Complete history of the south African War, in 1899-1902

HlSTOFEfoF THE

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ARTHUR PROBSTHAIN
Oriental Bool<.«|ler
4» Gt. Ruweli str.et
LONDON. W.r" •

Digitized^^y the Internet Archive

in 2007 with funding from

IVIicrosoft Corporation

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HISTORY OF THE

SOUTH AFRICAN WAR.

COMPLETE HISTORY

OF THE

South African War,

IN 1899—1902.

DA

BY F. T. STEVENS.

LONDON:
W. NICHOLSON & SONS, Limited,

26, PATERNOSTER SQUARE, E.C.,

AND ALBION WORKS, WAKEFIELD,

PREFACE.

TN order to publish a work of this kind immediately on the
■*• termination of hostilities, it becomes inevitable that the
course of events should be recorded chronologically rather
than that any department of the campaign should be dealt with
consecutively and finally by itself.

This imperative method has the advantage of showing the
daily development of events over the whole area of the war,
while it has what may be considered the drawback of dis-
cursiveness from the introduction of innumerable facts and
features of the struggle without any immediate connection with
each other.

When the eflfort is to present a history of facts as complete
as possible for research, rather than a picturesque story of
leading battles, this compilation of heterogeneous matter is
unavoidable, even if classified under many headings.

There is one set off to discursiveness. An exhaustive, sus-
tained, and graphic description of a number of battles, one
after the other, is a strain upon the feelings that is neither
pleasant nor wholesome. In order to wade through and grasp
the whole of the details with intelligence and composure, there
must be the mental relief afforded by the admixture of
diversified particulars.

Many events have been stated in briefest form. To paint
everything in strong colours and in minutice would give scope
for fine writing and piquant reading, but the chronicle could
not also be compressed into a cheap, single, popular volume
for the million.

CONTENTS.

auran. >Aaa.
I. — How the War came about — an Historical Review 7

II.— The Right and Wrong of it 14

III. — Its Outcome and Characteristics 22

IV. — The Stampeding Prelude 25

V. — Military Preparations 27

VI. — The Gathering and Progress of the Storm— A

Summary to Cronje's Surrender 30

VII.— In Battle Array 36

VIII.— The Battle of Talana 38

IX. — The Reconnaissance at Elandslaagfte ... 41
X. — The Siege of Ladysmith — A Series of Conflicts

in Natal ... 44

XI. — General Hildyard at Estcourt ... ... 53

XII. — Relief of Ladysmith , 57

XIII. — The Advance through Cape Colony 80

XIV. — Methuen at Magersfontein 86

XV.— The Siege of Kimberley 91

XVI. — Relief of Kimberley 94

XVII. — In the. Orange Free State after Cronje ... 100

XVIII. — Triumphant Entry into Bloemfontein ... 102

XIX. — Incidents in and around Bloemfontein ... 105

XX. — The Siege of Wepener and a General Advance 1 16

XXL— On the Way to Kroonstad 119

XX 1 1. — At Kroonstad — Waiting for Supporting Columns 126

XXIIL— The Siege of Mafeking 132

XXIV.— The Relief of Mafeking 142

XXV. — From Kroonstad to the City of Gold ... 150

XXVL— The Capture of Pretoria 160

XXVI I.— The Fighting in the Rear 172

XXVIII. — Subjugating Harassing Commandoes ... 177

XXIX. — One Day's Experience 183

XXX. — The War Chronicles of the Boers 190

XXXL— As to the Future 195

XXXII. — The Freaks of Desperadoes 202

XXXI 1 1. — Our Treatment of the Enemy — Our Generalship 223

XAXIV. — Cooping up De Wet 229

XXXV. — War Hospital Accommodation — A Scandal

and Sensation 251

XXXVI. — War Hospital Accommodation — Continued... 262

XXXVIL— "Some Fine Sport" 270

XXXVIII. — The Boer design to besiege Pretoria ... 306

XXXIX.— Kruger's " Last Resort." 346

XL. — The Boer Terrorism 360

Some of the leading British Officers in the War ... 370
Anecdotes of the War 375

HISTORY OF THE
SOUTH AFEICAN WAE.

CHAPTER I.

HOW THE WAR CAME ABOUT— AN HISTORICAL REVIEW.

THE BoER War of 1899-1902 came upon England
as a rude awakening from a peaceful dream, and
as a stunning shock to our proud imperialism. The
casus belli was an attack upon our rising Cape Colony,
upon Natal, and our grand schemes in Central Africa.

Although we were somewhat familiar with the Out-
landers' political grievances, which affected a great
many Englishmen at Johannesburg, Kimberley, and
elsewhere, and had been startled for a while by the
outrageous Jameson Raid on their behalf (which was
condemned by a prosecution of some of the leading of-
fenders,) no one, not even our Colonial Secretary, had
the faintest idea that the Boers meant to try conclu-
sions with us in the battlefield. Such a result, even
after our Government had espoused the cause of the
Outlanders — the non-Dutch immigrants in the Trans-
vaal— was never contemplated. That the little Repub-
lic of the Transvaal, with a population of 80,000 Dutch
to 123,650 "foreigners," mostly English, should offer
fight, was a thing " so absurd" that if it occurred to
any Englishman's mind as a possibility, it was at once
dismissed.

Some people, however, are wise after the event, and
now talk as prophets who knew all the trouble that was

8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

coming, yet thought it patriotic to be dumb. Events
nevertheless, have shown, only too clearly, by a terrible
loss of life on our side, and painful, halting campaigns,
through our unpreparedness, that our Government was
taken by surprise : and this they have admitted.

As to the challenge of the Boers, an explanation has
been offered by Dutch officers who have fallen into our
hands. It is this — that the Transvaal Government
deluded their people with wild stories of foreign help,
while at the same time all manner of troubles were to
overcome the British by way of Divine retribution.
Believing themselves in the right of the dispute, their
biblical studies and religious fervour conspired to con-
jure up a vivid dream of victory. They were the elect
Israel, the favoured family of God, and the British
were at the best but blinded, wicked pharisees, pro-
voking swift castigation.

Although the scene of strife was over 7000 miles
away, and could only be reached by steamers in about
three weeks, the war moved the nation as never a con-
flict of arms before, because it menaced not only our
important Cape Colony and the rest of our South
African territory (where large numbers of our relatives
and friends had recently settled,) but also the enormous
regions stretching away a thousand miles to the Zam-
besi, to which we look for homes for future generations
of Anglo-Saxons. The same sentiment also animated
our other Colonies, and the prompt ofifer of service by
Canada and the Australian Colonies was a pleasing
evidence of the Imperial bond that now binds these
appendages to the mother land.

That such a disaster should come just as we were
contemplating beautiful Edens and fabulous El Dorados
in that country for our children — with a Cape to Cairo
Railway, thereby opening up Southern Africa to the
Orientals and our trade with them, coupled with the
development of the present diamond and gold mines of
enormous wealth, and in which so much English capital
had been invested — these considerations, rather than the
merits of the quarrel, stirred commercial Britishers to
the core, and hence the individual interest that has
been taken in the progress of the conflict, so that all
classes, parties, and sects, have, in a way, become like

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 9

camp followers, sharing in the commissariat, the ambu-
lance, the clothing, the feeding, and the minutest com-
forts of Totnmy Atkins.

The welfare of our soldiers in the campaign became
a fashion, some thought it a craze; there came about
a universal rivalry of patriotism, relief funds many, and
almost every reservist and volunteer going to the front
was feasted and feted, and his kit ladened with tobacco
and other "creature comforts," whilst cargoes of extra
clothing, stationery, plum puddings, and what not, fol-
lowed the brave defenders of the Empire.

As one evidence of the national interest we may here
mention that five members of the Government went to
the front — the Duke of Norfolk (who relinquished his
Postmaster-Generalship for the purpose,) the Duke of
Marlborough, the Earl of Dudley, Lord Stanley, and
Lord Valentia. The Duke of Westminster, the Duke
of Roxburghe, and the Duke of Teck, also went out,
and in addition to 30 noblemen, there were nearly 40
baronets.

Not only were our most capable military officers
engaged at the war, but also the very flower of our
aristocracy. The supreme commander, Lord Roberts,
who is 67 years of age, lost his only son there. Lord
Duflferin had three sons on active service, and Lord
Salisbury had a son with Baden-Powell at Mafeking.
Prince Victor Christian, Prince Francis, Prince Adol-
phus and Prince Alexander of Teck are relatives of the
Queen who shared in the campaign. The Duke of
Devonshire had two nephews there, and lost one of
them — Commander Egerton, R. N. The Duchess of
Abercorn had no less than fifteen grandsons in our
ranks.

The peril to British interests elicited the most
remarkable enlistment and offer of service on record,
and sent into the field the greatest army Great Britain
has ever dispatched for war.

In order to understand what led to the dispute it is
necessary to refer briefly to the history of the Boers in
South Africa, and our relations with them, as facts
seem to show that under the circumstances, the arbitra-
ment of the sword was inevitable.

10 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

In 1652 about a hundred immigrants from the Nether-
lands settled in the locality now known as Cape
Town, under the auspices of the enterprising pioneer-
ing, filibustering Dutch East India Company. The
little community was soon augmented by French
Huguenots from Holland, but the company's service
proving too much like slavery, many of the colonists
trekked into the interior. The company's despotism
led to trouble, and Great Britain becoming embroiled,
Cape Colony was ceded to us in 1814. It was the act
for the abolition of Slavery — which involved loss to
Dutch farmers, notwithstanding some compensation —
when 35,000 blacks received their freedom in Cape
Colony — that resulted in what is known as the Great
Boer Trek, when they " shook the dust of the oppressor
from their feet " and thought they could enjoy greater
freedom to do as they liked as a republic in Natal.

Still there was trouble, and we annexed that terri-
tory in 1843, for the "peace, protection, and salutary
control of all classes of men settled at and surrounding
this important portion of South Africa." Five years
after, for the same humane reasons, which some people
dispute, we seized the country lying between the Orange
and Vaal Rivers; it became the Orange River Sove-
reignty; but in 1852, another poHcy prevailing at
home, we made the Sand River Convention, renouncing
all rights over the Transvaal, and two years later we
withdrew our authority from the Orange River also,
which became a Free State.

Much has been written of the treatment of the native
races by the Boers, and whilst these Dutch farmers
have been sometimes held up as pattern Christians,
there are Missionaries from Dr. Livingstone down to
ministers now labouring in their midst, who speak of
their cruelty and oppression.

It was in i860, that Paulus Kruger, who was born
in 1825, came upon the arena as a leader in a faction
fight. Every child in England, and many an English
child in our Colonies, is familiar with his likeness and
character — a plain, stolid-looking, uneducated, strong-
minded, courageous man, slovenly dressed in a shabby
black suit — a man zealous in religion, a "local
preacher," as the Methodists would designate him, with

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. II

an unquenchable passion for the independence of the
Republic of which he has been President four times,
with an increasing salary. Whatever we in England
may think of him, he had captured the hearts and kept
the confidence of his fellow-countrymen for many years
of conflict both with Afrikanders and native races.

The constant annexation of fresh territory, and oppres-
sion of the Zulus by the Boers, brought about a native
revolt under Cetewayo, when the English Government
was appealed to, and restored British supremacy in the
Transvaal, in 1877, ^t ^^^ time Lord Beaconsfield was
Premier in the English Cabinet. In his visit to Wak-
kerstroom Sir Garnet Wolseley, as High Commissioner
appointed to settle the government of the country,
publicly stated that the Transvaal would remain British
territory "as long as the sun shone," and he made a
proclamation to that effect, which the English Government
endorsed. After Mr. Gladstone became Prime Minister
in 1880, who had previously critised the annexation,
he replied to the Boer Leaders, who reminded him of
his speeches in Opposition, " that the Queen cannot be
advised to relinquish her sovereignty over the Trans-
vaal, but consistently with the maintenance of that
Sovereignty, we desire that the white inhabitants of the
Transvaal should, without prejudice to the rest of the
population, enjoy the fullest liberty to manage their own
affairs."

A desperate revolt followed, and Kruger, Joubert and
Pretorius were elected a triumvirate to govern the
Transvaal. The fight at Bronker's Spruit was followed
by the defeat of the English troops at Laing's Nek, at
the Ingogo River, and then at Majuba Hill on Feb. 27,
1881, when an Armistice was arranged by Mr. Gladstone
(to deliver this nation from ' blood-guiltiness,') with com-
plete internal self-government for the Boers under
British suzerainty. As to what this " supremacy" meant
leading politicians are disagreed, and the provision was
dropped in the Convention of 1884. The Imperial
Government justified their present interference on the
ground of the " common right to protect British subjects
against oppression."

In the opinion of some eminent Colonists, the Afrik-
ander Bond and the South African League contributed

12 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

much to the embittered feeling and strained relations
between the Boers and other white settlers.

These were political institutions with more or less
worthy objects, but as the mines developed and Out-
lander millionaires multiplied, there came — it is con-
tended by some — sinister and revolutionary motives.
For lack of the Franchise many of the Outlanders had
no political influence, and to get redress, recourse was
at last had to a plot for insurrection.

The Transvaal Exchequer rose from ;^i96,ooo and a
state of beggary in 1896, to four and a quarter millions
in 1899, of which 4-5ths were paid by unfranchised Out-
landers.

According to the Rev. Horace W. Orford, canon and
Chancellor of Bloemfontein (O.F.S.) Anglican Cathedral,
who in order to remain there with his family had to do
ambulance work, says : —

" They in Bloemfontein had constantly prayed for
peace, not for victory. The Boers knew that the crisis
would come, and they knew also that it had been pre-
cipitated three years too soon for those who had dreamed
of extending Boer rule to Table Bay and to the
Zambesi. The ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church
were more terribly responsible than any other class for
the war.

" I am constantly moving about in country places. I
know the Boer on his best and most attractive side, and
I greatly appreciate much in his character. I have been
in personal contact with some of the horrors and miseries
of such a war as this, and yet I say openly and advisedly
that I believe the war has been ordered in the provi-
dence of God, and will, in His good time, make for good
and for the building up of a great country and people."

This voices the opinion of the great majority of the
Colonists and of the English in the Federal States

The Johannesburg reform Manifesto of Dec. 17, 1895,
precipitated matters, being followed by the celebrated
Raid, and then Kruger's Cabinet began to arm for the
impending strife. That Raid has been largely ascribed
to Mr. Cecil Rhodes, a former President of Cape Colony
and Privy Councillor, a leader of the De Beers financiers,
and at the trial of the Raiders in London (after they had

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 3

been given up by Kruger for that purpose,) the conniv-
ance of the Rand mining prospectors with the plot was
openly asserted.

Now we come to the diplomacy that ensued as the
outcome of the futile Raid, which Jhowever, succeeded
in demonstrating the case for the Outlanders against
" Boer oppression." In March, 1899, Mr. Chamberlain
in the House, ridiculed the idea of war, and said — enu-
merating the grievances as to the Dynamite monopoly,
the franchise, the excessive taxation, and general malad-
ministration of the Transvaal, that " he did not intend to
take any very strong action."

In August, Mr. Kruger consented to discuss the ques-
tions at Bloemfontein, and then came the difficult pro-
blem— should these Outlanders have to wait seven or
five years, before they were admitted to the franchise, and
when should the terms date from — then or be retrospec-
tive. The Transvaal President proposed a five years'
retrospective franchise; eight new seats for the Out-
landers, giving them ten representatives in a chamber of
thirty-six, and equal rights for old and new burghers in
the election of the President and the Commandant
General. As to details, friendly suggestions were to be
welcomed; at the same time it was to be understood
that this intervention should not constitute a precedent
for future interference in the internal a£fairs of the
Republic; that the question of the suzerainty, in fact,
should be considered dropped; that arbitration, from
which foreigners should be excluded, would be recognised,
and finally this new policy was to come into force within
a few weeks. Mr. Kruger asked for a speedy settlement
of the dispute so as to avert the war which seemed
imminent.

This did not satisfy Mr. Chamberlain. The proposals
were " extremely promising," he said, but the conditions
attached " impossible ;" and meanwhile troops were sent
to South Africa and fresh demands threatened if Mr.
Kruger did not quickly come to terms.

The Outlander Council and the South African League
pressed our Government to demand equal language rights,
disarmament of Boers, demolition of forts, freedom of
speech and press, abolition of industrial monopolies, and
of religious disabilities, the independence of the High

14 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Court, right to vote for President and Commandant
General, and local self-government.

These reforms meant the cashiering of the Government
Ministers and Officials in the " South African State," (as
the Transvaal was designated) and seeing this, it is held
by Mr. Chamberlain and his followers, that the rulers in
the Republic mutually and privately decided on armed
resistance, and thus, in the cause of " freedom," were
successful in securing the sympathies of a large army of
Burghers, most of them marksmen from constant hunt-
ing, and some of them well-drilled artilleryists.

While diplomacy dawdled and the breach widened, an
army corps sent to Natal by us, decided to occupy Dun-
dee on the Transvaal border, and troops were hurriedly
transported to Durban, the great seaport of Natal, cer-
tain newspapers both in England and at the Cape
fanning the rising bellicose spirit and egging on the
British government by sensational reports of oppression.

Then on Oct. gth fell the bolt of the Dutch Jupiter,
Seeing no response coming to his message after waiting
for a few days, and noting also the belligerent measures
being taken by us, the Boer Raad demanded, in 48
hours, the British consent for the withdrawal of the
troops on the Transvaal border as well as of other rein-
forcements in South Africa, and that the troops on the
sea should not be landed in that country.

This was tantamount to throwing down the gage of
battle ; it was a demand for submission, and it was in-
terpreted as an indication that the Boers wished to drive
us out of South Africa. So with the almost unanimous
sanction of Great Britain a brief refusal to discuss the
final message was sent, and both sides put themselves
in battle array.

CHAPTER II.

THE RIGHT AND WRONG OF IT.

THIS has been much discussed and will be. The
friends of peace regarded it as a sad commentary
00 the Hague Convention — then just concluded — which

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 5

was an attempt to settle International disputes by arbi-
tration. As negociations had been going on for some
years, and at last seemed to approach conciliation, the
question comes — how was it, that in the end, the breach
was widened, and fresh terms demanded by our Colonial
Secretary — a question of vital importance, seeing that
these new demands, with a warlike attitude, are given
as the cause of the ultimatum of the Boers. In receding
from interference in the Transvaal and allowing the
Boers complete independence, the Gladstone Cabinet of
1881 acknowledged the freedom of the Republic as a
sacred thing, and Mr. Chamberlain, who was in that
Ministry, has explained that when the English Govern-
ment annexed the Transvaal it was done involuntarily,
with the sanction of the House of Commons, under a
misapprehension of the facts, and with the idea that the
Boers wished it. Even on the 8th of May, 1896, he
declined, in a speech in the House of Commons, to dis-
cuss the contingency of an ultimatum to President
Kruger, because "a war in South Africa would be one
of the most serious wars that could possibly be waged.
It would be in the nature of a civil war ; it would be a
long war, a bitter war, and a costly war, and it would
leave behind the embers of a strife which I believe gen-
erations would hardly be long enough to extinguish. To
go to war with President Kruger in order to force upon
him reforms in the internal affairs of his State — in which
Secretaries of State, standing in this place, have repu-
diated all right of interference — that would be a course
of action as immoral as it would have been unwise."

Yet that is just what has been done. What new cir-
cumstances then had arisen that justified a vigorous
policy of interference ?

Sir Alfred Milner, our agent at Pretoria, has had much
to do with the correspondence between Mr, Chamberlain
and Mr. Kruger, and at an interview with the latter at
Bloemfontein, when our Agent pressed for equal civil
and political rights, the Boer President said that were he
to yield on that point it would swamp the Republic and
place the control of the Transvaal in the hands of the
Outlanders ; his own Burghers were only 30,000 in num-
ber, while the Outlanders who might qualify numbered
over 60,000 or 80,000. All subsequent concessions as to

I6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the franchise were offered with such limitations and con-
ditions as showed the same unwillingness to grant the
rights which we extended to the Dutch in the Cape
Colony, where they are in a majority.

In consequence of a deputation headed by Mr. Kruger,
Lord Derby dropped the word Suzerainty in the 1887
convention as meaningless in this case, and only kept
the power of veto as to foreign affairs.

The discovery of the goldfields of the Rand, which
gave an output in one year of ten million pounds, led
to a sudden inrush of capitalists and people of all
sorts, characters, and races, and Johannesburg* became
almost unmanageable under a lack of municipal and
judicial control, which accentuated the old grievances.

Toubert had up to now led a Progressive Party for
reforms, but Kruger was the Prime Minister of the
Tories, and swayed the power. Mr. Rhodes, the erst-
while hero of the Afrikanders, had gone in for peaceful
reforms, but in 1895 he joined the ranks of the revo-
lutionists, and whilst our Colonial Office was, it is said,
apprised of the new turn of events, arms and ammuni-
tion were smuggled into Johannesburg ; then followed
Dr. Jameson's ill-starred attempt to foment revolt.

Meanwhile, Sir Alfred Milner, after a long stay in
London, returned to Pretoria, to resume the discussion
of reforms, and now his tone corresponded to the altered
view of the Colonial Office. On the 5th of May, 1889,
he telegraphed a despatch to Mr. Chamberlain to show
the urgent need for instant intervention : —

" The right of great Britain to intervene," he said,
" to secure fair treatment of the Outlanders, was fully
equal to her supreme interest in securing it. They
were our subjects; only in very rare cases had they
been able to obtain any redress by the ordinary diplo-
matic means. The true remedy was to strike at the
root of all those evils. The case for intervention was
overwhelming. The spectacle of thousands of British
subjects kept permanently in the position of helots,
constantly chafing under undoubted grievances, and
calling vainly to Her Majesty's Government for redress,

• The growth of this town was phenomenal. In i886 there was not a
single house on its site. It owes its existence entirely to the discovery of
gold reefs 130 miles long.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 17

steadily undermined the influence and reputation of
Great Britain and the respect for the British Govern-
ment within the Queen's dominions. A mischievous
propaganda in favour of making the Dutch Republic
the permanent Power in South Africa, was producing a
great effect upon a large number of fellow-colonists.
Thousands of the Cape Dutch were being drawn into
disaffection. Nothing could put a stop to this propa-
ganda except some striking proof of the intention of
Her Majesty's Government not to be ousted from its
position in South Africa. This could best be done by
obtaining for the Outlander a fair share in the govern-
ment of the country."

The publication of that despatch aided the warlike
agitation after Sir Alfred Milner had failed to get satis-
factory terms from Mr. Kruger, who said the demands
meant practically the giving of the land away, without
anything in return. Mr. Chamberlain took up the debate,
with fresh demands, as to the use of English in the Volks-
raad and to go into conference on other difficulties, and
if the reply to this message was negative or inconclu-
sive, •' Her Majesty's Government must reserve to
themselves the right to reconsider the situation de novo^
and to formulate their own proposals for a final settle-
ment."

Then came from the Boer Government their view of the
situation, and a hope expressed that the English Gov-
ernment would withdraw its demands. If they did this " it
would put an end to the present state of tension, race
hatred would decrease and die out, the prosperity and
welfare of the South African Republic and of the whole
of South Africa would be developed and furthered, and
fraternisation between the different nationalities would
increase." This not being considered worthy of an
answer, there came the Boer last word to fight.

On the one side it is argued that the five years' fran-
chise offered would have made the Outlanders the
supreme rulers, without a grievance, — in fact that they
would have become the contented subjects of another
Power. On the other hand, it is contended that equal
rights and obligations should have been granted by a
professedly Christian State without regard to Dutch
prejudices, or private interests. Whether there was an

B

l8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

honest endeavour to come to a just settlement by con-
ference, or whether it was regarded as impossible, are
questions on which statesmen are divided in opinion.

At the beginning of March, igoo, the ministers of the
Dutch Reformed Church, who have been accused of
fomenting the anti-Enghsh prejudice, issued a manifesto,
and in a reply to this, the Rev. J. S. Moffatt, of Mow-
bray, Cape Town — a minister of high repute among the
EngHsh Protestants, states that the political part of it
comes strangely from men '• from the pulpits of whose
church open sedition has been preached at the present
juncture — men who in this very manifesto menace us
with the disaffection of their people and with a long
vendetta of race hatred and woe and sorrow."

The Dutch ministers declare that the " fear of
slavery and oppression of the natives by the Boers is
chimerical."

Mr. Moffat answers with facts — the native cannot own
land by title, has no vote, must 'not walk on the pave-
ment, but in the road, must buy a pass to leave his tribal
location, must wear a badge of servitude, must ride in
railway compartments for "coloured people," and the
law distinctly states that there is no equality between
black and white in church and state. Till nearly two
years ago the native could not get legal recognition of
his marriage, and it costs him £^, with restrictions that
make the concession almost valueless. For a native to
go into a court of law is perfectly hopeless. One of the
fundamental causes of the great trek in 1836, was the
fact that the Boer found that under British rule he
could not work his own will upon the native.

Another expression of opinion of importance was that
of 40 ministers of various denominations presented in an
address to Sir Alfred Milner, the British High Com-
missioner at Capetown, on April 12th, 1900, in which
they approved of his policy and considered that after
annexation the people of the two republics would be
happy and prosperous. In reply to which. Sir Alfred
said he reciprocated the sentiments of the address, and
therefore desired that the settlement should be no
patchwork, no compromise, but magnanimous and with-
out vindictiveness.

As to the present intentions of this country the Prime

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I9

Minister also spoke at the Lord Mayor's Banquet in
November, i8gg. He said : —

" We seek no goldfields : we seek no territory. What we
desire is equal right for all men of all races, and
security for our fellow-subjects and for the Empire. I
will not ask by what means those results are to be
obtained — the hour for asking that has not yet come —
but chese are the objects — these are the only objects —
that we seek, and we do not allow any other con-
sideration to cross our path."

Those who were for annexation did not like this
moderate tone, when, after the defeat of Cronje in the
Free State, the aUied Presidents asked for an armistice
for a settlement with independence, Lord Salisbury
replied that when the time came for a settlement the
English Government could not allow the independence
that had existed — which was understood by some to
mean that the two States would be added to our
Colonies.

The Afrikander Bond.

This society has played so important a part in for-
mulating public opinion in South Africa that some par-
ticulars about it will be interesting.

The Afrikander Bond is a political Association founded
in 1880, for the purpose of quickening the interest of the
farming population in political affairs. Under the Bond
organisation he is an Afrikander who, whether by birth
or by adoption, considers Africa as his home and its inter-
ests as his own. The first congress of the Bond was held
at GraafiF-Reinet in March, 1882.

The object of the Bond, as defined by its general con-
stitution, is as follows: "The formation of a South
African nationality by means of union and co-operation
as a preparation for the ultimate object, a United South
Africa." The organisation consists of branches, one in
each ward or field-cornetcy. These branches elect two
delegates each, who constitute the district committee;
the district committees, in their turn, elect two members
each to form the provincial committee.

The provincial committee of the Colony, Free State,
and the Transvaal elect two delegates each to form a
central Bond committee, which can deal with no subjects

20 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

except those which have reference to the interests of the
States, and only such as have been referred to it by the
provincial committees. In 1890 the Provincial Commit-
tee represented forty-three Districft Committees with 173
branches and 4,686 members; in i8g6, sixty-three District
Committees with 280 branches and 8,511 members.
Its principles are as follows: —

1. The Afrikander National Party acknowledge the
guidance of Providence in the affairs both of lands and
peoples.

2. They include, under the guidance of Providence,
the formation of a pure nationality and the preparation
of our people for the establishment of a " United South
Africa."

3. To this they consider belong —

(a) The establishment of a firm union between all the
different European nationalities in South Africa, and

(b) The promotion of South Africa's independence
(zeltstandigheid).

4. They consider that the union mentioned in Art. 3 (a)
depends upon the clear and plain understanding of each
other's general interest in politics, agriculture, stock-
breeding, trade, and industry, and the acknowledgment of
every one's special rights in the matter of religion, educa-
tion, and language, so that all national jealousy between
the different elements of the people may be removed, and
room be made for an unmistakable South African Nation-
al sentiment.

5. To the advancement of the independence mentioned
in Art. 3 (b) belongs —

(a) That the sentiment of national self-respect and of
patriotism towards South Africa should above all be
developed and exhibited in schools, and in families, and
in the public Press.

{b) That a system oi voting should be applied which
not only acknowledges the right of numbers, but also that
of ownership and the development of intelligence : and
that is opposed as far as possible to bribery and compul-
sion at the poll.

(c) That our agriculture, stock-breeding, commerce, and
inaustries should be supported in every lawful manner,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2t

such as by a conclusive (doeltreflfeode) law as regards
masters and servants, and also by the appointment of a
prudent and advantageous system of Protection.

(d) That the South African Colonies and States, either
each for itself or in conjunction with one another,
shall regulate their own native affairs, employing thereto
the forces of the land by means of a satisfactory burgher
law ; and

{e) That outside interference with the domestic con-
cerns of South Africa shall be opposed.

6. While they acknowledge the existing Governments
holding rule in South Africa, and intend faithfully to ful-
fil their obligations in regard to the same, they consider
that the duty rests upon those Governments to advance
the interests of South Africa in the spirit of the foregoing
articles ; and whilst on the one side they watch against
any unnecessary or frivolous interference with the domes-
tic and other private matters of the burgher, against any
direct meddling with the spiritual development of the
nation, and against laws which might hinder the free in-
fluence of the Gospel upon the national life, on the other
hand they should accomplish all the positive duties of a
good Government, among which must be reckoned —

(a) In all their actions to take account of the Christian
character of the people.

(b) The maintenance of freedom of religion for every
one, so long as the public order and honour are not in-
jured thereby.

(c) The acknowledgment and expression of the religious,
social, and bodily needs of the people in the observance
of the present weekly day of rest.

(i) The application of an equal and judicious system of
taxation.

(e) The bringing into practice of an impartial and, as
far as possible, economical administration of justice.

(/) The watching over the public honour, and against
the adulteration of the necessaries of life, and the defiling
of ground, water, or air, as well as against the spreading
of infectious diseases.

7, In order to secure the influence of these principles,
they stand forward as an independent party, and accept

22 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the co-operation of other parties only if the same can
be obtained with the uninjured maintenance of these
principles.

Such is the programme of principles adopted by the
vote of a large majority at the Provincial Bond meeting
held at Middelburg on March 4th, 1889.

CHAPTER III.

ITS OUTCOME AND CHARACTERISTICS.

THE war has had far reaching results. It involved,
not only the loss of many thousands of lives and
many millions of pounds, ranking it as one of the direst
campaigns in recent history, but it affected the des-
tinies of many races in Africa.

The population of whites in the Transvaal is reckoned
at 295,000; of Kaffirs, 620,000; and the war strength
26,500. In the Orange Free State — white population,
77,000; natives, 130,000; liable for military service,
20,000 men. Taking a wider survey; it is estimated
that in British and Dutch South Africa there were, in
1899, 400,000 Englishmen or men of English descent,
500,000 Dutch, and 3,500,000 Indians, Malays, Hotten-
tots, and members of Kaffir tribes. The Hollander
element preponderates at the Cape and in the Orange
Free State; in the Transvaal, Natal, and the district
named Rhodesia the British are in a majority. Beyond
are millions more of black races with whom we have
been brought in conflict at different times, and for
whose peace and settlement we have also assisted at
great cost.

Up to the ist of May, the seven months' campaign
had cost the British Government 23^ millions, a little
over three millions a month and thereafter the cost
was estimated to be over a million a week.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 23

The casualties for the same period were:~-

Officers.

Men.

Killed in Action 218 ...

2,062

Died of Wounds 53 ...

492

Missing and Prisoners 171 ...

3.92s

Wounded 664 ...

9,225

Died of Disease 64 ...

2,028

Accidental Deaths — ...

48

Invalids sent home (including

many Wounded) ... 345 ...

4,958

Grand Total

24,253

Of the wounded a large percentage recovered and
again responded to the bugle call.

The armed struggle has been protracted far beyond
expectation, for the Republicans fought desperately as
they said and felt, for liberty, for independence. Of
their bravery there can be no question, though their
military tactics often betrayed a low cunning and a lack
of humanity. They defended their positions stoutly,
and when repulsed sometimes returned to the attack.

The Boers often left their farms empty, taking their
wives and children with them to the laager and even
to the trench, showing a strong domestic affection.
They took with them in their long, springless ox-wag-
gons what cooking utensils, food, and ammunition they
could. And leaving these at their base, the men on
their shaggy ponies, with their rifles, were accustomed
to make rapid marches for good distances to surprise
the British.

It has been essentially a guerilla war — a war of
ambush on the part of the Boers — not an open trial of
strength, but a contest in strategic covert positions, and
as the burghers usually had the choice of their defen-
sive or attacking position, and ensconced themselves in
deep ditches, on high hills, and shot from behind Kopjes,
walls, or trees, the attacking Imperialists were at a
great disadvantage. In the tricks of semi-savage war-
fare the enemy were adepts.

From an artist's point of view the eternal " khaki **
and barren stony veldt, with an invisible enemy and
smokeless powder, made picturesque sketches difficult

24 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

to find or to invent. The war was devoid of the pomp
and show of the historic pitched battles of Europe.

Yet never were the minutest details of a war so
freely chronicled by the daily Press. Quite a corps of
journalists followed the Imperial army, and many an
officer also contributed sketches of the military move-
ments. Never were so many Kodaks employed or
every phase of a battlefield illustrated. In some cases,
as at Mafeking, the war correspondents could only see
the fight by taking part in it. At the capture of Bloem-
fontein some of them galloped in advance and heralded
the approach of the victors, receiving an ovation by
mistake.

The results of the war to trade, civilization. Christian
missions, are far beyond imagination. However deplor-
able the means, thousands of miles of a country hitherto
little known to us are now added to the British home-
land as familiar suburbs for our surplus population.

We have not only added to our knowledge of the
geography of South Africa, but we have a truer con-
ception of who Mr. Boer is. We had been told he
was a pious, peaceable pastoral Christian. We have
discovered, alas, that the average Boer is " no better
than he should be " — that the ministers of the Dutch
Reformed Church — have to admit that the religion of
their flock is more superficial than real. In order to
remove a wrong impression on the subject, nine " Non-
conformist " pastors at Kimberley, in a letter to the
British Weekly, dated March gth, 1900, stated that the
Boers are as a rule "professing Christians," but they
do not answer to the description that has been given
of them, as God-fearing men, rich in Christian experi-
ence and holiness. " They have shown themselves
unworthy of independence, especially in their relations
to the native tribes, by oppression as to possessing land,
as to legal marriage, and education." ^

The reports as to the behaviour of the Boers towards
their foemen varied — now they treated the wounded
with kindness, now with barbarity, and there was the
same contradiction as to their treatment of prisoners.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2$

CHAPTER IV.

THE STAMPEDING PRELUDE.

THE common opinion was that the war would be
sharp and short — until we knew that the Orange
Free Staters made common cause with their neighbours
(without any quarrel with us,) and saw that nearly every
Dutchman in both Republics was taking the field
against us, backed up by the best and largest guns
(which we did not know they possessed) and to some
extent assisted by continental officers and foreign soldiers
tempted by good pay.

When war was imminent, a wild stampede of immi-
grants took place, many leaving their homes and pro-
perty to the commandeering, looting Boers. Cape
Colony became congested.

The evacuation of Johannesburg was attended with
many sad scenes. A Bradford man, writing to his
parents, from Port Elizabeth, gave a vivid picture of
the flight :

" When I wrote you a short note on September 29th,
1899, from Johannesburg, I did not expect to have to
clear out so soon afterwards, but there was very little
time given us to consider. The Boers were comman-
deering all the Outlanders* property»as a war tax ; they
claimed all the horses on the mines, and behaved most
insultingly to any Englishman they could come across.
The way the Boers were treating us was simply out-
rageous. They are worse than Kaffirs, so I cleared out
as quickly as I could. There were 1500 people left
Johannesburg by the same train, and nearly as many left
on the platform. I had an awful journey down. We
saw all the women and children in the closed carriages,
whilst we men had to go in open coal trucks. About
two hours after we started there was thunder, lightning,
and heavy rain, which continued until we reached
Kronstadt next day. Of course, we were all drenched
to the skin. There we had some •• scoff," for which
we had to pay 3s. 6d. each. At ordinary times the
charge is not more than 2s. per meal. The Orange
Free State officials provided us with cattle trucks, which,
being covered, were a little better than open coal trucks,

26 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

and shielded us from the rain. We travelled right
through the Free State in this kind of conveyance, and
after crossing the border into the colony at Newport we
were put into civilised carriages for the rest of our
journey. Altogether the journey took us three days and
three nights. It was difficult to get quarters, for the
place is crowded. Anyhow, we managed to get a room
— I and another fellow — for which we had to pay a pound
for one week.

"There are about 5000 refugees from the Transvaal
down here, and I hear that at Cape Town and Durban
people are sleeping in churches, warehouses, and, in fact,
anywhere they can get a covering for their heads.
People who came down here two or three months ago
are at their wits' end, their money being finished, and
they having to rely on charity for a bite to eat. Whole
families are starving. The British Government ought
to help these subjects, as they are forced to leave their
livelihood, and all b^ause the English Government will
not hurry up and settle things one way or the other.
Johannesburg is very nearly empty. Nearly all the
mines have been closed down. All the storekeepers
have barricaded their places up and discharged their
workpeople, and the principals have cleared out, leaving
their goods and property to look after themselves.
Thousands of people who a few months ago were doing
a nice business are now ruined, and their labours for
years past are all wasted. The Boers will not allow
them to remove their stock, produce, or anything else."

When the crisis came, at the end of September, 6000
Europeans left Johannesburg alone in two days. Those
who left early did so in comfort, those later in cattle
trucks and with much privation. The expulsion of
aliens was the order of the States, and protection was
withdrawn from the mines, which of course came to a
stand still.

With the opening of October South Africa became
astir with warlike preparations. Burghers and British
troops hurrying to the front, and with martial law came
plunder. Bullion worth a million being conveyed from
the Rand to Cape town was seized and sent to Pretoria
— with a " receipt" for the same. It was minted into
coin.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 27

CHAPTER V.

MILITARY PREPARATIONS.

ON September 8th, 1899, the British Government an-
nounced that with 7,000 men from India our force
in Natal would speedily be 10,000, under Major General
Sir Wm. Penn Symons, K.C.B. General Sir George
White, V.C., arrived at Durban on Oct. 7th, to assume
command in Natal, and now came the first plan of
campaign.

At Pietermafitzhurg — ist Battalion Manchester Regi-
ment, and Mounted Infantry Company, 2nd Battalion
King's Royal Rifle Corps.

At Estcourt — Detachment Natal Naval Volunteers,
Natal Royal Rifles.

At Colenso — Durham Light Infantry.

At Ladysmith — 5th Lancers, Detachment 19th Hussars,
Brigade Division, Royal Artillery ; loth Mountain Battery,
Royal Garrison Artillery ; 23rd Company, Royal Engin-
eers; ist Battalion Devonshire Regiment; ist Battalion
Liverpool Regiment, and Mounted Infantry Company;
26th (two sections) British Field Hospital, and Colonial
troops.

At Glencoe — i8th Hussars; Brigade Division, Royal
Artillery; ist Battalion Leicestershire Regiment, and
Mounted Infantry Company; ist Battalion King's Royal
Rifle Corps, and Mounted Infantry Company ; 2nd Bat-
talion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, and Mounted Infantry
Company ; 6th Veterinary Field Hospital.

With one company, ist BattaHon King's Royal Rifle
Corps at Eshowe, and a Detachment of the Umvoti
Mounted Rifles at Helpmakaar.

The enemy advanced in large numbers towards Glen-
coe in Natal in three columns, under General Joubert,
and occupied Newcastle, a second column under Viljoen,
crossing the lofty Biggersberg, took a position between
Glencoe and Ladysmith, and on Oct. 19th arrived at
Elandslaagte, cutting the railway behind the Dundee
garrison. A third body, under Lukas Meyer, crossed the

28 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

Buffalo river, and on Oct. 19, was within fighting distance
of General Symons's position.

At home our military garrisons and depots were all
astir, and the War Office was put on its trial. It seemed
overwhelmed by the emergency, and hastened its mobil-
ization and transports.

Fleets of transports soon dotted the ocean; large
steamers took their freight of some thousand soldiers each.

A voyage to the Cape is enchanting or disappointing,
just as the traveller takes it. It certainly is not without
illusion and disappointment. The notion which does
exist that it is a voyage all sunshine and blue water and
equable climate may be dismissed. There are long in-
tervals of cloudy sky and grey, turbulent sea. The heat
between Grand Canary and for some distances south of
Cape Verde is quite West African — moist, oppressive and
swoony. Such wind as may blow in this pestilential
region comes without instinct of life or invigoration. Old
cases of West Coast malaria reassert themselves.

The temperature of the sea rises to 8odeg. Fahr., and
this, coupled with the steam and fires and boiling water
within the ship, makes life below the promenade deck
akin to the interior of the tropical house in Kew Gardens.
Up to the Equator these devitalising conditions continue
with scarcely noticeable variations, but south of the
Equator we fall into a current of colder water, and thence
into the south-east trade wind, which carries ships up to
the coast of South America, if not round the Horn.
Again the weather changes ; it becomes hot and " sticky"
again, with head seas, closed port holes, and the sensa-
tions of a Turkish bath. Or it may remain severely
cold.

We crossed the line (so-called) on Tuesday, the loth of
October, wrote one correspondent, but without the old
historic ceremony. The steamer has run down the tra-
ditions of the Equator so much so that the Kinfauns
Castle crossed the line without a dozen passengers being
aware of the interesting circumstance. It was an ideal
cross-channel morning, a grey-blue sea, crisped into a
whiff here and there of white foam : the sky dappled
with cloud, now fleecy and anon black enough for 'rain.
There was nothing tropical in the scene. But what be-
came interesting was the absence of shade. The sun was

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2g

vertical, and you had to throw your head well back and
your face upwards to see it at all. Everything perpen-
dicular was the centre of its own orbit. There were none
of the oblique shadows upon the deck to which we were
accustomed in Europe.

*' On our arrival at Cape Town we had been fourteen
days beyond the reach alike of land and of news. But
though I and some colleagues fretted at the uncer-
tainty of what was before us, the military on board —
and these formed by far the larger portion of the pas-
sengers— awaited the result with smiling nonchalance.
Tommy attended parade, underwent inoculation for
typhoid, slept on the forecastle deck, grew fat, and gave
by far the best concerts of the voyage. The officers,
after the wont of British officers, played cards, gambled
Gn " sweeps," and coquetted with the lady passengers.
So, whether it was to be peace or whether it was to be
war. Her Majesty's red coats, blue coats, and khaki coats
took it all philosophically."

Officers ordered to the Front at the opening of
THE War.

General Sir Redvers BuUer, Commander-in-Chief,
Natal.

Lieut.-Gen. Sir F. W. E. Forestier Walker, Com-
mander-in-Chief at the Cape.

Lieut.-Gen. Lord Methuen, commanding First Division
First Army Corps.

Lieut.-Gen. Sir Geo. S. White, V. C, commanding
Natal Field Force.

Col. Sir W. P. Symons, commanding Fourth Division
First Army Corps.

Major-Gen. Sir H. E. Colville, commanding ist
Brigade, ist Div.

Major-Gen. A. G. Wauchope, commanding 3rd
Brigade, 2nd Div.

Major-Gen. Hon. N. J. Lyttelton, commanding 4th
Brigade, and Div.

Gen. Sir W. F. Gatacre, K. C. B., D. S. O., command-
ing 3rd Div. First Army Corps.

30 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Major-Gen. A. Fitzroy Hart, commanding 5th Brigade,
3rd Div.

Col. J. D. P. French, commanding Cavalry Div.
First Army Corps.

Col. J. P. Brabazon, and Cav. Brigade.

Col. F. Howard, 7th Brigade, 4th Div.

Col. J. F. Brocklehurst, 3rd Cav. Brigade.

Lord Roberts, Field Marshal, and Lord Kitchener,
his Chief of StaflF, arrived at Capetown on January loth,
1900.

CHAPTER VI.

THE GATHERING AND PROGRESS OF THE STORM. —
A SUMMARY TO CRONJE's SURRENDER.

Sept. I. — Portuguese authorities at Lourenco Marques
(adjoining Cape Colony) receive orders to release ammu-
nition destined for Transvaal.

Sep. 4. — Arrest of Mr. Pakeman and attempted arrest
of Mr. Monypenny, journalists, for alleged sedition at
Johannesburg. Volksraad declined Imperial conference
and alternative proposals for settling grievances. Panic
at Johannesburg and great exodus to Cape Colony
begins. Bloemfontein (Orange Free State) burghers
have 1,000 rifles given them in Market Place.

Sep. 5. — Mr. Pakeman released on bail. Exodus
increases.

Sep. 6. — Volksraad discusses concentration of British
troops on Transvaal border. General Sir F. Forestier
Walker arrives in Cape Town and takes over duties of
Commander-in-Chief.

Sept. 7. — Ammunition arrives in Transvaal from
Lourenco Marques. Volksraad hostile to British troops
coming to border.

Sep. 8. — War tribunal established at Johannesburg,
Artillery reserves called out at Bloemfontein and burghers

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 3 1

ordered to hold themselves ready for arms. British
Cabinet discusses crisis, and sends 10,000 troops to
Cape and Natal.

Sept. 9. — Transvaal accepts commission of delegates to
arbitrate. Orders received at Simla for despatch of
troops to South Africa.

Sept. II. — British Government demand reasons for Mr,
Pakeman's arrest. Great distress at Pretoria. Prepara-
tions at Bombay for dispatch of troops to South Africa.

Sept. 12. — British despatch to Transvaal Government
causes great excitement at Pretoria. War preparations
at Johannesburg proceed. Gen. Sir George White
appointed to command British troops in Natal.

Sept. 13. — Transvaal publishes at Brussels British des-
patch. Dissension among burghers in Free State.

Sept. 14. — Orange Free State joins Transvaal in resist-
ing the British.

Sept. 15. — Johannesburg trade collapsing.

Sept. 16. — Sir G. White and Staff, ist battalion North-
umberland Fusiliers and other troops, leave for Cape.
Another message from Kruger. Encounter between
police and public at Johannesburg. Indian contingent
embarks for South Africa. Armed Boers leave for
Volksrust and Komate Point.

Sept. 18. — Colonial Government publishes official text
of Transvaal despatch.

Sept. 19. — Loyal North Lancashire Regiment and
others leave Cape Town for the front. Town Guard
formed at Kimberley for defence, ist Bat. Manchester
Regiment arrives at Durban and proceeds to Pietermar-
itzburg.

Sept. 20. — Sir W. Harcourt, like Mr. J. Morley, pub-
licly condemns war with Transvaal.

Sept. 21. — More troops from Bombay for South Africa.
Free State Raad advised by President Steyn to resist
demands against the sister republic.

Sept. 22. — British Cabinet discusses Transvaal ques-
tion. Boers concentrating to defend Limpopo river.
Army Corps preparations at Woolwich.

Sept. 23.— Cape Parliament supports British policy,
ist Bat. Royal Irish Fusiliers leave Alexandria for the
Cape. Boer warriors aggressive at Charlestown and
Mafeking.

32 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Sept. 25. — First meeting in Ireland in sympathy with
Transvaal. Michael Davitt afterwards carried resolution
to Pretoria. Ammunition delivered at night to Boer
field cornet at Johannesburg. More troops from India
sent to Africa.

Sept. 26. — Three batteries of Royal Field Artillery
leave Birkenhead for South Africa. Afrikanders in
Griqualand join in Boer demands. Free State joins
Transvaal in resistance to Imperial policy.

Sept. 27. — War preparations active at Aldershot and
other military centres.

Sept. 28. — New Zealand and Canada offer troops to
England, which were accepted.

Sept. 29. — Cabinet Council sits. Boers massing.
Refugees flying to British Colony.

Sept. 30. — All courts in Pretoria closed by proclama-
tion. Indiscriminate commandeering becoming universal
in the Transvaal and Free State. Burghers and ammuni-
tions accumulating at borders. British and Colonial
troops concentrate on Natal border.

Oct. 2. — 2,000 Natal Volunteers encamp at Ladysmith.
Boers massing on Bechuanaland border. United States
decline President Steyn's appeal to intervene.

Oct. 3. — Troops from India disembark at Durban.
Refugees suffer much en-route to British territory.

Oct. 4. — Mail train from Transvaal to Cape stopped at
Vereeniging and the week's shipment of gold for England
commandeered by Boers. Defensive works at Mafeking
began. Free Staters mass at Harrismith and Boshof.

Oct. 5. — 20,000 armed Boers at Volksrust.

Oct. 6. — Sir George White arrives at East London and
proceeds to Durban. 3,000 native workmen quit unpro-
tected mines at Johannesburg. Commandant Cronje made
General to take charge of Western Frontier burghers.
Castle liner Braemar Castle sails for seat of war with
1,500 officers and men.

Oct. 7. — Army Reserve summoned by royal procla-
mation. Sir George White and staff leave Durban for
Pietermaritzburg. Disembarkation of Indian troops at
Durban.

Oct. 9. — The "Guelph" at Lourenco Marques with
cargo of ammunition for Boers seized and cargo brought

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 33

to Durban. ;^30,ooo taken from Barberton mine to
Pretoria, now almost deserted of British subjects.

Oct. lo. — Kruger's ultimatum.

Oct. II. — War opened at 3-10 p.m. (5 p.m. South
African time.)

Oct. 12. — Mr. Conyngham Greene, British agent, leaves
Pretoria, and Sir Alfred Milner, Lord Commissioner,
issues proclamation declaring all persons who shall abet
the enemy in time of war traitors to Great Britain.
1,500 refugees reach Durban from Delagoa Bay. Fund
opened at the Cape and in London for suffering refugees,
many of them penniless.

Oct. 13. — British troops open stores on line at De Aar.
Armoured train from Cape to Mafeking wrecked by Boers
at Kraaipan. 12,000 Boers invade Natal by Tintwa
Pass. A Red Cross train sent to Kraaipan fired on by
Boers. Mafeking isolated by destruction of line.

Oct. 14. — General Buller leaves London for the front.
Transvaal flag hoisted at Newcastle.

Oct. 15. — A fight near Mafeking, Boers worsted.

Oct. 16. — Boers occupy Ingagane and Dannhauser. A
reconnoitring train from Kimberly attacked by Boers at
Spysfontein.

Oct. 17. — Conflict at Acton Homes and Glencoe be-
tween the outposts. Bridges at Modder river and Four-
teen Streams blown up by the^" bearded Besoms."

Oct. 20. — Boers on the heights overlooking Glencoe,
salute daybreak by blazing away at the foreigners, who
are seen to turn to flight the army of the aliens.

Oct. 21. — British proceed northward from Ladysmith
to make good railway communication with Glencoe, en-
counter Boers at Elandslaagte, and the latter are seen to
scatter. Skirmish at Rhodes' Drift between patrols.

Oct. 22. — Skirmish at Krokodil Poort on the northern
frontier and several slain on both sides.

Oct. 23. — Gen. Yule, removing from Dundee, makes a
stand at Glencoe. Boers occupy Dundee.

Oct. 24. — Defeat of the Boers at Rietfontein, seven
miles from the Natal Aldershot. Cape Colony, north of
the River Vaal, " annexed " by President Steyn and
Bechuanaland "added" to his kingdom by Oom Paull
Mafeking bombarded.

Oct. 25th. — An advanced guard halts at Sunday River

C

34 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

when sent out to join Gen. Yule. A squadron of the
Hussars made prisoners by the Boers on the 20th at
Glencoe, taken to Pretoria.

Oct. 26. — Gen. Yule's forces reach Ladysmith in good
order after two day's forced march. Basutoland chiefs
meet and protest loyalty to Queen Victoria.

Oct. 27. — Boers massing on River Limpopo.

Oct. 28. — Siege of Ladysmith commmenced by 17,000
Boers, under Gen. Joubert.

Oct. 30. — Great excitement in Ladysmith owing to
general engagement with enemy. A cut-off column
capitulates to the Pretorians.

Oct. 31. — BuUer "the Deliverer" lands at Cape Town,
with acclamations lusty. Sir Redvers Buller next day
goes to Durban for the front.

Nov. 4. — Boer attack on Kimberley repulsed at
Carter's Farm. The garrison lost i killed and i
wounded, and 6 Boers were killed. Colonel Wessels,
the Boer Commandant, sent in word that he was going
to bombard if Colonel Kekewich did not surrender.

Nov. 9. — Message received stating that bombardment
had only killed a peacock and damaged a cooking pot.
Major Scott-Turner made a second sortie to ascertain
enemy's position.

Nov. 23. — Lord Methuen's relief column gained a vic-
tory at Belmont.

Nov. 24. — News received by garrison of the starting of
the relief force.

Nov. 25. — Lord Methuen won his second victory at
Gras Pan, in which the Naval Brigade distinguished
itself. In a sortie from Kimberley twenty prisoners were
taken at a cost on the British side of 5 killed and 23
wounded. Boer loss unknown.

Nov. 28. — Another successful sortie from Kimberley.
Boer laager captured. Our losses : 22 killed (including
Major Scott-Turner) and 42 wounded.

Nov. 28. — Lord Methuen attacked Boers at Modder
River and gained third victory.

Dec. i.-r-Garrison communicated with relief column.

Dec. II.— Lord Methuen's Relief Column met with
severe repulse at Magersfontein, in which the Highland
Brigade suffered severely and General Wauchope was

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 3$

killed. Boers heliograped to Kimberley, *• We have
smashed up your column."

Jan. 6. — Great British victory at Ladysmith.

Jan. lo. — Arrival of Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener
at Cape Town. Beginning of second advance of General
Buller's command. Cavalry brigade seized Potgieter's
Drift on the Tugela.

Jan. 17. — Potgieter's Drift and Trichardt Drift crossed
by the British in force.

]an. 20. — British success at Venter's Spruit.)

fan. 23. — Capture of Spion Kop.

fan. 25. — Evacuation of Spion Kop.

fan. 26. — British retreat across the Tugela.

Jan. 30. — Opening of Parliament.

Feb. 9. — Mr. Labram killed by shell from big gun
which had been bombarding Kimberley since January
7. Mr. Labram was the clever engineer who built the

ti gun which caused a panic among the besieging force,
ord Roberts arrived at Modder River.

Feb. II. — General French moved with the Cavalry
Division from the Modder to Ramdam.

Feb. 12. — Seizure of Dekiel's Drift by General French.

Feb. 13. — General French, with three brigades of
cavalry and horse artillery and mounted infantry, left
Dekiel's Drift, made a march of 25 miles, and seized
Klip's Drift on the Modder, and occupied the hills on the
north of the river, capturing three of the enemy's laagers
with supplies.

Feb. 15. — Relief of Kimberley. General French, push-
ing on with his cavalry, traversed Cronje's communica-
tions and reached Kimberlej'.

Feb. 17. — Pursuit of Cronje by General Kelly-Kenny.

Feb. 16-18. — Severe fighting at Paardeberg, where
Cronje was being gradually surrounded.

Feb. 19. — Bombardment of Cronje's position began.
Boer reinforcements driven back.

Feb. 23. — More Boer reinforcements for Cronje from
Natal beaten off, losing a great number killed and 87
prisoners.

Feb. 23. — The cordon round Cronje began to tighten.

Feb. 27. — Surrender of Cronje at Paardeberg on the
anniversary of Majuba. Over 4,000 prisoners taken.

$6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER VII. -

IN BATTLE AR RAY,

THERE are several ways in which a war may be
viewed. The commanding officers send detailed
reports of military movements, with deeds of daring
and statistics of the dead and wounded ; the waF
correspondent paints smart pictures of great events
and throws over the scenes of carnage a lurid glory ;
while the rank and file combatants, writing home to
parents or friends, tell a simple, honest story of suf-
fering, and though some of the mates may joke at the
cannon's mouth, the writer says distinctly he is sick of
the ghastly business and longs to be again at the old
homestead. To witness comrades falling to the right
and the left, and to be with the ambulance on the Acel-
dama, when the wounded are tended and the dead buried,
is a sickly, horrible experience, and enough to make any
humane heart bleed.

Still there are gleams of light in the sombre story.
There was a desire on the part of the leading officers
on both sides to mitigate the horrors, to carry on the
conflict under civilized rules, to respect the white flag
when mercy wished to succour the maimed, or inter the
dead, (though, it seems, some Boers used the flag of
truce as a statagem of treachery.) There were displays
of kindness and hospitality between the contestants when
opportunity offered and discipline permitted.

In one case for instance, a Boer prayed over the grave
of an English soldier; and a thousand men at daily
prayers in the besieged camp at Ladysmith, shows that
if the gory field of Mars seems like a pandemonium of
malignant beings, the fighters do not always lose their
manhood, or their faith in God. Never had a General
so many officers given to Christian Evangelistic Service,
as Lord Roberts, the pious Commander-in-Chief; and
the work of the chaplains was supplemented by that of
the Salvation Army.

There was alarm in our military circles lest while we
were getting ready to fight, the enemy, so mobile and
fiery, should reach the Cape and ^ defy the landing of
our soldiers. This design failed, and while the Boers
advanced to the attack we rushed our preparations.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 37

As division after division was called up, till the mother
land was stripped of its usual protectors, there was an
unprecedented response from reservists and volunteers,
thousands of men offering their services beyond require-
ments, and the outburst of patriotism, shown in every
possible way, is one of the redeeming features of the
awful calamity. It was a demonstration to the world
that when the British people feel their cause is just,
they are prepared to unite in grim earnestness to make
any sacrifice. Employers freely released workmen to go
to the front, keeping their places vacant, and even, in
many cases, making provision for wives so deprived of
their support. During the war working men have freely
contributed, as well as the rich, to funds for the relief of
sufferers by it, and ladies, from the Princess of Wales
and Princess Christian downwards, interested themselves
in this good work all over England.

At the outset the odds were fearfully against us —
only about 5,000 men and 18 guns available under Gen.
Sir Penn Symons in Natal, and in Cape Colony were but
2,000 men, under General F. Walker, while the opponent
commanded some 40,000 men and 70 guns from the
stronger State and 12,000 men and 30 guns from the
other. It is said the reason war was not declared in
September, was that President Steyn and his Volksraad
had not then been won over by the secret service money
of the Transvaalers, and then it had to get ready for
the forward movement. The Cape Dutch were also
expected to rise, but somehow this was delayed for about
six months.

Physical necessity too, impeded the Boer hordes eager
for the fray, as October found both transport and com-
missariat insufficient for such an armament as they had
in the Transvaal, and the season rendered the brown
veldt bare and dry, while their horses needed grass for
their main support. Many small skirmishes prefaced
the decisive battles we have to record.

On the afternoon of October nth, the Free State
Boers seized a Natal armour plated train between Lady-
smith and Harrismith. The next day they marched
through the Tintwa Nek for Ladysmith, while a Trans-
vaal force entered Natal at Laing's Nek, and the Johan-
nesburg contingent, mainly •'foreigners," pressed into

38 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

service, — (about i,8oo) — by way of Biggars-Berg, made
for Dundee.

The next day — the 13th — Spitz Kop, on the Free State
border, was occupied by Boers, and on the 14th they
entered Newcastle with a view of attacking Gen. White
at the rear of the left wing of his army; at the same
time the commandoes from Newcastle menaced his front.

It was on the i8th that the first shots were fired in
Natal, and Lieut. Gennell was wounded in the leg when
with a patrol of Imperial Horse scouting near Acton
Homes, 17 miles from Ladysmith, he met the pickets of
the foe.

The Transvaalers assembled their legions at Lands-
pruit, on the northern border of Natal, some 16,000
strong, and their Free Stater comrades, 10,000, mustered
near the Drakensberg range, threatening the Colony in
that direction.

After studying the geographical characteristics of the
country, which were against him. General Symons, re-
solved to abandon the position at the far north of the
wedge-like range of hills, and to make a stand at Dun-
dee, but when General White took the command in
October after the arrival of a contingent from India, the
camp was established at Ladysmith ; in all we had now,
in both places, some 12,000 men and 42 guns, and some
Natal reinforcements brought the Ladysmith garrison up
to 9,000.

The position of this camp as commanded by a lofty
range of hills proved disastrous, yet Sir George White,
when invalided home after the siege, defended its posi-
tion as the best under the circumstances.

CHAPTER Vin.

THE BATTLE AT TALANA.

THE first notable exchange of compliments was when
the Boer rifles seized Laing's Nek and crossed the
Drakensberg range, moving on to Elandslaagte, and on
the way they seized a train laden with supplies.

Generals Joubert and Meyer designed to fall on
Symon's camp, on the 20th, the former with 17,000 and

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 39

the latter, 7,000. On the day before, Meyer took Talana
Hill, a precipitous height overlooking our Dundee camp.

Friday, the 20th, opened at Glencoe with a bright sky,
the sunlight revealing a scenery of rugged grandeur,
typical of that part of the country. Picture the rocky
hill, scattered with big boulders called kopjes, accessible
with diflSculty, and on which native ponies had much
the advantage of our cavalry horses. And unfortunately
the English were on the wrong side of this, as of other
hills they had to climb, which sloped gently from the
north side and presented a steep aclivity on the other.

The British camp sloped down to a dry river bed or
donga, and on the other side of it the ground rose to a
narrow belt of wood at the foot of the hill. The stones
on the top covered the Boer Snipers, and their shots
were dodged as well as they could be by our men in
Khaki (Persian for dust) — a uniform first used in India,
of which much has been heard during the struggle, and
well adapted for a hot climate.

Our 4,000 men who advanced to the attack included
an Infantry Brigade of four battalions, a squadron of
Mounted Infantry, some Cavalry, and a few mounted
Natal troops. The Infantry was composed of the
Leicester Regiment, King's Royal Rifles, Irish Fusiliers,
and Royal Fusiliers.

The horsemen were the i8th Hussars, under Colonel
MoUer ; and in addition to the irregulars from the Colony
there were three field batteries of artillery, 13th, 67th,
and 69th. These cannonaded the hill at a range of 2,000
yards, and after a two hours' noisy duel the opposing
Mauser guns, using smokeless melimite, were silenced by
our shrapnels. The Hussars were making a detour to
cut off the enemy's retreat, and the Leicesters were kept
in reserve.

Then came the opportunity for 2,000 Infantry to scale
the rugged parapet against double their number of
marksmen, shooting in ambush. These were bearded
farmers and their sons, in ordinary dress, from beyond
the Buffalo river, and with them were a few anti-
English, Irish, French, Russians, Germans, and others —
well-paid free lances. Each Dutchman carried a rifle,
but neither sword nor bayonet, and for this reason they
did not appreciate close quarters,

40 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

They were " foemen worthy of our steel," only they
always took to their heels when our bayonets came into
play. Each Boer had a bandolier of cartridges swung
over his shoulder, or round his waist, and had left their
shaggy mounts tethered below. On the crest of the
elevation were six field pieces, in entrenchments.

The day before these Vryheid farmers, led by Com-
mandant Lucas Meyer (president of the first Transvaal
Volksraad or Parliament) were nowhere to be seen by
our scouts within fifteen miles, so fleet are the move-
ments of these huntsmen. At 2-30 a.m. our picket be-
came aware of the enemy. At dead of night the intrepid
civihans had dragged their long-range artillery up some
2,000 yards to the summit of the mount.

Three English battalions advanced to the wood, with
our guns firing over them, in the face of a shower of
bullets, which felled some of the assailants.

General Symons, whose whereabouts was unfortunately
marked by a lancer with a red flag, while leading
bravely, was mortally shot in the groin, though he con-
tinued on his horse until weakness compelled him to
withdraw : he died a few days after.

The frontal assault went on. From Peter Smith's
farm in a v/ood, over the boulders, climbed the Khakies
to a terrace with a stone wall ; thence it was like
scaling a perpendicular rock. Spread out for skirmish-
ing in half companies, led by the Dublins. From
boulder to boulder they scrambled till by 10-5 (or five
hours after our batteries opened) a second stone wall
was reached for a two hours' rest. They were now with-
in 600 yards of the crowning plateau and if any un-
wary * rooinek' (as they called our men) showed his head
above the wall he received a leaden missive.

The Fusiliers, on the left, mounted by a gully, into
which they dropped, but as they emerged from cover
not a few of them fell. So the ascent was made till at
noon, when there was a lull at the top, the " advance"
was sounded, and the wall was mounted at a bound ;
then a bolt across the bit of green veldt, to the precipit-
ous clifiF, which was attempted under a deadly fire.

Colonel Gunning, at the head of the King's Royal
Rifles, was shot through the brain. With a yell and
yiish still went on the Rifles, followed by the Dublins

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 4I

and other comrades, till victory crowned the three
dauntless battalions; they bayonetted any Boers found
in the trenches who would not surrender, while the rest
of the foe fled like mad on their fleet nondescript steeds.
They deserted 100 dead and wounded brethren, and to
save their retreat hoisted the white flag, which closed
the mouths of our guns. But what was their gratitude ?
They captured a squadron of Cavalry and most of the
mounted Infantry despatched to intercept their retreat.

It was a costly triumph. Five officers were killed and
seven wounded, out of seventeen, in the King's Royal
Rifles. The two other battalions lost two officers killed
and eight wounded. Of non-commissioned officers and
men the Rifles lost 11 killed and 75 wounded; the
Dublins 4 killed and 44 wounded, and the Royal Irish
Fusiliers 14 killed and 31 wounded.

170 British prisoners were escorted to Pretoria.
Sergeant Baldrey, with 30 troopers, being separated
from the rest, dodged the enemy and by a detour of
several days reached camp in safety.

CHAPTER IX.

THE RECONNAISSANCE AT ELANDSLAAGTE.

SIR GEORGE WHITE had tidings that 9,000 Boers,
from near Acton Homes, were moving towards his
camp at Ladysmith, which threatened his communication
with Dundee. On Saturday, Oct. 21st, that famous old
Boer, General Joubert showed in force to the north with
two 40-pounders and began bombarding White's camp,
where there was no gun of equal calibre to respond ; so
that a new position was taken up by our men, south of
Dundee, outside the range of the •• Long Toms." Gen.
Yule (Symons' successor) was in charge of the advanced
posts.

A reconnoitring party sighted a mass of Free State
Boers entrenched in a strong position at Elandslaagte,
and to General French (the prince of dashing cavalry
officers) was entrusted the order to move them on. He
had made a sortie the day before, when he had a small
force of cavalry and infantry, supported by two bat-
talions of other regulars, and as they marched they hear4

42 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

from the north east the heavy booming of cannon, which
revealed the engagement at Dundee.

With the break of day he dropped a shell into a rail-
way station shed, and the Devons, Gordon Highlanders,
and the Imperial Light Horse came hand-to-hand with
the enemy. As they dashed onwards our gunners many
a time drove their opponents from their machines, and at
last, after not a few officers and men had been sacri-
ficed, the position was taken at the point of the bayonet.
The well-known General Kock fell into our hands as a
prisoner, and his comrade. General Viljoen was killed.
It was our first victory of the sort. Three hundred Boers
were made prisoners, to be maintained during the war in
a safe retreat, (unless exchanged.) The Boers lost
heavily in killed and wounded, and parted with much
stores of food and ammunition.

Among the deeds of daring in the encounter at this
place was that of the engine driver at the station, who
seeing the Boers arriving, put on full steam, and dashed
through them, for Dundee, before they could plant their
guns.

French had with him on this occasion, the Imperial
Light Horse' (composed of British Outlander Volunteers,)
six guns of Natal Artillery, and 400 of the Manchester
Regiment, conveyed by train, an armoured train accom-
panying the cavalry. The enemy was sighted at 8-30 a.m.,
riding the plain, but their stronghold was the rocky ridge,
dropping at the northern end to a nek or pass, where their
camp was pitched, with a conical mountain for the back-
ground, and with breastworks of stone. Along the skyline
stood out in relief the black figures of the foemen.

In artillery, we were checkmated — our 7-pounders
being old and decrepit, and the Boers' long range, quick-
firing 14-pounders (taken from the Jameson raiders.)
Hence, safety was only in retreat, till reinforcements
came up. First arrived the 5th Lancers, and two
batteries of field artillery, tearing along with double
teams at full gallop ; then Colonel Ian Hamilton brought
the rest of the Manchesters and 1200 Devonshires and
Gordon Highlanders; making the total strength 1,600
infantry, 480 artillery, and some 800 cavalry. The new
batteries belched furiously at the guns on the long ridge,
and our cavalry pushed round to the right and left of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 43

the enemy's position, while the Gordons and Man-
chesters, in open formation, on the right, with dis-
mounted Imperial horsemen in the centre, and Devon
lads on the left, were ready to advance when the Boer
guns had been silenced.

All through the campaign the artillery of the Dutch
was worked by clever gunners, and the only " fault "
that could be found with their labours was that many
of their shells were non-explosive, and if they didn't
hit were often innocuous. On this occasion their men,
driven from their guns several times by our shrapnel —
bursting with a death-dealing shower — kept up the
thundering duel with deafening roar and plucky stub-
bornness, till French thought, if the stronghold was to
be stormed before nightfall, the infantry must advance.
To add to the dramatic effect a thunderstorm passed
over the scene. To advance across the plain under the
deadly fire from the hills, was like courting death, but
the men marched solid and without wincing. The
Devons, as steady as on parade at home, went forward
firing volleys occasionally until they reached the foot of
the hill. All the while the Mauser bullets whistled
through the air like a rain of lead, and our men were
dropping every moment. In front could be seen the
intermittent flashes of the rifles on the frowning peak,
hardly distinguishable at times from the murky storm-
clouds rolling over them. As " into the gates of hell,"
marched the invincible Britishers, ready " to do or die,"
at the call of duty. And then was repeated a climb like
unto that at Talana, with, however, a better result for
the empire, as we have intimated.

General Yule the next day marched to intercept the
flying farmers, but his force was too feeble and he had
to return. At 9 p.m., in a misty night, he had to steal
away, leaving the dying Symons to be buried by the
Dutchmen. Joubert sent a letter of condolence to Lady
Symons ; — it seems a grim sympathy ; yet it might have
been something more than politeness.

Yule made for Beith, and was not followed. On the
23rd his regiment (4,000 strong) crossed the Biggersberg
pass, where a handful of riflemen could have barred the
passage, and on the 25th Sir George White's position
was gained.

44 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Ladysmith was now being continually threatened.
The battle of Rietfontein on the 23rd was caused by an
effort of the Free Staters to intercept our communication
with Elandslaagte, when we lost one officer and 12 men,
with 95 wounded. The Boers, as usual, had the ad-
vantage of a commanding height, now on Matanawa's
Kop, which held entrenched a horde of patriots.

Our artillery was fixed on a small rise in the plain,
(through which runs the railway), and the enemy com-
menced hostilities at daybreak by shelling this position.
Our General replied, and the British force advanced,
with the Lancers on the flank, while cavalry went east-
ward to gain the Boer rear. The enemy's fire, however
necessitated a halt in the advance. The Gloucesters
and Devons had suffered much, yet to the west the
Naval Carabineers, with the Liverpools and King's
Royals, were sniping away with effect. At length by
one o'clock, the enemy's guns gave in beaten and the
Boers made a hasty retreat — (a movement in which they
excel) — pursued by the Colonials. The Lancers inter-
cepted the retreat, and the rout was complete, the Boer
squadrons flying to all parts of the compass almost, to
save their skins — ** for he \vho fights and runs away may
live to fight another day."

By this triumph General White kept in touch with
General Yule, who now made ready to give a warm
welcome to the generalissimo of the Dutch settlers.

CHAPTER X.

THE SIEGE OF LADYSMITH. — A SERIES OF CONFLICTS IN

NATAL.

THE eyes of the world were soon to be turned on
that camp in the pleasant neighbourhood of Lady-
smith, on the borders of Natal, where Sir Geo. White
had massed the chief army yet in the field to resist the
invaders. He was well aware of the approach of
General Joubert's miscellaneous cavalry, yet did not
know their enormous strength, and to discover thifS he

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 45

sent out a column of over a thousand men on Sunday,
the 2gth of October, to occupy hills to the left of the
ground over which he intended his army to march on
the morrow to engage the enemy.

His garrison consisted of ten battalions of infantry,
four regiments of cavalry, a good force of mounted
infantry, and the 23rd company of the Royal Engineers.
With a force of infantry, were sent No. 10 Mountain
Battery. In the course of the night the battery mules
stampeded with some of the guns. General French
went out with two brigade divisions to attack a position
upon which the Boers had on Sunday mounted guns.
The position was founTi to have been evacuated, but the
General was attacked with considerable vigour by
General Joubert's troops, who had many guns and
appeared in great numbers on Lombard Kop and Cul-
vara Mountain, east of Ladysmith. The Boers were
pushed back for several miles. The British losses were
between 80 and 100, and those of the Boers much
greater. Sir George White reported that the enemy's
guns had a longer range than the British, and they
were able to bombard the town at a distance of 6000 yds.
One of our Maxims was worked to the last possible
moment under a hot shell fire, and, when disabled, was
dragged out of range by the gunners, all the mules of
the battery having been killed.

As to the reconnaissance next day a telegram reached
London that caused much regret and criticism :

From General Officer Commanding Natal to Secretary of
State for War.

Ladysmith, 30th October, 11.35 p.m.

I have to report a disaster to a column sent by me to
take a position on hill to guard the left flank of the
troops. In these operations to-day Royal Irish Fusiliers,
No. 10 Mountain Battery, and the Gloucester Regiment
were surrounded in the hills, and after losing heavily had
to capitulate. Casualties not yet ascertained. A man of
the Royal Irish Fusiliers employed as hospital orderly
came in under flag of truce with a letter from the sur-
vivers of the column, and asked for assistance to bury the
dead. I fear there is no doubt of the truth of the report.
I formed the plan in carrying out of which the disaster

46 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

occurred, and am alone responsible for that plan. _ No
blame whatever attaches to the troops, as the position
was untenable.

It was a capture by the enemy of ten and a half com-
panies of infantry, (1050 men) and a mountain battery.
The men had expended their 70 rounds and could do no
more. The centre column moving northward, found that
it had been led into a false position. Twenty dead men
were picked off one plateau and 100 wounded.

Ladysmith now became invested. Big French guns on
the adjacent heights fired thirteen- shells into the town,
which did not do much harm, on the 30th of October.
The timely arrival of the British Naval Brigade with
their 4-7 in. guns, in three shots, put the enemy's guns
for a time out of action. The bluejackets dropped shells
right into the embrasure of the Boer batteries. Our
guns now swept the hills, and we had 42 in action.
Afterwards the 40-pounders on the Pepworth Kop and
other hills re-opened fire. The Boers fired ten shells at
a time from a Hotchkiss quick-firing gun, without
generally doing any serious damage for lack of aim.

In consequence of these warm attentions, many
civilians availed themselves of the government "passes,"
and left in the 24 hours' notice of a proclamation. They
moved to a neutral zone four miles off. It was better to
leave when they had the chance than to stand a siege of
four months with many privations, if not starvation;
and this mournful experience was shared by the denizens
at Kimberley and Mafeking, on the western frontier, the
daily monotony of the invested being enlivened by an
occasional sortie, with various results, some very disas-
trous. These sieges were the consequence of our not
having a sufficient force, both for the Transvaal and
Natal, to cope with the enemy's legions under Joubert and
Cronje. Intense anxiety was felt lest in any case these
towns should fall into their hands, and the garrisons be
imprisoned at head-quarters. Hence succour was dis-
patched from England with all possible expedition, and
the battalions were transported without any particular
casualty, but as usual, there were complaints of faulty
supplies by contractors for fodder and other things.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 47

Besters Hill Cleared.

On Noverri^er 2nd, the Boers reached Colenso, estab-
lishing batteries on Grobler's Kloof, thence opening fire
both on Ladysmith on the north and on this town on
the south. Guns of heavy cahbre attacked Fort Wylie,
at Colenso, and trains between these towns ran great
risks. Besides Nordenfelt quick-firing guns the Boers
used plenty of Mauser rifles. The result was that
Colenso was evacuated by our troops, who moved further
south.

The same day (Nov. 2,) the garrison force moved out
of Ladysmith and took Besters Hill from the bom-
barders.

Sir George White and his staff were astir before day-
break, and important movements of troops were carried
out without attracting the attention of the enemy. The
morning opened bright and clear, and everyone was in
high spirits. At ten minutes past six the Bluejackets
sent a shell from their new battery on the west. The
shell got home on the ridge whereon the Boers had
placed their 40-pounder, and it was quickly followed by
others equally well placed. The Boers were not long in
responding, and the cannonade soon became terrific.
The Bluejackets worked their three guns in splendid
style, evidently to the bewilderment of the Boer gunners,
who were utterly outmatched.

It was not long before our men got the range to a
nicety, and then they hit their mark with successive
shells, firing all the time with thrice the rapidity of the
enemy. The accuracy and rapidity of our fire soon
began to tell. The enemy's replies came less frequently,
and after four hours' bombardment the 40-pounder was
silenced entirely.

All this time other batteries had been at work, and we
uniformly had the better of the fight. This artillery work
occupied the attention of the enemy, and enabled Sir
George White to achieve his main purpose which was
the capture of the Boer camp behind Besters Hill,
The first inkling of what was taking place was conveyed
to the town by the sound of artillery fire in the direction
of the new hill position of the Boers, four miles to the
west, about ten o'clock.

48 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The troops selected for the work were the Lancers,
the Hussars, the Natal Carbineers, and the Natal Border
Rifles, and they left at dawn. A field battery also took
up a good position commanding the enemy's camp.
General French, who was in command, got his force
within striking distance of the enemy long before they
could have had any idea of what was in store for them.

By half-past ten o'clock the military strategy had
clearly developed. Joubert's main force was occupying
two positions to the east of the town — one on the old
site on the ridge above Pepworth's Farm, where the
40-pounder was still sullenly replying to our fire, and the
other on Isimbulwana Hill. "Our field artillery was sup-
porting the cavalry and infantry — the latter not yet in
action — the Naval Brigade guns were engaged with the
big Boer gun at Pepworth's Farm and our heaviest field
guns were replying to the enemy's battery on Isimbul-
wana Hill.

For a time there was a temporary cessation of the
artillery fire all round here, but the artillery of the Free
State Boers could still be heard in the direction of
Besters. The boom of guns could also be heard almost
due south, and it was assumed that an engagement of
some sort was proceeding in the vicinity of Colenso, as
the enemy did not attack us from that side.

The Boers were in a well-chosen position, and the
camp, a large one, was surrounded by the usual laager of
waggons and other obstructions to a direct attack.
Besters Hill itself was well fortified, and some good
guns were in position there. The first intimation which
the Boers received of our intentions was about nine
o'clock, when our guns fired upon their camp. Their
guns replied to ours with some spirit, but they were
badly served, and they did us no damage. Our gun-
ners, on the other hand, rained shell thick and fast
upon the enemy's camp. Within a comparatively short
time forty-two shells burst right in the midst of the
camp, inflicting such terrible loss that the enemy were
thrown into a state of panic. At that moment our
cavalry, who had been steadily working their way up to
the Boer camp, suddenly burst upon it, stormed over the
laager, and drove every one irresistibly before them.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 49

The enemy fled precipitately, leaving many of their
number dead and wounded on the ground.

The entire camp and its equipment fell into our hands.
Complete victory rewarded good generalship supported
bravely by the rank and file.

A Ladysmith Diary for November.

A diary kept at Ladysmith is interesting as showing
in what a sorry plight the inhabitants were kept, and
in what constant fear. Take this for November as a
sample.

On Nov. 7th the Boers shelled the town from dawn to
sunset. Some of the shells burst in the camp of the
Leicester Regiment, and wounded three of the men.

Nov. 8th. — The enemy attempted, but unsuccessfully,
to silence our naval guns, which are a continual annoy-
ance to the Boers. Our Bluejackets gave the enemy
more than they bargained for, and *« Long Tom" was
temporarily disabled by their accurate fire. Ten prisoners
arrived to-day from Pretoria.

Nov. gth. — The enemy made a determined attack on
the town from all sides, and our entire forces became
engaged. For a time it looked as though the Boers
really meant to storm the place ; but their courage did
not last long, and they were ultimately driven back with
heavy losses. Conspicuous among the enemy was a body
of men said to be Johannesburg policemen. They showed
considerable grit, and after the first repulse made a
second attempt to rush part of our outlying works.
The fire of our Hotchkiss guns was concentrated upon
them, and they fell back in disorder.

Nov. I2th. — A man was killed by a Boer shell.

Nov. 13. — There was again general shelling from the
enemy's batteries all round, but no casualties.

Nov. 14. — The Boers made another concerted attack,
and were again driven back with loss.

Nov. i6th. — A big shell plumped right on the railway
station. It exploded, doing considerable damage ; killed
two men and wounded three others. This was the best
shot fired by the Boers for a long time.

Nov. 17. — General shelling of town and camp : three
wounded,

O

50 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Nov. 1 8. — A shell fell and exploded in front of the
Royal Hotel. Dr. Stark was killed. The enemy re-
sumed the bombardment at midnight. Several shells
burst in the town, and three men of the Imperial Horse
were wounded.

Nov. 2oth. — More midnight bombardment. Our bat-
teries replied with great vigour and effect. Six men of
the Gordon Highlanders were wounded.

Nov. 2 1 St. — Renewed shelling, and four men wounded.
Our scouts brought in word that the Boers in considerable
numbers were moving to the south of Ladysmith.

Nov. 22nd. — Several shells burst in the town, and a
policeman was killed. Seven men were wounded.

Nov. 23rd. — A general and furious bombardment. Our
batteries were kept hard at work in reply. We had one
man killed and five wounded.

Nov. 24th. — Another lively artillery duel. The Boer
aim was good. British casualties — two killed, eleven
wounded.

Around Ladysmith.

At Ladysmith preparations were made for the siege by
deep entrenchments, and provisions were doled out care-
fully. Imitating the soldiers, some of the inhabitants
lived more or less in caverns, burrowed in the earth by
the Klip river, like water rats, leaving these dark retreats
at night for their beds at home.

The imprisoned inhabitants were looking to the rein-
forcements that had begun to arrive at Durban, where
the increase of population had suddenly amounted to
25,000. The British force in the country had now
reached 20,000 — a figure that was soon to be doubled.
To prevent the bringing in of help the Boers damaged
the railway in several places.

Other burghers, for no practical purpose that is ap-
parent, raided the adjacent Basuto and Zululands. Among
the incidents was an attack at Estcourt on an armoured
train sent out by General Hildyard. Several men were
killed and others wounded and were tended by a Scotch
doctor commandeered by the burghers for the purpose.

The enemy occupied the hills for many miles with
the view of preventing our advance.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 5 1

. On Nov. 3rd, General Brocklehurst, taking the i8th
and igth Hussars, with a Volunteer Cavalry and a
battery of mounted Infantry, operated against the enemy
on the Maritzburg road, about 50 miles to the south.

At midday General Brocklehurst, reinforced by the 5th
Dragoons, Royston's Horse, and two batteries, drove the
enemy from all his positions, shelled three guns into
silence, and headed 1,000 Boers from the Maritzburg
road. The Imperial Light Horse pressed too far into a
gully, and were extricated by the 5th Dragoons. All got
back safely under a heavy fire. Pomeroy, of the Dra-
goons, pluckily rescued a dismounted trooper, bringing
him out of the fire zone. The dismounted work by
Royston's Horse and the mounted Infantry was excellent.
The casualties were slight and the moral effect good.

The enemy had been shelling the town. Their artillery
was handled splendidly, but the effect was not great.

The enemy took advantage of a flag of truce to intro-
duce an artillery officer disguised as an ambulance driver
with wounded into the town, to observe how the ranges
proved. Subsequently, after the loss of many men the
Boers retired four miles from danger.

On the 1 8th of November Bethune's Horse, a mounted
Infantry regiment 500 strong, were the first relief party
sent from Durban to proceed to Ladysmith. They were
mostly Rand Volunteers, and on coming into action
suffered severely. As a set off to these resident volun-
teers, the Boer commanders published a proclamation
calling on the Dutch farmers in the Colonies to assist
them and promising payment for all supplies requisitioned.
This manifesto of President Steyn's was sometimes en-
forced by impassioned orations, and appeals to the
religious instincts of their co-religionists. Counter pro-
clamations were issued by the British, warning the
Queen's subjects against acts of disloyalty and informing
the predatory burghers that compensation would be
demanded for all the damage to property they were com-
mitting. ,

The Free Staters did another thing that it seems
difficult to approve. They issued from Bloemfontein
slips, in the Basuto language, containing fabrications as
to British defeats, and asking the chiefs to allow the
natives to reap the Boer crops. According to report|

$2 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

in both States, the inflammatory harangues of the Boar
leaders were often based upon wilful deception as to the
progress of the war.

In the first three weeks of the siege, 2,6So shells fell
into Ladysmith, mostly into the town, the camp being
quite apart from it. The " Long Tom" (a creusot gun,
of 5-g inches and a range of 10,000 yards) was the mort
formidable weapon of the enemy.

To break the monotony of the bombardment — (you may
get used to anything) — a comic paper was started, of
which fac-similes have been printed in this country.
The production shows that a variety of fun can be made
out of the gruesome business of human slaughter and
the miseries of a long siege. There were also cricket
matches and entertainments. ^

Mr. Barnard, proprietor of the Railway Hotel at Lady-
smith, arrived at Estcourt, having eluded the Boer out-
posts by riding along Kaffir paths during the night.
He stated that " Long Tom" continued to shell the town.
Its fire was very annoying, and none of our artillery was
apparently able to cope with the Boer siege guns. One of
the enemy's shells carried away the dining-room of the
Royal Hotel, and another hotel was smashed by a shell
while several persons were at dinner. The diners, how-
ever, escaped unhurt.

A brilliant httle performance was, on Nov. 5, achieved
by the armoured train which left Estcourt to reconnoitre
the line towards Ladysmith. It carried two companies
of the Dubhn Fusiliars, under Captain Romer.

Close to Colenso the enemy were sighted near the line
in considerable force. The Dublins at once opened a
brisk fire, to which the Boers rephed. Their fire, how-
ever, was quite inefiective, and, as they were sufiering
loss they quickly retired.

For some time they were lost to sight, but as the train
cautiously advanced they were seen to be moving round
on the left flank, with the object, it was presumed, of
taking the train in the rear.

To avoid this the train retired. It was seen that the
Boers had no intention of attacking, but were in full
retreat over the road bridge.

Immediately the Boers were perceived to be retiring, a

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 53

Strong detachment left the train and entered the town,
while the train itself advanced slowly to the station.
Several volleys were poured at long range into the still
retreating enemy.

Our men succeeded in entering Fort Wylie, and
brought back four waggon loads of shell, provisions, and
stores.

CHAPTER XI.

GENERAL HILDYARD AT ESTCOURT.

A CORRESPONDENT writes:— I returned with the
last train on Tuesday, the 21st, from Mboi River,
mtending to go back with the first train on Wednesday,
but I found that the telegraphic and railway communica-
tion had been cut.

The night passed without anything noteworthy occur-
ring, and the morning brought no improvement. At mid-
day several battalions were on the move, and it became
evident that something fresh was brewing. A column
marched out in the direction of Willow Grange.

General Hildyard on Nov. 21st, planned to attack with
the bayonet Beacon Hill and a hill beyond, both of
which were occupied by the enemy in large force this
evening, with entrenchments thrown up and four guns in
position.

The composition of the British column was as follows :
—The West Yorkshire Regiment were in the firing line,
with the West Surrey on the left flank and the East
Surrey on the right, the Border Regiment furnishing sup-
ports. The Volunteers were held in reserve. The 6th
Battery of Field Artillery, with a naval detachment and
the Carbineers, were on both flanks. On the comple-
tion of the infantry dispositions the whole column moved
from the top of the town road.

The Intelligence Department had located the enemy
on Beacon Hill, and beyond it, for a distance of seven
ipiles from the town, the country was rough and stony

54 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

and interspersed with hills. Beacon Hill rose from the
valley 1500ft. high.

The Yorkshire Regiment marched steadily on over five
miles of undulating ground, and then began its stern work
of climbing the heights. The supporting battalion fol-
lowed. In their khaki uniforms they got lost in the dis-
tance, and in order to note what they were doing it was
necessary to ride forward and catch them up.

A naval gun was with the greatest difficulty trans-
ported over the veldt, and was pulled by sheer strength
up the sides of an ail-but inaccessible mountain, while
No. 7 Battery of Field Artillery also experienced most
trying conditions in dragging their guns up the rock-
bound hill, gun after gun. They, however, accomplished
this severe task, which should serve as a moral lesson to
the enemy, who arrogates to himself that he alone can
climb hills with artillery.

At this point, when the Boers had retired down the
oflF side of Beacon Hill, and when we were climbing up
the near side, the storm which had been threatening all
the afternoon broke in its pent-up fury with terrific
violence. Torrential rains fell for hours, accompanied at
periods by heavy hailstones.

About six o'clock in the evening the weather cleared
up, and then the Boers took advantage to open the ball
by sending three shots from a long range with their
i2-pounder gun at our Naval Brigade. One shell landed
only 20ft. from our naval gun, doing, however, no
damage. Our gun replied with two shots.

The West Yorkshire Regiment had meanwhile come
within range, and exchanged shots with the Boer firing
line. This closed the day's operations, and when dark-
ness fell the prospect was a dismal one. Rain continued
to fall heavily. The volunteers marched up, under Col.
McCubbin, and the General ordered them to take cover
for the night.

When the storm had spent itself the Yorkshire Regi-
ment were on the move. In the darkness they advanced
in a snakelike formation towards the enemy's position.
They maintained touch, and, dressing wonderfully well
considering the nature of the country, the swollen rivu-
lets, which were rendered dangerous by the heavy rain-

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 55

fall, were successfully crossed and the kopjes clambered
or stumbled over.

The supporting battalion were equally dogged in their
endeavours during the blackness of the night, until, after
a tedious and never-to-be-forgotten march, occupying
several hours, the advance pickets of the enemy were
reached. Numbers, however, had fled on hearing our
men advance, leaving everything behind them.

In the small hours of the morning the West Yorkshire
Regiment were working stealthily on, and were within
bayonet-striking distance, when one man, more nervously
excited than his fellows, fired a rifle shot, which rang out
and gave the Boers warning of our presence. The result
was that they ran away before the West Yorkshire Regi-
ment could get at them. They charged, however, as best
they could, clearing the enemy from their final position,
which was stormed just as day broke with three ringing
cheers. The Boers rallied, and actually attempted to
ride our men down, but when the bugle sounded the
charge our men responded with enthusiastic cheers. The
enemy fled, and the position was won.

The Boers, in their precipitate flight, left heaps of
guns, ammunition, rifles, blankets, and about thirty
horses. Several prisoners also fell into our hands.

The object of the reconnaissance — to prevent the
enemy taking up certain positions overlooking Estcourt—
was thus attained.

All branches of our force then gradually retired to
camp. While this movement was being carried out, the
Border Regiment, the Durham Light Infantry, and the
Natal Royal Rifles held Beacon Hill, supported by the
7th Artillery. Our loss was eight killed and forty-two
wounded.

General Hildyard made another sortie from Estcourt
on Nov. 23rd. Altogether about 5000 men sallied out in
the afternoon. They were composed of the East Surrey
regiment, the West Surrey regiment, the West Yorkshire
regiment, a naval contingent, the whole of Bethune's
Horse, the Natal Mounted Police, the Natal Carbiniers,
and a battery of Royal Field artillery.

