our proper battalion, the
14th, commanded by Colonel Brookfield, M.P., at Maitland. Eventually,
thanks to the fact of his Grace the Duke of Norfolk being attached to
our squadron, when we got the order to go up country we left the rest of
the battalion behind at Bloemfontein, cursing, and proceeded by rail as
far as Smaldeel, where we detrained with our horses and commenced
treking after the immortal "Bobs."

His Grace's servant, rather an old fellow, did not seem to particularly
care for campaigning, and, often, dolefully regarding his khaki
garments, would sorrowfully remark, "To think as 'ow I've served 'im all
these years, and now 'e should bring me hout 'ere. It does seem 'ard." I
think a pilgrimage would have been more to his liking.

Our first experience of "watering horses" on the trek was both
interesting and exciting, it occurred at Smaldeel.

"The horses we proceeded to water at once; I had the pleasure of
taking two and of proving the proverb, _re_ leading horses to the
water. _En route_ were dead horses to the right and dead horses
to the left; in the water, which was black, one was dying in an
apparently contented manner, while another lay within a few
yards of it doing the same thing in a don't-care-a-bit sort of
way. Regarded from five hours later, I fancy my performances with
the two noble steeds in my charge must have been distinctly
amusing to view, had anyone been unoccupied enough to watch me.
Vainly did I try to induce them to drink of the
printer's-ink-like fluid, water and mud, already stirred up by
hundreds of other horses. When they did go in, they went for a
splash, a paddle, and a roll, not to imbibe, and I had to go with
them a little way, nearly up to my knees, in the mud. I have
arrived at the conclusion that the noble quadruped is not an
altogether pleasant beast. Still, I suppose he has an opinion of
us poor mortals. In death he is also far from pleasant, as was
conclusively proved when night came on, and a dead one near us
began to assert his presence with unnecessary emphasis. Phew!
It's all very well saying that a live donkey is better than a
dead lion, but judging from my experience of dead horses, which
is just commencing, I should say that the dead lion would prove
mightily offensive."

The water in the Free State, as a rule, was most unsatisfactory.
Marching in