FOOTNOTES:

FOOTNOTES:[A]In this action 15 officers and 560 men were reported missing. The great majority of these were captured, but were released on December 16.[B]Of these, 293 officers and 7052 men have been released or have escaped, and 4 officers and 92 men have died in captivity.

[A]In this action 15 officers and 560 men were reported missing. The great majority of these were captured, but were released on December 16.

[B]Of these, 293 officers and 7052 men have been released or have escaped, and 4 officers and 92 men have died in captivity.

FOOTNOTES:[C]Of these, 243 have died, 1570 have been discharged from the Service as unfit, and 654 are in hospital.[D]This total includes a number of men reported “missing” who subsequently rejoined, but whose return has not yet been notified.[E]The difference between these two numbers is due to the fact that the great majority of the men invalided home have recovered and rejoined for duty. (See note B.)

[C]Of these, 243 have died, 1570 have been discharged from the Service as unfit, and 654 are in hospital.

[D]This total includes a number of men reported “missing” who subsequently rejoined, but whose return has not yet been notified.

[E]The difference between these two numbers is due to the fact that the great majority of the men invalided home have recovered and rejoined for duty. (See note B.)

T. C. & E. C. Jack. Edinburgh.MAP ILLUSTRATING GENERAL BULLER’S CAMPAIGN IN NATAL—MAY-JUNE 1900.

SOUTH AFRICA AND THE TRANSVAAL WAR

TO QUEEN VICTORIA

“May children of our children say,‘She wrought her people lasting good;‘Her court was pure; her life serene;God gave her peace; her land reposed;A thousand claims to reverence closedIn her as Mother, Wife, and Queen;‘And statesmen at her council metWho knew the seasons when to takeOccasion by the hand, and makeThe bounds of freedom wider yet‘By shaping some august decree,Which kept her throne unshaken still,Broadbased upon her people’s will,And compass’d by the inviolate sea.’”—Tennyson.

“May children of our children say,‘She wrought her people lasting good;

‘Her court was pure; her life serene;God gave her peace; her land reposed;A thousand claims to reverence closedIn her as Mother, Wife, and Queen;

‘And statesmen at her council metWho knew the seasons when to takeOccasion by the hand, and makeThe bounds of freedom wider yet

‘By shaping some august decree,Which kept her throne unshaken still,Broadbased upon her people’s will,And compass’d by the inviolate sea.’”

—Tennyson.

Pretoria, like most South African towns, dozes in the lap of the hills, dozes tranquilly in a haven of generous nature, as dozed her Dutchmen in the midst of growing civilisation. The place from the distance is fair to the eye, poplar-groved, verdant, and picturesque, with the glimmer of red roofs cutting against the green, and veils of gauzy clouds, now grey, now purple, now azure, interlacing the hills and linking them with the sky. Its quaint, old, low-storeyed houses—in some cases thatched like bungalows—and its more modern tenements roofed with zinc, and bounded by pleasant rose-gardens tangled with flowers, seemed to the new-comers strangely suburban in contrast with the imposing Government buildings and shops which were soon alive with all the fluster of nineteenth-century money-getting.

For the great entry made, the capital was swift to resumeits everyday aspect, and trade grew even brisker than before. Famine prices reigned: though in some hotels where comforts were many, baths and sanitary arrangements were primitive. The Boers were busy “making hay while the sun shone,” consequently living became twice as expensive as in England; and, what was worse, with the enormous and somewhat voracious army to be fed, supplies threatened at no very remote date to become exhausted.

At first all things seemed to denote that the war was practically over, that nothing remained but to accept the surrender of the defeated Boers, and to settle quickly the administration of the conquered Republics. By degrees, however, disappointment set in—disappointment not unmixed with alarm. The redoubtable Christian de Wet had theories of his own; he put on his shoulders the mantle of the deposed Cronje, and set to work to show his generalship by destroying the railway in the south, cutting the telegraph wires, and generally harassing the lines of communication. Indeed, there was every appearance that the late investing forces might in their turn become invested in the capital. Postal and telegraphic communications were cut, supplies and reinforcements were menaced, and gradually the sunny outlook of conquest grew nebulous.

The defeated forces also began to concentrate at Machadodorp, beyond Middelburg, where Mr. Kruger was actively engaged in conference with his friends. They were not devoid of funds, for it was found that before leaving Pretoria the Boer officials had provided themselves with £300,000 from the National Bank, and while this sum lasted and he remained in the country, it was argued that Mr. Kruger’s schemes of bribery and corruption might be expected to continue, and even develop. Still Lord Roberts was undismayed! He had foreseen attacks on his communications, but had hazarded all on the one throw of reaching the capital before the Boers could gather together their forces for organised resistance, pushing forward in the only way possible if the conquered were to be left breathless. Napoleon’s advice to one of his marshals, “A commander-in-chief should never give rest either to the victor or the vanquished,” had been followed to the foot of the letter, as the French say.

