IN THE FREE STATE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2410, 10 May 1900, Page 27

IN THE FREE STATE.

'me British advance in the direction of Brandfort is being accelerated.

LONDON, May 2.

General Pole-Carew has advanced northwards from Bloemfontein.

General Brabazon's Yeomanry on Sunday night extricated a convoy which had been attacked midway between Thabanehu and Dewetsdorp.

Lord Roberts reports that the Boers attacks in the Thabanehu district were persistent on Saturday and Sunday.

General Bundle's position was very strong, and the enemy in the vicinity were fewer on Monday, enabling General French to strengthen Brigadier Hamilton, who, with General Smith-Dorrien, was fighting a strong force at Haut Nek, 12 miles northwest of Thabanehu. under Commandant Botha. Brigadier Hamilton's casualties were 30.

Lord Roberts- reports that .Colonel Maxwell has occupied Schancluaal and Vlak fontein, a tqw- of - kopjes -running 20 or 30 miles north-north-east of Thabanehu. The mounted troops engaged some of the enemy's horse.

All the British troops have ample warm clothing.

Lord Roberts is carrying out a- great enveloping movement. Mounted forces are sweeping the whole front, 18,000 troops being engaged, and are threatening Commandant Botha. The latter covers the retirement of the Wepener Boers in the direction of Winburg. The retreat to Brandfort is already rendered hopeless. 1 General Hamilton, on Saturday, was on the point of capturing a considerable force of the Boers at Thabanehu when the arrival of strong reinforcements compelled the British to retreat. The fighting in the Thabanehu district, which M-as continuous throughout Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, was of a determined nature. General French strengthened General Hamilton, who was, fighting a strong body of the enemy at Haut Nek. and thus enabled the latter to finally expel the Boers from their position.

General Hamilton's, casualties on Monday included the following Victorians : — Sergeant Pearce (slightly wounded), Lieutenant Lilley (wounded in the head and

made prisoner), Private Coughlan and Sergeant J. Ready (missing). The latter -is believed to be wounded. i All the commandos who are escaping I from the Wepener districts are driving before them great flocks of cattle, accom- ■ ponied by hundreds of waggons, toward j the north. j The British are making strenuous efforts to intercept Commandant De Wet's.

retreat to Winburg.

Commandant Olivier was wounded in the leg at Wepener during the attack upon the British gairison.

May 3

General Hamilton dispersed the Boers at Haut Nek, capturing 26 of the enemy, including the commandant of the force opposing him.

The Boers admit a loss of 12 killed and 40 wounded during the battle on Monday.

The foreign legion serving with the enemy suffered most.

Maximoff, a Russian, who was commanding this legion, was wounded.

The official report of tlie killed at Haut Nek included Gunther, a German officer, belonging to the 55th Regiment, and two Frenchmen.

The Gordon Highlanders and Shropshire Light Infantry gave the final stroke to the rout at Haut Nek. The British casualties were smalL

General Hamilton has started from Glen siding.

Major-general Sir H. E. Colville has started from Karee siding.

Colonel Maxwell's column has left Krantz Kraal, accompanied by four batteries and two 4.7 in guns.

The Boers are being pushed back along the front of the whole British line.

Lord Roberts leaves no horse forage outside the lines of his various camps.

Genei'al Hamilton is resting at Jacobsrust after a Aveek's incessant fighting.

Private Keeble, of the Victorian Infantry, while serving a 94-pounder at Haxit Nek, and from which he fired 1567 rounds, a number equal to 78 tons of iron, afterwards fell and'broke his arm.

Private Whinfield, of the New South Wales contingent, died of dysentery.

The commandeering of the rebels' horses is proving a most effective deterrent.

May 4.

General Tucker, General Pole-Carew, and General Hutton' s divisions surprised and captured Brandfort. The Boers hastily retieated.

Lord Roberts's decision to burn the oathbreakers' farms has impressed the burghers with the necessity of future surrenderers remaining at home.

General Broadwood has advanced 28 miles to the north in the Thabanehu district.

The Boers fled .to the east and north,

Later on General Broadwood reached Babelfontein, 10 miles to the north of Haut Nek.

The Boers have evacuated the Thabanehu hills, and are trekking to the north.

Four thousand Boers reinforced the garrison at Brandfort on the 22nd ult.

There was a sharp artillery duel upon the arrival of the British, General Tucker dismantling two of the enemy's guns.

Commandant De la Rey then retreated in the direction of Winburg.

jblake's Irish-American commando, who had retreated to Brandfort after their successful ambush of ithe British convoy at

Koorn Spruit, evacuated that position on the 3rd inst. (Thursday), when • General Hutton advanced.

Lord Roberts has gone to Brandfort

The British casualties .throughout the advance on and occupation of Brandfort were small.

Commandant De Wet on Tuesday -'ast (Ist inst.) surrounded a small" party of the Gordon Highlanders under Captain Towse.

The enemy called upon them to surrender

Captain Towse. in reply, gave his men, who only numbered lll5 1 the order to fix bayonets.

This was done, and then, led by their captain, they rushed on the Boers, and swept through them, inflicting great slaughter.

Captain Towse was blinded in both eyes by the enemy's fiie.

A Boer doctor reports that Captain Towse's charge with the Gordons killed 50 of the enemy.

