HOW A. BRITISH SQUARE WAS BROKEN.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 4990, 1 May 1884, Page 3

HOW A. BRITISH SQUARE WAS BROKEN.

♦ In describing the temporary break up of General Davis' square at Tainaneb, the correspondent of the Daily Telegraph says : " Our men could not easily be #ofc, despite tha trumpet callß and officers'' shouts, to reserve their fire and aim carefully. In a few minutes our line was. obscured by dense smoke from our own rifles, and under cover of this the enemy crept up the sides of the nullah, and a succession of rushes by our brave and resolute foes was made at the troops. The 65th, who were on our right, Marines on their left, the 42nd on extreme left, were nearest the brink of the nullah, which> oa their front, made a bend inwards towards them. The enemy appear to have gathered there 1000 strong. Creeping up under cover of the smoke and sloping ground they dashed at the Marines and 65th. A hundred swarthy Arabs came bounding over the rocks up the plain, spear and sword in hand. Half were instantly shot down, but thirty or forty were able to throw themselves upon our bayonets, giving and receiving fearful wounds. Quick. as lightning the rush increased, and in less time than it takes to tell, the Gsth gave way, falling back upon the marines. To their credit, be it ever said, many men disdained to run, but went back with their faces to the foe, firing and . striking with the bayonet. The bulk of the Regiment crowded in upon the marines, . throwing them in disorder, . and back everybody was borne in a confused mas 3, men and regiments being inextricably mixed up. General Graham and his staff tried their best to hold and rally the men, and General Davis and all the officers laboured to get the troop-B to stand their ground in on .orderly way. Evan .the 42nd were thrown into disorder by the general confusion ; but. here and there the Marines and Highlanders retired slowly, firing steadily at the rushing Arabs, whom, they bowled over, like ninepins, .though, truth to tell, they were instantly replaced by others. The Naval Brigade, who had been sent to the front with their machine guns, during the rush lost three of their officers and many of their men. The machine guns had to be abandoned, partly owing to the hurried retreat and partly because of the nature of the ground. The Bluejackets, despite the misadventure, managed to remove the sights and otherwise temporarily disable the weapons,, which, all fell into the hands of the rebels. We came back, about 80Uyds, moving in a more easterly direction, than the line of advance. By this time the fire of: the Ist Brigade on our right as well as front, and the cavalry on our left, held the Arabs ; and the officers succeeded in checking the retreat; the Black Watch, who were fairly in. hand, and a portion, of the Marines largely assisting in stopping what might have been a much more serious disaster to the Brigade. The Brigade was re-formed, and the men who had got out of. their own regiments were sent into their own lines again. I must revert to. the way in which several: hundreds of. Marines and Highlanders fought back to back, firing and retiring in excellent order. They were over 200 yds to the Brigade front when it was halted and re-formed,, and to their great coolness and steadiness is largely due the final success of the day. In that single struggle, we lost over seventy men killed. I counted the bodies of over thirty of the 65th, and about an equal number of the 42nd within a radius of 50yds, all shockingly mangled and hewn with sword cuts and spear wounds. The Arabs laid dead in hundreds.. I rode over to the 65th corner, as they were driven in, and had ample opportunity of seeing how the enemy did their work. Fearless and daring, they ran amuck, so to speak, at our men, hitting right and left. Even when themselves badly wounded, it was this very recklessness of death on their part which made them so dreaded. I think, all the same, many of our fellows soon realised that with the bayonet and Martini and coolness they had nothing to fear from the rudely armed and nearly naked savages." The Daily Neiv3 correspondent describes the incident as follows : — " Before coming to close quarters the Arab 3 actively plied their Remington rifles, and with the musketry from the 42nd and the 65 ih halfbattalions, the fire was simply terrific. In recent battles there have been few hotter corners than General Davis* square. The hissing and whizzing of the enemy's bullets over our heads made our voices almost inaudible. Had the Arabs been as good shots as the Boers not a tenth of our number would have escaped alive. The rebels then began to crowd about our left flank, composed of the 42nd, which opened fire with the same rapid energy as their comrades in front. The musketry fire had lasted about three seconds when a confused din of voices broke as an undertone through the roar. It was the 42nd forming the front half-battalion, and the 65th, which giving way, bulged inwards until at last they came within ten or fifteen yards of the rear line of their square, which, as I have already said, was composed of the Marine Light Infantry. Simultaneously the Arabs were running -in upon the left flank. Our square w»3 being crushed inwards. This is savage warfare, and I may remark in passing that some, if not all, of the non-combatants within the square became combatants for once. As the wild ruck or reckless savage Arabs pressed onwards the Highlanders and 65th continued pressing on the rear, and for a few moments the scene suggested a strange resemblance to that of Baker's square at El Teb, but there was a difference. The Highlanders and their comrades were retiring, like lions at bay. The spectacle did not so much terrify as exercise a weird, terrible fascination. Ido not suppose that either I or anyone else who 1 witnessed it will often again see its equal for magnificence. Though retreating, our men literally mowed down their assailants. In the smoke and dust of the battle, amid the bright gleam of their myriad spearheads, the semi-nude, brown-sldnned, black and shaggy-haired warriors were falling | down in scores. Of all the savage races in the world none could be more desperately brave than the Soudani Arabs, who were breaking upon our ranks like a tempestuous sea. At last the pressure of the front upon the rear became so great that those of us who were mounted were for a few moments too tightly wedged together to be able to move ; but we felt the collapse was only temporary. Even the capture of our four Gatling guns by the rebels did not shake this confidence. At last the Highlanders and the 65th responded to the call of their officers. They advanced step by step, resolutely and fiercely. Theblue-jackets charged splendidly, re-taking theii guns, and the Arabs began to retreat. The order to cease firing soon sounded, and the brigades waited to form, after which the force resumed the advance, the enemy giving way slowly and obstinately. The demoralisation of the Arabs iv this part of the battlefield was completed by the cavalry, who,, sweeping round the left flank, dismounted and poured volley after volley into the retreating enemy. The Arabs, in fact, had attempted to rally and take us in flank, but tho sudden movement by the cavalry defeated their object. This check effected, the square advanced to the edge of the plateau, beneath which extended a lai'ge nullah, or ravine, to search which skirmishers were promptly sent, when large numbers of Arabs, concealed all over the spot, sprang up as if by magic ; but, ia-^ stead of attacking, they bolted."