Details
1878 (22 Nov.) fine eight page letter to his grandmother, headed "Camp Greytown, Natal".
Further details
Extract:
You remember how suddenly we were ordered out by Telegram at the very beginning of my January leave and sailed to East London in H.M.S. Himalaya, we had almost uninterrupted life in tents till the end of July, "trekking" suddenly from place to place wherever the Kaffirs had gathered; then going into dense forest and bush and driving them out; and often when we apprehended a movement of theirs we lay out "waylaid" as they call it and barred the way alright - then the order was "shoot all coming from that direction instantly without challenging". Of course a challenge would be the instantaneous signal for the Kaffirs to plunge into obscurity - However many of our own side were shot by their friends - to wit Glennie the Captain of my very Company. (There goes the 8am breakfast bugle, I am writing in pajamas and there's a drizzling rain). Well we caught Tinni Macomo and others and killed others and Sandile near Isidingi where I was so long for three occasions, he is buried in a barn of a farmhouse which he had "burnt" on the Sunday. He and his followers had entered the Perie Bush as the immense trank of forest on the Krantzes and Kloofs of the headwaters of the Buffalo is called. Thus ended the "Amakhosa" campaign Galekas and Gaikas and we 2/24th were then ordered up to Natal for fear of Zulus fighting. So we came up to D'urban and thence trekked to Pietermaritzburg, "Pieter" was one gentleman and "Maritz" another the Dutch pronouce it "Ratzburg". Well we encamped at Fort Napier P.M. Burg for weeks it being unknown whether we'd go on to Newcastle and Utrecht and Leydenburg where we are at Secucumi, a gentleman of the native persuasion on the North West frontier of Natal who however aided by the drought has forced the column to retire and suspend operation till April next! They lost 7 and 8 horses per diem!!
You remember how suddenly we were ordered out by Telegram at the very beginning of my January leave and sailed to East London in H.M.S. Himalaya, we had almost uninterrupted life in tents till the end of July, "trekking" suddenly from place to place wherever the Kaffirs had gathered; then going into dense forest and bush and driving them out; and often when we apprehended a movement of theirs we lay out "waylaid" as they call it and barred the way alright - then the order was "shoot all coming from that direction instantly without challenging". Of course a challenge would be the instantaneous signal for the Kaffirs to plunge into obscurity - However many of our own side were shot by their friends - to wit Glennie the Captain of my very Company. (There goes the 8am breakfast bugle, I am writing in pajamas and there's a drizzling rain). Well we caught Tinni Macomo and others and killed others and Sandile near Isidingi where I was so long for three occasions, he is buried in a barn of a farmhouse which he had "burnt" on the Sunday. He and his followers had entered the Perie Bush as the immense trank of forest on the Krantzes and Kloofs of the headwaters of the Buffalo is called. Thus ended the "Amakhosa" campaign Galekas and Gaikas and we 2/24th were then ordered up to Natal for fear of Zulus fighting. So we came up to D'urban and thence trekked to Pietermaritzburg, "Pieter" was one gentleman and "Maritz" another the Dutch pronouce it "Ratzburg". Well we encamped at Fort Napier P.M. Burg for weeks it being unknown whether we'd go on to Newcastle and Utrecht and Leydenburg where we are at Secucumi, a gentleman of the native persuasion on the North West frontier of Natal who however aided by the drought has forced the column to retire and suspend operation till April next! They lost 7 and 8 horses per diem!!