The weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1878-1881, 1881-08-09
A BOER MARKSMAN.
Shouldering the Rife and Showing
How Majuba Hill was Won
and Bottles are Smashed.

l had a long conversation to-day with a
cry Intelligent specimen of a BOer, who
forms in Newcastle one of the guards that ac-
companies the Boer leaders attending on the
commission. He spent the afternoon in my
camp, and gave me a rehearsal of the different
modes of fighting among the Beers. First of
all he began by trying his hand at shooting at
bottles, distance 100 yards, with a fifteen
Winchester repeater, which | lent him for the
purpose. With this weapon, however, he
failed to accomplish any decided success, the
bullets falling close all around, but the bot.
ties remained untouched.
81 cannot shoot with your rihe,' he OBJ
served, but give me a Martini-Ilenry rifle
and l will pick off two bottles at 200 yards"
| sent up to the camp for a Martini Henry
carbii:e, which the Boer laid hold of with a
great deal more apparent confidence, and in
the first two shots verified his boast, for the
bottles were Immediately shivered to atoms.
He next proceeded to show me the Boer mode
of shooting from behind rocks and stones.
"The great mistake Your soldiers made" he
observed, "was to aim over the stones at the
enemy, but we always fire around the cor
ner." Throwing himself fiat on the ground,
he proceeded to put this remark into practice,
and dragging himself lithely along, peered
cautiously around the right-hand corner of a
low stone that onls just concealed his form
from the sigtt of the supposed enemy. Re-
moving his hat he raised it slowly alott on
the top of his ramrod, and manauvred it so
as to cause it to have the appearance of a
mans head cautiously taking note Of the EN-
envy. At this hat All English soldier is sup
posed to have taken a pot shot, wien The
Boer suddenly let it fall, and. bringing his
body round the corner, took steady aim and
fired at a black bottle some $50 yards distant,
which in another moment was smashed to
atoms.
Another method of shooting on horseback
he showed me in a brilliant and effective
manner. Mounting his horse and uttering !
loud cry he sent ii galloping up a hill as
hard as it could go. Suddenly, without a
word of warning, the left foot was pressed to
the strip, the right leg thrown backWar
over the saddle, the man was on his feet and
the horse stopped simultaneously as if spell
l bound. Standing erect, the BOer aimed cool.
springing into the saddle, he executed the
same manUuvre in two opposite directions,
,r with signal u~ncrring aim and effect. This
man was one of $50 who first stormed and
TOOK the Majuba heights. He says that Jou'
bert's only words We're Fellows. take that
A HILL and they fastened to obey. The reason
" why SO few men advanced to the attack was
because Joubert anticipated and made SURE
that the English would endeavor simultane
r. ously to take the Mex, as we'll as surprise then
lie on their left, and he retained men to defent
VI the positions mentioned. Finding, however
~ his fears were groundless, he despatched tresl
e men to the assistance OF their comrades, bu
as by the time they arrived the Majuba Hill has
e been taken. The ninety second, he Informed
i me, were the first they encountered, and thi
le regiment fought ~stoutly, but were driven bacl
Id on the plateau towards the f1ty-eighth. Bot
&c bravely defended the position until Cole.
NJ fell, when panic, he attirms seized our men
I'd The whole scene was, however, so envelopes
ly in smoke that be could make no accurate not
or of anything and confusion prevailed every
nj where. Sir George Colley he declares t
to have been shot while in the act of tying
.; white handkerchief to d ramrOd. The Boer
g. -.
. did not know at that time that this personag
a.
Le was Sir George. This is one of the few Doe
al versions of the Majuba fight that | have hear
from men who actually took part in the tirs
81 81 advance to storm the plateau. Each tale ia
'le lies similarly with the other and | am inclil
&C. ed to think IL is truthfully told.
is --