The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, February 20, 1900, Page 1

VOLUME LXXXVII— SAN FRANCISCO, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1900. PRICE FIVE CENTS CRONJE REPORTED SURROUNDED, BULLER GAINS MINOR VICTORIES Kitchener Be- lieved to Have (83l O - the Retreat of the Fleeing Com- mander-in- Chief of the Orange Free State Forces. s on Sunday she ward. Geneé F left Kimberley Sat g g east along the ¢ iver Kitchener is trying to T i outflank the ish pursuing to delay their so to assist the ns to escape topography think risk a fight the into rough y Mail correspondent, who was with the Britis} 4 attacked by the Boers at wires: Itimately the British aban- doned the convoy, in order 1eck the advance. Thus 200 gons and 600 tons of into the hands of the Boers, though it is doubtful if they will conve Riet River ford, not stores le to carry them away.” 1 Buller has achieved a iccess seemingly in captur- ing the range of hills south of the a. It makes more feasible nother attempt to relieve Lady- h The Queen has sent a direct message to Lord Roberts con- gratulating him and his troops. General French and Colonel Kekewich have been acquainted with their promotions. Dr. Leyds, at Brussels, the Free State troops who were besieging Ladysmith have with- drawn in order to defend their homes In this way he ac- counts for General Buller's suc- cess against the weakened forces. He will forego his projected trip to Rome, he says, because of “decisive events now taking place in the theater of war.” says | e e e e e e S e e o Y ) . . . |fanNefl$ G coLumMn > THE MAXIM GUN oG RALTiING BOERS + D .o “ . British Cavalry Attacking Cen. Cronje’s Wagon Train. E3 THE RAPIDITY OF THE MOVE MENTS OF THE BRITISH FLANK- | # ING COLUMNS BROUGHT THEM TO THE LINE OF RETREAT OF THE s BOERS FROM SPYTFONTEIN AND MAGERSFONTEIN BEFORE THEIR + LONG WAGON TRAINS HAD GOT SAFELY BY ON . THEIR WAY TO + BLOEMFONTEIN, AND GENERAL KELLY-KENNY'S DIVISION CUT ¢ OFF AND CAPTURED EVENTY-EIGHT TRANSPORT WAGONS IN » ONE BODY, AND 1 SOME THIRTY, MORE. THE LARGE PIC- * TURE GIV, A FAIR IDEA OF THE OPERATION. L T e e S e S g 2 sneralchip | of cattle, 100 wagons of provisions and Lord ‘Rl.hcrt~. generaiship | 5 T00¢-, | was conducted with such se.| The Chieveley correspondent of the { 3 A Daily News, telegraphing yesterday, says | crecy, says a telegram tfrom “We now occupy all the hills to the e right of Colen sid f the Tu- | Modder River, that even the TR pshat A hiah . ths |senior officers who took the|Boc SuAiAg Js Oay) njgnt. This | o capture of Hlangwane hill is of grez sixth division through the pre. | strategical importance, as-the hill com- | | T . ¢ . . mands the flank of the Boer defenses at | liminaries of the operation did|colenso. A tuccesstul advance and the not know what they would | eearinre of.the. rallway .may .'be ex- | pected. finally have to do. The Daily Mail has the following dis- J el patch, dated Monday, from Pletermaritz- burg: BIG BATTLE ON “It Is reported that Sir Redvers Buller has captured Hlangwane hill. Large numbers of Free Staters have left to meet Lord Roberts’ force. It is believed that a number of the Boers' big guns have been taken back across the border.” CAPTURF OF THE WILTSHIRE TROOPERS THE TUGELA EXPECTED LONDON, Feb. 20.—A dispatch tb the Mail from Lourenzo Marquez, dated says: | “According | the Boers are the Tugela. They the Wiltshires were to advices from Pretoria, ting a big battle on claim that seventy of killed at Colesberg and that thirty wagons with forage and| LOURENZO MARQUEZ, Feb. 1v.