The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-10-02

men ana CnllQren nave leII ana not
more than ten men are now there. A
locomotive is ready to bring away the
railway staff.
JOUBERT TO LEAD.
Cape Town, Oct. 2.-The Cape Argus
publishes the following dispatch from
| CharIestown:
'.Cornmandant General Joubert will
| command the Boer forces at Laing's
| Mex This is regarded as the Trans
| vaaPs reply to the movements of the
British troops There is considerable
uneasiness here.
CROWDS OF REFUGEES.
Newcastle Natal, Oct. 2.-The johann
\ nesburg mail train, due at midnight,
only arrived this morning. 1t was
| crowded with refugees, who reported
| that the train was sidetracked at Stan
| derton, Transvaal, to make way for
/ trains carrying burghers to the Natal
border.
A body of police arrived here today
| from Charlestown.
Four thousand Beers are at Sands
| print and Volksrust, just beyond the
/ Natal border. The Natal police are
| called in from outlying stations, and
the local troops and carbineers are
mObilizing for the defense of Newcastle.
WIRE CUTTING FEARED.
| London. Oct. 2.-The announced in
| tention of the British cabinet to meet
/ tomorrow has apparently been recon
! sidered. 1t is now said that the meet
ing depends largely on the develop
ments in the Transvaal. The date for
summOning parliament has not been
| definitely settled, though it is expected
to be about October 10.
Queen Victoria will hold a privy
council at BalmOral at early day
when the necessary proclamation VIII
be signed. The remarkable absence of
news from South Africa this afternoon
leads to the belief that there has been
a widespread cutting of telegraph
wires, or that extra censorship has been
established. There is no TransVaal
news yet to soften the extreme bellt-
costly of early dispatches. Neither is
there anything to indicate that the au-
thOrities at Pretoria have the slightest
desire to come to terms peacefully with
Great Britain Had the Beers not de-
termined to fight it out, or if they were
not prepared for hoStilitieS, they would,
it is thought, have sent some tempOriZ-
ing reply to Great Britain's reply.
All the hanging back seems to be
on Great Britain's side where in spite
of the newspaper and war office talk
of the mobilization of an army corps,
the work is apparently proceeding in a
curiOusly leisurely manner. The de-
parture of Gen Sir Redvers Butler, the
commander of the British forces in
South Africa has been postponed from
week to week and when the members
of the cabinet talk in public their as
surances of Great Britafn's good will
| towards the Transvaal are regarded as
almost sTTIacking of pathetic appeals
| for peace.
The Duke of Devonshire. lord presi-
| dent of the council, in his reply to
| toast to his health at a public lunch
con of the Manchester Technical school
| Saturday afternoon was careful in re-
! ferring to the TransVaal situation to
| announce that the cabinets new pro-
| pOsaIs were moderate, and his whole
| speech seemed to indicate that the Brit
/ ish government was framing it's dis
/ patch so rs to invite a continuance of
| the negotiations. 1t now appears that
| the alleged calling out of the first class
| army reserve was a hoax. The cir
| culars were issued on official paper and
many members of the reserve presented
| themselves at the barracks only to find
| that the order was a forgery. The pO-
| lice now have the matter in their hands.
| An advertisement appeared this morn
| ing announcing the formation of
| corps or gentlemen Rough Riders, pat
| termed after ROoseveIt's Rough Riders,
| for service in South Africa
! Advices from Lady Smith, Natal to-
/ day, say that 500 Burghers have assem-
! bled at Albertina in the Orange Free
| State with the object of proceeding in
| the direction of the border and that it
| is feared a raid on Lady Smith is medi-
J tated.
| AN ENGLISHMAN NCOMAIANDERED.
| London. Oct. "A prominent English
| man, DR. Wilson, has been command
| cred at Harrismith by the Orange Free
/ State.
| The Natal field artillery. carbineers
| and other military commands are en-
camped at Show Grounds, on the road
I leading to the Orange Free State.
! in command under Major General Sir
] George Stewart White commanding the
| Natal forces is expected to arrive at
/ Lady Smith shortly.
! Reports from Cape Town declare that
an immediate rupture of the diplomatic
| relations between Great Britain and
! the Transvaal is expected.
| The South African News. a semi
| oInclaI newspaper, announces that a
special train has left to fetch Conying-
! ham Green, the British Diplomatic
| agent at Pretoria and his starr If
| adds that the formal hauling down of
| the flag on the agency building is i'm
| minent.
| The correspondent of the Associated
Press at Cape Town has secured an Off
| claI denial of the statement of the
! South African News that train has
| Green from Pretoria No Instructions
| nave Yet been issued to Mr. Green All
| is quiet at Pretoria
| - Great excitement prevails at Cape
/ Town where it is reported that the
| Boers have occupied Laings Mex
Ihe British at Cape Town express
great satisfaction at the fact that mat
IeIS nave reached a state where a
| oennlte settlement of the difficulties is
iheVltable. The general drift of news
! ihulcates that the position of the Brit
| lsh troops in South Africa is critical
| owing to the delay in sending reinforce
| ments and in the event of hostilities
| early reverses are rarls5 es ,l,.b -
| able. -
V -AA1-N O-N CHN@A1NNTE1 6OH1hLfS-
! London, Oct. 2.-The latest advices
| show that the Transvaal mobilization
| has been rapid and eonprehensfve
| Many Beers, it is said did not wait to
| be eommandered. but proceeded to the
| border spontaneously. The members of
| the executive state secretaries, Presf-
| dent Kruger's relatives, members of the
| raad. judges and other professional men
| are all eagerly giving their services and
| the women are bidding men die rather
| than return beaten.
1t is calculated that the Orange Free
! state already has seven thousand men