Moving cautiously towards Willow Grange and keep-
ing touch with the railway, the troops first took a position
on the hills in the neighbourhood of Miller's Farm, not

56 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR

far from which it was known that there was a Boer com-
mando of considerable strength. As dusk came on the
bulk of the troops proceeded to Willow Grange for the
night.

Just as the beautiful country was becoming visible in
the opening dawn the battery and a couple of naval guns,
brought up from Durban before the enemy closed in upon
Estcourt, changed positions until they got into comfort-
able range of a Boer battery, snugly fixed upon an adjoin-
ing hill. Then we opened fire.

It was quite clear that we were entirely unexpected,
and it was some time before the flurried Boer gunners
recovered from their surprise and replied to the vigorous
shelling with a few badly-aimed shots. While our guns
kept steadily at work on the enemy's battery and rifle-
men, our infantry moved towards the Boer position, and
the horsemen made a detour to get on their flanks.

At this moment a well-directed shot from a big naval
gun smashed the carriage of a Boer gun and put the
weapon out of action, and our troops, now half-way up
the hill, made a dash for the summit. They could not be
denied, and as they got home the Boers turned and fled.

There was some wild bayonet work before the enemy
were finally beaten, and in the course of it eighty Boers
were killed by the cold steel. We got a fair amount of
loot, including twenty-five horses fully equipped.

The Boers retired upon a second position, where they
joined a secbnd commando, and thus encouraged, they
quickly assumed the ofiensive, bringing into action quick-
firing guns far superior to our field artillery. It was
decided, therefore, that our troops should retire, the ob-
ject of the sortie having been accomplished. The enemy
did not follow closely, as had been expected, and another
attack was ordered upon them, the enemy not being
anxious to resume, and moving off", followed Bethune's
Horse, the Carbineers, and the Mounted Police.

After a few days' quietness the besiegers on the 22nd
of November began deliberately shelling Ladysmith and
especially the hospital.

Schalk Burgher, commanding the Boers, impudently
sent a message that all the wounded must go to Ikombi
camp. General White peremptorily refused. The
burghers thereupon continued to shell the hospital.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 57

The Liverpools and the remnants of the Gloucesters
lost eleven killed and wounded on the 24th. Several
civilians and members of the Natal Police were killed or
injured.

The Boers numbered about ten thousand.

It became known that the Transvaal Commander-in-
Chief was ill, and though he directed the movements of
the State army, it was difficult to locate his presence.

It was reported that he now became thoroughly
alarmed, and strained every nerve to get all his troops
north of the Tugela. The two strong commandoes
which, under Joubert's direction, recently attacked our
troops at Mooi River camp and Willow Grange, had got
well south of Estcourt when it was decided to retreat.
They moved back by the eastern and western roads, and
were now entrenched north of Colenso. They were
pressed by our artillery and mounted infantry, and shots
were exchanged. A couple of miles from Colenso there
was a small engagement at long range.

On November 28th the Boers brought into action some
big guns posted on the hills, but their fire was ineffective.
Our troops returned into camp at Frere without sustain-
ing any loss, and the Royal Engineers set to repairing
the damaged bridge near by.

CHAPTER XII.

RELIEF OF LADYSMITH.

THE general advance to the relief of Ladysmith com-
menced under the direction of General BuUer, on
Nov. 28th.

From Frere a successful reconnaissance in force was
made to Colenso, where the main force of the enemy was.

At 4 a.m. our troops stood to arms, but the morning
wore on without anything exciting happening.

The Natal Royal Rifles and the Durban Light
Infantry, with two guns of the Natal Field Artillery,
went out before breakfast on the right side of the rail-
way pointing towards Colenso, The Border Battalion

58 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

and the 66th Battery of Field Artillery were on the left
of the railway, with mounted infantry, both flanks recon-
noitring. Shots were exchanged by the advance patrols
and the artillery placed several shells among the enemy,
who retired. Brigadier-General Hildyard was in com-
mand, and Colonel Lord Dundonald commanded the
cavalry.

" When riding across country," says a correspondent,
*' I visited Williams's farm, and found that it had been
raided by the Boers in the same ruthless manner as
other places. The contents of every room had been
wantonly destroyed, and every piece of furniture
smashed. From the numberless mealie cobs which
were lying about it was evident that a Boer commando
had camped there and their commissariat must be bare.
I also saw some newly-made graves, and from inquiries
among the Kaffirs ascertained that three Boers had been
buried on Sunday morning.

" Further on I found that James Rolfe's homestead had
been turned inside out. Beds, mattresses, and furniture
had been completely wrecked, and not one of the many
evidences of refinement which could be traced in the
household had been spared. Indeed nothing of any
value had been left. Even the outside of the farm-
buildings had been damaged. The iron had been torn
from the roof of a new building and used to shelter
separate parties of Boers from the rain, showing that a
large commando must have rested there during the rainy
weather.

" I followed up the spoor and found that the enemy
had retreated along the right side of the railway towards
Chieveley Station. I then crossed the line and looked at
the wreck of the armoured train. Two trucks were still
on the rails. One of them, which contained the plate-
layers' tools, was completely turned over, the wheels
being uppermost. The enemy's shell fire had broken the
axle, and this had evidently caused the accident. I
could see no signs that the lines had been tampered with.
One armoured waggon lay on its side, and the other was
upright. Both were riddled with artillery fire. There
were two graves alongside the railway bearing an inscrip-
tion in memory of the fallen soldiers.

♦* The Border Battalion is camped near here. The

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 59

mounted infantry have made a fine haul of cattle, recap-
turing 450 head besides 500 sheep."

At the beginning of December, General Joubert, being
indisposed, arrived at Volksrust for medical attention,
and Gen. Schalk Burgher took command of the Natal
Boer force, which blew up the bridge at Colenso to
stop our supplies to Ladysmith. Communication was
established between Frere Camp and Ladysmith by
heliography and the electric searchlight, the latter
causing much consternation in the Boer camp near
Colenso.

In many places they had cut the telegraph line.

Up to now the Boers had suffered severely. At Bel-
mont, 8 1 of their dead were accounted for, and before
Ladysmith, to Nov. 8th, 800 were killed and wounded.

Gen. Sir F. Clery arrived at Frere camp on Dec. 2nd,
and assumed command of the division.

On Thursday night, Dec. 7th, a brilliant and successful
sortie was made from Ladysmith by six hundred irregular
cavalry, under the command of General Sir Archibald
Hunter, of whose loyal support Sir G. White afterwards
spoke most warmly. The Boers on Lombard's Kop were
taken completely by surprise, and bolted in a panic,
leaving three heavy guns at the mercy of the British,
who blew them up with gun cotton. C3ur troops, having
captured a Maxim, returned to camp with the loss of only
one man killed and three wounded. Another sortie was
made at the same time by a squadron of Hussars, who
did considerable damage to the Boer camp, without sus-
taining any loss.

The Tugela Fight.

At dawn on Dec. 15th, a front attack by the British
was made in the Colenso plain against the Commandos
of Schalk Burgher and Pretorius, whose forces extended
five miles in entrenched positions on the hills.

The attack was ordered at two points. On the left
General Hart's brigade, with two batteries in support,
was to seize Bridle Drift, a mile and a-half above Colenso.
In the centre General Hildyard's brigade was to attack
the bridge.

Co HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR

Our batteries, especially the naval six 40-pounders,
opened a heavy fire on Fort Wylie. The Boers* guns did
not reply till the batteries on General Hildyard's right
opened at 1300yds., when a tremendous duel began.

At seven o'clock the Dublins led General Hart's attack
in an absolutely open plain under a front and enfilading
fire, the drift being the apex of a horseshoe curve of the
river, the banks of which were lined by Boers well
entrenched.

Shell fire was opened by the Boers in three directions,
that from a big gun on a ridge above the plain being the
worst, but eventually it was silenced by the naval battery.

Through a terrific fire the Dublins gained the river,
though not opposite the drift, and several men who
attempted to cross were drowned. They were within
400yds. of a Kaffir kraal, fortified by sandbags, which
formed the main position of the Boers for the defence of
the drift. Then came an order for the retirement, when
our loss was extremely heavy. The Connaughits lost
heavily, being caught by the shrapnel fire before they
were able to deploy.

A force of about 400 Boers was now seen to be moving
to the east to help to resist the centre attack.

Meanwhile, as the men of the Queen's Royal West
Surrey Regiment, the leading battalion of Hildyard's
force, were advancing, the 15th and 76th Batteries, on his
right, came within 800yds. range.

The guns worked splendidly, but the enemy's rifle fire
was too much for them.

Almost all the officers were wounded, including Colonel
Long, and so many horses were killed that the men were
forced to abandon ten guns.

The Queen's were now almost entirely deprived of the
support of artillery and were exposed upon the plain,
across which they advanced under a hail of rifle and shell
fire. By a series of short rushes they reached the wooded
banks of the Tugela, and disappeared from view. They
got within 800yds. of the Boers, but the enemy were
entirely sheltered in an unassailable position across the
river round the valley.

The Queen's held the position for half an hour before a
retirement was ordered. The Devons, supporting th^

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 6l

Qtieen's, sent a company and a-half to their assistance,
and almost silenced the batteries.

On the extreme right Thorneycroft's Imperial Light
Horse and the Natal Carbineers, with the police, a
mounted company of the 6oth Rifles, and some of the
South African Light Horse, under Lord Dundonald,
about looo strong, made a gallant attack upon the
extremely strong position of Halangwane Hill, which is
upon this side of the river, where was placed the Boer
battery which caused so much damage and wrecked our
batteries.

They advanced up the narrow valley, at the head of
which large numbers of Boers were hidden. The advance
was stopped by a party of Boers, who outflanked them,
and the force retired under a heavy fire.

The main naval battery in the centre of our line directly
before Colenso, firing lyddite shells at 4000yds. range, did
tremendous damage in the trenches, one shot knocking
the whole of one end of Fort Wylie into a shapeless heap.

The dongas afforded such perfect cover that it was
impossible to estimate the numbers of the Boers. When
the Volunteers had been forced to retire, and the ambu-
lance parties arrived to attend to the wounded, the Boers
ceased firing, and came out of their cover in the dongas
in thousands.

The ill-fated 66th and 14th Batteries were caught in a
trap. Directly they unlimbered they were met with a
deadly fire from a concealed trench, and were also raked
with shell fire. The killed and wounded men and horses
had terrible injuries. After the '* retire" was sounded the
Boers swarmed across the river in hundreds. They
rifled the bodies of our killed and wounded. They took
Colonel Hunt prisoner when he was lying on a stretcher.
The enemy could be seen all the rest of the day burying
their dead. Their loss in killed and wounded was esti-
mated at over 2,000.

On the average there were sixty empty cartridges
around every one of our dead — that is to say, every man
fired his rifle with courage and determination until the
last, even when completely isolated from companionship ;
and there were a number of instances in which two com-
rades had fought and died together far from the maiu
body of their regiment.

62 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

From beginning to end of the trying struggle the Royal
Dublin Fusiliers fought with all the martial ardour of
their race. One Dublin man endeavouring, badly wound-
ed, to make his way from the field, was overtaken by a
Boer, who called upon him to surrender. The Irishman,
weak as he was, turned, and with his last remaining
strength managed to bayonet his would-be captor.

The Dublin Fusiliers struck the River Tugela above
the proper ford for which they were making. They at
once dashed into the stream, in their burning eagerness to
get across first, with the sad result that about twenty
of them were carried away by the swift current and
drowned.

After the battle the Boers swarmed across the field.
Many of them swam the river Tugela with nothing on
them but their shirts. They found our Natal Volunteer
ambulance bearers at work searching for the wounded.
The Boers shot dead one of these bearers, and wounded
three others out of sheer brutality. They threatened the
others with death, and forbade them to touch anything.

Later in the day, after an armistice had been arranged,
the Boers were busy burying their dead. The bodies
were for the most part interred in the trenches which the
Boers had used so effectively during the battle.

We had eleven ambulances working for 24 hours.
All our wounded were sent south to Pietermaritzburg, and
ultimately the more serious cases were forwarded to the
coast.

Lieutenant Roberts (the General's son) was killed and
buried on the Sunday afternoon at a beautiful spot near
the station, with solemn and imposing ceremony.

Sir R. Buller himself had a skin cut on the body from
a spent bullet.

Many instances of heroism are recorded on the part of
men and officers belonging to all regiments engaged in
the battle. Lieutenant Ponsonby, of Thorneycroft's, was
carrying a wounded man, when the latter received a
fresh and mortal wound. The Boers then fired on Lieu-
tenant Ponsonby, who was slightly wounded, but escaped
after shooting a Boer dead at close quarters. He received
an ovation when he reached the camp.

The force of the enemy opposed to us was believed to
number from twelve to fourteen thousand. With such

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 63

entrenched positions as they occupied, and with a danger-
ous high-banked river hke the Tugela running between
the defensive and attacking parties, the Boers had a
distinctly overwhelming advantage from tactical or strate-
gical standpoints. Their positions were unique.

" Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them,
thundered and volleyed ;" but help was at hand for the
beleaguered town.

Ladysmith was being shelled daily, out of sheer wan-
tonness apparently, yet reports agreed that the Free
State Boers had taken the alarm at the threatened ad-
vance of Lord Methuen and General Gatacre upon
Bloemfontein, and were on the move. Thousands of
them, with waggons and other camp equipage, were
trekking through Van Reenan's Pass. The Free Staters
feared evidently that when Ladysmith had been relieved
the British troops would invade their country from this
side. Consequently Van Reenan's and all other passes
were elaborately fortified and strongly held.

The Creusot gun on Pepworth Hill was dismantled by
the naval gun, also a Howitzer on another hill, but the
enemy brought down two more large calibre guns, placing
one at 4000yds. against the western defences. With this
gun our own battery was able to cope, but another new
gun was well placed. We thus had now in position
against us three Creusot 6in. guns, four 4*7 Howitzers,
two batteries of high velocity, long-range field guns,
several mountain and automatic guns.

Then came to England the first news of the approach
of relief.

From General Buller to Secretary of State for War.
Frere Camp, December 7.
Have established, by energy of Captain Cayzer,
communication with Sir George White by heliograph.

All the troops in the Ladysmith camp passed a merry
Christmas. They were greatly dehghted with the kind
and thoughtful message from the Queen Empress.

The enemy gave us a quiet day. They did not shell
us much, and the slight bombardment had no effect.

But on the 27th of Dec. a train of six waggons which
were conveying provisions to the Boers was captured

64 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAtL.

and taken into Frere camp. The stores were consigned
by some of the Natal Dutch.

On the last day of 1899, General Joubert preached to
the burghers on liberty, having a large congregation in
his camp facing Ladysmith. On New Year's morning
some confectionery was sent ** with the season's greet-
ings" into the besieged town by means of shells. It is
said that these shells were afterwards sold at from 30s.
to £5 as souvenirs.

The same day was observed by General French in
attacking the Boers at Colesberg; and by Colonel
Pilcher, of the Bedfordshire regiment, in defeating the
enemy at Sunnyside, 30 miles north-west of Belmont.
Afterwards he relieved Douglas from rebel Dutchmen,
Major Gen. Babington's cavalry assisting.

On Wednesday, Jan. loth, Lord Dundonald, at the
head of the Cavalry Brigade, started from Frere Camp
in the early morning, and after marching twenty-four
miles in a north-westerly direction occupied a strong
position dominating Potgieter's Drift, on the Upper
Tugela.

Lord Dundonald made hasty defences to still further
strengthen his position. Subsequently a column of
infantry followed on the same line of march, taking up
another position of strength in close proximity to the
ferry.

Scouts were thrown over the river, and at daybreak
next morning, General Lyttelton's brigade, with some
Howitzers, marched out from the camp, and crossed at
Potgieter's Drift.

Though the river was high, some of the infantry suc-
ceeded in fording the stream at the drift, whilst the cable
pontoon was also largely used for the transport of men
and material. The Howitzers and some naval guns,
manned by the Naval brigade, were quickly brought
into position upon a kopje known as Mount Alice. They
opened fire immediately, and throughout the whole of the
day they shelled the whole length of the Boer posi-
tion, which was plainly discernible about five miles north
of the drift. Up to this hour, however, not a single Boer
gun had replied to our cannonade.

Whilst this movement was developing at Potgieter's

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 65

Drift, General Sir Charles Warren with his division suc-
cessfully crossed the river by another drift six miles
higher up.

A FURTHER Skirmish at Tugela.

At daybreak on Saturday, Jan. 20th, General Buller's
forces attacked the Boer positions north of the Tugela,
and the battle which ensued did not cease until seven
o'clock in the evening.

General Clery, with part of Sir Charles Warren's column,
from Acton Homes, commenced operations by an assault
on the enemy's right. A terrific bombardment was main-
tained, but it was not until two o'clock that the Boers
made any reply. Under cover of the guns the infantry
at length attacked, and gradually forcing the Boers back,
swarmed over the ridges which they had held. The
enemy rallied, and, with great courage, attempted to hold
a second position, but broke and fled before the heavy
fire which the British brought to bear from guns and
rifles. At the end of the day the British were face to
face with the enemy's main position, upon which a
furious cannonade was directed. During the day eleven
officers and 279 non-commissioned officers and men were
wounded.

Meanwhile General Lyttelton attacked the Boers west
of Potgieter's Drift. A Howitzer Brigade and two naval
guns had been posted on the north bank of the river, and
the movement was further supported by naval guns from
the plateau on the south bank and from Mount Alice.
The Boers soon became demoralised under the heavy
fire, and the British were able to operate with field artil-
lery. It was not until the infantry had been pushed for-
ward, however, that the Boers employed their guns, and
it was then ascertained that they had only one Maxim,
a Nordenfelt, and a 7-pounder. All three were quickly
silenced. The object of General Lyttelton's movement
was to prevent the Boers from concentrating their force
upon General Warren's column.

General Warren resumed the attack next day, and
again forced the enemy to retire from three positions, the
British advancing frequently in face of a heavy fire. His
troops were engaged all day, and at nine o'clock at night

£

66 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

General Duller reported that he had advanced a couple
of miles.

The Attempt on Spion Kop.

On the night of Jan. 23rd, Sir Charles Warren seized
Spion Kop, but found it very difficult to hold. The
boundary of the plateau was too large, and the water
supply was very deficient. The crests were held through-
out Wednesday against severe attacks and heavy shell
fire. The 2nd Cameronians, the 3rd King's Royal Rifles,
the 2nd Lancashire Fusiliers, the 2nd Middlesex, and
Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry were specially mentioned
for gallantry. On the night of the 24th-25th the officer in
command of the summit decided to abandon the position,
and did so before daylight on the 25th.

" The highest point of Spion Kop — a scene glorious as
well as disastrous for the British army — is probably
3,500ft. from the base. It runs at right angles to the
main range of hills along the Upper Tugela. On the
eastern side the mountain faces Mount Alice and Pot-
gieter's Drift, standing at right angles to the Boer cen-
tral position and Lyttelton's advanced position. The
southern point descends in abrupt steps to the lower line
of kopjes on the western side opposite the right outposts
of Warren's force. It is inaccessibly steep, until a point
where the nek joins the kop to the main range. Then
there is a gentle slope, which admits of easy access to the
summit."

The nek was strongly held by the Boers, who also
occupied a heavy spur parallel with the kop, where the
enemy, concealed in no fewer than thirty-five rifle pits,
were enabled to bring to bear upon our men a damaging
cross-fire.

Our men were able to occupy the further end of this
tableland, where the ridge descended to another flat,
which was again succeeded by a round stony eminence,
held by the Boers in great strength. The ridge held by
our own men faced a number of strong little kopjes at all
angles, whence the Boers sent a concentrated fire from
their rifles, supported by a Maxim and Nordenfeldt and a
big long-range gun.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 67

What with the rifles and the machine guns and the big
guns, the summit was converted into a perfect hell.

The disaster to our forces at this place — 1,600 casual-
ties— led to despatches which caused discussion both in
Parliament and press. Warren was found another post,
and a colonel was sent home on half-pay.

Advance of the Relief Column.

The Relief Column concentrated at Chieveley. From
there it moved forward once more, on the 14th of Feb.,
against Hussar Hill, facing Hlangwani. Not more than
a thousand of the enemy attempted to arrest the advance,
but the sight of the entrenchments across the three miles
separating Hlangwani from Monte Christo supported the
presumption that they were waiting for us on these hills,
amongst the ravines, in the trees, and amid the rocks.
Accordingly, all our Artillery, strengthened by two more
5in. siege guns from Modder River, and a 6in. Naval
service gun from the Terrible, directed their fire on
these hills and trenches and hiding places. For two
days lyddite and shrapnel were rained on them, and not
until Saturday the lyth, was General Buller's contem-
plated movement on Monte Christo made apparent.

On that day Generals Lyttelton, Hildyard and Barton,
set out on the march for Monte Christo. They were
preceded by the Mounted Infantrj'', under Lord Dun-
donald, who cleared the eastern side of the southern end
of the range, in order to pave the way for the Infantry,
by gaining secure possession of the first point of the
Nek separating it from the second and highest peak.
He was in time to prevent a body of Boers from gain-
ing the Nek. General Lyttelton's and General Hild-
yard's brigades successfully occupied the peak. General
fearton, with his Fusiliers, remaining to the left of its
base. A battery of Field Artillery, which had been run
up half way to the crest, began, on Sunday morning to
shell the opposite peak ; while the line of guns, extend-
ing on the left for a mile and a half to Hussar Hill,
launched a perfect tornado of missiles along their front,
Hlangwani and Green Hill, standing out on the right,
close to the second peak of Monte Christo, and the latter
itself were raked by lyddite.

68 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

On the morning of February i8th, Hildyard's brigade
advanced to storm the seemingly impregnable northern
peak of Monte Christo, and Barton's to rush the trenches
and eschanzed fastness of Green Hill. The Royal West
Surreys were given the honour of leading the way, being
posted on the right, with the Scots Fusiliers on the left.

It was at half-past twelve that the sound of cheers
from Monte Christo, borne to those below amid the sibi-
lant shriek of shells, told that the Surreys had won the
coveted peak. The position being carried, the Boer
guns and Maxim automatic turned on those of our men
who exposed themselves in charging forward through
the bush on the crest after the retreating enemy, several
of the Queen's being laid low in their eagerness to com-
plete the conquest. An hour after Monte Christo was
ours, there was a flash of steel against the verdant back-
ground of Green Hill, and half an hour later another
cheer borne upon the breeze, and 'the appearance of line
after line of khaki-clad figures on the summit of the hill,
told us that the second position was in our hands.

The peak and Green Hill marked the limit of the
advance on Sunday. In the afternoon General BuUer
rode on to Green Hill and inspected the position. As
a result, the Fusiliers moved on Hlangwani, and easily
captured it. A company of Thorneycroft's Mounted
Infantry got under the hill and found the Boers hastily
evacuating it. The occupation was completed by the
Fusiliers. Three camps, full of provisions, blankets, and
all the paraphernalia of Boer life, along with many thou-
sand rounds of Mauser ammunition and 2000 Maxim
automatic shells, fell into the hands of our troops.

Hlangwani had been turned into a fortress. Trenches
and walls covered every point of approach, and the con-
stitution of the hill itself, a mass of huge rocks piled in
every conceivable shape, afforded absolutely safe cover
even from lyddite. The rank and file of the Boers,
judging from the evidences on every hand, lived in the
roughest manner, though, apparently, there was no lack
of provisions. Having seized Hlangwani, and with
Colenso only 3000 yards due east, General Hart's
brigade, which until then had held Chieveley, while the
Lancashire brigade covered the left flank at Hussar
Hill, received orders to advance. Meanwhile the fight«

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 69

Ing line between Hlangwani and Monte Christo had
pushed the enemy back considerably, although on the
morning of Tuesday, the 20th, they were well behind the
alignment of Colenso, and continued to oppose our
advance with a field piece and a Maxim automatic, as
well as rifle fire.

Tuesday saw Colenso ours, and the same evening a
squadron of Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry forded the
river under fire from the kopjes on the northern bank.
The whole of the regiment crossed the next morning,
and seized the kopjes directly facing Grobler's Kloof,
and having Fort Wylie and the railway and road bridges
in the rear. The Boers retired precipitately on to
Grobler's Kloof, leaving their camps and all their belong-
ings,— bibles, papers, clothing, cartridges, cases, and
sacks of provisions, tobacco, rifles, cooking utensils, even
two boxes of splendid apples from Pretoria. Most of the
quarters were simply made of sheets of galvanised iron
laid against the wall of the fortifications. All were filthy
and evil-smelling. In the dongas near the river, where
chambers had been dug out, pools of stagnant water made
the places breeding dens of enteric fever.

Nothing could exceed, however, the great strength of
the position. Trenches ran everywhere, enfilading all
possible points of attack. Boulder-covered kopjes,
strengthened, where the guns had been placed, with
thick walls, a hundred yards or more. It was done mag-
nificently. There was no time or opportunity afforded
to sandbag the bridge, and a good many men were hit
there, but still the stream of men never halted on the
way. They filed on, now moving across an open space,
now hugging the river bank, until one by one they passed
from comparative shelter into the zone of fire. Here
many a good soldier fell in that bullet-swept rush to the
rendezvous, where only the men of the Brigade had time
to breathe in safety. The Inniskillings alone lost 38
killed and wounded.

At last, by 5.0 p. m., the battalions were massed under
fire. Once they were ready, no time was lost in making
the advance. The moment the enemy sighted the Irish
climbing the hill, they opened a rattling fusillade, to
which the advanced and supporting lines replied. Up,
up they climbed, taking advantage of the still fairly

70 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

abundant cover, until the last ledge was gained. The
stern part of the work only now began. With rifles at
the " ready," and cool as ever, the Inniskillings leaped
over the last boulder, and rushed for the railway line.
There, in getting through or over a wire fence, the Boer
bullets found their victims, but over the line and through
the fence at the other side the Infantry dashed, and, with
a cheer, rushed up the precipitous angle of the hill at the
first trench.

Up to now the Boers, who had been watching the
sheet of flame from the Naval guns on the south side of
the river, and ducking into the trench while the lyddite
shells exploded, had been coolly standing up between the
discharges and firing down on the advancing Infantry.
When, however, they saw that nothing could stop that
magnificent charge, and the bayonets seemed already
at their breasts, they stood irresolute for a moment,
then ran from the trench, and bolted up the hill for
dear life. With another cheer the Inniskillings rushed
at the trench, passed it, and, with a recklessness that
immediately became all too fatal, dashed after the hurry-
ing foe, and attempted to rush the next entrenchment.
But that splendid charge was met by a hail of bullets,
literally sweeping the face of the incline. Officers and
men went down before the blasting shower like corn
before the sickle, and yet they kept on and on, till
human courage could do no more, and they turned —
what was left of that gallant band — and retreated to the
trench they had already won, and to the protection of
the railway line below. As they went many fell to rise
no more, or, later, when the moon came out, and a man,
not altogether wounded to the death, staggered to his
feet and essayed to reach his comrades, he was shot down
like a dog.

The morning light found their comrades exposed to
another ordeal. Up to nine a. m., they held their own,
as Irishmen can, and then, as if the Boers were deter-
mined to wipe them out, a rush was made on the trench
from the kloof. They were forced to give way a little,
but they knew that their duty was to keep that hill for
the Queen, and, firing steadily and true, they made the
Boers turn tail and once more seek the cover of their
rocks and schanzes.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 7!

The labour involved in making Colenso impregnable to
a frontal attack, was immense. The trenches ran right
to the river banks, so that any attempt to ford the Tugela,
even at its lowest, would have been met by so vigilant an
enemy with an unerring fire.

The new line of Colenso and the kopjes north of the
village being in our possession, and General Buller,
apparently not caring to risk passing the Tugela on his
immediate front, where the kopjes rise precipitously on
either side, suddenly, on the morning of Wednesday, the
2 1 St, sent the pontoon train through an opening in the
centre of the Hlangwani range, and bridging the Tugela
north of Fort Wylie, launched the Dorsets, Middlesex,
and Somersets at the kopjes forming the continuation,
along the railway and the river, of those held on the left
by Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry. The Artillery fol-
lowed, and other Brigades, excepting such as were neces-
sary to maintain the hold on Hlangwani, rapidly
debouched through the hills westward, on the line of
the new advance.

We had struck an acute line north-east from
Chieveley, then worked back on another acute line
north-west, finally striking west for two miles or more.
We were then on the course of the Tugela and the rail-
way line to Ladysmith, nearly half-way between Colenso
and Pieter's Stations. The fighting that followed our
appearance at the Tugela under the kopjes had now
lasted, with slight intermission, for six days.

On Wednesday, the three regiments just named became
heavily engaged with the enemy ensconced at the base
and up the eastern face of Grobler's Kloof, losing in killed
and wounded nearly 200 officers and men. It appeared
we were engaged by the whole Boer Army. As the
troops massed across the river under the kopjes the
enemy brought the guns from Grobler's Kloof and the
kopjes ahead of us to bear on them.

A continuous and exceptionally heavy rifle-fire on
Thursday betokened the arrival of considerable Boer
reinforcements ; it is stated, indeed, that 3,000 Boers
arrived that day from the Ladysmith base, and armed
with rapid-firing Mausers, were disposed in trench after
trench, crowning the heights, and always commanding
our advance.

72 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR

It was only then, when this determined attack had
been repulsed by those weary men, that General Hild-
yard's battalions came upon the scene, to be greeted
with a ringing cheer. The Durham Light Infantry
relieved the Inniskillings in the trench, and the heroes of
the day passed on to get that rest they so sorely needed.

While the Durhams and others of General Lyttelton's
battalions held the hill, and on the previous day, while
the Irish brigade was fighting so magnificently, the
battle raged on the left. The Colonel of the Welsh
Fusiliers was amongst the officers of note who died there
for his country.

On Sunday, from four a.m. to four p.m., the silence of
the holy day was unbroken by the noise of battle.
General Hart, at the instance of the Commander-in-
Chief, had requested a truce, which was granted, in order
to bury the dead and recover the wounded.

The calm of Sunday evening was broken at half-past
nine by one of those sudden and furious outbreaks of
rifle fire which had been recurrent night after night.
The roll of the firing passed from left to right of the
position, and it lasted for twenty minutes. Next morning
it transpired that the enemy's searchlight — the only one
he had left — had been pluckily rendered useless by Cap-
tain Phillips and eight Bluejackets, who had only been
discovered after their daring work had been accom-
plished.

Only Ten Miles from our Goal!

Sir Redvers Buller's plan of advance was now made
clear. It was to hug the railway and river, storming
kopje after kopje running parallel with these to past
Pieter's Station, until we came to the point where the
Hlangwani Range dips into the Tugela facing Bulwana,
and somewhat to the left front of Ladysmith. The for-
ward movement so far had embraced the capture of the
kopjes up to Railway Hill, near to Pieter's Station, and
we were holding these, and preparing to push our advance
north from Hlangwani, whither General BuUer had gone
to direct the operations.

The Lancashire brigade, under Colonel Wynne, started
at two p.m. on Thursday, the 22nd, to take possession of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 73

the kopjes up to Onderbrook Spruit. The Royal Lan-
casters led the way, with the south Lancashire following.
The moment they deployed from the shelter of the ridges
on the left, and resolutely advanced, they came under
the range of the Boer guns and Maxim automatics.
The fire came both from front and Grobler's Kloof.
Our guns covered the advance in one continuous roar,
but were unable to silence the enemy's artillery. The
gallant Lancasters marched on unconcernedly, passed
over one ridge, and advanced on the objective kopje,
only to meet a hot fusillade coming from the front and
left.

The Boers stuck to the kopje until our fellows were
within less than one hundred yards, but the resolute ad-
vance sorely tried their nerve, and only a very few
remained to stand the charge. Our men, running for a
few minutes out of ammunition, had to lie under the
Krantz until supplies had been passed forward, when,
with the King's Royal Rifles reinforcing, they rushed the
crest just in time to see the Boers run into the trees and
dongas under Grobler's Kloof. Only one Boer remained
to be bayoneted, while another was shot within four yards
of the position.

* The story of the storming of Railway Hill comes next.
The passage of the Irish Brigade along a bullet-swept
path from Platelayers' House at Onderbrook Spruit, and
the charge of the Inniskillings, with their brothers in
arms, up Railway Hill, must rank as one of the finest
incidents in their history. Railway Hill rises from the
Tugela a mile from Platelayers' House. It is triangular
in shape, with one angle pointing towards the river. It
rises from the latter in a series of jagged, boulder-strewn
kopjes, until three hundred feet or so above the Tugela.
A kloof, through which the railway passes upwards on its
way to Pieter's Station, separates the last jagged ledge
from the hill proper. From the last kopje or ledge, and
immediately on the other side of the line, the main part
of the hill rises abruptly, almost precipitously, with a
sharp edge running back in a north-westerly direction for
several hundred yards. The base of this north-westerly
line of hill makes up a kloof thick with thorn trees, and
this kloof recedes round the left end of the hill to the

74 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

rear, where the enemy's force, under Commandant Dup«
reez, had its quarters, while a little further to the rear is
still another kloof, in which the enemy's Creusots were
mounted.

Along the beginning of the sharp edge referred to, a
long trench was cut, and right ahead, as the hill ran
still upwards on an incline for 300 yards or so, were
other trenches, until the hill terminated in a crest crowded
with commanding fortifications.

Such was the position the Inniskillings, with companies
of the Royal Dublins, Connaught Rangers, and Imperial
Light Infantry, were expected to storm against some of
the finest defensive marksmen in the world. Almost
the whole of the left face of Railway Hill, ascending
steeply from the kloof, rose clear from the river. Be-
tween the river and the kloof there is a wide open space,
sufficient to manoeuvre a Brigade.

The Boers on Railway Hill, as well as those on the
kopjes on our left, were able to keep their comrades in
full view, and every man of the Irish Brigade, who
crossed the open space west of Platelayers' House to
join the rendezvous under the first jagged kopje or ledge
constituting the commencement of Railway Hill, carried
his life in his hands. Yet each of them, with rifle at
the trail, passed out from Platelayers* House to run the
gauntlet of death without being able to fire a shot in*
return. He had at least half a mile to go before he
reached the rendezvous, and bullets sought him at every
step.

The conduct of the Colonial troops was the theme of
general admiration. Once again they have proved them-
selves the finest Infantry in the world. They drove the
enemy in front of them for nearly three miles, clearing
them out of a succession of trenches, ridges, and kopjes
fortified with schanzes.

In one trench, which had been dug across the road
at Pieter's, fourteen men were shot, and among the dead
were found a girl of eighteen and a woman of seventy.
A boy of eleven, with a bandolier slung over his shoulder,
was wounded in the arm and taken charge of by our
ambulance men.

Over fifty wounded Boers were removed to the field
hospital, and their dead were lying everywhere. The

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 7$

bombardment to which they had been exposed was ter-
rific in its intensity. Thirty-six of our shells had fallen
within a radius of one hundred yards.

The big Naval guns opened fire at 2,300 yards — a
range at which there is practically no trajectory — and
their projectiles literally ripped the Boer defences to
pieces. The enemy, as they retreated, were seen to be
carrying with them numbers of their wounded

Their camps were full of provisions, and littered with
saddles, stores, and immense quantities of ammunition.
Amongst the personal effects left behind were numbers of
watches.

A visitor to the trenches at Colenso after the conquest
says, they were in places full of dead horses and mules,
and hundreds of vultures feeding on them. The sides
of the hills were torn up by the shells.

When some of the Colonials gained an eminence that
commanded a view of Ladysmith, they were naturally
excited. As it was now sundown (when there is no twi-
light) there was a brief debate among the officers whe-
ther to advance further that night, and when the order
was given to go ahead, the men went ahead like mad,
going down the hill helter-skelter, and as one writer
said, it required some vigorous " swearing" from those
privileged ir this particular to get the men into decent
order in the plain.

The Triumphant Entry.

The reHef column had been in the " open " for 14
days, fighting day and night. They had slept often in
wet clothes on damp ground ; had not washed for weeks
and, according to orders, which applied generally to the
campaign, had not shaved since entering the field. Their
appearance therefore was not exactly those of conquerors,
when they marched into Ladysmith. But the garrison
smartened up to receive them cheerily, with polished
gaiters, clean khaki, and spotless helmets. Still, what a
sorry spectacle they presented.

As a private wrote — " They looked starved, hunted,
almost worked to death ; their eyes sunk back in their
heads, cheeks hollow, and their necks all fallen away.
Men I knew in Aldershot six months ago, I could not

76 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

recognise.'* And no wonder. For sometime the garrison
had been on a quarter rations, a biscuit and a quarter,
3 oz. of mealie meal and poor horse flesh. When a
soldier was killed his kit was sold, a biscuit fetching
2S. 6d., a stick of tobacco from 5s. to £0..

The first sight of the British troops was gained when it
was nearly dark, but the people thronged about the drift
where the coming column has to cross the river. Lord
Dundonald, who was at their head, was welcomed by
General Brocklehurst. When his name was heard the
cheering was louder than ever, for he was well known in
connection with his daring leadership of the Irregular
Horse. The troops with him were composed of the
Imperial Light Horse, the Natal Carbineers, the Natal
Mounted Rifles, and PoHce, a hundred and seventy all
told.

Sir George White, on his way to meet the troops, was
hemmed in by a cheering crowd of soldiers and civilians,
to whom he spoke as follows : — " Men, I thank you from
the bottom of my heart for your support and help, which
I shall acknowledge to the end of my life. It hurt me to
cut down your rations, but I promise I will not do so
again. Thank God we have kept the flag flying."

Louder cheers than ever were followed by the singing
of " God Save the Queen."

General BuUer made his "public entry" into the
town quite unexpectedly an hour before noon on March
2nd. Sir George White rode out to receive him on the
Helpmakaar road. The two Generals were cheered as
they rode through the main street into the town, but there
was no crowd to make a great demonstration.

Addresses were, however, presented by the Mayor both
to General Buller and General White at the Convent,
where Sir Redvers established his headquarters.

Large convoys of supplies were sent forward promptly,
with medical comforts, and Ladysmith's sorest needs
were thereby speedily relieved.

Some of the shops were found shut up, and others
stockless. Wreckage was on every hand, and the
pinched faces of many in the crowd told of semi-star-
vation. When relieved the food stores had only four
days* rations left.

As soon as he could get away, Sir Geo. White pro-

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. JJ

ceeded to Durban, en route for London, suffering from
fever ; and when he reached England he had a triumphal
entry wherever he went.

Losses of the Garrison.

The garrison, which had for four months defended
Ladysmith with such staunchness and devotion, had
become only the shadow of the force that was compelled
to retire before the Boers after the battle of Lombard's
Kop, on October 30th.

On " Mournful Monday " Sir George White com-
manded 558 officers and 13,760 men. Ten days later,
his force had shrunk to 498 officers and 12,556 men — the
rest were either killed or missing.

Since the investment we lost, in action, 16 officers and
162 men ; the casual bombardment killed 35 officers and
men, and wounded 20 officers and 168 men; 47 officers
and 360 men — of whom 94 have since died — were
wounded in action ; and disease accounted for 476
more — a figure that implies a greater loss of life, and per-
manent injury to health, than in all the battles, assaults,
and sorties from Talana Hill down to the date of relief.
Enteric fever, low fever, and dysentery had been ram-
pant ; the direct outcome of bad water, privation, and
the fetid dust arising from a town crowded with 21,000
half-starved inhabitants.

Although the actual mortality remained low until the
middle of January, and disease was not really virulent,
the general health of the troops suffered severely from
the want of good nourishing food and of essential com-
forts. As many as 8,424 passed through the hospitals,
and the daily average under treatment ranged from 1,500
to 2,000. There were 1,710 cases of enteric fever alone.

In February, the Army Medical Corps buried 500 men
in a patch of ground near the camp.

Until the middle of December, food was fairly plentiful.
The rations consisted of one pound of beef, one pound of
bread, four ounces of mealies, four ounces of sugar, and
one-third of an ounce of tea. Beyond this, prices
were prohibitive, and luxuries only for the rich. Eggs
sold at thirty-six shillings a dozen, chickens at from
twenty to thirty shillings, and tobacco at two sovereigns

78 MISTORV OF THE BOER WAR.

the pound. The repulse at Colenso was followed by a
reduction of rations, and when the Relief Column
recrossed the Tugela after the battle of Spion Kop,
there were shorter commons yet. The three-quarters of
a pound of trek ox was converted into half a pound of
horse-flesh, and the three-quarters of a pound of bread to
half a pound of biscuit, supplemented by only one ounce
of sugar and a third of an ounce of tea.

The once dashing Cavalry Brigade had practically
ceased to exist. At the beginning of the year it had
5,500 horses and 4,500 mules. Before the end of January
it could feed only 1,100 horses. The remainder had
either been converted into joints, soups, or sausages, or
been left to forage for themselves. The poor emaciated
animals, mere phantoms of horses, were among the most
painful sights of the whole siege.

A list of 1,109 casualties — 129 killed, 939 wounded, and
41 missing — the losses sustained by Sir Redvers BuUer in
the engagements between the i6th and 27th February, on
the march from Colenso to Ladysmith, was the principal
item of war news a day or so after.

A summary of the losses in General BuUer's leading
battles was as follows : —

Killed.

Wounded.

Missing.

Colenso

... 162 .

739 ..

. 222

Potgieter's Drift

... 29 .

.. 338 ..

5

Spion Kop

... 30s .

.. 1,077 ..

• 347

Hlangwane, Platers, &c.

... 160 .

.. 1,222 ..

. 48

657 ... 3.376 ... 622

Total 4,655

General Buller remained in command of the garrison,
and the dispersion of the enemy gave him leisure to
recruit his forces and rehabitate them, as well as for the
town to be repaired. But by the* beginning of April the
Boers returned to the Biggarsberg, about 40 miles away,
and began shelling Sunday's River camp, and there were
Boers again on the right of Mattawana. All around
Elandslaagte the trenches were occupied by our infantry
ready for an advance, and our guns commanded all
approaches. The strongest Boer force was for a time

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. ^9

towards Glencoe Pass and the Newcastle Road. The
divisions attacked were, Clery's, Warren's, and Dun-
donald's, whose line extended for five miles towards
Job's Kop.

The enemy opened fire at 8 a.m., one day with a loo-
pounder, 15-pounders, and a "pom-pom." One of the
men of the East Surreys was killed and another wounded.
Then, when the 4-7 gun from H. M. S. Philomel replied,
the Boers turned their attention to the bluejackets, two
of whom were killed and another wounded. The naval
guns frustrated a daring attempt to get between the
British troops and their base at Ladysmith. Com-
mander Botha on the Biggarsberg heights, some 3,000
or 4,000 ft. above sea level, had at one time a force
extending for fifteen miles — from Jonono's Kop to a
copje commanding Sunday's river bridge and our right.
For a month the Boers were raiding and looting, occa-
sionally exchanging shots with our outposts, and spying
for information ; yet their movements appeared simply to
be for the purpose of checking an advance upon Pretoria.

Regarding this spying business, upon which the Intel-
ligence Department depends for information as to the
enemy's tactics, some experts have asserted that there
has been more failure on our part in this respect than in
any other.

As the winter approached the Boers found the hills
too cold and sought the friendship of Kaffirs in the
plain, demanding both fodder and the hut tax, though in
Natal. If the blacks were not content, they had the
option of moving beyond Sunday's river. A special war
tax was demanded on all property in the Transvaal, to be
paid in three months.

So HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XIII.

THE ADVANCE THROUGH CAPE COLONY.

LORD ROBERTS' advance movements were charac-
terised with much celerity, and many surprises for
the enemy. He had the assistance of Generals French,
Methuen, Gatacre, and Clements, scouring different dis-
tricts, on the east, west, and south borders ; while Lord
Kitchener of Khartoum looked after rebel subjects.

De Aar, a jun(5lion on the line between Capetown and
Fauresmith on the Orange Free State border, and distant
from the border 55 miles, became an important depot in
October, under Major Haking and Colonel Barter after-
wards. Then came General Wood, who prepared defen-
-ces. The district was, of course, under martial law, and
curfew sounded at 6 p.m.

From Estcourt and the Mooi River to Frere ; from
Colesberg to Naauwport, and then on to Arundel, we
moved. The Orange Free Staters commenced their
invasion on the ist of November, chosing as the scene of
operations the Colesberg district, the centre of Afrikander
disaffecSlion, after concentrating at Bethulie and Spring-
fontein, and crossing the frontier at Norvals Pont. A
small squad of police in charge at once surrendered.

A short delay in Gatacre's and French's movements
was caused by the rising of Dutch farmers at the end of
November, which led to some skirmishes with them.
Many of the traitors joined the invaders ; and Sir Alfred
Milner, as High Commissioner, issued a proclamation to
remove false impressions as to the intentions of the
British Government, and to warn the disloyal of the con-
sequences of rebellion. The rebels, it was reckoned,
numbered two thousand, who seemed full of religious
enthusiasm, declaring God was their guide.

The official details of the defence of Kuruman, show
that the mission station, which was formerly the centre of
Dr. Moffat's long work among the natives of that part of
Africa, was a point of resistance to the Boer attack.
When the Boer commandant notified the magistrate of
his intention to occupy the place, the latter replied that
he had orders to defend it, and forthwith coUecfled twenty

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 81

natives and thirty half-castes, with whose aid he barri-
caded the mission chapel, and they resisted the attack of
500 Boers for six days and nights. The Boers then
abandoned the attack, having lost thirty killed and
wounded.

The burghers appeared on the hills at Arundel about
2000 strong, and a patrol of Carabiniers at night drew
their fire at a farmhouse. We shelled the ridges next
day.

Gatacre reached Molteno on Dec. 10, with 2,500 men,
by train, and after a tramp of 16 miles during the night
reached the Boer position at Stormberg at 4 a.m., falling
back to Bushman's Hoek after a skirmish, having lost
23 killed and 62 wounded — an unfortunate affair. A party
with a Geneva Red Cross flag was allowed next day to
bury the dead, and tend some wounded then found on the
battlefield. What a night of pain and anxiety they must
have had.

Slow progress was now made owing to lack of reinforce-
ments, till Colonels Pilcher and Page Henderson rendered
assistance ; meanwhile Lord Methuen's column reached
the vicinity of the Modder river, and found the enemy
strongly entrenched on hills which were like a veritable
Gibraltar.

The defeat of Cronje was not efifecfled till many of the
fighters on both sides were laid low. At the end of the
year and at the beginning of 1900 General French was
still struggling with the Boers at Colesberg, assisted by
Col. Watson.

Before the famous encounter at Modder, came the battle
of Kaffir's Kop, ten miles east of Belmont, on Nov. 23,
when the Grenadiers, supported by the Northumberland
Fusiliers, took a kopje in a storm of shot and shell.
Three of our officers and 50 men were killed, and 25 com-
missioned officers were wounded and 220 men. We
captured 50 prisoners, including a German commandant
and six field cornets. A hundred horses, large numbers
of cattle, and ammunition fell into our hands.

The first effec5live blow consequent upon the forward
movement upon the western frontier was delivered on
Nov. 23, at Graspan, six miles from Belmont.

Lord Methuen gave orders for a night march, and
before dawn our forces were close uoon the enemy. The

82 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

main attack was delivered by the Guards' brigade, the
Northamptons being in support, and the and Yorkshire
and the ist Northumberlands on the flank.

The Boer position was a formidable one on a series of
hills, each hill being entrenched, besides offering splendid
natural cover for the enemy.

It was not yet light when the order to advance was
given. There was no preliminary shelling, nor did the
infantry open fire until the enemy poured out a deadly fire
at short range. Then with a burst of cheering the Guards
bounded up the steep hill from cover to cover, until they
were right into the Boer lines. The enemy did not relish
the bayonet, and fell back upon his second line.

The Boers now were fully alive, the men in the rear
had hurried to the front, and the hill became a line of fire.
The Northumberlands on the right suffered severely.
The Guards again pressed forward in face of the terrible
fire.

It was almost like climbing a precipice, but, resistless,
they swept on, and so the Boers who had not sought
safety in flight had to face the British bayonets. Then
the field guns spoke and made good practice. The back
of the Boer resistance was broken, but the enemy still
lined the third ridge and maintained a hot fire. A brief
breathing spell, and once more, with a wild cheer, the
Guards started to storm the heights, and with the same
magnificent result as before.

Then it was seen that the Boers were in full retreat.
Their camp was well filled with stores, much of which
was abandoned. The mounted infantry and cavalry were
unsuccessful in their attempt to cut off the retreating
Boers, and it was not deemed wise for such a small force
to pursue them far.

The behaviour of the British troops was magnificent.
That any soldiers in the world could charge such almost
inaccessible positions, defended by proved sharpshooters
armed with magazine rifles, and clear them out at the
point of the bayonet, is almost incredible.

After the last charge Major Dashwood, of the Fusiliers,
who advanced upon seeing the Boers hoist a white flag,
was treacherously shot down.

On the 25th November the Kimberley Relief Column
advanced to Enslin, five miles to the north, where the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. S$

Naval brigade and the Yorkshire Light Infantry dis-
tinguished themselves at a row of five kopjes connected by
neks. We won the day, but many a boulder was dashed
with gore, and we lost four officers and i6 men killed, and
five officers and i6o men wounded.

Thence to Klopfontein for a halt, and then six miles to
Modder river on Nov. 28, when, after two hours' fighting,
Gen. Pole-Carew got a small party across the river, after
which the Royal Engineers threw over the water a
temporary bridge.

The enemy was now in great strength at Magersfontein,
to the north-east, with trenches planned by a German
expert, Albrecht.

Lord Methuen's column, both at Belmont and Enslin,
had a sharp encounter with the foe on Saturday, Nov.
25th.

Most of the kopjes were over 200ft. in height. They
were furrowed with trenches, and the ground had been
carefully measured to find the ranges.

At Enslin the armoured train advanced slowly in front
of the column and was already in action when the troops
reached the battlefield.

Lord Methuen deployed the cavalry on the flanks, while
the artillery took up positions to shell tlie Boer trenches.
At the same time the Ninth brigade was sent forward in
skirmishing order.

At six o'clock in the morning an artillery duel began.
The enemy's guns were splendidly posted, and they had
the range to a nicety. Shell after shell burst right over
our batteries, but our men stuck to their guns. One shell
struck the armoured train.

Subsequently our guns withdrew a distance of one
thousand yards. This affecfled the enemy's marksman-
ship, but our artillery continued to make splendid practice,
the Boers only replying at intervals.

Meanwhile the infantry were moving forward in prepar-
ation for the attack. The Northamptons worked from the
left to the right, where they were joined by the Yorkshires
and the Northumberlands.

After three hours of the artillery duel Lord Methuen
ordered the general advance, and our infantry swarmed
forward in magnificent style in face of a scathing fire. As
they advanced the troops, taking cover, returned the Boej:

84 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

fire, and, forging steadily ahead, compelled the enemy to
abandon their first position. Our cavalry charged two
hundred Boers who were retreating across the plain, and
succeeded in catching up the enemy's rear close to a kopje
where they were sheltering.

The Lancers found the kopje alive with Boers, and were
consequently forced to retire. .The capture of the second
line of kopjes — everyone of them — was only accomplished
after very severe fighting, but nothing could resist the
impetuous advance of the British infantry, who continued
steadily onward to the last of the enemy's positions.

Here the fighting was fearful, and the brunt of it was
borne by the Marines. Though their officers were falling
on all sides, the men clambered undauntedly up and over
the boulders. Nothing could stop their rush.

The remnant of Boers fled to the plain, where the gth
Lancers were unable to follow them, their horses being
exhausted.

The detachment of New South Wales Lancers, how-
ever, intercepted one party of the enemy attempting to
retreat, and charging, forced them back to their former
position.

Lord Methuen left Enslin with the knowledge that
another and much more severe battle would have to be
fought at Modder River as the Boers were in strong
force on both sides of the river, and would dispute our
passage to the last extremity.

His forces rested on Monday night the 27th of Nov.
at Wilte Kops ; a few miles from the river, but were on
the march again before dawn, one brigade far on the
right and another well on the left.

Soon after five o'clock we came into touch with the
enemy 25 miles from Kimberley, and our artillery opened
fire upon them at long range, while the naval contingent
came into action with their guns from the armoured train,
which accompanied the advance.

After an hour and a-halfs shelling, the gth Lancers
and the Mounted Infantry were sent forward to recon-
noitre the enemy's positions on the river bank. They
found the Boers at a farm and in some hotel grounds and
pleasure grounds, but apparently not in force.

General Pole-Carew's brigade on the left were sent
forward to make a feint attack, in the hope that they

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 8$

would draw the enemy away, while the Guards brigade
forced the passage of the river.

All this time a terrific artillery and rifle fire was in
progress. It was like the thunder of a mine explosion
mingled with the whiz of countless rockets and the jab-
jab of the Maxims.

About nine o'clock the Lancers became engaged with
the enemy, and as they retired, the Guards brigade were
pushed forward to the buildings mentioned.

Little signs of life could be seen until the Guards had
got within 150yds. of the low walls. Then a murderous
and appalling fire was opened upon our men. The walls
of the farmhouse and its outbuildings vomited continu-
ous torrents of lead. It was pradlically an ambush.

The Grenadiers, the leading regiment, appeared almost
to be cleared off the ground by the storm of bullets.

The Guards fell back, and took what cover they could,
and all the time the Boers played upon them with several
Hotchkiss guns, which, however, were, fortunately, fired
too high to do much execution.

Our artillery played upon the hotel and farm buildings
which were held by the Boers. Scores of shell went
right through the buildings and the walls were soon
riddled. At one time the farmhouse was on fire, but
through it all the Boers held to their positions with grim
tenacity.

Several attempts had already been made to get across
the river, but it was not until late in the afternoon that
part of Pole-Carew's brigade managed to cross far down
on the left. At sunset the enemy retired upon their en-
trenchments to the north, and the battle was won.

Our losses were heavy, including Colonel Northcott,
who was killed. Methuen had a " graze."

It was a desperate battle and lasted twelve hours.
The ambulance waggons were several times driven back
by the bullets, which were dum-dums.

The enemy occupied a very strong position extending
five miles. Their trenches were built in front of trees.
They lost heavily. Their strength was estimated at
11,000.

During the night the enemy evacuated and left us in
possession of the Modder River.

The plain was strewn with dead horses (prey of the

86 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

vultures) and with bullets. This was the first occasion
on which the Boers had ventured to defend an open
position. In the afternoon, the 62nd battery arrived,
having done the journey from Orange River in 24 hours,
and then went straight into the fray.

The scene on the Boer side of the river was fearful.
In a few houses dead Boers were found, and some other
buildings were filled with wounded. No effort had been
made to dress their wounds.

In their haste to flee from such castigators the Boers
left their ambulance behind in care of some doctors. They
had been led by General Cronje and by Commandant
Delarey, whose eldest son was killed.

The Boers retreated in the Jacobsdal direction, while
some went towards the Langeberg. They buried a
lot of dead where they fell.

Our casualties included eighteen officers. Among our
50 dead was Colonel Stopford, of the 2nd Coldstreams.

CHAPTER XIV.

METHUEN AT MAGERSFONTEIN.

GENERAL Methuen still pressing forward, fought a
pitched battle on Tuesday, Nov. 28, which he offi-
cially describes as "one of the hardest and most trying
fights in the annals of the British army." The Boers had
entrenched themselves to dispute the passage of the Mod-
der River, which, being in flood, made it impossible for
our troops to outflank them. A direct attack was there-
fore made at dawn in a widely extended formation, the
cavalry and infantry being supported by artillery fire,
while the Naval brigade rendered great assistance from
the railway.

The enemy, 8,000 strong, had two large guns, four
Krupp guns, &c. A desperate engagement ensued, last-
ing for ten hours, before the Boers were driven from their
positions. Ultimately a small party of British troops

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 87

succeeded in crossing the river, at a point about twenty-
five miles south of Kimberley.

Then there came a week's rest for the column.

On Saturday night, Dec. gth, Lord Methuen ordered
the artillery to move out towards the Boer position to
the north-east on the Magersfontein hills, which had been
strongly entrenched by 12,000 Boers. The shelling of the
position commenced on Sunday morning, and a heavy
fire was kept up all day.

The shell fire was resumed on Monday morning, and
at the same time our force left the camp. The artillery
kept up a terrific fire upon the Boer entrenchments,
while the infantry advanced to carry the position.

The enemy, however, notwithstanding the heavy fire
from our guns, kept their trenches, and the infantry,
advancing to close quarters, were met with a deadly
rifle fire.

Our losses were very heavy, the Highland brigade being
the chief sufferers. It was a massacre. The objective of
the Highland brigade was the eastern spur of the Boer
position.

The Guards followed the bank of the river, while the
Yorkshire Light Infantry moved along the river-side.

Just before daybreak the Highland brigade arrived
within 200yds. of a Boer entrenchment at the foot of the
hill. As they had no suspicion that the enemy was in
such close proximity, they were still marching in quarter
column and in close order.

They were met with a terrible fire on their flanks, and
were forced to retire, with heavy loss. Re-forming under
the shelter of a fold in the ground, the Highlanders
held their ground with the utmost gallantry.

They were joined later on by the Gordons, and the
brigade then fought its way to within 300yds. of the
enemy, displaying the most desperate valour and dash.

Meanwhile, the naval gun at Modder river, a Howitzer,
and the 75th, 62nd, and i8th Field Batteries, and G Bat-
tery of the Horse Artillery opened a terrific fire with
lyddite on the Boer position, enfilading their trenches
and searching every portion of the ground.

The Boers came into open ground in our direct front
for the purpose of making a flank attack on the British
force, but they were arrested by the Guards and artillery.

88 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

In the evening the Boers opened on us with shell fire,
but did no further damage. Their force included 4,000
from Mafeking.

Next morning our whole force returned to a safe
retreat. Once more, it is said, some one had blundered.

The Highlanders were badly guided into point blank
range of the extreme Boer trenches, and before they
could be extricated they had lost something like 15 per
cent, of their number in killed and wounded.

The kopjes on which we were advancing are low and
rambling, affording, to be sure, good cover for the Boers,
but our long-range guns had been able to rake them
thoroughly, and this superior range of artillery was
expected to stand us in splendid stead when the time
came for the grand assault.

Commandant Cronje had received heavy siege artillery
from Pretoria, at his urgent request, as an offset to our
heavier metal, which had bothered him a good deal at
Modder, but since the naval guns and Howitzer battery
arrived they had been supreme.

"Joe Chamberlain," our equivalent to the Boer " Long
Tom," proved a veritable triumph in its penetrating and
destructive power. "Joe " spits out with equal ease and
effect solid shot, shrapnel, and lyddite.

The naval contingent went into the fight as he always
does, cheering and laughing. There was a boisterous,
cheerful, dancing crowd of bluejackets about each gun.
We were now in daily communication by the flash light
and the Morse code with Kimberley.

Our losses in killed and wounded exceeded 700.
Among the officers killed were General Wauchope,
Colonel Goff, Major the Marquis of Winchester, Major
Milton and Major Ray.

Among the incidents was that of one officer of the
Army Medical Corps who attended the sick in the firing
line until killed.

A Seaforth Highlander while he was lying wounded
saw a Boer, a typical German in appearance, faultlessly
dressed, with polished top boots and shirt with silk
ruffles, walking about among the ant hills with a cigar in
his mouth, picking off our troops. He was quite alone,
and it was very apparent from his frequent use of field

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 89

glasses that he was doing his best to single out the
oflScers.

A wounded Boer prisoner, who was brought in with
the wounded Highlanders, stated that one lyddite shell,
which was fired on Sunday, fell plump in the middle of a
large open-air prayer meeting, which was being held to
offer up supplications for the success of the Boer arms.

The Highlanders actually crossed the river upon two
occasions exposed to a heavy cross fire. They scrupul-
ously respected the white flag hoisted over a large house
which they had to pass to get to the river. The first
section of the two into which the regiment was divided
had, it seems, got across the river, and the treacherous
Boers were under the delusion that there were no more
to follow, and thereupon they opened fire upon the
Highlanders' rear from the loop-holed house. The
treachery was thus witnessed by the second section, and
the men were so enraged that they stormed the house and
bayonetted every Boer within its walls.

A week after the battle dead Boers continued to be
found on and near the field of operations, as well as in
the river. Over a hundred bodies had now been found
and buried, and the Boers carried off at least as many, as
well as a large number of their wounded.

A day or two after the battle our mounted troops
brought into camp a thousand head of cattle intended for
the Boer commissariat.

On Tuesday night, Dec. 26th, the Boers thought they
saw in the darkness the whole British army advancing,
and they blazed away at the phantom for dear life. The
Boer fusillade formed a most brilliant spectacle, which
the amused and wondering camp enjoyed immensely,
despite the annoyance of having to stand to arms while
it lasted. The Magersfontein and other kopjes were
superbly illuminated by the Boer rifle and gun fire. The
enemy wasted not fewer than 20,000 rounds during the
night.

With the powerful telescope now used by the staff" the
positions of the Boer trenches and rifle pits could be dis-
tinctly seen, but their big guns were masked.

New Year's Day was celebrated in Camp by a long-
looked-for gymkhana, and the whole army enjoyed the
sports. There were nearly 140 entries for races, which

90 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

were of half a dozen different kinds, and dancing and
piping contests, and tent-pegging and other competitions
were also included among the events.

Modder River village, where our camp rested, is a
watering resort, situated on the northern side of the
river. Along this bank there is a continuous fringe of
trees and thick bush extending for miles. The crest of
the hill before the fall of the river commands a plain on
the other side for a great distance.

The enemy, in addition to the natural strength of their
position, had constructed sandbag trenches and all kinds
of breastworks; they had occupied the houses, and
posted guns at every point of vantage.

In the night time Commandant Cronje's burghers
looted the Modder Hotel, which is Kimberley's Rosher-
ville. Beautiful roses were growing in the garden. The
spoils included a peacock, which they docked of its gor-
geous tail feathers in order that the bird might be easier
carried, a hen which they lifted from its nest, and the
thirteen eggs upon which it had been long and patiently
sitting with the ambition of motherhood. The strong-
stomached Boers sucked the addled eggs as they lay in
their entrenchments. What poultry was left fell to
Tommy Atkins.

Cavalry reconnaissances the first week in January
enabled Lord Methuen to gain an excellent idea of the
Boer positions on the West. The Boer front extended
virtually from Koodoosberg, situated a mile north of the
Reit River, by way of Kamiel Hock, or Kopjes Dam,
Langeberg, to Magersfontein. Their centre position
comprised the ridges to the Modder River at Brownsdrift,
and crossing the river reached Rotfontein and Klipfon-
tein, and thence to Jacobsdal.

It was seen that an attack upon this front of forty or
fifty miles would meet with serious opposition.

Altogether, what with the numerous natural obstacles,
the sloping ground, and the Riet River, the Boer position
was a peculiarly strong one.

The district south of the Riet River and west of the
railway is pastoral. The owners, with a few notable
exceptions, were residing on their farms and homesteads.
To all appearances they were not disloyal, but simply
obeying the advice given to them by the Prime Minister,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. Ql

Mr. Schreiner, in his proclamation, setting forth the
virtue of strict neutrality. These people in times of
peace supply Kimberley daily with farm produce, and
the farmers seemed anxious to have the nearest and
most profitable market reopened, and to buy and sell in
peace.

CHAPTER XV.

THE SIEGE OF KIMBERLEV.

KIMBERLEY is the centre of the mining district in
Cape Colony, on the border of the Orange Free
State, 650 miles from Cape Town, 230 miles from Mafe-
king, and about 80 miles from Bloemfontein. It is a town
of some importance, with 45,000 inhabitants, public insti-
tutions, and places of worship. There is a suburb —
Beaconsfield — with 10,000 inhabitants. In both places
about half the inhabitants are coloured.

In the last week in October Kimberley was invested,
and the inhabitants bravely set themselves to defend it.
Its normal garrison grew from 600 to 4,196, with 197
officers, and 26 guns. After 10,000 natives had been sent
•* home," there remained a considerable community to feed
for four months without fresh supplies. The huge grey
mine heaps were converted into fortresses, miles of barbed
wire surrounded the town ; and there was patrolling by
armoured train and mounted infantry. Colonel Kekewich
was in command.

The enemy appeared on Oct. 15, cutting the telegraph
wire, and then an encounter with the armoured train led
to a " brush " at Spyfontein. By the igth, the railway
bridges at Fourteen Streams and Modder River were
destroyed.

Mr. Cecil Rhodes, having a large interest in the De
Beers Mines, arrived on Oct. 12, and played a conspicuous
and generous part in the succour of the imprisoned deni-
zens. He and his company are credited with subscribing
thousands of pounds to the relief fund, for when provisions
became short soup kitchens came into vogue, and pint

92 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

rations were served out to 16,000 poor persons in a day.
Among the relief works was an avenue a mile long at
Kenilworth, made under Mr. Rhodes' supervision, to be
planted with orange trees, with espaliers for vines and
also pepper trees. The company, too, found ^2000 for
wages for road-making. Entertainments of various kinds
helped to cheer the people. The relief fund amounted to
;^26,ooo, of which ;^i 7,000 was given by Mr. Rhodes and
his company.

The bombardment varied much, sometimes 400 shells
falling into the town in one day, and at other times the
performance was ludicrous. The besiegers blew up the
De Beers dynamite stores, seven miles from the town,
when 1400 cases of 35 tons, worth ;^3,5oo, were destroyed.
Buildings outside the town were burnt and pillaged.

Our military operations consisted of sorties and shelling
chiefly. No place above ground seemed to be safe from
the missiles of the enemy. Civilians were killed and much
property destroyed. In a sortie on Nov. 28, Col. Scott
Turner and 24 men were killed in capturing four redoubts
and some food stuffs. The De Beers Company made a
gun and also shells.

At Christmas Mr. Rhodes provided 42 plum puddings
for the camps. Typhoid fever and scurvy were now on
the increase.

The following extracts from the diary kept by Renter's
Correspondent at Kimberley during the last weeks of the
siege will give some idea of the daily danger and sufferings
of the citizens : —

Jan. II. — Scurvy has attacked the natives with alarm-
ing virulence, and they are dying fast. The supply of
lime juice and other anti-scorbutics is exhausted, and vine
cuttings have been tried in lieu of green food.

Jan. 12. — The principal medical officer states that the
food difficulty is responsible for the unusual mortality, the
death-rate being three times as high as in December.
Typhoid is very prevalent. Neglect to boil water before
drinking it is probably the cause. Fresh and condensed
milk is only distributed by those holding medical permits.

Jan.. 13. — There are fifty cases of typhoid now in the
hospital. Small quantities of eggs are being sold at 15
shillings a dozen, fowls fetch 12s. 6d, each, and potatoes
three shillings a pound.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. . 93

Jan. 15. — A supply of soup has been started, and is
being distributed at less than cost price.

Jan. 16. — The soup is acknowledged to be a success.
Two hundred gallons were distributed to-day. The
military have taken over all foodstuffs and other stores.

Jan. 17. — Leave has been granted to the inhabitants of
Beaconsfield to shoot small birds for food. Some mules
have been slaughtered, and are pronounced superior to
horseflesh.

Jan. 18. — Horse rations were to-day reduced to six
pounds of mealies and four pounds of chaff daily.

Jan. 21. — The Dutch living outside the barriers, and
holding passes for entry into the town for food, are able
to keep the enemy informed of our contemplated move-
ments, while we have to rely for information concerning
the enemy on natives, who are seldom trustworthy.

Jan. 23. — To-day 5,250 pints of soup were distributed.

Jan. 24. — Five hundred shells were poured into the
town to-day in a reckless way, the hospital, the scurvy
compound, and private houses all receiving attention.
This bombardment was probably due to the earthworks
which the defenders are erecting.

Jan. 25. — In nearly every garden small family shell-
proof holes have been dug. The shelling is increasing.
Mr. White, Manager of the Standard Bank, was so
unnerved that he decided to spend the day in the strong
room of the bank.

Jan. 26. — Four hundred shells were fired by the enemy
to-day. The scurvy compound, which is flying a Red
Cross flag, has been made a special target by their
gunners.

Jan. 28. — To-day 7,500 pints of soup were distributed.
Messrs. Wernher, Beit, and Co. gave 500 free tickets for
the necessitous poor.

Feb. 7. — Six shells, weighing loolb. each, have seriously
damaged a number of buildings in the town. A little girl
was severely bruised. The enemy's newspapers report
the capture of Mr. Jordaan, Mr. Rhodes's secretary, who,
nevertheless, is still here.

Feb. 8.— The Kimberley Club was damaged by a frag-
ment from a bursting shell. A store caught fire and was
extinguished with difficulty.

Feb. II. — The day was spent in making bomb-proof

94 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

shelters. Two thousand five hundred women and children
were lowered into the mines throughout the night, while
the men sought a place of safety which has been hollowed
out in the debris heaps.

Feb. 12. — Four houses are burning furiously at Kenil-
worth. They were ignited by loo-pounder shells, which
have been falling every three minutes.

Feb. 15. — All the morning a heavy cross fire was
directed against the garrison occupying Alexandersfontein.
Hundred-pound shells and shrapnel were bursting in
Kimberley, and every one was lying low. All shops and
banks had been closed.

A wonderful change, however, presently came over the
scene. At two o'clock heliograph signals were observed
announcing the approach of General French. Clouds of
dust, raised by the rapid advance of the cavalry, were
soon afterwards noticeable, and the enemy could be seen
limbering up their guns and fleeing in an easterly
direcftion.

The glad tidings spread rapidly everywhere. Mounted
and unmounted men hastened out to welcome the relief
column, while those at home hoisted flags.

Our deliverers were welcomed with a universal feehng of
joy and thankfulness. One hour we were enduring an
overwhelming bombardment, the next we were free and
could say, " Never again !"

CHAPTER XVI.

RELIEF OF KIMBERLEY.

IT was on Sunday, Feb. nth, that General French's
force rendezvoused at Ramdam. The Cavalry
and Mounted Infantry numbered eight thousand, while
General Kelly-Kenny's, General Tucker's, and General
Chermside's Infantry amounted to twenty thousand
men with 72 guns, and the other columns in the district
made up the force to 50,000.

Colonel Hannay's brigade was delayed by the fighting
at Rooidem, ia which he lost sixty men, and did not join

HIStORY OF THE BOER WAR. 9^

the other forces till Tuesday morning. At dawn on
Monday, the i2th, the Cavalry and guns advanced to
seize the Riet drifts. The Boers opened fire from
Pamberg, shelling the officers of the general staflF, who
had a wonderful escape. Colonel Broadwood held the
enemy at Waterval Drift, while the advance was pushed
at Dekiel Drift, with much smartness. Hunter and
Weston, who pushed skirmishers across, anticipated the
Boers occupying a commanding kopje. The passage
was forced with the loss of only two men.

On Tuesday the advance was continued by the cavalry
and guns across twenty-three miles of waterless desert
with a front of three miles in breadth. When the Mod-
der was sighted at four o'clock in the afternoon Colonel
Broadwood pushed on very rapidly, and occupied a house
and watermill. Then the 12th Lancers dashed for the
drift, followed by the Mounted Infantry. The Boer
garrison decamped, leaving their laager, ammunition,
horses, waggons, stores, and bread hot from the ovens
in our hands. The 12th Lancers galloped in pursuit of
the enemy, and captured a convoy of thirteen waggons
with food. The occupation of the river was invaluable
considering the urgent need of water by our troops.

On Wednesday the Boers brought a long-range gun
and shelled our camp till they were forced to retire by
Burton's battery, having lost their gunners. The enemy
drew off to the north-east to bar the road to Bloem-
fontein.

Our advance was already a brilliant success, the enemy
being puzzled as to our intentions, confused by the
rapidity of our movement, and greatly disconcerted.
Our progress was dependent on getting food for horse
and man ; and the arrival of a convoy column, piloted by
Rimington's Scouts, at dusk, afforded the greatest relief,
the horses getting the needed fodder.

Having rested, the advance was continued on Thurs-
day in a northerly direction, the infantry occupying the
positions vacated by the cavalry. At 10 o'clock heavy
firing opened direct in front from a strong kopje, and
the enemy fired with accuracy on our left front from a
detached ridge at right angles on the batteries, the latter
suffering loss, but steadily replying.

After half-an-hour's work, General French ordered a

$6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

charge across the nek between the positions. This was a
magnificent spectacle, four thousand men galloping
obliquely across the Boer front under a heavy fire. Our
loss was very slight considering the exposure, and the
charge was entirely successful. The Boers not only ran,
but offered no further resistance all day. Lieut. Hes-
keth, of the i6th Lancers, and three men were shot at a
few yards' range by the Boers holding Gun Hill, who
then hoisted the white flag. The squadron was so close,
however, that they charged all of them down.

Kimberley was sighted at about two o'clock. It was
still being shelled, but the firing ceased on our advance,
the Boers evacuating their positions. The first to enter
the town was Colonel Patterson, of Queensland, and his
regiment.

The mounted troops and horse artillery in four days
had covered a distance of ninety miles, fought two small
engagements, and finished by relieving Kimberley.

The whole movement which was conceived by Lord
Roberts was made up of different combinations, all of
which dovetailed exactly, in spite of several obstacles
which it was impossible to foresee. It began on Sunday
morning at three o'clock, and on Thursday afternoon
Kimberley was relieved. General French leading the way,
and the infantry making splendid marches in order to
hold the positions seized by him.

Early on the nth the concentration of French's divi-
sion began, and it was continued on the same day at
Ramdam. As the infantry appeared in sight early next
morning, General French moved forward and seized two
drifts on the Riet. General Tucker's division followed,
doing a splendid march, while close behind came Kelly-
Kenny's division. Both of these divisions arrived at the
Riet before General French left.

Here occurred a scene which will remain for ever
engraved on the memory of those who witnessed it. The
drift was almost impassable for the transport, which was
obliged to park on the south side of the river, but
indomitable energy and perseverance overcome all
obstacles.

It was found impossible for a t6am of mules to draw its
load up the steep north bank, and it therefore became
necessary to run relays of oxen, which were bitched on in

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 97

addition to the mules, and thus the loads were dragged
over all through the night in the midst of a terrible dust-
storm. Everybody worked splendidly. At four o'clock
next morning the back of the difficulty had been broken,
and most of the transport was on the north side of the
river.

Lord Kitchener accompanied General Tucker's Divi-
sion, 7th, which marched to within three miles of Jacobs-
dal, being obliged to keep to the river on account of the
water.

General French was awaiting the infantry there, and
left for Kimberley immediately on the arrival of the
Division, while Lord Methuen was opposite Magersfon-
tein, and General Tucker held Jacobsdal, with General
Colville's Division close at hand, ready to move where-
ever required, and General Kelly-Kenny's holding the
Klip and Rondaval Drifts on the Modder.

General Cronje had thus been completely out-flanked,
and the position of the Boer army became untenable.

On nearing the River Riet, at Waterfals Drift, French
found an unexpectedly small force of Boers in position to
dispute his passage. He quickly drove them off, and,
crossing the drift, marched on towards Jacobsdal, finally
bivouacking at one o'clock on Thursday morning, at
Wagdraas. During the brief rest General French sent
patrols on towards Jacobsdal, and ascertained that the
town was not held in force by the enemy, and that a
British Infantry Division was well on its way thither.

After a much needed rest for men and horses French
resumed his march, taking the Blauwbosch-road and
leaving Jacobsdal on his left.

The burning sun was succeeded by terrific tropical rain
accompanied by continuous and blinding lightning. The
road was soon like a morass, but French plodded dog-
gedly on, and reached the Modder River at Klip Drift
just before midnight. The Division had then covered
twenty-six miles in twenty-four hours.

Nearing the Modder River French's first care was to
take steps for covering the passage of the Division by
Klip Drift. To that end orders were given for a twelve-
pounder naval gun to be placed at the top of a kopje
dominating a ridge and commanding the river. The
bluejackets got cheerily to work, but before they had got

G

98 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

far with their big gun one of the wheels of the carriage
collapsed beyond possibility of quick mending. With
little delay the resourceful sailors, with the willing assist-
ance of stalwart troopers, lifted the twelve-pounder bodily
from the damaged carriage, and hauled and dragged and
carried it over broken and constantly rising ground a dis-
tance of two miles to the summit of the kopje. It was a
grand performance, and well deserved the warm eulogy
and thanks which Lord Kitchener has since conveyed to
all concerned in it.

No sooner had the big gun been got to the summit
of the kopje than the bluejackets set to work and im-
provised a platform for it so speedily and cleverly that
when the Division in the early morning commenced the
passage of the river, the twelve-pounder was able to take
effective part in the artillery fire with which the opera-
tion was covered. By Wednesday afternoon French
was in occupation of both sides of the river, and this
work was achieved at a trifling loss in wounded men.

Leaving troops and the naval and other guns to guard
the drift, French, with the bulk of the forces, including
the Royal Horse Artillery, moved steadily on towards
Beaconsfield and Kimberley. As he left the river he was
shelled by a Boer battery placed on a towering kopje,
but there were enough troops left at the drift to contain
the Boers in that vicinity, and French hurried on re-
gardless of the bombardment, which, in truth, did scarcely
any damage.

It was more of a rout than a retreat, for about a
thousand Boers bolted from their positions, which the
twelve-pounder had made too hot for them, and gallop-
ing madly across the plain, sought refuge in a distant
laager. Our guns rained shells upon them as they fled,
and they must have suffered very heavily.

The Cavalry Division heard the first welcoming cheer
some miles south of Kimberley. It came from British
troops ensconced in an out-lying Boer redoubt, which our
men had captured not long previously. The welcome
sound increased as French pushed on in the darkness,
relieved at intervals by the brightness of the big search-
light at De Beers.

At last the Division was in Kimberley with the delight-
ed townspeople and lately beleaguered and sore-pressed

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 99

soldiers crowding around and amongst the troopers, cheer-
ing and shouting and weeping for joy. The entire town
met French in the outskirts, and joined in the triumphal
procession through the roads and streets.

The artillery had been engaged between twelve and
thirteen hours, and the average number of rounds fired
by each battery was over one thousand. Here is a
magnificent example of the calm endurance which our
artillery displayed. An informal arrangement was made
between the enemy and our artillery front under a flag
of truce that firing should cease during the collection of
the wounded on both sides. A little later, however,
about three miles off, the enemy attempted to reach the
railway for the purpose of destroying it, but the naval
gun promptly shelled them and forced them to retire.
The Boers then opened fire from their eastern position.
Their range proved perfectly correct, and a heavy bom-
bardment directed at two guns of the 75th Battery Field
Artillery followed. They could have easily silenced the
Boer gun, but our artillery never moved man or horse,
remaining eloquently silent under a heavy and accurate
shell fire. This conduct so won the admiration of the
enemy that they suddenly ceased firing as a tribute of
respect and honour.

Lord Roberts, on reaching South Africa, had decided
that the relief of Kimberley should be his first object.
Rapid marches in fierce heat and sometimes blinding
dust storms, the defeat and rout of the enemy and
capture of laagers, ended at length in the joyful mes-
sage, sent by Lord Roberts from Jacobsdal at 2 a.m. on
Friday, the i6th of Feb., which was received in London
at 4-30 a.m. The siege had lasted 123 days.

Lord Roberts and General French on entering Kim-
berley, were enthusiastically received by the people and
the authorities, and there was a short public meeting
for a little congratulatory speechifying. Food supplies
were poured into the place, and at once industry and
good order were restored, while the authorities assisted
private enterprise in repairing the damaged buildings.

100 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XVII.

IN THE ORANGE FREE STATE AFTER CRONJE.

THE whole of the enemy's force, under the command
of Cronje, was now in flight. The suddenness of
our appearance seems to have astounded the enemy, and
thrown them into a state of panic. All their positions
were hurriedly evacuated, and the big gun at Magers-
fontein and Kimberley left.

Cronje moved his transport, consisting of several hun-
dred waggons, along the bank of the kopje north of the
Modder towards KofFyfontein.

Their transport got past our mounted infantry, but
owing to weariness had to stop. Our artillery immedi-
ately opened fire on it.

The main body of the Boer force kept up a running
fire the whole day, vainly trying to escape. Each time
their advance guard moved on our mounted infantry
galloped round and checked them. We never attempted
to storm their main position, contenting ourselves by
trying to check them.

Four of our divisions, with 15,000 mounted men and
seventy guns, made a long turning march of eighty miles,
all keeping in touch. An average rate of twelve miles a
day was maintained by the infantry, and twenty-three by
the cavalry, with enough transport following to feed all
sufficiently.

Each division had been engaged. The cavalry did
wonders, moving rapidly from point to point, seizing the
drifts, which were essential to an advance, before the
enemy were aware of their presence.

Our route was as follows : All the different sections of
the Army started from Orange River, Enslin, and Mod-
der River, passing consecutively through Ramdam and
spreading out to the Riet River to Dekiel's and Waterval
Drifts. They closed again on Wegdral, and from here
the cavalry seized the drifts on the Modder.

The Sixth Division did the march direct from Water-
val to Draiput, a distance of twenty-three miles. The
Ninth Division followed to Klip Drift, and the Seventh
Division seized Jacobsdal.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. lOI

At three o'clock on the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 27,
(Majuba Day) our camp at Paardeberg was awakened by
the continued rattle of musketry fire. When day broke
the news came that the Canadians were building a trench
within 80 yards of the enemy, who were firing at fifty
yards range. The Canadians gallantly worked forward,
and occupied the edge of the Boer trenches along the
river, entirely enfilading the rest. Then, with the excep-
tion of an occasional solitary shot, there followed a
complete cessation of firing on all sides. Our men
wondered what had happened.

Suddenly the regiment stationed on the crest of the hill,
first perceiving the white flag, burst into cheers, and the
news rapidly spread that Cronje had surrendered. Shortly
afterwards a note arrived for Lord Roberts, stating that
General Cronje had unconditionally surrendered. General
Pretyman was thereupon sent to take his surrender. At
about 7 a.m. a small group was perceived crossing the
plain towards the British headquarters, which received
the intimation that Cronje was arriving.

Lord Roberts, walking to the front of the modest cart in
which he sleeps, ordered a guard of Seaforth Highlanders
to make a line. As the group of horsemen approached
nearer, it was seen that on the right of General Pretyman
rode an elderly man clad in a rough short overcoat. This
was the redoubtable Cronje, his face almost burnt black
and his curly hair tinged with grey.

General Cronje's face was absolutely impassive. It
betrayed not a single sign of emotion. Lord Roberts and
his staflf stood awaiting him. General Pretyman, address-
ing the Commander-in-Chief, said: "Commandant Cronje,
sir." General Crorije touched his hat, and the salute was
returned by Lord Roberts.

The whole group then dismounted, and Lord Roberts,
stepping forward, shook hands with the Boer Command-
ant.

" You have made a gallant defence, sir," was the first
salutation of the British Commander-in-Chief to the con-
quered leader, who was then politely ushered into Lord
Roberts's quarters, where he was entertained with food
and refreshment.

It was an exciting, memorable scene. On the railway
were enormous transports of British supplies, and near by

102 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

long, lumbering army waggons with strings of i6 oxen,
coming in with stores. When Cronje the redoubtable, the
hero of so many battles, came forward, the Coldstream
Guards and the Scots escorted his tag-rag, bob-tail follow-
ing, (some of the men on horseback carrying cooking
utensils) into the British encampment. Cronje had been
losing men for a week, as they saw the game was up, and
only 3,800 gave themselves up (including a number of high
military officers). In the rear came conveyances of many
primitive kinds, filled with sick, women, children, and
supplies.

The British officers invited the fallen leader to a cham-
pagne supper, but he preferred a table laid outside a tent,
set apart for himself, and there he *• finished " a ham, and
having received a cigar, coolly asked for a second. He was
described as a thick-set, middle sized, lumpy man, with an
iron-grey beard, who wore an ordinary serge suit, brown
boots, and a wide hat, with a leather band round it, and
he carried a whip of raw hide. His wife, who looked sad
and submissive, was shabbily dressed.

Next day Cronje left in charge of Major General Prety-
man and an escort, for St. Helena, there to remain till the
end of hostihties, and with him went Colonel Schiel and a
thousand prisoners. The women and children were sent
home.

CHAPTER XVHI.

TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTO BLOEMFONTEIN.

THE victory over Cronje had cost us in ten days from
10,000 to 12,000 men killed and wounded, and still
we had other commandos to overcome before we entered
the Free State capital, though now within a few miles of
it. The Boers who had parted from Cronje after the
decisive battle on the Modder were found on the hills to
the east under De Wet and Delarey, occupying a position
in a semi-circle, extending fifteen miles from the Modder
river, which divided their centre from their right on the
north bank. Starting with 6,000 their numbers soon

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. IO3

increased by arrivals from Natal and the south of the
State, until it was estimated, by the ist of April, there
were within a radius of 20 miles of Bloemfontein quite
20,000 Boers.

Early on Wednesday, March 7th, Lord Roberts's army
moved forward to the attack. Gen. Colviile's division
took the north bank and the cavalry the south. Gen.
French, with two brigades of cavalry, two of mounted
infantry, and seven horse batteries, made a wide turning
movement to the south-east, while the naval guns and
howitzers went to the front and left. Finding out the rear
movement, for which they were not prepared, the burghers
turned and fled, though Presidents Kruger and Steyn tried
to rally them. Our casualties numbered fifty. We cap-
tured a Krupp gun and a number of waggons and tents.
The next day two brigades of the cavalry, with horse
artillery, and Gen. Kelly-Kenny's division, marched ten
miles on the road to Bloemfontein, keeping to the Modder,
and camping at Poplar Grove. Lord Roberts and the
main body followed quickly after. On Saturday they took
the road by the Kaal Spruit, and then came a fight at
Driefontein on the loth, in which Col. Broadwood's
cavalry and Col. Porter's troops engaged, with their
batteries. The Welsh regiment, supported by the Essex
and Gloucesters, advanced under a steady fire, while the
Yorks. and Buffs occupied a kopje in a central position.
Before dusk the Welsh rushed the position at the point of
the bayonet. The enemy then fled before our advancing
host.

On Monday night the Cavalry Division arrived at a
point of the railway six miles south of the capital. Two
hills overlooking the little town were seized, after some
opposition, and a brother of President Steyn was cap-
tured. On Tuesday, the 13th, Lord Roberts left Ven-
tersvlei, where he had made a farm his headquarters, and
joined General French, as the road was now clear.

Two miles from the capital, the British Commander
was met by officials of the late Executive Government,
who delivered up the keys of the public offices.

As the procession, headed by Lord Roberts and his
staff, approached the town, great commotion was observed
among the inhabitants. Mr. Colhns, the Free State
Secretary, conducted his lordship into the town, where a

104 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

great number of inhabitants, including men, women, and
children, were awaiting his arrival.

Here a great surprise was in store for us. Instead of
the sullen, scowling faces which might have been looked
for on the entry of a victor into the enemy's capital, we
saw only bright looks and fluttering handkerchiefs, while
our ears were greeted with wild cheers. On the way the
grave Field Marshal stopped the looting of a school-
house by some blacks. The Duke of Westminster and
Lord Stanley, leaning over their saddles, caught pilfering
niggers by the scuff of their necks.

Amid enthusiastic rejoicings Lord Roberts reached the
Market Square, whence he proceeded to the Parliament
House and thence to the Presidency.

Here there was a fresh and yet more expressive out-
burst of enthusiasm. As Lord Roberts entered the front
garden of Steyn's residence the large crowd outside sud-
denly started " God Save the Queen," and they sang the
National Anthem from beginning to end with tremendous
energy. Every soldier stood rigid, and the civilians
raised their hats. When the anthem wag finished there
was a mighty burst of cheering.

Captain Lord George Scott followed Lord Roberts
bearing the silken Union Jack which had been worked by
Lady Roberts, and in one corner of which a four-leafed
shamrock was embroidered. With the aid of Com-
mander the Hon. S. J. Fortescue, R.N., he bent the flag
to the halyard, and, amid hurrahs, fixed the Union Jack
over the town of Bloemfontein.

Half a troop of cavalry faced the gates of the Presi-
dency. The crowd, turning round, appeared to be struck
with the begrimed, unshaven faces of the troopers, in
their soiled and patched khaki uniforms. Everything
about them showed signs of hard fighting.

Acting, apparently, on the impulse of the moment, the
crowd roared forth the song "Tommy Atkins," and then
" Soldiers of the Queen." The men's stoHd faces relaxed
at this tribute of admiration.

Immediately the ceremony was over Lord Roberts
ordered measures to be taken for the protection of the
town, and made certain military dispositions.

General Pretyman was appointed Governor, and the
police arrangements were entrusted to him pending the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 105

drafting of further regulations. A visit was paid to the
gaol, where four men were found imprisoned for refusing
to fight the British. They were at once released.

Gradually that portion of the troops necessary to man
the northern heights passed through the town, meeting
everywhere with a reception which could only be des-
cribed as enthusiastic.

Soon the plain outside the town was filling wit!i
Regiments of Infantry, and the immense transport train
for the supply of the force.

Bloemfontein looks more like a village in Arcadia, than
the metropolis of a Free State. It stands on a plain
surrounded by low hills, with a Market Place in the
centre, to which the principal streets or roads converge.
It has some substantial buildings in red brick and in
the fine-grained white stone of the neighbouring quarry.
The New Raad Zaal is surrounded by Doric columns,
with a domed tower 90 ft. high, and cost ;^57,ooo.
There are a cricket ground, race course, golf links and
swimming baths. Trees, especially the willow and gum,
are a feature in the landscape, as nearly all the houses
stand in parks and gardens. In the National Museum
are fossils and specimens of the flora, fauna, and geology
of the country.

CHAPTER XIX.

INCIDENTS IN AND AROUND BLOEMFONTEIN.

THE next night saw a wonderful change in the capital.
The Boers who had nailed tin sheets over the front
of their shops to protect them from siege or loot, now
resumed business, and hobnobbed with the captors. The
second night was still more marvellous. The Scotch
pipers and drummers entertained the citizens to an open-
air concert in the market square, singing popular songs at
intervals, and the people were delighted. The air was
balmy, the moon bright, in a turquoise sky, and the
avenues of trees helped to make up a scene of tranquil
beauty.

I06 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

But soon there was another transformation, for by the
end of the month troops, horses, and stores began to pour
into the camp by rail and road from the Cape in large
numbers, until the village was surrounded for many miles
with white tents, lines of guns, and army waggons. One
result of this sudden influx of population was that the
prices of ordinary shop goods went up amazingly.

• Bloemfontein became the base for our general advance
on Pretoria under the command of Lord Roberts.

A month after occupation there were 2,000 cases in the
hospital at Bloemfontein, mostly typhoid fever. The
climate was found so good that the place was used for a
base hospital for the State, and among those who assisted
here, as elsewhere with the British forces, were chaplains
and nurses of the Salvation Army, which had many adhe-
rents in the khaki lines. They had relief shelters at
Kimberley, Ladysmith, and Capetown, and their services
were acknowledged by the commanding officers. When
opportunity offered Salvationists in khaki held services on
the veldt, and prayer meetings in camp were well
attended.

We have the statement of Sir Wm. MacCormac, chief
consulting surgeon at the seat of war, that in no previous
war has so much been done for the wounded and the sick,
and that only 4 per cent of the wounded have died. At
Jacobsdal the hospital arrangements were in the hands of
the German Red Cross Society, who used two churches,
a school, and four cottages. There was such a rush of
fashionable ladies to the hospitals as nurses — ladies who
were incompetent for the work, and some of whom, it was
said, went out " for the amusement of the thing," that Sir
A. Milner had publicly to protest against the craze.

