We arranged with the New South Wales and Western Australian Governments for the ss. _Surrey_ to convey our three contingents to Cape Town. We totalled some three hundred and eighty officers and men and four hundred horses. One squadron from a New South Wales cavalry regiment, one South Australian Mounted Rifles squadron, and a similar one from Western Australia. The _Surrey_, with the full complement on board, left Fremantle, in Western Australia, in January, 1900. I can still shut my eyes and see the immense crowds that wished us "God speed," and hear the continuous cheers of the people of Adelaide on the day when we marched through the principal streets of the city on our way to embarkation. It was one of those events that one does not forget. Once more I was on my way across the seas to the other side of the world. My eighth voyage. Fine weather across the Indian Ocean. I was not in charge of the troops on board the ship. I was merely a passenger, as a special service officer. Lieut.-Colonel Parrott, a New South Wales engineer officer, was in command. I had particularly arranged for this, as I had heard of the difficulties that had arisen in connexion with the transport of the first infantry units, and had considered it more advisable to act as a sort of support to the officer commanding than to be actually in command myself. This plan turned out quite successful. A finer lot of sports I shall probably never travel with again. Among them we had men of all classes--judges' sons, doctors' sons, squatters' sons, bootmakers' sons, butchers' sons, all happy together, and all more than ready for their job. Amongst our South Australian lot was one Jack Morant. He was not an Australian born, but had come out from the old country a few years before, and had an uncle at a place called Renmark, up the River Murray, where the Chaffey brothers, the irrigation experts from California, had established a fruit colony and had induced several retired officers from the old country to settle. Amongst these was Lieut.-Colonel Morant, Jack's uncle. The latter had been promoted to the rank of corporal, and had been christened by his comrades "Corporal Buller," from the somewhat extraordinary likeness he bore to General Sir Redvers. I will tell you more about Jack Morant and his unfortunate end later on. Those of you who read the _Sydney Bulletin_ in the days before the South African War may remember several typical Australian poems that appeared in that clever journal over the name of "The Breaker." "The Breaker" was Jack Morant. CHAPTER XI WITH LORD ROBERTS IN SOUTH AFRICA It was on February 25, 1900, that the _Surrey_ anchored in Cape Town Bay. As soon as the usual formalities were completed I was taken off in a special launch, and on landing proceeded to report myself to General Forestier Walker, at the time G.O.C. Lines of Communication.