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The following is an account of Sergeant-Major Edward Jollie's service in the British South African Police during the siege of Mafeking. As far as I'm aware, the account has not appeared elsewhere since 1900. I have an original copy of it, but transcribed it for my Master's thesis so it could be word-searchable. Jollie returned to New Zealand after the war with his wife, a widow he met on the ship. I have two photos of him but for some reason I cannot upload them. I also have other letters he wrote during the siege.


E. JOLLIE’S MAFEKING DIARY.
“BESIEGED” MAFEKING,
BECHUANALAND, JANUARY 22ND, 1900.

We have been besieged exactly 100 days yesterday. It’s really no joke, when you consider that the Boers are entrenched all round the town ; have built forts and earthworks ; torn up the line, likewise the telegraph wires, and have cut us off from everywhere. Not only that but every day the gentle Boers bombard us, from different directions, with their big guns, the shells of which come flopping into the town, killing people and smashing up houses, etc., whilst we, having no guns big enough to reach them, have to sit and let them do it. At present they are shelling us with a 94-pounder (i.e., a gun that throws a shell weighing 94lbs., and an awful weapon it is, too), also a 12-pounder quick firing Krupp gun, a 9-pounder French gun, a 5-pounder, and a 1-lb. Maxim Nordenfeldt. The latter throws 10 1-lb. shells rapidly in quick succession, whilst they traverse the gun from left to right, or vice versa, thus sweeping the town from end to end ; she’s a little beast, too. Then, also, they have a 7-pounder gun ; so you can see they make things pretty lively for us, and they do, too. Not only the big guns hold forth, but their sharpshooters with Mauser rifles, entrenched about 1200 yards from the town, fire down the streets incessantly, beginning at daylight until dusk. Also, they have a nasty habit of firing volleys into town at intervals during the night, on the off chance of picking somebody off. They have shot several people with their promiscuous shooting ; only two days ago a woman standing just outside her door was shot through the head by a stray bullet. The same day a Kaffir, drawing water from a tank, suddenly fell down, shot through the heart. The most mean trick they play us, though, is letting off their 94-pounder and the others into the town at night-time when one least expects them. They sight their guns before dark and leave them pointed, and at night- at 8, 9,or 10 o’clock – bang they come, just when everybody is out taking a little fresh air, so that there’s no time during the 24 hours that you can feel safe[.] One thing, and one thing only I fear, is there in their favour, and that is, they do not shoot on Sundays. That one day, in which you can walk about the town freely, without a bullet whizzing past you, or without the necessity of suddenly lying flat in the middle of the road while a shell goes screaming over you, is a great blessing, and we certainly take every advantage of it. Every Sunday we have something on – sports, or cricket, or football match, and yesterday it was a Horticultural, Agricultural, and a “Siege Baby” Show, all in one. The latter was for the best baby born during the siege. One of our Sergeant’s baby took first prize, being the biggest, etc., and the first one born during the siege. You’ve no idea what a relief Sunday is, and how everybody enjoy themselves, after living down holes all the week, risking your life every time you cross a street, stopping down your bomb-proof until the last big gun has gone off (at night) before you dare show your nose above ground for a breath of fresh air. Sundays are certainly days to be remembered.
I fear that you must have got a very gloomy idea of the state Mafeking is in from the papers. Weeks ago two native runners, who got through the Boer lines, brought us papers saying the Boers are within 250 yards of Mafeking, which is expected to fall hourly. Another one (a Dutch paper) said Mafeking had been taken, after a bombardment which only left three houses standing, and that the Boers had rechristened the place “Cronje’s-fontein,” the name of their General now besieging us. I was afraid all this would have been telegraphed perhaps to New Zealand, that you would have heard it and be imagining me a prisoner at Pretoria. The Boers will never take Mafeking, although it is only a small place (about the size of Patea). They haven’t got the pluck to try it again, I don’t think. The two or three attempts they did make were rather feeble, and they are getting a wholesome dead of our tight little garrison.
War was declared on the 10th October. Days before that we had been having false alarms, etc., that the Boers were on us. Consequently we all slept in our clothes, and often when the alarm sounded, two or three times a night, we had to turn out, saddle up and gallop off to Cronje’s Kopje ; wait there until it was discovered that it was a false alarm, and then back to camp. Cannon Kopje is a fort assigned to us (B.S.A.P.[1]) particularly to defend. It is on the South-East side and three-quarters of a mile out of town, on a kopje or hill, being simply a stone wall about four feet high, and semicircular only, so that if anyone attacked in the rear we would have no protection whatever. We had an iron Eiffel Tower arrangement rigged up for a Crow’s nest, where we had a man with a glass continually spying, so as to give us warning when the Boers were advancing.