In this notable march the marvellous genius of Lord Roberts had been shown in many ways, but in courage before all. He had adapted his fighting dispositions on a system specially suitable to the idiosyncrasies of the Boers—had observed their natural disinclination to take the initiative, their failure to act on the offensive rather than the defensive, and, on this discovery, had invented new tactics which were exactly appropriate and eminently successful. His infantry had made the centre of the advancing line to east and west of the rail, perpetually threatening the enemy with frontal attack,while active and competent wings of mounted troops unceasingly wheeled round both flanks, threatening to turn them so soon as opportunity should offer. Thus the Boers, for fear of being outflanked, were forced to extend their front till the central position—at the railway line—became too weak for resistance, and they had of necessity to retreat, and continue to retreat, till they were too exhausted to do more than run.

At the Chief’s masterly combinations, his ingenious synchronal schemes, his almost prophetic foresight regarding the positions of the enemy, and the effect of his every move upon those positions, it is impossible not to marvel—as at the amazing boldness and rapidity of execution with which was developed a design which brought him with his enormous army in little more than a month from Bloemfontein to Pretoria.

From the following general order issued on his arrival at his destination it is possible to understand the magnitude and the daring of the Chief’s plan, which, merely to read of, renders one almost breathless:—

“Pretoria,June 7.“In congratulating the British Army in South Africa on the occupation of Johannesburg and Pretoria, the one being the principal town and the other the capital of the Transvaal, and also on the relief of Mafeking after a heroic defence of over 200 days, the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-chief desires to place on record his high appreciation of the gallantry and endurance displayed by the troops, both those who have taken part in the advance across the Vaal River and those who have been employed in the less arduous duty of protecting the line of communication through the Orange River Colony.“After the force reached Bloemfontein on March 13, it was necessary to halt there for a certain period. Through railway communication with Cape Colony had to be restored before supplies and necessaries of all kinds could be got up from the base. The rapid advance from the Modder River, and the want of forageen route, had told on the horses of the cavalry, artillery, mounted infantry, and the transport mules and oxen, and to replace these casualties a considerable number of animals had to be provided. Throughout the six weeks the army remained halted at Bloemfontein the enemy showed considerable activity, especially in the south-eastern portion of the Orange River Colony, but by the beginning of May everything was in readiness for a further advance into the enemy’s country, and on the 2nd of that month active operations were again commenced.“On May 12, Kroonstad, where Mr. Steyn had established the so-called government of the Orange Free State, was entered. On May 17, Mafeking was relieved. On May 31 Johannesburg was occupied, and on June 5 the British flag waved over Pretoria.“During these thirty-five days, the main body of the force marched 300 miles, including fifteen days’ halt, and engaged the enemy on six different occasions.“The column under Lieutenant-General Ian Hamilton marched 400 miles in forty-five days, including ten days’ halt. It was engaged with the enemy twenty-eight times.“The flying column under the command of Colonel B. Mahon, which relieved Mafeking, marched at the rate of nearly fifteen miles a day for fourteen consecutive days, and successfully accomplished its object, despite the determined opposition offered by the enemy.“The newly raised battalion of the City of London Imperial Volunteers marched 500 miles in fifty-four days, only once having two consecutive days’ halt. It took part in twenty-six engagements with the enemy.“During the recent operations the sudden variations in temperature between the warm sun in the daytime and the bitter cold at night have been peculiarly trying to the troops, and owing to the necessity for rapid movement the soldiers have frequently had to bivouac after long and trying marches without firewood and with scanty rations.“The cheerful spirit in which these difficulties have been overcome and hardships disregarded are deserving of the highest praise, and in thanking all ranks for the successful efforts to obtain the objects in view, Lord Roberts is proud to think that the soldiers under his command have worthily upheld the traditions of her Majesty’s army in fighting, in marching, and in the admirable discipline which has been maintained throughout a period of no ordinary trial and difficulty.(Signed)Roberts, Field-Marshal.”

“Pretoria,June 7.

“In congratulating the British Army in South Africa on the occupation of Johannesburg and Pretoria, the one being the principal town and the other the capital of the Transvaal, and also on the relief of Mafeking after a heroic defence of over 200 days, the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-chief desires to place on record his high appreciation of the gallantry and endurance displayed by the troops, both those who have taken part in the advance across the Vaal River and those who have been employed in the less arduous duty of protecting the line of communication through the Orange River Colony.

“After the force reached Bloemfontein on March 13, it was necessary to halt there for a certain period. Through railway communication with Cape Colony had to be restored before supplies and necessaries of all kinds could be got up from the base. The rapid advance from the Modder River, and the want of forageen route, had told on the horses of the cavalry, artillery, mounted infantry, and the transport mules and oxen, and to replace these casualties a considerable number of animals had to be provided. Throughout the six weeks the army remained halted at Bloemfontein the enemy showed considerable activity, especially in the south-eastern portion of the Orange River Colony, but by the beginning of May everything was in readiness for a further advance into the enemy’s country, and on the 2nd of that month active operations were again commenced.

