On
April 25th we arrived at Alexandrië, six miles from Thaba'Nchu. The latter
place was already occupied by English outposts. General Philip Botha now
joined me; he had been engaging the enemy in the triangle formed by
Brandfort, Bloemfontein and Thaba'Nchu. My commandos numbered some four
thousand men, and I decided that it was time to concentrate my forces.
Lord Roberts was about to carry out the plans which he had formed at
Bloemfontein, namely, to outflank us with large bodies of mounted troops. He
attempted to do this to the north-east of Thaba'Nchu, but at first was not
successful. On a second attempt, however, he managed, after a fierce fight,
to break through our lines. It was during this action that Commandant Lubbe
was shot in the leg, and had the misfortune to be taken prisoner. At
Frankfort also, Lord Roberts met with success, and General De la Rey was
forced to retreat northwards.
I
was now firmly convinced, although I kept the belief to myself, that the
English would march to Kroonstad; and I could see, more clearly than ever,
the necessity of operating in their rear. I had suggested to President Steyn
when he had visited us at Alexandrië, that I should proceed to Norvalspont,
or even into Cape Colony, but he was against any such project. This,
however, was not because he disapproved of my suggestion in itself, but
because he feared that the Transvaalers might say that the Free-Staters, now
that their own country was in the enemy's hands, were going to leave them in
the lurch. Yet in spite of his opposition, I had ultimately to carry out my
own ideas, for, even if I was misunderstood, I had to act as I thought best.
I can only say that each man of us who remained true to our great cause
acted up to the best of his convictions. If the results proved disastrous,
one had best be silent about them. There is no use crying over spilt milk.
We
now pushed our commandos forward to Zand River. At Tabaksberg General Philip
Botha had a short but severe engagement with Lord Roberts' advanced columns.
I was the last of the Generals to leave Thaba'Nchu.
I
was very anxious to prevent the "granary"[37] of the Orange Free State from
falling into the hands of the English; with this object in view, I left
behind me at Korannaberg General De Villiers, with Commandants De Villiers,
of Ficksburg, Crowther, of Ladybrand, Roux, of Wepener, and Potgieter, of
Smithfield, and ordered the General to carry on operations in the
south-eastern districts of the Free State.
This valiant General did some fine work, and fought splendidly at
Gouveneurskop and Wonderkop, inflicting very serious losses upon the
English. But nevertheless he had to yield to the superior numbers of the
enemy, who ultimately gained possession of the "granary" districts. But he
made them pay for it dearly.
General De Villiers followed the English to Senekal and Lindley, and at
Biddulphsberg, near the first named village, he again engaged them
successfully, killing and wounding many of them. But a grave misfortune
overtook us here, for the General received a dangerous wound on the head.
There was still another most deplorable occurrence. In some way or other the
grass caught fire; and as it was very dry, and a high wind was blowing, the
flames ran along the ground to where many of the English wounded were lying.
There was no time to rescue them; and thus in this terrible manner many a
poor fellow lost his life.
General De Villiers' wound was so serious, that the only course open was to
ask the commanding officer of the Senekal garrison to let him have the
benefit of the English doctors' skill. This request was willingly granted,
and De Villiers was placed under the care of the English ambulance. Sad to
say, he died of his wound.
Some time later I was informed that the man who had carried the request into
Senekal was ex-Commandant Vilonel, who was then serving as a private
burgher. A few days later he surrendered, so that one naturally inferred
that he had arranged it all during his visit to Senekal.
Shortly after he had given up his arms, he sent a letter to one of the
Veldtcornets, asking him to come to such and such a spot on a certain
evening, to meet an English officer and himself. The letter never reached
the hands of the person to whom Vilonel had addressed it; and instead of the
Veldtcornet, it was Captain Pretorius with a few burghers, who went to the
appointed place. The night was so dark that it was impossible to recognize
anybody.
"Where is Veldtcornet—?" asked Mr. Vilonel.