On the 11th October scouts came in and reported the Boers were advancing on Mafeking. Great excitement, the Boers had crossed the border (which is about eight miles from Mafeking). The whole garrison was turned out and marched to a position on a rise about a mile S.E. of the town, where we took up a position, amongst trees etc.; charged magazines, and waited for the gentle Boer to arrive. After four hours’ squatting in the boiling sun it was reported that he Boers has retired again across the border. So we all marched back to camp again.
The next day (12th) the armoured train steamed down the line (south) for about six miles, when she had to come to a standstill, owing to the rails having been torn up. On her way back a Boer scout was seen on horseback about 2,500 yards off. The Maxim got on to him and shot him. The armoured train consists of three bogie trucks named Firefly, wasp and Gnat. The sides are raised to a height of about 4ft. 6in. with iron rails, loop-holed at intervals to allow of rifles firing through. Here and there the loop-holes are larger, to let the muzzles of the Maxims through. The engine is plated with half-inch sheets of iron, strong enough to resist a rifle bullet, though nothing heavier. On board they carry two Maxims and a Hotchkiss gun, while the three trucks will hold 30 men.
13th.- we were all at Cannon Kopje, when towards the middle of the day, we saw an engine and two trucks steaming out North towards Bulawayo. After a long interval, we suddenly heard and felt a tremendous explosion, and saw a huge column of smoke rising some seven miles off. The earth shook like an earthquake ; many were the conjectures as to what it was, but none of them were anywhere near the mark. In the evening we heard what it was. It appears there were two trucks of dynamite standing in the station, which the authorities thought were dangerous to the public safety, so an engine-driver was told to take them up the line as far as possible and leave them. Luckily for him, he thought of pushing them in front of his engine, instead of drawing them along behind, as the sequel will show, for he had not got out more than six miles when he was surrounded by Boers, who, thinking there were men in the trucks, immediately began firing on them. The driver jumped down, uncoupled the trucks, leaving them standing, while he made his way back for Mafeking as fast as his engine would go. When about 1000 yards from the trucks he heard and felt a tremendous explosion. The engine rocked so, that he expected her to leave the rails every second. It appears the Boers, receiving no answer from the trucks to their fire, drew nearer, when one of them put a bullet into the dynamite, which set the whole thing off. You can imagine that it would be a pretty big explosion when 13 tons of dynamite went off like that. It made a tremendous hole in the line, 30 yards long, 12 yards broad, and 10 feet deep, is the native report ; of course none of us have been able to go and see it. The natives also report that 150 Boers were killed by the explosion, but I think that is very much over the mark. The Boers must have thought we had planned it all purposely : one of our “dodgy little ways.” I know that engine-driver was jolly glad to get as safely out of it as he did.
13th October.- At the kopje all day, the Boers are round us, but have not offered to attack. This evening 15 B.S.A.P., including myself, were told off to go and man the armoured train, where we found 15 of the railway chaps armed and thirsting for gore, making us all told 30 on board.
14th October, Saturday.- This morning at 4.30 we (the armoured train) were told to steam up (North) the line as far as we could to reconnoitre, which we started to do. About half-a-mile out we met Lord Bentinck with his patrol galloping in. He yelled out to us, “we’ve stirred them up for you, boys ; go in and give them beans ! They can’t shoot for nuts.” They had been out scouting and the Boers had fired on them. Lord Bentinck was slightly wounded in the hand, which was bandaged up. On we went, and jolly cold it was, too ; also, we had had no breakfast, not even a cup of coffee. About four miles out we came upon a few clumps of Boers, whom we treated to a few volleys, to which they replied with interest, most of their shots, though, going too high. Onward we steamed until just over five miles out from Mafeking, when we were met by a perfect hail of bullets, and also small shell from a Hotchkiss gun they had. We replied with our rifles and Maxims ; the noise was simply deafening ; the volleys came against the trucks with such a rattle that we all had an irresistible inclination to duck, which we yielded to like so many Jacks-in-the-box. The Boers were on a ridge, and were firing at a range of 1000 yards, and very fair shooting they made too. Their Hotchkiss, too, came unpleasantly close, one shell striking in front of the truck and sending the dust right through the Maxim port hole, covering us with earth. Our Maxim 9in the Firefly), worked by one of us (B.S.A.P.), did splendid shooting, and eventually silenced their Maxim and Hotchkiss. One of the Boer bullets found its way in through a loop hole, and after cannoning around the truck, split up and wounded three of the B.S.A.P., though only very slightly, luckily. We kept moving the train backwards and forward, so that they could never get our exact range. We had a telephone from the trucks to the engine-driver, so that we could give him the orders, full speed ahead, half-speed etc., in spite of all the noise. Our Maxim was kept going at such a rate that the water in the water-jacket came steaming out, boiling over, which required that it should be constantly refilled with cold water. During the two hours and a half that we were fighting our two Maxims fired 4500 rounds between them.
