Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1899-10-07
The British. ROer Mar-

The world is about to witness a very
unequal struggle between a small but
liberty loving nation Of people and the
most powerful nation on the globe. The
Beers, emigrants from Holland, first
settled in South Africa in 1862, the
Dutch East Indian Company having
started colony there as way station
where their vessels could stop for sup
plies and fresh water on the route to
the East Indies. But the British also
wanted stopping place, and in 1896.
England then being at war with France
and her ally Holland, the English took
possession of Cape Colony and all the
adjacent country, They soon managed
to make themselves detested by the in
habitants, mixture of Hollanders and
French and since then there has never
been any enduring peace in that land.
The energetic and high spirited Beers
determined to live ne longer under
British rule and in 1884 began the
great trek (immigration) and they
soon had government of their own in
Natal, country bordering on the In
dian Ocean, About the same time an.
other Republic was formed to the west
Of them called the Orange Free State.
The English law at that time was 'once
a British subject always one, i" a law
which was attempted to be enforced on
Americans in 1912. A British raiding
column entered Natal in 1912; at first it
was defeated, but being re -inforced the
Beers were oveIcome, and there was
another trek from Natal to the
Orange Free state and across the river
Naal, at that time sparsely settled by
Beers After a bloody struggle of sew
eral year duration the English con
cluded the country was not worth fight
ing for and by solemn treaty it was &C.
knowledged as an independent state by
royal proclamation. In the face Of this
fifteen years after the valuable diamond
mines at Kimberly were discovered and
British soon found a pretext to seize
them. Says the historian; 1.-THE out
rage was SO abominable that many Eng,
ishmen lwere ashamed If it, SO as a
salYe to tender consciences an indem-
nifty of $3.50 600 was paid to the Free
State in 1877. And now the British
will send a great army to take posses.
sion of the gold mines in the Transyaal,
but if the Beers fight as they have in
former wars the British will need great
armies to succeed. The chronicler of
the times says
A trinmvirate, consisting of Kruger.
Joubert and Pretorious, was formed
and placed at the head of the republic;
every man or boy, able to bear arms,
marched against the English, who were
beaten every time they fought. Hide,
oh blushing glory or rather blot out |
from the annals of our grand old Eng
land s Six Mile Spruit, where 100 Brit.
ish soldier fled before 60 Boers-incredi
Die, if it were not recorded in the off
cial report and in all English accounts
of the battle Brokers Spruit, where
9G7 English soldiers were almost ami.
hilated by few hundred undisciplined
Laing S Neck where the
Beers, without cannon, sent force on
the run three times their numbe, r of
horse. foot and artillery; lngoga,
where 1850 Beers scattered 500 English
men, killing $50 of them and all but
capturing their cannon Majuba hill,
where $50 Beers charged up a steep
nthe face of 800 English sol.
iiers, who had every advantage of posi-,
lion, and drove themin headlong flight,
Killing % including the general, Sir
George Cooley, wouuding 1874 and TAX
ng 80 prisoners And then England &C.
the independence of the