Chapter VII: The Lydenburg Campaign (2)

To insure the safety of General MacDonald's advance, a simultaneous move, as we know, had been taken from the Ladysmith direction. The 13th Hussars received sudden orders to start minus baggage or tents and meet the 5th Lancers at the foot of the Drakensberg and secure Van Reenen's Pass. They reached their destination in the drear dead of midnight. Shivering in every limb, and rolled only in the fur rugs from their saddles, the small band awaited the daylight; then a few men being left to guard the Pass they pressed on hot-foot to Harrismith, which was reached at 5 P.M., just twenty-four hours after leaving Ladysmith--a distance of fifty-four miles. Thanksgiving services were held on the 5th at both church and town-hall in honour of the arrival of the British troops, and the general joy in spite of the cold (Harrismith, about 5000 feet above the sea level, was in a state of mid-winter) was inspiriting to the least patriotic heart.

In other places the surrendering of Boers continued, as many as 130 having come into Bethlehem during the 8th and 9th of August. On the 15th, General Hunter in his northward march encountered the enemy south of Heilbron, where the Boers with six guns were strongly posted at Spitz Kop. (This must not be confounded with the kop of the same name captured by General Buller.) After some ferocious fighting the position was turned, but not before three men of the Highland Light Infantry were killed, and thirty-three were wounded. The wounded officers were: Lieutenant-Colonel Kelham, Highland Light Infantry; Second Lieutenant L. H. Gibson, Highland Light Infantry (since dead).

On the 24th, Colonel Ridley with 250 mounted men and twenty-five infantry of the Imperial Yeomanry, while reconnoitring found himself confronted by a huge force of the enemy. He took up a position in a farm, and there defied 1000 Boers with two guns. The situation was critical, but General Bruce Hamilton's Brigade was despatched to the rescue, and arrived and dispersed the raiders. Colonel White, R.A., had also been despatched by General Kelly-Kenny, and had flung his small column into the fray, losing five men missing, one killed, while Lieutenant Jones (Yeomanry) was slightly wounded. The Boers proceeded to attack Winburg on the 26th, and General Bruce Hamilton had the satisfaction of beating them off minus their presiding genius, Olivier (who, it will be remembered, had refused to surrender with Prinsloo), and his three sons, all of whom were captured. Commandants Haasbrook, Roux, and Fourie, were the only prominent Boers now flitting about the Orange Colony, and one of these caused the wire between Winburg and Ladybrand to be cut, and made signs of attacking the latter place. This was on the 29th.

For some time, as we know, Ladybrand had been a centre of attraction for the enemy. It is situated in the heart of their grain country, and now, they, being what is vulgarly known as out at elbows, naturally made plans to capture the place. It is some seventy-two miles due east of Bloemfontein, near to Thabanchu, and within a cart drive of Maseru, and in the shadow of the purple mountains of Basutoland.

On Sunday the 2nd of September, Commandant Fourie, with some 3000 Boers, nine guns, and a pom-pom, invited Major White, Royal Marine Light Infantry, and his gallant band of 150 men to surrender. A refusal caused the hostile artillery to open fire, while the enemy approached on both flanks, surrounding the garrison. The Boers on one side had made for Lilleyhoek, those on the other for Vandermuelen's Farm, adjoining the town, which they viciously bombarded. The British force, consisting of one company of the Worcester Regiment, with Lieutenant Moss and Second Lieutenant Dorman, and forty-three rank and file of the Wiltshire Yeomanry with Lieutenants Awdry and Henderson, was entrenched on the mountain, and in the caves below it opposite the town, but within rifle range of it. They had a good supply of food, plenty of water, and had fortified several houses in the town, and therefore had a firm conviction that they could and would hold out till reinforcements should arrive from Thabanchu.

On the following day the Boers, their numbers swelled by others on parole, drew closer, and during the whole day a duelling with small arms was maintained. Meanwhile the foe placed a big gun at a point in the church square, and from thence attacked the garrison. They also fired from windows, walls, and every available shelter; but fortunately both Dutch and English inhabitants had sought refuge in Maseru. The garrison meanwhile held on doggedly, and repulsed the Boers in two attempts to charge.

