The Daily News. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1900. A GREAT BELIEF.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXII, Issue 40, 19 February 1900, Page 2

The Daily News. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1900. A GREAT BELIEF.

The most welcome and gratifying news that has been received since the commencement of the war is that which appears in our cable column this morning announcing the relief of Kimberley. General French's spltmdid achievement has done more th*u ielieve a beleaguered town; it has relieved the strain and tension that was being felt with increasing keenness by English people the wide world over—a strain that, in consequence of the accumulation of misfortunes and reverses that our army was labouring under, had become almost unendurable. The brief cable message was sent through early on Saturday, and, being at once made public, became the theme of comment and congratulation on all hands, and a feeling of most welcome relief was everywhere evident. The faot that to all appearance General French had got through the Boer lines without any serious loss, winning at once a bloodless and brilliant victory, is in most pleasing contrast to the few and questionable " successes" with which hitherto we have had to console ourselves with—a consolation which, by the way, was of the same unsatisfactory character as the "successes." It is worthy of notice that General French, who was the first commanding officer to thoroughly appreciate and effectively use our own colonial troops, ia the one general who has won any measure of success in the' present South African war. This, together with the fact that his latest j and most brilliant exploit has been] accomplished with the assistance of these very troops, is one in which every colonial may well feel a thrill and glow of pride. From a journalistic point of view, we have every reason to make the most of this feature of the occasion, as, at the expense of some ill-will and not a little misunderstanding, we have urged all along the very self-same method that has just proved so successful. We have, from time to time, protested in no measured terms against the criminal folly that has been responsible for such a needless sacrifice of the best and bravest of our troops. We may well hope that there will be no further need for adverse criticism of this nature, and that for the future it will be our pleasing duty to chronicle an unbrokeD series of successes of the nature of that just accomplished by General French. It is reasonable to assume that the next advance movement will be for the relief of MaCeking a step we are sanguine enough to think immediately feasible, seeing that Colonel Baden-Powell and his plucky garrison will be able to effectively co-operate with General French in this undertaking. Mafeking is some 22 miles north of Kimberley, which »#ould mean about a week's march for a swift moving force such as General' French commands. Of course it is possible that a halt may be made at Kimberley in order to allow of reinforcements coming up, and then a forced march to Mafeking (the railway line beiDg probably unsafe at present). After Mafeking has been relieved we may expect to hear of the march on Pretoria being commenced, a movement that will in all probability bring the different commandoes hurrying in from all direction*. All this, of course, is forecasting victories on paper, but such is the pleasant vista the relief of Kimberley has openea up, and the possibility of it affords us a eaticfaction that has been all too rare of late. It is a matter of w«rm congratulation that our own Ne v Zealand boys have so distinguished a part in this victorious movement, and are likely to be amongst the very to transfer tho theatre of war trom its protsoiit location into! 'he very hf '.rt cf the enemy's country. I