The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1900-01-16

CorrerpootsEos % re Ars1elatei Press.
London, Jan. G-Lstters from the sol
diers fighting against the Boers are pub
Jished In large numbers. and in many
cases are just as interesting as the ac-
counts by trained war correspondents. y
medical officer under Lord Methuen. de-
scTibing the battle OF Motder River.
writes. -
a lot Of the North Lancashire men
were horribly wounded ] turned over 0
sergeant black IN the face. dead. One
man was brought 10 me who had been
struck b . shell fragment-face mutilat-
81. throat cut, and chest lacerated on.
God. the sight was sickcn.nE. blood every
where. Very few OF our men icing
wounded. / went out near sunset 10 aid
the HighlandeTE. They had been lying all
day under that frigbgful sun, and their
wounded We're stiu there No stretcher-
bearers could advance. as they were all
shot at They shouted 70 me 70 crawl on
the ground, az, though most Of the firing
was over. there were SUI three or four
Beers with express rifles and explosive
bullets who were under cover and who
Kept picking of cur men. Some men IT.
terry collapsed, AMI all ] could DO was
10 put pad 20 their wounds and my
Ehisky flask 10 their lips. ! then crawIeI
back TO my horse and made my way TO
some smbuiances two miles distant 10 get
their aid. ] was under fire all the time
the bullets dancing around me. / felt a
kind OF solemn disregard, as l had been
exposed 10 greater dangers before
Infantry of I.Iffle Use.
In a letter written TO his father from
Mooi River, on November p, an officer IN
the QHeens Royal West Surrey Regi-
ment says:
Against IN enemy like the Beers in
fantry is useless. The -3uers have spies
everywhere, and as they are We'll mount
ed they can move away hours before our
infantry can get within striking distance.
On the other hand, they will never at
tack, and when we advance toward Preto-
ria comnandos will be LEFT all over the
country. looting and burning farms. The
only people who have a chance with them
are the local volunteers. If the govern
ment would only raise about 1900 volun-
teeTs and send oUt a lot OF mounted in
fantTy who could work with the local vol
-unteers. these isolated Beers forces would
soon be wiped out At present we are
helpless, as they make rings around US"
The special correspondent OF the cape
Argus thus describes a bOmbardment of
Kimberley; What will probably be hand
ed down in the annals Of history TO Boer
p0steflty as the DOmbarGment OF Kim
beFley probably oCCuTI ed on Tuesday, No
Vember T. and If ever the farcical element
were introduced into such serious busl
ness as war, the pueTile attempts TO raze
Kimberley can surely lay claim 10 it,
Boer Fire Was Harmless.
1.-The Beers had two guns mounted, one
at ScholZ Mex, trained on the Premier
mine at Wessclton. at a range of some
thing Ike $500 yards, and the other on
Spytf0nteiR.- quite 1900 yards distant. 4
couple OF shots were fired between and 8
o'clock in the morning, but then the
Beers desisted until about 10. when one
sun at SchOlZ Mex. apparently a nine
FOUNDER. firing a French shell, opened
fire on wesselton. The fire, however,
proved quite harmless, nearly all the
shots falling in the debris heaps, and our
guns at Wesselton replying and quickly
getting the range, induced the enemy 10
cease firing, and they cleared off about
noon. So little was thought of the Boer
fire that the alarm was not even sounded
and business was carried on just the
same. Thus ended the bombardment of
Kimberley. So little alarm did it cause
that men in the redoubts were actually
playing cricket and quoits while it was
going on
The following is from a Reservist SER
geant in the Coldstream Guards, who is
with Methuens column. He was at the
battle OF Modder River, and says: Our
ing the afternoon some one seemed TO
have spotted me from the trenches. First
a shot struck the side of my boot and
struck my rife just in front of my face.
filling my eyes with dirt and splinters. !
rose up a little, when another bullet
struck the middle finger OF my left hand.
] had got on my knees when a bullet
struck me fair in the chest on the buckle
OF my haVersack, breaking through IL
and causing a slight puncture OF the skin
and bruiSing my chest / have been con-
graduated as being the luckiest becsar in
my battalion"
Letter from BOer soldier.
From the Boer side come reports Just
as interesting. A lad OF seventeen wrote to
his mother after the battle Of Eiand- |
sfaagte, and the letter is published In
the Journal de GeneVe, as follows. I'VE |
were on a l1opje. Our horses We're behind !
il In a hollow. AS the infantry advanced |
against us we began shooting When it /
looked as IL We We're going to be sur /
rounded a certain number of our men fell |
back TO another position About a hun |
dred Of US remained on the kopje But the |
fire Of MaXims and their guns became so |
violent that we withdrew a little 10 find |
cover. The general and commandant VII |
joen, rallied US, and brought us back 10 1
the top Of the hill. and advised US 10 get |
under shelter there as much as possible |
I followed the general with dozen others |
TO the right, and Viljoen led the rest TO |
The left.
The English were still advancing. and |
they were now within 500 yards Of Us. /
IL was easy TO recognize the kilties they /
were wearing We fired AZ them inces- |
sanity. All our bullets seemed to strike. |
/ had not time 10 be afraid. / prayed God /
and fired on, aiming each time at one OF 4
lhr!r men. You know / am not a Dau !
shot Their MaXims gave US back what /
We sent them without d moments stop. /
a few OF US, finding our position too /
risky, ran back TO where The horses were.
and went of. j was close TO the general Z
and remained We fred on. he as well as
L. anl tried TO get cover behind three /
great blocks Of rock, Whep lyddlte shell /
burst close 10 Us and covered us With !
earth and stones The general withdrew
my r~irhhors was bit IN the side. But h 4
had strrnEth enough to set to his horse .
ana Balloped OF.
Bullet struck Gen. yiljorn.
We were now only fighting on the
kopj. with the general and the kilties 1
were SIN advancing and crushing Us in a /
circle. At hfty yards distance We we-e
sriu firing ON them Just then the gen
-Tsl tel. The group around me was re-
durrl TO eight, Of whom three were
wounded. Ny friend, Van NiekeTke had
boeu wounded a. the wrist but he kept
On airing with his LETT hand. resting his 4
gun on his Ti2ht arm. We could neither
cErfy away the general nor defend MIN.
and our cartridges were exhausted
What nOw| said Coghill, while We looked /
at ,2ca other. One of the wounded said:
We must raise the white nag --Coghlu
answered with curse.
THE bullets Whistled all around US
Something had 20 be done. Wen said
one OF the wounded-Coghlu completed !.
tAc Dhrase-'We must run for it
Good luck cried the general. who
vas seated on the ground and pale as
death. We threw doWa our muskets and /