The Admiralty was charged with the duty of hiring and fitting transports. It was decided that, as the supply train for the army could not be ready in South Africa for some weeks, vessels of only moderate speed should be chartered. In acting thus the extremity of the emergency seems to have been in some degree overlooked. Long before the first batch of troop-ships was half way to the Cape troops were most urgently needed in all directions. In Natal and in central Cape Colony our generals might have been able to dispense with an elaborate transport system by making use of the railways. Of the steamers chartered the great majority steamed 12 or 13 knots. The Aurania of 17 knots, Britannic of 16, and Roslin Castle of 15, were the fastest chosen. Though the cavalry and artillery should, strictly speaking, have sailed first, since horses always require some days' rest on land before they are fit for hard work after a long voyage, the time required to provide the horse-transports with proper fittings was so considerable that very few were able to leave with the head of the Army Corps.
Armstrong, Whitworth & Co.]
The picture represents the 12-pounder gun on field carriage, as used at Ladysmith and elsewhere.
[Photo by Gregory.
This is one of the weapons of the siege train intended for the bombardment of Pretoria, and used against Cronje at Paardeberg.
Embarkation of the troops.
Oct.-Nov. 1899.] Food for the Voyage.