Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-26
Has Not Changed In the
Past Few Days.
PRISONERS CAPTURED
By the British FOrces-Gen. Buffers
Advance Is StubbOrnly Contested
There Does Not Seem to be Any
Chance For CrOnje to Escape.

London, Feb. 26.-4:35 a. m.-Perhaps
never before in the course of the pres
ont ~ca1npaicn have such crowds visited
the war office as was there yesterday.
AS the Times remarked today: me
dearth Of news is somewhat trying at a
time when a considerable success was
generally regarded as imminent
No d%iminution of confidence In LORD
Roberts is felt, however, and the pupnc
is ready to believe that he had good
reasons for not mentioning General
Cronie in the official dispatches. Prop
ably he is in no hurry to end a SITUATION
which is bringing daily small parties OF
Beers i'm a vain endeavor to re-enioTce
General CronJe. These he can deal with
in detail.
Lord Roberts has already captured
over 800 Beers. and at this rate he Will
soon have an array of prisoners to hold
as hostages for the 5000 British already
in Pretoria.
General Cronje's refusal to accept the
offer cf Lord Roberts regarding the Wo-
men and children indicates either mat
the ~position is less desperate than mas
been supposed or that he has been ape
to dig an absolutely safe place Tor them.
Everything goes to show that General
Buffers advance is most stupoornly con
tested and most cautiously carried out.
1t is hoped that he will soon be IN a po-
sition where General White will be able
to assist him materially.
The campaign is now approaching a
most interesting phase. In about a fort
night the congress OF the KAN
bund will meet and it rumored that MI.
Hoffmeyer will then propoSe peace terms
on the basis of the republics retaining
absolute Independence. but offerlnG 10
disarm. If these terms are re)ecred us
understood a manifesto will be boldly
issued to the Dutch throughout South
Africa calling on them to throw Off their
allegiance to Great Britain. Probably
these rumors are exaggerated, Dut there
is no doubt hat the greatest anxiety
prevails in Capetown regarding coming
events.
Germany. through the semi-oficial
B%erliner Post, reiterates thai all reports
of German mediation are quite without
foundation.
. Captain Raymond Harvey de Mont
morency. who was killed Saturday. was
the heir of Viscount Frankfort de Mont
morency and was the fourth heir to a
pee,age who has fallen in the campaign.
Paardehurg. Orange Free State, We'd
nssday, Fel. 21.-The fourth day of Cen
eral Cronjr's final defense opened in
startling fashion. Soon after dawn a
most terrific rattle of rifles broke out.
waking ihe sleeping camp. 1t wa the
heaviest fire during the war, and all
awaits with fcreboding the news of It's
effect.
1t soon developed that the Gloucesters
and EsseEs had lost their way and had
bivouackeu. in error, close TO the Roer
laager. on the north side of the river.
AS soon as they We're perceived by the
enemy. the latter fusiladed. Wonderful
to tell. the British casualties were prac-
tically nothing. There was desultory
firing all day long on both the north and
south banks, General KnoX's brigade
holding and pushing Onward the line
south of the river. while General Smith
DOrrien. on the north side, worked to-
ward the laager. Meanw lille General
French advanced, in a far e~asterly direc-
ton, neal d kopje held by a strong force
of Cronje's men, reinforced by a Lady
smith contingent. At the same time
General B~roadwood's brigade, with a
battery of horse artillery, took up posi-
tons TO the left and rear of the same
kopje.
The front of the hill was thoroughly
searched by artillery fire. Suddenly the
Beers bolted from every side toward
General French, who headed toward the
drift, Smelling vigorously. A great num-
Der escaped, but many were killed by
SuTdputl ana ABOUT ~ were captured.
AS soon as the kopje was evacuated.
this correspondent visited it. The posi-
ton was found to be wonderfully strong
naturally and to form the real key to the
position in the case of defense against
Boer achievements advancing from the
east.
Our first engagement with the Lady,
smith Beers was singularly unfortunate
for them. A great deal of forage, provis-
ions and equipment was captured and the
kopje was frequently dotted with blood,
showing that many wounded had been
removed.
The Boer method of removing their dead
is to tie a couple Of reins to the body,
which is then dragged off by two horse
men at full gallop. There were several
pour parleurs today on the subject of a
short armisttce. 1t seems that General
Cronje is willing to surrender, but that
the young ~Transvaalers refuse. The 9TH
err beleaguered Beers are anxious to give
up.
A British doctor who visited the Boer
lines to see the wounded, found the
trenches along the river full of wound
ed and say many dead.
A deserter who came into camp tonight
says that yesterdays bOmbardment was
appalling in its effects, especially in the
case OF the HowHtzer batteries enflading
the river.
Thu position today is practically the
same. The Beers are strengthening their
entertainments around the lager, but the
case is hopeless. The capture of the kopje
today has given the British a splendid po-
sition. and will prevent a Boer relieving
force reaching CrOnje.
Everybody admires the splendid stand
of the burghers, but from a humanitar-
Ian point of view, it is considered that
further resistance on the part OF General
Cronj1e will be criminal. Every shrapnel
shell inds a victim and unless a miracle
occurs his force must be wiped out or