The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-06-17
Cronje Oh Shipboafd.
Capt. Webster. His Keeper, Tells Of the
Voyage to ST. Helena.
New Orleans Tfmeg-pemocrat,


New Orleans Tfmes-Democrat.
Capt, J. w. Webster who will pass into
history as the man who took Gen. Cronje
to St Helena, Is having g. weeks rest in
New Orleans while his big transport, the
Milwaukee. is getting ready for another
trip to South Africa with q cargo Of
horses. Capt. Webster has one. gift not
common among men Of action-the gift
of descrtptton-and. chatting over an aft
er-breakfast cigar yesterday morning he
told some interesting things about his
distinguished prisoner. Gen. Cronje is a
little, grizzled man." he said. who would
attract no attention in a crowd on ac-
count of any striking feature. He stoops
a good deal, carries his head low down
between his shoulders and looks like a
plain, stolid farmer who has worked
hard all his life. His wife IS a pathetic
old woman, about sixty I would say,
with pinched, careworn face When
they came on board the Milwaukee they
were IN a bad condition. They had been
for days in that terrible lager without
proper, food or means for cleanliness,
and one of the first things we did was
to give them fresh linen and comfortable
clothes.
In addition to the general continued
Capt. Webster, we carried a number Of
captured officers, making party Of
about twenty in all, and 1 treated them
exactly Ike saloon passengers. They
took their meals together at one long
table iii the forward cabin, and at an
other table Of about the same size l
seated Col. Leefe and the officers OF the
Imperial Guard. who formed the mill
tdry escort. The strfetest etiquette was
observed and things passed off very
smoothly We We're we'll provisioned on
the Milwaukee. and the fare at the two
tables compared very favorably with
that of any good hotel. l could see that
our formal dinners of a dozen or SO
courses astOniShed our prisoners, and one
day Gen Cronje asked me, through the
interpreter, how we managed to obtain
so marry delicacies. 1 told him there
was nothing phenomenal about our lar
der, and he opened his eyes wide. The
story had been industriously circulated
throughout the Boer army that our ships
were short of food and coaI-one of the
many lies told to hearten Up the burghers
was a revelation to our charges But
less than half of the 100 and odd prison
eTS we carried were Beers The rest
were soldiers Of fortune from here. there
and everywhere, SWedes predominating
am sorry to say that four OF them
Were Englishmen, and one of the four
was an eX-eoIonel of the Hussars He
mad been cashiered from the British
army and gone down to hide himself in
IranSV33I b,1
hrs Old name with his old uniform and
called himself Schmidt. but there was no
question about his identity. and the Off
GERS OF the escort treated him with I'M
disguised contempt. l passed him one
day when he had momentarily forgo,tone
hlinself and was humming a British rne IS
room song When he caught my eye he
stopped abruptly, turned scarlet and
walked away
The most disagreeable of the fereien
mercenar1es among the officers was Col
SmelS, who had been in the Austrian
engineer corps. Shiels was the fellow
VINO. as you may have read came near
escaping by digging a tunnel under kis
tent shortly before we sailed. He canee
aboard rugged oaG in a superb spiel: and
span uniform, all made in London. ard
IL was easy to see that he considered
himself better than his coinDa1iors- and
a cosmopolitan officer and gentleman.
his manner was naughty and sIperciI-
1ouS. On cur second day out he sloDDed
NE rather Familiarity and said III excel
lent English that he desired to prefer
SnIlF request. | beckoned to the in
tefpreter. Ascertain what this gentle
MAI WISHES said. and inform him
positively that he can communicate witt
ne only through you. Shiels was boiling
XX-fTs
srufffy anG still in English that he want
ed separate bathroom Ffe explained
that he did not care to make his toilet
with those Beers. Translate what lp.
says, ! ordered, and tie Interpreter
graVely repeated the request Tel tn.
gentleman said I, that I do not SET
why he should receive any better treat
ment than his. employers. If he is not
suited he may so aft. with the private.
sold ers. Shieis did not wait to have
my reply translated, but rushed off
furious That put d stop to any fur,her
ovelturcs from him.
To return to Cronje." Capt Webster
went on. 81 was rather nonplussed to
know what to do for the old gentle
mans diversion He and his wife woulf
sir silent, side by side. for hours. hold.
ing each others hand, and occasionally
he would read little IN the Bible: hut
was anxious to brighten him up a lit
Luckily happened to think OF a graph
ophone l had purchased during my lasI
Visit to New Orleans. l rugged it NJ in
my cabin, put in a SOusa's band cylinde,.
playing the Presidents March and then
sent an invitation to Gen and Mrs
Croajc and one of the Reer officers wi c
was also accompanied by his wife The.
came in, and, while making q pretext ct
e2>hinttirg some photographs, [ started
the machine to going. AT the first rotes
the whole party looked intensely amazed,
but of course, they soon located the.
source of the sound. 4 heard YOU had
talking box that talked like d man. said
Cronje, through the interpreter, is thai
it?' Yes. general. 1 replied and when
the cylinder stopped I slipped on another
Moody and Sankey's hymn, The Ninety
and Nine which I had been told she.
sang in their own language.
The effect was startling They rec
ognized the tune at once, and Mrs. Cron
Je burst suddenly into tears, while the
other woman lifted a quavering voice
and began to sing the words in BOer
Dutch. Her husband turned away and
wiped his eyes, and l could see by the
spasmcdic clasping and unclasping of his
hands that Gen. Cronje himself was
deeply affected. To relieve the tension
L put in a record with a lively banjo
solo, and in a moment the old gentleman
began to smile and beat time with his
feet and head, his gray beard wagging
to the melody 1t was funny to see him.