Letters from the Front.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 101, 26 January 1901, Page 3

Letters from the Front.

The following letter Las been received by Mr T. Loach, of Wairaate. from his son, Trooper A. E. Eoach, who is serving in South Africa with the second contingent:—

Eulischedombo im, Dec. 10,1900.

My last letter was written in a hurry, ko I thought I would write another line to make up for the shortness of the last. Letter-writing is a very awkward undertaking in many ways. Sometimes the ordar comes out that a mail will loave in an hour's time. Perhaps ysu will start to write, whon you will be ordered out on some duty, or perhaps the camp will bo moved, and you will either have to finish in a hurry or tear it up half finished, besides the awkward position one has to sit in to write. I may say that when my last left the camp was in a state oi grief over the loss of five of our be3t men with so many wounded, but our hearts were full the next day when wo heard that out beloved comrade Bob Smith (of Titnaru) died of his wounds on his way to the hospital. He was one of the most kind and obliging of men, and was ever ready to do anything for you, and 1 can safely say that the horses were never looked after better than while under bis charge. We are going to erect a nice headstone over his grave. I walked over the battle-field the other day, and waa surprised that any of us (tho second contingent) came out alive. The enemy were posted behind great rocks covered with trees, which so commanded our position that they could tee us crawling through the grass, our ground being flat, with not so much cover as would conceal a cat. We lay there from 5.30 a.m. till 7.80 p.m. in the burning #un, without food or water. At balf-put seven tho word was giTon to retire. The Boera were reinforced by 4his s&* and we had no Bupports wltbip mile*. If was then they poured in the lead, wad-our tneo fell ia tl! ferttfoiM w w« w*»dß»de*

this heavy rifle fire, tho Boer pompom and big guu letting it oat for all they were worth ; but we had not got many yards when the order <aame to go bade and regnin cur position at all costs and save our guns, which we did, and Btopped there till ten o'clock, when the* firing ceased, and we were relieved by some of the Queensland regiment. We rode buck to camp for tea (whieh was coffee) and biacuit, and then were turned out to roan the trenches for the night. Next morning we were told that in ctir last rally we drove the Boers from their position. Our general addressed us, and has mentioned us iu hia dtitipctehos to the Field Marshal, who sent us a kind message of sympathy. We camped on the position for a week, and rfovod here yesterday. The name of this place I have written ftt the head of this letter, but to pronounce it ia a different matter. We have been patrolling all the time, and came in touch with the enemy with one killed (a Queenslr.nder), Owing to our numbers being small, tb.9 duties fall very heavy on us. Tbore are only 60 availablo for duty In tho second contingent* at the present time. My health has never been better than of late, but a lot of the men are suffering from colds through sleeping out in the wet. I commandeered a splendid tent from a farmhouse, and have Ward, Butcher, Cloußtcn, and Knubley for lent mates : the three last mentioned are in my section, of which I am in charge.

Albert E. Loach, Paget'* Column, Sooth African Field Force,