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SMALL WARS

Chapter XIX.
Hill warfare.

Explanation of term "hill warfare."

Hill warfare may fairly be said to constitute a special branch of the military art--typical hill warfare, that is to say, such as Anglo-Indian troops have been fitfully employed upon for two generations beyond the Indus, culminating in the memorable Tirah campaign. It is not proposed in this chapter to deal with general engagements in mountainous country, like the storming of the Malakand Pass under Sir R. Low or the attack upon the Peiwar Kotal; nor is it intended to deal with the case of operations against irregular forces, which may be occupying or may have taken refuge in patches of hilly country, as the Matabili rebels did in the Matoppos in 1896. It is the campaigns of regular troops against hill-men fighting in guerilla fashion in their own native mountains and in defence of their own homes, campaigns almost the most trying which disciplined soldiers can be called upon to undertake, which create the conditions of genuine hill warfare and which deserve to be considered as a subject quite apart.

Its difficulties in all parts of the world.

The memorable operations of 1897-98 on the Panjab frontier attracted general attention to the importance of training our troops with a view to meeting the exigencies of this hill warfare, in consequence of the exceptional difficulties which beset the regular forces and of the heavy losses which were incurred before operations were brought to a conclusion. But it is no new thing for disciplined soldiers to find the coercion of mountaineers an arduous and a perilous task. Strong bodies of French and of Bavarian troops under experienced leaders suffered catastrophe after catastrophe at the

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hands of the Tyrolese peasants in 1809. Anglo-Indian battalions accustomed to triumph on the plains of Hindustan against tremendous odds, found in Nepaul that the disciplined army did not necessarily emerge victorious from combat with the hill-men of that rugged region. The military might of the Ottoman Empire, when still near the zenith of its greatness, failed for years to subdue the highlanders of Greece. Hill warfare presents, in fact, features of peculiar difficulty to regular armies, and its successful prosecution demands exceptional methods and exceptional leadership.

 

It will not be out of place before entering on a closer consideration of the subject, to examine for a moment what are these special difficulties involved in hill warfare. Some of them are obvious enough. It hardly needs demonstration that a rugged mountainous country destitute of roads, renders the movement of organized bodies of fighting men slow and laborious, quite apart from what the enemy may do. Any intersected terrain favours the people of the country who are acquainted with its intricacies, at the expense of invaders to whom it is unknown. Wheeled transport cannot be employed in such theatres of war, and vast trains of pack animals which stretch out a portentous length when on the march have to take its place. Supplies are rarely abundant in the mountains. All these are points that strike one at once; but there are others which are not quite so self-evident.

"Sniping."

In the first place there is the wear and tear caused by isolated marksmen perched on the hill tops, who fire down upon the troops in camp and on the march, whose desultory enterprises render outpost duties very onerous, who inflict appreciable losses among officers and men, and who thin the columns of transport with their bullets--this is more prejudicial to the efficiency of the army than is generally supposed.

Retirements unavoidable at times.

Then again there is the unfortunate fact that, from their very nature, these operations are constantly imposing upon the regular troops the undesirable role of acting as a force

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retiring before irregular warriors. Columns have to visit outlying valleys for punitive purposes and must then rejoin the main body; and even when penetrating into the heart of a hostile mountain district the rear of the army, as it passes successively the homes of different tribes and clans, draws these down upon it, and, as a result of the general direction of its march retires before them. Furthermore, it is the one great fundamental rule in war against undisciplined opponents, against Asiatics and savages and guerillas, always to seize and to keep the upper hand, to advance constantly and to harry them till they beg for peace; but in struggles against mountaineers occasional local retreats on the part of the regular troops cannot be avoided however resolute and vigorous may be the general plan of campaign. It is not only the tactical difficulty which attends these minor withdrawals, but also the elation in the hostile ranks at the spectacle of columns falling back, which has to be reckoned with and which gives to hill warfare a character of its own.

Care of the wounded.

It has already been pointed out how greatly the responsibility for saving the wounded from falling into the enemy's hands affects the tactics of regular troops in small wars. In no form of operations is this fact so strongly brought home to a disciplined army as in hill warfare against savage, bloodthirsty clansmen. The removal of wounded men is especially difficult owing to the nature of the ground. Every wounded man creates a little knot of men which offers the sniper a favourable target, one injured man thus begets others, and the progress of that part of the force in close contact with the enemy, becomes seriously--sometimes fatally--delayed.

 

Another point must not be overlooked in Indian frontier fighting where the hostile gatherings often number many who have served their time in native regiments. This is that officers are very likely to be singled out by marksmen, who can readily recognize them by their clothes and appearance, This is

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especially the case with British officers in native regiments, who can be detected at a considerable distance, and the value of whose lives the Pathan is perfectly well aware of. This is a very serious matter, and one for which unfortunately there seems to be no remedy in campaigns on the Panjab border.

Enemy generally warlike and nowadays well armed.

Then there is the naturally warlike character of the! average hill-man to be taken into account. He is a fighter all the world over, and always has been. The history of Europe proves it. Russian experiences in the Caucasus prove it. Anglo-Indian conflicts with the Bunerwals and Mohmunds and Afridis and Miranzais prove it. It is true no doubt, that even the most truculent of Pathan clans, even Zakka Khels and Maraunds, do not display the reckless bravery which the Zulus did in the days of Ulundi, and which has so often won admiration for the forces of the Mahdi and of the Khalifa. They do not give themselves away, but for all that they are warriors to the core. The guerilla of the hills plays the game in his own way. Amongst their boulders and gorges the tribesmen of the Indian frontier are most formidable foemen; they are active, cunning, determined, and often take a long time before they acknowledge themselves vanquished, although once beaten, they take it like good sportsmen, hoping for better luck next time. Of late years, moreover, a new feature has been introduced into warfare in their territory. They have acquired a stock of modern rifles, which have made their tactics far more difficult to cope with than when they trusted to antiquated matchlocks having neither range nor accuracy. It was the martial instinct of the Afridis and their excellent arms which, brought into play in a theatre of war presenting unprecedented difficulties to a disciplined army, made the Tirah campaign one of the most dangerous and arduous struggles which British troops have been engaged in since the Indian mutiny.

Stones and trees can be thrown down on the troops.

Moreover in hill warfare regular armies have to contend not only with hostile bullets and charges of swordsmen, but

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also with the missiles which nature provides for the defenders of a mountainous country. The enemy rolls down rocks and stones, often with murderous precision. A large proportion of the defenders of the Malakand Pass in 1896, trusted entirely to the effect produced by dislodging boulders. The disaster which befel a party of soldiers in the Koragh defile near Chitral at the outbreak of those disturbances which led to Sir R. Low's advance, was also mainly caused by crowds of Chitralis who hurled down stones from coigns of vantage. It is interesting to note that instances have occurred where mountaineers have rolled down trees upon the troops.

 

One of the most serious disasters which the Trench forces met with at the hand of the Tyrolese in 1809, befel a column of all arms advancing from the south, not far from the Brenner Pass. The guerillas had cut down numbers of trees high up on the mountain side above the road, and these were suddenly precipitated from various points upon the soldiery. Whole companies were swept down over the precipices into the torrent below. The confusion caused was indescribable, the losses overwhelming. A formidable body of highly disciplined troops was rolled back in confusion, routed by a mere mob of ill-armed peasantry.

 

Having drawn attention to some of the peculiar difficulties which beset regular forces engaged in hill warfare, the special methods which it imposes on them can be now dealt with in detail.

Size of columns.

Hill warfare almost necessarily obliges the regular troops to employ pack transport. The inconvenience of this form of transport has been already pointed out in Chapter V, and the enormous length of columns which it gives rise to, has been commented on. If the roads are very difficult--and there are certain to be some short lengths of narrow defile on most marches--the transport has to move in single file, and then it must be assumed that each animal will take 3 to 4 yards of road. If there are 5,000 mules to a column, and if that column makes a march of 10 miles along a narrow mountain track, the rearmost mules will still be in the old camp waiting to move off, when the head of the column has already reached

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the new camp. The result of this is that in genuine hill warfare columns must be smalL It is found that four or five battalions, a battery and a field company of engineers, with their baggage and supplies for four or five days, make as large a force as can conveniently be included in a single column. A very practical argument in favour of small columns is that, if the amount of transport is small there is a reasonable prospect of its being of good quality, which is essential if the force is to possess mobility.

Several columns usual.

If operations are to cover an area of any extent, it is generally best to employ several small columns. It is the only way by which reasonable mobility can be secured. But it does not follow on this account that the force, as a whole, is to advance by several lines of operations. It may sometimes be best, bearing in mind the broad principle of holding back troops and pushing supplies ahead of them into the heart of the theatre of war, to advance by, only one line in the first instance, not necessarily in strong force, with the idea of massing food in some central position well within the enemy's territory. But then, when the supply magazines have been established and the whole force moves up, its further operations will be carried out in small columns working independently in different directions.

 

In warfare of this character the enemy is apt to retire into mountain fastnesses with his women and children and belongings, and these must be visited and, if necessary, cleared. Very determined hill-men may decline to come to terms till every little valley and gorge has been harried. All this takes time and to get the work done numerous small columns must be employed, even if the transport question did not dictate a dissemination of the force when it is on the move.

Length of marches.

Marches must generally be very short, so as to ensure that the rearguard gets in before dark. When there is any likelihood of opposition, and if the size of the columns and the amount of supplies it is taking with it oblige it to include

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some thousands of pack animals, a march of 5 miles is about as much as can safely be attempted. A very small column with only a few hundred animals could, however, cover a considerably longer distance than this between dawn and the closing in of the evening. It is really a matter of calculation, as long as there is no opposition. But if the head of the column has to fight its way forward and is delayed by deploying in difficult ground, the time which will be taken cannot be accurately calculated and even a 5 miles' march may prove inconveniently long. The importance of getting into camp before dark will be shown in later paragraphs.

The troops generally on the lower ground, the enemy on the heights.

"Crowning the heights."

Inasmuch as in billy country the routes naturally follow the course of valleys, and as habitations, cultivation, and level patches suitable for camps are generally found in depressions, regular troops engaged in operations in such theatres of war are, when not in immediate combat with the foe, practically compelled to remain on the lower ground. This is so whether they are on the move or at rest. The consequence is that the enemy occupies the crests of the hills which the army passes on the march, or which surrounds its bivouac when it comes to a halt. Hill-men moreover always retire to the high ground when the troops advance against villages or show dispositions for a fight..As a result, what is technically known as "crowning the heights," is at almost all times an essential part of any operation in hill warfare, and it can rarely be altogether dispensed with even when the troops are at rest. But although this principle is fully recognized nowadays, and although the precaution of occupying commanding ground whence hostile parties could inflict loss on the army below seems an obvious one to take, it is nevertheless a fact that the system has only of late years come to be adopted as a matter of course--as the following examples show.

Examples of neglect of this.

In the Nepaul war the lack of flankers on the heights was the paramount cause of failure on the part of several of the columns.

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In 1823 a Turkish commander, well aware that all Hellas was up in arms and full of fight, advanced through the historic pass of Thermopylae without previously occupying any points on the steep declivities which abut on the land side of the defile. The Greeks suddenly appeared on the hill sides, and swooped down upon the Sultan's troops as they wound along below in column of route. The column was cleft at many points and was crumpled up. The slaughter was appalling, guns and transport were abandoned, and the Ottoman troops, paralysed by the sudden onslaught when they might have defended themselves, and panic-stricken when they found that their belated efforts to show a bold front were unavailing, fled in wild disorder towards Thessaly.

 

During the retirement of the avenging army from Afghanistan in 1841 through the Khaibar Pass, the advanced brigade under General Pollock got through unmolested, the heights having been crowned. But this precaution was neglected in the case of the rear brigades. These suffered appreciable loss at the hands of the Afridi tribesmen, whose demand for money in payment of safe conduct had been peremptorily rejected.

Enemy's dislike of attacking uphill and of being commanded.

In connection with this question of crowning the heights, it is desirable here early in the chapter to point out a very notable characteristic among hill-men. This is their antipathy to attacking up-hill, and their almost unreasoning dread of having opponents above them. They are ready enough to pick off antagonists who show up on the skyline from their hiding place below, but they will not advance from them even when their numbers are insignificant. It is not very easy to account for this, unless it is simply the result of the moral advantage which those perched on an eminence appear to enjoy over those at its foot. An assault down hill, of course, gets over the ground more quickly than when it is delivered up an ascent, but on the other hand it is easier to creep up hill unseen than down hill However, there can be no doubt--whatever the reason may be--that mountaineers are very nervous about having opponents above them, and that in hill warfare this is an important point for the regular troops to bear in mind, because it influences the whole question of tactics to a considerable extent. It enables picquets to hold knolls far out of reach of any support. It offers a means of obliging the enemy to evacuate strong positions, if higher ground be near. It

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may afford security to hard pressed troops who find an eminence at hand, offering them a temporary refuge, which they can occupy and hold.

Seizing the high ground in attacking a defile.

