Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1899-12-01

munition.
London. The position In Natal re-
mains full Of perplexities, which the
censorship has increased. Although o
division and half have now reached
Durham. that place Is practically pow
erless until supplied with cavalry and
artillery, and until these arrive the cit
uation will undoubtedly remain grave.
With three beleaguered garrisons In
Natal, besides Kimberly and Mafek-
Ing, and no signs OF succor in the
immediate future, IL is no wonder
that the outlook Is regarded as dis
tinctly gloomy and that the most pos
sible is made of Gen. Methuens sue
cess, such as 1t was. The battle de-
cided nothing, and it seems certain that
many experts are Of the opinion that
the story of the return of the pursuing
cavalry without getting in touch of the
retreating Beers indicates that the cav
alfy discovered in time that if 1t had
gone on it would soon have been on the
Pretoria race course with its comrades,
the Hussars. 1t will not surprise any
one greatly If the Beers are shortly
again discovered in an entrenched po.
ition near the spot from which Gen.
Methuen has just evicted them.
From no other point can even SEM
blance of success be reported. Mafek-
ing is apparently in worse plight than
the Britishers have hitherto cared to
admit, and it is difficult tosee how itcan
be relieved for some time to come.
While the official dispatch from the
Boer head laager outside Ladysmith,
dated November "a, showed that the
town was still flying the Union Jack
on Friday, the cheerful tone of the mes
sage and the evident anticipation OF
the. speedy reduction of Ladysmith is
tives.
The reported silence of the British
guns also again arouses fears of
shortness Of ammunition, and the fact
that the Beers have just placed in po-
sition another siege gun shows that
they have not yet done their worst.
The arrival of the German officers,
some of whom, 1t is understood, gained
large experience in reducing fortified
towns In 1878, is calculated to lead to
a change of tactics, which will add to
the suspense of the sorely tried garri-
son.
The situation In the northern portion
Of Cape Colony is about as unsasisf ao-
tory as 1t can be. Beers are turning
up In all directions.
A G ape Town dispatch received Sat-
urday reports that the enemy have
blown up every bridge between Ros-
mead junction and Middlehurg. This
was effected by small command,
which, 1t is said, remains in the neigh
borhood. The effect of blowing up
this bridge will tend to isolate Naup-
oort, which was recently re-ocupied by
the British and must delay the advance
Of the troops just arrived at Port Eliz-
sbeth.
The grsvest. news from Cape Town
comes from the northern part of the
colony, where ii is now evident num-
pers of Dutch farmers have risen and
joined the invading Free State foz~1
In the HerscheU AM BarklsY- E,ast DIS
trict.
A dispatch from Qusenstown, Cape
Colony, Gen. Getacre's headquarters,
announces that flour hundred colonial
rebels, including an ex-magistrate Of
Barkley- East, have joined the enemy
at the latter place, and that the whole
force is reported to be marching on
Dordrehct, whence 1t can operate and
posi- billy intercept Gen. Getacre's ad'
vance to reoocupy Stormberg Junction
stragetic point from which Gen. Get
acre can get in direct touch, Through
the railroad, with Gen. French at Ma
uwnoort and thus with the British
base at DeAar.
| Another dispatch says that refugees
arriving from Queenstown assert sha
Ladysmith has been occupied by th'
colonial farmers, and 1t is feared ther'
that there Is a general movement II
favor of the Beers.
Military experts infer that the req.
son Methuen's 8 cavalry returned with
| ont gettinr in touch with the Boer