Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1899-12-21
The BULLETS OF IHE.BOERS
ARE RAPIDLY THINNING THE BRITISH
RANKS-ME THUENS MEN HELD IN
CHECK At SECOND MODDER RIVER
'ho British Walk into Trap-Engand Sees a
Defeat In tho Engagement.


Tho British Walk into Trap-EnqIand Sees
Defeat In tho Engagement.
LONDON, December .14.-Each i'm
portant battle seems to bring wors,
reverse for the British, and the pa
pers this morning sorrowfully admit
that Lord Methuen's check at Mag
ersfontein is the most serious even
the war has yet produced.
Accounts of the engagement from
Gen. Methucn show that it was mos,
disastrous to the british, and tha,
his loss was heavy. In dispatches te
the war office, Gen. Mcthuen says:
sour artillery shellcd very strong
position held by the enemy in long
high kopje, from 4 o'clock until dusk
Sunday. 1t rained hard last night
"The Highland brigade attacked
at daybrcak Oh Monday the south
end Of the kopje. The attack was
properly timed but failed.
"rhe guards were ordered to pro.
teot the Highlands right and rear
The cavalry and mounted infantry,
with IIowitzcr artillery battery
attacked the enemy on the left and
the guards on the right, supported
by field artillery and Howitzer artil.
lery. They shoiled the position from
daybreak, and at LIS I sent the Cor
dons to support the Highland bri.
gade. The troops held their own in
front of the enemy's entrenchmcnts
until dusk, the position extending,
including the kopje, for distance of
six miles toward Modder river. To-
day l am holding my position and
entrenching myself.
"When the IIighlanders met the
murderous point-blank fire of the
Beers, about 200 were moved down,
"The British casualties included
the 'Marquise of Winchester, major
of the second battalion of the Cold
stream Guards, who was killed, and
Col. Downham, of the first battalion
of the Gordon IIighlanders, who was
mortally wounded.
"Our loss was great. I had to face
at least 10000 men.
"The Black Watch regiment, on
reforming, was able to muster only
100 men.
"The Beers lest heavily, in the
trenches and also in the wire entan-
clements when they came into the
open in an attempt to make a flank
attack on the British.
"The terrific British artillery fire
provoked no response except from
the Bocr rifles until nearly 4 o'clock
in the afternoon, when the Gordon
llighlanders formed to renew the at
tack on the ontrenched kopje. They
advanced with the utmost gallantry
to attack the Boers, close to the
place where lay their dead and
wounded comrades of the Highland
brigade.
"Ihe enemy opened with heavy
Shrapncl fire as the British advanced,
and it was found physically impossi-
BILE to take the Bocr trenches.
"Thc British got within two hun
dred yards, but could get no nearer.
1t was here that Col. Downham fell.
The Bocrs had free recourse to
barbed wire entanglemcnts, which
offered great obstacles even after the
damage inflicted by the British ar
tillery fire.
"Thia morning (Thursday) both
sides occupied positions they held
before the battle. The greatest
bravery was displayed by both off,
GERS and mon. The wounded include
Lieut.. Col. A. E. Codrington and
Capt. Sterling, both of the First bat
TALON Of the Coldstream Guards.
"a detachment of Beers, posted
among some thick bushes to the east,
maintained q most destructive fro
on our right.
"With the remarkable talent for
taking cover, which the Beers al
ways display, thoy wore, generally
speaking, virtually invisible, and, al
though the enemy's artillery was
practically silenced, their rifle fire
was so persistent and concentrated,