The Kopje Garrison Part 74

"Or put me under arrest, sir."

"I cannot spare any of my officers to-night, d.i.c.kenson, so I suppose it must be deferred till after the attack."

"Thank you, sir. I don't want to be out of the fight."

"I suppose not. By the way, have you seen much of Roby since he has been about again?"

"Oh yes; a great deal, sir, on purpose. I've been trying to get him into a better frame of mind."

"Well, I must say that you have not succeeded very well."

"Horribly, sir. I thought he'd think differently as his wound healed up; but he is worse than ever."

"Now then," said the colonel, "tell me frankly what you think of Captain Roby's state."

"I think he puzzles me, sir. One hour I think he is as mad as a hatter-"

"Say as mad."

"Yes, sir; one hour he's as mad as mad, and the next he's perfectly sane."

"Perfectly sane, I should say, d.i.c.kenson," said the colonel.

"Yes, sir, in all things but one, and over that he's just like that fellow in the story."

"What fellow in what story?" said the colonel coldly.

"That Mr d.i.c.k, sir, who couldn't write anything without getting King Charles's head into it."

"I see; and you think Captain Roby cannot help getting what he considers to be Lennox's cowardice into his head?"

"Exactly, sir."

"Humph! Well, there may be something in that. There, I have no more to say to you now. No rashness to-night, but do your best with your men. I'd rather hear that you saved one of our lads than killed half-a-dozen Boers."

"I understand, sir."

"Understand this too. If you have any conversation with your brother officers, say I have had you here to give you a severe reproof for the present, and that probably something more will follow when we have crushed the Boers. If they crush us you will get off. That will do, d.i.c.kenson. I expect our friends will visit us to-night, though more probably it will be just before daylight. Ask the major to step here as you go. By the way, you and Lennox were at school together?"

"Yes, sir; and at Sandhurst too."

"Well, I hope he has as good an opinion of you as you have of him. Good-night for the present."

"Good-night, sir," said the young man as he went out into the starlight to deliver his message.-"Well, I hope we shall win to-night, for the chief's sake! Hang it all," he muttered, "what a brick he is!"

Chapter Thirty Seven.

To Clear the Kopje.

As a rule, the garrison at Groenfontein after the posting of the watch settled itself down for a quiet night's rest, for experience had taught that there was very little to fear in the shape of a night attack. This was foreign at first to the Boers' idea of warfare. They knew well enough that they were strongest in defence, and acted accordingly. Every place they held was turned into a hive of cells, in which they lurked, stings ready. It was generally some kopje covered with loose stones, cracks, and crevices, while the open portions were soon made formidable with loopholed walls of loosely built-up stones. If their resting-place was in the more open country, it was a laager whose walls were the wagons, banked up and strengthened with stakes, thorn bushes, and a terrible entanglement of barbed galvanised iron wire.

Attacks had been made on the fortified village and the kopje at early morning, but never pushed home; and all through the occupation the tactics of the general in command had been the hara.s.sing of the British regiment with sh.e.l.l fire and clever marksmans.h.i.+p from cover, so constant and so dangerous that the wonder to the English officers was that the enemy had not long before fired their last cartridge away.

But upon this particular night something more was fully expected. The English scouting parties had brought in the information respecting the reinforcements to the Boer corps, so that when a Zulu, who had been a very faithful hanger-on to the British force, came in full of eagerness that afternoon to announce that the Boers meant to attack in force, the colonel, though always ready to doubt the information received and the possibility of the black spies' surmises being correct, felt that he was warranted in making every preparation; and this was set about in a calm, matter-of-fact way.

Judging that the attack would be in the form of a surprise directed at the kopje, possession of which would render the village perfectly untenable, the two field-guns posted in the most commanding position in the village were hauled up to appointed places on the kopje to strengthen the big captured gun, and the major portion of the troops were marched up to the well-fortified lines there, the colonel intending to hold the rocky elevation himself, leaving the defence of the village to the major, who was to keep the enemy who attacked in play there as long as seemed necessary, and then retire along the well-fortified path which connected village and kopje, where the princ.i.p.al stand was to be made.

The great natural advantages of the rocky mount had not been neglected. From the first the colonel had looked upon it as a little inland Gibraltar in which he could bid defiance to ten times the number of the enemy that had been attacking him, so long as food and ammunition lasted; and to this end he had, directly after the discovery of the entrance to the cavern, supplemented the stores found there by removing all they had from the village, and making additions from time to time whenever suitable captures were made; while, greatest prize of all, there was the inexhaustible supply of pure cold water, easily enough obtainable as soon as proper arrangements were made.

Hence it was that the little English force was always ready, the plans for the defence arranged, and nothing remained to be done but for the various defenders to march quietly to their appointed places.

Consequently, after the watch-setting, the orders were given, and party after party moved silently through the soft darkness, till by the brilliant starlight each battery was manned and the trenches which commanded the probable approaches to the kopje lined, while the same precautions were taken in the village, where wall and hut had been carefully loopholed; and then all was ready. The men lay down in their greatcoats and blankets to s.n.a.t.c.h such sleep as they could get, as it was antic.i.p.ated that several hours would probably elapse before the attack-if any-was made.

"I was in hopes," said d.i.c.kenson when all was ready, "that we should be up yonder, ready to cover the gunners. It would be a treat to play Boer and show them what firing from behind stones is like. Something new for them."

"But we shall not stay here very long if they do come," replied Lennox.

"No; we understand all that. Been drilled into us pretty well. But it strikes me that, according to the good old fas.h.i.+on of nothing occurring so likely as the unexpected, if they do come it will not be to where we are waiting, but from somewhere else."

"Where else can they come from?" said Lennox sharply.

"Oh, don't ask me," said d.i.c.kenson, laughing. "I'm not a Boer: how can I tell? They'll have hatched out some dodge. Got a balloon all the way from Komati Poort, perhaps, and about three o'clock they'll have it right over the top of the kopje, and if we had been up there I dare say we should have found them sliding down ropes like spiders."

"Highly probable," said Lennox dryly.

"Ah, you may jest; but you see if they don't come crawling right close up like so many slugs on a wet night. The first thing we shall know will be that they are there."

"Ah, now you are talking sense."

"But I don't guarantee that it's going to be like that," said d.i.c.kenson quickly, "so don't be disappointed."

"I shall not be. I'm ready for anything."

"Good, lad. That's the way to deal with the Boers. I've learnt that: for they certainly are the trickiest fellows going. I say-"

"Hadn't you better leave off talking now?"

"Only whispering. I was going to say that the major's here with us, and has put Edwards in command of both companies."

"But Roby's with him?"

"Yes; but Edwards is boss. I shouldn't have felt comfortable with our convalescent at the head of affairs."

"You need not have minded. Roby's as brave as he is high."