The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-04-26
THE BOER SOLDIERS.
A Few Facts for Sympathixers with
Kruger ct al. to Consider.

Julian Ralph, in London Mail.
And whether the war Is near its close or
whether the worst is to come, please pre-
pare yourselves soberly and with knowl-
edge for the settlement that is TO be made.
First beg you to remember that this is
not war waged by England. 1t is a war
steadily and stealthily planned by the
Queens Dutch subjects and the Dutch re-
publics for fully twenty years. For be-
tween four and six years they equipped for
ming defenses before the Jameson raid; let
no one fool you with falsehood about that.
Finally, Kruger begged Steyn to declare
war three weeks before Steyn consented,
then war was declared by the Dutch, and
hostilities were begun by them.
Next rid your mind of the notion that you
are crushing two farmer republics. There
is not farmer In the two countries, and
only one 0he Free State) was a republic
in any way except misnaming. These peo-
pie are herders of cattle, sheep, and goats
like the Israelites of old, and the Afridis
and Turks and Balkan peoples Of to-day.
The other day 1 read in an article by
Mr.. III. w. Massingham, that 1.-THE Beers
have made South Africa" The gentle,
scholarly journalist took that means of
saying that he had never been here. The
Boer has sat on South Africa and smother
ed it,. kept ii down, made IL the most
backward of all white mems lands OF equal
white mans tenancy. His so-called
farms are as nature made them-merely
reaches of veldt on which his cattle Craze.
On each one he has put up home, but its
surroundings are almost invariably more
repellent and disorderly than any homes
ever saw, except the cabins or the freed
ola t., he Init nI tot a m ms
and strongholds from which We have
routed them the filthiest places L have
known men of any sort TO live In, and
have seen red Indian camps, Chinese
camps, Turkish camps, and the camps or
many sorts of black men, 1t does not ex-
cuse the Boer to state the simple truth that
he lived by hunting until twenty-five years
ago. and that since then he has lived by
cattle herding. He has taken quarter
of century to grow small patch of
mealies for his partial support, and for
variety in food.
And now as to their bravery and honor"
I had seen and heard sufficient to fill this
page of the Daily Mail with accounts of
their cowardly and dastardly behavior be-
fore 1 came to Kimberley. but here 1 find
that they have been guilty OF different and
original enormities.
Here they killed our wounded and laid
their bodies in a row after one of the forays
out of the town. And here they armed
many of the blacks to fight against us,
fraudulent were their EXPLANATIONS Of hor-
ror at the idea of our employing native In
dian troops in this war-a step we never
even discussed. We have heard from Natal
and from Colesburg of their arming their
black servants and employing them to fight
us. but this / have merely read of-not seen
or got at first hand. In Kimberley, how
ever, it Is positively stated that the Long
burg negroes sent out or the diamond COM
pany compounds were impressed into the
Boer service, they being blacks whom we
have had recent necessity to punish Tor
rebellion.
the Beers have not abused either the white
flag. the Geneva cross, or both.
/ think 1t is safe to say that the fight at
Paardeberg drift, where the guerrilla chief
Cronje surrendered, is the only battle In
which they have not disgraced themselves
in one of these ways. At the battle before
that Spion kop, in Natal, our people saw
them loading their Maxims In their am
balances in order to get them safely away.
This we saw them do at Modder river also.
At Spion kop they showed the nag OF
true in one place. An officer said TO his
men, 1.-The dogs are trying TO murder us
by showing a white flag. Lie still, all OF
you. Put your helmets on the muzzie-ends
of your guns and slowly lift them into
sight above the rocks" This was done. and
a yolley of rifle bullets greeted what the
cruel Beers took to be the line OF British
heads. At Belmont the same fruse succeed
ed only too we'll .
During the siege Of Kimberley the devil
ish trick was played upon the town de-
tenders outposts. And Kimberley Is where
the Beers shelled the funeral cortege of
George Labram-who made the big gun Tor
the town at dark. later than they had ever
shelled the town before. Spion kop is
where they shot doctor while he was
bandaging wounded man. At many
places they fired on our ambulances.
saw them do 1t at Modder river. And j
saw them fire on our stretcher bearers
in that battle time and time again:
There is never an excess of poetry in
war, but one phase Of IL that was senti-
mental, If not poetic, has always been the
tendency of the opposing pickets TO estab-
lish a show of camaraderie. In the fight
between the North and the South in
America the pickets exchanged cigars and
tobacco, and In that between America and
Spain last year they conversed together
and exchanged gifts. In the war waged
by the Boer against the Briton the Boef
has crept up like snake i'm the grass 70
kill outposts on every field since the
war began.
a city of doctors Every man In the
streets wore a Red Cross badge on his
arm. These were the men who had just
been shooting at us from behind the gar
den walls. There was nothing novel or
original about their seeking the cowardly
shelter of a doctors badge. We are quite
accustomed to IL. We once entered Boer
lager after a victory and found twenty
seven or eight wounded men for their
patients, as / remember the case. There
was also a plethora of doctors I'm the tiny
hospital on 1.-The island" at Modder river.
They had hidden their rifles and cartridges
under the beds of the patients and put
on their Red Cross badges soon as they
saw they could not get away.
Again and again our mounted soldiers
have chased Beers I'm the veldt and seen
them rush into house, give their arms
into safe keeping. and then come out with
Red Cross badges upon their arms.
Their wounded have shot our soldiers
after battle had ended and we were offer
ing them succor. This is after the pattern
of the Dervish. who is never a good MAJ
Till he Is dead. At Graspan one of the
wounded Beers accepted drink of water
from a gallant officer and then killed him
as he passed on 10 the next sufferer.
They have not been content with footing
The houses of loyal persons in the British
colonies, but in Natal in scores OF instances
they have smashed into kindlings and tori
20 ribbons whatever they did not want OF
could not carry of. Worse yet. they have
fouled the walls OF the homes OF defense
less women with obscene writings
They never knew the value OF an oath
or promise and have not learned IL since
the war began. You have seen the false