Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-06-02
MAFEKlNG' HOT fight
Dramatic Gloss of the Towns
Long Siege.
BoBRs WERE IN BRITISH LINES.

Had the Town at Their Mercy
| Hungry Troops Fed All the Horse
| Sausage and Bread They CouId Eat
Meeting of EIoH and Baden-Powc1
| The whole town is keenly eXultinG
over yesterdays victory, which wa:
decisive. says a dispatch from Mafe
king, dated May IS.
The military position shortly after
! sunrise was extraordinary. All the
| outlying works of the town We're intact
/ the British had lost hardly any men
| and yet three bodies of Beers. right
| inside the British lines. had been sur
rounded and asked to surrender, which
| they had declined to do.
Commandant Sarel Eloff did not real
ize that his supports had been driven
back, and he told a messenger that the
| town was at his mercy.
Toward noon there was lull in the
| fighting. Everybody at headquarters
| went TO breakfast. and the commits
| sariat requisitioned for horse sausage.
bread and water for the men on the
fighting line. There was no thought
of half rationS. Every one got all he
could eat
The British in the Staat, moving from
rock to rock, gradually drew in their
circle around the Beers. who hoisted a
white flag about 80 p. m. Then.
amid ringing cheers, the first batch Of
Beers was disarmed and sent to the
town.
The erstwhiIe besiegers furnished an
,f.1f{s ,f-lI-
themselves so long cooped up. AS the
hungry, dirty. battle stained Beers
marched between the cleaning bayo-
nets of the British the British popu-
lation received them respectfully. but
the kaflirs gave full rein to their en-
thusiasm in boots. yells and similar
expressions of delight. The prisoners
seemed glad the fight was over.
AS the afternoon advanced the
crsckle of musketry began again, con-
tinuing until nearly o'clock, when
Captain Singleton shouted, Cease
fire. A message had come from head
quarters that Eloff. his officers and
men had surrendered and had laid
down their arms Internationally to
Colonel Hore. who, with a handful Of
men, had been Eloff's prisoner most
of the day.
Shortly before this a fuSillade was
heard. 1t was Eloff and the men who
stood by him firing on their own de-
serters, so of whom fed.
AS the news spread by telephone to
the garrisons of the various forts there
was great cheering. In the town some
one started God Save the Queen" the
strains of which mingled with the
hoarse shouting of the natives.
Soon Captain Singleton and Colonel
Hore approached. accompanied by
Commandant EIoff and his officers.
The meeting between Colonel Baden
Powell and the Boer commander was
dramatic.
This is Commandant Eloff, SIR said
Captain Singleton.
Good evening. commandant." said
Colonel Baden-Poweil. Wont you
come and have some dinner?''
AS the British had captured 100 pris-
oners-about all they could handle
Colonel Baden-Powell sent word 20
Lord Charles Bentinck to open the way
and allow the scattered remnants of
the federals to be driven from the
staat.
In half an hour everything was over.
and in the messroom at headquarters
the three Boer officers We're dining
Nearly, every mess in town raked UP
q hidden store Of liquor-a
bottle of champagne in one place, a
flask of whisky in another. The whole
town Joined in the jubilation, singing
God Save the Queen" and other pa
triotic songs all night.
The Boer prisoners were lodged at
Masonic hall. Most of them are Jo-
hannesburgers. They seemed in ex-
cellent spirits, scrambled for blankets,
wrote letters TO friends and grumbled
at General Snyman.