The principle of crowning the heights generally comes into play in the case of forcing the passage through a gorge or ravine. Hill-men are very much inclined to mainly depend upon breastworks within the ravine itself when making their arrangements to defend such a place. In any case seizing the high ground on either side of the defile will generally be the best method of forcing it when the enemy is prepared to offer a resistance. The capture of the heights of course turns any defence works down below, often taking these in reverse; and, once they have been secured, fire from them may cause considerable loss to the enemy retreating along the ravine--as occurred in the case of General Pollock's attack on the entrance to the Khaibar which is quoted in General Clery's "Minor Tactics." But it is not general actions of this kind which claim special attention in hill warfare; these have been already dealt with in Chapter XII.

Occupying the heights in moving along a valley or defile.

Before going into the operation of how to crown the heights in some detail, it will not be out of place to point out how well this obligation illustrates the inconvenience of conflicts with guerillas as the adversary. As will be explained below, this crowning the heights is a most troublesome and difficult operation, fatiguing to the troops, breaking them up into small parties which may easily meet with some mishap, and tending to delay the column. But in spite of its inconveniences and drawbacks and of the wear and tear on officers and men, it may have to be undertaken day after day for weeks upon weeks even when the enemy seems to be quiescent, because it is never known when these hill-men may collect and where, and because in guerilla warfare it is never safe to assume that there is no enemy because there is no enemy to be seen.

Moving flanking parties and

Many valleys exist where flanking detachments would almost move as rapidly along the hill tops as the column

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stationary flanking picquets.

with its impedimenta would make its way below. Where there are no subsidiary valleys, and no ravines and gorges jutting out from the main valley into the mountains on either hand, moving along the heights in parties is not necessarily a very tedious task; but such topographical conditions are in all parts of the world the exception rather than the rule, and this is certainly the case on the high lands of the Indian frontier. Many of the valley systems beyond the Indus may almost be likened to the backbone of a fish, so many are the nullahs and clefts on either side of the main depression, and it is obvious that the movement of flankers parallel to a column traversing this main depression will in such a case be a slow and most exhausting process. Therefore it has come to be very generally recognized as the best arrangement in very difficult country of this nature for the flanking parties to be stationary instead of moving.

General arrangement when stationary picquets are adopted.

The plan adopted may be roughly described as follows:--The advanced guard starts as a strong force, relatively to the column as a whole, and moves off some time before the main body. As it advances, it detaches parties on either hand to seize convenient hill tops commanding the line of route, and to hold them while the column passes. As the rear guard comes level with the different parties these withdraw from their posts and join it--the rear guard sweeps them up, as it were, on its march; and this has one great advantage, namely, that the rear guard, which as a rule gets most of the fighting, gets stronger and stronger automatically as it approaches its goal. Of course this method is not without its obvious inconveniences. Units are broken up, and at the end of a rough day's work the rear guard becomes rather a heterogeneous body. Moreover the troops which start first are apt to be the last, or among the last, to get in. Still, where the operation involves traversing a network of ravines and the flanking parties have to be stationary, an arrangement on this principle seems to answer better than any other. It

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should be noted that the flanking picquets on descending from their posts are often sent on at once to camp, if the rearguard be not pressed, in recognition of the hard work they have gone through. It is hardly necessary to point out that a stationary picquet, which can, if necessary, strengthen its position with sangars and which soon learns the surroundings and the defensive capabilities of its post, affords a more effective guard over a given stretch of ground than does a party of the same strength which has been clambering up and down for miles on end, meeting at every step new under-features and new obstacles during the time that it traverses that same, stretch of ground.

 

During the memorable march of Sir W. Lockhart's 2nd Division down the Bara valley in 1897, the leading brigade did not at first find flanking picquets for the rear brigade; but it was found by experience that it was better for it to do so. And it is interesting to note that, when on the evening of the last day but one of the march the Afridis boldly attacked General Westmacott's rear guard which had taken up a position on a ridge for the night, he had under his command, besides detachments of his own five regiments, a whole wing of the 2nd Gurkhas belonging to the other brigade, which had been on picquet duty.

 

Some difference of opinion exists whether it is best for one battalion to undertake flanking duties on both sides of the valley, or whether the picquets should be found by separate battalions for the two flanks. The former plan has the advantage that the entire control along a certain stretch is under one commanding officer. On the other hand, inasmuch as, when one battalion has been expended another has to be told off, it tends to mix up different units more than if whole battalions are told off to one side. Should the enemy be in force on one side and require to be driven off before the column can advance, this task can probably better be entrusted to a single battalion which would then picquet the heights on that flank.

Remarks on flanking picquets.

It is of course impossible to lay down any rule as to what the strength of flanking picquets should be. They must

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be strong enough, to hold the post they are detailed for, and to safeguard the stretch told off to them. But experience proves that the guerilla hill-men are not fond of attacking well posted parties, and that very small detachments can remain isolated in safety if their position has been carefully selected. "It is a common error," says Lieut.-Colonel Martin in his pamphlet, "Mountain and Savage Warfare," "to have far too many men on these flank picquets, which, if well supported by one another and their supports, are far safer if they consist of a few men properly posted; and a few men are, as a rule, sufficient for their requirements, whereas a large number are not only a waste of power but may give the enemy a better target to fire at and are more difficult to withdraw." Still, this presupposes that the ground admits of the picquets effectively supporting each other, and of their having supports to lean upon, which in very broken ground may be impracticable. But on this point the experience of the Tirah campaign is all in favour of very small parties; for throughout those long and trying operations, where isolated detachments were constantly posted at different points along the lines of route and round the camps and bivouacs, not one single one was overwhelmed by day or by night.

 

Of course it sometimes occurs that particular knolls and spurs may be held by the enemy and that the capture of these entails a force of some strength being told off for attack. But when such a point has once been secured a small picquet will generally suffice to hold it.

 

As regards the positions to be taken up by flanking picquets, the considerations governing this question have been greatly modified of recent years by the improved armament of the tribesmen. Formerly, when the enemy's fire was innocuous at ranges over 500 yards, the picquets had not to push out far afield into the hills. But with antagonists whose musketry is accurate at ranges up to a mile, it is necessary that flanking detachments should occupy

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the knolls and crests situated at distances of 1,500 yards, and sometimes more, from the point to be protected. When troops or baggage are moving along in column of route offering a favourable target for the enemy's marksmanship, it is almost indispensable that the picquets should be so placed as to keep the tribesmen out of range of the column. In any case the picquets must make it absolutely certain that small hostile parties do not creep down clefts and gorges, and get close to the route with a view to sudden attack upon baggage or followers. As a rule a picquet would climb up to the knoll which it is to occupy with bayonets fixed, and in scattered formation so as not to present a target, and it should avoid showing up the sky-line towards the enemy, or indeed getting on the sky-line with regard to any point where foemen may possibly be lurking. It is very important that the commander of a picquet should know when he is to quit his post, because as a general rule its withdrawal is the most difficult part of its task; but as retreats and retirements will be dealt with later on, this point will be referred to then.

 

In the case of convoys passing along a valley, the system of stationary picquets is almost invariably adopted. On a fine of communications through mountainous country the picquets would usually be sent out from the post at either end of the march which the convoy is to undertake, meeting half way. In this case the country is generally well known and it may be assumed that the enemy's enterprises will not be of a very determined character.

Remarks on moving flanking parties.

When in place of stationary picquets the flanking parties follow the heights and march parallel to the force moving along the valley, it will generally be advisable for the leading party and the rear party to consist of relatively strong bodies, especially the latter which is particularly likely to be molested. Great care must be taken to keep touch between the parties, and to ensure that they keep approximately abreast of their proper points in the column. It cannot well be absolutely

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laid down that either the column or the flanking parties are to set the pace. Practically, the column will move as fast as it can; the advanced flanking parties keep abreast of the head, and the rear flanking parties of the tail; but it may turn out that, owing to ravines or rocks or to opposition on the part of the enemy, the flankers cannot go fast enough, and then the column must be checked. Of course if the rate of movement of the flanking parties is faster than that of the columns, they must relax their pace.

Comparison of system of crowning heights to square formation.

Before closing this question of crowning the heights in hill warfare--the occupation of the commanding ground round camps and bivouacs is treated under the head of outposts in Chapter XXVI--it is worth while pointing out that the system is really very analogous to the square formation, which is adopted in very different terrain as a safeguard against the operations of a very different kind of enemy. In both we see the idea of all round defence, the need for which so seldom arises in the open field in regular warfare. In the one case resistance has to be offered to the enterprises of gangs of cut-throats against extended columns, in the other the sudden onslaught of hosts of reckless foemen has to be prepared for against a column which can be kept compact. The fighting formation in the one case is almost the antithesis of that in the other, and yet both may be said to originate from the same cause and both are peculiar to small wars.

Retirement a necessity at times, but general conduct of operations should be such as to render them as infrequent as possible.

It has already been pointed out one of the chief difficulties which the conditions of hill warfare create, is that the regular troops are so often obliged to undertake retrograde movements. The inconveniences which arise from this have been briefly referred to in an earlier paragraph, and the history of the Indian border wars proves how very serious they are. These retirements are often a disagreeable necessity. On the other hand it is to a certain extent within the power of the authorities controlling the conduct of operations in the hills, to reduce the number of occasions when withdrawals are imposed upon the

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troops, and it is clearly most desirable to keep down this number to a minimum.

Reconnaissances, in reference to this.

It is often the case in bill warfare--almost constantly on the Indian frontier--that the regular troops are called upon to advance into mountainous districts of Which very little is known. An army of trained soldiers encumbered with all the transport and paraphernalia which it necessarily involves, cannot be launched into such terrain without its having been previously examined to a certain extent. It thus comes about that a reconnaissance is often the first step before any operation is undertaken. Under cover of detachments, their strength varying according to circumstances, staff officers push ahead to see what there is to be seen and to report to their chief; when, however, they have found out what they want, the force forming the reconnaissance has to return to the point whence it started--from the enemy's point of view it retreats. Now as these reconnaissances cannot sometimes be dispensed with, and as the retirement which they involve is apt to be misconstrued by the hill-men, it seems very desirable that such operations should as far as possible take the form of a surprise, that the information should be obtained after a rapid, sudden march, and that the troops should be back again in camp before the enemy has had time to collect. If the reconnaissance can be carried out on these lines, the retirement may be unmolested and will not consequently appear to have the character of retreat in face of the foe. In view of the extraordinarily speedy movements of mountaineers, of their system of beacons on the hill tops, and of their other modes of rapid communication, it is by no means easy to make a reconnaissance far into their territory and to get back before they can assemble. Still, if it can be so arranged, it will probably save loss in men, and it will certainly save some momentary loss in prestige.

Forces detached for particular

Then there is the question of detachments sent off on punitive expeditions against particular villages or clans.

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objects, in reference to it.

When these have performed their task they must generally rejoin the main body, and this involves a local retirement. That the force detailed for such a purpose must withdraw eventually is of course unavoidable; but it would seem to be a sound principle in these cases not to hurry over the operation, but to make the time spent on the operation as far as possible dependent upon the attitude of the people of the locality. To march into a valley early in the morning, overcome resistance, destroy dwellings, burn fodder and blow up towers, and then to retire in the afternoon hotly pursued by an infuriated community, does not intimidate truculent highlanders; on the contrary they think that they have got the best of the transaction. On the other hand questions of supply, and the exigencies of the general plan of campaign, may not admit of the troops which constitute a minor expedition remaining detached for several days in some particular valley, merely for the purpose of proving to a petty clan that the regulars ate in a dominant position. There are so many considerations to be taken into account that the only general rule on the subject that can be laid down is, that the operation should be concluded as deliberately as circumstances admit of, and that if practicable the force should not withdraw as long as the enemy shows any inclination to follow it up.

 

The operations against the Mamund clan in 1897 are a case in point. The intervention of these Mamunds in the Mohmund campaign was as unexpected as it was inconvenient. Occupying a side valley on Sir B. Blood's line of communications from the borders of the Mohmund country back towards Malakand, their sudden hostility was necessarily a source of some anxiety, and it was not known that, owing to their numbers and to their very warlike nature, these tribesmen were foes who required to be taken very seriously.

 

A single brigade attempted to crush the clan in a single day. The operation involved a march of some miles, the destruction of several villages, and then a return march to camp. The task proved to be altogether beyond the capabilities of the force within the time, and the troops suffered heavy losses. But by deliberate methodical operations extending over several days the same force not very strongly reinforced, later on crushed all the

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fight out of the Mamunds, finishing its little campaign in triumph in spite of the fact that the enemy was continually getting assistance from beyond the frontier, which coincided with the head of the valley.

Holding captured heights, in reference to it.

