ABSTRACT
L EARNING that the Matabele War had broken out, I made every effort to get up to the front ; but as I had had no previous
experience, the military authorities would not take me on. However, I was determined to get to Bulawayo somehow, and with this idea made a start by taking the train for Pietermaritzburg, having just enough funds left to pay the fare. On arriving I was lucky enough to get a job to look after the engine and boiler at a steam bakery, and with the money I thus earned I was able to move on, a fortnight later, to Charlestown. I had now just enough money to pay for a night's lodging, and the next morning I crossed the boundary between Natal and the Transvaal,
and moved on to Volksrust, getting a glimpse of thc famous Majuba Hill on my journey.
