The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-05-16
Beers DECLARE THEY
HAVE TAKEN MAFEKINC
British Deny This, But Admit That Heavy Battle
Was Fought ia That Vicinity.
General Butler Tells Of the BggarSberg Fight and Suisse
quent Capture Of Dundee.

ment. Unanswered to the right around
their left flank and they retired. Dun
donald then halted.
" He was twenty-five miles. as the
crow flies, from his previous nights
bivouac, and had covered a Waterless .
country, most of the time riding
through smoke. From prisoners I learn .
That the enemy numbers over 1000 at
helpmaakar, and being now Joined by
those who left Van Jonders pass they
must total nearly 1900 men,
B." We move on Dundee today.
Hildyard reports the occupancy Of
Vessels Mex and is repairing the
line
Judging from the above dispatches.
the British advance is little more than
an arduOus march. The Beers. who
were active at first, later appear to
have shown the same readiness to re-
treat which is now marking the move
mentS of the federals in the Free State.
Apparently the burgheTs are about to
evacuate Natal and concentrate for
the defense of Laing's Mex nOrthWard
and Van Reenan's Pass west.
The occupation of Dundee by the
British places the coal supplies there
again in their hands
General Buffers advance. as his tele-
grams indicate, was by the instruc-
tons of Lord Roberts, and it will cease
or go forward as Lord Roberts directs.
1t is said that General Buffers orders
to keep the Beers employed have been
supplemented by an order to drive
them completely out of Natal and
then move on HarTismith.
Take Ladybrand Region.
General Rumble and General Bra
bant are taking possession Of the wide
regions around Ladybrand almost
without opposition. They find the
country plentifully supplied with cat
tie, horse feed and flour.
The Beers in that quarter surrender
daily, and it is the expectation of the
correspondents on the spot that the
eastern section Of the Free State will
soon be as tranquil as the western.
Beers Turn to Face Roberts.
The TransvaaI army has taken a po-
sitiOn at Blaauwbaschdort Pass, near
Hebron road station, fifty miles north
OF KrOonstad. Its rear guard is stiu
holding the hills north Of the Valsch
river, while the Boer scouts are in
touch with British accommodating par
ties twenty miles north of KrOonstad.
The Beers have held council of war
at Lingley, and British spies have
learned that the burghers decided to
hold Harrismith as long as possible.
KroOnstad. The railway Iaborers are
hard at work, and the engineers hope
to have the line repaired within three
days
The Free Staters are surrendering in
larger numbers than after the OccUpa-
ton of BIOemfontein. One officer of
the Transvaal artillery says:
There will be no serious fighting
this side of Pretoria, as Berenigen, on
the Vaal, is indensible. Heavy guns
are being mounted at Pretoria
Both Generals BOtha and Limmer
are agreed that ultimate success is
impossible President Kruger is OBJ
stinate, and a majority of the Trans
walters hold with him"
It is estimated that the Transvaalers
can still muster $4,000 men on the
fighting line.
Dundee Is Taken.
The war office has received the fol-
lowing dispatch from General Butler:
Dundee, May Is, l p. m.-We have
occupied Dundee About $500 Of the
they entTained. Their wagons also left
yesterday by Dejagers Drift and the
Dannahauser road. Their kaff1rs said
they were going to Laings Neck. Al
most every house in Dundee is COM
pletely looted. The navigation cOlliery
is all right.
The machinery Of the Dundee col
Iieries is destroyed. The houses Of
the town are damaged, but are struc-
turally intact.
A dispatch from Brands Drift, dated
Sunday, May Is. says: General Rumble
has completely checkmated the attempt
of the Beers to come south again, and
the enemy are retiring before the per
sistent advance of the British. Many
There We're $50 of these yesterday and
! today, among them President Steyn's
brother. The Ladybrand district is
clear of Beers. They have evacuated
! Mequatlings Neck, and are now near
Lindley.
Beers Tell of Zand River.
A dispatch from the Boer lager at
Reitzpruit. dated Thursday May 10,
via KrOOnstad. describing the Zand
river fighting, says:
"A report was received last night
that the British had crossed one of the
lower drifts At 6 a. m. the first
cannon shot proclaimed the opening Of
the battle. The British hosts could
| be seen advancing in solid masses.
] Their cavalry hung on our TANKS.
| Their infantry were less easily dis
| cernible in the grass. The sky was
clouded with smoke from the burning
veldt.
THE fighting began at Philip Bo-
/ tha's position above the railway bridge.
/ A British field battery pushed across
/ the river and bOmbarded the kOpjes
Philip BOtha was holding so heavily
/ that they appeared to be handicapped
/ from the bursting shrapnel Under
! cover of this cannOnade the British in
! fantry advanced but they met with
so hot a reception that they had to
/ retire.
| In the meantime the British cav
| airy had crossed the river. moving
| straight north General BOtha threw
| the StandertOn burghers, with a bat
/ terry of cannon, to head them off. The
/ burghers got the advantage and cap
! tured fourteen of the British.
Unfortunately, just at this time,
about II o'clock, the center of the
! burghers gave way without cause.
! Upon this Philip Botha and all the
| others gave way. The StandertOn and
/ Bethel commanders, with the Irish
/ brigade, covered the retreat to krO0n-
/ stad.
! otherwise than in the retreat from
! Brandfort and the Vet river. the Brit
/ ish pressed hard on the retreatlng
! burghers. All our cannon and com
/ missariat were brought out, ana SO far
as is known our casualties were con
/ fined to a dozen wounded.
Lord Roberts contributes q liae 70
the discussion going on in the press as
to when the war will end, oy the Iol-
! lowing telegram, dated Monday ana