The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-12-29


guns with them. They get over mountains
like coyotes over prairie They have an
ticipated with mastery foresight every
attack or advance made by the British
And all this. too. while conceallng their
own designs and numbers from the enc
my. Transvaal Beers and Free State Beers
are all alike, and Cronje seems as shrewd
a commander as Joubert.
Methuens defeat at Magersfontein and
Buffers defeat near Cheveley will precipi-
tate the mobilization and transportation
of the Sixth and Seventh divisions, IL not
the Eighth.
Methuen lost seventy officers In the ac-
ton at Magersfontein. The British off,
GERS killed, wounded and captured SO far
would, II brought together, make up
good half regiment of men.
~
British forces in South Africa now num-
Der 900 men. London wants another
100000 sent on thither.
Augustus John Henry Beaumont Pau
let, fifteenth marquis of Winchester, who
was killed in Methuen's last engagement
was descended from Sir John Winchester
who served under York against France in
1880. The first marquis was created by
Henry VIII. The soldier-noble who lost
his life in South Africa owned 1890 acres
of land in England.
More than fifty good ships have been
used by Great Britain for the transporta-
tion OF her troops to South Africa. This
was the finest fleet of its kind that ever
sailed with men for foreign conquest Up
to this time the Spanish armada had been
considered the most remarkable military
expedition by sea In modern times Some
sympathizers with the Beers see signin-
canoe in the fact,
From Durham northward there are now,
besides the $4,000 or $4,000 regular troops,
some $500 Natal volunteers, but these
have proved of small assistance to Butler
Military critics are amazed at the ignor-
ance of the British officers in Natal con-
corning the physical features of their own
country. They have neglected to survey
the hills and are in almost total ignorance
of the heights of the kopjes and the lay
of the neks-British territory-from which
the Beers are now Staying the flower and
pride of the British army
colonial scouting corps was organized
toward the end of last month for the pur-
lose of ascertaining the positions of the
Beers in Natal. This corps consisted of
sixty men, but the rout given to General
Buffers forces argues that their work
has been of the lowest order.
~
Total British wounded, captured and
Silled in Methuen's Magersfontein en-
gagement, g63.
Expert military men in this country
who have carefully studied the cable dis
patches are unable to say on which side
Of the Modder River General Methuen's
camp is now pitched His method of trans
ferring his troops to opposite banks of
the Modder would be by the use of fixed
boats, thus constructing floating bridges
over which could march in safety cavalry,
infantry and artillery. What with ad-
vances and retreats and the caution q,
the news censors. it has been difficult TO
~ the precise position of the British
generals until official reports from them
cling of some conflict disclose their
, President Kruger declared war on Great
Britain October IL. In the two months
ma more that have elapsed since that
line the British have lost upward of 1000
men and officers, killed, wounded and can
ured. In the three months of the late
spanish American war the total loss of
ne americans was less than 1900. But
he disparity is far greater than appears
n the face of the figures. Americans
ought the Spalnards in Cuba, Porto Rico
md the Philippines. Including the SOL
hers who died of fever and camp sickness
he Killed and wounded in the fighting
II all the battles on land and sea. Ameri
"a lost fewer than 1900 men. The British
oss oil 1000 is directly due to the supe-
Tor work of the enemy.
According to the Berlin National Zai-
ung the inventory of the modern guns
ossessed by the Beers is as follows:
hght I5-centimeter Krupp guns. sixteen !
,5-centimeter Creusot guns. eight mr.
me Maxim Nordenfelt field guns. TWEEN
Y-tour 37-centmeter automatic Mayim
uns, eight 12-centlmeter field howitzers
our IRON Krupp and four from Creusot; r
our modern 3.T-centimeter Krupp noun
ain guns and four 15.5- centimeter Creusot !
uhs' In all, with old guns, the Beers :
ossess some eighty or ninety pieces of :
rtlllery. During recent years they have I
ought 10000 Mauser rifles and 81. 900. 900
lrtridges, as well as large number OF
lartini-Henry rifles. 4