With the Naval Brigade in Natal (1899-1900) Part 3

The ground at the railway crossing which we had to cross was being heavily and accurately sh.e.l.led, so leaving my gun train for a time in a spot safe from the bursting shrapnel I rode on to prepare the pont for our crossing the river. We got the first gun over to the Colenso side of the river after hard work, the rotten bank giving way and the gun being half submerged in the water; then the somewhat unhandy soldiers in charge of the pont capsized a team of gun oxen when half-way across the river by rocking the pont, and, nearly drowning the poor oxen, swam ash.o.r.e themselves and left them to their fate. It was now 5 p.m. and as there were no men to do anything it was an impossible position, with the pont sunk in the middle of the flooded river; so that at dusk, after telling some soldiers who had come up from General c.o.ke's Brigade in response to my request what to do to right the pont, I drew up my remaining gun and wagons on the south bank, and put the gun which was already across the river out of action under a guard below the river bank in case of any Boer swoop on it.

_Wednesday, 28th February._--A red-letter day. Before daylight I set my men to work to bale out the pont and to get my second gun across the river with 100 rounds of ammunition, and also off-loaded and got over a spare wagon and 250 rounds more. All this was a terrible hard job; two empty military wagons trying to get across the drift at this spot were carried away before my eyes and only picked up a quarter of a mile down stream. At 11 a.m. I was able at last to march on to join General c.o.ke's Brigade in Colenso, and to get my guns into position. I was very exhausted and was feeling rather ill, but I was able to dine with the General under a tarpaulin and had much talk over old times in the Mauritius in 1898. It was a very wet evening, and my men who were bivouacking with no tents had a bad time of it. The sudden cessation of firing most of the day seemed to foreshadow some change at the front, and we found afterwards to our joy that a detachment of the Imperial Light Horse under Lord Dundonald had ridden into Ladysmith at 6 p.m. unmolested by the Boers who were reported to be in full retreat.[3]

[Footnote 3: The number of killed, wounded, and missing in the Natal Field Force, in the operations thus briefly alluded to, from Colenso (15th December, 1899) to the Relief of Ladysmith (28th February, 1900), amounted to 301 officers and 5,028 men.]

_Thursday, 1st March._--Everything seems to feel dull and unprofitable; all the country round is deserted and Colenso is almost unbearable from the odour of dead horses. At about 11 a.m. the pickets reported Boers in force coming down Grobler's Kloof, but the party turned out to be our own men; some of the garrison Cavalry, in fact, riding in from Ladysmith, who told us that the Boers were in full retreat. In the afternoon I rode round Colenso. What a scene of desolation and dirt; huts and houses unroofed and everything smashed to pieces! Long lines of abandoned trenches, and the perpendicular shelters which the Boers had blasted out behind all the kopjes against sh.e.l.l fire plainly showed how well they knew how to protect themselves. The trenches, about a mile long, in the plain to the right of Colenso are very deep and are sandbagged; parts of them are full of straw; many shelters are erected in them; and holes are burrowed out and strewn with chips of cartridges and pieces of sh.e.l.l, bottles, and every imaginable article. Being somewhat curious as to the effect of our sh.e.l.ling which had gone on from the 10th December to the 12th January at this line of trenches, I rode along them and came to the conclusion that not one of our sh.e.l.ls had actually hit these splendid defences, although no doubt our fire annoyed and delayed the workers in them. I picked up many curios here.

_Friday, 2nd March._--Not a Boer to be seen within miles. Very hot and odoriferous here, and I feel queer and tired out although fortunately able to lie down all day. In the middle of the night had a sudden and alarming attack of colic and was in great agony. I really thought I was done for, but my men gave me hot tea and mustard and water which did me good.

