The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1900-01-10
Gen. French in a Hole.
He Calls for Reinforcements and
Can Do Nothing Just Now.

He Apparently Holds Nothing With
in Five Miles of Colesburg juno
ton and there is no Hope Ct his
being Able to Seize One Of the
Crossings of the Orange River al
Present-When Gen. Roberts Ar.
,ives it is Thought that Gen.
French will be Ordered to Lea1
his Present Isolated Position and
Concentrate his Command at De
Aar on Orange River-Increased
Effectiveness of the Bombardment
of Ladysmith-War Office Orders
the Manufacture of Better Artil,
lery, Like that of the Boers-1le-
land has to be Kept Down while
the Boer Republics are being
Crushed.
London, January 4-4:4O a. m.-
Tnere is a complete absence OF any
thing new from the seat OF war.
The report Of the Boer attack uron
Mrlteno is not yet confirmed. Ap-
p .rently Gen. French holds nothing
within FIVE miles of Colesberg juno
tion. His request for Inducements
dispels any present hope that he will
be able to seize one of the crossings
of the Orange River.
It is probable that when Lord
R ,berts arrives Gen. French will be
ordered to quit his present unsup-
ported position and to concentrate
his command at De Aar or Orange
River.
As the Daily Telegraph says, Gen.
French ssseems to be in the position
of man having tiger cat in a trap
and unable to kill it for want of a
stick"
A dispatch from Dove farm an
nounces that Lieut.. Col. Pitcher has
returned there safely from Douglas.
Since Commander Joubert's return
to the front the cannonade at Lady
smith by the Beers has been much
liTelier. Between December Is ard
December 80 four shells killed ore
cficer and thirteen men and wound
ed thirteen officers and eleven men.
The war cfice acknowledges the
inferiority of the regular artillery by
authorizing the equipment Of the
new battery attached to the London
volunteer corps with Vickers and
Maxims, some of which the Beers
use, and by ordering 100 of these
12 IL FOUNDER quick frers built i'm
mediately. The officers and men of
the new battery will be supplied
from the Honorable Artillery Com
pany.
Eight additional militia regiments
have been called out. Seven o. these
will serve in Ireland, replacing the
regulars sent to South Africa.
MARLBOROUGH WILL NOT GO.
London, January 3-At Lord
Chesham's headquarters a represer-
tative of the Associated Press was
informed that the Duke of Marl-
borough's cffer to accompany the
Oxfordshire Yeomanry to South
Africa has not yet been accepted, in
spite of the published statement to
the contrary. 1t is further said that
it is quite likely he will not 60 to
South Africa, as be already has a
black mark against him on account
of being married, and his successful
passing of the medical examination
is doubtful.
The Pall-Mall Gazette today an
nounces that Winston Churchill has
been appointed squadron leader in
the South African horse.
BRITISH MISADvENTURES
London, January 3.-A special
dispatch from Rensburg, dated Tues
day, January 2, says supply train,
without locomotive, was set 10
motion within the British lines nea,
Colesberg and proceeded so near the
Boer position that it was impossible
to recover it and the British guns
therefore destroyed the trucks. II
is suspected that this was the act o.
traitor
The total British casualties abou
CJlesberg in two days were six mer
killed and twenty wounded.
The supply train, says another
dispatch from Rensburg, ran into
broken culvert and was wrecked