These, it was imagined, "put their backs into it," because, disgusted at the loss of their Commandant, Olivier, they proposed to secure supplies--clothing, groceries, and stock--before returning to their farms to recuperate. Any way, they worked with a will, determining to make hay while the sun shone, for report said that Bruce Hamilton with a relief column was marching in ten-league boots to the rescue. (The infantry covered eighty miles in four days and a half!)

Early the next morning the foe plied guns and small arms, and the noble little garrison, puny in size but large in spirit, replied with intense vigour and activity. Finally the big gun of the opposition stopped, whether from lack of ammunition or other causes, none knew. The fighting continued, however, and was viewed with interest, yet not without anxiety, by Sir Godfrey Lagden and the Basuto Chief, Lerothodi, from a point of vantage on an opposite mountain. Efforts were made to obtain news by heliograph, but these were unsuccessful, and the tug-of-war dragged on. But soon there were evidences that the Boers lay in fear of the arrival of the relief column, and were becoming concerned whence would come the attack. This concern increased, and by nightfall of the 4th, after looting stores and appropriating horses in the town, the Boers retreated in the direction of Clocolan with the loss of twenty-four killed and thirty-five wounded. The British casualties were few. Lieutenant Dorman, Worcester Regiment, was slightly wounded, but the injuries of Sergeant-Major Clifford, Wiltshire Yeomanry, were severe. All the officers behaved heroically, and the gallantry of Lieutenant Moss was especially remarkable.

The routed Boers soon betook themselves to the railway line in the region of Brandfort. As it was evident some mischief was brewing, General Kelly-Kenny communicated with General MacDonald, who brought the Highland Brigade from Winburg, whither he had gone to co-operate with General Hunter's scheme for enclosing the raiders. On the 13th the gallant Scot, assisted by Lovat's dashing Scouts, caught the enemy, drove them across the Vet River, and pursued them north of the Winburg-Smaaldeel Railway, the scattered rabble fleeing before the braw men of the north in such haste and panic that their track was marked with the trail of their effects. A magnificent "bag" was the Highland Brigade's reward: 7 prisoners, 31 waggons, 270 trek-oxen, 6 cases of dynamite, gun and rifle ammunition, groceries, blankets, clothing, besides useful odds and ends of all kinds. The British casualties were nil.

On the 14th and 15th two notable lieutenants, in different parts of the Orange Colony, decided to maintain the high traditions of the British Army. The first, Lieutenant Power, 8th Company Derbyshire Yeomanry, and his patrol, was attacked some six miles out of Bethlehem. Field-Cornet Froeman, in command of the Boers, sent a letter calling on the young officer to surrender, and threatening, if he refused, to attack him in a quarter of an hour, adding that he would guarantee no quarter, no lives would be spared. The note was promptly returned by the bearer with two words scrawled on the back, "No surrender." Fortunately in the nick of time reinforcements appeared, and Froeman vanished. In the second case, at Bulfontein in the west, the garrison, consisting of sixteen Police and Yeomanry under Lieutenant Slater, Imperial Yeomanry, was attacked by a hundred Boers. Undaunted by the superior number of the foe, the doughty sixteen held out until the following day, when relief arrived. The warlike proceedings at this date were degenerating into acts of brigandage, raids, and marauding excursions, and these continued through October and on.

