The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-02-13
ENGLISH WAR VIEW.
Bri ish Officer Comments on South
African Campaign.

Bri ish Officer Comments on South
African Campaign.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28.-An even
ing paper prints the following extracts
from letter received by a gentleman
in this city from a captain in the Brit
is army stationed at Woolwich.
We are, of course, engrossed with
the progress, or rather want of prog
ress, Of the war. We are much handi-
capped by very many different circum-
stances. What strikes US, as soldiers,
as the most extraordinary feature of
the foreign criticism is the quiet way
in which they totally ignore the enor-
nous difficulties under which we labor.
Part Of these, but the smaller part, are
of our own making. We are taken
necessarily at a great disadvantage
from the fact that We had such an
enormous distance to move our troops
and everything connected with them.
Foreigners, of course, say that we
ought to have taken steps beforehand.
Practically we could not do this. We
went wrangling on over the altogether
| insignificant question of the UitIand-
ers' franchise, whereas the real issue
was British or Dutch ascendency in
South Africa. Had the Government
gone to war. before England would
have been split up into two camps,
whereas now We are at least united
people
Sure Of British Right.
l am not, as you know, one who
thinks that my country always does
absolutely right, but of the justice of
our cause in the present instance l
have not the vaguest possible shadow
of doubt. This will be the verdict
of history when we have been long
dead and gone But unfortunately we
had very bad card in our hand, and
that was the johannesburg party.
| Personally, am much disappointed,
though not altogether surprised, at
the attitude of the American people. l
have always held that their action in
Cuba was perfectly justifiable, and in
Hawaii also. But if-they admit that,
as presume they do, l cannot for the
life OF me see what they can see wrong
in our attitude in South Africa. Sedi-
ton is rife and carefully fostered by
the Dutch elements there, and unless
we were prepared to haul down our
flag in those parts our action was the
] logical consequence. Rthink we stand
on even firrner ground than America
did, because, although Cuba was a
thorn in her side, there was no at
tempt on the part of Spain to under
mine the authority of the Union on the
mainland and among their own sub
ljects. However, these are academical
discussions and profitless at the pres
elt moment.
Popular Exaggeration.
Thanks to the telegraph, style OF
exaggeraticn has crept into peoples
conversation which was unknown in
former days. England has suffered nc
disaster up to the present, though we
have suffered considerable losses in
battle, much of which, / regret tc
think, was ayoidabie. But it requires
very intimate knowledge of our char.
acter as a people and of our traditions
and achievements as an army to draw
the correct conclusions from all tha
has happened.
The four serious events which have
occurred are Nicholson's Mex, Cat
lacre's reverse, Methuen's mishap ant
Buffers failure to cross the Tugela
The last three occurred in such rapiC
succession that foreign countries, onl.
too happy to depict every check in tn
most alarmist coloring, cried out tina
the end had come, whereas, as mat
ter of fact the game has only begun
( At present we are everywhere outnum
bered and with our lines of communi
cation in the most difficult situation
from military point of view possible
Rebel Colonists.
If we were acting in an enemy
q country we should have no doubt hoy
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