_Sat.u.r.day, 3rd March._--Woke up feeling weak and ill, but as luckily there was no work on hand I was able to lay still under an ammunition wagon and was much revived with some champagne which my best bluejacket named House got for me from my friend Major Brazier Creagh of the Hospital train. The doctor from the Middles.e.x lines who came to see me in the evening told me he had been into Ladysmith and had found the garrison looking very feeble; the Cavalry were hardly able to crawl and could not therefore pursue the Boers; the rations had been reduced to one and a half biscuits per day per man in addition to sausages and soup called Chevril, made from horseflesh. It seems that Ladysmith could have held out for another month, but the garrison had, after our failure at Spion Kop, given up all hope of our relieving them. Poor chaps! they have had an awful time of it. We learn that the Boers had left a huge unfinished dam of sandbags across the Klip River so as to flood out our shelter near the banks of the town; another week would have seen this really marvellous work completed; but luckily, as it was, our friends had to decamp in a hurry, leaving tents, wagons and ammunition strewn all over the neighbourhood; I wish I could add guns, but none were found, and I fear that the retreat took place for one reason only, viz., Kruger's fear of being cut off by Lord Roberts at Laing's Nek. Except for this I doubt whether we should ever have moved the Boers out of the Colenso position with our 30,000 men; indeed, I hear that the German Attache said it was a wonder, and that his people would not have attempted it under ten times the number. As it is, we are all glad that General Buller has succeeded.

_Tuesday, 6th March._--Nothing special to note except that wagons and ambulances have been pouring out of Ladysmith down Grobler's Hill during the last few days.

_Wednesday, 7th March._--In the afternoon General c.o.ke kindly came to wish me good-bye as his Brigade had received orders to sail for East London, and at the same time gave me orders to proceed to Ladysmith.

Meanwhile the Naval Brigade under Lionel Halsey pa.s.sed our camp on the way to Durban, and we drew up to cheer them and received their cheers in return. Poor fellows, they looked as weak as rats.

_Thursday, 8th March._--We left Colenso at 5.30 a.m. with the 73rd Field Battery for Ladysmith. We were much interested on the Grobler's Hill road to see the Boer trenches and shelters, which were simply marvellous and made the place impregnable. The trenches were blasted out of solid rocks, some 6 feet, and some 6 to 8 feet thick, of solid rock and boulder; these were all sandbagged, fitted with shelters with burrowed-out holes, and were extended for a front of half a mile facing Colenso. On the other side of the road, slightly higher up, was another line of similar trenches, while the road itself was defended by a series of stone conning towers--to use a Naval term--all loopholed and commanding the entire pa.s.sage. It was a wonderful revelation to us after the "prepare to dig trench" exercise prescribed by our own drill book. The Governor of Natal, Sir Walter Hely-Hutchinson, happened to ride by when our Naval guns were drawn up, and when he found that I was in command he sent for me, was very kind, and said he would write to my father to tell him he had seen me.

Although still feeling ill from dysentery I tried not to make much of it, but I could no longer ride my horse so got on a wagon. We moved on to Ladysmith at 4 p.m. and were much interested in the various hills and positions _en route_; we pa.s.sed over Caesar's camp, which we found a very straggling uninteresting sort of place. The town itself lay on the left and was now used as a hospital; we pa.s.sed along over the iron bridge where the troops from India were encamped, and much admired their khaki tents and green ambulances; and climbing the hill leading to the convent to join our Naval camp we found Ogilvy in command, who said, much to my regret, that the men of the _Terrible_ who manned my own and their guns, were ordered to be withdrawn for service in China.

_Friday, 9th March._--Having struggled long against my dysentery I am now compelled to go on the sick list; and feel it to be a great blow, after all my trouble and training, that my _Terrible_ bluejackets are to go. Good fellows. It seems bad for the force, putting aside all personal reasons, that all our trained men now well up to the country we fight in, should thus suddenly have to go, and that Mountain Battery gunners and others should be sent to fill their place. The men, however, seem glad to go back to their ships after all their severe work; and indeed the bluejacket is in some respects an odd composition; he turns up trumps when there is work to be done, but he is not always content with existing conditions and likes changes! Sir Redvers Buller is very pleased with us, so says the Naval A.D.C., and the telegrams just read out to the Naval Brigade from home are extremely complimentary.

They are (1) from the Queen--"Pray express my deep appreciation to the Naval Brigade for the valuable service they have rendered with their guns"; (2) from Admiral Harris--"The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty desire me to express to the Naval and Marine officers and Bluejackets and Marines who have been engaged in the successful operations in Natal and Cape Colony, the sense of their great admiration for the splendid manner in which they have upheld the traditions of the service, and have added to its reputation for resourcefulness, courage and devotion"; (3) from the Vice-Admiral Commanding Channel Squadron--"Very hearty congratulations from officers and men to Naval Brigade." We were all pleased at these wires, and especially that, among others, Sir Harry Rawson had not forgotten us.

