A LETTER FROM CORPORAL CON.

Otago Witness, Issue 2437, 28 November 1900, Page 65

A LETTER FROM CORPORAL CON.

OLIPHANT'S NEK, October 6. - - Dear' Dot and Little Folk,— Here I- am again — quite safe and sound, enjoying a long march through the Northern Transvaal, but not yet 'at Pretoria, to which plkee I in ray last erroneously stated we were bound. We struck camp Bth" September, and started soldiering in real earnest. A few miles out the Boers opposed our outposts, firing on them most unexpectedly from a group of farmhouses. When we got up, the Boers had gone, leaving behind them a family who had been preparing to fly, but who had been unable to get their "things packed and th'eii mules inspanned in time, -end were cut short by our rather tudden appearance on the scene. They just looked like a family of New Zealand farmers, and avowed their innocence of any knowledge of the Boer attack. The poor women seemed very much upset, but they were kindly treated, -although anything — including their waggon— likely to be of service to our enemy, was confiscated. About a week's slow marchingf and we pulled up one fine day much to our surprise, at Ottoshoop. The two . previous days we had heard Douglas's guns roaring, and as all the New Zealanders are with' him, our gun and a squadron of New South Welshmen being the only colonials with Methuen, we were naturally anxious to hear how our old company vhad fared, and found that * -three of the» Otago Fifth boys ha.d been wounded. Wo fovind thenum. the > hospital as merry and -as hearty as ever — one fellow, the jolliest of the three,- being shot right through the head. Our company by some mistake had, the of this skirmish, received no orders, -and had been left -in Ottoshoop until Captain Jackson, hearing -the firing, galloped the company right . out to the. firing line, and gave the Boers such a dressing" as 'they" will 110,1, f0e. in a-hufry, to re--ceive again. Our wounded comrade, stated that , he had experienced the most exciting, ride ever ' n ' he^hail in his life-^a" gallop until shot ' "'i the, head. From "" O ttoshoop we inarched to -' Dreif oiitein, the rnosf.exciting^ occurrence, being f a" church parade on and a concert 'f round" a' huge bonfire of sciub at "night. Then ,",folldwed long, dreary' marches, the country be- „, ing as level" as a board, very tiriiigto the eyes, *" 'and quite destitute of > firewood ; the , Tommies hevag sometimes forced to tear down the wood--work in the mud or cob houses. The houses, "owing to the scarcity of timber or quarry stone, are either built of mud or rough surface stones, and thatched with reeds; they present a dirty * desolate appearance, in the distance resembling a last year's straw stack in a •stiibfole paddock. One day we were kept back as an escort for our convoy, which was to follow j several miles in the rear of the main body, and j -when we reached camp that night we found fhat oiir column thad captured a Boer convoy - and two guns — one a Maxim and the other a 15pounder, captured -by the Boers from us at -Colenso. Our column,, in the grey of morning, had surprised the enemy, who, never dreaming of our presence, .were scattered to the winds, leaving a number of their women and children behind. One o£ the Imperial Yeomanry had rather an unpleasant experience, a Boer woman firing five shots at him from behind a waggon. I am sure it would be quite 'a pleasure to die at the hands of a lady, but perhaps this yeoman thought different, as his assailant being a lady, ho was unable to retaliate, and had to make himself scarce. After this ca-pture things began to get a little more exciting, as our scouts were constantly coming into touch with, small paities of the enemy. For several days the water was very * scarce and bad — at one camp_ we struck a brackish 'lake .where our ihorses, though very thirsty, 'refused to "drink. All around its shore were -numbers of deady , yellow", scaly . fish, wrTicn must have been good for eating, for we " found'in one shed, near our camp a number of ' fishing nets. ,One.day since then, I noticed a number of negroes and a transport conductor trying> ; to"icatch a number of the same kind, of " fish in a jimiddy* wa.terhole, ' and although the water was very stale, the hole was fairly alive * with the conductor informing me that they- were s termed yellow fish, aiid made qapi--tal eating. One Sunday we got into camp early and were «njoymg a nice rest when the Boeis started