"Very well; then I will get a troop of cavalry to go out towards Kamfers Dam, and will open fire from the guns on that side. Of course they will be told not to push the attack home, but to retire as soon as the Boers begin to fire hotly. In that way the attention of the Boers on the kopjes you have to pass will be attracted, and you will have a better chance of getting through unseen. I will, of course, order that the search-light shall not be directed near the road that you are travelling, but it shall play frequently on the two kopjes; the beam will pretty nearly blind the men up there. The best eyes cannot stand the glare of a search-light long, and when it is turned off, can see nothing for some time. So I think that, what with that and the attack on the other side, you will be able to make your way through, if you have luck. Of course you will not go as far as Boshof, and once past their lines, you will journey due south. In that way you will strike the Boshof and Jacobsdal road. When you do so, your course will be west, with a little south, which will lead you into your camp without going near their lines at Spytfontein and Magersfontein had better have a good look at my map. It is not as accurate as it ought to be, but it will at least be of some assistance to you. Have you a compass?" "Yes, sir; but it is of no use at night unless one is quite sure that there are no Boers near, as the striking of a match may be seen a very long way." "I will give you some American matches. They are beastly things, with a lot of sulphur in them, but they have the advantage that they do not strike with a sudden flash like most English matches, especially the safety-matches. There is only just enough phosphorus to light the sulphur, but, without allowing the flame to catch the wood, they will give enough light to let you see your compass. I don't say that it would be safe to strike one of them if there was a Boer within a hundred yards. But I do not think that the light would be seen half a mile away, especially as you would naturally strike it in the heart of a bush or in the shelter of a clump of rocks. Of course there is no chance of your getting back to camp before daylight, for the morning begins to break soon after five o'clock." "Thank you, sir! I shall be very much obliged for the matches; they would certainly prove most useful." Yorke did not care to walk about much, as he had a hard night's work before him, and he spent the day in one of the forts which was exchanging an occasional shot with a Boer battery, chatting with the officer in command.