NEWS BY THE MAIL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 8701, 21 December 1899, Page 3

NEWS BY THE MAIL.

* -THE BATTLES OF BELMONT AND :;•/; ■ .. GLENCOE. ?' '^OfFIOIAL REPORT FROM LORD -:•■■"'. :.- .METHUEN. j £-.'.- . London, Nov. 25. ;V • Advices from Belmont confirming the ;£..;Are4cberottß;n6e of the whjte flag by the ;JS|;JB%»'.iß.MW»fng indignation, the troops ?v ;,'eDgage(l ibitterly complaining, and it is SXr feared the result will be a refusal to give Sf-i'tbeißwsrs quarter. A similar incident to £5i tha' one .whion occurred at the battle of li^'dlenooey when an officer was shot by a £<?? wounded Boer, is-reported by the London i&:- -Times correspondent at Belmoot, who sayß Bltindell, of the Grenadier K?iGffardßJ.w4B. shot by a wounded Boer f«;';*nom. he. was attending. Such statements £ : ;i ! f app^ar;ihcredible,.but are confirmed offici- £.^. tillyt&jkthe protest of General Methuen, fS'^ih'c/j baia r sent a message to the Boer com--1? :—" I mast ask you to ifcf3*wi :,'-your 'wounded not. to shoot our I , must warn you not to use Dam buHet«;or übb the flag of truce j*?(jtr^cjeroußly, Srichaption is cowardly in fi^jthV^reme, and loaohot, countenance it." py^AU accounts confirm the splendid chargO/.W^T of .the British, infantry, the Scots xiritruawsX entering .'the fight with drums ggr beating and fifes playing. The second sf/-- ridge >*as the: strongest position. The Bders'. there were sheltered behind a ramH V: ; P*K* ~6f boulders. Nevertheless, the Guards <. *. adyanoed steadily, many of them coolly - -omoking. Mr B. F. Knight, the well- ; kiiown war correspondent, -who went to during the Spanish-American war, ?4vwa» wounded, in the arm by a dum-dum hulleir-* >~ : '-~ '" jh^-hoßpital train arrived at Orange time from Capetown, BelmoQt. The train was ; *i3n the corridor system, with iii': tiers on .each side. On its K^wirWWlOrange river with the wounded, p^^ai-io'nßdStnat 'a number of them were ' there were . many r^^re^M^n^^i.^ The troops in camp l;s%^^j%Jßey ; roiiftg>ft<im:the station to the : y ;t:K&pJt^.;Tho wounded were cheerful, and Eff^fftt^ by the ■ h? raWical ordßrliei exchanged ohaff with the Bsf nfeldiefs ii thTorowd. "Get any loot f soldier.; ;•• Yes," was the grim i^v^Septor'from ajnalmed'inan, "in my bloomwrrfingieg. 1 -' iTb^oofiolMlon must be accepted, '^iHSWewfj- reluotaiitly. . * I'^fc^ne-Boera 'art deliberate in the misuse i?'jSpf j$& f whit& ; fl'ag.^ On top of General other evidence, hfX'sQm«97 th<i statement of a correspondent j£'9 wh%"hMr'«rriVed" at Capetown wounded. xfeH^mys'hS was with a detachment of the : ? . Nqftbwnpton regiment when a force of E&al^wVS^lyaVas : -distant displayed the % l »»hiw fl^.vjThe.joffioer commandiug the rS";j Northampton* .then .ordered his men to £"K.'rise', : rwhentne,Boerß,deliberately volleyed, Knight and others. ?■?-...'. ' AlLßuropej , it seems, is privately assistw?fo£.ta*Boerß. It is estimated that at least ,^;^bne-;hfibqred expeditions to the Transvaal wjifjWre'.lniooutte of preparation in various | . .European countries. It is to prevent the K-^V?esiitio.n of these secret plans that- Great |kjßfiiain" was forced to take a position repglgarjijft. in diplomatic circles as somewhat fi%%BSmlliating, in view of her past conten- £?•• "'■ tioif that only rebellion was in progress in P"--.^ South Africa. It may be stated that dursfiifog thelasi ten days Lord Pauncefote has %. \^anllriS&»ed;toYO notes to the Btate Departp^S.roeritriirgipg the United States to exercise ;\*-";great;watehf illness to prevent the sailing £;-. of' fllibußteriDg expeditions from these fk^hores.' -r- ' '£<■■'. The Beoretary of War has received the £'••. "following despatoh through General &** Forester Walker from General Methuen, dated Belmont, November 23 : " Attacked .■.-': .the enemy at daybreak this morning. They |v.: were in a strong position. Three ridges fc were carried in succession, the last attack :,•.. being prefaced by shrapnel fire. The ins < fantry behaved splendidly, and received >•■ v Supnort from the Naval Brigade anaar*v tiliery. The enemy fought with courage $y - *md »kilL „ Had I attacked later I should £'\hsve sustained a heavy loss. Our victory i'l.JWM.oomplete. Have taken- forty prisovL'.ners, -Am buryiug a good number of ■'.: •. Boers, but, the greater part of the enemy's .; : ; killed and wounded were removed by their .', ■ oorarades'. Have captured a large number *■.. of horseaand cattle, and destroyed a quan- . tity of ammunition. Brigadier-General ■ Fetherstouhaagh was severely wounded in :-;■■"•- th;e shoulder, and Lieutenant • Colonel , . Crabbe (Grenadier Guards) is also reported "„"-■>"' vtoV be .wounded. Our other casualties ' v?erethe following: Grenadier Guards, third ; battalion : Killed, Lieutenant Fryer; wounded, Lieutenant Bluodell . ' (dangerously) 5 Grenadier^ Guards, second battalion : Wounded : Lieutenant Leslie, . Lieutenant Vaughan, Lieutenant Gurdon- -.. Roldw, : and Lieotonant Russell ; reported wounded, Lieutenants Lyon and . Cameron. Grenadier Guards : Rank and •V file, killed 26, wounded 36, mißsing 13; Coldstream Guards, first battalion : • Wounded, Lieutenant Grant. Coldstream Guards, second battalion; Wounded, Lieutenant Theodore Willoughby find Lieutenant Burton (the latter severely). Coldstream Guards : Rank and file, killed 8, wounded 23, missing 5. Scots Guards, first battalion : Wounded, Major Theon North Dalrymple Hamilton (severely), . Lieutenantsßulkely and Alexander. Scot 9 Guards s Rank and file, killed 9, wounded 34. Northumberland Fusiliers, first battalion : Killed, Captain Edgar and Lieut. Brine ; wounded, Major Dash wood and Lieutenant Festiog (dangerously), Captain Saple and Lieutenant Fishburne (severely). Northumberland Fusiliers : Rank and file, ' killed 12, wounded 32. Northamptonshire Regiment, second battalion : Wounded, Captain Freeland and Lieutenant Barton (Beverely). South Yorkshire Regiment, second battalion : Rank and file, wounded 3. tf ' London, Nov. 24. ■ The pathetic sconeß which marked the days following the engagement between the British and the Boers at Glencoe and at Nioholson'B Nek found a counter part at the War Office here to-day. Long before the doors were opened troubled and an xious women and men in all stations of life were assembled here, and when enquirers were finally admitted the anxious questions showed they feared yesterday evening's official bulletiu, though black enough, had not recorded the full slory of the British losses at Belmont. Up to noon the Government officials had issued no further despatches, and so the nervous distrust oi the publio remains unalleviated. Lord Methuen's message leaves a great deal to be explained. According to all previous facts obtainable as to the relative strength of the forces the Boers must have been in a decided minority, jet the total British loss (220 killed, wounded, and missing) proves the effectiveness of the enemy's resistance, and amply justifies General Methuen's tribute to the courage and skill with which the burghers fought The faot that no guns and only tortj prisoners were captured by the victors am that the Boers carried off their dead anc ■wounded shows they retired iv an orderlj manner, without precipitation or con fusion, and probably the Boer casualtiei were not numerous. Owiug to the stcengtl of the,position, the destruction of the Boei ammunition captured is taken as an indica tiou that General Metlmen occupied th< captured position at Belmont and de »troyed the Boer supplies in order not t(

, j hamper the immediate advance of his c column, which is marching in the lightest I order. The road is now presumably open to the Boor position on the Modder river, i Lieut. Blundell, of the Grenadier l Guards, who was dangerously wounded at i the battle of Belmout, has since died,of i his wounds. i The Governor of Natal has forwarded i [ the following despatch to the Colonial i Office : — •'Tugela, Drift was attacked i during the morning of Thursday, November 23rd, by from 250 to 300 Boers, who are believed to have advanced from Helpraakaarand Umvoti. The Mounted Rifles under Major Lcuctiars, and a small body of Natal Police, totalling 140 men, who were posted on the south bank of the i river, forced the Boers to retire, after two hours' fighting, Our loss was a sergeant- , major wounded. The Tucjela river rose during the day, and ia now reported imi passable except by boats." After the battle of Belmont, Lord Met.huen, addressing his troops, Baid :— , "Comrades,— l congratulate you on the complete success achieved by you this morning. The ground over which we had to fight presents exceptional difficulties, \ and we had as an enemy one who is a paßt- : master in the tactics of mountain infantry. With troops such as you, a commander need have no fear of the result. There is a sad side to all this, and you and I are thinking as much of those who have died for the honor of their country and of those who are suffering as we are thinking of our victory."