Majuba Hill in 1900—We march on Wakkerstroom and occupy Sandspruit—Withdrawal of H.M.S. Forte's men and Naval Volunteers from the front—Action under General Brocklehurst at Sandspruit—I go to hospital and Durban for a short time—Recover and proceed to the front again—Take command of my guns at Grass Kop—Kruger flies from Africa in a Dutch man-of-war—Many rumours of peace.
Saturday, 16th June.—Starting about 10 a.m. I rode over to Laing's Nek with Captain Jones and Lieutenants Hunt and Steel, taking Charlestown on our way and getting up to the railway tunnel where Clery's Division is encamped. The Boer scoundrels have blown down both ends of the tunnel, blocking up the egress, and putting a dead horse at each end! We found also a deep boring they had made over the top of the nek through the slate with the object of reaching the roof of the tunnel and exploding it; but this having failed, from our friends not getting deep enough, the damage is insignificant and the rail will be cleared by the Engineers within a few days. We rode along the top of Laing's Nek and looked at the trench, some three to four miles long, which the Boers had made there; it completely defends the nek from every point of attack and gives the defender, by its zigzag direction, many points for enfilading any assaulting party. In fact, the work is marvellous; the Boers must have had 10,000 men employed on it, the trench being some five feet deep on stone and slate, with clever gun positions, stretching from Pougwana, to the east of the nek, to Amajuba on the west, as we saw plainly later on from Majuba and elsewhere. We rode up Majuba Hill as far as we could, finding it a great upstanding hill with a flat top overlooking the nek. On the way we passed many small trenches and sniping pits evidently made for enfilading fire. From the top of the grassy slope (when it became too steep for the horses to climb) we commenced the ascent of the actual hill on foot, climbing, one might say, in the footsteps of the Boers of 1881 when they made the wonderful attack on Colley and turned his men off the top. Right well can we now understand how they did it; it is almost too clear to be credible to us, and one cannot but regret the omission of the English force to hold the spurs of the mountain when occupying the top, seeing that any attacking party, safe from fire from the top of the hill on account of the projecting spurs, could get up untouched to within a few feet of the top of this northern face; this is what the Boers did while holding poor Sir George Colley's attention by long-range fire from the valley below. We saw what must have been the very paths up which the Boers crept, and when it came to the point where they had to emerge the slope was precipitous but short; here, so records tell us, by a heavy rifle-fire while lying flat on their stomachs, they drove our men off the sky-line, and once at the top the whole affair became a slaughter. Climbing this last steep bit as best we could, we reached the flat top quite blown and found it about 300 yards wide with the well-known, cup-shaped hollow, in the centre of which lie our poor fellows buried in a wire enclosure—sad to say twenty-two bluejackets among them, beside Gordons, King's Royal Rifles, and others. An insignificant stone heap marks the place where poor Colley was shot, and on one stone is put in black-lead "Here Colley fell." The sky-line which our men held had only a few small rocks behind which they tried to shelter themselves but no other defence at all in the shape of a wall or trench. All the east and south faces overlooking the nek have now (nineteen years later) been very heavily trenched by the Boers at great expense of labour; they were evidently expecting we should attack and perhaps turn them out of Majuba, although the slope of the hill on the south side is quite too precipitous for such an operation. I picked up some fern and plants near where Colley fell, as a memento. We took an hour and a half to get down again, meeting General Buller and his Staff walking up to inspect the hill, and I rode back ten miles to Volksrust blessed with a headache from the steep climb and strong air. The view from the top of Majuba, showing the Boer trenches on Laing's Nek, was wonderful; well might they think their position impregnable and well might we be satisfied to have marched through Botha's Pass and forced the enemy to evacuate such an impregnable place with so little loss to ourselves.
Sunday, 17th June.—Left Volksrust early to march on Wakkerstroom, news having come in that General Lyttelton was somewhat pressed and was unable to get on. Our march was uneventful, as we only passed the usual farms with white flags and batches of Dutch women—as mischievous as they pretend to be friendly. Bivouacking for one night we got to Wakkerstroom—a march of twenty-eight miles—on the 18th, bivouacking outside the usual style of town, very cold and gray looking, one or two tall buildings, and situated in a treeless valley at the foot of some high hills. Very cold and wet.
Wednesday, 20th June.—Moved away from this spot the same way we came, and had no incident except hard marching; we passed Sandspruit on the Pretoria line, which we found undefended. Lees, the Naval A.D.C., here came up and told Captain Jones that the General wanted him. He rode off in a great hurry, first asking self and Halsey whether our small commandos wanted to stop or go off. We both replied "Stop, and see it out." Captain Jones came back to say that the Forte men and the Natal Naval Volunteers were to be withdrawn, and the 4.7 guns to be turned over to the military; we are to remain. He did not seem to know whether to be glad or sorry but told us that Admiral Harris had wired to the Commander-in-Chief that he wanted the Forte men for an expedition up the Gambia on the west coast. Such is the Naval Service, here one day and off the next.
Friday, 22nd June.—The 11th Brigade and Naval guns marched off at 9 a.m., leaving myself with the 18th Hussars, Dorsets, 13th Battery R.A. and so on, to defend Sandspruit Bridge. I was very sorry to say good-bye to Captain Jones and all, especially Hunt, Steel and Anderton, after our seven months' campaigning and hardships together, and I feel quite lonely. General Hildyard introduced me to General Brocklehurst who commands here. We selected gun positions and got the 37th Company R.E. to make two emplacements for my guns. I had a look at the bridge at which the Boers had fired gun shots to carry an important trestle away, but they did but slight damage.
Saturday, 23rd June.—Rode about all day looking at the defences with our Brigade Major (Wyndham), selecting positions and giving my opinion on some of them. Was asked to lunch with General Brocklehurst and Staff (Wyndham of the Lancers, Corbett of the 2nd Life Guards, and Crichton of the Blues) and had tea with them as well—all a very nice lot. Trains are running through to Standerton where the Commander-in-Chief and General Clery are at present.
Sunday, 24th June.—A quiet and cold day. Called on the Dorsets and found that Colonel Cecil Law is a cousin, and very nice and kind.
Monday, 25th June.—A hard frost and heavy mist. General Brocklehurst moved out with the 11th Hussars, two guns of the 13th Battery, my own guns, and a Company of the Dorsets, against some Boers who had been often sniping us and our guides from the Amersfoort Road. We got into position about 2 p.m., and had a small action lasting till dark; my guns clearing the ridges on the right at 4,500 yards with shrapnel, while the Hussars and guns advanced over a high ridge in front. Here the Boers resisted and retired, but on our drawing off into camp later on, to save the daylight, they came after us in full force and we had a small sort of action with lots of firing; we gave them fifty shrapnel. The General seemed pleased with our shooting. Trekked back to camp and dined with Colonel Law and the Dorsets who fed us up right well. Sent General Brocklehurst and his A.D.C. some damaged and fired brass cartridge cases which they wanted as a memento.
Thursday, 28th June.—About 2 p.m. a Flying Column from Volksrust passed through here to follow up the Boers at Amersfoort. This war certainly seems likely to last a long time.
Friday, 29th June.—To-day General Talbot Coke with a Flying Column moved out at 8 a.m. supported by the 18th Hussars and some of our guns, but he had to fall back in face of a superior force of 2,000 Boers and 6 guns against him. We had some twenty casualties.