I speak in this
way not because I am at all lacking in appreciation for the valour and
dash of both Gordons and "bluejackets," but simply because other
regiments who have often done as good or even better work--in special
cases--bitterly resent the unfair manner in which their own achievements
are sometimes slurred over in the press. Needless to say these
thoughtless reports are due almost entirely to journalists and would be
repudiated by none more keenly than the gallant men of the Gordon
Highlanders and the Royal Navy.
At the battle of Graspan the marine brigade left their big 47 guns in
the rear and advanced as infantry to the frontal attack. At 600 yards
from the Boer lines the order was given to fix bayonets: the brigade
then pushed forward for fifty yards further, when it was met by a storm
of Mauser bullets, which had killed and wounded no less than 120 out of
the 250 before the survivors reached the foot of the kopjes. It is
extremely difficult to clamber up the rough sides of an African kopje.
To do it properly one needs india-rubber soles or bare feet, for boots
cause one to slip wildly about on the smooth, rough stones. By the time
our men had got to the summit of the low ridge the Boers had leapt upon
their horses and were already nearly 1,000 yards away. Our gallant
fellows were out of breath with the arduous climb, and as it is almost
impossible to do much effective shooting when one is "blown," and the
cavalry had not appeared on the scene, the enemy got off nearly scot
free.
Pages:
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58