The Anglo Boer War was fought by Britain and her Empire against the Boers.  The British Army was reinforced by volunteer contingents from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Cape Colony and Natal. The Kaffrarian Rifles was made up of volunteers. William signed up with the Kaffrarian Rifles on 19 Oct 1899. The Kaffrarian Rifles were embodied on 18 October 1899 and were to be the garrison of East London.

The Boers were comprised of the combined forces of the South African Republic (Transvaal)and the Republic of the Orange Free State.  The Boer Republics declared war on 11th October 1899 and the conflict ended on 31st May 1902.

It is not clear in the original text which regiment William signed up for, but we know from attestation papers that William joined Burghersdorp Town Guards and District Mounted Troops and left on 25 Sept 1902. There were some 125 Town Guard units during the Anglo-Boer War.

In September 1899 British forces were concentrating on the borders of South African Republic and the Republic of the Orange Free State. By the time war began nearly all Uitlanders, the mainly British migrant workers in the gold mines, left Transvaal.  William described leaving Transvaal on 1 October 1899 for East London on Page 59 of the diary. South African History Online has a good description of events of this time.

William signs the Journal and dates it as 1904, which suggests that he wrote about events retrospectively.

William appears to jot down the address of the Miners’ Phthisis Sanatorium on a empty section of paper. He entered the Sanatorium in 1915, so it appears that this note was written then.