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Show OX IN WARFARE. H PrnTedlffectlv. a. a Borden Bearer In Sonth Africa. At the present moment, when the imciency of our army in south Africa "gel" depends on the stability of its tlnsport, it may not be amiss to con-, er the capabilities of the trek, or "ansport. ox" which,, after all, despite S and traction engines, Is the teSto7 of the south African trans-rt trans-rt stys the Pall Mall Gazette. The faS nrts the" can, as to testified by ransporta they ca ln col. mirprroxe: are less expensive than mules. They are slow but sure, never doing more than three miles an hour, or twenty miles a. day, which Is considered a good trek." The Zulu ox is the best-bred animal, but small and unserviceable when, compared to the bastard Zulu or--. Natal ox, which thrives on both the "sour" - veldt,' or ooast;-giassf.-alid the "sweet," or- up-couht-'-im-'-'eithHweefreutre very'ca'efunaridlln'g'anfl'must 6n no account be overdriven; they must have at least six hours a day for grazing graz-ing purposes. In the winter, which is coming on now, they can find a picking pick-ing on the parched veldt where a mule or horse would fail. They are, naturally, natural-ly, in poor condition till the green grass of spring appears in September. They are very liable to lung sickness and red water and whole spans sometimes some-times perish from these fell diseases. In the winter time they suffer terribly from the cold and on no account should be worked in the- rein during that season, for, among other things, the yoke when, wet gives them pore necks; thus '-reiiderihg them useless. The oXj's best work is dOB,-at night time, and moonlight treks' are the usual things with the "transport riders'' rid-ers'' after their teams have been grazing graz-ing all day. They are never kept under un-der the yoke for more than eight hours during the day, two stretches of four hours each. From 4 to 8 in the morning morn-ing and from 6 to 10 at night are the favorite hours for treking. In the convoys to the troops not more than fifty wagons are dispatched at tine time, and, if the roads permit, six or even more are driven abreast. The second division usually starts In half an hour after the first. Nearlj all Use wagons used in the present campaign are built locally, made of strong colonial col-onial woods and constructed without springs. Only two men are required to manage each wagon a driver and a "vorlooper" or leader of the team both of whom are nearly always trained Kafllrs. At present large numbers num-bers of these wagons are being hired from the colonists at the rate of 3 to 4 per day, the imperial government govern-ment making good any losses that may-occur may-occur In the span. |