through the districts of Harrismith and Vrede. He
could tell the delegates that the Kaffirs had been quite astonished that
there were still cattle and sheep and supplies of grain in the
districts. He had not yet come to the end of his provisions; but, even
if everything were taken, he saw a chance of obtaining food from
elsewhere.

Commandant C.A. Van Niekerk (Kroonstad) declared that if there was one
part of the country which was entirely exhausted it was the part where
he was in command, namely Hoopstad and a portion of Kroonstad. But yet,
during the last twelve months, they had been able to obtain food, and
even to sow for the ensuing year. There were no cattle in his district;
but he had taken a thousand sheep and fifty-two cattle from the English.

Commandant Van der Merwe (Heilbron) spoke to the same effect.

General Smuts was the next to address the meeting. He began by saying
that his expedition into Cape Colony had been the outcome of the advice
which the deputation had given in July, 1901, namely to continue the
war. That _he_ had been in command of it had come about in the following
way. News had been received in the Transvaal that affairs in Cape Colony
were taking a favourable turn, and accordingly General De la Rey had
received orders to go thither, and to take over the command there. But
afterwards it was thought wiser to annul these orders, because De la Rey
could not well be spared from the western parts of the Transvaal. Owing
to this, he (General Smuts) took the task upon his own shoulders, and
crossed the Orange River with two hundred men. He had had a difficult
task to accomplish. He had marched through Cape Colony to Grahamstad,
and from thence he had pushed on towards the coast, through Graaff
Reinet. Thence he had proceeded to the neighbourhood where he was now
carrying on operations.

He had visited every commando, and as he had seen that there were signs
of disorder amongst them he had taken them all under his own command. In
this way he had found himself at the head of some fifteen hundred men.
During his expeditions Commandant Lotter had been captured with a
hundred men; this had reduced his force to only fourteen hundred. But
since then the number had nearly doubled, so that they now had two
thousand six hundred men (divided into twenty commandos) under arms in
Cape Colony. In addition to these men there was a division under General
De Villiers operating in Griqualand West, and another u