With Buller in Natal by G. A. Henty

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WITH BULLER IN NATAL

[Illustration: "CHRIS SPRANG AT HIM."]

WITH BULLER IN NATAL

OR, A BORN LEADER

BY

G. A. HENTY

PREFACE

It will be a long time before the story of the late war can be written
fully and impartially. Even among the narratives of those who witnessed
the engagements there are many differences and discrepancies, as is
necessarily the case when the men who write are in different parts of
the field. Until, then, the very meagre military despatches are
supplemented by much fuller details, anything like an accurate history
of the war would be impossible. I have, however, endeavoured to
reconcile the various narratives of the fighting in Natal, and to make
the account of the military occurrences as clear as possible.
Fortunately this is not a history, but a story, to which the war forms
the background, and, as is necessary in such a case, it is the heroes of
my tale, the little band of lads from Johannesburg, rather than the
leaders of the British troops, who are the most conspicuous characters
in the narrative. As these, although possessed of many admirable
qualities, had not the faculty of being at two places at once, I was
obliged to confine the action of the story to Natal. With the doings of
the main army I hope to deal next year.

G. A. HENTY

CONTENTS

I. THE BURSTING OF THE STORM

II. A TERRIBLE JOURNEY

III. AT THE FRONT

IV. DUNDEE

V. THE FIRST BATTLE

VI. ELANDSLAAGTE

VII. LADYSMITH BESIEGED

VIII. A DESPERATE PROJECT

IX. KOMATI-POORT

X. AN EXPLOSION

XI. BACK WITH THE ARMY

XII. THE BATTLE OF COLENSO

XIII. PRISONERS

XIV. SPION KOP

XV. SPION KOP

XVI. A COLONIST'S ADVENTURE

XVII. A RESCUE

XVIII. RAILWAY HILL

XIX. MAJUBA DAY

XX. LADYSMITH

ILLUSTRATIONS

"CHRIS SPRANG AT HIM"

CHRIS OFFERS HIS SERVICES TO SIR PENN SYMONS

CHRIS AND HIS COMPANIONS SCOUTING

"BOTH RIFLES CRACKED AT ONCE"

"THERE WAS A TREMENDOUS ROAR AND A BLINDING CRASH"

"WITH A SHOUT OF TRIUMPH THE TWO BOERS RAN DOWN"

"PRESENTLY FROM BEHIND THE FOOT OF THE HILL SIX HORSEMEN DASHED OUT"

THE NAVAL GUNS ON MOUNT ALICE

"ONE OF THE BOERS HELD UP HIS RIFLE WITH A WHITE FLAG TIED TO IT"

THE RELIEF OF LADYSMITH

[Illustration: SOUTH EASTERN AFRICA]

WITH BULLER IN NATAL

CHAPTER I

THE BURSTING OF THE STORM

A group of excited men were gathered in front of the Stock Exchange at
Johannesburg. It was evident that something altogether unusual had
happened. All wore anxious and angry expressions, but a few shook hands
with each other, as if the news that so much agitated them, although
painful, was yet welcome; and indeed this was so.

For months a war-cloud had hung over the town, but it had been thought
that it might pass over without bursting. None imagined that the blow
would come so suddenly, and when it fell it had all the force of a
complete surprise, although it had been so threatening for many weeks
that a considerable portion of the population had already fled. It was
true that great numbers of men, well armed, and with large numbers of
cannon, had been moving south, but negotiations were still going on and
might continue for some time yet; and now by the folly and arrogance of
one man the cloud had burst, and in thirty hours war would begin.

Similar though smaller groups were gathered here and there in the
streets. Parties of Boers from the country round rode up and down with
an air of insolent triumph, some of them shouting "We shall soon be rid
of you; in another month there will not be a rooinek left in South
Africa."