"You are my prisoner," was Captain Pretorius' reply, as he took Vilonel's
horse by the bridle.
"Treason! treason!" cried poor Vilonel.
They brought him back to the camp, and sent him thence to Bethlehem. A
court-martial[38] was shortly afterwards held at that town, and he was
condemned to a long term of imprisonment.
In
the place of General De Villiers I appointed Deacon Paul Roux as
Vechtgeneraal. He was a man in whom I placed absolute confidence. As a
minister of religion he had done good service among the commandos, and in
the fiercest battles he looked after the wounded with undaunted courage. His
advice to the officers on matters of war had also been excellent, so that he
was in every way a most admirable man. But his fighting career unfortunately
soon came to an end, for he was taken prisoner in a most curious way near
Naauwpoort, when Prinsloo surrendered.
I
must now retrace my steps, and give some account of what I myself had been
doing during this time.
I
proceeded to the west of Doornberg, and only halted when I reached the Zand
River. What memories does the name of that river bring back to me! It was on
its banks that in 1852 the English Government concluded a Convention with
the Transvaal—only to break it when Sir Theophilus Shepstone annexed that
country on the 12th of April, 1877. But this Convention was re-established
by Gladstone—greatest and noblest of English statesmen—when he acknowledged
the independence of the South African Republic.
Here on the banks of this river, which was so pregnant with meaning, we
should stand, so I thought, and hold the English at bay. But alas! the name
with all its memories did not check the enemy's advance.
On
the 10th of May Lord Roberts attacked us with his united forces; and
although his losses were heavy, he succeeded in breaking through our lines
near Ventersburg, at two points which were held by General Froneman. And
thus the English were free to advance on Kroonstad.
I
gave orders to my commando to move on to Doornkop, which lies to the east of
Kroonstad. I myself, with Commandant Nel and some of his adjutants, followed
them when the sun had set. We rode the whole of that night, and reached the
township on the following morning. We immediately arranged that the
Government should withdraw from Kroonstad, and that very day it was removed
to Heilbron. President Steyn, however, did not go to Heilbron, but paid a
visit to General Philip Botha, whose commando had held back the English
outposts some six miles from Kroonstad.
The President, before leaving the town, had stationed police on the banks of
the Valsch River with orders to prevent burghers from entering the dorp[39];
he had only just crossed the drift before my arrival. I came upon some
burghers who, as they had been ordered, had off-saddled at the south side of
the river, and I asked them if they had seen the President. As they were
Transvaalers, they answered my question in the negative.
"But has nobody on horseback crossed here?" I said.
"Oh, yes! the Big Constable[40] crossed," one of them replied. "And he told
us not to pass over the drift."
"What was he like?" I inquired.
"He was a man with a long red beard."
I
knew now who the "Big Constable" had been; and when I afterwards told the
President for whom he had been taken, he was greatly amused.
General Philip Botha discussed the state of affairs with me, and we both
came to the conclusion that if Lord Roberts attacked us with his united
forces, his superior numbers would render it impossible for us to hold our
disadvantageous positions round Kroonstad. We had also to take into
consideration the fact that my commando could not reach the town before the
following day. Whilst we were still talking, news arrived that there was a
strong force of cavalry on the banks of the Valsch River, six miles from
Kroonstad, and that it was rapidly approaching the town.
On
hearing this, I hastened back to the south of the township, where a body of
Kroonstad burghers had off-saddled, and I ordered them to get into their
saddles immediately, and ride with me to meet the enemy. In less time than
it takes to describe it, we were off. As we drew near to the English we saw
they had taken up a very good position. The sun had already set, and nothing
could be done save to exchange a few shots with the enemy. So, after I had
ordered my men to post themselves on the enemy's front till the following
morning, I rode back to Kroonstad.
When I arrived there, I found that the last of the Transvaal commandos had
already retreated through the town and made for the north. I at once sent
orders to the burghers, whom I had just left, to abandon their positions,
and to prepare themselves to depart by train to Rhenosterriviersbrug.