_Sat.u.r.day, 10th March._--Alas, at last I have to go to our Field Hospital much against my will, while to add to my sorrow all my good men of the _Terrible_ are starting off to rejoin their ship. We were all glad to-day to hear of Ogilvy's promotion to Commander for distinguished service in the field. He thoroughly deserves it.

_Tuesday, 13th March, to Thursday, 22nd._--A bad time, and I can hardly walk a few yards without being tired. While in hospital, about the 15th, a frightful hailstorm came on, the hailstones being as big as walnuts and even as golf b.a.l.l.s; the horses in camp broke loose and stampeded, tents were blown down and flooded; several poor enteric patients died from the wetting, and we had a very bad time. Meanwhile important changes have gone on; Ladysmith has been emptied of Sir George White's troops; Sir Charles Warren and General c.o.ke are gone to Maritzburg; the Naval Brigade is broken up, and our Naval guns are turned over, alas, to Artillery Mountain Batteries. Captains Scott and Lambton are made C.B.'s; the _Powerful_ has left for England, and the _Terrible_ leaves for China; our flag is hoisted at Bloemfontein, and the tone of the Foreign Press has altered; still more troops are pouring out from England, and we hear that 40,000 more men are to be landed before April, which is a very good precaution.

_Friday, 23d March._--There are rumours that the Boers have evacuated the Biggarsberg hills, and at any rate all our troops are moving on to Elandslaagte. The Dublins celebrated St. Patrick's Day on the 17th with great _eclat_, and all the Irish soldiers throughout Natal wore the shamrock. They have behaved splendidly all through the operations and it is a pity that the Irish nation is not more like the Irish soldier.

_Sunday, 25th March._--Out of hospital to-day, but so weak that I can hardly walk a yard, so I have to give in and go down country much against my will. General Kitchener of the West Yorks told me of a private house of the Suttons' at Howick, near Maritzburg, and strongly advised me to go there; so I left Ladysmith on the 27th and got a warm welcome from the Honourable Mr. and Mrs. Sutton and their family who were most kind; and on the best of foods I soon began to pick up. The house is a very pretty combined country and farm house facing the Howick Falls, 280 feet high, of the Umgeni River. While here news came of the disaster at Sanna's Post and the capture of 500 of the Irish Rifles at Reddesberg, so we are all disappointed and think the end of the war further off than we thought. My twenty-seventh birthday on the 1st April pa.s.sed quietly in this peaceful spot, and after a pleasant stay I left on the 13th, my lucky day, fairly well, although still a stone under weight. I was very sorry to leave my more than kind friends and hope to meet them again some day.

_Sat.u.r.day, 14th April._--Reached Elandslaagte and rejoined the Naval Brigade at the foot of the historical kopje which the Gordons and Devons stormed in October last. The 4.7's are on top in sandbagged emplacements, and the 12-pounders are in other positions on the right.

We are with General Clery, in General Hildyard's Brigade, and we hold the right while Sir Charles Warren holds the left, of our long line of defence. The Boers face us a long way off on kopjes north of us beyond a large plain.

_Sunday, 15th April (Easter Day)._--All quiet here. About lunch time Commander Dundas and Lieutenants Buckle and Johnson of the _Forte_ arrived to pay us a visit, and they were all very interested in what I and others were able to show them.

_Tuesday, 17th April._--I feel much stronger and better now. Orders having come for General Clery's Division to withdraw to Modder Spruit, it did so at 6 p.m., leaving the Rifle Brigade and Scottish Rifles with us, all under General c.o.ke.

_Friday, 20th April._--Nothing moving in front. I have been given James's guns to command as he has slight fever, and I have had all the work and worry of dragging them up this kopje, making roads and gun emplacements which are now too elaborate for my liking. Generals Hildyard and c.o.ke came to look at my gun positions and said they were both glad to see me again; they have always been considerate and perfect to work under. General Hildyard has now Sir Charles Warren's (the Fifth) Division. I am very glad to be under him, although sorry that Sir Charles Warren leaves us, which he does to administer the Free State. Some sensation in camp to-day at Lord Roberts' comments on Spion Kop; undoubtedly he is very sharp and mostly right; he is now our one great hope out here and seems to be afraid of no one.