to make things warm for our outposts. The pom-poms and the r -Yeomanry were sent '-out to quieten them, and ■ as we could see the whole skirmish from above our camp, we could not help admiring the plucky way in which. the Boers, though retiring, fought. Only a •tfew^of ' our men were wounded, but this skiimish seemed to us to be the last straw on the camel's back — here were the Boers in front of our very eyes shooting at our tioops, and the 15-pounders were '-left in camp, whilst the pom-poms were selit,oiit,, as x per visual." ..But. our. time was yet to pome. Not many y-4ays;-Jater,*-w 1 c" were^marching^ quietly along j. s wheri' r it-becaru,e,''a,ppa : rent that something was -^in the.Cair:^3?|ies '^hoje column 'halted, troops '■ ,* wheeled every -suddenly we found "ourselves- trottingl'alorig at top soeed towards our front. Soon we heard "the boom of big % guns, and found ourse_lves in the thick of a nice ' little fracas. *" ' jlait ! ' Action front ! -Limber, drive on! " And our -guns were in it. The - Boers, .who had only- ,qne big gun, were outmatched fight "through, and we're -soon in full retreat. To our front was a narrow donga, or dried 'water course — the only opening left for a *• large party of Boer horsemen -to escape through. "At it they went — we. could just see their bodies above the bank as they galloped past. "Pom- '„ pom-pom," went the pom-poms ; , and " Bang, bang!" the 15-pounders. The edge of the donga was one mass of bursting shells and falling earth ; but the Boers rode right through and>' escaped. Suddenly we noticed their gun climbing a hill about 3000 yards to our front; we were ordered to open on it, but it zig-zagged all' over the place, and we (failed to strike it. Half-way up the hill it- stopped and came into -action again, but we made it so warm for the - gunners that they had to clear out, and all was over, though had we had any luck we should have di&able'd that gun. Next morning we hap-pened.-very luckily to strike camp just before ' 'ifiijiighi, &M had just got clear ■ when J noticed

a shell burst a few hundreds yards to our rear, and "-boom! " went the big Boer gun. We were completely taken by surprise, and were in a very bad place, for the whole column was cramped up in a gully. Dear Dot and little folk, I think nothing can sound more ominous in the early morning than the unexpected ; "boom!" of a concealed gun. One's nerves ' are strung up to a great pitch awaiting the \ next report, but as a rule the shell arrives first , and all anxiety is over. "Bconi! ' went their j gun again" and again, like the lumble of thun- ; der before the rain begins to fall, and fall it did, in showers and showers of Mauser bullets. It was quite a relief to get into action, for if there is anything we object to, it is allowing the Boers to shoot at us without returning the compliment. I was '"laying" — that is, sighting — the gun, and every time I stepped out clear of the recoil at the command, "Fire," the bullets Etarted humming; but my good angel must have been about somewhere that day, for I am still keeping clear of the hospital. We all got a good scare one time, however. Our two guns made things so, hot for the enemy that they went to the trouble of finding our range, and dropped a sKell fairly in front of our gun. It blew up the dust before it burs.fc, and you should have seen us all duek — just like one msn. It made a smothered report — plungar-r-buzz-z — and the pieces were all post, and we were up again, giving them back the change. It was the same old tale ; as soon as they found out we were likely to give them beans, off they ran! "He who .fights and runs away lives 'to figlit another, day," is their motto." We could see •them -cantering off slowly in extended order, and their firing gradually died away, and then ceased; but we soon changed their canter. into a gallop, for we sent them' a parting present in the'shape of shrapnel at 5000 yards. Perhaps you will ask how we. could no; chase them. Well, there is one thing the Boers can bifiit us at, and that is lunning away. To use a Kaffir's explanation, the Boers get on their ponies at sunrise and ' G-allop dis way, berry slow ; stop urn dark. Pony gcod; go again next morning. English horse berry fat, gallop quick — puff, puff; by-and-bye sick. ' In spite of all our firing there were very few casualties on either side, and we -neie none the worse of our scrimmage. We found pieces of the Boer shells, and very ugly