82 
SPORT AND WAR. 
CHAP. XI. 
he would rush hack into the thicket, and you might as 
well look for a needle in a bundle of hay as for a Kafir 
in a forest. 
It took several hours before we could successfully 
fight the whole of the wagons through this three miles 
of bush, and there was not a span of oxen that had not 
two or three of the team killed; but very few of the 
troops were shot. It was quite dark before we got all 
the wagons up and the camp formed for the night. 
This latter duty devolved on me, as staff-officer. 
In Kafir wars a good deal depends on the judgment 
of taking up ground for a night-camp, because you 
are sure to be attacked and fired into before daylight. 
It so happened on this occasion. We formed on the 
slope of a hill, leaving the horizon of the slope a little 
beyond the line of sentries, so that they could see the 
enemy approach over it without being seen. On the 
other side of the .lower end of the camp piquets were 
posted in such positions as entirely to command the 
camp. Only two or three men were wounded during 
this night-attack. 
The next day’s march was through comparatively 
open country; and the troops reached Fort Peddie 
without any more fighting, and so relieved that out¬ 
post, which had been surrounded by the enemy, and 
had had its supplies cut off for some time. 