_Sat.u.r.day, 21st April._--At daybreak we were hurried out by reports of Boers in force to the front, and we saw several hundreds on the kopjes at 8,000 to 10,000 yards. We are now in a position on the hill where Elandslaagte was fought. The graves of some of our own men are here.

In the centre of the hill are those of the Boers, and the remains of hundreds of dead horses and cattle are still lying about. The collieries of Elandslaagte lie two miles to our left; and further again to the left are the 5" military guns and two 12-pounders in emplacements, while our own Naval 12-pounders and the 4.7's are on this hill. Our right flank for some reason seems to be left practically undefended. At 7 a.m. the Boers brought a 15-pounder Creusot down on this flank and threw several sh.e.l.ls just over us at 4,800 yards; our 4.7's and one of my own 12-pounders replied with shrapnel and silenced it. The Boers appear to be in force in front, moving backwards and forwards through Wessels Nek, so we have kept up a desultory fire all day. At night they fired the gra.s.s in front of us for about four miles; we were up all night expecting a night attack, but none came; we were well prepared for it, as the hill was defended by some 300 men in all round the guns.

_Sunday, 22nd April._--At daylight stood to our guns in a heavy mist but no Boers reported. Received a box of fresh food from one of my kind friends, Mrs. Moreton, daughter of Mrs. Sutton of Howick.

_Monday, April 23rd to Friday 27th._--Boers reported to be returning on Newcastle. The long-expected presents from England for the Naval Brigade from our good friends Rev. A. Drew, Miss Weston, Lady Richards, and Mr. Tabor, have at last reached us from Durban, where they have been lying for upwards of four months. As we have only sixty bluejackets left up here we are overloaded. I took some tobacco, a beautiful pipe in case, some books, and a neck scarf. After all this kindness from friends at home what can we do for them in return? Poor James, and also my servant Gilbert, have gone to hospital with enteric. I am myself not much up to the mark but am thankful to have command of guns again, and so try to keep well.

_Monday, 30th April._--No events of importance during the last few days. Weather a trifle cooler. I rode over to the hospital on Sat.u.r.day to see Gilbert who is very bad, poor fellow, and will have to go home.

I gave him clothes and books and tried to cheer him up a bit. On my return I found a fine large parcel of clothes from my own people at home. Took the Naval Brigade to Church yesterday and marched past General Hildyard afterwards.

_Sunday, 6th May._--Nothing has been stirring during this past week, and we are getting rather weary of the quiet. We have news from home of the Queen's inspection at Windsor of the _Powerful_ men and of a fierce debate in Parliament on the Spion Kop despatches. We had our own Church service to-day.

CHAPTER VI

End of three weary months at Elandslaagte -- A small Boer attack -- The Advance of General Buller by Helpmakaar on Dundee -- We under General Hildyard advance up the Glencoe Valley -- Retreat of the Boers to Laing's Nek -- Occupation of Newcastle and Utrecht -- We enter the Transvaal -- Concentration of the army near Ingogo -- Naval guns ascend Van Wyk, and Botha's Pa.s.s is forced -- Forced march through Orange Colony -- Victory at Almond's Nek -- Boers evacuate Majuba and Laing's Nek -- Lord Roberts enters Pretoria -- We occupy Volksrust and Charlestown.

_Monday, 7th May._--Still at Elandslaagte. Rumours of a possible attack made us stand to guns before daylight, and it was well we did so, as at 5.45 a.m. a party of Boers tried to rush the station and were repulsed with slight loss on both sides; they managed to clear off in the dim light. The attacking commando became afterwards known as the "Ice Cream Brigade," being largely composed of Italians and Scandinavians.

_Thursday, 10th May._--Rumours of a move. Poor Captain Jones is laid up with jaundice, and indeed all in camp are a little off colour. Nice letters to-day from my father and Admiral Douglas. The Middles.e.x and Halsey's guns are shifted over to Krogman's farm. Self busy putting to rights some of our wagon wheels which had shrunk from the tyres owing to the great heat and drought.

