THE PLAN OF ATTACK. 497 There had already been some skirmishing at the Chagru Kotal, the enemy on the Dargai ridge firing from the cliffs on the sappers who were busy improving the hill track. On October nth General Yeatman-Biggs had actuallybrought his mountain guns into action against them, with good effect. But until they were cleared out of the position, the Chagru Pass would be no place for an army marching with thousands of baggage animals over a narrow and exposed hill-path. It was not supposed that Dargai was strongly held, or would be very persistently defended, for all available information pointed to the tribesmen Kempster had marched at 4 a.m. from the camp at Shinwari,eight miles south of Dargai, but he had much more than eight miles to go, on account of the long detour to the west, and the ground was exceedingly difficult. Aneffort was made to get the guns along with the brigade, but at last the hillside becameso steep that, after losing a lot of valuable time in the effort tobring the gun mules along,they had to be left behind. Westmacott opened with his guns from the Chagru Kotal about half-past nine, and his infantry formed up for the attack soon after, but contented themselves with mere long-range rifle fire for some time, for the plan that had been adopted was that the frontal attack was to be confined to a demonstration intended to fix the attention of the tribesmen and keep them occupied until there was news of Kempster's brigade being ready to drive home their attack along the crest.

having arrangedto make their real stand farther north,at the Sampagha Pass.

The plan of attack was that the Fourth Brigade (Westmacott) should advance against the front of the ridge from the Chagru Kotal, while the Third Brigade (Kempster) swept round to the south and west of Dargai, gained the crest of the ridge at a point nearly two miles west of the village, and, moving along the summit, took the enemy in flank. Sir Power Falmer accompanied the flanking brigade. Sir William Lockhart watched the front attack from the Samana Suk, where signallers with the heliostat kept the two brigades in communication with each other from first to last. Westmacott's guns opened from the Chagru Kotal, hut appear to have inflicted little loss on the tribesmen sheltered amongthe rocks and behind the sungars on the opposite crest.

At 11 a.m. the infantry had reached a low swellofground dotted with fir-trees, which gave almost the last bit of cover before the open space at the foot of the precipice. The 3rd Goorkhas were leading. In the second line came the Scottish Borderers, and then the Northampton. Beyond this point no further advance was attempted for a while. Noon came ;and although Kempster was not so close up as had been expected, it was resolved to drive the frontal attack home. Covered by the fire of the Borderers from the low ridge topped by the fir-trees andby the mountain guns from 32