Shortly after, we saw two gallant young sparks come riding along the plain on the opposite side of the river, evidently having been sent by the general to report on our proceedings.  They pulled up opposite us and watched us for a short time, and then one slipped off his horse, which was led by the other behind a big boulder.  Thinking they would merely watch us, I shouted to my men to keep an eye on them, and went on sketching.  Presently there was a bang, and ping came a bullet over our heads.  The beggar was potting at us at about a thousand yards, unpardonable waste of ammunition!  I put a rock between us, and went on sketching, everyone else did ditto, and presently our friend shut up, but after a time, finding things slow, I suppose, he began again.  This seemed to annoy Humayun, who asked for the loan of my rifle, and he and Akbar went dodging down the hill.  They disappeared behind a dip in the ground, and presently I saw them come out lower down among some bushes, and gradually they worked their way down to the edge of the river about eight hundred yards from our friend, who was calmly sitting in the open, having occasional pot shots at us, while his friend had come out and was evidently criticising the performance.

Presently there was a bang from our side of the river, and a spurt of dust on the opposite maidan where the bullet struck.  Humayun had over-judged the distance.  By the time he was ready for another shot, our two friends were legging it across the plain as fast as their ponies could gallop.  He got in a couple of shots more, but they did not hurt anybody.

As soon as Humayun commenced firing, the sangars in our front began humming like a beehive and presently shot after shot came dropping among us; the enemy evidently had plenty of ammunition, and for some minutes things were quite lively; but, finding we made no response, they calmed down gradually, and peace once more reigned supreme.

I chaffed old Humayun, when he came back, on his shooting powers, and he grinned in response.

I now noticed rather a commotion among the garrison of the sangars across the Nisa Gol nullah; the men began turning out, and one or two ran towards the higher sangars, evidently passing on some news.  Presently I saw a crowd of men, mostly mounted, with others on foot carrying flags.  Then came a fat man in white, with a standard-bearer all to himself.  All the garrisons of the sangars turned out, and I counted them—­there were over a hundred in each.

The commander-in-chief rode up the whole length of the nullah, and then walked up the spur on which are shown sangars Nos. 16 and 17 in the sketch.  Here he sat down, and, I have no doubt, calculated the odds on his winning when the action came off.  After a time he came down the hill, and the procession moved down along the nullah and out of sight.

When I had finished my sketch, I shut up my telescope and said—­

“Now we’ll go across the river.”