e hills in
front, or from the enemy? In another minute the question was answered by
another shell. It was our old friend the gun to the westward, who,
irritated by the noisy Maxims, had resolved to put his foot down. Whizz!
Bang! came a third shot, exploding among the branches just behind the
Colt gun, to the great delight of Mr. Hill, who secured a large fragment
which I have advised him to lay on the table in the smoking-room of the
House for the gratification, instruction, and diversion of other
honourable members. The next shell smashed through the roof of a
farmhouse which stood at the corner of the wood, and near which two
troops of the 13th Hussars, who were escorting the Maxims and watching
the flanks, had left their led horses. The next, in quick succession,
fell right among them, killing one, but luckily, very luckily, failed to
burst. The officer then decided to move the horses to a safer place. The
two troops mounted and galloped off. They were a tiny target, only a
moving speck across the plain. But the Boer gunners threw a shell within
a yard of the first troop leader. All this at seven thousand yards!
English artillery experts, please note and if possible copy.

While these things were passing the advancing squadrons had begun to
climb the hill, and found to their astonishment that they were scarcely
fired at. It was of great importance, however, that the Boers should be
cleared from the summit by the Maxim fire, and lest this should be
diverted on our own men by mistake I left the wood for the purpose of
signalling back how far the advance had proceeded and up to what point
the guns could safely fire. The ground was broken; the distance
considerable. Before I reached the hill the situation had changed. The
enemy's artillery had persuaded the Maxims that they would do better to
be quiet--at any rate until they could see something to shoot at. Major
Childe had reached the top of the hill, one man of his squadron, ten
minutes in front of anyone else, waving his hat on his rifle at the
summit to the admiration of thousands of the infantry, all of whom saw
this act of conspicuous recklessness and rejoiced. Lord Dundonald had
galloped up to support the attack with Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry
and the rest of the 13th Hussars. We, the South African Light Horse, had
taken Bastion Hill.

To advance further forward, however, proved quite impossible. The Boers
had withdrawn to a second position a thousand yards