| Show ONLY Y STUB STRON j Ij I 0 0 That N ber Comprises r ses the I Entire Boer Army I 4 EVERY MAN MA A ARE ABE STANDING OFF 0 BRITISH 4 0 At Christmas Time When Buller Bailer Was to Have Rove Been seen in Pretoria Thore There Were Wore But in inthe inthe inthe the Ei ld Remarkable ble Mobility of the Patriotic Republicans publicans 1 t 0 0 p N York May 2 A tad Or Orange Orange ange ango Free State letter to the Hie World dated March 18 says ays Observers erver Ob who have ha ve been ire in the Transvaal since the thear insisted that war ar began have all aU along the Beer army has baa never been stronger r than men n In the early part of January Major D T Lang a man of many years South African military ex cx experience experience and a member of Lord Rob Roberts crts erts body guard gave me a critical es en estimate estimate of the Boer Beer forces which he be placed lace at no Ieee ese e than 12 In the tue interview I had bad with President Pr ident Kruger I two tuo months ago Com Paal Paul said that the combined forces of the two iCs did not aggregate te men In Inthe Inthe Inthe the lists list of wounded wound and d dead doad ad which are posted in all public places by the Red Cross authorities I had seen men number and and from this fact I wa as led to believe that the preel president president 0 dent purposely underestimated the Boer Beer Boersm sm nith 0 SIne Since that time I have bave wen seen n almost the entire Boer Beer army and have at attempted attempted attempted tempted to ascertain Ite its real strength and count and figure as ai a I will I can cannot cannot cannot not believe that the Boers Beers ever had more than men in the field Commandant General Joubert last Jast week issued an aD order that every burgh burgher er between the ages of 16 and 60 CO O roust must t report in m laager at one of the camps and ag as a result of this order every man is in the field Yet no amount of figuring will show ow that the Boers Beers have anything like men pitted against the h or more moreIn moreIn moreIn In the early months of the fighting gay say up aD to the middle of January the Boers tad had less than men actually in the field for at Christmas time the war office in m Pretoria made a careful inquiry con ning the number of men in laager Isager for the purpose of sending ending Christmas Christinas gifts to them Force at Christmas Time The replies from the different com corn commandants gell aLiJ and Held field cornets showed that there were about men at the front and that number of presents pre were ent out to be distributed After Alter the distribution d had taken place and each mart mar had received re one on gift girt it was wan 88 found that more than presenta pre ento remained ed undistributed Since February many hundreds of men raen have ave been bE n sent Bent to the front and at atA atthe A 4 the present pre time the Boer Beer armies are tue areas as 88 strong as they ever can be unless the Ute volunteers continue con to come in from D lagoa goa Bay the only way by which strength th of the army can be increased now that Very vary v ry Bc Beer r in inthe inthe the two tuo republics is at the t front some ime somewhere me where There is no such a thing as an ia is the Boer Boor arm army nor is there tny ny p method 1 by which h the actual numbers I ia i a certain t tain commando can be bf ascer aster ascertained 0 tined with any degree of certainty and consequently con there is no one who is able to give the ei t strength of the army jn in j n the field today roday TheE The L r figures figurea appear app ar ridiculously low ow when it Is Ic I considered that after alter almost ah 10 six months fighting the British army Z of ten times that size has been en able to overrun only a small part of the i 0 republics ics territory but It a t must m be tak talc taken takI 11 I f 0 en cit mw C that e every ery Boer Beer ia is an ait 1 ti I I army unto himself that every one is mounted on om a fleet neet horse which can clIn sustain ustain itself it lf on the grass it finds any anywhere where and that there is no extensive I to prevent the Boer Beer from to otO the th enemy delivering a ahard aI ahard I hard and nd td escaping in time to prevent tare t H much 0 o |
