The Sun.
London, England, 1851-09-17 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON,

" Having assembled the troops at this point, it
being then one o'clock, I halted the troops to refresh,
and proceeded myself to reconnoitre the ground and
country at the head of the Zanooka or Wolf River.
On the ridge at the left bank of the Zanooka I ob-
servered a reconnoitering party of the Cape Mounted
Rifles from, I imagine, one of the detached columns
from head-quarters. On my returning to where I
had left the troops, some of the rebels, I understood,
had called out that they wished to surrender. Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Sutton rode out to hear what they had
to say, when they stated that many of them wished
to come away, but were afraid; that they wished
time to collect their people, that they might consult,
and all come together ; and they requested a week.
I caused them to be informed that they must sur-
render immediately, and that I would only give
them half an hour.
" At the expiration of the time, the troops being
refreshed, I moved the 74th Regiment again upon
their position, flanked by the Fort Beaufort Fingoes ;
Lieutenant-Colonel Fordyce took the opportunity to
inter two men of the 74th who had fallen, and then
moved on ; some sharp firing took place, but the
enemy retired into the forest and up the mountains,
and abandoned the position ; one soldier of the 7th
Regiment was, I am sorry to say, severely wounded
upon this occasion. I then retired the troops into the
Amatola valley, and at five o'clock P.M. bivouacked
for the night.
" On the morning of the 27th inst. I made arrange-
ments for conveying the wounded to my camp on the
Quisana, which occupied some time.
" At 12 o'clock I moved the force in three columns
up the eastern range of the Amatola mountain, the
enemy showing in small bodies on several points.
" The ascent of the mountain is precipitous and
very difficult. Crossing the ridge I moved the troops
down the valley to
the sources of the Zanooka, and
ordered them to encamp, taking the Cape Mounted
Rifles, and Kat River Levy and Alice Fingoes with
me ; I proceeded along the ridges towards the head
of the Ligney stream, I observed a reconnoitring
party of the enemy, posted in the forest bush which
intersects the ridge near Mount Macdonald. When
moving up with the Cape Mounted Rifles we were
briskly attacked, but the enemy was driven back by a
sharp fire from the Cape Mounted Rifles, and the
levies and Fingoes then coming up, the enemy was
driven off, and descended into the valley of the Kei-
kamma; it being then dusk, I returned and bivou-
acked for the night in Zanooka valley; during these
operations I saw nothing of any force from Fort Cox.
" On the morning of the 28th inst., moving shortly
after sunrise, I proceeded with the force towards
Mount Macdonald, where I reached at ten A.M., de-
taching the corps of levies into the valley of the
Zanooka to intercept the enemy's cattle.
"I observed small detached parties of the enemy
at some distance, who descended into the valley of the
Keiskamma, but I observed no troops or any force
below in the valleys ; the enemy made no show of
resistance.
" I proceeded with the Cape Mounted Rifles, and
occupied the high point of the mountain at the head
of the Ligney, while the levies passed down the
Zanooka, and brought out about 350 head of cattle,
chiefly cows and calves, all very poor. I returned
with the troops along the ridges, leaving the two
companies of the 91st Regiment to cover the return
of the levies to the bivouack, which was done leisurely,
leaving no part unscoured. While halted on the
Amatola range, a shot was fired from a high point of
the forest, by which, I regret to say, Captain Mel-
ville, of :the George Levy, was severely wounded
through the arm. The troops all assembled from their
several points of operations shortly after dusk.
" I am of opinion, from the appearance of the cattle
kraals, that the great body of the Kafir :cattle have
been sent away some time ago. There is no grass or
herbage of any kind in the Amatola or Zanooka
valleys, and not sufficient grass even for horses. The
cattle captured yesterday are miserably poor and
starved.
" Late last evening a Hottentot from the rebel
camp came in and surrendered; he brought me a
message to say that a large body of the rebels would
surrender in two days.
" Having expended all my provisions, and there
being no grass whatever for (the horses, I returned to
my camp this morning.;
" To the officers commanding corps and detach-
ments—Lieutenant-Colonel Fordyce, commanding
74th Highlanders, and commanding my first bri-
gade; Lieutenant-Colonel Sutton, C.M.R., command-
ing my second brigade ; Major Forbes, commanding
the detachment 91st Regiment; and Major Somerset,
C.M R., commanding the cavalry, I am greatly in-
debted for their exertions and assistance.
" To the officers commanding levies—Captain Ste-
venson, commanding first European Levy; Captains
Heathcote, Melville, and Hobbs, all commanding their
several corps of levies; as well as to Captains Cum-
bers, Verity, and Ayliff, commanding the Fingoe
levies, I have to express my thanks and approbation.
" I am not aware of what the enemy's loss was, the
contiguity of the forest having given them every ad-
vantage of carrying off their killed and wounded ; they
were observed carrying them into the bush.
" RETURN OF THE KILLED AND WOUNDED.

