The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-01-09
BRAVE AND
GOOD men
WENT DOWN
In the Effort to Gross Tugsla River,
Which Had Been Damned and
9arbed Wire Planted.
ROBERTS, With VOLUNTEERS,
Made a Desperate Attempt to Recap
ture Longs Guns, and Got
Two of Them.


LONDON. Jan. s-a:45 a. m.-General
White stu holds out. or did 50 sixty
hours nso, when the Beers. Ousted
from their foothold inside the works,
suspended their assault at nightfall.
England has taken heart. The sltua-
don, however, Is worse. The beieagueF-
ed force must have expended large
amounts OF ammunition, which cannot
be replenlshed, and must have lost
number Of officers and men. which Is
counter-balanced, so far as the garri-
son is concerned, by the greater loss
of the Beers.
General White stIll needs relief ana
the difficulties confronting General Bull
Ter are as great as before. The for
mers unadorned sentences, as read and
re-read, suggest cloquenay the peril
in which the town was for fourteen
hours, ana how barely able his nine
thousand men were to keep from being
overcome.
The chief concern for GeneraI Whlte
Is in respect Of ammunition. Sixty
eight days ago, at the beginning OF the
Siege. his small arm ammunition was
vaguely deserved as 'plenty." His
artillery then had three hundred rounds
per gun. Some Of the batteries have
been in action frequently since then,
and ali were probably engaged last
Saturday. His stock OF shells, conse'
uuently, must be low and this will make
Il diaicult for General White to CO.
operate In a movement by General Bull
Ter.
The entreuchmenta at Ladysmlth' as
described in a message that left a day
or two before the fighs and has just
come through, are fortified hills, well
covered with rifle pits and trenches,
down which the infantry move in sin
gle file to the various posts in absolute
safety. Full rations are still served,
except whlskey and tobacco.
LONDON. Jan. .9-s:45 a. m.-Fhe
Boer agents, according to the Cairo
correspondent 6f the DAILY Mall, are
evading British vigilance respecting
the Importation of ammunition The
correspondent says:
"a large quantity OF quick firing am-
munltion goes to Ras JibeutIl, from
which point 1t is conveyed by dhows
along the coast or trans-shipped to YES
sells bound for Portuguese and ports In
East Africa. French steamers touch
ing at Ras JlbeutII before reaching
Alden contrive to evade search by trans
shipping at Madagascar to steamers
apparently not connected with Euro
pean lines. In this way they escape
usplcIon.'
The Times publishes the following,
ated January 6, from MOdder river:
News from Belmont shows that the
Queensland and Canadian volunteers
lave been so energetic in that neigh
torhood 'hat large belt of the Free
5tate across the border has been de-
5erted by the Boers.'
LONDON, Jan. Spy 7:l5 the Irish
brigade had driven the Beers to the
oorth bank OF the Tugela. They found
hat the enemy had planted the ground
ylth barbed wire entranglements. Even
n the bed OF the river barbed wire was
iaId down. Into the wato: went the
Dublin Innlskllllngs. Borderers and
connaughts, but It was found Mt the
FORD that the Beers had cunningly
BANNED the river and there WIS ten
eet of water where ordinarily 1t Is
hut knee deep. They strove to find the
gosslngs, and many fine fellow with
Bis weight of ammunition and nc
Dutrements, was drowned. 1t was
esperate and serious situation. The
ttack upon the right was making no
rogress, and the hearts Of the men
ad reached an apparent impasse. Bat
here we're furious and angry Irish
en- who had resolved to get across
bmehow. BY dlnt of scramblIng from
5ck TO rock and swimming. number
on the other side. Yet most OF them
und that they had but passed across
winding spruit. The Tugela still lay
front, and all the while the mur-
rous fire of cannon and Mnuser
ashed, and comrades fell welterlng
their blood.
''In the meanwhile Colonel Long had
bst his guns. and Generals Butler and
lery, with their stnffs and escorts.
sd ridden to the scene.
THE spoutInG hail Of lead and Iron
Mapped and spluttered and the dust
Bffed more than ever. Lord Roberts
on, with Captains Schoheld and Com
rove. volunteered to ride out and en-
eavor to save the two field batteries
the open. Readily other volunteers
ere found. Corporals from the lives
nd drivers Of the ammunition wagons,
king spare teams EalloDed out. aud
en- and horses again began f1iling on
very aide. Young Roberts horse was
own up with a shell. ConErove was
ID with a bullet and his clothes wcre
at by other missiles, sehoaeld alon"
capped untouched. Across that valley
death quickly the surviving anm7l5
ere rounded up and the guns were
5oked and dragged away. Again and
-ain that day attempts we're made 10
ui Dff tht remaining guns, but 'he
cr nre was incessnnt and witherng
4 the battle was over. General Bull
a6andoned the guns and Fetreated.'