The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 11, 1899, Page 1

The Tall VOLUME l‘X:Vi;'II;NO. 71 1. SAN FRANCISCO, MONDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1899, BURGHERS ROUT A BRITISH FORCE PRICE FIVE CENTS. AND TAKE HUNDREDS OF PRISONERS ,GATACRE BEATEN AND FORCED TO RETREAT British Led Into Ambush and Suffer a Decisive Reverse. Turned Back by a Withering Fire, the Column Is Raked by Shot and Shell as It Retires Toward Molteno. OLTENO, Cape Colony, Dec. 10.—General Gatacre left Puttecolumn. It is believed here that he proceeded by forced march twelve miies toward Stormberg. He had 4000 men, inciud- ing the Northumberland Fusiliers, the Royal Irish Rifles and two batteries of field artiilery. The British were unmolested by the Boers until the Boer position was reached. when a hot fire was unexpectedly opened upon the advancing column. The engagement began at 4:15 a.m. At7 a. m., after a sharp artillery duel. the British retired. They are now marching toward Molteno. General Gatacre found the enemy’s position impregnable. It was impossible for the British infan- try to get at the Boers. ; The British column had arrived safely within a couple of incidents of the march being an occasional sudden cali of “halt! were near. Suddenly a terrific fire opened simultaneously on the British front and right flank. The Royal lr.sr_\ B!fles. which formed the advance, sought shelter behind 2 neighboring kopie and were speedily joined by the remainder of the column. It was soon found, however, that this po- sition also was covered by Boer guns, which were more powerful than had been supposed. The troops, therefore, sought a safer place about half a mile away, two batteries in the meantime engaging the Boers and covering the troops in their withdrawal. The action now became general at long range. and a detachment of mounted infantry ed northward with a view of getting on the enemy’s right flank. Suddenly a strong com- mando was seen moving from the north and the Royal Irish Rifles and the Northumberland Reg- iment was sent out to meet it. 4 It was soon discovered, however, that the Boers had machine guns well placed and the Brit- ish were compelied to face a terrible fire. Finding it impossidle to hold the position in the face of an enemy apparently superior in position, numbers and artillery, the British retired on Molteno, the Boers following up the retirement closely and bringing two big guns to bear on the retiring column. It is believed here that thhe British casualties were not serious. : LONDCN. Dec. 11.—The Times publishes the {followina dispatch from Molteno: “Generat ;crc attempted to assault the Boer position at Stormberg at dawn to-day (Sunday). The guides led us wrong and we were surprised while in fours and after a very trying night march. Our ra‘.‘remept was effected in excellent order, there being no hurry even at the most critical t The Northumberland and Irish Rifles behaved as if on review day. | fear our losses are One of our guns we had to abandon.” CAPE TOWN. Dec. 9.—It is rumored here that the Boers attacked Kimberley at close quarters last night. but were repulsed with heavy losses. WX ¥ T W A N . iles of its destination, the only under the belief that the Boers avy. guns, good order. les of the way, al- of the encampment a rifie fire upon most of it was at t particularly effective. empted an artillery fire but it was badly di- e at several point: rected MEANS A RISING OF CAPE COLONY DUTCH . 446 a. m—It 1s too much to reagrd General Gat repulse near Stormberg as the defeat British arms have yet the whole campalgn. Already A e S S P SN ° R e e I I S S . Boe : - E ;4 R OFMIC ICOURTMARTIAL LOS3 OF G LOMBARDS D FOr ONS oP *bebebedeie OWARP" MMANDRG 7.-“‘5'.0'- H BOER AND BRITISH OFFICERS MENTIONED IN DISPATCHES, MRS A e e e e A A AR AR AR S e A A e s e o s o e o e S e B e o e e T DS S NP QPP 020400000000 00 000808000000 0000 0000000000004 R e e U S Sk TS . but were nromptly chacked by a | & commgnding of- plete retreat was n march to Mol- ¢ | tribes w e $ 3l | ) L 2 440 | smashing blow GENERAL GATACRE, PELEPLI e PED s ei et eietedebeb et obsbeiebebei e ed THe Geiedstsieteiomeds undoubtedly boers—that t ualties is awaited wit It is also fe rous losses of d equipment The serious aspect of the affair is the ef- fect it is likely 1o have on the Dutch in Cape Colouy, who have been wavéring’ as’ to whether or nat o throw thelr lot with | northern farmers are | rebelifon. The de- ause it will delay tary list ¢ us misgtvt there were se- re of such a strong froce at tte unexpected. Doubt- Gatacre was the victim des. But the result pof e of proper cavalry scout- pied Arundel several skir Three miles re the enemy w ing an emplacem pounder. = The lyddite sh. do immense damage. The Boers but the incident is interesting as showing that the Boers are still in position quite | close to Mod¢ t the Boers are busy s at Spytfontein rs of works are beginning to appear at the foot of the heights. The | force fired on by the British naval gun is believed to form the r wing of the enemy’s main body. thrown forward for patroling and scouting purposes. It is reported that the bad water Spytfontein threatens epidemic typhotd. Kimberley reports all quiet there up to December 7 and that the pressure of the investment is diminished A dispatch from Cape Town to the Daily December 7, says Linchwe, people in at ollow their example. FEARS FOR THE SAFETY OF GATACKE'S FORCE LONDON, Dec. 1L.