by C.L.Norris-Newman. (8 3/4 x 5 1/2"; 395 pages; 25 illustrations; 3 large pull-out maps. Africana Reprint Library.) Those of us interested in Victorian Colonial Campaigns owe our devout thanks to the Africana Reprint Library for putting out so many fascinating books about campaigns in Africa which otherwise would be beyond all hope of ownership and indeed could only be obtained through libraries with the greatest difficulty. This volume is the reprint of the 1882 edition with new material added including a most interesting Foreword by Dr. Oliver Ransford who is well known to us as a modern writer on the two Boer Wars. The sixth to be issued in the Africana Reprint Library series of facsimile reproductions of early Southern African works, this is one of the series which will eventually comprise 24 matching volumes designed to cover the major areas of historical narrative. These volumes issued at two-monthly intervals in both a standard hard-back edition and a fully leather-bound edition, numbered and limited to 100 copies. At the time of writing the price is not known but if you wish to obtain copies I suggest you write to the Africana Book Society (PTY) Limited, 35J Upper Village, Carlton Centre, P.O.Box 1071 Johannesburg, South Africa. The short war of ISSI, the only war in the whole of the Victorian period which we lost, was of far more significance than at the time considered and in a sense it was the end of an era because after 1881 British Colonial activities tended to be more in the direction of commercial and strategic aspirations rather than improving the physical and spiritual welfare of subject races. That is beyond our scope and we are interested solely in the tactics and fighting of the British soldier and his opponents. This is a small and fascinating war, sadly neglected by wargamers (apart from myself I cannot think of any other wargamer who has a Boer army) and yet so suited for table-top activities, particularly in a campaign sense. The actions were relatively small in size and the numbers involved and, because of their incredible marksmanship and ability to use their native terrain, the Boer army need not be numerically large. The book has some fascinating appendices and, in its way of describing the combatants, their arms, tactics and general fighting, forms an ideal text book for the Colonial wargamer. More Book Reviews Handbook for Colonial Wargamers The Cavalry The Battle of Blenheim Oared Fighting Ships Wargames Through the Ages Vol. 4 1861-1945 Before Endeavors Fade: A Guide to the Battlefields of the First World War With the Boers in the Transvaal and Orange Free State 1880-81 Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 175 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1976 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com