About four o'clock, a message was received from the Colonel that, if it was impossible, without supports as we were, to carry the Nek, a retirement should be made, and a reply was sent that the Nek could certainly be carried, as the men were only waiting for the order to rush Marble Kop; but that the advantage thus gained would be valueless, as no troops could remain on the smooth pinnacle, with no cover and commanded on both sides.
Orders were therefore sent to each company commander to retire as quickly as possible as soon as it was dusk. All this time the firing in the valley on the right had been going on, and at intervals the Maxim spluttered out a handful of rounds and kept the enemy from quitting, and, possibly, from taking up other positions from which they could have added their quota of fire to that already being showered on us.
The stretchers were still coming in, and some of the men of E company had once more volunteered to make another journey, although this work was much more dangerous than lying behind an ant heap in the firing line, and the men deserve all the credit that it is possible to give them for their pluck and coolness. Four volunteers, when asked for, were also easily forthcoming to carry to the four Company commanders the orders to retire; one of these men, Hurrell, of E, had only just returned with a stretcher, but off he went again, and, I am thankful to say, safely returned.
There were now a number of poor fellows lying on the grass, and the doctor and Corporal Knapp and Private Gill were busy doing the best for them that circumstances would allow; several others, who were only slightly wounded and were able to walk, were sent off to camp, and the stretchers were sent back to the firing line in anticipation of the retirement at dusk.
Although we had been in action since mid-day and it was now nearly five o'clock, not an ambulance had arrived; but at last ours was seen slowly approaching from the valley on our right where it had remained: the labour of removing the groaning, wounded men—one of whom had been shot in the body, another in the thigh, another in the chest—in the clumsy old ambulance, which carried only two at a time, was commenced by the doctor.
It was now getting dusk, and a desultory fire was still being kept up by the enemy, when suddenly this increased in intensity and became a continuous clatter of musketry. The whole veldt between us and Marble Kop became spattered with puffs of dust thrown up by the Mauser bullets, some of the shots even reaching to the dressing station, which, unfortunately, had no Red Cross flag raised, although the Boers must have seen the ambulance wagon standing by with its white tilt and large flag flying.
The reason of this sudden outburst of musketry was the retirement of our men, who were running back smartly to be clear of the heavy fire: several little clumps of men were lagging somewhat in rear, carrying their wounded with them, and the Boers kept up a furious fire directed on these small parties. Several men were hit in this way, and the remainder were furious at the conduct of the Boers; but their firing was perhaps excusable, as, in the dusk, I doubt whether they could distinguish the stretcher parties at that long distance.
In contravention of the old-fashioned idea that all retirements should be conducted slowly, and that it is a disgrace to move out of a slow walk, is the common-sense feeling that, if troops are to withdraw under a heavy fire, the quicker they carry out the movement the earlier they will be beyond range, and the fewer casualties will occur: troops who have served in India on any of the numerous hill expeditions which take place in that country soon learn to act upon this plan.
It was almost dark when the companies began to arrive at the dressing station, and, as the bullets were still flying about, we formed up in a hollow a little further back and waited for the remainder to come in: a good many men, and almost all the officers, were still in rear bringing along their wounded. Some of the companies, notably F and the Volunteers, had a long way to come, and the former had to wait till quite dark before they could rush out of the cover afforded by the kraal and successfully carry in those who had been badly hit. Lieut. Anderson had been very dangerously wounded in the throat, and the men had some difficulty in moving him: his wound had been bound up under a dreadful storm of bullets by a young soldier called Say of F company. Several other men were especially noted in their care for wounded comrades and their total disregard of danger: a large number of others showed the possession of bravery in a marked degree by securing and issuing ammunition, carrying orders, and assisting in other ways, under a heavy and continuous fire.
[9]Our casualties were severe, there being one officer killed and four wounded, whilst three men were killed and thirty-two wounded.