“On May 12, Kroonstad, where Mr. Steyn had established the so-called government of the Orange Free State, was entered. On May 17, Mafeking was relieved. On May 31 Johannesburg was occupied, and on June 5 the British flag waved over Pretoria.

“During these thirty-five days, the main body of the force marched 300 miles, including fifteen days’ halt, and engaged the enemy on six different occasions.

“The column under Lieutenant-General Ian Hamilton marched 400 miles in forty-five days, including ten days’ halt. It was engaged with the enemy twenty-eight times.

“The flying column under the command of Colonel B. Mahon, which relieved Mafeking, marched at the rate of nearly fifteen miles a day for fourteen consecutive days, and successfully accomplished its object, despite the determined opposition offered by the enemy.

“The newly raised battalion of the City of London Imperial Volunteers marched 500 miles in fifty-four days, only once having two consecutive days’ halt. It took part in twenty-six engagements with the enemy.

“During the recent operations the sudden variations in temperature between the warm sun in the daytime and the bitter cold at night have been peculiarly trying to the troops, and owing to the necessity for rapid movement the soldiers have frequently had to bivouac after long and trying marches without firewood and with scanty rations.

“The cheerful spirit in which these difficulties have been overcome and hardships disregarded are deserving of the highest praise, and in thanking all ranks for the successful efforts to obtain the objects in view, Lord Roberts is proud to think that the soldiers under his command have worthily upheld the traditions of her Majesty’s army in fighting, in marching, and in the admirable discipline which has been maintained throughout a period of no ordinary trial and difficulty.

(Signed)Roberts, Field-Marshal.”

As may be imagined, the man who could accomplish so much in so short a span of time remained unperturbed by a vision of clouds on the horizon. He knew that though with the fall of Pretoria the campaign nominally ended, there were many minor passages at arms to be expected in various parts of the two Republics. There were the remnants of Botha’s army to north and east; there were De Wet and his marauders playing havoc with lines and telegraph wires, prowling in search of ill-defended convoys, and inspirited to fresh deeds of aggression by the successful capture of Colonel Spragge’s Yeomanry; there were Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp to be occupied by Sir Archibald Hunter, and Griqualand to be finally pacified by Sir Charles Warren.

Map of the Seat of War.

Still, it was unpleasant to receive the report that while the main army had been advancing, an immense force of Boers, through a series of unfortunate mistakes, had succeeded in capturing in the vicinity of Vredefort Road, a convoy and an escort of a company and a half of Highlanders on its way to Heilbron. The outline of the unhappy affair was painful in the extreme. As the mysterious circumstances attending the movements of the convoy have not yet been fully sifted, it would be unfair to accept the numerous criticisms offered on the subject, and details regarding the capture are so lost in the “fog of war,” that it is difficult to give an account of the series of muddles that brought about disaster. It appeared that though the enemy were lurking everywhere the convoy was travelling from Winburg under escort of only a company and a half “odd” men of the Brigade with orders to pick it up at Kroonstad, which place was subsequently changed to Heilbron. At Vredefort the party were to leave the rail and go by road; but shortly it received orders to await an escortthat was being sent from Heilbron. General Hector MacDonald wired that it should not proceed further till escorted by a strong force of mounted troops, infantry, and artillery, as he himself, during his five days’ march, had been repeatedly in collision with the foe. The officer in command laagered up. Next day an orderly reconnoitred and failed to detect the presence of the enemy. Suspicion had been aroused, however, by the disappearance of a Colonial conductor, who, it seems, used the occasion to report to De Wet, who promptly seized the time and the opportunity. He sent in with a flag of truce a terse message, “I have 1200 men and five guns. Surrender at once.” An hour earlier Major Haig with 600 men, marching from Vredefort Road, had got to within two miles of the convoy, but hearing that the railhead was threatened had turned back. The convoy was therefore at De Wet’s mercy, and he knew it. He refused to give any terms, so the small party capitulated! General Hector MacDonald, in defence of his Highlanders, who were evidently not at fault, gave a concise account of the circumstances attending the misadventure—an account more trustworthy than those of outsiders—

“While the Brigade was at Wynberg, a company of the Black Watch was sent as escort to a convoy of pom-pom ammunition to Smalldeel railway station, and a day or two later half a company of Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders with captured arms and ammunition, and we were informed that they would join us at Kroonstad. The Brigade, however, instead of going to Kroonstad, marched by way of Ventersburg and Lindley to Heilbron, while the detached companies marched by the railway to Roodeval. As we were opposed—practically surrounded—for the last five days of our march, a wire was sent to Smalldeel not to send in a convoy until it could be escorted by a strong force of mounted troops, infantry, and artillery. The Commandant at Smalldeel, however, sent away the convoy under escort of the company and a half of Highlanders, with the result that it was captured. Perhaps the Commandant was acting under orders from the army headquarters, and that remains to be seen.”

