who had paused to sweep the veldt with his
field-glass. "Yes, twice as many as are out here."

"What!" cried the major. "Well, there's no help for it; we shall have
to leave the cattle behind. Send a man forward to tell the convoy guard
to halt till we come up, and let the cattle take their chance."

"The men with the wagons too, sir?"

"No," cried the major; "not till we're at the last pinch. We must try
and save them."

The messenger was sent off at the double; and as the retreating party
marched on, the major continued to use his glass, shaking his head in
his annoyance from time to time as he saw the Boer reinforcements
closing up.

"Oh!" he groaned, "if we only had a lancer regiment somewhere on our
flank, just to manoeuvre and keep out of sight till their chance came
for a charge. Make them run--eh, Edwards?"

"Yes," said the captain dryly; "but unfortunately we have no lancer
regiment on our flank."

"No," replied the major; "and we must make the best of it."

"Beg pardon, sir," said Sergeant James to Dickenson; "but don't it seem
a pity?"

"What? To have got so far and not be able to get back unhurt?"

"I was thinking of the cattle, sir," replied the sergeant gloomily.
"Hungry and low as the poor lads are with the want of meat, it seems a
sin to forsake all that raw roast-beef. It's enough to make the men
mutiny."

"Not quite, sergeant," replied his officer as he tramped steadily on.
"But look forward; it doesn't seem to make any difference. The
baggage-guard has halted, but the oxen are marching on, following the
wagons steadily enough."

"Yes, sir; as the old lines used to say that I learnt at school, `It is
their nature too.'"

"I suppose the enemy will divide, take a long reach round, and get ahead
of the convoy."

"Yes, sir, that'll be their game. They'll make for that patch of
wood and rocks in front, occupy it, and force us to make a
what-you-may-call-it."

"Detour?" said Dickenson.

"That's it, sir."

"Yes," said Dickenson thoughtfully; "they'll be able--mounted--to make
it before we can."

But the major seemed to think differently, for he sent fresh men on to
hurry the convoy, his intention being to occupy the rough patch of a few
acres in extent, hoping to keep the enemy at bay from there till the
promised help came from Groenfontein.

"Yes, I know," he said impatiently when Dickenson joined him for a few
minutes to receive fresh orders. "It's distant, and we shall