RETREAT BEFORE OVERWHELMING HOSTILE PRESSURE
IN our rear, Major Fischer, who with five companies had been employed
between Kilima Njaro and Meru, had evaded the enemy’s superior forces
by moving on New Moshi, and had been ordered up to Kahe. Captain
Rothert, who had been acting under his orders with his company and the
Arusha Detachment (strength about one company), had been energetically
pursued by the enemy, and had made his way by Arusha towards
Kondoa-Irangi. We could only expect to get into touch with him by the
wire which had been put up from Dodome, by Kondoa-Irangi to Umbulu,
and that only after a considerable time. By abandoning New Moshi we,
of necessity, left the road Taveta-New Moshi-Arusha open to the enemy.
The latter was thus also enabled to penetrate into the interior of
the Colony with his troops from Taveta by Arusha and Kondoa-Irangi,
and to act there against our communication at an extremely dangerous
point. From our troops concentrated in the neighbourhood of Kahe and
New Steglitz he had not much to fear during this operation. Although
we had brought up all our companies from Tanga, leaving there only the
troops absolutely indispensable for security, all we could do with our
four thousand rifles was to let the enemy run up against us on suitable
ground, and, possibly, to take advantage of any mistakes he might make
by skilful and rapid action; but the odds against us being seven to
one we could attempt no more. From an attack on an enemy superior not
only in numbers, but also in equipment, and holding fortified positions
into the bargain, I could not possibly hope for success. I could not,
therefore, accede to the requests of my company commanders that we
should attack, but this expression of a bold soldierly spirit gave me
strength and hope in the serious situation in which we were placed.
Minor enterprises, undertaken against the enemy’s camps by patrols
and small detachments, produced no results of consequence; but they
may have helped to make the enemy’s main force take some notice of us
instead of simply marching on past us. He certainly did push on to
the west from Himo, and heavy clouds of dust were seen moving to New
Moshi and further on to the west. But a large part of the enemy coming
from Himo turned in our direction. For the commander such situations
are extraordinarily trying; he is not master of the situation, and
must, of necessity, renounce the initiative. Only the most careful
reconnaissance may perhaps reveal some weakness of the opponent, and in
order to utilize this weakness and regain the initiative, not a moment
must be lost. Fortunately, however, the enemy did expose weak points of
which we were able to take at least partial advantage.
Owing to the dense bush and high forest in which our camps were hidden,
aerial reconnaissance can hardly have been any use to the enemy. The
bombs dropped by the enemy caused only a few casualties at Kahe, and
did not interfere with us in getting away our stores through that
place. In order to draw our fire, the well-known English horsemen
appeared once more north-west of New Steglitz in a widely-extended
skirmishing line. In front of them, hidden in the bush, were our
companies, ready to take hold immediately larger bodies should appear.
A counter-attack of this description was made late in the afternoon on
the 15th March, and with fair success. In order to become thoroughly
acquainted with the ground, European patrols were constantly moving
about, and I also made use of every available minute. Through the bush
we cut and marked tracks. By this means we could clearly indicate any
point to which a detachment was required to go.
On the main road leading from Himo to Kahe a strong hostile force
had also appeared and pushed close up to the front of Stemmermann’s
Detachment, which occupied a fortified position on this road at Kahe,
facing north. With considerable skill patrols worked close up to the
detachment, and so concealed the movements of the enemy. When I arrived
there in the afternoon of the 20th March, it was not at all clear what
was really going on in front. It was quite possible that the enemy was
merely making a demonstration in order to attack at some other, more
dangerous, spot. Such a manœuvre would have been very menacing to us,
as the close nature of the bush country would prevent us from detecting
it until very late, probably too late. I decided to drive the enemy’s
screen back on his position proper. Earlier in the day it had been
given out that the companies were to move off to their former positions
at one a.m.; the machine guns were left in our entrenchments so as not
to lose them, and as a measure of protection. It was bright moonlight
when the leading company was fired on, apparently by a hostile outpost,
or patrol, which moved off. After that we encountered several patrols,
but then, about three miles north of our own trenches, we came upon a
stronger opponent with machine guns. The very severe action which now
developed proved that we had come up against the enemy’s main position;
to assault it seemed hopeless. Leaving patrols out, I withdrew step
by step. Our casualties were not inconsiderable, and unfortunately
included three company commanders, who were difficult to replace; of
the three, Lieutenant von Stosch and Freiherr Grote died of their
wounds a few days later, while Captain Augar only became fit for duty
again after a long time and when provided with an artificial foot.
