INCIDENTS OF THE SAMOAN WAR.

Grey River Argus, Volume LVII, Issue 10261, 18 April 1899, Page 4

INCIDENTS OF THE SAMOAN WAR.

An Ambuscade.

When the force of 114 men from the British and American warships and 150 friendly natives was surpi'ised by an ambush the fribndlies bolted, but the marines and bluejackets stood their ground splendidly, the American and British firing shoulder to shoulder and helping each others wounded. The bugle call for the retreat had to be sounded three times before the British and Americans would retire. The bodies were buried at Mulinuu on Easter Sunday. The heads were subsequently brought in by the French Catholic priests. It was then ' found that poor Freeman's ears had also been cut off. The graves were reopened and the heads put into the coffins with the bodies. Lonsdale, in addition to his shattered leg, had a bullet through his heart. Freeman and Lonsdale were very capable and popular officers. The former was a single man, and the latter was married last June. The loss of the allies was seven iren killed and nine wounded, including two friendlies. Three officers out of six are dead. Those who returned are Lieutenants Gave (H.M.S. Porpoise), Hickman (H.M.S. Royalist), and Perkins (American ship Philadelphia,) All behaved splendily. LieutenantCave was in command during the retreat. Captain Sturdee was away on an expedition in the Porpoise, so also were Lieutenant G-aunt and his friendlies. The enemy's loss was 50 killed, and many were also wounded. Three bodies were found near Lansdale and Monaghan. The priests and native teachers buried thirty-eight others. Much blood was found on the road where the rebels were dragging away their dead and wounded, and there were also pools of blood behind the cocoanut trees. The expedition had been despatched for the purpose of clearing the country to the eastward of Apia. It marched along the coast as far as Vailele, and then turned back again. The Royalist went ahead of the expedition and shelled some of the country, but avoided sending shells into the Germrn plantation, where the enemy happened to be. The four seamen killed when the Anglo-American force fell into the ambush were named Buller and Edsall (of the American warship Philadelphia) and J. B. Long and A. Prout, leading seamen of H.M.S. Royalist.