WITH BRABANT'S HORSE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 6701, 19 May 1900, Page 4

WITH BRABANT'S HORSE.

We (H.B. Herald) nave beem?s&d mitted to make the following exiri&or\ from a letter received by Mr T. Peddle, of the Clarendon Hotel, from his^lfn Corporal Peddie, with Brabant's Hbrle. Writing from Aliwal North, under date March 25th, he says :— p I have only just received your fi^st letter and papers, not having heard fron^, you for five months. (Letters were sent by each mail from Napier). I have finished a service of thrae months with Brabant's Horse, and I wanted to bi transferred to tha Imperial Light Horse, but did not succeed. I hope by the time you get this that we will be in Pretoria and tbe infernal war over. lam re ceiving my box of the Queen's chocolate in a day or two, and will post it to you as a memento of the war.

We have baen having some awful weather since my last fight, and have lost a lot more men killed than we thought. Wa are still finding dead bodies. They look awful. You have no idea of the hardships we have to go through, but when you see these men, if you can call them so, and the way they have been treating our men and womeo, you set yourself to do all in your power to exterminate as many of the bruies as possible.

One of my chums, Lonagan, was fighting by my side in the Aliwal North fight. We had both emptied our bando liers, when he asked me if I had any more cartridges. I eaid no. Shortly afterwards the ammunition carts cans 3 up to supply as. I told him to go and get some, but received no answer. I looked ar him and he never answered He was lying on his face. I turned him over and found that the poor fellow had been shot through the forehead, the brains protruding. . . . The screams of the wounded, the z-z-z of the Mausers, and the screaming of the shells is awful —but it is when you see your mates in pain around you that you set your mind to do your utmost.

We are at present having a good rest, as we have been continually fighting for i a solid month. Sometimes we don't I have a single thing to eat for two days, especially when we are out ou^ patrol. , Tub atginn are very cold. Sir Alfred ■ Milner has just arrived at Aliwal s and wa shift this week for the Transvaal. He is to give us a speech to thank]the . colonial divisions for the good w-efKiriey i have done in clearing oft the^eo^lvt in j so short a time.