51. Old Boer saves Captain George Paley

Isaac Malherbe’s determination to do something to prevent the British from returning unharmed to Ladysmith meant that he led his small force towards the noise of the soldiers descending the hill. Sampie van Zijl was shot in the throat and mortally wounded and the rest of Malherbe’s men positioned themselves along the bank of the
donga. They were directly in the path of Captain George Paley’s retreating ‘G’ company and some of ‘E’ company left on guard there. Reitz described how “Isaac whispered to us to hold our fire and each man peered into the darkness until, about fifteen yards away, we saw a black mass dimly-outlined and then, at his word of command, we poured volley after volley into their closely-packed ranks, shooting as fast as we could work the bolts of our rifles. A Captain named George Paley came up to where my brother and I knelt, firing over the edge of the bank, and as he failed to halt when called upon we both loosed a round and brought him toppling between us.”

67. Captain George Paley: "But we got the gun."

H.W. Nevinson wrote of the return of the Rifle Brigade men. “It was sad to see the stretchers coming home this morning. Meeting a covered dhoolie, I asked the bearers who was in it. ‘Captain Paley’, they said, and put him down for water. He had been reported missing. I gave him water. He recognised me at once and was conscious, but his singularly blue eyes looked out of a deadly yellow and bloodless face, and his hands seemed to have the touch of death on them. When I said I was sorry, he answered, “But we got the gun.”

Slides from a presentation by Robin Smith to a meeting of the South African Military History Society, Durban in 2010.

"But we got the gun" is the title of a book by Robin Smith about the raid by the 2nd Battalion, The Rifle Brigade on Surprise Hill on the night of 10/11th December 1899. Copies on CD available from the author.