Part 145

+Staubwolken auf´treiben.+

here +hin´dringen+.

to fall in under arms, +unter Waffen treten+.

= and held itself ready to march (+sich zum Abmarsch bereit halten+).

to fall back, +sich zurück´ziehen+. See App. §§ 28 and 22. The auxiliary in this clause is best omitted to avoid its repetition, the next sentence containing the same.

= after he (i.e. the enemy) had kept (+zurückhalten+, App. § 30) the troops the whole day at (+bei+) the great heat of the sun (comp. n. S. 76, N. 22; use +n+ as a connecting link, since fem. nouns ending in +e+ in olden times used to take +n+ as an inflection for the Gen., Dat., and Acc. Sing., as well as for the Pl.) in the field.

Section 174.

THE BATTLE OF KASSASSIN.

II.

Ismailia, Tuesday, August 29, 3 o’clock in the morning.

Scarcely had the Cavalry unsaddled, and horses and men begun to eat, when the sound of artillery was heard (S. 4, N. 4, +man+) again at Kassassin, and by the heavy and continuous roar it was evident that this time the attack was in earnest. Again the wearied men saddled their no less weary horses and prepared to advance. The sun was still beating down fiercely even at that late hour, and the hot withering wind was raising the sand clouds so high that it was impossible to see what was going on, but through the dust and haze numerous jets of smoke from the guns were visible.

The cannonade increased in violence, and the Cavalry moved away to the right, the Artillery following them, and pressed round towards the flank of the enemy’s Infantry. With the movement of such masses of men and horses the dust rose over the whole scene thicker than ever, and it was impossible to obtain more than a general idea of what was going on; while the sun set in a red glare over the sandy plain.

The Cavalry pushed still further to the right until hidden from the enemy by some low sand hills, and then goaded their weary horses into as fast a trot as the heavy sand and their weary condition would permit.

It was evident that it was the General’s intention to repeat the tactics of the previous fight, and that he meant to get round the enemy’s rear. It was a striking proof of his confidence in his troops that (S. 66, N. 15), with tired horses and night approaching, he should attempt this manœuvre against an enemy of unknown strength and with fresh horses. Against any other enemy it would have been rash, but the result proved that General Drury Lowe did not over-estimate the fighting powers of his men.

Ismailia, then the head quarters of Sir Garnet Wolseley, is 21 miles east of Kassassin, on the Suez Canal. In the morning, +morgens+.

and = and scarcely had; ‘men’, here +Reiter+; to begin to eat, +mit dem Essen an´fangen+.

the — artillery, +Artilleriesalven+.

= through, +durch+; heavy = loud.

+Kanonendonner+, m.

= clear.

= was meant in earnest (+ernstlich+, adv.). See App. § 17.

+und rüsteten sich zum Vorrücken+.

Say ‘Even at (+zu+) this late hour the sun sent down burning rays’, and insert the adv. +noch+ before ‘burning’.

+versengend.+

+treiben.+

to go on, +vor´gehen+.

numerous — guns, +zahlreiche aus den Kanonen aufsteigende Rauchsäulen+.

= became more and more violent (+immer+ with the comparative form of the adj.).