ar. Grobelaar and Steinkamp with the Burghersdorp
commando had been roused by the sound of the guns from their bivouac
on the Steynsburg road, and, riding back, lined the crest of the hill
to the west of Bamboosberg Spruit, and thence opened a long-range fire
threatening the line of retreat. Against this fresh enemy five guns of
Major Perceval's battery were brought into action facing west, and
with well-directed shrapnel at a range of 1,200 yards, drove back the
dangerous force. The remaining gun of that battery and the 74th
battery continued to check the Boers' pursuit from the eastward. Yet
it was evident that the whole plan had failed, and that the troops
were not in a physical condition to renew the attack on the
Kissieberg. Sir W. Gatacre therefore decided to retire on Molteno, and
directed the retreat on Van Zyl's farm, 1,200 yards to the north-west
of D. Foster's homestead, the mounted infantry and artillery covering
the retirement. The General, when he gave this order, had received no
report that a considerable proportion of the infantry had failed to
rejoin their proper units. He had remained with the mounted infantry
throughout the action, and having seen numbers of men of both
regiments crossing the valley, was under the impression that the
battalions were now intact behind the western ridge. An extraordinary
number of them were, in fact, still missing. The largest proportion of
these had probably never left the Kissieberg. The equivalent of two
companies of the Northumberland Fusiliers are known to have been taken
prisoners there. Of those who had retired, some had remained in the
donga. Besides all these, there was a considerable number of officers
and men dispersed about the valley, and particularly in the enclosures
near the northern Van Zyl's farm. It seems possible that, if the
general retreat from the position at +b+ could have been delayed even
for a comparatively short time, some of the scattered parties of men,
who were afterwards taken prisoners, might have rejoined their
battalions.

[Sidenote: The course of the retreat.]

The line of the retreat to Molteno was to the west of the ridge which
rises between the colliery line and the Kissieberg, and so gave some
shelter from the enemy's fire. The minished battalions struggled
along, some of the companies being able at first to keep their
formation, though, long before they arrived at Molteno, almost all had
fallen into disarray. The fatigue of the