushing from gun to gun to point each in turn, lest the
gunners in their excitement should fire upon Charteris's position,
urged his men on to load and fire with something like desperation. The
enemy were not suffering as they should, beneath the fire of his guns
on the one hand and the musketry of the two Granthi regiments on the
other. A sudden suspicion seized him, and he looked across through the
smoke at the opposite horn of the crescent. But no; it was dotted with
white puffs. Bishen Ram's men were firing with admirable precision and
coolness, but somehow their shots did not seem to take effect. The
reason occurred to Gerrard suddenly; they were firing with powder only.
Dearly would he have liked to plant a shell or two among the
treacherous scoundrels, but just now he could not spare the time. He
redoubled his efforts, and at last his half-incredulous eyes discerned
between the smoke-clouds that the tide was rolling back from the
centre. Charteris was visible for a moment, standing in his stirrups
and waving his cap vigorously, and Gerrard fired once or twice into the
sullenly retreating Agpuris, to dissuade them gently from rallying and
facing the hill again. But presently the doctor arrived in hot haste,
with orders to him to hold his fire for the present, since Charteris
meant to assail the enemy with successive charges of cavalry. Almost
before the smoke had cleared away there was the rush of a torrent of
men and horses down the hill, and the confused mob of Agpuris was
cloven as though by a wedge. The point of the wedge was a slender
figure on a black horse, an oddly shaped cloth, half brown and half
white, streaming behind it like a veil. The Rani was heading the
avengers of her son.

There was no time to watch the prowess of the Rajputs and Rukn-ud-din's
Moslems, for Warner came galloping up.

"I am to fight your guns, Gerrard; you are wanted to lead the
Habshiabadis. Their precious general took care to bring something with
him to keep his courage up, and when we nearly lost the hill just now,
I suppose he took too much of it. At any rate, he's quite incapable,
and his men are demanding to go on alone."

Gerrard mounted his horse and galloped back to where Charteris, sword
in hand, was riding slowly up and down in front of the ranks of the
eager Habshiabadis, pressing back with the flat any man who pushed
forward. He turned sharply