Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-02-28
fsHOW TOM DUFF DlEDN
Story Told by the Comrade who Was
with Him to the Last. VA

with Him to the Last. Va
The REGISTER some weeks ago made
note of the death of Thomas Duff, son of
James Duff of Mlddlebury, the young
man having been killed in the field
in South Africa in brush with the Beers.
Duff was member of Colonel Damant's
cavalry, which on Dec. 20 last met dis
astrous defeat at the hands of the Beers.
A comrade of Duff's, Trooper Loosemore,
has written letter to Peter Duff OF
Montreal detailing the action and death
of young Duff. The latter had been
acting as corporal, having gained his
stripes for ability and exceptional pluck
shown in skirmish shortly before. The
writer says:
"On the morning in question, Dec. 20,
his troop, No. 3 of G Squadron, Damant's
Horse, was told of as part of the gun
escort, and Duff as one of the non-com-
missioned officers went with it. The
last time | saw him alive was when he
was riding over to the guns with his
troop. Not being in Toms troop, | was
not present when the Beers actually took
the guns, but arrived with the rest of the
drove the enemy off. got the details of
his death from mutual cOmrade, one
George Laidlaw, who was with Duff
through the whole affair, lay next to him
in the firing line, saw him shot, and who
did his best to comfort him in lis last
moments.
"Up to the time the Beers rushed the
guns the escort had been firing upon a
small party visable upon the plain below,
placed there Intentionally by the enemy
as decoy to draw the attention of our
men away from their real attacking par
ty, placed upon the kopje itself, opposite
to the one our men had decended, when
this hidden foe suddenly rose up from the
loIg grass. OF course, the escort was
taken completely by surprise, and were
mostly shot down at the first volley, each
Boer doubtedlessly having had his man
marked before they showed up. Duff
wat not hurt at the first discharge, and
kept on firing until the case appeared
hopeless, when he ceased, being one of
the last to do so. He and Laidaw lay
where they had been all along, in a small
depression of the hill surrounded by a
broken stone wall, to which may be at
tributed their safety up to that time. 1t
was when almost all resistance upon the
part of our men had been overcome that
two old graybearded Beers came along
looking down into the knoll where Tom
lay saw him and at once called out
Hands upr Tom rose up upon his
knees, and putting his rifle and revolver
down. raised his hands in token of sur
render, on which one of the Beers, with
out saying a word, fired two shots from
the hip, the second of which passed
through Toms stomach. From that
wound he died about half an hour after
wards from internal bleeding. Laidlaw,
who had been overlooked by these two
Beers by reason of the long grass in
which ne lay, saw this thing happen, and
when his surrender had been accepted by
another young Boer, who found him a
few minutes later, he went to Tom and
stayed with him until he passed peace
fully away. | am glad to say that Tom
suffered no pain whatever, but lay fully
conscious, quietly talking to Laidlaw, un-
said, about half an hour after he was
shot. Tom asked Laidlaw to remove his
belt and to see how badly he was hit,
which was done, and Laidlaw saw at
once that the case was quite hopeless.
He told Tom so, who took ii like brave
fellow he was. He then asked Laidlaw
to put his arms around him and to hold
him tight, which Laidlaw did, holding
him there all the time. Tom then asked
Laidaw, where shall | go, George?'
And he asked him, DO you believe in our
Lord Jesus Christi and Tom said, Yes,
| do Then Laidlaw said, You have
nothing to fear, Tom; you will be all
right Tom then said, Tell the folks at
home and the boys that | died braye.'
Shortly after that he passed quietly
away. so quietly, indeed, that Laidlaw
could not tell the exact moment that he
died. Tom was buried next morning
ing separate grave. All the men of
Remngton's and Damant's columns
turned out to honour the dead, and the
Church of England burial service was
read over them by the Adutant. Fred
Ford and L, who both came over from
Montreal in the same boat as Tom, and
have slept under the same blanket with
him since, will see that a suitable stone
is placed over his grave, which has al
ready been fenced in from the veldt, to-
gether with the others. Toms comrades
all sent their sympathetic regrets to his
family In their great sorrow"
License Laws to BE Enforced.
The VILLAGE trustees held snecial