Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-04-03
FRIEND OF KRUGER
Personally Acquainted With Boer
Leader.
REV. N. H. A. VAN DER Walk IN CITY

KEW. M. h. A. VAN DER Walk In CITY
Believes the Beers Will Eventually be
Successful Possesses a Watch.
the Gift of President
Kruger.
A personal friend of Paul Kruger was
in the city last week in the person of
| Rev. Marchinus H.. A. Van der Walk,
pastor OF the Dutch Reformed church
at Muskegon, Mich. He has been in
this country but two months, his ma
tive land being in the Netherlands,
where his fathers family has enter
tanned LON Paul on the occasions of
his visits to that country. Mr.. Van der
Walk is ready talker, an ardent add
mirer of the Boer president and pos
sesses an unwavering confidence in
| the ultimate triumph of the African
republics.
he talked entertainingly to Cour-
Ter reporter this morning, giving many
interesting "reminiscences of this great
leader and fighter. Kruger was guest
in his fathers house in Delft for two
weeks when he made his European Wis
it in 1877. At that time he was vice
president OF the Transvaal. He told
the family the story of the great trek
of the Beers from Cape Colony to Ma
tai, and from thence to the Orange
Free States and the Transvaal in 1884
Then, as now, the religious character
was predominant and while the emf
grants fought a bloody battle, one
Sunday morning, with 10000 Kaffirs,
the attendants at religious services
We're praying for the victory of Boer
arms. The prayer was answered and
the new settlers took possession of
their future homes. Kruger, as boy
of 10, fought in this battle.
The second visit to the Netherlands
was in 1884. He was then President
Kruger, happy in the flush of victory
after Majuba hill. Kruger was declared
the friend of education, he having sent
several members of his own family to
the Netherlands to be educated, as well
as two sons of the Kaffir king, Magata.
On the arrival of the latter Mr.. Van
der Walk went home from the univer-
i sity to teach them the history of the
| Transvaal
/ When asked to state his impressions
Iof Kruger, he said: He impresses'
you at first sight as. only common
farmer, unpretentious and unassum-
ling. You stop. for a second look and
you see in his eye that you behold
man among men, pious, determined,
energetic, and successful. He is a man
Iof prayer and an eloquent preacher.
AS he comes before an audience one
feels at first that his speech will be
hating and his thought confused. But
lsoon the words flow as a smooth flow
ing river: all are enraptured with the
4 language, the beauty of expression and
the lofty trend of thought.faHe is given
by God as a second Moses to lead his
people. All have faith in him, while
he loves his countrymei and fears no
enemy. OF him Bismarck said: He is
greater than L.
"Will the Beers VIM" was the next
question. ''Undoubtedly, came the
animated answer. They will win,
! first, because they will never give up;
second, because the history OF nations,
4 tells us that small but strong and re-,
Il igious people, fighting against a great
ana oppressive nation, always wins.
i There was Sparta against XerNes, the
\ Netherlands against Spain and the
Swiss against the house of Hapsburg
The history of the Beers is an evil
dence that God does wonders. They
are fighters since 1910 and have al
ways been victorious. They are mar
vel to European officers and strategists
Joubert and Cronje have the same in
domitable spirit as Won Moltke and Ma
poleon. This spirit is given them by
the Holy Ghost. They never had the
training of the military schools"
4 Mr.. Van der Walk then gave it as his
opinion that the Netherlands would
interfere but for fear OF losing her
colonies as result. Considerations of
policy and not of humanity actuated
declared that the Beers would wait
among their Sopjes for the advancing
British and at the proper time would
! administer crushing blow.
As an instance of the spirit of the
Beers he related the following incident.
i A Boer private lost two sons early in
the war. He vowed that every day he
4 should be engaged in battle he would
take the lives of two of the queens
soldiers as his revenge. So wirh the
message, you came for gold and here
lit is" he sends two golden bullets
thru the heads of two of the enemy
in each engagement. AS priceless
souvenir, Mr.. Van der Walk possesses
a watch, given him by President Kru-
ger. 1t is in honor of the opening OF
the railway in the Transvaal some
years ago, and is handsomely engraved.
He was The roommate at the university
with the grandson of Mr.. Kruger, who
successfully operated against Jameson
in his raid. He has a brother fighting
as captain in Joubert's army. After
closing a lecture tour in the west, at
Pella last night, he is enroute to Ho-
boken, \. j., to continue his public
work that the people of this country
may get an understanding of the Beers
and their president.
Robbed the Grave.
A startling incident. of which Mr..