The sun., 1900-03-26
ROBERTS VAST ARMY.
Will March on Pretoria With One
Hundred and Ten Thousand Men.
NO WORD FROM MAFEKING
London Experts Confident That the
British General Is Taking Proper
steps to Relieve Be1caguered
Town-Other War News.

army OIL ut least l1UUUU men, ana per-
haps more. At least 10000 Of these will
be under the eye of the field marshal him.
self. while General Butler will command
10000. Lord AIethuen may also start foi
Pretoria at the same time with large
force.
Nothing has been heard recently from
Mafeking but experts hero are conf
dent that Lord Roberts is taking proper
steps to relieve the towS, and the result
Of his plans soon will bSsknown.
Nothing additional has bcen heard
from the big Bocr commando supposed
to be walking into General Frcnch's
trap.
british Officers Trapped.
At Il late hour the war Office posted the
following dispatch from General Rob
crts: w
'Bloemfontcin, March 24.-Ycstcrday
Lieutenant Colonel Crabbc, Captain
Trotter and Lieutenant the Hon. T. Ly-
gon of the Grenudier guards and Lieu
tenant Colonel Codrington of the Cold
stream guards rode eight or nine miles
beyond their camp on the Moddcr river
without escort, except one trooper. They
were fired upon by IL party of Beers. and
Lieutenant Lygon was killed and Lieu
tenant Colonel Crabbc, Lieutenant Colo
mel Codrington and Captain Trottcr were
seriously wounded. The trooper also was
| wounded.
"Onc Of the wounded officers held up a
| white handkerchief, and the R0crS came
| to their assistance and did all they posSi-
| bly, could attending to their wounds Tile
Boers then conveyed tn" wounded To the
nearest farmhouse, where they were talk
| On care of.
WiIkinsOn's Views.
Spenscr Wilkinson. reviewing the sitl.
| ation at the scat of war. says.
Tho two points Of acute interest arc
| just now Aafcking AMI the Bocr column
trckking north from Smithiicld and
RouXvillc along the Basuto border.
about Mafcking we are i'll the dark.
| Colonel IMmer has but Il handful Of men
ana is not strong enough to attack Com
nhndant Snyman and raise the siege
Commandant Snyman, therefore. has at
tackled him, and Colonel plumer has
| prudcntly retired. expecting no doubt Ia
return after Commandant Snyman when.
ever the latter goes back.
| Lord Roberts never forgets small
things while attending to great things
| IL may he taken AS certain that he knows
how and when he shall have Mafekine
relieved, Supposing the garrison can hold
out, but he doesn't disclose his plans in
\ advance.
May Escape French.
The Boer general who is hoping ia
get past General French up at Kroon.
| stadt may be caught and made to fight
hut with II few thousand mounted men he
ought to he able by temporary dispersion
| ,1tt. B..t IL.
hght he may be detained for some time.
Lord Roberts has now been more
| than ten days at BlOemfontrin. He seems
TO wish to settle the country behind him
| before going ON. Probably, too, he has
| extensive preparations to complete. His
next campaign will go into the dry sea-
son. when The nights are often cold ana
the voldt is dry and bare. He will want
his men equipped for This season and his
transport service qualified To bc as near
independent as possible OF grass ANA wa
| ter.
''Thc design no doubt is that General
| Butler in the next advance will move
simultaneously with lord Roberts. Gen
eral Butler perhaps is not yet quite
ready.
Big Armies Gather.
Lord Roberts will shortly have the
Eighth division and may also form of the
troops by now available new Tenth di-
| vision He will then have in his own
hands 10000 men, and General Butler
will have 10000. In view of these fig
urcs and the known power of Lord Rob
crts as Il leader | attach little impor-
tancc to the Boer declarations that they
will make n big fight If they stand be-
| fore they are driven into Pretorin, / OK
poet they will be enveloped. They may
defend Pretoria, but that can help them
but little. 1t will be question of
| weeks"
A special dispatch from Blocmfontein,
dated March "a, says:
"Rudyard Kipling has arrived here.
The Beers are reported retiring from
Kroonstadt after having blown up a
bridge"
Preparing ESr New Campaign.
Ladysmith, March 25-The scouts fire.
qucntly engage the Beers beyond Meran.
under the Biggarsberg. but no important
| fighting has taken place.
The Free StutprS coutinun IN ontor o,,r