Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1900-03-01

| London, Feb. 24. - Gen. Cronie is
seemingly making his last stand. He
is dying hard hemmed in bs:sBritish
Infantry and shells from fifty guns
taking into his camp. In the third day
Of the fight the Boer chief asked for
an armistice to bury his dead
flight to finish or surrender uncon
ditionally,'' was Lord IIitchener's re-
ply. Gen. Cronje immediately sent
back word that his request for an
armistice had been misunderstood, and
his determination then. as before was
to fight to the death. The battle went
on. This was the situation of Gen.
Cronje Thursday evening, as sketched
In the scanty kilograms that have
emerged from the semi-silenca Of
South Africa. Officially Lord Roberts
wires that he has scattered the adj
vanced commanders or reinforcamcntS
that were striving to reach Gen.
Cronje. 1t is regarded as singular that
Lord Roberts, wiring Wednesday,
should not mention the appeal for an
armistice on the previous day and also
that the war office should withhold
good news, if it has any Without
trying to reconcile even the Scanty
materials at hand, it seems plain that
Gen. Cronje is in bay, and even u
desperate situation. and that the Brit
lsll are pressing their advantage. While
the attack on Gen. Cronje proceeds
there is a
Race for Concentration
between the Beers and the British.
The engagement with Gen. Cronje's
five to eight thousand intrenched men
is likely to become an incident in the
battle between the masses. The scat.
tered fragments of Boer power are
rapidly drawing together to attack
Lord Roberts. Will Cronje be able to
hold out until the Boer masses appear,
or, if he does, will they then be able to
succor him? The British are facing
the Beers on ground where the arms.
tactics and training are expected to
give them the advantage over the
Beers. Gen. Butler. according to a
dispatch from Chieveley. dated on
Wednesday. finds the Beers in posi-
tons north of the Tugela largely rein
forced This seems strange.
The war office. for the first time. las
given out an official compilation of the
British losses. The total is 11,2OS to
Feb. II. This does not include, there
fore. Lord Roberts recent losses nor
the Wiltshire prisoners. The press as
ISOLATION learns that the British losses
at Koodoes Rand was 100.
Three thousand fresh troops will EN-
bark for South Africa to-day. The
relative position Of the combatants is
lkened to chess players, one of whom
from time to time adds pieces to the
board, while any less to the adversary
is irreplaccable.
News From Kimberley.
! London, Feb. 24.-The war Office has
issued the following from Lord Rob
erts. dated Thursday:
'Mcthuen reports from Kimberley
that supplies of food and forage are
being pushed on as fast as possible.
There will be enough coal to start the
-, De Beers mines in ten days. By this
means great misery will be alleviated.
Hospital arrangements there reported
| perfect. He hopes Prieska and the
adjoining country will soon he settled.
Beers Expelled From, a kopjc.
London, Feb. 24.-INhc Times has the
following from Paardeberg, dated Feb
81: 1--WE have expelled 500 Beers from
an isolated lopje about a mile south
east of Gen. Cronje's laager."