Those addressed paid no heed to the words. They had heard the same thing
over and over again for the past two months. There was a tightening of
the lips and a closing of the fingers as if on a sword or rifle, but no
one replied to the insolent taunts. For years it had been the hope of
the Uitlanders that this would come, and that there would be an end to a
position that was well-nigh intolerable. Never before had a large body
of intelligent men been kept in a state of abject subjection by an
inferior race, a race almost without even the elements of civilization,
ignorant and brutal beyond any existing white community, and superior
only in the fact that they were organized and armed, whereas those they
trampled upon were deficient in both these respects. Having no votes,
these were powerless to better their condition by the means common to
civilized communities throughout the world. They were ground down by an
enormous taxation, towards which the Boers themselves contributed
practically nothing, and the revenue drawn from them was spent in the
purchase of munitions of war, artillery, and fortifications, so
enormously beyond the needs of the country, that it was no secret that
they were intended not only for the defence of the republic against
invasion, but for a general rising of the Boer population and the
establishment of Dutch supremacy throughout the whole of South Africa.

The Boer government was corrupt from the highest to the lowest. The
president and the members of his family piled up wealth to an enormous
amount, and nothing could be done without wholesale bribery. The price
of everything connected with the mining industry was doubled by the
supply being in the hands of monopolists, who shared their gains with
high state officials. Money was lavished like water on what was called
secret service, in subsidizing newspapers to influence public opinion
throughout Europe, and, as it was strongly suspected, in carrying on a
propaganda among the Dutch in Cape Colony, and in securing the return of
members and a ministry secretly pledged to further in every way the aims
of the Presidents of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The
British and other aliens were not only deprived of all rights of
citizenship, but even freedom of speech and the right of public meeting
was denied them; they were not allowed to carry arms except by a special
license, their children were taught in Dutch in the schools, they had no
right of trial by jury; judges who had the courage to refuse to carry
out the illegal behests of the president were deprived of their offices,
and the few editors of newspapers representing the Uitlanders--as all
men not born in the state were called-were imprisoned and their journals
suppressed.

Intolerable as was such a state of things to a civilized community, it
might have been borne with some patience had it not been that the
insolence of their masters was unbounded. Every Boer seemed to take a
pleasure in neglecting no opportunity of showing his contempt for the
men whose enterprise and labour had enormously enriched the country, and
whose superior intelligence he was too grossly ignorant to appreciate. A
Boar farmer would refuse a cup of water to a passing traveller, and
would enforce his refusal by producing his rifle immediately if the
stranger ventured to urge his request. Of late the insolence of the
Boers had greatly increased; the manner in which England had, instead of
demanding justice with the sternness and determination that the
circumstances called for, permitted her remonstrances to be simply
ignored, was put down as a consciousness of weakness. And having now
collected arms sufficient not only for themselves but for the whole
Dutch population of South Africa, the Boers were convinced that their
hour of triumph had come, and that in a very short time their flag would
float over every public building throughout the country and the Union
Jack disappear for ever.

The long discussions that had been going on with regard to a five or
seven years' franchise were regarded with absolute indifference by the
Uitlanders--even the shorter time would have afforded them no advantage
whatever. The members from the mining districts would be in a hopeless
minority in the assembly; and indeed, very few of those entitled to a
vote would have cared to claim it, inasmuch as they would thereby render
themselves citizens of the republic, and be liable to be commandeered
and called upon to serve in arms, not only against the natives, upon
whom the Boers were always making aggressions, but against England, when
the war, which all foresaw could not long be delayed, broke out.

For months the negotiations went on between President Kruger and Mr.
Chamberlain, the British colonial minister, and the certainty that the
Boers were bent upon fighting became more and more evident. Vast
quantities of rifles, ammunition, and cannon poured into the Transvaal,
their passage being more than winked at by the Dutch ministry of Cape
Colony.

It was that day known that President Kruger had thrown off the mask of a
pretended desire for peace, and that an ultimatum had been telegraphed
to England couched in terms of such studied insolence that it was
certain war must ensue. The greatest civilized power on earth would have
shown less arrogance towards the most feeble. Not only was England
called upon to send no more troops to South Africa, but to withdraw most
of her forces already in the country, and this by a state that owed its
very existence to her, and whose total population was not more than that
of a small English county.

