The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-12-30
BULLER'S NEXT BATTLE.
II will Probably Take Place the Middle Of
Next Week.
he WILL PUT FORTH EVERY tfFoR,
TO Fail Now Would he Ruinous
to His Reputation.

New York. December ga dispatch to
the Tribune from London says: AS the
transport Albanian, arriving at Cape
town yesterday with two battalons Of
field artillery and an ammunition column
for the Fifth division. was dispatched for
Durham. General Buffers next battle is
likely to be deferred until the middle OF
next week. He will virtually have under
his direct command three out OF the Ave
divisions sent to the Cape with fourth
division locked UP under White in Lady
smith. The remaining division Is dis
tributed along the western and northern
frontiers. With 1000 men of the orig lna
he has called three divisions into
Natal for the relief of fourth instead
of carrying them into the Free State, In
accordance with his own plan formed be-
fore he left London. Failure to relieve
Ladysmith after SO complete an abandon-
ment OF his original pan OF campaign will
be rulnous to mis- reputation. he rs eva
IDENTIFY Strengthening his arnu py all
means in his power, and Will make de-
termlned et1LIu TO crush JouDerts iOlc1
ana rescue the garrison before the arrival
of General Roberts VINO is due in cape
town in twelve days.
No record has yet been received Of the
disposition maze OF the siege train whlcn
arrived in Capetown TUESDAY, hut the
news may have been suppressed for min
itary reasons. These twelve heavy guns
VIII be Il great ADDITION to the Brush
line of attack. il there are men trained In
their use. There is good authority tnat
81 How l.ntN .,Nt. ant
addition to the British artillery. and that
there are lew officers and gunDers capable
of handling them enectively There was
short period OF practice with naval guns
on Whale Island before the Howitzer
batteries were sent to South Africa.
Much has been written about the neg
lect of the war office to send long range
guns to the front during the early period
of the campaign. The truth is that tns
guns were not in service and, when
found. men had to be trained for serving
them.
After the arrival of the Majestic at the
Cape, where she is due Saturday with
1000 infantry, there Will be only one
transport, the Victorian with 400 cavalry,
to enter the port for week.
The Sixth division will begin to arrive
about the time Lord Roberts assumes COM
mand. so that he will have 10000 fresh
troops by the middle of January. Five
battalions of the Seventh division will
start frCm England next Thursday and by
the second week in February he will have
1O, 600 additional men. The Eighth divls-
ion will be modified early in January
and the reinforcements will be increased
by 10000 imperial yoemanry and volun-
teers during the next two months There
will be a steady movement of reinforce
ments week after week to the seat of war.
Gsorge Wyndham will have a strong
case to present in defense of the war Of
fice when parliament meets, for there has
been no lack of energy and toll in carry
ing out the mobilization scheme aud
dispatcbing the largest British army ever
organized for foreign country.
Veteran officials smile grimly when they
read Winston Churchill's frantic call for
three British soldiers for every Boer and
suggest that that vulture which he met
in the woods is Still on his nerves. His
outburst in the Morning Posts second
edition yesterday has invigorated the
alarmists like Mr.. Harmsworth's journal,
and they are renewing their warfare upon
Lord Lansdowne. Sir Michael Hicks Beach
and General Wolseley, and seem deter
mined TO drive them from their posts.
These antics contrast strangely with the
coolness presence of mind and unfiincb-
, ing faith in the army which the Nation
continues to display.
The most stirring bit of war news today
was a report through Reuter- that heavy
firing had been heard Thursday in the di-
rection of Stormberg. but the war office
failed to confirm 1t, since bulletin from
General Forester Walker. under the sans
date. announced that there was no change
in the situation of Gatacre and French,
with the exception that the lndwe railway
was again in operation.