At
Kroonstad there was not a single burgher left. Only the inhabitants of the
township remained, and they were but too ready to "hands-up."
One of these, however, was of a different mould. I refer to Veldtcornet
Thring, who had arrived with me at Kroonstad that morning, but who had
suddenly fallen ill. On the day following he was a prisoner in the hands of
the English.
Thring was an honourable man in every way. Although an Englishman by birth,
he was at heart an Afrikander, for he had accepted the Orange Free State as
his second fatherland. Like many another Englishman, he had become a
fellow-citizen of ours, and had enjoyed the fat of the land. But now, trusty
burgher that he was, he had drawn his sword to defend the burghers' rights.
His earliest experiences were with the Kroonstad burghers, who went down
into Natal; later on he fought under me at Sanna's Post and Mostertshoek,
and took part in the siege of Colonel Dalgety at Jammersbergsdrift. He had
stood at my side at Thaba'Nchu and on the banks of the Zand River. I had
always found him the most willing and reliable of officers, and he had won
the respect and trust of every man who knew him.
He
was faithful to the end. Although he might well have joined our enemies, he
preferred to set the seal of fidelity upon his life by his imprisonment.
Long may he live to enjoy the trust of the Afrikander people!
I
remained late that evening in the town. It was somewhat risky to do so, as
the place was full of English inhabitants, and of Afrikanders who did not
favour our cause. In fact, I was surrounded by men who would have been only
too pleased to do me an injury.
I
said farewell to Kroonstad at ten o'clock that night, and was carried to
Rhenosterriviersbrug, thirty-four miles from Kroonstad, by the last train
that left the town. But before I departed, I took care that the bridge over
the Valsch River should be destroyed by dynamite.
In
the meantime, those portions of the Heilbron and Kroonstad commandos which
had gone into Natal at the beginning of the war, received orders to leave
the Drakensberg. Obeying these orders they joined me, and, with my other
troops, had occupied splendid positions on either side of the railway line.
Commandant General Louis Botha was also there with his Transvaal burghers,
having arrived in the Free State a few days previously. Captain Danie Theron
was still with me as my trustworthy scout, and he constantly kept me
informed of Lord Roberts' movements.
For a few days Lord Roberts remained at Kroonstad, but about the 18th of May
he again began to move his enormous forces. He sent out four divisions. The
first he despatched from Kroonstad to Heilbron; the second from Lindley to
the same destination; the third from Kroonstad to Vredefort and Parijs, and
the fourth from Kroonstad along the railway line.
The two Governments had agreed that Commandant General Louis Botha should
cross the Vaal River, and that we Free-Staters should remain behind in our
own country. And this was carried out, with our full approval.
The Governments had also decided that even if the English entered the
Transvaal, the Free State commandos were not to follow them. I had long ago
wished that something of this nature should be arranged, so that we might
not only have forces in front of the enemy, but also in their rear. Thus the
orders of the Governments exactly coincided with my desires.
Lest any one should think that the Transvaalers and the Free-Staters
separated here on account of a squabble, or because they found that they
could not work harmoniously together, let me state that this decision was
arrived at for purely strategic reasons. We had now been reduced to a third
of the original number of forty-five thousand burghers with which we had
started the campaign. This reduction was due partly to Cronje's surrender,
and partly to the fact that many of our men had returned to their farms.
How, then, could we think of making a stand, with our tiny forces, against
two hundred and forty thousand men, with three or four hundred guns? All we
could do was to make the best of every little chance we got of hampering the
enemy. If fortune should desert us, it only remained to flee.
To
flee—what could be more bitter than that? Ah! many a time when I was forced
to yield to the enemy, I felt so degraded that I could scarcely look a child
in the face! Did I call myself a man? I asked myself, and if so, why did I
run away? No one can guess the horror which overcame me when I had to
retreat, or to order others to do so—there! I have poured out my whole soul.
If I did fly, it was only because one man cannot stand against twelve.
