The Express.
London, England, 1851-03-14 00:00:00

THE KAFFIR WAR.

The following let ter from our correspondent, giving
a resume of what has occurred since the commence-
ment of hostilities, will be read with the greatest
interest :

CAPE TOWN, Jag. 30.
On the 6th December Sir Harry Smith left Simint's Bay
in the Hennes to proceed a second time to the frontier, at
the urgent request of Cul. M'Kiunon, who at last began to
apprehend an outbreak in Kaffraria. Sir Harry was on
this oceadon accompanied by four companies of the 73rd
and some artillery. On the evening of the llth he had
reached KingWilliaMsTown,so that in four days he was in
the very heart of the disturbed district. From his amount*,
after Icing a few days in Katfraria, we were lad to believe
that things were in a more hopeful state than they had
hitherto been, that the war party was diminishing ta.t, that
contentions were rife among those ,A hu felt inclined to fight,
and, in short, that the danger was over. Sir Harry's
friends rejoiced at this, as the Kaffir. were doing that for
him which his own previous measures had the Met of un-
doing, inannueh as their quarrelling would frustrate the
evil effects of his late policy, which, by putting an alien and
a stranger over the (Mika race as their sup:etne chief, had
the tendency to unite them together in one body. Ilis auc-
tions, however, led one to think that frontier mutters were
not in such a very prosperous state, and that he had found
it necessary to change his policy. In repenting of the very
decided step he took in making Mr. Browlee the supnme
chief of the Gaikas, he fell hack on his old conciliatory
policy, and placed the rebellious chief Sauffilli's neither,
Sutu, as the head of all the Gaikas. When Sir Harry did
this, there is no doubt that nut only Sandilli and his bro-
ther, Ante, but every Kaffir in liatfraria, knew that, had
the Governor the power, he never would have retunied to
the old system of patting them OR the back and telling them
to sit still," but that he would have advanced at onee and
steadily proceeded to their tiled salting:l6.m ; so that they
felt that they had gained something like a victory, and
Sanililli knew that he himself, and he only, was the chief
of his people.
On the 30th Deninver, however, we heard news that put
all doubts at an end, for a state of thing; had taken place
on the frontier that inure than realised the worst fears of
even the greaten alarmists; the Kaffir* had risen on all
aides; our handful of troops were in the midst of dangers;
the 6th and Vith had antlered severely ; the troops were
besieged in their forts, and Sir Harry was at Fort Con,
in the gorge of the Amatola hills, where he was hemmed
in by the enemy, who lent entire possession of the sur-
rounding country; the military villages were attacked.
and many people murdered; and, worse than all, the
Kaffir police had gone over to the enemy, many
of them taking with them their ammunition and horses ;
and we might soon expect to hear of that .tote of train-
ing that we had got these into being 141011 used to our
serious hurt. _ .

No sooner did thin intelligence r,:ach Cape Town than 220
of the 73rd, with about :in Artillery and some mounted
Cape Riflemen, were embarked on hoard the Hermes at
Simon's Bay, under cononand of Col. Mete, the Quarters
Master General. They reached Buffalo on the ith, and
were all landed at East London the same day. The news
there was of the most alarming nature. The Kaffir; were
abroad in thousands, well mounted and armed, showing a
savage ferocity in everything they did to an extent never
witnessed lietine--even daring the troops to meet them
on the open field. Already at the very threshold of the
war, more than 50 of our troops had been killed and
wounded, showing that the Kahn; are now far from Iwing
a despicable enemy. for 1 do not behest, that during the
whole course of any previous Kaffir war we ever lost so
many men an we have nlready done in this. The Guvenuir
had lost no time in proceeding from King William's Town
to Fort Cox, while two divisions were sent under Colonels'
Ere and M'Kinnou to the skirts of the Amatolas. Colonel
M'Kinnon was sent to the Keiskaatina, where he was so
hotly received by the Kaffir:4 that he was forced to retrace
his steps, which he did, though not without considerable
loss both in killed and wounded, and finding un his way
bark the dead bodies of Morteen of the lith, who, when
out on duty, had been attacked by the enemy, who, after
cutting their throats, had stripped them of almost every-
thing they possessed. The attack on Colonel M'Kinnon
was most unexpetted. A friend of mine belonging to one
of the regiments told me that before they entered the Kei4-
kamma Gorge, where they were attacked, the troops had
halted by the side of a small stream that run through an
open piece of country. The Hottentot Riflemen had knee-
haltered their horses, the infantry had piled arms, and
while the men were engaged in preparing their morn-
ing meal numbers of K Airs, with their frau.,
came up with milk, bread, and such like, which
- -

