e Vaal impassable, but a small punt, capable
of holding only two passengers at most, by which they said we must
cross. I pointed out that it was impossible to get my carriage or
horses over by it, and that it was not the punt the General said we
were to cross. The escort replied it was Pretorius's punt that the
General told them to take us, and we must cross; that we must leave
the carriage behind and swim the horses, which we refused to do, as
we then should have had no means of getting on. I asked them to show
me their written instructions, which they did (written in Dutch), and
I pointed out that the name of Pretorius was not in it. I then told
them they must either take us back to the Boer camp again or on to
the proper drift. We turned back, and after going a few miles the
escort disappeared. Not knowing where we were, I proposed to Captain
Elliott we should go to the banks of the Vaal, and follow the river
till we came to the proper punt. After travelling all Monday,
Tuesday, and up till Wednesday about 1 p.m., when we found ourselves
four hours, or twenty-five miles, from Spencer's punt, we were
suddenly stopped by two armed Boers, who handed us an official
letter, which was opened, and found to be from the Secretary to the
Republican Government, stating that the members were surprised that,
as officers and gentlemen, we had broken our _parole d'honneur_, and
refused to leave the Transvaal; that if we did not do so immediately
by the nearest drift, which the bearers would show us, we must
return as prisoners of war; that as through our ignorance of the
language of the country there might be some misunderstanding, they
were loth to think we had willingly broken our promise. We explained
that we should reply to the letter, and request them to take it to
their Government, and were prepared to go with them at once. They
took us back to a farmhouse, where we were told to wait until they
fetched their commandant, who arrived about 6 p.m., and repeated to
us the same that was contained in our letter of that day. We told
him we were ready to explain matters, and requested him to take our
answer back to camp. He then ordered us to start at once for the
drift. I asked him, as it was then getting dark, if we could start
early next morning, but he refused. So we started, he having said we
should cross at Spencer's, being closest. As we left the farmhouse,
I pointed out to him that we were going in the wrong direction; but
he