Petticoat in Mafeking. The siege letters of Ada Cock . . . (1974)

\". . . with annotations and a vindication of Baden-Powell\"

Although it is a mixed bag - diaries, a defence of Baden-Powell and appendixes on various subjects, this rarely found self-published book is a useful addition to the large Mafeking bibliography.

The 57 surviving letters of Ada Cock to her sister cover a period of eight months, from the day before the siege bagan to the arrival of relief wagons nearly four weaks after Mafeking was relieved. The approximately twice-weekly letters offer a blend of domesticity and observation of the military and other events across the town over the period of the siege.

The letters are annotated by the author and accompanied by a large and well-chosen selection of photographs, drawing and maps.

The letters, notes and illustrations take up about half the book\'s x + 174 pp.

Apart from appendixes, reference and index, much of the rest of the book is devoted to a spirited defence of the commander of the besieged town\'s garrison, Colonel Baden-Powell, whose achievements had been downplayed in Brian Gardner\'s \"Mafeking - A Victorian Legend\", which had been published eight years previously.

The two-colour illustrated dustjacket is essentially complete although rubbed and chipped at the extremities with three unclosed tears, the longest being about 5 cm. The brown paper-board covers, gilt to the spine, have slight shelf wear but are otherwise unblemished. Both endpapers carry a map of Mafeking Town and Mafikeng Stadt. The illustrated text is printed on coated paper and remains unmarked and undiscoloured.