nine o'clock
The latter were at once placed on board the hospital barges . Fresh ammunition was served out and , half an hour after the last shot was fired , the army prepared to march on Omdurman . It was most important that they should arrive at the town before Ed Din 's Dervishes should reach it ; for unless they could do so , the loss that would be incurred in capturing it would be vastly greater than that which had been suffered in the battle . At nine o'clock the start was made . The troops advanced in brigades . Lyttleton led on the left , Wauchope was on his right , Maxwell somewhat in the rear , while still more to the right came Lewis , and farther out on the plain Macdonald . They formed roughly half a semicircle .