THE WESTERN TRANSVAAL

The district round Krugersdorp was greatly disaffected, and contests between British and Boers occurred almost daily. On the 29th of August a smart tussle took place near Modderfontein between a column under Colonel Bradley (North Staffordshire Regiment) and a band of desperadoes, who were driven off with some loss. Three men of the North Staffordshire Regiment were killed, and among the wounded were Lieutenant Wyatt and five men. Meanwhile the Colonial Division--a portion of it--with the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, was marching and fighting from Zeerust _viâ_ Krugersdorp to Kroonstad, losing in all sixty of their number. General Little, commanding the Brigade, was wounded, and was succeeded by Colonel Dalgety. Nearer Pretoria, at a place called Rooikop, Colonel Plumer had a brush with the enemy, resulting in the discomfiture of the latter, who dispersed, minus 100 rifles, 40,000 rounds of ammunition, 350 head of cattle, some waggon-loads of supplies, and seven of their number, who were taken prisoners. Captain Brooke, R.A.M.C., was wounded, as was Lieutenant Wylly and three Tasmanians.

The history of captures and surrenders, of marauding excursions and surprises, of sniping and derailing of trains, of Boer treachery and Boer shiftiness continued. The exciting episodes it would be impossible to chronicle in detail, but a fair idea of the strain on the already hard-worn troops may be gauged by looking at a table of guerilla incidents which followed at each other's heels in the course of the first week in September. On the 1st the rails were torn up near the Klip River; a supply train was overturned and captured, and the engine wrecked by dynamite. On the following day the line below Kroonstad was wrecked and a train containing stores captured, while another portion of the line--at America Siding--was cut. South of Heidelberg the line was cut on the 3rd, and injuries to the Heidelberg rails occasioned the upset of a train. On the 4th the line was cut near Honing Spruit, on the 5th near Krugersdorp, on the 6th near Balmoral, when an engine was blown up and five trucks were derailed. To finish the seven days' work the enemy on the 7th blew up the rail near Roodeval.

At this time strong columns under Generals Clements and Hart had set to work to scour the country between Krugersdorp and Johannesburg, and clear it of bands of marauders. The former skirmished near Kekepoort and elsewhere with Delarey, the latter operated south-west of Krugersdorp. Small parties of Boers were being driven hither and thither, and were usually hurried off with such rapidity that they left supplies and waggons behind them. General Knox, sweeping north-west of Kroonstad, had the satisfaction of capturing two of De Wet's despatch riders, bearing interesting letters for that officer, and thus returning a suitable _quid pro quo_ for the attack on the British mails made by the Dutchman in June. Lord Methuen's force, which had been halting at Mafeking, completed its re-equipment and started for Lichtenburg. Some little opposition was met with _en route_. On the 11th the Boers, who had assembled near the Malopo, were dispersed. Thirty prisoners were captured, twenty-two waggons, and forty thousand rounds of ammunition. In the fray Captain Bryce (Australian Bushmen) was severely wounded. On the 12th there was more fighting, near Ottoshoof. Captain S. G. Hubbe (South Australian Bushmen) was killed; Lieutenant White (6th Imperial Bushmen) was severely wounded and taken prisoner.

While these engagements were taking place, General Clements gave battle to Delarey's band and drove them from two positions, with the loss of two men killed and fourteen wounded. Later, on the 16th, he caught the raiders again near Hexpoort and again fought them, losing a gallant young fellow, Lieutenant Stanley of the Imperial Yeomanry, and one or two men wounded. Elsewhere the clearing process continued, and tussles were part of the daily programme. General Paget was operating around the north-west of Pretoria, at Warmbaths and Pienaar's River; and General Barton, outside the Krugersdorp line, protected the west flank of Johannesburg. General Hart was actively employed in the neighbourhood of Potchefstroom, which place he occupied on the 11th, in the smartest manner possible. He was getting tired of cannonadings and fusilladings, futile and fatiguing, which resulted only in the dispersion of the enemy, who had a knack of reappearing on the warpath directly his back was turned. There had been many days of hopeful advance; "Little Bobs," the naval gun, had searched kopjes innumerable; Marshall's Horse and the Imperials and others had boldly assaulted them, but at the end of it all, they had arrived only to find--a vacuum! This was depressing and wearisome, so the General gave rein to his _penchant_ for night attacks, and reaped the reward of what looked like temerity.