Our withdrawal, which the enemy probably took to be involuntary,
apparently led him to believe that he would be able to rout us next day
by a vigorous attack. The attacks made by powerful hostile forces on
the front of Stemmermann’s Detachment at Kahe on the 21st March were
unsuccessful; the enemy, composed mainly of South African infantry, was
beaten off with heavy loss. Our four-inch _Königsberg_ gun, directed
from elevated sites affording a good view, fired on the approaching
enemy, apparently with good effect. It may be assumed that part of
their severe casualties, which the English stated to have amounted on
this day to several hundred among the South African Europeans alone,
were caused by this gun. The enemy realized that he could not advance
over the field of fire extending for five hundred yards in front of
our trenches with any hope of success, and endeavoured to envelop our
right flank. But having previously reconnoitred and determined tracks,
we were also well prepared to execute a counter-attack, and in the
afternoon Schulz’s Detachment effectively struck at the enemy’s flank.
The last part of Schulz’s advance had, indeed, been very arduous owing
to the thick bush. The Askari could only work through it step by step,
when they suddenly heard the enemy’s machine guns at work only a few
paces in front of them.
Unfortunately, however, this counter-attack was not completed owing to
the events which occurred in the meantime on our left. The activity
displayed by patrols during the preceding days, and the clouds of
dust, had shown that strong detachments of the enemy’s horse, coming
from near New Moshi and keeping to westward of the Kahe-New Moshi
railway, were trying to work round our front, which faced north, and
of which the left wing was at Kahe Station. The continuation of this
movement would have brought them on to the railway in our rear, and
cut us from our communications while we were engaged with a superior
opponent with our front to the north. I had, therefore, posted a strong
reserve of eight companies in readiness at Kahe Station. But as I
thought it necessary during the action to remain at Kahe village, near
Stemmermann’s Detachment, I was unable to exercise rapid and direct
control over the reserves at Kahe. The dense vegetation prevented any
distant observation. The control of the reserve at Kahe had to be left
to the initiative of the commander on the spot and his subordinates.
The latter had observed that hostile troops had advanced through the
bush and occupied a hill south-west of Kahe Railway Station. One
company had, on its own initiative, attacked this force, but the
advance had broken down under shrapnel fire. Thereupon our four-inch
gun opened fire on these light guns and drove them off.
Late in the afternoon I received an urgent message that strong
forces of the enemy were advancing in our rear towards the railway
at Kissangire, and that the event we feared had actually occurred. I
was, therefore, compelled to issue orders for an immediate withdrawal
towards Kissangire. The enemy could not yet have reached there
in strength, and I hoped to defeat him there by rapidly throwing
all my forces against him. Thus it happened that Captain Schulz’s
well-directed counter-attack could not be carried through, or produce
its full effect. The transfer by night of our force across the Pangani,
which was close behind us, and over which we had previously made a
number of bridges and crossings, was effected smoothly and without
interference. Even on the following day the patrols we had left behind
found its north bank clear of the enemy. Our good four-inch gun, which
we could not take away owing to its lack of mobility, was blown up.
After midnight, that is, quite early on the 22nd March, I arrived at
Kissangire Station, and discovered to my very great astonishment that
all the reports about strong hostile forces moving on that place were
erroneous, and that our withdrawal had therefore been unnecessary. This
incident afforded me a remarkably striking proof of the extraordinary
difficulty of observing the movements of troops in thick bush, and of
the great care every commander must exercise in estimating the value
of such reports. But it also demonstrates how difficult it is for any
commander to combine his own powers of reasoning and his judgment of
the situation with the constantly conflicting reports, both of Askari
and Europeans, in order to base his decision on a foundation that
even approximately resembles the reality. In the African bush it is
particularly important, whenever possible, to supplement the reports
one receives by personal observation.
