ly found myself dumped down at Duffer's Drift with the same
orders as already detailed, and an equal detachment composed of
entirely different men. As before, and on every subsequent occasion, I
had ample stores, ammunition, and tools. My position was precisely
similar to my former one, with this important exception, running
through my brain were _four_ lessons.

As soon as I received my orders, therefore, I began to make out my
plan of operations without wasting any time over the landscape, the
setting sun, or the departing column, which, having off-loaded all our
stores, soon vanished. I was determined to carry out all the lessons I
had learnt as well as I knew how.

To prevent any strangers, friendly or otherwise, from coming into my
position and spying out the elaborate defences I was going to make, I
sent out at once two examining posts of one N.C.O. and three men each,
one to the top of Waschout Hill, and the other some 1,000 yards out on
the veldt to the north of the drift. Their orders were to watch the
surrounding country, and give the alarm in the event of the approach
of any body of men whatever (Boers were, of course, improbable, but
still just possible), and also to stop any individuals, friendly or
not, from coming anywhere near camp, and to shoot at once on
non-compliance with the order to halt. If the new-comers had any
provisions to sell, these were to be sent in with a list by one of the
guard, who would return with the money, but the strangers were not to
be allowed nearer the camp on any account.

Having thus arranged a safeguard against spies, I proceeded to choose
a camping-ground. I chose the site already described in my former
dream, and for the same reasons, which still appealed to me. So long
as I was entrenched, it appeared the best place around. We started
making our trenches as soon as I had marked off a nice squarish little
enclosure which would about contain our small camp. Though, of
course, the north was the front, I thought, having a camp, it would be
best to have an all-round defence as a sort of obstacle. The majority
of the men were told off to dig, which they did not relish, a few
being detailed to pitch camp and prepare tea. As the length of trench
was rather great for the available number of diggers, and the soil was
hard, we were only able by dark, by which time the men were quite done
up by their hard day, to make quite a low parapet and shallow trench.
Still, we were "entren