The force, leaving Welverdiend Station on the 8th, made forced marches of thirty-six and thirty-eight miles in fifteen hours for the infantry, and forty-four for cavalry, and surprised the Boers so completely that the town was captured, and also some eighty prisoners, with comparatively little fighting. Unfortunately young Maddocks, a most promising and popular officer of the 2nd Somersetshire Light Infantry, lost his life.

Incessant attacks on the railway lines, too numerous to be recorded, continued, of course throwing an enormous strain on the staff of the military railways, who had verily to sleep with one eye open, unknowing when and where the Boer would perpetrate fresh outrages. On the 12th, the guerillas destroyed a bridge on the Krugersdorp line, and elsewhere they made futile but annoying efforts to dislocate traffic. Lord Methuen at this time was moving steadily on across the Western Transvaal, occasionally varying his route by animated chases after Boer convoys. In one of these he was splendidly successful, and his booty included a 15-pounder lost at Colenso, 26 waggons, 8000 cattle, 4000 sheep, and about 20,000 rounds of small arm ammunition. Thus enriched he moved on the following day, the 20th, to Rietpan, forty-five miles east of Vryburg station. Here he chased more Boers, and increased his "bag" by 634 cattle, 3000 sheep, 29 horses, and 24 donkeys.

On the 26th Rustenburg was reoccupied by General Broadwood without loss. With Generals Clements and Ridley he spent his time in clearing the surrounding country, capturing waggons, rifles, and small arm ammunition, and occasionally--Boers. These, as a rule, dispersed like a flock of rooks at the sound of British pursuit, but twenty-four Dutchmen were captured and sent into Rustenburg. There, on the 4th of October, arrived Lord Methuen, who had fought two engagements on the 28th of September--one commanded by himself, the other by General Douglas--routing Lemmers's force and taking fourteen of them prisoners. Seven were killed. Two of the British were also lost, and among the wounded were Captain Lord Loch (Grenadier Guards), Lieutenant Parker (R.A.M.C.), and Lieutenant Noel Money (Imperial Yeomanry).

General Hart meanwhile continued to spend his energies in identical activities in the districts of Potchefstroom and Krugersdorp, to which latter place he returned on the last day of September. He came not empty-handed. His "bag," like those of Generals Paget and Methuen, was big almost to inconvenience. His prizes ran as follows: 2720 head of cattle, 3281 sheep and goats, and large quantities of mealies, potatoes, oats, bran, and hay, 90 horses, 28 ponies, 11 mules, and 67 carts and waggons. Of prisoners there were ninety-six. This was the result of a thirty-three days' march, during which the column had covered 310 miles and skirmished or fought on twenty-nine occasions. Of the British "braves" only three were killed. Twenty-four were wounded and three missing.

General Barton had his share of fighting, and on the 11th of October, in a somewhat serious contest with the enemy, the Welsh Fusiliers, led by Sir Robert Colleton, greatly distinguished themselves. Unhappily they lost Second Lieutenant Williams-Ellis, a gallant boy of only twenty years of age. Captain Gabbett was dangerously wounded, and Second Lieutenant Kyrke sustained a severe injury to the head. Captain Trenchard (Royal Scots Fusiliers) was also seriously wounded, as were eleven men of the Welsh Fusiliers.

EXIT MR. KRUGER

With Lord Roberts's return to Pretoria on the 21st of September commenced the general winding-up of affairs. At Schweizer Reneke the Boers had been giving trouble, and General Settle, with a force of 7000 men, went to the relief of the garrison and drove off the Boers, who lost heavily.

