OUR PRISONERS AT PRETORIA.

Evening Post, Volume LX, Issue 104, 30 October 1900, Page 5

OUR PRISONERS AT PRETORIA.

STRONG COMMENTS BY LORD ROBERTS. The report of Lieufcyiant-Colonel Hunt, senior officer among the British prisoners at Pretoria,, together with, the evidence laid before and the findings of the Court of' Enquiry as to the treatment of the prisoners^ were issued as ana paper by the War- Office recently. In his letter of complaint, Colonel Hunt does not make any serious chaTges so far as the treatment of the officers went, but he complains, bitterly of t<he treatment of the men, and makes the following points:— The scale of rations, always too low, was not adhered to. For 14 days ia February, no tea or coffee, and for the same period in January no meat, were supplied. The men were for six weeks without soap, had latterly no vegetables, and from the 27th May no firewood. The sick were scarcely cared for at all. . The findings of the Court made these and other cases of complaint clear. The Court found : — 1. That the. treatment of officers of the Imperial Army, whd were prisoners of war, appears, on the whole, to have been fairly good. 2. That the treatment of some of the colonial prisoners was severe and unjustifiable, inasmuch as they were thrown into a' common gaol, and not treated' as ordinary prisoners of war. 3. That the non-commissioned' officers and- men' were- very badly fed, and' the scale of diet (which was not even adhered to) was, in, the matter of meat, a starvation ration. 4. That religious' ministration- was sparingly granted. 5. That the general treatment of sick prisoners' was.ver^ bad, and has not been exaggerated, and that there is no doubt the prevalence' of sickness and the many deaths which occurred among the prisoners were attributable to the gross > neglect of most ordinary sanitary precautions. In a despatch prefacing- the report, Lord Roberts makes some comments on the finding of the' Court! While concurring in the view that the treatment of the- officers of - the- regular forces appears to have been fairly good, he says.:*— "That some of the prisoners <, who belongeu to colonial corps raised' in South Africa should have been confined in the gaol and ; treated: as criminals is opposed 1 to the usages of civilised .warfare, and the same remarks applies to the British subjects- residing in the Transvaal who were similarly treated- because they refused to take an oath of; allegiance to the South Afripan- Republic. The food of 'the noncommissioned officers and men is shown to haye 1 been quite inadequate in quantity and- inferior in quality. There was no excuse for this; as supplies of excellent meat-, bread, and 4 vegetables are easily procurable in the Transvaal at a" moderate price. The inhuman treatment of ..je sick prisdners throws the greatest discredit on the authorities at Pretoria. That the deficiencies referred to, in the correspondence were to some extent made 'good by the exertions and liberality of -"private individuals does not. exonerate the Government of tha. SqutK African 'Republic from ..its. resppnsibi(ity in, :this. matter* and. the, indifference which was showjn to-- the. Sufferings'., of. the, sick among- the British prisoners, is the more inexcusable when it is remembered that the sick, awong L the Boer, prisoner's- have, invariably; receivedthe same care, and. attention^ aa our dwn sipk- soldiers." /Lord Roberts concluded ( as, follows*—. It. would.' be, difficult, to. condemn too ijjEOTgJy. the.- conduct of Dr, H; B. Veale M.8.. (Cambridge), whose, heartlessness m ignoring* the disgraceful treatment of tivpjck.<;p;riSQners, and" the: romonstranoee addressed] to, hum by the- medical. officersinr immediate^ charge. of them, calls for the, severest:, reprobation." Writjing-fronvßustenburg on 20bfr-Au-gust to his sister, Miss M. Crow, Invercargill, Trooper Crow- states :— "We recently received 1 instructions from headquarters that 200 men were to be choson from among the Ist, 2nd, and 3rd Contingents of the New Zealanders for visiting England, and, fortunately, I have become one of the number. As far as I can see the 4th and -sth Contingents will not be in it; , Great dissatisfaction prevails among the men who are left, as nearly all looked forward' to the pleasure of seeing Homeland. We haxl been living on the best for the last thiee months, with the exception, perhaps, of three days, when we had to survive on some bran mash mixed with sugar. Living is very expensive- and> other- things in proportion; for example, it cost £3 10s- for half a dozen, cabinet photographs," Although the time has not yet .come for a general return to the Rand (says the Caj>e Argus) the altered circumstances of the campaign have evidently allowed a partial return under the direct control of the military authorities. Bach train northwards is now conveying a ?mall selected number of engine-drivers, colliery hands, and other persons whose sorvices are immediately required. It is believed that within a short space of time" a considerable number necessary for the immediate opening up of the specified' operations will 1 be allowed to leave for Johannesburg. The general exodus, however, cannot take place /for some little time yet, however favourable things may ti.rn out. It is obvious that the number to be sent will be regulated by the food supply, which the military will, be able to guarantee. Mr. Cecil- Rhodes, who has been travelling through Rhodesia lately, is reported to have gone to Buluwayo. The Governor of Natal has issued a proclamation that the Natal Volunteers will be kept on an active service footing until 11th November.