’On Thursday, March 29, four companies of the Royal Irish Rifles were under orders to go by march route to De Wet’s Dorp, and to leave one company behind at Helvetia, which is midway between the two townships.  We reached this place on the Friday, leaving Captain Murphy in charge, and the remaining three companies, under command of Captain McWhinnie, reached De Wet’s Dorp on the Sunday morning at nine o’clock.  We marched through the town and took up a position on the surrounding hills, when all at once we heard firing in the distance, and our mounted infantry were soon engaging the enemy’s scouts.  About sunset we were reinforced by about 150 of the Northumberland Fusiliers and Royal Irish Rifles Mounted Infantry.  Our men bivouacked for the night along the ridges, and I slept with them.  About three o’clock on Monday morning our officer commanding received the order to retire upon Reddersburg.  At dawn we marched out in the pouring rain.  We bivouacked that night on or near a Mr. Kelly’s farm, about fifteen miles from De Wet’s Dorp.  At two o’clock the next morning—­Tuesday, April 3, 1900—­a man, of the name of Murray, of the Cape Mounted Rifles, brought despatches, informing us that the enemy were in considerable numbers in the direction of Thaba ’Nchu, on the Modder River, and were likely to threaten our advance.

’Murray rode with despatches from Smithfield to De Wet’s Dorp, and finding that our column had left, he decided to overtake us, after having rested his horse; but in the meantime some of the enemy’s scouts had entered the town, had taken his horse, saddle and bridle, and were making a vigorous search for him, but in vain; and under cover of the darkness he walked out and reached us in the early morning.  He came and woke me up, and I took him to the commanding officer.  We marched out again in the grey of the morning, and at about ten o’clock a.m. we saw dense clouds of dust rising away in the distance to our extreme right, and shortly afterwards saw horsemen galloping towards us, whom we vainly hoped might be our own cavalry, sent to our relief by Lord Roberts at Bloemfontein; but in a few minutes all our hopes were shattered, when we heard firing and saw our men engaging the enemy and retiring upon the adjacent kopjes, which we at once took possession of, and arranged our hospital, planting the Red Cross flag immediately in front of our ambulance wagons and hospital tents.

’The battle, now known as the battle of Muishond-fontein, commenced at 10.45 a.m. on Tuesday, April 3, 1900, and continued all day.  At 3.40 p.m. the enemy’s guns arrived on the scene of action, and began shelling us from three different positions.  We were completely surrounded by a force of 3,200, under Commandant De Wet, who, according to his own testimony to us afterwards, had five guns, four of which were in action, as well as a Vickers-Maxim.  Shortly after the fighting began bullets and shells were dropping,