NEWS OF THE WAR.

Evening Post, Volume LX, Issue 104, 30 October 1900, Page 2

NEWS OF THE WAR.

The Daily Mail of 12th September publishes an. account of one of the most exciting incidents of the war— the chase and escape of the Boer general Christian De Wet. It is written by one of the Mail's war correspondents, Mr. F. K. Howhind, the only journalist, it believes, who took part in the pursuit from start to finish, and who arrived in England to find that nearly all the despatches which he forwarded from the frout during the progress of the chase failed to reach Home. The following is his account of the chase : — On the right of Sunday, 15th July, the Boer Commandant, Christian de Wet, accompanied by his brother Piet and by the ex-Pre.sident Steyn, with some 15U0 men, a dozen guns, and a- convoy of over a hundred bullock-waggons and Cape carts, forming a column severa} miles long, slipped out of the hills to the south of Bethlehem, in the Orange River Colony, on the border of Basutoland, got safely through the cordon Sir Archibald Hunter had drawn around him, aifd started northwards. A month later, near Rustenberg, in the Transvaal, 260 miles north of his starting point, with a force doubled in strength, he joined Commandant Delarey. With one of the keenest?' of the British generals on his heels throughout the march, he kept his lead, successfully circumvented several large bodies of troops on the look-out for him, crossed Lord Roberts's lines of communications twice, cutting them, in both cases, and captured two train-loads of soldiers und supplies. A TYPICAL STORY. This extraordinary march of De Wet's tells in miniature the story of all our disasters in this war. Perhaps no other single incident reveah 1 so clearly the handicap under which the Army in South Africa has from the first been working. Making every allowance for his own resourcefulness, which is great, and for his knowledge of the country, which is perfect, the fact remains that De Wet ' should not have achieved this brilliant success. It would be exaggeration to say, as many ka?e said, that every British disaster in the war can b© traced to the incompetence N of some British commander. But is is true beyond question that many disasters can be traced to that source, and that many victories, won in spite of bad generalship, would have been disasters if Tommy Atkins were not the unconquerable and incomparable fighter that he is. CO-OPERATION LACKING. Christian De Wet should not have got away through Slabbert's Nek practically scathless as he did. The blame for his escape is to be divided. How and why -will come out in due course, v. It is true that General Hunter, hampered as ho was by the difficulty of getting supplies into Bethlehem, had not had time to draw his cordon about De Wet quite so tightly as he wished. But his forces and hi* resources were sufficient, if all his subordinates had properly co-operated with him, to maim De Wet seriously before he could break free. De Wet, in escaping through Hunter's nearly-completed cordon, detached some 500 men to his flank. It was these with whom Paget was engaged that Sunday. They kept the latter busy while De Wet's main column, with hia convoy, slipped off quietly arid unmolested, and, coming into conflict with Little a few days later, this same flank guard created another diversion which also met with complete success. BROADWOOD'S STERN CHASE. When Hunter heard that his quarry was safely away he sent Broadwood and Rid* ley, with the Household Cavalry and taw mounted infantry, about 1200 men and a dozen guns in all, off on De Wet's trail. He couid not have made a better choice. De Wet, with all his consummate skill, doubled and t,ried every trick in vain to throw off his pursuers. Each of th« Boers had a led horse besides his mount, and as each of the picked bullocks grew tired De Wet's knowledge of the country and the friendliness of the inhabitants provided the best to replace it. Broadwood's force had barely enough mounts to go round, and the strain speedily told on these. And while De. Wet, wjth perfect knowledge, took his convoy alo-ig the best roads, Broadwood's convoy waV often on those which, though parallel, were heavy. But in spite of all, De Wet could never shake Broadwood off. At Palmictfontein, on. 19th July, Broadwood got in. touch AVith his rearguard and hustled it aloDg six miles in two Hours ; and at Vaal River, near Vredefort, ho ran De Wet down again. De Wet reached Palmletfontein by a course in the form of the letter "S," which led him around Lindiey from the southwest to the north-east. The fight at the former place began at about 2 in the afternoon and ended at sunset, nearly the whole of Broadwood's force being engaged. The enemy, seeing that we were drawing up to their convoy, posted their rearguard in an excellent position along and below a low range of kopjes, where stone kraals, a few farmhouses, and a donga provided satisfactory cover-. THE BOER REGAINS HIS LEAD. Broadwood called up his gunsj and in a few moments the Boers weie scuttling from all their advanced positions. Colonels Legge and De Lisle were sent around either flank and without much loss succeeded by dusk in clearing nearly all the ground of the enemy. Their last positions were evacuated during the night, and the trek resumed. Broadwood and Ridley rested on the. ground they had won ; but De Wet moved on in the dark, as he always does, and by nest morning had regained his lead. Broadwood, forced to halt at the railway for supplies, did not again catch n\, with De Wet until ho found him, on 24th July, entrenched on the Vaal just -outside Vredefort. De Wet had succeeded in doubling !m force, which was now 3000 strong, in.'re than double that of his pursuers. Crossing the railway near Roodeval, he cut the line, and captured a supply train, with its hospital comforts and escort, which ha,d been conveniently sent to greet him/ and then hurribd on to 'Vredefort. Broadwopd hud tired him out, however, and in the hills to the north-west of that town, on the south bank of the Vaal, he entrenched himself and sat down to draw breath. IN TOUCH ONCE MORE. Broadwood was up with him again on the following day. His persistence and dash were this time rewarded by the capture of six waggons, handsomely made, after an exciting chase, by a portion of Ridley's Mounted Infantry, under Colonel Legge, who snapped them up under the enemy's nose. Colonel Legge, pushing on a bit too far, became heavily engaged with the enemy's strongly-posted right flank, and Broadwood, • noting t^oir strength and finding it unwise to bring on a general action with a force so much larger than his own, ordered a general retirement to a ridge a mile back, //inis was grudgingly, but steadily accomplished, Legge losing heavily in the open. The whole force then fell back four miles, and encamped in face of the enemy, prepared to contest any effort he might make to cross the Vaal. " The incidents of the next few days explain in part how it was that Do net

