Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1899-09-29
ENGLAND VS.. TRANSVAAL
WELL INFORMED MEN SAY WAR CAN.
NOT BE AVOIDED.
is Sending Large Forces to South
Africa---The Beers Are Still Stubborn
IT will be a great and decisive conflict---
Opinions ofProminent Men

caple says: OnS CnapCer Oh IranSVaal
diplomacy has been closed, and another
will be opened after the next cabinet
meeting. During the interval while
tho Beers are. waiting for rain, which
will clothe the veldt with verdure and
enable their cavalry to move and while
also the British reinforcements are ap-
preaching the Cape and Natal, there is
leisure for sober second thought in
the capitals Of the two Dutch repub-
lies. The alliance between them
makes for peace as well as war; it will
place the Orange Free State in COM
manding position for suggesting COM
promise by which hostilities may be
averted, for President Steyn, having no
grievances of his own, will not be re-
preached by President Kruger, if he
be reluctant to drag u helpless state in
to war from sympathy with an ally of
the same race. The ministry at the
Cape will not be likely to allow the last
chance for maintaining peace to pass
without making an earnest effort to
prevent an outbreak that will closely
resemble civil war in South Africa.
Meanwhile the suspense continues,
with increasing probability that there
will be an active campaigning on a
large scale early in November, if the
Beers themselves do not begin the at
tack in the course of fortni ght. The
Daily Chronicle taunts the ministers
with exercising themselves for several
months over the misdeeds Of 30, 900
farmers, and with havingn no means Of
enforcing declaration OF war when
the crisis arises. The Broad Arrow,
speaking for the military classes, ad
mits that the ministers will have cause
for anxiety until the last battalion
now on the sea have disembarked in
South Africa, and intimates that they
put eff dispatching troops along too
long. The natural reply to both Of
these criticisms would be that the
ministers were anxious to avoid a pol
icy of provocation, and were hoping
against hope that Kruger would sub
nit if sufficient time were allowed
him Apparently thoy went too far
to promote the ends Of peace making,
and not far enough to place the mill
tary staff in readiness for war
Critics now assert that the British
force in Natal will be prepared to
hold its own by Oct. /, and that by
the 10Th there will be 10000 regu-
lars available for service. The minis
ters are,evidently aware that the force
already dispatched is inadequate, for
there are active preparations in pro-
gress for providing an additional army
corps with equipment for field service.
Lord Lansdowne and Mr.. George
Wyndham are the busiest men in
London, and are constantly in confer
ence with the headquarters staff and
Mr. Chamberlain. War will be waged
on large scale, with so. 900 or so, 900
regulars under Si- Redverse Buller's
command, although he will not go until
the bulk of this fresh reinforcement
has embarked. Word at army head
quarters is that no chances will be TAX
en-, one chance has been left open, and
that is the chance that Kruger may
take the field in the next ten days.
1t cannot be truthfully said that
war in South Africa is popular or that
there is any enthusiasm for it 1t is
now considered inevitable by the best
informed men. but it is faced regret
fully as misfortune for South Africa
and England alike There is no revolt
of public opinion against it here, but
the VIZ is approached with heavy
hearts as crisis that must involve
high cost in blood and treasure Mill
tary men affect to despise the. Beers.
and assert that the campaign will be
over three weeks after the first shot
is fred. They consider that their ar
tillery is now source OF weakness
for the Beers, for although $50 Ger
man gunners are in the service there
Is lack of training and maneuvering
power.
1t is probably true that the Beers
have made mistake in abandoning
the guerilla system of warfare, and that
regular tactics, with scientific gnnner'
from Germany, ~iil prove less formid
able than tReiI former irregular man