On the 25th General Baden-Powell returned from the Cape to Pretoria to take up his post as head of the Transvaal Police, and was promptly beset by upwards of 17,000 applications for appointments in his new force. Seventeen officers and 319 men of the Royal Canadian Regiment left on their return to Canada, while the City Imperial Volunteers prepared to follow in order to reach home before the 5th of November. These were in high feather: declared that they had acquired marvellous digestions from the practice of eating oxen that must have taken part in the Great Trek, and vaunted their ability to kill, clean, and cook anything from a chicken to a pig, and make chupatties fit for the Lord Mayor! They were still more exuberant when, early in October, they were reviewed, prior to departure, by the Chief, who commented on the fine performances of the gallant body of men, the conduct of the infantry under the Earl of Albemarle (who was at Cape Town invalided), and the excellent work done by Colonel Mackinnon. He spoke of their cheerful and ungrudging services, of their long marches, the privations and hardships, the fever and fighting they had endured, and he also alluded to the coolness and utility of the mounted branch under Colonel Cholmondeley. He wished them success on the resumption of their ordinary professions, and God-speed upon their journey.

The Volunteers had great cause to be proud of themselves, for on all occasions they had acquitted themselves admirably. On their entry into Pretoria their "soldierly bearing" had been remarked on by the Chief, in the subsequent battle of Diamond Hill, where young Alt lost his life, they had "greatly distinguished" themselves, and besides fighting twenty-six engagements had done some record marching, which has been noted elsewhere.

On the 31st of July some of the C.I.V. came into action at Frederickstad, losing one man killed and four wounded. Later they engaged in the chase after De Wet, throwing themselves with zeal into the pursuit, particularly on one occasion when they marched thirty miles in seventeen hours. Altogether, from first to last, the Volunteers had nobly thrown off the civic character for the honour of fighting for their country, had "put their backs into it," and showed that clerk or shopkeeper, gardener or groom, "A man's a man for a' that!"

THE ROYAL WELSH FUSILIERS.

Photo by Gregory & Co., London.]

The C.I.V. Battery under the command of Major M'Micking, H.A.C. (late R.H.A.) and Captain Budworth, R.A., Adjutant of the H.A.C., acting as Captain of the Battery, had been invaluable. They moved to Bloemfontein in June, proceeded along the Kroonstad line to suppress the activities of De Wet, and from thence came into action at Lindley. The Battery did excellent work, and finally silenced the Boer guns with their rapid and accurate fire. At Bethlehem they comported themselves gloriously, averted disaster, saving the guns and the situation. Afterwards, on the 22nd of September, again under Paget, they assisted in the surprise of Erasmus and capture of his camp.

Their official record of casualties to the end of August was: killed in action, 6; wounded, 65; died of wounds received in action, 3; died of disease, 44; taken prisoners and missing, 12; invalided home, 121.[13]

On the 27th, at Pienaar's River Station, forty miles north of Pretoria, the force under the command of Colonel Lionel Chapman was attacked by the enemy, who had crept up within 200 yards either side, through the thick scrub surrounding the district. Three hours' fierce fighting ensued, in which a Bushman was killed and three Munster Fusiliers were taken prisoners. These succeeded in escaping, owing to the number of the Boer wounded. Many of the foe, in addition to those slain in the fray, were killed owing to the explosion of a mine of whose existence they were unaware, and so great was the number of the wounded that ambulances had to be twice sent out to collect the Boer sufferers.

In the region of Groot Vlei Railway the marauders were surprised by a Mounted Infantry Patrol of the South Wales Borderers, under Lieutenants Dickinson and Gross, who themselves were surprised, on taking six prisoners, to find that their prizes were not Boers but Frenchmen!

September closed with the anniversary of the birthday of the beloved Chief, who was born at Cawnpore in 1832. Moltke did his great work at the age of seventy; Wellington accomplished his at the age of forty-six; and Roberts put the finishing touch to his crown of laurels at sixty-eight. Most appropriately, the day was chosen to announce the appointment of the gallant Field-Marshal to the post of Commander-in-Chief of the British army--an appointment which was looked upon both in England and abroad as an auspicious omen for the thorough reform of the British military system, and as a guarantee for the future defence of the Empire. The whole British world united in wishes--one may almost say prayers--for the long life and welfare of its grandest soldier.