Another phase of hill warfare which brings up this question of retirements is the case of hill crests or kotals which may have been captured from the enemy, but which cannot easily be held owing to the exposure which the troops would suffer, or to want of food, or for some similar reason. The only thing that can be said on this point is that a victorious army should if possible pass the night upon the battle-field (unless, of course', it can advance beyond it), and that if practicable arrangements should be made beforehand with this in view. But events cannot always be foreseen, and it must be remembered that heights are constantly cleared of the enemy when the conditions of the case render their subsequent abandonment advisable, without the enemy necessarily re-occupying them. One hears a great deal from time to time about" positions" in hill warfare. But the fact is that almost every mountain crest becomes a position when the enemy occupies it, and that the crest is captured and cleared, not because it is a point of strategical or tactical importance, but because the enemy is there. Still when high ground has been wrested from gatherings of hill-men it should not be abandoned at once, if it can be avoided; even if it can be held for a few hours the withdrawal from it will not appear to the enemy so much in the light of a retreat.

The case of Dargai.

In this connection the two actions of Dargai in 1897, which attracted such attention at the time, may be instanced. The first movement against the heights above Chagru Kotal from Shinawarri camp had been a reconnaissance in force to view the country, the main column approaching the Dargai position from its right rear (south-west) after a most difficult march over unknown country, while a smaller force actually captured the heights by a frontal attack from the east before the main column came in sight. Strong reinforcements kept joining the defeated tribesmen from the Khanki valley to the north, and, had it been decided to hold the heights, a whole brigade would probably have been required to occupy a very isolated position, and one for the occupation of which no preparations had been made.

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The intended line of march of the field force was northwards over the Chagru Kotal, east of the Dargai heights, down into the Khanki valley. Sir W. Lockhart, well acquainted with Pathan methods of warfare, foresaw that the tribesmen who had come from the Khanki valley would withdraw as soon as they found the troops passing their front and threatening their line of retreat But the troops on reaching the Chagru Kotal on the second day were launched direct against the heights, and although this operation resulted in a very gallant feat of arms which excited general admiration, it was not in accordance with the design of the general in chief.

 

Had it been foreseen that the enemy would gather in such force on the Dargai heights after they had been abandoned, it would have been a matter of consideration whether all the risks and inconveniences attending their retention by an isolated body of troops ought or ought not to be incurred. Had the sequel been foreseen--a direct attack upon an extraordinarily strong position which two days before had only been captured by a brilliant assault, when held in far less strength by an enemy threatened in rear--the position would no doubt have been held at all costs. But these subsequent events could not have been foreseen. The original operation was a reconnaissance. Reconnaissances are an unfortunate necessity, a preliminary to the advance of an army into little known districts which cannot safely be dispensed with. As has been pointed out in an earlier paragraph, reconnaissances in hill warfare very often involve the disagreeable consequence of the enemy closing in on the rear of the troops when these withdraw on the completion of their task. If heights captured from the enemy were always to be held as a matter of course for fear that they might be re-occupied by the hill-men, the whole army would soon be frittered away in isolated detachments posted on ground most inconvenient from the point of view of supply and water.

Troops not to get into clusters under enemy's fire.

There is one very important point in manoeuvring in the hills which should not be lost sight of when the tribesmen are well armed, as is now so often the case. Troops should never--except when about to charge, at which time the

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enemy's marksmanship is certain to be erratic--collect into clusters and groups affording a favourable target for the hostile rifles. Whether advancing or retiring within range of the enemy's musketry, formations should be loose and dispersed. When casualties occur some men may, of course, have to get together to carry off the injured; but under no other circumstances should compact bodies of men, however small, come under steady fire of these hill-men who often make very good shooting as long as they are not flurried. This is in the main a question of infantry formations which will be dealt with later on in Chapter XXI, but it is well to emphasize the point here before dealing with various details of combat in hill warfare.

Remarks on attack in hill warfare.

Attack has been already dealt with in Chapter XII, and a few observations upon infantry formations in hilly country will be included in Chapter XXI. But some general matters in connection with assaults on hill tribesmen may conveniently be touched upon here.

 

Experience shows that in hill warfare the broad principle that the making of a good bag should be a principal aim in offensive tactics, when dealing with guerillas, is especially applicable. They are not easily caught, these mountaineers. Expert cragsmen, as nimble as goats among their declivities and boulders, knowing every cleft and every nullah, it is wonderful what mobility they possess. If their flanks or rear are threatened they disappear as if by magic. Unless detachments manage to get where they can pick off the fugitives as they bolt, the assailants find after their weary scramble up the hill sides that the bird has flown untouched, and they have to satisfy themselves with the empty honour of gaining possession of a knoll or crest which is of no use to them. If possible, therefore, the flanks of hostile gatherings should be turned by unseen parties of active men and picked shots. The elements of concealment are indispensable, and it must be remembered that above all things the

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detachments making the detour do not too soon show up above the tribesmen nor in rear of them, otherwise the enemy will be off. For the same reason the frontal assault must not be premature or the enemy will get away undamaged. This seems to be the theory of attack in such operations, but quick eye for country, agility, and experience are required to put the theory effectively in practice.

The Gurkha scouts attacking above Thati.

It would be difficult to find a better example of the art of handling men on a small scale in attack against guerilla mountaineers, than the scuffle which took place between the Gurkha "scouts" under Lieutenant Lucas and the Chamkanii on some heights above Thati in 1897.

 

There were 80 of these scouts engaged. On this particular occasion they were moving rather ahead of one flank of the column operating against Thati. When the enemy was observed in some force on high ground, they first had to scramble up some precipitous slopes. Then on approaching the crest they found in front of them three successive spurs, each one sangared and held by large bodies of tribesmen. Lieutenant Lucas waited until he saw the leading company of the 5th Gurkhas coming up in support; then telling off one half of his command on one flank to sweep the first lot of sangars with independent fire, he himself led the other half from the other flank to charge this nearest position. To the wild delight of the Gurkhas, the Chamkanis, on seeing the little party rushing forward, stood up, fired a. desultory volley and got their knives out. It looked as if there was to be a scrimmage such as the scouts had been thirsting for. But the enemy could not stand the combination of approaching bayonets and of a withering fire, which the happy dispositions adopted for attack brought about. They wavered a moment and then fled, leaving behind them several dead to the credit of the firing half of the scout company. The two other spurs were cleared in the same way, and finally, when the hill-men streamed away over the crest and across terraced fields below, the Gurkhas shot them down from above with deadly effect Twenty or thirty of the enemy were killed and not a single scout was even wounded, for these Pathans are poor marksmen at a moving target, and their shooting goes to nothing when they feel that they are being got at

 

In this capital little bit of work the right principle of carrying out an attack on hill-men is very well illustrated. It was not merely a case of advancing with a rush and driving the enemy out helter-skelter by a resolute offensive, but

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care was also taken to have detachments, halted and well posted, ready to bring a damaging musketry fire to bear on the fugitives. The sangars were not merely cleared of their defenders; the defenders were treated to a torrent of bullets as well just when they had to quit their cover. There were no turning movements, no attempts to manoeuvre the hill-men out of their positions, they were tackled and in a military sense wiped out.

Turning movements not to be undertaken too readily.

Writers on tactics are always harping upon turning movements, and in some valuable papers which have appeared in India on hill warfare, there has been perhaps rather too much tendency to dwell upon their value. Quite unintentionally the idea has been conveyed to a certain extent, that when troops find tribesmen holding some spur or crest they are at once to begin working round the hostile flanks. This system should by no means be adopted as a matter of course--on the contrary, it is wholly out of place except under given circumstances. If hostile parties are strongly posted and well covered, and if a direct attack on them will involve serious loss, then by all means should troops be sent to operate against their flanks and rear so as to turn them out. The detailing of small bodies to work unseen round the hostile flanks so as to reach points whence an effective musketry can be brought to bear on the enemy when driven out by direct attack, will always be a sound and wise arrangement. If a picquet has to occupy some knoll it must turn the enemy off the place by whatever means seem most certain to achieve the object. But under other circumstances turning movements do not pay in the long run. If it is merely intended to clear spurs and crests of tribal gatherings, artillery fire will often do the trick and save the infantry a climb; but war carried on on these lines has few terrors for the guerilla mountaineer. The young men who do most of the fighting and who are generally the last to consent to negotiations being opened, do not worry over crumbling watch towers and burning byres, nor do the

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sufferings of women and children greatly appeal to them; but they do not like being killed and wounded any better than other people. The moral is obvious.

Mountain guns and cavalry in attack in hill warfare.

Mountain guns can travel over very awkward country, and in the disposition of mixed forces for attacks upon hillmen this fact is not perhaps always quite sufficiently kept in « view. The killing effect of artillery firing up at sangars from much lower ground is insignificant, although it may clear the enemy out of his defences. If the guns are told off to remain down in the valley or on the lower spurs and to stick to theoretically good "artillery positions," their real value is often entirely thrown away. They should, if possible, get on to high ground so as to be able to^play on the retreating enemy--of their mobility their own officers are the best judges; and as long as the force is advancing their escort need rarely give grounds for any anxiety. In Chapter XXIV, which deals especially with artillery, the desirability of very forward tactics on the part of this arm in small wars is insisted upon; this principle is of paramount importance in hill warfare, because portable guns cannot move rapidly like horse or field artillery, to make up for having been originally left too far back in the line of battle.

 

Cavalry can of course do nothing on hill sides or in narrow valleys; but the terror which horsemen inspire among mountaineers renders this arm particularly valuable whenever there is fairly level country within the area of a day's operations. If the other arms can drive the hill-men on to ground where cavalry can work, troopers may be enabled to perform splendid service, and their presence in wide open valleys such as are so often found jutting up into the mountains, will often afford most useful support to the flanks of troops moving along the slopes. The services of the sowars during the operations in the Mamund country in 1897 were extraordinarily effective, owing to the almost exaggerated idea which the clan entertained of their capabilities. On the occasion when the village

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of Zagai was destroyed the enemy was, to start with, taken somewhat by surprise, but as soon as the designs of the force were detected the tribesmen hurried from adjoining valleys to participate in the fray; those coming from the left had to cross an open space held by some lancers, but they would not face the music, and after a considerable delay they started to reach the vicinity of the village by a long circuit round the hills, only arriving when the fight was over. Given practicable terrain, cavalry can be of immense service as an auxiliary to infantry and artillery even in hill warfare. The difficulty about cavalry is that its forage demands much transport, and that the resulting increase of the baggage train may not be justified by the few rare occasions on which the arm is likely to come into play.

Remarks on the destruction of villages.

The destruction of villages is a task which is so often imposed upon regular troops in hill warfare that a few points with reference to this particular class of work may be included here. Although the habitations of the enemy are sometimes perched on crags and pinnacles, and are occasionally found clinging to steep declivities, they are as a rule constructed either on terraces or else down in the valleys, and owing to the topographical features of the country they will therefore generally be commanded by adjacent heights and spurs. If a strong force is available to deal with the village, it should have no difficulty in occupying the high ground and in keeping the enemy off. But if only a small body of troops be detailed for the enterprise, the occupation of surrounding spurs may be impracticable, and in that case the work of demolition will probably be carried out under considerable difficulties.

The work must be carried out deliberately.

Mountain guns do not have much effect upon Pathan villages without a heavy expenditure of ammunition. If the houses are of wood they have earth piled on the roofs as a rule, and they will not burn unless holes are made in these. The demolition of towers, although an easy engineering operation in itself, takes some little time. It is often very

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difficult to find the stores of grain, &c, if the enemy has been expecting the visitation, and unless these stores be dealt with the ob is incomplete. The destruction of a village in fact cannot he effected in a moment, and to ensure that the work shall be carried out thoroughly the parties charged with doing the damage require to undertake the task methodically and with deliberation; many of the dwellings of the Zakka Khels in the Waran Valley, which had been dealt with in November, 1897, were three weeks later found almost reconstructed.

 

The first step towards ensuring that destruction may be effectual is to arrange that it shall if possible be carried out by the sappers and their assistants unmolested. Under a hot fire, and with the enemy perhaps inclined to threaten the line of retreat, working parties will almost inevitably fail to make a lasting impression upon the dwellings given over to them. Therefore unless the whole operation is to be carried out in strong force capable of brushing away resistance, it will be judicious to give to it the character of a surprise. When the principle of "military execution" was applied in deliberate fashion to the valley of the Mamunds, General Jeffreys, having only a small force at his disposal, always concealed his intentions; the troops would march up the valley and would then suddenly turn off towards the locality selected for the visit, the consequence being that the place was in flames and its defences in ruins before the tribesmen could gather in any force to interfere.

Principle of attacking a village.

Assuming that the village about to be dealt with lies in a re-entrant in the hills, as is so generally the case, and that it is held by the enemy, the best procedure will generally be to push forward troops on either flank to capture the spurs between which it nestles. This is a case when guns can be used early in the fight, because it is desirable to make sure of the spurs, even at the cost of simply driving off the tribesmen (who will inevitably collect on the heights above the

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habitations) instead of trying to tackle them. Once these spurs are occupied, the enemy will almost for certain evacuate the village, and come under cross fire from the troops who have gained the high ground; it will, moreover, be easy to keep hostile parties at a distance who might otherwise try to annoy the detachments engaged in destroying the place. The object being to destroy the village, other circumstances are made subservient to this object, and the guns can be used freely against the guerillas on the heights. Supposing the destruction of the buildings to be only an item in a programme of general attack, a different procedure would of course be Mowed, inasmuch as the plan suggested here is not calculated to cause much damage among the opposing personnel except those actually holding the village.

