>   <xsl:variable name="target-element">
>     <xsl:copy-of select="key('ids', $target-id)"/>
>   </xsl:variable>
>   <xsl:apply-templates select="$target-element" mode="xref"/>

You are not numbering the original node, you are numbering the copy of the
node within the result tree fragment held in $target-element.

Michael Kay
Software AG
home: Michael.H.Kay@xxxxxxxxxxxx
work: Michael.Kay@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx


 XSL-List info and archive:  http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list