“We have hundreds of varieties of wood to choose from when constructing the wagon. But only 17 are useful for construction. There is the good old hard yellowwood, which is sturdy. But there is also Boekenhout, a much softer wood that is used as a shock absorber. Yet, it could stay still even with its softness. The wheel is made of iron to traverse the hostile environment. Charcoal is added to protect the rim from rust or rot when fording a river. About 12 – 16 ox is needed to pull a fully loaded wagon,” The wagon engineer explained to him.
One of the men his father brought over was a savant in wagon construction. An Engineer from the Netherlands, he came over to South Elfrica to seek new opportunities. He even helped in the construction of Pretorius’ wagons, culminating in their various victories against the natives which heavily outnumbered them.
“You may ask, why do we do so much for these wagons? Because these wagons aren’t only for transportation, they are for war.”
He paused, and the Corporals watched his next moves.
“When an Elven ambush is carried out, you must immediately surround yourself into a laager. If you don’t know what that means draw a circle of wagons around yourselves. The elves won’t be able to strike you with their throwing spears as you hide under them for cover. From there, you can open fire as they struggle to climb over or under the wagon to reach you. Since you know the ins and out of the wagon, you could hold them off in a melee.”
The engineer walked to the wagon and pulled off the cover. The bows, or frame supporting the cover stood naked. But on the wagon bed, an artillery piece sat behind the jockey box.
“Due to your Commando’s modifications to the wagon. Each wagon will be able to carry fewer people. But,” He pointed at the artillery piece and continued,” You should be able to fire that whilst on the move. I have reinforced the wood that the cannon sits on, but tests will need to be conducted. Still…”
The engineer began unscrewing some screws and popped off the artillery piece with some effort. He carried it for a couple of seconds before setting it down.
“It can be dismounted and moved to a more favourable position to allow a 360-degree firing angle if you aim it. If you mount it, you could probably fire it directly in front. But no elven ambush would likely attack you in front. So, you would be dismounting this a lot. I’m sure you all could imagine the applications such a piece could serve you. Such as loading it pre-emptively and dismounting it to quickly fire upon an enemy.”
The ox bellowed as the engineer screwed back the artillery piece.
“Well then gentlemen, you should give it a test. You will be depending on this for your lives.”
A couple of men got onto the wagon and grumbled about the lack of space in the interior due to the artillery. Jan got up as well, excited to give it a test. One of the corporals got up and went to the front by the jockey box and took a seat. Holding onto the reins he urged the ox forward. A slow pace began as the ox began trotting forward.
“Let’s give that artillery piece a shot,” One of the corporals mumbled in Elfrikaans and began grabbing a cleaning rod. He rubbed the cannon’s interior. Another man brought over a bag of gunpowder and dumped it into the cannon. A small ball of metal that was a couple of inches long was retrieved, and it was rammed into the cannon with a ramrod. Lighting the fuse at the back, the wagon shook as the men covered their ears.
A couple of metres away. Dirt was kicked up along with the plants that were rooted there. What remained was a crater. The wagon was still moving. The ox, rattled by the noise, was still trotting slowly. One could feel that it was slower than previously. But give it a bit more time, and they would surely be used to it.
“A harder wood needs to be used,” A corporal remarked as he knocked the base of the cannon. Jan looked at where he was pointing and found that the wood bent somewhat due to the force of the cannon.
“What’s with the shoddy quality?” Jan hissed at the engineer as the wagon made its way back.
The engineer brushed his words with a wave of his hand.
“You asked for a prototype. This is a prototype. It has not been field tested. So some errors like these from time to time show up. Now we know we should reinforce that region with more hardwood,” The engineer remarked as he tapped on the bent region of the wagon.
“Do not blame me for modifications to the usual design. The old tried and tested wagon is used because it can be used in all environments. Modifications that change the way it works, like the artillery piece mounted on it, would cause things like this to happen. So that begs the question. Do you still wish to continue with this design? Or we should remove the artillery and put it in the storage?”
Jan sighed.
“Continue with the current design, please. If it is completely unfeasible, then we shall revert to the usual wagon design.”
The engineer grumbled silently, about how new Commandoes always wanted to make their wagons stand out and be unique.