On the 2nd of October, Colonel Rochfort, with the Dublin Fusiliers Mounted Infantry, attacked a Boer laager between Johannesburg and Pretoria, the Fusiliers charging into the midst of the enemy with the bayonet, and capturing some nine marauders who had been actively engaged in the district for some time. The Boers, too, had their innings, for on the evening of the same day they succeeded in derailing, near Pan Station, a train containing three companies of the 2nd Coldstream Guards. On the unfortunate men they poured a vigorous fire with their Mausers, with the result that five were killed. Thirteen were injured, among them Second Lieutenant C. Heywood. Five men of other regiments were wounded.

An effort was made to surprise some of the Boer bandits at Bulfontein on the 4th, but Captain Henty (16th Middlesex Volunteers) found the party far stronger than his own small force, and was compelled to retire, which he did after three hours' fighting. Six of his men were wounded, including Lieutenant Slater (57th Company Imperial Yeomanry). Lieutenant Thomas (Ceylon Mounted Infantry) was reported missing but believed to be dead.

During the early days of October the Boers made more despairing efforts to be aggressive. The engine of a train conveying some men of the Naval Brigade and Coldstream Guardsmen was derailed on night of 5th near Balmoral by the explosion of a dynamite cartridge, but fortunately no casualties occurred.

Signs were not wanting that the Boers were sickening of the war, for General Kelly-Kenny reported that an armed Boer was brought in a prisoner by two of his former countrymen who were wise enough to see the futility of kicking against the pricks. Commandant Dirksen, who had been commanding a Boer band opposed to General Paget, also surrendered. He had been kept in ignorance of the real state of the political outlook, and was allowed to proceed to Komati Poort to learn the truth regarding Kruger's flight for himself. He returned satisfied, and gave up his arms. Thus very slowly affairs were moving on, the Boer belligerents thinning, the work of pacification growing gradually less troublesome.

General Buller took his departure for home on the 6th, leaving General Lyttelton in command at Lydenburg. The farewell meeting between the Chief and the troops who for nearly a year had followed him confidently through blood and fire, disaster and success, was remarkably touching, a demonstration which--leaving the formula of red-tape and blue-books--may almost be termed affectionate. Certainly, whatever may have been the opinion of the arm-chair critics at home, that of the "do or die" soldiers of Natal was expressed in a lusty and spontaneous burst of enthusiasm, which left no room for doubt.

On the 7th Captain Bearcroft and the Naval Brigade left, having first received the thanks of the Chief for the able assistance they had afforded during the war. The Natal Volunteers had also left for their homes, with many compliments on the excellent services they had rendered. On the 8th Lord Roberts visited the camp of the Australians and Rhodesians at Daspoort, and thanked the men for their devotion and bravery, especially for their fine defence of Elands River.

A chapter of accidents took place on the 9th. During the night a train conveying men and animals was upset near Kaap Muiden; three men were killed and fifteen injured--Lieutenant Hawkes sustaining a fracture of the leg--while over forty animals were killed or maimed. In the morning, to inquire into the mischief, Captain Paget, with Lieutenants Stubbs and Sewell and eighteen men of the Vlakfontein Garrison, went on an engine and truck to the scene of the disaster. The Boers, of course, were waiting their happy chance, and promptly assailed the party. The fighting at this time was fast and furious. On hearing of the attack Captain Stewart (Rifle Brigade) with forty men hastened to the rescue, and there, fighting, fell. A private in the Rifle Brigade was also killed, and among the injured were Captain Paget and Lieutenant J. H. Stubbs. Five men attached to the Royal Engineers were also wounded. Lieutenant Sewell, Royal Engineers, and ten men of the Rifle Brigade were captured.

At this period there was a good deal of enteric fever in Pretoria, and among the invalids, whose condition caused considerable anxiety, was Major Prince Christian Victor of Schleswig-Holstein.[14] Not that his state at the time was in the least critical, but interest hung around him because he was, first, the grandson of the Sovereign; second, because he was a gallant officer and a prince; and lastly, because he was before all things a delightful comrade, as popular as he was genial. His death, which did not occur till fighting had developed into guerilla warfare, was deplored by all who were acquainted with him; and also by the nation at large, who knew how to appreciate the devotion to duty of one who, though born in the purple, preferred to take his share of the country's work, and fight shoulder to shoulder with her defenders. His last wish was characteristic of his noble nature--he desired no royal resting-place, but elected to be buried "by the side of his comrades."