Certain it was that the Highland Brigade, who had already been subsisting on frugal, one may say starvation, fare was left in a sorry plight, and fully appreciated the significance of the saying that too many cooks will spoil the broth. On the shoulders of which of the cooks the blame will eventually rest remains to be seen.

It was the opinion of some that sufficient precautions were not taken to insure the expedition’s transmission of supplies, and the entrenchment and strong fortification of small bodies of troops sent to guard the line of rail; and also that there was an insufficiently co-ordinated system of intelligence, in consequence of which commanding officers moving with detached forces were without definite information regarding the movements and destination of other forces, friendly or inimical, which might have to be encountered.

The mishaps of Sanna’s Post—the capture of the Yeomanry and other corps—were thought to have been occasioned by the absence of a general staff—a general staff trained by years of practice to the exigencies of life in the field. Such a staff of trained and picked officers was educated by Napoleon for his use under his personal supervision, while Lord Roberts, with a gigantic army of 200,000 men, had a merely improvised machine. He had certainly Lord Kitchener at his elbow, but this officer’s duties developed into those of the “handy-man”—now organiser, now fighter, now administrator in rebellious districts—thus depriving the Chief of the clockwork apparatus that should be represented by the General Staff, at a time when generals and troops, like engines and railway carriages, had to be timed to arrive and depart from stations on the hard-and-fast principles of Bradshaw.

At this date with Lord Roberts in Pretoria were two and a half infantry divisions, a cavalry division, and a mounted infantry division, Wavell’s Brigade having been left at Johannesburg, while the other half proceeded to the Capital.

General Hunter’s Division, joined by Colonel Mahon’s force, was operating at Ventersdorp, while Colonel Plumer without opposition occupied Zeerust, the officials agreeing to take the oath provided they were protected from their fellow-countrymen. Elsewhere, across the Orange River Colony, the troops were fairly well expanded. General Colvile with the Highland Brigade was near Heilbron, and south of him Lord Methuen, while at Lindley was General Paget. At Senekal and Hammonia were General Clements and General Rundle respectively. South of these again, Generals Chermside and Brabant were operating.

It was imagined that the combined vigilance of these officers had entirely protected the communications in the Orange River Colony, but on the 7th of June the unquenchable Dutchmen succeeded in cutting line and telegraph wire north of Kroonstad, and in taking prisoners most of the 4th Battalion of the Derbyshires (Sherwood Foresters), who were guarding the district. Of the battalion, the Colonel, a lieutenant, and thirty-four rank and file were killed, five officers and ninety-nine men were wounded, and the rest, save six, made prisoners!

The story ran thus: At dusk on the 4th, the Derbyshire Militia Regiment arrived at Roodeval and pitched their camp in the lee of a string of kopjes that shelved away to the west, and terminated in a high hump which, jutting out of the plain, commanded rail, camp, and the surrounding hills. Owing to the darkness it was impossible to do much in the way of reconnoitring, and though some scouts and natives warned the commanding officers that Boers had been espied in the vicinity, little notice was taken. The pickets, whichhad been posted on a range of kopjes north of the camp, were strengthened, and some few shots fired at distant snipers. Then the party laid themselves down to rest, and slept placidly. Before dawn they were awakened by the furious crackling of musketry, and even as the men turned out with their rifles, they dropped. One after another as they left their tents fell victims to the unseen foe. The fact was, the pickets had been attacked and driven in, and the enemy occupied the range which commanded the British troops. Presently the early morning was humming with shot and shell, the Boers now having brought four big guns and a pom-pom to bear on the unfortunate camp and the bald plain that surrounded it. Valiantly the militiamen, raw and unfledged warriors as they were, fought; long, bloody, and disastrous hours passed, and they, falling thick as autumn leaves, continued to hold out in a completely defenceless position till the plain was littered with dead and wounded—more than eighty of them now lying in a trap from which it was impossible to escape. Colonel Baird-Douglas,[1]wounded in four places, fought like a lion, encouraging his men, and vowing to shoot the first who should display a white flag. Then he dropped exhausted and breathed his last. Finally 420 prisoners were taken, including the following officers of the 4th Derbyshire Regiment:—

Captain J. Humber, Captain C. P. Piers, Captain A. M. W. Mohun-Harris, Captain E. M. Wilmot, Captain R. C. Fenwick, Captain and Adjutant R. Britten, Lieutenant P. C. Shepard, Second-Lieutenant A. C. Hewitt, Second-Lieutenant J. L. Heymann, Second-Lieutenant H. L. Napier, Second-Lieutenant H. M. Milward, Second-Lieutenant J. H. W. Becke, Second-Lieutenant J. H. Mathias, Second-Lieutenant H. S. Anderson, Second-Lieutenant E. N. T. Collin, Hon. Lieutenant and Quartermaster M. M’Guire. Among the killed were:—Lieutenant-Colonel Baird-Douglas and Lieutenant Horley. Among the wounded:—Colonel Wilkinson, Captain Bailey, Second-Lieutenants Hall and Lawder, Lieutenant Blanchard, Canadian Infantry (attached to 4th Derbyshire).

