Illustration from H. Rider Haggard's Maiwa's Revenge, Chapter VII, by Thure de Thulstrup.The scene shows Allan Quatermain ordering the men to fire, after getting them to wait until the most opportune moment:“"Now they are going to begin," I thought to myself, and I was not far wrong, for in another minute the body of men divided into three companies, each about five hundred strong, and, heralded by a running fire, charged at us on three sides. Our men were now all well under cover, and the fire did us no harm. I mounted on a rock, so as to command a view of as much of the koppie and plain as possible, and yelled to our men to reserve their fire till I gave the word, and then to shoot low, and load as quickly as possible. I knew that, like all natives, they were sure to be execrable shots, and that they were armed with weapons made out of old gas-pipes, so the only chance of doing execution was to let the enemy get right on to us.On they came with a rush. They were within eighty yards now, and as they drew near the point of attack, I observed that they closed their ranks, which was so much the better for us."Shall we not fire, my father?" sung out the captain."No—confound you!" I answered."Sixty yards — fifty — forty — thirty. Fire, you scoundrels!" I yelled, setting the example by letting off both barrels of my elephant gun into the thickest part of the company opposite to me.”