they offered for sales' They all mingled fres:ly with
the soldiers during the hour they halted, and ho little ap-
prehension was there of an attack that our muskets were
not even loaded. It appears, however, that while they were
moving thus freely among the soldiers, the Kaffir,' were then
holding a meeting about half a mile off in the hush, when it
was discussed whether they should not then rush down upon
the soldiers and attack them when they were off the guard,
and at this meeting some of the Kaffir police belonging to
M`Kinnon's division attended. It was resolved that
they should not be attacked until they were filing through
the pass that they were just about to cuter. No sooner did
the troops resume their march than the Kaffirs that had
been mixing thus freely among them, and doing them such
goods offices, seized their muskets and ran off to the heights
that commanded the pass, from which they commenced
pelting them with such a shower of bullets, as had
there been anything like good firing among them
very few of the troops would have succeeded in
reaching the open country. In this affair there
were killed I officer and 1 I men, and wounded 2 officers and 7
men. M'Kinnun finding the country thus up in arms, and
fearing that Colonel Eyre, who had been sent to the Ka-
bousie, a river that runs by the eastern flanks of the Am.-
tola, might be surprised, took the precaution of ordering
him to retire on King William's Town, which he managed to
do without any loss. After Colonel M'Kinnon's division
reached Fort Cox, they remained with the governor so
closely hemmed in by the enemy that crowded the heights
all round, that in order to send out a despatch it was neces-
sary to do so by an escort of 80 mounted riflemen.
The 9lnt Regiment fared the worst, for Col. Somerset, the
commandant of Fort flare, thinking that Sir Harry and his
considerable party at Fort Cux might be in want of provi-
sions, sent some cattle under an extort of the Cape Mounted
Rifles and the 91st. On their way they were attacked with
great vigour by a large body of Kaffirs, when a heavy
tiring commenced, that was heard from both forts, between
which they were about an equal distance. On this tiring
being heard at Fort Hare, a reinforcing party was sent,which
arrived on the field when the others were retreating. Not-
withstanding this accession of force, the Kaffir' did
nut give in an inch, but fought with a fury and
valour that the 91st, experienced in Kaffir war-
fare, had never seen them display before. Our
troops could not stand the heavy fire that cut them up
from the thousands of men round them, and retreated.
The Kaffirs still followed them up, and so desperate were
they in their attack that they rushed on and fought hand
in hand with their foe, grappling our soldiers by their cross-
belts with one hand, while with the other they stabbed them
with the heads of their assegais, that they had broken off
short for that purpose. Our troops got back to Fort Hare,
though with terrible loss, having 25 men and two officers
—Lieutenants Gordon and Melvin—killed and 17 wounded.
The only thing there was as a set-off against these
reverses was the attack on Fort White, which is only a
collection of mud huts surrounded by a wall of the same
material. The Kaffirs had repeatedly attacked this place,
and had been as often driven back, but never with such a
loss as on the last occasion. Flushed no doubt with
their successes in other quarters, the Kaftirs, under San-
diUi in person, approached the weal in great numbers, till
coining within gun-shot they were received with such a
brisk and well sustained fire that they could nut stand it
long, but retreated, leaving from 20 to 30 dead on the field,
with ;about as many more wounded, among whom was
Ants, the brother of Sandilli.
After landing the troops at Buffalo Mouth, the Hermes
started the same evening for Natal with instructions for the
governor to endeavour to get the Zoolahs to attack the
Amakosas in the rear, so as to cause a diversion in favour
of Sir Harry. Sir Harry appeared rather doubtful of their
assistance, and held out the promise of all the cattle they
arc able to lift.
There are about 71 soldiers in East London. They are
chiefly engaged fortifying the commissariat stores, and
erecting a sound fort, on which they have placed
a 3-pound gun. The officer's families and others are
ordered from their houses into barracks, and everything is
done that can be thought of to resist an attack, as Buffalo
affords the only certain communication between Kaffratia
and this colony. Pato, the chief of the Slambie tribes,
who inhabit the coast country at present, professes great
friendship for us, and a great deal depends on the continua-
tion of this good-will. And this friendship is not passive,
but goes the length of doing the most useful services. For
when a party of the Cape Corps was ordered to conveyxome
waggons to King William's town, Pato scoured the whole
country with a thousand well mounted Kaffirs, each armed
with a carbine and bundle of assegais. The communication
between King William's Town and East London is only
maintained through hits influence, and l'ato's men carry
Sir Harries despatches. The Hermes landed 30 men, with
Lieut. West and a medical officor ; and as they have
brought two 2.1-10. howitzers, they will be able to make a

