Suffice it to say that they ended in something very like an utter rout of the English at the hands of a much inferior force, and that, a few hours after he had started, the ambulance being left in the hands of the Boers, John found himself on the return road to Pretoria, with a severely wounded man behind his saddle, who, as they went painfully along, mingled curses of shame and fury with his own.

Meanwhile exaggerated accounts of the English defeat had reached the town, and, amongst other things, it was said that Captain Niel had been shot dead.

One man who came in stated that he saw him fall, and that he was shot through the head.

This Mrs.Neville heard with her own ears, and, greatly shocked, started to communicate the intelligence to Jess.
As soon as it was daylight, as was customary with her, Jess had gone over to the little house which she and John occupied, "The Palatial," as it was called ironically, and settled herself there for the day.

First she tried to work and could not, so she took a book that she had brought with her and began to read, but it was a failure also.