lined both sides. Buller himself, with Piet-Uys, defended the rear,
assisting the wounded, and often charging desperately into the ranks of
the Zulus pressing upon him. The path was slippery with blood and
strewn with dead. As the last of his troop made their way down it,
Piet-Uys, a most gallant Dutchman, fell dead across the body of his
horse, with six Zulus, whom he had shot with his revolver, around him.

Wetherby's troop was surrounded, and forty-five out of his eighty men
killed. The colonel himself and his boy both fell, the latter refusing
to leave his father, although the latter urged him to gallop off and
join the column, which appeared to be making its way through the Zulus.
Colonel Russell's command got through without so much opposition; but
Buller's horse, Piet-Uys' troop, and Wetherby's command suffered
terribly.

Fortunately the Ulundi army did not follow the retreat; first, because
the tremendous three days' march which they had made had in a great
measure exhausted the men, who had started in such haste that they had
brought no provisions with them, and secondly, on account of the steady
attitude and resolute bearing of Russell's command.

Buller's force reached Kambula camp at half-past seven at night. It had
set in stormy, and torrents of rain were falling. Although he had been
in the saddle for forty-eight hours, Colonel Buller, on hearing that a
small party of the survivors had taken refuge in hiding ten miles away,
collected a party of volunteers, and, taking led horses, set out to
rescue them. This was effected; the fugitives were found to be seven in
number, and returned with their rescuers safely to camp.

The boys had both escaped, two of Wetherby's men, who accompanied
Colonel Wood, taking them on their saddles behind them. The total loss
was ten officers and seventy-eight men.

For the night the boys were handed over to the charge of one of the
officers of the staff, but in the morning Colonel Wood sent for them,
and they then told him the story of their adventures since the battle of
Isandula, with which he was greatly interested. He said that he would
at once have sent them to Utrecht, but that the camp would probably be
attacked during the day.

The troops had been on the alert all night, expecting an attack. Before
daylight Captain Raaff was sent out with twenty-five men to reconnoitre,
and returned with one of Oham's natives. This man had joined the Zulu
army as it ad