WATER SUPPLY ASSURED. 89 brought to the men, since they apparently could not reach it without much difficulty. The obvious way seemed to be to lead it through the channels, but how was the fresh water to pass the dirty water through it, above it, or how ? It could not go round it, for the cliffs were perpendicular. The General's foresight had provided for this, and on returning below, I found the Engineers had, in addition to half-a-dozen small pumps, brought nearly one hundred yards of hose, amply sufficient to reach the upper wells. I wanted the hose to lie along inflated water-skins, on the pool, but my suggestion was pooh-poohed, and the hose suffered to lie along the bottom ; I predicted it would rot in the water, but it didn't.

The water supply being thus assured, and amply sufficient (the upper pools containing each more than half the contents of the camel-pool), the next thing to be done was to hold the wells. The Engineers were to stay with the Guards' Camel Regiment, whilst the others went back for more troops and stores, so they were at once told off to help plan two forts, one at the