Show VLOR JA is WUNNIIFMG Tilt ViCTOR CROS M I j I The RetreatbcDamned Bugler Boy of Elandslaagte How the Cross is Given when Earned I I From a Staff Correspondent of tho Press l London Jan 16Lord Roberts of Kandahar who will arrive at the Capo in a few days to take charge of the biggest British army that ever took the field Is a little man as every one knows and there Is not much room left on his coat for additional medals Toucan Tou-can see that Tor yourself by studying the accompanying picture of him taken only a few weeks ago But of all the honors betokened there and all the others which a genuinely fond public has given to him and will shower upon him later If he fulfills their hopes In the Transvaal the simplest the least expensive Intrinsically and by far the most democratic Is the one for which If necessary you may be sure he would sacrifice all the others It Is the Victoria Cross the first in the row on his breast Some of the humblest men socially and financially In the empire have decorations dec-orations Just like It But General and private white man and black each had the proudest moment of his life when that little bronze cross waa laid upon his breast And Lord Roberts sailing away to fight on the field where his only son has Just been slain probably t the religiously exact army list contents Itself with naming five and then says breathlessly etc etc BOBS OTHER DECORATIONS In the picture one sees the Generals six medals In a row and three orders beneath them Of the medals following from left to right the first Is the Victoria Vic-toria Cross the second the India mutiny decoration with three bars one for Delhi one for Lucknow and one for the rclef of Lucknow the third Is the India medal for 1854 with three clasps for Burmtih UmbeYlah and Looshai meaning that this olllccr distinguished himself afresh In each of these the fourth Is the Abyssinian medal the fifth the Afghan and tho sixth that of KabulKandahar in recognition of his remarkable march and victorious battle bat-tle with Ayub Khan The large decorations decora-tions beneath are orderstwo abovo and one below Those above again from left to right are the Order of the Bath and the Star of India that below the Order of the Indian Empire I TWO OTHER BIG V CS Gen Sir Redvers Buller Is another I Victoria Cross man Ills decoration was granted to him for saving three lives In a retreat after a battle with the Zulus He was then a Captain and I brevet LieutenantColonel The Zulus were pressing the British troops hard when an officers horse was killed and Its rider left in fearful danger Buller I r 7 1 1 1 l1 r v tsil 1 7 ja 1 I 1 f I r q r1 rw I c I T r I i I it J j r I I r I 1 i I q 1 1 lr III = f i w fJ I I r 1 i q ra j mvWtWte 7i a ti L LORD ROBERTS I > r Picture Shows His V C7 and His Eight Other Decorations I I was supported in hiD sense of loss by the consensus of opinion that the action I in which the young man lost his lifer life-r would have won for him also the Victoria Vic-toria Cross If he fiad lived HOW HIS V C WAS WON r Lord Roberts won his V C In the Indian In-dian mutiny when only a Lleuteant fortyone years ago in the course of an action that was unpleasant enough to be named Khodagunge While the lighting was going on he saw two of the enemy Sepoys making oft with tho British colors He was on horseback and started after them when they turned on him and aimed their muskets at him One missed him the others gun missed fire and by that time he was on them slashing away with his k sword He killed one The other took to his heels and the standard was safe Only a few moments before the Lieutenant Lieu-tenant had saved the life of one of his men by cutting down a Sepoy who was about to kill him with a bayonet Lord Roberts wears nine decorations on his breast on dross occasions ns the Illustration shows and how many more he may have no one feels sure even galloped bock took the officer up behind be-hind him and carried him to a place of safety Returning he found a young Lieutenant In precisely the same fix and he did the trick over again When he got back a troopers animal had Juot fallen exhausted and for the third time Bullers horse carried a double load and Buller exposed himself to the enemy to save a comrade although the Zulus were not a hundred yards away Sir George White so long bottled up in Lady smith won the Victoria Cross unifier Lord Roberts In Afghanistan Afghan-istan by charging a fortified hill and taking It backed by only a few men At this time he was a Major In the famous fa-mous Gordon Highlanders They advanced ad-vanced under a lacking fire and on reaching the top of the slope found themselves outnumbered ten to one Quick an a wink White grabbed a rifle from one of his men and shot the Afghan chief His followers became demoralized and the Gordons routed them Later In the same campaign In the march to Kanduhar Roberta named White a second time In his dispatches dis-patches for having rushed on ahead of his men and captured a gun He ended Vl u 4 1 4 n1 1 l l > l to L rv Lij I i I If r ir Jt 1 r s r 5 IJ 1 1 J r r > s tL T a l lJy1 1 j r Jr + rl 1 1 1r t f 1 t v 1 y 1 rp r 1 y IV 1 1 r M I I r i 4 f 1 w I l I FIELD MARSHAL VISCOUNT WOLSELEY Who Decides as to the V C Candldat 1 tin ti-n i Y r l J 1 1 1 N v I t o a 1 t S1 C l 1 111 E r RETREAT BE DAMNED The Bugler Boy Who Saved the Day at Elandslnagte by succeeding his superior officer In becoming be-coming commanderinchlef In India HOW THE CROSS IS BESTOWED I asked the officer In charge of the medal branch of the War office how a Victoria Cross was obtained after It had been won Why there Isnt as much red tape about It as you would fancy he said I The action as a reward for which the I cross Is given must be performed In the presence of the enemy and It Is desIrable that the superior officer of the man who distinguished himself should have witnessed It It happens sometimes however that no officer