The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-25


as those on which the Berks are
now holding a position were at
tackled in the daylight by infantry-fCot
and mounted-with bayonets fixed, men
advancing in very open order. under cover
of as heavy fire of shrapnel as can be
TcuIed in on the ridges where the enemy
lies ready 10 fire.
The correspondent with Gatacres fro e
writes on Dec. q: Field day this mcrn-
ing. l devoutly hope that the men will Rot
be similarly handled In actual fighting NO
regard whatever for ground; shut eyes,
put the head down. and go straight like a
bull at a gate, but in such loose order
that the gate would probably survive the
shock
80 give any idea of how deceptive IS
this veldt on misty day | need only TO
mention that a flock of sheep which the
thunderstorm had caused 70 close up n
a block was actually mistaken for Boas
laagerl This misconception was not dis
PEELED until after our scouts. advancing
with the utmost caution, had approached
within 100 yards. Al double that distance
all of us were prepared te-certify that We
could see wagons, oxen, ana mounse
men"
DisIOyaity in Cape COLONY.
MT Whigham, the American CORE
spondent, sends some interesting articles
10 the Morning Post. Dealing with disloy-
atty in this section Mr.. Whigham says:
But since the Stormborg disaster ana
| our other repulses the disafecton, :
| ways sumbering throughout the whole OF
| the eastern counties, has been thorough y
awakened, and il merely requires anothes
Stormberg incident to bring the eastern
| half of Cape Colony down TO the very SCI
| about our ears. Information on this po nt
| is very exact. Round Craddoc1 ana Alice
| dale, through which 1 have just pass d,
the feeling is intense, and it is a great
| mistake TO imagine that the farmers are
not armed 10 a man or that they lack ann
| munition.
ct is a mistake even TO suppose that
| only the Dutch are against US. There are
| names on a certain list which are as Eng
| fish as any to be found between Londoh
| and York That the Colony will rise en-
masse l do not for a moment suggest, be-
| cause it is impossible to imagine mat the
| Stormberg affair can be repeated But as
to the actual feeling and the potentiahty
of the situation there is no room for doubt
| whatever; the names of many of the lead
ing citizens are already on the black list,
| and the list might be extended almost IN
| definitely"
| "No wonder that the war in this part Of
South Africa is a tabooed subject and men
| talk of anything else when they meet,
| though there is nothing else to talk about.
| If YOU go 10 the bar of the hotel in Alice
| dale the man next you at the counter may
| be a Boer or British, a Dutch spy or
| British intelligence officer The one thlnS
| which occupies every ones mind is the
war; yet listening to the conversation you
might suppose that no such thing as war
| ever existed. 1t is a strange, unnatural
calm such as is wont to precede a storm.
| Certainly if the thunderclap be Brush
| victory the air will be most beneflclally
| cleared"
Beers short of Food and Forage.
The Times correspondent with Butler
| saws of the condition of the Beers:
"Despite their activity, however, the
! condition of the Beers does NOT seem to be
! very prosperous. The week after the bat
! tie 100 Kaffirs, men, women and children
who had been working for the Beers, de-
| serted and came over TO us, many OF them
| being in a starving condition. Ihey COM
| planned of getting neither food nor money,
| and above all of the loud lamentations OF
| the Roer women in camp for their hus-
| bands and relations who had been kliled
| in battle All Kaffirs have superstitious
| horror of illness or mourning in any form.
| They said the Boer loss had been heaVy
almost entirely owing to the erect OF me
| Ivddite in the trenches. The power OF
| these shells they said, was terrific, sew
eral of them stating that they had been
| knocked down by the force of an explosion
| 200 wards away. The following week more
| Kaffirs came in telling the same story
| On Jan twelve Boer desertefs came ll.
| They. TOO, complained of lack of food and
| ul-usage, and said that the Beers Were
short of both food ard forage. All this
| points to the fact that the long waiting
here is telling heavily on the Beers
| Many of them are without tents-a serl-
Gus handicap now that the heavy rains
| are beginning-and the supply of rations
TO constantly moving force must be eX-
tremely difficult.
An officer in the Inniskiliings describing
| the Colenso battle says:
THE Boer position was impresnable
| even il we had not had to cross the Tug
| ella. The Beers reserved the fire OF theiI
| vell-concealed batteries until we were
| within close range. Even then we could
not see the position of their riflemen, ow-
ing 70 their using smokeless powder. The
| naval guns were the only ones of any use
and believe we could not have remained
even at Frere if it were not for them
In this action the low-class Beers robbed
and stripped the killed, and even cut off
an officers finger to get ring The bet
| ter-class Bocr is quite chivalrous, but
| being in the minority, he has no contro
over the mass and there is really no dis
| otnlfpa among them