GENERAL ITEMS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2426, 12 September 1900, Page 29

GENERAL ITEMS.

CAPETOWN, September 7. General Baden-Powell, who is on a visit to Sir Alfred Milner,. was given a great ovation in Caj>etown. LONDON, September 4. Captain Arthur Stourton took a party of invalided Canadians, Australians, and New Zealanders to Windsor. The mayor entertained them at luncheon. Private Jlr.xted, of New South Wales, asserted that the hospital patients at Bloemfontein were treated as well as the* transport arrangements permitted. The party were shown over Windsor Castle and the Queen's dairy farm and royal gardens. The Queen herself, hearing of the visit, directed that the trip should^ be made as pleasant as possible for them all. - ] Advices* fj om Hamburg state that Great Britain pays .-287.500 indemnity for the seizure of the German steamers Bimdesroth and General Iluzog at Delagoa Bay ! early in ihe war, and which at the time created considerable friciion Between Germany and England. September 5. Kruger has protested to Lord Salisbury and the Powers against the annexation of tho Transvaal. The Natal delegates have, arrived in England in order to press their claim that either Durban or Maritzburg be made the seat of the South African Confederate Parliament. It is officially announced that the indemnity paid for the seizure of ' the steamers Bimdesratli and Hurzon. totalled £25,000, and that ' for the Wagner £41,437. The following are the names of the Tas- . manian Bushmen who were wounded at Rooi Xo2> : — Lieutenant Wylie, Troopers Shaw, Wiiloughby, J. Brown, A. Brown, and T. Stgllapolare. The constituents of Mr Leonard Courtney, member for Bodmin, have rejected his candidature, and selected another candidate. September 7. Mr J. F. Hofmeyr, who is ill, has sailed from the Cape. 'He settles in Holland. September 8. It is hinted that General Baden-Powell, "before assuming a post in the annexed "territories, is coming to' England. He is consulting Sir Alfred Milner 'with regard to the organisation of the military and police. The following colonial casualties are announced : — Slightly wounded at Elands River: Troopers Hazel, Douglas, Lloyd (Victorian Bushmen), R. Heaid (Queenslander). j Missing: Lance-corporal Chester, Troopers Allison, Sproule, King (New South i Wales). | Wounded at Watervalonder : ' Dangerously, Private Force ; slightly, Lieutenant F. Darling, Privates Butterman, Monger, M'Comb (Western Australians). • j Wounded at Ottoshoop : Trooper Tweedie (Victorian). Died of enteric : Lance-corporal Cullen (Victorian). Septembei 10. Correspondence seized at Pretoria shows that the Netherlands Railway Company transformed its workshops into an arsenal for the manufacture of projectiles, paid employees serving on commando, and worked the- Cape-Natal lines under the Boers, destroying the lines when the Boers retreated. The Times Capetown correspondent says "that Sir Alfred Milner issues a proclamation stating that Great Britain will consider any concessions granted by the late Transvaal Government on their merits, and rwill modify them if granted illegally, or if they are prejudicial to the public good. LISBON, September 7. One thousand Portuguese are leaving here for Delagoa Bay. MELBOURNE, September 6. A member of the Victorian contingent In. a letter says: — "Every man of the contingent has signed that he wished to go to England. In the orders read to troopers ,was a message from the Queen to Lord Roberts, stating that the Queen wished to interview the contingents in order to personally present a flag to each." SYDNEY, September 6. Mail advices .state that the Secietary of Wsv lias intimated that examination kp