“I have received calls for assistance from Boers in the Transvaal and Free States region. They have trouble dealing with the Elfrican natives and require our assistance. They have sent these calls throughout South Elfrica. My contacts in Cape Colony said they have also received such messages and wish to hear my response on the matter,” Andries Pretorius explained.
He summoned most of the Commandoes and their Veldkornets to Pietermaritzburg to discuss regional affairs.
Jan was there with his two Veldkornets. Pietje, elected by the various rural Corporals and Russell, head of the Port Mpande administration.
“I don’t know whether we should participate. I don’t think the men would want to go without our wagons,” Pietje whispered into his ears.
“Pretorius, isn’t it obvious? Boers should help Boers. We should help our brothers in the North,” A Dutchman declared in Dutch.
“Forgot about them. Although now it's winter, the climate in Elfrica is still good. We can still farm our crops. They choose to venture inland, it's their responsibility to take care of themselves if they piss off any Elfrican tribe,” Another rebutted.
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“I agree. The last time we all helped was when Dingane massacred Piet Retief and his party. It doesn’t seem like a serious issue this time compared to last time. We all have worked hard to trek all the way here. Shouldn’t we spend some time enjoying the fruits of our labour? It hasn’t even been a year after our last battle.”
“This will not be the first, and last call for help. They can always fall back to one of the Boer settlements nearby. But no, they chose to venture even deeper inland and brave the risks of doing so. I see no point venturing so far out to help them out. What if the Xhosa launch an attack on us? Or Even the Zulu? Won’t our women and children be massacred instead? Just like how the Zulus did to Piet Retief, you think they won’t do the same to us?”
Everyone in the room was apathetic to the Boers’ situation. They fought hard to establish themselves in this hostile environment. Every day, one man probably dropped dead from malaria or some other disease. It’s not like that wasn’t a cure. There was, but one had to obtain the bark of a cinchona tree from Peru. Its costs are absurd considering how many other settlers also desired cinchona. Naturally, the wealthier Europeans who settled in Elfrica were willing to pay higher prices, so the poorer settlers could only subsist by praying to God for a solution.
Pretorius sighed, reading the room.
“I understand your concerns. And we did fight hard to obtain these lands, especially to avenge Piet Retief’s death. I also know that most of you are weary from fighting. But perhaps some of you might be interested in helping them out, I won’t stop you. And I can assure you, if your town is attacked by any Elfrican tribe, I will rush to defend that town.”
And with that, it turned into a social gathering as the men got into their respective cliques. Commandoes got together under a Commando-General, who chatted with other Commando-Generals. Jan tapped on the shoulders of his two Veldkornets and pointed to Pretorius. Since they didn’t recognize anyone here, they decided to go straight to their faction, which is Pretorius’ faction. Brushing elbow to elbow with the other Commandoes serving Pretorius they made some small talk.
The other Commandoes asked about the port affairs, especially the recent revolt by the Boers. But Jan calmly assuaged their concerns and said that business was running as usual. They heaved a sigh of relief and remarked that they had varying shipments of goods heading to that port.
Veldkornet Russell tried his best to interact with the other Veldkornets. But since most of Pretorius’ Veldkornets are Dutch, he felt rather isolated with his broken Dutch. Some tried to integrate him into their discussion, finding an Englishman trying to speak Dutch to be rather amusing. Whilst others conversed with him in their broken English, making it hard for both sides to communicate with one another.
The one who slotted in the best was Pietje, who had a similar background. They were Dutch homesteaders who lived off subsistence farming and were elected by the farmers to represent their interests.
They said things like how’s harvest or the price of seeds. Pietje was discussing the recent Cooperative they formed, the Boer Zuid Elfrica Coöperatie or BZEC, and how he was able to negotiate lower prices with the merchants as they got into a bidding war once they realized that if they were not chosen to do business with, they will have no business.
He smiled and told the tales of merchants pleading with him to give them the contract as they needed to fit the family or whatnot. He laughed as he said that those merchants charged exorbitant rates for their seeds a couple of months ago and did not bat an eye when he pleaded with them to lower their prices. Jan was sure the begging part was an exaggeration, but it added to the tale, so he did not cut in.
“They got give you any bribes or whatnot under the table?” A fellow Veldkornet asked.