Presence of women and children in villages.

In the Pathan country the presence of women and children in a village may be taken as a sure sign that the men belonging to it do not mean to fight. This fact need not of course, influence the decision to destroy it. But, from the tactical point of view, it is useful to know hostile intentions, because there may be more than one place to be dealt with, and the enemy may mean fighting at one and not at another.

Stone throwers.

It is well to remember that those hill-men who are detailed to hurl down rocks and stones upon the troops, are as a general rule unarmed, or that at least they have no weapons of a formidable kind. To deal with them it is of course necessary to get level with, or above, them; but it will generally be found that very small parties can do all that is required. Foemen assembled at the head of a stone shoot are practically defenceless as long as the troops do not attempt to approach them from below.

The difficulty of communicating orders during action in hill warfare.

On level open ground the communication of orders rarely presents much difficulty; they can be rapidly conveyed by mounted men, and on such terrain moreover, a force is generally in fairly compact formation. But in action against guerilla mountaineers in their own country, mounted orderlies

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cannot be used. In addition to this the regular troops are apt to be scattered in relatively speaking small parties over an extensive battle-field, the terrain being so broken that messengers on foot cannot traverse it at a very rapid pace. A hilly country favours signalling of course, and this is always made free use of in operations in such terrain; but when the army engaged becomes broken up into very small units as is so often the case, this means of communication cannot be entirely relied upon, and its effective employment depends on conditions of weather and light, which may fail.

 

Mistakes as regards orders have frequently caused difficulty and loss in hill warfare, owing to isolated parties misunderstanding the intentions of the commander and marring his plans. And before suggesting how best to avoid such contretemps two examples from the campaigns of 1897 on the Indian frontier may be given, showing what unfortunate results may attend the non-receipt or misconception of an order.

 

Practically the last serious combat of the Tirah campaign ended in a disaster owing to this. A column had crossed the Shin Kamar kotal, and some of the troops had advanced a little way down the valley on the far or northern side. The route on either side of the kotal was overshadowed by bills on the flanks, the whole depression running north and south. The enemy showed in considerable strength on the hill tops; but there is every reason to believe that the return journey would have been attended by no very serious fighting, had not a company, owing to some mistake which has never been quite explained, withdrawn from a knoll situated immediately west of the kotal and dominating it. This knoll was promptly seized by the enemy, and the retirement of the troops beyond was so seriously jeopardized by its loss that it became necessary to recapture it at all costs from strong hostile bodies elated by an apparent success. The knoll was stormed; but there were many casualties, and the troops forming the rear guard thus found themselves encumbered with numbers of wounded. In the final withdrawal from the knoll, the troops, hampered as they were by the wounded, suffered further serious losses, and the rear guard was in the end only extricated with the utmost difficulty from its awkward situation.. In this unfortunate affair five officers and 22 men were killed and many were wounded, among the officers killed being Lieutenant Colonel Haughton, whose leadership in the Tseri Kandao retreat,

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mentioned on p. 224, and on other occasions during the campaign, had been the admiration of all.

 

The first attempt to cow the Mamunds has been referred to in an earlier paragraph. The day's fighting is remarkable for the number of lessons in the art of mountain warfare which it teaches, and one of its most memorable incidents was the unfortunate result which attended the non-delivery of an order to a certain company at the proper time. After having been heavily engaged for some hours the brigade retired, keeping the enemy at a respectful distance at most points. But a Sikh company on the extreme right had pushed high up into the hills, and before the order to withdraw eventually reached it, it had become completely isolated and was being hard pressed by very superior numbers. To extricate it the Guides had to turn back, and it only reached the foot of the hills towards dusk with both officers wounded and short of ammunition, having had a desperate scuffle. It was largely due to this contretemps that the whole brigade was benighted, and that, while most of it regained camp in detachments, some troops were cut off and remained in a situation of much danger till past midnight.

Precautions to be observed.

It is obviously important to devise, if possible, some method of avoiding such unfortunate occurrences; but this is not easy. The ordinary precautions tending to ensure the correct transmission of messages should of course be observed--messages should be written down, should if practicable be sent twice by distinct orderlies, should be clear and concise; if the receiver of a message is in any doubt as to its meaning he should if possible refer back to the sender, and so on. But all these precautions may fail under the difficult conditions which are likely to arise in a tussle with hill-men on awkward ground, and therefore it seems most desirable that the officers should be informed of the intentions of their chief at the outset, and that before executing any change of plan, sufficient time should be allowed to elapse to ensure that outlying detachments shall have learnt what is going to be done. Especially is it important that the whole force should be aware of the alteration in the direction which the operations are to take, when a retirement is to commence; orders to distant parties must be despatched in ample time to reach them before the withdrawal begins, otherwise small bodies of troops in close contact with the enemy

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may be left in the lurch just at the most critical moment. Signalling is of course invaluable in these circumstances, and signallers should, if practicable, accompany every detachment sent off independently for any purpose.

Importance of avoiding being benighted.

In the above-mentioned affair with the Mamunds a great deal of loss was caused by the force being benighted. This brings us to a matter of great importance in hill warfare. It maybe laid down as a fundamental rule of conduct that the day's operations, whether they take the form of an attack or of a march, should be so devised as to ensure that the troops shall if possible reach their bivouac by sundown. This cannot, of course, always be arranged. It is often a matter of mere conjecture how long a march will take, although it has been laid down in an earlier paragraph that marches should be very short. On the occasion of the first visit to Dwatoi from Maidan in the Tirah campaign, although the distance was only seven miles, the rear guard did not reach its destination till evening on the day after the march commenced, and it was out all night in the defile. The opposition met on the road may be very determined, and may cause unexpected delay to the whole force. Circumstances may render it compulsory to move a certain distance before halting, whether this entails being out after dark or not. On several occasions in the frontier campaigns of 1897, when troops and transports failed to reach their destination before nightfall, being overtaken by darkness while still on the march, their being thus benighted was unavoidable. But it was not always unavoidable, and no lesson is more clearly taught by the experiences of those operations than that such belated movements of troops or transport are fraught with the gravest dangers.

In the darkness the enemy is enabled by superior knowledge of the country to work round the flanks and to get to close quarters. The column becomes split into fragments. Detachments lose their way. Transport drivers become terror-

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stricken and can no longer be controlled. The difficulties of the route increase a hundredfold, and it is impossible to send orders or to maintain a tactical control. Such being the consequences when troops are benighted while on the move in hill warfare, it is obvious that when practicable the day's work should be calculated on the basis that it shall be completed within the hours of daylight, whatever the operation may be.

 

The withdrawal over the Tseri Kandao Pass, already referred to on p. 224 and elsewhere, was one of those cases where the movement could not have been concluded before dark under any circumstances if the enemy gave trouble, the distance being about eight miles. On that occasion the goal was the great encampment of three of the four brigades forming the field force, and it was desirable, if possible, to reach this haven of refuge and to complete the transfer from the Waran valley to Maidan in a single day. But the result proved that it would have been better to take two days. When a route is fairly well known and the rate of march can be calculated with approximate accuracy, there seems to be little excuse for sending off transport in such quantities or at such an hour as to risk its being benighted, either wholly or in part.

 

When the Tirah field force crossed the Arhanga Pass from the Mastura into the Bara valley, nearly the whole of the baggage had to be left behind temporarily. The route was difficult, and the subsequent movement of the great mass of transport in single file was necessarily a slow and laborious operation. On two successive nights transport was still on the road after dark and 11,000 rounds and over 500 kits were in consequence lost. The tribesmen had not recovered from the effects of the Sempagha fight and did not seriously molest the transport in the darkness; but it is clear that at that early period of the campaign the importance of avoiding these night movements was not fully realised, and that, what is now considered one of the fundamental principles of conducting, these kind of operations, was not appreciated.

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Course to be pursued if troops are benighted.

Still, in spite of the best laid plans, it must sometimes occur that the whole of a force, or its transport, or its rear guard, may fail to reach its destination before nightfall, and the question arises how, under such circumstances, it should act. The answer to this seems to be plain, and is, indeed, written down with unmistakable directness in the records of the frontier campaigns of 1897. Troops about to be benighted must make up their minds to stop out till morning breaks, and they should prepare for this before darkness actually sets in. While it is still light some position should be selected where the force can be concentrated on ground favourable for defence, where the transport, if there be any, can be parked under proper protection, and where the best can be made of what cannot fail to be an awkward situation. The decision must be come to in good time, so that dispositions may be completed before the darkness closes in; the cold and exposure of a night in the open without great coats, &c, must be faced, in preference to the perils of continuing the movement after sundown. Of course this rule only holds good in presence of an active enemy and in a country where the troops are liable to be scattered and taken at a disadvantage. A compact column on favourable ground has not much to fear from ordinary hill-men at night or at any other time, and at night the enemy's sniping from a distance is not very damaging.

An early decision to be arrived at as to intended course of action when night approaches.

It happened on more than one occasion in Tirah that a rear guard was left to its own devices at nightfall; the main body of the force moved on and reached camp practically unmolested, while the troops who had borne the burden and heat of the day had to choose between remaining out till morning or straggling on as best they could. Further on, in dealing with retirements and rear guards, the importance of the main body making its pace conform to that of the rear guard will be pointed out, as it has already been pointed out in Chapter XIV. But, although this principle need not perhaps be carried so far as to make it an axiom that because

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the rear guard is benighted the main body must stop out all night also, it should be carried so far as to ensure that towards evening the whole force should know what is going to happen, and that the commander of the rear guard and his subordinates shall learn in good time what is to be the further programme. When heavy losses occurred at night in the Indian hill warfare of 1897, it almost always arose owing to misunderstandings, or owing to the fact that the approach of darkness was not taken into account at an early enough hour to allow of special arrangements being made.

Guns to be sent on.

Officers of mountain artillery have, with good reason, a strong objection to being caught by the darkness while on the move, or to spending the night in any position where the enemy can creep up close under cover. The mules get shot, and in any case the guns are of very little use in such circumstances. Guns must therefore, if possible, be sent on in sufficient time to reach the destination, provided of course that they will find supporting troops when they get there.

 

McCaskill's brigade marching down the Khaibar in 1841, when Afghanistan was being evacuated, was belated in the defile. The Afridis fired into the long column from the heights, and rushing down at one point captured two guns, after causing heavy loss to the detachments when taken at a disadvantage. The guns were afterwards recovered, as the enemy made no attempt to drag them off.

 

The first day's bout with the Mamunds, in 1897, marked as it was throughout by dramatic incidents, supplies no more remarkable picture than that of the four guns of No. 8 Bengal Mountain Battery, which passed the night at the village of Bilot With a half regiment of Sikhs and 30 sappers they were making their way back to camp, when an order came for them to halt and to cover the retirement of the Guides, who, after rescuing the isolated Sikh company as narrated on p. 312, could be heard fighting their way steadily back to camp on one flank. At this juncture a sudden tropical storm stopped the fighting and threw everything into confusion. Only the artillery and sappers received the order with reference to the Guides; this little party got to Bilot, where after the weather cleared firing was resumed and matters assumed a most critical aspect. Most fortunately a dozen of the Buffs turned up by accident, and their magazine rifles probably saved the guns. For these before long were firing case shot at 20 yards range. Both officers were wounded, the other having been killed in the afternoon.

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Many of the detachment and of the mules were hit, and the position of the whole party was such as to cause the gravest anxiety, when, after several hours and in the nick of time, two Sikh companies arrived. As a consequence of this nocturnal combat two of the guns were practically put out of action till the casualties could be replaced

Examples of troops being benighted.

Before making a few observations on the conduct of movements by night in presence of an aggressive enemy, when for some reason or other the troops have not been able to halt in good time and to take up a good position, some examples of halting, and of not halting, will be of interest. All are taken from the Tirah campaign.

 

When Lieut.-Colonel Haughton, who was commanding the rear guard on the first move to Dwatoi mentioned on p. 313, perceived that owing to the extraordinary difficulties of the road he could not get through before dark, he halted the baggage, parked it on suitable ground, picqueted the hills all round, and passed the night on the road in security.

 

All the way down the Bara valley the Afridis continually pressed on the rear guard On the last day but one of the march to Barkai, General Westmacott's brigade was heavily engaged all day covering the baggage and transport; this was in great confusion, the drivers being demoralized with terror and cold, and the valley presenting extraordinary difficulties to movement of any kind. The enemy was roughly handled several times during the day, but, coming on with a boldness not shown before, was evidently inspired with the dread that the loot might after all escape. Towards dusk there were still two miles to be traversed, and General Westmacott then took up position on a ridge for the night. The tribesmen committed themselves to an attack, which was pushed home with desperate bravery, but they were repulsed at all points with heavy loss. Not a mule or a follower was out off, and what may be looked upon as the last serious fight in Tirah proper, ended in a notable triumph for the regular forces.

