The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1899-11-02
UNWISE CUSTOM
Great Slaughter of British Off.
GERS in South Africa Brings
Out Protests
Against q Senseless Unwritten
Law of the British
Army.
Alleged Plans of Russia Ida.
Dwarf the South African
Campaign.

Campaign.
LONDON, Oct. 3O.-The large number
of British officers killed in the battles
which have already taken place in Ma
tai has brought out strenuous protests
from many quarters against the ancient
custom of British officers in refusing to
take cover when under fire. From tg-
ures at Glencoe, it is apparent that one
out of every four men killed was an Of
fcer, whereas, the organization exists
upon the principle that to every 20 men
there is one officer. 1t is evident that
if the same ratio of mortality is kept
up, the British forces will become Sc
riously under-officered. Among the en-
listed men at Glencoe, the proportion
of killed to wounded was 30 to 1856,
while 10 officers were killed to % Off
GERS wounded. The difference in the
percentage leads to the conclusion that
many of the officers were hit more than
once and kept on leading their men
after the first wound. Emperor Will
Jams recent criticism of the British of.
icers refusal to take cover is now fire.
quently quoted. The feeling in the army
itself is that though the regulations do
not say the officers must not lie down,
it is such an old established principle
that it would take brave man to in
augurate a change, and the adage of
the British soldier "follow wherever an
officer leads" is held to be still intensely
true, for although the officers believe
the personnel of the army is as good as
ever, it has been the history of Great
Britain that they at the same time
maintain that Tommy Atkins" needs
more leading than any man in the
world. so the spilling of Great Britain's
best blood is likely to continue for the
present.
The proportion of casualties as a
whole has caused thrill or horror and
sympathy throughout Great Britain,
for the people are now beginning to re-
alize what fight with a civilized enc.
my means. Old soldiers point out that
at the Alma, one of the bloodiest bat
ties in Great Britain's annals, the cas-
ualties totaled only 6 per cent, whereas,
in the recent Boer engagements they
considerably exceed that figure.
Regarding Intervention.
Regarding European Intervention,
Great Britain's plans to meet such an
emergency continue. The Journal de
Geneve publishes dispatch from Con-
stantinople saying that Russia intends
handing the porte note at an early
date demanding the opening of the
Bosphorus and Dardanelles. Unless
Great Britain is party to such de-
mand, Russsia's action will undoubt-
eddy stir up hornets nest, compared
with which the Transvaal question will
be quite Insignificant.
Such reports have depressing effect
on consols, and in spite of the boom in
South African securities, there is con-
siderable uneasiness on the Stock Elk
change regarding the future action of
Russia and France. South African
mine shares are no longer referred to as
"Kaffirs." They are now called "Brit-
ish" while South Africais optimistically
described as a mineralized Egypt.
Russia is reported to be endeavoring
to raise loan of e20, 900 in Paris,
but, so far, she has been unsuccessful.
Gives Space For Gratulations.
The temporary cessation of news
from the seat of war gives the news
papers here the opportunity for retro
spective graduation, firstly on the sue
cess of General Whites strategy, in the
face of greatly superior forces in puz-
cling the Beers, preventing the juno
ton of the Orange Free State and
Transvaal armies, and, in word, gain
ing time and delaying the invasion Of
Natal until the arrival of General
Butler and the army corps permits of
real operations for the invasion of the
two republics to commence; secondly,
on the bravery and daring, both of the
officers and men of the British army,
which has astounded not only their en-
emies, but the continental neighbors of
Great Britain; thirdly, on the readiness
of the reservists to respond to the call
to arms and the smoothness, success,
swift precision and completeness of the
mobilization which has equally amazed
the European critics, who, if they did
not anticipate dangerous repetition of
Crimean history, had not an idea of
the immense improvement made in the
organization of the commissariat and
fighting machinery
Wall Over the Queens Speech.
The Chronicle raises wall over the
wording Of the queens speech which it
says, clearly regards the war as "oper.
ations designed to bring revolted col
onies into submissions" that the Dutch
people, who were assured by Mr.. Cham
berlain that we had no designs on their
independence, are informed that they
are already regarded as citizens Of our
empire.
The Chronicle adds: These fateful
words are dragons teeth which will
produce an abundant harvest.
Lord Rosebery's temperance in the
world of politics, by his speech at Bath,
Wednesday, caused renewal Of specu.
lation as to the future of the Liberal