In the end of 1852, General Cathcart, with a force of 2,000 Infantry, 500 Cavalry, and two field guns, marched upon Basutoland, and sent a message to Mosheshue asking him how he intended to behave, and demanding the delivery of 10,000 head of cattle and 1,000 horses within a week. Mosheshue endeavoured to comply with this demand, but the Basuto love their cattle, and could not be induced to part with more than 4,000 head. They were also anxious to try their strength against the English, and would not listen to their chief when he endeavoured to show them how futile would be their efforts. The result was that on the 20th December, the British forces advanced to attack, and it was upon that day that the awful ride of a small body of Lancers down an almost precipitous ravine took place. It happened thus. The cavalry were ordered to march to the north of Berea Mountain, but seeing a great number of cattle apparently unguarded on the top of the hill, they tried to secure them. Suddenly a strong force under Molapo advanced, scattering cattle and foes in all directions. Had it not been for the bravery of Colonel Napier, our loss would have been very severe; but he, with the small party round him, attacked the Basuto, thus giving many of our men a chance to escape. One small body of Lancers mistook an almost precipitous ravine for the bridle-path, and charged down it at a gallop; those who were not killed in the descent rushing headlong into the midst of an armed force of Basuto at the bottom. To this day the spot is called "Lancers' Gap," and many Basuto tales are told of that ride to death of the brave "Ma-Soldier" of the Great White Queen, or "Mofumahali" as they call her. The Basuto fought well, and showed considerable bravery. They were nearly all armed with guns or rifles, in addition to their native weapons; but the coolness and bravery of our small force against such vast numbers alarmed them, and Mosheshue pointed out that they could not hope to overcome the strong reinforcements which would follow. After a hurried counsel the Basuto fled during the night to the most inaccessible mountains; and thus, after two days' hard fighting, ended the advance of the British troops.
Mosheshue wrote a most diplomatic letter to General Cathcart, on the advice of the French Missionary M. Casalis, saying he had seen the power of the English; he had been corrected; he now desired peace, and would never again become an enemy to the Queen. The General accepted the apology, and retired across the Caledon.
Into the advisability, or otherwise, of this step I prefer not to enter. Theal, in his "History of the Boers in South Africa," enters fully into the subject, and gives a very good account of the after effects of General Cathcart's step, as also the General's reasons for taking it.
Basutoland was taken over by the Colonial Government in 1870, the "Gun War" following in 1871, in consequence of the Colonial Government endeavouring to enforce the Disarmament Act. After the conclusion of the second "Gun War" (1880-1882), Basutoland reverted to Imperial rule. It is directly under the control of the Resident Commissioner, who lives at Maseru, and has under him seven Assistant Commissioners, one in each district, a Government Secretary at headquarters, and a dozen Sub-Inspectors in charge of the different detachments of native police, stationed in each district. Each detachment has also one or two European constables, according to the number of police and the size of the district.
The Resident Commissioner has a difficult position to fill. He is responsible to the High Commissioner on the one hand, and has to win the confidence and favour, not only of the Paramount Chief, but of the whole nation on the other, and to maintain the prestige of British supremacy without going too closely into purely native matters. The chiefs have considerable power up to a certain point, but are answerable to the Paramount Chief first, and through him to the Resident Commissioner, for the exercise of that power. They hold courts for the settlement of all native matters, save those of grave importance, which are dealt with by the Assistant Commissioners. Natives are always allowed to appeal to the Assistant Commissioner of their district against the decision of their own court or "Khotla," but no appeal is possible to even the Paramount Chief against the decision of the Government. In murder cases, and others of equally grave importance, two Assistant Commissioners must "sit in judgment." All sentences are referred to the Resident Commissioner for confirmation. All "liquor" cases are brought to the Assistant Commissioner of the district. The police patrol the country, and bring in cases for trial, and report any suspicious events. There are post offices at all the Government stations, under the supervision of the Assistant Commissioners, and most of the stations are now possessed of telegraphic communication. There is also a medical service, consisting of the Principal Medical Officer, resident at Maseru, and a Medical Officer at most of the stations, with a staff of native dispensers. Medical attendance is free to all officials and their families, and to the police; and also to the whole nation between the hours of ten to twelve daily, at the dispensary, a nominal fee of sixpence being charged by the Government to cover the cost of the medicine received.
The revenue is considerable, and is chiefly derived from the hut tax. This is a tax levied on each wife in reality, though it is nominally on the hut. It used to be 10s. for each hut, but has now been raised to £1 each. A man having two wives pays £2, though he may have three or more huts, and so on.
The expenditure consists of the salaries of all Government officials, including natives, cost of maintaining the roads, educational grants, and building and repairing of Government buildings, with various other minor expenses connected with the administration, pensions, &c. The work of education is a heavy item, there being over 100 schools. The Missionary Societies are the Paris Evangelical, the Anglican and the Roman Catholic. I have placed them in the order in which they stand. The French missionaries were the first to visit Basutoland, and are a big majority. They have done much for the Basuto, apart from religious instruction and example, for in the early days of their arrival they taught the people the use of many cereals and plants, of which, till then, they were ignorant, and also how to build, to plough, and reap, and the European methods of irrigation, as well as introducing into the country various domestic animals, such as the pig, the cat, and a dog, superior to the miserable specimens already to be found in the villages. Fowls, turkeys, ducks, and geese were also first introduced by the missionaries.
There are now several industrial schools in different parts of the country, in which the boys are taught masonry, carpentry, blacksmith's and painter's trades, besides the three "R's." Many of these boys show considerable ability, and are painstaking and neat in their work, taking a real pride in it.
At Morija, the largest mission station in Basutoland, as well as the first, it having been founded by MM. Casalis, Arbousset, and Gossellin in 1833, not only are there four missionaries employed, but quite a large number of assistant teachers and instructors of various branches of education. There is the Bible School, which trains natives for missionary work; the Normal School for teachers; a printing and publishing establishment, where Sesuto books, pamphlets, and a monthly newspaper are published, and in which all the work is done by natives, under European supervision. Then there is the Mission School, in which the children are taught. Twice Morija was nearly destroyed, in the Boer invasions in 1858, and again in 1865, but nevertheless it is now a flourishing station, nestling in a hollow at the foot of the mountains. Here also are to be found on some of the rocks the footprints of an enormous lizard, and traces of the haunts of lions and other beasts of prey.