Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1900-01-11
Gems. ROBERTS
AND KITCHENER.
Have About 100000 Men to Fight
Against the Beers
FEARS FOR LADYSMITH.
Losses Expected 20 be Htavy-Gen'
Buffers Report on the Battle
Boer statement OF Losses

London, Jan. l1.-During the inter-
lude Of apparent military inactivity
aud official secrecy, Lord Roberts and
Lord Kitchener have arrived at the
seat OF war. II is assumed that their
clear vision, supported by $1,000 fresh
men who are due to arrive in South
Africa within thirty days, VIII alter
the situation, and that the fourth
month Of the campaign viii witness the
beginning of victories for the British
arms.
They are not, however expected TO
produce definite results for some days,
but their mere presence will restore the
shaken confidence Of the men at the
front an their generals
Lord Roberts finds 10000 men on the
defensive or watching for an opening
Lord Methuen's health, according TO
the Daily Mail, has broken down, and
the field marshal may relieve MN.
Possibly some others VIII be relieved
of important commands. There is GER
tainly plenty Of rank In evidence IN
South Africa. In addition TO the held
marshal there are two full generals
four lieutenant generals and twelve
or fourteen major generals.
There is an uneasy suspicion thal
when Ladysmith casualties are an
nounced. they will be dlsheartenlng,
and will partly destroy the patriotic
glow produced by Gen. Whites victory.
The list Of victims Of disease issued Dy
the war office gives twenty-five deaths
from fever and dysentery in Lady
smith In four days, revealing the fact
that the besieged are existing among
bad sanitary conditions.
The Standard summarizes the gen.
eral situation thus: We'll, the cam
paicn has lasted three months we
have something like 10000 troops IN
South Africa. With this huge army
distributed over the country we are
still powerless to relieve three garri.
sons from investment, We have sun
to see large portions of both colonies IN
the hands Of the enemy
1--WE have driven the invaders back at
no single point. We are actually fur-
Their from the hostile frontiers than we
were on the day that the ultimatum
was delivered The work which min
listers believed could be effectually per-
formed with $4,000 men, has not been
done. has not even been begun, by four
or five times that number Can any
one fail TO admit that this Is evidence OF
a grave miscalculation Of forces and
! facts?"
The war office has authorized spe-
clal yeomanry camp Every trooper
Joining will pay for his own XII ana
mount for transportation and Tor an
| other expenses until his arrival IN
! South Africa, and Will then give his ser
| vices TO his country and pay for the
! privilege into the fund for widows ana
| orphans the amount he would receive
as a trooper Several influential gen.
| tlemen have already enrolled.
The authorities have urged the com.
mIttee Of the yeomanry hospital fund
| TO provide for 500 instead OF l5O beds,
| and the committee Is appealing for at
least $4,000 more.
The Times, In an editorial critlcising
nj great length the governments con-
| duct Of the war alludes To the stu
! Did and perverse mistakes that nave
| bene made, and demands that the
practice OF the non-revelation OF the
| facts" be abandoned. Ii insists strong
! ~ upon knowing the truth ana thee
\ whole truth about the situation, ana
finds fault with Mr.. Balfour's defense
! piecemeal. A.
The war office announces that the
| list Of British casualties at Ladysmlth
! last Saturday has not yet been re,
ceived. The following dispatch dated
at Frere camp. January l0th' noon mas
| ben received from Gen. Butler;
"a Transvaal telegram gives the enc
| my's loss at IAdysmlth on saturday as
! four killed and fifteen wounded ana
this after, as Is admitted, they had en-,
dured a whitening fire from FIX MASKED
batteries and had been defeated al all
] points
Natives here assert that the Boer
| loss in one command alone was lbV
killed and wagonloads wounded. The
heaviest loss is said to have been
among the Orange Free Staters, who
were forced by the Transyaalers into
the most dangerous places.
This curious dispatch is all the war
Office has issued tonight. 1t makes not
the slightest mention Of the position or
dolngs OF the British forces. II may be
interpreted to mean that Ladysmith is
safe but II Is more likely Intended 10
prepare the British public for terrible
| list Of casualties.
The Standard has received the follow
ing. dated January 9th, from its special
correspondent at Frere camp: u hear
on good authority, that President Kru-
ger sent word TO the Boer headquarters
asking why Ladysmith had not been at
tackled, and that the reply was, we
| should lose too many men,
His answer to this excuse was the
suggestion that the Free Staters might
be put In the fore front. This hint was
taken and the attack delivered.
president Kruger's advice was so far
good that the Free Staters behaved bet
ter than the Transvaalers have done.
| At all events they managed to seize a
| hill Later in the day the Transvaalers
retired before Gen. Whites counter-at-
tack. amid the jeers Of the Free Staters,
| who actually stuck TO their position un-
III they were bayoneted In the ditch
After this affair II Is almost certain that
| the allies will quarrel
"a heavy gun mounted on Umbulwana
hin has been firing since daybreak.
Evidently the siege Of Ladysmith is still
maintained"
The Capetown correspondent Of the
Daily Mail. telegraphing Monday says