DEATH OF JOUBERT,

The Commandant-General of the Transvaal, the Hon.
Pietrus Jacobus Joubert, the illustrious Boer soldier and
statesman, (who won ahke the esteem of friends and foes,
of whom, when he was lying on his death-bed, his latest
antagonist. Sir George White, declared that he was a
soldier and a gentleman, and a brave and honourable
opponent), died at Pretoria on Tuesday evening, Mar. 27,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. IO7

inflammation of the kidneys being assigned as the cause
of death. Although the Boer leaders tried to conceal
everything that might damp the ardour of their followers,
it had been known since the early stages of the campaign
that the most trusted of the Federal Generals was in a
precarious state of health, aud that he only appeared in
the field at intervals, the pracStical command being in the
hands of Botha, Schalk Burgher, and other less renowned
warriors.

General Joubert was in his sixty-ninth year, having
been born a British subject at Cango, in Cape Colony.
His parents were poor, and he was early left an orphan.
Joubert, however, was a youth of manliness and self-
reliance, and he set abcJut making a living by trading.
Having accumulated a little money and followed the for-
tunes of his emigrant kinsmen in their trek northwards,
he bought a little land in the Wakkerstroom district, in
the south-east of the Transvaal, and established himself as
a stock farmer. By dint of rare ability, he rapidly
extended his interests, and soon became a large landed
proprietor, with a very comfortable fortune in hard cash.
He first entered the Volksraad as member for the Wak-
kerstroom district, and after filling various minor offices,
he was appointed State Attorney in 1867. When the
storm burst which brought about the annexation of the
Transvaal by Sir Theophilus Shepstone, Joubert, who had
always been a keen hater of the British, began to assert
himself, and he speedily became the leader of the insur-
re(5lion. To his success as tradesman, farmer, law agent,
and politician, he now added a still more conspicuous
triumph as military strategist. His conduct of the war
has been generally recognised as masterly and far-seeing,
even by his foes. Since that eventful epoch he was, after
President Kruger, the chief personage in the Republic.
He was twice a candidate for the Presidency, running his
friend and colleague Mr. Kruger very hard.

Louis Botha became the new Boer Commandant
General, and was soon in evidence on the border of
Natal Colony, where his predecessor had chiefly operated
in person. Botha was the youngest Boer commandant,
being only 36 years of age. A native of Greytown, Natal,
he joined Lucas Meyer in raiding Zululand, and founding
the new Republic. He got one of the best farms in the

I08 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

district. Without military training, he is courageous, and
a good statistician. He is the best Vecht-General after
Cronje, with more dash and initiative than Joubert. He
has a firm, fierce look, and is close and retiring in his
manners.

Gen. Schalk Burgher took Joubert's place as Vice-
President of the Transvaal. Formerly a Mining Commis-
sioner, he is considered a Progressive, and was once
supported by the Outlanders against Kruger.

The Boers did not intend to let the Imperial forces
around the capital long enjoy their new quarters in peace.
There was a fight at Warrenton on Mar. 27 — (a place 45
miles north of Kimberley), where Lord Methuen operated
successfully. Fauresmith was occupied by Clements, and
Karee Siding, on the railway, about 21 miles from Bloem-
fontein, was taken with a loss of 182 killed and wounded.
French, who removed from Thaba N'chu, 25 miles off, to
the head-quarters near the capital, sent out patrols, who
reported 200 waggons of the enemy as going northward.
There was afterwards (March 31) a skirmish with the
enemy, who seized and destroyed the waterworks, 18
miles from the capital, (which has, however, another
reservoir), and being greatly outnumbered Col. Broad-
wood's columns lost seven guns. The concealed enemy
fired upon our gunners in a drift, and our casualties were
350 and the loss of 100 waggons of provisions. It was a
disastrous rout.

Col. Pilcher occupied Ladybrand, and captured the
Llandrost, and at Jagersfontein we had a hearty reception
from the English, who hoisted the Union Jack.

Generals Grobler and Olivier, with their Boer regi-
ments, had escaped towards Kroonstad.

Another misfortune overtook our arms on April 3, a
little to the east of Bethanie railway station, (35 miles
from Bloemfontein), when three companies of the Royal
Irish Rifles, and two companies of the 9th Regt. Mounted
Infantry (500 in all) surrendered to a superior force after
a severe struggle. As a set-off to this came the news that
Lord Methuen, at a place nine miles S.E. of Boshof, on
the next day, surrounded General Villebois (a Frenchman
who was in the Franco-Prussian war) who, with seven
others, was killed. We lost Capt. Boyle (brother of Lady
Tennyson) and three others, killed, and seven wounded.

^ HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. IO9

It was a four hours' fight in which the Yeomanry,
Kimberley Mounted Corps, and 4th Battery R.F.A.
were engaged. We also took 54 prisoners, together
with 60 horses and baggage.

It was the need of horses and winter clothing that
chiefly kept Lord Roberts from beginning the second part
of the campaign, besides which the weary warriors, all
tattered and torn, could do with a pause for recupera-
tion. In addition to this, there was the railway line of
communication with the coast to secure before the en-
ormous stores necessary could be brought up.

It has been stated that no fewer than 1,474 horses
were either shot or left behind sick in five days on
French's march to Kimberley, and that hundreds were
lost in the pursuit of Cronje afterwards. British horses
are much fleeter than the bony Boer pony, but they
cannot stand the great heat and heavy rains of the
tropics, especially on forced marches.

Reinforcements were, however, soon to hand. On
April 3rd, 2,000 troops arrived at Capetown in addition
to some previously on the scene, with 800 horses for the
Imperial Yeomanry, and on the 8th and 9th, 3,200 more
troops were landing, while 6,000 horses were then afloat
as remounts. Several thousand horses from stud-farms
in the country were also bought to make good the un-
avoidable waste in horse flesh, calculated at 5,000 a
month. In seven months 42,241 horses and 41,643 mules
were sent out as remounts.

In April, Sir F. Carrington's troops landed at Beira,
a small port in Portuguese territory, at the eastern ter-
minus of the railway which runs 212 miles to New
Umtali on the border of Rhodesia, whence a march of
250 miles would gain Bulawayo, from which there is a
railway to Mafeking. Carrington's column was made
up of Mounted Yeomanry (sharp shooters and rough-
riders) and Colonials (Australian Bushmen). The allied
Presidents gravely informed Portugal that they should
consider this an hostile act on their part, and yet the
Boers had made free use of the Portuguese Delagoa
Bay for landing soldiers and war material. The new
column was not long in reaching the front to co-operate
in the final victory.

While the Commander-in-Chief was for a time halting,

110 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

his staff were daily kept on the alert by the enemy who
seemed disposed to challenge his occupation of Bloem-
fontein by cutting off his communications by rail, and
several raids were made in places previously occupied
by the British, as at Reddersburg, (where Boers who
had taken the oath of allegiance were afterwards given
the choice of serving with the Staters or being shot,)
and thus the yellow flag at times took the place of the
Union Jack.

Here and there a Boer was shot by his compatriots
when found loyal to the British, and the disarmament
of the Free Staters was thus hindered as much as
possible. The Boers often played a crafty game, sur-
rendering an old musket and hiding their mauser, or
pretending to surrender to save their farms when they
were wiUing to aid their own commanders if fortune
favoured them.

For the protection of burghers subject to annoyance
after signing the peace declaration a mounted poHce
was organised.

General Gatacre, who lost 670 men captured at
Stormberg in December and was ordered to relieve Red-
dersburg on April 5th (when he was 60 miles away),
but arrived too late, so that the Boers captured 500 of
our men, now left the field for home under a cloud.

General Clements, on his way from Norvals Pont,
received the submission of 2,000 burghers, but the
enemy continued active in the south. One commando
was on the Orange River near Aliwal North, and another
attacked Wepener, where, on the 9th, we lost 11 killed
and 41 wounded.

Altogether the first week in April was a bad one.
We just about held our ground except at Reddersburg,
but we had lost a thousand men and seven guns, with
provisions and other stores.

The arrival of the third Division under Gen. Cherm-
side at Reddersburg, 40 miles north-east of Wepener,
was timely, and General Rundle, with his division of
10,000 men, was now at Springfontein, 60 miles from
Bloemfontein, while Sir Archibald Hunter, with Hart's
Irish Brigade, DubHn Fusiliers, Connaught Rangers, and
a regiment of Light Infantry was hurrying up from Dur-
ban to assist in the advance.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. Ill

When Good Friday arrived public interest was centred
on Lord Roberts, as the next great forward movement
was felt to be imminent.

In Passion Week Kruger ventured to a Raad meeting
at Brandfort though our forces were in the neighbour-
hood, and what should be the next Boer move in con-
sequence became a curious speculation. A recon-
noitring party from Kitchener's forces at Doornspruit
got within six miles of Brandfort, and could see the
Boer laager with some 2,000 men. They captured
four spies in a farm, and were nearly out-flanked by 50
of the enemy who had been hidden behind a farm build-
ing. Patrolling in all directions round Bloemfontein
was now an important feature, and when out with some
of the Royal Irish young Lord Rosslyn, a smart war
correspondent, was taken prisoner with the rest and sent
to Kroonstad. Among our captures was Coetze, a
British subject, in charge of a rebel commando at
Burghersdorp, who was sent to Capetown with others.

The Boer camp at Leenwkop, to the south east of
Bloemfontein, was now 1,000 strong, and in consequence
of their laager on the border of Basutoland, the Para-
mount chief Lerothodi was allowed by the British
authorities to form a police 3,000 strong for the pro-
tection of their land. In this way the burghers were
hedged in and their only escape was northward. Our
loss there in the four days to April 13th, was 18 killed
and 132 wounded, and after this, though General Bra-
bant's horse had been in peril, the enemy seemed to
despair of success at that point, meanwhile our rein-
forcements were gathering at Rouxville, close by.

There had been a threat at the beginning of the war, it
is said, that colonial prisoners would be punished, and in
consequence of complaints, Lord Roberts asked his
Honour President Kruger to see to it that all his
prisoners were treated with the same humanity and
kindness as was shown by the British to all captives
alike. At the same time six and a half tons of presents
for British prisoners had reached Pretoria, to be dis-
tributed by the American consul, Mr. Hay, on our
behalf; just as we have handed over to the St. Helena
prisoners gifts sent by their friends. Cronje and his
wife, with a few members of his sta£f, arrived at that

112 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

rock-fortress on April 14th, the first-named in good
humour. Colonel Schiel, his comrade, and two others,
were found to be intriguing with a Dutch cruiser in the
harbour to effect their escape, in consequence of which
they were marched to the High Knoll citadel. Other
prisoners shortly after joined them.

During six weeks of comparative suspended animation
on our part. Dr. Leyds, the Transvaal European agent,
conducted a deputation of Transvaal Cabinet Ministers
to Holland and Germany and then to America, with the
view of getting the , Powers of Europe, as well as of the
United States, to use their influence with Great Britain
on behalf of the independence of the two Republics ;
but this effort was in keeping with the puerile and
futile policy that had brought about the war. The
doctor informed some French shareholders that the Boers
respected private property, and yet the Transvaal State
Engineer, according to report, confessed to orders from
the State Secretary to blow up three of the Johannesburg
mines ; which however was not done.

The scenes of carnage, havoc, and strife in Natal and
the Free State were visited by war correspondents in
search of " copy " when the campaign halted. The
number of horses and oxen left dead and dying on the
battlefield provided good times for innumerable ghoulish
vultures, who literally emptied the carcases in some
cases, and to swarms of mosquitos, flies, locusts and
other insects.

Some broken down cattle were found grazing on the
road from Bloemfontein to Kimberley, and not even a
black nigger to loot them. But where a quantity of oats
had escaped the fire intended to destroy some abandoned
stores, an enterprising business man from Kimberley, had
appropriated them as derelict, while in another part,
two hillocks of compressed hay and oats were being
fired by some men of the Warwickshire Regiment, lest
they fell into the enemy's hands. Another abandoned
pile was a thousand boxes of biscuits; and yet, within
70 miles our men and horses had been on half rations.

In a three days' drive of 100 miles, hundreds upon
hundreds of dead and dying horses were seen by Mr.
Julian Ralph — a heart-breaking, ghastly scene. Twenty-
four hours after the battle of Driefontein, a number of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. llj

wounded horses were found lying on the ground, dying
of pain and exhaustion, and now and then a noble steed
would lift its head and send after the visitor such a piti-
ful, pleading look as haunted him ; and there was not
even a friendly rifle to put the suffering creatures out of
their misery.

The stench both from dead cattle and deserted Boer
trenches was enough to breed an epidemic.

The debris of a battle and the refuse of a camp would
make the fortune of an industrious marine stone dealer,
under favourable conditions as to transport — broken
waggons, a litter of empty tin boxes, shells, torn gar-
ments, pots and kettles, liquor bottles, torn love letters —
these told the tale of the grim junk of war.

Lord Roberts, inspecting some troops at Capetown,
had told them that war consisted of ninety-nine per-
cent of fatigue and one per cent of fighting. That has
been a true description of this campaign; and every
British Soldier, writing home, has told of the miseries of
marching in the desert, with alternate sandstorms, rain,
cold nights, and burning sun, sleeping in the open by the
month without changing clothes or washing, with hard
biscuits for rations and impure river water to drink, and
still they were healthy as a rule.

As April advanced there was a fortnight's persistent
rain which filled the empty watercourses, which was a
blessing, but rendered the muddy roads almost impas-
sable to heavy transport waggons, and this accounted
for the slow progress of the columns centring on Bloem-
fontein for new developments.

A remarkable despatch from the Commander-in-Chief
pubHshed in the London " Gazette" by the authority of
the War Office, on April i8, created much surprise in
the public mind as wholly inopportune and calculated
to do mischief. It was written in February, and laid
the blame for mishaps at Spion Kop on Sir Redvers
BuUer, Sir Charles Warren, and Col. Thorneycroft. In
military circles the publication was condemned as mis-
chievous and uncalled for, however correct the judgment
might be, but even this was questioned — thus fridlion
was engendered when there should be unity and con-
fidence. As a result Sir C. Warren was made governor

H

114 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

of Griqualand West, where the Boers were very un-
settled, and for which previous experience fitted him.

It was a significant admission of inferiority that the
Boers for ^ whole six .weeks should content themselves
with small trifling guerilla exploits, capturing a straggling
trooper, sniping at patrols, or throwmg a shell now and
again at our Wepener camp. They were massing at
the points which they thought we should take in our
advance to Pretoria — a matter in which they were likely
to be at fault as when they fortified themselves on a
road we did not oblige them by taking in our march
from Kimberley to Bloemfontein.

There were two departments of administration in
which Major General Pretyman, as military governor of
the Free State, occupied the resting time of the army.
There were bridges to repaiir, temporary ones to erect,
and there were taxes to collect, besides .which the
mounted police had much to do to restore peace where
the Dutch farmers wished to be loyal to the Queen
though threatened with spoliation and death by their
fellow-countrymen still in arms.

The presence of women in laagers and trenches is
not according to English taste ; yet it is perhaps capable
of a patriotic explanation. The only Scotch correspond-
ent with the Boers, in a letter extolling their Cromwellian
characteristics, informed us that there were 500 Dutch
amazonians, duly trained in artillery practice in the forts
of Pretoria, (which, he said, was being rendered almost
impregnable by fortifications and heaVy guns), while
nearly every woman there, between 18 and 40 years of
age, was armed and exercising at rifle ranges I

Among the slain Boers were found some women in
men's attire, and it was alleged that it was female
burghers who were guilty of killing our wounded on the
battlefield.

It is natural that pastors of churches should support
the politics of their supporters ; at anyrate it was so in
this war. The Cape rebels were, it is alleged, instigated
by their spiritual advisers, and these gentlemen found
themselves amenable to martial law.

In 25 days General Settle's cavalry covered nearly
400 miles from Orange River station to Upington,
arriving at Carnarvon on April 13th. He arrested the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. It5

Rev. Mr. Schroeder and 150 other traitors about 73
miles from Upington at the end of March, while at
Burgherskprp the Rev. L. Vorster was apprehended for
treason. He had preached at various Boer laagers on
the duty of supporting their republican brethren. Lieut.
Colonel Hughes took eleven persons in arms and dis-
armed 100 more. The enemy was beaten by Orpen's
Horse at Koegas-pont near Drackoentler on April 12th.
This little force was very useful in surprising rebellious
agriculturalists and giving them the choice of surrender
or a trial at Capetown for treason, when terms of
imprisonment from three to five years were inflicted.

On Tuesday, April 22nd, an explosion took place at
Begbie's foundry at Johannesburg which was used as a
Boer arsenal. It was suggested that it was the work of
some Englishmen (of course) who had made a tunnel
from a house on the other side of the street, and used
a large quantity of nitroglycerine for the purpose.
Seventeen men (Italians and Austrians) were reported
killed and 70 wounded. Everything within 50 yards of
the explosion was destroyed. The foundry, which origi-
nally cost ;^2o,ooo and belonged to a company, had
been commandeered by the Boers for the manufacture
of shells. ;^ioo,ooo had been spent in plant and machi-
nery. Mr. Wm. Begbie, a Scotchman, son of the
founder, was arrested on the charge that he had caused
the explosion to avenge the commandeering. In con-
sequence of this affair foreigners were ordered out of
the district at once. In the end the disaster was
attributed to an accident.

Among the incidents at this time was that of the
Boers at Fourteen Streams, where the railway crosses
the Vaal, commencing to shell Warrenton, about 30 miles
to the north of Kimberley. General Paget, getting
close at night in two armoured trains, gave them a
surprise visit in the dawn of Wednesday, April 25th,
and his eight guns gave a quintet, including a 40-
pounder and a pom-pom, their quietus after a four hours
discussion. Then at night we withdrew safely. Majors
Butcher and Montgomery commanded the batteries and
the entrenched Munsters protected our flanks.

Il6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XX.

THE SIEGE OF WEPENER AND A GENERAL ADVANCE.

MOST concern at this time was felt as to Wepener —
a village about 68 miles from Bloemfontein, on
the border of Basutoland, where the Colonials bravely
resisted a siege of seventeen days by a varying force up
to 8,000 Boers.

On the gth, loth, and nth of April Major Dalgety
had a stiff fight and his losses up to that date were 20
killed and about 100 wounded. Four Boer guns were
disabled and 100 Boers killed in these engagements. On
the night of the nth they were discovered slipping up
a donga when the Maxims of the Cape Mounted Rifles
fired into them at 200 yards, and five waggon loads of
wounded and killed were the sacrifice for such indiscre-
tion. A simultaneous attack in another quarter was
repulsed with the bayonet. In their retreat on this occa-
sion the Boers left their dead in the mill furrows un-
buried.

Unfortunately Capt. Little, paymaster of the First
Division of Brabant's Horse, Lieut. Holbeck, of Weir's
transport, and Mr. Milne, Renter's correspondent, fell
into the enemy's hands when trying to reach Wepener,
and after being dispoiled of all they had, they were sent
to Pretoria as captives.

It was now discovered that something more than the
relief of Wepener was being attempted. It was the
grand march of our big army for Pretoria. This was
the re-arrangement of forces.

Cavalry Division. — Lieut. General French.
Mounted Infantry Division. — Col. Ian Hamilton.
First Division. — Lord Methuen.
Second. — Lieut. General Sir F. C. Clery.
Third. — Lieut. General Sir H. C. Chermside.
Fourth. — Major-General Sir A. Hunter.
Fifth. — General Hildyard.
Sixth. — Lieut.-General Kelly-Kenny.
Seventh. — Lieut.-General Tucker.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. II7

Eighth. — Lieut.-General Sir H. Rundle.

Ninth. — Major-General Colvile.

Eleventh. — Major-General Pole-Carew.

The First Division was formed of the 9th Brigade,
under Colonel Douglas, and the 20th Brigade, under
Colonel Paget.

The Ninth Division of the Highland Brigade, under
Major-General Macdonald, and the 19th Brigade, under
Colonel Smith-Dorrien.

Brigade of Guards. — Col. Inigo Jones.

Colonial Troops. — Brigadier-General Brabant.

Rhodesian Field Force. — Lieut.-General Sir F. Car-

rington.

The Mounted Infantry Division included both regu-
lars and volunteers to the number of 10,000 in eight
corps. General Brabazon, in command of the Imperial
Yeomanry, had Lord Henry Bentinck M.P., as aide-de-
camp.

The first objedlive of the advance — the reHef of
Wepener's gallant garrison of some 1,500 men and 13
guns, was watched with intense interest. The enemy dis-
puted the advance of the reheving forces, hence the delay.
Gen. Rundle, with the Eighth and Third divisions, (about
12,000 men), moving on from Reddersburg to Dewetsdorp,
encountered the Boers at Oorlongspoort, 15 miles west of
the latter place, and after two days' artillery pradtice the
enemy had to retire two miles to the east, and we occu-
pied their first position with a battery. It had taken four
days to cover 20 miles, partly due to the heavy roads
through the rain, v/hich had converted dust twelve inches
deep into mud, and our transports could only crawl
through it.

Then Gen. Brabant's force (about 7,000) at the same
time had only got twenty miles from Rouxville, and was
engaged by the enemy at Bushman's Kop, about 20 miles
from the beleaguered camp. Thus on the south and west
the besiegers had to prepare for an onslaught, and they
did so by two divisions falling back to meet them.

At the same time General Pole-Carew's division of
infantry, with two brigades of cavalry under Gen. French,
moved eastward, and having retaken the waterworks

Il8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

supplying Bloemfontein, passed on to Leeuwkop, on the
way to Dewetsdorp, on April 22nd, where we had a brush
with the entrenched foe, and Rundle gained Karriefontein,
15 miles south-east of Bloemfontein.

Fighting was continuing day and night at Jammersberg
drift, close to Wepener, where on April 23rd we lost 120
men out of 500, in killed and wounded, including several
officers. It was the final brush. On that day the relief
columns made fair advance, Brabant and Hart getting
near enough to have heliograph communication with the
imprisoned commandant; in fact, at i p.m., they encamped
within eight miles of Wepener, waiting for the other forces
to get into position to complete the cordon round the
enemy. Carew and French were then at Tweede Geluk,
about 40 miles from Wepener, and able to signal to
Rundle. Gen. Ian Hamilton, with his strong division of
Mounted Infantry, took possession of Sauna's Post (the
waterworks) and the Ninth Division, consisting of Smith-
Dorrien's and Macdonald's brigades, went to his support,
as Boers crowded the neighbouring hills. The same day
Maxwell's brigade, (late Chermside's) of the Seventh
Division seized the hills covering the waggon bridge over
the Modder River at Krantze Kraal.

General Stephenson on Sunday, the 22nd, with his
Infantry brigade, did not reach Leeuwkop without a fight,
directed by French, at Paardekraal, where the Essex,
Warwicks, and Welsh were engaged, with the Yorkshires
in reserve. A battery shelling a farm and kopje was
replied to by the Boer pom-pom and heavy rifle fire, but
in the evening we carried the kopje with the bayonet.
The Cavalry brigade (8th and nth Hussars) and the 7th
Dragoon Guards reconnoitred a hill on the right, but had
to retire before a one-pounder Maxim and rifle fusillade
to the protedlion of our guns at Leeuwkop, while the third
Cavalry brigade and Lancers made a turning movement
to the extreme right of the hill, the Naval guns shelling to
the left. The next morning the Boers had fled.

On Tuesday Carew had made ten miles, and French
was eight miles N.N.E. of Dewetsdorp, having made 15
miles, and here again the surprised burghers took to their
heels, Chermside occupying without a blow.

The enemy, who had surrounded our camp at Jammers-
berg Drift, were on Wednesday morning found on their

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. II9

way to Ladybrand, a town of a thousand population in
the wheat district, on the Basuto border. Thus was the
siege of Wepener raised after a brave defence, and once
more the " slim " enemy had escaped in the nick of time,
showing how well posted up they were in our movements.

CHAPTER XXI.

ON THE WAY TO KROONSTAD,

WHEN our forces reached Thaba N'chu on Friday,
April 27, they found the enemy in full retreat, by
order of Commandant Botha, who had visited De Wet's
Dorp on Monday, and President Steyn (who was hardly
recognisable minus his beard) had been at Slingfontein
the same day.

The Boers had sent on their heavy waggons, to the
number of 750, to Kroonstad, and were now using light
vehicles lent from local farms.

It was a general flight under De Wet, General Grobler
having 6,000 men, and 2,000 acting on "parade com-
mando," with a week's rations in their saddle-bags; at the
end of the week being relieved by another regiment of
burghers. These men acted between the British lines and
the Boer main force, as scouts.

Colonel Alderson's Mounted Infantry came up with
Carew's troops on the Thursday. Crossing the Modder
at Vaalbank, to the south-east of Bloemfontein, General
Rundle arrived from the south-east, and just missed
capturing the foe, who defended their rear with pom-
poms; but French's cavalry went in hot pursuit to
Smit's Berg, on the east, with Ian Hamilton. Thaba
N'Chu was once the capital of the little republic of
Baralong, with several thousand inhabitants. It is 32
miles east of Bloemfontein, and French made it his base
for a time.

After passing Thaba N'Chu our advance columns had
a whole day's artillery dispute with the occupants of
Ejester Nek, in three positions, and at night the Boers
dispersed with their waggons to the north and east.

120 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

It was stated that hundreds of the farmers of the dis-
trict who had taken the oath of allegiance to the Queen
were among the enemy, but that some of them now
returned to their farms when they got the chance.
General Pole-Carew, who had returned to Bloemfontein
at the end of the week, found some Dutchmen in a farm
armed ; he took them prisoners, seized their cattle, and
what stores he could not remove he burnt, telling the
women-folk that they would be provided for by the
English. Such stringent measures were rendered neces-
sary owing to the duplicity of these men, who, however,
pleaded in some cases that they had been pressed into
service against their will. In the south of the State
there were still several bodies of raiders to put down.
In some cases tried at Bloemfontein, as at Ladysmith,
for the concealment of arms and ammunition, Boers
were sentenced to terms of imprisonment as well as
confiscation of property. When it was found that the
seizure of arms and the oath of neutrality were not
sufficient to prevent Boers resuming hostilities, their
ponies were taken, and this was found efficacious.

The design of our northward movement, was, while
relieving Wepener, to clear that corner of the Free
State of the Boers and so open communication for an
advance to the Transvaal. It was found that the enemy
held an entrenched position, about 4,000 strong, with six
guns, covering the De Wets Dorp country, like the
Sussex Downs on a large scale. Generals Rundle and
Chermside occupied an almost identical ridge on the
opposite side of the valley. It was hoped that they
would hold the enemy till General French, moving on
the Modder Drifts and General Hamilton on Thaba
N'chu, should be astride their lines of retreat.

The enemy had a detached force under Lammer to
protect their right flank, whom General Pole-Carew
engaged on Sunday and Monday. Botha arrived on
the latter day and at once detached a commando under
Fourie to oppose French's cavalry, which had passed
Carew's infantry division, and immediately the enemy
commenced a strategical withdrawal upon Leenw River
and Ladybrand, covering this retreat with a fire on
General Rundle's lines. On Tuesday, Frejich drove in
Fourie's containing force at Roode Kop, ten miles from

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 121

the main body of the enemy, and consequently could
only attack the rear-guard the next day, as they disap-
peared in the hills. Hamilton, with his mounted
infantry, at the same time struck the enemy's flank
containing force in the vicinity of Thaba N'Chu. We
had been forestalled by Botha by twenty-four hours, and
yet overtook his rear.

General Tucker's division held the front from Karle
Siding to Krantz Kraal, with outpost affairs from Brand-
fort patrols, when Nesbitt's Horse emptied some Boer
saddles.

General de Wet, however, still remained in the eastern
hills of Thaba N'Chu, and made a well-conceived effort
to turn French's eastern flank, but was foiled by our
dashing cavalry, on the 29th. The Federals from
Dewetsdorp and Wepener had then reached Brandfort.

On the last day of April, Hamilton, with a body of
mounted infantry and Smith-Dorrien's brigade of the
Seventh Division reached Houtney, 43 miles from the
town of Thaba N'Chu, and encountered Botha, who
occupied the hills for several miles and challenged the
British with seven guns. Rundle was able to assist, and
French was ordered up also.

There was a sharp encounter and we lost 45 killed and
wounded, while the enemy suffered severely by venturing
into the plain. This time they used black powder and
were marshalled in military order. Three kopjes were
taken by the Gordon Highlanders and Shropshire Light
Infantry. The Boers were re-inforced, and it was only
when Maxwell's, Hamilton's, and Col. Henry's forces
arrived that Gen. Tucker, who commanded, cleared the
eastern hills.

The southern portion of the Free State was now
divided into districts under military administrators with
a free hand, to effect its pacification, and the same policy
was commenced towards the north and east, to ensure
our lines of communication.

On Sunday, April 29th, the Boers attacked with guns a
convoy of 50 waggons on the De Wets Dorp road, which
was repulsed by a timely arrival of troops, but it showed
the necessity of sweeping a wide range of country as we
progressed towards the Vaal. There were inroads with*n

122 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

eight miles of Sanna Post, and the patrols of the Johan-
nesburg Police reached the Modder to attempt a surprise
for Tucker's army of some i8,oco men, while the main
body of Boers were trekking towards Winburg.

When reviewing Robert's Horse and Carew's Division
in the Market Place of Bloemfortein, on May-Day, the
Commander-in-Chief, who was accompanied by his wife
and daughter, spoke hopefully of leading the Colonials
into Pretoria before long. — Gen. White predicted that the
war would be over in three months — by the end of July.

The sketcher of this famous advance needed to be up in
a balloon so as to take in the simultaneous movements of
the British line, extending from west to east some i6o
miles, and consisting of about 100,000 combatants — artil-
lery, cavalry, infantry, and engineers, with the field
hospital and ambulance corps in the rear, and immedi-
ately behind on two railways — the Midland and Western
— heavily crowded and stocked construcftion trains. To
feed the multitude of khaki warriors 40 trains of supplies
were leaving Bloemfontein daily at the beginning of May.

All along this line the field-glass would reveal, at vary-
ing spaces of a few miles, the long rows of white tents of
the camp at the nightly halt.

Sometimes the reveille or " wake-up " notes of the
bugle sounded at 3 a.m., and the slumbering Tommy, who
had turned in late from the camp-fire concert or canteen,
after a long day's march, was relucflant to arise. Crawl-
ing to the mouth of the tent he saw in the softly-dappled
sky the silver moon and the " Southern Cross," it may be;
and the quiet of the arid wastes of veldt and scrub, with
cloudy mountains in the distance, is soon turned into the
dull and heavy tramp of regiments and the grinding of the
ordnance and store waggons over the stony plain, the rear
covered by a cloud of dust. Then a light is seen for a
moment on a hill some three miles away, and a report
startles the birds and shows that the enemy is awake too.
Thence forward the artillery dispute for mastery, until
soon after dawn the enemy's guns are silenced, and our
troops charge at full gallop in the face of volleys of bullets,
which empty saddles and make work for the doctors. On
one occasion, for instance, 32 wounded men lay in front of
the field hospital, some of the men moaning and crying in

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 23

agony, and others smoking with a grim grin as if indiffer-
ent to the broken limb or the bullet in the chest.

The daily advance was more exciting than a steeple-
chase.

Gen. Ian Hamilton on May 2nd, rested at Jacobsrust
for a day, having been fighting seven out of ten days.
Broadwood's brigade of cavalry and Bruce Hamilton's
brigade of infantry came up, and routed the "foreign
legion," a French regiment in khaki, as well as some
Yankee Irish.

Early on May 3rd the Eleventh Division and the Guards'
brigade, left Karee Siding and advanced on Brandfort
village, (36 miles N. of Bloemfontein) supported by
Chermside. The centre column had a skirmish, the
enemy disclosing three guns. We entered the place
about noon, unopposed, while Gen. Hutton chased the
retreaters towards Winburg. In the local hospital were
some British who had been wounded on Monday. The
wrecked railway and culverts were repaired by the engi-
neers in thirty hours, material arriving by train. A Boer
commander, returning for the telegraph apparatus, was
captured. The American-Irish only left a quarter of an
hour before our arrival, and the residents received our
advent with pleasure.

Lord Roberts, who from a kopje had signalled the
manoeuvres on the 3rd, arrived with Pole-Carew's division
at Vet River the next day, Wavell's and Maxwell's
brigades being two miles to the rear and right respe(5lively.
After three hours' work with the guns Gen. Hutton forced
the river under heavy shell and musketry fire. Gen. Ian
Hamilton did good service in preventing the jundlure of
the Boer forces, when the Household Cavalry, the 12th
Lancers, and Kitchener's Horse assisted, on the previous
day. The Boers left their dead and wounded for us to
care for. At another point Macdonald's Highlanders dis-
lodged the Boers under cover of the naval guns, in which
the Black Watch distinguished themselves. Hamilton
then advanced to a difficult drift over the Klein Vet River,
about twenty miles further — a place called Welkom, and
captured Winburg on Saturday — which finished a good
week's work — a fighting drive of 58 miles from Bloemfon-
tein in four days. The position of the other columns was

124 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

— Brabant at Dewetsdorp, Hart at Smithfield and Roux-
ville, Hunter at Windsorton, and Paget's militia at
Warrenton supporting guns fighting at Fourteen Streams,
in which diredlion Methuen was clearing the road for the
relief of Mafeking; and Barton's brigade was at Rooidam.

Captain Balfour met Commandant Philip Botha in
Winburg as the latter was about leaving. The captain,
as envoy, had gone forward under the protecflion of the
white flag, to demand the surrender of the place. The
Boer leader, misunderstanding Balfour's words, raised his
rifle to shoot him, but the Llandrost or Mayor, seeing the
position of things, capitulated, and Botha hastened from
danger. In the town were stores of ammunition and
forage.

At the Vet River the Gordons put a large commando to
flight, and the 8th Hussars cut them off, killing over 70.

On Sunday, May 6, Lord Roberts crossed the Vet and
encamped at Smaldeel Jundtion, a town on the Free State
railway, midway between Bloemfontein and Kroonstad,
and 22 miles from Winburg. Pretoria is 227 miles off.

The twenty miles' march from Brandfort showed that
the farmers had absconded from the district, and presum-
ably were with the retreating pony-men, with whom Carew
came in contact at the Vet drift. When Hutton's Mounted
Infantry brigade came up the Boers crossed the river,
and then ensued a fierce artillery contest for several hours,
till the nth and 7th Divisions crossed, capturing a Maxim
and 25 prisoners, among them a commandant with
important papers. The Canadians, New South Wales
Rifles, New Zealand Rifles, and Queensland Mounted
Infantry, vied with each other in their determination to
close with the enemy. Two 12-pounder naval guns and
the artillery made excellent pra(5tice, particularly two
5-inch siege guns used for the first time with this force.
The foreign legion destroyed the railway bridges, but our
engineers set to work to complete a deviation line on the
Modder. This for a time stopped supplies.

Twenty-six detached West Australians, on their own
initiative, took a kopje at the point of the bayonet.

To the west flank of the British, where Hutton took the
drift, the Boers were reported to have lost 40 killed, but
our casualties were slight.

Simultaneously Rundle's Division occupied Thaba

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 12$

N'Chu front, whence thousands of Boers, with immense
herds of cattle, trekked Ficksburg way, on the border of
Basutoland. Brabant's column joined Rundle's on
May 7th.

The enemy was found in force at Zand river, but
retreated before General Hutton's brigade of mounted
infantry, who crossed over and marched two miles. A
Boer convoy waggon and a train, with steam up, were
seen just ahead, and for fear of being captured, the
enemy opened a tremendous fire with eight guns.

The New South Wales rifles ventured to a ridge
abreast of Virginia siding, close to the river, and a
Long-Tom on a railway truck with other guns, made
the place untenable. After two hours the enemy came
into the plain, though raked by the Australians, and the
New Zealanders and Canadians had to advance to let
the New South Wales riflemen retire. The brigade
retired to Welgelegen, and the enemy, after demolishing
bridges and culverts, continued their retreat.

Hutton, who was now reinforced b)' French's strong
cavalry, followed the next day, along the railway, which
was wrecked.

Under a strict press censorship the plan of campaign
had very properly been kept secret. Now, however,
simultaneously with Hunter's advance on fhe^ extreme
west, we heard of General Buller advancing with strong
battalions upon the Biggarsberg (the Boers withdrawing)
to join in the invasion of the Transvaal.

The Free Staters were beginning to realise that their
game was up, and a first instalment of 30 of them sur-
rendered Mausers and horses to Lord Roberts, who
allowed them to proceed to their farms.

The burghers who had \rekked from Thaba N'Chu
found themselves cut off" by the rapid advance, and the
roads between Wepener and Clocolan became blocked
with a stream of waggons and cattle. After giving them
a rosy romance of Russian help via Delagoa Bay, the
fugitive Steyn bolted northward, leaving them to their
fate in the Korannaberg hills.

After a two days' halt to allow of railway repairs and
the arrival of transport, Lord Roberts, on Wednesday,
May 6th, resumed progress with a skirmish at the Zand
river. The Boer line extended twenty miles, but was

126 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

thin. Our line far out-stretching them, their flank was
continually in danger.

Roberts on Thursday telegraphed from Rietspruit,
eight miles north of the river, that the enemy had been
driven from point to point, and the advance guard was
at Ventersberg road railway station, four miles further,
the casualties being still small. The drifts were difficult
and .the fighting varied at different points. The east
Lancashires and Sussex took a couple of kopjes at the
point of the bayonet, when the Boers made a halt.

Eight Boer commandants had been in front, including
De Wet and Delarey, under Botha, but they became
separated in their flight from the Zand.

The twenty miles advance on Thursday was succeeded
by a similar progress next day. Broadwood's Brigade
overtook part of the enemy's convoy at Potgieter laager,
south-east of Ventersburg. Prisoners increased, as well
as deserters from the Boer ranks, and there were dis-
sensions between their leaders.

CHAPTER XXII.

AT KROONSTAD — WAITING FOR SUPPORTING COLUMNS.

ON Saturday, May 12th, at 1-30 p.m., the British Com-
mander-in-Chief entered Kroonstad, with his staff
and a portion of the army, the rest encamping outside.
The Guards led the way, fifes and drums playing.

The night before the Transvaalers had fled from the
trenches towards the Vaal, under Botha and De Wet,
while the Free Staters revolted, saying they were not
going into the Transvaal when thus deserted by Brother
Boers. A smart photographer took a snap shot of
President Steyn using his sjambox (whip) and boots as
arguments upon disobedient Boers.

The Union Jack was raised at Kroonstad Town Hall
with acclamation from the few British residents left in
the place. Many burghers had fled by vehicle and
train.

This is a pretty place— on the pure, perennial Vaisch

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 12/

river, avenued with trees, wilgeboon's or weeping willow
in particular — loo miles south of Johannesburg, 570
miles from Port Elizabeth, and about 100. miles on the
line from the capital, with an elevation of 4,500 feet
above sea level, and containing a normal population of
2,000 souls. , .

It was in the Market Square on the 17th of March
that the two Presidents harangued the people to stand
firm, denouncing the British " treachery" and promising
victory.

On April 2nd the Free State Volksraad was opened
here by Steyn with a speech to the effect that they
fought only for independence.

Lord Roberts having been presented with the keys of
the municipal offices by the Mayor, handed over the
government of the place to some of his officers and no
pleasanter residence could be desired. It is surrounded
by flourishing farms, which offer sport, while on the
river the Johannesburg Boating Club has its headquarters,
five miles being navigable.

There are all the elements of a city close by — the
Lace diamond mines, coal mines, and a fertile soil.

Among the papers not destroyed in the hurry of flight
was a list of 30,060 Cape Boers stated to have risen in
revolt against the British power, and other instances of
official mendacity were discovered in the published tele-
graph messages ; in fact, the Boer newspapers all through
the war were supplied with most exaggerated reports or
fabricated statements as to Boer successes and British
reverses, with the view of stimulating Boer zeal, which
was evidently an unreliable force.

Wanton destruction had been done at the Kroonstad
railway station and in the town by the drunken Irish
brigade from America, fighting for the Boers. Outside
the town the convoy taken from Broadwood at Sanna's
Post had been burnt.

More instances of Boer treachery with the white flag,
were reported by Lord Roberts, at Kroonstad. On the
loth of May, a party of the 6th Dragoons and Australians
dismounted, disarmed, at a kraal bearing a white flag,
when they were fired upon. An officer was killed, two
wounded, and several privates were taken prisoners.
On the i6th, two officers and six men of the Prince

128 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Alfred's Guard, were foraging, when they visited a farm
flying the white flag, whose owner surrendered ; but
when within 40 yards of another white flagged farm, 15
Boers fired upon them, killing two privates, wounding a
lieutenant, and a lieutenant and two corporals were taken
prisoners. Before the war began, Swinburne wrote —

"Scourge these dogs with jaws afoam."

These imitators of savage tactics deserved the scourge.

It was said that Lord Roberts had made up his mind
to take Pretoria by the 24th of May, the Queen's birth-
day. He had done 127 miles since March 13th. Could
he average fourteen miles a day for the next twelve days
he would achieve his object and one of the most remark-
able marches on record. Hence the race against time
and after the disheartened Transvaalers from this point
excited intense national, and even world-wide, interest.

Whilst there was a short stay at Kroonstad, Buller was
making for Dundee with a big force, en route to join
Lord Roberts on his east flank. The Natal troops con-
sisted of the 2nd, 4th, and 5th infantry divisions, with 12
field batteries, 72 15-pounder guns, a cavalry division
with a battery of R. H. artillery, 14 naval 12-pounders,
two mountain batteries, four naval 4-7 in. guns, one naval
6 in. gun, two captured Nordenfelts, one battery of
howitzers, a battery of Colt guns, part of the siege train,
a large body of mounted infantry, and three battalions
of corps troops ; and they were formed at the outset in
a ring of camps from Acton Homes to near Helpma-
kaar; Bethune's mounted infantry holding the main
road southward towards Dundee, while the West York-
shire battalion were at Elandslaagte.

When this strong force moved to within two miles of
Helpmakaar the enemy opened a heavy artillery fire
from the heights, and this led to an engagement lasting
till Sunday, when the Biggarsberg position of the enemy
was broken down. They had had a fighting strength of
between 12,000 and 15,000, with 15 heavy guns, including
two long-toms, but were now in scattered and reduced
companies.

In four days, Sir Redvers had moved 25,000 soldiers
45 miles with few casualties— a very good start; but

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 129

Dundonald's troops covered nearly 40 miles one day in
a waterless country.

Could the reader have surveyed this formidable column
of BuUer's moving among the high ridges of the Drakens-
berg, and then have winged his way westward to
Methuen's division moving towards Hoopstad, and
Hunter's facing Christiana, he might have fancied that
the huge army promenading northward was really
making a demonstration wholly beyond requirements.
On the ground of humanity, however, the invading host
could not well be too great, as it rendered fighting on the
part of the Boers an act of reckless self-destruction, and
the Boers love life.

When Buller reached Dundee, 73 miles in 60 hours, on
May 15th, he found that 2,500 Boers had the day before
entrained for Glencoe, while the waggons were on the
road via De Jager's Drift and Dannhauser road. Almost
every house in Dundee had been looted. Thence to
Glencoe, to find that the Transvaal commandoes had
trekked for home — about 4,000 with 18 guns. Hildyard's
Fifth Division had largely contributed to this success by
an intrepid hill-climbing at great speed.

When it was found that the Boers would not dispute
the passage at Nithoek, where they would have every
advantage from a commanding position on the heights,
it was known that the enemy had shown the white
feather. Then by Dannhauser, to Newcastle on the
1 8th of May. The enemy had gone by Wakkerstroom
and Meiller's Pass into the Free State, a disorderly
rabble, destroying railway bridges, tunnels, and other
property.

On Thursday, May 17th, Ian Hamilton's cavalry,
under Broadwood, occupied Lindley, 47 miles east of
Kroonstad, after slight opposition, only two of our men
being wounded. President Steyn had made it his seat
of government for two days and cleared out on the 13th.
Thirty miles north-west of this Hutton's mounted infan-
try the same day, 17th, captured one commandant
Botha, a field-cornet, five Johannesburg policemen, and
17 Boers. These policemen were harassing the farmers
outside the British lines, and hence the presence of our
troops was needed to keep these raiders in check.
Another good capture was that of a Captain Herron,

I

130 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the chief of the bridge-wrecking gang. A detachment
of 105 Norfolk Volunteers did 22 miles in five hours
just to make the acquaintance of the district.

It was significent of the end of the war in the Free
State, that several members of the Volksraad, including
representatives of Kroonstad and Wepener respectively,
were in Kroonstad at this time strongly advising the
burghers to surrender. Even President Steyn's brother
was of opinion that the State might thrive better under
British protection. The result was that in a few days
400 Boers gave up their arms.

Rundle's movements in the direction of Maseru on
the eastern border of the Free State were for a week
or two a mystery, and then we heard that after the
flight from Thaba N'Chu, the Boers held a meeting at
Mequatling's Nek, when it was decided to continue the
struggle. Accordingly some 6,000 of them tried to break
through our lines to the south. With the help of the
Colonials, Rundle spread his force over a front of 30
miles, and at the same time the yeomanry and other
troops pushed forwards, driving the enemy back with
daily skirmishing, with the result that Colonel Grenfell,
commanding the 2nd Brabant Horse, captured New-
berry's Leenw Mills, a Boer headquarters, with enor-
mous stores of mealies and other corn, since which
many of them surrendered. On the 14th of May,
Rundle had marched twenty miles to the east of Lady-
brand, receiving the submission of burghers all the way ;
and next day was at Ladybrand, then off to Clocolan.

Lord Methuen, who had had rather a leisure time
since the tragic Magersfontein, was now advancing to
the front rapidly and without incident. On May 17th,
he entered Hoopstad, on the Vet river, 85 miles west
of Kroonstad, without opposition. This brought his
column practically abreast of Hunter's and the main
army. The disposition of the several advancing columns
was to reconnoitre the whole of the State, and this had
now been nearly completed.

Sir Frederick Carrington was on the 4th of May wait-
ing at Marandellas for the arrival of the rest of his force
by steamers at Beira. To impatient on-lookers they came
so slowly that it might be thought the war would be over
before they had the chance of a shot. The Galeka brought

HISTORY Of THE BOER WAR. I3I

1,100 men on the 3rd, and they were given Hungarian
mounts. Other transports disembarked 700 New Zealand
troops. More arrivals in a few days increased the force
to 3,000, the Canadian artillery bringing a battery of
15-pounders. Some Canadian batteries had reached
Bulawayo, (which was the head-quarters of this Rho-
desian division), at the beginning of May.

A historian with each separate advancing column could
produce an interesting volume concerning them, and yet
many of their operations were only chronicled in late des-
patches, and in brief terms. Thus, after Gen. Frendh had
assisted at Thaba N'Chu he was lost sight of for a week,
till an incidental reference in the Field Marshal's telegram
informed the world that he had reached the front.

Leaving Bloemfontein on the 17th of April with Colonel
Porter's and General Dickson's brigade of cavalry, he was
joined later by General Hutton's mounted infantry, and
had marched 30 miles a day to gain the front by May 6.
Active operations began after crossing the Zand river,
where on that date French pushed out a Carbineer patrol
towards the enemy's main body. They encountered some
foreigners in khaki carrying swords, and fell back ; but
French advanced about three miles to the rear of the Boer
position, while Porter ordered a mixed squadron of Scots'
Greys, Inniskillings, Carbineers, and Australian Horse to
occupy a hill commanding the enemy's flank and rear, in
which they encountered some opposition. The force then
dismounted and were engaged examining a horse kraal
when the Boers opened fire from an entrenchment further
along the ridge, killing many horses (40 within an acre)
and stampeding the rest. The riderless troopers were
captured and the rest of the squadron driven back. A
pom-pom confronted a brigade coming up to support, but
Dickson outflanking the enemy they had to take to the
plain, when the 8th Hussars charged with their swords,
and routed them.

132 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XXIII.

THE SIEGE OF MAFEKING.

THIS was the longest siege of any, and the story, which
shows the pluck and resource of the garrison and
inhabitants, is full of deeply interesting incidents.

Mafeking is a smart little town on the Bechuanaland
railway, about eight miles from the Transvaal border, and
237 miles north of Kimberley. It has hotels, churches,
and a race-course, and is 4,194 feet above the sea level.
At the outbreak of the war it had no fortification.

Colonel R. S. S. Baden-Powell, its defender, has
achieved fame for his stout and cheery resistance and
his versatility. Women and children were sent southward
and those who remained went into laager to the west of
the town. Several houses were turned into hospitals, and
the sisters of the Roman Catholic convent and other ladies,
volunteered to care for the sick and wounded. The camp
was defended by earthworks and mines, guns were well
placed, (one, a i6-pounder ship cannon, that had been
used as a post for 20 years), and at night the searchlight
flashed in all direcftions for scouts. Every man in the
place almost became a volunteer, even the lads assisting
the garrison of 800 regulars. From the commanding site
long tracts of the brown veldt could be scanned, and the
wily patrols of the commandoes could be watched at
several miles' distance.

The watchers had not long to wait for the enemy. On
Oct. I2th Boers crossed the border at Maribogo, 40 miles
to the south, cut the telegraph wires, and advanced to
Kraaipan, a few miles northward, tearing up two miles of
the railway. Refugees (women and children) for Cape-
town, piloted by an armoured train, had just got through.
In returning Capt. Nesbitt, in command of fifteen men,
was warned by the police at Maribogo, but he determined
to make a dash for it. The train was fired upon where
the rails had been removed in the night-time. It was first
blown up and the fifteen men thrown out ; then the Boers
volleyed into them with 9-pounders and rifles. Being
overpowered, the squad gave in at five in the morning.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 33

Flowerday, the driver, escaped into a sluit alongside the
line and crawled on his stomach for a mile and a half.
Two trucks of dynamite, stored at the station, were drawn
out to a siding some distance from the town, when, seeing
the Boers approaching, the driver of the engine left the
trucks and put on steam to run home. The enemy fired
into the trucks, and the explosion was such that the
engine, now a mile and a half away, was almost lifted
from the metals.

Fighting began on the 14th, when Captain Lord Chas.
Bentinck and his patrol engaged the enemy to the north
of the town. The Boers fired on the ambulance sent to
recover two bodies, and yet the same afternoon Cronje
forwarded a letter suggesting that civilized warfare should
be shown with regard to wounded men.

Sundays were sacred by agreement ; the rest of the
week the watchmen had to be on the qui vive, and when it
was seen that a gun was to be fired by the enemy the bell
of the Roman Catholic Church twanged, and everybody
sought shelter. The aim of the attackers was not always
the forts or the camp, but the hospitals, where the Red
Cross flag fluttered, came in for shells as well as private
dwellings, so that many, like Lady Sarah Wilson, lived in
a bomb-proof cavern under the ground. Her ladyship, in
a graphic letter says — after describing the daily routine: —

•• Civilians and innocent individuals are struck down and
terribly mutilated, suddenly and almost without warning.
I say almost, for when the big gun is loaded the look-out
at head-quarters, from whence all her movements can be
accurately watched, gives the alarm by sounding a deep-
toned bell, and when the gunners go to fire her this is
supplemented by the shrill tinkle of a smaller bell — not
much louder than our ordinary muffin bell — but which can
be distin(5lly heard in this clear atmosphere. After this
second warning about three seconds elapse before the
explosion.

" Apropos of this wise measure, which has been the
means of saving many lives, the town dogs have by now
fully grasped its meaning, and whenever the bell rings
begin to bark loudly in all quarters ; so that if by chance
one fails to hear the hasty shrill voice of our trusty little
friend, the dogs' voices in unison cannot fail to warn one
to take shelter.

134 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

" The dogs, indeed, play a great part in this siege — one
belonging to the base commandant has been wounded no
less than three times ; another, a rough Irish terrier, has
accompanied the Protectorate Regiment in all its engage-
ments ; a third amuses itself by running after the small
Maxim shells, barking loudly and trying hard to retrieve
pieces ; while the Resident Commissioner's dog is a pru-
dent animal, and whenever she hears the alarm bell tears
into the bomb-proof attached to her master's redoubt, and
remains there till the explosion is over.

" What are even more to be feared than the monster
gun's proje(5liles are the shells from the high-velocity
Krupp gun, for which no warning can be given, as the
flash and explosion are pracftically simultaneous, and the
poisonous little i-pounder Maxim shells, which seem to
come everywhere, are generally fired in threes or in
fours. As the latter whistle overhead the sound resembles
that of a very long cattle whip sharply cutting the air,
cracked and manipulated by a master hand; very different
is the sickening whirr of a big shell, followed by the dull
thud and crash denoting where it has dealt death and
destrudlion. At least 700 of the 94-pounder shells have
been fired into this undaunted little town, and it is com-
puted in all certainly 5,000 missiles of different kinds of
destru(5tive power from the Boer artillery have found their
billets here (by the end of March). There is something
very cowardly in the fairly regular evening shell from the
big gun, which is usually loaded and aimed at sundown
and fired off between 8 and 9 p.m., or even later, over a
partially sleeping town, very early hours being kept here,
when the Boers must know men and women may be killed
indiscriminately. For this last shot wearied women and
children generally wait before leaving their shelters and
seeking their beds in their various houses ; but sometimes,
as a refinement of cruelty, it is not fired at all, and these
evenings the poor things creep to bed at last with many
forebodings."

About the 22nd of Oct. Cronje wrote to Powell, con-
fessing his inability to take the town by storm, but
warning him that he was expecting a siege gun for
Tuesday, so he might get ready ! In reply to this
courteous consideration Powell informed his combatant
that the place was surrounded by mines, which coul(J

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 35

be easily exploded from headquarters or automatically,
and as the goal was chiefly tenanted by Dutchmen, he
hoped Cronje would respect the orange flag floating over
it. Amongst other correspondence was a request that
Powell should surrender and save further trouble ; to
which Powell answered that he would let his *• friend
the enemy " know when he had had enough fighting.
On another occasion, Powell issued a proclamation to
the district explaining the natflre of the difference
between the Queen and the Republics and asking for
loyajty. Cronje wrote the Baralong chief, Wessels
Montsio, that as he was going to shell that place, he
had better get rid of the women and children, but after
consulting with Mr. G. C. Hebell, the magistrate, the
chief sent word back, that he had no quarrel with the
Boers and was loyal to the Queen — that the women and
children were safe in his kraal and he hoped the Dutch-
men would not interfere with him.

On the 24th, a huge .loo-pounder fell shrieking into
Mafeking market square, by which the besieged knew that
the big tormentor had come ; besides which there were
i2-pounders, Maxims, Nordenfeldts, Hotchkisses, and
Krupps. Sometimes the besiegers bombarded in earnest;
at other times they seemed to be quite indifferent.

The outposts were at first so near that on the " day of
rest " British and Boer conversed in a friendly way.
It was a day when the garrison indulged in baths,
shaves, clean shirts, polished boots, and went to church
if so disposed. The respite was much prized.

On the 31st, the Police under Col. Watford held an
unprotected fort against an advance of the enemy, who
were driven back. We lost eight men killed at Cannon
Kopje. On Nov. 3rd, a brickfield was captured by us
and the Boer sharpshooters were driven off'. The vic-
tories in Natal were celebrated on Guy Fawkes Day by
a display of fireworks. On the 7th, a sortie and retreat
drew the enemy within range of our rifles in the
trenches, and the burghers suffered for their blunder in
killed and wounded.

In this way the siege had its variety. Church bells on
Sunday, with a band playing in the square, amateur
photographers taking snapshots, and Divine service.
Then on week days, booming shells now and again,

136 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

keeping every one above ground in jeopardy. 300 shells
fell in 36 hours on the 24th and 25th of October.
Sometimes Mauser bullets whistled through the street
as customers went shopping, or as you sat down to
dinner, a shell six inches in diameter and 23 in length,
might crush into your home.

Among the pastimes was the publication daily of " The
Mafeking Mail" — a special siege slip; the terms for it
were i/- per week, " payable in advance." It contained
" General Orders by Col. R. S. S. Baden-Powell, Com-
manding Frontier Force," and in one number we see the
garrison was allowed the use of paper money for lack of
coin.

It was noticed that when, after the 24th of November,
Cronje moved to another scene of operations, his suc-
cessor. Commander Snyman, shifted some of the guns,
and a shell entered Riesle's Hotel, knocking over some
war correspondents playing billiards. On the 2nd of
December a Mauser bullet struck Mr. Warnes, chemist,
in his dispensary, wounding him in the shoulder.

Pushing our trenches forward by counter-sapping, our
sharpshooters on the east side of the town got within
range of the big gun and could punish its crew. Eventu-
ally the earth-redoubts extended for seven miles round
the town and thus afforded greater protection.

The enemy's scouts at one time got so close that a
stone-throwing contest took place, and one Sunday a
Tommy Atkins playing a concertina as a lure, and on
the Sabbath I a music-loving Boer put his head out of
his trench, and whiz ! a shot goes through his brain, or
rather a part of his skull is blown away.

On another Sunday, our men, sitting upon the parapets,
held a friendly conversation with a detachment of the
enemy, and an enterprising photographer endeavoured to
get them into line while he photographed them, but they
were evidently suspicious and feared that the temptation
to turn a Maxim upon them instead of the camera would
prove too great.

On March loth, we were informed — *' Since the Boers
moved their siege gun, ' Big Ben,' back to its old position
on the east side of the town, only about three shots have
been fired from it, making 1,180 shells fired by this gun
alone, and the total weight of metal thrown sixty tons."

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 37

This weapon was the scourge of the place, and many
instances of its mischief are recorded, such as that when
a native was struck and fell headlong down the steps
leading to Mr. Welsh's underground offices. The steps
were drenched with blood. The poor man had a leg'
ripped open and smashed from the groin to the knee.
He died in the hospital next day.

Tropical thunderstorms, with heavy showers, intensi-
fied the horrors, when the gunners and riflemen were
flooded out of their trenches and the bomb-proof shelters
and the women's laager became untenable.

Christmas was kept as cheerily as was possible under
such circumstances, and the officers drank the toast, in
champagne — ** Peace on earth to men and good will in
Mafeking !" — which seems odd in a condition of war.
In the afternoon a committee headed by Lady Sarah
Wilson provided a Christmas Tree for the children, to
enjoy which they had to leave their dark holes and the
women's compound. The Boers, being Christians, also
observed the day in meditation on the " herald angels"
and the birth of the Prince of Peace I

As if to compensate for the day's inactivity there was
on the morrow a stiff fight at Game Tree Fort, which
we found impregnable — the entrance to it only admitted
one person at a time — and we beat a retreat with the
loss of 21 killed and 33 wounded.

Among the dead were Captains Vernon and Sandford
and Lieut. Paton. New Year's day was not a holiday.
The Boers cruelly shelled the women's enclosure, killing
a little girl and wounding two other children. In
January the convent was once more shelled despite its
flag, and Lady Wilson was wounded. As the shelling
of the women's quarters continued, and Commandant
Snyman took no notice of protests, Powell let him know
that some Boer prisoners would be placed there, and
that of the 400 females in the laager half were Dutch.
Spies have been the pests of the British officers every-
where, and on one occasion when these Dutch women
arranged to sleep elsewhere there came a storm of shells
among the British women left behind, at which their
Holland sisters clapped their hands and laughed with
delight, it is said.

138 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

After three months the food supplies became a seri-
ous question, and there was issued an order that what-
ever horses were shot were to be handed over to the
commissariat for "beef" and soup — though mules were
preferred as nearer Bovine flavour. Four biscuits and
a piece of horseflesh became a soldier's day's rations, and
the poor people had to be fed by a relief committee.
Disease and privation began to fill the graveyard near
the women's refuge and there was much weeping and
sorrow. The sufferers wanted to know why no relief
column came to their rescue. All they heard was that
Colonel Plumer, with a little column of irregulars (under
1,000) from Tuli, in Rhodesia, 400 miles away, was
slowly approaching, and after months of marching and
hindrances many, they heard in March that he was
actually at Lobatsi, only 40 miles away; then on the
31st that he was within six miles, having just lost seven
officers and men.

There was no help from the nearest places, Vryburg,
the capital of Bechuanaland, 96 miles southward, offered
no resistance to the invaders. Seeing that neither the
Police nor the volunteers were prepared to stand a
siege. Major Scott, the British commandant thfere, shot
himself. But at Kuruman, 80 miles west of the Cape
railway, Mr. Hilliard, the magistrate, barricading the his-
toric mission chapel, held it with a handful of men for
two months till he was overpowered, and had to sur-
render, with 112 men, who were removed as prisoners.

By the end of March the bread was both darker and
scarcer, yet there was soup for everybody who needed
it ; and to entertain the inhabitants there was an exhi-
bition of paintings, sketches, photographs, musical,
poetical and prose compositions, &c., done during the
siege. The same day there was a meeting of the Town
Council and Chamber of Commerce for the considera-
tion of applications for compensation by the inhabitants
for losses incurred through the siege. The estimated
damage to houses was ;^ioo,ooo, and other losses
;^ioo,ooo, while the compensation claimed by the muni-
cipality was ;^5o,ooo. Scarcely a house had escaped
damage, a few were entirely destroyed, and yet the
loss of life had been small, considering that some 1,400
94-pound shells and several thousand smaller projectiles

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 39

had burst in the streets, sending lethal particles over an
area of 400 yards.

In a letter to Colonel Powell, the petitioners pointed
out these results of the siege which had lasted ^to
March 27) for 166 days, during which the male in-
habitants had borne arms for the defence of the town.
The fact was stated that in many cases they had be-
come destitute, and wanted to be assured of compensa-
tion in order by some means to recommence business
when relief came. In forwarding this document to the
Commander-in-Chief, the Colonel gave a full recommend-
ation for its favourable consideration.

Jan Cronje, son of the St. Helena prisoner, was now
in command of the besiegers, and hearing of the ap-
proach of the relief columns from the north and south he
withdrew his forces beyond rifle fire of the British, who
mounted a gun on a trench evacuated.

Colonel Plumer, arriving with 270 mounted Infantry
and a Maxim at Ramathlabama, advanced to within
sight of Mafeking and had an hour's fight with the
Boers, but had to fall back on his base with three
officers and seven men killed, three officers and 24 men
wounded and eleven missing, in addition to which a
number of horses were killed and wounded. The Colonel
was slightly injured. One of his Lieutenants (an accom-
plished scout) managed to enter the town with a message
— the first white visitor for six months.

By the end of April Lady S. Wilson's letters to the
press became more pathetic. The signs of semi-starva-
tion increased — those originally fat became lean and
gaunt, faces were white and bony. Oat bran porridge
produced sickness.

But there was no yielding. The bullets and shells of
the enemy were collected and re-cast as shots, and even
a new cannon was attempted. On one occasion a num-
ber of hungry Fingoes, intent on raiding the Boers'
cattle, were led by two Baralongs into a trap and all but
one were killed.

The want of discipline in the ranks of Boer volun-
teers was manifested nearly every day by the wilful des-
truction of property and life which could not afiect the
purpose of the investment.

Thus parties of native women and children were

140 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

allowed by patrols to creep through the Boer lines in
order to return to their homes, some of these fine sen-
tries receiving bribes as low as eighteenpence ; then on
April 9th, when thirteen black women went out, instead
of being challenged, the " pious" Dutchmen fired upon
them at fifty paces, killing ten and wounding two others.
The massacre was reported to Snyman.

In April some of the natives and whites were glad to eat
locusts, which come in swarms like bees and settle on the
vegetation. All food in the town was now commandeered,
and nothing sold over the counter. Happily the whole-
sale houses had got in large stocks in preparation for the
siege. Mr. Ben Weil, up to April 20, had supplied the
town and authorities with 409 tons of food stuffs, (2,000
lb. to a ton) ; raw produce (meal, flour, grain, and fodder,
1,225 tons) ; spirits, wines, and beer, 17,302 gallons — alto-
gether 1,728 tons of goods. As for fresh meat, the natives
occasionally raided the Boer cattle and thus helped the
supply. Whisky was 8/- a case, and 1/6 a tot ; a glass of
beer 2/-, a small bottle of stout 5/-, and gin 12/- a bottle.

On the 21st of April a case of whisky was raffled for and
fetched ;^io8, and a fowl fetched 30/-. A pound of flour,
sold by aucflion, realised two guineas, which was given to
the nursing sisters.

There were at this time 1,900 persons on the daily
rations list, and every one was eating horse flesh.

The bombardment became very uncertain, and when
the Commandant was away brandy-drinking Boers spent
a good part of the day in sleep. The monster gun had
sent 1,300 shells, and when these loo-pounders did not
burst they were sold for as much as £^. Three men, who
did not understand them, were blown to pieces in trying
to unload these awful bombs, and others were killed and
wounded.

During the day-time the town had a deserted appear-
ance. It was between sunset and moonrise that women
ventured from the warrens and scurried to the shops —
that men drove through the dusty streets the mules and
goats from the veldt for the watering. Even as you
sought the shelter of your home for sleep, that refinement
of Boer cruelty, the night gun, might make you jump.

Snyman made an abortive attack on the south-western
outposts on May ist, and shelled Mackenzie Fort for two

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I4I

hours, to no purpose; but on Saturday morning, the 12th,
a remarkable thing happened — the besiegers got into the
town; it was the final desperate attempt, and it failed.
No doubt it was caused by the news of the approach of
the relief column.

It was 4 a.m., and a fine, starlit, though moonless morn-
ing, when the town was aroused by an unusual fusilade
on the east side — a feint. The garrison bugle and the
church bell summoned the Town Guard to the redoubts,
and the fight began.

Led by two rebel deserters some 300 men had, under
cover of the darkness, crept along the Molopo river, and
rushing the piquets, had entered the Baralong stadt or
location, and at 5-30 there arose a lurid glare, which
speedily increased. They burnt the native kraals, a mile
in length. On they came, and our men did not fire. We
had learnt a lesson from them in trapping. Some of them,
shouted, " Come out, you skulkers ; we are going to take
Mafeking," when a comrade, spying danger, called out,
" Run, run, here are the rooineks," at which the braggarts
tried to retreat, but were cut off by the fire from the forts
on either side. The Dutch pressed 150 foreigners into the
laager, some were penned up in a stone kraal, and another
lot hid in a hollow behind a kopje, while a braver party
rushed the camp close to the railway in the town, and
seized the old fort held by 15 men of the Protectorate
Regiment, who mistaking the Boers for Britons did not
fire. Then the excited invaders raised a cheer and even
telephoned to B.P.'s head-quarters — "I am a Boer; we
have taken Mafeking!" "Have you indeed!" was the
laconic reply, and the wire was disconnecfted. Each of
the attackers had three bandoliers (equal to 300 rounds of
ammunition), and food and water for three days.

B.P. gave them the option of surrendering, which they
declined, so the fight went on all day. Major Godley took
25 prisoners in the stadt, and another party were allowed
to escape. Those who were surrounded in the fort tried
to make off, but most of them were captured, including
Commandant Sarel ElofF, Kruger's grandson, Baron de
Bremont, Captain Vom Weiss, and several field cornets —
in all ten officers; seventeen out of the no prisoners were
Frenchmen, and several were Germans. Ten of the
enemy were left killed and nineteen wounded, others were

142 HISTORY O'F THE BOER WAR.

dragged away at nightfall. We lost four killed and six
wounded. The town was wild with delight at the vidlory.
Eloff dined with Powell, who was now promoted to the
rank of Major-General.

Appended is a summary of the casualties in Mafeking
since October i2, when the siege commenced, to the end
of February, 1900, as officially given by Mr. Ronald
Moncrieff, extra A.D.C. : —

Combatants.

Officers. Men. Total.

Killed and died of wounds... 6 ... 53 ... 59

Wounded 11 ... 90 ... loi

Missing i ... 36 ... 37

Died of sickness o ... 8 ... 8

Totals 18 ... 187 ... 205

Civilians, Non-Combatants, and Natives.

Killed ...
Wounded

Women and
Men. Children.
... 2 ... 4
... 6 ... 3

Natives.
34
95

Total.
,. 40
.. 104

Totals

... 8 ... 7

Grand Total: 349.

129

,. 144

CHAPTER XXIV.

THE RELIEF OF MAFEKING.

BADEN-POWELL had agreed to stand the siege to
the end of May if necessary, and reported cheerfully
as to the health of the place and the spirits of the garrison,
but the newspaper correspondence was an appeal to
British sympathy. And it was felt that while the Queen
did well to send a kindly word of cheer and hope, the
British army, then within 300 miles, ought not to subject
the beleaguered to such protraifled miseries.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 143

With the opening of May came •' signs " of relief from
Kimberley and Warrenton (30 miles nearer), where Gen.
Sir A. Hunter, with 10,000 men, was using a 6-inch wire
gun that threw a 100 lb. shell seven and a half miles into
the Boer laagers. The passage of the Vaal at Windsorton
without opposition, gained a town of 800 inhabitants, 32
miles north of Kimberley.

Twenty-one miles further north on the same side of
the river we had to reckon with the foe at Fourteen
Streams, facing Warrenton, where on the opposite side of
the water a British force was located, and at Boshof, 35
miles south-east of Windsorton, was a fairly large force
under Lord Methuen (chiefly Yeomanry^ who had been
bivouacked there for some time as if enjoying a picnic.

About here the Dutch farmers are low-type squatters
who had saved themselves by returning to their farms
after the Cape rising, and some of them fought at
Magersfontein. The English emigrants thought these
swaggering Dutch were treated too kindly.

However the present display of British force might
teach them wisdom. On the 4th of May the Boers'
position, four miles long, was attacked by our Natal
troops, and the grand Imperial Yeomanry (the swell
brigade) had a baptism of fire, under Colonel Meyrick.
Ridge after ridge was taken, and the burghers, having
lost by death and wounds considerably, were chased
for miles to Warrenton, where Paget's brigade smote
them hip and thigh. Quite 3,000 Boers trekked north-
ward, losing 40 horses to Munster rifles — which is as
good perhaps as shooting the Boer for without a nag he
cannot take the field. The enemy left thirteen killed
and wounded on the ground, besides clothing, ammuni-
tion, and personal effects, showing that we had paid them
a surprise visit, and that to escape worse consequences,
they had evacuated in haste from the position they had
held for months. They made for Christiana, a railway
station about 20 miles in the Transvaal. We captured
several prisoners.

The British now joined hands on both sides of the
Vaal. Lord Methuen made a reconnaissance in force
from Boshof in the direction of Swartzkoptefontein, and
bis patrols had a skirmish, but seeing the northward

144 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

trek of the enemy he returned. The Yeomanry, who be-
haved well in the encounter at Fourteen Streams, were
now committed to an exciting forward march in the
Transvaal, parallel with and loo miles from the army at
Smaldeel.

Speculation became right as to the quarter whence
Mafeking's salvation should come.

A mystic relief column, advancing along the Bechu-
analand railway had, it was said, reached Vryburg by
May gth. It was a flying column of cavalry ^nd infantry,
3000 strong, with a battery of six guns. From Wind-
sorton, the distance covered since Friday, May 4th, was
93 miles. Then nothing more was heard for a week as to
the deliverers.

General Hunter's loth Division had Hart and Barton
as Brigadiers, with Col. Murray commanding the
Colonials, Major Reade being Chief Staff Officer. This
column operating on the west of the Free State, assisted
in clearing the Boers from the borders, and so acted on
the relief of the too-long imprisoned citizens, but Archie's
destination was then uncertain. After taking possession of
Christiana, he put a brigade in charge of the place with-
out encountering any opposition, and found it necessary
to return to Fourteen Streams. Another disappointment.

The keen suspense and mystery gave place, on the
night of the i8th of May, to a thrill of delight that
spread by means of the telegraph to every part of the
globe in a few hours — it was the very day Bobs had
promised it. And yet it was only a bare Renter's tele-
gram of one sentence, on which the national delirium
rested, and there had been hoaxes before. From Pretoria
at 11-35 a- ni- flashed the news: — "It is officially
announced that when the laagers and forts around
Mafeking had been severely bombarded the siege was
abandoned by the Boers." This reached London at
9-17 p.m. By 10-30 came a wire that the news had
reached Toronto, Canada. The 218 days' siege was
really over and the brave garrison and plucky inhabi-
tants were being succoured ! The same night came a
gleam of explanation — *' A British force advancing from
the south then took possession of the town." So it
was that flying column whom nobody had seen who
could speak with authority, that had arrived in the nick

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I45

of time. And imagination pictured Col. Plumer rushing
in from the neighbourhood of Ootsi with hampers and
boxes of food, the feast that the ravenous people would
have, and the merry-makings.

The long heroic struggle and dogged resistance to over-
powering numbers, the daily watchful fight, and patient
suffering had won the heart of Britons everywhere, and
when the joy bells rang, the flags fluttered, the fire-
works were discharged, the bonfires were lit, the illumina-
tions burst out, and the wild shouts of gladness were
raised in every jubilating parish in England almost, and
in distant colonies, it was a striking proof of that one-
ness of heart that binds a great nation in patriotic
sympathy.

It was Colonel Bryan Thos. Mahon, D. S. O., of the
8th Hussars, who was entrusted with the relief. He is
a Kitchener-man, and an Irishman, under 40, who
received his commission in 1883 and was transferred to
the Egyptian Army in 1896.

His composite flying column of 2,300 picked men
mcluded the Imperial Light Horse, from Ladysmith,
a Kimberley Mounted corps, a large body of infantry
from the Fusilier brigade, with Royal artillery guns
and pom poms, and a special equipment of 35 light-
springed mule transport. Among the officers were Prince
Alexander of Teck, Sir John Willoughby, Col. F. Rhodes
and Major Baden-Powell, brother of the gallant hero.

Starting on May 4th from Kimberley, they reached
Barkley when Hunter was engaging the Boers in the dis-
trict of Fourteen Streams. Vryburg was reached unop-
posed on May 9th, 130 miles being covered in five
days. At this pleasant village the loyal subjects hailed
the military with delight.

The column moved parallel to the enemy's Vaal
positions at Rooidam and Fourteen Streams, and were
so close that on the Sunday and Monday General
Hunter's balloon was visible and his bombardment heard.
The route thence was by the Hart river, abreast of
Taungs, where a dozen Zarps scuttled from the fort,
Pudimoe, Roodepoort, to Vryburg. After a rest it
started at 5 p. m., on May loth, and marched 21 miles.
Then a bivouac from 2 p. ra. to dawn. Monjani Mabili
was gained by breakfast time, Lieut. Moorsome, of the

J

146 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Protectorate Regiment, who had, with hairbreadth
escapes, eluded the Boers from Mafeking, had paid
Col. Plumer a visit at Ootsi, 20 miles from the
besiegers, and joined the relief column after a daring
ride of 300 miles.

Leaving Setladgai on Sunday at sunrise a western
detour was made to avoid Koodoosrand and a strong
force of Boers. As the column neared Jammasibi on
May 15th, Col. Plumer, with his plucky Rhodesian
troops, joined hands, and some Canadian Artillery from
Bulawayo, who had not before been heard of in this
direction, came to the rendezvous.

The south column had done 223 miles in ten days from
the jump off at Greefputs, the previous 34 miles from
Kimberley having been effected in easy stages.

The reinforcements were in the nick of time, for the
next day there was a fight of five hours — from three to
dusk — with 1,300 Boers.

The combined forces moved along the Molopo valley,
being about twenty miles from Mafeking. Soon some
of the enemy's scouts were seen, and a force of 500
. under a son of General Cronje, it was said. A mile
east of Saane's village, and within ten miles of Mafe-
king, we halted for watering the horses and cattle, and
to get ready for any possible resistance.

Boer activity was observed on the hills, and in two
hours we resumed the march. The Boers took up a
position on our right and Col. Plumer was sent with six
squadrons and some guns to check the enemy's advance.
The Boers had several guns on the south side of the river,
and started shelling our transport, and the waggon train
was therefore sent up a valley to the north east. Col.
Edwards' south column joined the left brigade and became
engaged, and the artillery were soon in action. The Boer
riflemen spread out on Plumer's right flank, and with
a pom-pom for a time enfiladed us. The British
South Africa Police acted independently on the right
bank of the Molopo, and did well, though being nearer
the enemy they suffered more from the shelling, but the
Rhodesian Regiment had the most casualties. A gun
shifted some Boers from the river bed and others from
two farm houses. After dark a farm house on the
north bank was occupied by the Fusiliers, who came

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR, t47

up as the Boers were crossing a drift to the south west
with their transport waggons. The Fusihers fired into
the train, killed several mules, and captured a waggon
load of pom-pom ammunition. Our casualties were six
killed and twenty-one wounded. The Boers left thirty
dead on the field and removed others.

The column continued in a north-easterly direction on
the Boers trekking, and encamped at 9 p. m. Then at
12-30 we were in motion again, due e^ist, our colonials
well knowing the ground, the waggons and guns being
flanked by mounted men. We halted several times as
we approached our destination and when within three
miles of it we struck the road direct to the town.

The enemy was non est. The defeat of the assault on
the I2th had disheartened the Boers, or perhaps, as
reported, Snyman jealous of ElofF, like Ajax sulking in
his tent, had abandoned that dashing young man to his
fate. Whatever the cause, at 7-30 on the night of
Wednesday, May i6th, Major Karri-Davis and eight
scouts of the Imperial Light Horse, galloped into the
town — now expecting the deliverance, but it was not till
Thursday morning that the advance guard of the column
came — a party of Cape Police under Major Berange, fol-
lowed by the rest of the force at nine o'clock, who pitched
tents on the polo ground within our trenches.

And as they marched in, what a mighty cheer went up
from the British volunteers who had saved the town from
the besiegers for six long weary months, and the civilians
joined in the happy ebullition of gratitude with no less
enthusiasm.

A sortie was at once made by some of the brave
colonials who had stood the siege and other colonials
who had just arrived, and were weary with marching
and firing.

An armoured train with a detachment pushed out to
Game Tree Fort, and shelled the besiegers from their
head laager, almost capturing Commandant Snyman.
They took a gun, flag, and a large amount of ammuni-
tion, stores, &c., — the food being very acceptable to the
half-starved people of the town. Twenty dead and fifteen
wounded Boers were found in the laager and near by.
From their housetops the delighted inhabitants of the
town witnessed the rout of their tormentors.

148 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Thus was the siege raised at 4 a.m. on the 17th of
May. When the men returned from the chase, the
town guard formed up in the Market Square for a march-
past of the reUef force, amidst the enthusiasm of the
assembled populace.

On Friday, Thanksgiving and Memorial Services were
held close to the cemetery and afterwards Col. Baden-
Powell impressively addressed the garrison, giving them
every credit for their devotion to duty ; then three volleys
were fired over the graves of the fallen comrades.

After the *♦ last post " was played, the National
Anthem was sung by the multitude.

Provisions first arrived by rail from the north on May
24th, while the line southward was repaired with all
despatch. The supplies on the 24th were received at
the railway station with popular enthusiasm.

Lady Curzon, sister of Lady Sarah Wilson, had col-
lected ;^i 2,000 in London, for the relief of the sufferers,
and she telegraphed to B. P. that he could at once
spend ;^3,ooo in urgent cases of destitution.

The total casualties of the siege were — white officers,
Skilled, 15 wounded, i missing; white non-commissioned
officers and men 61 killed and 103 wounded, 26 missing;
j6 died of disease and 5 wounded accidentally. Col-
oured combatants, 25 killed, 58 wounded. Non-com-
batants, white, 4 killed and 5 wounded, 32 died of disease.
Of the natives 64 were killed and 117 wounded.

Major Edwards was appointed commissioner.

Major General Baden-Powell, glad to be relieved pur-
sued the enemy into the Transvaal.

The first train from the south since the siege began
entered on June 9th, and the cheers of the engineers it
contained were responded to by the inhabitants. The
sick and wounded were sent to the Cape on the nth.

The universal joy expressed at the relief of this little
out-of-the-way place is easily explained. To quote Ian
Maclaren —

Whether Mafeking stood or fell was a matter of no
substantial importance to either side, and yet its stand-
ing, I will dare to say, is the bitterest disappointment our
enemy has had, and its splendid defence the chief pride
of this war for our country.
The defence of J^Iafeking is not to be estimated by

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I49

figures which can be placed upon paper, but by that
spirit of manhood which is the glory of a nation. This
achievement recalls the charge of the Light Brigade,
and the Siege of Lucknow, and the sinking of the Birk'
enhead, and the defence of Rorke's Drift.

The heroism of Baden-Powell and his volunteer army
is one of those incidents which quickens the pulse of a
nation, and lifts it above itself; which raises the stand-
ard of heroism and enriches its history. Our admiration
is freely distributed between the ingenuity, and skill,
and resources of the commander, and the bravery, and
loyalty, and endurance, not only of his men, but also of
the people in the beleagured place. But i dare to think
that the chief meed of our respect is awarded to the
spirit in which that gallant soldier and his comrades did
their part. They not only fought and toiled, and kept
watch, and suffered hunger, but they did it all with a
high heart, without grumbling or complaining, with un-
affected cheerfulness and pleasant jesting, as if this were
rather a comedy than a tragedy.

No whining message beseeching for relief, came from
them any more than from Ladysmith, but they made
the best of things and went on with their sports, and
pretended that they were in no danger, and declared
that, come what may, they would see that the English
flag was kept flying.

They carried themselves like Britons of the old breed,
who neither boast nor whine, and because they played
the game and played up well, and played to the end,
and by the will of God have won, we honour them and
count the country richer this day for them. And the
whole nation, from our old men to our boys, has
received another lesson in the old-fashioned English
virtue of pluck.

150 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XXV.

FROM KROONSTAD TO THE CITY OF GOLD.

LORD ROBERTS, after a ten days' halt, resumed his
march, the third week in May, by way of Honing*s
Spruit and Rhenoster river. Ian Hamilton had a series
of engagements with Commandant De Wet before gain-
ing Heilbron, where Steyn had temporally set up his
seat of government.

Broadwood on the way captured fifteen Boer waggons.
The enemy had made entrenchments, and damaged the
railway. General French, crossing the river to the north
west, made their position untenable though they were
12,000 strong, with fifteen guns.

We were now 55 miles from Kroonstad, and on the
24th gained Vredefort road, seven miles further, our
march being threatened by the damage of the railway
for two miles, which took several days to repair, but we
did not wait for that.

On the Queen's birthday the advance guard of the
main army crossed the Vaal near Parys, and Lord
Roberts encamped at Vereeniging on the northern bank
on the 27th. The rapid advance saved the coal mines
there from destruction. Our troops having temporally
withdrawn from Heilbron, Lieut. Webber, R.E., going
there on telegraph duty (not knowing of this) was
detained by the Boers, who had returned ; thus show-
ing the need of every town taken being garrisoned as
the army advanced. This depletion of the advancing
force was made up by reinforcements continually arriv-
ing from England.

By taking Germiston, eight miles east of Johannes-
burg, on the 29th of May the centre advance obtained
control of all the railways, with the exception of the
lines diverging from Pretoria northward to Pietersburg
and east to Delagoa Bay. French and Ian Hamilton
hastened forward to " cut" these lines too, by which all
supplies from the coast would be in our hands.

When our entrance into the Transvaal was found to

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 15I

be almost unopposed, it became clearer that the burgh-
ers generally were sick of the fight. It was literally a
daily chase of the flying Dutchmen.

Lord Roberts reached Klip river station on May 28,
without encountering a foeman, but French and Ian
Hamilton, working in conjunction on the left, had a
tussle, using long range guns to clear some hills of Boers
who lingered. Once more, however, we were just in time
to be too late at Klip river station, for the Boers got a
train with five guns started out of the station as the .
West Australian troopers dashed up.

Several significant events at this juncture seemed to
portend the near approach of the end, so far as the
grand march was concerned.

On the 27th of May the annexation of the Orange
Free State, under the style of the Orange River State,
was announced by the Commander-in-Chief, and the
President of the Transvaal proclaimed that all burghers
should observe three days of prayer and humiliation.
At the same time it was said a special train, with steam
up, was kept in the siding of the railway at Pretoria
for " emergencies," 36 boxes of bullion, insured at ;^6,50o
per box, were consigned by the Boer Treasury to the
Netherland bank in Holland, (whither the executive had
been sending money weekly for some time), and some of
the principal Boer and other families were running
away.

It was indeed a case of panic, and the question of
the hour at the capital was — would it not be wise to
capitulate unconditionally rather than risk further
slaughter, damage to property, and serious penalties
and punishment when the Conqueror took over the reins
of government in a few days ? What said the com-
manders, asked Kruger, and their counsel was divided.
The unpleasant duty of surrendering was shirked as
long as possible, and yet the commanders had farms
they would like to keep intact. How to save honour
and property, and escape the pains and penalties of
taking up arms against Her Majesty's Government, was
the moot point anxiously debated.

As the Boers fled from the British on the elevated
plateau of the Rand and went in the direction of Dela-
goa, the Portuguese authorities became alarmed and pro-

152 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

ceeded to defend their borders at Ressans Garcia, while
Komati Bridge was held by Cape rebels.

In the last three days of May great events pressed on
each other's heels, with sensational effect.

The fact that the British head quarters were at Ger-
miston on the Elandsfontein Junction, (which was taken
after a short encounter with Boers), settled the fate both
of Johannesburg and Pretoria by commanding the rail-
ways to the coast, excepting that to Marques, and the
logic of the situation led both to the surrender of
Johannesburg and to the flight of the Pretorian Execu*
tive on the 29tfe.

French tightened the cordon by working round to the
west and north of the " city of the gold reef," and was
soon half way on the road to Pretoria, which is 33
miles from Johannesburg, while other troops, with bat-
teries, surrounded the latter town, clearing the ridges of
the dauntless remnants of Botha's army.

Ian Hamilton with the 19th and 20th Brigades of
Infantry, and two 5 inch and some field guns of the 76th
Battery, was also to the fore, fighting his way at Gat's
Rand and Van Wyk's Ruit and on to Florida station,
ten miles east of the city, and the Gordons and City
Imperial Volunteers had the honour of giving the coup
de grace to the defence.

Pole-Carew was also busy to the east. He surprised
the last train that was leaving Elandsfontein for P.re-
toria, and stopped it, when the Boers bolted from it across
the country. Several hundred of them ran into a gold
mine, where the Grenadiers held them prisoners.

General Ian Hamilton's column on Monday advanced
to Syferfontein. General French, after passing through a
gap in the line of hills facing the Klip River, demonstrated
ahead with guns and mounted troops, drawing a strong
artillery fire.

On Tuesday General Hamilton, with General French,
reinforced by General Broadwood's mounted force in
advance, moved west to Zuurbekom waterworks, which
were reached at one o'clock, and then struck north with
Roodepoort as the objecftive. The enemy's flank was
reached by a turning movement developed by General
French, the joint force then proceeding towards Krugers-
dorp. At three o'clock one field battery and a handful of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 153

City Imperial Volunteers opened fire on some Boers in a
wood on the left front. The battle began suddenly. The
enemy were discovered barring the way to Roodepoort
and Florida, six miles away, and though they were 6,000
strong, with six guns and pom-poms, it was necessary for
us to fight to clear the road. The 21st brigade advanced
on Roodepoort in front, the City Imperial Volunteers in
the centre leading, the Derbyshire Regiment on the left,
and the Cameron Highlanders on the right. The Sussex
Regiment, originally in reserve, were then skilfully moved,
and soon afterwards the 19th brigade, with the Canadians
on the left, the Gordon Highlanders in the centre, the
Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry on the right, and the
Shropshire Light Infantry in reserve, also advanced to
take the main Boer position, while the 21st brigade acted
as an outflanking force.

The advance was gradual to the Boer position, which
was a strong one, with many natural inequalities. The
ground beside was blackened by grass fires, against which
the khaki made an excellent mark. Our guns made good
pracflice at long range, and towards half-past four they
had a tight grip on the Boers, and were then brought
closer. The Gordons charged with the bayonet with
superb unconcern, and carried the main position, but with
70 casualties. The pelting volleys of the City Imperial
Volunteers cleared the enemy immediately in front of
Roodepoort, the Boers under Gen. Delarey making their
final flight just as darkness was falling.

The behaviour of the City Imperial Volunteers and their
readmess in taking cover were excellent, though they were
enfiladed by a pom pom from a kopje on the right. The
Boers evacuated the entire position at nightfall, and thus
Johannesburg lay open to General Hamilton, who bivou-
acked on the ground taken. On Wednesday, General
Hamilton advanced to Maraisburg, and cut the railway to
Potchefstroom, while General French encircled the north
side of Johannesburg.

On that day Lord Roberts sent a flag of truce with
staff officers to summon the commandant (Dr. Krause) to
surrender Johannesburg, and that gentleman paid Bobs a
friendly visit in consequence. He promised, to surrender,
but asked that the entrance into the town might be
deferred for twenty-four hours, as there were many armed

154 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

burghers still inside. These were said to be Blake's
Ruffians (the Irish squad, whose mission was brigandage).

Lord Roberts agreed to the proposal, because he was
" most anxious to avoid the possibility of anything like a
disturbance inside the town, and as bodies of the enemy
are still holding hills in the immediate neighbourhood,
from which they will have to be cleared off beforehand."
It is not difficult to read into the meaning of all this. The
Johannesburg people, or some part of them, had had a
notion of resisting, and only the overwhelming strength of
the British induced them to change their minds. Even
yet there v/as fear that if the British entered on terms of
surrender some burgher might let off his rifle, and under
circumstances of such tension a few rifle shots might
occasion terrible effects.

The next afternoon the British cavalcade entered the
desolate place, and the Imperial flag raised on the Gov-
ernment buildings, (the flag made by Lady Roberts),
announced its occupation in the name of the Queen. Dr.
Krause met Lord Roberts at the entrance to the town, and
rode by his side to the Government offices, where he intro-
duced the Field Marshal to the heads of the several
departments, all of whom acceded to the request that they
should continue in their duties until relieved of them. A
large crowd of people assembled in the main square before
the Court-house, and the balconies of the houses were filled
with ladies.

A headstrong official had run up the Vierkleur or
national colour on the masthead in front of the Court-
house, but after the official surrender the Union Jack took
its place, with the customary drums and fifes playing, the
salute, and cheers. The cheering had been a continuous
ovation, and could be heard before Lord Roberts entered
the town. He looked calm and colledled, and frequently
acknowledged the greeting by salutes.

The tumult was such that the troops in the square had
difficulty in keeping a space open for the Commander-in-
Chief and his staff. The women, who waved their hand-
kerchiefs, in their frantic agitation pressed the flanks of
the troopers' horses to catch a sight of the Boer chiefs
doffing their hats to the vicflorious flag.

The enthusiasm of the populace found vent in singing
the National Anthem, and some of the soldiers sang —

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 55

"We're marching on Pretoria,
It belongs to Queen Victoria."

At the end of this significant ceremony, the nth and 7th
Divisions marched past, with the Naval brigade, the
heavy artillery, and two brigades of Royal Field Artillery.
It was a sight to impress the thousands of Dutchmen pre-
sent with a sense of Britain's military might, for these
regiments of healthy, bronzed, bearded stalwarts on fine
chargers, with flashing swords, had the firm determined
expression of vi(5tors.

The force marched through the town, to a pleasure
resort, called Orange Grove, three miles distant, on the
Pretoria road, where Lord Roberts made the village inn
his head-quarters, and where, in the evening, an officer
found him with the landlord's little daughter on his knee,
teaching her the letters of the alphabet with a pencil. In
his jocular way, he said to the intruder, *' Don't come
now ; can't you see I'm busy."

The 14th (Wavell's) brigade was left in Johannesburg to
support Major Davis, of the Grenadier Guards, as Chief
of Police, and Col. Mackenzie as Governor of the town.

During the fighting round the locality on the previous
day, the Queenslanders captured a creusot gun and wag-
gon, eleven waggons of military stores and ammunition,
and took a commandant Botha (of Zontfansberg), his
field cornet, and 100 belligerents as prisoners, including
some foreign mercenaries and Irish Fenians.