“Oh yeah, many of them did. Here’s the thing, I took all of them. And gave the contract to the one who gave the best prices for their seeds. This guy had a decent reputation, and I did business with him from time to time, and he lowered his prices for the contract. The rest of the merchants gave bribes. Didn’t bother to lower their prices. So, I got free money!”
“Woah, Pietje, you gotta calm down. What if all these farmers all setup workers' cooperatives, then aren’t I going to lose my job?” Jan thought to himself.
“The Boer Zuid Elfrica Coöperatie is a decent idea. Those British merchants won’t be so haughty once they realize they aren’t the only game in town,” Pretorius remarked to Jan.
“It was your idea, isn’t it?”
Jan nodded.
“I see, how’s the militia coming along? Got your wagons yet? Your father’s giving me daily updates on your progress. Seriously, this guy would only give me reports on his district monthly, but for you, daily! Wish he did the same for the districts.”
“If I did it daily, Pretorius. Then all the trees in South Elfrica will have to be cut down for the paper I will be sending you. And you will need to provide more money so that I can hire the men to write all these out for you. As it stands, I’m writing every one of those reports,” Vincent Boddewijk replied.
“Tell you what, Veldkornet. I want you to organize your district into a cooperative also. From now on, you will buy all your seeds for your farmers, and you will sell your crops on their behalf. I’m interested in setting up a trial for this before implementing it if the people are satisfied.”
“Very well, but you gotta send me more money for all the additional paperwork I have to send.”
“Just tax your farmers harder. Put a maize tax or something to pay for it!”
“Do you want me to go around my district and tell them that the reason why additional taxes are levied on you is that the almighty Andries Pretorius requested me to do so?”
The men laughed.
“Still, I heard from a couple of engineers. Do you want to try mounting a cannon on one of the wagons? Why do such a thing?” Pretorius asked.
“Preferably, I wanted it to be able to shoot while on the move. For example, let's say we are fleeing from an ambush. The mounted cannon can help provide a distraction to elves as dirt and plants are flung into the air. Or better yet, we do not have to assemble the cannon for storage. At the battle, we can dismount it, and bring it to where it needs to be.”
“So, it’s for skirmishing? Flight Commandoes could do a better job. They’re more manoeuvrable since they’re on horseback.”
“No, I intend for it to be a shock troop. The wagon is a good cover against the spears, and it would mess up Elven formation.”
Pretorius shook his head.
“That’s too risky. Throw a spear at the right angle, and it can and will penetrate a man in the wagon. You should stick to the method of surrounding yourselves with a wagon in a laager formation. And with your artillery pieces, you should be able to hold yourselves well.”
“But what if they retreat?”
“Then let them retreat. No need to pursue or hunt every last one of them down. Sure, they might bring trouble to us sometime in the future. But with their numbers dwindled, the damage they can cause will be limited.”
“It's just a theory. I’m thinking about how to fully utilize my wagons. So I’m testing out all sorts of formations in my head. But, when I’m ambushed, I will immediately form a wagon fort instead of charging into the enemy.”
Pretorius nodded, remarking, “Good.”
He went off to chat with the other participants, leaving him and his father.
“You’re thinking of going North to help those Boers out? Aren’t you? Or do you just want to test these weapons against hostile elves, since the Zulus and Xhosa aren’t a threat?” His father asked.
“Of course not! Our wagons have not even been constructed. Hell, we haven’t even trained most of the men to work together. We will be massacred if we even try to help them out.”
“If I was younger, in my twenties, I would help those Boers out. Not out of the goodwill of course, but out of the loot I could get. The slaves or their cattle. It’s ripe for the pickings. But I’m not as hotblooded as I used to be,” His father sighed, and went off to chat with the other Veldkornets, his old friends during the various campaigns against the Zulu Kingdom.
“Wait, we’re going to help them out?” Pietje asked, walking near Jan. The young scholarly Commando shook his head.
“Of course not. I do not care about that region. Like the other Boer said, they took on the risk to venture that far inland, they should expect this to happen.”
“I want to head to Zoutpansberg. And we might be passing through the area. Consider it an exercise. A little field trip to see if we could hold our own against the various Elfrican tribes. But we would do things realistically. We will negotiate with the natives first. And if push comes to shove, then we can test out our new weapons.”
Pietje nodded, satisfied with his answer.