The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-11-05

CLIO 6oS 0LA44OAy VI JULIUS bAaA Au1Dlr8I
Sch1ey. Where we relied upon the
Admiral's statements alone We 90
state.
THE THIRD YEAR OF THE BOER WAR,
The third year of the South Afri.
can War has begun with the Brit.
ish still fighting strong and the
Beers not yet surrendered. In re.
gard to the strategic positions in the
theatre of operations and the ma.
ture of the tactics employed by both
sides. the situation to-day remains
practically the same as it was a year
ago, only the weight of the British
army is slowly crushing down the
Boer forces How long the war will
continue depends upon the endu,
rance of the Beers in resisting the
British weight applied in this crush
ing process.
This method of whipping the Beers
by main force is the only possible one
for the British TO adopt. Field
Marshal Lord Wolseley once said
War in Africa is wait for the
wagon" A general in the Boer
army said "Give US two hundred
thousand men and let the British
have thirty thousand and We would
round them up in twenty four
hours" The British must always
wait for the wagon; the Beers will
often round up a command of an
equal size. During the history Of
the war sufficient proof has been
given that in all matters Of scout.
ing the British are far inferior to the
Beers. AS it is Of vast Importance
to a commander that he should know
as much as he Can about the move.
ments, Intentions, and position of the
enemy, that the scouts should do eff
cient work is almost essential to sue.
CESS. The British knew little about
the Beers the Beers knew much
about the British.
A knowledge of veldt craft is a
great advantage to the scout in South
Africa. This knowledge-or rather
perhaps it is an Instincts given to
the Boer at his birth, and because of
this instinct he understands under
all circumstances how to take care
of his horse, when to feed and water
him, when to "'of saddle and let
the sweat dry on his back, how to
take care OF the hoofs at night IN
derstands how to conceal himself,
taking advantage of every donga or
dip in the land or bit of scrub to &C
complish this understands by the
look of the road how large a force
has passed by. Naturally the Brit
ish soldier, being born and brought
up in England, has been given no
opportunity to learn such q craft.
Often the British scout in COnse-
quenoe will ride up to the very crest
of d hill so examine the surround.
ing country with his glasses. II
there T any of the enemy in the
neighborhood they are assuredly
we'll ridden and he sees no one,
whereas, standing on the skyline
himself, he is the first object to
catch the eye.
These two wavs of scouting Char'
acterize in a general manner the
methods by which the Beers and the
British are conducting their separate
and apparently unending campaigns,
In the meantime the political anN
financial aspect of the war are any,
thing but cheerful 80 England. Lora
Kitchener's proclamation of ban
ishment, which has been execut69
against a few Beer leaders, has hao
nc serious effect for the Beers haVo
made even nor daring aggressl'0
movements since that proclamaF0n
was issued than they had ever mau0
before. The mystery of their COZ,
tinued supply of ammunition bano'
the English. There is an ever IL
creasing tendency to harsh criticism
at home as the cost of the wal grove
with enormous strides 1t has Os0a
pointed out that the BOer war n"S
increased the English debt a touIeD
as much as the long Napoleonlo "a aba
English consols have fallen ID S - :
market, and the worst of 1t Is S Tbe
nobody clearly sees the end
Worlds Work for November