Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1896-04-29
Calling THE CAMELS HOME.

1t was a very dark night when Habi-
bullah arrived with his nine camels at
the lonely Zhob Levy post on the road
to Dera Ismail Khan. Though q native
of the regions round about, he, with
true Mohammedan recklessness, turned
in to sleep, leaving his beasts unsaddled
to forage during the rest of the night.
Small wonder that at dawn the loss of
the whole nine was reported at the near
est post. The loss was promptly attrlb-
uted to cattle-lifters, and as a band OF
Waziris had been rumored to have come
from the Mahsud tribe during the last
few days, Saddle and ride!" was the
order of the day. Bakshan Khan slipped
his medicine phial into his pocket. Wa
Zir Khan put chillum and some tObac-
co into his holster, instead of his ration
pocket. Gurdit Singh put twisted cloth
containing opium into his turban. The
English officer crammed half Il dozen
chupatries and a flask of whisky into his
pockets. In twenty minutes fifteen
armed men were galloping to the place
whence the camels had been lifted.
Bakshan Khan's crackers had been be-
fore them and had run the trail across
the river and into the hills on the other
side. Every indication was that the
party had gone off toward WanO III Il
bee line across the hills, and with prob
ably ten hours start. In that awful
country, and with the slow and malig-
nant camel peculiar to those parts, they
were probably a dozen miles ahead. To
follow that trail among that mass OF tor
rents, all twisting like wounded snakes,
and in as many directions as magma
ton could devise, seemed at first an abb
solutely impossible task. But to the
men following it every nullah was as
we'll known as London streets to i cock
ney. Not for nothing had they hunted
the wild goat and sheep and chikor day
after day in those Businesses. Only two
routes were possible. One, an easy one
with sandy going, up a nullah and then
across shallow neck, through kind of
down country with rocks for grass, into
another nullah, and so down among an
interminable wash of ray1nes to the Gu
NAL and Waziristan. The other was
stiff, but not steep, climb by way of the
by rayines, and then by an intricate sys-
tenn of nullahs to the confluence of the
Toi and Gumal and so to WanO. AT
the end Of two hours ride up the latter
route, chosen because it was the short
est in distance, sure indication was
found.
Turning a tall, ragged knee of a pre-
cipitous rock, a man was seen making
off up the mountain side. He bore
handsome jezail across his shoulders,
and was dressed as IT on a journey far
from home At the shouts of the party
he turned and unslung his iezail, but a
shot fired by a soWar induced him to
ground arms: and then at second hail
from Wazir Khan he came down to the
party. He was instantly seized and dis
armed. On inquiry he was found TO be
a young Mahsud, who gave the name Of
Mazduri, till an application Of a stirrup
leather to his legs revealed an alias of
Bakhtawar. This being accepted as
probable. he was further questioned.
His replies were evaSiVe, to say the
least. During the conversation four or
five soWars had gone ahead, and found
on the soft wet side of Il trickle of water
a plain mark of camefs foot. This
damned the prisoner.
He was decorated as to his neck with
collar of tough picketing rope; the
slack end was made fast to a Sowar's
saddle, and he was bid run or hang. A
sword point at his back ended all his
hesitation. He ran, and nimbly, too;
while the pursuers followed at a brisk
trot, winding up the sandy bell of the
nullah. A collection of camefs dung,
hastily thrown into a small Granny of
the rocks, close to the site Of sheepfold,
removed all doubts. The prisoner ran
on for nearly mile more, before he
tripped and fell, cutting his left knee
anu dIlu UduIy. AS LIE ulO So IL SUOL
fred from a rock on the mountain side,
about 400 yards ahead. scattered sand
and fints among the horses legs. 1t
was now quite certain that the rear
guard of the camel filters had been
caught, and a hard gallop to head eff
the irer resulted in his capture within
half an hour. He was not wounded, but
very tired.
A rapid council of war was held while
1pa1 l.
cropped a little of the sour heritage at
its edge When all are of much the
same mind there is little need of words,
and SO in half an hours time the pur-
suers, now ten in number, saddled and
mounted, and were off at a canter. While
crossing the rough and stony down-like
country horse fell and was badly hurt.
This necessitated the sending back of
the injured horse and three other sOwars
whose horses seemed unlikely TO last out
the stern chase, which, as all knew, was
bound to be long one. This delay of
ten minutes was not such q great loss
after all. For hardly had the pursuers
started again than the keen eyes of Bak-
shan Khan saw camel standing against
the skyline, on the top of a mountain,
about mile ahead, as the crow flies.
As he called attention to it another cam
ell appeared, and then a man. Against
the clear sky they looked gigantic. The
camels seemed the most weird and dia-
bolical creatures seen out of a dream,
while the man appeared at least ten feet
high and of gigantic dimensions A
truly uncanny sight In moment more
they dropped over the ridge.
The point at which they appeared
showed that they had changed their
route a little. and that by daring dash
across a difficult and little-used sheep
track the pursuers could drop into the
plain of the rayines before or at the
same time as the Waziris. The question
was whether the horses could survive
that awful scramble and gallop after
ward. But blood was up. and without
"a word they all tried for it,
To get up to the top of the neck was
not very difficult; but the descent! Fa-
ellis descensus Averni. But this was
far otherwise. A yawning precipice of
about 200 feet deep on the bride hand.
and a path consisting entirely of
powders, which goats might jump or a
man scramble over on the very brink,
was almost too much for the horses.
These gallant creatures had far weaker
nerves than their riders, and, though
each man dismounted and led his horse.
walking in front with the bride reins
behind his back, the agony of fear made