rst hit the top of the kopje. When it fell there
was a rush of gunners to pick up the fragments. I secured one, and it
turned out to be part of a huge forty-pounder siege-gun shell. Such a
gun would far out-range ours, and I believe the scouts have not
located it yet, which explains our inactivity.

_(3.30.)_--Our right section has gone into action, and is firing now.
Some wounded Yeomen just brought in. One of them, I'm sorry to say, is
Lafone, with a glancing wound under the eye, sight uninjured. We
camped at five, and unharnessed. It seems the Yeomanry lost ten men
prisoners, but the Boers released them after taking their rifles.

_August 19._--_Sunday._--Reveille at four. Some days are very
irritating to the soldier, and this was a typical one. We harnessed up
and stood about waiting for orders for five hours. At last we moved
off, only to return again immediately; again moved off, and after a
few minutes halted; finally got more or less started, and marched five
or six miles, with incessant short halts, at each of which the order
is to unbuckle wither-straps and let horses graze. This sounds simple,
but is a horrible nuisance, as the team soon gets all over the place,
feet over traces, collars over ears, and so on, if not continually
watched and pulled about. When it is very hot and you are tired, it is
very trying to the temper. At one halt you think you will lunch. You
get out a Maconochie, open it, and take a spoonful, when you find the
centres tying themselves up in a knot with the leaders. Up you get,
straighten them out, and sit down again. After two more spoonfuls, you
find the wheelers playing cat's-cradle with the centres' traces.
Perhaps the wheel-driver is asleep, and you get up and put them right.
Then the grazing operations of the leaders bring them round in a
circle to the wheelers. Up you get, and finally, as the fifth spoonful
is comforting a very empty stomach, you hear, "Stand to your horses!"
"Mount!" You hurriedly stuff the tin into a muzzle hanging from the
saddle, where you have leisure to observe its fragrant juices
trickling out, stick the spoon under a wallet-strap, buckle up
wither-straps, and mount. At the next halt you begin again, and the
same thing happens. It is a positive relief to hear the shriek of a
shell, and have something definite to do or interest you. About two
the 38th fired a few shots at some Boers on the sky-line, and then we
came to Waterval, where we camped and watered