 

Two days earlier, when the other brigade had brought up the rear, it had also been found impossible for the rear guard to get in before dark--the affair has already been mentioned on p. 175. Towards evening it was gradually outflanked; but the enemy was not in strong force, and the guns proved of great assistance till they were obliged to push on to camp two miles distant for fear of being benighted Between the tail of the rear guard and the camp the river ran in an awkward ravine, and the route passed through what was a typical military defile. Through a misunderstanding between the brigades the flanks had not been picqueted The consequence was that desperate efforts had to be made to induce the followers, who were benumbed with cold, were utterly exhausted and were terrified out of their wits to push on to camp. In the meantime the enemy got in between the tail of the rear guard, now consisting of several companies,

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ad the camp. The transport and drivers suffered appreciable losses, which, however, turned out afterwards to have been less serious than was,t first supposed.

 

But. while this was going on Major Downman with the rearmost troops lad occupied the buildings where he passed the night in complete security, practically unmolested and within sight of the camp. The difficulty had ocurred quite close to the picquets around the bivouac of the division. It is absolutely impossible to keep transport in such a situation from straggling and from becoming more or less unmanageable when the darkness closes in, and considering that the heights had not been crowned, it seems fortunate >hat the losses in the followers and animals were not much heavier than they actually were.

 

Before quitting Maidan Tirah, Sir W. Lockhart visited the Chamkani and Massuzai country to the west of Tirah, and General Gaselee's brigade was lent out in advance to open the road Although opposition was not very determined the country proved exceedingly difficult, and it was foreseen early that the whole brigade could not get over the pass which had to be crossed, before dark. General Gaselee therefore sent part of his brigade on, kept part of it in the pass itself, and left the baggage well protected at the loot of the pass. He thus spent the night with his force in three distinct detachments, each detachment, however, being able to take care of itself. An attack was made on the baggage during the night, which was repulsed with loss.

 

These incidents seem to point out clearly the course which should generally be pursued. When a force is on the move an understanding should be arrived at as to the intended procedure before dusk actually descends. This affects not merely that part of the force which is about to be benighted, but it also affects other parts which have reached, or which are close to, their destination. If the rearmost detachments of the force are in difficulties in the late afternoon and cannot get in before night, they should be reinforced betimes and should be halted on favourable ground. It is far better for the force to be broken up into detachments which, even if isolated, are well posted, than for part of it to be drifting along in the darkness, encumbered with an ever-growing crowd of helpless wounded officers and men who cannot be abandoned, and at the mercy of savage out-throats who can attack it from all sides.

Troops on the move at night.

Assuming, however, a body of troops to be benighted on the road and to be unable, owing to care of transport or some

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such, reason, to halt in any defensive position, where it can keep the enemy at bay, the great point seems to be to keep the troops in compact bodies prepared to assume the offensive when an opportunity offers. When it is dark the enemy cannot see to aim except at very close ranges, and if the troops are of good cheer and make occasional rashes with the bayonet, the wary foe will keep at a respectful distance. Nullahs should if possible be avoided, they are very dangerous if the heights on either side are not picqueted. But, above all things, there must be no straggling on the part of the men, or they will almost inevitably be cut up. The disaster to part of the Northamptonshire Regiment in retiring after the first reconnaissance to Saran Sar in Tirah, an account of which is given at the end of the chapter, occurred, as will be seen, while they were retiring through a shallow steep-sided nullah in the dusk while the rearmost companies were hampered by many wounded. The party of the Dorsets which came to grief during the Tseri Kandao retirement, mentioned on p. 225, seems to have moved in two separate bodies, one of which was brought in almost intact, while the other got into a nullah where the men appear to have become separated and to have been cut up singly or in small groups. To show the importance of the light question, it may be mentioned that the rear guard in this remarkable Tseri Kandao affair spent the night in two separate parties in buildings some little distance apart, but that Lieut.-Colonel Haughton was careful to take his party over to join the other one before it was light enough for the enemy to fire accurately. The advantage of keeping in groups during a night march is well shown by the following incident which occurred during the night move of baggage over the Arhanga Pass, referred to on p. 314.

 

Some Afridis had concealed themselves on roofs of houses close to the road, and suddenly jumped off them as the convoy passed and got among the mule drivers. Lance-corporal Simpson of the Queen's had collected 18 men, and was moving with these in a compact party with bayonets fixed.

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Some of the enemy tried to rush this little body, but they were bayoneted or shot. The N.C.O. then took his men a little way up the hill side and fired volleys into the raiders; these tried to get above him, but he again moved a little way up the slope and fired steady volleys. The moral effect of the cool, intrepid conduct of this little party under its young leader was invaluable to the rest of the escort, for it is not the Pathan's game to run unnecessary risks on a night foray. To find a party with fixed bayonets when he expects solitary individuals is an unpleasant surprise, but to be greeted with steady volleys at such short range that even in the dark they may prove deadly, quenches his thirst for plunder effectually.

Sir W. Lockhart's maxims.

Inasmuch as the dangers of straggling and of small parties getting into nullahs and ravines and falling into ambushes, are appreciable by day as well as by night, and inasmuch as some of the points drawn attention to above in reference to night work are really applicable to all hours of the day, it will not be out of place before proceeding further to quote some remarks made by Sir W. Lockhart to the Northampton and Dorsets, in Tirah, in commending them for their conduct under most untoward circumstances. "We must remember," he said, "that we are opposed to perhaps the best skirmishers and the best natural shots in the world, and that the country they inhabit is the most difficult on the face of the globe. The enemy's strength lies in his thorough knowledge of the ground, which enables him to watch all our movements unperceived and to take advantage of every height and every ravine. Our strength, on the other hand, lies in our discipline, controlled fire, and mutual support; our weakness is our ignorance of the country and the consequent tendency of small bodies to straggle and to get detached. The moral of all this is that careful touch must be maintained, and that if by mischance small parties do find themselves alone they should, as much as possible, stick to the open and shun ravines and broken ground, where they must fight at a disadvantage and run every risk of being ambuscaded."

Advantages which experienced troops

The regiments which are ever looking towards the border highlands from the Panjab plains, know all this by experience

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enjoy in this class of warfare.

and by tradition. The youngster who marches for the first time into the mountains has often heard it from the men decked out with many medals in his company; the subaltern has been told it by his seniors. The Sikhs, the Gurkhas, the Dogras and the Panjabis know full well that what is practised in camps of exercise in the North West Provinces or the Deccan, is designed to meet conditions totally different from warfare in the hills. On the threshold of the border highlands they shed their text-book tactics as it were a garment. Filing among the ravines and gorges, and scrambling over the crags and mountain crests, they adapt themselves at once to the conditions of the conflict, and the stealthiest Zakka Kehl or Orukzai knows that these native regiments of the Sirkar are not to be trifled with. But with British troops it is different. Battalions find themselves suddenly engaged on operations of a new and uncanny kind, the like of which often not one single individual in the corps has before experienced. So it comes about that when in a tight place neither officers nor men know instinctively what to do, they break up into groups, some group goes astray, loses its way, gets into a ad de sac, and, endeavouring to save its dead and wounded, is wiped out coolly and methodically by a not very superior body of the enemy not nearly so well armed or so brave as are the victims. Happily, the peculiar tactics which hill warfare demands, and with which native regiments, seasoned by many a border scuffle are well acquainted, are now being practised when opportunity offers in time of peace, and the petty disasters which so greatly swelled the fists of casualties in Tirah and which cloud the records of that great campaign, ought not to recur in the future.

Danger of even email ravines unless the heights are held.

The principle inculcated by Sir W. Lockhart that small parties should keep clear of ravines and broken ground when possible, does not apply only to detachments. It holds good equally in the case of large bodies of men, unless the crests and knolls dominating the ravines and depressions in the

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broken ground have been picqueted. The plan of crowning the heights is just as applicable to a shallow nullah as to a great depression in the mountains. The topographical under-features of any valley in the hills presents alternating spurs and ravines more or less accentuated. At first sight it might appear that the ravine would present a safer line of movement than the spur, because the former offers better cover; and it is no doubt generally the case in advancing to the attack that the ravine would be the preferable route. But when in difficulties, or when the object is to get from point to point with as little loss as possible, the spur will almost always be the line to take, and troops experienced in hill warfare are well aware of this. The case of Saran Sar quoted further on illustrates this principle well, and it will be found in studying the movements of regiments which have seen much service in the hills, that they are always on the spurs when they are retiring or otherwise in an awkward situation.

 

It is interesting to call to mind that the closing scene of the disastrous retreat from Kabul in 1840 gave evidence that the survivors, a mere handful of officers and of men of the horse artillery and the 44th Regiment, in their last hour recognized instinctively that the ravine was no place for them. They were in a depression parleying with the emissaries of Akbar Khan, the tribesmen gathering in threatening array on the heights around them, when somehow fire opened. They made a rush for it, cleft a path for themselves up a hill side through their astonished foemen, and seized a knoll where they fought it out to the bitter end with stones and steel.

Value of counterattack when troops get into difficulties.

This final effort of a doomed remnant showed not only that the gallant party realized the value of ground, but that the terrible experiences of the march through the Afghan denies with the crests on either hand swarming with Ghilzai tribesmen, had not stamped out the spirit of attack which is the fundamental principle of conducting warfare against irregulars. In operations against guerilla hill-men this great principle must never be forgotten. When the worst comes to the worst, a bold onslaught may save the situation. A single straggler lost in the darkness may save himself if he

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rushes in with his bayonet. A small party with a charge and a shout may hunt away the hostile swarm which has hemmed it in. And this is one reason why a nullah is so dangerous, because the sides may be so steep that it is impossible to assume the offensive, and because in any case the slopes will break the force of a rush.

Examples of catching the enemy in ravines.

Still, it would be a mistake to suppose that it is only the regular troops who get caught in such places. Gurkhas and other soldiers versed in the art of hill warfare manage occasionally to trap the wariest of mountaineers. At setting snares, devising ambuscades and work of that kind, some of the native corps on the Panjab frontier are quite a match for the guerillas whom they have to deal with; and there is no reason why British soldiers, supplied as they always are with a goodly proportion of officers who are keen and practical sportsmen, should not acquit themselves satisfactorily as guerillas if they only got the practice. The following two incidents which occurred in Tirah, are worth quoting in this connection:--

 

When the first column sent down the defile from Maidan to Dwatoi was returning, the rear guard consisting of 36th Sikhs was somewhat pressed and several casualties occurred. Some ponies were sent hack to help the wounded along; but, at a narrow place in the ravine, a number of Afridis scrambled down the rocky sides hoping to capture these, being apparently unaware that the rear guard was close by, coming up the gorge. A party of Sikhs managed by a skilful movement to get round above the enemy, and down into the ravine beyond. The looters were fairly trapped Precipitous walls of rock shut them in on two sides, egress up or down the gorge was barred by the 36th, and the Sikhs dealt with them with the bayonet.

 

On another occasion some Zakka Khels made a bold attempt to out off the tail of a convoy proceeding back from Maidan towards the Arhanga Pass. A company of Madras sappers working not far from the spot, hurried to extricate the convoy, and in doing so drove the enemy up the valley towards the pass where, some companies of the Gordons happened to be. One company of the highlanders hastened down each of the two spurs flanking the ravine. The Afridis were almost surrounded, and lost about 40 men, having only accounted for one soldier and for four followers of the convoy.

 

It will be observed that on both these occasions the

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tribesmen came to grief in an attempt to loot; and it should always be remembered in dealing with such antagonists, that cunning as they are, nimble, resourceful, and acute, they have human weaknesses. They are thieves by nature, and are by. profession accustomed to harry villages, to rob and murder travellers, and to cut off traders. They have a passion for plunder, and sometimes forget their caution in efforts to acquire it. Just as the Abyssinians rushed down from the heights at Arogee in hope of loot, and suffered for it as narrated on p. 233, so the wily mountaineers will sometimes make a blunder and pay the penalty of greed. It is a point worth noting, in view of luring such opponents into ambuscades and of catching them at a disadvantage among the baggage animals when they rush out from their hiding places to effect a capture.

General question of rear guards and retirements.

Early in this chapter it has been pointed out how one of the greatest difficulties under which the regular forces labour in typical hill warfare, is that owing to unavoidable circumstances portions of the force employed are so often obliged to retire for various causes. As already demonstrated these retirements are often misconstrued by the enemy into confessions of defeat. It is not the unfortunate moral effect of these withdrawals alone, however, that makes them so objectionable, but also the fact that they at times place regular troops in positions of great perplexity and peril, and that they involve perhaps the most difficult operations which trained soldiers are ever called upon to undertake in conflict with irregular forces.

 

In Chapter XIV the question of retreats has been already dealt with, and most of the points laid stress on therein apply to the conditions of guerilla hill warfare. It is necessary to draw attention, however, to the fact that rearguards have a very important and often most difficult part to play in the hills whichever way the army is going, whether it be advancing or retiring; because mountaineers

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are generally fully alive to the fact that detachments withdrawing before them, as a rear-guard must, are tactically in a disadvantageous situation. In discussing withdrawals and retirements and rear-guards it must be understood that these are not necessarily the movements of the tail of a retreating army. At the same time it stands to reason that troops covering the actual retreat .of a column, are more likely to get into difficulties than are troops who are merely protecting the rear of an advancing army, because in the one case the enemy has the moral advantage and not in the other.