Presently we found we were getting too far out from town, and there was a chance of the Boers getting to the rear of us, tearing up the line, and so cutting us off and leaving us stranded in the veldt, so we went astern about a quarter of a mile. The Boers thought we were retreating, and came rushing out of their cover, cheering like anything ; suddenly we halted, started forward again, and got into them at a range of about 700 yards, and didn’t we give them “what for,” too. They scuttled back like rabbits, many of them losing the number of their mess in the process.
Presently, away to our right-rear, we saw reinforcements riding along the ridge, two squadrons of the Protectorate Regiment, galloping for all they were worth ; and, to us, who had just had about enough of it (nearly three hours fighting, on an empty stomach, too) it was a grand sight. The squadrons halted about a mile to our right, near some Kaffir huts, dismounted and advanced towards the Boers, firing and taking cover as they went. The Boers were not slow or behind-hand in meeting our men, but they came on well, taking cover behind every tree or small ant-heap they could find. Our fire, though, was resistless, and gradually they had to give back, though very stubbornly. Presently one of our 7-pounder guns arrived on the scene ; she unlimbered and got to work on the gentle Boer with shrapnel. This certainly had the good effect of hastening the Boers’ retreat. During this young battle the armoured train, being left comparatively alone, except for an occasional volley when the Boers could spare a thought for us, we bethought our selves of grub, and having plenty of bully-beef and bread on board, immediately set to and had a good “blow out,” at the same time keeping very interested eyes on the fight that was raging (and on the tinned meat, too, of course, which was disappearing rather too fast for the fancy of slow eaters like myself). About 11 o’clock the Boers had had about enough of it and began retiring in good earnest. Then an Orderly came galloping over to us to get stretchers and volunteers to go and bring the wounded to the train from the huts on the ridge, nearly a mile off, and a jolly long mile it was. However, coming back seemed about 10 miles, for no sooner had we got the wounded into the stretchers than the Boers opened fire on us, in spite of our carrying a red cross flag, stretchers, and no arms whatever, so we got the order to retire at the double, which we did until our breath and strength gave out, by which time we didn’t much care whether we were hit or not and walked along slowly and sullenly, whilst the bullets whizzed overhead or struck the ground to right or left of us. Mighty glad we were when we got back to the train and hoisted the wounded in (seven of them). While we were away an engine had come out with orders to us to leave the wounded and steam back to town, but the order was too late, and we had the wounded safe on board. We got back to Mafeking about 12 o’clock. The station was crowded with people, and the cheers they gave us made me feel it was the proudest moment f my life ; such congratulations, hand shaking, and “Glad to see you safely back, old chap,” “Thought you would be cut off, you had steamed so far out, we thought it was all up,” etc. Them my chum, Lloyd, who had sneaked out of hospital in a pair of pyjamas and a dressing-gown, appeared on the scene with a bucket of beer and lemonade. “What Ho !” cried the unsuspecting Pelican ! ! After that, some food, and then to sleep in the station waiting-room, in case we should be wanted again. You should have seen the armoured train after the fight. The rails round were simply bespattered with bullet-marks. Thank goodness they couldn’t penetrate, or we should have been wiped out. We had a quiet day for the rest of the afternoon. This fight was the biggest surprise for the Boers, for they had been boasting that they were simply going to walk into Mafeking, just give a shot or two to frighten us into giving in and then take possession of the town ; and I believe they would have got in, too, had it not been for the armoured train. For 30 of us kept the Boers back (400 Boers) for three hours till our reinforcements came, and they hadn’t expected such a resistance. An engine, carriages, nurses, parsons, ambulance, etc., went out shortly after the fight to bring in any more that might be wounded, and in spite of their carrying a red-cross flag, stretchers, and no arms, the Boers fired on them again. We (our side) lost seven killed and about twelve wounded that day. The Boers were supposed to have lost 70 killed and very many wounded.
15th.- Cronje, the Boer Commander, has sent us word he intends shelling the town to-morrow.