good resistance in the event of being attacked, which is not
very improbable, inasmuch u 40 head of cattle were stolen
the night before they landed.
The governor is back in King William's Town, after
leaving Fort Cox surrounded by a guard of more than 200
men. _ . .

There can be no doubt that he was deceived, both as to
the numbers and equipment of the Kaffir", he went to chas-
tise, else he would not have been so rash as to ale: nee into
a country from which he and his troops were glad to retreat
within a very few days. Indeed, there is no doubt that,
well us Sir Ilarry does know the Kaffir's; valuable as his
authority on this subject may be considered, it is to los
feared, that not only has this knowledge been user
estimated; but his influence over the Kaitiri ben
always looked upon as being very much more Sties from
late events, it has turned out to be. Another Villory hna
been gained by the troops at Fort Beaufort, where the chief
Ilermintis Wan killed, an account of which accompanies this
hurried sketch.
I have written this in the midst of great hurry and eon-

fusion, and nut even time to look over wilt 1 lia;e
said. . . .

The Hermes has embarked 400 men, together with
150 tons of stores, for the use of the troops, sic., in
Kaffraria, and starts this evening, January 3utls, for
Buhl& Mouth.
Colonel Napier's suggestion in the Times of the lath of
December, as to the Buffalo, has been in vs • this, last too
iinsi us many mules as can be got are being sent to
the frontier.
The victory over the Kat River people by the inha-
bitants of Beaufort has been so decisive as not
only to he the Moguls of dispiriting the Kaffir., and
giving confidence to the colonists, but giving suffieit nt as-
Ruralise that the enemy they have to deal with is anything
but a fisrmidable one, and that the difficulty will not he
that of putting a stop to the war, whisk Is ill Is' eel
enough, but that of preventing anything liac a war fisr the
future. The people of the Kat hirer district are chiefly
the Hottentots who were located there in what wise called
"the ceded territory" by Sir A. Stockenstrom, in order to
form a frontier people intermediate between the Kaffir
and the colony. Hitherto they have always acted with
us, and liermanus, their chief, slid good wink.°
during the lost war. On this outbreak, however, he took a
different side, for having collected a rabble, made up of
Hottentots and Katfirs, he commenced by plundering tho
colony, and at last attacked Fun Beaufort, where he fared
so badly that his irregulars werctotally routed, and he him-
self killed. The most remarkable feature in this defeat is

the little progress that these people appear to hare made in
the use of tire-arms, for although ilermanteie people
had upward.. of WO killed besides wounded, not a white
man received a scratch, and among the black is
the amount of killed and wounded together is not more
than two or three. This affair, coupled with the gallant de-

....
fence of Fort White, makes a pima set off n7miust the
losses we experienced at first.
The Dee and Hermes war steamers arrived at Buffalo
Mouth on the 21st January, bringing with them in 011,300
men, who were all landed in a few hours, as the bar of the
river was quite smooth, with no surf. The Phtenix, colo-
nial steamer, will be up in a day or two with 300 more,
which will throw a body of 1,600 men into Kalfraria, and
of a kind eminently adapted to Inert the Kaffir either on
the bill or in the hush. These levies will enable Sir harry
to go to ton relief of the several forts that are now in a
state of siege, and will soon be in want of provisions ; so
in a few days we may expect mine important news. The
chief topic of conversation at Buffalo is as to whether the
Rifle Cape Corps arc to be trusted. There is no doubt
of their having been tampered with by the Rat River
Hottentots, that were so signally routed the other day at
Fort Beaufort; and people say openly, that on the tutu-
sion of the gully from that place, the reason why
these troops were restrained was that they could
not be trusted: Letters have been found written by