" 74th Regiment-3 rank and file killed ; 1 officer,
Lieutenant W. W. J. Bruce, and 9 rank and file,
wounded.
" Levies —1 sergeant and 2 rank and file killed; 1
officer, Captain Melville, and 4 rank and file, wounded,
2 mortally."
Lieutenant-Colonel Mitchell's report to Colonel
Mackinnon is dated King William's Town, July 1,
and states that he
,marched at 12 o'clock on the night
of the 28th of June, with a force of 1,777 men to the
Gulu Mountains.
" Having marched until daylight with the infantry
I detached Colonel Eyre, with about 750 men, up the
right ridge of the Gulu.
" With the remainder of the force I marched up
the gorge of the Gulu, into a deep nest of kloofs, a
fastness which a few resolute men might hold against
a host. At the entrance of the innermost kloof my
advance guard was received with a volley from a few
men on the front and right, and at a few paces dis-
tance, with, lam happy to say, no result. The men
dashed into the bush, and held it for an hour or two,
while the Fingoes drove out several large herds of
cattle and goats.
" We then moved over tremendous steeps to a dis-
tant spur of the Gulu, where we encamped for the
night. During the capture of the cattle the Kafirs
amused themselves with taking a few long shots at the
men. The conduct of the men who had marched,
with little intermission, from twelve at night until
five o'clock in the evening, without food, was ad-
mirable.
"In this affair the Kafirs were entirely taken by
surprise ; the result has been the capture of 1,500
cattle, .500 goats, and 22 horses.
" Oa the 29th we marched back to your camp.
On approaching the Quilly Quilly Mountain we per-
ceived a body of about 300 Kafirs on our left, and a
smaller body on the right. I sent Colonel Eyre, with
the 73d, to the left of the road, who, by his admirable
mode of handling his troops, did not permit the Kafirs
to come fairly into action. They skirmished, how-
ever, with the 733, for about an hour, in the dense
bush.
"I dispatched the remainder of the troops to the
right, with the exception of the 6th, who covered the
rear, and having seized on every point, the cattle and
baggage moved on to the camp without a shot fired at
them. The Kafirs were not in numbers sufficient to
attack the right, and being held in check by the Ma-
rines, who were planted on a commanding abutting
rock, skirmished but feebly with the 6th and Rifle
Company, who behaved very steadily and well under
their respective commanders. The Kafirs followed
the troops till they reached the open country.
" Some few Kafirs were killed in the two days'
patrol, and on our side one man 73d wounded and
three horses ; these and four horses also were lost by
rolling down the montains, and either breaking their
necks or being captured by the Kafiri.
"Nothing could exceed the excellent spirits with
which both English and natives did their duty.
"Captain Robertson, commanding a body of horse,
whom Colonel Michel directed to ascend the Ama.

tolas to the right of the Gulu, succeeded in capturing
about 1,000 head of cattle and ten or twelve horses,
and in killing and wounding several Kafirs."
The following passage in Lieutenant-Colonel
Eyre's report to Colonel Michel, dated from the camp

on the Umdizini River, June 30, conveys an idea

of the nature of the services in which the troops were

engaged:—
" I beg to bring to the notice of his Excellency:the
Commander-in-Chief the conduct of Captaia Dar-
nell on this occasion. In the performance of his duty
he pursued his prey with admirable pertinacity, in
spite of the natural obstacles of the ground, and the
presence of the enemy, relying with confidence on a

support which he knew to be sure, though distant.
This duty being performed, I immediately turned
my steps to the left, and proceeded to work may
way through a succession of kloofs at the head of
the valley, steep and thickly studded with bush,
through which there was not even a Kafir's path
perceptible. We reached the furthest tongue of
land which overlooked the main channel of the

valley; beyond that it was impossible to proceed. We
captured in the kloofs 286 head of cattle, which would
have escaped over the table ridge but for the presence
of Captain Robertson. Our division captured in a 11572
head of cattle, horses, and several hundred goats
The conduct of all—troops and levies—was admirable.
The men marched incessantly for fourteen hours, and
during the latter six hours they toiled up and down
height; and through kloofs all but inaccessible ;
but their; goodwill and cheerfulness never deserted
them."