16th.- The Boers commenced their shelling this morning at 9.30, with two 12-pounder guns, and one 7-pounder. It came as a great surprise to us, who were playing quoits alongside the armoured train, to suddenly hear the boom and the whizzing just over us of a shell from a big gun : we scuttled back into the train in double quick time, and lay uncommonly low, when the next one came over and crashed into the convent, about 200 yards to our rear, making a gaping hole in the wall, and bringing the nuns out at a very un-nun-like pace. They fund afterwards the shell had struck in the room they had set apart as a surgery for dressing wounded, etc. It’s lucky the wounded hadn’t arrived. We in the train, began to realize that we were in a decidedly awkward position. For if the Boers spotted us we would have a decidedly warm time of it, for if they manage to put a shell into our engine there would be a general burst up, and after our Saturday’s performance they would give anything to do for us ; luckily, during the night, we had painted the train green, and hung a lot of green branches all over her, so as long as we didn’t move there was a possibility of the Boers not seeing us (and they didn’t), especially as there was a good deal of scrub along the line. Well they shelled all day till about 4 o’clock, whilst not a shot was fired from our side. They did no damage to life, and only knocked about a few houses and the convent, which had a red-cross flag flying, and which Cronje had promised should not be shelled. Soon after 4 o’clock a Boer with a white flag came riding in : when about 100 yards from us we stopped him. He was astonished, for even at that distance he hadn’t seen the train until he came out. He was blindfolded and taken to Colonel Baden-Powell. He brought a message from Cronje, demanding the surrender of the town : which demand was laughed at. He expressed much surprise at seeing none the worst for the shelling, and also at our not having fired a shot in return. He was blindfolded again and led back to the Boer lines.
17th.- Boers sent to borrow four nurses to help nurse their wounded. No nurses would go.
18th.- Cronje informed us that he couldn’t take the town without bombarding it, and that he had sent to Pretoria for a big siege gun to do it with. Promptly told to bring forty blooming guns. Quiet for the next five days, no gun arrived yet. The Northumberland Fusiliers reported to be twenty-seven miles off and coming to our relief as quickly as possible. They haven’t arrived yet (1/2/00).
23rd Oct.- Everyone disagreeably surprised this afternoon when, after a distant boom being head, a big shell fell near the railway station, burst, and parts went whistling over the town. Everyone rushed out to pick up pieces, and it was soon seen by their size that the big gun had arrived, in spite of our being skeptical over it.
Oct. 24th.- The usual bombardment from Big Ben (the big gun). A trooper of the Protectorate Regiment had his leg broken by a piece of shell from her. Everybody is busy digging rabbit warrens for themselves to get into whilst the gun is firing. It looks very funny to see the people so busy, digging and carting steel rails and sleepers about to put on top of their “dug-outs or “bomb-proofs.” Whether they are the latter remain [sic] to be seen. I very much doubt it, myself. Although keeping underground does, of course, diminish the chances of one’s being hit, immensely. Everything now is done, “shelling permitting.” There’s a choir practice on Friday, “Shelling permitting.” We in the armoured train don’t feel at all comfortable when the shelling is going on. We are so exposed and above ground that we offer a pretty good target to the gentle Boer. We steam up and down the line as far as we can go, and have a pot at the Boers whenever we can get them within anything like range, but they are very shy and seem adverse to coming too close to our Maxim, although they fire hundreds of rounds at us during each day, but so far haven’t had the satisfaction of putting any of us hors-de-combat. There’s precious little room for thirty men in the train : and when it comes to sleeping at night-time we lie like sardines in a box as close as we can get. Luckily the nights are cold or we should be stewed. The days are very hot, and the iron rails each side make the place like an oven, when they get warmed by the sun. Often we chance being shot by a Boer and lie underneath the train, where there is a certain amount of shade, and generally more or less of a draught.
25th.- To-day the Boers made a very determined (?) attempt to get into the town. They started operations by shelling us with seven guns, 94-pounder, 7-pounder, 1lb. Maxim, Hotchkiss, etc. As for rifle bullets, they simply fired thousands of them into town. They kept this up all day long from a range of about 1000 to 1200 yards, never attempting to get any closer. I suppose they thought the noise would be enough to make us surrender. We all had orders not to fire unless they came in within 600 yards or so, and so on our side there was scarcely a shot fired in return : everybody kept under cover, and wasn’t a single casualty all day. Our 7-pounders, which could reach theirs of course, banged a few shells into them, and I fancy gave the wily Boer something to think over too, at any rate he was quite satisfied enough with what our big guns could do without testing our rifles as well.
We have four telephones put up in different places round the town ; I had charge of one on our side (North) of the town. Col. Baden-Powell issued all his orders through them, and we were able to report how things were going through during the day. In the evening I took down General Orders through the telephone, in which Col. Baden-Powell congratulated the B.S.A.P. on their steadiness and coolness under the heavy shell and rifle fire of the enemy to-day. What Ho !! Three cheers for Col. Baden-Powell of course. Oh, I forgot to mention, I think, that after the engagement of the 14th, the members of the B.S.A.P. on the armoured train were also congratulated in General Orders on their steadiness, coolness, etc., under fire, and n their gallantry in bringing in the wounded and so forth ; and weren’t our comrades at the kopje jealous, too, that they had not been on the train. However, their time was to come, and for many of the poor chaps it came all too soon.
