With Buller in Natal, Or, a Born LeaderHenty, G. A. (George Alfred)
General
With Buller in Natal, Or, a Born Leader
Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)
South African War, 1899-1902 -- Fiction
Here the fighting was almost over, and in a very short time all
resistance had ceased. Some of the Boer guns on the next hill had now
been turned round, and opened upon the captured position, which took
their own in flank. An aide-de-camp was sent off to order some of the
guns to be taken, if possible, up to the top of Pieter's Hill, and
after immense exertions two batteries were placed there. As soon as
this was accomplished, orders were sent for the rest of the infantry to
advance. General Warren was in command, and the fourth brigade, under
Colonel Norcott, and the eleventh, under Colonel Kitchener, now moved
forward, taking advantage of what shelter could be obtained as they
advanced. At the same time a strong force of colonial infantry moved to
the right to attack the Boer trenches farther up the line of railway,
and were soon hotly engaged. The defenders of Hart's Hill, and the
position between that and Pieter's, opened a heavy fire as soon as the
British infantry showed themselves; but their morale was so shaken by
the terrific bombardment to which they had been subjected, by the loss
of Pieter's Hill, and by the rifle fire now opened by its captors, that
their fire was singularly ineffective. Many men dropped, but the loss
was comparatively much smaller than that suffered by the Irish division
when moving across the open on the 23rd.
Taking advantage of every shelter, the troops moved steadily forward,
maintaining a heavy fire whenever they did so, and winning their way
steadily. Colonel Kitchener's Brigade pressed on towards Hart's Hill,
which on the side by which they now attacked was far less formidable
than that against which the Irish had dashed themselves. It had never
entered the Boer's minds that they would be attacked from this side,
and their most formidable entrenchments had all been placed to resist
an assault from Colenso. Arrived at its foot, the troops were in
comparative shelter among the boulders that covered the slopes. Foot by
foot they made their way upwards, until at last they gathered for a
final assault, and then with a loud cheer scrambled up the last slope
and with fixed bayonets drove the Boers in headlong flight. A similar
success attended the eleventh brigade, who just at sunset carried the
centre position, and a mighty cheer broke out all along the line at the
capture of what all felt to be the last serious obstacle to their
advance to Ladysmith. On the right, the Colonial troops had driven the
Boers in front of them for nearly three miles, capturing entrenchment
after entrenchment, until they arrived at Nelthorpe station. The three
camps of the Boers contained an even larger amount of spoil than had
been discovered in those of Monte Cristo and Hlangwane. It seemed that
they had been perfectly confident that the positions were impregnable,
and had accumulated stores sufficient for a prolonged residence. It was
evident, too, that the wealthier men with them had preferred this
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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