It was said that after the capture the commandants, on bringing the prisoners to the station, were seen cordially shaking hands with a railway official as though exchanging congratulations. This circumstance was one of many which bore witness to the innumerable acts of treachery and duplicity with which commanding officers had to contend.

Colour-Sergeant.Sergeant-Major.THE GRENADIER GUARDS.Photo by Gregory & Co., London.

On the same day, in the same locality, there was another engagement, which resulted in the capture of a number of the Railway Pioneer Corps. According to an account in theBloemfonteinPost, the corps was awakened at 5.26 in the morning by an unusual stir among the sentries. A moment afterwards a voice was heard asking, “Can any one speak Dutch?” A man, evidently a burgher, approached Captain Grant McDonnel and Lieutenants Blanchard and Hayes with a note from the Boer commandant in the vicinity, stating that he had 1200 men and five guns with him, and adding that he would give the British force ten minutes in which to surrender. The bearer, after delivering the note, went back to a large body of Boers mounted on horses, who had by this time approached so close as to be plainly visible.

The Pioneer Corps, realising their dangerous position, endeavoured hastily to improvise a barricade with a number of railway trucks, and also requisitioned a large quantity of biscuit and meat tins for the purpose. The orders of Captain Gale were speedily carried out, and soon his little force, numbering 160, were completely sheltered behind the barricade. The Boers, after waiting the specified ten minutes, and perceiving the efforts of the British to offer resistance, immediately opened fire, pouring volley after volley on the force. Captain Gale and two pioneers fell from the rifle fire, while shrapnel shells bursting near killed three men. The enemy then directed their heavy artillery on the barricades and station buildings, the latter being practically destroyed. The Boers were now only fourteen hundred yards away, and well hidden. An endeavour was made to have the wounded conveyed to safety behind a large tank, but a shell from the Boer guns exploded among the horses and the animals stampeded.

Firing from heavy guns was afterwards heard coming from the opposite direction to the Boers. Hopes were high among the gallant force that relief was at last arriving from Kroonstad. The pioneers, however, soon became too painfully aware that the firing came from another body of the enemy, who had surrounded the 4th Derbyshire Regiment the same morning. Although the firing continued, an outlying patrol attempted to reach the pioneers. The whole of the Boer guns were now worked with increased energy, and soon the want of ammunition compelled the British force to surrender. The report then went on to say that Commandant De Wet, mounted on an English charger, advanced and asked the number of British killed. Looking at the dead body of Captain Gale, the Boer commandant remarked sympathetically, “Poor man. Very sad. Bury him at once.” He also courteously allowed the body to be wrapped in a Union Jack. De Wet is a tall, heavily built man, with a brown beard. He wore a tweed suit and an overcoat, and carried a rifle and bandolier. Attached to his gold chain was a medal, on which was a representation of Kruger’s head. De Wet was very polite to his captives, and kindly expressedhis sorrow at having to destroy two thousand bags of mails. Unless he did so, he added, the young Boers would open the letters.

The bags were afterwards ripped open, and the Boers looted the baggage. One burgher found a number of bank notes as part of his spoil, while others obtained tobacco, cigars, and various medical comforts. Lieutenant Thurston, Cape Pioneer Railway Regiment, and Lieutenant Staffkett, Cape Pioneer Railway Regiment, were made prisoners. Some of the prisoners were called together and made to take off parts of their dress, which the Boers then donned. The British wounded were well attended to, and were subsequently removed to the Yeomanry Hospital at Kroonstad.

As a consequence of these attacks De Wet obtained possession of the line, which became so twisted and uptorn as to resemble unfinished Jacob’s ladders to heaven, while Pretoria found itself minus its longed-for home letters, and standing hourly in fear of running short of food. Still affairs were going on as though nothing had happened. The Town Council temporarily continued its duties. An English Burgomaster was chosen, and a new Court of Justice was established. Colonel Maxse became the head of the police, and many Colonials who volunteered for civil employment were given posts of importance. Owing to the many acts of duplicity practised by the Boers who had surrendered, more stringent regulations regarding oath-breakers were promulgated. The publication of malicious and false reports was forbidden, and a sharp look-out was kept over the movements of the spies with which the capital was still swarming.

