From this halting-place the road had a rather dangerous appearance, and every precaution was taken, lest Dabulamanzi should have received any reinforcements, which would enable him to attack the somewhat weak column at a disadvantage. The road over which they were passing was in itself open and fairly easy of transit, but not far to the left, and running parallel to the waggon-track, there were patches of bush so dense that horsemen could not enter, and they had to be examined with the aid of an infantry contingent, a few of whom had fortunately been brought in case of an emergency of this sort. Not far from the foot of one of the ascents to Ekowe on the left of the column lay the spot where Pearson was attacked on the 22nd January, and which, although called the battle of Inyazani, is some distance from the banks of that river. Some cavalry were taken over by Barrow to explore, but nothing marked the locality of the action except a large mound and a roughly carved cross where the dead were laid. On this cross were roughly cut the names of those who lay at rest below. Leaving at length the bushy country, the column now came to some steep and broken ground, and here were seen the remains of some of the waggons which had to be abandoned from Ely's convoy. Strange to say, some of the contents, tins of provisions and other stores, were still intact; but no arms nor ammunition had been left behind. Seven miles from Ekowe the troops came to a plain from which they were divided by a broad and well-worn watercourse. Here they faced the steep and scarped sides of a mountain, and in the distance could see a long unbroken range over which the sun was beginning to set. At this spot the Zulus had evidently attempted to impede the advance, as part of the road had been cut away. Engineers, however, soon remedied the damage, and they were enabled to push on; although it was fortunate that they had no waggons, as it was not without considerable effort they managed to get the two-wheeled carts across. As soon as this spot had been passed, the whole character of the landscape changed as if by magic; and as the wind freshened and carried away some misty clouds, the remnants of the late rains, a splendid prospect was seen, as the column wound its slow trail along a steep and rugged kloof leading into a fair and fertile valley beyond. Here, however, was a position that might have been held for some considerable time had the enemy chosen this spot to oppose the march. A sheer precipitous rock frowned on the right, and the only possible track lay exactly under its base, where with a few resolute savages above, huge boulders and masses of rock could have been hurled upon the column as it passed. On the left was a spongy swamp perfectly impassable to wheels, and not particularly easy to troops or human feet. Here a short way up the mountain farther on were seen the remains of a ruined kraal, and of some huts apparently not long vacated.