With the Guards' Brigade from Bloemfontein to Koomati Poort and Back — John Shaqi
With the Guards' Brigade from Bloemfontein to Koomati Poort and BackLowry, Edward P.
History
With the Guards' Brigade from Bloemfontein to Koomati Poort and Back
Lowry, Edward P.
South African War, 1899-1902 -- Personal narratives
place is at the field hospital; moving quietly amongst the sick
and wounded when they are brought in, and burying the dead when
they are carried out. There's not one of our chaplains out here
who has not earned, so far as I can gather, kind words from those
with whom he serves, and I think you will find your selection has
been more than justified.
"We had an excellent meeting in connection with the A.T.A. in the
Bloemfontein Town Hall last night, with Lord Roberts in the
chair. He spoke admirably; and though most of the troops were out
of the city the hall was full."
CHAPTER III
THROUGH WORLDS UNKNOWN AND FROM WORLDS UNKNOWN
[Sidenote: _A pleasure jaunt._]
During this six weeks of tarrying at Bloemfontein I found myself able
to visit a most interesting Methodist family residing some twenty
miles south of the town. For my sole benefit the express to the Cape
was stopped at a certain platelayer's hut, and then a walk of about a
mile across the veldt brought me to the pleasant country house of a
venerable widow lady. Her belongings had of course been freely
commandeered by the Boers on the outbreak of war; nor had the sons,
being burghers, though loyal-hearted Britishers, been able to elude
their liability to bear arms against their own kin. The two youngest,
schoolboys still, though of conscript age, had been sent down south
betimes; and so were well out of harm's way, but the two elder were
not suffered to thus escape. One as a despatch rider, and one as a
commissariat officer, they were compelled to serve a cause that did
violence to their deepest convictions. On the first appearance
therefore of the British, both brothers following the bidding of
strongest blood bonds, transferred their allegiance, if not their
service, to the other side. Thereupon they were so incessantly
threatened with a volley of avenging Boer bullets they felt compelled
to take a holiday trip to the Cape. Thus was their gentle mother with
war still raging round her gates bereft of the presence, protection,
and sorely needed aid of all her sons.
We arranged for the holding in her home of an Easter Sunday evening
service; and then returning to the railway were cheered by the speedy
sight of a goods train bound for Bloemfontein. Whereupon I scrambled
on to the top of a heavily loaded truck, and there, being a
first-class passenger provided with a first-class ticket, travelled in
first-class style, sitting awkwardly astride of nobody knows what. On
the same truck rode a Colonial, an English cavalryman, and a Hindu who
courteously threw over me a handsome rug when the chilly eve closed in
upon us. A decidedly representative group were we atop that truck-load
of miscellaneous munitions of war. And on into the darkness, and
through the darkness, we thus rode till late at night we reached the
lights of Bloemfontein.
[Sidenote: _Onwards but whither?_]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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