[The Great Boer War by Arthur Conan Doyle]@TWC D-Link book
The Great Boer War

CHAPTER 21
15/19

The man on the horse has had in this war an immense advantage over the man on foot, but there have been times when the man on the ship has restored the balance.

Captain Mahan might find some fresh texts in the transference of Hunter's Division, or in the subsequent expedition to Beira.
On April 10th the Boers descended from their mountains and woke up our sleepy army corps by a brisk artillery fire.

Our own guns silenced it, and the troops instantly relapsed into their slumber.

There was no movement for a fortnight afterwards upon either side, save that of Sir Charles Warren, who left the army in order to take up the governorship of British Bechuanaland, a district which was still in a disturbed state, and in which his presence had a peculiar significance, since he had rescued portions of it from Boer domination in the early days of the Transvaal Republic.

Hildyard took over the command of the 5th Division.
In this state of inertia the Natal force remained until Lord Roberts, after a six weeks' halt in Bloemfontein, necessitated by the insecurity of his railway communication and his want of every sort of military supply, more especially horses for his cavalry and boots for his infantry, was at last able on May 2nd to start upon his famous march to Pretoria.


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