To cover 112 miles in a week from Kroonstad was
excellent work, considering the need of caution and the
tardy progress of oxen waggon transports. A few parti-
culars here as to the feedmg and other supplies of the
army may give the reader a better idea of the task set
our gallant soldiers.

The Army Service Corps consisted of several thou-
sands of experts, labourers, and others. At the depots
you might see a long line of corrugated iron storehouses
packed to the roofs. Everywhere lay, piled, neat, white-
wood cases, stamped with curious signs and devices.
There would be jam from Australia, and preserved meat
from Canada and the States; Indian packages of grain
and goor, atta and choosa for the supply of multitudes of
coolies; tobacco from America, and champagne and port

156 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

and roast fowls for the invalids ; groceries and preserved
vegetables galore from Woolwich; mountain ranges of
hay, flanked by pyramids of oat sacks and ramparts of
bran and meal.

There were several reception bases for distribution.
Under Table Mountain sun-baked, wind-swept Capetown
acted as Base No. i, and from it runs a twisting line of
railway through the old Dutch townships of Stellenbosch
and Paal, through the mighty ravines in the Hext River
Mountains, to the open country by Magersfontein and
Beaufort West, to sandy De Aar, thence to Kimberley
and the Orange Free State.

Base No. 2 was at busy commercial Port Elizabeth,
in the mighty sweep of Algoa Bay, and from it runs a
line through Uitenhage and Graaf Reinet to Naauwpoort
Junction, deserted of Heaven, and on by shattered Nor-
val's Pont bridge to Springfontein. There it is joined
by a second line from East London (Base No. 3) that
winds through the hilly country about Stormberg and
Burghersdorp.

From Springfontein a single line passes on across the
open veldt to Bloemfontein, Brandfort, and so on to
Kroonstad and Pretoria. Guarding the lines, garrison-
ing the capital, and dashing forward was a mihtary
strength of some 100,000 men, for whom 500,000 tons of
goods were forwarded. The regaining of the mountain
passes of Newcastle, with Lang's Nek, gave a short cut
to the Rand from Durban.

Higher up the coast, past the Portuguese port of
Lorenzo Marques (supposed to be neutral and inter-
dicted from contraband), there was the open port of
Beira, a wretched ditch of mud flats, whence rations
followed Carrington's mounted Colonials.

Difficult as the slim narrow single metals were, worse
troubles commenced when these were left behind, and
transport was by the road. Then 300 officials, 2,700
butchers, bakers, &c., with 7,000 native drivers, had
charge of goo horses, 15,000 mules, and 25,000 oxen in
pulling and hauling 2,800 waggons and 350 other vehi-
cles over the desert sands.

Yet men wrote home grumbling that the little comforts
forwarded — tobacco, newspapers and such like — did not

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 157

reach them with proper postal despatch, in this thou-
sand miles' excursion from the Cape to Pretoria !

To move 200,000 troops as fast as they can be landed,
and hurry after them their tents and guns, horses, am-
munition, fodder, and food, would strain the resources of
a standard gauge double-track trunk line in England;
yet not a hitch occurred in the performance of this feat
by the narrow gauge single-track railway which we prac-
tically commandeered in South Africa.

Between November 1899 and the following February
the railway carried for the military authorities 18,000
animals and 37,000 tons of stores on the Western line,
and on all lines 70,000 men and 30,000 horses. In the '
first four months of 1900, to April 30, the lines conveyed
what were equal to 60,000 ordinary trucks, most of them
many hundreds of miles.

Of troops there were equal to more than 11,500
standard four-wheeled trucks, carrying thirty to forty
men each. Horses and mules utilised the equivalent of
14,000 trucks, and other military traffic used what were
equal to 35,400 trucks. Most of these vehicles also made
long runs, Kimberley being 647 miles from Capetown,
and Norvals Pont being about as far. These figures
show that the railway operatives moved more than 500
trucks daily, including Sundays.

What a change had passed over the gay and wealthy,
busy and thriving gold reef city since its evacuation of
Outlanders on the outbreak of the war ! Instead of
crowded streets, the soldiers found the thoroughfares
grass-grown and deserted. Instead of pushing trades
and commerce, the places of business and the private
houses were empty and often barricaded.

This was a place worth capturing. It is healthy,
standing 5,735 feet above sea level and covering an
area of six miles. Its roads are broad, and extend 126
miles; its parks occupy 84 acres. Within the municipal
bounds are 20,000 buildings, some very imposing, of stone
and marble, including palatial club-houses, magnificent
mansions, a majestic Stock Exchange, five first-class
theatres and opera-houses, hotels with elegant accommo-
dation for thousands of guests, stately churches, hospitals
and museums; it had electric street railroads, race
tracks and polo grounds, and too many gambling houses,

158 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

In 1899, its population was 80,000 whites and 140,000
Kaffirs. To have to bolt and leave all this property
behind, to take its chance of being looted and destroyed,
was a great sacrifice ; and how eagerly the exiles watched
the chance of returning and claiming their estates and
belongings.

Out of the 70,000 square miles of the Transvaal, the
Witwatersrand upland, in the centre of which Johannes-
burg stands, presents the most unique geologic features.
It was a huge barren table land, almost trackless and
devoid of trees, scorched by a fierce sun and drenched by
torrents of rain, when Johannes Bezuidenhut put up his
.wooden shanty in 1885 as the sole denizen of the site,
and named it John's burgh.* An Englishman named
Fred Struben found gold beds of the '* Blanket" forma-
tion on Sterkfontein farm at that time, and in two years
the place was overrun with prospectors of companies
■with a capital of ;^3,ooo,ooo.

The record of the *' White water Ridge" reef is more
than forty million ounces of gold, worth over ;^i6o,ooo,ooo
and at least ;^i, 000,000,000 remains to be extracted.
The city was an oasis of intellectual and commercial
energy in a desert of heavy, dull isolated squatters — a
mighty, though mushroom metropolis, compared with
which the colonial capitals, Capetown and Pietermaritz-
burg, are as Pensacola to Chicago.

The Commander-in-Chief lost no time in issuing a
proclamation which contained the following conditions : —

Immunity will be guaranteed to all noncombatants.
All burghers, excepting those who have taken an active
part in promoting the war, in directing operations, and
in commandeering or looting, or those who have acted
contrary to the usages of civilised warfare, will be allowed
to return to their farms and remain unmolested, provid-
ing they surrender their arras and take an oath not to
fight again.

Private property will be respected if British property

• There is, or was in May, 1900, an inmate of Guildford Union Worlc-
house, a man named James Pratt, aged 69, who, for fighting against
Kruger in i38o, was robbed of x$,ooo acres on which the city stands, and
ffr which be had paid ;^35o.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 59

has not been damaged, but if it is found that such pro-
perty has been wantonly damaged not only will the
actual perpetrators be severely punished, both in person
and in property, but the authorities who have permitted
such damage to be done will be held responsible.

Finally, all inhabitants are urged to prevent wanton
damage to property.

It was a source of immense satisfaction to the share-
liolders to find that the Rand mines had not been
damaged. The Chamber of Mines at Cape Town asked
permission for 2,500 employees to return immediately to
the Rand, and 500 of the principal workmen and staffs
of the big commercial houses were allowed to start at a
few hours' notice.

After the British occupation the town became quiet,
and there was a feeling of satisfaction and relief. Shops
began to be opened at once, and refugees to return.

Arms and ponies were surrendered by hundreds of
Boers, and the Dutch residents seemed not unwilling to
accommodate themselves to the new order of things.

The occupation of Johannesburg involved serious
responsibility. It is a wild place at the best of times,
though one must not appear to be disregarding the pres-
ence of many very reputable people, — cursed by inor-
dinate greed of gold, filled with tKe scum of the nations —
rascals and loafers and libertines, both male and female
— and poisoned by an easy morality, whether in com-
mercial or social life.

During the last eight months the best of its population
had cleared out, leaving few except the sharps, who
would not fight for anybody or any principle or cause,
but, whether it is war time or peace care only for
opportunities for loot and licence. It has always been
a hard task to govern Johannesburg under normal con-
ditions, and now no well-disposed person would be safe
in the city either as to his belongings or his life, if it
were not for the gentleman in khaki with his finger on
the trigger, to support the authorities in maintaining law
and order.

l60 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XXVI.

THE CAPTURE OF PRETORIA.

PRETORIA had been strongly fortified, and there had
been loud boasts that it would cost the British
dearly to enter it. Its situation in a basin commanded
by rocky heights on every side presents a natural for-
tress. On Wonderboom, on the north side, a strong
fortification had been erected under the direction of
Col. Schiel, now a prisoner at St. Helena, and each of
the railways converging on the capital was protected by
a fort a little way outside the place.

It is a pleasant small burgh, of a normal resident
population, recently of 12,000. Its sea elevation is
4,471 feet. It has all the appearance of prosperity, with
handsome public erections and commodious villas. The
Government Buildings cost ;;^2oo,ooo, and are a hand-
some pile, with a central tower surmounted by a statue
of Liberty. Its tropical verdure shows horticultural
taste.

Since the war broke out the capital had been in a
state pf excitement. In the first place all British sub-
jects, except those specially exempted by the commis-
sioners, were, by proclamation ordered to leave the
republic within a few hours, and the American Consul,
Mr. Hay, who acted as our intermediary, did what he
could to assist the refugees. He also looked after the
British soldiers and civilians whose ill-luck it was to
be captured by the Boers. These eventually repre-
sented a community of 4,000 lodged in corrugated iron
huts at Waterval, 13 miles from the town — in a field
100 yards by 700, surrounded by barbed wire. There
was a hospital, which was kept fully employed. At
one time it was reported that 40 men were delirious
from fever. Complaints were made to Lord Roberts
as to the rigour of the imprisonment and the poor diet
supplied, but the President never admitted any severity
or unreasonable treatment in any way.

The Volksraad, which opened its last session at
Pretoria, on the 7th of May, was sad and solemn. The

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR- l6t

members, including the leading commanders, were, as
usual, attired in black with white ties, and Kruger was
distinguished by a green sash. The consuls wore their
uniforms, with the exception of Mr. Adalbert Hay, who
was in evening dress. General Lucas Meyer was voted
to the chair. In the opening prayer, the chaplain, the
Rev. Mr. Bosman, used these words — " It has been said
that this will be the last meeting of the Volksraad.
O God, we pray Thee avert it."

The address of President Kruger, read by Secretary
Reitz, criticised the action of Great Britain. Speaking
later in the day, Mr. Kruger declared that from docu-
ments discovered on prisoners, it was clear that the
British Government decided on the war in 1896, which
was a bit of romance. Though Pretoria was invaded,
the Boers would still be free, he said. They might be
confident that God would defeat the most powerful of
Generals.

The senate listened in silence to this oratory, but
next day they approved of the opening address, and
then in camera considered the prospect and how to
meet it. Should they stand to their guns in the capital,
or flee into the inhospitable fastnesses of Lydenberg ?
On a question of selling some mining concessions, the
House disagreed, some speakers accusing Kruger of
inconsistency, and it was said he left the chamber in a
passion.

With the advance of Lord Roberts from the Orange
Free State, preparations for flight were surreptitiously
made by the Pretorian Government, the mountainous
region of Lydenburg, on the north-east of the republic
being given as their destination.

Their departure was deferred to the last moment.
Not till Tuesday, May 29th, when affrighted burghers
were arriving from Johannesburg and the thunder of the
Imperial guns could be heard drawing near, did they
use the special train in waiting on the Delagoa line.
Mr. Smuts, the State Attorney, and Mr. de Souza, the
Secretary for War, were left in charge of the capital,
and the rest of the Executive made for Machododorp,
a railway station 161 miles east of Pretoria on the
Delagoa line, whence Lydenburg is a hundred miles

K

-l62 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

N.E., whither it was said, enormous stores had been
sent to await events.

A touching little incident came off before Oom Paul
left the Government House. A telegraphic messenger
boy from Philadelphia, U. S. A., who had travelled
thence for the purpose, presented him with an aflfection-
ate address of sympathy, signed by 30,000 American
school children. This was some solace when adult
Americans declined assistance solicited by Boer dele-
gates.

Guarded by armed soldiers, six cabs filled with boxes
of gold were in the procession to the railway station.
The flight, though kept a secret, eked out, and the weep-
ing farewell at the s«-ation was pathetic, when the well-
paid guardians of the Transvaalers bid adieu to the
friends they now left to their fate.

President Kruger was more cautious. He drove twelve
miles in a closed carriage to Hatherley station, and there
joined the special train, accompanied by a thousand Boers
as a body-guard. At Machododorp, Kruger and his
secretary Reitz, occupied a private railway carriage in
the siding, when a newspaper correspondent visited the
fugitives. When asked what he would do now Pretoria
was lost, Kruger replied, " The Republican Capital, the
seat of Government, is here, in this car," reminding one
of Louis XIV's. di(5lum, " The State, that is me." As to
the money he had abstra(5led, he said he had only taken
what was necessary for State purposes.

Before leaving the capital, the Executive handed over
the administration to a vigilance committee, and " for fear
of trouble from the English prisoners, 23 British officers
were deputed to take charge of them!" Despite this
order, a large number of them were removed eastward,
under escort, to Nooitgedacht, 176 miles, in the Elands
valley.

With the flight of the Ministers of State, the troubles of
the burgomaster and constables of Pretoria increased.
The excitement and uproar waxed terrific. Among the
hundreds of Boers from Johannesburg, bringing in alarm-
ing tales of the British forces, was Commandant Ben
Viljoen, whose followers, it was said, attempted to loot the
Government stores. An order for the issue of ;^i ,000,000

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 63

in treasury notes was for a time likely to cause an insur-
recSlion, for the Government officials said Kruger«and his
friends had taken all the gold they could lay their hands
on, and the paper money for wages was useless. A report
that all the money in the banks was to be commandeered,
also caused their managers and clerks to threaten armed
resistance.

Then Generals Louis Botha and Lucas Meyer appeared
upon the angry scene, and from the balcony of the Senate
House harangued the burghers in heated terms •• to fight
to the bitter end."

The foreign military attaches, whose presence in the
campaign had not been neutral according to report, had
taken themselves off, and the trains for Delagoa Bay were
frequently laden with refugees.

The respe(5lable burghers were afraid of the foreign
mercenaries, who, while offering their sword to "strike for
liberty," had often only sordid motives. In fact, Pretoria
was a lurking-place for adventurers of all races — fighting
men *• broke in the wars," looters and receivers of loot,
men ripe for any rascality from pitch and toss to murder,
spies, betrayers of trust, traitors, dynamitards, wreckers
of order in general; most of them in desperate circum-
stances, and seeking their opportunity in the chaos which
may come of panic.

Pretoria was taken charge of by a war council composed
of the Commandants, with Botha at their head, whose
laagers were pitched just outside the town, and their
strength was said to be 10,000, with several guns. But
the British advance columns soon seized one or two of the
forts, (from which the guns had been removed), and the
dynamite fa(5lory on the southern road, which was defended
by Delarey and Keys.

One of the first objects of the investing force was to get
possession of the Delagoa line, and so cut off the retreat
of the Boers and their foreign allies. To defend the
approaches to the railway three batteries were posted by
the Boers in a strong position. President Kruger was
still giving his orders by telegram, and we had another
reason in this for capturing the wires along the metals.

The fight for Pretoria was fierce, and lasted several
days.

On Whit-Monday the main body of our force was in a

l64 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

position to start at daybreak, and marched about ten miles
under Jhe enemy's fire, to the Six Mile Spruit, (both banks
of which were occupied by Boers), six miles from the
capital.

Henry's and Ross's Mounted Infantry, with the West
Somerset, Dorset, Bedford, and Suffolk Companies of
Yeomanry, had a fine chance of showing their marksman-
ship, and despite the leaden hail of nail-like bullets from
hundreds of Mausers, quickly dislodged the foemen from
the south bank, and pursued them northwards for nearly
a mile, when they were stopped by guns which the enemy
had concealed on a commanding hill.

Our heavy naval guns and the Royal Artillery were
hurried forward, as fast as oxen and mules could draw
them over the rough and rolling hills, and these were sup-
ported by Stephenson's brigade of Pole-Carew's Division.
A few rounds silenced the enemy's artillery, and then a
large body of Boers tried to turn our left flank. But the
Mounted Infantry and Yeomanry, supported by Maxwell's
brigade of Tucker's Division, foiled this movement com-
pletely, yet not without the aid of Ian Hamilton's troops,
who had been three miles off, and closed up smartly.

The line of our advance lay over rugged and stony
ridges, and was therefore not easy to negotiate. The
enemy's front extended along the hills for a distance of
twelve miles, and rifle fire was opened on our mounted
infantry dire(5lly they appeared, compelling them to fall
back for cover.

Our guns, however, were speedily in action. They had
previously been moved well to the front in readiness for
some such contingency as had now actually arisen. The
field batteries rained shell on the opposite ridge, while the
heavy naval and siege guns were hurried along the road to
a nek commanding the forts and hills.

A terrific bombardment ensued. Shell after shell burst
in the forts and emplacements with destrudlive effect, and
others were sent right over the hills with the view of
damaging the railway.

It was while the artillery were thus engaged that the
Boers, assuming the offensive, made an attempt to turn
our right flank. The manoeuvre was frustrated, however,
by the Guards' brigade, who deployed into line to meet it.
On the left the 14th brigade was also attacked, while the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. l6$

75th battery shelled at close range a bush-covered ridge
which the enemy held in force.

After several hours of long distance firing the whole of
the infantry advanced, sweeping across the valley in
gallant style, and gaining the crest of the hills overlooking
Pretoria in the face of only slight opposition. From there
it was possible to see the Boers retreating into the town
and passing through it in disorderly crowds.

Further to the west, on our extreme left, General Ian
Hamilton had also advanced, sending round the West
Australian Mounted Infantry and the New South Wales
Lancers, under Col. De Lisle, to turn the Boer right.
The men led their horses up a steep and rocky ascent, and
down the other side, and then re-mounting galloped
straight across the valley towards Pretoria.

In the meantime the Gordon Highlanders and the Duke
of Cornwall's Light Infantry engaged the enemy from the
north, where they were holding the last ridge but one
under a heavy rifle fire. But the fear of being surrounded
was again too much for the Boers. Seeing Col. De Lisle's
men behind them, they turned and fled, leaving Pretoria
open before us.

Lord Roberts would have liked to complete the rout,
only the light failed with shortening days, and the main
British army bivouacked in sight of the capital. The
Guards' brigade was near to the most southern of the five
forts, and less than four miles from the town.

Our camp that night was a scene of excitement and
exhilaration, though, after twelve hours* marching and
fighting, the men were tired as well as the horses and
cattle ; still they were eager for the dawn of Tuesday to
complete their expedition.

General French, with the 3rd and 4th Cavalry brigades
and Hutton's Mounted Infantry, were on the alert to
prevent the enemy taking either the line or the road to
Pietersburg, but were too late.

On their left was Broadwood's brigade, guarding the
roads to the Limpopo river, and the Gordon Highlanders
watched the right flank of the main force, being not far
from the Irene station, which the enemy had destroyed.

When we counted up the day's cost, the report from the
ambulance and medical staflf was very satisfa(5tory.

At the time Lord Roberts bivouacked it was unknown

I66 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

to him that Ian Hamilton was following up the Boers in
the twilight, and got to within 2,000 yards of the town,
through which the Boers hastily retreated northward and
eastward.

There appeared to be no reason why the advance
squadrons should not follow up their advantage and take
the town that night. So Col. De Lisle sent an officer
with a flag of truce into Pretoria, demanding its surrender
in the name of the Commander-in-Chief.

The result was that shortly before midnight " our Bobs'*
was awoke in his cart by two officials of the South African
Republic, — Sandburg, military secretary to Commandant
General Botha, and a general officer of the Boer army,
who brought a letter from Botha proposing an armistice
for the purpose of settUng the terms of surrender. His
lordship replied that he would be glad to meet the Com-
mandant General the next morning, but that he was not
prepared to discuss any terms of surrender, which must
be unconditional, and he asked for a reply by daybreak,
as he had ordered the troops to march on the town as soon
as it was light.

Botha sent word back at once that he had decided not
to defend Pretoria, and that he trusted the women,
children, and property would be prote(5led. Three of
the principal civil officials afterwards came out with a
flag of truce, stating that they wished to surrender the
town.

As the sun rose. Lord Roberts and his staff moved
slowly forward, visiting the fort en route. General
Pole-Carew, in person, with an advance guard of the
2nd Coldstreams, pushed forward, having orders to
secure the station. When he arrived in close proximity
to the station, a train was perceived on the point of
leaving. Immediately, Pole-Carew, with his whole staff,
gave chase at full gallop, but the train escaped.

Meanwhile, Major Shute, with the advanced guard,
rushed the station. A few shots were fired, and several
engines and a quantity of rolling-stock was secured.

In the meantime a huge crowd had thronged the
Market Square. It consisted of ladies, armed burghers
anxious to surrender their arms, Hollanders, doctors,
and townsfolk. All were in a state of great excitement.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I67

Some were dejected and others openly showed their great
delight.

Then it became known that our officers who had been
prisoners were free. It appeared that the commandant of
the Boer prison guard woke them at one o'clock in the
morning, and insisted on their making preparations for
their departure. He was promptly seized and disarmed.
His adjutant next came with the same message, and he
was disposed of in the same way.

In the end the prisoners were guarding their own
guards. They made their way to the Market Square to
meet the incoming troops, and were soon exchanging
accounts of their experiences and greeting new-found
friends.

The experiences of the prisoners were deeply interest-
ing. Their last prison' was a great iron house, in which
there was one vast dormitory, separated from the mess-
ing-room. Each officer made himself a cubicle with
screens, which they decorated with pictures from the
illustrated papers.

The State entry into Pretoria was an historic scene of
great excitement.

From the Rand to Six Mile Spruit there had been
gentle levels on the open veldt, with no kopjes for
possible ambuscades. Now the road declined, some
1,200 feet between Johannesburg and Pretoria, and
whereas there had been no points of attack till we got
to Six Mile Spruit, where we halted, we found the rest of
the way broken and hilly, with a good main road direct
into the town.

As we neared the suburbs of neat little bungalows and
villas of successful Hollander lawyers and government
officials, some people came out to meet us.

A small party, led by Major Maude, went on in front
and left sentries at important points.

Lord Roberts was attended by his staff, with drawn
swords, and the Guards had the place of honour. It was
an imposing spectacle, and while Dutchmen looked sullen
and cowed, there were English and American residents
to cheer. It was 2 o'clock when Lord Roberts reached
the square amid a roar of cheering. The released officers
shouted themselves hoarse.

The document of capitulation was handed to Lord

l68 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Roberts by the Government Officers, and the British
flag was hoisted to the mast over the Government House,
with the playing of fifes and a royal salute, followed by
the lusty and frantic cheers of military and civilians.
Some of the crowd watched the hoisting of the flag,
denoting, as it did, the final blow to all their hopes, in
dogged silence, but many burghers, even those standing
behind the line of Grenadiers, with Mausers in their
hands ready to surrender, raised their hats as the flag
was run up.

Lord Roberts and his staff lunched outside the town,
pending the conclusion of arrangements for the march
past of the troops.

The 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards lined the square
for the march past.

The officers of the staff attached to the Guards' Bri-
gade, afterwards paid a visit to the Presidency. They
were received by the Dutch clergyman, who explained
that Mrs. Kruger was still in residence there.

The clergyman then invited the officers into the porch,
where they were shortly afterwards joined by the Presi-
dent's wife.

Mrs. Kruger, who was wearing a black silk dress and a
white cap, appeared perfectly composed, and exchanged
courtesies with her visitors.

The commanding officer then notified Mrs. Kruger of
his intention to replace the burghers' guard of the presi-
dency by a guard of British soldiers. The burghers
thereupon placed their pistols and ammunition upon the
ashphalted pavement near the Barnato's sculptured lions
in the verandah, and our sentries mounted guard.

The banks were being guarded by Hollander corps and
attach6s, and the place was in a state of alarm. One of
our shells had struck the residence of the American
consul, whose services to the town had been great.

With Roberts at the Presidency, the capital quickly
assumed its normal condition, for which leading citizens
expressed their gratitude.

On Wednesday morning General Porter's Cavalry
Brigade, 500 strong, with a battery of Royal Horse
Artillery, proceeded to Waterval, where the captive
private soldiers, together with 20 officers, were penned up
in iron huts, under a small guard of about 90. The guard

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 169

had consisted of 500 men, but desertions had been rapid
during the last week, the Boers throwing away their
rifles and returning to their farms.

General Porter arrived at Waterval at ten o'clock,
when a scene of tremendous excitement ensued.

About eleven o'clock a body of Boers got up on the
hills 4,000 yards away, and began shelling the camp and
the hospital, in which were 300 sick and wounded men.
Luckily, however, the building was not struck.

Col. Carleton, who was in charge of the camp, directed
his men to return the shots, and as the firing continued,
Col. Porter drew ofiF and engaged the enemy. Thereupon
the erstwhile captives, by direction of the officers in
charge of them, and without waiting for the trains and
transport that were being sent to fetch them, trekked off,
arriving tired and weary in the British camp at Pretoria.
Their joy was shared by their comrades, who celebrated
the rescue with a feast. This added to our force 3,500
men, 2,000 of whom were armed with surrendered
Mausers. The sick from the hospital were brought ia
by the train the next day.

A day or two after the British occupation of the Trans-
vaal capital, a serious break in the line of communica-
tion with the Cape by rail took place. To maintain
a line of 1,000 miles for supplies was the most difficult
part of the campaign, and with such a wily, tricky
enemy as the Boers, the wonder is that such a disaster
had not occurred before. A force of 2,000 Boers, with
six field guns, turned up at Roodeval, 31 miles to the
north of Kroonstad, and from Klip Kraal to America
Station Spruit, north of Fairfield, and ten miles from
Kroonstad, or for about twenty miles, the line was
destroyed. Thus the food supplies of our army at
Pretoria were apparently endangered, as they took with
them on the march only sufficient for a few days.

On June 7th, the day after the wrecking of the line, the
4th Derbyshires, a Militia regiment, about 600 strong,
with some other forces, accompanied a railway telegraph
and post-office corps to repair the damage, when they
were suddenly attacked by the Boers who had done the
mischief, and the result was disastrous to us, our men
being altogether surprised and outnumbered. We lost

170 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

two oflScers and 34 rank and file killed, and 104 wounded.
The rest of the men being taken prisoners.

Lord Roberts at once sent Kitchener with such troops
as could then be spared, with orders to push south and
communicate with Methuen, who had a very compact
force in the vicinity of Heilbron. He also despatched a
special messenger to Methuen to push on with all speed
to the main line of railway.

These two officers met at Vredefort road station on the
evening of the loth, and next day marched to the Rhen-
oster River, where Methuen gained a complete victory
over De Wet, took possession of his camp, and scattered
his troops in all directions. Our loss was one killed and
18 wounded, the latter being taken to the Yeomanry
Hospital, which was recaptured from the Boers.

The line and telegraph were restored with remarkable
celerity, and to prevent such hindrances more regiments
were sent from the Cape and from England to make our
communication secure.

These measures were shown to be urgent by what
took place on the 14th, when Lord Kitchener reported
that the Boers had attacked the reconstruction train
early that morning a few miles north of the Rhenoster
River. He turned out mounted troops and drove the
enemy oflf before they could do damage. One man was
killed and eleven were wounded.

Botha had retired to a place about fifteen miles to the
east of Pretoria on the Middleburg road, and his force
increasing, it was felt that its presence there would
retard the work of disarming burghers and collecting
supplies.

Consequently on the nth of June, Lord Roberts
moved out to the attack. With a very strong position
on the hills, Botha was able to put his strength into
his flanks; but French was sent with Porter's and
Dixon's Cavalry Brigades, and Hutton's Mounted In-
fantry round by our left, while Ian Hamilton, with
Broadwood's and Gordon's Cavalry Brigades, Ridley's
Mounted Infantry, and Bruce Hamilton's Infantry Brig-
ades moved round by our right.

Both columns met with great opposition, but about
three o'clock in the afternoon two of Hamilton's Infantry

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 17I

Battalions advanced to what appeared to be the key of
the enemy's defence on their left flank.

This was almost gained before dark, and then Lord
Roberts ordered the force to bivouac on the ground they
had won.

Among the slain was the Earl of Airlie, the head of
the clan of Ogilvys, and laird of Angus: Major the
Hon. L. Fortescue : and Lieut, the Hon. C. Cavendish.

The enemy fought with considerable determination,
and held our cavalry on both flanks, but Ian Hamilton,
assisted by the Guards' Brigade of Pole-Carew's Divi-
sion pushing forward, took the hill on his front, which
caused the enemy to fall back on a second position east-
ward which is slightly higher than the one we had
captured. This was accomplished on the second day,
and then the enemy slunk away under cover of the
darkness.

Their losses must have been considerable, the Lancers
alone killing 23, and the sangers were literally bathed in
blood.

Some Boer envoys arrived with a white flag, but as
a shell went over their heads they refused to deliver their
message to the West Australians at Zwart Kopjes, but
insisted on seeing Lord Roberts in person. He received
them the same evening, but the negotiations, whatever
they were, had no result. They appeared to be merely
a subterfuge to gain time.

While the cannonade was in progress two immense
white flags were seen to be flying from the enemy's
position. Our gunners ceased fire, and eagerly awaited
the surrender of the Boer army, but the flags proved to
have been displayed by Kaffirs, accompanied by a whole
tribe of women.

There was one critical moment. In advancing, G
Battery Royal Horse Artillery got under a heavy Mauser
fire. The Boers, who were probably Zarps, riding for-
ward and firing from horseback, sought to capture the
guns, which met them with case. Broadwood then
ordered a charge, and the 12th Lancers got home, killing
and wounding numbers of the defeated enemy. The
charge of the Household Cavalry was stopped by a
donga.

172 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The escape of Louis Botha was a disappointment. It
had been hoped to end the war by one staggering blow,
the effect of which would have aided the formal nego-
tiations between the Commandant-General and those of
his burghers who recognise the hopelessness of further
resistance.

It was said that the General consulted Mr. Kruger as
to what should be done in the event of his force being
surrounded, and the laconic reply was, " Cut your way
out."

There was said to be an informal armistice for a few
days, so far as Botha was concerned, with a view to
surrender, and Judge Van Leeuwen, under permit of
the Pretorian Governor, arrived by a " special" to
suggest an honourable capitulation to the doughty
champion, but when his train reached the station Mr.
Kruger was fast asleep, and his Secretary, Reitz, des-
pising the proposal, refused to awake him. A day or
two after Mr. Reitz was reported to have sailed incog-
nito as the guest of a Dutch man of war.

CHAPTER XXVII.

THE FIGHTING IN THE REAR,

THE scattered commandoes in the " Orange River
State," in the Transvaal, Natal, and in Cape Colony
still occasioned considerable trouble. The news that
Pretoria had fallen did not quench the fighting spirit of
the Boers at once.

General Buller, who was detained at Newcastle for
several days by the damages to the railway caused by
the enemy, sent out Colonel Bethune's contingent of 500
men on the 20th of May to do a little clearing business,
and they were " ambushed " at Vryheid and lost 66 men,
mostly captured.

The Natal Compensation Commission visited Newcastle
and viewed the depredations of the Boers. Most of the
stores in the town had been fully equipped before the
British evacuation, and the haul made by the enemy and

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 173

the rebels was found to have been very extensive. The
Convent and the Church had been burned down, and a
search among the ruins failed to bring to light any valu-
able^. The hotels were cleared of all their furniture, and
a number of the rooms used as stables. Almost all the
private dwellings had been depleted of anything of value.
The Town Hall and the police buildings were found, after
the Boer retreat, to be crammed with a miscellaneous
assortment of furniture, all more or less damaged. The
Commission has advised the owners to take back their
furniture and only to send in a claim for depreciation.
This decision has caused great dissatisfadlion amongst the
owners, who are objedling to receive back their goods
damaged. They prefer not to take back their furniture,
but to be compensated to the full extent of its value. One
objecftion they raise is that it is scarcely possible for them
to recognise their own property.

The enemy having formed a laager at Doornberg and
pressed General Buller's right rear on May 27, he sent
out Hildyard, who took Utrecht, and Lyttelton captured
Doornberg, after a light bombardment. The two places,
25 miles apart, are in the Transvaal, respecftively 22 and
37 miles from Newcastle, the railway to which was opened
on May 28. General Clery was bombarding Laing's Nek
from a commanding position.

General Buller put out a conciliatory proclamation in
reference to our invasion of the Transvaal, assuring all
who observed neutrality that they would be protecfled, and
any goods requisitioned would be paid for.

General Coke with the Tenth Brigade and the South
African Light Horse on June 6th seized Van Wyk Hill, a
position near Botha's Pass. General Hildyard cleared
the spurs between Botha's Pass and Inkwelo, thus pre-
paring the way for the forcing of the Drakensberg. At
the same time positions were secured on Inkwelo Mountain,
to render Laing's Nek untenable.

When this was accomplished, Christian Botha, brother
to the Commander-in-Chief, offered to submit on certain
terms, and there was a three days' armistice to communi-
cate with the latter, and his order was to fight on ; so the
enemy's positions were bombarded in Pogwani, Laing's
Nek, and Majuba, with casualties to both sides.

Oa June ii the troops fought the battle of Allemann's

174 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

Nek, one of the most dashing engagements of the Natal
campaign. It resulted in the precipitate retreat of a
strong Boer commando with four guns, and cleared the
way for General Buller's advance to Volksrust, the
frontier town of the Transvaal.

Allemann's Nek is a position of immense natural strength.
Hills of great height rise almost abruptly from the road
which winds round precipitous and rocky slopes.

The natural protecftion of the pass is continued on either
side by ascending ranges of hills cleft here and there by
sudden precipices and deep ravines. There was but one
way for the column to go, and only one thing for it to do.
It had to force the pass and to storm the heights com-
manding it.

When the march was resumed, far out on either side
the road was closely scouted. General Brocklehurst with
the 1 8th and igth Hussars scoured the country to the left,
while Lord Dundonald with Thorneycroft's Guides and
the Mounted Infantry did similar service on the right.

The enemy had held the ridges on our line of advance,
but must have fallen back to the Nek, as General Bullet
was enabled to deliver the opening attack from the last
ridge facing the pass without needing to fire a shot before
its occupation.

'• A " battery of Royal Horse Artillery was early in
position, and shelled the base of the hills to the right for
half-an-hour without eliciting a reply from the enemy.
But suddenly, at a quarter past two, a heavy gun opened
on us. Immediately the naval guns, Howitzers, and the
7th and 64th Field batteries were brought into action, and
subje(5led the Nek and the heights to a terrific pounding.

The enemy's gun was soon silent, but the bombardment
was kept up for an hour. Yet only an occasional Boer
could be seen scudding for dear life from the vicinity of a
bursting shell.

The attack was now developed. The and brigade
deployed on the left, and the loth brigade formed the
centre and right. Both converged on the nek and the
heights to the right of the pass. They had just passed
over the ridge, and moved down into the intervening dip
in full view of the nek, when, with startling suddenness,
the enemy let go their guns. They discharged shell after

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. t/S

shell at the Royal Horse battery, following them up with
a shower of shells from a pom-pom.

A Vickers-Maxim gun and the Mausers of the concealed
burghers kept up a continuous fusilade on Coke's and
Hamilton's brigades. It was to these troops that the main
assault had been entrusted. The Middlesex Regiment
was on the right, having on the left in the order named
the Dorsetshires, Dublin Fusiliers, the East Surreys, and
the Queens facing the open nek. The West Yorkshire
and Devonshire regiments were held in reserve.

Unchecked by the heavy fire to which they were
exposed, the brave fellows dashed forward to charge,
and being splendidly seconded by the guns, within an
hour and a half carried position after position till the nek
and the heights commanding it were ours. The Surreys
and Queens were subjedled to a galling cross fire as they
seized the inner positions.

The enemy removed their guns and pom-poms at an
early stage of the attack. As usual they set fire to the
grass at the opposite exit of the nek just as the Surreys
swept round after them. Col. Paget, with a secftion of the
7th battery, pursued them for a couple of miles, but in the
absence of the cavalry, who were still on our flanks, the
Boers succeeded in getting away with the whole of their
transport and guns. They left behind only some gear and
the horses of one pom-pom, and several dead and wounded
men.

Thanks to the dash and determination with which the
assault was delivered, our losses were exceptionally small.
During the infantry attack Lord Dundonald was hotly
engaged on our right. His men also behaved with great
gallantry, and finally drove the opposing Boers over the
hills to join in the general retreat.

The next day we encamped at Joubert's Farm, four
miles to the north of Volksrust. General Clery took pos-
session of Laing's Nek, and the Boers moved oflF in the
diredlion of Ermelo.

The white flag was seen flying everywhere, and the
women met with were in tears, ignorant whether their
husbands and brothers were dead or alive.

On Wednesday General Buller joined hands with
General Clery at Charlestown. Sir Redvers entered
Volksrust at the head of the column.^

176 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

General Sir Charles Warren's movements at Douglas,
(a small town in Griqualand West), on May 20, deserve
mention. Moving from Rooipan with a force composed
of Munster Fusiliers and Imperial Yeomanry, with two
guns of the Canadian Artillery, for scouting purposes,
they met with some Boers about two miles off, and chased
them through Douglas, when they left behind three wag-
gons and a great quantity of ammunition, food, &c., with
sheep and goats.

Then on the 29th Sir Charles, with a force of 700,
advanced to Faber Spruit, and occupied a strong defensive
position. At dawn he found himself surrounded and
fiercely attacked by a body of 1,000 rebels, who had
stampeded the horses. The British forces were quickly
concentrated and the enemy were repulsed. The British
loss was fifteen killed, including Lieutenant-Colonel
Spence, of the Duke of Edinburgh's Volunteers, and
thirty wounded.

Col. Plumer shifted his camp on the 24th of May to
Ramathlabama, sixteen miles north of Mafeking, to assist
in guarding the line to Bulawayo. Snyman had scampered
off to Zeerust, followed by the Queenslanders and Can-
adians, who, it should be mentioned, had made a record
journey from Marandellas, in Mashonaland, in order to
share in the relief of Mafeking, doing 550 miles to Ootsi
station by train, with 24 hours' stay in Bulawayo, and
then a march of 70 miles to the Molopo in eleven days.

On the Tuesday of the last week of May, there was a
crop of skirmishes in different parts. The Highland
brigade, opposed the whole of the way from Ventersburg,
recaptured Heilbron, at a cost of 30 killed and 150
wounded, according to Rundle's report. Then there was
a six hours' action in the neighbourhood of Winburg, at
Rooikranz, the 2nd Grenadiers advancing to within 1,000
yards of the hill on which the enemy was posted. Two
field batteries were engaged. Commandant Olivier was
killed, and Gen. De Villiers was severely wounded; the
enemy lost 50 killed. During the action the long dry grass
of the veldt caught fire, and this aided the enemy. Rundle
at the end of the day, returned to Senekal. Another of those
sad long lists of casualties, which so often accompanied
the record of our advance, was published by the War
QiHcc. The object of this action was to relieve the Duke

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 177

of Cambridge's 6Hte corps that was menaced by a larger
force of Boers.

In connecftion with this event, on May 31, the 13th
battalion of Irish Imperial Yeomanry, (about 500), had to
surrender to a very superior force of the enemy near
Lindley. Lord Methuen, (who was on the Heilbron side
of Kroonstad), started the next day in the hope of effect-
ing their rescue, but although he marched 44 miles by
10 a.m., he was too late. However, Jie attacked and
routed 2,500 Boers in a five hours' running fire.

The 8th and Brabant's Divisions routed the enemy
north of Ficksburg, who moved towards Bethlehem, where
7,000 Boers congregated. Ladybrand surrendered, and
large flocks of sheep captured from the enemy were sold
there weekly. 1,500 Boers surrendered at Ficksburg on
June II, despite the influence of Mr. Steyn, who was in
the district.

The commando under Cronje, jun., at Ventersdorp, was
broken up on June 9, and Major General Baden-Powell
made Ottoshoop, ten miles from Mafeking, his base, in the
same work, while Lord E. Cecil, his late " lieutenant,"
went to Malmani as Commissioner for the Rustenburg and
Marico district.

CHAPTER XXVIIL

SUBJUGATING HARASSING COMMANDOES.

EVERY Boer commandant did not reason like young
Cronje at Klerksdorp, on the west of the Transvaal,
or the work of disarmament would have proceeded faster
in the east of that State, as well as on the other side of
the Vaal. The Court House at Klerksdorp became full
of Mausers surrendered. Fighting had pracftically
ceased in the western parts of the Federals, and
the Dutch warriors were joining their long-parted
families, and resumed the long-neglecfted cultivation of
their farms. It was with the idea of expediting wavering
resolutions of this kind, that General Rundle, at Ficks-
burg, threatened confiscation of property if the fighting
farmers did not surrender by the 15th of June.

L

178 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

As a colonial farmer and a true man of peace — as an
influential statesman and a wealthy settler — he was just
the man for his present task of persuading the irresolute
Boers to leave soldiering for tillage, seeing there was
nothing now to fight for. Mr. Steyn, who was sharing
Mr. Kruger's loot, tried to rekindle the flickering ardour
of the patriots thereabouts, but there was a limit to the
treasury commanded by the stern old smoker in the snug
railway saloon then at Machadodorp siding, whose engine
was always kept in readiness with the steam up in case
of a surprise visit from little Bobs.

When General Lyttelton entered Wakkerstroom, after
the capture of the important strategical Laing's Nek, a
message from the Boer Commander-in-Chief was inter-
cepted, stating that he could not supply the place with
provisions. Of course, unless he could get a supply from
the Portuguese port of Delagoa, he would soon be in
straights himself.

The opening of the railway tunnel, cut in the rock in
Laing's Nek, on June i8th, gave Lord Roberts the short
communication with Durban for supplies of every kind.
It was found that about 150 yards of the brickwork at
either end of the tunnel had been destroyed, and the roll-
ing stock removed.

When Lord Lansdowne, the head of our War office,
sent congratulations to General Buller on his victory at
the famous pass, one could not help thinking of the
unpolitic publication of Lord Roberts' criticism of the
General's conduct at Spion Kop. There was also a sly
compliment to him in Roberts' telegram that the actions
at Pretoria and at the Nek had helped each other.
The Queen also signified her pleasure with the great
victory at the Pass.

The Diamond Hill from which Botha was forced on
the night of June 14th, fifteen miles east of Pretoria, is in
the Derdepoort district, and the enemy's line extended to
Tierpoort. He was there to defend his venerable Cal-
vinistic paymaster, the chief cause of the war, and
onlookers wondered how and whence the old fighter
would be captured, seeing that would be the short cut to
the end of the struggle.

As Botha had been compelled to fall back on Middle-
burg in consequence of his rear being thoroughly routed

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I79

by Ian Hamilton's Mounted Infantry — chiefly West
Australians, and the 6th Battalion — it was no surprise
to hear that the Government in the Railway Train had
moved to Alkmaar, 50 miles further, but other reports put
the locale as westward of Nelspruit. At the same time
Mr. Poldman, secretary of the Volksraad, arrived at
Lorenzo Marques, by special train with a quantity of
gold for shipment.

De Wet at this time had the merit of being the only
aggressive Boer commander, and his fell designs on the
Midland Railway though smart, and entailing some loss,
were of the nature of a military fiasco.

Emboldened by the success in capturing the detraining
Derbyshires, a commando, about 500 to 700 men strong,
and under the leadership of two men, Borman and
Muller, attacked the Zand River Station, at daybreak on
Thursday, June 14th.

Lord Kitchener narrowly escaped being captured.
He was sleeping in a railway carriage at Kopje's Siding
when, at three in the morning, the enemy, under De Wet,
suddenly opened rifle and gun fire on it. Lord Kitchener
at once saddled his horse and galloped to Rhenoster
River, two miles away, where Colonel Spens was en-
camped with 1,300 men and six guns. The enemy, who
were 900 strong, and had three guns, were very active.
They burned a culvert which had just been rebuilt and
derailed a train.

The Zand River bridge was badly damaged during the
Boer flight northward, and to repair it 350 of the Railway
Pioneer Corps men, who are volunteers for this particular
work but not regular combatants, happened to be at the
spot when the attack was delivered. They thus -for-
tunately increased the garrison of 250 Royal Lancasters
under Colonel North, and with them fought shoulder to
shoulder.

After the successful operations north of Kroonstad it
appears that Lord Kitchener anticipated an attack would
be made on Virginia, and warned the local commandant,
Colonel Capper, of the Royal Engineers, the officer who
repaired Norvals Pont bridge, to be on his guard.

Accordingly Colonel Capper carefully entrenched the
place, and a strict watch was kept for the enemy.

The flrst appearance of daylight showed the Boers

l80 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

were all round and in position, and a heavy rifle fire was
opened at once. The enemy in addition used a " pom-
pom " and one 12-pounder.

The attack, furious though it was, met with unflinch-
ing courage, and heavy fighting lasted well into the after-
noon.

Early in the fray Mr. Louis Seymour, the American
mining engineer, who was chief of the Eckstein group of
Rand miners, was shot dead by an explosive bullet, while
Lieutenant Clements, also of the Rand, was mortally
wounded. Five privates of the Royal Pioneers were also
killed, while seven wounded were removed to the south.

Things might have gone hard with the British forces
had it not been for 180 of the Northumberland Hussars
belonging to the Imperial Yeomanry, who opportunely
arrived from the south, and went into action with great
dash and brilliancy.

The arrival of these men speedily caused the Boers to
decamp, leaving behind them six dead Free Staters close
to the trenches. We took one of their wounded to our
camp and nine prisoners. Many of our men were
wounded by explosive bullets.

General Kelly-Kenny mustered 600 men from the vari-
ous regiments directly the news reached Bloemfontein,
and hurried them north to the Zand River in a special
train.

On the way the force was detrained at Doorm River, as
700 Boers were reported in the vicinity, and it was
thought inadvisable to proceed further for the time being.

After two hours' stay the garrison was further rein-
forced from Bloemfontein, and the first special train then
proceeded to Virginia, which was then quite safe.

All stations to the north of Bloemfontein were now
strongly guarded, as Boers lingered in the vicinity with
two guns.

The damage done to the railway at Zand River was
repaired by Major Molony within six hours.

The discharge of some of the Mafeking Relief Column,
and of the Natal Volunteers, was hailed as another sign
of the approach of the end.

In an order issued by Sir Redvers Buller, he placed on
record his high appreciation of the services rendered by
Brigadier-General Dartnell and the Natal Volunteers ia

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. l8l

the arduous task which had resulted in the expulsion of
the enemy from Natal territory. The order stated that
the Natal Volunteers had borne their full share of efifort
during the last eight months, and had largely contri-
buted to the successful issue. The General fully realised
the sacrifices the men had cheerfully made to remain in
the field, and felt that the time had come when he ought
to release as many as possible from the duty so patriot-
ically undertaken. He had therefore asked General Dart-
nell to undertake the defence of Dundee and a section of
the eastern frontier, and allow those Volunteers who were
not required for duty to return to their vocations.

With respect to Dundee, it may be mentioned that the
acts of Boer vandalism during their occupation evidence
the bitterness of their hostility to the colonists. Even
the places of worship were stripped, and what fire and
looting had spared was damaged by flooding the buildings
with water.

General BuUer specially reported on this barbarous
rascally. •' I desire to call attention to the disgraceful
way in which private property has been treated in that
part of the colony occupied by them. Wilful and need-
less damage is visible everywhere, and houses when not
completely wrecked have been desecrated with filthy
ingenuity. That this has been done with consent of the
leaders is proved by the fact that while in Charlestown
every house is wrecked, in Volksrust, two miles off, but in
the Transvaal, the houses are practically intact."

Still the high and mighty lieutenant of Oom the Auto-
crat, could pubhsh to the world a high falutin counter-
proclamation to the annexation of the Orange State.
The serio-comic bulletin was fulminated from the
"capital of Reitz " on June nth. After declaring that
the two Republics had been for eight months, and were
still, fighting an unrighteous war which had been forced
upon them, he contended that the Free State had not
been conquered, and therefore, seeing that the armies of
the Free State were still in the field, annexation was
totally contrary to the rights of the people. " It is a
matter of world-wide knowledge that British authorities
long since acknowledged that the Free State was well-
governed, and it is contrary to the fundamental rights
of the people to deprive them of their national heritage."

1 82 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

He concluded by declaring that the annexation was
non-eflfective and that the people of the Free State
remained free and independent, and would not cast them-
selves under the British yoke.

Baden-Powell, on the 12th of June, reported from his
camp 40 miles W. S. W., of Rustenburg of his operations
after the relief of Mafeking. He had repaired the rail-
way and telegraphs and arrested 100 rebels for trial.
On moving into the Transvaal with 800 men, he took
the surrender of 600 Boers about Marico West, Lich-
tenburg, and Rustenburg. Among the arrests were
local chiefs who had taken up arms with the Boers, but
otherwise the natives had been loyal to Queen Victoria.

General Baden-Powell had now been made a Lieu-
tenant-General on the staff in South Africa. This is
only what was to be expected after the hero of Mafeking
decided to remain at the front. The difference of rank
may be gauged by the " pay." A full General receives
£8 a day, a Lieutenant-General £5 los., a Major-
General £^, and a Brigadier-General £2 los. With rare
exceptions, all staff officers on active service are granted
a rank one step higher than they hold substantively.
Most of the brigade commanders were colonels, and
ranked in the war as Major-Generals. Divisional Com-
manders, as a rule, were Major-Generals.

On the 1 6th of June, the report from headquarters gave
the fact that up to then over 1,000 stands of arms had
been surrendered in Baden-Powell's district, and Hans
Eloff and Piet Kruger, son of the President, were to
make their surrender the next day, having been already
disarmed on their farms. -

After seven months of Boer occupation, the British flag
was hoisted at Daniel's Kuil in Griqualand West, on

June I4thj amidst the cheers of white and native
oyalists. Colonel Hughes having the honour of reclaim-
ing the town. The native women joined in singing the
National Anthem in English, which of course is
expected to be the tongue of South Africa in the near
future. This place, 80 miles west of the Kimberley and
Mafeking railway, had been commandeered by De
Villiers.
The disposition of our forces now completely severed

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 183

the two States, and each Boer commandant left in the
field felt his rear imperilled.

CHAPTER XXIX.

ONB day's BXPBRIENCB.

TT7E had now been scouting for a month as peace-
VV makers rather than warriors, for our business
was to induce armed Boers to take the oath of neu-
trality, or of loyalty to the Empress Queen.

This duty gave us a good idea of Dutch farm-life in
the Federal States.

We hardly knew one day from another, but it was the
first week in June when our miscellaneous corps reached
a small basin of veldt almost surrounded by stony
mounds. It was hke a sandy desert through which a
mighty torrent had once swept, leaving boulders exposed
when it ceased, but there was a bit of green herbage on
which our horses were grazing, and Karroo bushes.

After a twenty miles' march, we rested here at sundown
— my sergeant said it was but a few miles from Bethle-
hem. We thought we were- pretty safe, as the Boers
had then trekked from this locaHty further north.

It was sunrise when I woke with a pain at my left
ankle. I was lying on a bit of tarpaulin on the ground
under a gun waggon. It was a long greyish snake
that had been my bed-mate. Rising gently on my left
elbow, I seized it under the gills and dispatched it with
my kit knife.

I had been in a heavy sleep— you always sleep like
death when on the march — but I was wide awake now,
and found that several comrades were on the stir, yawn-
ing and rubbing their eyes, as Lance-Corporal McFer-
guson, of the Imperial Yeomanry, was bringing round
hot coffee from the mess tent to some of his company.
I was glad of a drink for the night had been chilly.

O ye who stay at home at ease, with downy beds on
which you make an impression, how can I make you

1 84 HISTORY OF THE BOEK WAR.

understand a stony bed that makes an impression on the
slumberer ?

I was stiff, and had the back-ache.

I got up and surveyed the bivouac, and tried to think I
was empire-making, serving Queen and country, winning
glory and prize-money — perhaps a decoration, though only
a poor Volunteer private.

I lit my pipe, wondered how I could distinguish myself
that day, and sallied forth to reconnoitre, all by myself, on
foot.

The air was very clear and so refreshing. A stray bird
cried overhead, and I should have liked a shot, but
mustn't. A sprawling spruit ran near by, with a bit of
scrub on its banks, the scene of a little steeplechase the
night before, for the Imperial boys are every one fine
sportsmen.

It looked a desolate place, and yet I thought this is just
what every farm site looked when these Boers trekked
hitherward. Walking on I disturbed some locusts in the
grass, for we had had a swarm the previous evening, who
shared our supper.

When I reached the rivulet with its rushy margin, I had
the satisfa<5tion of capturing a small porcupine, with whose
quills I write my love letters. He was asleep and my
knife did the deed when I found out the vital part of the
ball of spikes. It was not the easiest thing to kill or catty.
Stripped of its skin it made a savoury meal for a Kaffir
boy.

The different companies were aroused in a quiet way,
and breakfast served in picnic style. The men were very
jolly, as up to now we had not seen much skirmishing,
and had no sickness.

Then the order was given to form companies, and we
were put in extended ranks for the march, with the
Maxims in the van, followed by the cavalry, and some
infantry bringing up the rear, with the convoy.

Issuing through a sort of nek in a low range of hills, we
had a fine prospect of open country, and could see several
small farms separated by a few miles, with stone-fenced
pasture land, crops, gardens, and orchards.

As we neared them we met a couple of little, stunted,
curly-headed, dusky Bushmen, who could talk a little
English, and from them we learnt that there had been a

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 85

bit of fighting in the "village" yonder a day or two
before.

Seeing a >white flag flying from the chimney of a red-
brick house, with stables and cart sheds in the rear, a
dozen of us were detailed to advance with caution, for it
might be a Boers' ambush.

However, a woman and a child came out, and our guide
explained our peaceful mission. The woman said, " We
want to be friends with the English."

Then a Boer came out, and supposing he was the
husband, several of us entered the house to search it for
rifles. I picked up two empty cartridges from the mud
floor in the large living room, and in another room we
discovered three young men hid under a fourposter.

We induced them to come out, and they swore allegi-
ance, giving up their Mausers. They were the old man's
sons, and had deserted from a commando a few days
before.

In another farm house we found a woman and six young
children. There was a grave in the front garden, under a
large and fruitful mulberry tree, where the husband and
father was buried. The woman burst into tears as she
pointed to it. She was plump and clean. Sergeant
Blenkinsop, who is a widower, remarked to me, " If I
could talk Taal, I shouldn't mind making love to her, poor
thing, for the sake of the bairns" — and the well-tilled
fields as well, I thought, for the clay land bore heavy
crops of corn, judging by the stackyard.

There are hundreds of widowed farmers in South Africa,
and though they are plain of feature and not up to British
domesticity, it was a common remark in the squads I
joined that some of our fellows who wished to settle in the
country could not do better than leave their addresses
with lone widows having lucrative farms on their hands.

Now my friend the sergeant, who had been in the wars,
and was a hero in my sight — was also rotund, sentimental,
and withal a bit of a naturalist.

He lingered at the six feet of green raised mound, with
a cross at the head and bordered with red roses and arum
lilies, (the head of the homestead had fallen at Glencoe,
said the vrau), and as the lieutenant shouted, in his imperi-
ous, gruflf voice, " Look sharp, men 1" I pulled him away
to his duty.

1 86 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

He must, however, stare at the front of the verandah,
trellised in red fuschias and clematis, and admire in par-
ticular the flower beds.

Then we entered the white- washed "parlour" and look-
ed at the gun rack over the mantelpiece, into the cup-
boards (where there was plenty of jam), on the rough
beams, from whence hung strings of onions and other
things. Right through the bed chambers, on the ground
floor of course, into the daub and wattle stores behind.

The sergeant was very minute in his examination and
I was his A.D.C. He might have been taking an
inventory.

All at once I missed him, and found him in the vinery,
munching a melon, for which he said he had given the
head gardener (an elderly darkie in a straw hat and
trousers) a copper bearing the image and superscription
of Oom Paul,

By-the-bye, gentle reader, you should know that in
familiar parlance, the heads of families hereabouts are
addressed as tanta and oom (aunt and uncle).

As I mounted my nag at the gate I noticed on the
thatched roof of the house a monkey. It was Blenkin-
sop who drew my attention to it, and his close observa-
tion at that particular place made me ask him if he
had left his address with Mrs. Weissells — we had to
take her name and address, though the place and people
seemed innocent.

He winked "yes." Presently he said, "Why didn't
you have a go at the fruit ? she said, * Help yourselves,
gentlemen ?' So the guide said."

I reminded him of the strict orders against looting.

" He must have been a market gardener," he went on
in a whisper. " Did you see the orange and lemon grove ?
No ! Nor the cherries and peaches ? No 1 I never told
you my father was a horticulturist." There was another
merry twinkle in his eye.

Then came the order down the front — " Right about
face, quick march," for we had been brought to a sud-
den halt, while the Major scanned the horizon with hi3
field glass. He was often doing this, sweeping all points
of the compass, but now he was looking after the men
sent out two or three miles ahead.

We were making for another farrat

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 1 8/

I saw a man skulking along, dressed in a brown
jacket, moleskin trousers, and leather gaiters. He
dodged behind a willow tree, and out from a milk bush
and lump of prickly pears sprang a red buck well
antlered.

My horse made an instinctive bolt for it, but we had to
deny ourselves, and hold on under the baking sun, rising
to its zenith.

Blenkinsop gave me a running lesson on the botany of
the interland, much of which I forget; but we often
came across the ice plant and beautiful ferns. He was
no less well-informed about the rocks — granite, gneis,
sandstone, clay, trap, shale, and when we struck some
red sand, he scented ironstone.

We passed fields of mealies, Indian corn, the chief food
of the natives, also sweet potatoes, coffee, barley, and
sometimes a patch of pineapples. The eucalyptus or
gum tree, he could smell a quarter of a mile off, and of
course bananas and date palms were met with here and
there, also the Cape gooseberry and the Dingaan apricot.

I was pleased to recognise the dandelion, the daisy, and
the geranium ; they seem to be among the flora wherever
I roam.

Hullo! What's that? A loud report of some sort
from the east -where a dark cloud was rising.

" Halt I" came along, and instantly we saw the light-
ning flash and the artillery of the cloud-land rumbled
nearer.

So -we spurred on to the village, which was composed
of mud kraals chiefly, but it had its inn.

Here we rested for a couple of hours, and after mess,
Blenkinsop and I had a voyage of discovery.

" Can you tell one black from another, sergeant — Hot-
tentot, KafiBr, Baralong, Bushmen, Basutos, Bechuanas,
Zulus?"

" Well, you see, there is not much variation in their
physique, except the Bushmen are stunted by living in
caves. Have you seen the paintings on their caves ?
But you can tell the difference by their lingo if not by
their colour."

He struck for the inn for a drink of native beer made
from millet, and our presence drew a swarm of naked
humanity. They were not afraid of us — that was certain.

1 88 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Even the black beauties did not blush that they were in a
state of nature.

When they enter a town, such as Durban, or Pieter-
maritzberg, they have, by law, to wear a leathern apron,
or some other dress, because, they say, the men are
ashamed of them.

But speaking generally, both native sexes wear fringes
from the loins.

Being teetotal I had a glass of buttermilk and it was
"goot."

What a babel it was !

Enter two Afrikanders, who having called for drinks,
enter into a serious dialogue. Now for my phonography.
Here's a specimen !

The one says to the other, " Wei, hoe gaat het met
jou ? How does the world use you?" " O, slecht —
badly." " Hoe kom — what's the matter ?" " De wereld
is duivelsch stingy and suspicious, zy wil my nie ver-
trouw nie; ni eens een five-pound note of the Cape of
Good Hope Bank leen nie." " Ik het jammer ver jou —
I'm sorry for you." *' Toe dan, help me aan een beetje
geld; I'm awfully hard-up." ** Kerel, ik het nie a five-
pound note nie, zelfs van the Cape of Good Hope Bank."
" Well, ik hit hier een klein billetje that ik will dis-
count in the Standard Bank ; schryf maar your name
achter op." " Nie kerel ; ik het gezweer it zal mooit
weer myn naam op een bill zet nie ; I've had too many
losses that way, en de vrouw zeg ik moenie." *'Ja,
daar het je de wereld just as she is ; there's the world
for you. Zoo behandelt my de wereld."

We were waited upon by a German girl in a short
blue skirt and wooden shoes ; she had her red hair tied
up with red ribbon. The host was her father, and the
reims on the rafters made me think he was a cattle dealer
as well.

Before the twinkling stars came out, we had collected a
quantity of arms, working in so many squads.

We passed quite a variety of occupations. An ostrich
farm differs considerably from a horse ranch, and a pine
garden from a sheep kraal. As there are several months,
now the winter has set in, without rain, the wells and
dams are frequent. Irrigation, I thought« would work

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 189

wonders among the turnips, strawberries, and such like
— at least, the sergeant said so.

Then as to the poultry, we might have ducks and
chickens for dinner daily, they were everywhere, as well
as pigs, and so cheap.

We got up a gala at night, both for our amusement and
that of the village natives.

With the rising pale moon glinting through the chest-
nuts, and thorns skirting the ample green — with the sky
lamps shining brightly — the SeveiT Sisters, Southern Cross,
and fiery Mars in particular — I sat me on a mimosa-grown
ant-hill to watch the strange and noisy native games, and
the short military tournament.

The merry nigger band, playing on stones, drums, and
reeds, was the unique and discordant accompaniment of
marvellous jigs by men and women dressed in blankets
and feathers, whose dizzy gyrations spoke well for the
soundness of their heart and lungs. The war dance by a
chief's son, with assegai, knobkerrie, and skin shield, was
a great attracf^ion to us.

And, of course, we gave them a chorus or two of a
patriotic kind, finishing with the National Anthem, which
excited and pleased them immensely.

While this was going on two oxen had been roasted in
the camp, and the "joints" were brought down for a
feast — a little uproarious, and sans ceremonie, — for these
very carnivorous brethren are born gluttons, and as usual
left only bare bones for the dogs.

When we retired we received a pressing invitation to
come again before long, to which our spokesman, Sergt.
Blenkinsop, for it was a non-com's, affair, replied, '* O
certainly, my dear friends, we have come to stay, you
know," at which there was a broad grin and display of
ivories on many an ebony face, with a hop, skip, jump,
and clap, as the bright millenium vision dawned upon
them — of Britannia's rule and freedom. Then they
quietly dispersed to their huts.

Expe<5ling rain, (which didn't come), our tents had been
pitched and blankets served out. As we turned in, the
events of the day were discussed with animation, and
every man had a story to tell. It was remarkable what

190 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

different things they had seen en route — which, however,
was often the case. One had watched a tiger in the dis-
tance, another a wolf in a jungle, a third a wild cat in a
tree, a fourth a squirrel, and so on. One boasted of the
arms he had brought in, another of the Boer babies he
had kissed !

In one respect there was perfect unanimity in this little
circular debating class of recumbent figures, whose feet
supported the tent pole — we all agreed that we had earned
our country's pay that day, and carried out the command-
ing officer's injunc5lion. We had left behind us the sweet
odour of a good name, though khaki-clad invaders, for our
business, as he said, when we started out, was to pacify
the district, and fighting was only admissible in self-
defence.

" Lights out" had long passed by, and at length heavy
breathing and an occasional snore told me that one by one
the warriors bold had fallen into the arms of Morpheus,
while somehow the experience of the day, with tender
thoughts of home so far away, kept one awake, till, as the
sentry's measured footfalls died away into the midnight
stillness, even he, settling his head on his hard saddle
pillow, like a weary child, muttering a little lullaby of
prayer, dozed off" also. — (Trooper A. B.)

CHAPTER XXX.

THE WAR CHRONICLES OF THE BOERS.

JUDGING from the telegrams in Boer-inspired organs,
J the history of this war as written by a Dutchman will
differ materially from the statements made by British
generals and British pressmen. A few specimens of
fabrications have already been given.

At breakfast the day after his capture at Mafeking,
Commandant Eloff — " a typical Boer of the younger
generation, with curiously unkempt hair, literally stand-
ing on end, light sandy whiskers and a small moustache,
and wearing on this occasion a solemn, deje(5led expres-
sion on his by no means stupid, but discontented and

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I9I

unprepossessing face" — publicly stated that on leaving his
laager for the attack he sent back to instruct Reuter's
agent to cable the news that " Mafeking had been taken so
soon as the fort was in their hands," and that was done,
yet how soon the fort became his prison 1

Here is a specimen of Dutch veracity : —

Machadodorp, June 14th. — The commandoes east of
Pretoria, in the direcftion of Bronkhorstspruit, were com-
pelled to retire from Van der Merwe Station. This only
happened after the burghers had made a fierce stand for
over two days in a way which won the admiration of the
a(5ling Commandant-General. The loss of the enemy is,
according to the Commandant-General's statement, very
severe. The short rifle fire was very hot during the
second part of the day. Late in the afternoon the enemy
was fought at a distance of one hundred yards. Our loss
cannot be given yet. The a<5ling Commandant-General
only mentioned the name of Field-Cornet Jan van Vuuren
killed. He calls him one of the pluckiest men on the
field.

Information is again to hand regarding the most miser-
able condition of the enemy's troops, who penetrated to
Johannesburg and Pretoria. There are continual com-
plaints of lack of food. Several of the troops died in the
streets of Pretoria from exhaustion and starvation I

All along the road corpses, horses, and mules are lying
about. The living ones are so weak that they can hardly
carry any loads I

June 15. — Another oflScial war report to-day states that
while retreating the burghers were followed up a short
distance by the enemy's advance guard.

Both near Pretoria and on the Natal borders the
burghers have had to fight their way back step by step,
the enemy being in overwhelming numbers.

In Secocoeniland one native tribe wanted to fight
another, but the rising was soon suppres^d by the
Boers.

Fifteen officers and 500 British soldiers, prisoners of
war, have arrived at Standerton from the Free State, en
route for Nooitegedrecht.

According to a statement of the adling Commandant-
General, about thirty burghers were killed or wounded
during the last few days' fighting near Pretoria,

192 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

During the night of the 13th and 14th a small com-
mando of Free Staters penetrated through the enemy's
lines near Kopjes, and took 22 prisoners. Fighting still
continued when the report was sent oflF, the enemy's
positions being in Randtjes, north of the bridge. The
English forces were overwhelming.

The enemy are still getting reinforcements by train from
Vredefort Road.

Eighteen locomotives, which were still in use on the
Heidelberg- Volksrust section of the railway, have been
disabled, except one, which will do duty until the last
moment.

June 16. — A large movement of English troops is
reported to have taken place on the 14th between
Vereeniging and Elandsfontein.

A diflferent version from the same quarter — Lorenzo-
Marques — was as follows :

Machadodorp, June 13. — Lord Roberts sent a message
to Commandant Botha suggesting disarmament, and com-
plimenting him on the bravery of the burghers. The
surrender, it was pointed out, would be without dis-
honour, and would prevent much suffering.

General Botha suggested an armistice of six days so
that he might consider the proposition. Lord Roberts
was willing to grant one for five days for that part of
the Transvaal only. Botha declined, and hostilities were
renewed.

June 15. — The commandos are concentrating at Bal-
moral. Both Commandants Botha and Delarey are
leisurely retiring on Middelburg.

There has been slight bombarding of the enemy by a
Long Tom. Bridges have been destroyed and the veldt
burned. The authorities have succeeded in removing
provisions.

Fighting is continuous at Volksrust and Heidelberg.

There is an abundance of arms, dynamite, and ammu-
nition on hand; there are also 1,000 oxen.

The Government are working the Barberton mines.

In a short time there will be a heavy supply of tran-
sports for Lydenburg. The Government are determined
to make an indefinite stand in this inaccessible country.

The Government issued a proclamation on the 15th
inst. ordering the acceptance of paper money at par with

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I93

gold. The non-acceptance of this proclamation will be
regarded as inimical to the Government.

The Government have consented to accept supplies for
the prisoners at Nooitgedrecht.

June 18. — The train, which arrived early yesterday
morning, brought ;^45,ooo in bar gold.

Kruger and his Government are still on wheels at
Machadodorp.

Bar gold to the value of ;^5,ooo,ooo is lying in eight
covered trucks at Machadodorp station.

From another source came the acceptable news that
provisions had got through to the British prisoners,
taken as hostages to Nooitgedrecht, and clothing and
blankets were to follow in a few days. The prisoners
had not then been provided with places of shelter, but
were in a cold ravine between two mountains, and
some were sick and minus any medical comforts. In
the day time the men played football to keep themselves
warm, and at night were huddled together on the ground,
watched by pickets. Though healthy in winter in the
summer time the locality is notorious for fever.

According to a report at Lorenzo Marques a desper-
ate attempt was made to steal some of the bar gold
reposing in the railway trucks attached to Mr. Kruger's
travelling capital.

The attack is said to have been planned by a German-
American, well known to the police of New York, and
carried out by a number of the foreign mercenaries who
had been fighting on the side of the Boers.

If it be true, as many of these soldiers of fortune
averred, that after Cronje was captured their pay was not
given them, such a loot was not surprising.

According to another account the marauders removed
several of the bars before their presence was detected,
and that they got clear away with their booty.

A train and bridge were afterwards blown up near
Komati Poort, on the Netherlands railway. It was the
Malalana Bridge, which is on the railway about seven
miles west of the Portuguese frontier. Whether this was
done by a British coup from Swaziland or by engineers
from Lorenzo was a disputed point. As Mrs. Reitz and
family had sailed thence for Europe and Mr. Reitz was

M

194 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

said to be in the port, it might be a design to prevent
the escape of Mr. Kruger and his gold bars by sea.

With General Baden-Powell at Pretoria, after cover-
ing 60 miles in three days, there came orders for the
erection of 30,000 wooden huts with zinc roofs for gar-
risons at different points of the conquered States, which
showed that a considerable force was to be detained, to
keep rebelhous spirits in subjection.

A Reservist of the Coldstream Guards, writing home,
said — " We are quartered in the stables of the Orange
Free State Artillery, which are swarming with rats and
mice. We have lively times when we lie down to sleep,
for they run all over us." But most of the battalions
were under canvas.

Among the casualties published on June 20th were a
large number, including scores of missing, sustained in
engagements of which no mention had previously been
made.

We learnt now for the first time that a reconstruction
train was attacked at Leeuwspruit on June loth, with
the result that the British had three killed, five wounded,
and between fifty and sixty captured.

Leeuwspruit station is forty miles north of Kroonstad,
and only two stations north of Roodeval, where the
Derbyshires were cut off.

The attack on the train at Leeuwspruit was made on
the same day as the attack on the British post at Zand
River. The two places are eighty miles apart.

The only light on this affair had been shed by the
Boer bulletin dated June 14th, stating that on the night
of June 13-14 a Free State commando took twenty-two
prisoners at kopjes near Roodeval.

Another list of nine wounded and eleven missing
referred to an action at Vredefort on June 7th, of which
no statement had previously been made.

From Hammonia on June i6th, we learnt that General
Rundle's outposts had been in contact with the Boers
along the line from Scheeper's Nek to Ficksburg, each
force holding its own as the Boers were moving in great
strength on Ficksburg. General Rundle's positions had
been reinforced.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I95

CHAPTER XXXI.

AS TO THE FUTURE.

I HERE is the prospect of Zud Afrika becoming one
of the most cosmopoHtan parts of the world. In
lition to the Hollander aristocracy — the descendants
of Andries Pretorius, Jacobus Burger, Michael Van
Breda, Joubert, Kruger, and such like, and the families
of Huguenot origin — De Villiers, Du Toits, Du Plessis,
Jourdans, Pouches, Le Granges, &c., there is a good
sprinkling of Germans, and the British are spreading
from the coast and the mines to the principal towns of
the conquered States. And just as " French" scarcely
survived the third generation at the Cape, so the
•' Dutch" tongue is bound to give place to English
throughout the new, as it has done in the old, colonies.

The new government will displace the Landdrost
(magistrate) and Cornet (or bailiflf) with his command-
eering proclivities, and the courts of law will have a new
code whereby to adjust the relations of blacks and whites.
Great complaints have been made as to the treatment of
blacks in the Kimberley compounds. The magistrates
will be subject to public opinion and a representative
administration, which will protect free labour. But for
the present, as Crown Colonies, the districfls will be under
military commissioners, who are being appointed.

One of the first results of English garrisons will be a
stimulus to trade, and a consequent growth in the popula-
tions of the garrison towns. With this expansion and
new social relationships, the various missionary societies,
foreign and colonial, will promptly deal, in the interests of
morality and religion.

It is understood that a considerable number of the
Colonial and Volunteer troops will be encouraged to settle
in the new colonies in such occupations as may be open
to them, with a view of securing them as a Militia Force,
and also to help in the loyal vote required for a progres-
sive Colonial Parliament.

To prevent any calamity that might arise from too
great an inrush of immigrants, Sir A. Milner has pointed
out that there is only work enough at present, for a

196 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

limited number of skilled mechanics who are waiting
at the Cape, to return to Johannesburg chiefly.

But what as to farming ? That is entirely a question of
capital and enterprise. There are pessimists who say —

We saw as we went flowers without scent,

And dongas are streams without water ;

The women are plain, if strong and square,

And the men without sense of honour.

While large tracks of land are a waste howling wilderness ;

Your view of these matters depend upon circumstance.

Here are a few fa(5ls.

The average sea level height of the new colonies renders
them healthy. At the capital of Natal the average
temperature is 64 deg.

The "five months drought of winter" can be met by
reservoirs, lakes, tanks, and irrigation, as in Natal and the
Cape ; and there is some rain in winter. Our army 'when
on the march was often watered by artesian wells. By
tapping the sands water is got at the depth of a few feet
very often.

Even the karroo — the wildest, stoniest, sandiest desert
— is amenable to water and tillage — as the Mormons have
shown at Utah ; but there are stretches of fertile clay and
loam land, and if it is mostly occupied by Boers, the
Government can facilitate its transfer. Mr. Kruger has,
it is said, a hundred farms. If they are not forfeit by his
acflion as the chief cause of the war, they may be market-
able.

Ostrich rearing is very remunerative, and is an industry
capable of expansion.

Government loans for irrigation and the planting of
trees would help make the wilderness to blossom as the
rose.

The diamond and gold mines will take a leap forward
under the new conditions, and require more skilled labour.
The diamonds produced from 1867 to 1893 were worth
;^7o,ooo,ooo.

An obstacle is sometimes made of white labour com-
peting with black. For manual purposes, the native is
the cheaper, but there is plenty of work the black man
cannot do until he has gone to school.

Among the produdlions in Natal, and suited to the new

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I97

colonies, are — sugar, tea, coflfee, tobacco, arrowroot,
cayenne pepper, and nearly all tropical and sub-tropical
fruits and vegetables. Nearly everything grown ia
England will thrive there, somewhere.

Coal mines are being worked in several distridls, and
marble quarries opened.

For export the railways are available in many parts,
and these are sure to be extended shortly.

Basutoland, the " Switzerland and granary of South
Africa," is awaiting occupation.

The chief towns of the Orange River Colony, are
mainly occupied by Englishmen, and all prosperous.
Bloemfontein, Harrismith, and Boshof are sanatoriums;
Winburg, in its centre, stands on grain, sheep, and cattle,
Bethlehem, the land of plenty, trading with Durban;
Rouxville, rich in cattle farms; and of Smithfield, and
Fauresmith, and Ladybrand, we may say ditto.

Lorenzo Marques, June 18. — On Sunday evening, (June
17) a pier of a bridge between Hector Spruit and Malalane
Stations was blown up with dynamite. Next morning as
a goods train was crossing the framework collapsed, with
the result that the engine and several trucks were precipi-
tated to the bottom of the spruit. The driver and a Kaffir
were killed, and two white men were injured. The bridge
measured about forty feet. Passengers were therefore
transferred to trains waiting on the other side. The
Netherlands Railway Company notified that in conse-
quence of the disaster all goods traffic to Lorenzo Marques
would be suspended. The Boers alleged that the destruc-
tion was the work of three escaped British prisoners. As
they were unable properly to look after the prisoners at
Nooitgedrecht, the Boers were seriously considering the
advisability of expelling 927 men and five officers.

Zeerust, June 18. — Burghers returning from the front
report that the Boer commandoes have gone east and are
dwindling away. It is significant that limited numbers of
trustworthy burghers have been supplied with Martini
Henry rifles for protecflion against the natives. Several
of the latter have been caught stock-lifting. Those who
ofiiered armed resistance were shot down.

Till Johannesburg sprang up, the Transvaal was
verging on bankruptcy because the Boers are only easy-
going farmers, with no idea of developing the mineral

ipS HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

and other resources of a country; yet what has been
done in cultivation shows how the sandy plains can be
turned into gardens, and the buried treasures can create
golcondas.

Then there is Rhodesia, the territory won from the
Matabele in 1893, by the chartered company — a country
awaiting occupation also, with Sir Fred. Carrington's
troops at its little capital of Bulawayo, Lobengula's
former kraal, on a railway connecting it with the Cape
and Natal.

In a country extending from the Cape to 600 miles
beyond the Zambesi, to the southern shores of Lake
Tanganyika, you may travel hundreds of miles without
meeting with a human being. Towards that wonderful
lake a railway is to penetrate ; and those who have read
the travels of Stanley, Gordon Cumming, Speke, Grant,
Livingstone, and others, whose narratives are now illus-
trated by photogravures, will not need to be told of the
magnificence of the landscape, with mountains, valleys,
and rivers, or the luxuriance of its primeval forests.

Some 3,000 Britishers were required to take charge of
the railways, as the Hollander employes were cashiered
as unreliable for such work, on Lord Roberts arranging
to take possession of the lines for the Government ; and
in consequence of this that number of persons, includ-
ing wives and children, left for Holland, via East
London Port, in the third week of June. They had
refused to do British military transport work. The
railways outside the States had belonged to our Govern-
ment before.

Then there were all the Government Offices under the
military commissioners and magistrates, such as the
police, postal, and telegraph, to be manned by Britons.
There was an exodus of Hollander officials both from
Johannesburg and Pretoria, as soon as the military
governors could arrange suitable appointments ; and some
of the leading Republicans, not official, chose to expatriate
themselves rather than become British subjects. There
was one newspaper in Pretoria which still preached
resistance, and, as in the annexed State there was a
threat of punishment for rebels, so, when the Transvaal
was proclaimed a British possession, no revolutionary
doctrine would be tolerated in the Press or upon the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. I99

platform which tended to foment bitter racial animosity.

This journalistic defiance of the conquering power was
but the dying scream of an effete Dutch autocracy, and
another Press was soon to be established which would
teach Dutchmen higher morals and purer democratic
principles.

To contend for a Republic which would not give
equal rights to black and white, Dutch and foreigner,
was a poor cause. To ask Dutchmen to accept a
representative government under which their fellow
countrymen in Natal and the Cape were happy and
prosperous, was an easier and more promising task.

Some printers' type in Pretoria had been cast into
shots. The English pressman's vocation was to fire the
shots of truth, and to show that whereas the Republics
had been reared on " slimness," craftiness, and oppres-
sion of the weak, the new Power would stand on the
impregnable rock of justice.

The lesson of this war, as of that in China, which now
broke out, was that " the earth is the Lord's, and the ful-
ness thereof;" that whatever race possesses a portion of
it holds it in trust for God and the rest of mankind, who
must be free to occupy it on equal terms; that there can-
not be a selfish proprietorship of any soil, seeing that land,
as air and water, is essential to the existence of human
hfe.

Is there a man with soul so dead,
That hath not to himself thus said—
This is my own, my native land?

Yes, that is a most excellent sentiment, and should lead
to Paradise, but it is the nobler attribute of love which
welcomes others to share our cherished estate.

Bloemfontein, May 6. — It has been somewhat difficult
to put things into shape in writing you before respecting
trade in South Africa from the hardwareman's point of
view (says a correspondent), and you will understand that
as a yeoman I am so tied down by mihtary duties as to
have but few opportunities of going into commercial
matters on my own account. I have, however, seen most
of the principals or managers of the large hardware firms
in Cape Town, and there is only one opinion on the
subject. In fact, I had to rub my eyes to see if I had not

200 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

inadvertently walked out of one department into another
of the same firm, so general are the remarks *' that trade
is good and likely to remain so when the country is once
opened up again." Of course the business doing at
present is almost exclusively confined to military articles
of all kinds, certain goods in fact — ('303 rifles, for instance)
— not being procurable.

The value of land in Cape Town has considerably
advanced, and this has had the effect of stopping building
operations, although the northern contractors driven south
by the war are doing a little speculating in the building
line ; but I am told on good authority that if the contracts
are not finished by the time the country is settled they are
prepared to throw up the work done even at a loss and go
north again. The present great difficulty which has to be
contended with is transport. One firm had no fewer than
five steamers lying in the bay waiting for dock-room and
means of shifting goods from the dock. It is almost
impossible to procure horses and waggons, as ever5'thing
is taken up by the military.

The expense of carriage to the Cape of such goods as
stoves is very great, taking into consideration the large
amount of breakage which occurs in transit, while natur-
ally the purchasers are the losers. So much is this the
case that I believe one foundry depends entirely upon this
source of supply for its materials. Sometimes nearly 30
per cent, of a consignment reaches the colony in a broken
condition. Naturally castings made from such scrap are
indifferent, because no pig iron is used with them.
Another difficulty with which the ironmonger has to con-
tend is the large stock that has to be held owing to the
time occupied in obtaining supplies from Europe. No
doubt large profits have been made lately by the holders
of stocks, as the war has still further delayed the coming
forward of goods.

I have just done what a good many have not done, and
that is ridden from Norvals Pont on the Orange River to
Bloemfontein, about 130 miles, and I have interviewed on
the way everyone whom I thought might furnish me with
a little information likely to be of interest to your readers.
A farm, from a Free Stater's point of view, has a definite
value. It has a house with water-supply and so many
acres, but whatever the value of the house, and whether

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 201

the water is good or bad, £i per acre is the selHng-price.
A farm averages from 3,000 to 4,000 acres, and the arable
land, which must be watered and is generally about 50
acres in extent, is said to be better than all the rest put
together. Windmills are largely used in the southern
portion of Cape Colony, but in the Free State dams seem
to be more common. By their means large stocks of
water are colledted during the rainy season. The best
parts of the farms are fenced with about five galvanised
wires, the top one being barbed. The cost of this galvan-
ising is estimated at about £^0 per mile.

Wood is very scarce. I have not seen a tree for the
130 miles' ride which I have just completed except those
just round the farms, which have been planted more as
ornaments and for shade than for timber. A difficulty
naturally arises with reference to posts for these fences,
and I was surprised not to find more use made of the
light iron posts which our manufadturers make. It is
estimated that 3 acres of land will keep a sheep, and 15
acres a bullock ; therefore if farmers settle they require to
spend a large amount of money on materials of interest to
the readers of " The Ironmonger." Wire, pumps, mills,
and corrugated sheets for roofing are important items.
The last named is very largely used in Cape Town, and
as I work north I find it practically holds the field against
everything, and certainly the effect is more pleasing than
I expedted. Corrugated iron at home is looked upon as
only fit for chicken-houses and sheds, but one hears a very
different story about it here. The Government House at
Bloemfontein is a fine building, for instance, but the roof
is exclusively made of corrugated iron.

Trade at Bloemfontein is very good, and one man told
me that he was literally run off his legs, while if one
could only get supplies fortunes could soon be made. At
this place ironmongers' assistants wanted £'^$ a month,
and it is believed that as soon as the northern towns are
opened £^0 would easily be obtained by a good man.

At present I am writing in a trench 30 miles short of
Bloemfontein. We can hear the guns booming, and with
glasses see the shells burst.

Meanwhile Lord Roberts, the genial victor, and the
English officials he appointed set themselves in every
way to disarm the opposition of sullen and resentful

^02 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

burghers, and to win their affection and esteem. By
slow degrees it dawned upon the poorly educated
though often wealthy citizens of Dutch extraction, that
the Anglo-Saxon race was not all bad ; in fact, that they
could love and die for honour and justice, and so it
came about, as the anxious weeks wore on, that the
faces and the demeanour of the burghers became
happier, and the sentiment of society generally showed
reconciliation with the new and better regime. The God
on whom they called to fight for them had surely been
on the other side, and they must after all be in the
wrong. They must make the best of the inevitable, and
especially as they could make more money under the
English supremacy than under the Dutch I

CHAPTER XXXIl.

THE FREAKS OF DESPERADOES.

IF the Cabinet on wheels and the Flying Rulers ever
on the scamper with Mr. Steyn desired to conserve
a shred of credit of any sort, it is difficult to see how
they could expect it, as every day they were sacrificing
human lives in a course that could not be designated
even a forlorn hope. To " fight to the bitter end "
seemed to these Boer leaders their only path of duty,
in which we have a proof of their defective civilization.
It is a sort of savage courage. It is said that the
British never know when they are beaten, yet we can-
not conceive that in an invasion of England, we should
think of maintaining a sanguinary, yet futile, struggle, by
provincial raids, after the capital and chief cities had
laid down the sword.

Our story now assumes a scrappy character, and so
far as the fighting is concerned, our interest is chiefly
divided between Mr. Steyn's shifting manoeuvres in the
corn lands of his late subjects, and De Wet's smart
attempts to wreck the Central Railway.

This was the status quo on June 20th : —

Hammonia, June i8th. — This morning the Boers fired

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 203

a few shells at our Ficksburg position. The projectiles
struck the spur of a hill covering the camp, but did no
injury, and after a time firing ceased. The enemy occupy
Zout Kop, three miles from Ficksburg, where they have
mounted a gun.

Our position is very strong. It is held by General
Boyes's Brigade, a battery of artillery, and other troops.

The Boers are in force behind the hill. One of their
laagers is at a farm about four miles away.

A Yeomanry patrol went out with two guns. Observing
the Boers in the farmhouse they shelled it, whereupon
over forty of the enemy scrambled out.

Some of, the enemy came within range of our pickets,
and endeavoured to get a gun posted on the plateau in
order to shell our camp, but they were driven off.

Ex-President Steyn and his Government at Bethlehem
are displaying extraordinary energy, and are animating
the remnant of the burghers to continue hostilities.

Scheeper's Nek, June i8th. — The seat of the Free
State Government is in touch with the commandos.

A force of Transvaalers, estimates as to the strength of
which vary, is on its way to join the Free Staters. They
belong to the army which is retiring before General
BuUer.

In accordance with Lord Roberts's proclamation, Free
Staters remaining in the field now become rebels. Mr.
Steyn, however, has issued a counterblast, declaring that
the country is still an international Sovereign State, with
a president and properly constituted Government. He
advises the burghers that no notice should be taken of the
proclamation generally, and encourages them to stand
firm. Nevertheless, the ^burghers, when they can escape
from the commandos, are surrendering daily in small
groups at one or other of our camps.

There was great anxiety among farmers in the Lady-
brand district on their hearing heavy guns firing near
Ficksburg, knowing how mobile the Boers are.

Hunter's advanced column occupied Krugersdorp with-
out opposition on the i8th. Krugersdorp, which is a
growing town some twenty-two miles west of Johannes-
burg, was brought into prominence as the place near
which Dr. Jameson and his men surrendered, on January

204 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

2nd, 1896. Outside the town is the Paardekraal Monu-
ment, which was erected to commemorate the freedom of
the Transvaal burghers from British power, after the last
war.

Methuen, who was escorting a large convoy to Heil-
bron, on the igth, routed a force, under Christian De
Wet, who endeavoured to prevent his entering the little
town. Methuen had only three casualties.

Baden-Powell left Pretoria on the 20th to return to
Rustenburg with instructions as to the settlement of
that district, which was quietening down, and this had
been materially assisted by the capture on the 19th of two
guns by Hutton's Mounted Infantry from a l?ody of the
enemy, under Commandant Du Plessis.

The railway and telegraphic communication to Cape-
town was now completely restored.

Both at Pretoria and Johannesburg the markets were
daily becoming more crowded and business-like, though
the pickets were maintained and our camps were in the
suburbs. In both towns the administration was proceed-
ing satisfactorily. The British naturally repudiate all
liability in respect of the issue by the Transvaal of bonds
and promissory notes secured on immovable property.
All banks, except the Transvaal National, had resumed
business, so that stringent regulations were enforced, and
no transfer or alienation of securities could be allowed.

The first batch of prisoners had been sent south from
Pretoria. Raw gold to the value of ;^i4o,ooo had been
found in the Mint, and National Bank Scrip to the
amount of ;^ioo,ooo. The city was well provisioned, and
at Johannesburg food was cheaper than before the war.

Courts of Inquiry had taken the evidence of prisoners,
and investigated the claims for compensation filed by
burghers.

Pretoria, June 20. — The interventions of Mrs. Kruger
and Mrs. Botha were unavailing for a time, though the
Boer Commander-in-Chief gained the advantage of a
respite. That Lord Roberts should share the Presidency
with the dear old lady might not make the veteran
millionaire campaigner jealous, but it furnished oppor-
tunities for the insidious influence of the amiable if
martial Irishman and Mrs. Kruger suggested that if her

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 20$

husband and his colleagues were assured that they would
not be expatriated they might submit 1

It was a singular circumstance for these ladies to be
left to the tender mercies of the conquerors, and yet it
was an acknowledgment of the high honour of the
British.

As details were gathered of the fight with Botha to
the east of Pretoria, the more our admiration grew as
to the pluck on both sides and the desperate effort each
made for the mastery. The Boers never fought better,
but they found again the British were more than a match
in dauntless daring and fearless intrepidity. Each day for
the Dutchmen —

Rose the blood-red rim of Phoebus

On a hopeless dawn —
Horrors dread as e'en the grimmest

Realist has drawn.

This a day of blackest letter —

Sons of exiles' sons
Slain in hundreds where the rattling,

Screaming railway runs.

Heaped by wain, by spruit, donga

Lay the gory dead,
Pioneers who seeking freedom,

Found a yoke instead.

The accounts of a battle naturally vary with the ob-
server's coign of 'vantage; so we add here one by a
commanding officer with Ian Hamilton's division.

Early on Monday General French went out to the
left with his cavalry, and entered a country which he
soon found to be most unsuitable for cavalry operations.
He therefore determined to alter his dispositions, and
while manoeuvring to do so came under a heavy cross-
fire from the enemy. The British, finding that they
were surrounded, returned the fire vigorously, making a
splendid fight, and compelling the Boers to retreat just
as our artillery ammunition was exhausted.

On our right flank General Ian Hamilton's division
was soon in action. Broadwood's Brigade became in-
volved rather seriously. He was advancing between a
String of high kopjes against the enemy in his immediate

206 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

front, when his men were surprised by a close cross-fire
from the Boer snipers, who were concealed in a neigh-
bouring mealie field and along the kopjes. Their numbers
increased rapidly, and their rifle fire did much damage
among our artillery horses.

Encouraged by the execution of their fire, the Boers
advanced over a rise in the ground to within five or six
hundred yards of our force, when they were held in
check by our fire. The 12th Lancers, on our right,
then charged the enemy's direct front, and the House-
hold Cavalry accompanied the charge against the enemy's
right, clearing the mealie field in dashing style.

Captain Egerton Green, of the 12th Lancers, was
wounded in the thigh during the charge, and was taken
prisoner. He was afterwards heard of as having pur-
chased provisions at a store which he passed. He was
then going on well.

The small number of our casualties on the occasion
of the charge is extraordinary, considering the short range
of our enemy's fire. There were no Transvaalers among
the enemy's force, which consisted of Hollanders, colonists,
foreign mercenaries, and rebels.

