Lord Kitchener Had Descended To Wolvehoek To Be Present At
The Climax Of The Operations, But It Was Not Fated That He Was To
Receive The Submission Of The Most Energetic Of His Opponents, And
He Returned To Pretoria To Weave A Fresh Mesh Around Him.
This was not hard to do, as the Boer General had simply escaped
from one pen into another, though a larger one.
After a short rest
to restore the columns, the whole pack were full cry upon his heels
once more. An acute angle is formed by the Wilge River on one side
and the line of blockhouses between Harrismith and Van Reenen upon
the other. This was strongly manned by troops and five columns;
those of Rawlinson, Nixon, Byng, Rimington, and Keir herded the
broken commandos into the trap. From February 20th the troops swept
in an enormous skirmish line across the country, ascending hills,
exploring kloofs, searching river banks, and always keeping the
enemy in front of them. At last, when the pressure was severely
felt, there came the usual breakback, which took the form of a most
determined night attack upon the British line. This was delivered
shortly after midnight on February 23rd. It struck the British
cordon at the point of juncture between Byng's column and that of
Rimington. So huge were the distances which had to be covered, and
so attenuated was the force which covered them, that the historical
thin red line was a massive formation compared to its khaki
equivalent.
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