The foreign military attaches accompanied Commandant De la Rey.

The New Zealand Mounted Rifles were the first to enter Brandfort.

I General Hart occupied Smithfield on I Wednesday, capturing 25 Boers. One , hundred and twenty-five of the eneinj fled.

General Hutton has gone to the Vet River Generals Tucker and Pole-Ca:ew follow 10-dn,y.

General lan Hamilton on Friday reached Welkom, on the Vet River, 15 miles southwest of Winburg. He fought his way throughout the whole march. He eulogises the braveiy of General Broadwood's cavalry

and of the mounted infantry.

May 6.

Lord Roberts wired on Saturday from the Vet River that after shelling the enemy for three hours General Hutton' s mounted infantry turned the enemy's right flank, and dashingly forced the passage of the river in the face of a very heavy shell and musketry fire.

Of the British generals who have been particularly .. active during the past few weeks, General Brabant has a column near Dewetsdorp, General Rundle commands at Thabo nchu, and General French is busy operating at the front.

The Haut Nek casualties include the following: — Killed, Trooper F. Smith; wounded — Troopers Lewis, Maxwell, and Tweedie, all of New South Wales. One of the men is seriously wounded in the head. Private Ooughlan, of Warrnambool, is a prisoner, with his leg broken. Private James V. Fahery, of the New Zealand Mounted Infantry, is also dangerously wounded.

May 7.

Lord Roberts, from a kopje at Karee, heliographed instructions for the co-ordi-nation of the British movements.

Four thousand Boers held a strong line of defences. General Bruce-Hamilton followed the line of the kopje's to the east, while General Tucker advanced nearer to the line of communication. General PoleCarew moved to the centre. General Hutton, with the colonial division, making a wide detour, and arriving unexpectedly east of Brandfort, seized the unoccupied kopjes, and opened with a raking fire from the 9th Battery, driving the Boers on the plains towards the hills overlooking the town. Several shells were placed magnificently in the midst of the enemy. Rimington's Guides seized -the hill when the enemy evacuated the town, General Maxwell meanwhile forcing the position eastwards. The whole section streamed north, nearly losing their convoy and guns. The commandant of the town, returning to destroy the telegraph instruments, was captured.

Reuter's correspondent- states that the Irish-American Brigade were in a state of riot, and refused to figlrfc. They merely' manned the kopjes near .the toAvn.

SYDNEY, May 7.

The News correspondent, writing on April 2, gives particulars of the disaster to General Broadwood's column at Koorn Spruit. The whole affair, he\says, is inexplicable. The merest neophyte in the art of war, one would imagine, would have taken the trouble to find out if there were any of the enemy in the neighbourhood before camping in a hostile country, and the youngest subaltern would have been cashiered if he had been guiljby of bivouacking without throwing out pickets. The Boers came down without warning. It was only as the British prepared to cross a donga that the whole scheme of the Boer attack became painfully apparent. One hundred of the enemy suddenly emerged from a donga, and within 80 yards' range, with their rifles ready to fire, and demanded the surrender of the batteries and waggons. Almost simultaneously with the appearance of the 100 Boers was the arrival of 800 more, who rushed on the scene by the way of various spruits, and the entire British force was practically surrounded. " Throw down your arms " was the next order. Many *did so, utterly demoralised by the suddenness of the attack, but a portion of Roberts's Horse and others made a dash for freedom, and were literally cut to pieces, losing about 90. The scene here beggars description. Huddled together in batches were plunging horses, men, Avaggons, shrieking Kaffirs, and gun?. The artillerists fought bravely enough, but there was no chance for one of the batteries. The XJ Battery was right on the donga when attacked, and out of this, it is said, only the major, the sergeant-major, a corporal, and 14 men were left to tell the tale. The ser-geant-major made a gallant attempt to rescue one of the guns, and though the nearside wheeler was tying dead in the poles, succeeded* 3 in lashing up the rest of the team and actually got the gun away for some distance, and attempted single-handed to get it into action before it again fell into the hands of the enemy. The whole of the guns of U Battery were, therefore, captured by the Boers. On our left flank went the New Zealand Mounted Infantry. . Un-a-ware of the seriousness of the engagement, they were going into the donga. They were sent down with a portion of Roberts's Horse, and opened up a retreat to Boesman's Kop, towards which, by a very circuitous route, carrying them far to the south, the rest of the battered brigade made their way. As our men fell back and sought shelter among the long rank grass, the Boers boldly pursued them, and shot many of them fr^in the saddle,- recklessly expos-

ing themselves to our fire. One of the New Zealanders' waggons was captured. . Tha driver (Pitt) was sent vnth a wounded attache to some tin houses near whero tu* battle took place, and in the hurry and! turmoil of the scrimmage, he was apparently forgotten, for he found his way back to his company without further mishap. Amongst the missing New Zealan£-_r.s were Quartermaster-sergeant Berland, Sergeant Harris, and Privates Jewell. Catherell, Franklin, J. Wyllie, r G. Powell, Q. Butters, Prosser, Valentine, Pope. Tarrant/ Cossar, E. H. Palmer, Waldie, and Miller— l 6ia all, who, with the exception of Quartermaster Berland (supposed to be badly-, wounded) are prisoners. '