THE BOTHASBERG BATTLE.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 11244, 9 April 1902, Page 5

THE BOTHASBERG BATTLE.

A DESPERATE FIGHT

REPORTS PROM WAR CORRESPON-

DENTS.

NEW ZEALAND GALLANTRY.

(FROM OCX OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

LONDON. February 28. The X?rr Zealanders have liad a really .stiff batfc'e with the enemy almost "nil to themselves." It goes without saymg that they acquitted themselves splendidly. Happily they defeated the foe. Unfaappity their lossas in killed and wounded were sadly heavy. A despatch received this morning from Pretoria states the facts as follows:—"On Sunday last, the 23rd inst., the enemy made a determined attempt to break through the enclosing "line of troops engaged in another great drive. The object of the British Gteoeral was to drive the Boer forces upon the HarrismithBethlehem line of blockhouses, and there compel them to fight or surrender. "The enemy chtfSe Colonel GarrettY position in the encircling chain for making ■their attempt. The total force of the Boers was estimated at from six to eight hundred, and these, adopting the now famous bartering-ram tactics, souglht to drive a vast herd of 6000 cattle through the British line. The beasts, goaded into a maddening gallop, rushed upon the line held by the New Zealanders, but the colonials were equal to the emergency. They kept up a hot fire, mowing* J own men and oatule, a thick line of beasts strewing the ground. The Boeis, seeing that their attempt effectually to break tihrough and escape in tihe confusion was frustrated, lay down beside the dead cattle, and, using ttnam as a defence, ( poured in a heavy fire upon the 'New Zealsunders. The fusilade •was returned steadily, and with great effect, the engagement developing into a stiff battle. Th« colonials, though they suffered very severely, never wavered, behaving with the greatest gallantry, and fighting with #he utmost determination. j "Tiie Boers, who no sooner left the shelter afforded by the dead catWle, than they were shot dawn, kept up their fire from behind their defence for some time, but finally were driven back, 'leaving fifteen dead on the field. Several "wounded they carried back with .them. Seventy dead horses, one 'hundred ungrounded horses, and the whole of tlhe great* herd of cattle were left on the field. Very few of the Boens managed to pierce the line. The enemy w-ere led by itoos, Hans, and Manic Botha, who are weX J known as courageous and determined fighters. It is believed, tibough this is not certain, that some Transvaalers, under Wessel'.s, were also with them." By the special correspondent of "The Standard" Whe following account is given of this gallant affair:—"A determined attempt was made iby about 800 Boers, on the ndgjhlt of <the 23rd, to break back to the 'north, between Colonel Byng's and Colonel Rimington's columns. These troops formed a. portion of a combined movement from the Orange Colony raihray line eastwarde between the blockhouse lines, and another move from the north, culminating about Harrismith. The two columns had swung round to the south, near Vrede, when a body of Boers, using about 6000 cattle as a wedge, sought to force a way batiween lihe flanks to the north. The night was wet, and the moon was showing but dimly. The enemy drove 'hard against Colonel Byng's right flank. It i el tto tlhe Seventh Contingent of New Zealanders to <repei the attempt, which they ddd wi'bh the utmost dash and elan, tihe enemy also behaving with great "allamtry. They were hoti'.y engaged, but succeeded dn the supreme object of preventing tlhe Boers from getting through. "Owing to the cover afforded to tJw enemy by the mob of cattle, the New Zealanders were obliged to expose tihemselve*more than their opponents, and, as a.result, lost somewhiait heavily, having, two officers and 18: men killed and five officers and 33 men wounded. The whole of the cattle were taken, 70 Boer horses were shot and 100 captured, and 15 of tihe enemy were killed, and six taken prisoners. Colonel Rimingtqn, who was slightly in action, to the right, had one officer killed and two mien wounded. Only a few Boens escaped north. . The bulk of them; remained in front of the columns " Commenting upon the New Zealanders' battle, "The Standard," in its first leading article to-day, says:—"Among the memorable exploits of the war, the behaviour of the -New Zexdandiera in the affair near Vrede should have an enduring place. The account of Sunday night's fighting, from our special correspondent, shows that the singular gallantry displayed ,by the colonials waa rewarded by the frustration of the enemy's attempt to force a passege through the Vrede line of posts. HHfoeirto, there is no evidence that the Boers have been able, in any considerable [bodies, to get through the cordon. At the utmost they have succeeded in escaping in fragments from seme .particularly close corner, but even the slippery De Wet himself is still within the tails. Unquestionably it would have been a serious blow to the confidence entertained in the practical impermeability of tin© blockhouse system had the desperate attack on Colosnel Byng-'s force effected the object intended. Our troops in that region were engaged in one of those carefullyplanned drives which will more and more bepome normal features in the present stage of the struggle. The immediate purpose was to press tEe commandos in front toward the Harrismith-Bethlehsm line, where arrangements had been made to give them a very rough handling. On Sunday night the Boer leaders were apparently of opinion that, if tihey were to extrioate themselves at all, they must resort to the artifice which, tod enabCed their general to slip through. They had the advantage of nunzbers, and the weather was in their favour. The Bight was wet and dark. In the gloom a body, estimated at six or seven hundred men drove against the entanglements - a huge mass of six thousand cattle. It is easy to imagine that no barriers, however cunningly devised, could withstand the tremendous impact of this locomotive battering-ram. Hie unwieldy bodies of the unhappy hearts gave the fugitives just tie sort of sbeltethat they knew how to utilise. It might well have been thought hopeless to arrest the advance of tire mixed mass of horsemen and oxen. But the New Zeafcmders did not stop to calculate. A steady fusilade choked the rush, and soon tie Boers had to defend themselves as test they could in the thick of the herd. To force them to re~ treat, it was necessary that the brave colo- : niais- should expose themselves to the deadly fire of these trained marksmen. With what effect the baified ecemy availed them selves of their superior position is disclosed ! in ths list of casualties. Twenty-three! officer and men of the Seventh Contingent lay teri.vpo* the field; thirty.*™ were wounded lite losses of the Boers, as far as they have been ascertained, were somewhat less; but they were beaten back, and the cattle were the spoils of their adver,«anes. Another movement in the neighbourhood, on somewhat similar lines, was also defeated on tae following nk-ht, How far this was due to the moral effect of the Mod made on the Klip nsxy be conjeo tured. It M a sobd gain that la&h lias boen upeet m General De Wet's espedienf and fingbduna will notice with SSScI ben that once again a colonial regiment has .been cawpxwnis in doing a signal service to the hmpcre. While ObnadSne were oommemmirting in every town of the Do! numon the splendid part pkved by their brethren at Pao«fele g , \ b e people oi were enabled to aidto tteip woowis. wJth pnds and with sorrow, adkevemante of the Seventh Conting^