CHAP, IX. 
THE WAR OF THE AXE. 
59 
enemy at once, in so far that they moved back into the 
bush. But we had scarcely moved on in the direction 
to join General Somerset when the Kafirs attacked our 
rear, and we had to make a sort of skirmishing fight 
until we cleared the ridge of the mountain and got 
somewhat into the open. All this time there was very 
heavy firing going on with the infantry column on our 
right. As we moved down a hill on to a low ridge 
dividing the Amatola Basin from the Chumie Hoek, 
at the base of the Hog’s Back Mountain, the infantry 
column made its appearance, coming up the face of a 
steep hill out of the valley of the Amatola. They had 
been attacked immediately after entering the gorge of 
the Amatola Basin, and had some desperate fighting all 
the way to where we saw them still in action, and were 
very much pressed by the enemy. There were no means 
of carrying the wounded, and most of them fell into the 
enemy’s hands. 
Between us and the infantry was a steep rocky ledge 
so that it was quite impossible for the cavalry to go 
to their support. The infantry, however, fought their 
way on towards us and this ledge, where the ground 
became comparatively open. Several men fell between 
the ledge and where we were drawn up ready to charge, 
should the enemy come into the open; and as the Kafirs 
showed in some force there we charged down on 
them, dismounted on the brink of it, and drove them 