After the Transvaalers had crossed the Vaal River, I took twelve hundred men
to Heilbron, where there was already a party of my burghers. General Roux
with other Free-Staters was stationed east of Senekal, and the remainder of
our forces lay near Lindley. But the commandos from Vrede and Harrismith,
with part of the Bethlehem commando, still remained as watchers on the
Drakensberg.
When I arrived at Heilbron, late at night, I received a report that fighting
was taking place on the Rhenoster River, between Heilbron and Lindley, and
that General J.B. Wessels and Commandant Steenekamp had been driven back.
But on the following morning, when the outposts came in, they stated that
they had seen nothing of this engagement. I immediately sent out scouts, but
hardly had they gone, before one of them came galloping back with the news
that the enemy had approached quite close to the town. It was impossible for
me to oppose a force of five or six thousand men on the open plain; and I
could not move to suitable positions, for that would involve having the
women and children behind me when the enemy were bombarding me. I had
therefore to be off without a moment's delay. I had not even time to send my
wife and my children into a place of safety.
Our whole stock of ammunition was on the rail at Wolvehoek. I had given
orders to Mr. Sarel Wessels, who had charge of the ammunition, to hold
himself in readiness to proceed with it by rail, through the Transvaal, to
Greylingstad as soon as he received orders to do so.
But now the ammunition could not remain there, as Sir Redvers Buller was
gaining ground day by day towards the veldt on the Natal frontier and the
ammunition would thus be in danger of being taken. Therefore there was
nothing left for me but to get it through by way of Greylingstad Station. It
had to be done, and,—I had no carriages by which I could convey it, as I had
not sufficient hands to take carriages from the trucks.[41] There was only
one way (course) open; the commandos from Smithfield, Wepener and Bethulie
still had, contrary to the Kroonstad resolution, carriages with them at
Frankfort; I hastened to that village and sent the necessary number of these
carriages under a strong escort, to fetch the ammunition from Greylingstad.
In
order to do this responsible work I required a man whom I could trust.
Captain Danie Theron was no longer with me, because he, being a Transvaaler,
had gone with General Louis Botha. But there was another: Gideon J.
Scheepers.[42] To him I entrusted the task of reconnoitring the British, so
that the carriages which were going to fetch the ammunition could do in
safety what they were required to do, and I knew that he would do it.
[37] This "granary" lay in the Ladybrand, Ficksburg and Bethlehem districts,
and not only supplied the Free State, but also the greater part of the
Transvaal. If the districts of Wepener, Rouxville, Bloemfontein, and
Thaba'Nchu be included, this "granary" was the source of a very large yield
of corn, and there had been an especially rich harvest that year. As the men
were away on commando, the Kaffirs reaped the corn under the supervision of
the Boer women; and where Kaffirs were not obtainable the women did the work
with their own hands, and were assisted by their little sons and daughters.
The women had provided such a large supply, that had not the English burnt
the corn by the thousand sacks, the war could have been continued. It was
hard indeed for them to watch the soldiers flinging the corn on the ground
before their horses' hoofs. Still harder was it to see that which had cost
them so much labour thrown into the flames.
In
spite of the fact that the English, in order to destroy our crops, had let
their horses and draught oxen loose upon the land, there was still an
abundant harvest—perhaps the best that we had ever seen. And so it happened
that whilst the men were at the front, the housewives could feed the horses
in the stable. But Lord Roberts, acting on the advice of unfaithful
burghers, laid his hand upon the housewives' work, and burnt the grain that
they had stored.
[38] This Court was not composed of officers, but consisted of three
persons, one of whom was a lawyer.
[39] Township.
[40] Police Agent.
[41] Railway trucks.
[42] Everyone will know him, this brave man of pure Afrikander blood,
subsequently a famous Commander, a martyr. I appointed him Captain of
Scouts, and from the moment that he commenced his work I saw that a man had
come forward. It was sad to think in what manner such a man was deprived of
his life. I shall speak more of him later on, for, as our proverb says, "I
had eaten too much salt" to pass over his career unnoticed