the men of this corps, in which they expressed great
discontent, and they have often been heard to wish
for deliverance from the English. At Buffalo there was no
intelligence from Fort Hare. At Fort Cox they were so
closely hemmed in, that, although the spring from which
they are supplied with water is in the immediate neigh •
bourhuod, it is necessary to send a watering party of 100
men. At Fort White the Kaffirs have collected in thou-
sands, occupying the level country which surrounds it,
called the Lithe Flats; where they have thrown up en •
trenchments and dug ditches to prevent the besieged being
relieved from King NVillium's Town. As they have only got
a few days' provisions in this fort it is absolutely necessary
that it be soon relieved, and Sir Harry Smith has been only
waiting for sufficient men to advanee to its relief, and now
that he has 1,000 men and two field pieces landed, he will
be enabled to proceed at once. Sandilli is very busy on
these Mats, where he is in person. At King William's
Town they have placed about 40 sentries. Last week some
Fingoes were out cutting hay at a little distance from that
place, when they were attacked by about 300 Ka tin, whom
they succeeded in driving back, alter killing three or four
of them, and without any loss to themselves. On the
22nd dispatches came down front Sir harry, who is
still at. King William's Town, and with rather a scanty

vrardrobc, as he could only bring hisgaddlebain, full from

Fort Cur: The commidlicatiocit between King William's
Town and Graham's Town isonly kept up by smile Fingoes,
who carry despatches between these pluses at the risk of
their lives. The last despatches sent by the Governor were
taken by some Kaffir,. from Lieut. Drift, where Seyolo holds
the line of route with a large body of his men. Some of the
Slambies at Buffalo were surprised last night by a body of
marauding Guikas, who marched off with II cattle iuul
killed one of the Slambics. There was firing heard yester •
day at King Willliatn's Town in the direction of Colonel
Somerset's camp.

Exttrmination! extermination! is ever now in the

mouths of the colonists; nothing fur Kollin but extermi-
nation. The disease cannot he remedied in their unskilful

hands, so the patient must be put to death. Farmers,
traders, merchants, and winklcrs, unite in the cry, and have
all at once come to admire the sure and certain plait the
merciless Boers adopted in dealing with their barbarous

neighbours; and the coolness these. Dutchmen showed in

daily "potting," their brace of Kadin or more, cannot now
be sufficiently admired. The cry has been taken up and

echoed from mouth to mouth, increasing in damn'r us it
advanced, until it gave its last and loudest utterance in Sir
Harry's proclamation to destroy and exterminate for ever.
Nothing could possibly be more pleasing to the numerous
petty merchants and traders than the prospect of a war of
such a nature, which they know must extend over a
very considerable period of time, and thus prolong thu
stay of large bodies of troops on the frontier, whom they will
be able to supply with the necessaries of life ut the
most exorbitant and scandalous prices. Any one that danw
to harbour a thought, far less express a word of compassion
fur these brave but unfortunate people that are now resisting
the advance of invaders who they believe seek to take from
them their country and to extinguish their race, will at
once be set down for a fool. And if he should charac-
terise this idea of extermination ir something dreadful,
inhuman, and impracticable, they will not hesitate to call
him disaffected to that government which they themselves
have only been called from abusing by the fur inure im-
portant pressure of their own individual affairs. Farmers
are to the full as interested in this outcry against the Kadin
as the winkles; and assuredly were Kalfraria a less beau-
tiful country than it is, and did no rattle low pleasantly
from out of the green kluots of its hills, wa should hear
much less of the savage and demoniacal character of its
inhabitants.