One hundred and forty-eight officers, and 3039 men were released, and these were rearmed from the 2000 stands of arms which were given up in Pretoria on and after the British occupation. The list of the officers who had been suffering imprisonment at the hands of the Boers is a long one, and dates almost from the outset of the war:—

18th Hussars—Lieutenant-Colonel B. D. Moller, Major H. A. F. Greville, and Captain and Adjutant W. P. M. Pollock. Army Veterinary Department—Veterinary Lieutenant F. H. Shore. 1st King’s Royal Rifles—Lieutenant B. J. Majendie and Lieutenant F. M. Crum. 2nd Royal Dublin Fusiliers—Captain M. P. E. Lonsdale, Lieutenant C. Garvice, Lieutenant C. T. W. Grimshaw, and Second Lieutenant T. H. C. Frankland. 10th Mountain Battery Royal Garrison Artillery—Major G. E. Bryant, Lieutenant G. D. Wheeler, Lieutenant G. R. Nugent, Lieutenant W. H. Moore, and Second Lieutenant G. T. W. Webb (attached). 1st Gloucester Regiment—Major S. Humphery, Major W. R. P. Wallace, Captain S. Duncan, Captain Connor, Lieutenant A. Bryant, Lieutenant F. C. Nisbet, Lieutenant R. M. M. Davy, Lieutenant F. A. Brent, Lieutenant C. S. Knox, Lieutenant W. A. M. Temple, Lieutenant A. H. Radice, Lieutenant J. Ingram, Lieutenant P. H. Short, Lieutenant R. L. Beasley, Second Lieutenant W. S. Mackenzie, Second Lieutenant H. H. Smith, Lieutenant and Adjutant W. L. B. Hill, Lieutenantand Quartermaster R. J. Gray. 1st Royal Irish Fusiliers—Lieutenant-Colonel F. R. C. Carleton, Major F. H. Munn, Captain A. R. Burrowes, Lieutenant A. E. S. Heard, Lieutenant C. E. Southey, Lieutenant W. G. B. Phibbs, Lieutenant H. B. Holmes, Lieutenant A. H. C. MacGregor, Lieutenant A. L. J. M. Kelly, Second Lieutenant R. J. Kentish, Second Lieutenant C. E. Kinahan, and Second Lieutenant R. W. R. Jeudwine. Rhodesian Horse—Lieutenant A. E. Harenick. Natal Carabineers—Lieutenant A. J. Gallwey. 2nd West Yorks Regiment—Major H. de T. C. Hobbs. 2nd Northumberland Fusiliers—Major W. E. Sturges, Captain E. W. Fletcher, Captain F. B. Morley, Second Lieutenant G. R. Wake, and Second Lieutenant L. B. Coulson. 2nd Dorsetshire Regiment—Lieutenant F. W. Radcliffe. 2nd Royal Irish Rifles—Captain A. V. Weir, Lieutenant E. J. Christie, Second Lieutenant L. G. B. Rodney, Second Lieutenant P. G. W. Maynard, Captain V. J. Kelly, Captain W. J. M’Whinnie, Captain A. C. D. Spencer, Lieutenant E. H. Saunders, Second Lieutenant T. L. B. Soutry, and Second Lieutenant J. C. Bowen-Colthurst. 1st Suffolk Regiment—Lieutenant S. J. B. Barnardiston, Captain W. G. Thompson, Captain C. A. H. Brett, and Second Lieutenant F. W. Wood-Martin. 2nd Devonshire Regiment—Lieutenant-Colonel G. M. Bullock, Major J. M’N. Walter, and Lieutenant G. N. F. Smyth-Osbourne. 2nd Essex Regiment—Lieutenant W. F. Bonham. Royal Field Artillery—Lieutenant-Colonel H. V. Hunt. 66th Battery Royal Field Artillery—Major W. Y. Foster, and Lieutenant G. L. Butler (attached). 14th Battery Royal Field Artillery—Major A. C. Bailward, Lieutenant A. C. Birch, and Second Lieutenant C. F. Holford. Royal Scots Fusiliers—Captain D. H. A. Dick, Captain H. H. Northey, Lieutenant E. Christian, Lieutenant M. E. M’Conaghey, Lieutenant C. F. H. Rumbold, and Lieutenant G. C. Briggs. 1st Connaught Rangers—Captain G. H. Ford-Hutchinson, and Second Lieutenant E. V. Jones. Cape Mounted Police—Inspector E. W. Blyth, and Sub-Inspector W. A. Genllond. South African Light Horse—Captain H. Fitzherbert. 12th Lancers—Lieutenant N. M. H. Tristram. 2nd Coldstream Guards—Lieutenant H. Chandos-Pole-Gell. Reserve of Officers—Lieutenant C. M. Grenfell, late 10th Hussars. 6th Dragoon Guards—Lieutenant F. E. Till. Royal Horse Guards—Captain W. F. Ricardo. 2nd Lancashire Fusiliers—Captain W. F. Elmslie and Captain G. H. B. Freeth. Royal Lancaster Regiment—Major G. A. Carleton. King’s Royal Rifles—Major O. S. W. Nugent. 2nd Wiltshire Regiment—Major H. A. Stock. Royal Engineers Militia—Lieutenant J. H. Prior (attached Suffolk Regiment). 1st Oxfordshire Light Infantry—Major F. J. Evelegh. Kitchener’s Horse—Captain W. Vaughan, Captain A. S. Arnold, Lieutenant Burghuys, Lieutenant H. D. Duban, Lieutenant W. J. Horne, Lieutenant J. Sampson, Lieutenant L. A. Myburgh, and Lieutenant N. A. N. Black. 6th Dragoons—Lieutenant G. K. Ansell. 2nd Bedford Regiment—Lieutenant G. D. Jebb. 1st Royal Munster Fusiliers—Lieutenant D. Best (? Lieutenant T. A. D. Best. Inniskilling Fusiliers). 2nd Lancashire Fusiliers—Lieutenant-Colonel C. J. Blomfield. Victoria Rifles—Captain T. M. M’Inerney. Scouts—Lieutenant W. Hockley. British South Africa Police—Lieutenant H. Chapman. Royal Horse Artillery—Major J. C. Wray, Captain H. Rouse, Captain G. H. A. White, Lieutenant F. H. G. Stanton, and Lieutenant F. L. C. Livingstone-Learmonth. Northumberland Fusiliers—Lieutenant H. S. Toppin. Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry—Lieutenant H. T. Cantan. 2nd Royal West Kent—Lieutenant R. J. T. Hildyard. Army Service Corps—Lieutenant C. J. Croxford. Indian Staff Corps—Lieutenant R. J. Stewart (attached Army Service Corps). Roberts’s Horse—Veterinary Captain P. D. Bray, LieutenantJ. F. Hawkins, Lieutenant H. R. Horne, and Lieutenant T. J. Truter. King’s Royal Rifle Corps—Lieutenant G. H. Martin. Welsh Regiment—Lieutenant R. H. Metge. 1st Royal Dragoons—Second Lieutenant T. D. Pilkington. Royal Artillery, Staff—Captain H. T. Tennant. Durham Light Infantry—Second Lieutenant L. J. P. Butler. South African Light Horse—Captain J. C. Kirkwood. Cape Police—Captain A. Bates. Brabant’s Horse—Captain P. M. W. Little, and Lieutenant H. A. Steele. 9th Lancers—Lieutenant S. R. Theobald. Yorkshire Light Infantry—Captain G. G. Ottley. 1st Australian Horse—Lieutenant J. W. Wilkinson. 6th Dragoons—Lieutenant N. W. Haig. Prince Alfred’s Volunteer Guards—Lieutenant W. B. Everton. Lumsden’s Horse—Lieutenant C. E. Crane. Royal Engineers—Lieutenant M. T. Webber. 10th Hussars—Lieutenant Anderson Pelham, and Lieutenant Crichton. 2nd East Kent—Lieutenant W. G. F. Barnard. Eastern Province Horse—Lieutenant J. M. P. Bowker. 16th Lancers—Captain C. J. Eccles. Cameron Highlanders—Captain MacEwen. Intelligence Department—Captain L. G. Dennison. Police Magistrate—C. H. Hilliard. Newspaper Correspondents—Lord Rosslyn, Lord C. Manners, and M. H. Donohue.

