I am not surprised that the Colonials to
a man are convinced that they would manage matters infinitely better if
they were left to themselves. They would harass the Boers night and day,
sweep their plundering parties out of the land, make a circuit no matter
how far into Zululand, and come down behind and cut the line of railway,
and blow up the bridges, and worry them out of the colony. I don't say
they would succeed, but I am sure they would try, and I believe firmly
that five thousand mounted Colonials fighting in their own way would
relieve Ladysmith and clear Natal sooner than we with thirty thousand
shall do. I am not saying that they would succeed in a Continental war,
though they would certainly harass and bother any regular force four
times their own strength. To succeed they would require guns and a
greater degree of discipline than they have got, but such a force would
be absolutely invaluable as an assistant to a regular army. Don't repeat
what I say, Chris; there is a good deal of soreness of feeling on both
sides already, and I don't want any utterance of mine to add to it.
Still, I can assure you it has been a relief to me to let the steam
off."
At the appointed hour the Maritzburg Scouts and another Colonial corps
started with a train of two hundred waggons, and with immense exertion
made eight miles before it became dark.
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