BOER WAR.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XL, Issue 7190, 7 January 1902, Page 4

BOER WAR.

I)E WET'S LUCK.

A NEW ZEALANDER'S STORY.

A Wellington member of I he Fifth Contingent lately back from "the front, tells the following story as to how De Wet escaped Lord Methuen -.—"For a long lime," said the trooper, "we were circling round, backwards and forwards, almost always in touch with De Wet, but it looked as if we were afraid to go for him. After a lot of this work it became apparent that General Methuen's object was to drivo De Wet into Oliphant's Nek. a pass that a handful of resolute men with plenty of ammunition stationed on the Transvaal -iide could hold against an army. While • we were doing the shepherding business on the Cape sides Methtieu \v;is working round to the other end of the puss, where he stationed two companies of Imperial troops with orders to hold the pass at all costs. It was agreed that fourteen guns should be fired at our end as a signal that De Wet was in the Pass, and that we held our end. On Methuen rejoining us everything seemed to go as we wanted. De Wet and his column, not liking our stirring him up, turned into the Pass; the signal was given, and every one was more or less excited by the expectation that the slippery Dutchman would be captured. Ho wmt in all right, and kept on going; and he passed out at the other end without let or hindrance! Once in the open he was lost again. The revulsion of feeling caused by this disappointment was ODly equalled by wonder as to what had happened to the two companies at-tlie' outlet of the nek. Lord M^nuon'was so cut up by the failt. r - 51- miscarriage of his tachesptbathe made no attempt Ins.chagrin. It afterwards turned out that at the time we were driving De Wet into the tiap, BadenPowell was stuck upatEusteuburg, and General lan Hamilton, when on his way to the relief of the town, foundMethuen's iivo companies, and though ho was informed what their purpose was, overruled the officers and marched the companies off to the relief of "B. P." What this interference has cost the Empire it would be difficult to compute"