Sullenly and angrily the troops marched
away. Had they had their will they would have hurled themselves against
the Boer entrenchments until the last man had fallen. To them the
necessities of the situation were as nothing; to retreat seemed an
acknowledgment that they had been beaten, a feeling that is seldom
entertained by British soldiers. Their losses had been heavy, but there
were still enough of them, they thought, for the work they had to do,
and it was with a deep feeling of unmerited humiliation that they
received the order to retire.
The feeling, however, was not of long endurance, for two days later,
when they had settled down in camp near the Tugela and round Spearman's
Farm, the general rode through the lines, congratulating the troops on
the valour they had displayed, and promising them that ere long they
would be in Ladysmith.
"I shall be heartily glad when we are there," Chris said when he heard
what the general had promised, "not only for the sake of the town, but
for our own. We are really doing no good here. It is hateful to look on
when other fellows are fighting so desperately. If it were not that the
orders were strict against the mounted Colonial corps going out over the
country, to clear the scattered Boers out, we might be doing useful
service; and as soon as Ladysmith is relieved--that is to say, if we can
hold out till we get there--I should certainly vote that we come back
here instead of staying with the army, and go on again on our own
account.
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