Had he ascended and determined that the place should still be
held, he might have sent down the wearied troops, brought up
smaller numbers of fresh ones, ordered the Sappers to deepen the
trenches, and tried to bring up water and guns.
It was for the
divisional commander to lay his hand upon the reins at so critical
an instant, to relieve the weary man who had struggled so hard all
day.
The subsequent publication of the official despatches has served
little purpose, save to show that there was a want of harmony
between Buller and Warren, and that the former lost all confidence
in his subordinate during the course of the operations. In these
papers General Buller expresses the opinion that had Warren's
operations been more dashing, he would have found his turning
movement upon the left a comparatively easy matter. In this
judgment he would probably have the concurrence of most military
critics. He adds, however, 'On the 19th, I ought to have assumed
command myself. I saw that things were not going well - indeed,
everyone saw that. I blame myself now for not having done so. I did
not, because, if I did, I should discredit General Warren in the
estimation of the troops, and, if I were shot, and he had to
withdraw across the Tugela, and they had lost confidence in him,
the consequences might be very serious. I must leave it to higher
authority whether this argument was a sound one.' It needs no
higher authority than common-sense to say that the argument is an
absolutely unsound one.
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