Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-02-14


usual eating habits We're following
suit. Those who did not care to snatch
a piece of half cooked mutton from the
top of the kitchener and eat it Kaffir
fashion stood a good chance OF going
hungry. By chance. however. / had q
dinner of roast duck that night. Pass
Ing a couple of officers at the table
one of them asked me 10 join them
and passed me what he called duck
with history to help myself before
he and his brother officer began. The
duck, according TO his tale. had belong
ed TO the proprietor OF the hotel, and
one of the rough burghers. seeing 1t.
had cut off its head with his tackknife
and was making off with his prize
when he stumbled into the arms of
field cOrnet, who demanded particu-
lars of the way in which the duck
came into his possession. No satisfac-
tory explanation being forthcoming
ne was deprived of his duck and SEN
fenced there and then to u lasheS in
lieu thereof. The duck was taken in
side and cooked for the officers and. to-
gether with n plentiful supply of pota-
toes. proved an appetiZing dish.
| I'VE then left the station premises
and went to one OF the colliery sidings,-
where n train OF military stores was
being looted. My mission and my es
cort together enabled me TO go down
the entire train and watch the pro-
ceedings without interference. In one
wagon dozens of new military saddles
| were found. and this enabled the Beers
| to make use of the numerous horses
| they had captured on their way down.
| Farther along the train We're found
| meal, flour. bread. clothing. officers
baggage. bandSmen's uniforms and in
| struments What was useful was Of
course Immediately annexed. and 9TH
| er goods were thrown out of the trucks
/ and picked up by the scores of Indians
and natives who were enjoying the
spectacle. Some queer results We're
seen as the Beers found the officers
| baggage and the handsmen's uniforms.
One of the toughest managed to
squeeze his feet into i pair of patent
leather topbootS and exchanged his
coarse jacket for a scarlet bandmas-
ter's tunic. So attired he walked off
| with carbine in one hand and a boot
| tree in the other, no doubt bent on as
| pertaining what the latter was used
| for. Another sat for some time MAX
| ing vigorous attempts to blow n note
| on big trombone which was minus
a mouthpiece, and when he found IL
| unavoidable he threw ii down and
Itrampled the shape out of it,"
The Beers. too. seem to be able to
sing songs other than hymns and
psalms, for on the second night they
/ had n smoking concert. LAS our stay
seemed likely to prove long one and
the hours dragged YEARLY on 4 Smok-
| ing concert was moOted, whether by
our men or by the Beers l cannot say.
| but whoever gets the credit Of the
| initiative il was duly arranged. and
Field Cornet Pienaar was ready and
willing to take the chair. Duly at 8 p.
| III. he appeared and at once had some
choice whisky and cigars placed on
the table and he filed up and handed
round to BritOn and BOer impartially.
The whisky was consigned to some OF
our British officers at Dundee. and
Pienaar jocularly admired their choice
of whisky, and indeed as the night adj
vanced he quite warmed up to the Off
GERS, who, as he put ii, were not so
bad as he thought, as evidenced by
their good taste.
1.-THE smoking concert proceeded
merrily, despite the extraordinary cir
cumstances under which IL was held.
1t was opened by comic song, rem
dered by a refugee from Newcastle
whose musical abilities proved of great
service. He and l then rendered the
old duet AIS Well and on being en-
cored responded with the Army and
Navy duet. y Transvaal burgher sang
an Irish song as only an Irishnan can.
He told us afterward that this was his
eighth campaign, but he did not know
then that il was his last. Next day
he was dead. \ German sergeant then
sat down to the piano. Sir Joseph Barn
by's glee, Sweet and Low was sung
to his accompaniment, and when l say
that ii was Il success vocally and in
strumentally il goes to show how wide
is the popularity the little compost
ton enjoys. The Boer sergeant then
played a series of national anthems.
including both God Save the Queen
and the 'Transvaal Volkslied' They
were all played with good taste, and l
certainly never expect 10 hear our ma
tional anthem played or sung again I'M
der such apparently impossible condi-
lions. While we English prisoners
sang our national anthem the Dutch
present Joined in, but as they sang In
the taal 1 could not make out what
they were singing, but they We're we'll
acquainted with the air and sang it
freely. God Bless the Prince of Wales
was also played by the German, both
English and Dutch singing in their re-
spectiye tongues. Whether the Dutch |
version had any relation 10 ours can
not say but the tune was evidently |
familiar"
Next morning came the battle and |
the escape of the prisoners. When the
latter returned to Ladysmith, they
were surprised to find so much interest |
taken In them. The veracious native |
was the reason, and in the last para |
graph OF this letter Mr.. Atkinson gives |
a good reason for distressing the great |
amount of news the snle ufhnrifv for