A Story of War

Artillery practising today and grouping fairly well on their targets, spurs and hilltops. Yesterday we saw Bakshi piquet relieved by 1/8 GR and they were sniped and there was intermittent sniping for over an hour. The guns lobbed over three or four shells eventually. The only casualty, so the Khassadars told me, was a Kashmiri from the Coolie camp who was cutting wood and put his leg in the way of a bullet.

Summer lighning, thunder and rain today. For the past few days there has been a regular hailstorm just after lunch. I go up Goat Piquet today. We send out a Khassadar piquet with a flag to the next ridge. They do a bit of shooting and then one gabbles in a high pitched voice to another beck home in the Khassadar hut. He then comes and tells me in Pashto that they have spotted a lashkar moving towards me, and mentions something about machine guns, so I suppose he wants me to get a gun and slaughter the lot. However, the Khassadars let off a few more shots, but more come our way, and we get away safely. Holly Piquet, next door, has a few shots over them. An early start today, rising at 5.30am. I bought Wittington’s Smith and Wesson the other day, giving him mine, which he sold to the Doctor, Fowler, for 20 chips.