The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1901-08-17
sANGUlNE OF SUCCESS.
General Pearson Believes the Boers
will Win.

Samuel Pearson, who is in the Crescent
City keeping tab on the number Of
mules and horses shipped from the
American port for the British army
in South Africa.
"The kilograms from the seat of war
in South Africa must have been quite
satisfactory to you, General" remarked
the reporter. "But suppose you con-
cede that the ultimate defeat Of the
Beers, overpowered as they are, is but
a question of time?"
''Not by any MEANS" replied General
Pearson. 1.-THE end is just as far off
as it ever was. have noticed recently
in some Of the American newspapers
which I have read editorials on the
Boer war in which the writer's ven
tured an opinion on the situation in
South Africa. These opinions are
doubtless deducted from the tele-
graphic reports received from time to
time. 1 would like to say a few words
on this question and give you an idea
of the true position Of the Beers today.
The British army are in possession of
Bloemfontein, Johannesburg and Pre-
toria 1--WE will admit for the sake OF ar
gumenD of the railways generally, say
a mileage Of perhaps 100 miles.
Kitchener, therefore, has LOO miles
of lines of communication to
protect and guard, and he has a force
of 100000 white troops and 100000 ma
tive or negroes, as they are called in
this country. With this force he has to
keep open this long railway line, and
to oppose him General Botha has about
$4,000 men, frst-class shots, thorough
horsemen, brave beyond a doubt and
imbued with contempt Of the British.
"They are aggressive and are ready,
whenever opportunity offers, to attack
the lines Of communication or such
bodies of British troops as may be
reached, provided the British do not
outnumber the Beers more than three
to one. Sometimes, of course, the
Beers are brought up against greatly
superior forces of the enemy, at odds
from ten to fifteen to one, but they
never even then shirk a fight, and face
their opponents cheerfully.
"Just look at the map of South Afri-
ca, and you will see at once that it is
an impossibility for General Kitchen
or to bring the war to close with the
small, or, rather, inadequate forces at
his command, for this reason. Krit-
Finger, the Boer commandant, has pen
etrated far into the heart Of Cape Col
ony, where there are four commanders
distances apart, but still in concert
with each other
"The commanders are able men. and
we have General De Wet operating in
the Free State, and there are one or
two strong patrols in the Transvaal.
We have General Louis Botha. COM
mander-in-chief Of the Boer forces, who
is perhaps the finest general that ever
walked on battle field. With him
are the commanders under Dclarey.
Ben Niljocn, Beycrs and about six
other small flying divisions. Then in
Natal we have Christian Botha. along
with whom are also two or three strong
patrols. There are in all about 22.O0O
or $4,000 men. Now it requires at least
three to one. So Kitchener must have
at least 10000 men to operate, all in
small divisions. Then the balance of
his men must guard 1,70O miles of
lines. Then our men are so scattered
that he cannot find them il he is in
force, and il he is not in force he
finds that our men are; SO how and
what can he do?
eff you refer to the English wires
you will see for months past it is the
Beers who always attack. And Gen
eral Kitchener will one day say the
war Is over, and the next day his wire
will say so and so was attacked by a
superior force of Beers and had to
surrender. Today, indeed, the position
Is as far away on the part Of the
Beers giving in as the day war was
declared. Many people say: But look
Mt the men taken prisoners Well,
outside Of perhaps Cronje's 1900, 1 do
not think 1000 Of the balance would
have fought any longer. 1t is always
so. But today the men in the field
are the men, in fact from the very
start, who did all the fighting. 1t is
quite childish to think, with Botha.
Viltoen, Delarey, Kritzinger, Beyers,
De Wet, Steyn, Schalkburger, Lucas
Meyer, SHUTS and all the good men
in the field, that they ever will give in.
And 1 am sure the British army in
South Africa at present is not the stuff
to make them. Beyond Roberts burn,
ing the homes and concentrating the
women and poor little children in his
deathly camps and laying waste tho
country with the billion dollars he has
spent, he can show nothing. Further
today the British empire is lettering.
"Lord Miner comes home, and
when in London, he makes plenty
talkee, talllee, biggee tall1ee; but if he
has any sense he knows he is not tell
ing the English public the truth. The
English papers say Miner came home
because he was sick, Such is abso