The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-22

Awful Carnage at EIandSInagte
Pathetic incidents Among the
Wounded on the HattIe6eIdx.
Correspondence of the Associated Press.
LONDON, Dec. .13.-Iietters from Brit
ish officers and soldiers fighting in the
Transvaal, and lengthy descriptions of
war correspondents that filter into print
through the malls. TEEN with thrilling
and pathetic Incidents. Writing to his
mother young officer of the Manches-
tiers. wounded in one of the first engage
ments. relates that while he lay at night
on the hillside. expecting to die bleeding
from wound in his thigh and shivering
with cold, there came stumbling over
him "a Tommy OF my company. named
Rogers. This Tommy quickly whip
ped off his own oyeTcoat. placed it around
the boy officer, and, lying down, put his
arms around him and for the rest of thai
long. cold night kept him beautifully
warm"
Inc Times correspondent gives a graph
ic account and eXplana ton of the British
disaster at Nicholson's Mex, where Carl
tons c. lumn. consisting Of six companies
of the Royal Irish fusleers, four and a
half companies of the Worcestershire
regiment and No. 10 mountain battery.
surrendered.
Two hours before daybreak," says this
correspondent. while the column was in
an incl9Sed country, either a shot was
fired or a boulder rolled into the battery
The mules stampeded and easily broke
away from their half asleep drivers
They came back upon the Worcestershire
regiment, the advance party of whom
fired into the mass, believing. in the
darkness, that it was an attack This
added to the chaos, the ranks We're
broken by the frenzied animals and they
dashed through the ranks of the rear
guard. carrying the First and Second
reserve ammunition mules with them. It
became a hopeless panic. The animals,
wild with the shouting and the tumult
tore down the nullah into darkness, and
the last that was heard of them was the
sound of ammunition boxes and paniers
as they were splintered against the bould-
ers. The hubbub of these few minutes
was sufficient to have alarmed the
enemy By strenuous effort the officers
succeeded in getting the men again I'M
der control. and when daylight came they
seized the first position which presented
Itself and which was about two miles
short of the original goal. They were
forced to take advantage Of the first
kOpje, as BOer scouts were all around
them and the day was ushered in with
desultory firing. 1t was sorry position
which they had chosen, and the men were
in sorry plight. All their reserve am
munition was gone. and, though they
saved pieces Of the screw guns, they
were not able with these pieces to patch
up a single mounting.
Beers OPEN FIRE.
From earliest daybreak Boer scouts
We're accommodating. and about o'cioaK
mounted Beers could be seen galIoping in
small groups to the cover Of the hill west
Strong parties of mounted men took DO
sitions on the far side Of the two hills
commanding the kOpje from the road.
and about o'clock two parties had cross
ed the hills and opened heavy fire at
snort range right down upon the plateau
our men made plucly attempt to return
this fire, but 1t was impossible They
were under cross-fire from two Gfrec-
tons, flank and rear. The two companies
or GIoHcestershires. holding the self-con-
tanned ridge, We're driven from their shell
ter. and as they crossed the opening
on the low plateau they were terribly
mauled, the men falling in groups The
Beers had not as yet declared themselves
but about 200 marksmen climbed to the
position which the two companies of the
Worcestershire had just vacated These
u, Il
was then that the men were ordered to
take cover on the steep reverse of the
kopJe. As soon as the enemy realized
this move the men on the western hill
teemed onto the summit and opened on
our men as they lay on the steep They
were absolutely powerIess and what com
Eaenced as a skirnish seemed to be de-.
YelopIng into a butchery. The grim or
der was passed around. o faugh a bal
Iaghs. fix your bayonets and die like men,
There vas the clatter Of steel the mo-
ment Of suspense, and then the cease
firing sounded. Again and again Il sound
ed. but the Irish fusileers were loath to
accept the order, and continued firing for
several minutes. Then 1t was uncondi-
uonaI surrender and the men laid down
their arms"
HORRORS OF WAR.
The correspondent at Ladysmith of the
same paper describing the battlefield of
Elandsiaagte, graphically details the hor
rOrs Of war. He whites;
The battlefield as it stood on the Sun
day. conveyed sufficient proof Of the Sc
veI-.y of the fire. The wounded had been
removed by daylight, but the burial par
ties had not arrived to perform the last
duties to the dead. The men lay there as
they had fallen, sad pathetic tribute
TO the courage of the British soldier
We followed this tragic trail-TTtghland-
ers, Manchesters and mounted volunteers
lay Unfortunately grouped. Then SOL
itary figures under the stones showed
how little the cover had awaited them.
There were places where wire fences had
impeded the advance. Here the carnage
had been great, and one brave fellow
stopped in death, cut off as he strove
to wrench a post from its foundations
On the sky line of the table land the
dead lay thickest, this being the spot
where gEe attack had been checked. but
the white faa-gas already there, and
strings Ct cool ~ere digging the trench
which so ofteHSfs the soldiers resting
place. g.
We rode baT%szso the Boer position-,he
little kop1e upen which Schiel and his
twenty-three men had made their last
stand The bodies Of the fifteen that had
fallen OF this little band were grouped
as death had taken them. Some lay ". IN
heads suaken on their rifle stocks. fight.
ing to the end. Another had placed his
hat upon prominent stone five yards
away, ard had died with his fingers press
ing = charge into his magazine. What re-
m - j Of the lager was the litter of
she. fire. Tents were torn and burned
wagons splintered and overturned, food