Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-03-22
Destroy Railroad Bridge Over
Modder River Near Bio
emfontein Sunday.
LONDON GETS NO NEWS.
Pail Mall Gazette Treats story or Ger.
man Intervention N One OF Leyd,s
Fairy Tales = Says Germany
Would Not Consider IL.

Bloemfontein, Monday, March 49,
(By Associated Press.) - The Beers
blew up the railroad bridge over the
Modder river, fourteen miles north of
here, last night. The lawcourts re-
opened today.
Cape Town, March eo.-(By Associ-
ated Press. THE Beers have have
blown up the bridges at North Bloem-
fontein, including those ait Winburg
and Kroonstadt and are now retreat
ing north.
london, March ao.(By Associated
Press. For all the news that has
reached here yesterday and today,
Great Britain might almost as well be
at peace. 1t is reasonable to believe
that the relief of Mafeking will be
heard of at any hour. Kitchener has
entered Prieska, Cape Colony, without
opposition, the insurgents laying down
their arms, which merely confirms the
previous reports of their willingness
to submit. Roberts and Butler are
still inactive, pending developments at
the theatre of war Considerable inter
est is attached to the fate Of johannes
burg. Commenting on the reported
consultation between Secretary Hay
and the German ambassador at WASH
ington, DIR. Won Holleben, as to the
thnk
urged to leave Johannesburg alone, the
Pail Mall Gazette says: 'sIhis time
pr. Leyds has, as we may without i'm
propriety assume, put in circulation
tale to the effect that the German am
bassador at Washington and the AM
erican consul at Pretoria, are concoet-
ing little scheme of German inter
vention. That is a really glorious
yarn and one which shows to what
desperate straits the enemies of this
country are reduced Just Imagine a
government which formally declined
all outside intervention permitting
Germany to dictate the course of Rob
erts' march to Pretoria. The German
foreign Office knows better than to in
wife the snub it will infallibly receive
II it ventures to whisper so preposter-
Gus q proposition in Downing street,
Roberts Heard From. 80.
London, March 20.-(By- Associated
Press -The following dispatch has
been received at the war Office from
Roberts, dated at Bloemfontein, Mon
day, March 10: have received the
following reply to my telegram of
March IL to the presidents of che Free
G$n%A A
'Your excellency's telegram reached
me yesterday. l assure nothing would
grieye me more than that my burghers
should make themselves guilty
sof q deed such as that laid to their
charge by you. I am, however, glad
to say that you must have been mis-
taken. have made personal inquiry
of General Delarey who is command
of our burghers at the
place mentioned by you.
He denies that our burghers acted as
stated by you, but he says that on
Saturday (date being illegible) the
British troops when they were about
fifty yards from our position, put up
their hands as well as white flag,
while at the same time your cannon
bombarded the said troops, with the
result that Commandant Debeer was
wounded. Yesterday morning the head
commandant wrote in his account Of
the battle, as follows: Soldiers hoist
ed white flag, but we were then fired
at by cannons and compelled to
charge"
Won't Recognize Property Alienation.
Cape Town, March 20. (By Assoc
ciated Press Sir Alfred Miner, gov
ernor Of Cape Colony, and British high
commissioner to South Africa, has is
sued proclamation declaring that the
imperial government will not recognize
as valid or effectual any alterations of
property, whether Of lands, railroads
or mines, within the Transvaal or
Orange Free State, or any interest
therein or incumhrance or any conces-
sions granted by said government.
London, March 21.-(By Associated
Press 1.-The only news from South
Africa showing activity on either side
Ncomes from Warrentown, North Kim
berley, where desultory fighting oc-
Cured all day Sunday, resulting in
tbs retreat of the Beers towards Chris
tiana, under shell fire. The progress
OF this column towards Mafeking has
either almost ceased or is forbidden to
be mentioned in the dispatches.
Nothing new comes from Plumer
and Mafeking apparently still awaits
relief. A Pretoria account of the skir-
mish at Fourteen streams, March is,
says the Boer command was prepar-
ing to destroy the railroad bridge and
the engagement lasted half an hour,
with the result that one burgher was
slightly wounded. The same dispatch
announces the arrival at the Transvaal
capital OF General Schallsburger from
Natal.
The second edition ofcthe Times to-
day publishes dispatch from Bloem-
fontein dated Monday, March 19,which
says: The blowing up of the bridge
by the Beers is an evident sign that
the Transyaalers intend to abandon
the defense of the Free State All
is quiet in the south and west. a
corps of young Beers from the farms
surrounding Bloemfontein,s under an
imperial officer, has been detailed for
police work and to prevent further
looting Of abandoned farms by the