An important North West Canada Medal awarded to Major Charles Ross, D.S.O., who, having served as a civilian scout for the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars 1877-79, was appointed a Chief Scout during the North-West Rebellion in Canada in 1885: thereafter, he quickly rose to prominence for his gallantry in action, and, after further adventures, was decorated for his bravery with Roberts’ Horse at Sannah’s Post and appointed to command the Canadian Scouts in 1901, prior to forming Ross’ Scouts in the Great War - a remarkable career retold in Neil Speed’s entertaining biography Born to Fight

North West Canada 1885, 1 clasp, Saskatchewan (Chas. Ross, Mounted Police Scout), impressed naming, good very fine £3000-3500

Charles Ross, who was born at Orange, New South Wales, in July 1857, the son of Scottish parents, made his way to America at the tender age of nine years, as a stowaway bound for California, where he attended Santa Clara College. Having then lived with the Indians in Nevada for seven years - ‘voluntarily or enforced is unknown’ - and spent two years with the Mormons in Utah, he served as a civilian scout to the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars of 1877 (against the Nez Pere), 1878 (against the Bannock) and 1879 (against the Ute).

Moving to Canada in the 1880s, he enlisted in the North-West Mounted Police at Regina in August 1884 and served as Chief of Scouts in Colonel Otter’s Column in the North-West Rebellion of 1885, gaining at least one mention in despatches. A glimpse of Ross in action is to be found in Toronto Mail reporter “Eskimo Billy” Fox’s account of the battle of Cutknife Hill that May:

‘Charlie Ross, the Police Scout was there. He had a brother’s death to avenge and anything with a red skin received no mercy from him. He dealt with them in their own fashion. As he was rushing down the ravine he came upon an Indian who, seeing he was discovered, feigned death. But Ross’ quick eye saw through the disguise. Another man might have passed on and received a shot in the back. But he did nothing of the kind, and as he ran past drew his revolver and like a flash a bullet sped into the red skin’s brain. Down in the coulee and close to the heaviest part of the scrub, they came upon four Indian ponies which their owners had left in a hurry. These they captured, Ross recognising one of them as belonging to Chief Little Poplar ... And now there were signs of the enemy crawling down towards the creek again and on towards the guns. The had to be dislodged; at first rush our men would have to expose themselves on the ridge to the full fire of those in ambush.

Ross, who had been through there before, knew just where to go, and shouted, “Come on, boys,” and with a bound he disappeared over the ridge. The boys were there. The way some of ‘C’ Company and the Mounted Rifles “went for” that bush is deserving of every praise ... Colonel Otter therefore ordered Captain Nash to clear the woods in the rear, and this was beautifully accomplished by his company and some Police Scouts, the ubiquitous Ross, as usual, a prominent figure. Then they returned, crossed the creek, and, with the scouts, drove the enemy back from the side also ... ’

Ross was duly singled out for special mention by Colonel Otter:

‘Constable Ross, North-West Mounted Police, our Chief Scout, was always ready to lead a dash or take his place in the skirmish line. In fact, he seemed everywhere and at the proper time.’

On leaving the N.W.M.P. as a Staff Sergeant in 1890, Ross continued on his travels, including an unhappy stint in the Yukon Gold Rush in 1897, when he was backed by a dishonest senior government official.

Next actively employed in the Boer War, he served as a Lieutenant in ‘F’ Squadron, Roberts’ Horse from January-April 1900, with whom he was mentioned in despatches and awarded the D.S.O. for his gallantry at Sannah’s Post (London Gazette 19 April 1901). Neil Speed’s Born to Fight takes up the story:

‘The men of ‘U’ and ‘Q’ Battery and Roberts’ Horse that were on that slope leading down to the drift were now totally exposed at point blank range to 400 riflemen hidden along several hundred yards of the bed of Koornspruit. The ambush in which the British found themselves had been well executed; that triangle of ground between the two drifts was being swept by rifle fire from Koornspruit and rifle and shell fire from the far side of the Modder; it was soon to become a fight to either save or capture the guns.

Both Batteries wheeled and Colonel Dawson, the officer now commanding Roberts’ Horse, immediately gave the same order to his men when he realised what was happening. As the two Batteries turned to flee a four hundred round volley from the Boer riflemen tore into their ranks. ‘U’ Battery being to the fore bore the brunt; the riflemen not wanting such a prize to escape had concentrated on the horses but the gunners and drivers also suffered great casualties. Such a burst of concentrated sound so close to ‘U’ Battery’s horse teams caused those that could still move to stampede, but further intense fire brought all the horses down with the exception of one team that was carried along with ‘Q’ Battery.




We can imagine that Dawson’s order and rifle fire ringing in his ears Ross put spur to his horse and pulled the rein hard to the left. As the horse sprung forward it is reasonable to think that Ross did instinctively what he had learned from his youth. He gave his horse free rein as he bent his left knee to slide his weight out of the saddle and down the left side of the horse using the animal as a shield from the fire sweeping in from his right; God those Red Skins had known a thing or two. He stayed there for about thirty yards, clinging onto the saddle accoutrement straps.

The seven guns that managed to execute the 130 degree left turn along with Roberts’ Horse were now racing away from Koornspruit towards the partly constructed new rail station and iron out-buildings of Sanna’s Post. All the way taking hits from a continuous fusillade. Ross had regained the saddle and by laying forward over the shoulder of his horse, his head pressed down beside its neck he was offering only his backside as a target.

