understood ; the whole place is galvanised as though
it had received an electric shock. And every other
sentry realised in a second the danger that lay in the
swarming black ring of men, which now, for the first
time, were seen clearly enough encircling the whole post.
The Tibetans also were naturally startled into action;
they stood up under our very walls and actually used
our own loopholes, thrusting the muzzles of their matchlocks
into the Mission compound. A doctor was the
first man to dash into the place from the Reduit and
warn Colonel Younghusband of his danger. His description
of the compound is curious • he says that
a network of flashes and humming bullets struck in
every direction over the enclosure. By some merciful
accident not a single man was hit, though several
of the tents received four or five bullets straight
through them. Captain Walton in particular had a
very narrow escape ; he said that the first thing that
he realised, after this rude awakening, was the muzzles
of two or three rusty matchlocks poking down through
the wall in his direction. One thing probably saved
the situation; the Tibetans being naturally shorter
men than the Sikhs, for whom the loop-holes had originally
been made, and at no time paying much attention
to fire discipline or aim, simply held their guns up over
their heads and fired through the loop-holes in any
direction that was convenient. For a . few seconds,
which seemed almost as many minutes, the walls
remained unmanned ; then round by the water gate the
quick reports of the Lee-Metford heralded a blaze of
fire from every point of the perimeter.
From the point of view of the Tibetans, the moment
chosen for the attack was most unfortunate. They
V O L . I.