The escort consisted of a hundred men of the infantry of the Guides. The way down the pass was difficult; but no snow had fallen for three weeks, and the roads were fairly beaten down by passing parties. Still, their progress was slow and, late on the afternoon of the second day after starting, they were still four miles from the fort of Jugdulluk; which was held by a British force, and where they were to halt for the night. The Guides were on the alert. A party of four men were 200 yards ahead of the little column, which was commanded by Captain Edwards. Presently a shot rang out from the front, followed by a scattered discharge. William Gale was, at the moment, riding by the side of Captain Edwards. He had already placed himself under that officer's orders, in case of any emergency. "Mr. Gale," Captain Edwards said, "will you ride forward at once, with six men, to the advanced party. When you get there, take such measures as you may think fit; and send me back word as to the strength and position of the enemy." With six of the Guides, Will at once rode forward; while Captain Edwards halted, until the little column was gathered closely together: the camels and dhoolies, with sick men, in the center; the soldiers, in readiness for action, around them. A soldier now ran up with a slip of paper, upon which Will had scribbled, in pencil: "The enemy are apparently in considerable force. The defile opens here. They are disposed among rocks and boulders, on either side." Will, on arriving at the advanced party, had found at once that the force of the enemy was too strong for him to attempt to move forward, at present. He had posted the men behind boulders by the wayside, ordering them to pick off any man that showed himself; and they were soon engaged in a sharp musketry skirmish with the enemy. One of their number had fallen at the first discharge; and Will, taking his rifle, used it with effect, until the head of the convoy arrived. It was now fast becoming dark, and the flashes of the enemy's fire, from behind the rocks, showed how numerous were the assailants. "There must be a couple of thousands of the scoundrels," Will said to Captain Edwards, as the latter came up to ascertain the state of affairs. "Hampered with the convoy, the position is an awkward one. It is fortunate they attacked where they did; for we can hold our own here while, if they had waited till we got fairly down into this comparatively open valley, and then attacked us on both flanks, it would have been very awkward. "We must try and clear them out. We cannot stop here all night. It is freezing very sharp, now; and the cold will be intense, in an hour or two."