—TUpon the heels of vesterday's news of the gullant sortie from Ladysmith this morning comes in- telligence of the practical defeat of Gen- | eral Sir W. F. Gatacre in his first en gagement with the Boers. While this la ter reverse, though serious enough, is re- | garded as only an elementary check, still | | its effect upon the morale of the Boers and the minds of wavering Dutch farm. | ers In Cape Colony will undoubtedly ren- | der the task of the British much more | difficult and drawn out. General Gatacre, moving out Saturday | lery from Putter's Kraal in the hepe of | surprising the Boers at Stormberg, was | misled by his guilde and found himself in an untenable position, with the result | that he was obliged to retire with se-| vere losses upon Moltena. He reports over 62 officers and men missing in addi- | tion to a small list of killed and wounded. | Retnforcements will doubtless be sent | up with all speed to make General Gat- | acre's position secure, but the fact that | he has gravely underestimated the | strength of the Boers opposed to him is responsible for a feeling of considerable uneasiness as to the immediate future of the campaign in that section of the coun- try. News from Ladysmith created great en- thusiasm. General White evidently has not forgotten the art of delivering a at the enemy, nor have e e o e o e e e o DEFEATED COMMANDER. | s st ebeirebeisiete® Soudan, the sortie n of two big guns and the a Maxim was the severest ¢ the Boers have received In the ope- rations at Ladysmith. From the fact that the correspondent’s telegram reached Frere on Saturday night describing the fighting on Friday, it is in- forred that the investment of Ladysmith 1S not so stict as it was. “Pifing was heard yesterday morning, but it was probably only a continuation of the futile bombardment. News of the beginning of a general advance from Frere is momentarily expected. The tres- ver has been fin- h ] 0. All in < to the fact that there has been ening of the Boer forces around Ladysmith. From the western berder we are sti without news that General Mehuen fought a fourth engagement with the er emy, though there wer toria last night that fi menced on Saturday ne; Continued on Second Page. @eieieie e ieieieie B R e e LA SR UL N ST T S | @t NoNe e otien * = * o ) B - . < * o . B * - o * R - b » - * . Gatacre reports: Setietieti et ent, are: and three men. men Percival. 3 Missing — Major : 4 = PoYT™S . ot ol et B A R T T R L S e R S LR cers and men. e tietiotie @tie etie et oo et e et e N e et e e N0, ONDON, Dec. 1.—The War Office pub- lishes the following dispatch from Gen- eral Forestier-Walker at Cape Town: inform you that | met with a serious re- verse in the attack on Stormberg. misled as to the enemy’s position by the guides and found impracticable ground. The casualties, so far as known at pres- SECOND BATTALION IRISH RIFLES. Wounded — Lieutenant Colonel Fager, Mojor Seaton, Captain Bell, Captain Keily, Lieutenant Stephens, Lieutenant Sarnardston. SUFFOLK REGIMENT. Wounded — Second Lieutenant nard and twelve men. Missing-Captain Weir, Lieutenant Christie, Second Lieu- tenant Rodney and 290 men. SEVENTY-FOURTH FIELD BAT- TERY. Severely wounded-Lieutenant Lewlis Slightly wounded-Two SEVENTY-SEVENTH FIELD BAT- TERY. Kil'ed-One gunner. NORTHUMBERLAND FUSIL- EERS. ROYAL BERKSHIRE REGIMENT, Killed-One private. The remainder of my casualties will be wired as soon as ascertained. Stevens, Fletcher, Captain Morley, Second Lieu- tenant Wake, Second Lieutenant Coul- son, Lieutenant Radcliffe. Missing-Three hundred and six non-commissioned offi- R e e e e e et BRITISH LOSS OVER SIX HUNDRED MEN Deeply regret to et e e e e oo NetietieNe N % | was ROYAL May- Wounded-Major Captaln - . o s - . 04 s e . > . P . - ‘ A . - * - . 