ast
London on 16th November. The tasks assigned to that General were to
prevent British subjects from being persuaded or compelled to take up
arms against their Sovereign, to encourage and protect the loyal, and,
so far as possible, to stem the Boer invasion until the return of Lord
Methuen's division from Kimberley enabled the country south of the
Orange river to be swept clear of the enemy, preparatory to the
general advance through the Free State.

[Sidenote: Moves to Queenstown. His available strength.]

Sir W. Gatacre moved immediately up to Queenstown, taking with him the
2nd Royal Irish Rifles (898 all ranks), who had landed the same day at
East London. On arriving at Queenstown he found at that station the
half-battalion and a mounted company of the 2nd Berkshire regiment
(strength, 574 all ranks), a small detachment of Royal Garrison
artillery, and a half company of Royal engineers, which, with the
Naval contingent, had formed the original garrison of Stormberg. The
_personnel_ of the Naval contingent had been ordered to return to Cape
Town, but had left with the Royal artillery their two 12-pr. guns.
Besides these, the gunners had two obsolete field guns belonging to
the armament of the naval base, but owing to the lack of mules and
equipment none of the guns were mobile. In addition to these troops
the local volunteers, consisting of the Kaffrarian Rifles, the
Frontier Mounted Rifles (about 229 strong), and the Queenstown Rifle
Volunteers (285), had been called out; a corps of mounted infantry was
being raised locally from the farmers of the Eastern province by
Colonel Brabant, and a contingent of the Cape Mounted Rifles and Cape
Police had been placed at the Lieut.-General's disposal. The
Kaffrarian Rifles, 285 all ranks, held the base at East London. The
remainder of the local troops, except some posts of observation at
Cathcart, Indwe and Molteno, were concentrated at Queenstown. An
armoured train, commanded by Lieutenant F. J. Gosset, 2nd Berkshire,
patrolled the railway.

[Sidenote: Pushes on to Putterskraal, Sterkstroom.]

[Sidenote: and Bushman's Hoek, Nov. 27th-28th.]

For the moment it was obvious that no forward movement could take
place; indeed, a telegram despatched by Sir R. Buller to General
Gatacre, on 18th November, reminded him that "the great thing in this
sort of warfare is to be perfectly certain that one position is safe
before you advance to another, and that we are not yet strong