y when General French marched in. You'd have
thought we were a lot of babies. The street was crammed with yelling
crowds of pale, sickly-looking men, who had lived for weeks on less than
half the accustomed amount, and I know that many a one was too feeble to
choke back his sobs. And the women and the kids--God bless them!--just
held up their arms and blubbered. I felt just like a girl. But it's
all over now, and we're beginning to live like decent folks again, up in
the air and daylight."

"Yes," Jack agreed, "you have had a terrible experience, and have come
out of it wonderfully. Now it will be our turn to advance upon the Boer
towns and retaliate."

Far into that night they chatted, and then, bidding Eileen and Frank
Russel good-night, Jack accompanied Tom Salter to his quarters. On the
following morning he did not awake with that feeling of strength and
vigour to which he was accustomed, and all day long was depressed by a
feeling of weariness and lassitude. That night he was in a fever, and
on the following morning was too ill to get out of bed.

Four months of hard work and exposure had told upon him. Weakened by
his wound and by his stay in Ladysmith, Jack had fallen a victim to the
foul water and odours of the Boer laager at Paardeberg, and had been
struck down with typhoid fever. From that day, for more than three
weeks he lay helpless and almost wholly unconscious, tended by his
future wife and by another good Samaritan in the form of a soldier's
wife.

And while he lay in bed, fighting for his life, the British troops had
been scoring successes. Scarcely had the news of the capture of Cronje
and his force and the relief of Kimberley reached England when the
glorious message was flashed along the cables that Ladysmith had been
relieved on February 28th, after ten days of very heavy fighting.

On March 7th still more news was sent to England, for on that day Lord
Roberts attacked a large force of burghers at Poplar Grove, on the road
to Bloemfontein. For days they had slaved to dig their trenches, and
these extended for miles and miles, while Presidents Kruger and Steyn
themselves were there to cheer on their followers. But all to no
purpose. We were not going to advance across an open plain and break
our forces against an impregnable position. Instead, our cavalry and
guns swept round towards the rear, and in an instant the Boers were
galloping away towards Bloemfontein, leaving the labour