2 s B - o * - + ] . - . b4 N - . Fd . > . - . K s s * 2 + - . K * o . - s - - i . > . b . K 4 = . @ * - * . + - + - NetNetietetiotieg CARBONADO VICTIMS NUMBER THIRTY-TWO Twenty-Three Bodies Recovered and Nine Are Still in the Mine. ARBONADO, Thirt terda Wash., Dec two men were Killed in y explosion at the Hill coal mine. It was fc day that more men than supposed had escaped through the upper por- tions of the mine. This evenin three bodies had been taken ot searchers are looking for nine others that are known to have been covered with caved-in coal and fallen tim- bers near the bottom of the mine. Work was suspended this afternoon on account of the gas, but this is being cleared away by fans. Eight se- verely Injured men have been taken out and cared for at their homes and the | hospital. Following is the complete list of the men killed. the nine at the end being those whose bodies have not yet been | red: NARD JOHNSON. H. JONES, aged 64; reco LE J. leaves widow here and a married daughter at Burnett; | had a son killed in the mine a few years ago. HENRY SOINT, aged 26, unmarried. MIKE KICHINKE. JOHN MELLEN. WILLIAM T. WILSON, single man; relatives reside in Ontario. DAVID X. THOMAS; leeaves a widow | and two children. BEN ZEDLER JR., 19 vears. JOHN HILL, 19 years. HOWELL MEREDITH SR., aged 64; | with 3000 men and two batteries of artil- | leaves a widow and nine children. WATKIN JON ANDREW GO leaves a mother. EVAN M. LEWIS. JOSEPH LEE. RICHARD DARE. DANIEL DAVIS. AUGUST HENIAUT, % years old; . aged 26; unmarried; unmarried; leaves an aged father and mother. MATT NYLAND. JOHN T. DECONINK. T. J. EDWARDS, head of the local lodge of Knights of Pythias. JOSEPH THOMAS:! STEPHEN KROMOGE, aged 2; leaves a widow and son. WILLIAM H. DAVIS. REES JONES, fire inspector. MATT RIHILA. PAUL CURTISS. | ADAM POWELL. | JOHN FE i are: Andrew Kichinke, burned slightly, taken | home. Mike J. Kichinke are burned, in hospital. Abe Kal purned, in hospital David J. Lewis, very sick as result of | iredamp. . burned, in hospital ino, ribs fractured as a re- sult of caving. Mike Knish, badly burned about face and body. bruised and nearly suffocated by firedamp. | Peter Merp, aged 6 years, burned and nearly suffocated. Early this morning Merp and Knish were found in the fourth crosscut groping about. They were rendered unconscious | by the exploston and came to only when | better air was forced by the fan . into | that portion of the mine. Knish can speak, his lungs having been in- jured with firedamp. | A Coroner's inquest will be held to-mor- | row to determine the Mability, if any, for | the deaths resulting from the explosion. | No one can more than theorize as to the | cause. It is generally believed, however, | that it resulted from either a sudden co | tact with a body of gas in the old wor! | ings of the mine or some act of careless- ness on the part of one of the mine | Dynamite has been freely used In blas | ing coal, but it is claimed that no danger | attaches to its use when the fuse and ipunk with which it is ignited are care- fully handled. The miners are strictly ordered to light the punk In the passage- ways having fresh air to prevent any ex- plosion. Smoking is prohibited, but it is possible the explosion was caused by some miner lighting a match or opening his safety Clanney lamp. Fire Inspector Jones, who was killed, reported yesterday | moruing that the mine was absolutely free from gas. This report was placed on the bulletin board of the mine at 7 o’clock and also written in ink in the mine record book. Jones was an expert inspector and the company will rely upon this statement to prove that the mine was in good condi- tion when the miners entered it at 7 o'clock yesterday morning. Foreman Da- vis. who escaped, made a complete round 1 of the mine during the fe coming out w p He failed to f the mine was Some of the were horribly bur ed. arred clatming harred and ¢ Shocking sights have been witnessed all day. Sorrowing fate of their loved o the stre 1 the morgue. The hospital contains bent and twisted forms of men who will nat recover for months. The lungs of all who escaped were powerfully affected by fire damp. + The bodies were washed and made ready for burfal as fast as they arrived at the morgue. They were then removed to the homes, where heart-rending scenes were again enacted. The funerals will be heid Tuesday and Wednesday from the Pres- byterfan and Lutheran Churches. Nu- merous offers of help were recelved to- day by Superintendent Davies from other coal mining towns. All were declined Thirty miners from Wilkeson came up in their working clothes and jolned the rescuing force. The mine is still in charge of the State Mine Inspector. State Labor Commis- sloner Adams arrived to-day to look af- ter the miners’ interests. Governor Roger returned to Tacoma this morning, after spending the night at Superintendent Da- vies' residence. He did not confer with the miners. SEATTLE, Dec. 10.—Washington miners, through the local union, have take to render the familles of the vi those injured in the Carbonac ancial ald. All labor unions in Washington will contribute to th CANADIANS MOVE FORWARD. ORANGE RIVER. Dec. 5.—Half of the men of the Canadlan contingent have gone forward. Like the At tingent, they have been put since their arrival and have ! sidings, erecting platforms and rendering the usual routine service. They are in excellent condition and very zealous, —- RIVER GUNBOATS SENT. LONDON, Dec. 1L —Two shallow- draft river gunboats are being prepared at Chatham for service In South Africa. Each will carry two 6-pounders. oulck- firers and four Maxims