Source: Diary of the siege of Mafeking by Edward Ross
Sunday, 5 November 1899
Very quiet day. Band playing as usual in the recreation ground and at the women’s laager.
The Colonel sent out a letter today to Cronje, stating that we would respect Sunday as well as he, on condition that he would not allow his men to make defences and dig trenches under this truce, and also that he must remove his men from the position that they had taken up at the brickfields, otherwise he would shell them out. B.P. also sent a note that this being Guy Fawkes day and a recognised evening holiday in England we intended having some illuminations that evening - he wrote this so that Cronje should know the reasons for the fireworks, etc. How polite we are getting for wartime.
At 8 p.m. we were playing coloured lights all over the town, and generally making as much of Guy [Fawkes] day as it was possible under the circumstances.
Today has been very nice and quiet, a proper day of rest.
One of the enemy, a man named Swartz whose father is in jail as a spy, came down to our outpost lines this morning holding up his arms to show that he was not armed, and requested a conversation with our outpost sentry. Our fellow, a bit of a Dutchman also but loyal, met him and conversed.
He told the enemy that the shelling had caused no damage. This was found out by the Colonel who court-martialled the man but let him go, instructing him not to do it again: this is almost a pity as we might have been able to get some news in this manner.
