g quantities: tinned
meat 1/2 lb., or fresh meat 1 lb.; biscuit 1/2 lb., or bread 1 lb.; tea,
1/6 oz.; sugar, 1-1/2 ozs.; salt, 1/2 oz., and pepper 1/36 oz.

It has also been decided to turn all the horses out to grass, except the
artillery, three hundred from the cavalry, seventy officers' chargers,
and twenty engineers' draught. These few are to be kept fed with rations
of 3 lbs. of mealies, 4 lbs. of chaff, 16 lbs. of grass, 1-1/2 ozs. of
salt. The artillery horses will get 2 lbs. of oats or bran besides. In
the Imperial Light Horse they are killing one of their horses every
other day, and eating him.

_January 30, 1900._

Mortals depend for their happiness not only on their circulation but on
the weather. To-day was certainly the gloomiest in all the siege. It
rained steadily night and morning, the steaming heat was overpowering,
and we sludged about, sweating like the victims of a foul Turkish bath.
Towards evening it suddenly turned cold. Black and dismal clouds hung
over all the hills. The distance was fringed with funereal indigo. The
wearied garrison crept through their duties, hungry and gaunt as ghosts.
There was no heliograph to cheer us up, and hardly a sound of distant
guns. The rumour had got abroad that we were to be left to our fate,
whilst Roberts, with the main column, diverted all England's thoughts to
Bloemfontein. Like one man we lost our spirits, our hopes, and our
tempers.

The depression probably arose from the reduction of rations which I
mentioned yesterday. The remaining food has been organised to last
another forty-two days, and it is, of course, assumed we shall have to
use it all, whereas the new arrangement is only a precaution. Colonel
Ward and Colonel Stoneman are not to be caught off their guard. One of
their chief difficulties just now is the large body of Indians--bearers,
sais, bakers, servants of all kinds--who came over with the troops, and
will not eat the sacred cow. Out of about 2,000, only 487 will consent
to do that. The remainder can only get very little rice and mealies.
Their favourite ghi, or clarified butter, has entirely gone, and their
hunger is pitiful. The question now is whether or not their religious
scruples will allow them to eat horse.

Most of us have been eating horse to-day with excellent result. But one
of the most pitiful things I have seen in all the war was the
astonishment and terror of the cavalry horses at being turned loose on
the hills a