The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-01-15

advancing and they We're now within 500
yards OF us II WAS easy TO recognize the
kilties they were wearing. We fired at
them necessarily. All our bullets seemed 10
strike / had not time to be afraid i
prayed TO God and fired on. aiming each
time at one OF their men. You know l am
not bad shot Their Maxims gave us back
what we sent them without a moments
stop.
"a few OF us. finding our position too
risAy, ran back TO where the horses were
and went of. / was close to the general
and remained We fred on. he as well as /.
and tried TO get cover behind three great
blocks OF rock when lyddite shell burst
close to US and covered us with earth ana
stones The general withdrew US little
back At this moment one OF my neighbors
was hit in the side, but he had strength
enough TO get to his horse and galloped or
We were now only fighting on the kopje
with the general and the kilties were still
advancing and crushing US in a circle. At
fifty yards distance we were still firing on
them Just then the general fell The
group around me was reduced TO eight, OF
whom three were wounded. My friend
Van Niekerke. had been wounded at the
wrist, but he kept on firing with his lett
hand. resting his gun on his right arm
We could neither carry away the general
nor defend him and our cartridges were ex-
hausted.
What now? said Coghill. while we
looked at each other.
zone of the wounded said we must raise
curse. The balls whistled all around u.s.
Something had TO be done.
.'WeIl, SAID one of the wounded-Coghil1
completed the phrase-'we must run for it.
Good luck cried the general, who was
seated on the ground and pale as death.
I've threw down our muskets and every
thing that might delay US and then We
rushed down from the kopje, for II was a
case OF saving our own skins. The two
bodies Of the advancing English troops
were within 200 yards of each other. ran
down between them without turning my
wings. / do not think ever ran so quick.
j was lucky enough TO get to the horses
without being hit / could not find mine,
but got hold of another. Then OFF / went
him. and managed to get clear OF the
lancers who were pursuing us. l passed
the night in an abandoned kaffir kraal, and
the next morning managed 20 join the COM
mando OF Viljoen. L did not know what
became of my comrades, but / hope that
they were as lucky as / was"
COMMANDO'S DEPARTURE.
The Standard and Diggers' News gives
this picturesque account of the departure
of commando from Pretoria: 1.-THE par
ade OF 400 sturdy warriors of the police
commando excited admiration The Afri-
kander men have received their mandate
from the women folk. though the shadow
OF Elansdlaagte hung like pail on the
In kappes, and maids In chintz, and
babies of ali ages. on whom the warriors
showered vaIedictory BENSON. chung and
struggled fiercely around the carriages.
withered tantes. buxom vrous and frail
nicht1es tumble. over each other for a
final embrace. IL was admitted that no
finer more serviceable force had been
sent off. BY the time il gets to the Natal
border 1t will be 500 strong. II is under
. Ion nf hn ranlf xarf
NJ. j. Van Dam, with Lieutenants
Osthusm, Pohlman. Murphy and Jacobsz
next in command. c. b. Schultz addressed
the men: You are going to defend your
rights your l.Jerty and your independence.
that dearly bought independence God has
granted you and which is once again con-
tested. You are not going TO fight for
honor. or money, or mercenary ambition,
or sordid GAIN .
One of the soldiers rescued from the
wrecked transport Ismore writes:
1.-The most satisfactory part of the
whole business has been the splen-
did behavior of all the troops They
were as steady and quiet as II we were
paradipg the barrack square. Every man
stood In his proper place. There was not
the slightest confusion or hurry and they
did exactly they were told. There is
not the least doubt that 1t its owing to their
splendid discipline that all were saved.
Had there been the slightest panic. a
dreadful loss of life must have occurred,
as getting the boats off was most diff
ficult business owing to the heavy swell,
and when they were launched they leaked,
so that half an hours ballng had to be
done before we dared let them start.
Everything had TO be done by the soldiers,
as the ships crew were all employed in try
ing to shut the watertight door to keep
the sea out of the engine room. If X had
got in there before the fires were put out
a fearful explosion would have occurred
and the ship would have been blown in
half"
MoDDER RIVER BATTLE.
Modder river battle. with its many dra-
matte incidents, its heavy losses, its long
duration, proves a never-failing topic for
the war correspondent lucky enough to
have witnessed it.
Julian Ralph, in the Daily Mail gives a
vivid account Of this engagement. "a
common reliance of the Boer.'' he writes.
twas upon gin. Empty gin bottles. bottles
still containing gin and one full bottle of
that liquor were to be seen stuck in the
loose dirt of the trenches"
Speaking of the Boer losses this corre-
spondent declares: First in the mind of
the Boer is the desire to hide his dead and
to lie about their number. 1t is from their
own that they most desire TO hide the
truth. The prisoners We took all said that
only eighteen had been killed, but the de-
serters said the loss of life was very great
and that In the river alone one hundred
were sunk with weights.
For my part shall not be surprised If
some day we learn their loss was quite 800.
After every battle the veldt has been dot
ted with Boer horses in consequence of the
custom of bringing two horses for each
weil-to-do man. and in consequence of
the loss Of riders by death and wounding
But both previous battlefelds combined
showed no such number of riderless horses
as Modder river There were literally
hundreds of them. / had lost mine in
the fight, but in the first half hour OF the
next morning took my choice of four and