This dashing exploit was soon followed by another, less showy but decidedly practical. Report having declared that the last Long Tom of the enemy was ensconced somewhere twenty miles east of Pietersburg, Colonel Grenfell directed his energies towards its capture. He marched hot foot _viâ_ Doornhoek--which he reached on the 30th--to Berg Plaats. But the enemy was on the _qui vive_. They determined that Long Tom should show fight till his last gasp, and opened fire at over 10,000 yards range. Still Colonel Grenfell's men pushed on and on, determined to capture their prize, while the horrible weapon snorted derisively. At last, after firing sixteen rounds, and while Kitchener's Fighting Scouts were steadily bearing down on them, the Boers blew it up and scudded to the north-east to save their skins. The great object, therefore, of the splendid rush was defeated, but ten prisoners were secured, together with thirty-five rounds of ammunition for the defunct Long Tom. Two of the British party were wounded. While proceeding to search for further spoil, 100,000 rounds of Martini-Henry ammunition were unearthed at a neighbouring farm and destroyed. Kitchener's Fighting Scouts, under Colonels Colenbrander and Wilson, were now ever on the move, and, working from Bergvlei as a centre, were continually bringing in wandering Boers. A detachment of the 12th Mounted Infantry under Major Thomson, too, did splendid work, and succeeded, in the midst of a dense fog, in capturing Commandant Marais and forty of his followers. Beyers, who had fled from Pietersburg on the approach of the British, was still at large, however, and in the Waterberg district was doing his best to intercept such commandos as were on the way to surrender. Munnik, a former landdrost of Pietersburg, and somewhat of a firebrand, together with his son, an ex-state mining engineer, had been captured during General Plumer's march, by Major Kirkwood and the Wiltshire Regiment. The total "bag" made by Colonel Grenfell, during his move from Pietersburg till his return there on the 6th of May, was 129 prisoners, fifty voluntary surrenders, and 240,000 rounds of ammunition, which were destroyed. Seven Boers were killed. On 10th May Botha forwarded to Lord Kitchener another letter:--