The evening times., 1900-01-29
ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE
Letters Of British Soldiers From
the Seat Of War.
Private i'm the Grenadier Guards
Risks Life to Save His COtonei-Men
Slain While Singins-Pray.n for
Loved Ones While Surrounded by
Death-Christmas i'm Ladysmith.

officers and privates to their anxious
| friends at home contain many Indications
| OF the stern spirit in the ranks.
Among many individual acts OF bravery
displayed in South Africa that of private
OF the Grenadier Guards stands out promi-
| nently.
During the thick of the fight at Belmont
| Colonel Crabbe, commanding the Grena-
diers, became detached from his regiment
and was Immediately surrounded by Beers.
Seeing his colonels danger the private
rushed to his assistance. He shot two
| Beers bayoneted a third, and amid the
buiance wagon.
The colonel was shot in the wrist and
| injured in the thigh, and these were the
wounds he described as scratches when
wiring the result of the battle to Windsor.
He was soon about again, and recon-
| mended the guardsman for the Victoria
Cross. The man was one of the first
Grenadiers who volunteered from Wind
sor to join the Third Battalion.
The Magarsfontein Fight.
In letter to his sister about the Magars-
fontein battle private OF the Gordon
Highlanders writes:
will never forget it, Men on both sides
shot down like mad dogs ] believe the demon
oeVil was IN the men; all they wanted was the
| lives OF the Bo,rs. They seemed to be clamoring
| for the blood OF the Beers al the charge Shout
ing. ''Maiuba. Majuba!'' and we got MaJuoa
IN good earnest. We glad to retire, .INe
dogs with tails between our legs. / thank
God did not get hit. ] got my shins cut with
barhed wire.
My dear sister, ! remember your words; they
are still ringing IN my ears, Don't be a mur-
dsrer.' Gains stain will never enter nv soul
L don't forget to fire high. | will be the
tcol OF any nation. II take a mans life when
IN England would be hanged for il; but il the
government orders to Kill it is all right.
Our picket brought in four prisoners-an Irish
man, two Neshmen, and German. The corporal
IN charge OF the prisoners willfuy, with the butt
end Of his rife, broke the right arm Of one Of
the Welshmen prisoners, because he was fighting
against England lie is miner, and says it
was the oppression OF Lord Penrhyn which caused
him TO leave hIs home and country and make the
Transvaal his home. Anyway, there were several
said they would take the bounce ont Of the cor
poral Well, it is all with him now. II
appears he went TO the rear, and never came back
alive. His skull was broken in and there he was
found stiff
Don't forget me in your night prayers. Ii it
is the will OF God that | should lose my lie in
this war ! say Thy Will be done"
Sang as They Died.
Writing OF the battle OF MagaTsfointein
a sergeant OF the Seaforth Highlanders
says:
The Black Watch in front made an attempt
TO charge the position, but We had 10 retire and
simply run for IT, the enemy blazing at all
the way and dropping our fellows ike skittes
from their splendid positions. There nothing
for it but to lay down and pretend TO be dead,
and this | did about $50 a. m. till, suppose 6
p. m, the pCuring down on me all the time,
and not drink Of water all day, and dare not
stir hand foot. and expecting every instant
to be my last
could hear nothing but the cries, moans,
and prayers OF the wounded all round me, but
! daren't much look up 10 who they
were. Shot ana shell going over me all
day from the enemy and side and plenty
OF them striking within yard Of me-l mean
bullets, not shetland yet they never hit me.
/ believe some Of the fellows went on their
heads and walked right up TO the enenly's place,
singing till they dropped them. One youngster
lying close to me said he would make dart
for it about 8 ?. IN. | tried my best TO per
Suade him not TO. but he would 90. couple
OF seconds after | could hear them pitling at
him, and then his eroans for about minute.
and then he quiet.
About this time The sun began to get fearfully
hot and I began TO feel it in the legs which
are now very painful and swollen; besides ] was
parched with thirst Most Of the wounded
round me had ceased eroanng by this time.
As il began to get dark ! managed TO wrggle
my body through the shrub further back. snd,
after | had been at il some time, on looking mp
found myself right in front OF another entrench.
ment Of the enemy. They sent few rounds at
me, hut they struck Just in front and ricochetted
over my head. After hit. It getting darker,
got up and walked back. and there was nothing
but dead Highanders all over The place.
Prayed for His Loved Ones.
Writing home TO his wife, in Noting
ham. from Sterkstroom, a color sergeant
in the Second Battalion. Fifth Northum-
berland Fusiliers. says:
have been through my baptism Of FIRE and,
my God, Whist baptism II was. Ca
our arrival at Moltcno We're given half an
hours rest. and then ordered on our night march,
bayonets fxed. no talking, no smoking nothing
rivers, nullahs. kOpjes. laageTs, and one, we
marched through the long, weary night.
AT last day broke bright and sunny i
morning as ever broke on Gods earth. Our
generals idea to give the Boers surprise
and carry them at the point Of the bsyonet, but
we were disappointed. We betrayed by
soine villain or other. and were led into as
nice trap ever mortal was led into
a veritable slaughteIhouse.
As we commenced 70 march between two large
hills TO begin operations, both Of them became |
a blaze of shot and shell, and how l alive
10 tell the tale is wonder. We found
it impossible 20 get at them. They We're So
strongly entrenched that we had to retire, and |
horror OF horrors, to do this We had TO run the |
gsntlet OF terrible FIRE
| hadn't gone hundred yards when my ankle |
gave. and | could only hop. Then p! offered up |
a hearty prayer to God TO look after you snd the
children, and was about TO give up when a bullet |
tore my trousers. That gave me fresh lease |
OF life. and off ] went sgsin Awhile after the |
bullets flew around SO that | gave myself up Ell
trely, but still the bullets would not hit me. |
. We managed TO get clear at last, and |
marched fifteen miles 10 Moteno.
I forgot to mention that cavalrymsn lent me |
his mount. and il wild with me- and again |
had q narrow escape from death. But il was not |
TO be- ] must have had ninety lives. to say the |
least, that day. |
Christmas in LRdysmitb.
One of the war correspondents shut up |
in Ladysmith sends interesting particulars |
OF the CHEEKY manner in which the PEOPLE !
in the besieged town spent Christmas Day. |
The children had an especially good |
time. Two hundred of the little folk were |
at feast at which they had |
abundance Of the customary dainties and !
even luxuries The feast was under the |
chief control of Colonel Dartneli and Major |
who gleefully distributed the |
good things with their own hands.
There were four Christmas trees, named |
Britain. Natal, Canada, and |
Australia Sir George White and General |
Hunter were among the numerous COM
pany that Witnessed the festive proceed /
ings
One of the men of the Second Cornwalls, |
writing under date OF December 20 to his |
father and mother at Plymouth, says:
After we disembarked at Cape Town, on No |
vember 20, went about five hundred miles up |
country TO De Aar. Ten days ago we left there |
for the Orange River Camp, and now we are |
1v and for