The terms of that ultimatum had just become known in Johannesburg, and
it was not surprising that it had created an intense excitement. All had
long felt that war must come, and that at an early date, but the step
that had now been taken came as a surprise. From all appearances it had
seemed that the negotiations might be continued for months yet before
the crisis arrived, and that it should thus have been forced on by the
wording of the ultimatum showed that the Boers were satisfied that their
preparations were complete, and that they were in a position to overrun
Natal and Cape Colony before any British force capable of withstanding
them could arrive. England, indeed, had been placed in a most difficult
position. The ministry were not unaware of the enormous preparations
that the Boers were making, and had for some time past been quietly
sending out a large number of officers and a few non-commissioned
officers and men to the Cape. But so long as there was a hope that the
Boers would finally grant some redress to the Uitlanders, they could not
despatch any considerable number of troops, for had they done so they
would have been accused not only on the Continent, but by a section of
Englishmen, of forcing on a war with a weak state, whereas in point of
fact the war was being forced on by a country that most erroneously
believed itself to be stronger than England. The Boers of the Transvaal
knew already that the Orange Free State would join them at once, and
believed firmly that every Dutchman in Natal and Cape Colony would at
the signal take up arms.

Presently a gentleman detached himself from the crowd in front of the
Exchange, and joined a lad of some sixteen years old who was standing on
the other side of the street.

"Well, father, is it all true what they say?" the latter asked--"that
Kruger has sent such an ultimatum to England that war is certain?"

"It is quite true, Chris; war is absolutely certain. Kruger has given
the British Government only two days to reply to the most insolent
demand ever addressed to a great power, and worded in the most offensive
manner. I imagine that no reply will be given; and as the ultimatum was
sent off yesterday, we shall to-morrow morning be in a state of war."

"Well, father, there is no doubt what the result will be."

"No doubt whatever as to the final result, but I am afraid things will
go very badly for a time. I am glad, very glad, that Kruger should have
sent such an ultimatum. It cannot but be accepted as a defiance by all
England; and I should say that even the opposition, which has of late
continually attacked Mr. Chamberlain, will now be silenced, and that
Government will be supported by all parties."

After a quarter of an hour's walk they arrived at home. It was a
handsome house, for Mr. King was one of the leading men in Johannesburg.
He had come out with a wife and son ten years before, being sent by some
London capitalists to report to them fully upon the prospects of the
gold-fields. Under his advice they had purchased several properties,
which had been brought out as companies, and proved extremely valuable.
He was himself a large holder in each of these, and acted as manager and
director of the group. "What is the news, Robert?" his wife asked, as he
and her son came in. "I have had three or four visitors in here, and
they all say that there is quite an excitement in the town."

"It has come at last," he said gravely; "war is inevitable, and will
begin in twenty-four hours. Kruger has sent one of the most
extraordinary demands ever drawn up. He calls upon England to cease
sending out troops, and to speedily recall most of those now in South
Africa, and has given two days for a reply, of which one has already
expired. As it is absolutely certain that England will not grant this
modest request, we may say that the war has begun. I wish now that I had
sent you and Chris down to Durban a fortnight ago, for there will be a
fearful rush, and judging by the attitude of the Boers, I fear they will
make the journey a very unpleasant one. As we have agreed, it is
absolutely necessary that I should remain here. There is no saying what
steps the Boers will take with reference to the mines; but it is certain
that we must, if possible, keep them going--not for the sake of the
profit, which you may be sure Kruger will not allow to go out of the
country, but because if they were to be stopped it would cost an immense
deal of money to put them in working condition again, especially if, as
is likely enough, the Boers damage the machinery. I shall do as little
work as I can; and the Boers will not, I fancy, interfere with us as
long as they can benefit by the working. For myself, I would risk any
loss or damage rather than aid in supplying them with gold, but for the
sake of our shareholders in Europe I must do my best to save the mines
from destruction. Indeed, if I don't work them, probably they will do so
until the end is at hand, and will then do as much damage as possible.
You know we have agreed on this point." "Yes, I suppose it is best,
Robert; but it seems terrible leaving you alone here, and I shall be in
a perpetual state of anxiety about you."

