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1899 - Diary of the siege of Mafeking by Edward Ross

Tuesday, 2 January

Enemy again commenced shelling about daylight. They have got their new brimstone gun placed down south at Jackal’s Tree, where the big gun was first in position, and sending their first shell into the native village killed a woman who was kindling a fire. On and off the whole day the Boers have been hurling their tremendous flying machines at us, but thank goodness, with only one exception, only our buildings have suffered.

A meeting took place yesterday of the heads of departments: it seems it was arranged to invite subscriptions for the purpose of erecting a suitable monument in memory of those killed during the siege of Mafeking, the same to be erected in the most prominent suitable position.

It has today been published in general orders that Wessels the Baralong chief (who is always drunk) is to be suspended from his position as chief and to be superceded by Lekoko, who will administer the affairs of the native nation for the future. We have been expecting this for some time past, but it will cause a certain amount of jealousy amongst the natives as he has a small following of his own kidney, and they will create ructions if they get the slightest opportunity.

This morning, early, two native runners of ours attempted to get in from the outside through the Boer lines; one was successful, the other was shot by the enemy. The one who got in brings news that our relief column is on the way to Vryburg after having a severe engagement with the enemy further south in which they were successful, but also states that the other boy who was shot had a lot of important letters; this is a bit more of our usual luck.

The Boers surrounding us are all working very hard at their forts and trenches. It is supposed they intend making a big stand here against any relief column that may come up. If so we may look forward to some big fighting outside Mafeking, and it may be that we shall have an opportunity of revenge before they leave our neighbourhood.

The Boers must indeed have excellent information of our movements in town, for today they have put in four or five shells, over, in front, and at the side of the Town Hall, in which during the last week about ioo of our Volunteers have been quartered after their removal from the cemetery, so it seems that the shooting of the spy on Christmas night did not do much good.

The local loyal natives from the stadt are all working very hard for us day and night. The night parties working at the trenches number between three or four hundred, and during the now almost three months of the siege they have created under the superintendence of the Town Commandant almost a maze of trenches all round the town. It is dangerous to walk on the outskirts now, unless one is an excellent jumper. It will take a good deal of labour after the war to fill them all up again, but I should think a good idea would be to use a lot of the outside ones for planting trees. The government should pay the expenses of all this. It would be a grand reminiscence.

The Town Commandant just tells me it is intended to disperse the Court House reserve and place them in the out-redoubts. If possible, I shall go down to Early’s corner.

In general orders tonight it gave us all the instructions of our big warning bell. The different numbers of times rung denotes the position of old Creetje, pointing so that we can always tell the direction in which the shell is going to take, and if it is not our way no notice is taken of the fire bell. B.P. also puts in the general orders instructions to us [on] what to do about the enemy’s new incendiary shell. No water is to be put near them, but buckets of sand are to be kept handy in which to smother the fire in case of need.