The adventurous armoured train pressed on as far as Lobatsi, where it found the bridges destroyed; so it returned to its original position, having another brush with the Boer commandos, and again, in some marvellous way, escaping its obvious fate.  From then until the new year the line was kept open by an admirable system of patrolling to within a hundred miles or so of Mafeking.  An aggressive spirit and a power of dashing initiative were shown in the British operations at this side of the scene of war such as have too often been absent elsewhere.  At Sekwani, on November 24th, a considerable success was gained by a surprise planned and carried out by Colonel Holdsworth.  The Boer laager was approached and attacked in the early morning by a force of one hundred and twenty frontiersmen, and so effective was their fire that the Boers estimated their numbers at several thousand.  Thirty Boers were killed or wounded, and the rest scattered.

While the railway line was held in this way there had been some skirmishing also on the northern frontier of the Transvaal.  Shortly after the outbreak of the war the gallant Blackburn, scouting with six comrades in thick bush, found himself in the presence of a considerable commando.  The British concealed themselves by the path, but Blackburn’s foot was seen by a keen-eyed Kaffir, who pointed it out to his masters.  A sudden volley riddled Blackburn with bullets; but his men stayed by him and drove off the enemy.  Blackburn dictated an official report of the action, and then died.

In the same region a small force under Captain Hare was cut off by a body of Boers.  Of the twenty men most got away, but the chaplain J.W.  Leary, Lieutenant Haserick (who behaved with admirable gallantry), and six men were taken. [Footnote:  Mr. Leary was wounded in the foot by a shell.  The German artillerist entered the hut in which he lay.  ‘Here’s a bit of your work!’ said Leary good-humouredly.  ‘I wish it had been worse,’ said the amiable German gunner.] The commando which attacked this party, and on the same day Colonel Spreckley’s force, was a powerful one, with several guns.  No doubt it was organised because there were fears among the Boers that they would be invaded from the north.  When it was understood that the British intended no large aggressive movement in that quarter, these burghers joined other commandos.  Sarel Eloff, who was one of the leaders of this northern force, was afterwards taken at Mafeking.

Colonel Plumer had taken command of the small army which was now operating from the north along the railway line with Mafeking for its objective.  Plumer is an officer of considerable experience in African warfare, a small, quiet, resolute man, with a knack of gently enforcing discipline upon the very rough material with which he had to deal.  With his weak force—­which never exceeded a thousand men, and was usually from six to seven hundred—­he had to keep the long line behind him open, build up