It has been the custom since this outbreak to supply the
public from week to week with narrations, in which we are
told of the tortures and sufferings that have been inflicted on
frontier people ; but generally the week following the de-
tailed account, we find that they are either contradicted, or,
what is the same thing, they arc said to want confirmation.
Now, it is the horrid fate of women said to have been mur-
dered in the military villages that is descrilxst to us, with a
minuteness of detail that is absolutely terrifying; but the
women, unfortunately for our alarmists, are all sound and
whole, and we are not sure that they were not conveyed to
places of safety by those enemies who in all their
barbarity have nevertheless sufficient gallantry to respect
a woman's weakness and extend to her their pro-
tection : another time it is so distinctly told us that
three men are murdered, that there can be uo rea-
sonable ground for doubt on the subject, for their
names are given, and the degree of kindred in which they
stand to each other, when, to ! in the very next taper we
arc told in terms just as distinct as before that it is all a
mistake ; that Bear Moorereft and his son are nut dead, but
that they are still alive and kicking. One woman that had
the misfortune to have her clothes taken front her is sym-
pathised with as much as if it had been her skin that was
stripped off, and there is no name had enough fur these
barbarous wretches who could do such a thing, forgetting
all the while that a Kaffir, did he judge by his own feelings
of what is agreeable, could hardly think, that to be without
clothes, was a very dreadful suffering, seeing that to him-
self the condition of nudity is nearly one of perfect hap-
piness.

The evil effects of this terrifying gossip already begins
to show itself. Our hearts begin to quail, and stout
burghers are worse than children terrified by their nurse's
tales, who refuse to go out into the dark unless clinging to
her skirts, for they refuse to go to the front at all ; and
some, rather than go, have ignobly turned their backs and
fled. To such an extent has this evil practice of story-
telling been carried that a frontier journal finds it necessary
to say it " cannot urge too strongly upon the attention of
the people the importance of discountenancing exaggerated
rumours in reference to the savage enemy." " The power
of the foe is wonderfully magnified, and the consequence
is that persons even of courageous hearts are led to quail.
Thus shadows have struck more terror to the soul of these
brave burghers than possibly could the substance of ten
thousand Katfirs, for the Graham's Town Journal goes on
to say that to these (which are mostly to be sought for in
its own columns) "is to be attributed the disinclination
which so many evince to move to the front."
The efforts of the Kaffirs have been chiefly directed against
those who hold military possession of the country between
the Keiskamma and the Kei, and which they nut very un-
reasonably believe to be theirs and theirs only, because it
was there they were bred and born—because their old
Gaikas grave is at the bottom of a deep glen in the Ama-
tola hills. And that this is the case, an extract from the
Cape Town Mail goes to prove :—" Very few Kaffirs had
entered the colony. The marauders within the boundary
are believed to he mostly those Kadin who were lately in
the service of the colonists."
It mug not, however, be understood that from this there
is no danger, or that the Kaffirs are not in earnest. As-
suredly they are; and the danger is great and imminent.
Sir Harry's hands must be strengthened, and the Karnes
must first be shown the utter hopelessness of striving against
England, before they can conic to be dealt with in any
other way. But it will be well after the stitife is over, and
when colonial and Kaffir claims come to be adjudicated by
, men living at a distance from the scene of those exploits,
; that they should know that these people are not the blood-
thirsty demons they are made out to bo—that, like a certain

adiridoal of their own sable hue, they an not quite so
black as thej are painted ; and that, had they any means
ahalogoos to our press of telling the world how it is they
pa to be in the hostile position they are in, we would,
ryhaps. find out that the Kaffir. wen not altogether
guilty, and that the colonists were a good way from being
altogether innocent.
Nevis ha. just come in from Kaffraria of the defeat of
the Kaffir. in an attack on Alice and Fort hate. The
aimed, was in great form, and their object appeared to
he to seise the cattle that were in our charge that belonged
to the Fiascoes and our people. The Flagon belonging to
the location near Mr. Valilerstood's house (the tumniis-
loner) brims, d very well, charging the Kaffir repeatedly,
and with great valour. 1 have just seen a letter from an
of in Fort Mare, who says that they played their
24-lh. gun. tin-I slid great esetution, which will account
for the great lens among the Kaffir., who left above l(lt/
dead. There were only six Fingoes killed, so we
may fairly prv,uine that the artillery did the must of
th, work. f Kaffir. succeeded in taking 200 head of
eutVe, whit is is rather a whom. los.. The C. M. Ritht
Lard slid their basing done so will tend to dissipate
the idea of their bring disaffected.
The Hennes starts tor Buffalo Mouth this evening, 30th
January, with 4ilo kvie• awl about 131/ tons of military
Mores.

ARRIVAL OF THE BRAZILIAN
MAIL