The Savannah morning news., 1900-08-13
.ENGLAND'S DISGRACE
HER SOLDIERS ARE STARVING IN
SOUTH AFRICA.
RUNDLE'SMEN SHORT OF FOOD
VANISHING WHILE FOOD is ROT
TING ON WHARvEs.

Army-Raw Flour and Raw Meat
the Only Rations-Men Too Weak
TO Do the Work Before Them.
often Seen QuarreIing With Ne
groes for Food.
Correspondence of Associated Press1
London, Aug. 4.-Mr A. G. Haes, rep
resentative in South Africa Of the Daily
News, is the latest war correspondent to
attack the methods and the red tape of
the British war Office. He says:
Let me tell you how our army in South
Africa is treated by the incompetent peo-
pie of the good city of London. l pledge
my word as man and journalist that
every written word is true. l will add
nothing nor detract from, nor set down
aught in malice. If my statements are
proven false then let me be scourged with
the tongue and pen of slorn from every
decent Briton's home and hearth forever
after, for he who lies about his country at
such an hour as this is of all traitors the
West.
Il will deal now particularly with the
men who are acting under the command
u 4SiSuts OSii. OH LSSAiS MS
good soldier and courteous gentleman has
10 hold frontage line from Winburg via
Senekel, almost 10 the borders of Basuto-
land His whole front, extending nearly
hundred miles, is constantly threatened
by an active, dashing. determined enemy
an enemy who knows the country far bet
ter than an English fox-hunting squire
after season. To hold this vast line in
tact Gen. Rumble has to march from point
90 point as his scouts warn him of the
movements of the tireless foe.
RundIe's Men Starving.
Gen. Rundles task is a colossal one.
and any sane man would think that gil
gantic efforts would be made to keep him
amply supplied with food for his SOL
diers. But such is not the case The
men are absolutely starving. Many of
the infantrymen are so weak that they
can barely stagger along under the weight
of their soldierly equipment They are
worn to shadows and move very weary,
listless footsteps on the march. People
high up in authority may deny this, but
he who denies it sullies the truth. This
is what the soldiers get to eat, what they
have been getting to eat for a long time
past, and what they are likely to get for
a long time to come, unless England
Touses herself and bites to the bone in
regard to the neop,e who are RESPONSE
BILE for il:
Zone pound of raw -four, which the SOL
diers have to cook after a hard days
march, Is served out to each man every
alternate day. The following day he eats
one pound of biscuits. In this country
there is no fuel, except a little OK dung,
dried by the sun. II a soldier is lucky
enough TO pick up a little he can go to
TIE nearest water, of which there is plen-
ty, mix his cake without yeast or bak-
ing powder and make some sort of a
wretched mouthful. He gets one pound
of raw fresh meat daily, which nine times
out of ten he cannot cook, and there his
supplies end.
Where Food Is Going to Waste.
What has become of the rations of
rum, of sugar, of tea, of cocoa, of gro
ceries generally. Ask at the snug little
railway sldings, where the go-ds are STACK
ed-and forgotten. Ask in the big stores
in Cape Town and other seaport towns.
Ask in your own country, where count
less thousands of pounds worth of food
stuff lie rotting in the warehouses, bound
up and tied down with rep-tape bandages.
Ask-yes, ask, but DONE stop at asking
damn somebody high up in power. Don't
let some wretched underling be made the
scapegoat OF this criminal state of affairs,
for the faint of this shameful thing rests
upon you, upon every Briton whose
homes, privilege and prosperity are being
safeguarded by these furnishing men.
The people in authority will probably
tell you that Gen Rumble and his Splen-
did fellows are so isolated that food cam
not be obtained for them. l say this is
false for recently /, in company with an
other correspondent left Gen. Rundle's
camp without an escort We made our
way in the saddle, taking our two Cape
carts with us to Winburg railway sta
ton; leaving our horseflesh there, we
took train for East London. Then we
went back to the junction and down to
Cape Town, where we remained for forty
eight hours, and then made our way back
10 Winburg and from Winburg we came
without escort to rejcin Gen. Rumble at
Hammonia.
"If two war correspondents could ira
verse that country and get through with
winter supplies for themselves why can
not the transport people manage 10 do
the sa me? These transport people affect
TO look with contempt upon a war CORE
SpOndent and his opinions on Things mill
tary, but IL we could not manage trans
port business better than they do, most of
us would willingly stand up and allow
ourselves to be shot
Their Hunger Us Desperate.
Our men ON the fields of war are fam
ishing, whilst millions worth OF food lies
rotting on our wharves and in cities, fool
that ought with ordinary management to
he within easy ri ach of our fighting gen
erals. Britain asks of Rumble the fulfill
ment of q task that would tax the ener-
ges and the abilities of the first general
IN Europe, and with n stout heart he
faces the work in front of him. faces 1t
with men whose knees knock under them
when they march, with hands that shake
when they shou der their rifles; ST axe, but
not with fear; tremble, but not from
wounds, but from weakness, from pow
erty OF blood and muscle, brought about
by continued hunger. Are those men mt
TO storm a kopje? Are they fl to tramp
the whole night through. 10 make
forced march, to turn a position ana then
fight, like their fathers fought, next day.
II II you no. And yours be the shame
II the Empires flag be lowered-not
theirs but yours. for you-what do you
do? You stand in your music halls ana
shout chorus of songs full of sentiments
Of pride for your soldier. full of praise
for his patience, his pluck and his deVo-
ton TO duty. and you let him go hungry