were indifferent as to
whether it ever came (in); they would be satisfied with a seat in a
truck going _out_. We were anxious to know what was going on in the
world. An intense longing for a glimpse of Stock Exchange quotations
existed in some quarters; others were dying to "back" horses; and there
were guileless people whose sorrows were epitomised in a sigh for a
letter, or two, (or a dozen) from home, and corresponding assurances
that all was well there. We speculated a good deal on the probable depth
of the piles of correspondence accumulating for each of us. The
letter-sorters were not enjoying their holidays; we hoped--we knew they
would soon end. Had we dreamt that they were to lengthen into another
seventy days, the dream would assuredly have killed us. But, thank
goodness, in the watches of the night our sleep was not haunted by the
spectral truth. Seventy _hours_ assimilated better with--our dreams.
There was the Column busy signalling and settling it all with the
Colonel. The Colonel was certainly a reticent man; he gave us precious
little _data_, to supplement our faith. But the _nearness_ of Methuen
was _data_ enough for us. It did not do, it was foolish when it was
useless, to be too curious. It was puzzling, to be sure, to watch the
movements of the Boers, or rather their lack of movement. That they saw
the signals and knew what to expect went without saying. And yet they
perversely showed no signs of running away. On the contrary, they kept
improving their defences and generally indicating that they had come to
stay. We liked the _hardihood_ of this attitude; but were on the whole
inclined to pity the poor beggars. Defiance, in the circumstances, could
only mean annihilation for them. Kimberley reasoned thusly: Kimberley
reasoned well.

Saturday made it still clearer that the ineffable enemy, so far from
being frightened, was obdurate yet. Large commandoes of Boers had joined
the besiegers during the night. All day long they toiled like Trojans,
digging trenches. At Oliphantsfontein they erected a new camp and made
their fortifications unassailable. We could only conclude that they
purposed making a stand. The fatuousness of such a course was clear to
us; for with the aid of the Relief Column we would presently be in a
position to attack the Boers from many sides; to hem them in; to cut off
retreat; and to kill or make prisoners of them all. It was a bold
conviction; we still viewed things through Napole