The San Francisco call., 1899-10-27
HOW THE BRITISH
WERE DRIVEN BACK
TO LADYSMITH
Deadly Aim Of the Beers That
Materially Trimmed the Ranks
Of the Retreating Troops.

| came so destructive that the Beers re-
treated to another ridge, whence they
were dislodged by the volunteers In the
face of a CALLING fire.
1.-The Beers soon reformed and took up
a position on another ridge. but the volun-
teers dashed across the intervening plat
eau, again rushed the Boer position and
drove them back to the main force. oc-
cupying Matawanaskop. The British then
sheled the latter until clusters of Beers
were seen leaving and retreating west
ward when the engagement closed.
A special from Glencoe Camp, dated Oc-
tober %. says:
after the alleged victory Friday the
British imagined they were free from fur
ther molestation for some days, but they
soon found that the earlier reports of a
sweeping success were exaggerated The
reported capture of all the Boer guns was
Incorrect The burghers succeeded in re-
moving some of them before the British
carried the hill, leaving only the riflemen
behind to cover their retreat.
'On Saturday news was received of Cen
eral Joubert's main column threatening
Dundee. General Yule quickly recognized
the impossibility of defending DoTh Dun
dee and Glencoe against such superiority
of numbers, and sent word to Ladysmlth
of his dangerous situation and ordered the
evacuation of Dundee, which commenced
with long range firing by the big guns at
daybrsak Sunday. The Beers male ex-
cellent practice and the shells from a
forty-pounder occupying the Impati
Mountains dropped in and around the
town. In the meanwhile the British had
reached Glencoe in safety. There orders
reached General Yule on Monday to fall
back on Ladysmith. At the same time
he was informed that a large force was
waiting at Glands Laagte to assist his
retirement. Glencoe Camp was accord
ingly evacuated. The precarious position
of the British was not known to the
Beers"
A belated dispatch sent from Glencoe
camp on the night of the battle in that
vicinity admits that few Boer dead and
wounded were found on the field and at
tempts to explain this by saying:
Throughout the fighting the Beers, In
accordance with their CUSTOM buried
their dead and carried off their wounded
Immediately after they fell, those left
representing only the casualties during
the last moments of the fighting. Even
their disabled cannon were removed, al
though broken pieces of them could be
seen lying about
An official British account of the fight
at Reitfontein, given out at Cape Town,
says:
Yesterday Sir George White, having
ascertained by previous reconnaissance
that the Free State forces had moved
east from Besters Station and were at
tempting to gain the road from Lady
smith to the north, moved out in the di-
rection of Glands Laagte with the Fifth
Lancers, Nineteenth Hussars, Imperial
Light Horse, Natal Mounted Volunteers,
two field batteries, one mountain battery
and brigade of infantry The enemy
posted battery two miles south Of
Modderspruit and opened with infantry
fire at long range on the British advance
guard, consisting of the Nineteenth Hus-
sars. This was followed by artillery fire
directed with considerable accuracy