THRILLING NARRATIVE OF THE ZULU WAR BY AN EYE-WITNESS.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 2, Issue 93, 12 July 1879, Page 2

THRILLING NARRATIVE OF THE ZULU WAR BY AN EYE-WIT-NESS.

Mr. Witt, a Swedish missionary, who witnessed the fighting at Saudala and Rorke's Drift, arrived in England early in March. He was interviewed at Portsmouth by tho representatives of the Press. His house at Koike's Drift was, it appears turned in a hospital for tho shoulders and his outhouses into a commissariat store. When the Zulus came down ho escaped on horsehack, and lost everything which he possessed. His narrative is as follows :

" It was on January 22, 187!). Bright and warm rose the sun over my station, Oscursbutg, situatod at tho Buffalo River, on the Natal side. My farm is a drift into the Zulu country, known by the name of Rorke's Drift. Ten minutes' walk from the drift were inv houses, two large buildings, situate at the bolder of the Zulu country, and at the vein' place where the greatest resistaece from Zulus was expected. Those buildings were found very fit indeed for military purposes and at the request of the general commanding the forces, I left them at his disposal.,' Tho missionary thus describos the battle:—" Behold on the one side 1000 soldiers, reinforced by equal their numbers of black, ones, leaving their camp to attack an'eneuiv more than 10 times their number. Behold on tho other side this mass of Zulus, who close together, walk straight against the mouth of the cannon. Look how thousands are killed, and nevertheless tho moss presses without fear over the dead bodies of their comrades against the destroying weapon. Behold on the one side ft few dozen white troops, and only the remainder of that thousand Look how they, after having shot away all their ammunition, keep close together, trying yet awhile to fight for their lives with the hayonet. Doctor R and myself had En the morning made op our, minds to pay a visit to a missionary in tho neighbourhood. When aUva'lo start ;ii no on we uviv told that, liijpUit light wi.s taking place over tine liver. In uuiupeny uJ the u.iapluiu.ol the forces

I iiacendt.il a lull 60011 high, between tho station and liver, from which we had au excellent view of what was going on, at a distance of three miles as tho crow (lies. AVe saw the place were the camp was made. The whole spot swarmed with black figures. Down below us, though very hilly broken, contained a luge flat between irs and the camp, and on this flat we saw three lines drawn, the one end reaching the camp, and the other the river. The whole of it was a shocking light. The heavy firing from the rifles mined with the rolling sound from tho big guns and the movements of the lines had drawn themselves more close together to one spot. Hero was a large Kaffir kraal, which was gradually surrounded and fired at. How mauy had entered it I do not know, and will probubly never leuru, because what was inside there was certainly killed by the Zulus' bullets. After 20 minutes heavy tiring the resistance ceased, and the attacking .ones divided themselves again, half from 5000 to (WOO, approachthe river, whore another skirmish took place, and the spot were they crossed one by one. This done, they sat down for half-an-hour, in order to get some rest and to strengthen themselves. Then they separated again divided into two parties, the one following the oanrse of the river, that we never had the the other taking its way towards us. "We now perceived that the house of a neighbouring farm on the Natal side was on tire, but we were so far from fancying that the Zulus, would cross the r iver that we never had the slightest idea of the real state of things but were still thinking that the approaching black people were our own troops. They now were so close to us that their bullets could easily have reached us, and we saw that they were all naked. Reality then also stood nuked for us. The thick mass that swarmed in tho the camp was the Zulus, who had taken possession of it; the light lines tiring at the kraal were Zulus ; and, finally, thos'e who had crossed the river and were approaching were Zulus. The few whites whom we hod seen galloping now and then to tho Natal side perhaps were the only survivors of all those who a week before had eutered the Zulu country. Arrived at the houses, we saw at once a new proof of the sad truth to which our eyes are just been opened. The tents, which surrounded the houses, and the commissariat store had been pulled down, and a temporary barricade of meal sacks were made between the houses at a distance of 20 yards from one another. Here wo were met by the anxious question from many lips, ' Are tho Zulus coming here'' and were compelled to answer, ' In five minutes they will be here.' In the samo moment the lighting began in the neighbourhood. Though wishing to take .part in the defence of my owu house, and at the same time in the defence of an important place for tho whole colony, yet my thoughts went to my children, who) were at a short distance from there, and did not know anything of what was going on, and having seen one part, of the Zulus going in that direction, i followed the desire of my heirt, saddled my horse, and started to warn my family."