However, our withdrawal could not now be altered, and the most
important thing was to re-group our forces. In this operation the
decisive factor was water-supply. This, and the necessity for
distribution in depth, caused me to leave only a detachment of a few
companies on the high ground at Kissangire, from where it observed
the seven and a half miles of waterless thorn desert extending to
the Pangani. To the east of this detachment at Kissangire, under
Major von Boehmken, was Otto’s detachment, pushed up on to the North
Pare Mountains in order to close the passes leading over them. Major
Kraut took up a position on Ngulu Pass, between the North Pare and
Middle Pare ranges. The main body of the force settled down in several
fortified camps in the fertile Lembeni country.
In spite of the various withdrawals we had recently carried out, the
spirit of the troops was good, and the Askaris were imbued with a
justifiable pride in their achievements against an enemy so greatly
superior. Only a very few individuals deserted, and they were almost
without exception men whose cattle was in the territory now occupied by
the enemy, and who were therefore afraid of losing their property.
Almost the entire German civil population had left the Kilima Njaro
country; most of them had moved to Usambara into the Wilhelmstal
district. The Arusha country had also been evacuated, and the farmers
had moved off by ox-wagon by Kondoa-Irangi to Dodoma. The numerous
Greeks had for the most part remained on their coffee-plantations on
Kilima Njaro, and the Boers of British nationality had stayed in their
cattle farms, which extended from the north-west slopes of Kilima
Njaro northwards round Meru Mountain and along the western slopes of
the latter to the vicinity of Arusha. At Lembeni the regular course
of existence had not been interrupted; supply trains rolled right up
to the station; the companies which were not in the front line worked
diligently at their training, and Headquarters continued its work in
the railway station buildings of Lembeni just as it had done previously
at Moshi. Airmen appeared and dropped bombs, just as before.
The country was carefully prepared to meet various possible battle
conditions, passages were cut through the dense rhinoceros bush, and
a field of fire cleared where necessary. Personal reconnaissance took
up much of my time, and often led me to the companies encamped in
the thick bush and on the dominating heights. The troops had already
developed to a tolerable degree in adaptability, and in the art of
making the material side of their existence as comfortable as possible.
I remember with pleasure the occasions when, in a comfortably arranged
grass hut, I was offered a cup of coffee with beautiful rich milk,
prepared from the ground-down kernel of a ripe cocoanut. The North Pare
Mountains also were frequently the goal of my expeditions. Up there I
found a rich and well-watered area of primeval forest, through which
it was hardly possible to penetrate off the roads. The water-supply of
the country proved to be far more plentiful than the results of former
surveys had led us to expect; in this respect also it was shown how the
necessities of war cause the resources of a country to be opened up,
and utilized to an extent greatly exceeding previous estimates. The
natives of North Pare are, like those of Kilima Njaro, masters in the
art of irrigating their fields by means of the water coming down from
the mountains.
On the 4th April, one of my reconnaissances took me to Otto’s
Detachment on the Pare Mountains. From the north-west corner one had
a clear view of the enemy’s camp, lying down below at Kahe Station.
The obvious idea of bombarding it with one of our long-range guns—in
the meantime we had brought to Lembeni one 4-inch _Königsberg_ gun on
wheels, and one 3·5-inch gun mounted on a ’73 pattern carriage—could
unfortunately not be carried out. With rather too much zeal the
troops had thoroughly destroyed the permanent way of the line between
Lembeni and Kahe. With the means at our disposal it could not be made
sufficiently fit for traffic to enable us to move one of our guns up
and down on it with rapidity. All our observations and reports agreed
that the enemy, who had formerly often sent patrols and even stronger
forces to the south of Jipe Lake, no longer displayed any interest in
that district. He had in any case moved his principal forces towards
Kahe and also beyond New Moshi westward towards Arusha.
