Until the inhabitants had seen the head of our Division, about a mile off, they had not the slightest idea that there had even been a British attack! They were particularly anxious to know how the people were faring in such villages as Mulebbis, and other places, south of our old line, where they had friends and relatives. As indicative that our advance was carried out with speed and secrecy--while we were resting here, _a Boche motor lorry arrived_! The driver, being unaware of anything unusual, drove quietly into the town; he nearly fell off his seat when he was suddenly surrounded by British troops! This lorry proved to be the advance guard of several more, all of which were, of course, captured. CAPTURE OF EL FULE. After a sleep in the afternoon (what a luxury for the first day of a "stunt!") and tea, the Brigade saddled up and moved off at 18.00, just before dark. What a cheery crowd it was! But they had "some" march in front of them, the object being the capture of Nazareth and the cutting of the Turk's principal line of communication, _which would isolate practically the whole of his army west of the Jordan_! Just outside the village, two large marquees--a German Field Ambulance--hurriedly evacuated, were passed. Earlier in the day an officer of the 13th Brigade had found an untasted breakfast here, for which he had much reason to be thankful! [Illustration] Further on, the track taken (the main route being avoided) proved very bad, and in many places the whole division had to proceed in "single file". In some places, also, horses were led. The natives, who had gathered upon the road-side from the villages which we passed, stood silently watching us. They must have been amazed, and the troops must have appeared to them veritable "ghosts of the night". At 23.30 a halt of 30 minutes was made, at a small village, and horses fed. In the early hours of the morning many horses, belonging to the forward part of the column, were passed by the wayside. They were completely "done". No doubt they were, in some cases, able, later on, to join up, but in their present state their riders had taken their saddles off and had lain down beside them, to sleep. For the moment these men had nothing further to do, but they must have run a serious risk from hostile natives when the Brigade had passed by. At 04.00 the next morning we emerged upon the open Plain of Esdraelon.[20] FOOTNOTES: [20] _The Plain of Esdraelon stretches across Central Palestine, and has an average width of about 10 miles. It forms a wide break between the Mountains of Galilee on the north and those of Samaria on the south. It has always been a great battlefield; in the Bible it is called the Plain of Jezreel; see Judges iv, 3, v, 21, vi, 1; I Sam. xxix, xxxi; I Kings xx, 25; Josh. xvii, 16._ A GREAT MOVE!