The result then of these bustling operations had been that De Wet and his force survived, but that he had failed in his purpose of invading the Colony, and had dropped some five hundred horses, two guns, and about a hundred of his men.  Haasbroek’s commando had been detached by De Wet to make a feint at another pass while he made his way through the Springhaan.  Parsons’s force followed Haasbroek up and engaged him, but under cover of night he was able to get away and to join his leader to the north of Thabanchu.  On December 13th, this, the second great chase after De Wet, may be said to have closed.

CHAPTER 31.

The guerilla warfare in the Transvaal:  Nooitgedacht.

Leaving De Wet in the Ficksburg mountains, where he lurked until after the opening of the New Year, the story of the scattered operations in the Transvaal may now be carried down to the same point—­a story comprising many skirmishes and one considerable engagement, but so devoid of any central thread that it is difficult to know how to approach it.  From Lichtenburg to Komati, a distance of four hundred miles, there was sporadic warfare everywhere, attacks upon scattered posts, usually beaten off but occasionally successful, attacks upon convoys, attacks upon railway trains, attacks upon anything and everything which could harass the invaders.  Each General in his own district had his own work of repression to perform, and so we had best trace the doings of each up to the end of the year 1900.

Lord Methuen after his pursuit of De Wet in August had gone to Mafeking to refit.  From that point, with a force which contained a large proportion of yeomanry and of Australian bushmen, he conducted a long series of operations in the difficult and important district which lies between Rustenburg, Lichtenburg, and Zeerust.  Several strong and mobile Boer commandos with guns moved about in it, and an energetic though not very deadly warfare raged between Lemmer, Snyman, and De la Rey on the one side, and the troops of Methuen, Douglas, Broadwood, and Lord Errol upon the other.  Methuen moved about incessantly through the broken country, winning small skirmishes and suffering the indignity of continual sniping.  From time to time he captured stores, wagons, and small bodies of prisoners.  Early in October he and Douglas had successes.  On the 15th Broadwood was engaged.  On the 20th there was a convoy action.  On the 25th Methuen had a success and twenty-eight prisoners.  On November 9th he surprised Snyman and took thirty prisoners.  On the 10th he got a pom-pom.  Early in this month Douglas separated from Methuen, and marched south from Zeerust through Ventersdorp to Klerksdorp, passing over a country which had been hardly touched before, and arriving at his goal with much cattle and some prisoners.  Towards the end of the month a considerable stock of provisions were conveyed to Zeerust, and a garrison left to hold that town so as to release Methuen’s column for service elsewhere.