After passing a cold night on the damp height at North Pare I descended
to Lembeni on the 5th April. Here I found a report that on the
previous day Captain Rothert, who was encamped with the 28th Company
beside the Lolkisale, a high mountain in the Masai desert, two days’
march south-west of Arusha, had been attacked by superior forces. The
heliograph communication with Lolkisale from the south-west had then
been interrupted. It was not till later that the following facts became
known. Several mounted companies of the enemy, coming across the desert
from Arusha, had attacked the 28th Company, who were in position on the
mountain, from several directions. As our people were in possession of
the water they could well sustain the fight against the enemy, who had
none. On the second day of the action the situation became critical
for the enemy, because of this very absence of water. Unfortunately,
however, after Captain Rothert was severely wounded, this circumstance
was not properly appreciated on our side. The situation was thought to
be so hopeless that the company surrendered with its machine guns and
ammunition. On this occasion also some of the Askari gave evidence of
sound military education by refusing to join in the surrender. They,
together with the wounded, rejoined our forces near Ufiome, without
being interfered with by the enemy. There they met a new rifle company
and the Arusha Detachment, of which the former had arrived from the
Central Railway, the latter from the direction of Arusha.
The road to Kondoa-Irangi and the interior of the Colony was now hardly
closed to the enemy coming from Arusha. There were three companies
in the neighbourhood of Lake Kivu, in the north-west corner of the
Colony, under Captain Klinghardt, retired, who had done so well in the
actions at Kissenyi; they were moved by march route and on Tanganyika
steamer to Kigoma, and from there by rail to Saranda. From there again
they marched up towards Kondoa-Irangi. Captain Klinghardt was also
given command of the troops already north of Kondoa-Irangi (about two
companies) and of another company that came by rail from Dar-es-Salaam.
These movements would take a long time. Consequently, the good and
well-tried 13th Company, whose peace-station had been Kondoa-Irangi,
was at once brought by rail to near Buiko, whence it marched through
the Masai desert to Kondoa-Irangi. The march through this waterless
and little-known country had to be undertaken before the completion of
the reconnaissances, which were in progress; and to do so with what
was, according to African ideas, the large force of one company with
carriers, in the dry season, and before the heavy rains had set in,
involved some risk.
But this risk had to be run; for the force facing us at Kahe, after
its reconnoitring parties had been several times repulsed, was showing
no signs of advancing against us. At the time, therefore, the enemy
was evidently directing his principal effort towards Kondoa-Irangi.
As, for the reasons already set forth, it appeared unsound for us
to attack from Lembeni towards Kahe, I decided merely to occupy the
enemy station in the Kilima Njaro country, and to direct my main force
against the hostile group which had meanwhile pushed forward to near
Kondoa-Irangi. The execution of this project was not quite easy; much
time was needed to cover the distance of 125 miles from the detraining
stations on the Northern Railway to the Central Railway on foot, and
at any moment a change in the situation might render it necessary for
Headquarters immediately to make fresh dispositions. All the troops
must therefore be kept within reach. The various detachments could
not, as on the march from the Central to the Northern Railway, be set
in motion on different and widely-separated roads. The march of our
fifteen field and two mounted companies had to be made on one road. The
Force was thus confronted with an entirely novel and difficult task.
There was no time to lose. The detachments of Captain von Kornatzky,
Captain Otto, Lieutenant-Colonel von Bock and Captain Stemmermann,
each of four or three companies, were moved by rail at intervals of
one day, from Lembeni to Mombo and Korogwe. Thence they marched on to
Kimamba (station west of Morogoro) to the Central Railway. Manifold
difficulties arose. Hard and fast destinations could not be laid down
for the detachments for each day, more especially because heavy rains
set in which in places so softened the black soil that the troops could
literally hardly get along.
Thus it happened that one detachment made quite short marches, and
the one behind got jammed on top of it. This, however, was very
inconvenient, and interfered both with the regular service of supply
on the line of communication, and with the transport of the company
baggage, in which the relay-carriers belonging to the line of
communication had to be called in to assist. The companies now began,
according to ancient African custom, to help themselves, seized the
line of communication carriers, regardless of other orders, and simply
kept them. As the whole service on the communications depended upon
the regular working of the relay-carriers, it also became seriously
dislocated.
[Illustration: Masai.
(From a drawing by General von Lettow-Vorbeck’s Adjutant.)]
[Illustration: European Dinner-time
(From a drawing by General von Lettow-Vorbeck’s Adjutant.)]