"I don't think there is any occasion for that; as long as I am working
the mines and they are taking the gold, which no doubt they will have to
repay when our army are masters here, they will not interfere with me.
They treat us badly enough, as we know; but they love the gold even more
than they hate us, so I have no fear whatever as to my personal safety.
I am afraid, dear, that for a time things will go very badly with us.
Already we know that commandos have gone forward in great strength to
the frontier, and I should not be surprised if the whole of South Africa
rises; at any rate, the Boers are confident that it will be so.
Gladstone's miserable surrender after our disasters at Laing's Nek and
Majuba have puffed them up with such an idea of their own fighting
powers and our weakness, that I believe they think they are going to
have almost a walk over. Still, though it was certain that we should
have a hard time whenever war came, we have been hoping for years that
England would at last interfere to obtain redress for us, and we must
not grumble now that what we have been so long expecting has at last
come to pass. I believe there will be some stern fighting. The Boers are
no cowards; courage is, indeed, as far as I know, the only virtue they
possess. In the long run they must certainly be beaten, but it will only
be after very hard fighting."

"What do you think they will do, father?"

"I can't say what they will do, but I am sure that what they ought to do
is to merely hold the passes from Natal with enough men for the purpose,
and to march their whole force, broken up into half a dozen columns,
into Cape Colony. There is no force there that could resist them, they
would be undoubtedly joined by every Dutchman there, and I am convinced
that the Africander ministry would at once declare for them, in which
case England would have to undertake the tremendous work of conquering
the whole of South Africa afresh, for certainly she could not allow it
to slip from her hands, even if it should prove as stern a business as
the conquering of half India after the Sepoy Mutiny. Now to business.
Fortunately we sent down your clothes and everything we had of value to
our friends the Wilsons, at Durban, six weeks ago. What you have
remaining you must leave behind to take its chance. You will be able to
take no luggage whatever with you. We know how terribly the trains have
been packed for the past fortnight, and a week ago almost all the
carriages were commandeered for the use of the troops going south.

"You must take with you a basket of provisions, sufficient, if
necessary, for two or three days for you both. There is no saying how
long you may be on your way to the frontier; once beyond that you will,
of course, be able to obtain anything you want. But you need expect no
civility or courtesy from the Boers, who, indeed, would feel a malicious
pleasure in shunting you off into a siding, and letting you wait there
for any number of hours. You must mind, Chris, above all things, to keep
your temper, whatever may happen. You know how our people have been
insulted, and actually maltreated in scores of cases, and in their
present state of excitement the Boers would be only too glad to find an
excuse for acts of violence. I was speaking to you about it three days
ago, and I cannot impress it too strongly upon you. I have already given
you permission to join one or other of the corps that are being raised
in Natal, and if anything unpleasant occurs on the road, you must bottle
up your feelings and wait till you get a rifle in your hand and stand on
equal terms with them."

"I promise that, father. I think, after what we have had to put up with
here, during the past two or three months especially, I can bear
anything for these last few days."

"Yes, Chris; but it will be more trying now that you have your mother
under your charge. It is for her sake as well as your own that I impress
this so strongly upon you. Now, will you go down at once to the railway-
station and enquire about the trains? I shall go myself to the manager
and see whether I can get him to make any special arrangement in your
mother's favour, though I have no great hopes of that; for though I know
him well, he is, like all these Dutchmen in office, an uncivilized brute
puffed up with his own importance."

Chris started at once, and returned an hour later with a very
discouraging report. The station was crowded with people. No regular
trains were running, but while he was there a large number of cattle-
trucks had been run up to the platform, and in these as many of the
fugitives as could be packed in were stowed away. As soon as this was
done the train had started, but not half the number collected on the
platform had found room in it. His father had left a few minutes after
him, and presently returned.

"From what I can hear," he said, "there is no chance whatever of your
being able to get any accommodation, but must take your chance with the
others. Viljoen told me that except the waggons there was not a carriage
of any sort or class left here, and that there was no saying at all when
any would return; but that even if they did, they would be taken for the
use of the troops going south. All he could say was that if, when I came
down to the station with you, he is there, he will see that you go by
the first waggons that leave."

