nt-General; and I asked him
to let me know the result, to which he nodded assent. Almost
immediately, however, the enemy's line advanced.'

Whilst this short parley was going on, every effort was being made in
the rear to get the waggons up, but without much good result, because
when the Boers opened fire the rear-guard would be at least half a
mile behind the head of the column. Even those who were guarding the
waggons had not time to join the main body. When Colonel Anstruther
saw the Boers advancing, he gave the order to his men to extend in
skirmishing order, but before they could open out to more than loose
files they were met with a murderous volley, and at the same time
Boers on the right and left flank and in the rear, who had previously
measured and marked off the distances, picked off every man within
sight. Our men returned the fire as best they could, but in less than
ten minutes 120 were either killed or wounded, besides a large
proportion of the oxen in the waggons shot. The officers who exposed
themselves were picked off almost immediately by the Boer marksmen.
Captain Nairne, Lieutenant M'Sweeney, Lieutenant and Adjutant
Harrison, Lieutenant Hume, Deputy-Assistant Commissary-General
Barter, Conductor Egerton, Surgeon Ward, were all wounded, besides
Colonel Anstruther himself, who was shot in two or three places.

It was useless to contend against such odds, and the 'cease fire' was
sounded, and handkerchiefs waved to denote submission. During this
unequal struggle, Mrs. Smith, the widow of the bandmaster of the
regiment, who, with the wife of Sergeant-Major Fox and some children,
were riding in one of the foremost waggons, came fearlessly up to
where the wounded lay, and, tearing strips from her clothing, helped
the surgeon to bandage the wounds. The sergeant-major's wife was
severely wounded, as was also Fox himself. There was no lack of
heroism during those awful ten minutes, whilst men were being shot
down like dogs. Lieutenant Harrison was shot through the head while
cheering on his men; Lieutenant Hume was equally conspicuous
for his coolness. An orderly-room clerk named Maistre and the
Sergeant-Master-Tailor Pears quietly concealed the regimental colours
in a waggon-box when they saw the danger of them falling into the
hands of the enemy; and their work was not in vain, as Conductor
Egerton managed subsequently to wrap them round his body under his
tunic, and having obtained permission after the