This is the first time that the Knolly Estate has allowed the great man's memoirs to be published. What follows is the fifteenth chapter of 'The African Adventure'.

DeVries Light Horse Part 3

We found the wagon with the balloon parked over by the Regiments’ few horses and oxen, there were a few troopers on guard who nodded at us as we approached and advised us to beware of the smell rising from the middens.

I nodded back and Bertie gave them a mock salute as we climbed aboard the wagon. Bertie cast his eye about the basket and burner.

'Hmmm, you know I may just be able to fix this after all.'

'Fine, but keep looking and keep your voice down. Now it seems to me that we may have left our German friends behind us but find ourselves in a worse position'.

Bertie picked his way amongst the folds of red 'How so Knolly? This is the very Regiment we saw looking for recruits in that flyer.'

'Yes, yes I know, but it wasn't exactly the way I'd hoped we'd sign on and Monty and the others will be an added complication.'

'Oh Knolly, how can that be, soldiers of the Queen and all that, plus old scholars.'

'Bertie, you saw the way his eyes glazed over when we were talking about Rhodes, he's been got at, he believes all the rhetoric. No I'm afraid we can't trust him and therefore we stick to the bit about flying round the world, sounds a bit Jules Verne I know but Monty will fall for it and should pave the way with Mrs DeVries for us.'

Bertie shook his head 'I don't like it Knolly, it goes against all the codes and what if we end up sending Monty to his death.'

'I know what you mean, and I don't like it any more than you do and we have a job to do. Now
I think we'll be quite safe chatting to Monty about past exploits providing we don't allude to the current Service work, you know mention the Navy stuff but keep the rest on a gentleman adventurer level.'

Bertie nodded 'Shouldn't be too difficult, I mean the Service is never there when you need it anyway.' He stuck his hand through a rent in the silk 'Who's going to sew this up now?Bertie wiggled his hand in the hole 'So Knolly what's going on here?'

I heaved one of our bags out of the basket. My best guess is that the DeVries Light Horse are going to form part of an expeditionary force into the Transvaal. It would seem that things have moved on a pace since we spoke to the Kaiser. Hopefully we'll find out more once we meet Mrs DeVries.'

'Excuse me sirs,' came a voice below 'Captain LeBoeuf sent me to find you. I'm to escort you both to your billet for the night.'

I looked down to see a young trooper 'Capital' I said 'here take this.' tossed down one of our few bags of belongings and jumped down after it. 'Come on Bertie, time for a wash and brush up, the balloon can wait. Oh, bring the other bag'

Bertie emerged from under the balloon canopy clutching the other bag 'I think Knolly I'll grab forty winks before this evening, it's been a long day.'

I smiled 'lead the way trooper.'

Our tent being a spare was in the main row, not an officers' one, but then again this had the advantage of being far enough way from the rantings of Colonel Nix for which I was truely grateful.

'I hope this will suit, dinner is a seven and the Captain has expressed you dress accordingly.' said the trooper as he turned to leave

'Will the Colonel be there?' asked Bertie

'Thank heavens for that.' Bertie muttered under his breath and flung himself onto the camp bed (a piece of furniture which for once withstood such an assault) and was soon snoring away. Leaving him to it I went off to try and find what sort of washing facilities were available. They were not what I expected and the men in charge of the mobile bath apologised that the machinery was having teething troubles and hoped to have it working for the following morning although as it was likely to be an early start they doubted it. Indeed once I ‘d found a bowl of luke warm water and a razor I saw them starting to take the bathing apparatus down and begin to stow it away.

I felt better after a wash and shave and made my way back to our tent, Bertie was still out cold so I decide to sort out what clothes we had to wear for the evening.

'ARRRGH!' shouted Bertie as he fell off the bed 'Knolly, I just had an awful nightmare, the bags, the clothes they're...'

I reached down into one of the bags and pulled out something that was obviously de rigour for young women intent on arousing men's passions.

'Oh... Knolly , haven't we got anything to wear'

'Well, I have old fruit, but as for you...' and I offered him something even more revealing from the bag.

'Knolly, I can't wear that... it's not my size or colour.'

I couldn't hold my laughter any longer and collapsed on the floor with tears rolling down my cheeks and threw the bag at Bertie. 'Here, take a look.'

Bertie looked, and began to join my laughter. Luckily only a few bits of Felicity's wardrobe had found their way into Bertie's luggage as some bizarre form of keepsake.

'I suppose you find this funny, Knolly?'

Through my tears I nodded 'Bertie, if you could only have seen the look on your face, now go and get cleaned up while I sort out something for the pair of us to wear.'

We managed to dress for dinner and hoped that excuses would be made for the hotter climates, I believe that our black tie etc was, by now, on a ship bound for home, but who knows.

We were escorted back to the mess tent at the appropriate hour by the young trooper who, as it turned out, was Monty's batman. He was a chatty soul who informed us that that he'd served in Egypt with Monty against the 'Fuzzy Wuzzys' and kept enlightening us with tales of how they did didn't like the taste of cold steel and didn't like it up 'em!! Charming fella.

Monty was already waiting for us at the table having a glass of wine poured for him, there were a couple of junior officers sitting with him who we had not yet met on our travels around the camp.

We sat down opposite Monty who then introduced us to his juniors as old school chums. His batman shuffled up to him.

'Permission to speak, sir!'

'Yes, Jones, what is it?'

'Will you be needing me for the rest of the evening?'

'No I think not, thank you'

'Very good sir, I'll be off and sharpen my bayonet... they don't like it up 'em you know'

And with that Jones was gone.

'Where did you find him then?' asked Bertie as the soup was being served.

'Jones, oh he's been with me since I joined up. Colourful chap ain't he? Bit set in his ways but good man all the same. Career soldier if ever I saw one.' He glugged down his wine and continued 'But tell me, Knolly, what have you and Bertie been up to since you left the old school? I'd heard you joined the ranks of the Civil Service in the Admiralty Office or something and you Bertie went to college, which I find hard to believe.'

I glanced around the table and noticed the other two officers had stooped their own conversation and waited eagerly to hear what Bertie and I had to say for ourselves.

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