The Historian Must Be Content To Give A Tame Account Of The Siege
Of Kimberley, For The Thing Itself Was Tame.
Indeed 'siege' is a
misnomer, for it was rather an investment or a blockade.
Such as it
was, however, the inhabitants became very restless under it, and
though there were never any prospects of surrender the utmost
impatience began to be manifested at the protracted delay on the
part of the relief force. It was not till later that it was
understood how cunningly Kimberley had been used as a bait to hold
the enemy until final preparations had been made for his
destruction.
And at last the great day came. It is on record how dramatic was
the meeting between the mounted outposts of the defenders and the
advance guard of the relievers, whose advent seems to have been
equally unexpected by friend and foe. A skirmish was in progress on
February 15th between a party of the Kimberley Light Horse and of
the Boers, when a new body of horsemen, unrecognised by either
side, appeared upon the plain and opened fire upon the enemy. One
of the strangers rode up to the patrol. 'What the dickens does K.L.
H. mean on your shoulder-strap?' he asked. 'It means Kimberley
Light Horse. Who are you?' 'I am one of the New Zealanders.'
Macaulay in his wildest dream of the future of the much-quoted New
Zealander never pictured him as heading a rescue force for the
relief of a British town in the heart of Africa.
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