The seven escaping guns having covered better than a 1000 yards were ordered into action by Phipps-Hornby 100 yards short of the new rail station. In a swirl of dust one of the guns overturned having suffered losses of crew and wounds to most of its horses. As the remaining horses struggled with the dead weight of the overturned gun and limber one by one they were shot down in their harness. The remaining six guns came into action as their horses were led to what little safety was offered by the buildings at the station site. Under the ceaseless fire men continued to fall; Roberts’ Horse found themselves in no better position. Some were returning rifle fire from behind their fallen mounts while others, without cover, lay or knelt to fire, holding back the Boer endeavours to take the guns. Being totally exposed, the men of Roberts’ Horse also suffered severely from the rifle fire. As the men serving the guns died or fell wounded, volunteers came forward from Roberts’ Horse to assist. We can imagine Ross lying in the dry grass and thinking of the similarity he now found himself in to the fight at Cut Knife Hill all those years ago and realised the need for action. He had fired his last round and rolled a little onto his left side to bring the butt of the carbine back so he could push a handful of cartridges into the waiting empty magazine. As he groped for the ammunition in the bandolier he saw an artilleryman take a shell from the limber, turn toward his gun, stiffen then crumple, the shell slipping from his hands. A gunner, his hands outstretched ready to receive the shell to feed it to the open smoking breech stood frozen. Ross scrambled to his feet, bent low, covered the few yards to the limber, scooped up the shell and thrust it into the hands of the waiting gunner. The weight of the round was all that was needed to reactivate the disciplined hands back into the loading-firing sequence; Ross kept the rhythm flowing. When a gap appeared in the ranks of the artillerymen or when Ross saw a need for an extra man at one of the guns he would call one of his riflemen from the grass and direct him to his new post. The artillery fire was having no positive effect on the Boers; due to firing down the slope and the depth of the stream’s bed most of the shells were passing over Koornspruit ... ’

Following the action at Sannah’s Post, and on the arrival of General Hutton, Ross joined the the 1st Mounted Infantry Scouts, but also served on attachment to the Royal Canadian Dragoons, an early “mention” from his C.O., Colonel Anderson to his senior Hutton, revealing his continuing gallantry under fire:

‘Lt. A. L. Howard I would again bring this officers name to Notice as having done exceptionally good work with his machine-gun. At Leeuwberg on the 7 July Lt. Howard took his gun up into the firing line of the 1 M.I. and very materially assisted in keeping the enemy back. When the line was outflanked and compelled to retire Lt. Howard, having had his own horse, his Sergeant’s horse and the gun horse hit, also the gun carriage hit twice, took the gun off the carriage and walked away with it under his arm. Subsequently he and his Sergeant (Sergeant E. Holland) went out and recovered the gun carriage and also brought in two wounded men of the 1 M.I.

Lt. Howard’s coolness in action is remarkable and he and his gun are always to be relied upon.

I fully endorse the report of Colonel Alderson. This officer has been several times mentioned to me for exceptional service and I have more than once had occasion to remark his coolness under fire and intrepid conduct in action.’

Next removing as second-in command to the Canadian Scouts under Major “Gat” Howard, Ross himself assumed command of the unit following Howard’s death in early 1901 - the circumstances of the latter’s death, gunned down while a prisoner of the Boers, prompted Ross to make his Scouts to swear an oath not to take any Boer prisoners (Thomas Pakenham’s The Boer War refers). Indeed the period of Ross’ command would witness the Canadian Scouts winning a fearsome reputation, and indeed no end of success in much heavy fighting, their gallant C.O. gaining further “mentions”, a typical example stemming from his part in a big advance towards the Heilbron-Wolvehoak line in the period January-April 1902. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Great Boer War takes up the story:

‘The advance ended in the capture of 147 of the enemy, who were picked out of holes, retrieved from amid the reeds of the river, called down out of trees, or otherwise collected. So thorough was the operation, that it is recorded that the angle which formed the apex of the drive was one drove of game upon the last day, all the many types of antelope which form one of the characteristics and charms of the country having been herded into it. More important even than the results of the drive was the discovery of one of De Wet’s arsenals in a cave in the Vrede district. Half-way down a precipitous krantz, with its mouth covered by creepers, no writer of romance could have imagined a more fitting headquarters for a guerilla chief. The find was made by Major Ross’s Canadian Scouts, who celebrated Dominion Day by this most unusual achievement. Forty wagon-loads of ammunition and supplies were taken out of the cave.’

Ross remained in South Africa at the end of hostilities, opening trading posts and poaching ivory from British and German East Africa, the latter activity so successfully that he was invited in 1907 to become an Assistant Game Ranger, in which role he guided the safaris of ex-President Roosevelt in 1909 and of “Buffalo” Jones in 1910. Nor is not without interest that his wife, Beatrice, established a friendship with Karen Blixen about this time - many years later the subject of a major Hollywood film, Out of Africa.

Once again, however, the intervention of hostilities of 1914 saw him return to uniform, this time as founder and commander of Ross’ Scouts, a troop of the East African Mounted Rifles, in which he fought in German East Africa, raiding enemy territory up until his sudden resignation in December 1914. Thereafter, he is believed to have served in the same theatre of war in the 25th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (a.k.a. the Frontiersmen), and, according to one published source, rendered ‘yeoman services as an Intelligence Officer behind enemy lines and was several times mentioned in despatches’. More certain s the fact he was convalescing back in London by the end of 1917.

Ross returned to his appointment in the Game Department after the War, but died of pneumonia in June 1922. ‘A superb scout, and a restless, adventuresome, entrepreneurial man with an untidy domestic life’ (Carman Miller, Professor of History, McGill University), he was buried in the Eldama Ravine Cemetery in the Rift Valley, Kenya.

N.B.
Another officially impressed North West Canada Medal to Ross is held in a private collection in Australia, together with his D.S.O. and Boer War and Great War campaign awards.