[Jan. 1900.
Lord Roberts conciliates the Colonials.
On January 10 Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener had reached Capetown. Their first step was to do all that was possible to stimulate the enrolment of Colonial troops. Almost immediately after landing Lord Roberts visited Rosebank Camp, where the South African Light Horse had their quarters. One regiment had already been raised and sent to the front in Natal, and now two more were added, known as Roberts' and Kitchener's Horse respectively. Furthermore, Lord Roberts appointed a distinguished Colonial officer, Colonel Brabant, who had great experience in South African war, a Major-General, and proposed that he should command a division composed entirely of Cape Colonials. This action roused general enthusiasm. Hitherto the British officers of the army had looked askance at the Colonial and pronounced his methods irregular. Indeed, so much friction had arisen between the Colonial levies and the British staff that many of the Colonials were anxious to leave the ranks, in which their only rewards were constant snubbings from the military authorities. Lord Roberts by his exquisite tact put a stop to all this. He chose for his own bodyguard these very Colonials as a sign that he appreciated their services. He soothed the ruffled susceptibilities of all, and sent everyone back to his place with the feeling that the new Commander-in-Chief was a man of exceptional detachment from his environment—free from all prejudices and from all traces of red-tape, absolutely just and impartial. And what was more, he charmed as well as soothed. It was said of the great Chatham that no one left his presence without feeling himself a nobler and a stronger man. The same was true of Lord Roberts.
[Photo by R. C. E. Nisson.
A disconsolate war correspondent amidst the ruins of his tent after a thunderstorm. The photograph illustrates how readily the dry and parched veldt is transformed into a swamp.
In all, the troops placed in the field from first to last by Cape Colony amounted to about 18,000 men, distributed in the following regiments:—
| Duke of Edinburgh's Rifles | 1,189 |
| Cape Garrison Artillery | 566 |
| Capetown Highlanders | 464 |
| Port Elizabeth Guards | 518 |
| East London Rifles | 673 |
| Grahamstown Rifles | 560 |
| Kimberley Regiment | 800 |
| Capetown United Rifles and Cape Police | 1,000 |
| South African Light Horse | 600 |
| Brabant's Horse: 1st Regiment | 600 |
| " " 2nd Regiment | 600 |
| " " 3rd Regiment | about 400 |
| Roberts' Horse | 600 |
| Kitchener's Horse | 600 |
| Railway Pioneers | 1,200 |
| Bayly's Mounted Rifles | 450 |
| Nesbitt's Horse | 400 |
| Orpen's Horse | 300 |
| Kimberley Light Horse and other Irregulars at Kimberley | 3,200 |
| Griqualand Mounted Rifles | 1,200 |
| Cape Mounted Rifles | 492 |
| Kaffrarian Mounted Rifles | 540 |
| Queenstown Mounted Rifles | 200 |
| Frontier Mounted Rifles | 145 |
Jan.-Feb. 1900.] Reorganisation of the Army and the Transport.