WAR ITEMS.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 3430, 26 November 1900, Page 3

WAR ITEMS.

THE CAPTURE OF CAPTAIN BOVRN.

Mr Q. G. SUad, of Christchurch, has received a letter from Captain H. Louis Bourn, dated from BarDerton, 20th September, m which the writer gives a description of hia capture by <he Boers, and his treatment as a prisoner. "My capture," says the writer, " was very unfortunate both for myself and for the horse under my command, but even now I fail to see how I could have helped it. We were sent forward to obtain information and to hold a certain kopje. Reinforcements were sent for, and wera m sight, and were expected t any time j m fact, as some of the men retired at my order — as soon as we found ourselves m ■* hole— they met the reinforcements coming up. The Boers were very much favoured by the rocky slope behind me, but I did not pay much attention to it, as there were two battalions of infantry covering it. I have since learned that the infantry retired previously under better cover, as the enemy from a different quarter attacked them. The very hot fire from two pompoms, and about 400 rifles for four hours was very trying, but my tank was made easier, as the' men kept quite steady, and not a man moved until I was on my feet. This is proved as only man was hit. We were rushed off the kopje, and had to walk 18 miles to General Botha's laager, where the best place for our custody was an old fowlhouse. Next morning we wtre 1 sent on a, mule trolly to the railway at Balmoral, and after two nights m the tif fn we reached Nooitgedacht. "The Boers seemed to us to be m a very bad way, and for some time coyld only give hard peas, c:offeo beans, and lice for rations, later on flour, and occasionally, say about once- a week, lib of meat cr.ch. At first the only etore m the place bad nothing. Pots and pans could not be and anywhere; then when supplies did n>uie m the prices were enormous, or say tinea times the usual. Under the trying circrinstances our men were noted to be tie quietest and least quarrelsome, and «em«)£ to "buckle to" better than any m tie laager ,which is very much to their credit, more especially as they were taken wiUioat convenience, whilst others bad their oortplete kits with them. We were delighted when the reports of the guns were heard, but disappointed when the officers were ordered to pack ready for morning. At first we were led to believe that our c(s- t tination ws* Nelspruit, but when the twin ran through not one of us could guess where they would take us. " Batberton is a small mining town, the oldest mining town m South Africa, and its population is comprised of a number of British, as well as Dutch, resident* The British were very kind to us while we were here, sending us fruit and vegetables, but the suspense was great, and when the Boers came into the town they were almost m a state of riot, and threatened to shoot us. The women also suggested that it was the best thing to do with us. The influence of Commandant Van der Post only saved us. Snipers used to sit on the hills and shoot at the window lights ; some j of the bullets actually coming through the windows. General French and bis brigade must have made a wonderful march, as the Boers did nob expect him for another 48 hours. The method of Boer warfare seems to me peculiar.^' They do not form a camp or bivouac as we do, but the members of a family, with their relatives, pitch a tent and live together, and will be some distance from anybody else. They do not fight as nn organised body, or under control. When there is to be a battle, a message is sent to them, and they either go or stay ns they please. Except those •we saw under General Botha, who include the Johannesburg Police, who are a fine, smart lot, and are very well mounted, the other commandos we saw are miserable subjects."

American post-office regulations do not permit the sending of requests for payment of debts on post-cards, or m envelopes that bear outward evidences of their contents. As might be expected, however, Yankee ingenuity hits succeeded m evading the letter of the law — or rather the law of the letter. Mourning envelopes are now sent out by sorrowing creditors, bearing such texts on the outside as " Let us walk honestly," and "Owe no man anything." For some years past physicists have been trying to discover the secret of the light of the glow-worm and firefly, m the hope that a light without heat can be artificially produced. It is now claimed that a French lady has made an appreciable step m the direction of success, having produced a substance which gives out a considerable amount of light without waste of material. The light from a small piece is not strong enough for most purposes, but it is enough to enable one to see his way about a room. If this is correct, we may look for further advances BOO*

What is a thank-offering ? We read, says the " Daily Chronicle," with immense edification that "Mr William K. Vanderbilt has given £500,000 to his daughter, the Duchess Of Marlborough, the gift being a thank-offering for the Duke's safe return from the war." In old .days thank-offerings were made to Heaven — to Heaven's proxies, the poor, and so forth. Perhaps the association clings a little, for it is m Paradisal Paris that the Duchess is investing the money in — antiqi« furniture! We who are not millionaires may show our thankfulness by transferring a. shilling from our right to our left-hand trouser- j pocket. _