HOW THE ARABS ATTACKED THE CAMP. 235 Regiments, and then another gap between them and the right water fort. A line drawn between the west redoubt and the right water fort would have represented the front, but there was no continuity of the camps that lay along it ; and the same may be said of the right flank, represented by a line from the west redoubt to the ordnance store, when there was a great gap between the ordnance store and the nearest camp. A third line from the water fort to the camp of the Indian contingent south-west of the town may be said to have represented the left flank, with a great gap facing the south. In rear of these advanced lines were the marines, royal horse artillery, hussars, headquarters camp, and camp of the army hospital corps, separated by considerable spaces, intersected by shallow gullies, through which the lithe and half-naked savages could silently creep into the camps undeterred by the line of pickets, which was also broken into too wide intervals to prevent the enemy from stealing in at night, while when an alarm was given each camp was in danger from the fire of the next, and the Arabs having speared or stabbed some of our sleeping men in the tents, or made a sudden rush on a body of those who were resting and ofi duty, would escape in the darkness, mostly carrying away their own dead and wounded. The electric light which was turned on from the Dolphin only served to throw up into strong relief every tent of the camp and every moving figure for a few seconds, and then left everything in blacker darkness than before.

On the 7th March the assassinations were commenced by some Arabs who crept into the lines of the headquarter camp and stole the provostmarshal's horse, after stabbing his servant in five places. The screams of the poor fellow roused the men, and the officers of the staff were all rushing about in confusion. After this more precautions were taken, but the disposition of the camp precluded any really efiective measures, and when our men turned out and began to fire, their bullets were often as dangerous to their neighbouring comrades as to the enemy.

It was a harassing time. The heat, almost unbearable, was aggravated by sand-storms which filled the eyes and plastered the faces of the men with fine dust that stuck in a pasty deposit to their perspiring skins.

There was, on the whole, no serious want of water, and even when the advance was made the men were on a fair allowance. The condensing apparatus was set to work, the wells were deepened, and a regular watertransport service was organized under the command of Major De Cosson, who with his staff of assistants set himself to this most necessary work with untiring energy and great success.

In Suakim itself stores had been opened by some Greeks, where both eatables and drinkables could be procured at a comparatively reasonable rate; but of course in camp, and especially at the advanced posts, there were few luxuries, and the supply of ordinary rations was all that could be