The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-05-08
LINE OF BRITISH POSTS
TO BE ESTABLISHED ACROSS THE
FREE STATE TERRITORY
THE EXPULSION OF THE Beers
This Section First Necessary.
Roberts Making SLOW Progress In
This work-Geueral Botha Rein
forced Prospects OF sharp Fighting.
The Advance on Pretoria TO be Made
From Three Widely Distant Points.
Blue-jackets at windsor Castle.

London. May g., 4:10 a. m.-The i'm
mediate objective of Lore Roberts is
to establish a line of British posts from
one frontier OF the Free State to the
other at right angles with the railway.
thus preventing Boer raids southwark.
It is essential, therefore, that h
Beers should be expelled from h
rugged Thabanchu district and be
forced to retire to Ladybrand.
AS the result of the desultory firing
Monday and Tuesday the Beers were
pushed back a few miles, but nothing
decisive appears to have been yet at
tanned. The Beers continue 10 follow
their hGrassing tactics. One we'll
horsed commando, operating in the
neighborhood of Sannas-Post, inter-
fers with the British onvoy going
from Bloemfonten to Thabanchu. The
enemy nearly captured a convoy Tues
day, but they were driven on after a
brisk fight.
Preparations for an advance con-
tinue at Kimberley.
Sir Alfred Miner has written TO the
mayor of Kimberley assuring him that
the relief of Mafeking has not ceased
to occupy his attention and that or
the military authorities and that moth
ing will be left undone to raise the
siege at the earliest possible moment
The British garrisons along the rail
way to Warrenton have been Strenth-
ened, and supplies are going forward.
"A mounted force has gone to Barkley
West in consequence of the Beers hav-
ing occupied Windorton. A thousand
Pn0rC fhrpQfan the mica tl0nS
between Boshof and Kimberley. =
"A correspondent at LourenZo Mar
CUES cabled Tuesday hat a large part
of the investing force at Mafeking
had been withdrawn.
BUTLER REMAINS QUIET.
General Butler continues quiet. n
Beers assert that they are delaying an
| attack upon him in the hope hat all
the horses of the British will die of
horse sickness.
According to a correspondent of The
Daily Telegraph with Lord Roberts.
President Kruger is again asking
peace terms. The departure of the
Boer delegates from Holland for the
United States, and h they have
said of their purposes and hopes, draw
British attention to American views
of the war.
London, May at is difficult to un-
ravel the tangled stories coming from
the neighborhood Of Thabanchu, but
apparently, the British forces are en-
gagged in a movement having for it's
J object The hemming in of the Beers
still in that district. While Generals
Frenc. and Rumble are holding the
Beers at Thabanchu, General Broad
woods cavalry has been pushed on
Hout mex, in the hope Of i~ntercepting
the federal convoys between Lady
brand and Winsburg.
AS General Botha has been reinforced
there is every prospect Of sharp fight
ing. The new zone of operations and
the general movements of the various
columns are taken to indicate that
Lord Roberts is deploying his army
preparatory to beginning his northern
march. 1t now seems likely hat it is
the commander-in-chief' intention to
advance simultaneously from Kimber-
ley. Bloemfontein and Ladysmith, with
the view of preventing the Beers from
concentrating their forces at any given
point.
A dispatch from Bloemfontein, dated
yesterday, chronicles the prevailing
opinion among the t~ownspeople there
that the war is not likely to last more
n six weeks once the British ad-
vance begins, but adds that the cor
respondent has been unable to dis
cover any ground for the opinion, be-
yond the fact that General Darlington
has arrived at the Marandellas base,
whence a flying column will be dis
patched in a direction not made public,
A dispatch from Mafeking, describ.
ing the Boer attack on April 18th, says:
THE bombardment of the Creusots
was the hottest of the seige. Many
shells entered the hospital and wo-
mems lager. Unde cover of the ar.
tillery a large force commanded by
Cronje Cthe younger), including the
German corps, advanced close to For
Abrams. The garrison laid low unit
the Boer force was at close range
when they fired a volley killing five
Many were wounded and the attach
was repulsed. The bombardment ther
ceased. The Beers, under a Red eros.
flag. later, were permitted to recover
their dead"
CREW OF THE POWERFUL AT
WINDSOR.
Windsor is in holiday attire toda,
and decorated from end to end il
honor of the naval brigade of the Brit
ish ruise Powerful, which assisted il
the defense of ~Ladysmith. The nava
men were summoned to the castle t.
be inspected by the queen. The band o
the G~renadier Guards met the nava
brigade at the railroad station AM
played them to the castle through
cheering crowds of people. The inspec
" NNoAiCo liz lIC QudoI d1Sic LII
was witnessed by the Duke Of Yorl
. and other members of the royal famil
and a number Of high naval and mill
: tary officers. Her Majesty drove dow
, the line of b~luejackets, who advance
and gave three cheers for the queen
Captain Lamberton, of the Powerful
and the officers of that vessel. wer
. afterwards presented to her majest,
who thanked Captain Lambton an
! the brigade for their noble services t
: he empire. The captain replied tina
what they had done was nothing t
. what the navy was prepared to do fo
her majesty. The queen some tim
afterward saw the bluejackets enter
tanned at dinner.
BOER POSITION ASSAULTED.
Thabanchu, May Afternoon.
General Hamilton's division was en-
gagged yesterday and today in forcin
O a passage northward. At Houtney, til
Boer front held a line of hills CON
manding the sides Of the mex. TT
Canadians and Gordons attacked til
hill to the left and the Shropshires an