Generals Broadwood and Gordon had moved to turn
the left of the Pienaarspoort range on the Saturday.
They had considerable chance of success, as they had
a start of the Boers, who had taken little precaution to
guard their left rear. Unfortunately the operation was
stayed on Sunday, owing to negotiations with Botha
through his wife, who went out from Pretoria. Botha
took advantage of the respite to improve his position,
and seized hills which Broadwood would have taken if
he had not been restrained by headquarters.

On Sunday evening Botha rudely repudiated the over-
tures, and on Monday the second phase of Hamilton's
turning movement developed. But Botha had recovered
his left, and fighting was severe. Broadwood advanced
against the kopjes on his front, the mounted infantry
protecting his left, and Gordon's Cavalry his right. Per-
ceiving a gap in the enemy's line behind which two
guns were firing shrapnel with damaging accuracy, Broad-
wood determined to attempt to cut this in order to break
up the Boers' first line, and reduce their artillery fire,
Q Battery galloped for the gap and unlimbered. The

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 207

Boers, seeing an opportunity, did what they had rarely
done before ; a large mounted body charged in close for-
mation across the open up to within six hundred yards
of the battery, and opened a murderous rifle fire. There
was but one way to extricate the guns. It was then we
had a repetition of the " Charge of the Light Brigade."
The 1 2th Lancers were ordered into the open in front,
where they formed and charged. The enemy did not
wait long enough for the squadrons to get really home.
They scattered, but ten men were left dead, and several
wounded.

The guns were saved, but the cavalry as they rallied
came under rifle fire again. However, they had attained
their object. Simultaneously another mass of Boers at-
tempted Broadwood's right flank. The Household Cav-
alry wheeled out from behind a kopje, and charged.
The moral effect of the naked steel and the shouting
troopers was too much for the enemy, who broke and
fled demoralised. A hundred of them ensconced in a
kraal evacuated it in sheer terror of the sword. It was
a decided cavalry coup. The enemy were scattered and
broken, and our mounted infantry came up and held all
the positions taken.

General Gordon on the right was not heavily engaged,
but was in touch with the enemy all day, the 17th
Lancers losing two officers.

Hamilton shelled the enemy out of their main position,
and prepared the way for an assault on the morrow. The
Boer position consisted of a steep ridge, with a plateau
beyond, succeeded by a second position artificially
strengthened. The plateau afforded little cover, as there
were no stones, and the grass was burnt short.

On the next day under cover of 5-inch and field guns
the infantry advanced to the assault at two o'clock. The
Derbys were on the right, the City Imperial Volunteers
in the centre, and the Sussex Regiment on the left.
They seized the plateau under shrapnel and rifle fire.
Once on the summit they were received with a murderous
fire from ascertained range from the Boer second posi-
tion. They were enfiladed by a one-pounder Maxim on
the right, and swept at short range by shrapnel. It was
impossible to advance further, and the ist Coldstream
Guards were pushed up in support, but attempts to

208 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

bring up artillery aid failed owing to the steepness of the
ascent.

For two hours the infantry lay exposed to the com-
manding fire of all arms. It seemed that we were about
to have a repetition of Spion Kop, and that our infantry
would be dislodged for want of artillery support.

Casualty succeeded casualty among the prostrate men.
Then with a magnificent herculean effort Connolly haul-
ed the 82nd Battery on to the plateau. It was a sight
to see, and worthy of immortal song. It unlimbered
amid a tornado of concentrated fire, but withstood the
blast. Fifteen rounds of its shrapnel at one thousand
yards had their effect, the 5-inch guns found the position
of the enemy's quick-firers, and the enemy broke.

The long, extended line of prostrate men who had
taken punishment all day leapt to their feet, and a shim-
mering line of bayonets swept forward to the assault.
The Boer position was taken just at nightfall.

The casualties were about a hundred in our infantry.
The enemy lost 200 at least, killed, and many more
wounded, according to one correspondent who witnessed
the combat.

Hence they were glad to fall back before midnight.
On Wednesday the whole force advanced to Elands
River Station. Part of Col. De Lisle's corps came upon
their retreating waggons, but pursuit was then impossible.

We had now reached the turning point of the cam-
paign. The three days' hard fighting dislodged Botha
from the strongest position the enemy ever held, except
in Natal. They were ousted with loss just as the news
arrived that General BuUer had invaded from the south-
east, and that De Wet's successes had been checked.
The result was the informal armistice between the bel-
ligerents in the vicinity of Pretoria from the 15th to the
28th, which some critics condemned. There is however
a limit to human endurance.

Early this week, it was thought, we should know
whether the Republicans considered it expedient to con-
tinue the struggle. De Wet's efforts to turn the tide of
fortune came just a week too late. If he had struck
before Botha's main base was wrested from him the
situation might have been different. Now, with General
Puller advancing along the south-east frontier of the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 209

Transvaal and General Hunter in the south-west, in a
few days the two States would be completely isolated,
and then if they chose to continue the struggle we could
deal with Botha and De Wet separately and in detail.

The fact that five thousand arms had been surrendered
at Pretoria in the last fortnight was proof of the temper of
the Transvaalers and of the extent of their stomach for
the war.

The situation was as follows : — Colonel de Lisle, having
pushed Botha's retreating rear guard, was at Bronkhorst
Spruit. The greater part of the main army was resting,
and holding Pienaarspoort, the outposts being in touch
with Bronkhorst Spruit. General Smith-Dorrien had
command of the communications from Pretoria to Kroon-
stadt. His brigade, largely augmented by mounted men,
kept connection with Lord Methuen.

De Wet made an attempt on Friday upon Zand River
bridge, but was driven off, and pursued by Knox. Sir A.
Hunter, to whom Cronje has surrendered, was to arrive
at Johannesburg shortly.

In a few days the whole of the main army, with the
exception of Smith-Dorrien's brigade, was to be relieved
of garrison duty, and to co-operate in General BuUer's
advance.

Pretoria had quite settled down under General Max-
well, and Major Maxse was raising a police force of three
thousand men from all the colonial corps, which gave
them much satisfaction.

Energetic measures were being taken to procure a
practically wholesale supply of remounts for the cavalry
and mounted infantry, and also of transport animals.
There was great loss of horses through disease.

Two hundred remounts from the Remount Establish-
ment, Woolwich, proceeded by special train to Tilbury
Dock to embark on the transport Pinemore for South
Africa.

At Aldershot the departure of a series of drafts for
South Africa was commenced. The Royal Engineers
sent forty telegraph linesmen under Lieutenant Jackson
for various parts of the Cape, and the Army Service
Corps sent 58 non-commissioned officers and men, mostly
of the Supply branch, commanded by Lieutenant

N

210 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Thomas, for duty on the lines of communication. Dur-
ing the next week drafts of the Leinsters, Derbyshires,
InniskiUings, Roj'al Lancasters, Durhams, Northumber-
land Fusiliers, and South Wales Borderers left.

The transport Orient embarked at Southampton, for
South Africa, three officers and 350 men of the Royal
Dublin Fusiliers, one officer and 300 men of the North
Staffordshire Regiment, two officers and 106 men of the
Second Seaforth Highlanders, one officer and 100 men of
the Second East Yorkshire Regiment, one officer and 65
men of the Army Service Corps, and details, bringing the
total up to 13 officers and 983 men, a draft of 63 non-com-
missioned officers and men of the Somerset Light
Infantry also left Devonport for South Africa. Thus,
while some Volunteers were leaving the front for home,
more regulars were taking their place.

At Capetown a large number of civilians were leaving
for the Transvaal, railway communication having been
re-opened, and there was the prospect of Peace, for which
men of business longed and prayed, — Peace, " which
hath its victories no less renowned than war."

The best sign of peace was that burghers were coming
in from every quarter to surrender arms. As Lord
Roberts's Johannesburg proclamation reached the dis-
tricts its effect began to be seen. The back of the war
was broken, but whether guerilla fighting would con-
tinue depended on the action of Generals Botha, Delarey,
Lemmer, De Wet, and Lucas Meyer, who met in confer-
ence to consider the advisability of continuing resistance
or accepting the best terms that the situation offered.
The President was reported to be running up and down
the line in a demoralised, distracted state. The trouble
on the line of communications was due to the despera-
tion of bands of the enemy composed of the more fanatic
Boers and of those who hoped for no leniency from us.

Other movements, destined to bring hostilities to a
close, were already on foot, as we shall see presently.
The enemy in small numbers were still in the hills cover-
ing the Lorenzo Marques line, and had fired some shell
into General Pole-Carew's camp, which had been moved
further off, and another battle was imminent.

Lord Roberts published a complimentary order to the
troops as follows : — " The column under Gen. Hamilton

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2lt

marched 400 miles in 45 days, including ten days' halt.
They engaged the enemy 28 times. The flying column
under Colonel Mahon, which relieved Mafeking, marched
at the rate of 15 miles a day for 14 consecutive days, and
successfully accomplished their object, despite the deter-
mined opposition of the enemy. The nevs^ly-raised bat-
talion of City Imperial Volunteers marched 500 miles in
51 days, only once having two consecutive days' halt.
They took part in 26 engagements with the enemy."

Now that we were the paymasters of all Government
officials we claimed all State property.

Her Majesty's Government were informed by the High
Commissioner for South Africa that the following Govern-
ment Notice, No. 46, of 1900, had appeared in the
'• Johannesburg Gazette :" —

All are hereby warned against receiving, negotiating,
or in any way dealing with a certain cheque of the
Banque Francaise de I'Afrique du Sud, Johannesburg,
numbered 001356 for the sum of ;^40,ooo (forty thousand
pounds) sterling drawn by A. Gregor and J. Joudan for
and on behalf of the said Banque Francaise de I'Afrique
du Sud on the National Bank of the South African
Republic, Limited, Johannesburg, payable to cash to
bearer and dated May 28th, 1900.

Notice is further given that payment of the said cheque
has been stopped, and the relative funds in all the said
National Bank of the South African Republic, Limited,
interdicted by order of the Military Governor, the said
amount being the property of her Majesty's Government.
(Signed) Colin Mackenzie, Col., Military Governor, June
15th, 1900.

In connection with this matter, which seemed a
promising scheme to get some of the Transvaal Bank's
funds transferred to friendly hands, the following descrip-
tion of the two banks in question may be interesting : —

The National, or De Nationale, Bank of the South
African Republic, Limited, was floated in 1891, under a
concession which gave them enormous advantages over
all other banks in the Transvaal. For instance, they
had control of the Pretoria Mint, and their bank-notes
were made legal tender, and whereas it was necessary

212 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

for one-third only of their notes, in circulation, to be
covered by coin or bullion, the notes issued by all other
banks had to be wholly covered in coin, &c.

The Banque Francaise de I'Afrique du Sud, which was
apparently one of the mediums for this attempted
removal of ;^40,ooo, is a Paris bank, which started in
1895 and established a branch in Johannesburg. Their
dealings at the Rand during the first years of their
existence were not the most fortunate, and a» a result
their first dividend was not declared till 1898, when 4 per
cent, was paid.

In March last the Transvaal Government comman-
deered half a million of coin from the banking institu-
tions at Pretoria, the amount being made up as follows :
Standard Bank of South Africa, ;^26o,oo ; Bank of Africa,
;^8o,ooo ; African Banking Corporation, ;^7o,ooo ; Nether-
lands Bank, ;^5o,ooo ; Natal Bank, ;^4o,ooo. Most, if not
all, of these sums would have been lodged in the National
Bank.

Once more let the enemy have his say.

Machadodorp, June 20. — A success in the Free State is
reported. Two British convoys were captured, and a
locomotive and several trucks containing railway bridge
material destroyed at Rhenoster River. Prisoners to the
number of 350 — 300 workmen and 50 military — were
taken.

Piet Viljoen reports that 50 miles of railway in the Free
State have been destroyed.

Fifteen officers of the Seaforths, the Highland Light
Infantry, and the 13th Yeomanry have arrived here as
prisoners from the Free State. They will be sent on to
Nooitgedrecht with others who are following.

In a skirmish with the British on the i8th inst., 31
troops who were retiring on Volksrust were taken
prisoners.

A patrol of nine Hussars was captured yesterday.

There was a small fight at Amersfoort on the 15th inst.
The British were defeated. Four were killed, while the
burghers' loss was nil.

General Froneman reports that the effect of the lyddite
bombs taken on the 7th inst. at Roodeval was so terrible
that a hole 20ft. deep and over looft. long was made in
the ground.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 213

Klerksdorp and Ventersdorp have been abandoned by
the burghers.

General Andrles Cronje, who is dangerously ill, has
been made a prisoner.

[The capture of the 350 military and workmen men-
tioned in this telegram is the Boer account of the a(5lioa
at Leeuwspruit on the 14th inst., when the constru(5lion
train was taken. Nothing had been reported of this
incident beyond the publication of the names of the miss-
ing men, who belonged to the Engineers. Amersfoort is
a small village about twenty miles due north of Charles-
town.]

Lorenzo Marques, June 21. — An official message from
Machadodorp, dated June 19, states that fighting is going
on in the Free State, and that the lines of communications
are continually being cut by the burghers.

The enemy's camp east of Pretoria has been broken up.
The British have retired to Pienaars Poort, leaving out-
posts at Donkerhoek.

Details to hand regarding the railway " accident " at
Malaland, near Komati Poort, show that the bridge was
destroyed by dynamite. The driver was killed, the fire-
man seriously injured, and the guard is missing. One
passenger became delirious through injuries to the head.
Five other passengers were slightly injured. The official
message ends with the announcement that traffic has now
been restored.

A report has reached here to the effect that five miles
of telegraph wire has been cut between Komati Poort and
Kaapmuiden. Consequently communication with Mach-
adodorp is both difficult and expensive. Native runners
are employed.

Thirty-eight men of Brabant's Horse, captured at
Hammonia, in the Free State, have arrived at Nooit-
gedrecht.

Small parties of armed Boers who are in Swaziland see-
ing what they can pick up, have, under the present
circumstances, found it advisable to leave at once, other-
wise the position might get too warm for them any
moment.

The Swazies are mostly in their kraals. The authori-
ties have placed them under their chiefs, who are being

214 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

well paid for their services. The Swazies are now happy
and contented.

Four men have been taken prisoners by British scouts
along the Swaziland border.

From an English source came the news that another
large parcel of bar-gold had arrived here. It is amazing
to note the facilities offered at this port for exporting gold.
One firm received ;^300 commission for conveying a parcel
of gold from the train to the steamer. Three hundred
unstamped sovereigns, manufacftured at Machadodorp,
had been offered at 20s. each. Passengers who arrived
by the train from Machadodorp had to walk round the
broken bridge. Another train was waiting on this side.
It is reported that a resident at Komati Poort was arrested
and shot by the Boers for blowing up the bridge. It
would appear that dynamite was placed on the bridge
with a cap attached, and the engine passing exploded it.

Passengers from the Transvaal on the 19th stated that
a big fight had taken place at Machadodorp, which the
Boers abandoned, retiring to Lydenburg.

Financially the Transvaal Government was now said to
be reduced to severe straits. Mr. Kruger was endeavour-
ing to meet the emergency by an issue of Treasury notes,
but the people refused to accept them. A proclamation
had been published rendering the acceptance of the notes
obligatory, and declaring that burghers refusing such
payment would be treated as enemies of the State and
have their property confiscated !

The flour supply was almost exhausted, and other
articles scarce.

But, according to the statement of a passenger, there
were eighty truck-loads of munitions of war at Machado-
dorp.

The following are specimens of the news with which
the spirit of the burghers was bolstered up : — It is
announced that thirty miles of Free State railway have
been destroyed, that the Paris Exhibition is closed, that
war has broken out between England and France, and
that many hundreds of British prisoners have been cap-
tured in the Free State 1

The best news was concerning General Buller, who
was advancing with his main force up the railway towards
Johannesburg. Covering about ten miles a day, he neared

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR, .215

Standerton. He had so far met with no opposition, and
many burghers had surrendered their arms to him.

Lists coming in of the casualties in recent engagements
related to the march of the Highland brigade from Win-
burg last month. Lord Roberts reported at the com-
mencement of June that the brigade arrived at Heilbron
on May 29, having been opposed more or less the whole
way from Ventersburg. The chief fight was at Roode-
port, a few miles south of Heilbron. There had been a
good deal of fighting in the vicinity since then.

Buller's Headquarters, Zandspruit, June 20th. — Our
column reached here to-day.

One hundred and eighty-seven burghers surrendered
at Wakkerstroom, and 80 at Volksrust.

Many more of the enemy would have surrendered
had our line of march been in a north-easterly direction,
so as to afford protection to those who laid down their
arms.

As matters stand, many are afraid to deliver up their
rifles for fear of reprisals from their own countrymen.

There are still a number of irreconcilables hanging
upon our line of march. One typical incident will show
the bitter feeling prevailing amongst them. The son of
Commandant Woolman proceeded to a Boer commando
and strongly advised them to surrender, to save useless
bloodshed. He was promptly fired upon by a Boer
named Coetzee, the bullet passing through his leg and
killing his horse.

Paardekop, June 21. — General BuUer, with his main
force, arrived here without meeting with the enemy. The
presence in this district of such a large British force has
had the effect of inducing further submissions of burghers.
Paardekop is on the railway, 15 miles from Zandspruit.

The Hollander oflficials who remain at the stations
temporarily are loud in their complaints against the Boers
for casting aspersions upon them.

Parties of Boers carrying white flags met the General
on the road on their way to deliver up their arms and
horses.

General Hildyard joined General Clery at Zandspruit.
The retreating Boers destroyed a fine bridge and cul-
verts some distance a-head, the explosion being hearcj

2l6 * HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

by our troops. They fired nine shells at Zandspruit
bridge, with little eflfect.

Forty more Boers surrendered to-day.

Kattbosch Spruit, June 22. — Dundonald and 3rd
Cavalry Brigade occupied Standerton to-day unopposed.
The enemy left yesterday, having blown up the railway
bridge and done certain other damage.

The Infantry, who marched 22 miles to-day, are
halted for the night at Kattbosch Spruit.

Standerton is 60 miles north of the Natal border.

The march was sometimes through dense grass, show-
ing the fertility of the soil. To relieve the horses the
riders walked and rode a mile alternately. The mules were
used for the drawing of the munitions and the oxen for
the convoy. Each man carried a bottle of water for the
day.

Pretoria, June 22. — Ian Hamilton's column reached
Springs yesterday, en route for Heidelberg, where it will
join hands with Buller's troops, who reached Paardekop
yesterday, and will be at Standerton to-morrow, thus
opening up communication between Pretoria and Natal,
and preventing any joint action between the Transvaalers
and the people in the Orange River Colony.

Baden-Powell reports from Rustenburg that he found
the leading Boers very pacific and cordial on his journey.

Commandant Steyn and two actively hostile field
cornets had been captured during his absence.

Lord Edward Cecil, the Administrator of the Rusten-
burg district, had up to date collected nearly 3,000
rifles.

The District Commissioner at Kroonstad reports that
341 rifles have been handed in at Wolmaranstad.

Heidelberg is the centre of a little branch of the
gold mining industry — a healthy and rising place.

There was another line of communication between
Volksrust and Elandsfontein to be guarded, lest it proved
a gap to the enemy.

It was a piecemeal surrender generally, against the
opposition of a junta of generals well paid to keep the
custodian of the bar gold at work minting sovereigns,
which ought to have been condemned as counterfeit.

Things became lively when Commandant De Wet
Started raiding to the south. He somehow discovered

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 217

that the h"ne from the Vaal right down to Kroonstad
was practically unguarded. He thereupon appointed
posts of observation, and when the chance offered
swooped down upon our line of communications with
considerable eflFect.

In this way he surprised the militia battalion of the
Derbyshire Regiment, who were wholly unsuspicious of
the vicinity of the enemy until they found themselves
attacked by overwhelming numbers. The Derbyshire
men made a gallant stand, but the fight was necessarily
short, because our men were entirely without guns, and
could have been shelled out of existence without necessity
for the Boers to come within range of rifles.

After that De Wet destroyed ten miles of railway, cut
the telegraph line in several places, and captured a con-
voy and escort which was on the way to join Ian
Hamilton's column. De Wet, by pure mischance, just
missed bagging a still larger convoy of 300 waggons which
was proceeding along the line of the Vaal River under a
small escort.

De Wet's rapid and destructive movements caused a
tremendous commotion all along our line of communica-
tions. The alarm was general and spreading until Lord
Kitchener started south with a mobile force, Simultane-
ously Methuen got to the south of De Wet and com-
pelled him to fight. The Boers were badly beaten, but
they managed to get away with their guns.

Lord Roberts issued a proclamation holding farmers
in the immediate vicinity of the railway responsible for
any damage done, and menacing them with the destruc-
tion of their farms by way of punishment.

The railway and telegraph were of course rapidly re-
paired, and the line was strongly guarded by Smith-
Dorrien's Brigade.

Hammonia, June ig. — There was quite a smart morn-
ing's work here to-day. The Boers have been pushing
their laagers closer to our lines recently, and last night
they established one behind a hill only two miles from
our outposts. They also occupied a farm still nearer
to us.

General Rundle thought this was rather too audacious
a procedure, and early this morning he sent three guns,
with Col. Blair's Yeomanry to teach the Boers a lesson,

2l8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The Colonel's Yeomanry is the 4th Battalion, consisting
of Staflford, Leicester, Derby, and Bedford Companies.

This movement took the enemy by surprise. Our guns
shelled the hill and farm with admirable effect, and the
Boers ran for shelter up the valley, leaving several men
on the field.

Later on numbers of them attempted to surround the
Yeomanry outposts, but our fellows pelted them with
long range volleys as they came over the open veldt,
causing them to fly for their lives. The gunners then got
at them, and shrapnel pitched into a group of Boers, of
whom several fell.

The enemy kept out of range for the remainder of
the day. Our only casualty was one artillery horse
wounded.

From Bulawayo came tidings concerning the native
chief Linchwe, who, angered by the repeated raids of the
Boers on his cattle, resolved to go to the assistance of his
people in the Transvaal, recover the stock, and recoup
himself for the damage which had been done. Colonel
Plumer and General Baden-Powell had previously only
succeeded in keeping Linchwe quiet by warnings and
appeals. There was a force at Lobatsi able effedlively to
suppress him.

The movement to co-operate with the Natal force
against any enemy in the south-east of the Transvaal
l)egan on June 19.

At Pretoria special officers were enlisted temporarily to
cope with the classification of surrendered burghers.

The Courts of Justice had re-opened, and the general
police administration of the place was satisfacftory.

There was a little agitation to make Johannesburg the
capital. This was resented by the Dutch who have pro-
perty in the capital, and it was at the least an untimely
suggestion.

Pretoria is much inferior to Johannesburg as a town.
The neighbourhood is destitute of natural beauty, save
the road to the Fountains, three miles off, where are the
magnificent springs that supply the town with pure water.
A fine view of the place is gained at Signal Hill, to the
south, the plateau at the foot of which was the site of the
EngUsh camp in 1881. Though founded in 1855,
Pretoria, as it stands to-day, is pradically of the same

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 219

era as the Witwatersrand gold discoveries of 1885, whose
wealth led to the ambitious archite(flure of the last ten
years. Thus it is true that, in a sense, in taking Pretoria
we take what English capital created. In 1889 the Boer
Parliament House was a little thatched building — little
better than some English barns. The present Govern-
ment buildings, of Continental style, are very handsome.
The Raadzaal or Parliament House, fronts the Church
Square — a large bare space, where the ox-drawn waggons
outspan when the Boers come up for the Nachtmaal, or
religious festival and fair — a curious compound, aflfording
the ministers of the Dutch Church a grand opportunity of
giving their country flocks a better idea of the teaching of
the Bible, which, it is said, they so much revere, and
which has no doubt saved them, in their nomad pastoral
life, from sinking down to the level of the black natives.
In Church Square is their Cathedral, a plain, heavy, sub-
stantial strucfture, with a large tower, also the new Law
Courts, and the Club House (mainly used by Outlandersj.
Then there are the Post Ofi&ce, New Market, Public
Library, Museum, and Hospital, one or two good sized
hotels, used as boarding-houses. The churches include
St. Alban's, (R. C), a Jewish synagogue, Wesleyan,
Baptist, and the Dopper Church, where Oom Paul used
to occupy the pulpit. The streets run downwards from
the river Aapies, with other thoroughfares crossing at
right angles, and down the sides of each runs a small
channel of overflowing water fed by the stream. Pretoria
is lit by electric lamps and has ele<5tric trams. The
inhabitants keep good hours, for Kruger and his colleagues
had a hatred of " nacht-loopers." Its cabs are much the
same as the Enghsh as to constru(5lion and fares. For
want of sanitary care the town has been the home of
malarial and typhoid fever — hence a rigid Medical Officer,
with a stafif of inspe<5lors, was the first urgent reform
pressed upon the consideration of the new Governor.

To resume our diary : —

Potchefstroom, June 12. — After a splendid march by
Brigadier-General Mahon's column, this place, the old
capital of the Boers, (founded in 1839), was occupied by
British troops to-day. The few British residents in the
town, as soon as they learned of our near approach, set to
work to prepare a welcome for us, with the result that,

220 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

when our troops marched in they found many houses
decorated with bunting, and ladies wearing the British
colours, and they heard genuine British cheers. Their
enthusiasm was something to remember. Their pent-up
feelings were able to find vent without fear of punishment
after eight long months of suspense and insults.

As we entered the town the train was about to start for
the north. Our troopers headed it off and captured it.
Our spoils included eight locomotives and plenty of rolling
stock.

The Boer force here submitted en masse, and gave up
their arms without demur.

I have been able to secure an interesting interview
with ex-President Pretorius here. The capital is named
after him, and he had much to do with building up the
Republic. He said he had never been in favour of the
war — was thoroughly against it, in fact — and told Kruger
so. He foresaw all the difficulties, and knew that much
ruin would be caused by fighting against Great Britain's
might. He thought the war would last three months.

Kruger made a mistake by going to Machadodorp. If
he had been in the President's place he would have met
Lord Roberts at the Vaal River, and there sought terms.
It was no use prolonging the struggle, for there was no
doubt as to how it would end.

Mr. Pretorius said the enmity of the Boers would pass
with good government. The burghers were now at Great
Britain's mercy, and to continue the campaign in the
north of the country would be useless. He described the
war as a child fighting a man.

At the end of the interview the old man volunteered the
information that he was born in the same year as Queen
Victoria, whom he said he revered. Marthinus Wessels
Pretorius is the son of Andries Pretorius, who defeated
the Zulu chief, Dingaan.

Hammonia, Friday. — General Rundle and his staff,
with Colonel Maxwell, of the Royal Engineers, rode to
Ficksburg to-day, and reconnoitred the Boer position in
that district. The General pushed his way well into the
Boer lines, and at one time was adtually behind a Boer
outpost. He found that they held a wide extent of
country, but whether in large numbers or not could not be
ascertained.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 221

The enemy did not appear to have much artillery, as
the only gun located was that on Zautkop, near Ficks-
burg.

Pretoria, June 19. — Lieut. -General Baden-Powell, with
thirty-five mounted men, arrived here at noon yesterday.
Lord Roberts rode out to greet him several miles from
the town. The General and his men looked very well.
Subsequently Lord Roberts met him at the entrance to
Pretoria, and escorted him to the Residency. It was a
very hearty meeting, and attracted much attention.
When discovered in the town, the hero had a good deal
of handshaking, and salutes even from the Boers.

Baden-Powell left Mafeking with but 300 men, and had
had no fighting on the way hither. Large numbers of
Boers surrendered their arms to him. In fact, the whole
western district of the Transvaal has abandoned the
war.

General Baden - Powell met General Hunter near
Klerksdorp. Amongst the prisoners who had surren-
dered were two sons of President Kruger and two of his
nephews, the ElofFs. Mr. Kruger's sons are back in
peaceful occupation of their farms.

Col. Plumer and General Hunter are attending to the
pacification of the districts west of Pretoria.

Maseru, June 22nd. — A gentleman who has just arrived
here from Ficksburg and Hammonia reports that the
British forces between Ficksburg and Hibernia and
Lindley amount to about 35,000 troops. They are dis-
tributed in camps about three miles apart and in
thorough communication right through. The Boer lines
between Ficksburg and Bethlehem are said to be in great
strength. Up to the present the Boers have refused to
surrender in Ficksburg and Bethlehem districts.

Paardekop, June 22nd. — Admiral Harris, commanding
the Cape Station, having intimated to Buller that the
services of the naval contingent lent from H. M. S. Forte
were now necessary on their ship. Captain Jones and his
gallant bluejackets, together with the Natal Naval Volun-
teers, are forthwith to leave this army and proceed to
Durban.

General Buller, in a special order to the army, says the
Naval brigade leave his command amidst the sinceer

222 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR

regrets of all ranks and arms. He wishes them a hearty
good-bye, and assures them that they carry with them
the gratitude and best wishes of their comrades of the
Natal Field Force.

Lord Strathcona's Canadian Horse, a splendid corps of
500 troopers, joined General Buller's Force yesterday.
All the troops in camp turned out and gave the Canadians
a hearty reception.

Lorenzo Marques, June 22nd. — A passenger from the
Transvaal declares that on Wednesday he saw about 500
men and 15 officers brought to Novitgedrecht from Rhe-
noster Spruit, in Orange River Colony. In burgher
circles there was much talk of renewed activity in the
Colony next month.

Mr. Reitz was reported to have stated that the Boers
were in a position to carry on guerilla warfare for three
months longer.

Durban, June 23rd. — A despatch from the front brings
intelligence of the destruction by fire of a complete
British field hospital of eighteen tents. The hospital
was in camp near Volksrust, with the nth brigade on
the open veldt. The Boers, as they retreated before
General Buller, had set fire to the grass, and before any
attempt could be made to cope with the conflagration it
had assumed enormous proportions, and had spread
immense distances over the veldt.

To add to the trouble a brisk wind was blowing, and
this drove the flames right down upon the nth brigade.
No danger was feared, however, until the fire had got to
within about a hundred yards of the hospital tents, and
then the Bearer Corps were called out to extinguish the
travelling flames by beating the ground in the fashion
usually found effective.

Unfortunately a trek waggon was in the way, and the
oxen, stricken with panic by the heat, glare, and noise,
refused to move an inch. Thus hampered, the fire-
beaters were unable to cope with the flames, which then
swept unchecked through the hospital, consuming every-
thing in their path — tents, fittings, and stores alike.

At the first signal of danger the wounded had been
removed away from the line of fire. Some had to be
carried on ambulances by the Bearer Corps, but the
majority were able to walk. Had any man been left in

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 223

the tents certain and horrible death would have over-
taken him. As it was several men had narrow escapes.

Many of the wounded had stored their rifles and ban-
doliers in the tents, and there was a scene of alarming
explosions as the flames caught the cartridges.

As soon as news of the disaster reached General Duller
he sent out for bullock waggons, and in these the
wounded were taken to Volksrust, where accommodation
was found for them in the schoolroom of the town.

Vryburg, June 23rd. — The Cape Police find no opposi-
tion. The Town Council approve Sir A. Milner's policy
for suppressing the rebellion.

Maseru, Tune 23rd. — The resident commissioner in
Basutoland has taken stringent measures to stop stock
thieving, and the Paramount Chief was assisting ; many
arrests had been made.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

OUR TREATMENT OF THE ENEMY AND OUR GENERALSHIP.

SCARCELY a soldier who has been to the front
speaks well of the Boer as a man. He may be
brave, but he is cruel, and like the untutored savage of
the land, he thinks deception a virtue ; that is, speaking
of the average Boer. Hence arose the general opinion
that our treatment of them was soft. They were con-
tinually tricking us, and yet we trusted them.

A hot-blooded critic took the English nation to task for
its leniency. We kept cool heads, he says, when
Kruger's hordes were carrying everything before them,
and British war counsels were as chaos. We were
equally cool-headed when Lord Roberts and Lord
Kitchener, evolving order out of confusion, changed the
course of events, and gave us victory for reverse. We
were not losing our equanimity now, when, after the
enemy's capitals and other principal places were cap-
tured, his commandoes raid an extensive range of the
Orange River Colony, destroy many miles of railway,
make prisoners of Imperial Yeomanry and Regulars by

224 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

a battalion at a time, and practically " hold up " British
Generals possessing far superior forces.

It says a great deal for the moral fibre of our English
folks that they receive a succession of such irritating
incidents — or, to use Lord Roberts's phrase, " unfor-
tunate occurrences " — with such supreme self-possession.
Of course, they knew well enough that these misfortunes,
though not minor misfortunes by any means, could not
prevent the ultimate triumph of our arms. Yet there
were now murmurings, "not loud but deep" at disasters
of which there has never 5'et been adequate explanation,
and disasters, too, which have been repeated on precisely
similar lines at various points and at various periods of
the campaign.

Take one instance out of many. How comes it that
the country has never yet been officially informed of
the officer in charge of the force which, like a grouse
drive on the moors, was headed down into the Boer
trap at Sanna's Post ? We have had controversy to
repletion over Spion Kop, but not an officer who did
wrong or did right has been left unnamed. Yet there
have been affairs like that snare which De Wet set so
successfully for the advance column of Colonel Broad-
wood's force, the responsibility for which has never yet
been directly fixed. It is admitted that there may be
reasons for "making fish of one and flesh of another";
but the British public does not like it, and does not
hesitate to say so.

The average Briton has about as little of the blood-
thirsty in his composition as the representative of any
living race. John Bull takes a great deal of provoking
to goad him mto a fight ; but when " in't he makes an
end on't."

We have been carrying on this conflict on what is
called " the highest moral principles." Some call it
" making war with kid gloves." It is nice to hear the
dignitary of a great Church describing the British Com-
mander-in-Chief as " the most humane general of our
time." But, after all, the most humane thing in war is
to get it over as soon as possible.

Over and over again our men have been snared and
shot down under the white flag. How often has retri-
t)ution followed upon the murderers ? Our troops enter

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2^$

A rebel country, and the rebels are out-numbered. A
proclamation is issued that if they surrender their arms,
all will be well. What do they do ? They bring in a
handful of old weapons ; or, if at a pinch, they give up
a Mauser, they know they have others stored away at
home. A gleam of success to the Boer arms, and the
man who surrendered is back again to the shooting
game.

Had we commandeered their horses, as well as their
rifles, at the outset, many a valuable life would have
been spared, and districts long disturbed by strife would
have been as contented as Bloemfontein and Johannes-
burg.

The armistice trick, too, has been played for all it
was worth. Cronje tried it with Lord Kitchener, and
received the sharp response — *' Not for an instant."

But the Bothas — " the gentlemen of the Boer Com-
mandants" — succeeded where Cronje failed. General
Buller was good enough to tell the Botha opposed to
him that his Boers were surrounded, and could not
possibly get away, that, therefore, he had better sur-
render, and amazingly easy terms were offered him —
•' Back to your farms, leave your big guns, and await
Lord Roberts's decision."

Botha demurred, and then General Buller graciously
invited him to take three days to think it over I The
Boer took the three days, and used them to get his force
away, guns and all ! Could there have been more sar-
castic commentary on the British General's confidence
that the Boers were '* surrounded" ? There were 30,000
British soldiers and 3,000 Boers. Ten to one I Yet not
a man or a gun was captured. Reverse the conditions
— 30,000 Boers and 3,000 British — how many of ours
would have escaped ?

And even Lord Roberts himself permitted the Com-
mandant-in-Chief — the other Botha — to play a somewhat
similar game. According to the *• Times" correspondent,
in the battle outside Pretoria an important operation was
stopped on Sunday to negotiate with Botha through his
wife, who went out for the purpose. Botha, we are told,
took advantage of the respite to improve his position,
and seize hills which Broadwood would have taken if he
had not been restrained from headquarters.

O

226 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

On Sunday evening Botha rudely repudiated the over-
tures. What was the result ? A murderous fire was
opened on the British, and although we were victorious
the price of victory was all the dearer for Botha's
" slimness."

The British forgot that the Boer has no sense of
honour. Then an agitation was got up in favour of
Kruger, the archplotter of all the mischief. He does
not want to go to St. Helena. He is excessively anxious
to remain " in his own dear country," and surely, writes
one of his panting sympathisers in a pro-Boer paper, " we
ought to let him remain in his own country." But it
is no longer " his own country." He has forfeited all
claim to " more than six feet of Transvaal soil," says this
caustic scribe. The blood of thousands is upon his head,
and if he were free to return to the place where he and
his corrupt Executive have tyrannised and plundered to
a degree unparallelled in our days, we should never be
free from intrigue and trouble.

We must not forget one thing. Our difficulties will
not close with the war. The racial hatred will remain
for years. The Cape Colony rebels, *' willing to wound,
but yet afraid to strike," may lie low for a season, but
should we be involved in a great war which strained
our resources, they might risk another effort to achieve
Dutch supremacy. In fact, that is what the Boer dele-
gates to America threatened.

The presence of Kruger in the land would appeal to
them. Even after Kruger, there would remain his dis-
ciples, eager to pick up the mantle he dropped. No,
there can be no security for peace in the land so long
as the chief breaker of it is there. Kruger must go.
St. Helena need not be his home. But it should not be
anywhere in South Africa.

With all our christian tenderness we must be firm and
sensible. We have paid 6,000 lives for supremacy in
the interests of righteousness, let us not be cheated out
of the prize by a Boer trick at last.

Then as to our generalship. The tolerant British
public does not like too severe a criticism of our officers,
nevertheless the lessons of the war should be taken to
heart. Our blunders have been terrific. We have owed
success partly to the splendid courage of our soldiers,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 22/

and partly to the supreme military genius of Lord
Roberts. But we have also owed it in a great degree
to our superior numbers and the profound depths of the
national purse.

"There can be little doubt that if the Boers had
been braver and wiser, we should have sustained checks
of the most serious kind, if not a final defeat. They
might have easily gone as far as Cape Town, and led
the Dutch people to rebellion. If they had followed up
their early victories, they might have driven us to the
sea. If they had been willing to lose the necessary
number of men, they might have taken Ladysmith and
Mafeking, and perhaps Kimberley also." — So writes an
expert.

We have, indeed, escaped by the skin of our teeth,
and the only proper mood for us is sobriety. There is
no occasion for sackcloth and ashes, but there is just as
little occasion for an exuberant pride.

The defedts of our military system have been so
glaringly exposed that we shall be very foolish if we
do not alter it. An officer has written a striking little
book, "An Absent-Minded War," containing a strong
indidtment, very few of the counts in which can be suc-
cessfully challenged. He does not allow us to forget the
terrible beginnings of the war. They were due, (he says),
almost entirely to preventable causes. If the proper steps
had been taken, the war, he thinks, might have been
ended in two months at an immeasurably smaller expen-
diture both of money and of life. As it was, we were dis-
gracefully repulsed by a nation of peasants, whom we had
despised, and were exposed to the derision of the world.
We lost thousands of prisoners, and sustained the most
humiliating defeats. The incapacity of our officers
became a byeword, as reputation after reputation found
a South African grave. No doubt, as has been said, the
men were splendid, so far as courage and dash was con-
cerned, though they had to receive the most of their train-
ing on the spot. No doubt, also. Lord Roberts, in the
glorious sunset of his life, has showed himself a soldier of
the very first order. His achievements place him along-
side of our greatest commanders. Not a word can be
said against the courage of our officers; but as to their

228 HISTORY OF THB BOER WAR.

inefficiency, their want of brains, this has been the weak-
ness and the fault. These weaknesses arise from causes
that can be easily traced, causes that make them inevit-
able. And the question for the British people is whether
they are prepared for radical army reform.

It seems that officers are still compelled to make the
deepest study of the Franco-German War, and this at a
time when war has been revolutionised by magazine rifles,
smokeless powder, and quick-firing field guns. There has
been no study of military problems likely to become
acftual. The proof of this is found in the fact that our
Intelligence Department, controlled by Staff College
graduates, had no military map of Natal or Cape Colony
which was at all adequate to the necessity. Another des-
tru(5tive abuse is that fashionable influences, or, in other
words, smart society seems pradlically omnipotent in the
appointment of officers. The author of ' An Absent-
Minded War ' says : * I know of one talented lady who
can obtain any vacant appointment for any of her friends.'
This statement had been made before in the columns of
the Westminster Gazette, and no attempt has apparently
been made to challenge it. Another great evil is that
only wealthy men can hope for employment in the rank of
a general officer. Of course, when the choice is restridted
to wealthy men, incapacity is positively welcomed.
There are not so many able and willing to come for-
ward as to allow of a seledlion being made. It may be
replied to all this that the military genius is still to be
found among us, and the names of Roberts, Kitchener,
Buller, Baden-Powell, and others, may be quoted. To
this the reply is that all these have been forced, while
young men, to act upon their own responsibility. They
have by circumstances been freed from the paralysing
features of red tape. They have defied the traditions of
the effete War Office, and are, in consequence, in exceed-
ingly bad odour in that old shrine of mediocrity.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 229

CHAPTER XXXIV.

COOPING UP DE WET.

WHILE Kruger and Botha were meditating an uncon-
ditional surrender, (with St. Helena or Colombo in
the perspedlive), adlive steps were taken to capture the
nimble and dashing De Wet. It was high time that Lord
Kitchener, as responsible for the transports, looked after
him. A full revelation of his feats was not made till his
lordship ran down the line, and then it was discovered
that during the fortnight ending June 20th the line of
communications from the Vaal to Kroonstad had presented
the chief difficulties in the way of Lord Roberts's opera-
tions.

On June 3rd De Wet captured a convoy of forty waggons,
with stores and ammunition for the Highland Brigade,
then at Heilbron. The capture was made half way
between Heilbron and Vredefort Road.

At this moment the available troops on the communica-
tions were Lord Methuen at Lindley, the Derbyshire
Militia at Rhenoster, and 1,000 men, drafts for regiments
at the front, under Major Haig, at Vredefort Road. Con-
voy escorts and other details in small groups were
scattered along the line.

On June 4th Major Haig attempted the relief of the con-
voy, but failed, and returned to the railway.

De Wet then moved south, and on the following day
appeared astride the railway and demolished Roodevaal
bridge.

June 6th found him forcing his way north, working des-
trudlion on his way. He occupied Vredefort Road
Station, and compelled Major Haig to retire six miles
north to find a defensible position. There was some sharp
rifle fire, but Major Haig maintained his position.

On June 7th Lord Methuen arrived at Heilbron, where
General Macdonald was very short of supplies, his men
having been on quarter rations for six days.

Meantime De Wet, whose force had been largely
augmented by his successes, had detached Commandant

230 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Nil to attack Rhenoster. He effe(5led a surprise, attack-
ing in the moonlight, and the Derbyshire Militia sur-
rendered after having loo casualties.

As to two of De Wet's skirmishes, Lord Roberts
reported as follows: — On 2nd June a convoy of fifty
waggons, in charge of Lieutenant Corballin, reserve of
oflScers, was despatched from Rhenoster to Heilbron,
escorted by 160 details of the Highland Brigade under
Captain Johnstone, Volunteer Company, Seaforth High-
landers, Lieutenant Lang, Argyll and Sutherland, and
Lieutenant Murray, Highland Light Infantry.

At one a.m. on 4th June Major Haig, in command of
1,000 details at Vredefort Road, received a message from
ofl&cer commanding convoy, dated 9.30 p.m., 3rd., that
they were surrounded by superior numbers, and required
assistance.

Major Haig at once started with 600 details, and sent
the message on to Major Haking, commandant at Rail-
head, some seven miles further north at Kromellanberg
Spruit. The latter received the message at six a.m., and
an hour later despatched 120 Berkshire Regiment
(Mounted Infantry) to join Major Haig.

Both parties returned in the afternoon without having
been able to get in touch with the convoy, the Mounted
Infantry being driven in by superior numbers. The con-
voy was surrounded on the morning of the 4th June, and,
in reply to a flag of truce from Christian De Wet, sur-
rendered.

In second affair the enemy, on the morning of the 7th
June, attacked the post on our line of communication just
north of the recently-repaired railway bridge at Rhenoster
River, held by the 4th Battalion Derbyshire Regiment
and a party of Imperial Yeomanry scouts.

The pickets which had been posted on a range of
kopjes just north of the camp were attacked at dawn and
driven in, and the enemy occupied the range, which com-
pletely commanded the camp.

Our troops lost 35 killed and iii wounded, the remain-
der being taken prisoners.

Captain Anderson, Imperial Yeomanry, escaped, and
reported Captain W. Knight, D.A.A.G., and Lieutenant
Kreager, Imperial Yeomanry, as prisoners.

On June 8th considerable reinforcements, consisting of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 23 1

the Shropshire Light Infantry, the South Wales Border«
ers, and a battery, moved rapidly from the Vaal.

On June gth Lord Methuen moved out from Heilbron to
reoccupy the railway. He overtook and broke a Boer
detachment covering the Vredefort road, and on the
following day he and the force from the Vaal concentrated
at Vredefort road, the Boers being still in the vicinity.

On June nth the whole command, under Lord Methuen,
moved south on both sides of the railway, and scattered
the Boer commando at Reitvlei.

Next day they moved still further south, on information
that Kroonstad had fallen, but contrary information
arriving, moved east on the tail of the retreating
Boers.

On June 14th the enemy again appeared at Rhenoster.
They made a night attack on two constru(5tion trains,
where Col. Girouard was personally superintending
repairs. The working party resisted stubbornly, and
were extricated by the timely arrival of support from a
post to the south. The latter were attracted by firing,
and arrived with artillery. One shell was sufl&cient to
disperse the attack. The working party lost some forty
prisoners. Dead Boers were found twenty yards from
the train, the coaches of which were riddled with bullets.

Lord Methuen arrived from the east without having
effedted the capture of the Boer rearguard. The Boers
were by this time retreating to Frankfort, their sole
remaining depot of supplies in Orange River Colony.

Methuen, after slowly pursuing, returned to Heilbron
on the igth.

Drastic measures were now taken to avenge the
damage done to our communications. All the farms
lying within five miles of the scene of injury were burnt,
and in the process De Wet himself was the first to suffer.
Happily the interruption did not affect the food supplies
of the army, Pretoria being found well stocked with
provisions.

Railway communication between Bloemfontein and
Pretoria was re-established on the 17th inst., and Lord
Methuen continued his operations against De Wet.

The following telegrams illustrate other exploits of the
Boer General.

232 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

From General of Communications, Cape Town, to
Commander-in-Chief.

Cape Town, June 20th. — Referring to your telegram of

iune 19th to General, Cape Town, telegram arrived from
lethuen, June 4th, giving casualties amongst 13th Bat-
talion Imperial Yeomanry found by him on arrival at
Lindley, June ist, which, having been checked as far as
possible, were telegraphed to the Secretary of State
June 6th. All inquiries have failed to elicit further
report on the fate of the rest of the battalion or con-
dition of wounded. ' Trooper Hankey, lately belonging to
the 13th battalion, who was with Methuen, states that
he helped to write Methuen's telegram, and that no
further news was available. It is supposed that all not
mentioned were prisoners of war. This requires con-
firmation. Interrupted telegraph communications to
the north of Kroonstad is the probable cause of no
reply received to inquiries. I am sending to every
station where news could be expected. Only further
reports were telegraphed to the Secretary of State on
June 14th and i8th.

The War Office issued the following telegram from Sir
Red vers BuUer : —

Standerton, June 24th, 3.25 p. m. — Four hundred and
sixty-one prisoners, Irish and Middlesex Yeomanry, taken
at Lindley, and 180 men, details of the Highland Bri-
gade, taken with a convoy near Heilbron, passed through
Standerton on the 18th. Of these a few severely
wounded, including Lord Longford, had been left at
Reitz, and the following sick were left here; Highland
Light Infantry, Lance-Sergeant W. W. Maloney,
Privates D. MacDonald, D. Lindsay, J. Cosgrane ; 2nd
Black Watch, Private J. Mansfield ; 6th Company Yeo-
manry, Trooper J. Hill (who is seriously ill.) Others
doing well. Bulk of prisoners, including Lord Leitrim,
Lord Innismore, and Victor Gibson, are stated to have
been in good health.

The total number of British prisoners brought through
Standerton, who were captured in the Free State by the
Boers, was 580. Of these 440 were Imperial Yeomanry
and 140 belonged to the Highland Brigade. The Yeo-
manry comprised four companies — the Belfast, the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 233

Dublin, the North of Ireland, and the Duke of Cam-
bridge's Own. The captured Highlanders' detachment
consisted of Seaforths, Black Watch, and Highland Light
Infantry.

In the capture of the Yeomanry the Boer Commandant
De Wet seems to have displayed much of his character-
istic slimness. The Yeomanry, unaware that General
Colvile had vacated Lindley, and that it had been
reoccupied by De Wet, approached the town in very
haphazard fashion. De Wet had been well informed of
their coming, and his Boers lay low.

The Yeomanry were allowed to come right into Lind-
ley, and their first intimation of the presence of the enemy
was a sharp volley. This was followed by a summons
to surrender, and retreat being out of the question, and
the Boers in overwhelming force, the whole battalion had
perforce to lay down their arms.

The disaster to the Highland Brigade detachment took
place between Roodeval and Heilbron on June 4th. The
Highlanders were escorting a convoy of 61 waggons from
Roodeval to Heilbron when they were attacked and sur-
rounded by De Wet's force, which numbered 1,400 men
with seven guns. After a hopeless resistance the High-
landers surrendered, and the Boers captured the convoy.

The Yeomanry had meantime been confined at Vrede,
and they were detained there until they were joined by
their equally unfortunate comrades of the Highland Bri-
gade, when they were all brought together to Standerton
en route for Machadodorp.

While at Standerton the British prisoners stated that
they had been well treated by their captors. Com-
mandant De Wet had personally given instructions to
the burghers that they must pay for everything taken
from the British prisoners. The Boers fancied many
articles of the accoutrements of the prisoners. The
water-bottles and field glasses especially were in great
demand. The prisoners had not the option of withhold-
ing these articles, but most of them were paid for. The
men were footsore, and the residents of Standerton helped
to supply them with food. The ofiScers were quartered in
the hotel and the men in the railway goods shed.

234 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

It also transpired that the Boers on the Zand River
recently captured a train containing two thousand mail
bags, conveying an accumulation of three weeks' letters
for the troops with Lord Roberts. Two members of the
Post Office Corps were killed and two wounded, and the
rolling stock was as far as possible destroyed. There
were ;^4,ooo worth of stamps captured with the mail
bags. These were English, and specially for the use of
our troops, so that they will be useless to the Boers.

General Clements successfully engaged a body of Boers
on Sunday, June 24th, near Winburg, where he had gone
to pick up supplies and some heavy guns, preparatory to
acting in combination with columns from Lindley, Heil-
bron, and Heidelberg. He drove the enemy north of the
Zand River with loss.

Owing to rumours of great successes by General De
Wet having been industriously circulated in Pretoria,
Colonel Maxwell published several official bulletins giving
dates and details of all military operations.

Colonel Smith-Davies reported from Vredefort that
three Boer ambulances which entered the British lines
there by mistake were searched and found to contain a
quantity of dynamite and Mauser ammunition, three of
our mail bags, and seven armed burgers who had signed
the oath of neutrality at Bloemfontein.

Ian Hamilton occupied Heidelberg on June 23rd. The
enemy fled on the approach of his column, and were pur-
sued by our mounted troops for six or seven miles.

On the previous day Broadwood's Cavalry had a skir-
mish with the enemy and completely dispersed them, cap-
turing six prisoners without loss on our side.

Hunter's advance brigade reached Johannesburg and
proceeded towards Heidelberg, early on the 22nd, for the
joint action against De Wet, who made another dash on
the 23rd.

Part of his commando, consisting of about 700 to 8co
men, with three guns, attacked the railway between
Kroonstad and Honingspruit on June 23rd, at dawn.

The attack was first made on an outpost of Canadian
Mounted Rifles two miles south of Honingspruit. The

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 235

outpost was cut off, and two men were killed, and Lieu-
tenant Triglis and four men were wounded. Three men
are missing.

The enemy then attacked a camp occupied by two
companies of the Shropshires and fifty Canadians, shell-
ing them freely with shrapnel, but without much effect,
as our troops were well entrenched.

Meantime, at Honingspruit Station, a train from Pre-
toria, going south with four hundred infantry, was also
attacked. The released prisoners from Waterval hastily
arrived. They were armed with rifles surrendered by the
Pretoria Boers, and were without artillery. Colonel
Bullock, of the Devon Regiment, was in command.

The attacking force numbered about 300, and had two
15-pounders. Colonel Bullock just managed to telegraph
to Kroonstad before the wires were cut. The enemy
destroyed the railway on each side of our position. They
sent a white flag summoning the troops to surrender, but
the demand was at once refused. An attack with rifle
fire from the north immediately commenced.

It was then about half past eight. The Boers also
opened with shell fire from guns posted to the north and
south-east of the position. Then their riflemen riding
round to the east, practically encircled our men. After
a heavy shell and rifle fire, lasting several hours, the
enemy again invited Colonel Bullock to surrender, but
he indignantly refused, and an unflinching resistance was
continued until half-past three o'clock.

When reinforcements appeared, the Boers bolted pre-
cipitately. The new arrivals were despatched by General
Knox from Kroonstad and consisted of the 17th battery,
R. A. and 300 Yeomanry, under Colonel Brookfield.
Unfortunately Major Hobbs, of the West Yorkshire, who
had been for eight months a prisoner, was killed. Lieut.
Smith Glover, was wounded and three other men were
killed and sixteen wounded. Dr. Lenthal Cheatle, con-
sulting Surgeon on Lord Roberts's staff, was in the train,
and making bandages of sheets and pillow-cases, and for
splints any pieces of wood that he could find, had a hard
day's work in bandaging the wounded, and temporising a
hospital in a cottage near the little station.

Leaving De Wet for a while, let us now follow the
march of General BuUer towards Johannesburg.

236 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

When Lord Dundonald's advanced guard marched into
Standerton, on June 22nd, the Canadians occupied the
post of honour. There was no semblance of any opposi-
tion and as our men approached the town the last of the
burghers and the officials fled.

General BuUer, with the remainder of his column,
arrived at ten o'clock next morning. The march from
Laing's Nek proved entirely uneventful. The nights
were bitterly cold, and very trying to the troops; we
entered the town in a thick cold mist.

Whilst the headquarter's staff were on the march a
violent explosion was heard shortly after leaving Paarde-
kop. When we reached Standerton we found that the
middle span of the large viaduct had been blown up.
This was said to be the work of Hollanders. They had
also set fire to a huge pile of sleepers, worth ;^i7,ooo, at
the railway station, and only the smart arrival of our
mounted men prevented the station itself from being
destroyed. The enemy had made preparations for burn-
ing it.

Lord Dundonald, on his arrival, arrested the whole of
the Hollander railway staff, numbering 47 altogether.
They at first adopted a high and mighty tone, but their
demeanour after a pointed examination by the military
chiefs became remarkably subdued.

We took about a score of locomotives at the station.
They were all more or less damaged, but our engineers
said they could be easily repaired. Our men also seized a
large quantity of miscellaneous rolling stock, all of which
came in useful for bringing up supplies to the front.

The railway line was practically intact to Standerton.
Throughout the whole Natal campaign nothing had stood
out more prominently than the smartness of the engineer-
ing staff". No difficulty was too great to be overcome.
Within one hour of General Buller's entry into the town
the broken wires were made good and the telegraph
office opened for the receipt of traffic.

The town in the afternoon presented almost its normal
appearance. Most of the business premises were open,
and shopkeepers were by no means averse to trading with
the British.

The road bridge across the Vaal was intact, and no
buildings in the town appeared to have been destroyed.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 237

The first men to reach Standerton were three guides.
They were followed by Colonel Gough's Composite
Regiment, forming part of Lord Dundonald's Cavalry
Brigade, and including Strathcona's Horse. The infantry
bivouacked six miles out, having marched over twenty
miles. The Landdrost and officials made off for Macha-
dodorp. The fighting burghers had for the most part
evacuated the town three days ago.

A patrol of Transvaal police which was left behind on
the look-out also retired, after commandeering all the
farmers' horses in the neighbourhood. The troops were
welcomed heartily when they rode into the town.

Two of the railway officials, named Van Daila and
Scheffers, were arrested, as it was alleged that they were
implicated in the blowing up of the railway bridge and
the destruction of railway property. The prisoners were
provided with comfortable quarters in the gaol. Ten
cases of dynamite were sent here. Five were used for
destroying the bridge, and the remainder, with a very
large quantity of ammunition, were taken to Machado-
dorp. It was ascertained that at a small station next
to Zandspruit the officials received a telegram informing
them that dynamite was on tthe way, and instructing
them to destroy the bridges and culverts.

A few burghers surrendered immediately a proclama-
tion was issued warning all under arms that they would
be held responsible in person and property for any act
of violence or ill-treatment offered to the persons or pro-
perty of any burghers who signed the oath of neutrality
and surrendered to the British Government.

Before decamping, some Boers looted a store, and the
proprietor of an hotel went to Machadodorp to recover,
if he could, ;^900 for goods commandeered from him.

Field Cornet Badenhorst, of Wakkerstroom, remained
in the neighbourhood of Graskop, about fifteen miles dis-
tant from Zandspruit, with 1,000 burghers, his object
being to interfere with our lines of communication, but
General BuUer had taken precautions to frustrate them.

At Standerton, on the 24th of June, a trader who had
just come through from Ermelo stated that the people
there were anxious to surrender the town, provided they
were assured of good treatment. In Ermelo, as elsewhere
in the more remote districts, the Boers were gulled by

238 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Stories of the deportation of men and families. Between
such fears and the coercion brought to bear on them by
Mr. Kruger's satelHtes the people hardly knew what
to do.

Only a comparative few were still in a militant mood,
and of these part had joined Mr. Kruger at Machado-
dorp, and the rest had formed a commando at Graskop,
six miles south of Zandspruit.

A deputation came even from distant Pietersburg,
requesting a force to be sent in order to accept the sur-
render of the town. Apart from the two fighting com-
mandants, and Botha was only acting on the defensive
to protect his master, there was a general desire for
peace.

All the burghers at Pretoria, wrote a correspondent,
regarded the continuance of the war as criminal. So
long as President Kruger was willing to stick to his
guns and fight to the bitter end they were ready to
follow, but at the same time his flight and the many
flagrant cases of cheating and self-aggrandisement on
the part of himself and his officials had opened their
eyes. On more than one occasion burghers could be
heard expressing a desire* to shoot the President for his
betrayal of their country.

Mrs. Lucas Meyer and Mrs. Botha were both in the
town. They could be seen shopping daily, and passed
everywhere unhindered.

Thanks to the energy of Colonel Ward, who has done
magnificent work in feeding such a large army, our
soldiers were on full rations.

Vryburg, June 23. — Over 200 men of the Kuruman
commando surrendered to a small patrol of General
Warren's force. The remainder were split up into small
parties.

The surrendered arms sent in from Schweizer Reneke,
about 100 in number, included carbines, rifles, and shot
guns, as well as Mausers.

Cape Town, June 24. — De Villiers's commando, con-
sisting of 200 men, with 280 horses, 18 waggons, 260
rifles, and over 100,000 rounds of ammunition, arrived
at Blikfontein and surrendered to Sir Charles Warren.
It included sixteen leading rebels, but De Villiers him-
self, with a small party, had trekked eastward.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 239

Mr. Arnold Foster, the '* Times" Cape correspondent,
strongly supported a colonization scheme in an able
article in that paper of June 25. A Government loan
of ten millions for irrigation and farming would be better
than large garrisons, and was the best way of making
the land a source of wealth and strength. " There is,"
he said, " no reason why, in time, the soil in a great
part of South Africa should not be capable of support-
ing a prosperous and contented population." A great
and wise scheme of colonization he considered most
imperative.

Some of the Rhodesian companies offered the Austra-
lian bushmen large farms practically free of cost in the
event of their settling in Rhodesia.

Mr. Rhodes went to Beira and offered to give the
Colonials a retainer of £2^ a year each and ;^i2 for
each horse, on condition that they staid in the country,
with liability to military service if called upon, and to
present themselves, mounted, on certain occasions.

There was a disposition on the part of many Cana-
dians, New Zealanders, and Australians to settle ; and
Mr. Chamberlain stated to the House of Commons that
the subject of Colonization was receiving the careful
consideration of a joint Departmental Committee.

The Natal Premier arrived at Durban, on June 23,
and gave an interview to the journalists. He said he
thought that the court for trying prisoners on charges
of treason should be constituted as follows : —

One English Judge, one Judge of Natal, and one bar-
rister commissioner. In his opinion the court should
sit as soon as the Judge appointed arrived from England.
He was strongly m favour of the common lands in the
Weenen district being irrigated and sold at low rates to
the soldiers now in South Africa who desired to settle
in the country. Every inducement should be given to
loyalists to settle in the country.

The Imperial Government would sanction the Natal
Railway Company working the through railway right up
to Pretoria and Johannesburg. The question of the per-
manent management of the railway lines, however, rested
with Mr. Chamberlain.

All the refugees now remaining here were being main-
tained by the Mansion House Fund. It was notified,

240 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

however, that the supplies from this fund would soon cease,
and the Town Council were consequently actively exert-
ing themselves to face an acute crisis, as there was no
prospect of the remaining refugees being able to return
to their homes before August.

Dr. Morris Martin, interviewed at Birmingham, repeated
a statement that had been previously published, throwing
light on Boer tatflics. When in Pretoria he had the
choice of being dodtor to Cronje's army or being shot.
When the first skirmish came ofif at Mafeking, and he
gave the reporter of the Boer organ the correct report of
killed and wounded, he was lashed for it. Henceforward
he told lies to order. His job was altogether most uncon-
genial, in contiguity to stinking Boer trenches, and
after Cronje's surrender, when the docftor was removed
to Pretoria, he craved a week's respite for a sea breeze,
and gaining Delagoa Bay it was not long before he was
on his way to England.

Then it was reported that Mr. Kruger issued a pro-
clamation on Sunday, June 24, stating that the Russians
had declared war on Japan, and that England was bound
by treaty to support the latter, and must therefore with-
draw her troops from South Africa. The proclamation
also stated that Lord Roberts had no supplies, and
implored the burghers to keep up their courage. But,
despite the many proclamations, the burghers were anxious
to return to their homes. The majority, as soon as shell
fire began now ran to safe cover and prepared to retreat.

A singular misfortune was reported from Scheepser's
Nek on June 21, as to the Boers not yet entirely cleared
out of the Natal border. On the previous night Colonel
Dalgety, commanding the Colonial Division camped at
Hibernia, sent word to General Rundle at Hammonia that
he had surrounded over 200 Boers on a kopje called
Doornkop, and asked for assistance to enable him to cap-
ture the enemy.

General Rundle acted with promptitude. Leaving
Hammonia at midnight, and taking with him the Scots
Guards, cavalry squadrons, and a battery of artillery, he
made forced marches in the dark, and arrived at the Nek
before daybreak. There, after all his trouble, bitter dis-
appointment awaited him, for. he found that Colonel
Dalgety had raised the siege during the night, and

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR- 24I

returned to his camp. It appeared that Rundle again
went out in the morning, but found the enemy gone. They
had taken advantage of Colonel Dalgety's retirement to
get away as fast as possible.

There were various speculations regarding the Colonel's
acflion, but it was believed that the main reason for his
retirement was that his gun got damaged. He had the
enemy fairly cornered, and with such strong reinforce-
ments, the whole of the Boers would assuredly have been
caught if he had stood firm.

The enemy made the Senekal road highly dangerous to
the unescorted traveller, their pickets turning up unex-
pecftedly in the most unpleasant manner.

At Kimberley, on June 23, Dr. Jameson, the previous
night, broke silence for the first time in four years on the
subject of the Raid. Addressing the eledlors, he sketched
the position on the Rand before the raid, emphasising the
fact that discontent was fomented by the working classes
themselves, who, groaning under grievances, were in a
state of semi-revolt. His own part, he declared, would
have ceased with the establishment of a Provisional
Government to carry out a plebiscite of the people. The
Provisional Parliament would have included both Dutch
and English, and no racial element would have been
involved. Dr. Jameson said he had also hoped to assist
in the federation of the different South African States.
The Rand revolutionists were thoroughly well armed, but
they failed owing to weak links in the chain. He denied
that the raid had been the cause of fresh racial trouble or
of the Boer armaments. Nor did he admit that it had
hampered the Imperial Government. Race feeling had
always been there, and the Boer armaments had com-
menced from the time of Sir H. Robinson's ultimatum in
1884.

At Bloemfontein an anti-English German publican at
this time sold his property for ^15,000, which before the
war he offered for ;^i2,ooo. The Queen's birthday was
celebrated here with music and dancing, feasting and
bunting.

A member of the Wharfedale Yeomanry, an officer
under General Arthur Paget in Lord Methuen's Division,
gave an account of a march to the front from the village

P

242 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

of Boshof. It shows how quickly Volunteers become
smart soldiers.

" The march is being made under most difficult con-
ditions, and it speaks well for the men that they endure it
so well. The sand is so bad that for several hours during
one march we were unable to see the troop in front of us,
and on one occasion I could not see the hoofs of my horse
for more than half an hour. We start each morning
about 3 a.m., and rest during midday, and march again in
the evening. On one occasion we got separated from our
transport, and during the whole day both men and officers
had nothing to drink, and only three biscuits each, for
nearly 20 hours.

" As to sleep, during the last fortnight every officer has
slept in his clothes, and for nearly two and a half days we
were unable to wash owing to lack of water. However,
when we arrived at Hoopstad we had a little luck, as
owing to the number of Free Staters in the district a
battalion of the South Wales Borderers were left behind
as garrison, and I was attached to them with my troop to
act as scouts, (the other three troops going on with the
column.

" On Monday we received information that there were
about 100 Free Staters at Bultfontein, and that we must
at once proclaim the district. I received orders to take
my troop at once there, and escort Captain Grant, of the
Borderers, who was to proclaim the district. There were
also a troop of Royal Irish Rifles Mounted Infantry
ordered to proceed from Brandfort, about thirty miles
from Bultfontein, to support us. They left a day after we
started.

" We left early on Tuesday morning, and marched 30
miles, and halted at a friendly farm outside, in order to
arrive at Bultfontein in the dark. Instead of arriving
with my full troop, I had only ten men and a corporal
left, the horses being too unfit to proceed, together with
three Royal Engineers to work the telegraph. There
were about 150 armed burghers in the town, and we
decided to make a rush instead of waiting for daylight.

" We arrived at Bultfontein at g.45 p.m., nearly all the
inhabitants being in bed. We made straight for the
telegraph office and surrounded it, and Capt. Grant and
myself entered it. We found about 14 men inside, and

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 24J

fortunately caught them unarmed, and promptly held
them up. We then took charge of the instruments,
leaving the Sappers in charge, and rode off to the
Landdrost's house, and arrested him and his clerk.

" Then we took the hospital, and turned it into a bar-
racks for our men, and awaited the morning. Owing to
the dark no one knew our numbers, or we should never
have reached Bultfontein alive, but the Irish Rifles
arrived to our assistance in the morning, and we were
able to take complete possession of the town.

•* After that we called upon the burghers to lay down
their arms, offering them a free pass to their farms if they
took the oath of neutrality. During the next day they
came pouring in, and at the present time of writing more
than two hundred have surrendered out of a burgher roll
of about three hundred.

** What makes this interesting is that Bultfontein was
the only district left in the Free State which was not
proclaimed. Of course, the knowledge that we had more
than a thousand troops within thirty miles materially
helped us, as we should never have dared to attempt to
seize a town with 150 armed burghers if we had not
been sure of reinforcements. Still, I think the men
showed great pluck in seizing it, and they have been
specially mentioned in the despatch to the General.
We are still holding Bultfontein, and will do so until it
is quiet.

" There was a friendly rivalry between the Irish and
ourselves as to who should be the first to arrive, and they
were greatly disappointed at finding our flag waving.
They marched the 30 miles in under five hours, which is
a very good performance when the horses are carrying a
full equipment."

Writing from Port Elizabeth, Dr. S. R. Scott said: —
" Half the 3rd Yorkshire Regiment is here, North End,
and the other half at Cradock and vicinity. Our sphere
of work extends up the line about 30 miles, where there
is an important railway bridge. A constant guard being
needful, a strong detachment is posted there, Barkly
Bridge. It is quite in the * bush.' I had an afternoon's
shooting there some weeks ago. Buck, hares, guinea-
fowl, wild doves are the game. We came on a spoor of
elephants, and found our way back by starlight, the

244 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Southern Cross being our chief guide. The bush
consists of very thick thorn and cactus, no vegetation
higher than lo or 12 feet. Tracks made by wild
animals interlace in all directions : it is impossible to go
along any other than ready-made tracks. I am feeling
very tempted to come back and settle here ; it would be
a good thing to do."

Innumerable letters from soldiers at the front found
their way into the newspapers, and more or less threw
light on the campaign, with its tragic and its pleasant
side. Thus one sketches a haul of oranges at Dundee
and another of poultry on the road from Boshof.

Corporal Holmes, of Wakefield, writes thus from Port
Elizabeth. — " We are having a hot time of it, for we
only get two nights a week in bed, and the guards and
other duties are very hard, but I am all right, as I am
a full corporal of the Garrison Police. They are dying
in dozens at Bloemfontein from enteric fever ; it is
something awful. We had a grand affair the day Mafe-
king was relieved, and one could hear the cheers of men,
women, and children for miles away. The Union Jack
was flying, and all the men-of-wars in the harbour were
lit up with electricity, and they all fired volleys in hon-
our of Baden-Powell and his men. I think the Boers
have had quite enough of it, Lord Roberts is settling
them with his six-inch wire gun. The other week we
made a raid upon all the bad characters in the town,
and we succeeded in capturing thirt)'. We scoured all
the kopjes, and found men hiding in caves. Several of
them tried to escape, but they were unsuccessful, as they
were surrounded by our men. We had, however, a rough
time with them. On the night of the rejoicings over
Mafeking one of the rockets dropped on a big vessel
laden with hay, and she took fire. They had just time
to get all the troops and horses off before she was a mass
of flames. She has been burning three days, and the
flames could be seen for miles around."

The terrible lists of casulties which almost daily
appeared in the newspapers were more than enough to
make any man with a heart wish for an end of hostilities.
To take, as an example, the three weeks ending June
23rd, the official returns show that the enemy had placed
Hon de combat no fewer than I1700 officers and men. Of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 245

these 337 had been reported as missed, and these losses
do not inchide the battalion of Derbyshire Militia cap-
tured at Roodeval on June 7th, of the battalion of
Imperial Yeomanry captured at Lindley on the 31st of
May, (of which no official return was then forthcoming,)
and which would bring our missing reported in the period
mentioned to a total of 1,300 officers and men.

Since the end ot May, the Boers had killed 35 British
officers and 268 men, and wounded 94 officers and over a
thousand men. Of these casualties Lord Roberts's battle
with Botha east of Pretoria accounts for only about 200
officers and men.

The Yeomanry had borne a creditable share of the
recent engagements, as shown by their large proportion
of losses, four officers having been killed, 16 wounded,
and two reported missing, while 55 Yeomen had been
killed, 120 wounded, and 28 were unaccounted for — a
total of 225. The Sherwood Rangers Company lost one
officer wounded, two men killed, nine wounded, and ten
missing, while the South Notts Company lost two officers
wounded, one man killed, and one wounded. The Duke
of Lancaster's Own, (23rd Company) had in the brief
period covered by the returns referred to lost one officer
-wounded, 12 men killed, and 16 wounded, while the sister
company, the Lancashire Hussars, lost one officer
■wounded, three men killed, and six wounded.

Disease showed little signs of diminution, for between
900 and 1,000 officers and men had in 22 days been
reported dead. Only in a few cases were the deaths
attributable to accident.

The struggle for possession of the railways cost the
Royal Engineers and the Royal Pioneer Regiment a large
number of officers and men, the former since the end of
May having lost two officers wounded, and one missing,
four men killed, two wounded, and 48 missing or cap-
tured, while the Railway Pioneers lost five officers
killed, one wounded, and two missing, and ten men
killed, 15 wounded, and 48 missing.

A calculation from the official returns gave a net
total, exclusive of the officers and men returned to the
fighting line, of 35,443 placed out of action during the
campaign, and leaves 40 officers and 1,872 men (exclusive

246 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

of the Derbyshires and the 13th Battalion I.Y.) to be
recovered from the enemy. The Boer and Free State
prisoners with us were beHeved to number over 6,000.

The War Office abstract of the casuaHties to the
South African field Force to the 23rd June, showed 257
officers and 2415 men killed; 902 officers and 11,496 men
wounded ; 72 officers and 620 men died of wounds ; 225
officers and 4950 men missing and prisoners; 127 officers
and 4260 men died of disease; 844 officers and 17,666
men invalided home. Of the missing officers and men,
177 of the former and 31 15 of the latter had been released
or had escaped, while i officer and 79 men had died in
captivity.

Our effective force in South Africa was reckoned to be
over 200,000 officers and men, including — apart from
Artillery, Royal Engineers, Volunteers, Yeomanry, Colo-
nial corps, and non-combatants — 17 Regiments of British
cavalry, six battalions of foot guards, and 109 battalions
of infantry of the line. This leaves 196 battalions of
infantry, and 18 regiments of cavalry available for duty
outside South Africa.

Ian Hamilton reported — " Heidelberg is the most
English town I have yet seen, and the inhabitants gave
us a great reception, the streets being crowded and a
fine display of bunting made. Captain Vallentin hoisted
the Union Jack in the Market-square amid the cheers
of the populace, the British, Australian, and other
Colonial troops. * God save the Queen' was sung, the
crowd heartily joining. The poor loyalists have had a
rough time of it lately."

Hutton's Mounted Infantry had a skirmish with some
Boer patrols a few miles south-east of Pretoria. Captain
Anley managed the little business very well. Lieut.
Crispin and one man of the Northumberland Fusiliers
were wounded.

General Pole-Carew's Division moved out from Pre-
toria and re-occupied the kopjes at Pienaar's Post. It
was reported that 2,000 men of Botha's commando were
hanging about. A few Boers sniped Col. Henry's
Mounted Infantry, but no casualities occurred. This was
a daring attempt to draw our fire. Botha's force at
Middleburg was stated to be 30,000.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 247

Scraplana from Pretoria in June was something like
this :—

Permission was granted, under certain circumstances,
to burghers to take cattle to the bush veldt for the
winter.

The surrendered commandants dined freely at the
regimental messes, and discussed the battles in which
they had been engaged. The war has resulted in the
prevalence of a much better feeling between both sides
of combatants.

A portion of Lord Roberts's bodyguard of colonials
was looking forward to returning home, where their in-
terrupted business demanded their attention.

Colonel Maxwell, the Governor, had issued proclama-
tions ordering civilians to remain in their houses after
seven. All horses were requisitioned.

Great feeling existed among the Boers against their
chief Government officials, who made every provision for
their personal aggrandisement, leaving the smaller fry
unpaid.

Many town officials had taken office temporarily.
The local railway had been completed to the Irene
Bridge.

Lord Roberts gave a dinner to the military attaches
(who all expressed their high admiration of the conduct
of the British army) before they left for home.

General Ian Hamilton was suffering from a broken
collar bone, caused by a fall from his horse. It was
set, and he was going on all right.

While the fight near Pinnear's Port was still in pro-
gress emissaries endeavoured to obtain Lord Roberts's
permission to reach Mr. Kruger and induce him to
return to Pretoria. They were the bearers of a piteous
appeal from Mrs. Kruger and other friends who had
driven thither in an hotel omnibus. General Botha,
however, stopped the delegates, saying that their mission
was useless since Mr. Kruger had no longer any right to
act, the issue now being a purely military matter.

The men released from prison at Waterval were formed
into a composite regiment under the officers who had been
captured with them, and were now eager for reprisals.
When released from confinement by General French, the
" y " battery, R.H.A., brought away the Maxim gun that

248 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

had covered the prison; they dragged it all the way to
Pretoria, and now wanted to use it against Botha.

A great quantity of army stores was found in Pretoria,
including hundreds of tons of compressed forage, and
many tons of biscuits, which of course were utilised by the
British army.

One of the many new enterprises arising out of the war,
was the proposal to connect the south-west coast of Africa
with Rhodesia by rail, and Mr. Rhodes was said to be
in communication with the German authorities for that
purpose. His influence was great, and his past achieve-
ments warranted success in almost any commercial or
engineering work. He is called an empire maker, and
has had much to do with the building up of South Africa.
According to one biographer, he is not a sordid man,
though the possessor of millions. He is a generous
" boy." His statue, in bronze, is to ornament Bulawayo.
His new railway enterprise was to develop the Otovo
Copper Mines.

The successes of De Wet put Mr. Kruger into high
spirits, and he talked of an attempt to retake Pretoria.
When the new batch of prisoners passed his railway
habitation, they saluted him, and he raised his hat to
them. The men were in no good humour, especially as
there was no suitable provision for their lodgment, and
the nights were very cold.

To be independent of the telegraph between Pretoria
and Johannesburg, heliographic commi^nication was set
up and the first message was — "Will Lord Roberts
accept the presidency of the Soldiers* Institute at
Johannesburg," which showed that the camp was
making itself comfortable.

As we surprised a laager near the capital we heard the
sounds of several concertinas, and we found they were
played by Dutchmen in charge of the transports. It is
the national instrument, and nearly every male Boer
prides himself upon being a master of it, but the music
is often execrable. I have listened to it as a serenade by
moonlight, on the stoep of the homestead, in the weird,
balmy evening (writes a musician). I have heard the
lazy Boer, lying on his waggon mattress, drawl out his
old hymn tunes, and when the oxen were outspanned seen
him roll oH his bed to take his seat on a water keg to

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 249

entertain the Kaffir servant while he made the coffee.
But the boys usually play fortissimo, without an atom of
taste, and with vigour enough to burst the cotton
convolutions.

After three different accounts, a fourth correspondent
told the public that the bridge over the Delagoa Rail-
way, seven miles west of Komati Poort, was destroyed
by a party of Strathcona's Horse, who landed at Kosi
Bay and marched through Tongaland. It seemed a
pity that a stronger force had not gone up the line as
far as Machadodorp and taken Mr. Kruger prisoner,
although he was not far from being that already in his
railway carriage, in which he transacted what •' business
of State" he could, which was mainly paying bills for
those fighting for him.

A Johannesburg tradesman went to him in the hope
of persuading the President to cash ;^9,ooo worth of
" blue backs." Mr. Kruger gave him ;^3,ooo in bar gold,
which he took out of a safe.

In ope case the British authorities seized some bar
gold that Mr. Kruger had paid to a merchant, but it
was understood that if the account was found correct,
the man would get his money.

General Hutton fought a smart engagement with
General Snyman's commando. Hutton marched from
Pretoria towards Rustenburg, and on the road he met
General Baden-Powell on his way to Pretoria. It was
ascertained that General Snyman's commando was in the
vicinity, and the two forces joined and attacked the
Boers. After a slight skirmish the Boers retreated.
They could not get away quickly enough, however, and
General Hutton captured 150 of them and two guns.

Three hundred of General Carrington's Canadians
reached Rustenburg, and General Baden-Powell for-
warded a big convoy of waggons, which he had captured,
to that General.

An unfortunate incident occurred near Kroonstad in
connection with a body of Basuto labourers who had
been sent by the Resident Commissioner to work under
the Royal Engineers. They were attacked by the Boers,
and 20 of their number were killed and wounded, while
200 were taken prisoners. This occurred at the same

250 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

time as the disaster to the Derbyshires, which was wit-
nessed by the natives.

It was a remarkable thing that the Union Jack hoisted
on the court-house at Standerton was the identical flag
which was hauled down in 1881 after the retrocession of
the Transvaal.

Chief Nowadie, of the Amangweni tribe, who lives
near the sources of the Tugela, close to the border of
the Free State, collected ;^2i9 among his tribe for British
sick and wounded.

The Boers made an attack upon Colonel Henry's out-
posts near Eerstefabrieken. Our men were driven in by
the Boers, who were content with sniping us for some
time, after which they disappeared.

General Methuen fought another successful engage-
ment at Engelbrechts Kop, near Vereeniging. He
attacked a body of Boers in a strong position, and
drove them off. He was always " routing," but not
defeating.

Another case of abuse of the white flag occurred near
there. A party of Cork Militia were sent to a farm to
collect rifles, when the farmer fired on them. The man
had given in his submission, and undertaken not to bear
arms again.

A proclamation ofiering safety to all Boers surrendering
arms secured a cessation of sniping between Standerton
and Sandspruit. Elderly farmers were now driving in
under the white flag, and delivering up arms and ammu-
nition. It was reported that the number of the enemy
about the Heidelberg district was rapidly decreasing, the
Boers dispersing towards their farms intending to collect
arms for surrendering.

A very strict surveillance was maintained over the
inhabitants here, though the town was perfectly quiet.
The military discipline effected the removal of the deeply
impressed belief that Afrikanders had become slaves
under the British. This terrorism of British action had
evidently been instilled into the inhabitants by the com-
mandants.

On June 26th General Hunter, commanding in place
of the disabled Ian Hamilton, was co-operating in
the great move in the Orange River Colony and had

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR, 25 1

reached Frankfort. An attack on the line of communica-
tions had been beaten oflF.

A body of the enemy attacked the Roodeval Spruit post
on the railway, on June 27th, but were easily beaten oflF
by a detachment of Shropshire Light Infantry, West
Australian Infantry, and a fifteen-pounder gun from an
armoured train.

Baden-Powell reported that one of his patrols captured
an influential Boer named Ray, who had been endeavour-
ing to raise a commando in the Rustenburg district, and
that another patrol brought in over 100 rifles, making
over 4,000 rifles and 1,000 inferior pieces taken during the
last few days.

He also stated that thirty Lichtenburg Boers arrived
at Rustenburg, going to their homes from the Delarey
commando. They said they would have left before had
they seen Lord Roberts' proclamation, which was care-
fully withheld by the Boers in authority.

There was a record market day in Pretoria, on June
28th, the farmers in the neighbourhood having come in
large numbers to sell their produce.

CHAPTER XXXV.

WAR HOSPITAL ACCOMMODATION. — A SCANDAL AND
SENSATION.

A PAINFUL sensation was caused on June 27th, by
disclosures in " The Times " about the lack of
medical comforts and skill in South Africa. " The
Times " correspondent, Mr. Burdett-Coutts, signed his
name because of the gravity of the statements he made.
He wrote from Cape Town under date May 29th, and
began thus : '* A long time has elapsed since the
despatch of the last preceding letter. During that
period the growing scenes of neglect and inhumanity,
of suffering and death, which have been the lot of the
British soldier in the closing chapters of this war have
made up a picture which it is impossible any longer to
conceal from the eyes of the British public,"

252 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR-

The real charge contained in the correspondent's letter
was that, Whatever success may have attended prepara-
tions for dealing with men wounded in battle, there was
no adequate, or approximately adequate, provision for
dealing with the far more numerous class of men stricken
down by disease.

"The Times" correspondent went to Bloemfontein,
the chief headquarters of the Commander-in-Chief for
seven weeks, and he told what he saw after the occupa-
tion had lasted a month, and when there had been ample
time to obtain necessary appliances if such appliances
existed. Typhoid was rampant in Bloemfontein. There
was uninterrupted railway communication to the sea,
and there was more than ample time to get everything
needed from Cape Town, or, for that matter, even from
England. Yet there were neither beds, nor linen, nor
stretchers, nor nurses, nor proper ambulances, nor any
of the well-understood necessaries for the treatment of
typhoid.

The correspondent drew a painful picture of the con-
dition of affairs. There were some 1,500 in field
hospitals. Field hospitals had no beds, because, in
theory, they follow an army on the march, so for seven
weeks men ill of typhoid fever lay on the ground. But
this was not the worst. The fever cases increased, but
the accommodation, poor as it was, did not. The field
hospital overflowed into bell tents constructed to hold
six healthy men who are out in the open air all day.
Into these were huddled ten typhoid patients who had to
lie there day and night on the hard ground, or, when it
rained, in three inches of mud.

" One night (he says) hundreds of men to my knowledge
were lying in the worst stages of typhoid, with only a
blanket and a thin waterproof sheet (not even the latter
for many of them) between their achmg bodies and the
hard ground, with no milk and hardly any medicines,
without beds, stretchers, or mattresses, without pillows,
without linen of any kind, without a single nurse amongst
them, with only a few ordinary private soldiers to act as
* orderlies,' rough and utterly untrained to nursing, and
with only three doctors to attend on 350 patients. There
were none of the conditions of a forced march about this.
It was a mile from Bloemfontein. There was a line of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. • 253

railway to two seaports, along which thousands of troops
and countless trainloads of stores and equipment of all
kinds, and for every one except the sick, had been moving
up during the whole of that leisurely halting time.

♦* Besides other deficiencies which cannot be described
there were no sheets or pillow-cases or pretence of bed
linen of any kind; only the coarse rug grated against
the sensitive skin burning with fever. The heat of these
tents in the midday sun was overpowering, their odours
sickening. Men lay with their faces covered with flies in
black clusters, too weak to raise a hand to brush them
ofJ", trying in vain to dislodge them by painful twitching
of the features. There was no one to do it for them. At
night there were not enough to prevent those in the
delirious stage from getting up and wandering about the
camp half naked in the bitter cold. In one tent, where
some slept and others lay with eyes open and staring, a
case of * perforation ' was groaning out his life huddled
against his neighbour on the ground. Men had not only
to see, but often to feel, others die.

" With one more incident graver than all the rest the
dark history of a field hospital at Bloemfontein must
close. On the occasion of my last visit, the hospital
had been mostly emptied, as it was to move on to the
front. In the course of this process 20 of the worst cases
were removed to a more permanent hospital a mile and a
half off. How were they taken ? They were lifted out
of their tents and put into rough ox-waggons — all typ-
hoids and many of them dangerously ill — and then jolted
across the veldt, which in this place is much broken by
spruits and gullies. One case was in a state of * hemor-
rhage' when moved."

The correspondent, among many other questions asked:
" Was the medical service at Jacobsdal and Paardeberg
included in the sweeping eulogy of the eminent surgeons
in London ? The horrors of those scenes, the tortures
suffered by our wounded there owing entirely to short-
comings of medical equipment, staff, and transport, were
a by-word in everj^ mouth before that first chapter
closed."

It must be remembered these events occured at Bloem-
fontein. No practical man (the writer says) will question
the prior claim of military exigency over humanity where

254 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the interests of the two are irreconcilable ; but when-
ever the former is not really endangered by the latter
humanity cannot, and must not, be entirely neglected.

The despatch from Mr. Burdett-Coutts to Lord Wol-
seley was as follows :

Capetown, June i. — Just returned from front. Ter-
rible pressure sickness. Breakdown in medical arrange-
ments. Doctors, nurses, equipment, miserably insuffi-
cient. Pitiable scenes here entirely falsify reports sent
home.

(Signed) Coutts. *

The sensation created by the publication of Mr. Bur-
dett-Coutts's denunciation of the South African war
hospitals and their organisation was transferred to the
House of Commons on the 28th of June, when several
questions were asked of the Government on the subject.

Mr. Balfour, in reply to Sir Henry Campbell-Banner-
man, said nothing had come to the notice of the Govern-
ment to suggest that any suffering of the sick and
wounded in South Africa was due to the insufficient
supply of medical comforts sent from this country. The
question was rather as to organisation in South Africa.
A certain amount of correspondence had passed between
Lord Roberts and the Secretary of State on the subject.
It would be in the hands of members later in the day.
However, the House felt so keenly on the subject that
he would read some extracts.

The first intimation which reached the Government
was a telegram from Mr. Burdett-Coutts on June 4th.
Lord Lansdowne at once telegraphed to Lord Roberts,
who replied on the 7th.

Lord Roberts' reply: "The very existence of my
force depended upon supplies coming up by train along
a line of railway nearly goo miles long, every bridge of
which for the last 128 miles had been destroyed by the
enemy. Notwithstanding this, I ordered that the require-
ments of the sick were to be first taken in hand, as soon
as the railroad had been repaired. The principal medi-
cal officer proceeded with the first train to Kroonstad,
with surgeons and nurses. No. 3 General and Scotch
Hospital had been held in readiness at Bloemfontein to
be sent to Kroonstad directly the line was open. This

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 255

was done, and they received 180 patients within twenty-
four hours of arrival.

" I repeatedly visited the hospitals during the time I
was at Kroonstad, and impressed upon the principal
medical officer to do all that was possible to remedy
matters. A few days afterwards I received a report from
the medical officer that the medical arrangements were
good, and Lord Methuen has since informed me that the
medical arrangements were perfectly satisfactory.

" I was deeply distressed at being wiable to make
more perfect arrangements on first arrival at Kroonstad.
But it was inevitable that in the rapid advance of our
great army when the railway had been destroyed the
suffering would have been enormously increased had it
not been for the prompt manner in which the medical
authorities made use of the scanty accommodation avail-
able at a place little larger than an ordinary English
village."

Subsequently, continued Mr. Balfour, a further com-
munication was addressed by Lord Lansdowne to the
Commander-in-Chief in South Africa, and he wired on
June 25th : —

" As regards the hospital at base I personally satisfied
myself that all arrangements were working satisfactorily,
and I have not heard any complaint about them. When
we first arrived at Bloemfontein we had an abnormal
number of sick, due no doubt mainly to the peculiarly
exhausting conditions of the march ; but also to the
terribly insanitary conditions of the camp at Paardeberg.
We also had a considerable number of wounded from
the fight of March loth, and hastily to improvise ac-
commodation at Bloemfontein for such a large number
— increased before I left up to 2,000 — was not an easy
task.

*• Owing to the rapidity of the march no huts were
available until railway communication with Capetown
had been restored. As soon as I could arrange for such
a supply of tents as was necessary for the very existence
of the forces I ordered more nurses, more doctors, and
more hospitals.

"Bloemfontein is not a large town, but all suitable
public buildings, schools, etc., were made into hospitals.

256 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

I constantly visited these, and after a very short time
they were, I consider, in good order and not overcrowded.

" I can quite understand that people who have no
practical experience of such matters are much con-
cerned to hear of the hardships which sick and wounded
soldiers have to undergo in times of war, especially when
they are not aware of the many difficulties which have
to be contended with in alleviating suffering. Such
difficulties are sufficiently great in countries where there
are large towns and villages and easy communication by
road and rail, but they have been immeasurably increased
in South Africa by the local conditions to which I have
referred.

" I have no wish to evade responsibility in the matter,
or to screen any shortcomings which may be proved
against the Royal Army Medical Staff". You state you
have been told that reports of Sir William MacCormac
and Mr. Treves are optimistic, and that conditions have
changed since they were here.

" It is true that neither of those gentlemen took part in
any long or difficult march, but two consulting surgeons
who are now on the road to England have been with this
force from the Modder River to Pretoria, and I would ask
that their opinions on the subject might be ascertained.

" I would further suggest that some committee, say of
two medical men of recognised ability and some man of
sound common sense, should proceed to South Africa in
order to furnish a full report on the working of the
medical arrangements throughout the war. I will
guarantee that they shall have the fullest assistance;
and if their visit should result in any amelioration of
the condition of our sick and wounded soldiers during
war no one would be more grateful than myself."

Mr. Balfour continued that it was the opinion of the
Government that some such independent inquiry as Lord
Roberts suggested should be placed at his disposal. He
was aware that the subject was one in which a great
deal of public feeling had been excited; and he con-
sidered it desirable that they should have an opportunity
of discussing it.