On the 19th, in the grey of the dawn, Mr. Kruger slunk from South Africa on board the Dutch man-of-war _Gelderland_. With the utmost secrecy he was smuggled to sea to evade, not his foes the British, but his dupes the Boers, the luckless refugees who lusted for revenge on the man who had ruined their country, deceived, robbed, and deserted themselves. When he departed his moneybags were full! Theirs--his beloved people's--were empty! Rich, he fled to escape the consequence of his own inflated obstinancy; beggared, they remained to endure the brunt of it! Round the debased fugitive it was impossible to cast the smallest glamour of sentiment. The absence of all sense of honour and truth, the sordid ambition and personal greed of the man, exposed now to the full, deprived him of the sympathy of those who had formerly watched his remarkable career with interest and admiration. Hitherto, most people had been prone to believe that the President of the Transvaal was, as the patriarchs of old, narrow-minded and obstinate no doubt, but saved by a simplicity that was picturesque as it was primitive. The romantic were even wont to look on him as another Cromwell of the English--a new Hofer of the Tyrolese--a brawny moral giant, to wonder at and revere. But, gradually, the massive peasant became transformed into the pinchbeck potentate, a despot with never an inkling of statesmanship to redeem the unctious sophistries and hypocritical cant with which he attempted to blind the world and himself. Now, it was impossible for his admirers to ignore the clay feet of their idol, and his compatriots, many of them, were forced to realise that his character, like the bar gold he paid to his creditors, was little more than a delusive show of amalgam. His last evasion declared that he had received "six months' leave of absence for the benefit of his health." So let it remain--a crumbling rung on the long ladder of his duplicity. There was more truth in the fabrication than he recked of. He had gone from his native land for six months--and as many more as he cared to take--and, if his flight were not for the benefit of his personal health, it was assuredly for the health of the great mass of human beings whose lives in the Transvaal had hitherto been asphyxiated by the narrowness of his prejudices and the autocracy of his rule! So, good-bye to him!

Photo by Wilson, Aberdeen]

FOOTNOTES:

[13] All the prisoners have since been released or returned to camp. Five poor fellows died on their voyage home.

[14] Prince Christian Victor Albert Ludwig Ernest Anton was the eldest son of Prince and Princess Christian. He was born on April 14, 1867, and died at Pretoria on October 29, 1900. He was educated at Wellington College and Magdalen College, Oxford, and subsequently entered the Royal Military College at Sandhurst. He received his commission in 1888, and was appointed second lieutenant in the King's Royal Rifle Corps. Two years later he was promoted to be lieutenant, and in 1896 became captain, with the brevet rank of major.

He served with the Hazara Expedition in 1891 as orderly officer to Major-General Elles, commanding the forces. He was mentioned in despatches, and received the medal and clasp. He was in the Miranzai Expedition of the same year, and was present at the engagements at Sangar and Mastan. The next year he accompanied the Isazai Expedition.

When it was found necessary to despatch a force to Ashanti against King Prempeh in 1895 his Highness volunteered his services, and was made aide-de-camp to Major-General Sir Francis Scott, who commanded the expedition. For his share in the Ashanti Expedition Prince Christian Victor received the star and promotion to the brevet rank of major. He also served with the Soudan Expedition under Sir Herbert (now Lord) Kitchener in 1898 as staff officer to the troops on board the gunboat flotilla. He took part in the bombardment of the forts of Omdurman, and was present at the battle of Khartoum. He was mentioned in despatches, and given the Fourth Class of the Osmanieh, the British medal, and the Khedive's medal with clasp. Prince Christian Victor was gazetted in October 1899 for special service in South Africa. He took part in many engagements before the occupation of Pretoria, and was appointed an extra aide-de-camp to Lord Roberts in August.