The War of the Axe; Or, Adventures in South AfricaGroves, J. Percy (John Percy)
History
The War of the Axe; Or, Adventures in South Africa
Groves, J. Percy (John Percy)
South Africa -- History -- Frontier Wars, 1811-1878 -- Fiction
Up this valley G--n led his column, fighting over every yard of the
broken ground, until--just as night was falling--he reached the open
country in the vicinity of Chumie Hoek. The Caffres here made one more
desperate attempt to take the guns, but the gunners opening upon them
with shot and shell, repulsed the attack, and it was not renewed; the
column then marched on, and eventually arrived in camp with the loss of
an artillery waggon, which had to be abandoned owing to the collapse of
its team of bullocks...
We must now return to the rear-guard, and see how it had fared with our
friends in "Jamieson's Horse" during that eventful day.
When the officer commanding the rear-guard heard that the escort of the
centre division of the convoy was being driven back, and that the
waggons were in imminent danger of falling into the enemy's hands, he
consulted with Captain Jamieson as to whether he should not take it upon
himself to send a troop to their assistance; but before he had time to
come to a decision a mounted orderly arrived from the front with the
alarming intelligence that the waggons had already been captured, and
that the road was entirely blocked; he also brought an order that
"Jamieson's Horse" should be sent forward at once, to retake the waggons
and hold the enemy in check until the road had been cleared.
Anxious to reach the scene of the disaster without a moment's delay, and
being well aware that if he advanced along the road he must necessarily
meet with more or less hindrance, Captain Jamieson wheeled the corps to
the left, and started off at a hand-gallop across country until he lost
sight of the convoy; when he changed direction to the right and led his
men over some broken ground, which ran almost parallel to, and was
within easy rifle-shot of the road. They had advanced about three parts
of a mile over this ground, and were within half that distance of the
captured waggons--which were now completely surrounded by hundreds of
the enemy--when Frank Jamieson, who was riding at the head of the
leading troop, espied--away to the left front--a small party of Caffres
driving off the bullock teams into the mountains. He at once pointed
them out to his father, who ordered him to follow in pursuit with
fifteen men, and do his best to recover the teams and bring them back as
quickly as possible.
"Without them," said the captain, "I do not see how we can take the
waggons on; for I heard Thompson say that he had no spare draught
cattle."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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