Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-11-23

| of the Fight.
In my previous accounts OF the battle
Of Elandslaagte L was compelled TO de-
| scribe very briefly the conclusion of
the operations. L am now able, hOwev-
| e., to send you, in greater detail, an
| account of the final phases of the en-
gagemenr writes the London Stand
| ards war correspondent from Lady
| smith, under date of Oct. 80
In the course of the advance of the
Devonshire regiment, to which / had
| attached myself for the purpose of OBJ
serving the engagement, it was Speedi-
ly made evident by painful experience
| that the Beers had lost none of their
| old skill in the use of the rifle. Their
shooting was as deadly as ever But
while their craftsmanship had not de-
Perforated our training had improved.
The lessons of previous disasters had
not been forgotten, and our men dis
played an aptitude for seeking every
natural means of cover which, COM
bined with their dash and gallantry,
brought them every moment nearer TO
the top of the ridge without dispropor
tionate loss.
Presently the hill on which the enc
my We're posted was almost encircled
by a ring of fire. The DevonShireS,
Gordon highlanders and MancheSters,
as they drew closer to the Beers, were
manifestly impatient to charge them
at the point of the bayonet-the last ar
gument of the British infantryman.
But the moment had not yet come. The
air seemed thick with bullets, while
above our heads the Shrek of the shells
and the thunderclaps of the bursting
shrapnel made n din that was appall-
ing to those who had not had previous
experience of modern projectiles.
So keen were the rank and file of the
Devonshires that more than one man
exposed himself to the deadly aim of
the Beers merely in order to satisfy
himself as to the progress of the fight.
l heard one soldier invite his comrade
to put up his head and see how the
Beers were getting on. Il will as soon
as there is room for it, was the reply,
a very natural one considering that the
air seemed to consist of flying lead.
The Gordon highlanders were espe-
cially anxious to teach the enemy Il
lesson. Their regiment was represent
ed at Majuba Hill, and the Beers had
afterward referred to them in deriSion
as "Kaffirs clothed in kits" The men
were keen on wiping out the insult and
to this end bore themselves with the
most reckless courage. Nor were the
MancheSters one whit less ardent or
determined. From my position on tie
left front l was unable to follow the
movements of that regiment very
closely but the steadiness and volume
of their fire showed that their hearts
were in the work. The action ut this
stage had lasted for about an hour
when rain commenced to fall in tor
rents, and the difficulties of light which
had so hampered the artillery began
to be increasingly felt by the other
arms. Now and again there appeared
against the sky line the figure of some
unusually venturesOme Boer. but for
the most part not n soul was to be dis
cerned behind the ring of flame
Toward 6 o'clock there was a lull in
the deadly rattle of rifles and machine
guns. and our artillery ceased to throw
in their hail of shell for fear of i'm
pedfng our advance. But the pause
was only momentary. An instant later
the bugles sounded the charge. every
man sprang TO his feet and, abandon
ing all thoughts of cover, rushed for
ward with fixed bayOnet.
1t was n magnificent and soul stir
ring spectacle as our gallant fellows
dashed straight at the enemy, driving
him irresistibly from point to point.
The Beers stood their ground TO the
last, with the courage of despair, but
they were no match for our men in per-
sonal combat and were driven back in
hopeless confusion. Fifty or 60 OF
them. mounting their horses, made off
at full speed over the hills toward the
east. Another 10 minutes of deadly
work and the last shot had been fired.
With Il loud cheer and shout from
the Gordon highlanders of What
price. MajuDa?" our men dashed down
the opposite incline right into the heart
of the Boer position, with bayonets fix
ed. But the white flag, stuck into the |
muzzle OF a Mauser. was already flying |
in the laager, and the officers checked |
their men in midcareer.
The hollow in which the enemy had |
fought was thickly strewn with dead |
and wounded. Colonel Schiel, the lead |
err of the German contingent. lay pros |
trate with both legs shattered. He |
had IL appears, exposed himself on |
the ridge with the utmost gallantry. in !
order to encourage his men when they |
seemed disposed to give way to panic. |
Two guns which had been worked eff |
fectively by German gunners were cap |
tured, and the whole of the enemy's |
camp. stores and equipment fell into |
our hands.
The Iancers, as l stated in my previ- !
Gus message. were loosed in 4 brief 1
pursuit OF the flying enemy. but other
wise the cavalry had no share in the |
enga cement. Colonel Scott Chisholme,
commanding the Imperial Light horse
obtained leave to join the infantry adj
vance with n dismounted squadron OF i
men recruited from former residents of .
johannesburg. They went forward .
with the Gorions and bore themselves 4
with the GOODNESS and courage of sea-