“Could they refrain from shouting it to the next man who taunts them? No, Ressaldar; tell them to trust me as they have always done hitherto. There will be work to be done before many days, but I cannot set mutinous men to do it.” Badullah Khan went out, meeting Woodworth on the threshold. “Would you mind coming up to the north-western tower, sir?” asked the adjutant, when he had closed the door. “The enemy seem to be doing something in that direction which I can’t quite make out.” “What sort of thing?” asked Colonel Graham, rising. “I would rather not give an opinion until you have seen what there is to see, sir,” was the reply, so unwontedly cautious that the Colonel prepared for a heavy blow. Woodworth followed him up the narrow winding stairs in silence, and pointed to the stretch of desert on the northern side of the town, across which two long strings of men and animals were slowly passing in a westerly direction. The Colonel started, examined the moving objects through his field-glass, and called to his orderly-- “Ask Beltring Sahib to come here at once.” Almost before Beltring, breathless, had mounted the staircase, he was greeted by a question. “Beltring, are there any guns at Nalapur?” “No, sir. At least, there are two old field-pieces in front of the palace, but that’s all.” “Are they in working order?” “They use them for firing salutes, sir, not for anything else, I believe.” “Still, that shows they are safe to work, and here they are. Where will they mount them, should you say, Woodworth?” “On the hill, sir. The slope on the far side is comparatively easy for getting them up.” “True, and from the brow there they could knock the place about our ears in a couple of hours. At all costs we must keep them from getting the range to-day. They will have no range-finders, that’s one good thing, and if we can secure a night’s respite, it’ll be a pity if we don’t make good use of it. Tell our marksmen to fire at anything they see moving up there. Those guns must not be placed in position before sunset. And then tell all the other officers and volunteers to meet me on the south rampart immediately.” The council of war which assembled on the rampart, sheltered by the south-western tower, was sufficiently informal to make the hair of any stickler for military etiquette stand on end, but its proceedings were absolutely practical. The Colonel, beside whom stood Mr Burgrave, stated the situation briefly.