The War.

Manawatu Herald, 1 February 1900, Page 2

The War.

The newspapers of Old England about which it was proudly asserted they accepted the news of reverses in the war quietly and confidently appear new to have turned suwttw tea* with

The Times leading. The news, what little of it we get, from South Africa, is nothing to be troubled about and it is evident from the language of the English press that the ever likelihood of France interfering is ever present and each stoppage of the onward career of the British forces makes more probable. We need not repeat the old story of the preparations that are complete to crush the fleets of France snould she but take one step in opposition to Great Britain, as it has been told so often. We can understand Consols falling as it will profit some people to buy when low to sell again when they rise, but we cannot see anything to cause alarm. The clamour for some decided success on the part of the English Gtoerals denotes unfair impatience on tfe part of the public and a most extra/rdinary lack of knowledge <5? the cu^acter of the country. It is only some c ? months since war was declared ttid all the British troops then in Sfcith Africa were distributed for the de^nce of Ladysmith, Kimberley andiftafeking, towns hundreds of mits apart. The Boers had made every nteparation and were thus able to nkke an immediate attack and an in;fision of Natal and Cape Colonyl There appears to be little doubt that the Government were not fully Informed as to the force necessary to6e despatched, and thus but a hztfdful of men were first sent out. N»w let us carefully note what our troops have already accomplished and then we can easily see that their wo^c under most disadvantageous circijmstances has been very good. Taking tfee position in Natal first into consideration, before the first relieving force landed at Durban the Boers had penetrated as far south as the Mooi river, and the inhabitants of Pietermaritzburg were alarmed for the safety of their town. All communication with Ladysmith was cut off, and the railway line to Weeton was in the Boers' hands. The British forces since then have driven 1 the enemy away to the north of the Tugela river, having cleared the country around Willow Grange, Weenan, Freer and Chievely. Not only that but Estcourt has been secured and made the base for supplies for the General's army which, owing to Co lenso being in the Boers' hands, and the railway bridge over the river having been destroyed, made a detour by road to the north and east to ActonHomes, a position which commands the Tintwa Pass and is not very far away from Van Reenens pass, through which the railway enters the Orange Free State. "Black and White" issued a capital map of the country round Ladysmith taken from a balloon, which was reproduced by the Canterbury Times, and a look at this shows the extraordinary roughness of the country. We should estimate that Acton Homes is within 20 miles of Ladysmith and looking from the former place to the latter we find there are two roads which resemble in shape an egg and within the egg portion is a long range of hills, of which Spion Kop forms one. The road on the north of the hills runs close to the railway from Ladysmith to Van Reenens and the other road to the south passes a few miles away from, but parallel with, the hills, with a branch of the Tugela. river between. We now come to what may have led to much misanderstanding— there are four branches of the Tugela river, all crossed by the railway, one at Estcourt, again at Frere, then at Colenso, and lastly at Ladysmith. When General Buller left Estcourt he may have passed to the westward of the branch at Frere, but we know, when repulsed from crossing the Tugela at Colenso, he crossed it away to the westward and got into his position at Acton Homes. We believe that General Warren moved further north and got on the road to Ladysmith to the north-west of Spion Kop and having driven the enemy from its heights, came down and crossed the branch othe Tugela at its base, and the map would suggest that he will proceed eastwards, that is onwards, to the railway line and take the Boers who are supposed to be at Colenso, in the rear, as there is, or was, a force of British at Chieveley (towards the South of Colenso) guarding the line of communications with General Buller's army. If the Boers are not at Colenso, the force stationed at Chieveley could be used elsewhere, and if they are there they appear to stand a good chance of being surrounded. The country between Colenso and Ladysmith appears fairly level and open, and it will be a difficult task to persuade the Boers who are entrenched near Spion Kop to leave their hills and attack General Warren on the open. Everything in this part of Natal looks as though it was going in favour of the British. At the north of Cape Colony Generals French and Gatacre have done good work as they have almost cleared out all the enemy from Naauwpoort and Stormberg to \the frontier of the Free State. The area is some 5000 square miles, and was filled with Boers and treasonable colonists, and this fairly illustrates the work these generals have performed. We seem to have done worst on the west, though that implies only the non-relief of Kimberley, and these delays may be more for future action than from actual impossibility. Anyway Lord Methuen has pushed the enemy from De Aar, up past Potfontein, over the Orange river, past Belmont, Grass Pan and over the Modder river. He has had a portion of his force scouting over 25 miles within the Free State, and is waiting in a secure position for reinforcements, but at the same time securing Kimberley from an assault, as all the Boers available forces are needed to watch him. Nobody who is not in the confidence of the Generals commanding can say what is going to be done, and we are pleased to notice that they are not to be drawn into any statement whatever the outcry may be. That General Buller has not applied for further reinforcements has, to our mind a satisfactory appearance, for if he had they would have been sent, some of the troopships which have been arriving so quickly at the Cape would have been [ ordered on to Durban. If Kimberley can hold out in food and ammunition wo doubt if the existing position on

the Modder will be altered until Lord Roberts is ready to commence the invasion of the Free Slate. The most worrying of the incidents of the war are the dreadfully absurd cable news of which the following makes a pretty specimen — " Public feeling is depressed over the Spion Kop disappointment, but the military resolution to persevere is unimpaired." The last eight words might have been a translation from an exciteable halfpenny Paris paper. Britons have generally acted on the sound advice, when in a tight place, to keep your spirits up and your powder dry. So must we do so now.