Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-05-10
England Realizes That There Will Be
Plenty Of Fighting.
OFFICERS COME In FOR CRITICISM
Recent Trip in an Automobile From
Vienna to Paris.
A NEW HOME FOR PUNCH

LONDON, April "A, 19OO.
am Informed on excellent authority that
Lord Roberts wrote a scathing criticism of
the battle of Magersfontein. which still re-
mains in the archives OF the war office. These
comments accompanied the first account of
the engagement written by Lord Methuen
but as Lord Roberts complained of the sim
gularly irrelevant matter 1t contained and
the irregular manner in which the report
had been prepared, 1t was thought advis
able to recommend Lord Methuen to revise
his curious dispatch before publishing it.
and this was done. But Lord Roberts, in
sending this modified and second version Of
the battle to the war office, only complained
of Lord Methuen's delay in supplying a list
of men of the Black Watch whose services
were worthy of special mention.
The commander-in-chief did not think it
necessary to repeat the criticism he had
passed on the action based on the original
dispatch, possibly thinking the war Office
would publish such portions of his former
comments Is the secretary of war conSid
cred advisable. But the war Office only
published the revised dispatch and withheld
the real criticism which covered the original
document. 1t may therefore be contendad
that the observations made by the COM
mander-in-chief on the official" dispatch
the only one published-appeared in the
London Gazette One reason alleged for the
suppression of the criticism is that the first
dispatch contains comments concerning
Gen. Wauchope.
Want Dispatches Published.
1t is said that Immediately the house of
commons resumes It's work on Thursday u
consultation will take place among certain
Independent members of influence to con-
slider how most fittingly to bring pressure
to bear upon the government to publish the
various dispatches affecting Lord Methuen's
conduct of the campaign UP to and includ-
ing the disaster of N1agersfontein. The de-
mand for the comments upon 1t by the COM
mander-in-chief in South Africa is daily
growing, and is spreading in all quarters
and notably since the supersession of Gen.
Gatacre and the open censure of Sir Red
vers Butler and Sir Charles Warren-and it
is felt that the matter of Lord Methuen I'M
less the government publishes the required
documents before Thursday, ought to be
taken in hand by members who carry
weight both in the commons and in the
country, instead Of being left to irreSponsi-
Bile questioners.
M. Jean de Bloch Is issuing another
pamphlet On the Transvaal war. This time
he deals with the difficulties which he eX
poets will confront Lord Roberts in his
march to Pretoria. The eminent Russian
critic has all along taken a pessmistic
view of the British position, and he does NOT
even now go back from the views he enun-
ciated at the commencement of the cam
paign. Lord Roberts troops can, he adj
mits. most certainly invade and occupy the
TransvaaI, but the feat he considers par
takes of the tasks of Hercules, and will
cost more time, more money, more. men
and a greater task of those intangible fac
tors which make up the prestige of England
than the most pcssimistic of Rritons imag-
Tres. And in this heavy bill of expenses he
does not include the element of foreign COM
picatiOns.
Guerrilla Warfare.
This belief. which is entitled to more
than casual attention, is founded on the
assumption that the campaign will ulti-
mately reduce itself to the dimensions of a
guerrilla war. England in South Africa will
in fact, have to initiate Russia in the eau
casus from 1924 10 1892, Austria in Bosnia
and Napoleon in Spain, and under far
greater disadvantages. For, says NJ. de
Bloch. guerrilla warfare on a large scale,
with ideal and Well-equpped soldiers like
the Beers, is an unknown quantity. Never
before were there so many conditions favor
able to the defense in guerrilla warfare as
are to be found on the side of the Beers;
and still quoting NJ. de Bloch, strategists
and tactcians look forward to the HOSTILE
ties which will ensue on the invasion of
republican territory with something of the
thrilling interest with which physicians fol-
low the development of a new disease.
Finally, in urging upon both combatants
the benefits of arbitration he admits that
while the risks to England are considera BILE
for the Beers a continuation of the war
promises nothing but inevitable ruin. NJ
de Bloch's pamphlet, which Is illustrated
with maps and profile of the South Afri-
can railways, is eminenty readable and
well worth perusal.
Salisbury's Status.
The impression prevails that Lord Sails
bury's dinner party in celebration of the
queens birthday will be the last of the
kind given by The premier 1t is significant
perhaps, that members of the diplomatic
body hold this opinion. and that, so far as
one can foresee, all the foreign diplomatsts
will attend the reception to a man. The
idea has gained root abroad moreover, in