 

The broad principle enunciated in Chapter XIV, that retirements should be conducted deliberately and that rearguards as a whole must withdraw slowly maintaining a bold front, holds good in hill warfare. In operations of this particular nature, the enemy is to the full as eager and zealous in pursuit as is found to be the case in campaigns against irregular warriors of other kinds; hill-men are indeed especially noted for their energy and skill when following up retiring troops. The importance of keeping touch in a retiring column, and of the main body as a general rule adapting its pace to that of the rear-guard in conducting a withdrawal in face of guerilla highlanders--points already emphasized in Chapter XIV--can scarcely be overrated. That a bold counter-attack will often prove the best way out of a difficulty has been proved over and over again in hill warfare. But there are certain other respects in which rear guard operations in mountainous country present abnormal features.

Persistency of hill-men in pursuit.

In the first place, experience proves that hill-men are: exceptionally persistent in pursuit. As a rule an uncivilized. foe is desperately in earnest when the regular troops first begin to fall back, and this first phase of a retirement is, therefore, its most critical time; but the history of small wars shows, on the other hand, that an army once fairly launched in retreat is not ordinarily followed up with much obstinacy by savage warriors. This, however, is not the case

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when the trained soldiers are opposed to mountaineers fighting in defence of their hearths and homes. We have only to look back to the melancholy story of the retreat from Kabul to find an example of a formidable body of troops of all arms being harassed and dogged during its retirement for many days by ever growing swarms of hill-men, whom even the love of loot and the attractions of a rich harvest of plunder in the wake of the withdrawing army, failed to draw off from the trail Moreover it is very generally the case that in mountain warfare the retirements and rear-guard affairs are limited to a single march and to a single day's work, so that the enemy hardly has time to weary of the game of hovering around the hindmost detachments until these reach a place of safety.

The fact that the retirement is generally down hill tells against the regulars.

Early in this chapter, the disinclination of hill-men to attack up hill was referred to, they like having their opponents below them, and their whole attitude is governed by this question of relative levels. A moment's consideration shows that when troops have to retire in hill warfare, they will generally be retiring down hill with the enemy above them or easily able to get above them. Mountaineers stick to the crests and spurs while they can. The regular army marches and encamps on the low ground. Thus while the troops generally attack ascending, they also generally retire descending. Even if a force be retiring up a valley, the picquets on the flanks will be moving down hill to join the column, and the enemy pursuing these will have the command.

 

This is one reason why the tribesmen of the Indian frontier are so formidable in pursuit. They are enjoying not only the moral advantage derived from the regulars retreating before them, but also the, in their opinion, very great material advantage of being above their opponents and of being able to charge down on these when they fall back. Before breech-loading rifles penetrated into the border valleys, rushes down hill sword in hand were a very favourite manoeuvre on the part of most Pathan clans. These onslaughts

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have rarely been attempted of late years upon regular troops who are advancing, but this national mode of fighting is not forgotten when the soldiers turn their backs.

Advisability of a sudden start and rapid movement at first when retiring.

In Chapter XIV it was laid down that retirements should as a whole be conducted slowly and deliberately. But this does not always altogether hold good in hill warfare, at least at the commencement of a withdrawal. Indeed it is often expedient to withdraw in the first instance very rapidly, because by doing so a good deal of ground may be covered before the enemy perceives what is going on. The nature of the country is of assistance to the regular troops in this. On open ground a withdrawal is perceived at once, the enemy follows up without delay, and any precipitate movement of the retiring force encourages him to desperate effort which detachments in motion may not be able effectually to cope with. In broken intersected country, on the other hand, even the very watchful tribesmen may lose touch of what is going on, and a smart retreat of the troops nearest them may come upon them as a complete surprise. But even in hill warfare quick withdrawals of this kind are only admissible just at the start with the idea of giving opponents the slip for a moment. Later or the withdrawal must, as a whole, be conducted as deliberately as in the case of retreat in open country.

 

Retreats and rear-guard operations in mountainous country when the hostile forces consist of guerilla warriors who know the country, who can easily outpace the troops, and who possess the warlike instincts rarely wanting in the hillman, involve so much difficulty and danger, that the broad rule which really governs the whole conduct of small wars and which may be summed up in "fight the enemy wherever you get the chance" hardly applies to them. On the contrary, the rear guard should sneak off unmolested if it can. When a force is retiring through mountain defiles the most able leadership, and the most admirable conduct of the rank and file, will

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hardly prevent the enemy from having the best of it if there be a close pursuit. The retiring force suffers in prestige in any case, and in spite of superior armament, of cohesion, and of courage, the balance of probability is in favour of its having more casualties in its ranks than occur amongst its antagonists. Therefore the intention to fall back should be concealed to the last moment--unless of course it is hoped to lure the enemy into some rash action.

Changing a movement of advance into one of retirement.

Should the army have been advancing, and should it become necessary during the day's operations to withdraw again, it is very important, supposing the enemy to be in force and inclined for fight, that the troops shall achieve some distinct success before turning to go back. To approach a hostile position and to then retire without attacking it, is sure to bring down the enemy in force with the possible sequel of a harassing and dangerous pursuit. If it can safely be attempted and if there be sufficient time, the enemy should be beaten first, and then the troops may be able to withdraw without very serious molestation; at any rate the enemy will, after having been roughly handled, give them a wide berth for an hour or two. and will probably only follow them up at a respectful distance. Lieut.-Colonel Pollock in his "Notes on Hill Warfare," quotes the action of Shah Alam Kaghza, in the Waziristan operations of 1881, in proof of this, and his account of what occurred may be given here.

 

"The 1st Sikhs advanced up a spur covered with oak jungle, so thick that it was difficult to see more than ten yards off. About half way up they halted and the two half companies wore ordered to lie down, fix bayonets and load Suddenly a charge was made on them, the enemy appearing about ten yards off The fire they received sent them back, but the officer instead of allowing his men to get out of hand, pursued them steadily up hill, halting to re-form every now and then. This was a wise precaution as if the men had got out of hand and rushed up the hill, a rush of Waziris might have swept through them. As it was, at each hill the Waziris tried to rush the companies, but did not succeed ... After the charge we heard the general's bugle sounding our regimental call and the retire.

 

Colonel Price, who was a very able officer and quite understood the situation, refused to obey the order, as he was aware that if we retired through

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the thick scrub before the Waziris were beaten, the result would have been a heavy loss in men, so, instead, he drove them over the range and we halted for some time, and then retired without a shot being fired at us."

 

In a case like this there most be always some difficulty in changing from movement forwards into movement backwards, and it will generally be best to halt some time and to make sure that all out-lying detachments know exactly what they are to do. The intention of retiring should be concealed to the last moment, and it will perhaps be possible to get a good start of the enemy before he realizes that the troops are turning back. Sounding the "retire" on the bugle will rarely be a wise procedure, especially on the Indian frontier where the bugle calls are known to the tribesmen. Nothing should be left undone in the way of deceiving the enemy by actual manoeuvre and by spreading false reports.

 

When General Westmacott's force which had moved down from Bagh to Dwatoi in Tirah to reconnoitre the route, turned back after a day's stay at Dwatoi, it got a clear start of the Afridis. The enemy had not expected that this withdrawal would take place. From the nature of the ground round Dwatoi, the drawing in of the picquets and moving off of the baggage could hardly have been effected without loss, had the tribesmen been on the alert and had they known the direction of the intended march.

Details of retirement operations.

When the details of conducting a retirement in the hills come to be considered it becomes manifest how extremely difficult such an operation may prove to be. Except when it is a case of withdrawal from a captured position, or of the marching out of a portion of a force from an encampment which remains in occupation of other troops, the conditions will generally be that the column has detachments out on knolls and spurs in the direction where the enemy is, and that, as it moves off, these detachments have gradually to be withdrawn to other positions. These retirements of picquets cannot always be effected without casualties.

Withdrawal of picquets.

The retreat of a picquet in face of active determined tribesmen who are on the watch to catch it at a disadvantage when it quits its position, is a delicate operation requiring

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nerve and judgment. It may be assumed that its commander has noted his surroundings and decided on his course of action in good time in view of the contingency of recall, and it is most important that he shall have selected a good route and shall have informed his subordinates beforehand of the point where the next halt is to be. When the moment comes to retire, the bulk of the picquet should if possible slip off unobserved by the enemy, while a few especially active men remain behind to keep the opponents occupied and, should these perceive what is going forward, to hold them in check. The withdrawal should be in driblets, care being taken not to stand up before starting lest it attract attention, and in the meantime the files left behind should extend quietly so as to lead the enemy to think that the full muster is still in position. As soon as the main body of the picquet has taken up its new position the men left behind hurry off to join this, covered by its fire and taking care not to mask this fire; practically the little party has to run for all it is worth, but it does not in reality incur so much danger as might be supposed, because irregular warriors are bad shots at a moving target, especially when they are excited and are rushing forward themselves. The re-united picquet should fire a few steady volleys and it should if possible make a pause before retiring again on the same principle. The men must avoid getting into clusters while on the move, otherwise they may give their antagonists a good target to fire at.

Picquets covering each other's retirements.

Sometimes one picquet will cover the retirement of another, and if the ground be favourable and if all concerned are experienced in such operations, the system of one line of picquets retiring through another will work to perfection. Considerable losses may moreover be inflicted on the enemy by cross fire if he presses forward too eagerly to occupy abandoned positions. The great principle to be observed of course is that parties actually hurrying off shall have their retreat

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positions, and which can therefore aim steadily. If by mischance a man is wounded and has to be carried off by his comrades, the situation becomes very nasty, because it involves a little cluster of men for the enemy to aim at; the steady fire of a few files from some secure position however has a wonderful effect in keeping back guerilla antagonists, for these, however bloodthirsty they may be, generally have a rooted aversion to exposing themselves to really dangerous fixe. It is when isolated detachments retire with no support to cover the movement, that the regular troops get into difficulties and that ever-increasing swarms of clansmen get in among them and commit havoc. If it can be arranged for picquets to retire down parallel spurs, they will be able to afford each other very effective support; the enemy will take good care not to attempt a move down the ravine between them and thus each picquet will have one of its flanks secured.

 

If a picquet be overlooked from higher ground and if in consequence it be impossible for part of it to slip away unnoticed by the enemy, the best plan may be for the whole of it to retire simultaneously and to make a rush for the next position decided upon. Such a movement, if there be no covering picquet to maintain fire upon the enemy, is undoubtedly dangerous. But if tribesmen perceive that a detachment is withdrawing in driblets, they will make great efforts to outflank its position and to make the retreat of the few men left to the last a most perilous undertaking; then, if some of this rearmost party get hit, the whole of it may be sacrificed. In the event of casualties occurring, the best plan will often be to deliver a counter-attack or to make a show of delivering a counter-attack, and the wounded should if possible be carried back along a line well commanded by the fire of the covering detachments. It is a great point to keep the enemy from getting so close to the wounded as to be allowed an easy shot into the little groups which collect, and a heavy independent fire should be maintained by the covering detachments upon

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points where the enemy may be gathering, so as to disconcert the hostile aim.

 

Above all things is it necessary that, once the retreat is in full swing, successive withdrawals in face of an active pursuit should be carried out with deliberation as a whole, and that picquets, or portions of picquets, acting as covering detachments to parties falling back, should fire steadily and accurately. The enemy soon takes note of it should the fire be at all wild and acts accordingly, he becomes more and more venturesome and may finally try a rush. As long as these guerilla warriors can be induced to stick to their skulking tactics and to shun the open, they cannot get to close quarters with the rearmost parties while these are actually on the move, and that in itself is a great point gained.

Importance of parties nearest the enemy getting timely notice of intended retirement.

Obviously it is most important that commanders of picquets and of detachments in contact with the enemy should get timely notice of an intended retirement, otherwise they may lose touch with their supports, or they may be compelled to conduct their own retreat with a rapidity not in consonance with the requirements of the case. Owing to the difficulties apt to arise in transmission of messages, much judgment is .required on the part of the commander of the retiring force, and of the commanders of isolated detachments. There is greater danger of some party or parties getting into difficulties when an action is abruptly broken off and an immediate withdrawal ordered, than when the force is retiring after a halt where there has been plenty of time for communication and where the troops nearest to the enemy have had opportunity for noting their surroundings. Detachments in close proximity to the foe cannot simply turn round and move off, arrangements must have been made in advance, while on the move they must be covered by other detachments or they are sure to come to grief.

Direction to be followed by retiring picquets.

In retiring, picquets and detached parties should follow the lines of the spurs as far as possible, they should avoid

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ravines unless these are swept by the fire of other detachments, and it is of course essential that they should take a line in general conformity with the direction followed by the force. The disastrous consequences of disregarding these rules are exemplified by the following unfortunate incident which occurred during the Tirah campaign.

