"That is most satisfactory news--most satisfactory. This is the most important point at present. There can be no doubt that in a day or two all communication with Kimberley will be cut off, and this place will become the base of our advance for its relief. An immense amount of stores must be collected here before we can move forward. No doubt small bodies of Boers will be hovering about, but they are not likely to make an attack; and indeed I doubt if any force could do so successfully. Still, it is a great thing not to be obliged to spend half our strength on erecting strong earth-works, and to feel that we can work in security. At the same time, I am sorry that they are evidently going to invade the colony south of the Orange River. From what I have heard, the Dutch population round Colesberg, Steynsburg, and Stormberg are likely to join them almost to a man. The country is mountainous, and it will be difficult to drive them out of it. "Round Aliwal North a considerable portion of the population is British. They may be able to hold their own; but if they cannot do so, they are sure to suffer heavily at the hands of the Boers, who will certainly combine plunder with patriotism. Among them there are a considerable number of Irish and American Irish, Germans, French, and Hollanders, adventurers of the worst kind, whom high pay and the hope of plunder have attracted, together with a miscellaneous riff-raff of the lowest class from the mining centres. The country Boers will be rough and vindictive enough, you may be sure, but this foreign scum will be infinitely worse; still, I have no doubt some of the troops as they arrive will be sent on to Port Elizabeth, and will, we may hope, be able to make head against them. "By the way, we had news yesterday that Penn Symons had defeated them at Dundee, though with heavy loss on our side; he himself is mortally wounded. General White doubts whether that force will be able to maintain itself, as the Boers are closing in all round him, and the line of railway from Ladysmith is already cut. The Boers have a tremendous advantage in being all mounted men, and, living as they will do on the country they pass through, they will be unencumbered by supply trains, and will move three feet to our one. The more I see of it, the more I feel that we have a troublesome and difficult job on hand." The letter to Major Mackintosh was at once written and sent off by the train starting that evening, together with one from the colonel, stating the information that he had gained--thanks to the daring and enterprise of Mr. Harberton, who had in disguise entered the Orange Free State and gathered the intelligence he now sent from the men of the Boer commando at Fauresmith.