Another dispatch to Earl Grey from Sir H. G.
Smith, dated the 19th of July, continues the ac-
count of the galaxy operations as follows :

" My dispatch of the 3d instant will have informed
your Lordship that I contemplated to detach a force
into the Fish River bush, to expel the Kafir and Hot-
tentot rebels, who were committing depredations
within the colony, and endeavouring to interrupt my
communication with Graham's Town. I have now
the honour to report that this service has been very
effectively performed by Lieutenant-Colonel Michel,
of the 6th Royal Regiment, and Major 'Wilmot, Royal
Artillery, under the latter of whom I placed the levies
and Fingoes at Fort Peddie.
" These operations continued during nine days,
little resistance having been offered by the enemy. A
herd of $8 colonial cattle and six horses were captured,
and an encampment of the Hottentot Theopolis rebels
was destroyed. Seven half-starved and miserable
women, some with children, were taken, and have
been brought to head-quarters in one of the commis-
sariat waggons. They are either unable or unwilling
to throw any light on the causes which led to the mis-
conduct of their husbands and their sons at Theopo-
lis, merely saying, The Kafirs fetched us away.' A
quantity of clothes, and, among other things, a num-
ber of Bibles, were found in the camp. The Fingoea,
whose comrades had been so treacherously and bar-
barously murdered at Theopolis, naturally showed
great exasperation, but I am happy to say, beyond
spoiling the camp, they committed no acts of violence.
" Your Lordship will thus perceive the result pro-
duced by my combined movements in the Amatolas.
Meanwhile depredations have been committed within
the colony to a lamentable extent, so much so, that
M}.tior-General Somerset, upon the urgent
_represen-
tation of the civil commissioner of the division of
Somerset,' has moved a large mounted force, with
some Fingoes and levies, upon the Bush Neck' and
the Kaga and Koonap rivers, where he has been very,
successful in intercepting marauding parties, and re-
capturing their spoil. I have requested the Major-
General to establish posts of burghers, if they will
turn out in their own defence, at every eligible point ;
and I have expressed my wish that he should return
with his force to Fort Hare. Lamentable as the ex-
cesses are, former experience strongly inclines me to
believe that they are the last efforts of the enemy,
who in all previous wars has invariably made a rush
into the colony immediately before his final submis-
sion. lam therefore the more anxious to continue
my combined operations in the Amatolas, which in
the present dispirited state of the Gaikas would, I
hope, bring hostilities to a close. All reports tend to
the belief that now is the time to persevere in the ag-
gressive. Desirous, however, as lam for peace, I
shall not fail to keep in mind your Lordship's injunc-
tions, so consonant with my own views, that it must
not be patched up on the hollow assurances of rebels,
who flew treacherously to arms and committed the
most atrocious murders ; but that it must be preceded
by their unconditional submission, and be established
upon such a basis of justice and equity, to both co-
lonist and Kafir, as can hardly fail to ensure future
tranquillity."
In a third dispatch Sir H. G. Smith observes :
"My dispatch of the 19th inst. will have made
your Lordship acquainted with the success of my
operations: in British Kafraria. No further infor-
mation than that previously reported had then reached
me from Major-General Somerset or from Major
Warden, the British Resident in the Orange River
territory. I have now the honour to transmit copies
of the reports which I received yesterday from both
these officers, and of one from Major Donovan, com-
manding the troops at Bloem Fontein.
" The unremitting zeal and activity of Major-
General Somerset, and his experience and abilities in
the direction of the force which I have placed under
his authority, will I hope counteract all the evils
within the colony which he so feelingly describes ;
and I rely with the greater confidence on such a re-
sult from the judicious arrangements which he has
already made, set forth in the enclosed 'Frontier
Order.' They provide for much that is contained in
a Memoir' addressed to me by the Board of Defence
at Graham's Town, the copy of which I enclose, to-
gether with that of my reply.
"In the Orange River territory affairs are by no
means in so satisfactory a position as I could desire.
In my memorandum to the officers in authority there,
it is far from my intention to convey censure, having
full confidence in their discretion ; but risks should
never be run, nor any attempt made to carry an
enemy's position, especially in the commencement of
a war, without every probability of success. It would
have been gratifying to me to be able to extend my
report of successful operations in British Kafraria to
the Orange River districts, and I trust that my next
intelligence will enable me to do so.
" Two strong patrols under Lieutenant-Colonel
Michel and Lieutenant-Colonel Eyre are now in the
field in British Kafraria in opposite directions, :in
order to follow up the recent successes.--I have, &c.,
" H. G. SMITH.
" P.S. Just as the mail was about to start the im-
portant and sensible letter from Mr. Gladwin, at But-
terworth, of which the enclosed is a copy, reached
me, and I opened my dispatch in order to communi-
cate to your Lordship this satisfactory intelligence,
which I hope may reach Cape Town in time for the
mail steamer. I shall be very guarded in my replies,
and hold well the vantage ground I have obtained."
The following passage in Major Warden's report
describes the incident which elicited the Commander-
in-Chief's memorandum above referred to :
" In my letter of the 27th ult. to your Excellency's
secretary, Colonel Garvock, I mentioned that the
force under Major Donovan would move on the fol-
lowing day towards Sikongela's country, in order to
enable that chief to join the tribe.
" We took the waggon-road, and when about ten
miles from Plat Berg the advanced guard was fired
upon by a party concealed behind some rocks. Not
a shot was returned on our side, and the troops with
the burghers and native contingents encamped near
the mountain called Vier Voet: During the night
some shots were again fired by the enemy, and a
Fingoe sentry badly wounded. The next day, being
Sunday, the commando made no movement, the ene-
my, however, was observed to be in force on the Vier
Voet Mountain, and on the following morning Major
Donovan gave the order for attack ; most gallantly
was it made, and the stronghold of the enemy carried
with severe loss to our opponents. The Barolongs,
700 strong, after capturing some thousands of cattle,
and believing that no further fighting was required,
remained on the mountain for the purpose of plunder-
ing the huts, and regaling themselves on Kafir beer,
which was found in large quantities. During this
time two large Basontu commandoes, under Moshesh's
brother Mosseni, and Molappa, Moshesh's son,
gained the summit of the mountain and fell upon the
Barolongs, who were taken by surprise, and had it not
been for the gallant stand made by the Boers under
Commandant Erasmus, who had observed the ap-
proach of the Basontus, very few of the Barolongs
would have escaped ; as it was, 138 Barolongs were
killed and many wounded. A six-pounder gun, well
horsed, and supported by a detachment of Cape
Mounted Rifles, under Ensign Somerset, and a
party of Boers, under Mr. A. Eervee, was hard
pressed by the enemy for many hours, and escaped
with difficulty.
" Had the Barolongs 'left the mountains immedi-
ately after routing their first opponents, the loss of
life on our side would have been trifling compared to
that of the enemy, whereas it is now almost equal.
Moroko lost 131, the Koranas, Le Puis and Bethany
people 14, making a total of 152, besides a great many
wounded. Among the killed, I regret to say, are two
of Moroko's brothers, and the leader of the Bethany
natives.
" The Basutu tribe have joined the Battamy and
Koranas, under the Gert Lynks, we may number
our enemy in this sovereignty at about 10,000 figh
ing men."

