he carts to lighten their burden.

On nearing Elandslaagte we caught up the rear of the fleeing
commandos. Here we learned that Generals Botha and Meyer were still
behind us with their commandos, near Lombardsdorp. We off-saddled,
exhausted and half starving. Luckily, some of the provisions of our
commissariat, which had been stored here during the Ladysmith
investment, had not been carried away. But, to our disgust, we found
that the Commissariat-Commissioner had set fire to the whole of it, so
we had to appease our hunger by picking half-burned potatoes out of a
fire.

At 7 o'clock next morning General Botha and his men arrived at
Elandslaagte and off-saddled in hopes of getting something to eat.
They were also doomed to disappointment. Such wanton destruction of
God's bounty was loudly condemned, and had Mr. Pretorius, the
Commissioner of Stores, not been discreet enough to make himself
scarce, he would no doubt have been subjected to a severe
"sjamboking." Later in the day a council of war was held, and it was
decided that we should all stay there for the day, in order to stop
the enemy if they should pursue us. Meantime we would allow the
convoys an opportunity of getting to the other side of the Sunday
River.

The British must have been so overjoyed at the relief of Ladysmith
that Generals Buller and White did not think it necessary to pursue
us, at any rate for some time, a consideration for which we were
profoundly grateful. Methinks General Buller must have felt that he
had paid a big price for the relief of Ladysmith, for it must have
cost him many more lives than he had relieved. But in that place were
a few Jingos (Natal Jingos) who had to be released, I suppose, at any
costs.

My burghers and I had neither cooking utensils nor food, and were
anxious to push forward and find our convoys; for we had not as yet
learned to live without carts and commissariat. At dusk the
generals--I have no idea who they were--ordered us to hold the
"randjes" south of the Sunday River till the following day, and that
no burghers were to cross the river. This order did not seem to please
the majority, but the Generals had put a guard near the bridge, with
instructions to shoot any burghers and their horses should they try to
get to the other side; so they had perforce, to remain where they
were. Now I had only 22 men under my command, and I did not think
these would make an appreciable difference to our fighting force, so