688 
laing’s nek and ingogo. 
at the nave frequently came away. The lids of the limber boxes 
cracked badly owing to exposure and the variations of climate. 
Plating (T25-inch thick) of steel applied to the lids of the boxes would 
have been very useful, especially at the action of the Ingogo River, 
where the guns were under a smart infantry fire at short ranges. The 
lids would have afforded great protection to the gunners working at 
the limber, and the same remark applies to the lids of the axletree 
boxes. 
The general service wagon was cumbersome and entirely useless for 
long marches over rough and hilly grounds. Two-wheel carts, peculiar 
to the country, drawn by mules, were very serviceable. One was 
required for each division. 
7-pr. carriages . 
The experience of the Zulu War proved that the axletree-arms of the 
7-pr. R.M.L. are too weak: they invariably bent. The Kaffrarian 
pattern carriage, on the other hand, was cumbersome and in every way 
unsuited to the country. The low standing 7-pr. carriages with mules 
driven tandem, and two-wheeled carts carrying ammunition, were more 
economical and were found from experience to be just as serviceable. 
When going over rough ground these little carriages were steadied 
by the detachments with drag-ropes, one man to each rope was ample. 
Ammunition. 
The ammunition was satisfactory with the following exceptions 
The case shot broke up in the axletree boxes after long marches over 
rough ground. The proportion of this projectile for rough warfare 
should be increased, as the firing of case shot had constantly to be 
resorted to in S. Africa, particularly at the Ingogo River engagement, 
where all the case shot was expended, and reversed shrapnel used as a 
substitute with very indifferent effect. 
The lanyard hooks were too weak and frequently broke off. 
The 15 sec. fuzes, used largely at the action at Laing's Nek, were 
found to be excellent; yet we constantly felt (especially at Laing's 
Nek) the want of a time fuze with some such adjustment that, 
even after the gun was loaded, the charge (if necessary) could be with¬ 
drawn and the fuze rapidly altered to suit another range. Sometimes, 
when the gun had been laid on a certain object and the fuze bored, 
orders would come for the guns to be at once laid on some other point, 
necessitating re-adjustment of the fuze, which, with our present fuzes, 
is generally impossible. Had we a fuze something on the principle of 
the old E time fuze, this difficulty might be met. The R.L. percussion 
fuzes were good with the 9-pr. R.M.L., but quite the reverse with the 
7-pr. R.M.L., in which case prematures constantly occurred, the common 
shell with percussion fuzes sometimes bursting in the air. This was 
partly explained by the pellet and guard working forwards against the 
needle in flight, and revolving at a different rate to the body of the fuze. 
The tubes were satisfactory on the whole, although there were many 
