building in which it was placed. Captain Peat was struck down and stunned; but, recovering almost immediately, he had the gratification of finding that the operation of which he had been the acting conductor had entirely succeeded.
The British batteries now poured their fire into the works, and the bugle sounded for the assaulting column to push on. It was commanded by Brigadier Sale, and consisted of her Majesty's 2nd, Major Carruthers; 13th, Major Fraser; 17th, Lieutenant-Colonel Croker; and the Bengal European regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel Orchard. The advance, under Lieutenant-Colonel Dennie, entered the gateway, followed by the remainder of the column, when a series of desperate struggles took place within the gateway. "The most trying and critical part of the affair," says Colonel Dennie, in a private letter, "was when I found myself in the dark vault of the gateway. The blue lights the enemy had thrown down became, by the time we had ascended the mound or camp extinguished, and we were involved in total darkness. As friend could not be distinguished from foe, and firing, whilst mixed up with these ruffians, would have been destruction to us, I forbade it with all my energies; and nothing was done but by the feel. The clashing of the sabre and musket, and sensible sounds of the blows and stubs – the cries and groans of those suffering and trampled upon, to one in cold blood would have been very horrid. But sense, with me, was occupied in trying to find the gate. Neither to the front, nor to the left, nor even long to the right, could I perceive one ray of light; but, at last, groping and feeling the wall, I discovered to the right hand, high up, a gleam of sky and stars, and found a dense mass of Affghans still closed up the outlet, and obscured the sight so desired. Then it was that I ordered a volley from the leading section, and the effect was complete. Down fell the obstacles before us; and a crushing fire kept up incessantly, by ordering 'loaded men to the front,'
