THE TRANSVAAL WAR

Evening Star, Issue 11656, 17 September 1901, Page 3

THE TRANSVAAL WAR

STORIES OF THE WAR. , The Hon. Alfred Lyttelton, M.P., speaking at Leamington recently, said that he heartily wished he had been able to bring his brother, Lieutenant-general Lyttelton—who, with the exception of Generals Methuen and Plumer, had had as much fighting as anyone in Africa—to speak to them. His brother had told him some good stories of the war. The last man he had the, misfortune ■to see killed was a, poor private, ■whose mother depended upon him. His only property was his kit, which he left her" After his death his comrades purchased his kit—the actual value of whirh was 15s—for £75. In another case, where a father and son were fighting, the father, •n old colonel, obtained leave to visit his wni, a subaltern of artillery, whom ho found engaged in a very stiff fight. The sergeant serving the gun was shot, whereupon the old colonel, without further ado, took off his coat and went on serving the gun nnder tbe direction of his own son, the subaltern. He had, of course, no right to do this, but he (Mr Lyttelton) had not heard that he had been censured by the Government for the act. "BETTER TREATED THAN OUR OWN MEN." The following letter, dated Vereeniging, June 24, has been received by an officer from his brother, who (says the 'Morning Post') is serving in South Africa with tho volunteer company of his regiment:— This morning I was riding round and inspecting the Boer refugee camp at this station, and was much impressed by the comfortable and happy looks of the whole of its inhabitants. The women not employed with cooking were promenading and gossiping with their neighbors, tho children were laughing and playing, and the whole camp appeared to be as contented as possible. The boys copy the soldiers in everything, .and every evening you sec them playing football, etc., and fraternising with the British -privates. Comfortable and large marquees have been erected as hospitals ; a splendid water-cart brings them the best water obtainable in the neighborhood ; an iron building was being put up for school purposes; and frequently sports and games are promoted for the benefit of tho younger inhabitants. I rode back to our own camp, having come to the conclusion that the relatives of those fighting against ns are better treated than our own mpti, who, however, do not hegrudge Ihem this preferential treatment. Immediately on arriving in my t«nt I picked up a. newspaper, and, much to my surprise, the first paragraph that caught my eye was as follows- —"London, Juno 18. Mr LlcydGeorae to-day moved the adjournment of the House to call attention to the treatment of women and children in the refugee camps." If all the camps are like the ono at this station I defy Mr Lloyd-George or any other man to make them in the circumstances more comfortable or to treat their inhabitants with greater consideration. Boer women and children are being better treated than ever they were treated in their lives, and I have not. the least doubt quite as well fed. A few days ago some Mounted Infantry a few miles from this had a skirmish with a party of the enemy. A Mounted Infantry captain had his horse shot under him and was taken prisoner. One of the enemy came forward statinc that he would shoot him, but a young Boer came up and refused to allow any harm to be done, at tho same time informing the captain that his mother was living in the refucee camp, and that she and those of her family with her were being so well troted that he would not all6w any British soldier to bo ill-used if he could help it, and I have not the least doubt many of the boys who are now living under our protection will remember how well their mothers, sisters, and themselves were treated, and in years to come, if ever the Empire is in danger, they will be among the first to come forward and fight in its defence.

" BOBS'S " CAPvE OF LITTLE THINGS. A sketch of Lord Roberts, by Mr Winston Churchill, the war correspondent, appears in the ' Windsor Magazine' for July. Part of it relates to the Cominander-in- , Chief's career us.- a vouik; soldier in India, a career Roberts himself has fullv described in ' Forty Years of My Life.' The South African items are fresh. Mr Churchill states that Roberts owes a good deal of his success to the tireless attention he. pays to little things. His plans appear to provide for every contingency. The secret instructions drawn up for his generals were always complete, and often in his own handwriting. His preparations for the relief of Kimberley were admirably masked. " In spite, of scouting, spies, and newspaper correspondents, French and his cavalry division were abstracted from around Colesberg—drawn off little by little during the nights—moved round by march and rail to the Modder River, a distance of several hundred miles, and their places taken by an infantry brigade, withottt either tho Boers in Colesberg itself, or anywhere else, realising what had happened. The whereabouts of the Sixth Division was equally unknown or uncertain." When all was ready he sent word to Buller, who was then trying to relieve Ladysmith: j "Tell all ranks that I have this day invaded the Orange Free State with a largo a.rmy, particularly strong in cavalry and puns." "Bobs' is at 'em at last," said. the soldiers; " now we shan't be long." Three days later the news of the relief of Kimberley arrived. " French has captured five laagers." "French! now the devil did he get to Modder?" asked the officers. "We thought he was at Colesberg." The Boers were asking the same question. When Roberts marched into Pretoria, a staff officer said : " You must bo a happy mau to-day, sir?" "No," replied the Field-marshal, with a momentary expression of intense weariness, " not happy —thankful.' l And the officer remembered the gravo in Natal which had swallowed up a father's hope and pride. "NEVER GIVE IN." Writing from Johannesburg a Gordon Highlander volunteer says that lately, en account of rioting on the part of Scandinavians and others, the family of De Wet (who live in Johannesburg) "have had to seek police protection. Tho voluntcpr one evening formed part of the guard sent to protect the De Wets, and " in the morning," he writes, "Miss De. Wet came out and gave me a cup of cocoa. I hail u long chat with her. She is a. girl of about eighteen or thereby. 1 said to her it was about time the war was done, and she replied that the family had all urged their father to surrender, but it was no use, she *aid. He told them he would 'never give in.'"