Chapter 37 - Page 2

number of prisoners fell, but he had taken so many,
and had hustled the remainder to such an extent, that the fight seemed
to have gone out of the Boers in this district. On January 1st be
presented the first-fruits of the year in the shape of.twenty-two of
Grobler's burghers. On the 3rd he captured forty-nine, while Wing,
co-operating with him, took twenty more. Among these was General
Erasmus, who had helped, or failed to help, General Lucas Meyer at
Talana Hill. On the 10th Colonel Wing's column, which was part of
Hamilton's force, struck out again and took forty-two prisoners,
including the two Wolmarans. Only two days later Hamilton returned to
the same spot, and was rewarded with thirty-two more captures. On the
18th he took twenty-seven, on the 24th twelve, and on the 26th no
fewer than ninety. So severe were these blows, and so difficult was it
for the Boers to know how to get away from an antagonist who was ready
to ride thirty miles in a night in order to fall upon their laager,
that the enemy became much scattered and too demoralised for offensive
operations. Finding that they had grown too shy in this much shot over
district, Hamilton moved farther south, and early in March took a cast
round the Vryheid district, where he made some captures, notably
General Cherry Emmett, a descendant of the famous Irish rebel, and
brother-in-law of Louis Botha. For all these repeated successes it was
to the Intelligence Department, so admirably controlled by Colonel
Wools-Sampson, that thanks are mainly due.

Whilst Bruce Hamilton was operating so successfully in the Ermelo
district, several British columns under Plumer, Spens, and Colville
were stationed some fifty miles south to prevent the fugitives from
getting away into the mountainous country which lies to the north of
Wakkerstroom. On January 3rd a small force of Plumer's New-Zealanders
had a brisk skirmish with a party of Boers, whose cattle they
captured, though at some loss to themselves. These Boers were
strongly reinforced, however, and when on the following day Major
Vallentin pursued them with fifty men he found himself at Onverwacht
in the presence of several hundred of the enemy, led by Oppermann and
Christian Botha. Vallentin was killed and almost all of his small
force were hit before British reinforcements, under Colonel Pulteney,
drove the Boers off. Nineteen killed and twenty-three wounded were
our losses in this most sanguinary little skirmish. Nine dead Boers,
with Oppermaun himself, were left upon the field of battle. His loss
was a serious one to the enemy, as he was one of their most
experienced Generals.

>From that time until the end these columns, together with Mackenzie's
column to the north of Ermelo, continued to