The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-10-31
(Copyright by Associated Press.)

Copyright by Associated Press.)
London October 2S.-The South Afrl-
can war has now been in progress near
ly three weeks, and, so far, the British
arms have been consistently crowned
| with rnomentary successes, though al
p cost which verifies President Kruger's
prediction that the conflict would stag
ger humanity. But, though victory has
| fallen to Great Britain whenever and
wherever the issues were of paramount
importance, General Whites position
| today is scarcely more reassuring than
at the outbreak of the war. So far, he
has only shown his ability to outwit
by strategy the Beers strategy. That
in it's conception meets with high praise
from the British military critics. Now
he appears to have reached the limit
of this game of war by which he was
able to prevent the massing Of the
| BOer columns, and must either meet
the enemy's combined forces or retreat.
Many people think General White
| should rest content with the successes
| so far achieved and fall back on Colon
so, DOlnIlnS out IndL lie dpptdlo " NC
| fully able to move his forces quickly
and without deterioration. 1t is scarce
| " probable that he will follow this
| course, preferring rather to hold Lady
| smith, though against much superior
numbers, until reinforced. 1t is the
feeling that the general intends to fol-
| low the latter course that creates un-
easiness, for victories over Boer units
are not believed to indicate that the
same result can be achieved over the
| Beers when masSed.
Compared with this impending move
ment about Ladysmith, the fate of
! Kimberley and Mafeking and the prog
ress of the other Independent opera
| tions are almost insignificant. The ra-
pidity of the Boer advance and the
tenacity of the endeavOrs of their col
umnS to concentrate on General Wh1te
have proved clearly that the Beers
plans We're matured long before hOSt1l-
tiles displaced negotiations, and though
they may not be able to stand before the
brilliont charges of the British troops
or serve their artillery with the skill
of their opponents they are a mobile
force and operate harmOnlOuSly under
a carefully prepared plan of campaign.
No one seems to have the faintest
idea of what conditions Will confront
the British army corps upon it's ar
rival in South Africa. Will it be an
avenging force whose duty will be to
wipe out the defeat of General White
and the capture of Mafeking or Kim
berley, or will it simply be a walkover
into Pretoria, dispensing Boer bands
disintegrated by the strain of long
campaign and discouraged by constant
reverses? These questions are upper
most in the minds of all connected with
the war office. BY November 4th the
last troOpship should have sailed, but
the army corps will scarcely take the
field until the end of December. There
is a lull in the departure of the troops
forming the army corps owing, the ad-
miralty officials say, to the troops not
being ready.
According to special dispatch from
Cape Town received here today rumors
of dissension at Bloemfontein, capital
of the Orange Free State, have reached
Cape Town. 1t is said a movement is
on foot to depose President Steyn and
install Mr.. Fraser as president.
The lull in the news from Ladysmith
Natal, which was beginning to be re-
garded as ominous, has at length been
broken by a Cape Town dispatch un-
der this mornings date, saying:
Scouts from Modderspruit having
reported the Beers in force on the Help
makaar road, General White ordered
out a strong force Of artillery, mounted
infantry and cavalry. A small patrol
| of mounted infantry was Shelled by the
Beers nine miles from Ladysmith, and
the Boer position was finally located
three miles beyond Modderspruit. The
British force is now four miles from
the Beers"
! The dispatch does not give the date
of the above occurrence, but it must
have been since Thursday, when the
last news arrived from Ladysmith, so
the Boer advance from Dundee south
ward and from Besters station east
the interim and the engagement fore
shadowed by the above dispatch may
already have been fought.
The other news from the front does
not enlighten the situation in Natal.
Fragmentary details are arriving of
the occupation of Dundee by the Beers.
1t is alleged that twenty men of the
town guard occupied an outpost a
couple of miles from the town, when a
Boer shell dislodged them and the men
fled to neighboring hill where 300
Beers surrounded them and shot the
majority. The Beers then entered
Dundee, dragged several civilians out
Of their houses and pistoled them in
the streets.
BRITISH DUM-DUM BULLETS CAP
TURED.
AS appendant to the above comes a
story from Cape Town to the effect
that several cases of dum-dum bullets
were found by the Beers at Dundee,
which the British abandoned in their
fight. Some of the Beers wanted to
use the dum-dums in the next battle
but President Kruger vetoes this, say
ing: mo, it must not be so. What
ever the British are, we Beers are at
least humane" The bullets wese then
destroyed.
| Further details from PuleC q. <.yao
Rhodesia, show that the armored train
from there on October 18th sent to-
wards Mafeking under the command
of Lieutenant Llewellyn, got within