I proceed with the column under Colonel Spreckley's command for Shiloh—A bad time for the horses—I find the bodies of three Zambesi boys at Stuart's mining camp—Account of the murders—A fort built on the site of the old police camp—March for the Queen's Mine—Part of the column sent on to Inyati—Bodies of six murdered men found—Narrow escape of Mr. Rees and his family—Church and mission houses at Inyati burnt down by the Matabele—Column move to Fynn's farm—Patrol fall in with a large body of Kafirs—Council of war decides to endeavour to drive rebels from their position—Kafirs decamp during the night—A faithful servant—Kafirs disheartened but afraid to surrender—Large amount of grain captured—Return to Bulawayo—News of the rising in Mashunaland—A force sent to Eastern Rhodesia—The prophetess "Salugazana"—Umlimos responsible for the outbreak in Mashunaland—Loot the object of the Mashunas—Captain Laing arrives at Bulawayo—His successful engagements with the rebels—Matibi's valuable assistance—Loyalty of Chibi and Chilimanzi—The Bulawayo Field Force disbanded—Lord Grey's address to the members of the Bulawayo Field Force.
Owing to the delay caused by the attack on and pursuit of the impi from the Umguza, as I have just narrated, Colonel Spreckley's patrol did not leave Bulawayo for Shiloh until the afternoon of the following day, Sunday, 7th June. This patrol comprised about 330 white men, about half of whom were mounted, 100 Colonial Boys, and 100 Friendly Matabele—over 500 men altogether.
As we did not proceed along the main road, but first took a branch track to the old Imbezu kraal, and then followed the course of the Kotki river until we struck the main road, we did not reach the site of the old police camp near Shiloh mission station until Thursday, 11th June. Up to this time we had not seen a single native, whilst all the kraals we passed had been long deserted and all stores of grain removed, so that our horses and mules, having to depend entirely on the dry scanty grass for their sustenance, lost condition rapidly.
One day we outspanned close to a miner's camp, which was situated on a rise above the Kotki river, and as I was field officer for the day and had to post the videttes, I placed two of them on the site of the mining camp. Here we found the dead bodies of three natives, who proved to be Zambesi boys who had been working at the mine at the time when the rebellion broke out. On inquiry I found that this camp had belonged to an American miner named Jack Stuart—a lieutenant in Grey's Scouts—from whom I learned, that on hearing rumours towards the end of March that a native rising was imminent, he and his partner had gone in to Bulawayo to ascertain if there was any truth in the report. Six Zambesi boys were left working in the shaft, which had been sunk on a reef just alongside of the camp, and two days later one of these boys came to town and reported that on the previous evening a party of Matabele had visited the mine, and forthwith proceeded to murder all the Zambesi boys they found there. He himself, he said, had managed to escape by running, but he thought that all his companions had been killed. A few days later, however, another of these boys turned up who had been very badly wounded and left for dead by the Matabele.
It appears that, on seeing two of his friends attacked, this boy had made a bolt for it, but was overtaken and knocked down by a heavy blow on the back of the head from a knob-kerry. He fell on his face stunned, and was then stabbed in the back with an assegai, the weapon being driven clean through him, and then twice nearly but not quite withdrawn from the wound, and again driven through him, so that, although there was only one wound on his back, there were three in front, where the point of the assegai had come through, just below his breast-bone, and his right lung must have been punctured in three different places. This boy would seem to have lain a day and a night, insensible, where he fell, but on regaining consciousness had found strength enough to walk to Bulawayo, some twenty miles distant from the mining camp where he had been knocked down, assegaied, and left for dead.
On his arrival in town he was at once taken to the hospital, and, owing to the kind nursing and skilful treatment which he received there, he in a few weeks' time completely recovered, and although he still bears the scars of the wounds which he received, his general health appears to be as good as ever it was.
On Friday, 12th June, the day after our arrival on the site of the old police camp, a fort was built, and here Native Commissioner Lanning was left in charge with a garrison of about seventy white men and twenty Friendly Matabele and a stock of provisions sufficient to last for two months.
On the following morning we struck across country towards the Queen's Mine, a property belonging to Willoughby's Consolidated Company. That night we slept on the way there, and the fresh tracks of Kafirs and cattle having been seen late in the afternoon, a patrol was sent after them very early the next morning, the column shortly afterwards getting under way and arriving at the mining camp at about eight o'clock.
Here it was found that although a good deal of property had been destroyed by the Kafirs, but little damage had been done to the machinery and pumping gear, the savages probably not having recognised its value nor been sufficiently energetic to give themselves the trouble of smashing it up. Another short trek in the afternoon brought us to the ford of the Impembisi river, on the main road between Bulawayo and the mission station of Inyati. Here the patrol which had left us in the early morning under Captain Gradwell rejoined us just at dusk, having been unsuccessful in coming up with any Kafirs or cattle, all of whom seemed to have gone down the Impembisi river.
As the mules and horses were now getting into very low condition, it was determined not to take the whole column on to Inyati, but only to send on the contingent who were to remain in garrison there under the command of Lieutenant Banks-Wright, together with another 100 men who were to return to the main column as soon as the fort was in a fair way towards completion. This force was accompanied by four waggons carrying provisions and other necessaries for the garrison of the fort, and the Rev. Mr. Rees also went with it, in order to bury the remains of the six white men who had been murdered near the police camp of Inyati on 27th March.