I disclosed that the samples of New South j Wales leather arc soft, porous, and gene1 rally unsuitable for army purposes, and the department is not prepared to authorise the inclusion of Australian leather in the War depai'fcment specifications, but it is willing to consider other samples. ADELAIDE, September 8. Thirty invalided soldiers arrived by the Wilcannia, including the following New Zealanders : — Privates Wright, A. Morris, Mitchell, and Constantine (?). The returning invalids report that many Australians and Canadians are joining the police. Twelve thousand will be required to pacify the country after the troops are withdrawn. HOBART, September 5. The Whakatanc brings the following invalided New Zealand troops: — Corporal M'DonaJd, Troopers Bell,- Currie, Goulder, Kidney, Privates .Prosser, Sullivan, Thompson. Van Blarembuvg. AN OTAGO BOY KILLED. WELLINGTON, September 4. The Premier has received a cablegram from the High Commissioner, Capetown, to the effect that Private J. Butler, of No. 1 Company, third contingent, was killed ! hi action aS Winburg on the 27th August. | Butler was a farmer at Beaconsfield, and , his father resides at Bald Hill Flat, Otago. REPORTED DEATH OF A NEW- ' ZEALANDER. NAPIER, September 10. " A private cable received at Hastings .states that Trooper J. W. Scott, of Hastings, a member of the fourth contingent, t had been shot in an engagement. There are no particulars. ' j COLONEL FRANCIS. j WELLINGTON. September 4. | A cablegram has just been received by j | flic Premier from Colonel Francis to the I effect that there is nothing seriously wrong j with him, that he is only run down a ! little, and that' he is getting on very well. The medical board does 1 not, however, con- j sider him strong enough to remain at the > front. The colonel further adds that all j the wounded are doing well. A CORRECTION. WELLINGTON, September 4. A cable received by the Premier from Sir A. Milner shows that the iYPDougall who was wounded at Ottoshoop was a member of No. 7 Company of the fourth contingent, and' belonged to the Wairarapa. Sutherland belongs to No. 9 Company of (the fourth contingent, and came from East Taieri. This message clears up the doubt s/i to the identity of these men. THE TROPEA'S GROOMS. -• WELLINGTON, September 4. -- The Department of Agriculture has received information as to the movements of the men who accompanied the consignment of- horses in tire Tropea as grooms. The following were enrolled and proceeded to Bloemfontein to join General Brabant's Light Horse:— J. T. Marshall, William Scott, R. Harding, Walter Glass, Walter Barclay. Walter Keddell, Alfred Emery, Alfred Collins, Allan, Aislebore, Harley, Mulville, James O'Shea, Gordon, E. Murray, Samuel New (shipped as Wood), H. Birnett, Kerr, Maxwell, S. H. Manning. Three of the Tropea's cooks — E. Gregg, Mumelly, and Morris — :>lso enrolled. A. Hutton proceeded with a horse for Lieutenant Seddon Witheford and Willis proceeded to join their contingents. Algie and Fiolier remained at East London. OFFICIAL TELEGRAMS. WELLINGTON, September 6. The Premier has received the following cablegram from the Premier of Victoria : — " E. Bennett (second contingent) and P. A. Deloree (third contingent), invalided troopers, left Melbourne for Sydney by the s.s. Damascus." ' Colonel Robin has cabled as follows to the Premier, under date 4th September : — " Troopers Witheford, Wallis, Morine, and Hutton have joined. Have promoted Captain Madocks to be major, Lieutenants Bartlett and Crawshaw to be captains, and Sergeant Ross (third contingent) to be lieutenant, to fill vacancies. Major Cradock takes an Imperial command. I still command the New Zealanders. The Queen presented Trooper Coutts (first contingent) with a &carf." MAUSERS FOR NEW ZEALAND. WELLINGTON, September 9. A consignment of 25 Boer Mauser rifles, sent by the war authorities in South Africa to the New Zealand Government, has come to hand. The weapons are to be cleaned and placed us a memento of the war in Parliamentary Buildings. THE OTAGO NURSING SISTERS. At a meeting of the Nurses' Committee it was resolved to request the Organising Committee to add Mr J. A. Park's, name to the sub-committee in place of Mr W. A. Shields, and that Mr Park be authorised to sign cheques. In view of the expenses entailed ' on the nursing sisters in South Africa, it was decided to waive any refund of their New Zealand pay aftei they are in receipt of Jmj perial pay. It was resolved to authorise Mr I H. C. Pilcher to pay to tlie nurees- three I months' salary already voted, and an additional bonus of £10 to cover cost of refitting to each sister. It was decided to write to Mr Pilcher and each of the nurses setting out the exact financial position of the committee. Mr Pilclier reported that the several New Zealand* nurses were in the following districts: — Sister Janet Williamson, in charge of No. 10 general hospital at Bloemfontein ; Sister Sarah J. Ross, in charge of No. 3 at the same place; Sister Dora L. Hairis, also in No. 8; Sister Is-'abellrt" Campbell , in the New St. Andrew's College Hospital, Bloemfontein; Si&ter Dora Peiper, at the same place ; Sister Ellen M. Monson, at No. 1 general hospital, Winburg ; Sister Bessie Hay, at the Wanderers' Club Hospital, Johannesburg. Letters weie received from the nurf-es referring to the fact that the general expenses in South -Africa wore very heavy. Jt Mas in consequence of this representation that the I committee made the allowance above referred

Nurse Hay wrote that &lie had taken advantage of her hospital at Johannesburg not being ready for her to gc to Pretoria and visit the hospitals there, with the particular object of looking up all members of the New Zealand contingent?, and s,hs lir.d dkco\ered many of them. On her return to Johannesburg Nurse Hay found that her hospital would not be ready for a fen' days, and, learning that one of the hospitals was without a night nurse, she volunteered for the service, with the result that when her own hospital was ready for her the P.M.O. of the hospital where she was then in service objected strongly to her leaving. Ultimately she was allowed to remain, and . hei request that the rest of the staff be colonial musing sisters was granted. The nurses write in the highest terms of the hospitals. Nurse Hay, referring to one at Johannesburg, pays that nothing better could be found in London. The Langham Hospital (Bloemfontein), where so many of our nurses have served, has been discontinued, to the -great l egret of the sisters, who write in glowing terms of the excellent treatment the wounded received there.

Several New Zealand invalids are under treatment by our nurses. The committee's hope that our nurses would be a help to our soldiers has thus been realised.

Nurse Rops, who was prostrated by an attack of scarlet fever, and was nursed throughout it by Sister Karris, is now convalescent. .The committee have written to the nurses to say, that whenever they wish to Teturn to New Zealand funds are available*! for them, but that with the. payment of the three months' salary already made the committee's obligation ceases so far as salary is concerned, this being necessitated by the state of the funds.