NEW ZEALAND.

Waikato Argus, Volume IX, Issue 772, 5 October 1900, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND.

{BY TELEGRAPH—PRESS ASSOCIATION). Wellington, This Day. A cable from Sir Alfred Milner to the Premier on October 2nd reports tbat (Private Cone, of the Third Contingent, is dangerously ill at Pretoria. He comes from South Canterbury. LETTER FROM THE ERONT. The many friends of Mr James Prentice, who left here with the sth New Zealand Contingent for thewarin South Africa, will (writes our PiroDgia correspondent), be glad to hear that "Jimmy " is in good health. His previous letters were dated from Bulawayo, but those by last mail are all dated from MafekiDg, August 12th. In a letter to his friend, Mr Singleton, here he writes. "We have seen a lot of South Africa since we ~ left New Zealand and have had_ enough of the marching between Beira -and Mafekiug, three montha on the move all the time; We thought we would never see any fighting till we went ninety miies out of Mafekiug, Zeerust, but as we were on our march to Rudeuburg one morning the Boers opened fire on us with their Mausers aud big guns.. All our waggons were well got under cover, and we took up a position on a little kopje and opened fire on them with bur 15pounders shraphel shells, the Australians and pom-poms covering our right aud left. We gave them all they wanted for that day. The order was then given for us to retire to where we had camped the night before, Marieo. Next morning another fellow and I went out to look for some of our missing mules, when three Boera fired on us from an old Kaffir brick house, we went straight back to camp and reported it to the staff. A score of the Australian Bushmen were sent to the place and captured them at 3 p.m- We were on the move again for Mateking, but the Boera were half-a-mile away waiting for us. This time they fired on us with Mausers using smokeless powder, but their position was soon diacoevred, when we sent six shrapnells in- ■ to the hill, the pom-poms then kept up their firing in front of us, and the Boers soon cleared into the bush, We went on about ten miles and settled dorrn to feed horses and mules and have our tea, when we discovered that the Boers were all round us. We had to harness up and travel all night back to Zeerust, arriving there at 5 a.m. We gave our horses and mules a spell all day. Half an hour after we left the town, the Boers got in and burnt all the Britishers' houses down. After all this excitement we enjoyed the two days out amongst th« bullets. The following'' was our full force out :—No 1 New Zealand 15 P. Battery, R.F.F.A., 120 men Auckland Division ; 1000 Paget's Horse aud Kimberley Horse, including the Pompom , Artillery ; 300 Australian Bushmen. They are the boys for scouting and outpoa* duties. The fourth and fifth New Zealand Contingent remained in Mafekiug, aud I think they will come with ua next time as an advauce guard. Chritopher Berry is talking about joining our battery. I hope he will be with us iu a few days. There are seven Boer spies to be shot this afternoon. They are some cf the 33 we captured the other day. Our casualties at Elands River were nine Australians wounded, two troopers and one officer of the Kimberley Horse captured. Corporal Robertson of our battery had a narrow escape, a bullet going through the sleeve and pocket of his tunic. He found the bullet tangled up in his shirt and flannel. It must have glanced off the ammunition waggon as it was flatted out. How arc the No 2 Waikato Mounted Rifles getting on. I heard yon had only six men for the Easter Encampment. lam glad to hear that football ia doing well. We have had two matches since we landed, one against the Imperial STeomanry, and against a Bulawayo team. We beal both teams badly. Joe Papesh and Southerland wish to be remembered to all friends.