Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-04-16
The Last stand at spiszkop.
tThe Lond % Standard

To chronicle faithfully, accurately and with
out exaggeration the events or battle while
the narrator sim laoors under the excitement
which Inevitably attends a defeat, requires
a mind more than ordinarily wen balanced
Accordingly, although / trust that the tele-
grams sent 70 the Standard described faithfully
the disastrous fight on Majuoa Hill, nave
deemed IS necessary to ALLOW day OF two 20
elapse before Writing. have thus been enabled
70 supplement- my own experience by that Of
otnerS VI no were In various parts or the battle,
and have thus. hope rendered my narrative
as complete and as accurate as possible.
we had been exposed 20 five hours OF IN
ceaslng FIRE, and had become accustomed 20
TIE constant humming OF bullets, which az
neon Almost ceased, when the General. weaTied
With the exertions OF the previous night, lay
doWn 10 sleep. Communication by henograph
mad been established with the camp. and con-
ndence In our ability TO hold our own had in
however, who, with his few men, had been
opposing the enemy alone throughout the
morning, without even receiving i visit fron
the General or his stan. did not share IN the
general assurance. little after II he came
back from his position for few nainutes to tell
Us Uhat, having seen large numbers OF the
enemy pass to The hollow underneath him, he
feared they were up TO some devimenG Klein
forcementS were promised him and he returned
TO bis post, but these, as | nog know, cid not
reach him until 1t was almost too late Shortly
aiterward Major Hay, OF the 92i Col. Stewart.
Major Fraser and myself were discussing the
situation. The FORMER expressed an opinion that
q
attack. l mad remarked that the )er5
would probably make their final effort at
about In the evening, as they oil at the
kngogo, when we were startled by loud and
sustained rattle Of musketry, the bullets OF
which shrieked over our heads IL a perfect hsli.
Lieut.. Wright. OF the 92i, rushed back. shout
ing ous Tor immediate reinforcements. Tie
general. startled up from his sleep, assisted og
his staff, set about getting these forward. aad
then, for the tilSt time, it dawned upon us that
We might lose the hill, for the Sodlers moved
forward hnliTaftQplV
cny too evident that they did not like the
Wolk before them. By dtnt OF some hard shout
got over the ridge. where they lay down, some
distance behind Hamilton and his thin line of
Hghlanders, who, although opposed to about
500 men at 12s yards, had never budged an inch.
IL seems that the advance OF the enemy had
been thoroughly checked, when one or our peo-
ple-an officer. / heieve-noticing the Beers
for the first time, CALCULATED, "0h, there they
are, quite close agd the words were hardly
out OF his lips ere every man OF the neHly-ar-
rived reInfcIceE1ents bolted back psnc.strickeu.
This was more than flesh and blood could
stand, and the skfrmiShlng line under Ham
llton gave way also, the retreatlng troops
being exposed, OF course, to the Boer fire
M slf o, 1na f'Gs w6 eec the was on the
on us. and was witness or the Wild con-
fusion which then prevailed l saw McDon-
h4eae on to the sho 3d. any mau who
him; and, indeed, every body was hard at work
ralytng the broken troops Many, or course
got away ana Disappeared over the Slae or tue
hill next the camp but some hundred and fifty
good men, mostly HighlanderS, blue jackets
and Old soldiers OF the 5Sth. remained 10 man
the ridge for final stand. Some of The Beers
appeared and the fire That was intercnangei
was something awful. Tnree times they
showed themselves and three times they as
quickly withdrew, our men, when that occurred
at once stopping their fire. / could hear the
soldiers calculate, "Well not bulge from this.
Well give them the bayonet II they come
closer" and SO on, but all the time dropping
mo TL-r ON hah or,yaor fI,-
got TO Work IN secure positions, and every shot
told.the men falling back hit, mostly through the
head. Color Sergeant Fraser, OF the 92d one
Of the finest soldiers In the corps dropped close
10 ne with both legs shattered TO pieces, and
many others OF his regiment, whom l had
known In Afgnanistan. met similar fate, Just
honorable close.
Altogether it was a hot five minutes, but
nevertheless personally thought at the
time We should hold our own. expected every
minute to hear the order given for bayonet
charge. That order, unfortunately, never came,
although am sure the men would have re-
SpCnded 20 II. But our hanks were exposed
and the enemy, checked In front, were stealing
around them; across the hollow on the Side Of
the hill facing camp we had no one, and as the
frequently looking over their shoulders, Col.
onei Stewart sent me over TO see how matters
We're going On. There reported all clear and.
indeed, II the enemy had attempted to storm
the hin on that face he would have been deci-
mated by the fire Of bis own people aimed from
the ether SiGe. We were most anxious about
our right flank 1t was evident that the enemy
were stealing round II, SO men were taken TO
prolong the position there. They were Chiefly
blue Jackets, led by brave young officer,
and, as 1 watched them follow hun up,
Viction flashed across me that We
should lose the I'LL. There was knoll on the
threatened point, up which the relnforcements
hesitated to climb. Some OF them went back
over the top OF the plateau TO the further ridge
others went round. By and-bye there was
confusion on the knoll itself. Some of the men
On it stood up, and were at once shot down;
and at last the whole OF those who were hold
Ing It gave way. Heller SHELTER they were at
once followed by the Beers, who We're able to
from which instant the hiil OF Majuba was
theirs 1t was sauce ga peat. Major Hay
Captain Singleton OF the 92d, and some other
officers. were the last to leave, aud these were
Immediately Shot down and taken prisoners
The General had turned round the last OF all to
walk after his retreating troops, when he also
was shot dead, through the head. minute or
two previously Lieut.. Hamilton. requesting the
General to excuse his Presumption, had asked
for charge. as the men would not stand the fire
much longer. Cooley replied: "Wait until they
come On, we Will give them volley and then
Charge" but before that moment arrived II was
too late. To move over about one hundred
yards OF ground under the fire OF some five hun
cred rifles at close range Is not pleasant expe-
Renee, but 1t Ia what all who remained OF us on
the hill that day had to go through. Every
moment expected would be my last. On every
with sharp cries OF agony were pitching forward
on the ground. a bullet struck the rock at my
heel the splinters hitting my leather leggings
whilst overhead and on either side the missiles
shrieked past with the noise Of a thousand To-
comotives. AT last reached the shelter OF the
further lldge. Colonel Stewart and Lieutenant
Hill, of the 5Sth. being close to nae. The latter
had behaved sp!endidy during the action-was
shot through the arm, and I gave him my
handkerchief to bind his wound. The officers
were calling out to the men to rally when SOL
der cannoned against me and knocked me-
INTO The bushes On the. preciplce underneath.
The Beers were Instantly on the ridge above,
and for about ten minutes kept up their terri
BILE fire On our soldiers who plunged down
every path. Many, exhausted with tie nights
marching and the days fighting unable to 90
further, lay DOWN behind rocks and bushes and
were afterward taken prisoners; but Of those
who remained on the hill to the very last prob
ably not one in six got clear away. The period
during which l was suspended In the bush az
the mercy Of the Beers firing, only some three
or four yards above my head. was, | think, the
most unpleasant OF the whole day. l did not
expect that men, In the heat OF action, would
spare me; but they did, and helped me at last
QUITO out Of my ny awkward position on to the ridge
tors OF spurs, belt and some money, demanded