The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1900-12-25
cannot BUT
ADMIRE HIM
BOLDNEss OF DEwET I'M
PRESSES ENGLAND.
PUBLIC WEARY AND BORED
Take Little Interest in War
and Care Still Less
for Canal.

London, Dec. 22-General De Wet
would bs by far most acceptable
Christmas box to a majority Of Eng
lishmen, though there seems little
likelihood of the wish being granted.
The desire for the suppression of
this wonderful Boer leader, however,
is accompanied b. generous admira-
tion Of his latest feat. It would be
unworthy of the British nation, says
the Times, to refuse the credit that is
due feat Of arms SO brilliant as this
unexpected dash backward of De Wet
and his men through the British lines.
Other papers take the same view,
comparing the ride to Primghar Mex,
with the charge at Balaklava. In
fact, the admiration for the extraOrdi-
nary daring displayed by the Beers on
this occasion predominated over the
chagrin at the failure of the British
officers to cope with their opponents.
There is springing up philosophic
indifference to the incapabillity of the
generals in South Africa. Reverses
have become the expected thing.
Last Christmas the country almost
went crazy over the plum puddings
and chocolate hampers sent to the
soldiers on the veldt. This year they
are not mentioned. In fact, the pub
lie is unalterably weary of the long
drawn out struggle. This in no way
affects government, whose determi-
nation to fight it out to the bitter end
is evident from it's decision to rein
force the already huge army in South
Africa. Several members of the cabi-
net, however, would be heartily CRATE
full, were the Boer leaders to sue for
peace.
The Nicaraguan canal still fails to
arouse any really deep interest here,
as it is thoroughly understood that
Great Britain will take no action in
the near future, and the Chinese nego-
tiations are regarded in the light of
monotonous farce, more than SER
ious problem, thanks to the foolish
misunderstanding which have arisen
among the powers themselves. The
only quarter in London where the
performance is thoroughly enjoyed is
at the Chinese legation in which Sir
Chih Chen Lo Feng Luh, minister of
China, mourning secludedly for his
brother, is reported to be in a state Of
perpetual chuckle over the attitude of
Christendom.
Once more the question of the day
is Americas commercial rivalry,
which throughout the week has been
forming the basis for long analitical
articles in the Daily Express and
Daily Mail. written by engineering
and other experts which detail the
result of the recent trips to the United
States under headlines, ''Wake up,
England, ""Why we are falling Be-
hind, etc., reiterating that the Eng
lish manufacturers lack the initiative
and are absurd in their conservatism,
which is summed up as follows in
one of the articles: IF the forego-
ing facts are unpalatable, it is better
they should be known than that the
nation should continue to dream on in
q FOOLS paradise until the next cycle
of bad trade, when we may find our
markets in the possession of others. !"
The announcement that the Neither
lands does not consider itself bound
by the Paris Venezuelan decision re-
garding the Anglo-Dutch frontier, is
not regarded by the foreign Office as
being of any Importance or as likely
to form the basis for international
friction. The Dutch boundary is a
comparatively minor matter on which
the colonial Office has been engaged as
a step to ward off contingency,
which, however, Great Britain has
not contemplated.