--A provisions were captured, but no ammu- correspondent who was with the Boer | forces in the attack upon Rensberg gives further particulars regarding the capture of the Wiltshires. He says: “Commandant Peller, who arrived first, found two companies of the Wiltshires and began attacking in the open. Sooa after he was jolned by a body of Free Staters and together they drove the Brit- thus describe | nition. Th the fighting at Kimberl * “The British came through Blaunbank and attacked in two columns. While the Boers were busily engaged with Lord Roberts, General French, with 2000 caval- rv and six guns, succeeded in breaking | through the Boer lines. The Boers did B S i = o I SRS S S "wounded. but of the 200 Wiltshires 142 heat and thirst was intense. ers did their best to alleviate this, and many of the wounded ¢were carried in blankets to Rensberg siding. “At Rietfontein the British rear guard erals to leave the wounded in order (o re- pulse the attack. effectively to the British cannonade. The Boers lost two killed and four wounded. They now occupy all the Rensberg vosi- tions formerly occupled by the British, | the Federals close up.” - AR JAPANESE WANT TO FIGHT. VANCOUVER, B. C., Feb. 19.—The Jap- anese residents of this province have renewed their offer to raise and equip at their personal expense a corps of at least | one hundred traine * ® * * A )3 S JONE * 4 ) * * * ® ¢! PS + * 3 . * @ ur ;. 54 ® { THE BRIDGE OVER THE VAAL RIVER AT FOURTEEN STREAMS, ¢ <; NORTH OF KIMBERLEY, TO WHICH IT IS SAID GENERAL CRONJE , HIMSELF, WITH A LARGE PORTION OF HIS ARMY FROM MAGERS- ¢ o FONTEIN, IS NOW HASTENING. . By THE POINT IS A MOST IMPORTANT ONE; COMMANDING THE % & RAILROAD TO MAFEKING, AND THE NATURE OF THE COUNTRY IS ; ¢ SUCH AS TO MAKE IT EASY OF DEFENSE AGAINST A LARGE FORCE. | for service with the British forces in South Africa. The Japanese are eager have made themselves eligible for service by taking out papers of British citizen- | ship. | —_—— FIGHTING PROCEEDING NORTH OF KIMBERLEY LONDON, Feb. 20.—This dispatch from its special correspondent is published by the Daily Mail: JACOBSDAL, Feb. 18.—General Cronje is dedging away to the eastward ard fighting as he retreats under our harass- ing attack. Fighting Is still proceeding to the north of Kimberley at Dronfield. The enemy has been located by local troops, and General French has vigorously a‘- tacked them, surreunding their laager. The enemy has evacuated Kamferdam. The burgh- | began shelling, thus compelling the Fed- | A Krupp gun replied | whose rear guard is at Rietfontein, with | | ernment’'s proposals were d men, fifty of them ! .H*—O* D e e e e e e e e B e e e e e il e e e e aa o el i ol ool o n e el + from Honey Nest Kloof arrived to-day. Tt were captured, and of those forty-four | appears that the captured supplies are a were wounded. "whl[e elephant to the Boers, since they “The suffering of the wounded from |are unable to clear them away. There is considerable probability that they will be recovered. e e | COMMONS VOTES MONEY FOR THE WAR LONDON, Feb. 19.—In the House of Commons to-day during the discussion of the report of the Committee on Supply on the vote for the addition of 120,000 men to the army, Willlam Redmond opposed the measure on the ground that the Gov- largely of a permanent character. He denounced the scheme as a ‘‘miserable makeshift.” Other Irish members opposed the meas- ure. The report was finally adopted by 164 | votes against 32. Nationalist Michael Joseph Flavin, | Wyndham, Parliamentary Secretary of the Foreign Office, declared the Govern- ment proposed to invite expression of opinfon from the Colonfal Governments re- garding the reorganization of the forces of the empire, and kindred questions. | | MAFEKING REPORTED | TO HAVE BEEN RELIEVED N, Feb. 19.