_Friday, 11th May._--A great move this morning. The Dorsets trekked at daylight to hold Indudo Mountain and Indumeni on our right. General Clery's Division marched with Dundonald's Cavalry up Waschbank Valley, and the 5" have been shifted to cover this advance. We were much amused to-day in reading the first edition of the _Ladysmith Lyre_ (Liar), which perhaps I may be forgiven for quoting, with songs sung by the garrison:--A duet by Sir George White and General Clery, "O that we two were maying"; by Buller's Relief Force, "Over the hills and far away"; by the Intelligence Officer, "I ain't a-going to tell"; by Captain Lambton, "Up I came with my little lot"; then a letter from Ladysmith to Paradise Alley, Whitechapel:

"DEAR MARIA,

"This 'ere seige is something orful. We sits and sits and sits and does nothing. Rations is short, taters is off, and b.u.t.ter is gone. We only gets Dubbin. These blooming sh.e.l.ls are a fair snorter; they 'um something 'orrid. 'Opin' this finds you as it leaves me,

"Your affectionate,

"MARTHA."

Among other amusing items was, "Mrs. K. says her dear Oom is getting too English: he no longer turns into bed in his clothes and boots."

_Sunday, 13th May._--We got our marching orders at last about 11 a.m., and I was just in the act of mounting my horse in good spirits to ride off and see my guns brought down over Elandslaagte Kop, when something startled him and he bolted over the rocks near the camp; having only one foot in the stirrup I overbalanced and came heavily on my head and left shoulder and was knocked silly for twenty minutes with a gash over my eye to the bone. I was carried to my tent and kindly st.i.tched up by Dr. Campbell of the Imperial Light Infantry, and being much shaken I was obliged to hand over command of my guns to poor Steel who was only just recovering from jaundice and had to trek off at 3 p.m. to Sunday's River Drift. By keeping very quiet in the 4.7 camp in Hunt's tent I got over my fall better than I expected, and was able to move on, with a bandaged head and a sore body, with the 4.7 Battery when they marched at daybreak on the 17th to Waschbank Bridge which we reached at about 11 p.m. after a very hot and dusty march--all done up and cross, and self in addition bandaged up and feeling altogether unlovely after a slow and horribly dusty ride of eighteen miles. The position of affairs now seems to be this: General Buller with Clery's Division (the 2nd) and the Cavalry have occupied Beith and moved on Dundee from which the Boers fled on the 14th with 4,000 men and eighteen guns. Thus, Buller is in Dundee; Lyttelton's Division (the 4th) is still near Ladysmith under orders to advance; and we (the 5th) are to move to Glencoe with all speed up Glencoe Pa.s.s and along the railway line route.

_Friday, 18th May._--At 7 a.m. we trekked under General Hildyard and had a very trying march with dust, dust, dust, sometimes a foot thick, till arriving half-way to Glencoe we outspanned oxen. We found all the railway bridges and the culverts of the line, some twenty-eight all told, blown up along our line of march. The Boer positions we pa.s.sed on the road were extraordinarily strong, as usual; and one can well understand why they held on to this place and the Biggarsberg ranges on each side, a position ten times stronger than any Colenso. We reached Glencoe about 5 p.m., and marching through it bivouacked for the night a mile beyond the town on the level uplands. Here we received orders to advance with all speed to Newcastle, where the Commander-in-Chief is with the 2nd Division; so on we moved by moonlight in a cloud of dust and pa.s.sed the night on an awful rocky place at Hatton's Spruit, trekking on in the morning towards Newcastle; but when five miles on our march we received orders to move back to Glencoe as the line had broken down and there were no supplies for us at Newcastle. All disappointed, but back we had to go! The weather is bitterly cold, and although we have our tents, we are, no doubt for good reasons, not allowed to pitch them.

_Sunday, 20th May._--Took over my guns from Steel feeling rather low with a plastered cut on my face. General Hildyard has congratulated us all on the hard work and marching of the last few days. Both he and his Staff have always a kind word for everyone, and I was greatly pleased when they and Prince Christian, on seeing me with my faithful guns once more, told me how glad they were that I had got so well over my fall.

