Show WATER IN THE MINES Iio of Richest Properties in South Africa Flooded by Boers New York Dec 31 Howard J Ttothschlld an American citizen who was employed on the Standard and Digger News a mining paper published in Johannesburg has Just got back to 2sTew York from the Transvaal Mr Itoinschlld wa al TMgrlns Rest a little mining camp ISO miles northeast or Johannesburg when the Boers de cared war October 11th There were SOO whiles mostly Americans and Englishmen in Pli grlmH Rest when the war was declared TJie gold mlnu there Is owned by the 32ck teliiH who own other mines in the Transvaal We all asked permission to stay and the Boers at llrnt gave us permission t6 do HO on the understanding that we vyould form a home guard to protect then > the-n c from the British or anybody else rv > re accepted those conditions but the next day we were told by the burghers that wo had twentyfour hours to either enlist in the BDer army or get out of I tho place Most of us decided to get ouL ouLThere wan 90000 In gold which hud h cm taken from the mine and the burghers seized this first giving Mr U P Thompson a Scotchman und see rplary or the mining company a receipt and a note promising that the Transvaal Trans-vaal Government would repay at the clote of th war Ct ourse If Hid Transvaal Is beaten by England no rc tnrl v ill be made TniM same proceeding proceed-ing look place al nil the mines not hut up In the besieged towns Mr Thompson and I went out to the tables to get horses to ride out to Jn t poet a mine some miles In the country vhen we were approached by an Amer ji J in named Blake I uniformed an a Soc rnd Lieutenant In the Boer army Blake who had recruited 200 Amen i UK lur the Boat army showed us a I jclamutlon which had Just been 1s mcd by the Transvaal Government i nflKcatlng all horses fodder gold and t < ore to curry on the war ugalnvl England Eng-land and promising to pay for them at tint conclusion of the wnr Thompuon and I returned to his hou e < and there w < found that the Hotr commander hud luknn puwcsslon r ofhla 1 residence worth WOOOO In It was the finest iolli > i > ilon of gold nuggets nug-gets In South Africa worth at least r OOOO Mr Thompson also had 45000 In gold of his on nil of which went to the Tmnsvaal Thousands of Englishmen Eng-lishmen wore treated jill the same way When the Boers took possession of the gold mine at Pilgrims Rest they turned out all the Kafllr laborers broke the pumping machinery und Hooded the mine They also Hooded the Bonanza and the Robinson deep mines near Johannesburg two of the richest gold mints in South Africa The Boers furnished us with horses and an armed escort for the long ride to Johannesburg No man In the pun ty was ullowod to take away with him moiu than 50 Being unable to prove that I was an American citizen I was treated I In the same manner as the British subject sub-ject The Government has taken all the most fertile land for the raising of crops for the Boer army The Boor women young boys and the old men have left their own arms and are working the Government farms aided by Knfllrs I In this way they can kccp their armies well provisioned At all of these Government I ernment farms we saw the Boer women wo-men ploughing and doing the hardest kind of manual labor |