Native Wars and Unrest 125 



was at last reduced by volunteers, Swazies and 

 Imperial Troops under Sir Garnet Wolseley. Then 

 when the Cape Government, (Sir Gordon Sprigg as 

 premier) demanded the disarmament of the frontier 

 natives and Basutos, the Colonial forces failed in the 

 field and retired, and the Colony had to face a heavy 

 debt, besides loss of prestige. All these disasters were 

 the outcome of a want of a rational and continuous 

 policy in dealing with the native races, and the 

 interference of statesmen, who could not understand 

 the conditions obtaining six thousand miles away ; 

 and whose sympathies were frequently more with 

 the black races than with the struggling Colonists in 

 South Africa. During the Basuto war of 1866, I had 

 one or two disagreeable experiences. I was on my 

 way from to Pretoria on horseback, and on reaching 

 Dodd's Hotel on the Sand Spruit (under the Drakens- 

 berg), I found the place burnt down and quite 

 deserted the Basutos having raided the district. I 

 got a Zulu who was loafing round, to cut me some 

 grass for my tired horse, waited there to rest him for 

 some time, and then rode on towards Harrismith. 

 After passing the Drakensberg I kept well on the 

 alert but felt anxious, as my horse was tired, and 

 any Basutos I came in sight of could catch me. 

 When near Wilge River a Basuto commando passed 

 to the west of Rensburg's Kop, while I kept on the 

 road to the right. If I had been half an hour later 

 they would have had me, where they came into the 

 main road at Elands Kop. I heard of their move- 

 ments when I got into Harrismith from Command- 

 ant Piet Dreyer, who had just returned from a 

 patrol. I was unarmed, the country was full of 

 Basuto raiders, and I had to ride alone to Pretoria ; 

 so after much pleading, Dreyer sold me the only 

 revolver obtainable. He (poor fellow), while on 

 patrol, was ambushed soon after this and killed. 



