The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1899-10-28

Paups Domain ON the Eve OF the
Declaration of War Kruger's
Fortiications-Al1eg Plans to
- Destroy the Gold and Diane nd
- Mines-Boer Tactics Against the
Misunderstanding Qualities Of
the Men and Women, Too.
The Transvaal Boer is always ready to
fight. He carries his rife on his shoulder
apd piece Of biltong in his pocket,
mouching around over. the veldt so that If
a field cornet gallops up to tell him that
war has been declared he may start for
the front at once.
Prospect Of an occasion to use his
rifle has ever sent CLEAN into the or
dinarily dull eye of the Boer and made
of him a changed man. Whether the OBJ
ject be a human being or wild duck
matters not to him, his one thought be-
ing to glance along the cleaning barrel
and hit small objects at long range.
When he shoots at a British soldier,
therefore, he first examines him care
fully to see If he is an officer, and then
picks out some particular button or con-
spicuous part of the uniform on which
FROM force to habit, just as he aims at
the white breast of duck, though it
is an unFritten order in Boer warfare
to kill theyoficers or chiefs, if possible.
When the captain or commandant sees
an officer it rs his plan to select about
six of the best marksmen available to
fire simultaneously at him., The higher
his rank the better. The man so care
fu11v Sa1actod ha no
doomed t..N~ l. ..a'-r =. -zE.. =
To an American these methods may
seems cold-blooded and cruel, says the
New York Sun, but it must be remem-
bered that the Transvaal burghers hate
the English as they do the dreaded black
spiders that infest the country and al
ways refer to the British soldier as
ruineks or red-necks. There are two ex-
plantations of this name. One is that
when the English came to the Cape an
old Dutchman noticed that when John
8, Bull got angry he grew red about the
neck In the Transvaal they say the
name arose when British dragons were
quartered there from the red coat collars
which made the uniform conspicuous
For the English the Beers have framed
this particular defiance: IF you will
have our country, take it: but it shall
be over our bodies and the ash heaps of
our property and goods" Paul Kruger
himself is the author of the catch phrase
which was embodied in the celebrated
third proclamation made IN 1881, when
the British were hectoring the old farm
ers. 1t was no idle threat or dramatic
bluff. Any one who has seen these long
r legged, weather-beatens plainsmen get to-
gether at the rally has realized Immediate
ly that they would never give up their
country until all were wiped Out-men,
women and children. ID
The acknowledgement Of the BOer
forces in Piet Joubert, a man 6S years old,
with string of military victories extend
ing over one-half a century In the his
tory of the Transvaal he has borne al
most as important a part Paul Kruger.
Until this present agitation there existed
a strong rivalry between the two. For
three successive times Kruger was
elected president by small majority over
youbert and since boyhoOd they have
contested neck and neck for various
honors. When it comes to fighting the
English however, they are united. Jou-
bert has long been the military head of
the nation, and Is recognized to be the
best fighter and tactician In the country.
He has divided the Transvaal into seven
teen districts for mobilization purposes,
each district being under commandment.
These districts are, in turn, subdivided
under the commands Of field comets.
While Joubert is the commander-in-chief,
he still Is subject to the orders OF the
Volksraad and President Kruger and
makes no important moves without their
consent. G.F ...H e stq.s ,.Hr.s-t5 81 r..
In spite of the Beers being scattered
all over the Transvaal, the whole nation
can be modified in two or three days, q
proceeding which probably cannot be du-
plicated by any other country. This is
possible owing to the Beers constant
equipment In light marching order. The
moment that Kruger decides to declare
war Joubert either telegraphs or sends
relays of messengers to each command.
ant. This officer promptly notifies the
several field comets In his district and the
latter either dispatch their assistants, who
gallop here and there on the veldt> sound
ing the alarm, or else make bonfires al
night and pillars of smoke by day, the
pre-arranged signals for war.
From q dull, apathetic, ill-kept and lazy
dreamer the Boer Is then transformed
into quick-witted, cunning and energetic
being, The Transvaal, burgher. indeed, Is
a most peculiar combination Of phleg
matte Dutchman and wildly excited
Latin On the veldt he viii loaf arount
in the sun and only move to reload hi:
pipe in the raad chambers the sergeant
alarms oftentimes is unable to maintain
order. The members leap around, throw
Ing their. arms, shout and carry on Elik'
anarchists. H,3 Az -
1t is on the rifles Of these old countr!
Beers that Kruger mostly depends o.
the night that news reached him OF thu
Jameson raid in December, 1895, Their
was CONSERVATION at Pretoria. The frs
dispatch said that 5000 British troops hat
crossed the border, and then; a second
sent by the British as 9 decoy, statet
that the troops were only the Chartered
company's police making q short cut
Joubert wanted to take the: few cannon
that were in Pretoria and go out to NEE
the invaders.
"Oh, no, Piet,'' said Dom Paul. Don
you suppose 200 of our old farmers wit
their rifles can stop 1900 Eruineks 2?
The result proved that Kruger wa
right. The whole force that fought Jane
s son consisted Of 400 men in two divisions
summoned from the open vellt. Jameson
began the attack with artillery. The oil
Beers laughed at this. .4{
EVERY man take to rock, ordere
fCommandant Cronje, and the farmer
lodged behind rocks and trees.
At the proper moment they advanced i,
proper Indian skirrnish In two divisions
opening a deadly fire at 500 yards. TIL
ireformers then cut loose with Maxims
but for once the machine guns which ha,
been used to NOV down the Africal
natives were of no avail. The Boer
were so scattered that they evaded tn
bullets. Jameson finally opened with
5 twelve-pounder. but Cronje told of twent
Beers to kill the gunners, which the.
did with precision and accuracy. Tha
practically ended the fight.
The strength Of the Beers as a militar.
nation lies in the fact that nearly ever,
man possesses innate wariness and 4
himself general, This man Cronje. VIII
captured the raiders, was not celebrate,
warrior yet he took hold OF the cam
!paien on a moments notice. mapped on
his plans, quickly led on. jameson. unit