SOUTH AFRICAN DESPATCHES'

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 25 April 1901, Page 4

SOUTH AFRICAN DESPATCHES'

[Continued from last issue.]

The last despatch of the series is one written by Lord Roberts on his way to the coast at Johannesburg on November 15, but not actually despatched till his arrival homo on January 3. It begins by an expression of regret for the loss to the field force of those colonial contingents whose time had expired and who wished to return home, a loss all the more seriously felt owing to the state of affairs brought about by the dispersal of the Boor forces into guerilla bauds.

3. To meet ihis state of affairs the Army had to bo broken up into smaller columns then had hitherto been found advantageous, and the mobility of each column had to be increased. Great difficulty was, however, experienced in carrying out those necessary change-', owing to the lime having arrived for the withdrawal of tine Royal Canadian Dragoons, Royal Canadian Regiment, the three batteries of Canadian Artillery, and the greater part of the first contingents furnished by Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania, and allowing the members of the several Sou:h African carpi to return to their homes and employments after having been embodied for 12 months. It was impossible to disregard urgent reasons given by our Colonial comrades for not being able to remain longer at the seat of war. They had done admirable service and shown themselves well fitted to take their places by the side of Her Majesty’s Regular troops and I witnessediheir departure with deep regret not only on account of their many soldierly qualities, but because it materially impared the mobility and efficiency of the Army in South Africa for the time being, a very critical time, too, untill indeed a fresh body of Mounted Infantry could be formed from the nearest available Line battalions, and the several South African local corps could bo again rccuited up to their original strength.

As Lord Roberts remarks later in the despatch, “Largo as the force appears to be in South Africa, r, has proved all too small for the duties is has been ‘ required to perform.” The despatch goes on to summarisi the confused and intricate operations which took place during October and November. It concludes with a review of the work done by the South African Field Force during tha period for which Lord Roberts commanded it.

32. From this, my final despatch, I have been obliged, on account of its great length, most reluctantly to omit many interesting incidents, and to leave unrecorded many gallant deeds. As it is, I feel an apology is due for the almost inordinate proportions which this, as well as my former despatches, have assumed, owing to the vastness of the country over which operations had to be carried out, die length of time to which they have extended, and consequently the great number of events going on in d fferent places simultaneously, which have had to bo described.

S 3. The magnitude of the task, which her Majesty’s Imperial troops have been jailed upon to perform will perhaps be better realized if I give the actual number of miles of the several lines of communication, each one of which has had to be carefully guarded, and compare with the well-known countries of Europe, the enormous extent of the theatre of war from one end of which to the other troops have had to bo frequently moved.

The area included in the theatre of war are as follows :

From these tables it will bo seen that, after leaving been brought by sea 6,000 miles and more from their base in the United Kingdom, the Army in South Africa had to be distributed over an area of greater extent than Franco (201,146 square miles) and Germany (211,168 square miles) put together, and if we include that part of Rhodesia with which we had to do, larger than the combined areas of France, Germany, and Austria (261,616 square miles.) And it should be remembered that over

these great distances we were dependent on single lines of railway for the food supply, guns, ammunition, horses, transport animals, and hospital equipment, in fact, all the requirements of an army in the field, and that, along these lines, bridges and culverts had been destroyed in many places, and rails were constantly torn up.

These tabular statements show better almost than anything else the wastage of advancing forces and (ho smallness of the force that even an army of over 200.000 men, continually reinforced, can bring into the field at long distances from its base. The total army with which Lord lloberta entered Bloemfontein was only just 27,000 men and 7,600 horses. At Pretoria on June sth he had barely 21.000 and 6,060 horses. The force that marched on Komati Port throe months later was under 22,000 (including General Puller’s force), with less tian 5,000 horses. '

The remaining despatches arc those of Lord Roberts’s subordinate officers dealing with the doings of separate columns, with short covering notes by Lord Roberts himself. The first deals with Lord Mcthcnn’s operations round Boshef in April, 1000, for which Lord Roberts give*; him high credit. The next deals with Colonel JJalgcty’s stubborn and skilful (defence of (lie position at Jammcrsherg Drift, near Wepcncr. 1. f am of opinion that the utmost credit is due to Lieutenant-Colonel l)algety and the troops under his command for the stubborn and successful resistance ■ which they offered to a enemy greatly outnumbering them. The hardships of the investment were increased by heavy rain, and by the impossibility of relieving the men holding the line of entrenchments for a period of IG days, owing to the largo perimeter which had to be guarded, and-the small force available for the purpose. 5. I cordially support LieutenantColonel Dalgety’s recommendations on behalf of the officers, non-commissioned officers, and men whose services he has brought to special notice.

Square miles. Cape Colony ... 277,151 Orange iiiver Colony... 48,220 Transvaal 113,010 Natal 18,913 Total 758,030 Eliodosia 750,000 And tlic distances troops have had to travel are JJy land— Miles. Capetown to Pretoria , .. 1040 Pretoria to Ivomati Poort 200 Capetown to Kimberley. . 047 Kimberley to Matching 223 Matching to Pretoria . . 100 Matching to Heir a . 1135 Durban to Pretoria . 511