The Irish standard., 1901-09-21
THE HUMANITY OF THE BoERs.

From time to time the British dis
patches sent from South Africa to
London have contained charges against
the Beers of cruelty toward prisoners
who fall into their hands. Such
charges have been commented on in a
savage manner by the London and
other English organs of jingoism, and
the Beers have been held up to the
people of Great Britain as barbarians
The London Times, especially, has dis
tmguished itself in branding the Bo,
ers as monsters of crime and iniquity
In brutal language it has advocated
no quarter to Boer prisoners taken in
battle if they are found to have i'll,
treated the British soldiers left wound
ed OH the veldts.
Capt. Seely, Il Tory member of par
lament for the Isle of Wight who
had served for seventeen months in
the South African war, has come for
ward to defend the Beers from
charges OF cruelty and inhumanity. In
a recent letter to the British Thumb
eler," as the Times is called, he says.
II have this morning seen an article
written by a newspaper correspondent
in South Africa stating that the Beers
murder wounded men, and that this is
frequent incident venture to
ask you to publish this letter for the
sake of those, tens of thousands in
number, whose anxiety for their hus-
bands, sons, brothers, is great enough
already without the addition Of this
fresh terror.
During the seventeen months that
l served in South Africa l had, per-
haps, rather exceptional opportunities
of learning how our wounded were
treated by the Beers. On two differ
ent occasions men under my command
who were dangerously wounded were
attended to by the Beers; in each case
they were tended with the greatest
kindness and care, and the wounded
men themselves begged to thank those
who had been so good to them; on both
occasions the general in command of
the column conveyed his thanks either
personally or by letter.
II have spoken to many officers and
men who have been left sick or wound
ed in the hands of the Beers and in no
single instance have I heard anything
but gratitude expressed for the treat
ment they have received. In the in
tense excitement Of hand-to-hand fight
ing it may be difficult to differentate
between the wounded and the I'M
wounded; but the relatives and friends
of those now fighting may rest assured
that Englishmen left wounded on the
field will receive from the Beers no
less care and kindness than wounded
Beers have invariably received from
the English"
Another British soldier, Private
Greenwood, of the Liverpools, has
spoken in behalf Of the Beers, and cor
roborates what Capt. Seely says. He
was severely wounded, had his right
leg amputated, and attributes his re-
covery to the tender care and kindness
Of the slandered burghers. He says:
II was lying alone on the veldt, with
n wound in my leg which caused me
such agony that scarcely retained my
sanity. In fact, felt every moment
that was going mad. was parched
and kept calling out for something to
drink, but no one answered, and being
helpless in this way for some hours
my limbs became numbed with cold
made certain that should die be.
fore help reached me and quite gave
+, jump on seeing two human beings
approach some hours after nightfall
The men turned out to be Beers, but !
wasn't frightened. Anything-death
even-was preferable to such exposure
| as that was subjected to. I asked