—Dispatches from Maseru say that large forces are be from the Transvaal to the Free ate under prominent generals. It Is also said the Free State is making des efforts to collect an army to fac British at Koffyfontein. An official proclamation orders out male inhabitants between the ages of and 60, and enthusiasts declare that ev. one up to the age of 100 must go. | Typhoid fever is sald to be playing | havoc among the Boers at Colesbers. CAPE TOW T} @ oo® D i R i S e . - - . k3 13 + > S > * ’. + > | » B » | > . e e e e e At Kimberley a report s current that | Mafeking has been relleved, but that the Boers are trying to conceal the informa- | tion. SEVERE FIGHTING ALONG THE MODDER [Special Cable to the New York Herald. ( right, 1300, by New Y ¢ pany. Republication of s prohibited. All _right the United States and Great Bri PRETORIA Feb. 16, via Lourenzo 19—Two thousand British »d in entering Kimberley There are reports of severe Marques, Feb. troops succe sterday. | fighting along the Modder River, but de- tails are lacking. MARQUES, Feb. 19.—On ving column attempted to break out of Kimberley with the gar- rison, but falled. Heavy fighting is pro- | gressing. i W ROBERTS' SUCCESS. LONDON, Feb. 20.—The Standard’s cor- respondent at Modder River, under date of Sunday, Feb. 18, wires as follows: “The magnificent success of the plan of camp:ign of Lord Roberts must be scribed in great part, after full consider- | @000 00000 0000 0000000000 +0+0+0 o +0@Q formerly soldlers in the army of Japan, | member for North Kerry, moved to re- dtce the vote of £13,009,000 to £12,000,000. Varfous other members raised protests to go to the front and all the volunteers | from different points of view against the war, John Dillon protesting against the threatened employment of natives in the hostilities. Mr. Wyndham, replying. said: “The Government is doing Its best In the circumstances of great difficulty to prevent any such horrible occurrence, but if the Boers attack any other nation we are not going to prevent that nation from defending itself.” John Redmond, the Nationalist leader, declared that the principal European na- tlons were against Great Britain in this war, and that the great mass of the pub- lic opinion in the United States was in the same direction. (Ministerial cries of “No, no.”") Mr. Flavin's motion was rejected by 235 votes against 31. After further discussion the debate was closed on motion of Mr. Ealfour and the vote was carried by 207 against 31, not serfously oppose General French's ad- vance, but confined thelr efforts to pre- venting the provisions getting through. In this they succeeded, capturing 2000 head ish back from the neighboring kopjes, capturing all but three. “It is impossible to say exactly how many of the British were killed and The reason why the supply wagons were abandoned at Riet River Drift was that an attempt to retain them would mean a delay of advance. Another wagon train e, ARMY REORGANIZATION. LONDON, Feb. 19.—Replying to a ques- tion in the House of Commons to-day, Mr, tion has been given for careful and bril- liant strategy, to the extreme mobility of the newly organized forces employed, but s mobllity has to be pald for. It in- great ~ expenditure in horses. ? the Boers, for instance, are arly finished. | | {n | _“If we are to retain our advantage there | must be an unstinted drawing upon every | possible source of supply throughout the empire. Otherwise we shall be without enough horses of the suitable kind to fur- nish the necessary remounts. “The infartry under Lord Roberts has done some marvelous marching, mostly | at night. Its pluck and endurance have and success of the cavalry operations.” RN I PRETORIUS RELEASED. ARUNDEL, Sunday, Feb. 18.—Com- mandant Pretorius, who was captured by the British at Elands Laagte, and three other Boer prisoners were handed over to the Boers from Arundel to-day. A messenger under a flag of truce had pre- viously arranged the programme. The prisoners had a cordial Interview with General Clements and were then taken in an ambulance half way to the Boer camp. —_— METHUEN AT KIMBERLEY. LONDON, Feb. 20.