The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-05-28

dACpiNiu 10 Il special QlSDdLCu IlOfl
New Castle, has issued a proclama don
asking the Transvaal burghers to no
tify aim whether they desire to con-
tinue the fight or to sue for peace.
President Kruger's proclamation To
the burghers asking their votes for or
against continuing the war is under
stood to say they can quit now with
the prospect Of retaining their farms,
or continue to the bitter end. Rumors
are current in Lord Roberts army that
the Beers intend TO surrender.
Grootven, Twenty-three Miles South
OF Nereeniging. Sunday May 27.-Lord
Roberts northern advance force stead
lily continues, and today the Transvaal
hills were sighted. General French has
secured am excellent thanking position
on the northwest. There is something
irresistible about this advance.
The troops have been splendidly ham
died, and the Beers. completely out
Unanswered. have been forced to aban-
don their positions at the first appear
ance of the British thanking force,
which has made "a determined resist
ance at the Vaal impossible.
Beers Trek For Home.
Many .TransvaaI burghers are now
trekkiug hOmeward, and il is safe to
say that the most irreconcilable Trans
waller at last recognizes the hopeless
ness of the struggle Most of the farms
IA the northern part of the Free State.
where the ties of blood with the Trans
Vaal are strongest, have been deserted.
This section has been flooded with
Ease tales of British cruelty, reports of
the bUrning of farm houses and the
~
hope of Inducing the burghers to re-
main at the commanders, but the evil
dence all points now to the existence
Of a permanent feeling of enmity be-
tween the Transvaalers and the Free
Staters. each accusing the other of
treachery and cowardice.
1T is regarded as unlikely that the
TransVaal government viii go TO Ly-
denburg, where food is scarce. A body
of Beers. mostly on foot. is trekking
hard toward Vereeninging from the di-
Tection of Hebron.
The condition OF the British troops
continues excellent, although the cold
nights are very trying. They are able
10 march three miles an hour.
Bridges Are Destroyed.
The Beers have destroyed every
bridge and culVert. They are said to
regard Kip River Berg, north of the
Naal as d position of great strength,
and talk of making themselves impreg-
nable there.
It is reported that the population of
Johannesburg is in a high state of eX-
element. The Beers VINO are passing
through nOTthWaTd threaten to blow
up the mines. and in view of their
waHt3n destruction of everything else,
il would not be surprising If they car
Tied out the threat.
The British are more interested.
however, in grazing and in the water
supply than in the mines.
Taaiboseh, Saturday, May 26.-Gen-
eral French crossed the Naal at Linde-
gus drift yesterday, and General Henry.
with mounted infantry today. They
pushed forward and nearly succeeded
in saving the bridge, only the northern
most span being destroyed. All the
refugees agree that the mines viii be
destroyed.
The B0ers are taking a position at
Kip River Drift, having left the Vaal-
The commandments have assembled 10
discuss the ACCESSIBILITY of continuing
the struggle Meanwhile there is a
force of the enemy at Myreon.
Kroonstad Sunday. May 27.-General
hamilton has invaded the TransvaaL
having crossed at WOnderfontein Drift
London, Nav 27,-The war Office has
received The following from Lord Rob
erts:
''Vereenisen, Sunday, May q. 1:15 p.
m.-We crossed the FaaI this morning
and are now encamped on the north
bank The advance troops, which
crossed yesterday We're only just in
time TO save the coal mines on both
this and the other side of the river from
being destroyed Cur casualties We're
four.
'Baden-PoWen reports that the rail
way between hIafeking and BUluwayC
mas been restored, and that supplies
are being brought into Mafeking. He
says the Canadian artillery Joined Col
onel Plumer from Beira with incredible
rapidity.
Lieutenant Weber was taken pris-
oner at Hebron a few days ago. He
went there on telegraph duty. II was
not known that our troops had beer
temporarily withdrawn"
The Standard has the following from
VredefOrt, dated Thursday, May "A:
Thirty thousand Beers are reported
to have passed through here Tuesday
and to haze crossed the Naal but this
number IS probably excessive
When Lord Roberts wrote his first
J a
terday, shortly before 2 O'Clock in The
afternoon. he was fifty--one miles from
johannesburg and seventy seven miles
from Pretoria. His immensely superior
forces had passed the Wal river. theh
last great natural obstacle, at three
points.
The VaaI has a curve os eighty miles
on the west to Zand Drift on the east
The concaye OF the current is toward
the Free state. Thus Lord Roberts
advancing along the railway, was in &
position to strike any part of the eres-
cent by shorter lines than those by
winch the Beers could reinforce the
threatened points. The Beers retreateC
almost without a show of 2efense. Gen.
eral French and General Hamilton ap.
parently ds5 not fire g shot.
Eleven Men First to Ford.
OF Lord Roberts immediate force
eleven men. belonging TO the Eight
mounted infantry. was the first to fore
the river. They came upon Boer pa
troll footing at NieljOhn's Drift, and
after a skirmish lasting ten minute.
followed Three hundred Beers t1ieC
feebly to hold the Veree9yan cOlIiery
but were dislOdged.
Msj0r Hunter Weston and LieuteG-
ant Earle rode in advance of Lord Rob
erts forty miles into a hostile country
to try TO cut the railway behind tbs
Beers before the Naal was crossed, bu
they We're too late.
The Boer rear guard IS at MOYertOn
ten miles south of NeFeenigcn. THEFT