The following are the chief points in Mr. Glad-
win's letter, dated Butterworth, July 31, 1851, to
which Sir H. G. Smith attaches importance :
" Your Excellency will be gratified to hear of the
favourable turn in our affairs at Butterworth. On
Saturday, the 11th instant, the chief Rili came here,
and although he felt some difficulty in looking me
direct in the face, it was evident from his whole
deportment that a great change had passed over him.
This doubtless was one of the results of the late

movements in the Amatola mountains; that affair
has opened his eyes, and he now professes to see a
little more clearly, although he tried, as every Kafir
chief will do, to argue through the whole subject;
but his feet were soon struck from under him, and ho
was left without any plea in extenuation of his people's
conduct.

"On Monday, the 13th, he came again, when I
pointed out to him the consequence which must result
to himself and tribe by allowing his people to rob and
plunder without restraint. He professed to be very
thankful to me for showing him these things, as much
so as though he had never seen or thought of them
before. He also said, ' You have done right in not
leaving Butterworth ; by remaining you have helped
me, and to-day you are ' Hinza.'

After arguing through the whole subject, I brought
him to the business part of the question, and having
had an intimation that he intended to request me to
write to your Excellency on behalf of Sandilli, I an-
ticipated him by distinctly telling him that the only
way for him to gain your Excellency's ear on any
subject was for him first to make all matters right
concerning himself. To this he replied by saying,
' I will make my people pay for all the shops plun-
dered in my country.'
" Not knowing the course your Excellency might
deem proper to pursue towards Rili, I endeavoured to
impress upon him the importance of sending men, as
requested by your Excelleuch when to them every
point would be fully explained.
" I then called his attention to another subject on
which I thought your Excellency would require some
explanation—viz., the Hottentots in his country. I
told him to prepare his answer on that point, as your
Excellency would hold him
i responsible for the mis-
chief they had done while n his country, and also
direct him as to his future course towards them.