Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-30
COMMENT ON SPlON kOP
Press and Prominent Englisbmen Discuss
Gen. Buffers Defeat.
General Sentiment Seem. to He 10
Prosecute the War With
Greater NiROr.

LONON, January 30.-Mr Spenser Vii
kinson. in the Morning Post says:
Defeat is bitter but it is right 10 face it
and to take reasonable means to turn it
into victory. 1t is wrong To try to conceal
it from ourselves
The initiative is now again with the
Boer commander. and the question is, What
will he do next? He will either act against
Ladysmith or against Gen. Butler In the
latter case pursuit would be useless. for
when the British force is once across tho.
small rear guard could prevent pursuit.
Much more probable would be an attack on
Chieveley before the return of the main
body. Either that or fresh assault on
Ladysmith may be recorded in a day or
two
Mr.. Wilkinson then proceeds to point out
the groundlesSneSs of fears that strategic
suggestions made in England might be use
full to the enemy. He says that the censor
ship stands in the way of any such benefit
to the Beers, and that. moreover. if the
Boer generals want suggestions. they can
easily get them from the German press.
As such matters are likely to come under
the attention of parliament. he discusses at
length questions of artillery and the like,
concluding as follows:
THE measures now urgently needed are
the development of the military resources
of the country by the initiative of the gov
eminent. With 100000 men in the field and
10000 to follow, the moment has come to
push on the training of all troops left at
home and to raise further troops to supply
the further needs of the campaign
Buffers Probable Next Move.
Whether Lord Roberts will permit Gen.
Butler to make another attempt to relieve
Ladysmith is quite outside the knowledge
even of those closely connected with the
war office. With the troops due to arrive
next month, he may think himself strong
enough to try two large operations. Com
bining the forces under Gems. Methuen,
French and Gatacre, and adding to them
the arriving troops, Lord Roberts would
have 10000 for the invasion of the Free
State, with 10000 to saooo guarding COM
nIunicat lions and 10000 trying to rescue
Ladysmith. The public burns with i'm
patience that something should he done,
but there is nothing to do but to wait on
the preparations.
The government declarations in parlia-
me Mt, the counter suggestions Of those out
side the government, and the consequent
discussion in the press and on the Platform
The thing on which everybody seems agreed
is that more men must go.
Twenty thousand two hundred and tweu
ty-two men and 155 guns are at sea. Eleven
thousand infantry and 5000 cavalry, in
Guiding 5000 yeoman, are practically ready
to embark. Therefore the government,
without doing more, can place at the dis
posal of Lord Roberts 10000 additional men
and 1915 guns. The further purposes of the
war office are supposed to embrace some
where In the neighborhood of $1,000 more
men.
Great anxiety has been removed by the
announcement that Lord Dundonald's cav
airy forces, which it was feared were fso-
lated among the hills in the neighborhood
of Acton Homes, are safe on the south
bank of the Tugela river.