Early in the morning of the 13th Lord Roberts arrived to see the cavalry march off. Delay had been necessary to obtain supplies and to feed the horses, as their forage did not come in till it was broad daylight. The Field-Marshal warmly praised General French and his men for the skill and success of their movement. It was a most auspicious opening to a splendid campaign, and filled all with renewed confidence. The infantry, too, had indeed deserved well. The marching of the Sixth and Seventh Divisions through the heat had been superb, for though the distance was not great, the tracks were sandy and exceedingly bad, and the dust suffocating. In the best of spirits, about 11·30 a.m., the Cavalry Division moved off, with orders to cover a distance of twenty-five miles and seize by nightfall the important fords over the Modder River known as Klip Drift and Rondeval Drift. The lateness of the start, though unavoidable, added greatly to the difficulty of the task. The sun was already high and the heat great as the horsemen went forward over the plain in magnificent array. Behind them the advance brigade of the Sixth Division was already marching out, to follow in their wake to Wegdraai, a farm with good water, half way between the Riet and Modder. Behind this brigade again, the rest of the Sixth Division and the whole of the Seventh Division were nearing Waterval Drift, and the Ninth Division was on its way to Ramdam. [Illustration: _J. Charlton._] BETWEEN TWO FIRES: THE ENEMY'S AND THE BURNING VELDT.] [Sidenote: Heat and thirst.] [Sidenote: Veldt on fire.] [Sidenote: [FEB. 13, 1900.]