The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-02
ENGLAND'S GIGANTIC FORCE.
SHE WILL SOON HAVE 213,OOO MEN
IN SOUTH AFRICA.

Question Is Asked; What Are They
All Doing !"-OnIy About 10000
Have Been Engaged in Action, Yet
ioo'oOo Are Already There-Wnr
Office Issues List of More Spion
Hop CnsuaIties-Cnnon Farmers
Comments on Macrum.
London. Feb. ? 4:S0 a. m.-Mr. Wynd-
hams remarkable declaration in the
House of Commons to-day that Great Brit
ain will have in a fortnight a total of
1S,OoO troops in South Africa, with 452
guns is received with wonderment
All are now there, except about 1900
that are afoat Beyond comparison this
Is the largest force Great Britain has ever
put into the field AT the end Of the Cri-
mean war she had scraped together $1,000
men. Wellington at Waterloo had $4,000.
Roughly speaking, only sO.O0O men are
at the front. Ten thousand others have
been lost and 10000 are shut up at Lady
smith
Excluding these there are 10000 troops
who have not yet been in action in addi-
ton to those at sea. Why so many have
not yet been engaged is explained by the
lack of land transportation and the origin
| OF supplies to which Lord Roberts is de-
voting his experience and Lord Kitchener
| his genius for details. 1t seems as though
the weight of these masses must DESTROY
the equilibrium which now holds the
British forces stationary where ever they
are in contact with the Boer army.
Lack of transportation and organization
Will not explain adequately why, when
| generals at the front request reinforce
ments, they get them in rather small
numbers. Knowledge is slowly penetrat-
ing to London that large garrisons must
be kept in Cape Colony TO held down the
Cape Dutch, who, as every one knows,
outnumber the British residents three to
| two.
More spiOn I<Op Casualties.
London, Feb. 1.-The war office this even
ing completes the list of the British cas-
ualties at Spion kop by announcing the
names of 215 missing men of various regi-
| ments, including 1S7 members of the Ian
cashire Fusilleers.
1t is generally supposed Gen. Butler is
maturing another attempt TO reach Lady
smith.
A letter appears to-day from a Hanover
| ian officer, formerly of the Twenty second
German Infantry, hut now among The ma-
itary advisers of the Beers which says
| that nearly 10000 trained European sol
diers. including quite 800 officers, are
among the Beers. Referring to the mil
| iii, 7
says:
Owing to the strength of our position.
on a circle of nights. like Sedan, we can
not be brushed aside except by a relief
column outnumbering US two to one"
owing to the discovery that cotton khaki
| is insufficient protection for troops sleep
! ing on the South African plains, the gov
ernment is starting to reclothe the forces
in the field with wooden khaki, and has al
| ready ordered 95 900 suits in Glasgow alone.
Said Macrum Was Afraid.
Canon Farmer. who was forced 10 leave
| Pretoria with other British cergymen, has
arrived in London. With reference to
| Charles E. Macrum, the former United
! States consul at Pretoria, Canon Farmer
said to a representative of the Associated
! Press:
"Mr. Macrum was one of the last men
saw before leaving. I told him he was
taking the wrong side and did not under
stand American feeling. His chief care
seemed to be for his personal safety, and
l think 1t was chiefly on that account
that he left in the midst of the crisis. He
is not strong man, and President Kruger
may have taken advantage of this.
In regard to Blake's so-called volun-
teers, they are like Mr.. Blake, mostly
! burghers, who have been obliged to fight
anyway. Mr.. Macrum told me there were
1900 Americans in the Transvaal, most
Of whom the United States was glad to
get rid Of
| Pretoria, Canon Farmer added, was pro-
visioned for two years.
They Don't Understand 1t.
In the absence of exciting war news the
nation and the newspapers have had time
to discover the utter lack of relation ex-
listing between the feeling of the people
and the temper of the government as
| demons rated in Parliament, where, in
stead of fe.ieving the grave anxiety of the
country by the declaration of measures II
is proposed to take in behalf of the ma
tional safety, the ministers continue 10
demonstrate their inability to grasp the
SITUATION, by Deatlng the air with recrlm-
nations self-accusatory defense and bck-
erings as TO the degree of responsibility
attachab'e to the respective departments
of the government The disgust. almost
despair. noticeable on all sides, is voiced
by the ultra ministerial organ, the Globe,
which says:
THE heart of the empire seems para
lived while its extremities are in fun vigOr
Thus far only one statesman in the front
rank has struck the right note and that is
Lord Rosebery."