A " Daily Mail " correspondent bore out the allega-
tions : — I am able to bear out much of the worst that Mr.
Burdett-Coutts has written about the treatment of the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 25;

sick and wounded in South Africa, but as I took no
notice, and made no study of the matter, I can only tell
of chance observations and impressions.

AH, however, tend to confirm the results of his experi-
ence. In Bloemfontein the nurses at the Volks Hospital
told me that they would consider it a lasting disgrace if
they lost a single enteric patient, so light is the form of
that disease prevalent there. The Army statistics will
show that this was equally true of the situation with
regard to the soldiers sick in and around Bloemfontein.

There were 2,500 enteric patients when I left them, and
they were out of all proportion. Left to lie on the
ground and be nursed by ignorant and slovenly
" Tommy " attendants, the sanitary arrangements were
such that at least in some hospitals they had to leave
their blankets at the risk of death.

At the Volks Hospital it was realised that the army
under Lord Roberts had long been on short rations, and
that the men were hungry and weakened. Therefore, a
** building-up " treatment, with nourishing food, was
adopted and relied on, with satisfactory results.

In the army hospitals (I had it from the lips of the
officer in charge) at least one base hospital staff was
trying upon these sick and famished patients a new
German method rightly called •' the starvation treat-
ment." All the time I was at Bloemfontein I was
haunted by the horror of the neglect and cruelty to the
sick.

When I was at Kimberley some of the local physicians
were similarly horror-stricken by the condition in which
wounded came to them — trundled over the bad roads all
the way from Paardeberg in ox-waggons. Reaching
Kimberley, they were put on the bare floors of the
buildings which the philanthropic Mr. Rhodes placed at
the army's disposal, and they secured beds only at the
hands of a Colonial dispenser of charity funds. Yet —
and Dr. Treves may make a note of this — there is no
more reason why even "flying hospitals" cannot carry
the new fold-up American beds than there was reason
why we correspondents should do without them. Yet
we all carried these or inferior beds, which were light,
small, and portable. Five to seven hundred American
camp beds could be carried in one ox-waggon.

Q

258 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR*

Those who had the dispensing of the funds of such
chanties as the Red Cross and other societies, and who
had expected only to provide delicacies and extra com-
forts, can help the cause of reform by repeating to the
public what they told me on the field of the demands
made upon them by the Army Medical Corps for the
primary essentials of hospital outfitting, such as you and
I and everyone would have supposed the Government
had supplied.

As to the amount of skill that enters into the surgical
and medical treatment of the sick and wounded, I, of
my own knowledge, know more than is to be seen in the
criminal adoption of the starvation method at Bloem-
fontein. But one of the greatest EngHsh surgeons told
me that the average army medical man is a tyro, and
must be so because of the failure of the War Office to
allow the doctors to prosecute their studies in the great
capitals of the world in times of peace.

He said that the doctors should be either sent or
allowed to go to Paris, Berlin, and New York for two or
three months either in their holidays or in extension
thereof, but that the practice in the army is to discourage
and to forbid this advantage to its doctors. The result is
that only those who have been stationed in or near
London have had a chance to walk the metropolitan
hospitals, and the rest are experienced only, if at all, in
the treatment of the commonest wounds and maladies.
This matter of the training of the doctors in the hos-
pitals is apart from Mr. Burdett Coutts's complaint, yet
it is quite as important as any defect he mentions.

When we confine ourselves to the care received by
the sick and wounded in other respects we must be
deeply grateful to the enterprise and humanity of those
colonies and rich men at home who sent to Africa the
only well-equipped field hospitals there. The managers
at these outside and private charities did not have to beg
of civilians for thermometers, measuring glasses, sheets,
beds, pillow cases, and instruments as the army men did.

So extravagant and grotesque was the unpreparedness
and helplessness of some army hospitals that I actually
heard of the indisputable case of a private citizen sup-
plying bandages to a hospital in Capetown. He found
it lacking in these simplest necessaries, and in an houir

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 259

purchased a Cape carload of bandages to present them
to the hospital. He had some difficulty in getting
through the red tape which prevents the military
receiving from civilians, yet this humiliation could have
been avoided early by the proper outfitting of the hos-
pital in the first place, or the purchase of bandages by the
hospital in the second place.

With respect to the latter expedient, a civilian who
spent hundreds upon hundreds of pounds in buying com-
mon necessaries for the field hospitals told me that he
was informed the army medical men could not purchase
a thermometer except at the risk of personal pecuniary
loss. It wanted three months, he said, for a field hos-
pital to observe the formula for getting supplies which
he used to buy at an hour's notice.

I have no hesitation in saying that I consider the treat-
ment of the sick and wounded (especially after the main
advance from Modder River) primitive, cruel, and almost
barbaric, as well as needless and inexcusable.

Julian Ralph.

The * British Medical Journal' printed a report from Mr.
Anthony A. Bowlby, F.R.C.S., who was at Bloemfontein
with the Portland Hospital. The letter, dated May 31,
stated that when the hospital arrived at Bloemfontein
the health of the troops was bad.

They had been without proper tents or shelter, and the
nights had often been pouring wet. The ground in many
places was a swamp, and much of it had been fouled.
Within a few days of the occupation of Bloemfontein
enteric fever broke out in many camps, and spread
rapidly. It appeared to have been brought in by the
men in many cases, but it is certain that in many other
cases it was acquired through bad water or other local
insanitary conditions, and various localities, such as
Thaba N'chu, got a bad reputation, which was very well
deserved.

At this time there were no general hospitals at Bloem-
fontein, and in spite of utilising buildings in the town the
field hospitals speedily became overcrowded, so that they
had to accommodate three or four times the numbers for
which they were equipped, and it became impossible to
nurse or treat the patients satisfactorily.

260 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The " British Medical Journal" stated that Mr. Alfred
Fripp, the chief surgeon of the Imperial Yeomanry
Hospital, in a letter dated June 4th, wrote that there
were at that time over 5,000 sick at Bloemfontein, most
of whom were suffering from enteric, while at Kroonstad
three hotels, the town hall, and the churches had been
converted into hospitals.

A Birmingham soldier, who had been invalided home
from Bloemfontein, said that while in the hospital he
frequently saw naked men in a delirious state wandering
about on freezing cold nights. He had several times to
wait seven or eight hours before he could get a drink of
water.

Although he was in hospital twenty-one days he never
saw a nurse. The major portion of the men had to lie
on the ground. The stench in the tents was terrible.
On one occasion after a thunderstorm he lay in a pool
of water for almost an hour and no one came to him.

An invalid member of the Army Service Corps, who
was attached to the 9th Divisional Field Hospital outside
Bloemfontein, and who arrived in England June 26th,
wrote to the " Daily Mail," stating that on April 3rd,
when suffering from enteric, he^ was put into a small
marquee with fifteen other men suflfering from various
complaints, and there lay on the ground with just one
blanket under him for three weeks. He and other men
had no change of garments, and were smothered with
vermin. On some days the doctor never came near
them. He was finally sent down with a train-load of
men to Wynberg. The journey took two and a half
days, but rations for one day only were served out.

A private just home from Green Point Hospital, Cape-
town, wrote to the same paper that the patients in con-
valescent wards were not nearly so well off for comforts
as the men in the camp.

A soldier's wife sent a letter from her sick husband
at Bloemfontein, in which he stated that the sufferings of
the enteric patients were horrible in the extreme. Thou-
sands of patients were in a frightful state, even the barest
necessities being unobtainable.

Lord Wantage, V.C., who is chairman of the English
Jled Cross Society, was interviewed by a newspaper

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 261

representative on the subject of the allegations against
the South African war hospital authorities.

•* The Central Red Cross Committee sits in London
twice a week," said Lord Wantage, " to receive and
consider reports from our commissioners in South Africa,
and we have had no such complaints as those of Mr.
Burdett-Coutts.

" That gentleman attended a sitting of our committee
before he went out to South Africa and offered to act
as our commissioner out there, but as he was only
making a flying visit we did not accept his offer. He
has been out there observing all these things, but has
never let us know of the deficiencies of which he now
complains. Had he reported them to us we should have
remedied anything needing it. We have the means to
do it."

" The principle of the field hospital," continued his
lordship, " is th^t it should be kept as light as possible
and should not be hampered with beds and other appli-
ances.

" The regulations of the service specially preclude
them. If they attempted to carry these things about
with them they would lose the very object for which
they are instituted, and yet Mr. Burdett-Coutts com-
plains of their not having these things. The chief thing
to remember is that a war, with its varying fortunes,
cannot be carried out with the smoothness of a garden
party."

" As a matter of fact," added the veteran soldier, " the
reports from Sir John Furley, who is our head commis-
sioner in South Africa, have shown us that the arrange-
ments for tending the sick and wounded in this cam-
paign have been as good as the ups and downs will
allow.

" But the Red Cross Society is not the subject of this
criticism, and I have no doubt the medical department
of the War Office will supply its own defence should
any defence be needed."

262 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XXXVI.

WAR HOSPITAL ACCOMMODATION.

THEN there was the evidence of Surgeon-General
Hamilton, formerly P.M.O., South Africa, as to the
condition of the Woodstock Hospital at Capetown — " a
discredit to any Government," set upon a main sewer
exit and in a stench that made it frequently impossible
to keep the windows open. At Bloemfontein the limita-
tion of the medical establishment and supplies was
evidently in his opinion blameworthy, since he asked
that the blame shall be laid upon the proper shoulders ;
and he added that for years the organisatioh of the medi-
cal service had been calculated to result in the evils
complained of.

Yet another officer in the Army Service Corps wrote
from Capetown to the " Globe" complaining in similar
terms of the condition of Woodstock Hospital and of its
internal arrangements in the bitterest terms. No lava-
tories or operating room ; operations performed in the
wards ; not even a screen to shut out the gaze of other
patients; amputated limbs left exposed in the lobby;
dysentery cases, typhoid cases, and surgical cases herded
together in the same ward — all on the lines of the charges
made by Mr. Burdett-Coutts.

The letter proceeded — " Medical comforts are deficient
in quantity, but if outside help is offered it is refused,
and the stereotyped official reply is given ' that the
Government provides all that is necessary.' My official
position is sufficient authority for the truth of the stater
ments that the deficiency of milk and medical comforts is
quite inexcusable."

As shown by Mr. Faber in his question to the Under-
Secretary for War, 127 officers and 4,260 men have died
of disease in South Africa, and 844 officers and 17,666
men have been invalided home from causes other than
wounds. This is a frightful record ; and the question
was, how far it was avoidable : Many of the men drank
of poisonous streams when nearly mad with thirst, and
slept in unsanitary conditions. They were exposed to
the elements, their clothes were in rags, and they ha4

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 263

short rations, before they reached Bloemfontein. Then
the fever broke out to revenge the violation of the laws
of health, and the only query seemed to be, did the
authorities grapple with the epidemic as they should
have done under the diflficulties of transport ?

Mr. Frederick Treves, one of the leading surgeons
who visited South Africa for the purpose of treating
the wounded and sick, replied to Mr. Burdett-Coutts's
statements in a letter to the " British Medical Journal "
as follows:

Sir, — I have read Mr. Burdett-Coutts's letter in the
"Times," and am shocked and surprised at the report
he furnishes.

I left Natal in March, some time after the relief of
Ladysmith, and the account I gave on my return to
England of the work of the Army Medical Service in
Natal, was based upon my experience up to the period
of my departure.

Mr. Burdett-Coutts comments upon this account as
if it dealt with events which were to be in the future
rather than with events which had happened in the
past. To every word I have said as to the excellence
of the Army medical arrangements in Natal I adhere
most absolutely. It is difficult to believe that a depart-
ment which stood with such success the exceptional
strain of the Natal campaign can have suddenly exhi-
bited the alarming collapse depicted by the writer of
the letter in question. My experience had induced me
to think that the organisation of the Army Medical
Service was sound and good, that the general scheme
of work and administration was efficient, and that the
lavish arrangements, planned by the Director-General,
were carried out by the subordinates in a liberal,
thorough, and business-like manner.

There was no evidence of the intervention of red tape
nor hindrance by petty formalities, and the hospital
work was not only not hampered by other departments,
but was helped in every way with the heartiest readiness.
I cannot think that our sick have been treated with
" neglect" and *' inhumanity," as Mr. Burdett-Coutts
asserts. Instead of neglecting their patients, the surgeons
I met worked with heart and soul, sparing themselves i^

264 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

no particular, and of the untiring and unselfish devotion
of the nurses I have already spoken.

This war has been a war of surprises. The casualties
have been higher than the gloomiest ever dreamt of, and
there was no reason to anticipate that the outbreak of
enteric fever would assume the enormous proportions it
has assumed. The circumstances of war, unfortunately,
render an immense amount of suffering and distress
absolutely unavoidable, and the difficulties of furnishing
adequate supplies from a far distant base are extreme.

I left South Africa with the impression that nothing
more could have been done, when a temperate regard
for the circumstances of war was kept in mind. The
Army medical service can lay no claim to the gift of
prophecy, nor to the power of anticipating the future,
but so far as any reasonable foresight can go the depart-
ment seems to have done all that in fairness could have
been expected of it. Mr. Burdett-Coutts will no doubt
substantiate the points detailed in his report, but his
preliminary account is conveyed in language which so
savours of the theatrical that it fails to carry with it an
overwhelming conviction.

Mobile field hospitals, if they have to do the work they
are intended to do, cannot take beds with them. It is
better for a typhoid patient to lie upon a blanket and
waterproof sheet on the ground, as Mr. Coutts describes,
than to be hurried helter-skelter to the base.

No human being can tell how the progress of an
epidemic may proceed, nor how the numbers of the sick
will be distributed. Preparations may be made for a
thousand, and the admission may not reach ten. It is
impossible to avoid overcrowding at times, and equally
impossible to provide in every detail for emergencies
which no reasonable foresight could anticipate.

That our gallant soldiers should suffer is deplorable
indeed, but the blame must fall rather upon the miserable
fortune of war than upon a department which has spared
neither men nor money, nor care nor devotion, in a work
which has assumed dimensions out of all proportion to
that anticipated at the outset.

The seat of war was at least three weeks distant from
the base of supplies, and in these three weeks a region
free from disease may become the seat of a desperate

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 265

epidemic. The movements of the troops cannot be
exactly foretold. It would be better for the country to be
flooded with doctors and nurses rather than the soldiers
should suffer, but it is quite impossible that the medical
arrangements can at a time of war overthrow all those
circunstances of transport and supply upon which the
conduct of the campaign depends.

Lord Roberts, in his despatches asked that the testi-
mony of Mr. Watson Cheyne should be considered, as he
travelled with the army from Paardeberg to Bloemfontein.
Mr. Cheyne, writing to the British Medical Journal, said
that in order to facilitate the march the military author-
ities reduced the number of ambulances from ten to two
for each division, though the medical authorities pro-
tested that this might cause very serious delay in collect-
ing the wounded, and that at Driefontein this warning
was justified. There and at Paardeberg many of the
wounded had to bivouac under trees, and, where there
were no trees, under temporary blanket shelters. The
wounded at Paardeberg, for lack of ambulances, were
carried for three nights, two of them through rain, in
jolting buck waggons with no shelter from cold or from
the scorching sun. The reply to this was that military
operations could not have been carried out if adequate
transport and medical service had been waited for.

The English Government at once consented to a
Committee of Investigation, and the subject was discussed
in the House of Commons on June 29th. When Mr.
Burdett-Coutts (M.P. for Westminster) went to South
Africa to examine the working of the army medical
system, his wife, the Baroness Burdett-Coutts, strongly
approved of his mission, and it had also the sympathetic
interest of Miss Florence Nightingale. Naturally it was
not looked upon with much favour by the military
authorities in South Africa, and from Mr. Coutts's speech
in the House of Commons it was clear that he was an
unwelcome visitor.

The debate was on a vote of supply. As Mr. Burdett-
Coutts did not rise, Mr. Wyndham, the Under-Secretary
for War, addressed the Committee. He enlarged on
the ample preparations the Government made, and
admitted that the troops suffered many hardships.
The wounded had often to be left lying on the fiel(|*

266 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

of battle for many hours. The " compromises of war,"
Mr. Wyndham said, carried with them many terrible
sufferings to those engaged. It was, as he put it, all
a question of transport. He spoke of Lord Roberts's
rapid march to Bloemfontein as one of the greatest
achievements in war, but he reached that point with
his men half starved and his horses wholly starved.

Some useful information was conveyed to the House
by Mr. Wyndham : — On the 15th January, igoo, there
were in South Africa 351 army medical doctors, and in
June the numbers were increased to 446. In January
there were 79 civilian medical officers, and in June 348,
and 32 had gone out since. Of highly paid specialists
there were 3 in January, and 7 in June. The total
number of doctors in January employed by the War
Office was 437, and in June the number had been
increased to 853. Those figures did not include the
civil medical practitioners in South Africa, who had
so readily placed their services at the disposal of
Lord Roberts. There were now (he said) 566 trained
nurses with the troops, and when those who had already
sailed were landed the number would be 639 nurses. In
January the number of beds provided for the sick and
wounded was 5,960, but in June the total was 18,840.
The number of sick and wounded in January was 3,731,
and on the i8th of May 11,903. Down to the most
recent date there was a large excess of beds above the
requirements. The scale upon which beds had been
supplied was 10 per cent, for the whole force, and that
was the highest that had ever been computed, and was
quite high enough, even for climates like Ashanti. That
scale had also been applied to all the forces which had
been sent out. He was quite prepared to defend the
organisation of the Army Medical Department. The
Principal Medical Officer with the troops was always
in the confidence of the General commanding, and he
knew the distances which the troops would be required
to march, and he arranged the stores accordingly. There
were hardships in the firing line, and also during the
time the wounded and the sick were being conveyed
in the waggons to the hospitals. In a case alluded to
.all the sick had to be conveyed along a single line of
railway, blocked in many places with stores going the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 267

Other way. Very often they were twenty-six hours in
covering a very short distance.

As to the ambulance waggons, they were devised after
long experiments by men fully acquainted with the
conditions of service in the field, notably by Sir Redvers
Buller. On the nth of June Lord Roberts wired that
the hospital accommodation was sufficient, but since
then two more general hospitals had been sent out.
Mr. Wyndham received a wire on the 31st of May
asking the War Office to stop sending for the present
further surgical supplies.

As to Bloemfontein, in many cases the patients could
not be moved after admission, and it was impossible to
provide beds and mattresses for 3,000 patients all at
once. Lord Roberts had said if at Bloemfontein there
had been any deficiency or hardships they were acci-
dental and temporary, and certainly were not typical of
their field hospitals as a whole. On the 27th of April
there were at Bloemfontein 2,000 beds, with considerable
capacity for extension. Altogether there were then 2,291
patients in the military hospitals at Bloemfontein, 873
being cases of enteric fever. The field hospitals there
had to be prepared for a move at any time. There was
great difficulty in moving up supplies, and this also
extended to stretchers, and it was quite true that some
patients were placed on the ground. He had been
informed that there were some twenty or thirty medical
officers present at Bloemfontein, and five hospitals at
the time referred to. This provided one doctor for every
ten or fifteen patients.

The principal medical officer reported on the 14th of
May that Lord Roberts expressed the opinion that the
arrangements for the sick and wounded at Bloemfontein
were most satisfactory, but that was a later date to that
which the member for Westminster had called attention
to. It was quite true that the sick and wounded at
Bloemfontein had to undergo terrible hardships. It was
also true that those who were charged with their care
had exercised the greatest devotion to their duties, and
the result of their labours was that the rate of mortality
from enteric fever had not been abnormally high. The
percentage of deaths from enteric fever in this campaign

268 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

was 21, in the Nile campaign it was 28 per cent.; Don*
gola campaign 50 per cent., Matabele war 32 per cent.,
Chitral campaign 28 per cent., and in the Soudan 39 per
cent. Those figures even compared favourably with the
state of things in times of peace.

Mr. Burdett-Coutts, who followed Mr. Wyndam,
showed no sign of flinching from his charges, and only
modified them on one point. The hospital which he
described at Bloemfontein he had spoken of in his letter
as an illustration, but he now said that it was not a type
of the rest, and was undoubtedly the worst. He had on
his arrival in South Africa written to Lord Roberts
asking to be allowed to go to the front. Lord Roberts
took no notice of his letter, and he went to the front as
an independent observer. The state of affairs to which
he referred at Bloemfontein existed two months after the
railway was opened. He took issue with the Under-
Secretary for War on the question of military exigency.
In his opinion it would have been quite possible to bring
up a train with medical supplies.

Mr. Coutts stated that he had made no suggestion of
brutality in the treatment of the wounded. There had,
however, been a deficiency of nurses, and a deficiency
of such things as disinfectants.

The first thing that struck him in Bloemfontein when
he saw the crowded state of its hospitals was why more
buildings were not taken for hospital accommodation.
There were seven or eight buildings taken, which con-
tained 700 patients, when there were 2,200 patients in
and around Bloemfontein. There were three consider-
able hotels, a town hall, and stores, all of which might
have been turned into hospitals, and, in addition, there
was a very considerable number of comfortable private
houses which were not occupied by their owners. They
were taken by staff" officers and military authorities.
He did not say they were not justly taken, but he saw
no reason why many more of them should not be taken
for sick and wounded.

As a matter of fact, there was a want of medical
personnel and appliances. He did not say that the
personnel should have gone with Lord Roberts on his
forced march, but a comparatively few days after the road
to Bloemfontein was open, and it would have been per-

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 26g

fectly possible to have sent up doctors and nurses. He
considered that a great many of the evils which occurred
at Bloemfontein were owing to the absence of a proper
female nursing staff. A great many of the orderlies in
the hospitals were untrained private soldiers who were
convalescents, and he protested against the use of con-
valescent soldiers as orderlies in a fever hospital. Such
men themselves needed rest and attention. It was a
most inhuman practice, and one for which, if there had
been a sufficient number of properly-trained attendants,
there would have been absolutely no necessity.

They arrived at Kroonstad on the Saturday, and on the
Thursday after they endeavoured to equip two buildings
as hospitals. There were 300 patients, but there were
only two doctors, no nurses, and no trained orderlies.

There went up with the troops dozens of corres-
pondents, innumerable attendants, and nondescript people
of different positions, and why could not doctors and
orderlies have gone up also ? With regard to the equip-
ment, there had been great obstinacy and want of pro-
vision on the part of the Army Medical Department.
Collapsible beds, of which hundreds could be packed in
a waggon, and " tortoise " hospital tents, which would
accommodate two more patients than, and only weigh
half as much as, the marquees which they used, were
ignored although it was known that the great difficulty
was going to be that of transport.

The great vice and error in the whole of the proceed-
ings at the front had been the absence of a proper
system of stationary hospitals — hospitals which could be
put into buildings on the line of march. Why, in all
that idle time after the black week in December, if this
equipment was at the Cape, why was it not pushed up
those 500 or 600 miles to De Aar, the rail head ? It
would then have been easy to have got the equipment
further on. But nothing was done in the way of moving
the equipment up to the front. The natural result was
that at Kroonstad patients were carried in by untrained
hands, put on the floor without anyone to attend to
them, many of them in dangerous stages of illness, and
the doctors themselves complained bitterly of the want
of assistance.

2^0 HtStORY OP THE BOER WAR.

Owing to the lack of proper stationary hospitals con«
voys of sick and wounded were sent in ox waggons in
which men could not lay flat, a journey of three days
and nights over the veldt, in scorching heat during the
day and freezing cold at night, without any extra cloth-
ing. There was no doctor or orderly, and the man sent
with this particular one had no medicine, and did not
know what to do although he had some men who were
dying. On the 23rd of May there were eight wounded
men brought to Bloemfontein Station where they lay on
the platform without attention from six o'clock in the
morning until half-past three in the afternoon, and four
of these men were dying. Such a state of things was a
scandal and a disgrace. It was no good comparing the
personnel who was out there on the 15th of January,
with that of the 15th of June, as by the latter date the
tragedy was over.

As to Cape Town, moreover, he had not a very
favourable report to make. The equipment and staff of
one of the hospitals there had been ordered up to
Bloemfontein, with the result that only twenty-five
nurses were left to 2,000 patients. The responsibility
rested, as he thought, not upon individuals, but upon a
system which was entirely inelastic.

CHAPTER XXXVIL

"some fine sport."

I AM only a Private Tommy Atkins, of the K.O.Y.L.I.,
and after doing the advance from the Cape to
Pretoria, via Kimberley, I find myself marching to
Lindley to help to capture the last Boer Commandant
left in the field, with any fight in him — Master De Wet,
of French extraction. They say, directly he is killed
or taken, Botha, the Boss of the Boers, will bluff and
bluster no more, but cave in like a lamb.

I don't think my wife and kid will know me when I
return, for I have lost stones, and turned a hairy red-man.
Carrying 41 lbs. of accoutrements for 20 miles a day, I
have worn out two of those heavy hob-nailed boots that

HlStORY OF THE BOER WAR. 27 1

were served out to us by Major Norwood the indefatigable,
and I want a^iother pair, please, with a stone of 'bacca.

Well, you want to know about the battles. I have
been in half-a-dozen with ** hair-breadth 'scapes," and am
yet unscathed. The fact is the Boers can't hit me, I've
grown so thin and shadowy. When they shoot I do
a half-turn, and am then invisible to them, do you see.

I have only been in the Boer's clutches once ; it was
last week between Senekal and Winburg, and it came
about in this way. As orderly to Captain Creyke (being
a good writer) I was taking a message to another officer
one evening, who was in camp a mile off, when up
jumps a grisly Boer sentry from behind a boulder,
presenting his Mauser, and shouts, *• Surrender 1" They
know a bit of English. Then another gipsy joins him
quick, and I was fairly kidnapped. They were escorting
me to their lines when there dashed up a mounted
colonial, who fired at them, one fell dead and the other
fled so I continued my errand in safety.

All the fighting Boers seem to be in this quarter,
for I hear of skirmishing daily. And two days after we
encountered them early in the morning, at Rietspruit, a
small hamlet.

General Clements, when returning from Winburg to
Senekal with a cpnvoy, heard from a native that the
enemy was lurking at a farm-house on the hill side.

Next morning the whistle of the captain and the order
" Stand to your horses" was heard at daybreak ; and I
was astir to see the sport. The Boers were early-risers
too, on that occasion, and we had only time for a biscuit
and a cup of coffee.

It was a wildish country. On the eastern hill the red
rays of old Sol threw a lonely old windmill into bold
relief. Here abouts are sheep walks, with small bee-
hive Kaffir mud huts, and the sheep thrive on the schaap
bosch as well as the strong grass.

A pungent smell made me sneeze pretty often as the
veldt had been lately fired close by.

But now for the sport, which I was in a good and safe
position to see, close by the well-guarded convoy.

De Wet's men were first seen on the west coming at
a gallop from a white-washed farm-house where they
had been secreted for the nighti They were of the

5^2 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAft.

familiar drab nondescript Yeomen order, with slouch
felt hat, bandolier and Mauser — more like a gang of
wild bandits than a regiment of patriotic guardsmen
fighting for dear liberty. And De Wet was careering
at their head, in no way distinguishable as to his work-
a-day attire.

I had the chance of seeing the Commandant under
the protection of a truce flag last month near Kroon-
stad. He is a tall, stout, heavily-built man, with a brown
beard, and dresses in a grey tweed suit, with an over-
coat. I noticed that he wore a gold chain to his
watch.

Presently there arose over the hill to the east a small
crouching creeping line of sandy clothed men on foot ;
they were scouts, and then some men on horseback, with
a cannon or two. Now there is a sharp report, a puff
of smoke, and the two lines draw nearer, taking advant-
age of what cover the ground affords by bush and
mounds, as shot and shell are exchanged.

The khaki line was soon broken by the varying chances
of the fight, out of all semblance of order, as they
stumbled over the bare, brown, sun-scorched, boulder,
flecked ridges, dotted here and there with the stunted
bush and short grass, hazy now with the dew, and all
alive with projectiles. We caught the keen rattle of the
rifle firing, punctuated by the sputter of the machine
guns, and occasionally broken into full periods by the
heavy reverberating roar of the death-dealing artillery,
now and then laying low a victim, who sprawled on the
veldt in agony unobserved, while his maddened comrades
rushed on with a yell.

I must say, the game of slaughter is devoid of any-
thing picturesque — the butchering is done, you see, in
working uniform and in matter-of-fact business style.
No drum or banner, " Living pictures" and the gramo-
phone might reproduce the battles with a grim and
gruesome fidelity, and a shocking effect, but the enter-
tainment would be an unmitigated, dreary, and sicken-
ing spectacle, don't you think ?

When lying near Trommel I could hear cannonading
to the south-west of Senekal — this was on June 26. — and
it seems Colonel Grenfell, with his troops of Colonials,
had driven o£f the Boers there, and now attacked their

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2/3

flank with a Hotchkiss. The contest was so hot that
Col. Grenfell's battalion of Brabant's Horse was sent
from Senekal to co-operate with General Clements, and
getting into contact with the Boers, soon became heavily
engaged.

Then Brabant attacked the Boer left, with seven guns
and 600 men. What a din there was.

The enemy, who had two guns, two pom-poms, and
two Maxims, fought hard for two hours, at the end of
which time the Colonials threatened their flank and they
retired on the Lindley road.

A commando from Plattkop attempted to come to the
assistance of the others, but General Brabant shelled
them, compelling them to beat a hasty retreat.

This success cleared the Winburg road at least for a
time. Our casualties were three killed and twenty-three
wounded, but the Boers suffered heavily. Through a
glass I saw them pick up the dead and wounded, which
were carried to their waggons in the rear.

We haven't time for buck hunting when we see one,
but I had a strange experience last week. There came
a swarm of locusts — rather late in the season, — and they
seemed to cover everything. While we were trying to
drive them from the tents a lot of darkies arrived with
carts, and filled bags with them — a job in which the
boys were glad to help them. I found afterwards that
the natives kill and cure them by steam in pots, then
dry them in the sun and store them away as delicacies
for the table. Well, there is, as they say, no accounting
for tastes.

The military situation about Winburg was at this
time one of frequent kaleidoscopic changes. For the
last three or four weeks the Eighth and Colonial Divisions
had been scattered across the country from Senekal to
Ficksburg, and thence back to Ladybrand, endeavour-
ing to check any southward movement of the enemy.
Although the Boers became exceedingly daring and
troublesome, Rundle's long thin khaki line was usually
enough, but it was 90 miles long, and breaking to the
north the Boers soon found their way round to the south
between Winburg and Senekal. They thus were in a
position to attack all convoys coming from or going to

R

^^4 HtSTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the base at Winburg, and further to menace General
Rundle's position.

This unpleasant state of things was soon checked, for
while the Colonial Division held Senekal, other portions
of the Eighth Division retained all strong positions at
Schiepr's Nek, Hammonia, Ficksburg, and Ladybrand,
and Rundle himself was now well to the south of Senekal,
thus practically completing a chain all the way from
Winburg to the Basutoland border.

This was a tremendous frontage for a division to hold,
but it was necessary, owing to the exceptional circum-
stances. On the other hand, the enemy held mountain
ranges immediately in front of Senekal and Ficksburg,
their line extending back through an extremely hilly
country to Bethlehem. In addition they had a flying
column moving to the south-west of Senekal, and between
there and Winburg.

We were preparing for the last big fight of the war
in this quarter by massing our troops and guns.

The desperate forces of the enemy were ever lying
in wait to attack isolated bodies of our troops or con-
voys on the march. One of the enemy's favourite
methods was to send small parties southward in order
to intimidate the Boer farmers who had laid down their
arms and taken the oath of neutrality. They actually
in some cases kidnapped them in the night time.

The enemy's flying column had been especially trouble-
some during the past few days in attacking and burning
convoys belonging to the force under General Clements,
and it was high time this game was stopped.

Commandant Crowther remonstrated with General
Rundle for shelling some farm-houses near Senekal on
the 22nd and 23rd of June, stating that two women had
been under fire, though fortunately they escaped unhurt.
General Rundle in his reply reminded the Commandant
that he had previously warned the enemy of the conse-
quences of firing from farm-houses and enclosures in
the vicinity, since they would be liable to destruction
as an inevitable result. General Rundle further held
Boer commandants responsible for any injury sustained
by women in houses which the enemy use as positions
from which to fire on Her Majesty's troops, as well as

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 2^S

for injuries to women who remain in laagers or other
positions of the enemy.

Commandant Crowther also sent some private letters,
which he desired to have forwarded, along with a copy
of Mr. Steyn's counter -proclamation to the last one
issued by Lord Roberts. General Rundle stated that
he was unable to forward any private letters, and he
therefore returned them, together with the proclamation,
which latter, he remarked, did not concern him.

Lord Roberts, on the 2gth June, telegraphed several
small skirmishes. General Paget reported from Lindley
that he was engaged on June 26th with a body of the
enemy, who were strongly reinforced during the day.
A convoy of stores for the Lindley garrison was also
attacked on the same day. After a heavy rearguard
action the convoy reached Lindley in safety. Our
casualties were — killed, 10 men ; wounded, 4 officers
and about 50 men.

On June 25th, near Ficksburg, Boyes's Brigade was
in action with a body of the enemy. Our casualties
were — killed, 2 officers ; wounded, 4 men ; missing, i
man.

Lord Methuen found that the Boer laager near
Vachkop and Spitzkop had been hastily removed in
the direction of Lindley. He followed the enemy for
12 miles, and captured 8000 sheep and 500 head of
cattle which they had seized in the neighbourhood.
Our casualties: 4 men wounded.

Hunter continued his march towards the Vaal River
unopposed. A few farmers met with en route sur-
rendered.

Springs, the terminus of the railway from Johannes-
burg, in an easterly direction, was attacked early on
June 28th. The Canadian Regiment, which garrisons
that place, beat the enemy off. No casualties reported.

Corporal Marks, who with Trooper Brian succeeded
in escaping from the battalion of 500 Yeomanry captured
by Christian De Wet at Lindley, on May 31 gave an
account of the affair.

They left Kroonstad under hurried and imperative
orders to reinforce General Colvile at Lindley without
delay. They marched at full speed, arriving at Lindley
pn Sunday, May 27, at nooat

2^6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

As they entered the town a number of horsemen were
seen galloping out at the other end in the direction of
Heilbron. Our men found that General Colvile had
left at daylight, -after some severe fighting, for that
place.

The Yeomanry had not been in the town an hour
before heavy rifle firing began on all sides. Lindley
lies in a kind of saucer, commanded by hills. The
convoy was left a mile in the rear when the firing
commenced, and the force took the best cover possible
in the town, which was very little.

The line of the enem)''s fire gradually extended, until
our men were completely surrounded. It was evident
that the Boer force had only withdrawn until they had
ascertained the strength of the battalion.

Firing went on until five o'clock, by which time
Colonel Spragge ordered a retreat. The two quick-
firing guns covered the retirement to the convoy, and
the movement was effected without much loss, although
the Boers were firing from the surrounding hills at a
range of 800 yards.

Colonel Spragge then took up a position near the
convoy, and held two kopjes. The firing ceased at
dusk, but on the following morning was resumed, and
continued without cessation the whole day. A number
of horses were killed.

The fighting on the Tuesday and Wednesday was a
repetition of that on Monday, without much loss on
either side. On Wednesday night Colonel Spragge
decided to send Scout Smith, in company with a kaffir
guide, in search of General Rundle, with an urgent
appeal for help. Marks and Brian were instructed to
leave at the same time with a similar message for
General Colvile.

The scouts left unarmed, and after a terrible night
Marks and Brian got through the enemy's lines, and by
dint of rapid marching reached General Colvile's camp
at 7 o'clock on Thursday morning. The message was
delivered to the General, and realising the urgency of the
case Marks made for Kroonstad as hard as horses could
gallop. When eight miles to the north-east of the town
be learned that Lord Methuen was in the neighbourhood,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 27/

and entered his camp at half-past four in the afternoon of
Thursday,

Lord Methuen started without a moment's delay, and
reached Lindley without opposition the same night,
but he was too late. He learned on arrival that the
battalion had been taken prisoners that afternoon at two
o'clock.

The Boers, who during the first three days had been
fighting without guns, on Thursday morning brought up
two field pieces, and opened a terrible shell fire on the
little force, which, being confined in a small area, was
simply decimated.

Such terrible mischief did the enemy's fire cause that
it was mere madness to hold out against it, and Col.
Spragge decided to surrender.

He lost that day 40 killed and 71 wounded. Among
the former was Capt. Keith. Capt. Lord Longford was
dangerously wounded in the neck. Some of the more
severely wounded were found in Lindley Hospital, but
the Boers had taken a good many away with them in
company of the rest of the battalion. Some men had
been left lying on the field of action. We also lost no
horses.

Lord Methuen learned that the attacking force was led
by Christian De Wet, who had under his command nearly
6,000 men.

Scout Smith, who went in search of General Rundle,
was captured by the Boers and shot as a spy.

Leaving a garrison of 1,500 men at Lindley, Lord
Methuen pushed on to Heilbron, encountering severe
opposition the whole way. There he was joined by
General Colvile. In the meanwhile De Wet worked
round northwards from the neighbourhood of Heilbron,
and captured a convoy with 150 of the Black Watch, on
their way to the latter town as both Lindley and Heilbron
were in a state of semi-starvation.

Lord Methuen immediately moved forward with 4,000
men, leaving General Colvile at Heilbron, to help to get
a big convoy through himself. On the way he met Lord
Kitchener with a small force, and on the following morn-
ing the combined columns under Lord Kitchener and
Methuen came up with De Wet ten miles further to the
south.

2;8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Fighting began at ten and lasted all day till four
o'clock. The Boer commander occupied a strong
position, but at that hour executed a masterly retreat
under cover of his field guns towards the south, leaving
his camp and a number of killed and wounded behind
him.

The whole batch of yeomanry prisoners were marched
northward, and on arriving outside Standerton formed up
in line in order to make a triumphal entry. One of the
Black Watch marched at their head playing " Soldiers
of the Queen" on a concertina, and the small crowd of
British residents waiting to receive them cheered heartily,
despite the lowering looks of the Dutch townspeople.
Next day the prisoners were marched off to Bethel,
enroute for Ermelo.

Captain Corbillis, of the Royal Irish, who was made
a prisoner in the attack on the convoy sent by Lord
Methuen to Heilbron with an escort of only 200 men,
managed to escape. He said the loss of the convoy was
due to a misunderstanding. Finding that the Boers
were closing in on him, Capt. Corbillis sent two orderlies
to the nearest camp with a request for help. Major Haig
at once started with 600 details, but an orderly who sent
forward to search for the convoy returned with the report
that all was clear.

Believing that the convoy had got through, and was
in no need of assistance. Major Haig marched back to
camp. On the way he was overtaken by a second
messenger, who declared that unless help was forth-
coming immediately the convoy would have to surrender.
But by this time it was too late. The escort submitted,
it is said, without having fired a shot, and go waggons
fell into the hands of the enemy, with 200 prisoners.

At both Roodeval and Rhenoster there was unmistak-
able evidence of the recent encounter. The veldt for
hundreds of yards was strewn with burnt paper, the
contents of our mail bags, and a couple of holes large
enough to bury a house in mark the spot where the Boers
exploded our shells and other ammunition.

An escaped prisoner says that the enemy waded knee
deep in letters at Roodeval, which was then the railhead.
There were accumulated at that place large stores of

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 279

ammunition and winter clothing, and three weeks* mails
from Europe and the South.

The guard, joined by 60 of the Railway Pioneers, made
ramparts of mail bags, clothing, and biscuit tins, and
fought most pluckily. But the Boers, after disposing of
the Derbyshire Militia, with whom they were simulta-
neously engaged across the river, were enabled to bring
into action four pieces of artillery. The defenders of
Roodeval, though without guns, held out for six hours,
losing twelve men killed, but were at last compelled to
surrender. The Boers then helped themselves to the
stores, mails, and clothing, and burnt all they could not
take away.

It being reported that a commando 600 strong of
Boers from the Orange River Colony had appeared at
Delange's Drift, on the Klip river, between Standerton
and Vrede, a force was sent to reconnoitre.

Portions of no less than fourteen locomotives were
found hidden away by the Hollander railway oflScials at
Standerton. Many of the engines captured were soon
in working order.

A few of the chief railway ofificials were detained as
prisoners of war on charges of having wilfully damaged
the railway line, especially the viaduct here and rolling
stock, for which they were to be tried.

The residents tell of being heavy losers through the
Boer military authorities, who commandeered their goods
and horses during the war and never paid for them.
One firm alone lost nearly ;^4ooo.

The first number of the "Vrede Chronicle" had been
published — the beginning of a new Press both in that
and the other state. It was printed in English of course.
The editor claimed that Vrede should be the new capital
of the Orange River Colony.

Steyn, at Bethlehem, had a consultation with General
de Wet, who had 7000 men falling back on Vrede.

The Free State Government books were still under the
verandah of a store there, packed in cases, and there
were thirty waggon loads of ammunition near the town,
while a commando of about 3000 strong was at Tafel-
berg.

It was decided to clear out the gaol at Standerton, and
to send a large number of the HoUanjders captured in the

280 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

neighbourhood to the coast, whence they were deported
to Holland, so that their own Government might deal
with them for not observing the neutrality proclaimed by
the Netherlands. A few, who were alleged to have been
implicated in the destruction of property, were detained
in Cape Colony as prisoners of war.

A largely attended and influential deputation, including
the Archbishop of Capetown and some leading residents
of the Rand, waited upon Sir Alfred Milner to urge the
retention of the Transvaal liquor prohibition laws. The
High Commissioner, in reply, expressed his heartiest
sympathy with the object of the deputation, and said he
had repeatedly mentioned the matter in despatches. He
hoped the Government would retain the legislation
prohibiting the sale of liquor to natives, and he believed
that, under honest administration, the law would prove
effective.

Lord Kitchener's prompt action saved a couple of
construction trains which had been sent to repair the
bridge at Leeuw Spruit. One of them was stopped and
a truck overturned owing to the rails having been
removed by the Boers. Lieut. Holmes and six men
held the enemy at bay while the section train was
warned. A party of 50 Volunteer Engineers were on it,
and most of the rifles were in the first train. Some of
the men dashed back for three-quarters of a mile to
reinforce Lieut. Holmes, while the others fetched rifles
wherewith to defend the second train.

Capt. Lloyd drew up his force on both sides of the
railway, and after compelling 400 Kaffirs to lie down and
remain quiet, opened a steady fire.

The position, however, had become one of extreme
danger, when all of a sudden shells were seen to fall in
the midst of the enemy. It seems that a member of a
small working party near at hand had managed to
escape, and carry the news of the attack to Lord
Kitchener, who was encamped with 35 men at Kopjes
Station.

Lord Kitchener at once rode to the camp of the
Shropshire Regiment, and brought a gun into action,
personally directing its fire. The fall of darkness com-
pelled the Boers to retreat, and the valuable railway
material was saved.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 28 1

One of the engines had thirty-eight bullet marks and
the other forty, but no serious damage was done.

Under Lord Kitchener's supervision prompt measures
were taken to strengthen the lines of communication.
The defence of these was entrusted to General Smith-
Dorrien, who acted with great energy.

The train following the one attacked at Honing Spruit,
in which was the Duke of Westminster carrying Lord
Roberts's despatches, and Mr. Winston Churchill, was
shelled back to Roodeval, but not hit.

A private letter received from Pretoria gave the details
of a dastardly attempt on the part of a Boer to blow up
the artillery barracks and magazine there. The man had
actually succeeded in lighting the fuse when he was
observed by an artilleryman, who rushed forward in time
to kick away the fuse, but was killed in doing so. Two
unarmed men managed to seize and overpower the mis-
creant, who was subsequently wounded in an attempt
that was made to lynch him, and taken to the hospital.
Had the attempt succeeded, the i8th, 62nd, 75th Field
Batteries, and the Hampshires, together with the culprit
himself, would inevitably have been destroyed.

Raw gold was sent to Lorenzo Marques from the
Transvaal in the last week in June, and quantities of
clothing were smuggled through for the Boers defending
their " Cabinet." Yet we had men-of-war lying in
Delagoa Bay. It was reported that 60 miles of railway
had been destroyed, cutting the communication between
Machadodorp and Pretoria. Col. Gourko, the Russian
military attache, remained with Mr. Kruger.

At the end of June the ubiquitous Steyn was at Harri-
smith, imposing heavy fines upon the burghers who
refused to take up arms again.

Among the proclamations in the Government
*' Gazettes," frequently issued at Pretoria, was one for-
bidding fresh gold mining, but allowing the completion
of work in hand. This was a disappointment to the
gold miners at the Cape and at Johannesburg. All raw
gold was to be deposited in the government bank. The
transport of specie and unwrought gold was also for-
bidden, as well as the transport of coal, except for
household use. There was also a new and more
stringent order as to the telegraph and railways. The

282 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

principal residents in a district were held responsible for
damage, in addition to which a penalty of not less than
half-a-crown per morgen was to be levied on each farm
in the district, and receipts for goods requisitioned
would be cancelled. Lieut. -Col. Girouard, in charge of
the railway traffic, was authorised at any time to com-
pel any leading residents to accompany trains in order
to safeguard them.

With the opening of July the "sport," as the pro-
fessional manslayer sometimes grimly calls the war,
seemed nearly at an end. The big game — the elephants,
lions, tigers, &c. — of former sportsmen in these regions,
have been driven into Central Africa, and in course of
time may be preserved from extinction only by great
care ; and when human beings cease to be game for
shot and shell the earth will be a happier hunting
ground and a pleasanter place to live in. Alexander
the Great wept inconsolably when he could find no
more nations to conquer, so, it was said, there were
some soldiers in South Africa who saw the signs of
peace approaching with a sigh that their occupation
would soon be gone.

For now the army on the move was more a Patroling
Police than anything else.

Slowly and daily the movement at enveloping the Free
Staters under General De Wet made progress. Gen.
Sir Francis Clery pushed Sir Redvers Buller's front nine
miles further along the railway towards Heidelberg, and
on June 30th, occupied Vlaklaagte, with General
Cooper's Light Infantry Brigade and details of cavalry
and artillery.

The railway was in good order up to Vlaklaagte, near
which a skirmish occurred between a small party of
Boers and our advance guard, when the Boers were
quickly driven back.

On a farm near by were found the four Misses Eloflf,
granddaughters of the President.

The Boers surrendering related extraordinary tales
which were spread by their leaders to counteract the
British successes of the last few months, with the result
that they were in complete ignorance of the real course of
events.

Wessels farm was occupied by General Clery, with

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 283

the 4th Brigade and details of artillery and cavalry. The
country hereabouts is flat, and consequently nothing was
seen of the Boers, but a number of them were in the
Witfoortje hills, a few miles in front, and they fired on
our advanced patrols.

General Clements, whose column began a movement
simultaneously with three other columns, operating from
the northward and westward, came into contact with the
Boers ten miles north of Senekal, on June 28th. The
enemy showed in large numbers, and General Clements
was hotly engaged. After a time he succeeded in com-
pelling the Boers to retire. The enemy, however, were
still hovering around him, and further fighting was
imminent.

The Boers attacked the British position at Hammonia
but were repulsed.

On the Lindley road one of Rundle's patrols was fired
on from a farmhouse. The Boers were afterwards driven
out of the house, which was burnt. One of our opponents
was captured.

The Boers formed a large camp in the fork of the
Elands River, where large numbers of waggons and cattle
were collected. Many Boer women and children were in
the camp. Their patrols were in daily contact with our
outposts.

On June 30th, General Colvile left Pretoria on his way
home, it was supposed in consequence of one or two
untoward events that have been recorded.

Sir H. E. Colvile went out at the commencement of the
war as commander of the Guards' Brigade, and in that
capacity was engaged in the earlier operations under
Lord Methuen. After the arrival of Lord Roberts he
was given command of the Ninth Division, including the
Highlanders and Smith-Dorrien's Brigade. During the
march to Pretoria this division was broken up, Smith-
Dorrien's battalions going forward under General Ian
Hamilton, and the Highland Brigade remaining behind.
Sir H. E. Colvile stayed with the Highlanders at Lindley,
and accompanied them from there to Heilbron at the end
of May.

A snap shot of Mr. Kruger at this time would be
interesting historically, though no magnanimous Briton
wQuld rejoice simply in his humiliation.

284 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

A business man of Standerton, provided with a Boef
safe conduct, paid his Honour a visit at his railway
headquarters at Machadodorp, and on his return on June
29th narrated his experience. He found President
Kruger, Secretary Reitz, and General Lucas Meyer in
a railway carriage there. Only a handful of burghers,
the faithful few, remained with him. They all wore a
dejected air, and each expressed a desire for peace.

President Kruger made a pathetic central picture. He
was evidently much worried, and bore unmistakable
traces of the misery he had suffered.

The previous reports of unlimited supplies at Macha-
dodorp were stated to be incorrect. There were practi-
cally no stores there.

All these facts were furnished to General Buller.

When a man is down there are plenty ready and
brave enough to kick him ; and before he left Pretoria
some old women, wives of Dutch burghers, tried to
horsewhip the fallen Dictator, who was rescued by his
Hollander bodyguard. So said a special correspondent
of the Natal daily " Witness."

A Pretoria correspondent of the " New Rotterdam
Courant," in touch with Dutch sentiment towards the
Boer Government, wrote that he must record with regret
the evil influence of President Kruger, and those asso-
ciated with him, upon the sense of honesty among the
high employes of the Transvaal State. " In a time of
collapse and crisis," says this correspondent, " such as
the Transvaal is now passing through, there are always
persons who will seek to enrich themselves in any frau-
dulent manner. But it is rare that these persons should
be found in the entourage and families of the responsible
rulers of the despoiled country. Yet this is the disgust-
ing spectacle which is now presented in the closing scene
of the life of the Boer Republic."

If this charge is true, it is a sad commentary on those
" high principles" for which the Republican Government
went to war.

At the end of June came the first issue of a paper
called the " Pretoria Friend," and conducted by a com-
mittee headed by Lord Stanley and Captain the Hon.
J. Ward, which was said to have an excellent educational
effect.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 285

At Pretoria a great number of Colonials, Australians,
and Canadians volunteered for civil employment as police
and on railways and were accepted. The new Pretoria
High Court had a salutary effect, and the capital gradually
regained a sense of security and repose. Hilliard was
appointed chief magistrate. Captain Mclnnery (Victoria
Rifles,) Her Majesty's Advocate ; and Blyth, Sheriff.

Prices of food stuffs were regulated according to pro-
clamation. The native pass system was thoroughly car-
ried out. Mr. Loveday was appointed burgomaster in
place of Mr. Potgieter. The original town council tem-
porarily resumed its duties. The publishing of false
and malicious reports was severely punished. Colonel
Maxwell from time to time published an official resume
of war news. As to the banks allowed to do business,
Emrys Evans was financial adviser. Twenty pounds was
the weekly limit allowed to be drawn by one person,
payments in and out to be made in specie. Colonel
Maxse as Commissioner of Police had a perfect patrol
of the town. The Provost-Marshal's staff was consider-
ably increased in order to cope with the increased work.

A Colonial Fund, started at Durban for the purpose
of presenting General Buller with a testimonial in recog-
nition of his services in ridding Natal of the enemy, was
a huge success. Committees were formed at Durban,
Pietermaritzburg, and in other towns, with the mayors
at the head of each committee, and the shilling sub-
scriptions poured in from all quarters.

All the British residents who left the Transvaal at
the commencement of the war and were domiciled at
Durban, registered their addresses in order to facilitate
return to their homes.

The romantic epic of a war is in the arena at the
front, but the stern, matter-of-fact prose is in the rear,
as painted by Mr. R. Kipling and Mr. Burdett-Coutts.
Take the following scene as representative of many
episodes of the kind from the fierce outset to the desult-
ory climax :

Slowly and noiselessly along the sandy road a ghostly
column of white-hooded ambulance waggons moves out
of the dark pine trees. " Halt !" cries a voice, and the
whole line stops. Four orderlies, sitting erect on the
front seats, jump down and disperse, The squad by the

2B6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

roadside cluster round the back and peer into the dark
cavern beneath the hood. Two bodies lie side by side
on stretchers, lengthway along the floor of the \yaggon.
Two orderlies take the proje(5ling handles and slide one
of the stretchers half out on its little flat wheels. A
corporal holds his lantern up to read the tally tied to
the end of the stretcher, and a sergeant stands by, blue
paper in hand.

" What's this ?" asks the latter.

" Gloucesters, 1007, injured head," says one orderly,

"Gordons, looi, fractured thigh," says the other.

" Gloucesters pass on," replies the sergeant, and then
— falling into Zolaesque — " Thigh, tent 37."

Four orderlies, one to each handle, lower the stretcher
gently from the waggon and place it on the ground a
little way from the road. Two return to the waggons,
and two remain stooping between the handles at either
end.

" Lift — steady !" and like a machine the stretcher rises
from the ground, slow and level, and moves off to a
neighbouring tent. The stretcher is aligned with the
empty bed, with the length of one shaft resting on the
edge. Very tenderly the two orderlies and a nurse half
lift and half slide the body on to the bed. I notice the
nurse does as much as the two orderlies, standing on
the other side and making a cradle of her arms into
which the body is gently moved.

The Boer wounded, too, were as well tended as our
men, as the following shows : —

Here is one who fought on the other side — a wounded
Boer prisoner. Being shot in the lower part of the leg
only he is carried by two orderlies, who make a chair
of their gripped hands while the patient puts an arm
affectionately round the neck of each. He is carried
into a tent, and while his blood-stained clothes are being
changed for a comfortable hospital suit the usual process
of taking stock of his worldly possessions goes on. First
comes his watch — a handsome gold one.

"That goes under yer piller," says the orderly; " seej
I put it there. Anything else — any money ?"

The Boer, satisfied as to his watch, hesitates about
the cash.

•'Any money?" repeats the orderly, blue paper and

HISTORV OF THE BOER WAR. 28/

pencil in hand. *' You'll have it all back — Boer and
Briton, we treat 'em all alike here."

••A shilling," replies the Boer after a pause, and
fumbles in his pockets. The shilling is duly entered in
its appointed square on the blue sheet. He hands it over
reluctantly, and his eyes follow it from the orderly to
the staflf-sergeant.

"Anything else?"

"No, nothing else," replies the prisoner, somewhat
doubtfully.

" Sure ? Remember, Boer and Briton, we treat *em,"
&c. Then slowly and with difficulty the prisoner pro-
duces something from every pocket, a nameless collec-
tion— pipes, tobacco pouches, a silver match-box, a Bible,
a gold snuff-box, little pots of beef essence, and a dozen
other knick-knacks, and, lastly, from the bottom of each
deep recess half a dozen cartridges. They cover the
little table at his bedside, and the orderly goes on metho-
dically with his inventory.

"Have you got that shilling down?" asks the Boer
anxiously. Only then something that has been familiar
in his English from the first takes a definite note. It
seems to carry us far away, north of the Tweed, and
things are getting confused. After all our Boer turns out
to be a Scotchman, long resident in the Transvaal, and
commandeered to fight.

The picture of the Bloemfontein camp when the writer
of the above was there, with a slight change in details,
is a sketch of other camps on the line of march.

The town is surrounded on all sides by huge military
camps at distances varying from one to ten miles. A
proper system of sanitation, always difficult where water
is scarce, is much obstructed by the Kaffir encampments
which accompany every brigade, and are almost beyond
control from a sanitary point of view. The eye is not
the only sense that leads a visitor approaching a camp to
make a wide detour round these kraals — black clusters
of flat wigwams formed of waggons outspanned and buck-
sails stretched over them. Soldiers who die are buried
in the cemeteries. But there are other soldiers of the
Queen by thousands in every camp — four-footed ones
these, as loyal, strong, and patient as their masters —
many of whom die every day, and must be buried with

288 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

little trouble and less transport. Horses, mules, oxen—
their graveyards are never far from where they fall, and
the graves are not dug deep.

The reader before this probably has reflected, how
many-sided is war, and how differently viewed by those
connected with it.

Here is an artist, who follows the army to paint the
portraits of its heroes, and who finds nothing but pleasant
gossip on the way. Not he to moralise — his line is like-
ness-taking, professionally, which is an art requiring con-
centration of attention to catch the moods and character
of the *♦ subject." It gives us some side lights of camp
life — moments of leisure when over pipe and glass,
soldiers laugh and joke, between the battles.

One of these enterprising artistes is Mr. Mortimer
Menpes, whose forte is military portraiture. On return-
ing from the front he was interviewed by a representative
of the Daily News who knew how to make " copy " out
of him. The artiste received " sittings," at the seat of
war, by Lord Roberts, Mr. Cecil Rhodes, Sir Alfred
Milner, Mr. Cronje, and other celebrities, and these
gentlemen are to live on immortal canvas.

At the front they all call it a " one-man show."
"Bobs" is the one man. Nevertheless he gave Mr.
Menpes several sittings. '• I must apologise for my
intrusion when the whole world is looking at you, my
Lord," said the painter, when he was marched into the
Commander-in-Chief's room at Bloemfontein — Mr.
Steyn's old apartment, and was confronted with the
little man — " all steel, lithe, every nerve palpitating with
life— at his age!" "Not at all," replied "Bobs;" "it's
a privilege you're conferring." What a kindly gentle-
man he must be, this man of war ! kindly, courteous,
considerate ! Whilst the painter was at work they
chatted about various things. The talk got back to
Paardeberg, and Mr. Menpes happened to say that he
had painted Cronje. " And Mrs. Cronje ?" asked Lord
Roberts simply. " No, no," answered the painter,
smiling ; " Mrs. Cronje did not lend herself to decorative
treatment." " Ah 1" returned Roberts, " I don't think
the prettiest woman in the world would after three days
in those trenches I"

The comedy of war is well illustrated by this little

HISTORY OF THE BOKR WAR. 289

aside. In the middle of the sitting Lord Kitchener came
in with a scout, hot, covered with dust and dirt, and
almost panting for breath. Kitchener took Roberts
aside, and whilst they were talking in low, hurried tones,
the scout stood at attention by the side of a marble
Venus on a pedestal. Despite the awful presence of
the two great men, the lady fascinated him, and even
whilst Roberts was hearing his very important news,
do what he would, the corner of the eye nearest Venus
would turn that way. However, Lord Roberts was too
engrossed to notice it, or goodness knows what the conse-
quence would have been.

When the artist begged Mr. Rhodes to sit to him
(Long Tom had only just given in — the diamond city had
only just been relieved) he said : " Oh I I don't mind, but
full face — full face. No profiles! I am a plain, blunt
man, and I like to look people full in the face. That
man Fil-des " — such is fame! Fancy pronouncing th?
distinguished Academician's name as a dissyllable
♦' began a portrait of me in profile — wanted to show one
side of my face. Dastardly, I call it. I say that no
honest man ever sat for a side face."

Mr. Menpes was a little frightened by this outburst, but
he soon got on fairly easy terms with the great specula-
tor, who asked his opinion of his face from a painter's
point of view. Mr. Menpes had already made up his
mind what the "note" was, and said at once, "I am
surprised by its boyishness." ** Ah I that's it," returned
Mr. Rhodes. ** Boyishness — dreamer. Yes, yes, that's
what I am — a dreamer — imaginative, romantic." Then
some thought crossed his brain, he touched the bell, and,
like a streak of lightning, a secretary appeared. " So-
and-so, when will those ten thousand trees be delivered ?"
•' Insix weeks' time, Mr. Rhodes." "They must be here
in two weeks. Put two thousand more men on the job at
once." So did Monte Cristo talk to his people. There
you have Mr. Rhodes full face — the dreamer and the
shrewd man of action in one.

Mr. Menpes is full of stories he heard about Rhodes
worship. The bitterest pro-Boer cannot but have a
sneaking regard for a man who is the subject of this
pretty little tale. " Oh, Mr. Rhodes," sighed a poor
fellow down with enteric, " oh, what would I give for a

290 HtSTORY OF tllE BOEk WAlL

drop of milk " (then worth five pounds a drop !)
" Umph," replied Mr. Rhodes, in his grim, gruflf way.
" Umph 1" and he went away umphing. The next day
he came again, and after a few words slouched out, and
nervously left a tiny medicine bottle on the corner of the
table. •• Oh, I do love Mr. Rhodes,*' said the sick man.
" See what he's brought me — it's milk." And so it was —
value unknown.

When Mr. Menpes was busy at Kimberley he used to
go and get shaved at a barber's adjacent to the club.
This barber told him an amusing story, which illustrates
the moral effect of Long Tom admirably. Said the bar-
ber, busy with his razor : " Well, it's like this — when the
small guns were firing into the town, and the bullets
came this way, my customers used all to fly under the
counter there, and left me standing with the razor. But
when Tom began business — well, I used to go with my
customers, too. Tom was a regular terror."

Mr. Menpes was also successful in securing sittings
from Generals French and Macdonald, though both of
them were very shy of the palette. French was
extremely nervous under the ordeal, and at one or two
points he even ran away and hid himself behind a
newspaper. "The shyest sitter I ever had," exclaimed
the painter, " but charming." Sir Hector was easier,
and talked very freely. Yoii cannot call him a pro-
Boer, but they have no keener admirer of their fighing
qualities. What struck Mr. Menpes about this self-made
general was his dislike of luxury.

When all the officers were enjoying the comparative
luxury of Bloemfontein he stuck to his tent outside.
He preferred to rough it on the ground. He gave Mr.
Menpes a good illustration of the enormous difficulties
of the Intelligence Department during the war. " I'll
tell you what it is," said he, in his soldierly way, " I
trust nobody in Bloemfontein — not men — certainly not
women. The children are the only safe draws. What
I do is to stuff" my pockets full of sweets, go out for a
walk, and talk to the children. They tell you where
their papas have gone."

Then he went on to compare fighting in South Africa
with fighting in the Soudan. In the Soudan it was

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 201

child's play — easy country — no enemy. Here's a fearful
country and a brilliant enemy.

"Now, how far do you think that kopje is off?" —
pointing to a hillock which appeared quite close, but
which was really some miles off. Mr. Menpes was aware
of the deceptive nature of the country, and said so.
" Well," continued Sir Hector, " you would think it was
an easy thing for me to take my brigade there, wouldn't
you ? And it looks flat country between us, doesn't it.
Yet ten thousand Boers could conceal themselves in that
wavy plain."

When he was painting Mr. Rhodes, they discussed art
and gardening. Mr. Menpes had visited his gardens at
Cape Town, and the first question Mr. Rhodes asked him
was how they looked. Mr. Menpes congratulated him
on the artistic way in which he had grouped his flowers
in great clusters, and amused him by contrasting this big
way of gardening with the back garden of poor London
Suburbia.

It is not surprising to hear that a man who " thinks
in continents " should complain that his wild beasts in
his compound at the Cape are skimped for room to
roam in. •' They want acres," he cried — " acres and a
marble platform to walk on. You can't see 'em now."

Then he went on to describe the Siege Avenue
which is being put in hand to commemorate the siege
of Kimberley. It is to be a mile long ; there will be room
for fours-in-hand to drive through it ; it will be mainly
an avenue of vines, which will form an arched vault of
grateful shade ; on either side will be rows of pepper
trees, orange trees, and eucalyptus, the last on the out-
side to protect its tenderer comrades. In the centre
will rise a beautiful monument of marble columns, each
resting on a sphinx.

The only question which perturbed Mr. Rhodes was
whether the clustered columns should be roofed or open
to the winds of heaven. Time would settle it. But it
will be a big thing, be sure, when Mr. Rhodes has done
with it. Mr. Rhodes had thought of lions supporting the
columns, but the complimentary artist thought the sphinx
a truer emblem of the man of diamonds, the •* boy " who
thinks much and speaks little.

The hemming in of De Wet was watched by experts

292 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

with interest. The British lines, extending 240 miles
from the northern to the southern horn of a crescent,
were, at the beginning of July, converging on Bethle-
hem as the centre, and the Drakensberg in the rear of
the Boers seemed the only way of escape, but even then
they might find their road barred by a Natal force. At
the northern point there was Clery, towards Vrede,
Hunter was at Frankfort, Macdonald at Heilbron,
Methuen to the south-west of that place, Paget at Lind-
ley, and Rundle and Brabant holding a chain of posts
from Winburg to Ficksburg on the south ; a total of
nearly 50,000 men to catch about 5,000.

General Botha was apparently making a move towards
relieving his comrades in arms, as well as plotting against
Pretoria.

Hunter, crossing the Vaal, reached Frankfort on the
1st, without opposition, and Macdonald joined him the
next day. This place is 50 miles north of Lindley and
41 miles west of Vrede. Clery reached Graylingstad
on the 2nd, with some attention from the ambushed
snipers. That is on the Netherlands railway, 20 miles
north of Standerton.

We now, for the first time, heard complaints from
the Boers of want of food, at several places — Pretoria,
Johannesburg, Greylingstad, Heilbron, and elsewhere —
and the British undertook to feed the families of men
fighting against us! Naturally the presence of a great
army ran up the price of food, and the dairy farmers
made a big profit. At Pretoria, for instance, though
there was a large market, prices ruled high. Butter
sold at 6s. and 7s. per pound, and eggs at about 4d.
each.

Colonel Ward, who had charge of the markets, con-
vened a committee of ministers of religion at the capital
to relieve the distress, which had an effect on those
seeking to create an anti-British feeling.

Where Boers were found without oats for seed pur-
poses Lord Roberts ordered that they should be sup-
plied with seed from our stores. Nevertheless some
of the Boer women still cherished bitter feelings
towards the British, and openly flaunted the Transvaal
colours before the troops. A number confined their

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 293

wrath to the British officers, to whom they made most
insulting remarks in Dutch.

Patient consideration was shown them, and every
effort made on all sides to bring the Dutch to a more
conciliatory frame of mind. Many of the Boers still
entertained the belief that they would regain their in-
dependence as Mr. Kruger said.

Lord Roberts issued a proclamation enjoining every
male over sixteen years of age residmg in the town, un-
less he was a British subject, to obtain a permit to
remain. This proclamation was due to the well-founded
suspicion that several of the townspeople were com-
municating with the enemy. It was a measure for en-
suring protection as well as ejecting undesirable persons
from the town. Certain aliens who had become burghers
in the Transvaal since the commencement of hostilities,
and also a large number of suspects, were escorted across
the border.

Armoured trains now daily patrolled the lines in
different directions from the town, and the country
round Pretoria was particularly well adapted for such
work. The enemy, however, kept well out of sight,
though hovering in the neighbouring hills.

The Transvaal Constabulary, instituted for the pur-
pose of patrolling Pretoria in the first place, was ex-
tended to the country districts after the pacification of
the Transvaal had been accomplished.

The first arrangement was wholly provisional, the
men serving for three months from the date of enrolment.
The pay was as follows : for a captain 30s. per day, a
subaltern 25s., a sergeant 15s., a corporal 12s. 6d., and a
private los. The three last also had rations. Twenty
officers and six hundred men were drawn from the follow-
ing corps of Yeomanry: — The South Notts, West and
North Somerset, Dorsets, Devons, and Sussex ; Canadian
Mounted Infantry, Cape Mounted Rifles, New South
Wales Mounted Rifles, Tasmanian and Queensland
Mounted Infantry, New Zealand Mounted Rifles, Natal
Police, the Argentine Contingent of the South African
Light Horse, and the New South Wales Lancers.

To return to the Orange River Colony, which was,
in the district we have described, an exciting scene of
daily military movements. The landscape was dotted

394 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

with Kharki warriors, mounted and on foot, In all
directions.

Lord Methuen's force reached Paardekraal from Heil-
bron on July ist, completing nearly 500 miles of march-
ing and counter-marching, while the Northamptons left
Kroonstad for Honingspruit to refit with sorely needed
winter clothing.

Steenkamp's commando, 1,000 strong, was near Me-
thuen, and Captain Masters, of the Array Service Corps,
and Major Bagley, of the Australians, were captured
while foraging five miles from the column.

As the railway from Heilbron to Wolvehoek had been
restored, a large quantity of stores was being sent to the
former place where they were much needed.

A few influential Boers now surrended at Heilbron,
and others were captured.

Some staff officers and a cornet, Christian De Wet,
were captured near Paardekraaf, and Andries De Wessels,
a member of the Free State Raad and a leader in the
Afrikander Bond, was arrested on his farm, where a
large quantity of sheep and oxen were secured.

A patrol of the South African Light Horse, acting on
information supplied by a guide to our Intelligence
Department, captured at a farm house ten miles from
Standerton two men under arms, who had just returned
from Vredestand, and had no intention of surrendering.
One was Michael Christian Eloff Muller, mining commis-
sioner of Johannesburg, and the other Johannes Mac-
kenzie Muller, who married a daughter of Jan Meyer, of
Johannesburg.

Driscoll's Scouts attached to General Rundle's Divi-
sion, returned on June 30th, to the camp at Doornfontein,
having patrolled for a distance of sixty miles in the dis-
trict of Winburg. They located a force of 500 to 600
Boers with at least two guns upon Doornberg, which
commanded the main road to Winburg and Senekal, and
threatened the railway. A much-needed convoy arrived
the next day, escorted by Scots Guards and Derbyshire
Yeomanry from Winburg. i

The whereabouts of Mr. Kruger now became a matter
of uncertainty owing to conflicting reports, and these we
may mention as samples of the difficulties which a truth-
loving chronicler had to encounter in his search for facts.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 295

A Jewish storekeeper who had been given Transvaal
Government notes for ;^5oo for goods commandeered by
the Boers visited Machadodorp the first week in June,
and on his return home stated that Mr. Kruger had gone
to Nelspruit, the transport station for Lydenburg.

Another account was that he had removed to an hotel
at Watervalonder, a short distance further from Pretoria,
and a third statement was that he was removing to the
small mining town of Pilgrim's Rest, 84 miles from
Machadodorp.

It was further asserted that at the end of June, Mr.
Kruger removed two stations, or about five miles east-
ward, on the plea that this place was not so cold, but
some said it was because he thought it was safer from a
surprise. It was also nearer to the Elands laager.

The State Saloon carriages were stated to be heated
and comfortable. There were separate apartments for
the old man's companions. He worked unremittingly,
remarking that he was prepared to die at his post.
Sitting crinkled up in his chair, he wrote his despatches
or dictated them to his clerk. His pale, leaden, fur-
rowed face was a contrast to the bronzed countenance
of the burly Lucas Meyer, whose deep voice also sounded
as of another race when Mr. Kruger's rasping, barking
tones were heard, as though he had worn out his voice
in public talking. He had been a man of strict rules,
but now his Sabbaths were given to State-craft, and his
devotions often broken through. Mr. Reitz, the Secre-
tary, was more buoyant and cheerful, and yet shared his
master's concerns. Dr. Heyman was in constant attend-
ance, as well as Mr. Piet Grobler, Under Secretary.

Kruger's vitality and force of character were seen in his
stratagems, subterfuges, schemes for keeping up the fight.
The reports sent to hearten the commanders were often
false and misleading, but who was the liar it might be
difficult to say.

The " Chicago Record " published a despatch giving
an interview with President Kruger. "England," said
Mr. Kruger, " is occupying less than one-third of the
Transvaal. She can never beat us in the mountains.
The British supplies are being cut oflF. Her soldiers in
Pretoria are suffering from want of food. Our forces are
now advancing again upon Pretoria. We have 1,500

296 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

British prisoners at Nooitgedacht, and 1,100 more are
coming. Our people are cheerful and hopeful, and all are
regaining confidence. Despite the reports to the con-
trary my health continues good."

Mr. Kruger, in reply to another interviewer, gave the
following message as from himself to the British people : —
" The President and people of the South African Republic
most earnestly desire peace, but only upon these two con-
ditions, viz., the complete independence of the republic,
and an amnesty for those Colonial Boers who have fought
with us. If these conditions be not granted we will fight
to the bitter end."

Shareholders in South African stock of all kinds were
having bad times, and it needed optimistic prophesies,
such as that of Mr. J. B. Robinson, of London, (an
authority on the subject,) as to the Transvaal becommg
•* the richest country in the world," to induce speculators
to retain their scrip, even if they had a chance to sell (at
a big drop in price.) But the British Government did
what it could to maintain the credit of the Orange River
Colony, by meeting the half-year's interest due on the
State loan, on the ist of July, without prejudice as to
future liability.

A considerable number of mining engineers and several
mining magnates, who had returned to Johannesburg in
twos and threes, were ordered back to Bloemfontein, their
return being deemed premature. And for the same
reason no force could be spared for the war that had
broken out in China. Until Mr. Kruger surrendered,
there was no security on either side of the Vaal.

As our circumvention of the enemy narrowed, so skir-
mishing increased, and almost every man in our force
had a chance of popping at the Boer — an opportunity
many Volunteers fresh in the field had been longing for.
General Paget did not reach Pleisirfontein without oppo-
sition, but he soon dispersed the snipers, driving them
across Leeuwkop to Broncrifontein, where he bivouacked
for the night, and the next day (July 4th) he reached
Blaauwkopje, fifteen miles north-west of Bethlehem,
•where the " Orange State Executive" was located, though
it was reported Steyn, the famous " sprinter," had sought
a safer retreat in the mountains to the east.

We were now in the garden of the colony, and could

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 297

judge of its agricultural qualities. Some of the farms
were quite attractive though without the gardens and
accommodation common in English farming. A number
of limited companies in London set about offering farms
to Volunteers who wished to settle in the colony on easy
terms of payment, provided applicants had some capital
and were in earnest in their intention to cultivate the
land or rear stock.

The Boers on the 4th made a desperate attempt to
regain Ficksburg, by a midnight rush. Our sentries gave
an alarm, and there was a fierce combat for an hour, at
the end of which the burghers were convinced that they
had no chance and made off.

Brabant's Colonial Division found Doornberg Kopje,
near Winburg, evacuated on the 5th, but our garrison
at Scheepersnek was engaged with Boer outposts; our
line was advanced to Vlakspruit on the same day, and
by this means covered the railway there.

As the enemy had for some days been threatening
our line of railway by trying to get round our right
flank, at another point, Lord Roberts despatched liutton
on the 5th July with his mounted infantry to rein-
force Mahon, and with orders to drive the Boers to the
east of Bronkerspruit. These orders were effectually
carried out durmg the 6th and 7th by Mahon, who was
attacked by some 3,000 men with six guns and two
Vickers-Maxims. A squadron of the Imperial Light
Horse pressed a very superior force of the enemy in a
gallant attempt to carry off a wounded comrade, to
which was attributable the heavy losses it suffered.
We sustained six killed and some 24 wounded.

Hutton was attacked on July 8th in the position he
was holding by a large number of Boers. He beat
them off without much difficulty, the 5-inch guns with
him being useful. Our only casualty was Lieutenant
Young, ist Battalion Canadian Mounted Rifles, slight
wound of scalp. The enemy left several of their
wounded on the ground, and sent a flag of truce, with
the request that they might be received into our field
hospital.

Hanbury Tracy, in command at Rustenburg, received
a party of Boers under Limmer on July 7th, who coolly
invited him to surrender the town and garrison. Tracy

298 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

replied that he held Rustenburg for her Majesty's
Government, and intended to continue occupying it.
The enemy then opened fire with artillery, and tried to
take the heights which command the town. In this
they did not succeed owing to the good arrangements
made by Tracy and his officers, and were eventually
driven oflf with the assistance of Colonel Holdsworth,
7th Hussars, who made a rapid march of 48 miles
from the neighbourhood of Zeerust with Bushmen,
under Colonel Airey, on hearing that Rustenburg was
likely to be threatened. The enemy suffered heavy loss,
and five prisoners were captured. Our casualties were
Bushmen, two killed; Captain M'Haltie and three men
wounded.

The officer commanding at Heilbron reported on the gth
that Mr. Blignant, Orange State Secretary, Mr. Dickson,
State Attorney, Mr. Van Tander, member of Council,
and Mr. Kupper Vergen had come into Heilbron on
the previous day and surrendered. They stated that
an influential deputation of officials was to visit Mr.
Steyn to urge him to surrender. Mr. Steyn, with
Commandant De Wet, had retreated to Fouriesburg
with 3,000 men.

Some 800 prisoners — chiefly Yeomanry and Derby-
shire Militia, the result of recent raids — whom the Boers
found it inconvenient to feed, were put over the Natal
border from Reitz and made their way, footsore and
exhausted, by Acton Holmes, to Ladysmith. They
complained of rough times through shortness of food,
and were glad to get back to our lines, with a chance
of being in at the final battle. Their officers were
detained in custody.

A convoy arrived at Vlakfontein through Greylingstad
on the 5th. It had nearly reached a defile in the hills when
the Boers opened fire upon it with two 14-pounders. The
nearest shell fell 20 yards from the convoy. Thorney-
croft's Horse thereupon occupied the hills to the right
defile, and kept the Boers back on a long ridge extend-
ing over the extreme left. The infantry meanwhile
deployed into the plain, while the field artillery and a
section of a howitzer battery got into position under
the ridge.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 399

The Boers worked their guns rapidly, but the howit-
zers replied and drove the enemy back over the ridge.
The convoy then passed through safely and our force
began to retire. On the Boers seeing our artillery
limber up they came forward, and openly brought one
gun on to a ridge on our left. Half a dozen shells
fell around the retiring howitzers, and a pom-pom was
worked in the direction of our infantry, but the shots
fell short.

The 63rd Field Battery eventually went out and the
first shell forced the enemy's gun from the ridge, after
which the Boer fire was silenced at every point.

On the 5th a skirmish also took place 18 miles north-
east of Standerton. A party of 34 recruits of Strathcona's
Horse, under Lieutenant Anderson, acting as advance
guard to a party of mounted infantry, were attacked in
front and flank by the Boers, whose strength was
estimated at 200.

A heavy musketry fire was poured into the Canadians,
who stood their ground and rephed, driving the enemy
back from the kopje they had occupied.

The Landdrost of Heidelberg surrendered the same
night.

A telegraph construction party captured a Boer who
who was seen entering a house. He admitted that
he came down the hill every day to the house for food.
Another Boer, who was found by Strathcona's Horse,
pointed out a house in which he stated that arms and
ammunition were stored. As soon as the patrol
approached the house it attracted a fire from the
immediate neighbourhood, which, however, was insig-
nificant.

The rifling of the Boer guns was becoming worn,
and the Boer prisoners admitted that their ammunition
was scarce.

The arrival of Sir Redvers Buller at Pretoria on July
7th was a sign that the country was clear on the main
line, but on the Netherland line the enemy's outposts
continued active and fourteen of our mounted infantry
were missing on the 5th. Lieutenant Colonel Pilcher
had an encounter with the Boers at Rockenhont's Kloop
on the Middleburg road, with a few casualties.

Perhaps it should be mentioned, as another instance

300 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

of the folly of the Boer advisers, that on the 7th of
July there arrived in London by the " Tantallon Castle"
five heavily-bearded, bronzed men as delegates from the
•' People's Congress," held at Graafif Reinet, in Cape
Colony on May 30th. They were but the mouthpiece of
a few hundred erratic Afrikanders. The delegates were
the Rev. Professor De Vos, Messrs. R. P. Botha (a
relation of the Boer general), P. J. Du Plessis, and R. J.
De Wet, with whom was the Rev. A. Moores, of the
Dutch Reform Church. On board the vessel they held
prayer meetings for the success of the Boer cause, and
refused to uncover when the National Anthem was
played by the band. They soon discovered how little
sympathy their cause had in England, and how well
public opinion was informed on Boer politics. It was
too late in the day to preach peace on Boer terms ; it
was little better than lunacy to expect the independence
of the States when they had fought to the bitter end,
and had no guarantee of any better rule.

Great efforts were meanwhile being made by the ex-
treme Afrikanders to effect a boycott of British trade,
and to this end Afrikander trading companies had been
established in several centres with a total capital of
;^2oo,ooo. A conference had been held at Cradock to
discuss the details of the policy to be pursued. This
attempted combination of business, politics, and patriot-
ism was regarded by the Progressives as a futile display
of misdirected energy.

Mr. C. H. Thomas, of Belfort, in the Transvaal, who
was staying in London at this time, informed " Lorna,"
of the British Weekly that in the summer of 1898, he in-
terviewed Mr. Kruger, Mr. Reitz, Mr. Schalk Burgher,
and Gen. Piet Cronje, with the view of inducing them
to come to terms with England as the only way of
maintaining the independence of the States. Mr. Reitz
said:

" Well, but I cannot do what I like, Paul Kruger is
King" — a significant expression, seeing the President
always posed as the servant of the Boers. Mr. Thomas
supported the statement of Dr. Jameson and others that
the Boers had been arming since 1881, and he had
lived among them for forty years. We may pity 'poor
old Kruger,' in the overthrow of his life-long and most

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 30I

cherished ambition — the establishment of a great South
African Republic. He acted up to his "lights," as a
Dogger and a self-taught Boer. The pity is, he would
not take counsel of men more learned, experienced, and
trustworthy in higher European politics.

These Afrikander delegates were types of the Hollander
element backing up the Boers in resisting British de-
mands, and it was found necessary to weed out of office
in Pretoria and elsewhere those Hollanders whose bitter
anti-Enghsh prejudice made them secret traitors.

Only the week before the arrival of these apostles of
conciliation, Mr. Kruger had, through Mr. Reitz, told
the Daily Telegraph correspondent that he would fight
while he had 500 burghers left in the field.

It was not till the beginning of July that the British
consul at Lorenzo Marques was able to publish a list of
the 659 Gloucesters and 276 Fusiliers who had for
months been imprisoned at Noitgedacht station, near to
Machadodorp, where Mr. Kruger, it was definitely set-
tled, occupied a small hotel at Lowlands.

Burghers of the Transvaal had recently secured tacit,
if not express, permission from the Portuguese authori-
ties to their removal, with large herds and stock, to
Gasaland. That some such general movement was con-
templated by the Boer Government was shown by the
fact that the construction of a road from Trichardt's
Drift to Gasaland had been in progress for six months.
It was reported that large droves of cattle had been
sent across the border, while a considerable number of
burghers had taken advantage of this haven of refuge to
escape from commandeering officials.

The Portuguese apparently welcomed the movement
as promising a body of settlers for a district which was
practically unproductive, and legally they were no doubt
justified in thus befriending Great Britian's enemies. At
the same time, their action was hardly consistent with
the cordial professions made by the Portuguese towards
England, for, knowing that their stocks were safe in
neutral territory, many Boers were encouraged to con-
tinue fighting with far greater spirit than if their herds
were liable to seizure by the invading force.

Bronkhurst Spruit is 47 miles east of Pretoria, on the
railway leading to Lorenzo Marques — and Mr. Kruger,

302 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The fight telegraphed on Monday, July gth, was at
Oliphantsfontein, south-east of Irene, and the Boers had
hovered about that part ever since our occupation of
Pretoria. Their intention was to preserve his Highness's
isolation and security. According to the Cape Argus^
the correspondent of a London morning paper, seeking
an interview with him, had something more than a curt
rebuflF. Mr. Kruger, who has a temper, spoke his mind
as to the man's " impudence," and shook his fist^
defying no doubt the British Press and nation at the
same time.

Fouriesburg, whither the Orange Colony commandants
were said to have fled, is 30 miles south of Bethlehem,
about 25 miles north-east of Ficksburg, and 16 miles
from the Basuto border. As this place is only 60 miles
from Ladysmith there was the prospect of a warm re-
ception should they cross the mountains, and more
especially since the arrival there of the half-starved,
ragged 800 discharged prisoners, many of whom had
been robbed by their captors.

In order to avoid falling into the hands of the British
they had been kept marching with the Boer army, till
one day they were paraded down to Oliver's Hock
Pass, and there turned adrift, without food and most of
them penniless. Some of the men could scarcely crawl
from weakness, and succour was sent out to them from
Ladysmith.

Many persons might naturally wonder why Lord
Roberts did not prefer to conquer Botha and Kruger
before he finally engaged with De Wet and Steyn.

From the official despatches of Lord Roberts, it ap-
peared that the Commander-in-Chief had decided that it
was necessary to crumple up the forces with Command-
ant Christian De Wet and Mr. Steyn in the east of the
Orange River Colony before proceeding with the final
task of crushing the Boer forces in arms in the Trans-
vaal. It was well to complete the annexation of the one
before taking over the other. The despatch of General
Hunter's strong and useful column from Johannesburg to
Heidelberg was a striking indication of this design, and
as other strong columns were operating on all sides of the
irreconcileable ex-Free Staters left in the field against us,
there was good reason to hope that the work would be

HISTORY OF tHE BOER WAR. 303

accomplished with that thoroughness which invariably
characterised the work of the veteran Field-Marshal.

Sir Redvers BuUer, who had paid a short visit to Pre-
toria, as the guest of Lord Roberts, returned to Stander-
ton, to look after the northern barrier which hemmed in
the forces under De Wet and Steyn. The British forces
round Pretoria and in the Western Transvaal were mostly
" marking time," and guarding the all-important lines of
communications from adventurous Boer commandoes,
until the operations in the Orange River Colony had been
completed.

That this desirable end was not far distant, appeared
probable from the despatches received on the loth July
from Pretoria, which described the capture of Bethlehem
by columns under Generals Paget and Clements. Bethle-
hem was something more than one of Mr. Steyn's many
transient capitals. It had long been the headquarters of
Commandant Christian De Wet ; it is also a position of
some natural strength, surrounded by difficult kopjes :
and it had long been understood that it was here Mr.
Steyn and his backers would make a determined stand.
Bethlehem was held by De Wet's forces when the com-
bined British columns appeared before it on the 6th of
July.

General Clement's forces were the first to reach the
town, and then General Paget's. The former sent in a
flag of truce demanding its surrender. This was refused
by Christian De Wet, when Paget, making a turning
movement, succeeded in getting hold of the most import-
ant part of the enemy's position covering the town. This
was carried before dark by the Munster Fusiliers and
Yorkshire Light Infantry after a stifif fight.

The following morning the attack was continued, and
by noon the town was in our possession, and the enemy
in full retreat with heavy losses.

Our casualties were four officers wounded, and thirty-
two men of the Munster Fusiliers with one man missing.
Seven men of the Yorkshire Light Infantry were wound-
ed. One man of the 58th Company Imperial Yeomanry
was killed, and two wounded.

Paget reported that, but for the accurate practice by
the 38th Battery Royal Field Artillery, and the C.I.V.

304 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

Battery, under Major McMicking, the casualties would
have been many more.

■ The country was found broken and difficult, and, in
consequence, our cavalry were unable to make any very
wide turning movement. Clements attacked one position
while -Paget charged another in dashing style.

The one assailed by Clements was gallantly captured
by the Royal Irish Regiment, who took a gun of the
97th Battery which was lost at Stormberg. The list of
casualties was small considering the strength of the posi-
tions assaulted.

The general stains quo on the line from Senekal to Win-
burg was little changed at this time. General Rundle
continued master of the situation, and the enemy found
themselves baulked at whichever point they endeavoured
to break through southwards. Driscoll's scouts returned
to Senekal from a three or four days' tour through the
country behind, having found no trace of any armed
Boers. This fact was particularly gratifying to General
Rundle after the able and careful dispositions he had
made.

Isolated parties of the enemy had been evincing some
activity, but the main bodies had then retired to Bethle-
hem. Mr. Steyn was credited with striving to encour-
age the burghers with all manner of fictions. The latest
product of his invention was that the British were dying
at the rate of 1,600 a day from bubonic plague, and that
the hopes of the Afrikander nation were never brighter
than at the present moment. Unfortunately, the burghers
were unable to dispute these statements, and so perforce
they believed them. Mr. Steyn took care that the Boers
got no news whatever from the outside world, and he
also took the most stringent precautions to prevent the
burghers escaping from their laagers.

General Rundle conducted a reconnaissance on July 9,
and found that the enemy had evacuated all their posi-
tions around Senekal, including Biddulphsberg and Tafel-
berg. The Cape Mounted Rifles and Driscoll's Scouts
occupied Biddulphsberg.

A number of the enemy had gone towards Ficksburg,
and the remainder to Retiefs Nek, near Bethlehem.

Turning to the west of Pretoria, Baden-Powell
reached Rustenburg on the evening of the 8th, without

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 305

opposition. He found all quiet, and public confidence
entirely satisfactory, thanks to the prompt and bold grasp
of the situation taken by Major Hanbury Tracy. The
district west of this was somewhat unsettled, owing to
the presence of the small force which attacked Rusten-
burg being still in that neighbourhood, but measures were
taken to meet this.

A patrol of fifty men which went to Zwartruggens to
disarm sixty burghers returned to Zeerust with thirty
rifles and 2,000 rounds of ammunition.

A German who deserted from Mafeking and joined the
Boers was captured and sent to Mafeking for trial.

Commandant Snyman's eldest son was arrested, and
170 cattle taken from him.

Two Krugersdorp officials were convicted of damaging
the wires, and had their farms burned and all their pro-
perty confiscated.

An officer in the Manchester Company of the Imperial
Yeomanry writing from Lichtenburg, Transvaal, on the
5th of June, described the ordinary work of settling the
country thus :

" After a fortnight in Maitland Camp they sent us up
here, first to Belmont, then to Kimberley, Vryburg, and
at last to the railhead at Doom Bult. Since then we
have been marching every day, acting as body guard to
General Hunter and the supply column. We have also
searched all the houses. We have been dead out of luck
in the fighting line, as the Boers have simply cut and
run as we advanced. Our column has got them in be-
tween Mafeking and the railway, so they won't wait now
that the former place is relieved, and are coming in to
hand over their rifles and horses (the English Govern-
ment are giving them £10 for the latter. Isn't it rot ?)
at the rate of 200 a day in this town. We had a bit of
a ride after some native raiders three days back, who
said that Baden-Powell had sent them to retake cattle
taken from them by the Boers, but they had started their
old game of killing both men and women. As soon as
we caught them they laid down their arms. The Lothian
Yeomanry had all the fun, as the people they chased
held out, so they potted six blacks and took the rest
prisoners. The way these black brutes mauled the dead

$06 HISTORY OF tHE BOER WAR.

Boers was quite unpleasant to see — the bodies were
simply riddled with bullets."

With swarms of unemployed people at Capetown and
Durban matters became painfully strained by destitution
and high prices. At the latter town in July, ;^io was
paid for loolbs. of flour, eggs were 6d. each, and butter
6s. a lb. There was some impatience to re-start the Johan-
nesburg mines.

The continuance of the war was also entailing great
hardships on the fighting farmers, who were unable to
send their cattle into the bush veldt, and General Botha
was reported to be finding great difficulty in keeping his
men together for that reason. Lord Roberts, as far as
he could, facilitated the movement of cattle to the winter
pastures.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

THE BOER DESIGN TO BESIEGE PRETORIA.

THIS may seem to be incredible, yet was a fact.
It had, in a moment of unguardedness, been
announced by Mr. Kruger to an interviewer, and if
the intimation reached Lord Roberts, it was treated as
an idle, empty taunt. The Boers, however, had given
many indications of vitality and daring, as well as of
remarkable mobility, consequently it behoved our Com-
mander-in-chief to keep a sufficient line of outposts for
many miles to prevent a surprise. In the present
instance this is what he did not do, and our forces and
reputation suflFered for it.

On Wednesday, July nth, the Boer advance was
made upon Pretoria to the east, west, north, and south,
and one of these attempts ended in a disastrous defeat
for the British troops and a great encouragement to the
enemy.

General Lucas Meyer, with the Erasmus commando
on the raid, ventured as far as Horner Nek in the
Magaliesberg Range, to the northward of Wonderboom,
which overlooks Pretoria. An outpost party of the

HISTORY OF TrtE BOER WAR. 367

Scots Greys met and shelled the intruders, the action
lasting from dawn to 8 a. m. Fortunately the enemy had
but few guns, and had to retire. Our casualties were
small.

