Stump electronic books

At Magersfontein a level plain lay behind the Boer
position, and to abandon it was to give up the game altogether.
Besides, why should he abandon it? He knew that he had hit us hard.
We had made absolutely no impression upon his defences. Is it
likely that he would have tamely given up all his advantages and
surrendered the fruits of his victory without a struggle? It is
enough to mourn a defeat without the additional agony of thinking
that a little more perseverance might have turned it into a
victory. The Boer position could only be taken by outflanking it,
and we were not numerous enough nor mobile enough to outflank it.
There lay the whole secret of our troubles, and no conjectures as
to what might under other circumstances have happened can alter it.
About half-past five the Boer guns, which had for some unexplained
reason been silent all day, opened upon the cavalry. Their
appearance was a signal for the general falling back of the centre,
and the last attempt to retrieve the day was abandoned.


Pages:
242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266