“Yes,” I said, “now they will be after the Boers again.” General De la Rey went to the commando to see that all should be ready to receive the “khakis” when they came. However, they kept quiet for the moment in Klerksdorp.
I had pitched my tent in a lovely little wood. Everything was looking very well; the veldt was in good condition; my cattle were all doing very well when suddenly the pest broke out among my animals. This was very disappointing; however, it did not go so very badly with them.
The week had come to an end, and I was just going to sleep on Saturday night when suddenly General De la Rey and Ferreira and young Coos came up to my waggon.
“I was not to wait for them,” they said, “there was such a large number of troops in Klerksdorp, and we were not so very far from them.” After they had had something to eat, we went to sleep. On Sunday everything was quiet. President Steyn had also joined us. We all met in the morning at service, and I asked President Steyn to come and dine with us that day. We had a very pleasant time, and heard nothing more of the English.
Early on Monday morning, just as I had got up, there came a man all red with blood asking, “Where is the General?” “Here he is,” I said. “General,” he cried, “there are the English.” The horses were quickly saddled. I did not know how to hurry enough, to get all my things packed, the “khakis” were now so near; however, we had all learned to get ready quickly when the enemy was coming. Very soon we had finished everything and off we started again, keeping a good look-out to see that the troops were not closing upon us.
Very soon we had formed into a very large “trek.”
We started off from Brakspruit. At one o’clock in the afternoon we stopped to rest, still not knowing what had happened in the night. Later came a rumour that the troops had taken a great many prisoners that night, and among others all the members of General De la Rey’s staff. “What a fortunate thing,” I said, “that he had been in the waggon that night; if it had not been for that he might very well have been taken also. It was a merciful ordinance of the Almighty that had so guided his steps.” We did not know at the time if all had been taken or killed.
I went to the place of Roodewal; there we all waited, including President Steyn. We kept a feast day there, Dominie Kestell holding the service. We found a large community, with many women and children. I was surprised to see how well they were looking. It was now Saturday. On Sunday we had to fly once more, this time towards the Harts River. From there we went on to Coetzee’s place, where we arrived late in the evening. Still later, General De la Rey arrived with his men.
In the morning, after we had had breakfast, the burghers all went back to the commando. I got everything ready for our dinner and set it to cook, and then went for a moment to the waggon of one of my friends. We were sitting there talking, when suddenly there were the cannon reverberating again not very far from us. Everyone tried to get ready before everyone else; it was not very long before we were all once more on the “trek.” There was now a very large number of waggons driving on together. Some went towards the clumps of trees, others went on over the veldt where there was no road. “It will go hard with us to-day,” I thought, “the whole country is so bare; they can see us from a very long way off.” Little Coos was close to my waggons. He dashed off alone towards the commando. I felt very nervous lest he might come suddenly upon the troops. The battle went on; the people in the waggons had to get away from it as best they could. Later it began to rain. In the afternoon things were quiet, so that we were able to make a halt. The food that I had half cooked in the morning had to go once more over the fire. “It will soon be ready now,” I said.
In the evening we went on again. We heard that the camp of the “khakis” was in Brakspruit, at no great distance from us.