Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1900-10-05
HOW The CRAFTY BOERS
FIGHT THEIR BATTLES

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Once in his "schanze," the Boer
awaits the assault of the enemy with
serenity. He knows what is expected Of
hin, and has no doubt of his ability
to meet any requirements. He rarely
fires at the troops advancing directly
upon him, but rather at those to the
right or left. This maneuver has the
double advantage Of enabling the Boer
to remain fully concealed, while the al
von,ing foe, his attention occupied
ahead, thoughtlessly exposes himself
to bullet coming at an angle. In this
way two commandos, lying couple OF
hundred yards apart, will cross-firc
the eremy and protect each other
Look through my excellent field
glasses while they are directed at an
ensConced Boer, during one of the Brit
ISL attacks along the Tugela Sharp
mel and lyddite burst all around him,
but he betrays not the slightest nerv-
BUSINESS. He lies stretched on his left
side, his Mauser thrust through a cleft
between two boulders. The sun beats
on his barred gray head. for his hat is
nodding on twig ten feet away. as
the breeze stirs the bush. 1t Is placed
there to draw the fire intended for the
owner. He does not fire, although his
finger Is on the trigger and the muzzle
of his rife is motionless. Below. toll
ins painfully up the slope which ris IS
from the river, is tn ekhaki-clad line
OF battle. The British have got within
three hundred yards. and the critical
moment Of the charge is nearing. They
are pushing forward steadily; rushing
a few yards, then dropping behind some
convenient cover to fire-for Tommy
Atkins has learned point or two from
the book Of his opponent Watch the
motion Of the barrel of the old Beers
gun, as II seems to follow the move
mcnts Of some object. The sunburned
check drops on the stock, the rifle
cracks, and an English officer who hal
partially risen to give some order slides
down, writhing convulsively. His bill
let has found him. The Boer coo,!y
works his lever out and in, and resumes
hts watchful attitude.
Thoroughly disciplined troops place
a vast amount Of dependence on their
officeis. Deprived Of officers, a regular
regiment will become fuddled and
cease to advance. The Boer knows
tliis. and he counts one officer worth
twenty men. Although the English Off
cars have discarded all marks of rank,
they cannot conceal themselves in &C.
ton. Vocal orders cannot be under
stood In battle unless supplemented by
gestures, and thus the officer betrays
The Boer crouches In bis
'sc!anze" and patiently waits until he
spots" the man in authority. Does lie
then proceed to empty his magazine
rapidly and, probably Intellectually?
Not he. He reserves his fire. but keep
Ing his rifle all the while trained on the
officer, until the latter gets In a posi-
tc offer fair shot. Then the bullet
speeds and the officer goes out of dc
ticn And this is the way each individual
Bocr in the line of defence does his
work. They do not all get officers of
ccnrse but the illustration portrays the
Method. The Boer fights men Just as
he would stalk the shy antelope or lie
n wait for the stealthy tiger in both
" h'ch pastimes he Is adept. Every
Boer knows his rifle thoroughly aud
becomes acquainted with all its little
oddities Of sight and trigger, and other
whims peculiar to firearms. and uses II
accordingly. In fact. his secret OF
strength lies in reduction to indl-
vidualism Of nearly all practical qualifi
Avital point In the Boer method Is
never to throw away a shot; which
means, Of course. never to fire until
there is a fair chance OF hitting. This
policy leads them to permit the enemy
to come dangerously close at times
before opening fire. The first battle Of
Colsnso provided good illustration Of
this almost stoical reservation. The
I,pt tsh n,nrshnI IN ,fithin h,,,
dred yards Of the Boer "schanzes" BE-.
lore they had the slightest intlmation
of the presence OF the enemy. The
C.'ashing rifle volleys when they did
begin, swept the English down by hun
dreds. When the British had retreated
after abandoning the guns, the Bo2r
FIRE dwindled away and soon ceased al.
together Somebody ordered the guns
o be brought on, and the men In charge
1t, No more deadly rife fire could
be conceived than that which frustrat-
ed their brave attempt. General Boths
stood, partially sheltered by a huge
rock, just opposite the abandoned guns,
the movements of the British
through his field glasses. Teams OF six
horses hitched two together, directed
b. three mounted drivers, essayed The
impossible task. They came at full
ealltp. with a huge iron hook ready
to attach to a gun and haul 1t OFF. In
the 'schanzes" the Beers waited. Near