The enemy have built redoubts and earthworks all round us now, and are gradually creeping closer and closer, working at night, of course : making a trench 200 yards, or so, nearer us, occupying it, and the next trench will be a little closer still, and so on.
There are many exaggerated guesses as to how many Boers there are round us, some even putting their numbers down at 6000 men, but I think that is very wide of the mark. The general idea is that there are between 2,000 and 3,000 hemming us in. On our side we raise about 2,000 men of sorts (i.e.) 200 Police (Cape and B.S.A.P.), 500 Protectorate Regiment, and the rest townsmen, shop-keepers, etc., so practically only 700 of our side are used to bearing arms.
One always hears of the Boers being such remarkably good shots, but our experience of them goes far to contradict it. They shoot badly with the rifle, and their artillery fire is worse almost.
Still working the telephone ; it’s getting uncommonly monotonous too, often getting called up two or three times a night.
26th.- The usual bombarding.
27th.- Fairly quiet. Back on the train again. The Boers have a trench some 1200 yards from the train, and are potting at us all day, immediately they see a head above the rails, we have to lie jolly low until evening. When it’s fairly quiet during the day, we play quoits alongside the train, but get rather unpleasant interruptions in the shape of “Big Ben: putting a shot in a little too close to be pleasant. It appears to be the fashion at present to snapshot us and the armoured train, with the bullet marks on it. We have been “took” dozens of times by men, women, boys, and last but not least, by a Kaffir, which fairly “took the biscuit.” We’ve been photographed by the “Times” correspondent, “Black and White,” and several other leading papers.
28th.- Nothing much happening during the day, but this evening seventy of the Protectorate Regiment, under Captain Fitz-Clarence, made a night attack on the Boer laager, to the E.N.E. of the town. They crept up close, fixed bayonets and charged, getting right into the enemy’s trenches. The Boer, completely taken by surprise, yelled for mercy ; “Don’t kill me, my master, don’t kill me” Our men were in the trenches three-quarters of an hour, bayoneting every Boer they could see. Three Boers were hiding under a tarpaulin. They were all three wiped out ; Captain Fitz-Clarence killing two, cutting one chap’s head clean off with a sweep of his sword ; those who saw it done say that it sounded like the crack of a whip.[2] All the men state that after the first few minutes they lost their heads, with the lust of killing ; saw red, as he Kaffirs call it. Our casualties were two killed and wounded (four since dead). The Boer loss is not known, but supposed to be pretty considerable, about seventy killed being the general estimate. Cronje sent in the next day for a few hours’ armistice to bury their dead.
29th.- Sunday, and quiet.
30th. – The usual shelling. Managed to get to church this evening.
31st.- We heard a great deal of firing and shelling this morning from the direction of Cannon Kopje, where the rest of the B.S.A.P. are stationed, and which is the key to Mafeking, being on a hill three-quarters of a mile from and overlooking the town.
During the day we (in the train) learnt that the Boers had made a most determined effort to take the kopje. The enemy shelled us with five guns, including the 94-pounder, whilst they advanced under their shell fire, thus getting to within 300 feet of our fort (which was simply a stone wall about 4½ feet high) – over which our fellows had to put their heads every time they fired, for it wasn’t loop-holed as it should have been. At 300 yards our two Maxims got on to them with deadly effect, simply mowing them down. It was too much for the Boers, they broke and fled, first hoisting the red-cross flag, and when our men ceased firing they took advantage of the red-cross flag to retreat (at the double) under it. Their Leader, Cronje’s son, was killed, bravely leading his men on to the attack, and when trying to rally them when they wavered at our Maxim fire. It was an awful fight, and we lost very heavily. Out of our fifty odd men seven were killed and several wounded. Amongst the killed were two of our Captains, two Troop Sergeant-Majors, and three Troopers, whilst another Sergeant-Major and a Corporal were wounded. To-day we got orders to leave the armoured train and to go and reinforce our comrades at the Kopje. We had hardly arrived there when “Big Ben” gave us a taste of his quality – knocking down half the fort and burying three men under the debris of earth stones, etc. However, we dug them out not much the worse.
1st. Nov.- A quiet day. The Boers are burying their dead. We buried ours this evening, each just sewn up in a blanket.
2nd- What a dirty crowd we do look. We live day and night in the trenches, and haven’t had our clothes off for weeks, nor have we had a shave. A wash about every three or four days is about as much as we can manage.
3rd.- A dispatch rider got in to-day from Kimberley with the news that 12,000 troops had arrived there. The advance body of which is expected to reach Mafeking on Monday. Good news, if it is true. I only hope we shall be relieved soon, we are all very tired of being shelled and sniped at day after day without a chance of retaliating, for the Boer won’t come to close quarters.
