The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-01-11
THE TRAN SVAAL.

"Oom Paul"-President Kruger Is a Brave
Old Dutchmsn Who Knows No Fears.
From the New York Tribune.
Although the Transvaal is in name
republic, 1t is really governed by a
despotic oligarchy. Indeed, Ii might
be said to be ruled by a trfumvirate,
consisting OF President Kruger, Gen.
eral Joubert and General Smit.. The
chief and best known of these is Pres
ident Kruger, or loom Paul." as he is
almost universally called by the Beers.
He is a robust old man of something
more than 20 years. In early life he
was physically the strongest man in
the whole Transvaal, and he is even
now by no means decrepit. He has a
long, narrow head, with small, cunning
eyes deeply set under furrowed brows,
a large and rather coarse nose and
mouth, and a struggling beard. There
is little of the phlegmatic Dutchman
in his manner in conversation; on the
contrary, he is voluble, excitable and
given to a profusion of gestures. In
religion he Is "Dopper," that is, a
member of the most conservative and
biggest scot among the Beers. He
used to be a great fighter and leader
of raids against the natives. When he
was a mere lad he distinguished him
self in a campaign against the Zulus.
A Boer expedition on the upper waters
of the Vaal river received tidings at
the close of a days fighting that a
Zulu impi was advancing to attack
them. The Beers, all excepting young
Kruger, refused to believe it, and lay
down to sleep, but Kruger believed the
news, determined to keep watch all
night and persuaded one oomrade to sit
up with him. Sitting on wagons on
opposite sides of the camp, their rifles
in their hands, they watched all night.
Az ofh inc hof a L L
gers keen ear caught the sound of
approaching feet. He had just time to
give the alarm when a thousand or
more Zulus charged full upon the
camp. There was a desperate struggle,
but the Beers were at last successful
and the Zulus were repulsed. But had
II not been for Kruger'S watchfulness
there is little doubt that every one of
the Beers would have been slaugh-
tered.
Kruger bears upon his body many
scars of bullets and spearheads. His
left hand minus a thumb, which he
lost many years ago. He was out
hunting when his gun burst and terri
bly, mangled the thumb. He was afraid
lockjaw would set in, and so entreated
his comrades to amputate the MEM
Der. One of them tried to do so. but
his heart failed him and he gave 1t up.
Thereupon Kruger seized a knife with
his other hand and himself cut off the
mangled thumb. The very small scar
now remaining shows how good a job
he made of 1T. He has several times
visited England on missions for his
countrymen. He first went wearing
the broad felt hat, the short jacket and
shoes of Unframed leather which form
the usual costume of a "Dopper" Boer
But on his return home his astonished
friends beheld him clad in n high silk
hat, a long black frock coat and poll
ished boots. He told them that Eng
land was a good enough country and
contained some fine houses. but all the
land seemed to belong to some one.
Even outside of London you could not
sit down under tree to smoke a pipe
without having some one come up and
say the land was his and ask you what
you were doing there. Kruger has
stubbornly refused to learn a word OF
English. and there is no man I'm the
whole republic who regards English
men with more hatred and contempt
than he does.