Many things occurred to make the day interesting, or say, rather, out of the common; but the palm was easily carried off by the Colonel’s “gift.”  I have had occasion to allude to the parsimonious action of the military in curtailing the allowances paid to natives for captured cattle and thereby paralysing the incentive that usually induces humanity (black or white) to face danger.  This untimely experiment in economics had discouraged the Natives and practically sent them out on strike.  There were no cattle coming in, and so the Colonel thought it would be a good thing to reduce our meat ration from half a pound to a quarter, and that of little boys and girls with capacious stomachs to two ounces!  I must leave to the imagination of the reader the effect of this proceeding on the part of the man who made and administered Martial Law.  The promulgation of the half-pound regulation had been resented as an injustice; but now the “Military Situation” demanded a still more drastic fast.  The Military regime became more and more unpopular; it was declaimed against with finer gusto and eloquence.  The new enactment was too much even for the “Law’s” apologists; it alienated their sympathies, and afforded them excuse and opportunity to associate themselves at last with the rightful indignation of their fellow-citizens.  As for Kekewich, we—­or as many of us as might survive his snacks—­determined that he should be made explain himself to the Queen.  It was a glad New Year altogether, with every probability of its gladness continuing “all the year round.”

As if he had got wind of the Colonel’s coup, and looked on it as a menace to the success of his own starvation policy, the Boer (on Tuesday) by way of expediting things opened fire on the cattle at Kenilworth.  A supreme effort was made to wipe them out.  The effort was futile; the cows chewed the cud under fire with inimitable nonchalance, while the goats, our whiskered pandoors, with fine satire sagaciously cocked their horns.  Not that we cared.  The non-success of the bombardment was if anything disappointing (I say it advisedly).  What substantial difference was there between four ounces of ox’s “neck” and nothing at all.  None to speak of.  Besides, we suspected the law-givers, who doubtless deemed themselves, like royalty, above the “Law.”  Did not the Colonel represent the Queen?  Nay, more; could he not exclaim with the great Imari in the play, “It is the ‘Law,’ I made it so.”  In short we had a notion that the Colonel and his staff did not weigh their own rations.  So that if the Boers had succeeded in slaughtering the cattle there would have been satisfaction in the thought that the military had had to suffer with the rest and been served right indeed.  Eggs were too expensive, to be thought of; two shillings each (egg) was their market value in the New Year.  They were fresh of course, beyond yea or nay they were fresh (since none could be imported); and to be sure, absolutely sure, of that was delightful—­to millionaires and roost-keepers.  The exactions of the local egglers formed the subject of much adverse criticism, but they excused their medicinal charges on the plea that they had nothing save eggs to sell.