THE SEVENTH CONTINGENT.

Otago Witness, Issue 2505, 26 March 1902, Page 27

THE SEVENTH CONTINGENT.

THE CAPTURE OF DE WET'S (iUNS. Corporal A:idre*v, in a letter to his father at Sumnc, published in tho Lytteton Times, sjives particulars of the captuip of De Wet's gun?. He writes on February 5: — The contingent has made its name, a1?a 1 ? no cloubt the papers have already informed you, fc- on the night of February 2 we left camp at 9.30, and after a 24-hour»" lide we came across the Boers. They were iiiist preparing to move off when we sighted tlienr about a mile away, for it was hardly light" then. At the time we thd not know their strength, but chanced that, and rushed off in pursuit at full gallop. So sudden was our attack that they did not have time to turn their guvs on us. though they shortly afterwards got their Maxim to work. There were only 70 of ue in the rush, but we managed to take one 15-pounder, two pom-pome, two waggons, and 15 prisoners, besides killing a couple and making \arious cantuies oi cattle, Cape cart-j, etc. Several Boers got away, but were chased jnlo Colonel Byng'.s column and captured by him. The following is the lift of rapture? for the day, as near as I can get it. for they have not come- out in orders yet: — Prisoners 21, killed 2, 1 15-pounder, 2 pom-poms, 340 big elipP.s. 1200 pom-pom shells, 2000 smallarm ammunition. 2 waggon 3, 2 Cape cart*, and a large number of stock. The iioxt letter is dated February 9, from the vicinity of Heilbron. The writer saya : " Since February 5 we have been engaged in Kitchener's grand driving movement, and as far as we know it has proved fairly successful.. About 11 columns were engaged in this move, forming an advarea screen of 45 miles at the commencement, and narrowing daily as we approached the junction at Woiverhoek. We fell out yesterday, leaving Rimington and Elliott to complete the movement, for the distance from line to line hero is le>s than 10 miles, and they can easily manage that distance. Two nights ago the Boers in the enclosure made several r^fon* to bleak through, but in e\ cry rase ueie met with ouch lolieyt- fViat they had to retire. Of course, e\ery hum' in camp \\a-> out, mid po»*a of five troopecd ant) olio noncommissioned officer «*ach \\eif» placed at about every hundred yards., making a long firiug ; liue from line to line. . The exact result is uot yet known to us, but it is believed the piiscners number some hundred?. After the "vVilman&rust disaster and the seutettoe of death passed on one of tho inPii of the Fifth Victorian Contingent for inciting to mutiny, gome severe comments appeared in some of the Melbourne papers concerning alleged want of discipline, etc. The c o comments have been warmly repudiated by officers and men alike as a grons libel Major-general Heateon, through whose hasty words «ome of the trouble arose, congratulated the Victorian Fifth, and thanked them for all the hard work they had done. He acknowledged that his promotion was largely through the efforts of the Victorians. Officers who ha\e ser\ed in other contingents say that the btandard of the fifth full}' equals, if it docs not surpass, that of other contingents in p-\erv respect. The men had been on trek almost continuously s-inee their arrival in South Africa, and a.s the time approached for their return General Plumer a«ked Lord Kite hener if some more Australians might be a«ked for. Lord Kitchener said he wnuld endeavour to do so, but would prefer to keep on the fifth for another six months. The following is an extract from a letter received in Wanganui by an aunt of Sergeant W. Moore (son of Mr W. .1. Moore, of Kensington School) from a member of the sixth contingent, dated Rotterdam. Fcbluary 3: — "I have to sympathise with you in your bad bereavement through the death of your nephew, Sergeant -Moore, who dietl of enteric fever (a's you will have heard long before thin) at Wakkerctroom on January 30, after an illness of three weeks. He had not been feeling well for three or four days before going into hospital, but he would not give in, and at last had to be carried out of the lines into the field-hos-pital, and was sent from there to his last resting-place, 'Wakkeratroom, two days later. I can tell you that it wat sod news indeed to all of u& when s we heard it in camp, for he was a general favourite with all, and a good soldier too. I do noW think that there was any man in the whole regiment but had a good word for him. It was very hard after serving 12 months and getting through the roughest part of it to be taken off by enteric fever just in the last month. But I f3U££?jge it is only one of the gloriflys jjn.-

certainties of a war-faring life. There are four or five of our men dangerously ill with enteric at Wakkerstroom."

At the meeting of the North Canterbury Board of Education (telegraphs our correspondent) p. letter was read from a female teacher "-ho desired to go to South Africa as a teacher in the refugee camps, but wished to Luow if the position she at present occupies would be kept open for her. The rhaiunan (Mr T. S. We-iton) thought it would not be prudent to give all successful applicants .12 months" "leave of absence. Each cu-e should ba dealt with on its merit*. After discussion it was agreed that the ho3rd could not keep the positions open to teachers who go to South Africa, but ca their return they might apply for positions in the oidinary course. Co'.cuel Holdsworth and Lieutenant Hopkinson. of the Imperial Army, are at present in Wellington. Their object in visiting New Zealand is to purchase 1080 remounts. Reuter's correspondent at Jamestown, St. Helena, wri+ing under date the 17th January. Mates that s>bout four weeks previously all the Boer piisoners, over 20, who were shut up in High Kn«U Port, were released, -j And spent their Christmas, in camp, Hans Eloff, Mr Kruger's son-in-law, being chief &uicng them. The caiap had been 'remarkably quiet while he and those with "him- • were away, but no sooner had he returned" than he liegan to agitate, and hi-, less than three weeks" the whole camp was in a turmo"tf. The authorities" interfcrSdJ and ;Mr Eloff *nd' four otffers were arrested nod- feat back to High Knoll. It is wid'tbat when the guard went to arrest Eloff a v.vmber'of the prisoners surrounded him. and it was only when the guard were about to have recourse to se\ere measures that they gav6 way. The camp has again become quiet. j