During this time Colonel Park was commanding the Lydenburg district with Captain Ravenshaw as Brigade Major.

On February 5th the Boers attacked all the Lydenburg posts.  The attacks were not heavily pressed.  There were no casualties on the side of the defenders, whilst the Boers lost, as far as could be ascertained, two killed and seven wounded.

On February 16th two Boers surrendered at Mission Camp.  These stated that their friends in the laagers were badly off for meat and had hardly any horses left, most of them having died of horse-sickness.

Early in March, 1901, Colonel Park decided on raiding Piet Schwartz’s laager, which was stationed on the ridge to the north of and overlooking Kruger’s Post.  His force consisted of three companies Devons under Captain Jacson, three companies Rifle Brigade, three companies Royal Irish, one squadron 19th Hussars, three companies mounted infantry, three guns 53rd Battery, one howitzer, and one pompom, and by the 12th his arrangements were complete.  The infantry were to make a night march and to attack at dawn, whilst the mounted troops and guns were to be at Kruger’s Post just after dawn to assist.

Under cover of darkness, the column rendezvoused at the Spekboom Bridge, one company having gone on ahead to seize any Boers who might be coming down at nightfall, as was their wont, to form a picquet there.

A start was made from the bridge at about 9 p.m.  Leaving the main road on their left, the column proceeded in single file, Devons leading, along a footpath which led them over a Nek in the hills and thence down into a donga.  An accident, which might have been attended with very unfortunate results, occurred at the very commencement.  The Royal Irish, who were in the rear, instead of following and keeping in touch with the remainder of the column missed connection, and went up the main road, on which, about two miles ahead, was a Boer picquet.  They were, however, stopped just in time and turned back.  This delayed the advance for about an hour.  Along the donga the march was continued for some six miles, when a cross donga was met with, the sides of which were steep and about fifteen feet high.  The leading troops crossed and halted on the far side till the rear closed up.  The Maxim gun mules with difficulty negotiated the obstacle, and the advance was, after one hour’s halt, continued to Kruger’s Post.

The force kept to the donga almost the whole march, scarcely for a moment leaving its shelter.  Terribly rough going it was, with long high grass soaking wet, and the men tumbling about into ruts and over rocks.  On they trudged, twisting and turning, up and down, falling about, with every now and then a suppressed exclamation and an imprecation on rocks and ruts in general and night marches in particular—­no lights, no smoking.  No one except he who has done it knows what a strain it is marching along through the dark night, without a word and without the company of a pipe.