It rained last night, with the result that we got simply drenched in the trenches. We hear many of the Boers have had enough of it, and are leaving every day for their homes and farms. It is estimated there are not more than 1500 round us now. Our casualties last Tuesday were very heavy and very much felt by us all.
Total killed in Mafeking (not including natives) from the beginning of the siege, 18.
The Boers were supposed to have hand about 200 killed and 300 wounded so far.
5th.- Fireworks (Guy Fawkes Day) this evening, which must have surprised the Boers considerably. I was on picket duty about three-quarters of a mile from town (beyond the Kopje), and the town looked very pretty with different coloured lights shining, and an occasional rocket going up.
Sunday, 7th.- Last night the enemy attempted to blow up the armoured train by loading a trolley with dynamite, putting a fuse to it and starting her down the incline towards the station and the armoured train, which was standing on the main line. Luckily the fuse burnt too quickly – the whole affair blew up while still 1000 yards or so from the train, and doing no damage, unless, perchance, it caught one of the Boers who may have followed too closely to view the effect.
8th.- Usual shelling.
9th.- A small general attack on the stadt early this morning. Our casualties were four wounded.
In Orders this evening Capt. Greener (B.S.A.P. Paymaster) is appointed Chief Paymaster to the garrison, and Sergt.-Major Jollie is appointed Assistant Paymaster. What Ho ! ! So to-night I go into town to take up my new job, I shan’t be sorry to get out of this trench and back into a house, and perhaps a bed. Ye gods ! What a luxury !
16th.- The usual shelling. They have instituted a look-out and a church bell. The look-out watches the big gun all day through glasses, and when he sees the Boers going towards her for the purpose of loading it he rings the bell. This can be heard all over the town, and as there is an interval of two or three minutes between loading and firing her it gives people ample opportunity of getting down their bomb-proofs, or at any rate, getting under cover somewhere. It’s a capital idea, and will, I feel sure, save many lives.
18th.- A white woman got shot at the woman’s laager to-day by a Mauser bullet.
19th.- Relief column seems to be further off than ever. Will it never come ?
This paymaster business is an awful job. There is such a lot to do.
Dec. 10th.- The food question is beginning to be a serious one, and, I fear, will be more serious before we are out of the wood. No relief seems to be coming, and so far the Boers seem to be getting the best of it down country and Natal. We may be here for months yet, judging by appearances the Boers don’t intend to leave us. They are building new earthworks etc., and at one place, the brickfields, they are entrenching within 300 yards of our advance post. It must be pretty exciting down there, and it doesn’t do to keep your head in front of a loop-hole too long, because being at such close quarters it doesn’t take an extraordinary shot to put a bullet through at the range. This trench (ours) is manned by Cape boys, who are fighting well for us.
12th.- Still alive, which is something to be thankful for these times. Our cemetery is getting pretty full : I took a walk up there the other day and was surprised at the number of new graves ; many children have died, and a fair number of men, twenty or more, have been killed during this siege. It’s awfully sad. For it’s nothing less than murder, these Boers sitting around, week after week, and shelling with their big gun to which we cannot reply.
25th.- Christmas Day. Baden-Powell has decided to hold it on Sunday, as we cannot trust the Boers.
26th.- To-day our men made an attack on Game Tree Fort. They got to the Fort, but couldn’t get in. Several of our officers killed whilst firing through the port holes with their revolvers. We lost twenty-three men, chiefly of the Protectorate Regiment. The Boers evidently knew we were coming for the place had been strengthened and held 500 Boers, whereas it was generally manned by about 100, so there must be treachery somewhere ; in fact, we know there is, for the Boers seem to know what is going on here just as well as we do.
January, 1900.- Food getting uncommonly scarce, shall have to start on our horses soon, and they are thin enough, goodness knows. The natives working in the trenches are getting very weak. Night and morning, as I am paying them, one or two fall down, and are carted off to the Hospital. They are eating dogs amongst other things, one of the other things being the heels of their boots charred in the fire: they don’t seem to get any fatter on it. We crave for something sweet. All the sugar ration (half-an ounce per man) going to the women and children, and they are having a bad time of it. I heard a man had a tin of treacle to sell : I went prepared to give him twenty-five shillings for it, only to find he had already sold it for thirty shillings.
