HOW MR STEYN ESCAPED CAPTURE.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 26 October 1901, Page 4

HOW MR STEYN ESCAPED CAPTURE.

In an interesting letter to the Daily Telegraph, Mr Bennet Burleigh, describing the Boer-surprise at Keirz, gives the following account of Mr Steyn's narrow escape from being captured or shot: " Creeping away round the corner of an adjoining house, bare-headed in night dress, sand with only socks upon his feet, was a tall, stout, swart, full-bearded, partly bald-headed, elderly man. If anybody saw him he probably smiled at Use spectacle, and did not trouble in particular about an unclad burgher more or less. But the skulking personage was none other than ex-President Steyn himself, now reduced to a woful plight. A Boer companion near by found him a pony and assisted Steyn to mount, for the ex-President prefers a wheeled vehicle to horseback. With a cut and a kick the Boer sent Steyn adrift upon a most uneasy seat. If, in the hurry, there had been a saddle thrown upon the pony, it was ungirthed, and had turned beneath in a stride or two. Then the unwonted apparition appeared in the one long main street of Beitz of a dark, heavy figure of a man, bareheaded and bare-limbed with a flowing shirt, galloping madly to the eastward. He had to pass the corner where some of Lieutenant Shaw's men were. A challenge rang out for him to halt, yet not Steyn, but the horse, was in charge of that wild John Gilpin ride. I am told Steyn would have gladly stopped, but could not, and looked pitifully as if he would have liked to. Sergeant Cobb, the crack shot of the 7th Dragoons, repeated the challenge, and at ten places lifted his rifle to bring the horse or rider down. But the weapon missed fire, slipping out the cartridge, he put in another, but the second als > missed fire. And why ? Because the oil supplied the men was of inferior quality and had frozen, blocking the spring and the striker. Owing to the intense cold similar mishaps had previously occurred with the men's rifles. Lieut Shaw snapped his pistol, but missed. There was more laughing than vexation at the man's escape, till after it was found that it was Steyn himself that had got away. When the column came up tcouts were despatched after him, but Steyn had been mat a few miles out by three or four brother Boers, who had helped him upon a better and more comfortable mount, and conducted him by Kaffir tracks into the kopjes."