Murder on the Veldt.

Manawatu Herald, 5 April 1902, Page 2

Murder on the Veldt.

THE SHOOTING OF UNARMED BOERS. , A correspondent has supplied the Morning Leader with.a story, of .the affair of the Bush Yeldt Carbineers related by a member of the first squadron of that force. It is stated that after the occupation of Pieters* burg the bulk of the, regiment (under a captain, whose name is not given, bat apparently not an Australian) proceeded to the Bush Veldts ' Major Laneham remained at *Pietersburg. Lieut. Morant and Lieut. Handcock (since shot by court-mar-tial) accompanied the regiment. Captain Bobinson, commander of the first squadron, noticed that the unnamed captain shot the niggers, who were met like so many rabbits, without provocation. The natives called him “ Balaolo," this word meaning murderer. Captain Robinson, after ineffectually remonstrating, returned to Pietersburg. When the Carbineers had reached a point two hundred miles north’ of Pietersburg ten unarmed Boers entered the camp and informed Lieut. Handcock, who was the officer-in.-charga, that they were journeying to Pietersburg to surrender. When it became known that the Boers had £20,000 in their possession, Handcock and some other officers held a mock court-martial, / and ordered the Boers to be shot. Handcock directed Sergeant-Major Morrison, the senior non-commis-sioned officer, to put the sentence into execution. Morrison, after consulting the other, non-coms., told Handcock that the action was not justified. When again ordered ,to shoot the Boars Morrison refused. Then, by Handbook's orders, men f|-om another squadron shot the ten Boers while they were kneeling in front of their waggons. The waggons were ransacked, and Transvaal paper money representing £20,000 was found. In the federal House of Eepresentatives, the Bight Hon. Mr Barton, in reply to a question, said that in view of the conflicting statements, it would be unwise to com© to any iconclusion with reference to the shooting incident. He had received no official information, and was trying to. obtain particulars, but it entirely rested with the authorities in South Africa’to furnish what they thought fit. His information was obtained from private conversations which he could . not divulge. However, it confirmed ' the main facts published in the press. After the shooting of the Bqer.thai was caught wearing the'late Captain Hunt’s clothing, two other parties, one of three, and one of eight, were captured and shot. He was not credibly informed whether they; were courtmartialed, whether they were clad in khaki, or whether they par- 1 ticipated in the illtreatmeut of Cap-:, tain Hunt. Major Lenehamj who was seventy miles away at the time, was slightly reprimanded for not sending in a report. The officers involved were tried in proper form. A letter from a member of one Of the local contingents,'now a warder in the Pretoria Goal, with reference' to the shooting of Boers, mentions that lour officers wore found guilty, one of them a New. Zealander, who, with Lieutenant Witton, was transported, but he does not mention the name. He states that they shot thirty-eight Boers.