_Tuesday, 22nd May._--Busy getting my wagon wheels and guns right after their trek over the bad road, and obliged to send them into Dundee to be cut and re-tyred. I rode with Steel and Hunt to Dundee which is five miles off; it is a small and miserable place with tin-roofed houses, bare dusty surroundings, and awful streets. We saw poor General Penn Symons' grave with the Union Jack flying over it, and other graves marked by faded wreaths and wooden crosses. We had a talk with the Chaplain who said that the Boers had pa.s.sed through on Sunday in full flight with all their guns. We rode back from this desolate scene, amid the dust of ages and smell of dead animals, wondering how poor General Symons ever allowed the Boers to occupy Talana Hill which is only half a mile from the town and completely commands it; in fact, there should never have been a Talana, and our troops did splendidly to retake it.

_Wednesday, 23rd May._--Sudden orders to move off at 2 p.m., so all is rush and hurry. I rode once more at the head of my guns, and all went well with us except that one of the poor oxen broke a hind leg in the trek chains down a steep bit of road and had to be left behind and shot. For four hours after this our long line of march was stuck in a drift, but at last, at 11 p.m., we got over it and at 1 a.m.

bivouacked at Dannhauser.

_Thursday, 24th May._--The Queen's birthday. G.o.d bless her. Up at daylight, very cold, and no tents. Poor Captain Jones still very sick with jaundice. Steel also, following my example, got a bad fall on the rocks from his horse and is in Field Hospital. At noon we all paraded in line with the Naval Brigade on the right; General Talbot c.o.ke made a speech and we gave Her Majesty three cheers from our hearts and drank her health in the evening.

_Friday, 25th May._--Orders came to get our guns in position to defend the camp, so off I had to go to do this on one flank and Halsey on the other; and we lay out all day ready for an attack, with the cattle grazing just in front of us. To our right about fifty miles off is Majuba Hill.

_Sat.u.r.day, 26th May._--We left Dannhauser at daybreak--oh, how cold--marched with the 10th Brigade, and trekked on to Ingagane, meeting on the road Lyttelton's Division (the 4th), which was hurrying to the front. We reached Ingagane at 5 p.m., and met General Buller and Staff just as we were going into camp for the night. The General looked well; and the sight of him, somehow, always cheers one up, as one feels something is going to be done at once.

_Sunday, 27th May._--Up at daybreak and awfully cold. We marched off to Newcastle, the fine Lancashire Fusiliers, my father's old regiment, doing rearguard just behind our guns. Met Archie Shee of the 19th Hussars who recognised me from old _Britannia_ days, where he and I were together. He told me that my cousin Ernest St. Quintin of the 19th had gone home with enteric after the Ladysmith siege. On getting to the top of the hills overlooking Newcastle we were much struck with the view and the prettiness of the town which the Boers had hardly wrecked at all--quite the best I have seen in Natal from a distance.

We went gaily down the hill and over a footbridge into camp where we found all three Divisions together, barring a Brigade pushed on with some 5" and 12-pounders to Ingogo. We hear that Lord Roberts is across the Vaal, and that Hunter is pushing up through the Orange Free State parallel with us, while the enemy are holding Majuba, Laing's Nek and tunnel, and Pougwana Hill to the east of the Nek, with 10,000 men.

_Monday, 28th May._--Moved off with the 5th Division under General Hildyard towards Utrecht. After an eight-mile march we crossed the bridge over Buffalo River and Drift unopposed by Boers, and entered the Transvaal at last. We were the first of the Natal force to do so, so I record it proudly. At 9 p.m.--a very cold night--orders came for an advance on Utrecht, my guns and some Infantry under Major Lousada being left to hold the bridge and drift here. I visited all the salient points of defence and outposts from Buffalo River to Wakkerstroom Road and carefully selected my gun positions, then brought the guns, each with an ammunition wagon, up the ridge, a steep pull up, and placed them one commanding the Utrecht Road and one Wakkerstroom Road--unluckily one mile apart, which could not be helped. I put my chief petty officer, Munro, in command of the left gun and took the right one myself, riding between the two to give general directions when necessary. At night as no Boers appeared we withdrew the guns and wagons behind the ridge.