missies they were, not unlike the tooth of a cogwheel. They fired segment shells, the contents of which are like the rims of cog-wheels -7th e teeth fitting into grooves ciit inside the shell, the whole flying into fragments or. segments (hence the name) upon the shell bursting. ! A few days latex we were paraded by the ! General, who explained to,us in full the whole of his late movements; but owing to the wind I was unable to hear the greater portion of his remarks. I could not help • noticing what a fine man Methuen is— exceedingly tall, straight [ and well-proportioned, a most commanding I face, and dignified carriage, he looks every inch a general. I could not keep my eyes from his face, for in spite of his heavy, square chin and determined mouth, there is a cornethirg kindly I iv his expression that wins even the hearts of the Tommies. It is a not unusual thing for him after a long day's march to hay.c a walk round to see how his soldiers — especially the infantry— arc faring. Upon being addressed by an officer, a private, if lying down, is supposed to spring up and stand to attention. Lord Methuen comes amongst his.' resting soldiers, lies down himself, and puts them quite at their ease, whilst he questions them, as to how they are faring, and how they "Got on to-day" ! ** No wonder the Tommies love Him. They call him Mr Thoughtful, from his- favourite attitude — both hands resting on his staff, his -legs crossed, resting on one foot, bent 'head and body, and his face wearing a most thoughtful expression. ! The last few days we have been camped at Oliphant's Nek, a small pass through the hills near Rustenburg, ', - appioa'fehed- on either side by beautiful wooded valleys, the best gLOund that we have yet seen m South Africa. It seems a shame to disturb such peaceful vales with their green crops and babbling streams, yet but a couplo of months ago Oliphanu's -\ek was one Hades of bursting shell, as the Boer General, De Wet, hard pressed by Methuen, hastened through. We are at present resting for a few days in a beautiful spot, green shady trees, green grass, and a nice pond to feast our eye's upon. Dear Dot and little folk, in an old Witness I came acro33 a poem entitled Unhonoured Heroes," by Phill, and I think that no one but a person who has seen for himself the sufferings of the poor dumb animals out here can understand how true that poem is. The poor horses have a hard time of it, no doubt, but they at least have one friend in their master, and are kindly treated. But oh, the poor oxen! — * , ■■ N Look at the oxen there, tugging and straining; _ . ' Bogged in the niire, cut raw with the whip." Phill must have seen them to have written that. I have seen the poor brutes, lashed and goaded by a pack of screaming blacks, past masters in the use of their swishing laahes, twisting and cringing, unable to escape the stinging blows, until tby a supreme effort they dragged their weary load from the deep rut. The poor oxen and mules are by far the greatest sufferers in thia campaign, and for their sakes it is time it is over. Are they weary and worn out, they are lashed 'and' driven by the black fiends until they fall Bleeding 'and moaning. < "' Tortured and maimed, left to perish by inches, The battle's in front and the beggars are . slow. ' x. Without these poor brutes oxir great army ■would be at a standstill. So _vvith best wishes to all the little folk and Dot, I .remain, — Yours tiuly, CON. P.S. — I have to cut this letter short, as we are moving to-day, or rather have moved, to Rustenburg — a beautiful little town. Have- only received the one batch of letters. [Con has excelled himself in this engrossingly interesting letter, has he not, little folk? I think this- is the most interesting letter our page has had for many a long day, and we should all be grateful to "our corporal" for remembering iis throughout the exciting scenes ■in which 'he is taking an active part. Is it not pleasant to read about -such, a noble general as Lord Metlmen? War lISIS its uses, notwithstanding the suffering it entails when it shows us what splendid men there are in all ranks, of the army, from Lord Roberts down. The other side of the ' picture— the sufferings of the poor dumb creatures, makes one shiver. It it perhaps not to be expected that the uncivilised' blacks should display much consideration for animals, but one cannot help feeling indignant at their' biutalitities as described by our Con. — DOT.]