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No sooner said than done; with the passing of the last word through Jantje's lips half a dozen stalwart Kafirs dived into the hut and in another moment reappeared, bearing between them the unhappy patient, stretched upon an eland's skin.
On his coat collar he wore the two stars of his rank, Lieutenant Colonel. One of the young Federal officers made some remark about Eland's stars, and said, "I can't understand your Confederate ranks; some officers have bars and some stars. I see you have two stars; are you a Brigadier General?" "No, sir," said Bland, straightening himself up to his full height; "but I ought to be.
When it was not more than fifty yards away, it fell in a heap, rolled twice over like a shot rabbit, and lay still. That bullet was in its heart. The two Kaffirs appeared breathless and streaming with perspiration. "Cut meat from the eland's flank; don't stop to skin it," I said in my broken Zulu, helping the words out with signs.
Whilst very little active service was seen during the first year of the war, still sufficient evidence was given of Eland's ability as a commander of the men, and upon the reorganization of the regiment, Captain Bland was elected Lieutenant Colonel. From this time until September 20th, 1863, his fortunes were those of the Seventh Regiment.
We went along the Olifant's River, by Israelskop and Crocodile Hill, to the spot where the Eland's River runs into the Olifant's River, and thence direct to Witnek through Giftspruit. The grass, after the heavy rains, was in good condition and yielded plenty of food for our quadrupeds. Strange to say, nothing worth recording occurred during this "trek" of about 95 miles.
Some five years had gone by, during which many things had happened to me that need not be recorded here, when one day I found myself in a rather remote part of the Umvoti district of Natal, some miles to the east of a mountain called the Eland's Kopje, whither I had gone to carry out a big deal in mealies, over which, by the way, I lost a good bit of money.
Long streaks of foam now streamed from his mouth, and a profuse perspiration had changed his sleek grey coat to an ashy blue. Tears trickled from his large dark eye, and it was plain that the eland's hours were numbered.
But one russet afternoon we were in Richmond, and a terrible type was shouting himself hoarse with "'Eavy British lorsses orful slorter o' the Bo-wers! Orful slorter! Orful slorter! 'Eavy British lorsses!" I thought the terrible type had invented it, but Raffles gave him more than he asked, and then I held the bicycle while he tried to pronounce Eland's Laagte.
Colonel Harrison's regiment of artillery, Colonel Bayler's horse, Colonel Eland's horse, General Scott's new levies, part of which are gone to Carolina, and part are here, Colonel Gibson's regiment stationed on the Ohio, Heath and Ohara's independent companies at the same stations. Colonel Taylor's regiment of guards to the Convention troops: of these, we have a return.
In this post cart I travelled for three days and two nights by way of Richmond, Heidelburg, Standerton, where cattle rearing and horse breeding is successfully carried on, and Newcastle, which will be remembered as having been the base of operations during the Boer war, and also as the place where the final treaty of Peace was drawn up and signed by the joint Commission, to Eland's Laagte, the present terminus of the Natal railway, thirteen miles beyond Ladysmith.
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