An effort was now to be made to repair the consequences of this
remissness and to drive the Boers off the positions they occupied, and
it was hoped that if a heavy blow were dealt them they would draw off
altogether. The forces of Joubert, Meyer, and the Free Staters were now
all within a distance of a few miles, and were all to be beaten up.
Their central position was on a hill afterwards known as Signal Hill,
and on this they had already planted a forty-pounder gun. A force
composed of six companies of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, four and a half
of the Gloucesters, a mountain battery and a troop of Hussars started at
midnight towards a hill known as Nicholson's Nek, occupied by the Free
Staters. Major General Hunter with a brigade of infantry, three
batteries, and a small cavalry force were to attack Meyer's commando to
the east, while General White, with two infantry brigades, French's
cavalry, and six batteries of field artillery moved against Joubert's
force on Modder Spruit. It was hoped that the Boers, if defeated, would
find their retreat barred by the force that had stated early for
Nicholson's Nek. All were well away from the town before daylight broke.
At five o'clock in the morning the guns spoke out, and were at once
answered by the Boer artillery, and the roar of fire soon became
general.
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