"That is something at least," Mrs. King said quietly. "I certainly do
not wish to ask for any favour from these people, and do not want to be
better off than others. I have no doubt that it will be an unpleasant
time, but after all it will be nothing to what great numbers of people
will have to suffer during the war."

"That is so, Amy. And now I think that the sooner the start is made the
better. The rush to get away will increase every hour, and we shall have
the miners coming in in hundreds. Many of the mines will be shut down at
once, though some of them will, like ours, continue operations as long
as they are allowed to."

"Make your basket, or bag, or whatever you take your provisions in, as
small as possible, mother. I saw lots of baggage left behind on the
platform. You see, there are no seats to stow things under. I should say
that a flat box which you can sit on would be the best thing. And you
will want your warmest cloak and a thick rug for night."

"I have a box that will do very well, Chris. Fortunately we have plenty
of cold meat and bread in the house. I shall not be more than half an
hour, Robert."

In less than that time the party were ready. Chris's preparations had
been of the simplest. He carried over his arm a long, thick greatcoat,
in the pocket of which he had thrust a fur cap and two woollen
comforters. He had also a light but warm rug, for he thought it probable
that he might not be able to be next to his mother. He had on his usual
light tweed suit, but had in addition put on a cardigan waistcoat, which
he intended to take off when once in the train. In his pockets he had a
couple of packets of tobacco, for although he seldom smoked, he thought
that some of it might be very acceptable to his fellow-passengers before
the journey was over. He wore a light gray, broad-brimmed wide-awake,
with a white silk puggaree twisted round it, for the heat of the sun in
the middle of the day was already very great, and would be greater still
when they got down to Natal. The box, which a Kaffir servant put on his
shoulder, was about eight inches deep and a foot wide, and eighteen
inches long.

"What have you in it, mother?"

"Two tin bottles of cold tea, each holding a gallon."

"I should hardly have thought that we wanted as much as that."

"No; but there may be many women who have made no provision at all,
thinking that we shall at least be able to get water at any of the
stations we stop at. I have a small tin mug, and that joint of meat; the
rest of the box is filled up with bread-and-butter. I have cut it up and
spread it, so that it packs a good deal closer than it would do if we
put the loaves in whole."

Mr. King had his wife's thick-wadded winter cloak and a rug over his
arm, and a small hand-bag with a few necessaries for the journey. Mrs.
King was in her usual attire, and carried only a white umbrella.

"We look as if we were starting for a picnic rather than a journey that
will last three or four days," she said with an attempt at gaiety.
"There is one comfort, we shall have nothing to look after when we get
to the end."

Chris walked on ahead to let his father and mother talk together, for
although all arrangements had been discussed and settled during the past
two or three days, there was much they had to say to each other now that
the parting had come. The lad was a fine specimen of the young
Uitlander. A life passed largely in the open air, hard work and
exercise, had broadened his shoulders and made him look at least a year
older than he really was. He was a splendid rider and an excellent shot
with his rifle, for his father had obtained a permit from the
authorities for him to carry one, and he could bring down an antelope
when running at full speed as neatly as any of the young Boers. Four
days a week he had spent in the mines, for his father intended him to
follow in his footsteps, and he had worked by turns with the miners
below and the engineers on the surface, so that he might in the course
of a few years be thoroughly acquainted with all the details of his
profession.

The last two days in each week he had to himself, and with three or four
lads of his own age went for long rides in search of sport. A couple of
hours every evening were spent in study under his father's direction. He
was quiet in manner, and talked but little. He deeply resented the
position in which the British population in the Transvaal were placed,
the insolence of the Boers towards them, and their brutal cruelty
towards the natives. The restraint which he so often found it necessary
to exercise had had no slight influence on his character, and had given
a certain grim expression to the naturally bright face. Many had been
the discussions between him and his friends as to the prospect of
England's taking up their cause. Their disappointment had been intense
at the miserable failure of the Jameson raid, which, however, they felt,
and rightly, must some day have a good result, inasmuch as it had
brought out the wretched position of the Uitlanders, who, though forming
the majority of the population, and the source of all the wealth of the
country, and paying all the taxes, were yet treated as an outcast race,
and deprived of every right possessed by people of all civilized
nations.

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