The Young Colonists: A Story of the Zulu and Boer Wars Page 7

ofthe contract, and that they authorise us to sign in their names. We aregoing with the waggons, sir, to look after the Kaffirs."

  "Well," the officer said, "you can do as you like about that; but if youspeak Kaffir it will be useful--only, mind, you will have to provisionyourselves. From the day the teams are taken up, rations of mealieswill be served to the Kaffirs at the various halting-places, but thereis no provision for rations of white men. The cattle, too, will be fed,but you will have to see to yourselves."

  "Yes, sir; we expected to do so."

  "Well, you had better fetch the teams up to the yard. I must inspectand pass them before they are taken up. Bring them round at once; thenthey will be loaded to-night, and start at daybreak to-morrow."

  The teams were brought round to the yard, and immediately passed by theofficer, who indeed remarked upon the excellence of the animals. TheKaffirs were directed to outspan or unyoke the oxen, for whom rations ofhay and grain were at once issued.

  The boys returned to the town and made their purchases, which werecarried down by two Kaffirs and stored in the waggons, which werealready in process of being loaded--two with boxes of ammunition, theothers with miscellaneous stores for the troops. They slept at anhotel, and next morning at daybreak presented themselves at the yard.The Kaffirs were already harnessing up the oxen, and in a quarter of anhour the four waggons, with sixteen others, started for the Tugela.

  It was now the middle of December. Early in the month commissioners hadbeen sent to Cetewayo with the terms decided upon by Sir Bartle Frere.The first clauses of the document contained the settlement of thedisputed frontier, and fines were fixed to be paid by the chiefs whosemen had committed forays across the borders; it then went on to demandthat the whole of Cetewayo's army should at once be disbanded; freedomof marriage was to be allowed, when the parties thereto were of age;justice was to be impartially administered; missionaries to be allowedto reside in the Zulu country; British residents to be appointed; alldisputes between Zulus and Europeans to be referred to the king andresident; and no expulsion from Zulu territory was to be carried intoeffect without the distinct approval of the resident.

  It was intimated to the king that unless these terms were accepted bythe 11th of January the army would at once invade the country. Few menexpected that the Zulu king would tamely submit to conditions whichwould deprive him of all the military power in which he delighted, andwould reduce him to a state of something like dependency upon theBritish.

  During the month of December General Thesiger, who commanded the Britishforces in South Africa, made every effort to prepare for hostilities.The regiments which were at the Cape were brought round by sea; abrigade of seamen and marines was landed from the ships of war; severalcorps of irregular horse were raised among the colonists; and regimentsof natives were enrolled. Before the date by which the king was to sendin his answer the troops were assembled along the frontier in thefollowing disposition:--

  Number 1 Column. (_Headquarters, Thring's Post, Lower Tugela_.) Commandant.--Colonel C.K. Pearson, the Buffs.

  Naval Brigade.--170 bluejackets and marines of H.M.S. _Active_ (with one Gatling and two 7-pounder guns), under Captain Campbell, R.N.

  Royal Artillery.--Two 7-pounder guns and rocket-battery, under Lieutenant W.N. Lloyd, R.A.

  Infantry.--2nd battalion, 3rd Buffs, under Lieutenant-Colonel H. Parnell.

  Mounted Infantry.--100 men under Captain Barrow, 19th Hussars.

  Volunteers.--Durban Rifles, Natal Hussars, Stanger Rifles, Victoria Rifles, Alexandra Rifles. Average, forty men per corps--all mounted.

  Native Contingent.--1000 men under Major Graves, the Buffs.

  Number Two Column. (_Headquarters, Helpmakaar, near Rorke's Drift.) _Commandant.--Colonel Glyn, 1st battalion, 24th Regiment.

  Royal Artillery.--N. battery, 5th brigade, Royal Artillery (with 7-pounder guns), under Major A. Harness, R.A.

  Infantry.--Seven companies 1st battalion, 24th Regiment, and 2nd battalion, 24th Regiment, under Lieutenant-Colonel Degacher.

  Natal Mounted Police.--Commanded by Major Dartnell.

  Volunteers.--Natal Carabineers, Buffalo Border Guard, Newcastle Mounted Rifles--all mounted; average, forty men.

  Native Contingent--1000 men, under Commandant Lonsdale, late 74th Highlanders.

