British soldiers and natives, their object being to
gain some commanding position, whence, without being seen, they may pour
a deadly fire on their astonished foes, and thus cause a panic retreat
that might be turned into a disorderly rout by a sudden rush of
reinforcing Boers or a terrific storm of bullets from several quarters
at once. Reasoning from experience they hope to make history repeat
itself in another Majuba Hill. One would have thought that the fights at
Elandslaagte and Dundee would dispel delusions of that kind based on the
assumption that Tommy Atkins will not stand up against rifle bullets at
short range from Boers whom he cannot see if they but steal upon him and
open fire where he least expects to find them.

Probably there were erroneous estimates on both sides, but at any rate
it is certain that our foes were confident of being able to win by
massed surprise, and their effort was made with an adroitness not less
astonishing than the audacity of its conception. After this it will be
ridiculous for anybody to contend that the Boers are not brave fighters,
though they lack the daring by which alone fights like that of Saturday
can be decided. Their tactics have changed little since the old days,
and it remains true now as then that they are an offensive but not an
attacking force. Having gained by stealth the positions that were
supposed to command our outpost defences on Caesar's Camp and Waggon
Hill, they acted from that moment as if on the defensive, trusting for
victory not to any forward movement of their own but to the belief that
our men would give way, and might then be rolled back in panic upon
Ladysmith by thousands of mounted Boers who awaited that turn of events
to make their meditated dash. Such undoubtedly was the plan conceived by
Free State and Transvaal commanders at the Krygsraad when Joubert,
Prinsloo, Schalk-Burger, Viljoen, and other leaders met together in
council some days ago. The manner of its execution may be conjectured by
the light of subsequent events.

The attack began before daybreak with a determined attempt to capture
the whole range of Bester's Ridge, which is divided officially into
Caesar's Camp and Waggon Hill, forming the southern chain of our
defences, and held by the outposts of Colonel Ian Hamilton's Brigade.
Seventy of the Imperial Light Horse held Waggon Hill with a small body
of bluejackets and a few Engineers having charge of the 4.7 naval gun,
which they h