is present and In a case like that the candidate can-didate must prove by his companions that he really did do what he asserts that he did When his Immediate superior su-perior Is satisfied that he ought to be rewarded he writes an account of the business and hands it to the officer in command of the forces and he Indorses the papers and sends them on to the War office Here they are laid before Lord Wolseley the commanderln chief who passes upon them and de I i y I I s I 11 it i 1 J l t 1 t if I I ti41 I L I v Hit I i I t r 4 iC rr t r r CORP JOSEPH JOHN FARMER 1 Tho V C Horo of Majuba Hill cldes to which applicants the cross I shall be given Of course the cross > goes most often to a soldier sailor of marine and when 1 it happens that the fortunate man Is In I England he receives his medal from I tho hand of the Queen herself If he is in the field however or on shipboard he receives his decoration from the General or Admiral in chief command on the semiannual Inspection day and in tho presence of the men who were at the scene of his exploit OF COURSE THEY APPLY Then men who have done brave things do apply personally Certainly they do That is in keeping keep-ing with the spirit of the warrant which the Queen first Issued In 1S3G and which says that her Majesty desires de-sires that tho new decoration should be highly prized and eagerly sought after lu that warrant she said that as tho third class Order of the Bath was limited to the officers In tho higher branches of the service and ns no way then existed to reward heroes adequately ade-quately for meritorious actions for army medals of the ordinary kind are given only for long service and exceptional excep-tional conduct the Victoria Cross was Instituted Sometimes ItTTaH happened that several sev-eral men have done a deed deserving of the cross without any one of them having distinguished himself above his comrades In that case the several officers of-ficers meet and select one olllcer to be decorated the noncommissioned officers offi-cers select one noncommissioned officer of-ficer to be decorated and the soldiers marines or seamen also gather and appoint ap-point two of their number to receive the crosses HONORS COMB THICK UPON HIM 1 Besides the ceremony of presenter flow In the presence of his comrades hcw nt on the Victoria Cross man has his name mentioned In a general order from the War office with the particulars of his heroism and his name also appears In tho London Gazette Ga-zette likewise with an account of what ho did and the original papers are kept sacredly In the archives of the War office of-fice forever afterward That register la probably the most democratic roll In Great Britain for upon It the names of nobles and highlyplaced ofllcers precede and follow those of lowly privates pri-vates and drummer boys tho one as much honored as the other There havo been erasures from that roll but they can be made only by direct di-rect order of the Queen who decides personally all cases where charges are made against V C men Treason cowardice felony or any infamous crime are the causes for which a former for-mer hero can lose his place In the register reg-ister The Queen says In her warrant war-rant We our heirs and successors shall bo the judges of expulsion or restoration CROSS CARRIES A PENSION Winning a Victoria Cross means a pension of 50 a year from the date of I the act for which the cross Is bestowed be-stowed Then In case where holders of the cross become deserving of It once more a clasp is added and each I clasp means an increase of SO a year in the pension Of course dishonorable dishonora-ble conduct on the part of a V C man deprives him of his pension as I Noll as his place on the register The number of crosses bestowed is kept down by a strict observance of the specification which the Queen made In her original warrant In 1S50 and made emphatic by another In 18S1 that tho cross should be given not on account ac-count of rank nor long service nor wounds nor any other service circumstance cir-cumstance or condition save tho merit of conspicuous bravery Politics said the officer never Is allowed to play apart a-part In the matter The Queen arranged for the establishment estab-lishment of the cross In 1S5C the nineteenth nine-teenth year of her reign and signified in another royal warrant In 1867 that crosses would bo distributed to officers offi-cers and men who had distinguished themselves In the Insurgent wars In I New Zealand In 1S57 a second royal warrant had made members of the East India service eligible and In 1SSL came a third warrant making stronger the phrase conspicuous bravery and stating that tho warrant was Issued I I Is-sued ns some doubts had arisen as to the exact qualification for the cross CANDIDATES FROM THIS CAMPAIGN CAM-PAIGN Although no onicial statement has been made on the subject It Is fair to assume that Lord Wolseley has already al-ready decided on a few at least of the 1 C winners ot the Transvaal war Winston Churchill has been declared by the public to be deserving of one for his efforts In behalf of lhu wounded when the armored train was attacked Trumpeter Sherlock the boy who shot three Boers with a revolver and whose pcamplo every English boy Is dyingto emulate some of them having runaway run-away from school with that project In mindhas established a clear claim to one oneMore people than he himself will be disappointed If the bugler boy of Elandslaagte Is not made a V C The story of his deed has traveled faster than his name but he Is true to the type of Napoleons drummer boy who didnt know how to beat a retreat Attached to the Gordon Highlanders who seem always to be prowling around when there is any storming of heights to be done be it in Europe Asia or Africa he and they mounted the slopeat the crest of which the Boers had their strongholdall cheering cheer-Ing lustily and driving everything before be-fore them until