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I ordered General Froneman to proceed from the source of the Kaffir River in the direction of Jagersfontein Road Station, to the west of Dewetsdorp: General Fourie I despatched in the direction of Odendaalsstroom, on the Orange River, to the farm of Klein Kinderfontein, to the west of Smithfield. I then sent scouts to the neighbourhood of Odendaalsdrift.
So overwhelming were their numbers that the commandos of Generals A.P. Cronje and Piet de Wet were far too weak to hold them in check, and I had to despatch two reinforcing parties, the first under Commandant Fourie, the second under General J.B. Wessels. General Froneman had now returned from Smithfield, whither I had sent him to attack the garrison.
I sent President Steyn a telegram, informing him that our burghers were rejoining, and adding that Lord Roberts was the best recruiting sergeant I had ever had! General Froneman and the men whom he had collected soon found work to do. The enemy was expecting a reinforcement from Aliwal North, and I sent the General, with six hundred troops, to oppose it.
"If I could only buy back the independence of the Orange Free State, I would gladly give all I possess." Several other Transvaal delegates expressed themselves in the same sense, and said that they fully appreciated the sacrifices which the Orange Free State had made. General Froneman thanked them in the name of the Free State.
General Froneman gave me to understand that it was necessary to off-saddle the horses, and to give them a long rest, as he had been riding without any break since the previous evening.
We settled that Generals Cronje, Wessels, Froneman, and Piet De Wet should proceed with the remaining burghers, numbering eleven hundred and fifty, to the ridges east of the Modder River, right opposite Sanna's Post. They were to take with them the guns, of which we had four or five, and bombard Sanna's Post as soon as it was light.
Among the dead was the renowned Sarel Cilliers, grandson of the worthy "voortrekker" of the same name. Veldtcornet Jurie Wessels was the most distinguished of the prisoners. It was a miserable affair altogether: General Froneman ought to have called his men back when he saw that General Liebenberg had not sent his contingent.
At Roodewal only two of my men had been wounded, whilst General Froneman had lost but one killed a burgher named Myringen and two slightly wounded. It had been a wonderful day for us a day not easily forgotten. We were deeply thankful for our success. Our only regret was that it had been impossible for us to keep more of the clothing and ammunition.
On the 8th of February we overtook General Froneman at Lubbesdrift, six miles to the north of Philippolis. We pushed on that evening towards Zanddrift, which we reached on the 10th of February. Then we crossed over into Cape Colony.
In case of such an emergency, De Wet divided his forces into two parts. He placed one division 1050 strong with four guns under the control of Generals Cronje, Froneman, Wessels, and Piet De Wet, with instructions to occupy the positions east of the Modder River and directly opposite the Waterworks, so as to check Broadwood, should he come to the rescue of the garrison.
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