 

A reconnaissance was being made by the Kurrum movable column up the long Earmana defile into the Chamkani country. No opposition was encountered in advance; but when the retirement commenced, the tribesmen collected in some force and adopted their usual harassing tactics; they were however kept in check without great difficulty. A picquet of the Kapurthala infantry which had been detached to hold a flanking spur, however, met with disaster. It was ordered to withdraw at the proper time and it received the message, but instead of descending obliquely rearward into the valley and joining the rear guard, the commander and most of the men made an attempt to strike the valley higher up with the idea of participating in the skirmish which was going on. The party got into difficult ground and came in contact with the enemy higher up than where the rear guard was--they in fact missed connection with it and thus became isolated. They found themselves, moreover, in an awkward side ravine and the tribesmen quickly closed the ends of this. The upshot was that they were eventually shot down to a man.

Pursuit often checked completely if enemy is roughly handled at the start.

Experience shows that if the pursuers are roughly handled at any point, the fate of those slain by the troops rarely fails to exercise a most wholesome restraining influence on the remainder, at least for a time. It is most important to bear this in mind because a sudden counterattack when there happens to be a chance of inflicting loss on the enemy, or a happily conceived ambuscade, or a feint by which the wary hill-men are induced to expose themselves, may stave off pursuit for the nonce and may even stop it altogether.

 

The slaughter caused by the fire of the 15th Sikhs upon the Zakka Khels when these charged out on them on the Tseri Kandao kotaL as narrated on p. 224, was so great that, after it, the rear guard was able to withdraw to the foot of the hills unmolested. The rear guard, indeed, would probably have reached camp without further loss, but for night closing in and giving the foe fresh heart.

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On the occasion of the second reconnaissance to Saran Sar, in Tirah, the scouts of the 3rd Gurkhas covered the retirement, while the regiment itself took up a position some way lower down and to a flank. The scouts, by prearrangement, suddenly fled down the hill They were promptly followed by the enemy, who thus came under cross fire from the regiment. As a result of the ruse the tribesmen suffered so severely that they kept at a safe distance for the rest of the day. The fate of the little party of Afridis, which was trapped during the retirement from Dwatoi to Bagh, as mentioned on p. 323, had the effect of taking all the sting out of the pursuit

Value of counterattacks when in retreat.

The check may often he merely temporary. It is never safe to assume that, because by some deft stroke the hill-men have been caught at a disadvantage, have been punished and have apparently drawn off, that they have really abandoned the idea of harassing the retirement altogether. The effect will frequently be--as happened at Tseri Kandao--to induce the enemy to creep round the flanks taking care to give the troops a wide berth, and to attempt an ambuscade or to devote attention to stragglers. Still, when in a difficulty, it may greatly relieve the troops to choke off the pursuers even for a few minutes, and no opportunity should be lost of doing so. It is extraordinary how swarms of hill-men gathering round a detachment of troops which is retreating and is apparently in peril of annihilation, will give way if this suddenly assumes the offensive. While some of the party advance boldly with bayonets fixed, the remainder may be able to remove the wounded a considerable distance and to take up a good position for covering the retirement of those who have turned on the enemy.

 

The value of a counter-attack is demonstrated by the following incident, as related by Lieutenant Winston Churchill, his graphic account of the earlier part of the withdrawal of these two companies of the 35th Sikhs being unfortunately too long to reproduce.

 

"The retirement continued. Five or six times the two companies, now concentrated, endeavoured to stand. Each time the tribesmen pressed round both flanks. They had the whole advantage of ground, and commanded as well as outflanked the Sikhs. At length the bottom of the spur was reached, and the remainder of the two companies turned to bay in the nullah with fixed bayonets. The tribesmen came on impetuously, but stopped 30 yards away, howling, firing and waving their swords.

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"No troops were in sight except our cavalry, who could be seen retiring in loose squadron column.... The Sikhs, who numbered perhaps 60, were hard pressed and fired without effect. Then some one--who it was is uncertain--ordered the bugle to sound the 'charge.' The shrill notes rang out not once, but a dozen times. Everyone began to shout The officers waved their swords frantically. Then the Sikhs commenced to move slowly forward towards the enemy, cheering. It was a supreme moment The tribesmen turned and began to retreat. Instantly the soldiers opened a steady fire, shooting down their late persecutors with savage energy."

Ravines to be avoided, and junctions of these with the valley to be specially guarded.

It is hardly necessary to say that; nullahs should be avoided during a retirement, unless commanding points on either side have been picqueted. No straggling should be allowed, and constant watch must be kept on the flanks, especially if the rear guard be covering the withdrawal of a baggage column. In following the line of a valley, as is so often the case when a force withdraws, the dangerous points for the baggage are where minor ravines and gorges debouch into the main one. Even if the heights are effectively crowned, parties of marauders can often get down these subsidiary denies unseen, and can rush out to cut up followers, to throw animals into confusion, and even to overwhelm small groups of soldiers. These junctions should be held till the rear guard comes up, or at least till it is close at hand; the troops for the purpose drop off from the main body as it marches along. It is especially important to take this precaution in case the heights have not been picqueted, as may sometimes be the case owing to their inaccessibility or to there not being sufficient men for the purpose. When it is a case of protecting a baggage column, the parties to hold the junctions should take up position before the transport reaches the place, i.e., they should be detached from troop in advance of the baggage column.

Men to be sent on ahead to find the route In unknown country.

When retiring over unknown ground in the hills it is very important to send on trustworthy men to reconnoitre the ground, and to prevent any possibility of the force getting into a cul de sac or being brought up short by a precipice. Lieutenant-Colonel Pollock, in "Notes on Hill Warfare," mentions the following occurrence: "Some years ago, in

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retiring from the crest of the Kohat Pass, a body of men, not knowing the way, moved straight down the hill. The Afridis saw their mistake at once and pressed them back on to the precipice below them, and I think about forty men were shot or fell over it." Had the picquet of the Kapurthala Sikhs, referred to on p. 333, observed this precaution of sending men ahead, they would probably not have got into the defile where they eventually perished.

Pace of column to be regulated by that of rear guard.

Finally, in withdrawals and retreats in hill warfare, it is impossible to insist too strongly upon the necessity of touch being kept between the front and rear, and upon the recognition by all concerned that it is the duty of the leading troops to support the rear guard, just as it is the duty of the main body of the rear guard to support the picquets and detachments which are in immediate contact with the enemy. On no account must the units at the head of the column press on, leaving those in rear to look after themselves as best they can. The following paragraph of a memorandum issued by Sir W. Lockhart, while stationed at Maidan in Tirah, may be quoted on this subject: "Under no circumstances whatever should any of the troops return to camp without direct orders from the officer commanding the force engaged until the successful withdrawal of the whole force is assured, for if the troops in the front or in advanced positions have reason to think that they are not supported in rear, and will not be backed up till they have passed through the lines covering their withdrawal, they naturally are apt to lose heart and heavy loss or disaster may result."

The theory of rear-guard duties in hill warfare.

The theory of a rear-guard's duty in European warfare is that it must protect the rest of the army from attack, that it must keep the enemy at bay at all hazards so as to give the force the retreat of which it is covering plenty of time to get away, and that, if it achieves this object the fact of its being as a fighting body wiped out of existence is quite in accordance with the fitness of things, however regrettable it may

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be. That these conditions do not apply to small wars in general has already been pointed out in Chapter XII, and in no nature of small war are they so wholly inapplicable as in the case of conflict with guerilla warriors in a mountainous theatre of operations.

 

Few armies, ancient or modern, have not been able to point to some page in their history, where the devotion of a few brave men remaining behind after a lost battle has kept the foe at bay for a season, and has saved their comrades from destruction. There is a glamour about these rear-guard exploits scarcely to be found in any other operation of war. But in struggles with guerilla mountaineers there rarely is any scope for them. Campaigning against such antagonists a rear-guard could scarcely sacrifice itself if it wished to, because it takes two to make a fight and the average Pathan has no fancy for the risks involved in closing in upon a body of determined soldiers and in annihilating them. On the contrary, if the rear-guard halts and shows an inclination to battle on to the bitter end where it stands, the hillman promptly slips round its flanks and harries the main body or the baggage, whichever may be most convenient. Just the same result will be brought about should the main body push on regardless of the rear-guard; for the enemy will detect that there is a gap with lightning rapidity, and will get between the rear-guard and what it is trying to cover. A column in retreat should as it were resemble a snake or lizard, which feels any pressure on its tail along the whole length of its body; and the only means of approximating to this is to ensure that constant touch be kept from front to rear--not from rear to front. Of course this applies not only to the column as a whole, but also to the rear-guard itself. The main body of the rear-guard should regulate its pace by that of its outermost detachments.

 

Moreover, as a general rule, the force which is retiring is doing so 'for its own convenience. Not only is it usually

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more than a match for the enemy in a stand-up fight, but it is so much stronger that, so long as it advances or stands still, the foe shuns all contact with it. Only when it turns to withdraw do the tribesmen pluck up courage to harass the hindmost troops, because they know that these have a difficult task to perform and that, relatively to the strength of the force, they are not numerous. Therefore the whole of the troops, if possible, or at least a considerable portion of them, should be kept well in hand and ready to support the rear-guard if the enemy becomes too bold. To be able to do this rapidly and effectively, a gap must on no account be allowed to occur in the retiring column, otherwise the reinforcements will not be at hand when they may be wanted.

Position of baggage in retreats.

Of course the conditions differ considerably according as the retiring force is, or is not, accompanied by its baggage. A column sent out on reconnaissance for the day has clearly a great advantage over a body of troops which is moving with all its impedimenta from one place to another. In the latter case there will almost inevitably be a string of baggage animals, extending over a considerable distance and offering a great extent of flank to the enterprises of a guerilla foe. To lay down what should be the order of march of a column which is relaxing accompanied by its transport, the first point to be considered is whether the flanks of the line of march have been secured by picqueting the heights. Supposing the flanks to have been so secured independently of the force itself, a very small advanced guard would head .the column, followed by the transport with a small escort, which would move as rapidly as possible; then would come the main body, but this would regulate its pace by that of the rear guard, not of the baggage, the defence of which would be in the hands of its own escort. On the other hand, if the column has to secure its own flanks by detaching picquets as it moves along, the advanced guard must be of sufficient strength to be able to perform this task. In any case,

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however, the proper place for the main body--those troops not required for picqueting the flanks, or for actual rear guard duties--is behind the transport, not in front of it. The only exception to this is when the rear guard is obviously capable of beating off any possible attack. The story told on p. 175 of what occurred in the Bara valley, on the occasion when Major Dowhman and his little force were out all night, illustrates this.

 

Awkward as is the problem of conducting a retirement through difficult mountainous country, pursued by agile, resolute, guerilla warriors who thoroughly know the ground, it is after all, like every other military operation, a question of adapting manoeuvres to the special circumstances of the case. Certain rules must be observed, certain precautions must be taken, a certain amount of skill must be displayed in handling the troops, otherwise the force will suffer serious loss and may even meet with terrible disaster. But the regulars enjoy at least this one great advantage--they know almost for certain that it is when they fall back that the tug of war begins, they know what they have to look for, and they can make preparations accordingly.

Remarks on operations in forest-clad hills.

Up to the present, hill warfare has been in the main considered in this chapter as taking place in theatres of war where the mountain sides are bare of forest growth. But operations often take place in valleys and on spurs and crests, where the whole country is clothed with undergrowth and trees. At first sight it would appear that when such topographical features present themselves, they must add greatly to the difficulties of the regular army. But in reality this is not necessarily the case. The tribesmen of the Himalayas and other ranges around the outskirts of the Indian empire do not seem to practise the plan of cutting down trees on the hill sides, and launching them on the heads of the soldiery, which the Tyrolese found so effectual. For other reasons bush or forests on the slopes rather favour the troops than otherwise.

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In the next chapter bush warfare will be considered, and it must be admitted that it is sometimes hard to draw the line where hill warfare ends and where bush warfare begins. Forests, especially if there be undergrowth, undoubtedly help to cloak the movements of guerillas. Large bodies of mountaineers may be able to move unseen along a pine-clad hillside, where they would have shrapnel bursting about their ears were there no trees to conceal them. But, on the other hand, the cover makes it far more difficult for the enemy to know exactly what the troops are doing, and tribesmen, who have such a wholesome horror of having their retreat cut by their antagonists, do not like to be in ignorance on such points. Moreover trees interfere with sniping--when the slopes are overgrown it is almost always more difficult to see the bottom of the valley from the heights, than when they are bare. Of course much depends upon the nature of the foliage. Trees of the pine class on steep declivities generally take the form of a long stem with a tuft on the top, and afford little cover; bushes and scrub, on the other hand, grant almost complete protection from view. The case quoted on p. 328 of the 1st Sikhs and the Waziris, shows how close hill-men can He if there is jungle on the slopes. When the Afridis made the final onslaught on General Westmacott's rear-guard, mentioned on p. 317, they crept up to the troops concealed by undergrowth. It is interesting to note that, on the only occasion during the Tirah campaign where the tribesmen adopted the traditional Pathan tactics of a downhill charge of swordsmen--at Tseri Kandao, the Zakka Khels who made the attempt had gathered under shelter of a wood, and it was from the cover of this that they dashed out upon the troops.