The following officers, prisoners of war, were found in hospital:—

Lieutenant the Hon. D. R. H. Anderson-Pelham, and Lieutenant C. W. H. Crichton, 10th Hussars (convalescent after enteric fever); Lieutenant H. Chapman, British South Africa Police (contusion, convalescent); Lieutenant G. H. Martin, King’s Royal Rifle Corps (tonsillitis, cured); Lieutenant R. H. Metge, 1st Welsh Regiment (neuralgia, cured); Lieutenant G. C. Briggs, 1st Royal Scots Fusiliers (doing well); Major F. H. Munn, Royal Irish Fusiliers (neuralgia, cured); Major J. C. Wray, Royal Horse Artillery (convalescent); Lieutenant N. W. Haig, 6th Dragoons (enteric fever, seriously ill, but improving).

Nine hundred and ninety prisoners were removed, however, and, it was believed, were taken some forty miles from Komati Poort.

On the 8th a curious experience was related by some of the Canadian Mounted Infantry, who, happening to lose their way and pass, unchallenged, the Boer lines, found themselves at the little town of Hebron. The inhabitants imagining them to be the forerunners of a British force, promptly surrendered arms and ammunition. The Canadians, with a due sense of humour, engaged in the formalities with becoming gravity, commandeered an ox-waggon, loaded it with their booty and returned again through the Boer lines, plus eighty-eight rifles and a big store of ammunition!

