At 2.0 the _Sultan_ signalled to the _Inflexible_, which was engaging the Hospital Battery and Fort Pharos, "Proceed to Pharillon" (Silsileh).
At 2.55 a shot from the Hospital Battery struck the _Inflexible_ aloft, carrying away the slings of the mainyard.
At 5 the Hospital Battery fired its last shot.
At 5.10 the _Inflexible_ proceeded across to engage Fort Silsileh, all the other forts from Ras-el-Tin eastward having been silenced.
At 5.15 the general signal, "Cease firing," was made, followed at 6.5 by, "Anchor in same position as last night."
While the off-shore squadron was thus occupied, the other division of the fleet under the Admiral's immediate command was not idle. The _Invincible_ at anchor, with the _Monarch_ and _Penelope_ under weigh inside the reefs, assisted by the _Inflexible_ and _Temeraire_, in the Corvette and Boghas Channels, were engaging from a distance of 1,300 to 1,500 yards the batteries and lines of Mex, also the Forts of Marza-el-Kanat and Omuk Kubebe at various ranges. The enemy replied briskly both from rifled and smooth bore guns. At 8.45 one of the _Monarch's_ shells exploded the powder magazine at Marza-el-Kanat. At 8.27 the Admiral signalled to her, "Close nearer the forts, keeping as close to them as possible." By 9 a.m. the enemy's guns, except four at Fort Mex, were silenced. These four nevertheless gave considerable trouble to the ships, for it was difficult to hit upon their exact position, placed as they were almost on a level with the water, and only dimly and occasionally seen through the smoke.
About an hour before this Lord Charles Beresford, in the _Condor_, stationed as repeating ship, saw that the 10-inch rifled guns in Fort Marabout were playing with great accuracy, at a range of 4,200 yards, upon the ships engaged off Fort Mex, the shots falling only from 10 to 30 yards short. Steaming within range of his 7-inch gun, he chose with great skill a position, 1,200 yards off, upon which the enemy's guns could not be brought to bear, and engaged the fort single-handed for two hours. The _Condor's_ excellent practice soon checked the fire from Fort Marabout, and elicited from the Admiral, who sent the other gunboats to his aid, the signal, "Well done, _Condor_." It is satisfactory to be able to add that during this operation no casualties occurred on any of the vessels engaged.[19]