The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-10-30

ces would offer an irresistible tempta-
ton to the Beers, but, notWithstand-
ing the action of the Cape Govern
ment in recalling the civil servants in
the volunteer force there, Kimberley
will doubtless prove hard nut for the
Beers to crack. Its defenders are North
Lancashires, volunteers, and engin-
eers-about $500 in all-With guns and
Maxims, and the debris heaps and
trenches connected with the mines af-
ford Notifications ready made.
Modder River Hope Town, and Or
ange River are small places on the
railway between Kimberley and the
junction of the lines which run south
to Cape Town and Port Elizabeth re-
spectively, De Aar being the name of
the important station at the apex of
the triangle, just over 500 miles from
Cape Town. As De Arr is a spot
touched by the trains running north to
Kimberley, and the northeast to
Bloemfontein, the orange Free State,
and the Transvaal, it is extremely
likely that the Free State Beers will
do their worst to wreck the railways in
that quarter. In the same vicinity are
Colesberg and Burbhersdorf, towns in
the Cape Colony near the Orange Riv-
er and on the railways that approach
the Boer Republics from Port Eliza
beth and East London respectively.
Colesberg, famous as the birthplace of
President Kruger, is a town of some
1000 inhabitants, and has two bridges.
Burghersdorp is a rather smaller town,
oh a n
Wesleyan churches as well as Dutch.
The Orange River is crossed at Be
thule Bridge, / ,4S6 feet In length. Ali
wal North, a short distance from
Burghersdorp on a branch line, is an
important frontier town of between q
coo and 5000 population and faces the
Free State across the Orange River,
which is spanned by the Frere Bridge,
$50 feet in length, an avenue also from
the Colony into Basutoland.
1.-THE northern Natal towns which
are threatened are inclosad in the tri-
angular space where the railway from
Durham runs up to the Transvaal by
way of the pass well known as Laing's
Mex, or the "Col" between the noun
tains, Of which Majuba is one, the
higher ground being in the hands Of
the Beers Charlestown, in the ex-
treme north of Natal Colony, 3O4 miles
from the port of Durham, stands 1886
feet above sea level and is four miles
distant from Majuba Hill. Before
President Kruger suffered the railway
to penetrate his territory, CharlestoWn
was of Importance as a terminus, but
its small glory has departed and the
place Is now quite insignificant A
little lower down the hills up which
the railway climbs lies Ingogo Station,
close to the Schuins Hoogte battlefield
Qngogo Heights; and still lower, at
distance of thirty-six miles from
Charlestown in the direction of the sea,
stands Newcastle, on the Incandu Riv-
er, al the foot of the Drakenbergs. 1t
is a very healthy little town of some
two thousand inhabitants, and pos
sesses English, Wesleyan, and other
churches, town hall, and a public
library; and 1t is the center of some
highly important coal mines, as well
as of wool industry. The coal fields
extend into the Transvaal, and also
southeast to Glencoe and Dundee
small mining towns whose names sug-
gest the energy of Scottish founders in
the promising part of Natal Lady
smith, or Ladismith, (named after the
wife of Sir Harry Smith, the Cape
Governor, after whom the Free State
town of Harrismith is named) is
town of 1000 or 5000 inhabitants. thir-
ty miles from the foot of the Drakens-
berg Mountains, and is chiefly note
worthy as the site of the important
camp where a large part of
the British force in Natal is now as
From the London Stand
ard.