"Presently I heard a great deal of shouting from this trench, in which were about fifty men. They were calling for reinforcements, and shouting, 'The Boers are coming up.' Two or three minutes afterwards, I saw a party of about forty Boers walking towards the trench. They came up quite coolly; most of them had their rifles slung, and all, so far as I could observe, had their hands up. Our men in the trench--they were Fusiliers--were then standing up also, with their hands up, and shouting, 'The Boers are giving in, the Boers are giving in.' I did not know what to think, but ordered a company of my regiment to fix bayonets. We waited to see what would happen. Just then, when the Boers were close to the trench, someone--whether an enemy or one of our men--fired a shot. In an instant there was a general stampede, or rather a _mêlée_, my men rushing from their position and charging, while the Boers fired at the men in the trench, knocking several back into it dead. Previous to this, a Boer came towards me saying, 'I won't hurt you.' He looked frightened, and threw down his rifle. Immediately afterwards a Boer fired, and there was a frightful muddle. I fired at one Boer, and then another passed. We were fighting hand to hand. I shot the Boer and he dropped, clinging, however, to his rifle as he fell, and covering me most carefully. He fired, and I fell like a rabbit, the bullet going in just over and grazing the left lung. I lay where I fell until midnight. Subsequent to my being hit, parties of Boers passed twice over me, trying on the same trick, holding up their hands, as if they were asking for quarter. But our men refused to be taken in again, and fired, killing or driving them back." Thus it would seem that the Boers were guilty of acts even more questionable than those with which they charged our men. [Illustration: BOER DOCTORS AND AMBULANCE.] Early in the afternoon the Scottish Rifles arrived, and were at once thrown into the firing line. They served to defeat the last determined Boer attempt to rush the position, replacing the shattered fragments of the Lancashire Regiments. At the same time mules came up with a supply of ammunition, which had been running low, and with a certain amount of water, which was served out to the wounded. The most critical moment had passed, though the murderous shell fire still continued. So determined were the Boer rushes that at times the enemy came within thirty yards. Yet, as the day went on, and the sun began to sink, ground was distinctly gained. [Sidenote: JAN. 24, 1900.] _Lyttelton's Attempt to Divert the Enemy._] [Sidenote: The King's Royal Rifles storm a ridge.]