GORDON AND THE MAHDI. 138 COLONEL FBED. BURNABY Halua'dozen Arabs were now abouthim. With the blood gushing in streams from his gashed throat the dauntless guardsman leaped to his feet, sword inhand, and slashed atthe ferocious group. They werethe wildstrokes of a proud, brave man dying hard." Private Wood, of the Grenadier Guards, sprang to his rescue, but it was too late; for the colonelwasoverborneand fellto theground.

Wood raised his head;and,seeingthatthecase was hopeless, exclaimed," Oh, Colonel,Ifear Ican say no more than 'God bless you!'" The dying man, his life-blood running out in a stream fromhis jugular vein,opened his eyes,smiled,gave a gentlepressure of thehand, and passed away, close to his old comradesthe Blues.

When Colonel Burnaby was struck down, among the number who bravelyran out to render aid was Colonel Sir WilliamCumming, of the Scots Guards. The fringe of advancingArabs had thickened, still Sir William got near enough to see he was toolate. An Arab charged full at him spear in hand, Cummingparried the blow, and gave the savage the point of his trusty Highland broadsword full to the hilt. A second Arab came swooping down instantly,but,luckily for Sir William, the rebel missed his footing, stumbled, aud got a swinging backvertebra. Quicker thanit takes to tell,another Mahdist, with uplifted two-edged cross-hilted sword, dashed into the fray, dodged a cut made at him, andmade good his retreat towards his men, thanks to a blundering camel that gotin the way.

While the foregoing incidents were transpiring, the fate of the entire force was trembling in the balance. Several officers, including CaptainVerner (staff-officer to Sir CharlesWilson,chiefof the IntelligenceDepartment), tried to rally the Heavies, who were being massacred, whilepowerless to retaliate,owing to the cartridges jammingin their rifles.* Verner himself was overpowered, * "The scenes thatoccurred at the battle of Abu Klea,"remarks Mr. Bnrleigh, "through the jamming of cartridges, are not likely to be effaced from the memories of those who witnessed them. We had a forewarning during the morning, as the men lay in the zereba and replied to the enemy's fire, that the rifles might jam. The approved mode of freeing the block from a jammed cartridge was to endeavour to throw the lever up and down smartly two or three times. If that plan didnot work, then there was nothing foritbut to hit the lever a sharp blow witha stick or stone, or use theramrod toeject the empty case or shell. When the Arabs charged the square at Abu Klea, the left face, upon which the rush came, poured in a comparatively ineffective fire. That front, as all know, was composed partly of the Heavy Cavalry regiment. The men had fired very lew shots, and at that stage of the fight there was no over-heating of parts of the hander over the nape of his neck, that severed the