German composition

Section 174 The Battle of Kassassin. — II

Ismailia⁠1, Tuesday, August 29,
3 o’clock in the morning.

Scarcely had the Cavalry unsaddled, and⁠2 horses and men begun to eat, when the⁠3 sound of artillery was heard (S. 4, N. 4, man) again at Kassassin, and by⁠4 the heavy and continuous roar⁠5 it was evident⁠6 that this time the attack was⁠7 in earnest. Again the wearied men saddled their no less weary horses and⁠8 prepared to advance. The⁠9 sun was still beating down fiercely even at that late hour, and the hot withering⁠10 wind was raising⁠11 the sand clouds so high that it was impossible to see what was going⁠12 on, but through the dust and haze numerous⁠13 jets of smoke from the guns were visible.

The cannonade increased⁠14 in violence, and the Cavalry moved⁠15 away to the right, the⁠16 Artillery following them, and pressed⁠17 round towards the flank of the enemy’s Infantry. With⁠18 the movement of such masses of men and horses the dust rose over the whole scene thicker than ever, and it was impossible to obtain⁠19 more than a general idea of what was going on; while the sun set in⁠20 a red glare over the sandy plain.

The Cavalry pushed⁠21 still further to the right until⁠22 hidden from the enemy by some low sand hills, and⁠23 then goaded their weary horses into as fast a trot as the heavy sand and their weary condition would permit.

It was evident that it was the General’s intention to repeat the tactics of the previous fight, and that he meant⁠24 to get round the enemy’s rear. It was a striking proof of his confidence in⁠25 his troops that (S. 66, N. 15), with⁠26 tired horses and night approaching, he should attempt this manœuvre against an enemy of unknown strength and with⁠27 fresh horses. Against any other enemy it would have been rash⁠28, but the result proved that General Drury Lowe did not over-estimate the fighting powers⁠29 of his men.

Notes

1 Ismailia, then the head quarters of Sir Garnet Wolseley, is 21 miles east of Kassassin, on the Suez Canal. In the morning, morgens.

2 and = and scarcely had; ‘men’, here Reiter; to begin to eat, mit dem Essen an´fangen.

3 the — artillery, Artilleriesalven.

4 = through, durch; heavy = loud.

5 Kanonendonner, m.

6 = clear.

7 = was meant in earnest (ernstlich, adv.). See App. § 17.

8 und rüsteten sich zum Vorrücken.

9 Say ‘Even at (zu) this late hour the sun sent down burning rays’, and insert the adv. noch before ‘burning’.

10 versengend.

11 treiben.

12 to go on, vor´gehen.

13 numerous — guns, zahlreiche aus den Kanonen aufsteigende Rauchsäulen.

14 = became more and more violent (immer with the comparative form of the adj.).

15 to move away, ab´reiten; to the right, nach rechts.

16 = whilst the A. followed them (ihr, to agree with Kavallerie in the fem. Sing.)

17 ‘to press round’, here seitwärts vor´dringen; towards, auf; ‘of — infantry’ may be briefly expressed by ‘of the hostile Infantry’.

18 With — horses, Durch die massenhafte Truppenbewegung.

19 ‘to obtain’, here sich... machen; of what was going on, von dem Verlaufe des Gefechts, which place after the pron. sich.

20 in — glare, mit blendend rotem Glanze, which place before the verb, which stands?

21 vor´dringen.

22 until — enemy, bis dieselbe den Blicken des Feindes... entzogen war.

23 Render ‘and — permit’ freely, and say ‘und spornten dann ihre ermüdeten Pferde zum möglichst schnellen Trabe an’.

24 gedenken; to — rear, dem Feinde in den Rücken zu fallen. The Impf. of the verb gedenken stands, of course, after fallen, accord. to App. § 19.

25 welches er zu seinen Truppen hegte.

26 = in spite of the tired horses and the approaching (heran´nahen) night.

27 = in the possession of fresh horses.

28 unbesonnen, i.e. imprudent.

29 fighting powers, Stärke, f.; ‘men’, here = troops.