The Repulse Had
Been Absolute And Complete, For Not A Man Or A Cartridge Had Been
Taken From The British, But The Price Paid In Killed And Wounded
Was A Heavy One.
No fewer than 161 had been hit, including the
gallant leader, whose hurt did not prevent him from resuming his
duties within a few days.
The heaviest losses fell upon the
Scottish Horse, and upon the Derbys; but the Yeomanry also proved
on this, as on some other occasions, how ungenerous were the
criticisms to which they had been exposed. There are few actions in
the war which appear to have been more creditable to the troops
engaged.
Though repulsed at Moedwill, De la Rey, the grim, long-bearded
fighting man, was by no means discouraged. From the earliest days
of the campaign, when he first faced Methuen upon the road to
Kimberley, he had shown that he was a most dangerous antagonist,
tenacious, ingenious, and indomitable. With him were a body of
irreconcilable burghers, who were the veterans of many engagements,
and in Kemp he had an excellent fighting subordinate. His command
extended over a wide stretch of populous country, and at any time
he could bring considerable reinforcements to his aid, who would
separate again to their farms and hiding-places when their venture
was accomplished. For some weeks after the fight at Moedwill the
Boer forces remained quiet in that district. Two British columns
had left Zeerust on October 17th, under Methuen and Von Donop, in
order to sweep the surrounding country, the one working in the
direction of Elands River and the other in that of Rustenburg.
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