Show ARE CHAFING AT DELAY Britons Dissatisfied at Inactivity In-activity of Roberts SOMETHING APPEARS WRONG I London Declares that British Commanders Com-manders Action will Enable tho Doers to Recover from tho Demoralization De-moralization Caused by Lord Rob ertas Former Rapid Movements Col Plumer is Within Six Miles of MafekingIn an Engagement Ho Lost Twenty Men Killed London April 6 5 a mThe War office of-fice Issued no news yesterday and little lit-tle was allowed to come through from the corN POlfd nts at Bloemfonleln According lo the Standards representative t represen-tative there Is I no sign hilt the Boors Intend taking the offensive Gen Clements Is so disposing his forces as fo guard against any surprise attack which although Improbably is evidently evident-ly l not regarded impossible judging I from the preparallonsof Lord Roberts I WAR OFFICE CENSURED J As usual whenever there Is any check In the progression the Boer campaign I cam-paign the War ofTlceXls being soverly censuied for failing to maintain the necessary supplies of remounts for the army It Is possible Lord Roberts has difficulties other than remounts with which to contend Much anxiety Is felt I as to the water Supply I despite the I statements cabled home that there Is I no fear of a water famine UNACCOUNTABLE DELAY Whatever tho reasons may be considerable con-siderable dissatisfaction is beginning to be exprosseTl libro l at the unaccountable unaccount-able delay both at Bloemfonleln and In I Natal whlcironablcs the Boers to recover re-cover from the demobilization caused by Lord Robertss former rapid movements move-ments j v The enemy now evidently hope to rc tard the advance by threatenIng the railway behind Lord Roberts So far as the Natal railways are concerned I repairs are being made beyond Elands lnngteajd ihejjdca yo often repealed li i that ah advance is lmminenL 3 1 AIM I UN 1T Y FROM RLVRNEL A dlspalchyto 4 h Daily Telegraph from Ltld rH11 tIP 1 hys that the J opr intJ I w3tlngltosVt1ons d reveal I immensu Htrength Ingenious I construction and Immunity from the British shrapnel and lyddite I lire A dispatch from Ladysmlth to Ihft Dilly Chronicle gives serious news of the outbreak of a deadly I lung sickness among the oxen which Jf I It spreads Is likely lo cripple Gen Bullers opera lions From Lourenco Marques coiue the report that Mr Steyn has tjpen 1 appolnt ed commandant of tlfp Fir StatCi J forces vr SIEGE ATMAFEKLNG Although Col PJumer Is reported to have gotten within six miles of Male kIng It Is evident that the sieges had not been raised on April 1st Toward the And nt I hl ln m nii i i 0 n v Ul IUIII I Ill bo reinforced by the troops now going by way of Debra sothat reliefcannot be far distant t TWENTY BRITONS KILLED A special l l dispatch from Lourenco MaiqueM says sharp fighting occurred April 2nd fn the neighborhood of Mafe I I I icing Tho garrison made a sortie while Gen Plunders cavalry attacked the Boets at Ramalhlabainoi Both at tucks were repulsed TwVjlyvof Col l PI tuners men were fbitml OciALmn tlics I field and six others werA niJUjXTrlson ers The Federal losses were small v J BRITISH OFFICERS CAPTURED A Pretoria dispatch date Tuesday April 3rd says In the fight of Ramnthlabama March 31st the follow ing were taken prison s Caps Crew DuncanRoborlson and McLaren Crew and DunranRobertson have since died Slaff OJlicers Cecil and Granvllle and nine oillcers of whom six were wounded The prisoners all belonged to Col Plupiers Rhodeslan force Jhaba NChu Is not In possession ot the Federals Fortyone British sub Jects were escorled across the border inlo morning1 1 f r J p START bN bARINO MARCH A dispatch from Gah > lon s Bechu nnaland Wednesday Alaich 2Slh says Col Plumer with a force of British mounted infantry started on a daring march Sunday March 25lh with the object of threatening the Boer linos of communlcailon After iwo rapid marches through Transvaal L territory they arrived at dawn March 27th within twelve miles of JJecrust and this tinctly heard the bombardment < of Mafcklng NO WHITE MEN SEEN Having reconnoitered the country with the view of future operations without sighting a single white man Col Plumer crossed the railroad south of Lobalsl which he found In posses sion of a Boer force and returned Then finding the railroad hence dam aged by Gen Snymans main force he returned lo the vicinity of Matching RELIEF COLUMN NEAR Rumors reach hero that u relief col umn Is approaching Matching from the soulh STILL SHELLING lfAFI KING Advices from Mafeklng dated Fri day March 23rd say There has been little excItement during the past Week The Boer shell lire comes in fitful