they reached the summit sum-mit with the Devons Manchester and Imperial Light Horse at their heels when suddenly a bugle call rang out Cease Firing Retreat True it was a Boer trick and a Boer trumpet that was being winded to demoralize the redcoats but they didnt know It The British soldier Is a machine who obeys without thinking and he did cease firing and was about to retreat re-treat when this pintmeasure chap Jumped Into the breach Retreat be damned ho screamed and then lifting his bugle and putting put-ting his whole heart Into one blow he sent the Charge rocketing fiver the hill Some of the men heard the swear and all heard the bugle They charged and the Boer line was split and shattered FARMER OF MAJUBA HILL It was a drummer who had the honor to be tho youngest man who ever wore tho Victoria Cross His name was Michael Magner and his chance came at the storming of Magdala under Lord Napier In Abyssinia The path leading to the gate of the fortress was lllled with obstacles and the defenders of the bata were pouring a withering fire over it Led by the drummer bon bo-n small party climbed the hill by a circuitous cir-cuitous path forced their way through a breastwork of thorns and engaged I the enemy beating them back Then the main body of the army advanced and the works were taken The drummer drum-mer boy was one of the first to enter Then there Is Corp Farmer whom everybody knows as Farmer of Maju ba hill He was a member 1 of the army hospital corps and of course It was his business to look after Colleys men In that ghastly massacre Corp Farmer and his comrades had gathered the wounded men together in a little hollow of the hill for shelter but the Boers were pouring bullets in everywhere every-where and the wounded soldiers were being wounded a second time Farmer found a white Hag and waved It over the little group when a ball passed I through his nag arm He said Never mind Ive got another and lifted the t yFt c I 4 lr pray p r1r 1 1I M l r Tho Victoria Cross 1 nag again In his left hand when that was shot through too Then he fell onlY a few yards away from Gen Col Icy I Ive got tired telling the story he said to me last night when I asked If I he would put It in his own words He is assistant doorkeeper at the Criterion j theater and after helping to form the long cue of people that wait outside the entrance every night he guards ono of the exits I It was In February that I was shot he said and I got my cross In August I was siLl > k In the hospital at Newcastle I Newcas-tle though until the last of May Yes Ithe Queen herself gave me the Crows at Osborne house In the Isle of Wight I Mv General went with me and when we came In the Queen said This Is one of the bravest men I have Isnt he I General The General just nodded his head The Queen pinned the cross on + my coat and said 1 am proud of you and I hope youll have a long life e My arm was all bandaged and In splints and she laid her hand on It and caressed ca-ressed It I left the Cross where she put it until that coat was worn sos I couldnt wear It any longer Im a modest man he went on Im one of the modestest of men but Ill say this to you about what I did Most of the men hovo won the cross havo advanced on ambuscades or fought under un-der a fire that camo from they didnt know where But I tell you I knew I was shot through both arms by the same man and I tell you Its hard to stand there and be potted and then hold up ready to be potted again Farmer wears his cross all the time but Is Inclined to be critical regarding the worlds treatment of him I aint one of the favored few of a wealthy na tionhe said That Majuba hill business busi-ness was all right and It got a lot of advertising but there was no money in it Ive had my picture printed no end of It and Ive got a whole book of newspaper clippings about me A fellow fel-low is singing a song about Bravo Corp Farmer of Gory Majuba Hill atone at-one of the halls and making money off It but here I am working nights forGO for-GO cents a night and that precarious One of my hands is half paralyzed tooEverybody knows about him however how-ever and Is more ready to tell his story than he Is and how he left a sweetheart sweet-heart at homo In England when he went to the Transvaal and how sho was the proudest girl In the whole country He married her the day after he cam home and she Is his wife now and cherishes every picture of him and newspaper reference to him even more I than he does TWO DOUGHTY BROTHERS There Is I another V C man employed at the British museum and another at the Imperial Institute In Kensington They won their crosses together also In saving wounded men this time from Zulus who surprised the hospital of which they were in charge There Is only one case where two brothers have won crosses the men now being LleutoantGenerala K C B Gough Is their name The younger I Hugh Henry Gough was In command of Hudsons Horse at Lucknow He i led a mighty charge across a swamp resulting In the capture of two guns his horse was twice wounded and his turban cut almost from his head He virtually won the cross again later on through another breakneck charge and fought several duels In the course of the battle finally being wounded by a shot Just as he was charging down on two Sepoys armed with bayonets Before Be-fore he got the wound that downed him he had two horses shot under him and had been shot through the helmet His brother Sir Charles went through the Punjab campaign as a boy of 17 Four times he has merited the cross originally by saving the life of his fireeating brother at Khurkowdah when ho killed the two men who were upon him Three days afterward he led a cavalry charge and fought two men handtohand killing both of them A year after at Shumshabad he engaged and sabered the leader of the enemy and a month later he rescued still another officer and sent his opponent oppo-nent to kingdom come I CURTIS BROWN e oi 1 |