Then he rose and quietly returned to his bed, saying, ‘Indeed, ma’am, I could not help going to have a pipe, for sure, that was the nastiest stuff I ever got drunk on,’—alluding to the taste of the chloroform. Besides being a social comfort to the soldier on the march and in camp, the wholesomeness of the weed has long been recognised in the Army. Lord Wolseley on the occasion of his rapid dash to Coomassie gave proof of his belief in its prophylactic properties when on landing at Cape Coast Castle he caused pipes and tobacco to be dealt out to the men. George Gilham, of the 2nd Battalion, Rifle Brigade, writing from the ranks tells of his experiences on the march, and says, ‘The climate about Cape Coast Castle is bad, and the stenches we came upon almost knocked us over. But the General had pipes and tobacco served out to us with orders to smoke for protection. I was then no smoker, but I soon managed to learn the art.’ And Corporal J. C. Ives, of the Buffs, bears pathetic testimony to the soldiers’ love of a pipe of tobacco during some hard service, fighting the Zulus. After describing a fierce encounter with the enemy he concludes with this lament: ‘The worst of all was we had no tobacco, the last having been already issued. We did not know we had so little in our possession when we sold some to the Kaffirs in charge of the track oxen. When we found all was gone we would have given double the value of it, but it was too late, and we were induced to try experiments with dry tea-leaves, grass, and coffee grounds. Some of the men found a herb which they smoked, but this had the effect of making their heads swell to such an extent that they had to be attended by the doctor.’ On another occasion when the 91st Highlanders came within sight, and greeting cheers had resounded on the still night air, he says, ‘When our friends arrived the first question from the Ekowe garrison was, “Have you any tobacco?” Oh, that smoke! The same night we were served out with a tot of rum, white biscuits and a small piece of tobacco, luxuries subscribed for by the inhabitants of Port Natal.’