Show HAROE8TFIGNT OFViR I Battle at Vlakfontein Was Desperate Engagement BRITISH WERE SURPRISED Boers Wcve So Close That at the First Fire Fifty Britons Fell Two Guns Captured by Bosrs Were Recap turcd by British After a Bayonet Charge Dsrbyshircs and Yeomanny Lost Heavily FortyOne Bosrs Were Killed Boers Capture Jamestown I Surrendar Occuring on Sunday 1 5 i S London June 5 Details receIved regarding re-garding the fighting at Vlakfontein show thai It was one of the most desperate des-perate engagements of the war Gen Dlxons column was traversing the district and establishing posts h when it was attacked by 1200 Boers under Commandant Kemp The Boers were so close that fifty British fell at the first volley The Yeomanry held the position protecting pro-tecting the suns until they were nearly decimated and then finding it Impossible Impos-sible to save the guns the artillerymen artillery-men shot the gun horses lo prevent Uie Doers moving the guns The column quickly recovered from the shock of the unexpected attack Tho Dorbyshlres I charged with I bayonets bayo-nets and after a short desperate fight drove otC tho Boers and recovered the guns The Derbyshlies and Yeomanry both lost very heavily It Is asserted that while the Boers had temporary possession of the guns they shot two artillery men In cold blood for refusing to work them against their own comrades S London June JLold Kitchener in a dispatch from Pretoria dated June 1th says Dlxons report the fighting fight-ing at Vlakfonleln forty miles from Johannesburg May 29th Just received On our side 1150 men with seven buns were engaged Tho force was returning return-Ing to camp at Vlakfon in when the enemy under cover of a veldt fired rushed the rear guard contesting of two guns of the Twentyeighth andO and-O men of the Dcrbyshlrea and the Yeomanry They temporarily enptured tho two guns When the remainder the force came Into action tho Boers were driven off and the gUns recap lured and the Boer position was occupied occu-pied Our casualties wore six olllcers and I I fiftyone men killed six officers and 115 I men wounded and one ofilcer and seven I sev-en men missing One officer and four men have since died of wounds For tyone Boers were killed on the I I ground The further Boer casualties I are not known Reinforcements arc being sent < I The War office tonight published the following dispatch from Lord Kitch i II ener dated Pretoria June 4th Jamestown Cape Coloney surrendered surren-dered to Krltzlngers command on the morning of June 2nd after four hours fighting The town guard and localS local-S Volunteers were overpowered before ol pursuing columns could como up Our casualties were three killed and two wounded The Boer loss is said to have been greater The stores were looted but the garrison was released Have placed Gen French in charge of tho operations In Cape Colony |