My own opinion is that they did not lose very heavily.
From that day nothing of importance happened until I left Natal; though both the Transvaalers and Free State burghers had a few slight brushes with the enemy.
During the night of December the 7th, "Long Tom," the big Transvaal gun, which had been placed on Bulwana Hill, had been so seriously damaged by dynamite, that it had to remain out of action for some time.

We all admitted that the English on that occasion acted with great skill and prudence, and that the courage of their leaders deserved every praise.
Yet, if we had only been on our guard, we might have beaten off the storming party; but they had caught us unawares.

Nevertheless, the mishap taught us a useful lesson: henceforth the Transvaal Commandants were more strict, and their increased severity had an excellent effect both on the burghers and gunners.
General Sir Redvers Buller had landed at Cape Town early in November.

We were now expecting every day to hear that he had assumed the chief command over the English army encamped between Estcourt and Colenso.

The number of troops there was continually increasing owing to the reinforcements which kept pouring in from over the ocean.
Great things were expected of Sir Redvers Buller, to whom the Boers, by a play of words, had given a somewhat disrespectful nick-name.