  Number 3 Column. (_Headquarters, Utrecht.) _Commandant.--Colonel Evelyn Wood, V.C. C.B., 40th Regiment.

  Royal Artillery.--11th battery, 7th brigade, R.A. (with four 7-pounder guns), under Major E. Tremlett, R.A.

  Infantry.--1st battalion 13th Regiment, and 90th Regiment.

  Mounted Infantry.--100 men, under Major J.C. Russell, 12th Lancers.

  Frontier Light Horse.--200 strong, under Major Redvers Buller, C.B., 60th Rifles.

  Volunteers.--The Kaffrarian Vanguard, Commandant Schermbrucker, 100 strong.

  Native Contingent.--The Swazis, our native allies, some 5000 strong.

  In the first fortnight of their engagement the waggons travelledbackward and forward between Pieter-Maritzburg and Grey Town, which forthe time formed the base for the column of Colonel Glyn. The distanceof the town from the capital was forty-five miles, and as the waggonstravelled at the rate of fifteen miles a day, they were twelve days inaccomplishing two double journeys. When they were loaded up the thirdtime, they received orders to go straight through to the headquarters ofthe column at Helpmakaar. The boys were pleased at the change, for theroad as far as Grey Town was a good one.

  They reached Grey Town for the third time on the 2nd of January. Herethey found the place in a state of great excitement, a mounted messengerhaving arrived that morning with the news that Cetewayo had refused alldemands and that large bodies of the Zulus were marching towards thefrontier to oppose the various columns collecting there.

  On arriving at the government-yard the lads received orders at once tounload the waggons and to take on the stores of the 2nd battalion of the24th, which was to march from Grey Town the next morning. The start wasdelayed until the afternoon, as sufficient waggons had not arrived totake on their baggage. The road was rough, and it was late in theafternoon before they arrived at the Mooin River.

  The weather had set in wet, the river was in flood, and the oxen hadimmense difficulty in getting the waggons across. Two teams had to beattached to each waggon, and even then it was as much as they could doto get across, for the water was so high that it nearly took them offtheir feet.

  The troops were taken over in punts, and, after crossing, a halt wasmade for the night.

  After seeing the cattle outspanned and attended to, the boys wanderedaway among the troops, as they were to start at daybreak, and it waslong past dark before all were over. The tents were not pitched, andthe troops bivouacked in the open. Brushwood was collected from therough ground around, and blazing fires were soon burning merrily. Itwas all new and very amusing to the boys. The troops were in highspirits at the prospect of an early brush with the enemy, and songs weresung around the fires until the bugle rang out the order, "Lights out,"when the men wrapped themselves in their blankets and lay down, and theboys retired to their snug shelter under the waggons, where theirKaffirs had as usual laid piles of brushwood to serve as their beds.

  The next morning they were off early, and reached the Tugela after fivehours' march. This river does not here form the frontier betweenZululand and Natal, this being marked by the Buffalo--a much larger andmore important stream--from the point where this falls into the Tugela,some fifteen miles below the spot where they crossed the latter river,which here runs towards the southwest. Two more days' marching took thecolumn to Helpmakaar. The weather was wet and misty, and the troops nowmarched in close order, with flankers thrown out, for the road ranparallel with the Buffalo, about five miles distant, and it was thoughtpossible that the Zulus might cross the river and commence hostilities.A cordon of sentinels had, however, been placed all along the river fromRorke's Drift down to th
e point of junction of the Buffalo and Tugela;below the stream was so wide that there was no fear of the Zuluseffecting a crossing.

  Most of the troops which had been stationed at Helpmakaar had alreadymarched up to Rorke's Drift, and after staying two days at Helpmakaarthe 2nd battalion of the 24th marched to that place, where the 1stbattalion of the same regiment were already encamped.

  Two days later the remainder of the force destined to act under ColonelGlyn had assembled at Rorke's Drift--the term "drift" meaning a fordacross a river.

  This column was the strongest of those which had been formed for thesimultaneous invasion of Zululand, and General Thesiger was himself uponthe spot to accompany it. Many of the waggons which had brought upstores were sent back to Grey Town for further supplies; but those ofthe boys, being laden with the spare ammunition and baggage of a portionof the 24th, were to accompany the column in its advance.

  The last two days of the term granted to Cetewayo to accede to our termswere full of excitement; it