So they marched forward, the one incident, and that a sad one, being the killing with an assegai of a dog who had followed the force, and had endangered the success of its movement by barking at a startled buck.

The only noise in the column marching behind the lithe, wiry guide was the occasional muffled cough of a man and the sharp snort of an excited horse.

When the force was within a mile of Babyan's impi a halt was called, and the men lay down to sleep in the freezing cold night.

It was not a long sleep, for an hour before dawn they were in the saddle again, and moving through the darkness as silently as before towards the enemy's stronghold.

When the pass was reached which led into the valley held by Babyan the column was prepared for attack, the advance force being under the command of Baden-Powell.
The guide almost jumped with joy, he says, when he spotted the enemy's fires.