When French went down to Cape Town to consult with General Buller, he
found his Chief oppressed by serious misgivings. Sir George White and
his force were surrounded in Ladysmith; Mafeking and Kimberley were
both invested by the enemy; and a great invasion was threatened along
the whole northern boundary of Cape Colony. To deal with all these
difficulties Buller had only one army corps. One column, under Lord
Methuen, was advancing to the relief of Kimberley; another, under
General Gatacre, was attempting to stem the Boer invasion of Cape
Colony; while a third, to be led by Buller himself, was massing at
Chieveley, prior to advancing to the relief of Ladysmith. French was
given command of a fourth column with which he was to harass the Boers
around Colesberg. A Boer commando under Schoeman had seized a passage
on the Orange River at Norval's Pont on November 1. On the 14th the
Boers entered Colesberg; and a proclamation was issued declaring the
district to be a Free State territory.

[Page Heading: WORRYING TACTICS]

From the first no striking victories were anticipated for French's
little force. It was to act as a dam, rather than as a weapon of
destruction. It was a rather flimsy dam at that. Buller's
instructions, which at first spoke of a "flying column," soon declined
to suggestions of "a policy of worry without risking men." In
particular it was to stop raids on the railway line which might impede
Methuen's advance on Kimberley.

Collecting a part of his force at Cape Town, French left on November
18. On the following night he reached De Aar, where Major-General
Wauchope gave him another couple of companies of Mounted Infantry.
Acting on Wauchope's advice, he determined to make Naauwpoort his