1st. Feb., 1900.- Stated eating horse flesh to-day, at least the others did. Unfortunately my ration was bad, so only had one five ounce hard biscuit all day, and jolly hungry I felt by night time. Everybody seems to like the horse ; they make it in the form of sausages. The only thing is that there is no proper fat to fry it in. People are using all sorts of substitutes, olive oil, cocoanut [sic] oil, linseed oil, etc. The latter gives the sausage quite a fishy flavour and smell. It is very bad for one though, if taken in large quantities, and several people have gone to the Hospital in consequence of using too much in their culinary operations. It’s the only oil I have, but I only use just enough to grease the bottom of the frying pan. I had some (about 1lb.) ground oats given to me, with which I made porridge, and it was good too. They are making brawn out of horse skins with the tan scraped off and made firm with glue. This he military have commandeered for that purpose, and there’s none to be got in town. The brawn is awful, still we are glad to get it. Horse soup, too, with plenty of pepper, etc., isn’t bad, and lucky is the man who gets a bit of horse liver in it.
26th.- There is a rumour in town that Kimberley is relieved. Hurrah ! perhaps we will be next. We are asked to hang on until 24th of May now. I suppose we can as long as the horses last.
March.- They started on the 1st by shelling the brickfields very heavily. We lost several. More rumours (8th) that Cronje has been taken prisoner with 5000 Boers. We all hope it is true. Snyman is in command around Mafeking here : Cronje was, but had to go South.
March 13th.- To-day came near to being my last on this festive scene. Until lately we have worked (Paymaster Staff) above ground in the Magistrate’s office. Lately the shelling etc., has been so bad, and the work has grown and become more intricate, so that we found we couldn’t get through it all with the constant interruption of rushing out and getting behind a wall when the bell went ; besides we are dealing with a lot of money, which on such occasions is left on the table, there being no inclination to stay and put it away at the risk of a shell catching one in the act ; so we have had a big underground office built just outside where we work now together, though I still pay the boys, night and morning, from the office above, through the window, as there are too many boys and they smell too much to bring them into the dug-out. Well, on this occasion about 5.45 p.m., I happened to be particularly busy down below. The boys, about 200 of them, were sitting on and around the dug-out above my head, waiting for me to come up and pay them. The foreman came down and said they were ready. I said “ Wait a minute,” when the fire bell went and bang came a 94-pounder into the office above, wrecking it completely. Much of the shell came plump into the earth above my head, kicking-up such a dust that we down below were in total darkness. I thought the roof was coming in. When it got lighter I made my way up above and found three boys killed and five badly wounded. Me they were looking for under the bricks and debris of what had once been the office, thinking I was in there at the time ; another half-minute, and I should have been there, r at least pieces of me would. It was only through my being too busy at the moment to come up that I escaped.
March 27th.-The Boers must have got an extra supply of ammunition, for they have given us the severest day’s shelling since the beginning of the siege.
A woman standing at her back door was shot to-day by a Mauser bullet. She had only been married six months. We have had ne siege wedding. One of the railway-men married a Dutch girl ; she couldn’t speak English and he couldn’t speak Dutch – a curious union.
We have all been on half rations since January, and thirsty and hungry we are.
April 12th.- Woke up this morning and found the big gun gone ; at any rate can’t locate her ; it’s too good to believe she has gone for good.
Good Friday, and a quiet day. Rations again reduced, Oh Lor. ! ! Many people getting ill from eating horse flesh. They get their legs and arms swollen up to a tremendous size. All hope of help from Plumer is long ago given up. He is dodging about outside 20 miles or so off. In march he tried to get in with 250 men ; he got within five miles ; they could see Mafeking, but the Boers drove him back, and chased him for 14 miles to his main camp.
May 10th.- Rumours that a Relief force is somewhere about. Natives say the Boers intend making a last assault soon, so everybody is on the qui vive.
May 12th.- Awakened this morning by all the alarm bells in the town going, at 4 o’clock, and a continuous rattle f rifle fire, bullets rattling on the roof, against the walls, etc. All the firing coming from the East front. Made my way to a fort on the East, bullets dropping like hail all around, reached the fort, and looked through a loop-hole to see all the veldt on that side like a sheet of flame, simply a continuous flash of rifle fire. Presently firing in the West began, and got louder and nearer. Then when it became daylight the Boer guns began putting in shell after shell. We began to realize that this was their grand assault. The firing from the East was evidently a feint (for they came no nearer) t hide their advance from the West, and well they did it too. By breakfast time we knew how they had succeeded. Eloff with 400 men had come up the river, which at the most is 4ft. deep, through the stadt and so into the B.S.A.P. fort, and not 500 yards from the centre of the Town. This fort was supposed to be held by the Protectorate Regiment under Col. Hoare ; they had taken our building for their barracks, and our chaps were stationed on cannon Kopje, a mile away – an exposed position. Eloff got into the fort, where he took Col. Hoare, five other officers and 15 men prisoners, and started firing from the fort straight into the town, up the main roads. As the bullets struck a house or street they cracked just like a whip. The gaol was the nearest building to the fort which our men could occupy, and from there, lying on the roof, they potted at the Boers. This the Boer gunners, 3000 yards off, could see, and soon began shelling the gaol. The gaoler and several men were killed. Presently, however, we got the fort fairly surrounded, and not a Boer dare show his nose over the side. About 200 of the Boers made a dash for it out of the fort; some got away, the others were rounded up by the natives on the stadt and kept there. Eloff held out until dusk, when, seeing Snyman sent no assistance, and hearing that we intended to storm him with fixed bayonets, he surrendered to Col. Hoare, his own prisoner. Most of those with Eloff were Germans and Frenchmen. Meanwhile those surrounded in the stadt were having a rough time of it, and just when the natives were going to charge with assegais, they put up the white flag. So ended the great and final assault. We got 103 prisoners, who were marched up to the Dutch Reformed Church, where they were kept and closely guarded.
