The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1900-02-12

. bombardment more vigorously than bsiore,
9 mvre guns being put ia position, but heiiu-
: graph messages from the clly reported tnat
. little damage was being done The garri-
9 son kept in high spirits over expectations
from General Buffers operations. a helto-
9 graph message January % reported that
9 the bomberdment was not doing much
: damage and slackened. Shells from Gen
eral Buffers guns could be seen bursting
9 near tho Beer camps.
In South Africa this season OF the year
IL summer instead OF winter. as In the
9 Northern hemisphere. The camp at Lady
: smith holds between 5000 and 1900 men
: aud the soldiers sufer severely from
diseases incident TO camp lie. General
" bile has reported that his provisions are
good and ample and has asserted he c0uio
9 bold the town nntll February or March.
81 The position OF Ladysmth was a most
. unfortunate choice for aa encampmcnt.
Q The military man who selected it could
hardly have exhibited such poor judgment
had he been a paid servant OF the Boer
government.
The town is about thirty miles from the
foot OF the prakensberg range OF moups
. tains, and about 100 miles north OF Ours
Q ban on the Natal Government railway,
. which at Ladysmith divides into bra ncces
. to fhe Orange Free State ana the Trans
. vaal respectively. Ladysmith stands ON
the flat ground which slopes down to the
Q Kip river, q tributary of the river Tugela,
. IL Is the Kip river which the Free State
Beers have tried to divert by engineering
. work at It's sources in the DrakensbsTg,
. with the object, possibly, Of cutting off
the towns water supply and also OF rem
. derng easier the passage OF the river NJ
any point where the Boer wagons may re-
quire 10 ford II. The town OF Ladysmith
. ranks third in Natal next to Pete mar
. itzburg). although apart from thu mill
tary camp Its inhabitants do not number
: more than 1000 or 5000. The local direc-
. tory, however shows that nearly all ths
q residents OF sufficient importance 10 be in
3 cluded in such work bear English,
Scotch Welsh or Irish names.
. Arriving at the town by rail from Dur
3 ban, high rocky ridge OF hills, frlnged
IN their tops with mimosa trees Is seen
on the right OF the line These hills en-
3 close Ladysmith in a rough semi -circle,
protecting 1t from the severe winds In the
dry winter but rendering the town rather
. oppresslyely hot In the summer. In Natal,
IL may De here remarked tile summer
? begine in October and ends in March the
summer is the rainy season, aud at mid
summer the sun rises ct and sets a.
o'clock The town which has a pleas
. ant homolike appearance, is the main
. center OF Kip River county. There are
thirteen streets fairly well laid out, and
9 among the public buildings are +he town
. hall, built at 4 cost Of some $4,000 a mar
y het oillce, court house, prison and fort.
. government school, postoftice, puh1c IL
o braly and reading room branches of the
Natal and STANDARD banks, Roman
. Catholic sauatorium and school; ana
among places Of worship churches OF the
g Dutch Reformed Church OF south Africa
t. Tor Angellcan), Wesleyan and Congregl-
v Iionai communities. The streets are not
I. well paved, but progress has been made Of
late In drainage. gasworks and a waler-
q works scheme costing e2B.00O. The popu-
y lation Includes, besides white people, some
a 2O0O natives and nearly as many Hinlus
A and other Indians, who have immigrated
- via Durham and act as coolies, walters,
servants etc Az present, however, Lady
r smiths resident population Is chiefly
IN swollen by It's military defenders Since
. 1897 some Thousands Of imperial troops
nave be~~ stationed here, and the NUM-
70 Der is new, OF course, very largely aug
ir mented. The camp Is situated near the
|. waterworks, about two miles from the
o.. town; il includes barracks, hospital
- church ana permanent stablng for some
1900 horses The government railway d.
partment has also large repairing and
II ether workshops at Ladysmith
~ To the north of Ladysmith the railway
- runs mile or SO 10 ORANGE Frae Sta %
e. Junction, where the line bifuroates, the
"a main route bearing east to Elandslaagte,
rs Glencoe, Newcastle and the Transvaal.
- while the Free State line branches OF due
~ west toward Van Reenen's Pass and the
Drakensberg mountains. For some time
lu after leaving LadSsmith the country re-
al mains open, dotted with low. stony hill
~ locks and scanned with stone dykes but
4 some fairly pretty scenery opens up after
half an hours ride on the main route
a. mimosa trees decorating the broad alluvial
lie valleys and farm homesteads peepine out
Oh OF dense groves of bluegum trees. until
as at sixteen miles north the train an
no breaches the bleak and lonely uplands OF
ths1 al .t~s.e
q Eiahdslaagte, where the battle was
u fought In the westerly direction. after
Leaving tho junction already mentioned
gu the tfee state line sweeps to the west to-
uN ward oliviers Hook and after traversius
~ ap Omen hare country short distance
"a notth &est OF Ladysmith again crosses the
"a Nip river and passes by walkers Hook.
en- Aeeters. Cow1rth and Brakwnl stations
=, 10 the mountain pass. 4 few miles north l.
~ west OF Lhdysmith on this route magni-
y, ncent mountain panorama opens out the
uu Drakel soerg range IN this neighborhooi /.
- containing rugged, mighty peaks from IL y
g wv rect downward II H. Smith and
ne other eAtorprisIpg farmers have excellent
II. farms Ia The neighbour cd. and there are
~ infRe glazing farms at Basters station.
:" Between Bestcrs and Brakwal there ar-
~, hlsh STONY kopjes thtllsl. with wide
NJ prospect 90 MI and vale 10 the eastward.
-, IN the thirty miles between Iadvsmith ana
~ Brakwal tie train rises 1850 feet. althoueh
ea level sc
=, To the snnthward OF I.advsmith the ga.
~ lions on the railway going in the dIroetio,
q, q Mariuhurg and Durham are in the fol-
No lowing order Nolthorne (six and one
20 fourth miles from Ladpsmlthl. piaters
inipe and ons-f fourth miles,. Colenso (s,x-
teen and one-fourth milesl, cheyelev
ttwenfv-three snd oNe-toprth NIL "a
Frere Ennei7dale and Estcourt where tha
20 line crosses he wsenen road, tortv-tbres
srd one-tonrth miles south ~ raavsrlth
Ne'thorpe ant Pis'ers are lonely ont. stu .
, Tons ~ ledysmith chieav renar,sablo Cav
T. the number cf native kraals in the vioin .
1. NV, AZ Colenso which Is VILLAGE ~,
U railway crosses the river ruaela ne lars.
-, est river In Natal. and a vcry rnpid rnc,,v
" ,orent' Just now fnll. 80 ih1t the bridse
), Is OF much strategieal Importance.
d. AMBULANCE CORPS.
~ ohited irish Societies send Mon ts
S The Boer Army.
- chicaro February 1.-THE amhularc.