THE PUZZLE IN NATAL.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 24, 29 January 1900, Page 4

THE PUZZLE IN NATAL.

The latest news from the seat of •war in A'atal is somewhat difficult to understand. If the cable from the Agent-General, which, however, is not corroborated as yet through our news channels, is correct, then General Warren has not only withdrawn the wing' of his force from Spiorikop, but also retreated with his whole division to the south of the Tugela. This is a distance of about five miles. Even supposing- that the whole of the. position that the British took up in the locality of the mountain was unsatisfactory, a retreat of five miles, and the putting1 of a river between himself and the enemy, is not the policy that would be expected of -Warren if his advance in this quarter is to be persisted in. In making- this statement we are influenced largely by the fact that General Warren's section of tlje army in Natal is at least 13,000 men, and opposing this must be a numerically inferior force of Boers—a force so inferior that had Warren chosen to fall back only jiist out of range the enemy could not iiave lef£ the entrenchments/ which are theirJniain strength, and followed. With the British south of the Tugela, they will, however, be able to strenuously oppose their reerossing in this vicinity." if the Agent-General's telegram is correct the inference from the cables is that Warren's' movement has been displaced as the keystone of the advance on Ladysmith, and that his division is now being moved either as a cloak to another plan or to put'it in a position to rapidly assist another advance. Although the enemy had not jn'obably a force equal to that of the British operating in the vicinity of Spioukop, they had concentrated a very strong division there, and consequently weakened the whole of their line eastward towards Colenso. While attention has been directed to the manoeuvres on this corner of the field of campaign, it is not improbable that other movements, of which we remain hi ignorance owing to a carefully instructed censor, have been steadily matured. Some colour is lent this supposition by a caWe conveying intelligence of a lengthy list of "casualties at first ascribed to Warren's army, but later stated to belong- to Lyttelton's division. Now it is |a. somewhat significant fact that while news aboiit Warren since he- crossed the Tugela on the l.Cth has been full and

explicit, little has been.heard of General Lyttelton's movements, notwithstanding the fact that he made the passage fully twelve. miles east_ of Spionkop as far back as the 12th. Likewise Lord Dundonald's Brigade, which successfully engaged a small section of the enemy near Acton Homes a week ago, has disappeared from the arena of the cable messages. In this may lie an explanation of Warren s movements which, though we cannot claim to understand them, at least do not bear the stamp of a reverse. We are still strongly of opinion that the original plan General Buller has put into operation has not as yet fully developed, and that some movement now under way. but of which we have not as yet heard anything, is the vital part of the scheme. It may be that it has to do with the section of the army which crossed at Potgeiter's Drift, and which Generals Dundonald and Lyttelton command; or it may be, and this seems to us the more likely, that it is an independent movement away to the east, possibly even east of Colenso. Whatever the position is,- the somewhat meagre cable news of General Warren's withdrawal! is sufficient to convince us that it is not made because of a reverse. The occupation of Spionkop was unquestionably a mistake,, but it was by no means a vital one, and it cannot have anything to do with his present movements. Speculation as to the plans of which we feel assured this retreat is an integral part is necessarily more or les idle, but we do not regard the news in our cable columns this evening as being as serious as accepted literally it would undoubtedly be.