The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1900-01-06
The BRITISH
AGAIN F0ILED
----~e~-
Another Fatal Frontal Attack
Tried at Mafeking.
a=---aaras-
THEIR LOSS WAS HEAVY
f--~--~-~~
Desperate yaIor OF Officers and Men
10 the Pace Of the Usually
Accurate BOer Fire.
THEIR LOSS WAS HEAVY

1 LONDON. Jan. g. ii5 q. m.-The
Times publishes the following dispatch
from Mofeking. dated Dec. 2s:
AT dawn todiy Colonel Baden
Powell organized an unsuccessful at
tack upon strong position Of the en-
cry at Game,ree two miles from
Mafrklng. from which the Beers have
been maintaining a dcsultory. but am
noJng shell and rifle are Tor several
weeks
The railway has recently been re-
, constructed between town dtld Game
tree whore he Beers had destroyed q.
the final repairs being made In prepar-
alton for the R1riIc.
During the night an armored lrain
with MaNlum and lIosohklss guns. un-
der Captain Williams and his troops.
took up positions FOR an attack from
two sides Captain Lord Charles Ben
,nck and a squadron were in reserve
on the lift. while The extreme left wing
was occupied by artillery and gal
looping Maxlum Of the Cape police.
"Emphcemenls were thrown up dur
Ing the night. the ord r. being TO at
tack az dawn ana the artillery Are
TO desist upon prolonged footing from
the armorcd truin. AZ dnybreak the
guns opened fire and rapdly drew. a
reply from the enemy. our shells burst
ing within effeoav range. Captain
Vernon gave the signal 10 ceise FIR
Ing and 10 advance. his squadron lead
irg of
As our men engaged the position
with r,ile fire. II was soon found tlat
the strength of the forts WIS greater
than We had supposed. The enemy
concentrated such an exceedingly hct
nre tha, the advance Of Captain vern
on was almoa, Impossible but with re-
mlrliable hercasm and gallantry Cap
tains Stanford and Vernon. Lieutenant
Patton and Scout Cooke. who guided
I the sauadrous. and Few men actually
reached the sand bags Of the fort with
, In 500 yards OF the area of the fort.
But nothing living could exist there
since the ground was swept BY
I Mauser and Martini bullets. The mon
i Who chars u through this zone Of fire
suffered terribly and In following their
officers to capture the fort 20 men lost
/ their lives Captain Sanford was the
/ first TO fill and Captain Vernon. al
ready twice wounded. and Lieutenant
I Patton were killed at the foot OF the
I fort. Thase two officers. climbing the
ditch which surrounded the fort. thrust
their revolvers through the enemy's
! loopholes only to be shot themselves
/ the next moment.
/ "Gametree Is surrounded with
scrub which contained many sharp
shooters and thoir accuracy OF fire ssil
further confused the men who had
followed Captain Vernon and who saw
him and his brother officers killed
| Being without commanders, they
were driven of at one point but thev
endeavored to scale the fort At others
/ They found the position Of the Beers
however. almost impregnable.
when we retired under cover Of Tie
armored train 50 many men had been
wounded that suspension II hostill-
ties occurred under the auspices Of the
red cross. The veldt around the Boer
position was at onoe dotted with he
flags of mercy and II was seen that
our wounded were scattered within but
a short radius Of the fort. We had al
most completely surrounded It.: and
had It not been 80 extraordinary well
protected, we should have been In
possession.
Il went with an ambulance to Came
tree The fort itself is circular with
wire interior and a narrow frontage
between six and seven feet high pierre
ed wath triple tiers of loopholes and
surrounded by a ditch