CHAPTER THIRTY TWO.
DOWN BY THE SPRUIT.
The trumpets were ringing out again to call the various parts of theforce together, a couple of regiments being sent in pursuit of the onlybody of the defeated Boers which showed any cohesion, the greater partof those who had reached their horses and escaped doing this to a greatextent singly, and the rest of that day was passed in gathering in thewagons, disarming the prisoners, and making all secure in the laager,which was now formed about a spruit that offered an ample supply of goodfresh water.
The capture proved to be far greater than was at first surmised, for inaddition to the four heavy guns with their wagons and specialammunition, scores of the great lumbering Dutch wagons were full ofrifles and cartridges. Besides these, there was an ample supply ofordinary stores, and, in addition to the many spans of oxen, hundreds ofcaptured horses and several flocks of sheep.
By night all was made secure in the great camp, and the despatch-riderswere made welcome at the mess presided over by the cavalry General, whowith his staff eagerly listened to the adventurers' account of theirjourney, and to their report of the state of beleaguered Mafeking.
That night the pair slept in peace in the well-guarded camp afterdebating about their continuance of their journey the next morning.
But when morning came the General demurred to letting them go.
"You must wait a day longer," he said, "until my boys have done more, toclear the way, for your road must be full of revengeful Boers, theremains of the force we defeated yesterday, and I am certain thatneither you nor your despatch would reach Kimberley if I let you go!"
"We are very anxious to be off, sir," said West, in a disappointed tone.
"And I am very anxious that the Kimberley people should have your goodnews, my lad," said the general, smiling, "and the news too of how wehave taken the guns and stores meant to be used against Mafeking; but,as I have told you before, I don't want the news you are to carry to befound somewhere on the veldt, perhaps a year hence, along with some ragsand two brave young fellows' bones."
"Thank you, sir," said West quietly; "but when do you think we mightcontinue our journey?"
"That depends on the reports I get in from the men still away inpursuit."
The men in camp were in high glee, for they had been struggling hard forweeks to get to conclusions with the enemy, but without success, whilenow their highest expectations had been more than fulfilled; but therewas plenty of sorrow to balance the joy, many poor fellows having mettheir end, while the number of injured in the hospital ambulances andtents made up a heavy list.
West and Ingleborough saw much of this, and spent no little time intrying to soften the pangs endured by the brave lads who lay patientlybearing their unhappy lot, suffering the agony of wounds, and many morethe miseries of disease.
There was trouble too with the prisoners, and West and his companionwere present when a desperate attempt to escape was made by a partyworked upon by one of their leaders--a half-mad fanatical being whosepreachings had led many to believe that the English conquerors wereabout to reduce the Boers to a complete state of slavery.
The attempt failed, and the leader was one of those who fell in theterrible encounter which ensued.
Both West and Ingleborough were witnesses of the resulting fight, forthe attempt was made in broad daylight, just when such a venture wasleast expected, and, after those who seized upon a couple of score ofthe captured horses and tried to gallop off had been recaptured, theyoung men worked hard in helping to carry the wounded to the patch ofwagons that formed the field hospital.
"Ugh!" said West, with a shudder, after he and Ingleborough haddeposited a terribly-injured Boer before one of the regimental surgeons;"let's get down to the spruit and wash some of this horror away."
"Yes," said Ingleborough, after a glance at his own hands; "we couldn'tlook worse if we had been in the fight! Horrible!"
"It's one thing to be in the wild excitement of a battle, I suppose,"said West; "but this business after seems to turn my blood cold."
Ingleborough made no reply, and the pair had enough to do afterwards indescending the well-wooded, almost perpendicular bank to where thelittle river ran bubbling and foaming along, clear and bright.
"Ha!" sighed West; "that's better! It was horrible, though, to seethose poor wretches shot down."
"Um!" murmured Ingleborough dubiously. "Not very! They killed thesentries first with their own bayonets!"
"In a desperate struggle for freedom, though! But there, I'm not goingto try and defend them!"
"No, don't, please!" said Ingleborough. "I can't get away from the factthat they began the war, that the Free State had no excuse whatever, andthat the enemy have behaved in the most cruel and merciless way to thepeople of the towns they have besieged."
"All right! I suppose you are right; but I can't help feeling sorry forthe beaten."
"Feel sorry for our own party then!" said Ingleborough, laughing. "Why,Noll, lad, we must not holloa till we are out of the wood. This last isa pretty bit of success; but so far we have been horribly beaten allround."
"Yes, yes; don't talk about it," said West sharply; "but look overthere. We needn't have been at the trouble of scrambling down thisalmost perpendicular place, for there must be a much easier spot wherethat fellow is walking up."
"Never mind; we'll find that slope next time, for we shall have to comedown again if we want a wash."
They sat down chatting together about the beautifully peaceful look ofthe stream, while Ingleborough lit his pipe and began to smoke.
"It does seem a pity," said Ingleborough thoughtfully, exhaling a cloudof smoke: "this gully looks as calm and peaceful as a stream on oldDartmoor at home. My word! I wish I had a rod, a line, and some flies!There must be fish here. I should like to throw in that pool andforget all about despatch-bearing and guns and rifles and men usinglances. It would be a treat!"
"It looks deep and black too in there," said West. "Yes, a good day'sfishing in such a peaceful--Ugh! Come away. Let's get back to thecamp."
"Why? What's the matter?" cried Ingleborough, starting up, in the fullexpectation of seeing a party of the enemy making their way down thefarther bank to get a shot at them.
But West was only pointing with averted head down at the deep blackpool, and Ingleborough's face contracted as his eyes took in all thathad excited West's horror and disgust.
For there, slowly sailing round and round just beneath the surface, werethe white faces of some half-dozen Boers, wounded to the death ordrowned in their efforts to escape the British cavalry, and washed downfrom higher up by the swift stream, to go on gliding round and round thepool till a sudden rising of the waters from some storm should give thestream sufficient power to sweep them out.