“‘2. That no forward movement into Zululand will be made till the expiration of the thirty days; but at the end of that time, if all the demands are not complied with, the troops will advance. “‘3. That such advance will not be directed against the Zulu nation, but against the king, who has broken the promises he made at his coronation. So that in the event of hostilities, all Zulu subjects willing to lay down their arms, and wishing to take refuge in British territory, will be fed and protected till such time as peace is restored, when they will be at liberty to return to their homes; but that all who remain in Zululand will be considered as enemies. “‘5. That these are His Excellency’s instructions, which he intends to carry out to the best of his ability.’” (P. P. [C. 2308] p. 39). On the 11th January, Lord Chelmsford, with No. 3 Column, crossed the Buffalo River at Rorke’s Drift, the infantry crossing on a barrel-raft, a punt, and a small boat; the cavalry and natives by a ford lower down the river. The force encamped in the Zulu country where it crossed. The General, with the cavalry, rode to the left to meet Colonel Wood—commanding No. 4 Column, which was at Bemba’s Kop—about thirty-five miles off. They met about halfway. Colonel Wood, on his return, commenced operations against the Zulus by seizing some 2000 cattle belonging to Inkomi and Sihayo, the Zulus only making “a show of resistance.” In addition to this, Colonel Wood reports, on the 13th January, that he had also captured 2000 or 3000 head of cattle from the Sondolosi tribe, and on the same day an attack was made on a petty chief, Mbuna, whose men refused to disarm, and seven Zulus were killed.—(P. P. [C. 2242] p. 45). Colonel Wood crossed the Blood River on the 6th January, and here we must leave No. 4 Column for the present. No. 1 Column had some difficulty in effecting the passage of the Tugela, the river being in flood. The fortunes of this column will be followed in a future chapter. Colonel Durnford, No. 2 Column, reported to the General (on his return to camp on the 11th) that the country in his front was quite quiet. He then returned to his command with further instructions as to its disposition, when “he and the mounted men and rocket battery were to join me with No. 3 Column,” writes the General on January 14th.—(P. P. [C. 2242] p. 47).