When Baden-Powell met Eloff, he said “How do you do, Commandant Eloff ; come and have some dinner.” The niggers were delighted, and jeered, and sang, and yelled, as the Boers were marched to their prison.
One rather funny thing happened. During the Boer occupation of the fort, two of the Municipal Police, hearing the firing, thought it was our men in the fort and that they were hard pressed, so off they started for the fort ; directly they got out of shelter of the gaol, and in the open, running towards the fort, the Boers started potting at them. These two didn’t realize that they were being fired at from the fort ; they certainly thought the bullets were coming pretty close, so kept on running all the harder towards the Boers. These were laying bets with each other as to who should shoot them first, and yet they couldn’t hit them. At last, when twenty yards from the fort, one of the Boers sang out in English, “Come this way, come this way.” The two still thinking they were friends, went up to the fort, when they got the order, “Hands up !” and found a rifle pointed at their heads. They were simply dumbfounded, and just stared at the Boers in astonishment. How they were not hit, after running about 400 yards across open country, and actually toward the Boers, is astonishing. The Boers told them they thought it was because they came at such an erratic pace, walking a little way, then running, that the Boers could not get their sight quick enough ; the Mauser sight is awkward to lower quickly.
May 16th.- The relief column is supposed to be near at hand. This evening, about 8.30, ten men of the relief column, under Major Karrie-Davies, rode into the town. Everybody took it very quietly, hardly realizing what it meant. One man coming across them said, “Hulloa, who are you?” “Oh, we’re part of the relief column.” Nothing more. They had had a hard fight in the afternoon ; we could hear their guns going, and those who had glasses and a house-top could see part of the fight.
17th.- Hurrah ! Early this morning the relief column marched in ; great excitement. They marched through the town and took up a position about a mile forward on the East front, to shell McMullen’s, the chief Boer laager, and Game Tree Fort. Then they started, and it was fine, shell after shell dropping right into the middle of the laager. I was on top of the Courthouse roof, sitting on the chimney, and had a capital view. All the houses had their sight-seers on the roofs, plenty of ladies, and gay parasols, etc., photographers, and all sorts. Luckily the Boer guns didn’t reply to ours, or there might have been an accident. After about an hour’s shelling they advanced on the laager, and found all the Boers had decamped, and very hastily too, for their breakfast was still frizzling on the fire, nearly burnt to a cinder. Silk dresses were scattered about, saddles left behind, as many of them didn’t wait to saddle their horses, but just jumped on their backs ; in many cases, too, the men were only dressed in pyjamas. The place must have been a regular pandemonium. Old Snyman was one of the first to make off and save his skin. They galloped for twenty-six miles without hardly drawing rein. There’s no doubt they did get a fright. Afterwards our men all came back and marched past ; it was a fine sight for us poor beggars, seeing all the guns and men made one dimly realize that the siege really was over. The Relief didn’t make much difference to our food supply, for we were on short commons until the 28th May.
On the 24th the first train came in from the North, amidst wild excitement, for it meant food, though that we didn’t get until four days later. The train and station were decorated, it being the Queen’s Birthday.
It is hard to realize that the siege is over, and I don’t think we shall quite realize the fact for some time to come. For even now, at any sound that resembles the going off of a gun, one instinctively looks for a bomb-proof. You only have to yell out, “Down !” or “She’s off !” and everybody within hearing involuntarily ducks.
Part of the Relief Column left on the 27th May for Zeerust, which they took on the 29th without a shot being fired. I think that is all of interest that I know about the siege, so will close, thanking God that I came through it all safely.


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[1] British South African Police.
[2] Captain C. FitzClarence of the Bechuanaland Protectorate Regiment was recommended for the Victoria Cross for his actions in the defence of Mafeking during the siege. Thomas Packenham, The Boer War, London: Abacus, 1992, p.403.