Kimberley could have easily been taken, but here another factor came in. To take the place, all the Boers had to do was to destroy De Aar Junction, the supply depot there, and the branch line to Kimberley. Having done this, the next step was to proceed on the Cape Railway line and destroy it. The English could have done nothing without these lines, and Kimberley would have fallen without one shot being fired. But President Steyn prevented this because it put the Dutch Cape Ministry in a bad dilemma. This Ministry was friendly to the Boers and no doubt wished them every success, but had the Boers proceeded as I have suggested, the British Government would have charged the Ministry with treasonable conduct. So De Aar Junction and all the railway lines were allowed to remain in good order for the use of Lord Roberts and his army. The Boers in their every act were always swayed by their love of justice and humanity, and were always ready to sacrifice themselves in order to do good to others. It was a vital mistake they made, and I repeatedly told them so, because they knew, and I knew, that the liberty and independence of their land were at stake. I used to beg General Joubert to throw the whole force of the Boers in the Free State into Cape Colony and destroy all bridges and railway lines, for I knew, if this was done, we would get 15,000 or 20,000 recruits in Cape Colony, and the English could never then push their way across the Orange River. But the good, humane General Joubert would never consent to do anything that might cause trouble for his friends in Cape Town. I respected him for the stand he took; in fact, I admired and loved him for it; but it was not business in dealing with such an unscrupulous enemy as Great Britain. Ladysmith and Kimberley were practically relieved on the same day, February 27th, and a few days afterwards followed the relief of Mafeking. To lay siege to Mafeking was positively foolish, and had the Boers allowed General Baden-Powell to come out, why, they would have had him and all his men in Pretoria for their Christmas dinner at President Kruger's expense. Mafeking was of little or no importance to either party in the war, so long as the English were not permitted to cross the Orange River, and they never could have crossed or reached the Orange River if all the bridges and railways in Cape Colony had been destroyed. The Karoo, a wide desert, must first be crossed, and no large army would dare make the venture of crossing.