The outlook was not a cheery one. The enemy, split into small factions, were bent on playing havoc north and south, and horrible rumours were afloat which contrived to annoy, perplex, and discourage those who, in the absence of newspapers and correspondence, gave rein to their imagination. General Maxwell, who was acting as Governor of Pretoria in this emergency, inaugurated a system of official bulletins, which served to distribute what intelligence theremight be, and sustain the drooping spirits of the community. The prolongation of the war, after all seemed to have been skilfully accomplished, was depressing to even the most ardent and bellicose mortals. Still more so was it to those who had had their fill of fighting, and who could not number the list of their engagements even with the fingers of both hands. It was known that Botha, after the surrender of the city, had retired with a small force to a crevice in the hills some fifteen miles east, astride the Delagoa Bay Railway, and that round him he was gathering a goodly number of burghers, who assisted him in intimidating other burghers who might have been willing to tender their submission. As all overtures towards peaceable negotiations failed, it was necessary to take definite action, and this on the 11th of June Lord Roberts accordingly did. A great combined enveloping movement was planned out. General French, with Porter’s and Dickson’s Cavalry Brigades, and Hutton’s Mounted Infantry, marched out on the left of the Chief, while General Ian Hamilton with Broadwood and Gordon’s Cavalry Brigades, and Ridley’s Mounted Infantry, and General Bruce Hamilton’s Infantry Brigade on his right, prepared to assail the tremendous frontage of the left of Botha’s position. The Dutchman, perched on a series of steep and irregular hills, and strongly protected in front, had placed most of his force on his flanks. These he knew by experience to be his vulnerable points, and against these he divined that Generals French and Ian Hamilton would be operating. General Pole-Carew, in the centre, advanced his Division, numbering some 6000 bayonets and twenty guns, in support of General Ian Hamilton. He moved eastward along the line and engaged in a duet with the enemy with long-range guns, a duet which lasted during the whole day. It was found that the enemy’s position extended some sixteen miles, their left, the Diamond Hill, being so strong and so extended that movement of an enveloping kind was thought to be almost impossible. Nevertheless, while General French (assisted by Hutton’s Mounted Infantry), through country inimical to cavalry operations, was perilously and vigorously engaged in making a wide detour in order to envelop the right flank of the enemy and hold him from swelling his numbers elsewhere, General Ian Hamilton on the enemy’s left flank (some six miles south of the line), his ambitions centred on Diamond Hill and the line of rail beyond, operated correspondingly. Far to right, in a somewhat crab-like fashion, moved the cavalry; Gordon’s Brigade—the outer pincer as it were—wheeled round the almost impregnable stronghold of the Boers; to left, Ridley’s Brigade and De Lisle’s Corps of Mounted Infantry—forming the left or inner pincer—twisted towards Pienaar’s Poort, while Broadwood’s Brigade—the head and front of the creature—endeavoured to spit forth andpierce through this central gap, and if possible get behind the Boers on Diamond Hill. Early in the day the southern slopes of Diamond Hill became the scene of contest between Ridley’s Brigade and the enemy, whose rifles poured their sleet over the advancing mass and whose guns clamoured loudly in the distance. Broadwood’s Brigade, meanwhile, began a bold advance—across a spruit and over a plain to a passage towards the railway line—an advance which was hailed more boisterously than pleasantly by a converging storm from the enemy’s heavy guns. Still the cavalry pushed forward, while Lieutenant Conolly with two horse guns was set to clear the course. But the Boers, inch by inch, stubbornly contested the way. The stentorian tones of warring artillery were heard in an argument that lasted hours, while parties of Boer riflemen approached with such audacity with a view to the annihilation of the gunners of Q Battery and the capture of their pieces, that for protection sake the 12th Lancers were ordered to charge. Unfortunately, at this critical juncture their commander, the Earl of Airlie, who already had had his horse shot under him, was seeking a new charger. He joined his regiment in time to lead to the attack, but taking a more northerly direction than was intended, he found himself exposed to a murderous tornado from the southernslopes of Diamond Hill. Nevertheless, the charge of the valiant band, small though it now was, had a glorious result. Away scudded the Boers to both sides, scattering over the distance towards Diamond Hill, while their oppressive propinquity to the British guns and Broadwood’s right flank was brought to an abrupt close. This done, Lord Airlie decided, as the horses were too jaded and overworked to engage in effective pursuit, to become no further involved. He was about to withdraw his regiment when suddenly a bullet caught him, and, almost instantly, he fell dead. Thus the Empire lost one of its finest soldiers, one of its most honourable, well-beloved of men.[2]The charge cost the regiment two officers and seventeen troopers, a deplorable loss considering its diminished size since the commencement of operations. At the same hour, while Gordon’s Brigade was heavily engaged on the right, the Boers became so obstreperous that the Household Cavalry had been ordered to charge. This order was obeyed with zest. The Dutchmen, numerous as they were, took in at a glance all that was meant by the approaching whirlwind—a flashing avalanche of naked blades—and turned tail. Away they fled over their grassy ridges, seized their horses and made off so quickly that none of the Lifeguardsmen and few of their chargers were sacrificed to the dashing exploit. It was thought that the whole body of the foe were on the move, but this was not the case. The congregating crowds of the enemy amid the scrub-covered ridges around the main position had yet to be cleared off. Accordingly, soon after noon, the 21st Brigade (Bruce Hamilton) advanced, cleverly clambering up the crests, which had previously been scoured by artillery, and finally succeeded in folding back the formidable wave of Dutchmen which guarded the line, and forcing them, such as could escape, amid a hurricane of bullets, to gallop to fresh cover. Dusk set in early, but the troops, sticking to the ground they had won, covering a front of some 25 miles, there bivouacked for the night.

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