Flankers in such terrain.

In marching through mountainous country, where the hills are covered with dense forests, flankers must be stationary. They cannot keep a proper look-out and at the same time traverse such difficult ground. But in such terrain the

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stationary picquets need not be pushed out so far to the flanks as would be the case were the slopes bare of trees, and being thus nearer to support they need not be numerically so strong as on opener ground. The enemy to do much harm is obliged to get quite close to the column, and, that being so, very small parties of troops, being less easily observed than larger detachments, afford a good chance of dealing drastically with attempted hostile ambuscades. The progress of a column is always slow in hilly country, but when the whole district is covered with almost impenetrable undergrowth, its rate of march is dependent upon the rapidity with which a way can be cut through the thickets; operations in such country present rather the features of typical bush warfare than of hill warfare, and can best be considered under the former heading.

Stockades.

In the Lushai country it has always been a favourite plan of the enemy to place stockades on the hill sides, flanking the expected line of advance of the troops. Such works should if possible be surprised from above, special troops being detached for the purpose as soon as the existence of one of them is detected. In those districts of the highlands around the Indian frontier which are overgrown with forests, it has generally been found that stockades replace sangars. The attack of stockades is sometimes an awkward task and their presence is sure to delay the general advance of a force, but, in spite of this, it is safe to say that the construction of defence works by the enemy in almost any form is upon the whole advantageous to the troops. Defence works offer an objective; and even if the defenders suffer no great loss, the fact of their evacuating fortifications which have been carefully prepared tells against them. "La morale est pour les trois quarts, le reste est peu de chose" is especially applicable in guerilla warfare.

The first reconnaissance to Saran Bar

Before concluding this chapter it will not be out of place to give a short account of a typical day's combat in the hills,

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in Tirah as an example of hill warfare.

Illustrating the difficulties that unexpectedly arise, and which affords noteworthy examples of the contretemps which may occur in such affairs in spite of the utmost foresight and of the most judicious dispositions. No better example could be found than the first reconnaissance to Saran Sar in Tirah, memorable for the losses sustained by a part of the Northampton Regiment and for the devotion shown by officers and men under most adverse circumstances.

 

General Westmacott had at his disposal for this reconnaissance the Northamptons, the Dorsets, the 15th Sikhs, the 36th Sikhs, a Sapper company, and two batteries. The object of the operation was to visit and examine a pass over the hills by which a track, much used by the Afridis, led eastwards out of the basin of Maidan. Although it is impossible on so small a scale to portray the intricacies of the terrain, especially where the abrupter slopes meet the comparatively level parts of the valley, the sketch facing p. 344 will give a general idea of the lie of the ground

 

To Saran Sar Kotal from camp was about five miles; to the foot of the hills was about three. The force started about 7.30 a.m., the disposition of the troops for the advance being that the Dorsets should move on the left covering that flank, the 36th Sikhs on the right, and the Northamptons in the centre generally along the line of the well marked track. The 15th Sikhs and sappers were to remain in reserve with the batteries, one of which was brought into action on the rounded hill, marked A in the sketch, the other a little further back.

 

It will be observed that a nullah runs along the north side of this hill A, and that this is followed for some distance by the track. Some of the Northamptons advancing up this were fired upon at an early stage; but the resistance was not determined at any point in the centre, and the regiment worked its way steadily up towards the kotal The 36th for the most part followed in support, as it was soon seen that no opposition would be met with on the right On the left, however, the Dorsets found themselves confronted by rugged, awkward slopes covered in places with trees; the hill sides here were out into by deep ravines, and besides making very slow progress the companies worked off rather to their own left and lost touch with the centre--so much so that the left flank of the Northamptons caused General Westmacott considerable anxiety at one time. It was found most difficult to communicate with the Dorsets or to see what they were doing from the centre, and some Northamptons had to be especially detached to watch that side. However, the summit was eventually gained at 11 a.m. practically without loss, and a halt was made for purposes of survey and observation.

 

As Sir W. Lockhart wished to see the ground himself, the withdrawal did not commence till 2 p.m., which allowed about four hours of daylight

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to get back to camp--longer than it had taken the troops to reach the kotal. General Westmacott arranged that the Dorsets, who had not advanced far tip the slopes, were to keep on their own side--the right flank in retreat. The 36th Sikhs were to guard the left flank and to act in support in the centre. The Northamptons formed the rear guard.

 

Five companies of the Northamptons on the left were to hold their ground, while the other three, more to the right, withdrew; this movement was carried out successfully without a shot being fired. Then the five began to withdraw and the tactical genius of the tribesmen at once displayed itself. Four of the companies retired without the enemy showing any sign of activity, but as the rearmost one crossed an open space it was suddenly assailed by a flanking volley from a wooded spur to the north. Several casualties occurred and considerable difficulty was found in covering its retirement. General Westmacott at once ordered the 36th Sikhs to reascend and help the Northamptons. After that the retirement to the dip east of the hill A was carried out most successfully and was completed by about 5.30 p.m., the casualties at that hour not being much more heavy than is almost inevitable in such an operation.

 

The day's fighting seemed to be almost over. The troops were practically at the foot of the slopes. The enemy was evidently in some strength among the woods to the north, but was very unlikely to pursue clear of the hills. It was getting dark, so, all the wounded being reported safe. General Westmacott sent off the batteries and ordered the retirement to continue, the 36th on the left, Dorsets on the right and Northamptons in the centre, each regiment having practically to look after itself, as when night begins to fall any general control or supervision becomes impossible. The 36th Sikhs, who were the last to move off, took the route round the east and south of hill A; but the Northamptons, retiring round its other side, unfortunately descended into the already mentioned nullah, and the Afridis, at once perceiving the error, began to hurry down side gullies to reap the benefit of it.

 

This nullah is a comparatively shallow depression, but it follows a most intricate and tortuous course, its sides are very steep--precipitous in places--and it is joined on either side by numerous minor ravines of similar character. Offering as it did the shortest road to camp, with an easy track along it convenient for marching by and for conveying wounded along, having, moreover, been traversed by part of the regiment in the morning, it is not unnatural that troops, who were inexperienced in the peculiarities of Indian mountain warfare, should have selected a gully for their line of retreat without picqueting its flanks. The enemy with characteristic cunning waited till the advanced companies had passed on and till the troops on either flank were well on their way towards camp. Then the Afridis suddenly opened fire from the precipitous banks on to the rear companies, and these at once became encumbered with wounded. Desperately situated as they were, they retreated slowly down the nullah, making what reply they could to the hostile musketry but engaged chiefly in carrying along their wounded,

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of whom the number swelled each moment. Fortunately some companies of the 36th Sikhs and some Dorsets, ordered back in haste, came to the rescue and helped to extricate the Northampton rear-guard. But about 20, including two officers, had been killed, and over 20 had been wounded in the fatal nullah before the regiment got clear of it.

 

This reconnaissance is singularly instructive as an illustration of bill warfare with stealthy guerillas for foe. In the first place it illustrates the difficulty of control over troops launched into the hills in this class of fighting; the Dorsets were practically lost to the force at a time when their absence might have been most inconvenient. A regiment saturated with. Indian frontier tactics would probably have advanced more rapidly and have kept touch with the centre almost instinctively; but what comes natural to a battalion well versed in this peculiar kind of warfare, can only be learnt from experience by infantry which has not enjoyed this advantage, unless a special training has been adopted beforehand on suitable ground. Had the wooded spurs north of the track up to the kotal been thoroughly cleared by the regiment on the flank, the Northamptons might not have suffered so much when the retreat commenced, and the retirement to the vicinity of the fatal nullah would probably have been completed long before dark. The prompt appearance of the 36th Sikhs when the rear guard found itself checked on the summit, shows the value of making the retirement of the main body dependent upon the pace of the troops as the tail of the column. The delay in starting on the return journey was unfortunate as it turned out; but the retirement was virtually completed before dark and, had it not been for the unfortunate route taken by the Northamptons at the last moment, the regiments composing the column, having no transport to protect, would have had little to fear from the Afridis once they were clear of the hill sides. The dangers of a nullah, unless the crests on either hand are picqueted, are vividly exemplified by what happened to the rearmost detachments of the Northamptons. The troops on the flanks did not safeguard the knolls close in immediately overhanging the depression, which should therefore have been held by the regiment itself when it followed this route. It is doubtful if the growing darkness seriously aggravated the situation--the bad light must have told against the accuracy of the hostile fire; but by daylight the evil plight of the detachments in the nullah would at once have been observed by the other troops. The winding course of the gulley made communication between front and rear most difficult; still the imperative necessity of touch being kept between head and tail of a column in retreat, is demonstrated by the fact that companies of the regiment for a time tramped stolidly on towards camp in ignorance of the tragedy being enacted a few hundred yards in rear, where their comrades were fighting for their lives and fighting for the lives of others unable to defend themselves. Finally, the deft manoeuvres of the tribesmen, their astuteness in restraining their fire till it was bound to tell, and the instinctive grasp of the tactical situation shown by the promptitude with which these semi-

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savages, scattered all over the bill sides, swooped down upon the troops when these fell into a snare, bear signal testimony to the genuinely war-like character of the borderland Pa than.

Scouts.

Before quitting the subject of hill warfare it is necessary to say a word on trained scouts. The idea of specialists in any form is distasteful to many; and it is no doubt in the highest degree desirable that the soldier should be a jack-of-all-trades. But is this possible?

 

The idea of trained infantry scouts working on foot in advance of the firing line is one of the novelties of up-to-date regular warfare. Their value has, however, been fully recognized for some years in bush warfare, and seeing that it is almost always arranged in theatres of war thickly overgrown with jungle to organize a special corps of them, it is hardly logical not to accept them in the hills. It is open to question whether the scouts should not form an independent body, rather than detachments of them forming part of each battalion. Of the services of the Gurkha scouts in/ Tirah there can be no two opinions. Whether the expeditionary force as a whole accounted for many more Orukzais and Afridis than its own list of casualties amounted to, is doubtful; but the scouts beyond question killed such a number of tribesmen that their own trifling losses seem absolutely absurd in comparison. The fight mentioned on p. 305 must not be taken as a typical example of their methods; it only shows that when put to it they could bring off a good thing on quite different fines. Ordinarily they acted as skirmishers thrown out on the hill sides ahead of the column. They treated the tribesmen in their own coin, watching them, stalking them, and superior to them to the extent that the man who is determined to get at his opponent is superior to the man who is determined that his opponent shall not get at him. They were up to every trick, they could move as fast as the fleetest of the tribesmen, and they made themselves a terror to the enemy by night and by day.

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Plan XIV. Saran Sar
Plan XIV. Saran Sar


 

To hope that the average soldier could be trained to attain so high a state of perfection at such difficult work without the requisite terrain being available for practising over in peace time, would be delusive. It would seem wisest to accept the inevitable, to consider special scouts for hill warfare as a necessary consequence of a mountain frontier, and to leave nothing undone likely to add to their efficiency in future campaigns.

Outposts.

The question of outposts will be dealt with under the head of service of security in Chapter XXVI, and need not be considered here.

Conclusion.

In this chapter the examples given in support of theories and suggestions put forward have been drawn almost entirely from the campaigns on the Panjab frontier in 1897-98. This is not because many of the difficulties to which regular troops are exposed in such conflicts, and the best mode of over-corning them, have not been demonstrated in other expeditions into the highlands where the Pathan is found, as well as in campaigns in the Caucasus, in Switzerland, and in parts of Spain. It is because no operations of recent years have afforded so vivid a picture of what warfare in the mountains means. In the Ambela Campaign the losses were proportionately far severer than in Tirah. In Waziristan and the Black Mountain the peculiar conditions of hill warfare were admirably illustrated. The guerillas whom the Russians had to deal with in the Caucasus were as daring and adventurous as any class on the Indian border. But the outbreak of 1897-98 is still fresh in our recollection, many of the incidents which occurred in the consequent punitive expeditions were keenly and not always wisely criticized, and there can be no question that the operations in the Afridi country presented difficulties to Sir W. Lockhart's forces, such as no regular troops have been beset with in a mountainous theatre of war within living memory.

 

That these difficulties were to a certain extent heightened

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by the want of experience and training among parts of the army engaged is fully admitted. The tactics which guerilla warfare in the hills necessitates, are as distinct from the operations which the armament of to-day brings forth on the modern battle-field, as the stealthy cut-throat of the Trans-Indus highlands is distinct from the Pomeranian grenadier. To a soldiery accustomed only to drill-book manoeuvres practised on gentle undulations, a few of the simple maxims known to every Gurkha havildar are, when retiring down a mountain side in the gloaming dogged by ferocious clansmen, worth a whole folio of Prince Kraft. At almost any moment some portion of the military forces of the British empire may be called upon to engage in hill warfare, and although the art of manoeuvre in face of an enemy can only be fully acquired by actual experience, an acquaintance with its theoretical principles cannot fail to be of some service in the hour of trial.

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