This was one part of the design. It seems that three
commandos — those of Delarey, Erasmus, and Meyer —
with six guns, during the previous night took up posi-
tions facing the lesser kopjes five miles north of the
Wonderboom Range, and extending west to Zart
Kopjes.

At daybreak on the nth, C Squadron, 7th Dragoon
Guards, advanced from the regiment's camp near
Doornpoort, scouting with a long line to watch. Lieu-
tenant Cholmley's troop was leading, when, three miles
out, on Hearing a farm, they saw a score of khaki-clad
helmeted men.

One showed a white flag, which was afterwards
dropped. This was the enemy's signal for a fusillade
at a range of from 100 to 200 yards on the front, rear,
and flanks of the Dragoons, who had supposed the
enemy to be the 14th Hussars.

Horses and men fell, but the lieutenant, though suffer-
ing from two flesh wounds, and with clothes and saddle
riddled with bullets, and his horse hit, made a detour,
and halting his men and firing, regained the outpost
with eight troopers, the rest of the squadron assisting.

Lord Church was also wounded.

From the camp, the Dragoons advanced, and with two
guns shelled the Boers, checking them ; but later, owing
to an action breaking out further west, the whole of the
outpost line retired to the main range.

Whilst the Dragoons' fight was proceeding, the Boers
attacked outposts to the westward, held by the Lincoln
Regiment, Scots Greys, and another battery section of
two guns.

The enemy, finding good cover behind the rocks and
amidst the thick bush, surrounded and overwhelmed
three companies of the Lincolns and a squadron of the
Scots Greys, who strove to save the guns. Owing to
the terrific Mauser fire, this task became impossible, and
both the cannon were lost.

Some of the troops retired fighting towards the main
ridge, suffering considerable loss.

308 HISTORY OF THE BOER WARi

Lord Roberts reported that our right flank was threat-
ened in a determined fashion, and that Nitral's Nek,
which was garrisoned by a squadron of Scots Greys,
two guns of O battery R. H. A., and five companies of
the Lincolnshire Regiment, was captured. The enemy
attacked us in superior numbers at dawn, and seizing
the hills which commanded the Nek, brought a heavy
converging fire to bear upon the small garrison.

Nitral's Nek is about eighteen miles from Pretoria,
near where the road crosses the Crocodile River. It was
held by us in order to maintain the road and telegraphic
communications with Rustenburg.

Severe fighting lasted more or less throughout the day.
Immediately on receiving information in the early morn-
ing of the enemy's strength, Lord Roberts despatched
reinforcements under Colonel Godfrey — the King's Own
Scottish Borderers. Before, however, they reached the
spot the garrison was overpowered. The two guns and
a greater portion of the squadron of the Greys were
captured owing to their horses being shot, as were also
about 90 men of the Lincoln Regiment. The list of
casualties was rather a heavy one.

Simultaneously the attack was made on our outposts
near Derdepoort, a few miles north of the town, in which
the 7th Dragoon Guards were engaged. The regiment,
which was handled with considerable skill by Lieutenant
Colonel Lowe, kept the enemy in check until he retired
on his supports, and we would probably have suffered
but slight loss had not one inexperienced troop mistaken
some Boers in the bushes for our men.

According to another account, the Lincolns were
attacked at dawn, whilst having coffee in camp in the
Nek, when Commandant Delarey brought up four guns
and two pom-poms.

The three companies of the Lincolns who supported
the squadron of the Scots Greys, fought pertinaciously.
Colonel Roberts, of the Lincoln Regiment, was wounded
in the arm and taken prisoner.

The force only surrendered when cut off", and it was
found that the guns could not be brought back. Some
horses of the Scots Greys got loose, and escaped into the
town. Detachments of men fought on until night, when
they escaped to Pretoria,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 309

Reinforcements arrived after four o'clock in the after-
noon, when it was too late to attack the Boers.

The Boers looted Schuman's Farm before retiring to
entrenchments.

In consequence of a report our force had been ordered
on Tuesday to hold the pass which is in the neigh-
bourhood of Daspoort Fort and they reached there in
the afternoon. Three companies, with two guns of O
Battery, took up a position in the pass, and camped at
night there, leaving the squadron in the plain, some dis-
tance south of the pass. The eastern hill presented a
rugged, rocky, and inaccessible face, but further east it
was apparently approachable from the main ridge.

At daybreak next day, as shots were being fired by the
men forming the pickets placed on a small kopje north
of the pass, the Boers appeared on the eastern kopje,
and opened a heavy fire. Confusion ensued, but the
colonel soon made his voice heard, and commanded the
men to take up a position on a kopje west of the gap.

It was the two guns with an escort of Scots Greys
placed in advance of the main body that were captured.
After making an heroic resistance, nearly every man of
them was killed or wounded. The Maxim sergeant
brought his gun into action early in the day, but the
opposing fire was too hot, and he was obliged to retire.
This he did successfully, saving the gun with the aid
of seven volunteers. Meanwhile the Boers were keeping
up a continuous fire all along the line, the Lincolns
gallantly replying. About three o'clock the enemy also
appeared on the left of the British position. One officer
and 15 men made a valiant attempt to charge the Boers,
and 14 of the little band were either killed or wounded.

The three companies of the Lincolns were now practi-
cally surrounded, but they never wavered. Their firing
was a model of steadiness. They had to be as economi-
cal as possible with their ammunition, as there was no
chance of getting further supplies. Towards nightfall
all the ammunition was expended. The latest arrival
from the scene of the engagement that night stated that the
men were taking good cover with fixed baj'onets at the
moment of his escape. They were awaiting the approach
of the enemy. It was reported with authority that the
enemy employed armed natives. Two leaped from cover

310 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

when a small party of the Lincolns were surrounded and
demanded the latter's surrender. A soldier, who had still
his magazine full, stepped forward, and shot both natives
dead. An officer who escaped was also challenged by an
armed native.

Our 7th Dragoons were holding three kopjes at Com-
mando Nek, says a correspondent, when Commandant
Grobler, at the head of a strong column, with four guns,
seized higher ground to the east early on Wednesday
morning, and opened a terrific fire at dawn. The horses
were shot down, and the guns rendered useless.

Our men held out with the utmost gallantry all day,
retiring to the westernmost kopje, where the remnants
were forced to surrender at dusk.

A force of Norfolks, Borderers, and an Elswick battery
were despatched at i p.m., but though they marched
hard, they could not reach the spot in time.

Commandant Grobler subsequently asked for an am-
bulance, which was sent to him. The scene of this
skirmish was 8,000 yards due north of Wonderboom
Fort. The British cavalry prevented the enemy from
making a turning movement towards the extreme left
of General Pole-Carew's position.

In the encounter narrated, the Scots Greys alone lost
forty men while trying, though vainly, to hold a little
hill on the nek, while the Lincolns lost five officers out
of ten.

After this a strong force was sent from the Pretorian
camp to prevent the enemy's advance.

Great activity was displayed by small parties of the
enemy between Graylingstad and Standerton, at the
same time ; telegraphic communication had three times in
three days been cut shortly after being restored, while
the railway bridge, seven miles from Gfeylingstad had
been damaged and the line torn up for some distance.

On an order to concentrate his forces. General Clery
moved back from Vlakfontein. The troops made a
detour, avoiding the defiles, but there were no signs of
the enemy. General BuUer on returning from Pretoria
on the Sunday, had to remain at Graylingstad, owing to
the destruction of the railway, until the Tuesday when
he proceeded forward.

^ few Boer houses in the neighbourhood of the raij-

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 3II

way were destro5'ed. A patrol of Thorneycroft|s sur-
prised three Boers fully armed beyond Vlakfontein and
took them prisoners.

We shelled the enemy from here effectively with our
5-inch gun, causing them to evacuate Van Colbers Kop
on the north of the railway whence they had shelled our
convoy on the 7th. The Boers retired to a laager thir-
teen miles north of this place, where they had a large
quantity of supplies and ammunition.

Smith-Dorrien also had a successful engagement with
the enemy near Krugersdorp towards Johannesburg, on
the west, inflicting heavy loss on them. This daring
advance was another proof that Krugerdom was not
extinct.

BuUer reported that the Boers who were destroying
his line of railway near Paardekraal were driven off on
the nth, after a short action, while Hart's report from
Heidelberg was that the surrendering of arms and am-
munition continued to be made by the Boers in that
district.

A British prisoner who escaped stated that the Boers
under De Wet, several thousands strong, and with ten
guns, who were driven out of Bethlehem, had taken up a
strong position fifteen miles to the south in the hills
around Retief Nek.

President Steyn accompanied the force, which, when
concentrated in laager on July 6th, comprised both De
Wet's and Steinkamp's commandoes.

Botha and Delaroux were at Stern Kamps Kop, hold-
ing the Eighth Division in check.

The Boers at Fouriesberg were short of clothing and
boots, and suffering considerably from the bitterly cold
nights. The Rev. Mr. Snyman resigned his ministerial
charge in order to become a fighting general.

General Clery's column moved in an easterly direction
from Graylingstad and camped at Vetpoort, on the main
road from Standerton to Heidelberg.

The Mounted Infantry engaged about 200 Boers a few
miles forward. A trooper of Thorneycroft's Horse was
shot in the forehead. The Horse Artillery shelled the
ridge occupied by the enemy. The shells struck a cart
which seemed to form the sole transport of the Boers.

Colonel Mahon, reinforced by French's Brigade, took

312 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

with considerable dash all the positions held by the
Boers in the neighbourhood of Reitfontein. A number
of the enemy's dead were found on the field. The British
casualties were trifling.

Mr. Eloff, Mr. Kruger's son-in-law, was brought in to
Mafeking on this memorable Wednesday as a prisoner of
war.

The Boer Commander-in-Chief moved some of his
forces towards Standerton with a view of diverting at-
tention from De Wet. Four squadrons of the South
African Light Horse left the camp there on the 8th for
a reconnoitre and after capturing two armed Boers in a
Kaffir kraal, the right squadron fell in with a strong
picket covering a big force of the enemy. In a skirmish
a non-commissioned officer was killed.

In forty-eight hours over twenty trains arrived at
Pretoria from the south, bringing supplies and troops,
including the Elswick Battery.

The reason of Lord Roberts's three weeks inactivity
was the subject of criticism. Mr. C. Williams, of the
Morning Leader, thought a possible explanation of the
delay in the general advance might be found in the fact
(which we learnt with profound regret) that Field Marshal
Lord Roberts had been suffering from a bowel complaint,
which was so serious that Lady Roberts was sent for in
a hurry from Bloemfontein.

Attention was called to the extraordinary heroism
shown by the victor of Kandahar in his endurance of the
saddle after having been operated upon in a most serious
manner some years before for fistula. But this did not
appear to be apposite of the present ailment. Anyhow
the news of a defeat near to Pretoria showed that some-
body was not equal to the task of coping with General
Botha.

The same week a hundred Natal rebels escaped from
the Transvaal, via Lorenzo Marques, and Cape rebels
openly preached sedition in connection with the new
Cape Ministry, showing that a strong hand was needed
to repress a fresh revolt that was threatened.

In Pretoria itself the amenities of good society pre-
vailed, for Lord Roberts in opening the " Irish Hospital"
in the Court of Justice (to accommodate 500 beds) had
the patronage and presence of the wives of the twQ

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 313

leading Boer commandants — Mrs. Botha and Mrs. Meyer,
while Mrs. Kruger, through those ladies, sent her good
wishes. Some of the most influential residents were
present, Dutch as well as English.

If, as stated confidently by some writers, the two first
objectives of Lord Roberts, by the order of the British
Government, were the relief of Kimberley and the cap-
ture of Johannesburg for the sake of British share-
holders in their mines, this did not prove, per se, that it
was a capitalists* war, and our Government repeatedly
asserted that their first and chief motive was, Justice
for the Outlanders. But the price of the enforced march
to Pretoria was the sacrifice of much life by over fatigue,
and the only partial conquest of the country through
which we rushed. Thus, after gaining the Transvaal
capital, we had still to dispose of the scattered enemy
in both States, and this was not so easy as the remark-
ably swift advance.

We have seen how Lord Roberts set about the defeat
of De Wet's forces in the Orange River Colony by con-
centrating a large army which gradually narrowed around
the enemy, whose strength was variously estimated at
from 5,000 to 6,000.

While Botha's army was advanced to the vicinity of
Pretoria and lay entrenched on the hills a few miles to
the north, in the second week in July, the generals on the
other side of the Vaal were daily narrowing the corner
into which De Wet was being driven.

Shortly after rounding Biddulphsberg General Rundle's
force met General Clement's flying column returning
from Bethlehem after its splendid march and brilliant
victory there. While the two generals exchanged cour-
tesies their forces moved on in opposite directions. The
picture was a remarkable one. The battle-weathered
soldiers of each division as they moved quickly past —
the one fresh from victory, the other in pursuit of the
fleeing enemy — greeted and cheered one another with the
greatest heartiness.

Soon the divisions had passed each other. General
Clements camping in a fine country, while the other,
leaving the Bethlehem road, turned to the right. Wit-
kop was looming on the sky-line ahead, and General
Rundle was now right behind what had been deemed

314 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

impregnable Boer fortresses a few days ago. As we
were in the midst of the enemy's country the greatest
precautions were taken, General Rundle personally seeing
that scouting was thoroughly carried out. It was well
that he did so, for on nearing a lonely farmhouse at
the foot of Witkop he saw, through his field glass, a
number of Boers moving about, as if intending to ambush
our advance scouts. General Rundle, however, cleared
them out with a few well-timed shells, and they madly
galloped away leaving Witkop in our hands. Following
up this movement, the General soon occupied all the
surrounding hills, including Gaunkrantz, another much-
vaunted Boer position, which, with the help of the
Colonials, we now held.

All the different Boer commandoes had, as we have
seen, retired to Foriesburg, near the Basutoland northern
border, where they had immense herds of cattle. They
had been forced into a portion of country which had
only five outlets capable of allowing transports through —
namely, the one closed by the Colonial Division, Slab-
bart's Nek, Commando Nek, near Ficksburg, Riet's Nek,
and Naauwport. If these avenues of escape were stop-
ped it was obvious that the enemy would be a prisoner.
It was stated that Mr. Steyn threw up the sponge after
the loss of Bethlehem, and would have then surrendered
but that Christian De Wet threatened to shoot him, and
it was believed that he was now a prisoner in his own
laager.

A characteristic incident is recorded of Captain DriscoU,
of the Scouts, who went alone on Sunday night to
Zuringkrantz to view the Boer positions. He was enter-
tained by a British storekeeper there, and on Monday
morning, while drinking coffee, he was surprised to see
four armed Boers dash round the corner of the street.
DriscoU immediately snatched up his carbine and, point-
ing it at the Boers, commanded them to hold up their
hands, or he would shoot. All four at once surrendered,
one being so frightened that he actually fell off his horse.
The amusing point was that Captain DriscoU at the time
of his plucky act was all alone, ten miles away from the
main body of his scouts, and was close to a large Boer
force.

I^undle was closing in upon Wit Nek and Commando

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 31$

Nek, and the road grew rougher and more hilly as we
advanced.

General Clery on the 13th, was at Platkop, and was
engaged with the enemy through the whole of the day.
Our mounted infantry moved in a northerly direction,
and found the Boers in force on a ridge from which they
were compelled to retreat the day before. They held out
obstinately, compelling Strathcona's Horse to engage
them and the artilleryists to bring the howitzers and
5-inch guns into action. Our infantry deployed and after
the engagement had lasted three hours General Clery
gave directions for a general advance. The mounted
infantry in dashing style forced the enemy, some 1,000
strong, from a number of strong ridges in the face of a
severe fire.

That day we only made three miles, but the next day
we covered six to the east, reaching Waterval Spruit,
near to Holgatfontein. The enemy, who had four small
guns, occupied a position on a ridge fifteen miles east of
Greylingstad. They tried to shell our transport, but
made no stand, retreating northward towards Bethel.
We had not enough mounted troops to enable us to strike
a decisive blow, though we were once within a mile of a
Boer convoy.

Two men of Thorneycroft's were wounded. A major
and four men of Strathcona's Horse were captured and
two troopers wounded. A new fuse enabled our shrapnel
to burst at 5,500 yards.

After three days' skirmishing, the general result of
which was the forcing of the enemy back a considerable
distance to the eastward, General Clery returned on Sun-
day, the 15th, to Vaal, the next station to Greylingstad.
Each day the Boers, to cover their retreat, set the grass
alight, and the country over a vast area was laid waste.
The mounted infantry, Thorneycroft's Horse, and Strath-
cona's corps, did capital work, and the artillery made
some excellent practice. On Friday, the 13th, the Boers,
on their last position being taken, reformed in the open
country, whereupon every branch of our artillery, includ-
ing pom-poms and Colts, poured in a heavy fire upon
them.

A little to the north of Standerton, the South African
J-ight Horse did some good scouting work and prevented

3l6 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the Boers from destroying part of the railway near Vlak-
laagte Station, while Dundonald captured near Wiet-
poort (five miles north of Greylingstad) a camp belong-
ing to a party of the enemy, who blew up the Leeuw-
spruit Bridge a few days before. Other troops were
moving up Van Reenen's Pass, to make that secure.

Botha sent a commando from Barberton towards
Volksrust to help De Wet out in that direction.

After our defeat on the nth of June, the defence of
Pretoria was strengthened by fresh guns, placed on the
northern hills.

On Friday afternoon the 13th, a reconnaissance was
made in the direction of Wonderboom towards Onderste
Poort with a section of the Elswick Battery. Our men
came under a sharp fire from the Boers, who used cannon
of large calibre, bursting shells close to the Elswick long
i2-pounder quick-firers, but doing no damage. The
Elswick guns were unlimbered and returned shrapnel,
but apparently the enemy's cover was good, as the shells
only checked their fusilade partially. The force, having
accomplished its object, retired to camp, our big 6-in.
gun in the old Boer fort dropping shells amidst the
burghers who ventured to follow too near.

On Saturday we fired three shells from a 9.7 gun, using
for the first time a war weight projectile of 280 lbs. So
far as could be seen the effect was satisfactory, the shells
dispersing the enemy at a range of over 8,000 yards.

On Monday morning, July i6th, the Boers were occu-
pying five kopjes only eight miles from Pretoria, and
large numbers were on Pyramid Hill, ten miles to the
north-west. Our patrols were sniped and several shells
fell upon a force of mounted infantry. It was a little bit
too warm even for the amiable Bobs; so a general
advance was made from Pretoria at daybreak that
morning, our troops moving forward through the various
passes from Hartebesthoek on the west to Derdepoort on
the east in a broad front.

Colonel Hickman was on the left, General Ian Hamil-
ton in the centre from Wonderboom, and General French
on the right with the Eleventh Division at Pienaar's
Poort. The Boers retreated as soon as our advance
bei^an, not waitmg even to fire a shot at either column.
We hastened their retreat with a few well-aimed shells.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 317

They left Doornpoort, near the Pietersburg Railway,
so hurriedly that they were unable to remove their camp
equipment. Part of it they burned, but their tent equi-
page, forage, cooking utensils, and other things were
captured. A body of Boers over 2,000 strong moved off
in a north-westerly direction towards the bush country.
Many women and children were with them. General
Hamilton's force halted at Waterval. General French
found the enemy on his front near Kamel-drift, at mid-
day. The Boers here fired about twenty shells, and a
number of pom-poms were also used, as well as the
Mausers. French, however, never replied, quietly wait-
ing for Hamilton to get round their flank. There were
no casualties on our side. Colonel Henry's Mounted
Infantry had a brisk skirmish with portions of Botha's
men at a point beyond Pienaar's Poort. Gen. Hutton
was located near Bronkhurst Spruit.

Fresh evidence accrued that a number of armed Kaffirs
were fighting for the Boers. Five natives tried to take
one of the Lincolns, who bolted, declaring that he would
be hanged if he would be captured by niggers. The
blacks fired volleys, but the soldier escaped.

The Boers helped the Makapans in their war against
the Zwart Boys, whose location was twenty miles north
of Pretoria. The result was that the Zwart Boys were
driven to seek shelter under our guns.

A feature of the late operations had been the exact
knowledge of our movements possessed by the enemy.
Immediately General French had withdrawn from the
north they attacked, while the movements of the Lincolns
must have been known to the Boers almost to the exact
minute of their departure and arrival. This was held to
furnish undoubted proof that information was sedulously
collected in the town and transmitted to the Boers by
means of natives.

A Boer officer and two men had passed through the
town in British uniform, and a number of men in the
Boer ranks put on khaki taken from our men who fell in
the field. In consequence of this, and in order to pre-
vent as far as possible the transmission of information, a
zone on either side of our lines was now cleared of na-
tives, and steps were taken to identify soi-disant officers
jind soldiers attempting to pass our linest

3t8 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAIL

We have already incidentally referred to the troubla
threatening in Cape Colony by rebels openly preaching
sedition. In deciding the terms of peace we had before
us a work fraught with grave anxiety owing to the strong
sympathy of a portion of the Dutch colonists. Mr.
Schreiner, the late premier, sought to steer a middle
course. He was in favour of the punishment of rebels
and of the modified independence of the conquered
States — not for annexation.

The settlement of the question was made as difficult
a matter as possible, judging from the information sent
from Capetown by Mr. Prevost Battersby, an able cor-
respondent, who quoted a recent speech of Dr. Te
Water, a member of Mr. Schreiner's Ministry, who dis-
agreed strongly with the late Premier as to the punish-
ment to be meted out to the Cape rebels. It was said
that we had been far too lenient with traitors and rebels
in the present war, just as we were too lenient and too
trustful after the Majuba Hill affair. Mr. Battersby
pointed out that the irreconcilable members of the Bond,
encouraged by our leniency, considered the present to be
the most propitious moment to flout the authority of
Great Britain and to sow the seeds of future discord,
and that Dr. Te Water's defiant speech was more than
the encouragement of a rebel to a people with whom we
were at war, for it voiced the rebellious sentiments of
the colony with the intention of challenging further dis-
turbance. This chief among rebels still entertained the
hope of a Dutch South Africa, he and his followers
hoping to sicken us of our conquests by making our rule
in South Africa increasingly difficult ; and he had the
hardihood to declare that had the colony adopted a pro-
per attitude, and had the Bond Ministry had the courage
of its opinions, the war would have been brought to a
different issue. In other words. Great Britain would
have been hopelessly defeated notwithstanding its quarter
of a million of troops, if the rebellion of the disloyal
Dutch had been general, and if the Bond Ministry had
sided openly with the Boers, instead of merely preach-
ing the doctrine of neutrality as a save-face while they
promised rebels forgiveness and allowed unlimited quan-
tities of ammunition to pass freely through the Colony
to the Boers.

HISTORY OF tHE BOER WAR. 319

It now rested greatly with Sir Alfred Milner, and Sir
Gordon Sprigg, the new Premier, insisting on some
form of punishment for disloyalty. Mr. Battersby de-
clared that a situation might arise demanding an attitude
of unswerving determination to enforce that supremacy
which was still sneered at in certain circles. Then he
added, " We are always weakest in the moment of our
success, and this is one of them."

Some Britishers used their wits to escape from cap-
tivity and their stories relieved the tedium of dry records
of military movements which have been " much of a
muchness." Here is one little adventure.

Sergt. Nicoll, of the Middlesex Yeomanry, a prisoner
of war who escaped from the Free State, arrived safely
at Ladysmith. Interviewed by a correspondent, Nicoll
said he was taken prisoner near Senekal, owing to some
muddling on the part of somebody. He was conveyed
to Bethlehem, and afterwards to Harrismith. In the
latter town he, with other prisoners of war, were con-
fined in the school house and grounds. They talked over
the chances of escape, and it was ultimately arranged
that Nicoll should be given a chance.

A boxing match was announced to take place amongst
the prisoners, and when the time came it was found, as
had been expected, that all the guards were amongst the
interested spectators of the fight. When the boxing was
in full swing, Nicoll and two other men slipped out,
climbed the wall of an outhouse of the school buildings,
and got clear away without an alarm being raised.

Nicoll and his companions marched boldly through
Harrismith, and as soon as they were clear of the town
pressed on for Van Reenen's Pass. The distance was
thirty-five miles, and by avoiding the main roads and
keeping a sharp look out for the enemy's patrols they
managed to reach the pass unobserved. They got to
the top of the Drakensberg all right, and then took a by-
path down the mountain range. They had not gone far
when they stumbled upon a Boer laager surrounded by
barbed-wire entanglements, amongst which they flound-
ered. The noise made by the fugitives roused the Boer
sentry, who fired upon them at only forty yards' range,
but, fortunately, missed.

Nicoll and his chums then left the path, and literally

320 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

rolled down the steep mountain side. After a series of
really marvellous escapes, they reached Natal territory,
and were ultimately found and rescued by British Hussar
scouts. Sergeant NicoU, when rescued, was completely
knocked up by hunger and fatigue.

The British losses at Nitral's Nek turned out to be
smaller than at first anticipated. The fact that many of
the captured Lincolns and Scots Greys escaped was a
striking proof of Boer disorganisation. The cause of the
disaster to the Lincolns and Scots Greys was said to be
that the officer in command of the force camping on the
Nek neglected to occupy the heights on both sides.

The country round Pretoria became deserted, Kaffirs
and farmers abandoning their homes in expectation of
fighting.

On Tuesday, July 17th, the Eleventh Division had a
quiet day at Piennar's Poort, as the Boers retired still
further from before General Ian Hamilton's column, but
the day before the sniping and cannonading had resulted
in one man of General Stephenson's Brigade being hit by
a stray bullet.

The enemy were still hovering about to the east of
Elandsriver, and also to the south-east of Irene Station.
Nevertheless so little did the presence of the Boers dis-
turb the Eleventh Division that a cricket match, officers
versus men, was held.

The Boers unsuccessfully attacked the left of General
Pole-Carew's position, where the West Australians were
stationed. The British general, having left an apparent
gap in his defence, which was able to be swept by the
naval and other guns, the Boer advance was carefully
and suddenly met by such a hot artillery fire that they
decamped. The Boers also attacked the springs to the
south of Pretoria, where there was heavy fighting. They
advanced within fifty yards of the Royal Irish Regiment
and summoned them to surrender. The only answer
was a rattling volley, dispersing the enemy in every
direction.

From Lorenzo Marques we were informed that within
the last three weeks the demeanour of the Boers stationed
between Machadodorp and Pretoria had, according to the
testimony of one who had come in contact with them,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 32 1

completely changed. They no longer treated with con-
tumely and bitter insult non-fighting men suspected of
British sympathies, but on the contrary showed them an
amount of friendliness and courtesy quite exceptional in
recent years.

Apart from firebrands of the Reitz type and those
under their influence there was evident among the bur-
ghers a general desire to accept British rule with the best
grace possible, to make the most of the new order of things.
This was in a large measure due to the favourable reports
reaching the burghers from Pretoria and other occupied
districts.

Scarcely a day passed without desertions in batches,
numbering from twelve to sixty, from Botha's army.

A plot to surprise the garrison at Johannesburg and
capture the forts was discovered on July 13th. Four
hundred persons under suspicion in the matter were
arrested, and a large quantity of hidden arms and ammu-
nition seized.

The coup was to have been made while the projected
race meeting was on, and when numbers of troops would
be out of the town.

It had also been arranged that one of the Boer com-
mandos in the neighbourhood should come up to assist.
This commando, however, had been encountered at
Krugersdorp by Smith-Dorrien and defeated.

One of the conspirators, a young Dutchman, revealed
the secret to a lady friend, who immediately gave inform-
ation to the British authorities.

The police in consequence took the most stringent
measures to prevent the possibility of another similar
attack.

At Pretoria, for some time, a considerable number of
vagrant and disreputable foreigners from Johannesburg,
(most of whom had come here during the war,) had
been showing signs of uneasiness. Ultimately the
authorities received information to the effect that they
intended creating a riot and breaking out to join a com-
mando with which they had been in communication for a
long time. The plot was nipped in the bud. Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Mackenzie, Director of Military Intelli-
gence, had 380 of these persons imprisoned, at the same
time informing their respective Consuls that he was quite

U

322 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

willing to release them if the Consuls answered for their
future good behaviour.

Lord Roberts issued a proclamation ordering all
women whose husbands were out on commands or
otherwise absent, and were unable to support them-
selves, to leave Pretoria, and be sent to rejoin their
natural guardians.

De Wet being now considered comparatively harmless,
Lord Roberts got everything in readiness for the advance
towards Machadodorp, under General Hamilton, who
had now recovered from the injury to his collar-bone.
There was a further reorganisation of the division for
this purpose, and General Hamilton now commanded a
new division, composed of General Smith-Dorrien's Bri-
gade and a new brigade under Colonel Cunningham, of
the Derbyshires, comprising two battalions, each taken
from Generals Hart and Barton, who were left with half
brigades on the lines of communication, Colonel Mahon's
Cavalry Brigade, including the Imperial Light Horse
and Colonel Hickman's Bushmen Corps.

At Zeerust, the latest arrivals from the front stated that
the Marrieo commando was in sore straits, inasmuch as
lung sickness and red water were prevalent, and the
commissariat was in a low state. General Delarey
superseded Commandant Snyman, who had been reduced
to the ranks. Measles had broken out in the Elands
River camp, and there were some suspicious cases in the
local camp.

At Waterval, on July i6th, the railway line was kept
open only with considerable difficulty owing to the pres-
ence of detached parties of the enemy.

A patrol of 22 men of Strathcona's Horse and the
Devonshire Regiment were attacked at Waterval Bridge
by about 40 Boers, and rounded up in a farm about five
miles to the north. Luckily a couple of officers were in
the neighbourhood, and though they were fired at rode
hard into camp and brought back assistance. The patrol
was rescued after five hours' fighting.

The Mounted Infantry Division, formerly General Ian
Hamilton's, now General Hunter's, completed a march
right across from Heidelberg through Frankfort to Beth-
lehem, while Col. Hickman's Bushmaa Corps had riddea

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 323

through the district from south to north. Thus De Wet
was being pushed back upon Harrismith.

Interesting details of recent operations in the neigh-
bourhood of Bethlehem showed that General Paget's
Brigade, with the 38th Battery, occupied Lindley on the
5th of June, and defended it for a whole month against
De Wet's repeated attacks. The defence was extended
to a distance of 11 miles.

Shelling began on the i6th, and on the 20th a picket of
Munsters was attacked. They repulsed the Boers at the
point of the bayonet.

Constant shelhng and sniping followed till the 26th,
when the enemy brought five guns into action and
attacked the Yorkshire Light Infantry. An outpost, con-
sisting of half a company, was cut up, only six men
remaining unwounded. The Yorshiremen, including the
wounded, fixed bayonets, and held the enemy at bay, the
Boers being afraid to approach the trench. The enemy
finally withdrew.

The 38th Battery had seven casualties while going to
the assistance of the picket. One man of the Yorkshires
volunteered to fetch reinforcements, and did so under a
terrible fire. He was severely wounded while returning.
General Paget's force was strengthened towards the
end of the day by the arrival of the City Imperial Bat-
tery, and General Clements effected a junction with the
force on July ist. On the following day General
Clements, m conjunction with General Paget, attacked
the enemy. General Paget moving on the Boer left flank
while General Clements operated in front. The 38th
Battery was surprised by a party of Boers, who were in
hiding in a mealie field. They poured in a heavy fire,
kilHng Major Oldfield and one subaltern, and wounding
10 men. The Yeomanry dismounted, and drove off the
Boers, thus saving the guns.

Meanwhile the infantry attack had been successful in
driving the Boers from Beacon Kop. The enemy had
laid an ambush for a Munster outpost, and at nightfall
fired upon them at a range of 50 yards. They were in
turn surprised themselves, however, by the Middlesex
Yeomanry, who attacked their flank and drove them off.

Then on the 6th, General Clements sent a messenger
into Bethlehem to demand the surrender of the towot

324 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

General De Wet refused to surrender unconditionally,
and General Clements accordingly attacked the Boer
front and left positions, which were held in great strength,
while General Paget moved on the right. Two com-
panies of Munsters having expended their ammunition,
made a dashing bayonet charge, and carried a kopje
towards nightfall.

The action was renewed at daybreak next day. Paget
continued to push round the enemy's flank, and ulti-
mately the Royal Irish carried the Boer main kopje by a
brilliant bayonet charge. They captured the enemy's 15-
pounders. The Boers just, managed to retire with their
other guns.

The C.I.V. Battery, with their quick firers, did excel-
lent work. Their fire was very accurate. Three hun-
dred Bushmen, mostly South and West Australians,
joined in the attack, and behaved most gallantly. The
Royal Irish had about 50 casualties, while the Munsters
lost four officers and 32 men.

The Boers fled through the town in confusion to
Retief s Nek, a strong position.

Lord Abinger and Captain Ured were captured and
afterwards released. Many Boer graves were found.
The enemy's loss was undoubtedly heavy.

A diary from Captain Simpson, of Castleford, (K.O.
Y.L.I.) — serving in the Orange River Colony, under
Lord Methuen, threw light on the difficulties of bringing
up supplies.

Here are a few extracts: —

May i6th. — We are escorting an enormous convoy,
which contains food and forage for 10,000 men and 5,000
horses for a month. It is six or seven miles long, and
the work of seeing it safely through is very hard. Yes-
terday we started at 4-30 a.m.; and marched 14 miles,
getting in at 8-30 at night — 16 hours. To-day we left at
3-30 a.m., and have done about 8 miles, and are now
stopping for breakfast at 8-30. We pass through nothing
but endless veldt. I am now lying on my valise on the
open veldt miles away from shade. The Colonel is
arguing with a Boer woman whose farm we have just
robbed of two cows and two hens of great age — ^^the
others are sitting round about, talking and smoking.
W« quite expect the enemy to have a shot at the convoy,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 325

but as we are about 4,000 strong we hope to render a
good account of ourselves.

Saturday, 12-20. — Six miles from Hoopstadt. We
arrived here at nine this morning. Left Kraalkop 5-30
last night and halted from 10-30 until 4 a.m., and then
did remainder of march. Not a bit tired. Leave here
at 4, get to Hoopstadt about 7.

Monday. — Since writing the last few lines I have had
a jolly bad time. Instead of leaving at 4 we did not, at
least my company did not, leave until 10-30 p.m., because
the beastly ox transport was not ready. When we did
start the brutes kept breaking down, and we were out
all night going six miles, and did not get into camp until
7 next morning, nearly frozen to death, sleepy, and ter-
ribly hungry, as we had had nothing to eat since four
the day before. We are now encamped on the banks of
the Vaal River, and can see the " Promised Land."
Every one seems to be giving in their arms and ammu-
nition, and the war is sure to be soon over. We have
just heard of the^'relief of Mafeking, and are very much
delighted. The Vaal river looks awfully nice, and there
are plenty of fish. The soil here is 20 feet deep.

Jacob's Farm, Tuesday. — Marched 15 miles to-day be-
fore breakfast on an empty stomach. I was both hungry,
hot, and tired. We started at five and got here about
ten.

Commando Drift, Wednesday. — Very short march,
about eight miles to this place, which is a ford over the
Vaal. The river is pretty here, and the whole country-
side is much nicer than that never-altering veldt through
which we have been passing. We shall be at Botha's
Hill the day after to-morrow, and shall then cross the
river into the Transvaal.

Sands Spruit, 2-5 p.m. — We have only just finished
breakfast after a terrible morning. Had nothing to eat
since 4 a.m., and then only cocoa and a biscuit. There
are heaps of Boers about ready to snipe us or cut oflf the
convoy if they get a chance.

5-15 p.m. — Just had Queen's Birthday parade; and a
verse of God Save the Queen ; gave three cheers. There
is a ration of rum being served out, so that the men can
drink her health.

Monday. — Spent the coldest night I ever remember.

326 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The blankets were frozen stifif and covered with white
frost. Nearly frozen to death. Marched 13 miles before
breakfast ; wind again very cold. I have not washed for
three days, as water is scarce, and what we have to drink
is horrid and makes the strongest tea and coffee taste and
look quite earthy. We shall get to Kroonstadt early to-
morrow.

Kroonstadt, Tuesday. — Arrived here at 10-30, simply
delighted to finish our 15 days' march, having done nearly
200 miles. It is really very hard work marching, especi-
ally on an empty stomach. This is a pretty little place
in a valley I am just going to explore. We are leaving
here on Thursday for Lindley (43 miles), so our journey
is not yet ended.

May 31st. — We are now on the way to Lindley to
extricate a battalion of Yeomanry who are in trouble
there.

June ist. — Since last writing my company and another
have been detached to take some empty waggons back to
Kroonstad and return with full ones, so we left them last
night at a drift which it took them until midnight to
cross, and made an early start, 4 a.m. this morning,
halting at 7 for breakfast. The scene last night when
they crossed the drift was most extraordinary. Imagine
a hell made up of miles of veldt on fire, a struggling
mass of oxen, hundreds of them, creaking waggons, any
quantity of yelling niggers making the most hideous
noise in the world encouraging them up the hill on the
far side of the drift, two big fires to lighten the dark-
ness near and show the way to the crossing, officers
shouting, men grumbling and groping their way in the
dusty, murky atmosphere — and you will get somewhere
near a faint idea of what I witnessed. We have done
the record trek of the campaign, 18 days, and we have
not finished yet.

June 2nd. — Arrived here at Kroonstad at 9-30 last night
absolutely worn out in temper and feet, after 5 hours of
the worst and most annoying march I ever had. We
were lost in the dark a dozen times on the veldt.

June loth. — We are in a state of siege here, at Lindley,
and on half rations, which means that you get up from
your meals still hungry. I am thankful to say I never

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 327

was in such good health. The weather is very extra-
ordinary. The nights are terribly cold — 7 or 8 deg. of
frost very frequently, which is quite dissipated when
the sun gets up at ten o'clock. Then sleeping without
tents is far from luxurious. Two nights ago we had a
violent storm, which saturated both our beds and our-
selves. While I am writing this, our artillery has com-
menced thundering away at the enemy, who are about
2,000 yards off. So far, they have only replied by rifle
fire, not doing any harm. We lose a great number of
men through sickness. I have 50 or 60 men down.
One has died, three have been sent home invalided, and
others are in hospitals in various stages of sickness, but
improving. I had to read the burial service over the
dead man, as the chaplain was in bed, ill.

The bullets are whistling all around us, and the only
thing we can do is to treat them unconcernedly. War
is a funny game as we play it, for after the last engage-
ment the Boers brought their wounded into our camp
for our doctors to attend to, as they have no doctors of
their own. Lindley is a pretty little place, and the
country around is much superior to anything I had seen
before. Like many another patriotic volunteer, Capt.
Simpson took with him an enthusiastic band from his
detachment at Wakefield.

Sir Alfred Milner appointed a commission of six mem-
bers, military and civil, to inquire into the damage sus-
tained by the loyalists in the north of the Colony during
the Boer occupation.

It is heartrending to think of the nine thousand
British soldiers — all of them somebody's boys and some-
body's darlings — who had lost their lives in the war,
and hundreds of whom were lying in unknown graves on
the wild veldt. Many of them lay huddled together with
a score or more companions in a hastily dug grave or
rather trench. More could not well have been done for
them in an emergency when a hurried march forward
after the fighting was necessary ; and from the very
nature of things it was absolutely impossible, even where
decent Christian burial was given the poor fellows who
had died fighting for Queen and country, to do more
than inter the bodies out of the reach of the vultures and
then leave them, their unadorned graves never to be

328 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

visited by sorrowing relatives and friends. We were
delighted to read in this connection a telegram from
Capetown to the effect that the Loyal Ladies' Guild
throughout the country had been appealed to by the
head committee to make the graves of the soldiers and
sailors who have fallen in the war their sacred care
wherever they were within reach, including, of course,
the graves of the Canadians, Australians, and New
Zealanders.

In this work the guild had been promised the cordial
co-operation of the military and naval authorities. The
graves were to be fenced in, and on certain days in
the year flowers would be placed thereon. And it is
pleasing to know that fate has not dealt so unkindly as
might have been feared with all our fallen soldiers, as
witness a letter from Corporal Griffiths, of the South
Lancashire Regiment, dated from Norval's Pont, Orange
River Colony. The writer's words will, we feel sure,
breathe comfort to many sorrowing people.

He says : — " Perhaps it might be pleasing to your
numerous readers to hear how the graves of our soldiers
who have fallen in this most trying war are cared for.
"When we were stationed at Rensburg we came across
many graves and did what little we could in the way of
making them look as tidy as possible. At the foot of a
kopje we came across three graves of men belonging to
the loth Hussars. The centre one had a plain wooden
cross with the inscription ; * In memory of Private H.
Hornsey, loth Hussars. 5-3-1900.' This had been
erected by his own comrades. But as the grave had
no surroundings we took the job in hand and soon had
a God's-acre with a small gateway erected. A few
lines were then composed in the rough and placed in a
bottle, which we filled with sand and deposited on the
centre grave at the foot of the cross : —

"A hallowed spot, erected
By soldiers' hands alone ;
With reverend hands they raised i^
And piled it stone by stone.

Oh, who can tell our feeling?

Each face we read so well,
The anguish that we feel for those

Who for their country fell.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 329

A wreath we laid with care upon

Our gallant comrades' grave ;
•You've done your duty,' each one said,

•Your country's name to save.'"

" We came across some more graves at Colesberg,
which we treated in a Hke fashion." The hearts of
some poor mothers and wives will throb with thankful-
ness to Corporal Griffiths and his colleagues for their
kindly action and for a truly reverential token of their
respect for the memory of unknown brothers-in-arms.
Perchance it may have fallen to the lot of some of that
gallant company of Lancashire men to likewise find a
soldier's grave in South Africa. If so, may be others
have been led to do for them what they did for those
three members of the loth Hussars who had fallen by
the way and found a secluded resting-place beneath the
Rensburg-kopje.

To return to the fighting in the Transvaal. It was
an imposing and efficient force that was dispatched to
clear the vicinity of Pretoria of the "invaders." In
fact, it was a new brigade, consisting of the Border
Regiment, the King's Own Scottish Borderers, the
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, and the Berkshires,
under Colonel Cunningham (late of the Derbyshire Regi-
ment) together with Colonel Hickman's force of 1,800
Mounted Infantry, various details, an Elswick Battery,
and a Canadian Battery attached to Cunningham's force,
the whole under General Ian Hamilton. Colonel Mahon,
with the Imperial Horse, effectively operated with General
French on the enemy's right. But the Boers were evi-
dently aware of our intentions, and withdrew to prepare
for another attack on a portion of our line — which shows
good generalship.

General Ian Hamilton continued his advance on the
17th shelling a few of the enemy, as they were retreating
to the north. In the morning some of his men entered
the thick bush on the veldt, in which a small party of
Boers were hidden. One Queenslander was killed and
another wounded.

A commando 1,000 strong, with three guns, under De
Bruye, was to our front. Two thousand more of the
enemy retired, some to the westward to join Delarey, and
others to the eastward to Donker Hock, to join Grobler.

330 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

General Botha had been reinforced from Lydenburg.
His women's laager was only a few miles ahead of us.
Colonel Mahon's force at Kameel's Drift came in touch
with the enemy's outpost.

Every moment our columns were now expecting an
encounter, and were on the alert against a surprise.

On the 1 6th the enemy made a determined attack on
the left of Pole-Carew's position and also along our left
flank commanded by Hutton. A stiff fight ensued*

The outposts held by the Royal Irish Fusiliers, under
Major Munn, New Zealand Mounted Infantry, under
Captain Vaughan, and Canadian Mounted Infantry,
under Lieutenant-colonel Alderson, were gallantly de-
fended.

The enemy made repeated attempts to assault the
position, coming up to a close range and calling upon the
Fusiliers to surrender.

The ist Cavalry Brigade, on the extreme right of the
line, temporarily commanded by Lieutenant-colonel
Clowes, was well handled in a fine charge on the Boers.

The enemy suffered severely. They had 15 killed,
50 wounded, and four were taken prisoners.

Our casualties included two officers killed belonging to
the ist Canadian Mounted Rifles — Lieutenants H. Borden
and J. Birch.

These young Canadian officers were shot while gallantly
leading their men in a counter attack on the enemy's
flank at a critical juncture of the assault upon our
position. Lieut. Borden (only son of the Minister of
Militia, Canada) had been twice before mentioned for
gallant and intrepid conduct.

Ian Hamilton's column advanced to Waterval without
opposition, and then to Haman's Kraal.

General Rundle, with the Colonial Division and part
of General Campbell's Brigade, reached Rooikrantz on
Sunday night, July 15th, just in time to stop a force of
Boers, estimated at over 1,000 strong, from escaping
from the Brandwater Basin.

The British column marched in the morning from
Witkop and Witnek, our advanced scouts discovering
the Boers in three kopjes to the west of Rooikrantz. The
enemy were quickly driven from these hills, and retired on
Rooikrantz itself.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 33 1

A squadron of Grenfell's Battalion of Brabant's Horse
followed the enemy up across the plain, and gained
possession of a Kaffir kraal close to Rooikrantz, where a
heavy rifle fire checked their advance. The men held
their positions in the kraal until dark, three of our guns
shelling the Boers on Rooikrantz hill.

Meanwhile a large commando of Boers appeared on the
skyline on Witterbergen, trekking over a rough and
almost inaccessible path to reinforce their comrades.
The path was so steep that the Boers were compelled to
lead their horses down the mountain.

They were beyond the range of our guns, and the force
gained the position.

The next day the wary enemy eluded even the vigilant
watch-dog, for 1,500 men with five guns managed to
break through the cordon formed by Generals Hunter
and Rundle's division between Bethlehem and Ficksburg.
They made rapid tracks for Lindley, and were closely
followed by Paget's and Broadwood's brigades.

They had reached about half-way between Bethlehem
and Lindley when they were sighted by Broadwood's
cavalry and Ridley's mounted infantry, and it was an
exciting chase.

Methuen left Krugersdorp the same morning with
Smith-Dorrien in command of his infantry to clear the
country between that place and Rustenburg.

On General Clery moving across Waterfall Spruit on
July 17th, it was found that the enemy had sub-divided
their forces, as small parties were discovered by native
scouts in different directions in our rear.

The Boers lighted a grass fire and moved behind it.
"When our column observed these movements, a few
lyddite shells were sent in their direction. A party of
horsemen was seen in the evening on a ridge. Two
explosions had been heard near Greylingstad, and it
was feared that the Boers had destroyed the line near
Paardekop.

Previously the enemy fired a high-velocity gun, and
one shell fell in the mess tent of the Lancashire Fusiliers.
Other shells hit the station, but there were no casualties.

Investigations at Paardeberg, the scene of Cronje s
last stand, showed that large quantities of ammunition.

332 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

rifles, and shells were buried with dead Boers and else-
where. The Australian Bushmen proved extremely
clever in discovering these strange graves. The undam-
aged weapons and ammunition have been removed to
prevent their future use.

General Rundle found that there were several com-
mandoes not far from his camp facing Rooikrantz, and
though the one he had hemmed in was reinforced, their
supplies of food and ammunition were scarce and had
to be brought over the mountain on pack horses. The
Colonial Division artillery, by shelling the Boer camp,
compelled the enemy to shift nearer Wittebergen, but a
couple of naval guns would have cleared the whole of
Rooikrantz. The Boers showed fight on several
occasions, and we lost a few men killed or wounded.

On the i8th of July Rundle's line before Commando
Nek was strengthened by the Colonial Division, and at
the same time Colonel Dalgety attacked the Boers' left
wing, driving them out of a sheltered donga towards the
rugged hills.

A section of the 79th Battery shelled the Boer centre,
while Colonel Blair's Yeomen and Colonel Grenfell's
Colonials fired long range volleys on the right. The
latter set the veldt on fire, and the flames, driven by a
strong wind, burned brightly behind Rooikrantz, destroy-
ing the pasture of the Boer horses there. The smoke
and heat made them adjourn to a safer place.

The enemy were content with sniping and did not
appear to possess a gun. They were believed to be a
horse commando of about 1,500 men, trying to break
through and attack our communications.

The prisoners taken at Mogelikatze Nek (Nitral's Nek)
were sent to Balmoral, Botha's headquarters. A ser-
geant made an attempt to escape by staying behind in a
house, where he was, however, discovered later by a
field cornet. He had managed to secure a revolver, and
with it he shot the cornet dead, but other Boers hearing
the discharge of a firearm surrounded the house, and
recaptured him.

The advance of Ian Hamilton's Division, in extended
front, was continued on the 17th, when General French
arrived near Boxburg, where he cleared General Hutton's
flanks of Boer outposts.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 333

Skirmishing proceeded in that direction, and south-east
of Irene all day, with a steady forward movement.

A number of important arrests of spies were made
during the last two days. One man was found disguised
as a woman.

In pursuance of the proclamation issued by General
Maxwell, as Military Governor of Pretoria a large num-
ber of women and children presented themselves at the
railway station on the 19th of July, and two transport
trains, containing them and their belongings, were sent
via Hatherley, to the Boer hues beyond Pienaar's Poort.
They seemed pleased with the cheap trip and the pros-
pect of rejoining husbands, fathers and brothers.

On the i8th Mr. Wohnarans, whose house was within
our lines, near Hatherley, was arrested. It was dis-
covered that a quantity of arms and ;^i2,ooo in bar gold
were concealed in the house. He had lately arrived at
Cape Town from a visit to Europe as a Peace delegate.
He was allowed to proceed home after taking the oath of
neutrality, and afterwards admitted that he was serving
on a commando. This is typical of many cases of the
kind.

The Chief Commissioner in Zululand, in a despatch to
Sir Redvers BuUer, reported on the 19th that a number
of Vryheid burghers, who had entered Zululand with
waggons and stock, had surrendered to the British
magistrate at Ngogte. They had also given up their
arms. An arrangement was suggested to locate them in
Zululand.

Steps were taken for the British Government to take
over the control of Rhodesia. A patrol was fired upon
by natives north of Buluwayo and a policeman was
killed. A body of yeomanry was despatched to the
place. Fifteen thousand horses were disembarkeed at
Beira for the front.

Mr. M'Masters, the British Consul at this place was
stabbed in the back by a German-American and died on
the 19th of July. His assailant was arrested.

With the return of aristocratic officers and many war
correspondents, as well as foreign military attaches, by
the middle of July, the public interest in the war became
overshadowed by the massacres in China ; nevertheless
there were several critical fights on, and as Mr, Winstou

334 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Churchill stated when interviewed on disembarcation at
Southampton, there was much for our army still to do
beyond that of a police force. This was exemplified
by the telegrams from Lord Roberts on the 21st and 22nd
of July.

July 2ist — Little, temporarily commanding the Third
Brigade, reports that on the 19th he came in contact,
near Lindley, with the force under De Wet, which had
forced its way through Hunter's cordon. Fighting lasted
until dusk, when De Wet's force, being repulsed, broke
up into two parties.

Little's casualties were slight. He buried five Boers,
and took two dangerously wounded into his ambulance.

Hamilton and Mahon continued their march yesterday,
practically unopposed, and should join hands to-day with
Pole-Carew's division near the Eerstefabricken station :
they found the country extremely difficult. Hamilton
captured a few prisoners and four waggons.

A body of the enemy have appeared between Krugers-
dorp and Potchefstroom, where they wrecked a train on
the igth inst., which was taking two officers and twenty-
one sick men to Krugersdorp.

Pretoria, 22nd July, 1-35 p.m. — The enemy made a
determined attempt to-day to destroy the post at Rail-
head, thirteen miles east of Heidelberg. They attacked
it at daybreak with three guns and a pom-pom, and by
noon had completely surrounded it. The position was
garrisoned by two companies Royal Dublin Fusiliers,
one hundred and ten Royal Engineers, and ten Yeomanry,
under the command of Major English, of the first-named
regiment. He telegraphed to Heidelburg when the attack
commenced, and General Hart started to his assistance
with two guns, one pom-pom, and one hundred and
forty Marshall's Horse and Yeomanry. The Boers had,
however, been beaten off before the reinforcements
arrived, owing, General Hart states, to the skill with
which Major English had fortified the position, his
vigilant arrangement, and the good fighting qualities of
the garrison. The Boers were seen burying their dead,
and their ambulance was busy with the wounded.

A Cape Town telegram of Saturday, July 21st, stated —
Lord Roberts has made an attack in force on the road
to Middleburg, and a big battle is now in progress.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 335

President Kruger is with his burghers, and is exhorting
them to fight to the death, quoting Scripture to show
that they must win. It is beHeved, however, that the
Boers will not make a long stand.

Then from Lorenzo Marques, the same day — A des-
patch from Machadodorp states that there has been
heavy artillery firing in the neighbourhood of Middleburg.
The Boers in that district are fully prepared to fall back
upon the approach of the British.

British prisoners have been passing through to Nooit-
gedacht all this week. Two hundred and twenty arrived
yesterday. Among them were a number of Canadian
scouts captured at Greylingstad.

Four German officers who have been acting as Kruger's
military advisers have arrived here by way of Barberton,
having received orders from Berlin to proceed on active
service to China. All are in poor health owing to priva-
tions endured in the fiel^.

Another despatch from the same source stated that
President Kruger and his Executive, having become tired
of the railway siding in which their saloon car had been
moored for a long time past, were now moving up and
down the railway line. They recently took a trip to
Balmoral.

Before starting Mr. Kruger issued another manifesto
to the burghers full of quotations from the Scriptures.
He had been very careful, however, not to let the deluded
Boers know that he had been offered honourable terms of
peace without removal from the country, it was said.

The burghers assumed that there was nothing for them
but to continue to fight, as otherwise they must be pre-
pared for banishment to St. Helena or India.

After a gallop of three days in the hide and seek game,
General Broadwood's 2nd Cavalry Brigade came up with
De Wet's flying commando, without waggons, on the
iQthofJuly. The enemy was caught at Palmiet-fontein,
and it was a sharp artillery fight at a long distance.
Darkness prevented a further pursuit of the laager, when
it made off over the hills once more. Eight dead Boers
were found, and we suffered five deaths and sixteen
wounded. Our brigade went on next day to Vaal
Krants, to find that the cunning enemy had doubled
back through Paardeskraal in the dark. The following

336 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

day the march was to Roodeval Station for supplies.
The commando, which was now computed at about
2000 men and four guns, was accompanied by Steyn,
who shared the command with the Brothers De Wets
and Olivier. They cut the wires and destroyed the main
lines on the railway to the north of Honingspruit, and
also the telegraph lines to Pretoria via Potchefstroom, on
the 2ist. A supply train, with loo Highlanders, was
captured by them as they moved on towards Honingspruit
Station, followed by 2nd and 3rd Cavalry Brigades.

A remnant of Boers was met near Bethlehem on the
igth, and a detachment of Yeomanry, after capturing a
kopje, had to retire, being overpowered.

Delarey's commando was also on the prowl on the 19th,
and wrecked a train between Potchefstroom and Krugers-
dorp which was carrying a number of civilian passengers,
as well as Lieut. Harris, Welsh Fusiliers, Lieut. French
Brewster, Royal Fusiliers, and 21 men, convalescent
patients, none of whom were injured.

Methuen continued his march after the occupatipn of
Leckpoort, and engaged the enemy's rearguard near
Zandsfontein on July 20th. Early the next day
(Saturday) he attacked the enemy again, at Oliphant's
Nek, and completely dispersed them, with heavy Boer
loss. By these successes Rustenberg, which had been in
difl&culties, was relieved, and Methuen and Baden-Powell
joined hands.

Hunter reported that Bruce Hamilton had secured a
strong position on Spitzray, between Bethlehem and
Ficksburg, with one battalion of Cameron Highlanders
and 500 mounted infantry. Our casualties were —
killed : three of the Camerons ; wounded : Captain Keith
Hamilton, Oxford Light Infanty, severely, head; Cap-
tain Brown, Lieut. Stewart, both slightly; and thirteen
men of the Cameron Highlanders.

The Grenadier Guards and dismounted men of Bra-
bant's Horse opened fire upon a small Boer convoy,
which was proceeding to Witnek, and which was also
shelled. Three Boers were shot, and one Guardsman
was wounded.

Colonel Bullock reported from Honingspruit, midday,
32nd July, that the latest information was that the Boers

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 337

in force crossed the line to the south of Serfontein during
the night.

A Boer scout asked a local farmer the way to Kerr's
Store, near Junction of the Vaal and Rhenoster, where he
said that Ue Wet would join another commando, and
that all convoys were going there.

The line, which was slightly damaged, was soon cleared.
Captain Fowler repairing the wire.

Little reported from Wadihook, 20th of July, that he
was sending ambulances and a few waggons of supplies to
Lindley, under the Geneva Cross, to bring the sick into
Kroonstad, and remounts were being sent from Bloem-
fontein.

As Broadwood had sent to Kroonstad for supplies for
his 3,000 men and horses it was most unfortunate that
the communication should be cut, but this was only a
temporary check upon the rations. The Raiders were
living upon the farms, having no other means of supply ;
and this showed that we could not trust the oath which
these local Boers had taken.

There were complaints at Botha's headquarters of a
scarcity of corned beef since the British Consul at
Lorenzo Marques had at last got the Portuguese author-
ities there to stop forwarding food to the Boer army as
contraband. It was stated that a Hollander merchant
who had been sent to Europe with ;^8o,ooo to buy food
for the burghers had absconded.

General Grobler bolted into the bush with some of his
followers, tired of the war, some said — but others reported
that he was still in communication with Botha.

With a rigid Press censorship, and only scrappy,
almost enigmatical oflScial telegrams, it was impossible
at this time to feel satisfied with the way in which the
British campaign was conducted. The breakdown in the
operations against De Wet were peculiarly disheartening.
Not far short of 50,000 British troops had been set in
motion against perhaps one-twentieth their number of
Boers, yet hitherto without a tangible result. What was
required was not mere skirmishing with the Boers' rear-
guard, but the capture of De Wet, his troopers, and his
guns. How or why the British campaign against him
had so far been a complete failure was not apparent, and
tnen suspended judgment with an impatient grumblei

V

338 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The position was humiliating, even if its extreme diffi-
culties, from a British point of view, might be quoted as
an excuse.

When the exiled Pretorian families arrived at Barber-
ton it was found that Mrs. Kruger had expatriated her-
self to go with them. A British detachment was in
the neighbourhood to check Botha's advance in that
direction.

Another batch of Boers was sent to Ceylon, where
there was accommodation for 2,000.

Whilst the first session of the new Ministry at the
Cape opened with moderation and in a conciliatory spirit,
there were in the town a number of Transvaal officials,
mostly Hollanders, on parole, who broke their oath of
neutrality by fomenting discontent and sedition among
Cape Afrikanders.

The question of the treatment of the rebels was one
upon which Mr. Merriman sought to cause trouble to the
new Cape Cabinet, and hence there was value in a Blue
Book published by the Colonial Office on the 23rd of July
referring to this subject, which had proved the wreck of
the late Ministry.

Mr. Chamberlain's attitude was shown in a despatch to
Sir Alfred Milner, dated May 5th, in reply to a minute
drawn up by the Ministry, recommending that persons
indicted for high treason should be tried by a special
tribunal, that only the principal offenders should be
selected, and that the rank and file should be allowed to
go free, on giving proper security for their good
behaviour.

Mr. Chamberlain agreed to the special tribunal, but
was of opinion that the scheme of punishment for rebel-
lion did not go far enough.

" Her Majesty's Government," he wrote to the High
Commissioner, "are assured that the people of this
country are animated by no vindictive feeling towards
those who have been or are in arms against her Majesty's
forces, whether enemies or rebels.

" Their principal desire is that when the war is over the
racial and other animosities which existed before, or
which have been called out by it, shall at the earliest
possible moment disappear, and be succeeded by bar*

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 339

monious co-operation between those who have to live
together in South Africa.

"But in pursuing this object the sentiments of both
sides must be taken into consideration ; and while on the
one hand the worst results may be anticipated from any
display of a revengeful policy on the part of the loyalists,
not less serious consequences would ensue from the
rankling sense of injustice which would follow upon a
policy which would actually place rebels in a better
position after the struggle was over than those who
have risked life and property in the determination to
remain loyal to their Queen and flag.

" Clemency to rebels is a policy which has the hearty
sympathy of her Majesty's Government, but justice to
loyalists is an obligation of duty and honour."

Mr. Chamberlain divided the rebels into six classes,
commencing with the ringleaders and promoters, and
ending with those who could prove they had acted under
compulsion. The lightest penalty was to be lifelong dis-
franchisement.

It soon became evident that on the question of punish-
ment the Cape Cabinet was hopelessly divided. Messrs.
Schreiner, Soloman, and Herholdt were in favour of the
ringleaders being tried by the special tribunal which
should have power to pass such sentences on conviction as
are allowed by the laws of Cape Colony, while the rank
and file were to be disfranchised for five years.

Messrs. Merriman, Sauer, and Te Water, however,
went further, and demanded an amnesty on the model of
that conceded by Lord Durham to the Canadian rebels in
1838. These radical differences of opinion naturally led
to the resignation of the Cabinet.

Sir Alfred Milner estimated the number of colonists
who joined the Boers at 10,000, in round figures.

;^i7,ooo was spent by the Cape Government on the
relief of distress among the Dutch consequent upon the
evacuation of Bechuanaland by the Boers.

^340 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

CHAPTER XXXIX.
kruger's "last resort."

EVIDENCE daily accumulated that the enemy had
received reinforcements from men who had sur-
rendered and returned home; as well as by foreigners,
hence by the 20th of July they numbered 16,000.
Pretoria was at that time still their objective, Botha
being in command to the north east, Viljoen to the
south east, Delary to the north west, and De Wet, after
leaving his own locality at Rhenoster, (having recovered
his lost column) made towards the last-named. Piet de
Wet, on the way, burnt a train.

It was a guerilla fight all over the theatre — it was said,
with a view of wearying the Imperial Field Marshal into
giving " terms." The Boers often showed appreciation
of our generosity, even sending for medical comforts to
our camp, at Ficksburg.

To attempt to record the innumerable petty skirmishes
becomes a weariness.

On the 23rd, Ian Hamilton, in the general advance,
had got 35 miles along the Delagoa Bay line, with a
fight at Piennars Poort, when the South Australians
suffered the brunt of the fire and lost their Colt machine
carriage, so that the ammunition had to be thrown into
the river. They were beaten by the pom-pom. Clery
moved to Grootspruit, but Rundle, after seven hours
fight, could not shift his adversary from Rooikrantz.

A little bit of good luck befel some British scouts on
the Swazi border, where they captured Commandant
Vondam of Nooitgedacht, with a companion named
Scheuble, and killed Cornet Lombard, of Komati Poort,
who fired instead of " holding up his hands " when sur-
prised in a Kaffir's kraal.

Dr. Leyds is accused, by those who should know, as
the worst adviser Mr. Kruger ever had. The doctor's
secretary was with the old President at Watervalonder,
before returning to Europe by the steamer Konig on the
30th of July.

Baden Powell reported from Majato Pass, eight miles
N. W. of Rustenburg, on July 22nd, that Colonels Airey

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 34X

and LufBngton, with only 450 men, drove 1,000 Boers
from a very strong position and scattered them with con-
siderable loss. We suffered 6 killed and 19 wounded.

A telegram from Lord Roberts dated from Vander-
merwe Railway Station, July 24th, showed that the
advance on Middleburg had been resumed, and Bronk-
horst Spruit was reached, where the 94th Foot was
attacked on December 20th, 1880. The British graves
there were now put in good order. The centre of the
army was unopposed, but French's cavalry and Hutton's
mounted infantry, making a wide detour to the right,
came across bodies of the enemy, who were driven back,
leaving several dead and wounded behind them, and a
good many prisoners. We had one casualty — one killed,
Lieut. Ebsworth, ist Australian Horse. A number of
the enemy went north to the bush veldt, which would, in
a few weeks become malarial, and the rest trekked mainly
towards Machadodqrp. They were described as chiefly
*' the riffraff of Europe," prone to looting.

Mr. Kruger, who was paying his bills with paper
money, guaranteeing his creditors that the British
Government would be bound to honour his signature,
now became more restless, and it was reported that he
would use the carriages which had long been in waiting
to convey him, his confederates and entourage (not for-
getting the bullion,) to the desolate and almost inacces-
sible rocks of Lydenburg,

The Boers totally destroyed the big bridge at Bronk-
horst Spruit before retiring to Vaal Bank on the 22nd.

When Broadwood came up with De Wet in the hills
on the south bank of the Vaal at Vredefort, he found the
enemy's strength had increased to 4,000. Five of their
waggons were captured and 18 of their men by Broad-
wood's dashing column, while De Lisle, on the right,
took another waggon and two prisoners. We were once
more over matched, and had to retire with a loss to the
mounted infantry of one killed and five officers and 28
men wounded.

Lord Roberts, on the 25th, found Balmoral, Botha's
late headquarters, deserted, but French and Hutton
were engaged six miles southward. Alderson attacking
the enemy's right with his mounted infantry and French
making a wide turning movement round their left, which

342 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

threatening their retreat, they bolted, followed sharply by
French and Huttou across the Oliphant's River at
Naauwpoort.

Buller's communication being threatened, there was a
three day's battle at Amerspoort by Gen. Hildyard, in
which the enemy were defeated with great loss.

With the closing days of July came news of progress
in all parts of the arena. 'Tis true, it still seemed slow
to those who thought the war should have ended months
before. Our policy was leniency with a view to the lion
and the kid lying down together in amicable fellow-
citizenship, yet this method was chiefly the cause of
the prolongation of the struggle. The overloading and
overdriving of cavalry horses broke many down, and
for lack of remounts. General French had brigades
often as thin as 600 men, sometimes even 300. Then
it was a wonder that our British Consul at Lorenzo
Marques, with a man-of-war in the "roads," allowed
the Portuguese authorities to feed the enemy and keep
them supplied with arms and ammunition, under
various absurd subterfuges. If the neutrality treaty
had been enforced the enemy could not have existed.
At length these Kruger-bribed officials were cashiered,
and some system of supervision of contraband was insisted
upon.

Well, the good news was partly that, after two days'
fighting. Sir Archibald Hunter had driven the Boers out
of Wit Nek, and with Clements and Paget had got
into the Brandwater Basin, Macdonald and B. Hamilton
blocking Inguwooni and Golden Gate. The Black Watch,
having captured a hill, were assisted by Rimington and
Loval's scouts to keep it during a frosty night against
the sneaking sniping foe. The Highland Light Infantry
were compelled by the booming field pieces of the Boers
to relinquish a steep hill above Reliefs Nek, where we
lost 5 killed of the Highland Light Infantry and 20
wounded; and the 2nd Royal Highlanders having 17
wounded on July 23rd ; the next day's casualties were
5 hots de combat. Rundle co-operated by a demonstration
against Commando Nek, closing up the southern exit
from the Basin. The Sussex Regiment, after a pitiless
night's march, joined Hunter in a bold attack on a hill
commanding the Nek on the right, which however did

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 343

not succeed, for the stubborn opponent was strongly
entrenched in a natural fortress, as usual, giving no
target. The two battalions joined at the junction of
the roads to the two Neks, Stabbert*s and Reliefs.
The 79th Battery R. A., at 5,500 yards, located a belching
Krupp in a deep fissure at the foot of rocky Zout Kop,
and silenced it for a time ; the Leinsters routed the vicious
Mauser firers from a Kopje ; the Staffordshires defied a
blazing Maxim in maintaining the central position at
Commando; the brave Scots Guards dared the buzzing
bullets in occupying a donga only 1,500 yards from
the Mauser volleys on Julys Kraal, with mtermittent
shells, segment and shrapnel, which even reached the
Ficksburg garrison and a radius of ten miles. We
could have silenced that spit-fire with lyddite. The
Ficksburg Wesleyan Chapel was filled with fever cases.

Hunter then marched into evacuated Fouriesburg,
where he found Mrs. Steyn, wife of the ex-President,
and one hundred English soldiers imprisoned by C. De
Wet, who was now "held up" on some high ridges
near Reitzburg, seven miles south of the Vaal ; but his
younger brother Piet was taken with his followers and
convoy near Kroonstad on the 26th.

Then came the reward of Hunter's long and hard-
fought investment. After trying by messenger two or
three times for terms, General Prinsloo (of whom we
had not heard before) surrendered unconditionally at
Naauwpoort on the 30th, with about 1,000 Boers, horses,
ammunition, stores, &c. That was after the second Nek
was captured by the Scots Greys, and the enemy found
themselves in a tight corner. It was a second Paarde-
berg.

By the removal of the four-and-a-half months impasse
in that quarter, 40,000 Imperial soldiers were freed for
operations elsewhere.

Another item of consolation was the surrender at Bank
Station, of the two officers and 23 men taken prisoners
on the 19th, when their captors wrecked a train. The
released men were taken to Krugersdorp.

Barton, having reconnoitred the railway to Bank
Station, (where the train referred to was wrecked,)
replenished the scant supplies of Methuen's column on
the Potcbefstroom railway ; and the railway being opened

344 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

to Heidelberg, our through communication with Natal
was restored.

Another piece of good news was that when French and
Hutton reached the high ground on the east bank of
Oliphant's River on the 25th, they could see the enemy
fleeing in disorder towards Middleburg, the road being
blocked for miles with horsemen and waggons, their rear
only seven miles off. Night was closing in wet, and a
fagged army could not reach its prey. It was a terrible
experience that night, a strong and bitter east wind
driving the torrents of rain into our exposed bivouac.
One officer (Lieut. Maclaren,) and three Highlanders,
being minus their overcoats, died from exposure, and
the mortality among the poor over-wrought and sod-
dened mules and oxen was great. The wonder was
that any one survived. But hardy Tommy made light of
the night-long shiver and with the welcome dawn came
up to parade with a smile.

And so we resumed our pursuit of the scattered
troops of colonial rebels and hired scum, our painful
tramp being through alternate dust and mud; we were
blistered by day, frozen by night, with a huge convoy
lumbering at our rear (driven by yelling niggers,) sniped
at by heroes in rabbit holes and pelted by invisible creusots
and pom-poms, the shells, hurtling with a whizz or roar
overhead, and now and again with a brief prayer we
buried a fallen comrade by the wayside, marking his
lonely resting place with a pile of stones; while the
chaplains, when they got the chance, tried to brace our
courage with the assurance that we were preparing the
way of the Lord, the Prince of Peace, and digging the
foundations of the Kingdom of Righteousness, Peace and
Joy.

Every train to Lorenzo Marques was daily full of
scared Transvaalers, and boxes of gold still arrived there
from Kruger for shipment to Holland.

^ General Clery, the tactician, encamped at Vlakfontein
on the 26th, and on the way our guides were fired upon,
but drove the attackers back. Clery, who belongs to
Cork and is related to continental royalty, was taking a
conspicuous lead in the advance to liberate our comrades
9, few miles further oij the line.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 345

The military scavengering of the frowsy, skulking vil-
lains in Pretoria and Johannesburg was, meanwhile,
making for a more wholesome state of society there, and
orderly burghers could with reason join in the Te
Deums at the English Churches. There were influential
Dutchmen who, if they could, would have rendered Mr.
Kruger harmless as a prisoner and who regarded him
now as the callous enemy of the Transvaal, hindering
its peaceable settlement, and sacrificing its interests for
his own miserable sordid ends — such men as Mr.

iacobus Smit, (the Chief Inspector of Railways,) Mr.
<. F. de Beers, (Chief Inspector of Offices,) Dr.
Scholtz, (the well-known Colonial Physician,) Dr. Soha-
gan, and Mr. Van Leeuwen, (Judge of the Supreme
Court,) who had formed a deputation to try to induce
their venerable headman to surrender after his flight
from Pretoria with near two millions of gold. The black-
bearded, SIX foot Christian De Wet, said it would be
infra dig. to " cave in " before his chief, and Botha's
excuse for doggedly persisting in a useless waste of life
was that his " honour " was bound up with the defence
of his aged master. And so the gruesome carnage
lingered on, at a military cost to Great Britain of three
millions a day, and the question was gravely asked—
Would it be over by the anniversary of the opening ?

For there was news of reverses as well. Gen. BuUer
disappointed in not joining the advance before it reached
Middleburg on the 27th, (he having to deal with the
enemy at Vlaklaagte station, 10 miles north of Stander-
ton,) and Baden Powell was surrounded by Delarey at
Rustenburg. To defend Pretoria against the threatened
incursion, Lord Roberts trained back thither the day
General French entered Kruger's first retreat, and Pole-
Carew gained Brugspruit. Capt. Legatt, with a con-
struction train, was rapidly repairing the line for its use ia
following the Boers to Machadodorp and onwards.

An expedition burnt nine farms from which our troops
were fired upon the previous Tuesday.

Mr. Kruger had run down to Barberton, to the south
east of the line, to see his anxious wife and arrange for
flight, then he returned to Watervalonder, whither the
rolling stock of the railway had been removed on learning
of our advance.

34^ HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR,

Kruger's private secretary having been to Delagoa
Bay it was surmised that his Honour might find that
exit from his pursuers the best, as the natives of Lyden-
burg were not loyal to Krugerism. There were skir-
mishes between 300 of the burghers and Seccocoeni's
kraalmen and the Boers were driven across the Steel
Poort River; so, on the other side of the line, the
Swazi Queen had repeatedly offered 14,000 dusky war-
riors to clear Barberton and Komati Poort of all the
"brutal Dutchmen," but the Imperial General-in-Chief
had requested her to be quiet. That road, however,
seemed an unsafe one for the grey-haired fugitive by which
to seek the port of embarkation.

The British prisoners at Nooitgedacht were crying out
for deliverance from a painful bondage. 75 were sick,
mostly from dysentery, and were being attended by
doctors of a Russian ambulance.

As General Prinsloo was a sort of Field Marshal over
several district commandos, numbering 5,000 men and 17
guns, the surrender of the rest of these men was hoped
for and awaited by Generals Hunter and Rundle at their
head-quarters on the wild rocky heights known as Slaap-
krantz, eight miles south-east of Fouriesburg. The staff
and a guard of honour supported the British flag in the
midst of the camp. The guard was composed of the 2nd
Scots, Yeomanry, DriscoU's Scouts, and Grenfell's Horse,
who had all done such splendid service; and the regi-
ments, several thousands strong, formed in double line,
about a mile in extent, with a battery of the Eighth
Division. The bands of the Leinsters, the pipers of the
Scots, and the fifes and drums of the Munsters, with
patriotic and lively music, celebrated the submission and
cheered the spirits of the vanquished as they rode up and
threw down their weapons.

Prinsloo at 9 a.m. rode in unarmed, his aide-de-camp
carrying a white flag. He saluted, and the British
Generals shook hands with him, cordially inviting him
into one of their tents. He is a fine-looking, grey-bearded
man, was well dressed, and rode a spirited charger.
Afterwards arrived Commandants De Villiers and
Crowther with their burghers, and two Krupp
9-pounders.

Next day arrived Commandants Deploy, Potgieter,

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 347

Joubert, Rouse, and P. J. Fonternel, Lieut. Anderson
(Staats Artillery), and Commandant Vander Merwe.
In all 4,140 names were taken with as many horses; of
the three guns given up two belonged to the U Battery
R. H. A. Ten waggon loads of ammunition were des-
troyed as useless and 195,000 rounds of cartridges. The
Boer waggons and carts when passing through the Little
Caledon Valley extended seven miles. The prisoners
were at once sent to the Cape and transported to
Ceylon.

Unfortunately Olivier did not feel bound to submit,
and with five guns and a commando broke away east-
ward, being unheard of till the 15th of August, when
General Hunter lost three men killed and 40 wounded
in an engagement with him near Heilbron.

In a few days after, the slim De Wet ( with whom was
Mr. Steyn), managed to escape his pursuers once more,
and crossed the Vaal.

One result of this flight was said to be that it gave
opportunity for bringing up supplies, so that Rundle's
force got full rations. According to Mr. A. G. Hales, of
the London Daily News (whose statement was mentioned
and not contradicted in the House of Commons), they
had at times been half-starved while thousands of pounds
of foodstuffs were rotting in warehouses at side stations.

The war drew its slow length along and seemed at
times at a standstill, yet, as the song says, " We have the
money and we have the men." On the ist of August
Parliament passed a Supplementary War Loan Bill
which brought up the votes" to sixty-one millions for
estimates to the end of the previous February. As to
men, the Under Secretary of War stated that the
aggregate strength of the force in South Africa was
223,500, of whom i8g,ooo were Imperial troops. He
also intimated that it was intended to garrison the
country, at the end of the war, with 45,000 men, and that
15,000 others would remain there as colonists.

At the close of the Parliament, on August 8th, the
Queen's speech, after referring to the annexation of the
Orange Free State, expressed a " trust that this would be
the first step towards the union of races under institutions
which, while establishing from the outset good and just
government for all, may be in time developed so as to

348 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

secure equal rights and privileges in my South African
dominions."

During this dull time, among the exploits of Boer
raiders was railway and train-wrecking, and owing to the
displacement of rails by them a sad accident occurred at
Fredrickstad, 14 miles north of Potchefstroom, by which
a supply train was derailed and 13 men of the Shropshire
Light Infantry were killed and 39 injured. Smith-
Dorrien, who knew of the damage to the line, had told off
a patrol to warn any trains, but the warning somehow
was not given. A Court of Inquiry investigated the
matter.

Whilst French strengthened his position at Middle-
burg, and Pole-Carew held the line thither (Paget after-
wards garrisoning Waterval), Ian Hamilton's flying
column returned through Pretoria and was after the
Boers to the south and west of the capital. First he
made for Rustenburg, and Lord Kitchener for Rhenoster,
the former releasing Baden-Powell, and the latter trying
to catch De Wet.

After making good the line of communication, so that
stores could be sent up to Johannesburg and Pretoria,
where food had been scarce through broken lines, General
Buller at last was free to march in the direction of
Komati Poort, Botha's base, to cut off supplies and the
retreat in that direction — a march of a hundred miles, by
way of Ermelo and Barberton.

Botha's wife, singular to say, was among the guests at
a dinner party given by Lord Roberts at the Presidency
on the 30th of July. She was a Miss Emmet, and
belongs to a good Irish family. She was once the belle
of the capital, Botha's farm being on the road to Middle-
burg. Bobs, an Hibernian, scored a point in so honour-
ing the Boer commander-in-chiefs amiable spouse.

For De Wet to capture British soldiers was absurd
and cruel, seeing he was unable to locate them. The
remnant of the loth company of the Royal Engineers,
taken by him on June 14th, were put over the Drakens-
berg, and reached Durban in a sorry plight. When
convalescent they were added to the Colonial Mounted
Police.

By the occupation of Harrismith by General Downing
pn August 8th, Olivier's chance of retreat by th^

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 349

Drakensberg seemed cut off. Here 684 Boers had
surrendered up to August 19th.

General Knox, who drove the enemy from Rhenoster
Kop, north of Kroonstad, on the and of August, had to
report the derailment of a train 20 miles south of
Kroonstad, where four men were killed and three injured.
At the request of Mr. Stowe, the American Consul-
General, a passenger on his way to see Lord Roberts,
the 40 men taken prisoners were liberated, among them
being Colonel Lord Algernon Lennox. The trucks and
stores were burnt by order of the notorious Captain
Theron.

A sharp lesson was taught the Boers on the road to
Vrede where one field cornet, De Lange, had carried off
three neutrals against their will. Major Gough, with a
detachment of Mounted Infantry and four guns, with two
pom-poms, supported by infantry from Standerton,
shelled De Lange and 300 Boers, scattering them in all
directions, several being killed. His house was burnt
and cattle seized. In some cases neutrals where whipped
by the Boers, and commandants and others, freed to go
home on passes, resumed arms against us. Lord
Roberts, in consequence, decided to retain as prisoners
all armed Burghers taken in future.

On the 7th of August BuUer marched 18 miles — from
Paardekop to the village of Amersfoort, which he occu-
pied after ejecting Christian Botha's three district
commandos (2,000 men and 10 guns) from the ridges
above it with a loss, so far, of two officers and 23 men
wounded. It was a running fire all the way. Lord
Dundonald's cavalry made a wide detour to the left and
the infantry went to the right, advancing in a seven
miles front. Two miles from the Boer position the
Gordons and King's Royal Rifles encountered the enemy's
vanguard, and the struggle lasted from two to half-past
five in the evening. It was found that burghers of the
Wakkestroom district who surrendered to General Lyt-
tleton and then " passed" to their farms, had been
arrested as prisoners by the Boer leader because they
refused to break their oath to us.

BuUer reached Carolina and French's scouts on Aug.
14, being then within 40 miles of Botha's stronghold at
Machadodorp, C. Botha joined his brother Louis.

350 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAft.

Among our many failures was that of Ian Hamilton
to reach Rustenburg in time to capture Delarey, and
before Carrington could relieve Col. Hore's brave little
garrison of 300 men at Elands River, Delarey with
6,000 men and two Creusots besieged them.

The valiant bushmen had wished for a tight place, and
now had to stand a siege while Kitchener came up. In
the end they were released with a dozen killed and more
wounded.

Having, as we thought, cleared the West Transvaal of
militant Dutchmen, it had been denuded of British
troops, and now that Delarey, with Grobler, was making
a stand there, awaiting De Wet's forces (now augmented
to 3,000, with ten guns), it was intended apparently to
make the contemplated daring attack on Pretoria.
Carrington, over-matched, was driven from Zeerust and
retired upon Mafeking, but was ordered back to save
Zeerust.

As part of the Boer designs probably was a diabolical
but clumsy plot discovered by the Pretorian police on
the 7th of August. Lord Roberts put it briefly thus : —
" A plot to carry me off discovered. It was clumsily
conceived : Ringleaders and all concerned are now under
arrest." The intention was said to be to set fire to
houses in the west of the capital and in the confusion
to seize the arms in the artillery barracks, assassinate the
British officers in their quarters, and to carry off the
Commander-in-chief to a Boer commando on the hills to
the north of the town. The culprits were dealt with
by Court Martial. In the trial of Lieut. Hans
Cordua the ringleader, (a rather simple young ex-Staats
Artilleryman), a letter in cipher was produced to the
effect that General Botha had promised him help.
Cordua was found guilty and shot. Many culprits were
sent out of the country.

From this conspiracy it was argued by leading English
newspapers that the policy of leniency was found to be a
mistake in the case of foresworn uncivilised rebels and low
caitiflf brigands, such as we were now dealing with as
irreconcileables, that more stringent measures should be
adopted to terminate hostilities by annexing the Trans-
vaal and treating all in arms against the Queen as
outlaws, whose property (if they had any) should bo

HISTORY 01^ THfi BOER WAR. 35 1

confiscated. Lord Roberts issued a more punitive procla-
mation to deal with such men. •

The chasing of De Wet by Generals Kitchener,
Methuen, and Smith-Dorrien lasted several days and
was of an exciting kind, with occasional rearguard
actions. At Schoolplaats, eight miles from Ventersdorp,
on the I2th of August, De Wet blew up several of his
waggons owing to the loss of oxen and had to leave 30
exhausted horses at a farmhouse. All his prisoners were
released except the officers, (what a woful tramp they had
had!) and Methuen captured one of his guns, after
shelhng the main convoy. Just when it was supposed
Kitchener had him, the sprinter whisked oflF once more in
the night, as, knowing the road well, darkness was no
hindrance to his marching. Our generals, with from
30,000 to 80,000 soldiers, had now been hunting him for
four months.

Steering north he had the bravado to summon Baden-
Powell to surrender Commando Nek ; but, seeing the
hopelessness of an attack, he passed on the west towards
the unconquered country to the north of Pretoria,
followed by B. P. Then joining Delarey the combined
commandos, with their convoys in front, hastened east-
ward with the intention of reaching the camp of their
commander-in-chief for what was anticipated as the final
stand, against the attack of Buller and French's forces.
The Boers knew perfectly our plan of campaign and were
adepts in signalling. In this purpose however they
were frustrated by the hero of Mafeking.

On the 17th of August Ian Hamilton occupied
Oliphant's Nek in the Magaliesberg, capturing two krupp
guns, gun limbers and waggons, and Mahon on the
Crocodile River took two waggons and seven Boers.

For a time it was annoying to contemplate that the
Boer commandos, crossing the Pietersburg line, were
likely to get on to the Delagoa railway, with a chance of
reaching Botha. But by tremendous marching, aver-
aging seventeen miles a day, Baden-Powell headed oflf
the Von-Moltke hunter, and supported by General Paget,
drove him back, succeeding in an engagement at Warm-
baths, forty miles north of Pretoria, in capturing 100
British prisoners and 25 Boers, including three officers.

352 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

and some waggons. De Wet then, with a small com-
maado, and abandoning his convoy, rode through the
Magaliesberg range by a bridle path, going south: for
once he had been checkmated by a night march.

By the 23rd of August De Wet was co-operating with
Delarey at Banks Station on the Potchefstroom line,
which was blown up.

The identity of this remarkable man De Wet was for a'
time under obscurity by correspondents confounding him
with the Cambridge B. A. of the same name, a much
younger man who was for a time the Pretorian Press
Censor at the opening of the war. The *• Christiaan" who
was such a splendid man of chase was of middle age and
middle stature, and was a plain farmer who knew nothing
of soldiering beyond sport, like that at Sanaa's Post — a
trap into which we blundered most egregiously. His
chief scout was a Scotchman, in khaki, known as Jack,
who managed to enter our camps with a British pass.

BuUer by the 23rd of August had reached the Komati
Valley, where General Kitchener (brother of Lord
Kitchener ) drove off a considerable force of the enemy.

The Boer line of detachments extended from Belfast to
Crocodile River, 160 miles, with 4,000 in an entrenched
position at Dalmanutha near Machadodorp, and 18 guns
had passed through Nooitgedacht in readiness to meet an
attack from Komati Poort.

Lord Roberts on August 24th arrived at Wonder-
fontein, within 22 miles of Machadodorp, Buller being
at Leeuwkloof, six miles from Dalmanutha, and French's
cavalry (four brigades) on the east of Machadodorp, while
Pole-Carew was at Belfast; thus the Boer position was
being invested. The enemy occupied the ridges between
Belfast and Dalmanutha. On the day before, Buller had
an artillery victory over the long range 15-pounder and
pom-poms of the Boers. When the pickets were placed
for the night, by some mistake two companies of the
Liverpool regiment advanced about 1,500 yards into a
hollow out of sight of the main body, where they were
pelted by Mausers, 10 being shot dead, 45 wounded, and
32 captured. Three other men were killed during the
day and several others wounded.

Pole-Carew lost 14 men wounded in occupying Belfast
pn the 24th. Next day he was joined by Lord Roberta

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 353

and his staflF, our commander-in-chief taking the direction
of operations in an attack on the Boer position the day
after, extending over a perimeter of nearly thirty miles,
and lasting all day.

Lyttleton's Division, with two brigades of cavalry,
under Buller, worked on the south-west of Dalmanutha ;
French, with two brigades of cavalry, moving north
by the west of Belfast, drove the enemy to Lekenoly, on
the Belfast-Lydenburg road, and Pole-Carew advanced
with the Guards' Brigade of the Eleventh Division in
support.

The enemy were in strong force with an enormous
power of guns of largest calibre as well as quick-firing,
and made a determined stand as was expected. The
hilly nature of the country favoured them. The issue of
the day was inconclusive, and the penalty we paid was
small. The next day, Monday, August 27th, the struggle
was resumed and we took Bergendal, about three miles
west of Dalmanutha, and considering that we had to
cross an open glacis for two or three thousand yards
and the determined opposition of the pom-poms and other
machinery, our losses were moderate. Twenty dead
Boers were found on the field. The Inniskilling Fusiliers
and the 2nd Battalion Rifle Brigade were the attacking
party, and the latter suffered most in doubling over the
last five hundred yards, making a magnificent bayonet
charge on a boulder-strewn kopje surrounded by trees.
The Johannesburg police were overthrown, and we made
their commandant prisoner. Our pom-poms and lyddite
did great execution for three hours and at the end of the
day pelted the runaways.

French advanced to Zwartkopjes on the Lydenburg
road, preparing the way for Pole-Carew's movement on
Tuesday and then via Elandsfontein they made for
Kruger at Waterval Onder.

Lieut-Col. Ridley I.Y., with 250 mounted men and 25
infantry, was reconnoitring at Winburg in the Orange
River Colony, when Olivier made his appearance with
1,000 Boers and two guns. Hunter was hurried to Kroon-
Stad, and Bruce Hamilton dashed off" thence by train with
a brigade. Result : the little force was saved and General
Olivier, son of the soil, a free lance, and the victor at
Stormberg, was caught, and his three sons, on August

W

354 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

26th, in a donga by a scout of eight men, in a plucky
coup.

Baden-Powell, having reached Nylstroom, in the thick
veldt of the Pietersburg railway valley, was ordered back
to Pretoria, finding no opposition. Grobler's force was
squandered, Delarey not to be found, and Steyn had
reached brother Kruger, (ready for a sail said some),
while Lydenburg was again prepared for the "final"
retreat.

Eruptions of hostilities in North Natal and the Brand-
water Basin of the Orange River Colony, showed that the
Boers were not quite suppressed yet, and guerilla De
Wet turned up at Heilbron and then at Winburg, deter-
mined to be the last patriot left in the field.

Buller occupied Machadodorp on August 28th and the
Boers fled on the Lydenburg road, followed by Dun-
donald's mounted troops; but the rocky fastnesses
beyond Helvetia were no arena for cavalry.

Lord Methuen's force arrived at Mafeking on August
aSth to re-equip and were joined by the Elands River
garrison who walked in, having lost their horses in the
siege at Elands. Theron was rampant south of
Johannesburg, and Ladybrand and Ficksburg were
now threatened by raiders.

The advance of Lord Roberts was continued on the
29th, when the south African Light Horse, after some
slight opposition, entered Waterval Boven, driving a
scattered remnant of the enemy through the town, while
French's cavalry reached Doornhoek, overlooking Water-
val Onder, (eight miles from Machadodorp), encountering
only a few parting shots.

Through mist and rain Buller approached Nooitge-
dacht next day to find that 1,800 British prisoners had
been liberated, and were marching towards our camp.
It was a sorry spectacle ; they were very badly clothed,
some half-starved, many scarcely able to walk from weak-
ness and sickness. Doctors with the ambulance hastened
forward to pick up and tend the feeblest. A few officers
escaped, but most of them had the day before been taken
with the fugitive commandos to the entrenched laager at
Barberton, (about 40 miles south east) and Kruger
Steyn, Botha, Schalk, Meyer, Burger, Viljoen and Dr.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 35$

Hayman, with officials and a body guard, had gone by
train to Nelspruit station (50 miles).

Prisoners had been given up by Grobler and others, so
that less than a thousand of our men, it was computed,
were now in captivity.

Twenty-one boxes of gold arrived at Lorenzo Marques
on August 2gth, and specie of the value of ;^i 30,000 was
sent to Holland by the Crown Prince steamer that day.
Eloff, one of Mr. Kruger's grandsons, had charge of
fifteen cases of bullion.

Being short of ammunition burghers were required to
give up their mausers till a fresh supply was to hand.

By Saturday, the ist of September, General BuUer had
reached Badfontein, 17 miles from Lydenburg, whither a
commando had hastened from the last battle in order to
protect the hoarded supplies there.

The Transvaal was annexed on the ist of September
by proclamation : so ended the chequered history of the
South African Republic of nearly seventy years.

But for a while it merely converted the enemy into a
rebel, as the fighting was not over by any means.

