ew to
repairing the line. They seized the station and released a number of
prisoners, but were compelled to withdraw by three heavy Nordenfeldt
guns, which the Boers had posted on a hill about 2,500 yards beyond the
station. At half-past ten they had reached the point I describe, and
were very slowly coming back towards Ladysmith, the trains moving
backwards, and the cavalry walking on each side the line. The point is
called Modder's Spruit, from some early Dutchman, and there is a little
station there, the first out from Ladysmith town. At that moment
another train was seen coming up with the 1st Devons, and within an hour
a fourth arrived with five companies of the Gordons. The 42nd Field
Battery then came, and the 21st later; the 5th Lancers with a few 5th
Dragoon Guards, and a large contingent of Natal mounted volunteers. That
was our force. It took up a strong and fairly concealed position behind
a rise in the road to the left of the railway and waited. Meantime the
Boer scouts crept along that rocky ridge on our right front and down
into the plain, firing into us at long range, quite without effect.

At half-past one General French, who had taken command, sent out a few
Lancers to watch our left, and a large force of mixed cavalry to the
right. By a long circuit these swept up the whole length of the ridge
and cleared out the Boer sharpshooters, who could be seen galloping away
over the top. The infantry then detrained and advanced across the plain
and up the ridge in extended order, half a battery meantime driving out
a small Boer party, which was firing upon our Lancers on our left.

[Illustration: PLAN OF THE BATTLE OF ELANDS LAAGTE]

When we reached the top of that long ridge, we found it broad as well as
long, and we were moving rapidly across it when, with the usual whirr
and crash and scream, one of the enemy's big shells fell in the midst of
our right centre, killing two horses at a gun. It was at once followed
by another, and a dozen or two more. They had our range exactly, and the
art of knowing what was going on behind the hill, but though the shells
burst all right and hot fragments or bullets went shrieking through the
midst of us, I did not see anything but horses actually struck. I think
six or seven horses were killed at that place, and later on I heard of a
bugler having his head cut off, and two or three others killed by shell,
but otherwise I believe the artillery did us no damage, though to mo