LADYSMITH, March 3, 1900.
[DEAR MOTHER:]
The column came into town today, 2200 men, guns, cavalry,
ambulances, lancers, navy guns and oxen. It was a most cruel
assault upon one's feelings. The garrison lined the streets
as a saluting guard of honor but only one regiment could stand
it and the others all sat down on the curb only rising to
cheer the head of each new regiment. They are yellow with
fever, their teeth protruding and the skin drawn tight over
their skeletons. The incoming army had had fourteen days hard
fighting at the end of three months campaigning but were
robust and tanned ragged and
caked with mud. As they came in they cheered and the
garrison tried to cheer back but it was like a whisper.
Winston Churchill and I stood in front of Gen. White and
cried for an hour. For the time you forgot Boers and the
cause, or the lack of cause of it all, and saw only the side
of it that was before you, the starving garrison relieved by
men who had lost almost one out of every three in trying to
help them. I was rather too previous in getting in and like
every-one else who came from outside gave away everything I
had so that now I'm as badly off as the rest of them.
Yesterday my rations for the day were four biscuits and an
ounce of coffee and of tea, with corn which they call mealies
which I could not eat but which saved my horse's life. He is
a Boer pony I bought from a Tommy for two pounds ten and he's
worth both of the other two for which I paid $125 a piece.
Tomorrow the wagon carrying my supplies will be in and I can
get millions of things. It almost apalls me to think how
many. Especially clean clothes. I've slept in these for four
days. I got off some stories which I hope will read well. I
can't complain now that I saw the raising of this siege. But
I hope we don't stay still. I want to see a lot quickly and
get out. This is very safe warfare. You sit on a hill and
the army does the rest. My sciatica is not troubling me at
all. Love to you all and God bless you.
DICK.
