ng were the officers I
took with me, ordering them to assemble at Doornberg, in the district of
Winburg, on the 25th of January, 1901: Generals Piet Fourie, Philip
Botha and Froneman; Commandants Prinsloo (Bethlehem), Steyn (Ficksburg),
Hasebroek (Winburg), De Vos (Kroonstad), Merve (Parijs), Ross
(Frankfort), Wessel Wessels[80] (Harrismith), Kolbe (Bloemfontein), and
Jan Theron, with the renowned Theron Scouts.

From the 8th to the 25th of January we were in the north-western
districts of the Free State. We were waiting for a suitable opportunity
to make a dash into Cape Colony.

[Footnote 78: _Vlei_--a valley with stagnant water in it.]

[Footnote 79: The Boer proverb is:--"Blood creeps where it cannot
walk."]

[Footnote 80: I had appointed him in place of Commandant Truter, who had
resigned.]

CHAPTER XXV

I Again Attempt to Enter Cape Colony

I was now about to make a second attempt to march into Cape Colony. I
had great fears that my plans would leak out, since I was obliged to
mention them to the commandants. But I was not able to confine all
knowledge of my future movements entirely to the commandants. For I had
sent many a burgher home to fetch a second horse; and the burghers began
to make all sorts of guesses as to why they had to fetch the horses; and
one could hear them mutter: "We are going to the Colony."

But nevertheless they were all in good spirits, with the exception of
some, who had for commander a most contradictory and obstinate officer.

By January the 25th nearly the whole of my commandos had assembled; only
General Philip Botha, with the burghers from Vrede under Commandant
Hermanus Botha, had yet to arrive in order to complete our numbers; and
he had been prevented coming.

President Steyn and the Government decided to go with me and my two
thousand burghers.

At Doornberg the council of war was called together by the Government.
President Steyn then communicated to the meeting that his term of office
would soon expire. He pointed out that the provisions of the law
designed to meet this contingency could not be carried out, because a
legally constituted Volksraad could not be summoned at the present
moment.

The council of war decided to propose a candidate to the burghers
without any delay, at the same time giving them the option of
nominating candidates of their own. Further, it was decided that the
candidate who should be elected should be sworn in as Vice-States
Pre