Show I BAD m THE RlTI8H Gloomy View Taken of Their Situation Situ-ation In Transvaal 1 4 WHAT DULLER WILL FIND t HAFEKUfG AND XIMBERLEY IN HANDS OF ENEMY t English Forces Are Outnumbered Two to One and Even When Reinforcements I inforcements Arrive it Will Be No Holiday For Them Romance N In the Transvaal New York Oct 21A dispatch to the Tribune from London says The war session of parliament came to an end with a comical division in the lords when there were only ten to be counted count-ed with a few random shots from the ultra peace fanatics and with the black rods stately stage business for reading the queens speech Mr Chamberlain has been the chief figure but Mr Wyndham has gained an increased reputation by the clearness clear-ness ability and courtesy with which he discussed the army estimates Wider lines of cleavage have opened in Mr I Gladstones home rule party in consequence conse-quence of the hostile attitude of the Irish nationalists toward the war I I measures whicch were rendered unavoidable un-avoidable by President Krugers ult matum The liberals with few exceptions have joined forces with the unionists I Lord Roseberys short speech at Bath is a model of reticence and good sense which the London press generally commends com-mends His point that the Boer ultimatum I ulti-matum cut short all discussions of questions relating todiplomatic correspondence I corre-spondence and the adequacy of the War I preparations is unanswerable and equally cogent is his plea that partisan criticism is out of place when the two I races are watching a struggle for supremacy su-premacy in South Africa and all Europe waiting to see whether England will stumble or fail Friendship of Triple Alliance While an atmosphere of suspicion has been created in Russia and France by the English armaments it is noticeable that the influence of the triple alliance operate to command good feeling and respect for the British government on the part of Germany Austria and Italy England is slipping back into 1 her oldtime position > with the naval power in reserve behind the triple alliance I al-liance French rumors that the German Ger-man emperor svill postpone his visit to England are not confirmed but there is much of a secret underplot in proc I rare on the continent with an early meeting of the czar and the German emperor as an interesting episode I Bismarck supplemented the triple alliance al-liance with a secret understanding with Russia but that was because he was indifferent to the fate of fconstanti f6 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 4 4 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 4 + + + + ± 4 S + 4 p 9 + D + + + = U + + + t + + 9 + Z2gs o 4 + 4 PORTION OF A BOER LAAGER 4 + + b + + + + + + + + + + + + + 4444 + 4o4644o nople and Asia Minor The German emperors secret understanding is with England and that because he is not an idle spectator of what is going on in the sultans dominion There will be neither European intervention nor any secret attacks on Persia or anywhere any-where else unless England meets some great disaster or there is an outbreak of civil war on a large scale in South Africa with the native tribes joining in the fray fraBritish British In Bad Straits One of the best military experts in London takes a serious view ot the British difficulties in South Africa He asserts that the British plan of defense of the western border is as defective as the GlencoeLadyymith line in Natal which General White was compelled com-pelled to abandon in an hour of victory vic-tory It includes three weak garrisons separated by long distances The Boers are already between Colonel Plumer and Colonel BadenPowell between Mafeking and Kimberlev and between Kimberley and Cape Town Three weak garrisons are cut off from one another and cannot be reinforced Tho critic predicts that tho Boers will speedily capture Mafeking which incapable of defense and he fears that Kimberley will also be taken He also forecasts raids from the Fr eState e-State border by which Ladysmith will be cut off from communication with the sea The railway crosses several rivers on the way front the cpast base and he asserts that nothing < will bg easier than the destruction thesiBrit fsh by bands of 5CO or 1000 r iders rom the mountain passes < What Buller Willj Find Even if General Jouberts force is not massed between Ladysmith the sea he apprehends that in spite of the encouraging news received from the western border General Bull r will learn soon after his arrival at J Cape Town that Mafeking has fallen and that Kimberley is closely Invested and that General Whites army is cut off from its base supplies and reinforcements reinforce-ments He also forecasts the success of the Boers in harassing the army corps on its long march through the Free State to Pretoria and In constantly threatening the lines of communication by unexpected raids ahd the Destruction of bridges He scoffs at the idea that the British will have a holiday march northward when the army corps is ready to advance in December These are the views of an experienced veteran who has fought many battles I but it is only just to add that he assumes as-sumes that the Boer generals will display dis-play more energy and tactical skill than they have shown during the last fortnight From Rhodesia it isreported that the Boers twice crossed the Limpopo river during the last week Their object is no doubt to defeat or occupy Colonel Plurm A and to prevent his advance to the relief of 1af king There was a sharp skirmish near Tuli andthe Boers retreated Serious Boer Reversss Boer messages received at Lourenzo Marques and the remarks of their prisoners pris-oners ImplYan admission of serious i and unlooked for reverses Everything that can be gleaned from the various sources makes it plain that the hospitals hos-pitals of Johannesburg and elsewhere in the Transvaal are being severely strained to accommodate the large numbers of Boer wounded Nevertheless until it is known that General White has struck a decisive blow in Natal and that Kimberley and Mafeking have been relieved or else abandoned by their assailants the Uneasiness un-easiness here must continue A foreign for-eign military attache competent to express ex-press an opinion and entirely friendly to England sums up the situation thusIt is quite true that the British have done admirably wherever they have been assailed inflicting severe losses on the enemy and upsetting the I plans of the Boer generals besides creating cre-ating a moral impression of power not expected of their numbers Yet they are outnumbered in Natal in the proportion pro-portion of 2 to 1 or at least 3 to 2 They are more seriously outnumbered and beleaguered at Kimberley and Ma felting and at each point they are being be-ing attacked with scientific skill and solid persistent courage One cannot but be uneasy for the Natal field force in such a situation while the capture of Kimberley or Mafeking may very possibly prove to be a mere matter of days Famous Officer Killed The chief notability of the latest casualties cas-ualties is Commandant Bothawho was killed before Kimberley South Africans Afri-cans recall an ancient duel between Major Sampson and Pioter Botha They were old acquaintances and tolerable friends before the 151 Boer war in I 1881 Atthtf siegtftrf iLMtchefStrom they met on opposite sides and used to pot at each other from day to day bandying bandy-ing cheerful and friendly insults all the time For several days they missed but at length a shot of Sampsons hit Bocha in the calf Bothas rejoinder was a I shout Heres one for you Sampson I and a ball that struck his opponent in I the neck and barely missed the jugular I vein But before he dropped I second shot from Sampson laid Botha flat I Both were carried off the field appar 1 cntly to die and both recovered to remain re-main fast friends Sampson once said that when in prison at Pretoria as reformer Botha I came to see him and asked what ha could do to lighten his former enemys lot Sampson complained of a hundred petty tyrannies of Du Plessis his jailer I The name is familiar to readers of Mrs Hays Hammonds book I Botha went at once to Du Plessis and gave him a terrible warning of what I Sampson would do when free if not more kindly treated Du Plessis eagerly I relented from that day Now Botha is dead and Sampson seriously I ser-iously wounded eighteen years after the first encounter I frst t s + 4 4 1 + 4 h 4 4 Signal Officer and Idachine Gun Belonging to Dublin rusiieers I + + + + + + + + + + + 4 + + + + + + I hi j J t f |