The Russellville Democrat., 1891-05-07

t their part was to demand a surrender This was promptly refused, and mus ketry fire was then opened on the fort We made no return, but avoided the portholes as much as possible, cooked breakfast, and most of the men slept until noon.
 told you our fort was on the crest of steep hill The earth slanted away from 1t in all directions for about forty rods before there was any cover for an enemy. So far as musketry was concerned, they might blaze away for a year and not hurt any one, but we knew they would soon bring up field pieces against us There was only one spot where they could plant the guns to get the proper elevation on us, and that was just opposite the north center of the fort, on little plateau forty feet above the travelled trail. During the day we backed this wall with other blocks of stone, and made it as secure as circumstances would permit, and when night came the enemy he'd fred 5000 bullets 2. as ,s. .i.iiour infiicting the least damage.
 We hadn't the lumber to build plat forms around the walls, but we had sufficient to build three lookout sta tions at three corners, and there sen tinels took their stations when darkness fell. What we feared was night at tack with scaling ladders, and that was exactly what they were planning for. Instead of taking time to make ladders, however, they made rush on us about 1 o'clock in the morning with detail of men. carrying long poles to rest against the walls. The sentinels gave us timely notice, and standing on blocks of stone so as to bring us nearer the enemy as he showed up on top of the wall, we tumbled him off with bull let and bayonet so rapidly that he drew of in great confusion.
 That attack was a good thing for us. The enemy gave us credit for three times our actual strength, and there fore decided to move with more caution in the future, and it gave us the idea that our position could be defended against big odds. During the next day the Afghans kept up slow and irregu- lar fire against us, simply wasting their lead, and all the men, except those on necessary duty, were permitted to sleep. When night came again we discovered the cause of their apathy. We plainly heard them clearing away the small trees on the plateau and using the spade, and knew that they were going to plant artillery to use against us. The artillery branch of the Ameer's service was very weak, the guns being of light caliber and the ammunition generally poor, but no one could doubt that if gun or two was got to bear on us, and the enemy would keep begging away, the shot and shell would in time effect breach.
 We had above (, 1000 rounds of car tridges, as our slaughtered comrades had left three-quarters of their store behind them, and the sergeant ordered us to man the ten portholes on that side and keep up steady fire on the plateau It was firing at random in the darkness, but we doubtless knocked some of them over, and quite certainly delayed the work. When morning came we could see that they had cleared the ground and begun to throw up small fort to hold the guns. Our fire had driven them of. During the day they made bullet proof screens of boughs and mats and paid us but lit- tie attention. When night fell they set up their screens and worked behind them, and though our fire might have inflicted some slight loss, it did not prevent them from getting two guns in position. They had an earthwork six feet high to protect the gunners, and as the sergeant looked out and saw what had been done he grimly said:
 s'Well, we shall have few days less to live"
 While we were at breakfast the guns opened fire with solid shot. They were only forty rods away, and yet the gum nery was so poor that the first nine shots were thrown away. When they began to strike, however, we realized the damage they might infiict. The stones were but little harder than sand stone, and while too heavy to be hurled down they fiaked and crumbled under the impact. We manned the portholes and fired at the embrasures, and in this way we choked though we could not silence the fire They got the guns trained on one particular spot, and be- fore night came we knew they could breach us in two days more. As dark ness closed in their fire was suspended. They could see the progress they had made, and there was no need of hurry.
 We had with us native born Yan- kee WI o had fought under almost every flag and taken the oath of allegiance to four or five governments, and early in the evening we noticed him overhaul ing the pile of poles we had dragged in for firewood. He at length selected out four or five which had all the spring of American hickory, and then unfolded his idea to the sergeant. It was simple enough, but no one but Yankee would have ever thought of it. We first laid five short poles on the ground and pinned them fast. Then three feet in rear of them we elevated five other short poles about two feet from the ground on crotches. When the end of a long pole was put over one of thes% and rested against the one on ths ground we had what would have been a spring board, if there had been any board about it. We then nailed box