Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-09-21

of forest. The Fingo levies were sent round
through the bush to the rear of the
vanced to the attack. The enemy skirmished
in the plain, but the cavalry dashed down upon
| them and drove them into wooded ravlne,
from which they kept up fire some time, until
silenced by two or three volleys from the in
fantry The main body of the rebels was drawn
| up in front of their huts, and as soon as the
infantry approached, and the cavalry charged
| down, they took to fight but volley from the
| Fingoes in the bush killed several of them.
The rest, however, succeeded in gaining the
forest, The village was then burnt and $50
| cattle and some horses and goats, all stolen
from neighboring settlers, were recovered.
The column then marched back to their
bivouac of the night before, and the following
| day returned to Grahamstown. There was no
halt here, for the next morning they marched
| to Join the column from King Wiliamstown.
| passing through the Eeca Pass, where constant
attacks had been made by natives upon WAGONS
and conveys going down the road. They
| crossed the Koonap river, and at the end OF
two days march eDcamped on ridge where
the Amatola range could be seen, and finally
! Joined the column composed of the Ninety-trst
Regiment and the rest of the Cape Mounted
| Rifles encamped near Fort Hare.
Two days later the whole force, amounting
| to 1000 men, advanced to the base of the
| Amatolas and encamped on the plains at a
| short distance from the hills. The attack was
made in two columns; the Seventy-iourth, a
portion of the native levies, and of the
| Mounted Rifles, were to attack formidable
position in front, while the Ninety-first were to
| march round, and, driving the enemy before
them. to effect junction at the end of the
/ day with the others. The cavalry could take
no part in the attack of the strong position
| held by the Kaffirs. which was line of per-
| pendicular cliffs, the only approach to which
touched the summit of the Cliff at one point
| only The Seventy-fourth moved directly
to the attack, the native levies skir-
mishing on both fanks. The enemy
who could be seen in large numbers on the
height, waited until the Highlanders were well
within range before they opened fire. The
cavalry below watched the progress of the
troops with anxiety. They replied with steady
volleys to the incessant firing of the enemy,
advancing steadily up the slope but occasion
ally leaving a wounded man behind them. Two
companies went ahead in skirmlshing order,
shots with the enemy as they went. They sue
ceeded in winning foothold at the top of the
cliff and drove off the defenders. who took
refuge in a dim forest few hundred yards in
the rear.
As soon as the rest of the regiment had got
up they advanced against the wood. from
which the enemy kept up constant fire, and
pouring in steady volleys, entered the forest
and drove the enemy before them foot by foot,
until the Kafirs retreated into a thick bush
absolutely impenetrable to the soldiers. On
emerging from the forest the troops were
joined by the other column, which had driven
the energy from their position on the Victoria
heights and had burned two OF their villages.
While the fighting was going on between the
first division and the enemy, the second di-
vision had been engaged in another portion of
the mills and had penetrated some distance.
Skirmishing went on during the rest of the
day. but at nightfall the troops returned to the
camp that they had left in the morning The
Kaffirs had suffered considerable loss during
the day, two of their leading chiefs being
among the slain, and Sandilli himself narrowly
ESCAPED being taken prisoner.
The Cape Mounted Rifles attached to the
Seventy-fourth had taken no part in the affair,
for the ground had been altogether impractical
bic for cavalry. The troops, when they re-
turned, were utterly exhausted with the IA
tigaes that they had undergone, but were well
satisfied with the events of the day.
1T is well enough for beginning" Ronald
said to Sergeant Menzies but what is it?
These hills extend 20 or 80 miles either way at
the least; twice as far, for anything know.
They contain scores of kraals; 1 don't suppose
l am far out when 1 say hundreds. We have
burnt three or four, have marched mile or
two into the woods, have killed perhaps 100
Kafirs at the outside, and have lost in killed
and wounded about so of our own men. l sup
pose altogether there are Is 600 or 20 900 Kafirs
there. They have no end of places where our
fellows can't possibly penetrate. There's no
holding such position as that. The columns
may toll on through the woods, skirmishing all
the day, but they only hold the ground they
stand on. Why, Sergeant, it will take dozen
expeditions, each made with a force three or
four times larger than we have now, before we
can produce much effect on the Amatolas."
Il am afraid it will, Blunt" the Sergeant
said, before we break down the rebellion.
=.
have got 10000 or 1000 cattle among the hills.
If we can drive them off we shall do more good
than by killing Kaffirs; the chiefs care but
little how much their followers are shot down,
but they do care nightly for the loss of their
wealth. Cattle are the one valuable possession
of the Kaffirs. Shooting them has very little
effect on those who are not shot; as for driving
them out of one part OF the country, it makes
no difference to them one way or another.
They can put up their kraals anywhere, The
one point on which you can hit them is their
cattle. A chiefs consequence depends on the
number of bulocks he owns. A young Kaffr
cannot marry unless he has cattle to buy wife
with. Putting aside their arms and their
trumpery necklaces and bracelets, cattle are
the sole valuables of the Kaffirs. You will see
if we can capture their cattle we shall put an
end to the war, but any amount of marching
and lighting will make but little impression
upon them"
The representations of the two soldiers
proved correct; it was only after six invasions
of the Amatolas by very much larger forces
after hard fighting. in which the troops did not
always have the best of 1t, after very heavy
losses, and after capturing some Il, 600 ca1tle
that the conquest of the Amatolas was finally
achieved
So far, Ronald had heard nothing more as to
the discovery of his identity by one of the men
of his troop. He thought that the man could
not have mentioned it to anyone else, He felt
sure that had it become at all known lie
must have heard of it. He would have
noticed some change in the manner of the
men. and it would certainly have come to
the ears of Menzies or one other of the nom
commissioned officers. who would, of course
come to him to inquire whether there was any
truth in the report; beside, he must have known
him from the time he joined the troop, and
could nave mentioned 1t before if he had
wanted to do so. Ronald supposed, then, that
he had kept silence either because he thought
that by originating the report to the disad-
vantage of a popular man in the corps he
might. though it proved to be true, be re-
garded with general hostility, or, that the man
might have intended to keep his secret think
ing that some day or other he might make it
useful to him. No doubt he never would have
said what he did had he not been excited by
liquor.
Ronald hardly knew whether to be glad or
sorry that the secret was still kept 1t would,
he felt sure, come out sooner or later, and in
some respects he would rather have an end of
the suspense, and face it at once. His position
was strong one, his OFFICERS were all markedly
kind to him, and his expedition to the Amatolas
had rendered him the most popular man in the
corps among his comrades. The fact too as
told by Colonel Somerset to his officers and as
picked up by others from their talk, that he
had refused a commission added to his popu-
larity; the men were glad to think that their
comra6e preferred being one of them to be-
coming an officer and that the brave deed they
were all proud of had not been done to win
promotion, but simply to save women In
distress.
There had been sly laughter among the men
when their comrades told them how pretty was
the girl Ronald had brought back; and there
had been keen wagering in the regiment that
there would be wedding before they marched,
or at any rate that they should hear that there
would be one on their return from the war
The one contingency had not occurred. The
other, it seemed, was not to take place. for in
answer to a question as to how the wounded
colonist was going on, Ronald had said care
lessy that he was mending fast and would be
well enough to be taken down to the coast in
fortnight and that the doctor thought by the
time he reached England he would be com
pletely set mp again. So the bets were paid.
but the men wondered that their sergeant had
not made better use of his opportunities for
all agreed that girl could hardly refuse man