an hour after midnight
The men lay down in lines two deep , leaving a space of twelve feet between the front rank and the hedge of the zereba . They wore their great coats and slept with their rifles in their hands , the officers being in rear . In the twelve foot space which was left the sentries patrolled , and there was no need to ingress the necessity of vigilance upon them ; the known vicinity of the enemy put them sufficiently on the _ qui vive _ . All , however , was quiet till an hour after midnight , when the sleepers were awakened by a tremendous fusillade , and a storm of bullets came rushing over the zereba . But as the men were lying down , or crouching under the hedge , only a few unfortunate animals were struck by the leaden shower . To show , however , what absurd things men will do in a panic , an Egyptian camel driver jumped , in his fright , over the prickly hedge , and ran along it _ outside _ , exposed to the enemy 's bullets . These failed to strike him , but an English sentry inside naturally took him for an Arab trying to force an entrance , and shot him dead .