A West Pointer with the Boers /

by John Y. Fillmore Blake

Now I come to February, when there is not nearly as much rain as in January. During the month of January, heavy rains fall daily, and as the Boers were without shelter or overcoats and constantly wet, they were not inclined to be active. In February, they are dry at least half the time, so one may expect them to do something.

I forgot to say that late in January, in company with Walter Trichardt, a young Colonial, and four young Boers, I decided to cross the railway line, and visit Commandant Trichardt and Captain Jack Hindon, both old friends of mine. We foresaw much trouble, so we concluded to make a careful survey of the situation before trying our luck. Walter and myself rode directly towards Balmoral Station, on the main road, and when within about two miles of the numerous forts and blockhouses, we halted and used our glasses. We could see no one about the forts or blockhouses, so we rode on till within 600 yards of one of the largest forts. Now we were close to Balmoral, could see the poor women and children cramped up in the beastly concentration camp, and about 200 Tommies. In the forts and blockhouses we could discover no life whatever, so we knew that all available men were out trying to corner General Botha.

We came back, joined the four young Boers, returned to the line within a mile of Balmoral, cut twelve barbed wires, and went on our way. The English had put up dummy soldiers at the blockhouses, and dummy cannon on high points near them, but we were not frightened by them in the least. I mention this, because we soon had trouble, and I witnessed something that will give Joe Chamberlain, Lord Kitchener and Lord Milner the direct lie. We are now in February, and about twenty-five miles north of Middleburg. We are with Commandant Trichardt, of the Artillery, Captain Jack Hindon and Captain Karl Trichardt. The entire command is 213 strong. It is rolling prairie where we are camped, and on the Middleburg side are several thousand cavalry, and on the north side about five miles distant, some 4,000 Kaffirs who had been armed by the English. We kept a good look out both ways. Yet before the month came to an end, we were surrounded at daylight and suffered severely. Colonel Park with about 4,000 cavalry and 600 armed Kaffirs, made a night march and attacked us just at sunrise. They were on three sides of us, and the 4,000 armed Kaffirs were on the fourth side. They began to fire on us at a range of six or seven hundred yards, and as our horses were not saddled, but out grazing, one can well imagine that we were in a hot corner. Every man ran for his horse and pack horse, and under heavy fire saddled and packed. Then it was time that every man should make a dash for liberty. We put in the spurs and all made the dash, but unfortunately only thirty-nine of us succeeded in escaping. My pack mule always followed me, and although she fell far behind and the English hurled a storm of bullets at her, yet she came through all right, and joined me. These 600 armed Kaffirs were on the English left flank and fought in line with the Tommies; yet Chamberlain, Kitchener, Roberts, and Milner all swore that they had no armed Kaffirs with them in the war. Now, when any man tells me that such Englishmen as these are capable of telling the truth, I know at once that man is either an Englishman himself or an Anglo-American.

On the high veldt the English columns were still very numerous, and there was daily fighting, but the Boers held their own and suffered but little. Commandant Alberts and Veldtcornet Tromp attacked the Scots Greys, who had shown up again, and utterly routed them near Springs, killing and capturing a few, and several horses. These Scots evidently meant it when they told us in January that they would not fight any more. In the Free State there was an army 60,000 strong in the field, bent on cornering and capturing General De Wet. They had him and his burghers with 500 cattle in a triangle, two sides of which were lines of blockhouses and networks of barbed wire. On both sides the blockhouses were very near to each other, and all well manned. It would seem almost impossible for any Boer force less than a thousand strong to pass through.

On the third side were about 40,000 English, and their plan was to drive General De Wet into the angle formed by the blockhouse lines. They were advancing rapidly, and General De Wet knew that he must decide and act quickly, so he made up his mind to cross the Lindley-Kroonstad line of blockhouses. It was a very dark night and he had lost sight of his cattle, but there was no time to lose in trying to recover them. On reaching the line, he cut out a passage in the net-work of barbed wire within a hundred yards of the blockhouses on either side, and passed through without a shot being fired. He went on for a few miles and unsaddled for the night. He had not been in camp very long before he heard shouting in the darkness, and much to his surprise here came four young burghers with the 500 cattle which he had given up as lost. These youngsters had cut away the wires and driven all these cattle between the blockhouses without the English firing a shot. The blockhouse system may be a great invention, but it is of no earthly use when fighting such an enemy as the Boers. I am sure that we crossed the blockhouse lines on the high veldt at least fifty times, yet I never heard a shot from one of them.

I remember one occasion when 300 Boers, about 100 trek wagons loaded with women and children, and nearly 10,000 head of cattle, passed through a line of blockhouses, and not one shot was fired. We were well surrounded, and on the following morning, the English spent hours hunting us within the circle, while we were at least ten miles away. The English officer is certainly a brilliant soldier.

It was only a few days after this that the English suddenly came upon these wagons, women and children, and, of course, captured them. About an hour afterwards, a small Boer commando with a French gun discovered the wagons moving along with an escort of about fifty Tommies. The Boers could not attack, on account of the women and children, but one of the artillery boys thought he would see what effect a shell would have on the escort. He sighted the gun so that the shell would be sure to fall well to one side. The shell struck and exploded, about 200 yards from the escort, and every man fled as fast as his horse could take him. Then the women turned their wagons about and returned to the Boers. To each wagon was yoked from twelve to sixteen bullocks, and the women had to drive them. It was a sad sight to see those young and old ladies, and even children, working like slaves to escape capture by the English. They preferred to take the chance of being shot or of dying in open field, to sure death in the English prison camp.

The bird having escaped for the hundredth time, the English columns went back to their respective stations, and then General De Wet, too, returned to his old corner.

After a week's rest, out came the English, more numerous than ever, and the general could see columns of them in every direction. It was plain to him that they did not intend to make use of the blockhouse lines, but to form a continuous circle around him. They succeeded, and General De Wet was again rounded up. When night came, he started out for freedom or death, and as soon as his scouts came in contact with the English, lively firing began. He ordered his men to charge, and they broke through, but lost eleven men killed. Some of his commandants became confused, and did not get through, but on the following night, all broke the same circle, with the exception of two that were captured. Although there were 60,000 men in that circle, yet they dug trenches, so fearful they were of General De Wet and his men. Maxims and rifles were concentrated on the band of patriots, but it faced the storm of bullets, charged over the English trenches, and De Wet was free for the one hundredth and first time; and that is why you will still hear the real Englishmen talking about the cowardly De Wet and his burghers. Every word that falls from your lips, Mr. Englishman, is an unmistakable sign of your degeneracy.

In Cape Colony, General Smuts and his numerous commandants were so active that an alarming state of affairs continued to prevail, and the English shot down, without trial, many suspected rebels in the various districts. In the Western Transvaal, General de la Rey had been busy in many parts, but especially at Yzerspruit, where he again fell upon Colonel Van Donop, captured 600 prisoners, killed and wounded 200, took three cannon, a convoy of 150 wagons and 1500 mules. This was a good afternoon's work, and General de la Rey ascribes its great success to the personal bravery and daring of General Celliers, one of the very best fighting generals in the war. General Celliers, with less than 500 burghers, proved too much for Colonel Von Donop and his 1000 English; yet the Colonel came out all right, for he reported that he had been attacked by an overwhelming number of Boers; this, too, in the face of the fact that Lord Methuen had just swept all the Boers out of this part of the country.