The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-04-02
SORE At CAPTURE
Rumor That British Regain
ed Prisoners and Guns
Fails to Wipe Out
Defeat.
MUCH HEROISM SHOWN
Captain Haldane's Interesting
Tale of His Escape From
the Beers.
MUCH HEROISM SHOWN
IBy Gable to The Associated Press. l

|
laid for him by the Beers on Saturday.
The casualties numbered $50
The War Office has received the follow
| ing dispatch from Lord Roberts, dated
Bloemfontein April II
| Il received news late yesterday after
noon from Colonel Broadwood, who was
at Thaba N'chu, thirty-eght miles east
of here, that information had reached him
| that the enemy was approaching in two
| forces. from the north and the east. He
stated that if the report proved true he
| would retire towards the water works,
seventeen miles nearer Bloemfontein,
where we have had detachment of
mounted infantry for the protection of the
| works.
s'Brcadwood was told in reply that the
Ninth Division, with Martyrs mounted
infantry, will march at daylight today to
support him, and that if he considers it
necessary he should retire from the water
works. He moved there during the night
and bivouacked. At dawn today he was
shelled by the enemy who attacked on
three sides. He Immediately dispatched
two horse artillery batteries and his bag
gage toward Bloemfontein, covering some
of them with his cavalry.
Some two miles from the water works
the road crosses a deep nullah, or spruit.
in which during the night force of Beers
had concealed themselves. So well were
they hidden that our leading scouts passed
| over the drift without discovering them,
and it was not until the wagons and guns
were entering the drift that the Beers
showed themselves and opened fire. Many
sIIo,.-
| Immediately shot down at short range
and several of the guns were captured.
The remainder galloped away, covered by
| Roberts Horse, which suffered heavily.
Meanwhile Lieutenant Chestermaeters,
of Rimingtons Scouts, found a passage
across the spruit unoccupied by the
enemy, by which the remainder of Broad
woods force crossed. They reformed with
great steadiness, notwithstanding all that
had previously occurred.
"BroadWoods report, which has just
reached me, and which contains no de-
| tails, stated that he had lost seven guns
and all his baggage. He estimates all
his casualties at about $50, including NoJ
missing.
ION hearing this morning that Broad
wood was hard pressed [ Immediately cr-
dered General French with two remaining
| cavalry brigades TO follow in support OF
! the Ninth Division. The latter. after a
magnificent march, arrived on the scene
| of action shortly after P. NJ.
'tBroadWoods force consisted of the
Royal Household Cavalry, the Tenth Hus-
sars Q and U Batteries of the Royal
Horse Artillery and Pitchers Battalion of
Mounted Infantry.
at from 5000 to 10000 with guns, the num-
Der of which is not yet reported"
The rumors of the recapture by the
British of the seven guns taken from Col
nr1 0l
despatch to the Chronicle" from Bloem-
fontein, which, it is aid, in all probability
is correct, fails to compensate London for
the severe shock experienced from the
humiliati ting defeat sustained within a few
miles from the headquarters of the
British Army of occupation. The public
is painfully surprised to learn after all
that has come and gone that British off1-
GERS of high position can still neglect pre-
cautions, which the veriest tyro might be
expected to observe and blunder into
traps which, exercise of the elementary
military rules would have revealed. There
is no attempt here minimize the diScred-
italness of the whole affairs, so far as
the British are concerned, or detract from
the dexterity of the oBers who, were ap-
parently commanded by General De Wet
The tactics of the burghers were evil
IDENTIFY eXcellently conceived and boldly
carried out, and unless the reinforce
ments sent by Lord Roberts have turned
the tide and recaptured the prisoners, a
couple of hundred men from two crack
corps of the Household Cavalry and the
Tenth Hussars are by now on their way
to swell the growing deposit of British
prisoners at Pretoria. President Kruger
is said to have promised to reoccupy
Bloemfontein this week, and the stubborn
burghers seem to be closing around the
place in such force as promises to be
troublesome especially when it is real
lied that the activity of strong Boer
force in the vicinity of Paardeberg has
already intercepted direct communication
between Lord Roberts and Kimberley.
But for the overwhelming numbers at the
disposal of Lord Roberts the situation
would justly cause Great Britain greater
anxiety. AS it is. the nation is begin
ming to realize from the nature of the
barrass the future movements Of the
British troops.
A special despatch from Bloemfontein
this morning reports that the water sup
ply of the place has bene cut off. This is
a natural sequence of the Boer success at
the water works. But the authorities are
hopeful that the. strong reinf@oreemenit,s5 orc i,5
promptly remedy this.
1t is evident from Lord Roberts de-
spatch that big engag ement is in pro-
mate the number of British engaged, they
probably exceed even the eight or ten
thousand men which the Beers areA esti-
mated to number. The scene of the Brit
ish disaster appears to be Mealie Spruit,
where the Bloementein road crosses a
tributary of the Modder River.
~
dated today announces the arrival there
of Captain Haldane of the Gordon High
landers, and Lieutenant LIE Mesurier, of
the Dublin F'usileers. who escaped from
Pretoria after perilous adventures. 1t an
pears that after Winston Churchilfs
escape the sentries were doubled, electric
light was installed additional barricades
were constructed and the officers were
confined in the Model School after $50
P. NJ Captain Haldane says that after
several unsuccessful attempts they sue
ceeded in cutting off the electric light.
but even then the street lamps preclu1ed
an attempt to escape, and they decided to
hide in the space beneath the building. to
which a trap door had previously been
secretly constructed as 1t had been an
nounced that the officers would he re-
moved elsewhere in a few days. when it
was hoped the two men would be able 10
escape. But the removal of the prisoners
was postponed. and the two men. in the
damp, sibterrapean dwelling. began TO
despair and commenced digging in differ
ent directions in the hope of finding a
suitable exit. The work was post ardu-
Gus. as they had only a screwdriver ard
a slSewer with which to dig tbs ground,
which was as hard as rock The impris-
oned officers, March Is. heard Somebody
above say the officers would be removed
the following day. After passing twenty
days underground. in cramped
position ana spbsisting on little food