The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-12-19
And IL Clements Had Delayed Retreat
Little Longer His Whole Army
Would Have Been Captured.
LORD SALISBURY CRITICISED
PEssIMIsTIC SPEECH NOT RELISHED
BY THE LONDON PRESS.
Thanksgiving Service I'm Connection
with the Return of Lord Rob-
erts to BE Abandoned.

LONDON, Dec. 19.-"The Beers have
raided Cape Colony at two separate points,
| one hundred miles distant" says the Cape
Town correspondent of the Daily Mail.
zone commando advanced upon Philips
town, between Colesburg and Kimberley.
The other, supposed to be Herzogs COM
mando, crossed the Orange river between
Odendalstroom and Bethulie. northwest of
Burghersdorp, its objective apparently be-
ing Craddock. General Macdonald Is en-
gaging the invaders, who have no guns,
twenty miles west of Burgersdorp. The
latest news is that they are being slowly
forced back to the Orange river. where a
warm reception is being prepared for
| them"
Another dispatch from Cape Town says:
'grhe Beers who crossed the Orange river
into Cape Colony, west of Aliwal North. on
Saturday, encountered the Cape Rifles and
| Brabants force, who retired with loss"
| Rumors were current Monday night that
| General Knox had inflicted a crushing
| defeat on the Boer commanders, and that
| the Boer force had been utterly routed
| on the Orange river. AT the War Office
nothing was known concerning these re-
ports. News of decisive British success
at this time would add considerably to the
average Englishmans enjoyment of Christ
mas festivities.
CLOSE CALL FOR CLEMENTS.
| Lord Kitchener. in a dispatch from Pre-
| toria, dated Dec. IL, reports that all the
| British wounded in the engagement at
! Nooitgedaoht have arrived there and are
| doing well. Unofficial details of the defeat
| of the British at Nooitgedacht indicate
| that General Clements's entire force had a
narrow escape from capture. The Boer
| plans were splendidly laid. If the main
| British column had tarried little longer
there would have been complete success
! for the Beers, who exposed themselves un-
dauntedly, yelling and waving their arms.
Their rushes were only stemmed by ar
tilIery. After the British retreat the Beers
held prayer meeting. Their hymns could
! be heard by the retiring British. All ac-
| counts indicate heavy Boer loss. Colonel
Legge exhibited splendid bravery. He shot
| five Beers with his revolver before he
| fell with three bullets In his body.
| The government publicly requests en-
ployers who have kept open situations for
yeomanry, colonials and volunteers, to con-
| tinue their patriotic efforts to minimize the
| Sacr1nceS OF tneSe men IN the service OF
| their country. The War Office has issued
| the Queens thanks to the yeomanry, colon
| ials and volunteers, expressing her reli-
ance that those abroad will continue to
aid the regulars. The foregoing are de-
| signed to quiet those in the field who are
| waiting to go home Numerous volunteer
| officers designations have been gazetted,
| lawyers, physicians and business men who
| have urgently represented that their af-
| fairs are going to ruin. The War Office,
| on account of these representations, has let
| them off.
| SALISBURY PEssIMISTIC.
| AT the conference Of the National Union
| of Conservative Associations, yesterday,
| Lord Salisbury, alluding to the war, said
| IL they wished to sustain the empire and
maintain the glory of England untarnished.
| their efforts must not be slackened until
| this great enterprise was carried out, for
| on the issue thereof depended the glory
| and perpetuity of the empire. 1t might
| require strenuous effort and great self
sacrifice. The present was a period of
some anxiety. "We," said the premier, "do
not know exactly what has taken place.
| We earnestly hope the issue may be better
4
it through. Maybe there are matters
| which have not been explained, and when
] explained it may be the subject of scrutiny
as to the steps whereby the present results
! have been reached. But we must spare no
effort whereby the glory and the main
tenance of our empire may be achieved"
The contemplated thanksgiving service
| In ST. Paurs Cathedral in connection with
the return of Lord Roberts from South
| Africa, has been abandoned, owing, as the
| government announces, Ito its being con-
| sidered desirable to defer general thanks
giving until the close of the operations in
South Africa" The programme now is for
| Lord Roberts 10 debark in the Solent to
| visit the Queen at Osborne House, Jan. 2,
10 re-embark and to finally land at South
| ampton, coming from that point to Lon
| don.
Lord Salisbury's gloomy reference to
| South Africa causes much heart-burning.
The conservative press, reluctant to admit
| that the situation is worse, complains of
the premier's needless pessimsm." The
| Daily News asks whether Lord Salisbury s
utterances foreshadow the news of another
reverse. and it suggests that the govern
ment has received dispatches from Lord
Kitchener asking for more troops. on the
! ground that the war, instead of being fin
ished. is entering upon new and difficult
| phase.
All the papers are urging the government
to do everything possible TO support Lord
Kitchener. The Queens message 20 the
volunteers was evidently designed to soothe
| the general disappointment over their re-
| tention in the field. There are rumors cur
rent that the government is not able to
respond TO appeals from South Africa to