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http://www.wenet.net/~titangh/webley.html

Lawrence's Most Spectacular Pistol Shot
Nasir screamed at me,'Come on',with his bloody mouth; and we plunged our 
camels madly over the hill, and down towards the head of the fleeing enemy. 
The slope was not too steep for a camel-gallop, but steep enough to make 
their pace terrific, and their course uncontrollable: yet the Arabs were able 
to extend to right and left and to shoot into the Turkish brown. The Turks 
had been too bound up in the terror of Auda's furious charge against their 
rear to notice us as we came over the eastward slope: so we also took them by 
surprise and in the flank and a charge of ridden camels going nearly thirty 
miles an hour was irresistible. 

My camel, the Sherari racer, Naama, stretched herself out, and hurled 
downhill with such might that we soon out-distanced the others. The Turks 
fired a few shots, but mostly only shrieked and turned to run: the bullets 
they did send at us were not very harmful, for it took much to bring a 
charging camel down in a dead heap. 

I had got among the first of them, and was shooting, with a Pistol of course, 
for only an expert could use a rifle from such plunging beasts; when suddenly 
my camel tripped and went down emptily upon her face, as though pole-axed. I 
was torn completely from the saddle, sailed grandly through the air for a 
great distance, and landed with a crash which seemed to drive all the power 
and feeling out of me. I lay there, passively waiting for the Turks to kill 
me, continuing to hum over the Verses of a half-forgotten poem, whose rhythm 
something, perhaps the prolonged stride of the camel,had brought back to my 
memory as we leaped down the hill-side: 

For Lord I was free of all Thy flowers, but I chose the world's sad roses, 
And that is why my feet are torn and mine eyes are blind with sweat. 

Meanwhile another part of my mind thought what a squashed thing I should look 
when all that cataract of men and camels had poured over. 

After a long time I finished my poem, and no Turks came and no camel trod on 
me: a curtain seemed taken from my ears: there was a great noise in front. I 
sat up and saw the battle over, and our men driving together and cutting down 
the last remnants of the enemy. My camel's body had lain behind me like a 
rock and divided the charge into two streams: and in the back of its skull 
was the heavy bullet of the fifth shot I fired. 

( From Page 304 SPW) 



Kenneth Pantling
Whatever happens they have got
The Maxim Gun, and we have not.

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