the sea as
fast as possible, and on the 17th the column under Sir Evelyn Wood
arrived at Newcastle, to the great joy of its inhabitants. For days an
attack by the Boers had been expected, intrenchments had been thrown up
round the great convoy which had been collected to advance with the
force, and all the inhabitants who could bear arms, and many settlers
from the surrounding country, had come in to aid in the defence, should
the Boers attack it.

The arrival of the relieving column ensured the safety of the town, and
the Boers between Newcastle and General Coney's little camp at once fell
back to their old position on Laing's Neck, leaving the road open.
General Colley and his staff rode in from Prospect Hill, the name of the
camp, and had a consultation with General Wood. The 92nd Regiment
marched out and reinforced General Colley's column.

The Boers' position at Laing's Neck was commanded by a lofty and rugged
mountain, called Majuba Hill, on its right, and the occupation of this
hill by the British would render the position untenable. It would have
been an admirable military movement to seize this hill when the whole
force was collected at the camp in readiness to advance, as, with their
flank turned and a force advancing for a direct attack, the Boers must
at once have retreated, but General Colley most unfortunately desired to
retrieve the two defeats he had suffered, by compelling the Boers to
fall back, before the arrival on the scene of Sir Evelyn Wood with the
main body. He believed, no doubt, and with reason, that Majuba Hill
once captured would be impregnable against any attack which might be
made against it.

Accordingly, on the night of the 26th, with twenty officers and 627 men
drawn from the 58th, 60th, 92nd, and naval brigade, he started from the
camp with the intention of seizing the hill. The night was a dark one,
and the march across the unknown country difficult in the extreme. The
intervening ground was cut up by steep valleys and rapid ascents, and
for hours the troops struggled up and down these places, many of which
would have been difficult to climb by daylight. At last, after immense
labour, the force reached the foot of Majuba Hill, having taken six
hours in accomplishing a distance which, as the crow flies, is little
more than four miles. At a commanding point near the foot of the hill
200 men were left, to keep open the communication; the main body kept on
until they reached t