All our toil was repaid by the glorious panorama that now stretched out before us to the south.

We saw the undulating veldt between the Magaliesbergen where we stood, and the Witwatersrand.

Through a ravine we had a view extending for many miles, but wherever we cast our eyes there was no sign of anything that resembled the enemy.
As it was now too late to off-saddle, we began, after having taken a little rest, to descend the mountain on the other side, my object being to reach a farm where I hoped to get some sheep or oxen for my men, who not only were tired out, but nearly famished.
We went down the mountain--well, somewhat quicker than we had climbed it; however, we could not go very fast, as the incline was steep.

In an hour and a half we reached a Boer farm.
One can imagine how the burghers recovered their spirits as they ate their supper, and what it meant for them to give their tired limbs a rest.
The following morning we found good horse-provender, and plenty of it.
It was not as yet the habit of the English to burn everything they came across--they had not yet begun to carry out that policy of destruction.
I now felt quite easy about the safety of our camp.

The attention of the English would be turned in quite another direction.
I was quite right in this view of the matter.