Almost immediately General Buller's force was shelled by the Boers, and so also was General Stephenson's Brigade on the extreme left, the General himself having a narrow escape from a hostile pom-pom. The town was also liberally attacked, and the enemy, with long-range guns from Dalmanutha, made a stubborn defence of their ground, even trying to squeeze a small force to the rear of General French, a manoeuvre which was quickly frustrated. General Buller continued to push steadily forward, with General French on his flank, driving back Boers as he went, and bivouacking on the ground he had gained. The whole of the 26th was spent in furious fighting over the whole thirty-mile radius, the bellowing of guns multifarious continuing from dawn till sunset. Lyttelton's Division (General Buller directing), with two brigades of cavalry, operated south-west of Dalmanutha; while French's cavalry, moving north by the west of Belfast, crumpled back the foe towards a place on the Belfast-Lydenburg road, called Lekenvlei. General Buller was supported by the Guards Brigade, who advanced steadily from Belfast in spite of an enfilading fire, contesting their way against a clamorous tornado of Dutch artillery--Long Toms, pom-poms, and many other formidable weapons, accompanied by Mausers, which persistently continued their flute-like concert--till both belligerents were enveloped in the eerie shadows of night. The cavalry operated over uncongenial ground, well suited to the tactics of the Boers and consequently hazardous to themselves; but only one officer, Captain Harrison (Scots Greys), was seriously wounded. [Illustration: A CAPITAL ON WHEELS: MR. KRUGER'S SEAT OF GOVERNMENT AT MACHADODORP] On the 27th came the grand attack which may be said to have broken the back of the Boer army. General Buller, having found it impossible on the previous day to find an artillery position whence the infantry could be assisted in an attack, sent forward on the morning of the 27th the 2nd Cavalry Brigade (General Brocklehurst), "A" Battery R.H.A. (Major Burrows), 53rd Battery R.F.A. (Major Gordon), two pom-poms, and the 4th Division Mounted Infantry (Major Stewart), towards a commanding ridge which ran from Belfast on the south side of the railway towards Dalmanutha. Here the Boers occupied about a mile or two of frontage, the centre being a picturesque homestead called Bergandal Farm, the kopjes on the left being thickly peopled with the enemy. Having obtained excellent artillery positions, the General directed the fire of all the British guns on this farm. Quickly the gunners got to work, and a fierce bombardment commenced and continued to grow heavier and heavier as the moments wore on, till at last the roar and rampage sounded as though Vulcan were holding festival in the bosom of the hills.