Plumer, with a small force, mastered Commandant
Pretorius east of Pienaars River and took 1,000 cattle,
31 waggons, 26 prisoners and go Martini rifles, with the
Boer families, which we also had to keep. Major
Brooke, R. E. had a victory at Kraai railway station
and General Hart at Johannesburg waterworks. There
was a skirmish at Rooi Kop, in which we were on the
winning side, taking 100 rifles, 40,000 rounds of ammuni-
tion, seven prisoners, 350 head of cattle, and three
waggon loads of supplies. Plumer was credited with a
third victory near Warmbaths, and there was a surrender
of a band of men, women and children, with waggons,
carts, sheep, and cattle, at the first station east of
Pretoria.

Krugersdorp had to be reconquered, as well as Lady-
brand, whither Hunter hastened to reheve the garrison
against Commandants Fourie, Grobler, Lemmer, Haase-
brock, and Theron — the last-named being shot through
the head by a pom-pom a few days after.

In a reconnaissance towards the Boer position where
the road passes over the mountains overlooking Lyden-
burg, General BuUer found Botha had taken the

35^ HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

command of 2,000 Boers, with three Long Toms at the
pass. Ian Hamilton was sent with a column on the
Belfast-Dielstroom road to turn the enemy's flank, and
this necessitated a delay in the advance. Brocklehurst's
cavalry brigade joined in the march. The result was the
flight of the Boers on September 7th, and our unchal-
lenged occupation of the town which had been described
as an impregnable fortress. More than that, when our
flag was hoisted at the court house there were British
residents ready to salute it with a hearty cheer. As if
ashamed of their cowardice the nondescript warriors
returned to the heights with some guns, and bombarded
the town for two hours, afterwards clearing off towards
Krugerspost and Spitzkop, 15 N. and 22 miles E. distant
respectively, whither we followed them with frequent
engagements. It was literally a rout, and we captured
300,000 lbs. of supplies and about 300 boxes of ammuni-
tion. The road was execrably rough — a geologic chaos
of rocks and chasms, so that the cattle employed had an
awful time of it. We occupied Machberg on the 7th, and
next day Klipgat, capturing goods, ammunition, and gun
tackle, and halted at Spitzkop to accept surrenders and
receive supplies.

With General French marching on Barberton (where
Mrs. Kruger was reported to be too ill to travel), ex-
President Kruger felt his quarters at Nelspruit insecure,
and he retreated by the only way open — to Delagoa Bay,
with a large staff of satellites in his pay, including Secre-
tary Reitz with the Government archives, his deputy Piet
Grobler, and Auditor-General Marais. In two special
trains these refugees arrived at a seaside station and
reached the Bay by boat, driving to the house of Mr.
Potts, the Transvaal consul, over which hung the
republic's flag. ;^i, 500,000 sterling was deposited in the
local banks, and while the exiled Hollander officials,
numbering sixty, lived in luxury at hotels, 3,000 Trans-
vaal refugees, including widows and orphans, were left
to starve in the streets unless befriended by the British
and Portuguese. As to the loot and State documents,
a movement was set on foot at Cape Town and at
Johannesburg for steps to be taken to recover the same
or compensation. In the Cape Parhament on Sept. 24th

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 357

the Premier, Sir Gordon Sprigg, declared " Kruger is not
only a capitalist but a thief."

Owing to representations from the British Govern-
ment Mr. Kruger had to remove to the house of the
Portuguese Governor, (where he was forbidden to see
anyone) until he left the port. The story was invented
that Mr. Kruger had resigned his post for six months,
leaving the •' keys of office" with Mr. Schalk Burger
(a neophyte and nobody), to get the Powers of Europe to
intervene for '* autonomy for the States under the Queen's
sovereignty," which everybody knew was impossible.
So the much-worried old man, with failing eyesight, as a
prisoner in reality, awaited a Dutch man-of-war to convey
him and his servants to Amsterdam, to which the British
Government offered no objection.

Major-General Baden-Powell was appointed as head of
the Transvaal Police, and the guerilla desperados still
afflicting various parts of the country were now criminals
to be run down by a mounted constabulary, with the aid
of the military.

Lord Roberts issued a proclamation in English and
Dutch calling upon all burghers in arms to cease hostili-
ties, seeing its futility and the trouble it inflicted upon
the country. 15,000 Boers were captives till there was
peace.

Louis Botha (on the score of ill-health) handed over his
command to Ben Viljoen, who moved from Hector Spruit
(two stations from Komati Poort), — whence Mr. Steyn
had suddenly descended on his mercenaries at Nelspruit
to quell a riot — with 3,000 men and 30 guns — the remains
of the recognised Boer army, who went northward towards
the Selati district, accompanied by Mr. Reitz, who had
returned as Mr. Steyn's comrade.

Trouble was feared from Boers and Irish-Americans
fleeing into Portuguese territory, hence large troops of
Portuguese soldiers arrived to keep the peace.

The disruption of the enemy was seen at Barberton,
where we seized the fortress and depot with valuable
stores, waggons, 43 locomotives and rolling stock, besides
cattle and 100 Boers, with slight opposition, and liberated
the Britishers in prison. Similar seizures were made in
other places, as many as 28,000 head of cattle and sheep
being taken in a few days, besides horses, riHes, and

358 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

ammunition. In fact our advance was unopposed.
Nelspruit being occupied on Sept. 17th by Stephenson's
brigade, and Kaap Muiden on the 19th; then on to
Komati Poort and the border of Portuguese territory.
About 2,000 Boers and 700 Irish-Americans and rebel
Cape-colonists preferred surrendering to the Portuguese
after blowing up their Long-Toms and destroying much
of their stores. Thirteen guns, more or less damaged,
were found in the Crocodile River. On the Selati rail-
way eight miles of rolling stock was taken. Viljoen and
C. Botha, with a small following, trekked across the Sabie
River northward.

To facilitate submission Lord Roberts issued a procla-
mation that those who surrendered would not be sent out
of the country.

A number of Boer oflEicials sailed from Delagoa on
Sept. 26th for Holland.

Colonial troops were now sent home, followed by
volunteer battalions, like the London City Imperials, in
due course.

In the last week of September happened the first
serious casualty to a transport. We lost 930 horses by
the foundering of the " Suffolk " off Klipper Point en
route to Port Elizabeth, but the men on board were
picked up by the " Lake Erie."

While Kruger was at Lorenzo Marques that place
was not a pleasant one to live in. Though the sur-
rendered warriors — many of them gaunt, unkempt,
ragged villains, were safe in barracks, till shipped off to
Europe at Kruger's expense, the influx of people of
various nationalities from the Transvaal made food
dear, and increased the bad reputation of the port for
disorder owing to free trade in intoxicants and the habit
of associating drink with business, so that it was a com-
mon thing to see men inebriated before noon.

Our troops on the border were now being fed by the
British Consul at the Bay. Objection could not be
taken to this by any one after the free use of the port by
the Boers. If we had stopped the importation there of
armaments and stores for the Transvaal a year before,
the war could not have lasted six months.

Kruger's lodgings were at Reuben Point, in the ele-
vated residential part of the town, faced on three sides

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 359

by the sea, while the old portion of the town is on the
low land on the north side of the magnificent bay,
which, as the port of the Transvaal, it is thought Great
Britain will acquire.

Kruger, it was asserted, blamed Steyn for not sub-
mitting after the British occupation of Machadodorp,
and if the latter's subsequent conduct is explained by
a hope of intervention through the General Election in
the United Kingdom, he must have been more gullable
than his comrade, who now virtually laid down his
arms, for the election, albeit it criticised freely the mis-
management of the war and our unpreparedness for it,
in no instance, worth mentioning, showed a constituency's
opinion adverse to annexation and British supremacy.
The only point in dispute was, which party should be
entrusted with the settlement of the new South African
colonies, and this matter resolved itself into the question
— should there be an immediate representative govern-
ment, and if so, what should be the franchise. It is
true, some Ministerialists asserted that the Liberals, if
they had a majority, would reinstate the Republics, or
give them independence under our suzerainty (as the
Boers now wanted,) but this was merely electioneering
claptrap.

Another reason given for Steyn's continued resistance
(with the sanction of Kruger's coterie) was the hope that
if Mr. Bryan was elected President of the United States,
on Nov. 6th, he would use his influence with great
Britain on behalf of the Boers. The grounds for this
supposition were alleged to be the large sums of Boer
money sent to help Bryan and buy American sympathy.
Mr. C. E. Macrum, when U. S. Consul at Pretoria, had
received ;^i5,ooo ; Mr. Webster Davis (a U. S. Under
Secretary of State,) ;^25,ooo, and Mr. Montagu White,
Consul in London tor the Transvaal Republic, ;^2oo,ooo
for this purpose. It was with Macrum that Mr. Hollis,
U. S. Consul at Lorenzo Marques, intrigued for the
reception of provisions for the Boers during the war, so
that the Secretary of the United States sent his own son,
Mr. A. S. Hay, to supercede the latter, a tool of Reitz.

Anyhow, with the progress of October came an erup-
tion of hostilities, in various parts. Mr. Kruger, at an
early hour oa the 19th, embarked secretly on board the

360 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Dutch cruiser Gelderland, accompanied by Mr. EloflF
(a grandson-in-law,) Dr. Heymann and Mr. Bredell, his
secretary, and sailed the next day for Europe.

Dr. Leyds arranged for the Peace Delegates (Messrs.
Wolmarans, Wessels and Co.,) and the Refugee Trans-
vaal State officials, to receive Mr. Kruger at Marseilles,
with a view to a " triumphal procession " to Brussels,
which was a foolish and futile attempt to influence the
British Government and a breach of faith with the Dutch
Government.

CHAPTER XL.

THE BOER TERRORISM.

BUT to return to Steyn. He fled with L. Botha and
some 2000 Boers to Leysdorp, 75 miles north of
Lydenburg, in order, it was said, to join Commandant
Vorster at Pietersburg. Delarey was opposing Gen.
Clements near Commando Nek, Erasmus was watching
his opportunity north east of Waterval, and Grobler,
who suffered a defeat at Pienaars Rivers station, had
the northern terminus of the Pietersburg railway at his
base, while a special column went after De Wet in the
hills of Heilbron.

The eruption of raiders in both colonies at the begin-
ning of October was like a renewal of the war, and
pointed to a concerted action to harass the British and
destroy property. Engagements on a small scale became
common, and we lost officers and men frequently, though
always victors.

Lindley had to be reconquered, Machadodorp cleared
with a loss to us of eleven killed and 30 wounded, Jagers-
fontein (a diamond village in Orange Colony) had to be
rescued from the enemy, (who were aided by Boer
residents, and even Johannesburg and Kimberley were
threatened by the ubiquitous snipers, as well as Bar-
berton and other places. Thus, while several army
officers and some volunteer battalions were sent home,
(including the C.I. Vs.) there was good reason for the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 36 1

despatch from England in the third week of October ot
2,000 soldiers to fill up gaps in various regiments ot
regulars.

Lord Roberts, at Pretoria, was also trying the peaceful
intervention of influential burghers to induce Botha and
De Wet to surrender, but the latter's military orders were
paramount. His lordship was anxious to return to
London by the end of the year, to take up his new
duties as Commander-in-Chief (in succession to Field
Marshal Viscount Wolseley,) to which post he was pro-
moted in September, and in which capacity he was
expected to initiate the great army and war oflSce reforms
shown to be urgently necessary in the course of the
present campaign.

Mr. Wyndham, defending the war office in one particu-
lar, contended that when longer fuses were introduced
into the shells our artillery equalled the Boers', bursting
shrapnel at 5,400 yards, but Captain Lamlaton, the
saviour of Ladysmith with the naval brigade, stated that,
compared with the Long Toms and other guns of the
enemy, our cannons were ridiculous toys. It was, he
said, a deep sense of the galling humiliation we had
suffered at the hands of Dutch farmers that led him to
contest Newcastle.

We were now in the springtime of Africa, and General
Buller's march northward was a fresh experience. The
country is the bush veldt, and vegetation was often so
luxurious that we had to cut a road in the jungle. From
the bleak uplands to the mild climate of these wide
pasture lands is a great climatic change. The scenery
was beautiful, but the mists and heat of summer here
have to be shunned by Europeans.

It was thought Buller's destination was Pietersburg.
From Pietersburg it is a little over a hundred miles to
the borders of Rhodesia, the division being the Limpopo
or Crocodile River running 200 miles from east to west of
the country, and as far again through Portuguese terri-
tory to the Indian Ocean.

Buller's march was one of conquest in a part of
the Transvaal where the British flag had not before been
hoisted, and it seemed important that the natives and
Dutch farmers hereabouts should witness a march past
of our arms inasmuch as a railway firom Pietersburg to

362 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Bulawayo (about 250 miles,) will ere long open up
Rhodesia from Pretoria, and so prepare the way for the
great projected line to stretch towards Lakes Nyassa
and Tanganyika, and thence on to Cairo — running almost
from the source to the mouth of the Nile.

From Pilgrim's Rest Buller proceeded to Krugerspost
on Oct. ist, when shells of 9,000 yards range killed two
and wounded several of our men, in return for which we
made a great haul of their live stock and supplies.

Then came a surprise and change of tactics. Sir
Redvers, for no assigned cause, gave up the chase, and
on returning to Lydenburg took leave of his forces (which
he left in the hands of General Lyttelton), proceeding
direct to Pretoria and thence to the capital of Natal and
the Cape, on his way home, receiving well-merited
honours en route as well as the thanks of his chief.
After a few days the headquarters of the Fourth Division
of the 8th Brigade returned to Middleburg, leaving Botha
to be dealt with otherwise.

Although the derailing of trains was still the occasional
occupation of roaming guerillas, the Military Governor of
Johannesburg intimated his readiness to receive English
and other refugees from the Cape at the rate of 3,000
weekly from Oct. loth, but Sir A. Milner only sanctioned
the return of 1,000 a week from Oct. 15th. The state of
the country however caused a postponement of the date
by the military, and thus it came about that many of
those for whom we went to war were reduced to the
greatest poverty at the Cape.

It was reported that the Government rights in the
Rand gold mines (as to ground not concessioned ),
amounted to 40 million sterling. The restarting of
the mines was naturally expected to give new life to
the Transvaal.

Inspector-General Baden-Powell had ofiFers of service
in his Mounted Constabulary, very promptly, to the
extent of 12,000 — many from the Imperial Yeomanry, —
and the terms of service were 7/- for third-class, and 9/-
for first-class troopers, per day, with rations, horse,
equipment, and lodging. From north to south the
disturbances to be quelled extended 400 miles, and this
meant long and tedious marches. Police barracks were
erected at Pretoria.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 363

Our frequent hauls of waggons, live stock, and stores
were partly due to the weakness of the Boers to defend
their laagers and their preference of flight to fight. It
was thus with Delarey at Rustenburg when General
Broadwood gave him challenge. The prisoners captured
and surrendered since the last transportation now
amounted to 16,000 ; Boers were constantly submitting
as they knew they would not have to leave the country.
They were kept in large camps.

Now and again our troops were reminded that they
were in a tropical country by severe thunderstorms.
Near Barberton a sergeant and gunner were killed by
lightning, also six mules and two horses in an ammunition
column. The blaze was blinding, and the noise deaf-
ening ; while the water came down for a short while, not
in drops, but in streams. In Sabie Valley, where Captain
Steinaecker, late of the Swaziland Scouts, was operating,
a trooper and native scout when in the bush were killed
by lions, and a lion hunt ensued. The valley is between
Lydenburg and the Portuguese border — a wild, unex-
plored region.

At the end of a year's warfare the close observant of it
has a far more correct view of the Boer stratagems.
Important documents fell into our hands which led to the
Transvaal Concessions Commission in reference to the
proceedings of the Netherlands Railway Company, which
had acted, through its managing director, Mr. Krebchmar,
as an almoner of the Transvaal Government in cor-
ruption and in the destruction of bridges ; Mr. Reginald
Statham, Mr. Hargrove, and Mr. Mendlsohn were well
paid for their pro-Boer zeal as journalists. Mr. Krebch-
mar, writing in December, thought Mr. Kruger should be
content with annexing Northern Natal and other small
parts, whereas that old diplomatist declared to the British
Government that such an idea as annexing the British
Colonies had never entered the heads of the Boer
Executive.

With the sailing of Kruger came a reign of terror.
Predatory bands made village life unsafe. We can only
mention a few instances.

Having got into Jagersfontein the Boers shot down ten
unarmed natives with explosive bullets and released the
prisoners in gaol. We held two forts in the town and a

364 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

kopje outside. The Boer losses included their command-
ant Visser.

Methuen's two columns had to fight their way to
Zeerust, Delarey haunting his flank for days, and
Lemmer was surprised and driven off. Since leaving
Rustenburg Methuen's loss was six killed and ten
wounded. It took four hours to dislodge the enemy to
the north of Zeerust on the 20th, and as we entered the
town the Boers shelled our column incessantly. On the
25th, there was another engagement in which the Boers
suffered most.

A party of 100 Boers was driven away from the railway
near Honingspruit, and a determined attack on Faure-
smith was repulsed on Oct. 19th, with several losses to
the Seaforths. There was a running fight near Fredrik-
stad on the 17th, i8th, and 21st, in which we lost several
men.

De Wet was a veritable demon of vengeance. He
sent word to the burghers of Reitz to clear out the
women and children as he meant to smash the place
with artillery. In the north-east of the Orange River
Colony burning and looting houses and stores were
common. Lindley was wantonly wrecked, and Harri-
smith in a state of siege.

Several English pro-Boer journals gave a mass of
anonymous correspondence with the intent to show that
the British army was laying waste the land to drive the
Boers out of it with a view of handing over their farms to
English or other colonial settlers.

Methuen stated in his report to Lord Roberts, that " he
captured over 200 waggons and denuded the country"
(on his way to Zeerust), and the word "denuded" was
interpreted to mean that he had destroyed all the houses
he met with after looting them. Every General acted
under strict orders; confiscation and destruction were
meted out as penalties for offences. Thus General
Hunter burnt the village of Bothaville, 40 miles N.W.
from Kroonstad, as a punishment for sniping at the
British. The Boers used pom-poms and Maxims and
several Lancers were killed and wounded in the march
from Kroonstad. If any wanton wreck and ruin were
done it would have come to the knowledge of the Field-
Marshal and have brought speedy censure upon the

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 365

perpetrator. His lordship's whole policy was conciliation
so far as it was possible. The tour of vengeance upon
which the enemy now entered had no such justification,
so far as we can see from the evidence. Of course there
was quite enough to account for the spirit of revenge
without this. The ringleaders in hostilities had, by their
own act, forfeited all claims to clemency. They alone
were responsible for all the scourge and loss to Boer
homesteads at this time. Submission would have
brought peace at any time, and the struggles of the
irresponsible desperate commandoes had no other excuse
than that of savage reprisals.

The recrudescence of hostilities engaged nearly all our
generals. French was sternly opposed all the way from
Carolina to Bethel, which he reached on Oct. 20th, with
the loss of an officer and six men killed and three officers
and 24 men wounded. The Boers attacked Settle on his
march from Bloemkop to Hoopstad, and an ofiicer and 15
men were wounded. A few days after, (on Oct. 24) the
Cape Police had a severe fight near the latter place with
two Boer commandoes.

The column left Wegdraai with a convoy from Hoop-
stad under orders to patrol south of the Vaal, a portion of
Denison's Scouts and two galloping Maxims accompany-
ing it.

The Boers attacked the patrol, but were immediately
repulsed, losing several men. When the convoy was
near Hoopstad a further attack was made from dense
bush.

The enemy, who had been largely reinforced, and out-
numbered the police by ten to one, gradually encircled
the force, doing much damage.

They directed their fire chiefly on the Maxims, which,
despite a most gallant defence, had to be abandoned.
Our horses stampeded, but the officers and men showed
splendid pluck, bringing in comrades who had lost their
mounts.

Shortly before dark the police were reinforced by
Yeomanry, and the Boers were effectually kept in check.
The attacking force, which was under Generals Du Toit,
Viljoen, Potgieter, and De Villiers, showed great deter-
mination, advancing pluckily in the face of a heavy
Maxim fire.

366 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

Our casualties for the day were : — Cape Police : Four
killed, eight wounded, fifteen taken prisoners. Cape
Mounted Rifles: Three killed. Yeomanry: Three
wounded.

The Boers stripped the corpses and stole the prisoners*
clothing. They refused to allow the Colonial troops to
bury their dead, but granted permission to the Imperial
troops. The fight lasted two hours, and in the end the
enemy were completely beaten off. The column reached
Hoopstad at ten o'clock at night, the entire convoy, with
the exception of the Maxims, being brought away.

Crossing the Limpopo the daring Boers attacked an
outpost of Carrington's at Tuli, in Southern Rhodesia,
and at the other end of the country the Jacobsdal garri-
son of Cape Town Highlanders, (near Kimberley,) suf-
fered severely, 14 being killed and 16 wounded in an
attack which was abetted by some of the inhabitants,
in consequence of which their houses were burnt down.
In three of them were found large stores of ammunition.
Train wrecking was attempted at Waschbank in North-
ern Natal by a dash under cover of the night by a party
of Swaziland police and Natal rebels under a Russian
officer, who blew up the line and committed various
depredations at the station.

A train with a small part of the Rifle Brigade went out
from Greylingstad to reconnoitre the railway towards
Heidelberg. The enemy, unsuspected, came down under
Hans Botha, blew up a culvert and tore up 200 yards of
the line, so that the train could neither go forward nor
retreat ; and then the Boers poured a heavy rifle fire
into it, thus, after a short fight, our men had to surrender.

Barton had a sharp encounter with a force under De
Wet at Frederickstad, on Oct. 25th. The enemy left
30 dead and 30 wounded on the ground, and three
Boers who fired after holding up their hands were shot
by court-martial. We lost one officer killed and 6
wounded, besides 25 men wounded. Our force was not
sufficient to crush the redoubtable raider, who made off
for a speedy rally. We had only half a company of
Royal Welsh Fusiliers and three companies of Royal
Scots Fusiliers, supported by a few guns and mounted
troops; still it was a smart and plucky contest on both
sides, at close quarters, our men using the bayonet.

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 367

Two days after Charles Knox, assisted by De Lisle,
with some mounted troops, fell on the retreating foe when
trying to recross the Vaal, where the drift was blocked.
De Wet pushed on towards Lindeque on the north
bank. He had reached Rensburg Drift, between Venter-
skroon and Parys, when Knox came up. We fired into
them and they bolted to the south-east, but were headed
by Le Gallais's troops. It was a stiff fight ; the Boers
were severely punished, leaving behind them two guns
and three waggons, and another containing ammunition
was blown up by a shell from U battery. The enemy
got away at nightfall in a heavy storm. De Wet was
said to be in low water. Our casualties were nil.

General Kitchener went to the aid of the Lydenburg
garrison, which had been menaced by L. Botha, and by a
night dash, on a friendly hint, we captured a laarger near
Krugerspost, several Boers being put hors de combat and
four taken prisoners, while we got off Scot free.

Notwithstanding the new uprising, the ceremony of
proclaiming the annexation of the Transvaal to her
Majesty's dominions passed off most successfully at Pre-
toria, on Oct. 24th.

As the Royal Standard was hoisted in the main square
the Grenadier Guards presented arms, and the massed
bands played " God Save the Queen," and a salute of
twenty-one guns was fired by the i8th Battery.

The Military Governor then read the proclamation.
The bands again played the National Anthem and the
troops gave three cheers for her Majesty.

The Victoria Cross was presented to several officers
and men, and 6,200 troops marched past, all looking in
the best of health and most workmanlike.

Sir Godfrey Lagden and some of the Basuto chiefs
were on the ground. These latter were evidently much
impressed, and begged that their expressions of loyalty
might be communicated to the Queen.

Mr. Chamberlain announced that until the colonies
were in a fit state for a representative government, they
would be ruled on the Crown Colony System and on
the model of that which exists in Trinidad, Jamaica,
and Ceylon — types of government, however, which would
require adjusting to the different conditions existing in
the Transvaal and Orange River Colonies.

368 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

The Commander-in-Chief and the High Commissioner
have arranged for such a scheme to be submitted to the
British Parhament as soon as peace was secured.

In the Cape Colony martial law had been relaxed, but
the outburst of violence caused the authorities to resume
recruiting for defensive purposes.

The Boer generals were pressing peasants into their
service by lying statements and threats ; in conse-
quence of which all Boers over fourteen years of age
living within a radius of ten miles from Bloemfontein
were brought into that town to prevent them rejoining
the commandoes: similar steps were taken in other
places.

There are many points that the chronicler of these
current events cannot clear up conclusively. Questions
will occur to the reader such as these — who was now
directing the Boer tactics, and whence came their pro-
visions and ammunition ?

As to the first, if one could credit Dr. Leyds with such
power, he was the directing generalissimo, from the
Chancellerie de la Republique Sud-Africaine, No. 8, Rue
de Livorno, Brussels — the Legation opened in 1898, by
a Volksraad vote of ;^i 7,000 a year. No doubt the
black-eyed, handsome, sphinx-like Batavian ex-school-
master, had sent both soldiers, artillery, ammunition and
food during the war, and was still the inscrutable plotter,
aided by his secretarial adept, Mr. Van Boeschoten.
He acknowledged to some Boer refugees that he had
plenty of money, but then it was not for them, how-
ever needy ; it was for diplomacy. Kruger's clique was
still in constant communication .with Leyds.

A certain Russian lady had often acted as a Boer spy,
and Mr. Kruger, when cut off from communication with
his oflficers in the land of conflict, tried to send by her a
message to De Wet; it was hidden in a lady's blouse
when handed to the chief steward of the Gironde
steamer, and the lady, sailing from Lorenzo Marques to
Durban, was to proceed by train to the Orange River
Colony and find the commander ; but the British Consul
intercepting the parcel, forwarded it to Lord Roberts.

The Boers had rough vaults in forest and veldt in dif-
ferent parts of the country, where they had stored artil-
lery, material, and tinned food, and it was from these

HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR. 369

it was said, the scattered commandoes were kept sup-
plied. Mrs. De Wet told an interviewer that her hus-
band had provisions and powder and shot for three years!

Our ofificers showed great activity in the last week of
October. Padget had a haul of 25,000 head of cattle,
and General Kitchener surprised Schalk Burger's laager
at Rooikranz ; on the other hand the Boers seized Red-
dersburg, (looting the stores) and captured a Cape Town
mail train, which they looted and fired, but it was rescued
by an armoured train. Boer families in the neighbour-
hood of such depredations were sent to Boer lines.

November opened with a slaughter of the Boers at
Bothaville, where we captured seven guns, and the man-
ufacture of sedition at the Cape.

Before leaving Pretoria, with the principal members of
his staff for home, Lord Roberts authorised the filling up
of the mounted infantry and an addition of 1,000 men to
the Colonial Division under General Brabant ; also the
garrisoning of district towns with a view to the clearing
of areas of the enemy instead of long treks such as that
of Gen. French, from Machadodorp to Springs, which
entailed the loss of 1,500 transport oxen.

Lord Kitchener was entrusted with clearing up the
debris of the war, and a more capable man for the irk-
some duty could not be found.

Lord Roberts thought the struggle was practically at
an end, and the Guerilla Campaign that ensued lasted
for a year and a half! There was a revival of hostili-
ties, and recalcitrant Burghers were induced to break
their oaths, and rejoin the malcontents, ever shifting
their hiding-place, unable to give battle, yet determined
not to yield till extremities made the life of brigandage
unendurable. The sufferings of the sulky snipers in their
scraggy commandos, sometimes sleeping without the
shelter of van or tent, exposed to inclement weather, were
terrible, and showed their indomitable love of independ-
ence, their hardihood, and courage. To onlookers it
seemed madness, but in such dire straits the ordinary
rules of judgment do not apply.

For Account of the Guerilla Campaign and Results of the
War see page 384.

X

370 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

SOME OF THE LEADING BRITISH OFFICERS
IN THE WAR.

Field-Marshal LORD ROBERTS of Kandahar,
V. c, G. c. B., G. c. s. L

Of all the brilliant soldiers who have helped to found and
consolidate our Empire in the East — that Empire which dwarfs
the conquests of Alexander and of Caesar — none have acquired a
higher niche in the temple of military fame than Lord Roberts of
Kandahar, known to the British private as "Little Bobs." Of
Irish extraction, with a dash of French Huguenot blood in his
veins, Frederick Sleigh Roberts was born in 1830 at Cawnpore,
which he was afterwards to enter as one of the heroes of an
avenging host. His father, Sir Abraham Roberts, had attained
the age of 90, and become the " Patriarch of Indian Generals."

In May, 1857, news of the Mutiny at Meerut and the seizure
of Delhi reached Peshawur where Lieutenant Roberts was acting
as D.A.Q.G. of the Division commanded by Major-General Reed :
and presently before Delhi, the headquarters of the rebellion,
there appeared the immortal "Field Force," into which Roberts,
after urgent entreaty, had been able to exchange from the Punjab
Movable Column.

It was now that his career of glory began — a career that was
repeatedly all but cut short by the bullets, shells, and sabres of
the Sepoys,

From the siege of Delhi young Roberts, still acting as staff
officer, passed with Greathead's Movable Column to his own
birthplace, blood-stained Cawnpore — distinguishing himself re-
peatedly on the march.

After a year's rest in England he returned to India, and was
recommended by Lord Clyde to the Viceroy, Lord Canning, to
take charge of his camp.

A year or two later Roberts was made Q.M.G. in India, and
on his shoulders rested most of the responsibility for the pre-
paration of the camps and durbars necessitated as well by the
Prince of Wales's visit to India ('75 — '76) as by the proclamation
of the Queen as Kaiser-i-Hind. Nor was he less useful and en-
ergetic in the field of fighting than in the field of famine.

When it became necessary to force the Ameer of Afghanistan,
iShere Ali, to receive a British mission at Kabul, Major General
Roberts got the command of the centre, or Kuram Valley, Column
(about 5,500 men) of the force. At a banquet given in his hon-
our on his return to India, Roberts — now a K.C.B. — was referred
to by the Viceroy as " the hero of the Afghan war."

LEADING BRITISH OFFICERS. 37 1

On 1st September — the anniversary of Sedan — Roberts gave
battle to and utterly defeated Ayoob.

When, a few years later, Mandalay was captured and King
Thebaw deposed from the throne of Burmah, Roberts took com-
mand, and soon, as usual, brought the operations to a successful
issue.

In 1885 Lord Roberts exchanged the command of the Madras
army for the post of Commander-in-Chief in India. In the Dia-
mond Jubilee procession of the Queen was " Little Bobs" on the
snow-white palfrey which had carried him on his ever-memorable
march from Kabul to Kandahar.

General the Rt. Hon. Sir REDVERS HENRY DULLER,

V. C, G. C. B., K. C. M. G.

Devonshire, the county of cream, has well been called the
cream of counties from the number of illustrious men and history-
makers it has produced ; and it is still as prolific of sailors and
soldiers as it was in the time of Drake, and Raleigh, and the other
•west country paladins of the good Queen Bess. But none of the
living sons of illustrious Devonshire have attained to greater dis-
tinction than he who was entrusted with the command of the army
in Natal.

The scion of a very old Devonshire family Redvers Buller, in
his nineteenth year, procured a commission in the 60th Rifles, 2nd
battalion, and soon thereafter he was fortunate enough to receive
his baptism of fire at the taking of the Taku forts — a campaign
from which he returned home with a medal and two clasps.

As good luck would have it, his battalion was included m the
Red River expedition, and the fine soldierly qualities of Captain
Buller attracted the particular attention of Colonel Wolseley, its
commander.

Buller has decidedly something of the Cromwell in him, being
tall, big-boned, and ponderous, with a touch of ungainliness even
in his figure ; severe almost sullen in his aspect ; curt of speech
and abrupt in manner ; taking no pains to glove his iron hand in
velvet ; sharp and straightforward, averse to all show and self-
advertisement, an intense hater of shams and humbug ; a man
calculated to inspire fear and respect more than affection in his
subordinates, but withal a man of great honesty of purpose and
force of character, to be trusted implicitly by his friends and
dreaded by his foes.

Such was the man whom Wolseley, in many respects his anti-
thesis, discovered during his Red River expedition, and appointed
to be his chief intelligence officer during the subsequent cam-
paign in Ashantee. South Africa became the scene of chronic
trouble with the native races, and in the campaign against the
Gaikas and Galekas, as well as in the subsequent smashing up of

372 HISTORY OF THE BOER WAR.

the Zulu power, Major Buller simply covered himself with glory
as the organiser and leader of the Frontier Light Horse.

As Buller had pioneered Sir Garnet's punitive expedition
through the pathless swamps and forests of Ashantee, so again,
as chief of Wolsele/s Intelligence Department, it was he who
piloted his little army — Graham's brigade in particular — across
the starlit desert from Kassassin to Tel-el-Kebir, where Arabi
Pashi was crushed as effectually as Koffee Kalkali and Cetawayo
had been successively crushed before him.

LORD KITCHENER.

Lord Kitchener of Khartoum, the conqueror of Mahdism
and the avenger of Gordon, is the eldest son of the late Lieutenant-
Colonel H. N. Kitchener, and was born in 1850. Educated at the
Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, he joined the Royal Engi-
neers, and was employed for some time in and after 1874 on the
Palestine and Cyprus surveys. He served, having volunteered,
as a major of cavalry in the Egyptian army in 1882, with the Nile
Expedition in 1884, and became Governor of Suakim in 1886.

For his bravery in the action of Handub in 1888, when he led
the Egyptian troops against Osman Digna — who not long age
escaped from the forces of Colonel Wingate when the Khalifa
met his death— he was made A.D.C. to the Queen, and in the sub-
sequent fighting he was mentioned in despatches and made a C.B.

From 1888 till 1892 he held the rank of Adjutant-General in the
Egyptian Army, and in the latter year he was appointed Sirdar.
After the taking of Dongola in 1895 he was made a K.C.B., and
subsequently organised the final irresistible advance against the
Khalifa, which resulted in his utter defeat at Omdurman in Sept.,
1898. For this he was awarded a Peerage, and on his return to
this country was given an enthusiastic reception, and was present-
ed with the freedom of London and a sword of honour.

In June of 1899, Lord Kitchener received the thanks of both
Houses of Parliament and a grant of ^30,000, as an acknow-
ledgment of his eminent services in planning and conducting the
campaign on the Nile in 1886-89, which culminated in the battle
of Omdurman, the capture of Khartoum, and the overthrow of the
power of the Khalifa.

The Hero of Mafeking— BADEN POWELL.

Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden Powell's likeness has been
in the greatest demand during the war fever. He belongs to a
clever family. He has a brother who is a major in the ist batta-
lion of the Scots Guards. Our hero is so many-sided. He is the
inventor of a war-kite and an ardent aeronaut. His work on
scouting is a standard book. His father, who died in i860, was

LEADING BRITISH OFFICERS. 373

Savilian Professor of Geomanry at Oxford. By his second wife,
a daughter of Admiral Wm. H. Smyth, he had a daughter and
five sons, all of whom have won distinctions.

Mrs. Baden-Powell's town house is like a museum with the
curios brought home by her adventurous sons, while its quaintness
is enhanced by the daughter's love of natural history, which leads
her to keep some 30,000 bees in a back drawing room.

SIR GEORGE WHITE, V.C.

On October 7th, 1899, General Sir George White arrived at
Durban and assumed command of the British forces. Colonial
and Imperial, in Natal. Although it was late in life before he at-
tained the higher posts in his profession, he has been both Com-
mander-in-Chief in India and Quartermaster-General.

Sir George White is a native of Co. Antrim, having been bom
near Ballymena. His career may be conveniently divided into
decades. He joined the Army in 1853 ^^ the age of 19. At 29
he was promoted to be a captain of the Gordons, and ten years
later he attained the rank of Major. After twenty years of wait-
ing his chance came at last, and Sir George White made the
most of it. This was the Afghan War, in which he served under
General Roberts. He was present at every action during the
war. When hostilities broke out he was an unknown major ; at
the conclusion he had been four times mentioned in despatches,
had won the Victoria Cross, and the brevet of Lieutenant-
Colonel. Sir George White had now planted his foot firmly on
the ladder of success. First he became Military Secretary to
Lord Ripon in India, then Assistant-Adjutant-General in Egypt ;
after that he was given the command of the Upper Burmah
Field Force. There he earned fresh triumphs, was thanked by
the Government of India, made a Major-General, and given a
" first-class district." Then, at a bound, he attained the highest
.post in the Indian Army. Sir George White quitted the chief
command in India to become Quartermaster-General of the Army.
His appointment to the command in Natal was received with
general satisfaction. He is now Governor of Gibraltar.

Major-General J. D. P. FRENCH.

The victor of Elandslaagte and the saviour of the Diamond
City — the dashing, ubiquitous, redoubtable cavalry commander,
who has seen more of the fighting than any other officer —
deserves a chapter to himself. He was born in 1854, the only
son of commander John French, R.N. and is 5 feet 6 inch — with
blue eyes, ruddy face, brown moustache, and a firm chin. He en-
tered the Army through the Militia, and is a self-made man.
Those who knew his career were pleased when, at the en4 Qf

374 LEADING BRITISH OFFICERS.

September, 1899, it was announced that the Queen had approved
of his appointment to command the. Brigade of Cavalry in South
Africa. He began with the 19th Hussars and remained in that
regiment 20 years. He was made captain in 1880. In the Nile
Expedition in 1884-5 he served under Lord Wolseley as Major.
With General Stewart he met the hordes of Dervishes, and after
the occupation of Abu Klea General Buller reported that the
force "owes much to Major French and his thirteen troopers."

After five quiet years in England he was sent in 1891, with
supreme command, to join the staff of General Luck ; returning
in 1893, he became Assistant- Adjutant-General at the War Office,
taking charge of the Cavalry Brigade of the South-East District
in 1897, and when General Buller made up his staff for South
Africa he remembered French, who within a fortnight of landing
was at Modder Spruit, and then came the brilliant flank capture
of the Boers' position at Elandslaagte ; afterwards the skirmishes
at Reitfontein, Naauwpoort, and Colesberg, the occupation of
Arundel, the relief of Kimberley — for which his troops marched
100 miles in four days — and then on towards the Orange Free
State capital, (though his horses died by the hundred from fatigue),
and hot after the retreating Dutch legions.

Major Edw. Yewd BRABANT, m.l.d., c.m.g.

The famous leader of Brabant's Horse is a politician as well as
a soldier. In 1873 he was elected to the Cape Parliament as
member for East London, and was re-elected for that constituency
in 1882 and 1888. In 1897 he was elected President of the South
African League. He is proficient in the Military affairs of South
Africa, having been Field Commandant of the Colonial Forces in
1878 and a member of the Defence Commission in 1896.

Lieut-Gen. REGINALD POLE-CAREW.

A Comishman, 51, was schooled at Eton and Christ Church,
Oxford, and became a Coldstreamer in 1869. He was private
secretary to Sir Hercules Robinson, in New South Wales, and
Lord Lytton's aide-de-camp during his Viceroyalty of India.
He has been intimately associated with Lord Roberts from the
Afghan War of 1879 onwards.

LlEUT.-COL. H. C. O. PLUMER led his Mounted Rifles
against the South African natives in 1896. He fought in Egypt
in 1884. His chief work has been in the present war to keep
the Boers in order in the Gaberones.

COL. THORNEYCROFT was in the Zulu and previous
Transvaal wars.

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR. 375

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.

Commanding officers discountenanced the drinking of ardent
spirits in the war, and the only way a huge case of whiskey could
be got aboard one vessel was by labelling it " Books for our Boys.
From the Y. M. C. A. Wanted on Voyage." The colonials assert
that they drank in every word of " them books."

Some of General Buller's men, getting short of tobacco, tried
another weed — dried tea leaves, which made them nervous.

A Connaught Ranger, after the Colenso fight, wounded and
parched with thirst, crawled down to the Tugela for a drink,
when, as he lowered his bottle into the water, he saw a dead
comrade at the bottom of the river with his eyes glaring at him.
He had jumped into the river to swim across and been caught in
the lacework of barbed wire set in the river bed by the slim
antagonist.

The ant hills are often a feature of the veldt, and in the gloam-
ing have been taken for men crouching, and also challenged by
the soldiers.

The nigger drivers of transport waggons received £s a month,
with clothes, rations, and accommodation, while an English driver
received in the army service corps is. 2d. a day with rations.
Colonials received 5s.- a day for ambulance work or fighting,
ordinary British infantry is.

The British war balloons used so often were made at Aldershot,
of gold-beater skins, A balloon, holding 10,000 cubit feet of gas,
only weighs 170 lbs. ^ The hydrogenic gas is carried compressed
in steel tubes, and it takes two or three waggons to convey a
charge for one large balloon. Each balloon will take up two
men and the required apparatus. Of course the balloons are
captive.

There was a postmistress at Ladygrey who refused to sur-
render to the Boers, and another at Van Wyk's Vlei who said
to them — " Shoot me dead and then you can take" tl]e keys ;"
they were hidden in her breast. She was left alone for her
courage.

Mr. A. T. Webster, a blacksmith and waggon maker at
Kimberley, who being a member of the local Highland Volun--
teer Corps, fought in the trenches during the siege, writes thus —
•* I will give a brief outline of what occurred on Jan. 2Sth. A
j3-pounder shell entered through the roof of my house and

376

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.

exploded in the dining-room. Our boy, Andrew, who is five
and a half years old, had half his face cut away, and his right
leg and arm broken. He died three hours afterwards. Douglas
— who will be three on May and — had his arm and leg broke,
the former so badly that it was just hanging by a bit of skin,
but the doctor managed to save it, and the boy is already able
to use it. The leg is still giving a bit of trouble, and he will
very likely have to undergo another operation. Our eldest girl
Jessie, had a small piece of shell through her arm, but it was
nothing worth speaking about. My wife met with a very seri-
ous disaster and had to have her leg amputated about three
inches above the knee. She is at home again and manages to
get about fairly well on crutches. We had a baby born on
Jan. 4th, but it died on the 7th, and you may imagine what a
state she was in when the accident happened."

The following figures and information derived from official
sources will serve to show the magnitude of the task with which
our transport and commissariat departments had to cope. We
give the totals of men, horses, guns, and waggons sent from
England since the despatch of the first detachment of the Army
Corps on October 20th.

Month.

No. of
Ships.

Officers
and Men.

Horses.

Guns.

Waggons
and Carts.

1899.

October

32

28,679

3,680

76

360

November ...

3»

29,178

5,559

100

522

December ...

23

I9>453

3,275

61

335

1900.

January

34

27,759

6,023

117

448

February

39

33,604

5,596

28

117

March

35

28,428

4,397

23

137

April

19

11,492

4,340

2

32

May

II

7,200

2,623

2

0

June (first week.)

3

2,348

840

0

0

Total ...

•234

188,141

36,333

409

1,951

• Many of the transports made several journeys.

This table shows that in the 227 days since October 30th
(including Sundays) up to June, 234 transports had left England
for South Africa — roughly speaking, one per day — each carrying
on an average about 800 troops and 150 horses, besides guns and
vehicles. In addition to this great army, troops had been sent
from Australia, Canada, India, and small contingents from other
colonies, and reliefs from Malta, Crete, Egypt, etc., — in all, a total

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR. 377

of about 20,000, making the grand total of fighting men then
landed in South Africa well over 200,000

Here is a story told by Mr. Charles Williams : — After the
battle of the Modder, a soldier, carrying his rifle in his left
hand at the sling, and holding up his jaw with his right, walked
into a field hospital. As soon as a surgeon was at liberty he
said, —

" Well, my man, and what can I do for you ?"

" Och, dochter, I jist want ye to take out o' my jaw a bullet
that's knocked out two of my teeth."

"Well, sit down. Is that the only place you feel any pain?"

" Troth, that's all and that's plenty."

" But are you sure you've no pain anywhere else ?"

"Sorra bit, only I'm confused like."

" Well, no wonder— that bullet in your jaw got there through
the top of your head." And the patient recovered.

Private Roberts, Worcester Regiment, who arrived at South-
ampton on the 8th of April, told an extraordinary story of Boer
brutality.

In one of the engagements at Colenso he received no fewer
than seven bullet wounds, one each in the head, shoulder, and
the leg, and four in the abdomen.

He was left on the field of battle and subsequently picked
up by a party of the enemy, who intended to take him prisoner.
When, however, they discovered he could not walk they threw
him to the ground.

The poor fellow sustained four broken ribs by the fall. The
Boers then proceeded to rifle his pockets, helpless as he was and
suffering the utmost agony. They broke one of his fingers in
wrenching a ring from it, and partially stripped him in the pur-
suit of their heartless search.

After his rescue Roberts's life was for a time despaired of. He
has made a fairly good recovery, though the sight of his right eye
has been destroyed.

When General Macdonald was wounded he sent a trumpeter,
fifteen years old, to tell Colonel Hughes-Hallett to take com-
mand. The brave lad crawled along the fighting line, found
Colonel Hughes-Hallett wounded, and then delivered the message
to Colonel Wilson.

No fewer than 140 steamships were devoted to the transport
of troops, provisions, and stores, representing 650,000,000 tons.

After Elandslaagte, Dr. Hornabrook, riding along, came across
a party of 25 Boers who had lost their way. The doctor told
them that the British had won the battle and that they must
consider themselves bis prisoners. He ordered two of bis ser*

378 ANECDOTES OF THE WAR,

vants to take the weapons of the party, and others to march
before them, and in this way they were led to the British camp.

A trooper of the sth Dragoon Guards was offered money to
spare the life of a Boer, so he took him prisoner instead.

Another old Boer who was wounded said to a British soldier
who put his bayonet to the man's breast, "Kill me, I've killed
five of your rooinecks," but the Britisher spared him.

A Christmas box for President Kruger was — a shipload
(Karam) of war material — 40,000,000 rounds of small-arm am-
munition, 7,000 rounds of shrapnel and common shell, 4,000
rounds of lyddite shell, and 800 boxes of fuses, besides miscel-
laneous "dainties."

Lord Roberts's army has been the largest ever sent out of
England, some 200,000. At Waterloo there were only 15,000
British infantry, while in the Crimea, there were not more than
30,000. Lord Wolseley, in Egypt, had 30,000 soldiers. In the
Walcheren expedition in 1809 there were 41,000 men.

The horses of the Scots Greys at Maitland Camp were dyed
gray (Khaki).

The Marconr wireless telegraphy was used at De Aar with
success.

The Marquis of Winchester, who fell at Magersfontein, was
40. He was England's Premier Marquis, and the hereditary
bearer of the " Cap of Maintenance* before the Sovereign at
coronation.

In the confusion of the brilliant sortie from Ladysmith on
Dec. 8th, a sergeant seized General Hunter by the throat, cry-
ing, " Who the devil might you be ?' And he was startled to
find out the fact.

"The Transvaal mint has been coining 300,000 sovereigns a
month out of the gold of the Outlanders," said a journalist in
January, 1900.

The Queen's New Year present to the Tommies at the front
was 40,000 boxes of Chocolate from one firm and a like quantity
from another.

Narrow 'scapes are told by the hundred. One man had a
pipe in his waistcoat pocket, and a bullet went right through
the bowl. Sergeant Pendered, of the Coldstream Guards, was
struck on his boot, rifle, middle finger of his left hand, and the
buckle of his haversack on his chest, yet only sustained a
bruise.

Lord Ava, son and heir of the Marquis of Dufferin, being un-
attached, was accepted as a galloper by Col. Ian Hamilton, at

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR. 379

Elandslaagte, but having no horse he had to gallop on foot
and sometimes was too winded to deliver his message till he
rested, charging with the Gordons.

Mr. John Fraser, son of Rev. Colin Fraser (Dr. Moffat's col-
league) the late chairman of the Orange Free State Volksraad,
was enlisted (commandeered) by his fellow-burghers though he
had publicly opposed the alliance with the Transvaal. There
were many of his way of thinking whose shots would not count
for much.

A Natal Volunteer was paralysed with fear, and lay down
helpless, till struck by a bullet on the mouth, he rushed to the
charge like mad, crying, " Where are the devils ? Let me get at
them."

There were 5,000 Outlanders in our ranks, all mounted.

Before Ladysmith straw Lancers and bogus batteries were
put up for the aim of the Boers, as a pastime.

Two regiments were each led by a dog and another (Welsh)
by a goat.

By means of wires on the ground, the Boers, at night, were
apprized, in some instances, of the approach of the British both
by the ringing of a bell and the striking of a light.

Mr. H. Steyn, the ex-president's brother, was arrested for not
answering to a sentry's challenge and was sent to the Cape on
parole. On the way he expressed himself freely to his fellow-
travellers, condemning the Boer sieges and destruction of rail-
ways and bridges as mistakes. He said the intention was to in-
vade the Cape, but the British were too quick for his country-
men. He mentioned that at the Magersfontein or Modder
River battle, he counted 43 Boers lying dead, heaped together,
from the butts of Highlanders' rifles.

At Pepworth's Farm, near Modderspruit, after the relief of
Ladysmith, 50 coffins were found in an outhouse, left by the
Boers, whose custom was to send the bodies of fallen comrades
in coffins to the railway station nearest their farms for interment
there. They made good fuel for our camp fires.

Dutch ox-waggons, which were used for transports, are painted
gaily, and cost ^40. They are drawn by a span of 16 oxen,
worth £,10 a head, and the simple harness is worth ;^25. A very
long whip is used by the driver. The Cape vehicle is longer
and heavier than the Natal one. These conveyances have to
be licensed.

While the battle of Jacobsdal was in progress a Boer hid
himself behind a sack in a hollowed out tree trunk and sniped
from it as it floated down the river.

380 ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.

A sapper of the Royal Engineers wrote to say that their
daily diet in Ladysmith "was horses' flesh and mules' liver,
while starch made into a jelly and mixed with essence of lemon
they regarded as luxuries."

"Jumping up in alarm," penned a private of the Duke of
Cornwall's Light Infantry, describing how he slept under a
wagon cloth after Paardeberg, " I saw half a dozen mules pulling
at my covering, thinking, no doubt, that I was a sack of oats, or
some such thing." Another man had a snake round his foot
for a bedmate.

"Many a time," said a private of the and Fusiliers from
Ladysmith, "have I seen fellows of ours only too eager to sell
a pony with saddle, bridle, and everything complete for a stick
of tobacco. The highest price that was paid for a pony was
£i, but the animal was a very good one."

Writing of the relief of Ladysmith, a private said : " The
first day after our entry into the town we had served out to us
a quart of beer. Ah ! ye gods, what nectar 1 Fellows in the
other regiment offered 5s. and even los. for a quart ; but no,
none of our fellows would sell their beer for as many pounds."

Mr. R. Benyon, speaking at Liverpool on "Tommy Afloat,"
said the Admiralty had for the war in South Africa chartered
316 steamers, aggregating nearly 1,500,000 tons, which had
carried 190,000 men, over 70,000 horses and mules, and stores.

Relics of the war make quite a show at the Royal United
Service Institution in Whitehall, London. Col H. C. Cholmonde-
ley, commanding the C.I.V. Mounted Infantry, sent the Boer
Bible found in Cronje's own quarters at the Paardeberg trenches
on the day of the surrender. Captain A. St. L. Glyn, Grenadier
Guards has contributed a Boer haversack he picked up in the
trenches at Magersfontein. Its contents are a Bible, a book of
Psalms, another religious work, a mat, pens, pencil, a packet of
pins, and a candle.

Mr. Rudyard Kipling's "Absent-minded Beggar" song, utilized
by the Daily Mail, in five months brought in ;^97,ooo for the
relief of those left behind by Tommy Atkins, as well as for the
succour of the soldiers at the front.

In a letter received from Armourer Sergeant Lyons, 3rd Bat*
talion King's Own Scottish Borderers, written at Warrenton, to a
friend at Leeds, the following interesting passage occurs:— I
think the backbone of the war is now broken. There is no mis-
take about their women assisting in the fighting. I found about
six pairs of stays at the Modder. A man of the Dublins, who
was fighting here, found a woman who was dying, having been
shot below the heart. He tendered her as well as he could*

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR. 38 1

giving her water. She told him that her husband had been
killed, and being a good shot she had also used a rifle. She
said he could not be an Englishman or he would not have been
so kind (you see the impression they have of us.) He told her
that he was, or, at least, an Irishman, which amounted to the
same thing, but she could not believe it. Before she died she
gave him her husband's watch and ;^I5.

In an action before Ladysmith, a Boer shell lifted a British
tent sky-high, and out of it fell a coat. Supposing it was a man
the ambulance proceeded to the spot and found the owner of
the garment picking it up unscathed. Another shell lifted a
barrel (in which was a pig) towards the clouds, and when Barney
returned to mother earth the tip of his nose was gone, and he
was so frightened that to stop his squeaking he was stuck.

A British soldier who was shot and killed, kept a tight finger
on the trigger of his rifle, and when a Boer tried to sneak it the
dead finger still pressed the trigger, and the weapon went off",
killing the thief.

A shilling in a soldier's pocket passed with a bullet through
the fleshy part of his thigh. Another man received two bullets
in one hole in his flesh. Another bullet went into the mouth of
a Boer loaded cannon and exploded it, with a smash up.

Lady Roberts went to see the grave of her son at Colenso. It
was marked by four small sticks. The route of the army will be
dotted with grave stones, which will be historic in future cen-
turies.

The last word of many a soldier, as he rolled over shot to
die in the arms of a comrade was " Mother !"

One Salvation Army Tommy, as he advanced to the attack,
was seen to stop to pick up his New Testament, and another
as he lay his head on an ant hill to die, refused a glass of
water, which he said might do for another ; he had drank of
the water of life.

At Magersfontein a dead British officer was found stripped
naked on the battle-field, and at Spion Kop one of the surgeons
stated that some of the ofiicers' fingers had been cut off to
secure the rings. It" is said that the thieves were Hollanders
and not "true Boers."

Some of the looters in Zululand began restoring property after
conspicuous chastisement, and at Stormberg Junction, Boer girls
joined in the National Anthem I

Some of the war doctors were paid J[,yxi a year, but some of
the "nobs" £100 a week. The highest scale of payment in the

^82 ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.

Army Medical Corps is ;^r,752 per annum; 514 nurses at tlie
front, received from ;^30 a year to Two Guineas a week, accord-
ing to rank and service.

A Pontefract telegraphist at Bloemfontein, writing to his
parents, gave instances of Boer lies in the messages sent, and
he stated that a man was fined ;^ 10 for publicly saying he didn't
believe one of these messages.

At the battle just before Cronje's surrender, Mr. Kruger was
looking on and rallying waverers when a shell burst within 60
yards of him. He was in a waggonette drawn by eight horses.
He said to his jehu, " Drive for Bloemfontein," and the horses
flew as if pursued by furies. At Bloemfontein he ordered a
special express for Kroonstad and was glad to be in a safe place.

Major Karri Davis (a West Australian dealer in Karri timber,
settled in Johannesburg) was the first Britisher to enter both
Mafeking and Johannesburg when they were taken.

When Commandant De Villiers was wounded at Senekal,
General Rundle sent him a bottle of champagne, and during
the siege of Ladysmith the late General Joubert asked Sir
George White for a bottle of brandy, which he readily gave.

Many of the Dutch names of places will probably be changed
for English ones. They are either descriptive of the locality or
named after some distinguished person. Fontein (fountain)
occurs so often that one might think it was a land of waters,
which it is not. Driefontein means three fountains : Aar, ear ;
deel, deal ; mager, meagre ; Van Ryn, Rhineland ; valsch, false ;
Vryburgh, free town ; wapen, weapon ; zweer, sore ; zweren, to
swear ; volks, folks ; &c.

The Mystery of Magersfontein.

Boer versions of the battles give a view on the other side
which cannot be altogether ignored in awarding praise and
blame for the conduct of the war. Take the three days' disas-
trous fight at Magersfontein. Mr. Douglas Story, who had a
Boer telescope, says —

" The battle-ground is sadly at variance with the first conjec-
tural explanations of the fight. These placed the credit of the
Boer victory upon his trenches and his elaborate defensive works.
He was supposed to have stowed away thousands of men in
marvellously constructed entrenchments, and to have won the
battle as an engineer rather than as a soldier."

He proceeds to give a Boer account which disposes of the idea
that there was anything more than a rough line of trenches and
the wires were those of an ostrich farm. The statement was

ANECDOTES OF THE WAR. 383

that of the Free State adjutant to General Cronje on the days of
the battle, who, in addition to acting as aide-de-camp, had to
furnish President Steyn with accounts of the fighting. This
anonymous informant (who graduated at Cambridge) says : —

" Neither the general nor any one of us had the least infor-
mation to lead us to expect this attack. The general alone
seems to have been awake. As for the rest of us, we were
too startled out of our sleep to shoot, and we fired very much in
doubt as to the identity of our targets. Some of the men fell
within twenty yards of our trench, and nearly all lay within
three hundred yards. Next morning, when we could venture out
of our shelter a little, I counted eighty bodies on a space no
larger than an ordinary dining-room. Since that fight, I tell
you, I have hated the mere sight of khaki. It was horrible. The
main body was manoeuvring at the time we learned of their pre-
sence, and we simply riddled them. Oh, they were brave, those
poor Highlanders I One officer I heard cry out : ' Hurrah, boys,
we're among them !' Next morning I picked his body up with
seven bullets through it. I tell you, a man can get terribly tired
of killing !

*' One awful mistake was made by the British. They were
made to shoot with fixed bayonets. Just think of soldiers shoot-
ing at men in widely-extended order, aiming now at an exposed
limb, an elbow, or a portion of a face with a weapon rendered
utterly inaccurate by a useless and cumbersome attachment ! I
have made every possible inquiry into the strength of our forces
at Magersfontein, and my information is that we had 2,500 men
on the field, of whom 1,500 were in position. We had 243 dead
and disabled men, our heaviest loss being caused by the gun fire
directed against us while moving to take up position on our left
to oppose the forenoon attack.

" It was now that Major Albrecht with his three cannon had an
opportunity to reply to the British half-dozen of batteries. One
gun he served in person, and there he had erected two strong
schanzes, and had dug a shelter pit out from the rightmost schanze.
First he would fire from the schanze to the left, and at once his
men would haul the gun behind the other screen. There they
sponged and attended to it while the British shells burst with
marvellous accuracy all round the schanze from which it had just
retreated. Then he would fire from the second screen and haul
back to the first. If the British directed their fire against both
positions simultaneously, he retired with his iron-throated friend
to the shelter hole he had dug. There he fondled his pet,
cherished her, and revived her until it was once more safe to ven
ture out to his mantlets again."

APPENDIX,

DE WET'S ATTEMPT ON CAPE COLONY,-
THE "CLEAR UP," AND PEACE.

HAVING by his sweeping mobile columns persuaded
large bodies of armed farmers to return home under
an oath of neutrality, Lord Roberts dispensed with a
considerable colonial force and hastened to England to
succeed Lord Wolseley as Commander-in-chief of the
British Army, and with the message that " the war was
practically over." He mistook the temper of the Boer
leaders, as did others in authority, for no sooner were
the troops withdrawn than the hostile commandants, it
is said, by misrepresentations, threats, and promises,
induced the peaceful Burghers to rejoin their com-
mandoes, and thus arose the Guerilla Campaign — and
the futile invasion of Cape Colony, with more drastic
clearing movements by command of Lord Kitchener,
with a view to a speedy, peaceful, and just settlement
of the country. We append a brief synopsis of the
principal events up to negotiations for peace.

Nov. 22nd, 1900. — Oom Paul, accompanied by late
officials, had an enthusiastic reception on arriving at
Marseilles, and also at Paris, where, all shaven and
shorn, and dressed a la mode, he was almost past recog-
nition. After a little further effort to get assistance he
subsided into a private gentleman — a recluse.

Dec. 2nd. — De Wet on his way to take the Cape, was
met with near Bethulie, in Orange River Colony, our
lines commanding twenty miles on the Smithfield road.
The enemy numbered several thousands, in small bands
usually.

Dec. 5th. — After some engagements he crossed the
Caledon and made for Odendal. Knox led the chase,
but was always too late.

Dec, i2th. — The elusive guerilla broke through a cor-
don, and made a dash for Springham Nek, 2,500 men

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 385

marching through in open order, though Col. Thorny-
croft's artillery was on the crest of the hill; these were
overcome by Commandant Prinsloo.

Steyn and Piet Fourie led the charge, and De Wet,
as usual, defended the rear. Our incessant fire had no
intimidation if a few saddles were emptied. Col. White
was detached to follow up Haasbrock, (who made a feint
against the pass) and scattered the commando at night-
fall, the Welsh Yeomanry using their revolvers and the
butt end of their rifles.

De Wet made for Ficksburg, with the loss of three
guns, 50 killed and 100 taken prisoners, besides a great
amount of ammunition (6,000 rounds), and some horses.

This Commandant Haasbrock a few weeks after met
with a sad accident. With his wife, two daughters, and
ten Boers, he was following the Dutch Napoleon when
the dynamite in their waggon exploded, killing eight of
the men, and injuring Mrs. Haasbrock, so that the hus-
band got furlough to tend her.

Dec. i6th. — Encouraged by rebels, between 700 and
1000 Boers crossed the Orange River into Cape Colony
at Rhenoster Hoek, and on the i8th they occupied
Venterstad, fleeing thence to evade their pursuers, to
Steynsburg and retiring to the Zuurberg range for safety.

Cape Colony was seething with sedition, became an
unpleasant place for loyalists, and the Government was
harassed with forebodings.

There was a preliminary invasion by three columns
to prepare the way for the great advance of De Wet
and Steyn. The leaders were the two Hertzogs, Brand
and Wessels, who crossed the Orange River to the
west and made for Calvinia and Clanwilliam. They
would have occupied the Piquetberg, but for the prompt
occupancy by the Cape Cyclists. A commando under
Kritzinger made tracks for Murraysburg, and Scheeper,
crossing near Aliwal North, pressed forward to the
Steynsburg Hills. These leaders had orders to raise
recruits, arrange depots, and procure remounts, and they
secured a considerable amount of stock.

The British columns sent to meet them were — on the
west, those of Brabant, Girouad, and Haig, and on the
east Le Lisle's and Bethune's.

Y

386 APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

The Cape Dutch farmers were willing to sell their
horses to the British or to feed the Boers on the sly, but
they were not so enthusiastic in the cause of " freedom "
as to join the invaders openly, and small troops of these,
disappointed, re-crossed the Orange River for home.

Dec. 17th. — Another invasion at Zanddrift, north of
Colesberg, by 2,000 Boers. Our force made them diverge
towards Philipstown, which they occupied on the 19th,
and then went on to Houtkraal station, cutting the line.
Subsequently other bodies entered the colony and matters
there grew more serious.

Dec. 2ist. — Lord Kitchener addressed a meeting of
the Burghers who had assembled at Pretoria, convened
by their Peace committee. Several other attempts were
made for peace by sections of the Boers, and an unsuc-
cessful appeal was made by them to the Bond.

Jan. ist, igoi. — The Boer invaders to the west made a
night attack on Witteputs station and were beaten off.
Further north Delarey captured a convoy near Christiana.
Vryburg was hot with rebellion, De Villiers finding it a
good recruiting ground. A British convoy on the way to
Kuruman, and worth ^30,000 was captured. On the
other hand Col. Hackett's column at Jagersfontein took
a large quantity of stock and 1000 horses.

With martial law in the most disaffected parts, eventu-
ally extending to the whole of the Cape Peninsular, the
Cape Government's appeal for the loyal to arm for de-
fence against the invaders, (now half way to the capital)
was met with enthusiasm, and thousands of irregular
troopers were soon in the field with rifle and field glass
to guard the passes, under General Brabant.

Jan. 13th. — Gen. Brabant assumed command of the
Colonial Defence Field Force mobilised at Piquetberg
Road, about a hundred miles from Capetown on the west,
where Pickieners Kloof was held by the mounted infantry.
The railway about Matjesfontein, a hundred miles to the
right, was guarded by Col. Henniker and other leaders.
Judge Hertzog's following of 700 Boers from Clanwilliam,
Kritzinger's of 900 from Murraysburg and others from
Bechuanaland were making for a rendezvous, at Hex
River Mountain, (it was understood) where the flanks of
the opposing forces were resting.

APPENDIX — THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 387

Jan. i8th. — Col. Grey with New Zealanders and Bush-
men routed 800 raiders from the neighbourhood of
Ventersburg, Orange Colony, killing four. 1000 Boers,
led by Bach, Spruyt, and Meyers attacked Colville's
mobile column on the way to Vlaklaagte, north of
Standerton, their design being to capture our baggage,
for which purpose they used a pom-pom, while the
cavalry in the van were attacked. The Rifle Brigade,
with their bayonets, assised by 50 Standerton police,
were too much for the thieves, who left many dead on the
field.

A part of De Wet's force was engaged by Knox 40
miles north of Thaba N'Chu, near Welcome. We lost
three and the enemy five men. The gold mines had to
be defended by a thousand soldiers.

French gave battle to 2,000 Burghers in Wilge Valley,
Ermelo district, and killed four. This was the first
great movement for rounding the implacables by rapid
marches to the blockhouses.

Gen. Smith Dorrien moved up from Middlelburg, Gen.
Campbell from Erstefabrichen, Gen. Knox from Kaalfon-
tein. Brigadier General Alderson (i8th Huzzars,) con-
centrated at Baps-fontein ; Lieut. Col. AUenby (6th
Dragoons,) at Pulfontein, Brigadier General Dartwell
(commanding Natal Volunteers,) at Springs. Ermelo
became the centre of the line.

The desperadoes were now the scourge of the land,
sometimes despoiling farmers of their horses and cattle,
under threats of death, and their attacks on our posts
also made strenuous and decisive measures imperative.

The result of this sweeping movement was thus given:
296 Boers killed and wounded ; 177 Boers taken prisoners,
555 surrendered, 6 guns, and 754 rifles captured, besides
nearly 200,000 rounds of ammunition, 1,747 waggons and
carts, 6,289 horses, 126 mules, 5,621 trek oxen, 26,927
cattle, 175,514 sheep, with grain and forage in enormous
quantities seized or destroyed.

The threatened invasion of Natal was completely frus-
trated, but, as usual a large portion of the commandoes
got away. General Botha, with 3,000 men, passed
through French's widely extended lines at night, crossing
the railway in the direction for Rossenekal and the bush
veldt.

388 APPENDIX — THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

Our casuulties in this enterprise were 5 oflBcers and 41
men killed, 4 officers and 108 men woundfed.

Jan. 31st. — Col. Pilcher and Major Crewe fell in with
De Wet's force in the Tabaksberg mountains between
Bloemfontein and Smaldeel. Crewe had a Colonial
division of 700 and gave fight to a gang of Boers
ambushed on one side of the hills, when De Wet's
whole force came to the rescue and Crewe had to
retreat, leaving his pom-pom, which was "jammed," in
the hands of the enemy, after its thirteenth discharge.

Feb. 5th. — The Boers threatened to invade Marques
Lorenzo to liberate their 2,000 comrades confined there,
and to seize their arms. The Portuguese authorities
took steps to frustrate this plot. Eventually the captives
were sent to Lisbon.

200 British soldiers at Modderfontein were surprised on
a dark and stormy night by over a thousand Boers.
After we had lost 28 men killed and wounded, the little
garrison had to capitulate. The Boers seized rifles and
everything they wanted, and afterwards liberated their
prisoners.

Feb. 6th. — Louis Botha, with 2,000 men, attacked
Smith-Dorrien at Bothwell at 3 a.m. and was repulsed
after severe fighting. Gen. Spruit was killed, another
general wounded, two field cornets were among the slain,
beside 20 others of the enemy left on the field. We lost
24 killed and 53 wounded.

General French (in charge of the Transvaal forward
movement) drove 6,000 Boers towards Amsterdam, 12
miles from the Swaziland border. About 800 waggons,
with families, passed through Ermelo, with large quanti-
ties of stock, and we entered the town after some opposi-
tion. 50 Boers surrendered. The trekkers were panic-
stricken by our pursuit. What a lurid picture of misery,
even for hardy burghers, is presented by such a caravan
of homeless wanderers.

In their flight for the Pongolo Bush, the Boers even
abandoned their wounded, and we captured a convoy of
55 waggons and 15 carts, with some cattle, near Lake
Chrissie.

In the local Ermelo newspaper were found false
charges of cruelty against British troops, copied from

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 389

Irish and London journals. The wickedness of pub-
lishing such partizan libels was seen when their mad-
dening effect on the ignorant Burghers provoked out-
rages on British prisoners.

Here is an instance of brutal brigandage on Feb. 7th.
A Durban train, proceeding to Pretoria, was attacked
between Greylingstad and Heidelberg, by a party of
ambushed Boers who riddled the carriages with shots,
and wounded six civilian passengers. The object was
robbery, for as soon as the train was held up every
passenger was searched, ^25 being taken from a nurse,
and all the luggage in the train was stolen.

Two other trains were wrecked on the same line that
week, and one with supplies was only saved by an
armoured train coming to the rescue. Similar outrages
were often repeated on the Delagoa and other railways.
At Taaibosch, C. C, railway passengers were robbed,
train wrecked, and natives shot in a pit. Three of the
Boer miscreants were punished by Court Martial, being
sentenced to death, and two were imprisoned for five
years. Mr. Kruger justified the plunder as a necessary
act of war.

Feb. 12. — Meyer De Kock was shot by the Boers at
Belfast, for taking papers from Gen. Smith-Dorrien to
Botha in the interests of peace on Jan. 21st. He was
arrested at Roossenekal and tried for treason. He wrote
to his wife and children that he had done nothing wrong.
He was one of the Peace Committee in the Orange River
Colony.

To cope with the hunting down of the implacables,
36,000 men were embarked from England between
January ist and March 30th, of which 14,858 were
Imperial yeomanry, (who formed an effective component
of nearly every column,) 4,484 S.A. Constabulary, and
17,200 drafts to various regiments of militia and mounted
infantry.

At the beginning of April, Boer commandants had
furlough to attend a " Volksraad " at Boshof, when 40
Boers of all sorts and conditions re-elected Mr. Steyn
President of the Orange River Free State ! After which
there was a banquet! This beats the record for
bravado.

390 APPENDIX — THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

The great guerilla now went to Vredefort to refit for
the assembly offerees at Doornberg, about 22 miles N.E.
of Winburg. On Jan. 22nd, and the next day, he crossed
the line near Holfontein making for the grand rendezvous.
His laager included the commandoes of Froneman, Fou-
rie, Haasbruck, and others.

De Wet crossed our Thaba N'Chu-Bloemfontein line
near Israels poort. It was a good stroke of Lord
Kitchener's to recal Knox and Hamilton to entrail their
columns to Bethulie, as by this means the great Nimrod
was headed off as he made for the Orange River, just
as, after re-crossing the Caledon to Rouxville to Com-
missie Bridge, he had been dodged by his pursuers and
had to return to the Lindley district early in December.

He had collected about 2,500 men in the Winburg
district and though we held the Thaba N'Chu-Bloem-
fontein line with a chain of posts, its links permitted
the enemy to get through on the night of Feb. nth.
All that Gen. Bruce Hamilton's three flying columns
could do was to slightly engage the rearguard. Then De
Wet doubled back in the neighbourhood of Jagersfontein
Road to seize a train of transport animals, and made
Philippolis without hindrance as Brand and Hertzog
had there supplanted our magistrates by Boer landdrosts.

Many a farm had been stripped of its men-folk to
constitute this horde of invaders, whose chief object was
recruits. Among its leaders were a Cronje, De Vos,
Brebar, Wessels, (Harrismith,) Haasbrock, Theron,
Pretorius, Joubert, Steenekamp, Koetze and Kolbe ;
with two 15-pounders, a pom-pom, and a maxim, and
many Cape carts conveying ammunition, provisions, &c.
Fiet Fourie decided to act independently with his fol-
lowing, declaring that De Wet was out of his mind.

The British arrangements to meet De Wet, on enter-
ing Cape Colony on Feb. nth, were as follows: — Gen.
Lyttelton, an able officer, was entrusted with this work,
and made Naauwpoort his base. Seeing that the inva-
ders took the road to Calvinia the columns were
echeloned, Plumer on the direct rear, Crabbe and
Henniker moving west to make the next parallel, with
De Aar and Britstown as their base. The Cape
Cavalry Brigade under Bethune were the next parallel

APPENDIX — THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 39I

from the Richmond Road, on the Britstown and Prieska
line; Col. Haig was stationed at Frureburg Road, while
Thorneycroft was to form a southern line. Gen. Knox
and Gen. Bruce Hamilton were to hold themselves
ready to support Plumer if De Wet should be brought
to a stand. Another column was ordered from Kim-
berley, to act if the Boers broke back to the Orange
River from the Britstown district. De Lisle waited at
Carnarvon ready to receive the hero of a hundred hunts,
and Colonel Gorringe was to pay attention to Mr.
Kritzinger.

Plumer entrained to Colesberg with Queensland M. I.,
Imperial Bushmen, and two squadrons of the First
King's Dragoon Guards under Col. Owen, who came in
touch with the enemy at Philipstown, on March 13th.
De Wet moved westward, across the railway in the
vicinity of Houtkraal, nipped by two armoured trains
and the column under Col. E. Crabbe. It was here that
the enemy lost a gun and a maxim, the whole of his
ammunition transport, and many prisoners, but he
managed to take away two pieces of ordnance.

Unfortunately a detachment of the King's Dragoons
under Major S. B. Smith, fell into the enemy's hands and
had to tramp after him, till thoroughly exhausted, on
foot. Smith was sjamboked for complaining that they
could go no further.

The Boers under Brand and the Hertzogs being re-
ported as going northward upon Prieska, it was necessary
to change the order of our operations. Plumer pressing
the enemy so closely, the other columns could not assist,
and all that was done was to confine the enemy for a time
in a bend of the river.

At this juncture Rimington's Scouts encountered a
commando coming from Houwater towards Britstown,
and after a skirmish the foe vanished. De Wet recross-
ed the railway near Pauwpan station, trekking for the
Orange River. Thus the careful scheme to trap him had
failed; and so had failed thus far the Boers' chance of
recruiting.

The invasion of the Cape on Feb. nth and 12th,
was a complete fiasco. De Wet, in a short jacket, with
his lieutenant Steyn, in a blue suit, crossed the Orange
River near Zand Drift, in several bodies, hotly pursued

392 APPENDIX — THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

by Col. Plumer, who routed them from disloyal Phil-
ipstown, capturing a gun. The swashbuckler's reverse
here was due to the 60 Victorians under Captain Tivey,
who galloped to the rescue of the Yeomanry Patrol
holding the gaol. By reaching a commanding kopje the
Colonials withstood the commando of 400 men under
Van de Merve, emptying some of their saddles. After
a day's fight the Boers skedaddled when they spied
more Victorians arriving (under Major Clarke and Major
Granville-Smith). It caused the invader to turn back
on his pursuers. He had made westward, crossing the
Kimberley line north of De Aar, to join Hertzog, and
on the way blew up two culverts. Our echeloned squad-
rons, miles apart, were after him, but hampered by too
much luggage.

Feb. i6th. — Col. Crabbe moved out of Houtkraal at
daybreak and got up with the enemy two miles from
the station, making towards Britstown. Our two 15
pounders laid low 65 killed and wounded Boers, with
the assistance of two naval 12 pounders brought up by
Capt. Nanton's armoured train. The Boer leaders fled
helter-skelter, and we captured 100 ox-waggons and
carts, also a spring waggon and an ambulance waggon
containing 100,000 rounds of rifle ammunition, 6,000
pom-pom shells, several boxes of 15 pounder ammuni-
tion, and 30 prisoners in a tattered state, some of them
shoeless. Our casualties were two officers of the 3rd
Dragoons, one officer of the Australian bushmen and
one private wounded.

It was discovered that De Wet, finding himself headed
in the chase, had bolted, leaving the fighting to his
lieutenant Froneman, with a thousand men, a pom-pom
and a 15 pounder, who had been sent against Hopetown
on the Orange River colony border. Abandoned by his
chief, this poor fellow lost all but a few carts, hundreds
of his distressed horses being abandoned in the flight.
He was glad to be rid of 65 yeomanry and some other
troopers he had captured, and they were not sorry to
have no longer to follow on foot the galloping invaders
in their retreat, especially as the karoo was a wide
expanse of deep mud through the frequent heavy
showers.

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 393

Feb. 17th. — Lord Kitchener and stafiF had a narrow
escape on their return to Pretoria from De Aar. At
Klip River, 15 miles south of Johannesburg, his baggage
train was attacked and the engine and four trucks blown
off the line by dynamite. A pilot engine alarmed the
passenger train that followed, and by an armoured train
from Elandsfontein the raiders were scattered.

Having driven the invaders to the Orange River for
the most part, they searched in vain for a ford in the
swollen river near Bethulie and then returned to the
Zuurberg Ranges, where they were found buck hunting.

No less than 17 columns, under Gen. Inigo Jones,
joined in chasing Kritzinger's scattered commandos, with
the object of a pitched battle on the banks of the Orange
River, which was now 5 feet higher than at this time
the year before. At Land Drift Col. Crabbe met with
one party, seizing 300 horses, with arms and ammuni-
tion, the Boers escaping to the hills.

Feb. 2ist. — Little had been heard of Lord Methuen's
column of Imperial Yeomanry and Australian Bushmen
since they started to clear the district between Vryburg
and Klerksdorp, and yet they had done good work in
many a skirmish. Passing through Scheizner Renecke
to Wolmaranstadt they fell upon a laager and captured
54 Boers, 52 waggons, 20 cape carts, 3 sacks of small
ammunition, 100 horses, 2000 head of cattle, 10,000
sheep and goats. The next day they moved on to
Hartebrestfontein, where they had to contest for the
passage of a nek. Our regiment of 1000 men had to
reckon with 2000 Boers and luckily a reinforcement by
the loth L Y. helped us to take the position, the enemy
leaving behind them the remainder of their live stock.
We sustained a heavy loss — 50 killed and wounded, and
20 dead Boers were counted on the field, our guns having
accounted for most of them. When our troops reached
Klerksdorp our foray had yielded 60 prisoners, 25.000
sheep and goats, 5,000 cattle, 200 horses, 80 waggons
and carts.

Feb. 24th. — De Wet suffered h'n worst defeat, barely
escaped near the Orange River at Disselfontein, 20 miles
N.W. of Orange River Station. When he entered the
Cape Colony he had 1,500 men, four Maxims, and two

394 APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

Hotchkiss guns, according to James Smit, a captured
Free Stater; when the guerilla chief attempted in vain
to re-cross the swollen river (in some places i6J feet
deep), he had no cannon and but 300 men.

Col. Owen, with detachments of King's Dragoons,
Victoria Imperial Rifles, and Imperial Light Horse, came
upon De Wet's laager near Read's Drift early in the
morning, and at once seized the guns mounted on an
adjacent farm — a 15 pounder and pom-pom. A shell
among the boiling pots produced a stampede, some
making for the farmer's boats, and we captured 50 men
who were loiterers, and blankets, overcoats, saddles,
&c., enough to fill three buck waggons. Some Boers
swam across the torrent and others were drowned. It
was a case of "save himself who can," as Steyn told
them in a parting address.

Owing to the rains the river rose five feet by the next
day, and the main body of the raiders, being balked as
to a retreat through any drift, had no alternative than
to double back in a westerly direction, recrossing the
Kimberley line at Kranskaail on Sunday. Thorneycroft's
Mounted Infantry joined in the chase, and six columns
got the signal to converge on the scattered burghers.

De Wet was driven into a corner, where the railway
from De Aar admirably served our purpose in landing an
army en masse within a few hours. As many as fifty
trains a day were run, the officials working uninterrupt-
edly for nineteen hours at a stretch.

In consequence of the heavy thunder-storms, producing
torrents of rain, and our slow convoys, De Wet and
Steyn were able to reach Petrusville, where the Boers
under Hertzog and Brand joined them, making a force
of about 2,000. With five carts they passed South Kop,
20 miles south-east of Hopetown, on the 24th. On the
following night they had reached Philipstown, 70 miles
from the scene of the 23rd.

On passing through Strydenburg in their • flight the
Boers wreaked their vengeance on the Post Office and
looted the Stores. De Wet's route was lined with dead
and dying overwrought horses and mules.

Dodging his pursuers the enemy at length turned east-
ward for a ford. Now and again a patrol would stumble

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 395

on a dozen or so of shoeless, shaggy Burghers, with an
orange ribbon round their faded hats, and in one case
300 of them bolted at the sight of six khakis, leaving
behind their picnic utensils.

March ist. — De Wet at length found a drift at Lillie-
fontein four miles west of Colesberg Road Bridge, and
crossed into the Orange River Colony, pursued by
Thorneycroft and others. On the way we captured 200
stragglers, while 80 daring men of Kitchener's Fighting
Scouts, under Colenbrander, were taken by a superior
body of Boers. The point of fording was 18 miles N. of
Colesberg, and the running of the water was so strong,
that five carts were left on the south side. Thirty Boers
were drowned.

March 3rd. — De Wet headed for Philippolis, then
finding British troops there, he turned for Fauresmith,
50 miles from the river crossing, and proceeded north-
ward unmolested.

Haasbrock and Steenkamp, two of De Wet's adju-
tants, attended a council of war, in his absence, near
Philippolis, when Steenkamp, declaring that he was sick
of the hopeless raid, decided to return home with his
commando.

Kritzinger, (a colonial,) who was located at Pearston,
now became the object of our kharki Cape huntsmen.
He had a small commando in the neighbourhood of his
farm, and was easily moved on by the approach of our
patrols.

March 3rd. — Delarey attacked our garrison of 480 men
at Lichtenburg (40 miles S.E. of Mafeking,) and we lost
two officers and nine men of the Northumberland Fusi-
liers and 16 wounded. Other regiments lost 2 killed and
10 wounded. The Boers numbered 1,500; commandants
Smuts, Celliers, and Vemaas co-operating. Col. Money
drove them out at the end of a hard day's fight. Seven
Boers were captured and many slain, for their carts were
carrying away the dead and wounded all night. Celliers
was injured.

March 8th. — A brush at Jagersfontein cost us 3
killed, ID wounded, and 3 missing.

Mistaking an armoured train for a horse train at
Roodehoogte in Cape Colony, the Boers allowed it to

$g6 APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

approach within firing distance and 40 of them were
killed.

March loth. — Lord Mathuen captured, afterwards
released, wounded in thigh. Two trains were wrecked
and looted between Belfast and Middleburg, and one de-
railed next day, making 21 such outrages since the
British occupation of Homati Poort.

March nth. — Being routed at Aberdeen, Scheepers'
commando made for Murraysburg, 80 miles south of De
Aar, but were prevented entering the village by Colen-
brander. Cols. Parsons and Scobell, with guns, did
59 miles under 25 hours for the same purpose. Leaving
five corpses on the veldt the Boers trekked for Graat
Reinet (the centre of their previous operations) before
our supports came up. When the Burghers were here
last the Dutch inhabitants received them with open
arms.

A party left Colesberg to repair the telegraph at
Philippolis, accompanied by a force of mounted infantry
under Captain Taylor, of the Royal Lancaster Regi-
ment. The next day they were surrounded by Boers
and lost one man killed and six missing. Reinforce-
ments under Major Tothill (Royal Garrison Artillery,)
with guns and an ambulance, arrived in time to save the
detachment.

On March nth the Boers attacked a train at Wilge
River, near Balmoral, on the Delagoa line by blowing
it up with dynamite, when 600 of them swooped down
from their hiding place, and met with a warm reception
from eight men in a stone blockhouse 300 yards from
the scene of the explosion, who kept the enemy at bay
for two hours. Eventually, however, some of the Boers
reached the train and 40 of our men in it surrendered,
but afterwards escaped. Three of our men were killed.
A Boer was seen to shoot dead eight natives at close
quarters.

Our reinforcements arriving the miscreants were
chased and 15 killed.

On March 14th a column under Lieut. Col. Park,
Devonshire Regiment, by a 12 miles night march from
Lydenburg, assisted by a troop of Irish Fusiliers and
some of the Royal Irish Rifles from stations on the

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 397

Delogoa line, captured a Boer laager at Krugerspost.
We had one killed, and four wounded; the Boers' loss
was one killed, five wounded, 32 taken, with live stock
and grain. The notorious Commandant Abel Erasmus
with his family, was also brought into our camp.

March 15th. — Col. Gorringe had a fight with Kritz-
inger's commando at Ransfontein Poort. The foe's 400
horses, arms, and clothing had all once belonged to the
British, and it was no wonder that at Winterburg 24
of the Colonial Defence Guard mistook a Boer squad
for comrades and were captured. At the end of the
day Gorringe seized the defile for which he had fought.
The Boers had nine killed and many wounded. Our
losses were small.

March 20th. — Col. Scobell engaged Fouche, Malan,
and Scheeper at Blaauwkrantz. The enemy had been
driven from Graaf Reinet. Grenfell's column joined in
the attack as well as Kitchener's Scouts. There was a
night advance, and at 4 a.m. we took the foe by sur-
prise. The main body had two guns under Capt. Donne
and received a heavy fire, but ultimately the Boers
skipped from kopje to kopje, the left section of K bat-
tery doing much execution among the enemy's horses.
The Boers made off towards Jansenville on the Sunday
River. We buried 4 Boers and found two others killed
and 4 wounded. 100 horses were captured in good con-
dition and 50 wounded ones were destroyed. We had 3
men killed and 4 slightly wounded.

In a fight at Doornberg with General Williams, Com-
mandant Philip Botha (brother of Louis and Christian,)
was killed and his two sons wounded. He had taken
a prominent part in the war both in Natal and the
Orange River Colony.

Severe fighting took place at Haartebeestfontein, 14
miles east of Klerksdorp, in the south-west of the
Transvaal.

Gen. Babington sent out 200 men of the Imperial
Light Horse with a gun to reconnoitre, and encountered
Delarey. After holding a position for two hours and a
half, the Boers made o£f on reinforcements appearing.

Col. Fred Meyrick with 5th Battalion Imperial Yeo-
manry, held on bravely till, at 3 p.m., we got through

398 APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

the pass, and entered the town. The Boers lost heavily,
and we had lo killed and 40 wounded.

March 23rd. — 400 Boers wrecked part of a supply
train at Vlaklaagte, and took away two waggons of food,
besides several carts full. General CampbelPs column
arriving at Standerton, was able to protect the line better.
He brought in some trophies of his campaign from Vrede.

Delarey, assisted by Smuts' commando, who had been
a great trouble in the Potchefstroom district for some
months, came to grief to-day. Babington, augmented by
Shekleton, attacked 1,500 Boers to the south west of
Ventersdorp, and after a stiff fight drove in the rear-
guard, with the result that we captured the convoy, in-
cluding the guns, at Vaal Bank. The capture embraced
two 15-pounders, one pom-pom, six maxims, 320 rounds
of gun ammunition, 15,000 rounds of small arm, 160
rifles, 53 waggons, 24 carts with supplies, and 140
prisoners ; 22 Boers were killed and 50 wounded, but our
losses (including a brush on the 22nd,) were ten killed
and 25 wounded.

While Sir A. Milner, assisted by an Executive Council
for the Transvaal, was settling the municipal govern-
ment of Johannesburg with a view to the working of
the gold mines, the Orange River Colony was put under
General Elliot, with Bethune, Beatson, Broadwood,
and De Isle; C. Knox, with Pilcher and Thorney-
croft ; Lyttelton with Hickman, Haig, Bruce Hamilton,
and Rundle; making columns of 20,000 men, in addi-
tion to Ridley's mounted police, in four military districts.
By this means the several districts obtained a closer and
more effective supervision. With certain general instruc-
tions, each district commander had a free hand as to his
military movements.

When the O. R. F. S. Executive was captured, except-
ing StejTi, (who fled in deshabille on horseback) it was
found by a letter that Secretary Reitz had suggested
surrender. The treasury contained ;^i2,ooo.

A rapid advance to Pietersburg, with a concentrated
movement by half a dozen regiments, easily cleared the
Northern Transvaal of hiding remnants of Boer com-
mandos. It was a military pic-nic in romantic regions.

Eventually by armistice the Boer leaders came

APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN. 399

together, and on May 31st, 1902, the terms of surrender
were signed, by which ;^3,ooo,ooo was allowed for re-
patriation, and a representative government as soon as
possible. At the surrender the Boer army numbered
17,661. The signatories at Vereeniging, were Lords
Kitchener and Milner, Mr. Steyn, Generals Bremner and
Christian De Wet, Judge Hertzof, Generals Schalk
Burger, Reitz, Louis Botha and Delarey. The number
of Boers captured or surrendered to May 12th, 1902, was
62,664. During 8 months Lord Kitchener reported the
capture of 8,946 rifles, 789,869 rounds of ammunition,
3,138 waggons, 34,242 horses, and 167,578 cattle.

June 2nd. — Peace rejoicings universal.

June 8th. — Peace Thanksgiving Service at Pretoria;
extraordinary enthusiasm.

Botha and other Boer generals aided in getting the
surrenders, which amounted to 22,000 men since the
armistice.

The total British force in the field at the close of the
war, excluding local men, (which were about 25,000) was
202,000. Total number of our men engaged in the field
during the war, 448,435. Total deaths in South Africa in
our army, 21,942 ; missing, 105; invalids sent home who
died, 508 ; invalided from further service, 5,879. Killed
in action, 5,774, wounded, 22,829.

Boers killed in action, 3,700 (so far as published ;) died
in exile, 700 ; died in concentration camps, 19,000 ; total
Boer deaths, 23,400.

As to the cost of the war. It was officially estimated
at ;<f 223,000,000, when peace was signed. Since then the
estimate has risen to nearly /30o,ooo,ooo, through claims
for compensation. /15, 000,000 were paid for the re-
settlement of Boers, military receipts, and other com-
pensations under proclamations, — so that the pacification
of the country was rapid. In a short time 100,000
people had been put back upon their farms.

Mr. Chamberlain's flying visit did much to allay irrita-
tion, and inspire confidence. The tour, began in Novem-
ber, 1902, closed at the Cape on Feb. 17th, 1903. The
Colonial Secretary travelled 2,281 miles by train, trekked
215 miles across country, visited twenty-four towns and
villages, made thirty-two speeches, received fifty deputa-

400 APPENDIX— THE GUERILLA CAMPAIGN.

tions, and partook of eighteen luncheons and banquets.
His message was peace and that the colonies should pay
the war bill.

He confessed to having made one mistake. He found
that the Boers were not guilty of the ill-treatment of the
Kaffirs and other natives, but that in the war, the Dutch-
men had been able to leave their families in the care of
the blacks.

The Pretoria Town Council, elected by our Govern-
ment to represent various interests, gave notice of resign-
ing in favour of an elective municipality so that the ques-
tion of the commonages might be legally tested — the
first sign of friction with the Dutch in our administration.

A thousand natives from British Central Africa were
approved by the Government to work in the gold mines,
under strict regulations, to test a difficult problem. The
liquor traffic among the natives was prohibited. Having
gone to war on behalf of the gold miners largely, we were
now labour touts.

By the absorption of the new colonies British sover-
eignty over the whole South and Central Africa embraces
an area of over a million and a half square miles, and a
length of country, stretching in a continuous line from
Northern Rhodesia to the south of Cape Colony, of 2,000
miles. The territory under British jurisdiction south of
the Equator is thus almost exactly the size of India.

The following table shows roughly the extent of the
South African British possessions : —

Square Miles.

Cape Colony 277,151

Natal and Zululand 29,434

Basutoland 10,293

Bechuanaland 386,200

Transvaal Colony 119,139

Orange River Colony 48,326

Rhodesia ... ... ... ... 600,000

Central Africa Protectorate ... 42,217

1,512,760

W. NICHOLSON AND SONS, LIMITED, PRINTERS, WAKEFIELD.

DEC 1 6 1985

A 000 633 475