The Savannah morning news., 1902-07-13
but had been, happiIy. just out Of the.

but had been, happily, just out of the.
danger zone.
At the battle of Dreifontein, just
before Bloemfontein, another case in
point was the experience of my son
and H. A. Gwynne of Reuter's-in
many important respects the greatest
of living war correspondents. These
two advanced toward the invisible en-
envy, hidden among bushes and rocks
on kopje, until there came upon
them such a cloud burst of bullets that
it did not seem as If a miller moth
could have flown over the veldt with
out being hit. Both men fell on their
faces, and, out of dare deviltry, Mr..
Gwynne lifted one hand above his
head to see if 1t would be hit. He
pulled 1t back before it had been rails
ed six inches, for a bullet grazed along
the back of it even as he began to raise
1t.
That fusilade continued for many
minutes, and neither man, nor even
one of their saddle horses, were they
brave that nearly the only marked men
were not the towards, but the fellows
who went out was shot, though other
men and horses fell all around them.
One man was shot three times while
doctor was dressing him. and yet the
doctor escaped.
1t is these experiences, common as
rain to all who were in the war; which
inure men to danger. cause them to
belittle it, and utterly destroy that
sort of romance of war which we i'm
bibe from the books of men who i'm
agine what war must me without hav-
Ing experienced it's various phases.
When Capt. Lowther of the Scots
Guards, and three or four of his men
were being sniped at while on out
post duty, the dreamer about war
would have had the captains cheek
blanch, while through his brain would
roll panorama of the scenes of his
past life and the faces of those he
loved at home. He would try to steel
his nerves, he would set or flock" his
say either, Men, 1 fear few of us will
come out of this alive" or Take cover
quick, and shoot whenever you see a
head" Nothing of this accords with
the facts.
The bullets whistled around the men
and spattered the earth at their feet,
while they strobe ahead to the OUT
posts to which they were ordered. At
last-possibly when the captain be-
came impressed by the impudence of
the enemy-he said to his men: 1--WE
will stop those fellows. They are too
cheeky. Forward, men, and roll them
out of their holes" The Guardsmen
dashed ahead and the Beers leaped
UP and retired-as was their almost
tnvariable custom.
1t was SO with Capt. Bowen of the
Kimberley volunteer forces. In live
ly skirmish fight a Boer picked him
out from among his men. and shot and
shot and shot at him until it seemed
to the captain like persecution. He
grew vexed-not angry, because that
implies losing self-control-but annoy
ed. He said to himself, THAT fellow
is shooting at no one but me. Does
he think I am like a wooden target,
with my self-respect or ability to an
swer back?" He lay down on the veldt
and devoted his most careful and ar
dent efforts to Kidding the world OF
that insolent Boer. He made the Beers
hiding place so hot that the man could
not move without exposing himself,
and therefore stopped shooting.
Capt. Bowen knew he had not hit
the man, and was obliged, reluctantly,
to get up and mount and ride after
his men. A half hour later when he
was returning and had forgotten the
incident, the Boer again. opened fire
at him, and this time shot the captain
in the mouth.
Brave men were plenty in the army.
So generally of their way to put them
selves in danger, or who, being in
great danger, despised it-refusing to
take cover, and even rushed upon the
enemy. towards were so very, very
few that one came to think before the
war closed that perhaps courage Is one
of the commonest virtues.
The truth is, of course, that men set
tied with themselves whether they were
or were not towards before they en-
tered either the army or the war. There
were a few correspondents-and espe-
cially men of leisure pretending to be
journalists-who reused doubt as to
their courage by disappearing when a
battle was on and reappearing after
sidering our first judgment, because
several of these very men were either
wounded or taken prisoner, or Joined
forces and fought with the best before
the war ended.
We had an artist with US who talked
very like timid man, and continually
vowed that he would never go under
fire again, yet in every bat
tie he was sure to lie
caught in some highly dangerous
corner or plight and it became inn
possible to think him a coward. One
day another artist, who had been al
most foolhardly with his bravery up
to that time, was suddenly seized with
what the English call 'funk"-or
fright. This was at Driefontein--a
terrible battle, whose fierceness has not
had the celebrity 1t deserves.
The artist was standing beside his