WITH CARRINGTON'S FORCE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CIV, Issue 12323, 13 October 1900, Page 2

WITH CARRINGTON'S FORCE.

ENGAGEMENTS WITH THE ENEMY, A LETTER FROM A NEW ZEALANDER. The following letter, Gated Ottoshoop, August 16, 1900, has been received from Trooper Davies, who is doctor’s assistant in General Carrington’s colonial column: “My dear Parents, —On August Iwe left Bulawayo for Matching, a distance of 490 miles. We came by train, travelling two days and nights in open trucks, with thirty men in each, and were very cramped and unable to sleep. But that is looked upon as a trifle. It is not the first time we have not had a sleep, and it will not be the last. We arrived in Mafeking on August 3, and were greatly interested for a day or so, but that is all. Mafeking is quite a small town. The buildings are small and squalid, and many have been pierced through and through with 94 and 981 b shells during the siege. The shopkeepers have many shells, which they gathered after the relief. I have got pieces of various shells that exploded ; also Mauser bullets, and several little marks of interest to me and you also. The forts of Mafeking were well built and placed, hut the siege train was a fra/ud. There was a siege train, and I must eay it was well built, but it only ran, north and south for about a quarter of a mile. There was no circular railroad at all, so we were disappointed in this part of the siege. Major Davies, who now commands us, has a great name; so also has Major Cradock. “ Ou August 4 we left Mafeking for Zeerust, a distance of thirty miles, and arrived safely at Zeerust, a nice little township with about 1000 inhabitants. On Sunday, August 6,’at about 11 a,m., when drawing hear the River Ellin, the, Boers poured a heavy fire into us. We were surprised, but soon got our _ commands. After retiring, for about . 200 yards, we got our guns and pom-poms going at them, and soon they shifted from hill to hill until dark. On, the Monday we again got at them, but General Carrington gave orders to retreat slowly. Just then some of our boys and the Australian Bushmen made a charge, all on their own, but when a hundred yards from the Boers General Carrington ordered the retreat to .be sounded, and our fellows walked down the hill in such a careless manner that I thought they would all have been shot, but not one got hurt. They won’t forgive General Carrington, because they say it would have been another New Zealand victory. I myself think they would have taken the kopje, as I saw the Beors beginning to run away when our fellows got close. We retreated on Zeerust, and had to destroy £16,000 worth of transport goods before leaving for Mafeking. Ail the inhabitants of Zeerust came with us, and our convoy was close on eight miles long, some say ten miles, some five. We arrived safely at Mafeking,, or rather retreated, and stayed there until Tuesday, August 14, .when we got orders to attack the Boers again.

“We left in a great hurry, and arrived hero (Ottoshoop) yesterday (August 15) at 2 p.m., and at 3 p.m. our boys were,again in action until 8 p'm. To-day (August 16) they have been going all day, and have driven the Boers from kopje to kopje, and are now after them. Yesterday we had bullets and shells falling all around us, even near the ambulance waggons, and also this morning, but. now we cannot hear the guns at all. - In travelling with the waggons my horse got shot. As the doctor and I were dressing two of our wounded chaps bullets fell within three yards of us, and ail we «ay is'‘That’s close.’ Being in action is just like eating your dinner. The Boers are very poor shots. Our chaps have been out all day, and only one has been wounded -— l Trooper Alexander, of Auckland, 1 who got shot through the foot. He will be better in three or four days. Three of our horses have been pierced through, but will soon recover from that. We lost sixteen horses on August 5 and' 6, and thirty-two more wounded. That does not say much for the Boers’ shooting. (I just heard a report, from our T5-pounder). I met Dr De Renzi to-day, and had a ohat with hitn; I also met Jim Quinn, who used to take part in concerts, etc., in Kumara. He is well, and belongs to the Wellington Fifth Contingent. Tom Martin has recovered, and is out in action now. 1 have got two Mauser bullets, which we extracted from our boys, one front the arm and one from the leg of another. Good-bye, I will continue. at a leisure moment.”

“August 26 (Sunday),—About ten- minutes after I discontinued the above I got word that we all had to go out to attack a large force of Boers, who were about four miles off. I got one of our sick men’s horses, and soon we were on the road. We galloped along, and presently came up with No. 1 Brigade. (We form part of ,No. 2). Our big guns were doing grand work, shelling kopje after kopje, and as we galloped up and took them, ihe Boers were in full retreat. This was repeated time after time, until we, came to the large kopje above hammers Farm. Here the big guns shelled a small kopje, and we took it after some trouble ; then just opposite was another larger kopje, which a portion of the Dunedin Fourth Contingent rushed on, but just as they got about half way up the side the enemy, who were silent in this kopje before, fired on them, killing Captain Harvey and wounding Captain Fulton and several troopers. Major Davies just then appeared, saw the danger, and ordered the Wellington Fourth to go to the'relief, which'they did.- It was .the prettiest sight I ever saw in my life. The Wellington boys mounted, and went at full gallop down the side of our kopje and across, the fiat that led to the kopje they were to take, and all this time ‘they were under a heavy cross fire from two other kopjes. •“ Just at this exciting moment Dr Watt saw a man fall, and turning to me -said, / Davies, there is a wounded man over there, we must go.’ So off we galloped, the bullets hissing all around us. My horse went at full gallop, and I was there first. We found it was Captain Harvey, killed, and Captain Fulton and three troopers wounded near him. We earned them under cover, as the bullets were dropping all round us. Soon we had more to attend to. Lieutenant Collins, of Wellington, Corpora! M’Cartney and Trooper M’Dougall were reported as wounded. (M'Dougall was really shot through the head and killed immediately.) “But if we were'busy, so were the boys. They gave the Boers such a doing, and drove them from this strong position, capturing thirty horses and killing sixteen Boere. Among the killed was General Snymah’s son. Wounded Boers covered the summit of the large kojijo, and their losses were very heavy. It was now nightfall; and we had to stay and do what we could lor the wounded until the ambulance came. It w ; a.s a cold night, and the poor fellows, both wounded and sound men, suffered. We could-light no fires, and had no blankets; ; even the 'wounded had nothing but their overcoats, but at two o'clock the doctor ordered me to light a small fire and make some beef tea, which i did, and this wanned the-poor fellows a bit. At 4 a.m. the ambulance came and removed them, and they arq all, doing well. “ We .were under fire again on August 17, 18 and 19, and lost a New South Wales lieutenant and trooper. On August 20 we retired back to Ottoshoop, and on August 21 we were,again under heavy fire, when an English -captain, who,, was attached to us, was’wounded. We go out every second day, but are still safe and sound. We expect to be here for a'few weeks yet. lam in grand health ; never felt better, can eat, drink, .sleep, and work, and am quite happy.. We hope to.be back soon.. We are living well here. Our boys get sheep, cattle,.’ poultry ahtf pigs, 'etc.', from the’farms, great fefds.’’ " ' ~ i,'