gust and has lllllo effect The British casu alties are almost nil The IJoors seem to bo breaking up their main laager westward but have lakon up an In Irenehod posi lou northward with the view 1 of preventing the approach of a relief The sharpshooter1 keep up a steady Interchange of tire It Is rumored ru-mored that relief Is near The usual Sunday truce enabled the garrison to continue playing cricket matches M Shcte a native chief southward has broken out against the Boers There wan heavy firing In tho dIrection of his dUet kraal March 22nd An IrishAmerican trooper of the protec torate baa deserted thc Brlllsh A reward re-ward of f50 has been offered for his capture dead or alive HANDS UP A dispatch from Urandfort 0 F S dated April 2nd Monday says Burghers Bur-ghers who are re j timing from the scene of the Sn n nil s Pont ambuscade also re ferred to us Karoo and Korn Sprul1 furnish Interesting details of Iho occurrence occur-rence 1 appears lhat when the flral 1 j retreating British wagon onlered the drift the ambuscadors shouted Hands up removed the ofMccrs and Jet the carl through Ths proccsa was repeated several tunes until the wagons arrived In a buncli I when the bUlc ruse wns discovered discov-ered anda disorderly 1 light followed SHOT HIS COMRADE DEAD In one cart were two ofllcers to whom Commandant Dowet shQuted r Hands up ono of them obeyed where upon the other shot his comrade dead refused to surrender and was ImmjctU ably shot rue burghers lost litce men killed and ten wounded including a field cornet cor-net Among the wounded yu Ole Dutchmilitary attache NixWho I re ceived a bullet in the ehesD Altogether chc t logether the Boers captured 3SO pgJuoncrB t SIGNIFICANCE I OF THE I BATTLE The significance i of the hattIe < must j not bo underrated It was fought b I by 1 c I force of Free Slalcrs on the flat plains and without sheller The Free Slaters arc now desirous of marching on Bloeinfonteln and the Transvaal officers are anxious to emulate thc late successes suc-cesses of their allies All the Southern Boer forces have I nw formed Junctures with the main Boer army and form a large forc or veterans IMPORTANT PAPERS CAPTURED J I Perhaps of greater Importance oven i than the victory was the capture or I I r British secret papers including maps and plans of 1897 189S ant 1S90 outlln J I I Ing elaborate schemes for the Invasion of the Orange Free Stale and Transvaal 1 I and giving 3 plan for roachlntf Johan msburg from MafeUIng I along Dr Jnmcpons route amended so as to avoid his mistake Another gives a plan for the march 1 from Bloomfontein to Kroonsiadl i FULL OF REBELS j I AlI from VInsrsburg Prlculca and Kenhardt show the colony Is full of rebels The Keulmrdt rebels are marching on Calvlnla and others are on theIr way toward Fourteen Streams A dlspatchbox l was found at Saunas Post containing the oaths signed by thc Free Staters who surreiidercQ The 1 signers have boon sent for In order that I the cGnerc1 may explain the invalidity p of oath under compulsion Tho bur ghors who were previously short of I food now have plenty Commandant Dcwet sent the British guns wagqns and prisoners to Wlnburg BOERS MASSING FORCES Delachcd bodies of BOll horse numbering num-bering from 500 to 1000 each have appealed ap-pealed at several places to the south I I and eastward of Bloemfontcin threatening threat-ening the railroad but communication by wire and rail Is not In the least affected af-fected One of these forces Is near East Sprlngfonteln on the Bloomfontein railroad rail-road and Gen GatacreH forces are re j I ported to about to engage it I BRITISH RESERVING CAVALRY I i I Lord Roberts to safeguard the railroad rail-road seemingly declines to send columns i col-umns chasing the Boer bands He Is I reserving his cavalry and l transport animals ani-mals for the forward movement Ex I planallons at Iho War office as to why I Lord Roberts Is inactive Is there has been a lack of horses for remounts but nev horses ire arriving by tralnloada hourly The pressure on tic railroad la so great lint private parcels and the illlcers newspapers have nol been forwarded for-warded from Capetown for three weeks BRITONS DISSATISFIED I The situation In the Free Stale remains I re-mains far from clear and Is unsatisfactory unsatisfac-tory to British observe The sickness the Boer 51knp among prisoners I prison-ers at Simohslown conllnues lo Increase In-crease Five men died Apill 3rd Tho prisoners who wero on board the transport I trans-port Mongolian have been transferred trans-ferred to the shore camp Unless tho sickness abates It Is i not likely that cnn move prisoners will be sent to Sl Hel I |