was not captured then and there. Broadwood, knowing that the enemy was too strong to be attacked by his inferior force reported the situation to headquarters, and asked for reinforcements. Judging that the enemy was sorely in need of rest, he paw that if a. force was sent down from the north to block the drifts across .-c Vaal from that direction, and sufficient troops aeut to him from th© south, the wily Boer might be cornered yet. But the Intelligence officers at headquarters had received information "that De Wet intended to cross the Vaal drifts without delay. Assuming that the Vaal drifts could not be blocked in time, they contented themselves with ordering General Hurt and Colonel Little, with two of the 4.7 guns, to reinforce Broadwood. As a matter of fact, De Wet retained this position on the Vaal from 23rd July to 7th August, thereby amply justifying Broadwood's assumption. De Wet was very active during most of this time, making several attempts to seize positions commanding Broadwood's and Ridley's camps, which a, braver force would soon have done. But by unceasing watchfulness the Boera were kept at bay. Reinforcements from the south came slowly up, and with the advent of Lord Kitchener on 3rd August, Methuen was ordered to move down to the Vaal from Potchefstroom. But for some reason or other a delay occurred, and this, in the end, gave De Wet his chance. ' • HIS FINAL ESCAPE. On Sunday, sth August, Broadwood extended his line, and two days later Do Wet's escape to the south was effectually cut off. He found a hole to the north, however, and on 7th August successfully crossed the Vaal and slipped rsund Methuen's front. He was never in danger after that. The time he had spent in resting and replacing his animals had repaired his forces, whereas Broadwood's transport had suffered seriously owing to the unhealthiness of his camp and to the necessity of sending constant convoys back to the railway. Lord Methuen hung on De Wet's left rearguard with a - persistence which, if he had found an earlier opportunity of displaying it, might have borne fruit, and Lord Kitchener, relentlessly forcing oft his niules and bullocks at a killing pace, crossed the Vaal at Lindique's Drift on 10th August, and sought to overcome this latest lead De Wet had gained. But it was a hopeless task. De Wet ti'ekked at night, when bullocks go at their best, and thus gained time during the day to let them feed and rest at will. The result was inevitable. De Wet joined Delarey, atid recent despatches from ihe front tell us that he is (12th September) back agaiD in the Free State roaming over his happy hunting grounds at his own sweet will. Lord Roberts will doubtless succeed in catching him in the end, but he can hardly do so Until he has made sure that his plans will be more exactly executed. A WARM DAY'S WORK. Lieut. Percy Heywood, of the Victorian Imperial Bushmen, sends his father, Mr. J. B. Heywood, Secretary to the Treasury, an interesting account of a very Warm day's Avork, in. ■which he was engaged. His letter is dated Ottershoof, Transvaal, 6th September, and the incident related took place two days before that date. He was marching alongside a convoy with ten men, when he was ordered to join a party of the squadron a mile ahead. However, when within about 600 yards of the' supposed squadron it struck him that they were the enemy. He dismounted his men, aud retired the horses 100 yards to the rear, and then found the/suppd'aed squadron was really the enemy, about 60 or 70 strong. . Ho. fired a volley, and then was horrified to find the horses of his men going "like one 1 o'clock" for shelter half a- mile away. This, he says, was horrible, as the Boers Opened fire upon them, and the bullets whizfced past. He ordered -his men to lie down, and then observed that the enemy were working round on his left flank. Oae of his men risked it, and after a long and wearisome run reached the horses and galloped for assistance. Meanwhile he and his men, now only eight in number, were- lying on their stomachs at full length, the Boers pouring a terribly quick fire into them. Two were wounded at the commencement, out fortunately only enough to- make* them more keen to hold their own. They kept on firing as well as possible, and gradually pushed themselves along with their hands.. The enemy by this time had formed a half-circle, and were only 300 or 400 yards away. Lieut. Heywood says he and his men had absolutely no shelter, the ground was quite flat, and the bullets fell in showers only a foot away. How they escaped death is, he remarks, a miracle. To his dismay he found on looking round that the convoy had gone, and we were on our- little own." This went on for an hour and a quarter, and they eventually managed to crawl to their horses, only to find that they were all shot, one being dead, and bis own dying, but with just enough strength to stand on his feet, and while he was endeavouring to mount two more bullets passed through the poor animal. • Just as they were ready to gallop off, "boom!" went a gun, three shots were fired at the enemy by their own people, who had come to their assistance, and they managed to get out of range without further damage. As ,Lieut. Heywood remarks, "it is a marvellous thing" I am sitting here writing at the present time." We knew (says the Times of Natal) he would come, increase, and multiply— the ■ man who carried the message far reinforcements at Spiori Kop is in Durban, Maritzburg, Capetown, and East London. There are four of him already. Bill Adams is also to be met in the bars. He won Eland's Laagte " oo his own."

THE CHASE OF DE WET. HOW AND WHY HE ESCAPED.