—The Cape Town correspondent of the Dally News, tele- graphing Sunday, says: “Lord Methuen’s force, I learn, has ar- rived at Kimberley, having got through from Magersfontein without fighting." gone very far toward ineuring the safety | Series of Suec- cesses on the Tugela That Might Lead to the Relief of | Ladysmith if Properly Fol- lowed Up by British Foreces. | | | \ HIEVELEY, Monday Feb. 19.—The Boers’ line of fortresses is roken. The British have achieved a decided success in capturing the enemy’s position on Monte Cristo. The Beers, however, effectively executed a retreat, removing their guns and convoy wagons. The British had comparatively few casualties. | BULLER'S MODEST * REPORT OF SUCCESS morning, LONDON, Feb. 19.—The War Office has recefved the following dispatch from Gen- eral Buller “CHIEVELEY CAMP, Feb. 19.—1 yes- terday moved around the enemy's flank. The Queen's, who had bivouacked on the northern slope of Cingolo, crossed the Nek and, supported, by the rest of the Second Brigade, under Hildyard, assault- ed and took the southern end of Monte Christo. “The Fourth Brigade, on the left or western slope, and the Welsh Fusileers, supported by the rest of the Sixth Bri- gade, assaulted the eastern flank of the | enemy’s position, while the Second Bri- gade cavalry, on the extreme rmight, watched the eastern slopés of Monte Christo, and drove back those of the en- emy attempting to escape there from our artillery fire. Assauited by the heavy ar- tillery fire on their front and flank, and attacked on their flank and rear, the en- | emy made but siight resistance, and | abandoning their strong position were | driven across the Tugela. I have taken several camps, a wagon load of ammuni- tion, several wagons of stores and sup- plies and a few prisoners. “The weather has been Intensely hot and the ground traversed was exceedingly difficult, but the energy and dash of the troops have been very pleasant to see. They have all done splendidly. The work of the irregular cavalry, the Queen’s, the Scots Fusileers and the Rifle Brigaj€. was perhaps most noticeable, while the excel- lent practice of the artillery and naval guns and the steadiness of the gunners, under at times very accurate fire, was re- markable. The accurate fire of the naval guns from Chieveley was of great assist- ance. “Our casualties are not, I think, many.”™ B at GENERAL BULLER NOW HAS A GREAT CHANCE LONDON, Feb. 20.—Spencer Wilkinson, reviewing the military situation In the Morning Post, dweils upon the importance of the operations of Sir Redvers Buller and says | ow is General Buller's great chance. e time to throw himself with all o the task before him and te hard without counting ses too ly. He will then probably defeat the Boers and relieve Ladysmith this week. Failing that, he will at any rate prevent them from sending reinforcements to the Free State “From the comparative ease of the ope- rations so far, however, it looks as though the Natal Boers had sent reinforcements to General Cronje, who may be delaying a fight by retreating until those reinfore ments shall have had time to reach him In conclusion Mr. Wilkinson reiterates his statement that victories are more im- portant than positions, adding: “No doubt Lord Roberts has done the best that was possible, but the essential thing still is t® destroy the Boer army.” ok o vl ‘TO ANNIHILATE THEM LATER. 19.—The latest news trom South Africa is regarded here as of the greatest importance. The Berliner | Tageblatt says that the war is doubtless now In the decisive stage and this view is corroborated by the utterances of most of the German newspapers, although the | Agrarian organs continue to affect | belleve that the Boers have permitted | the British to penetrate the Free State | only to annihilate them later on. |SHIP SUBSIDY BILL CERTAIN OF SUCCESS | BERL Feb. to Will Be Favorably Reported to the House With Objectionable Features Removed. WASHINGTON, Feb. 19.—Senator Han- na to-day had a conference with the Re- | publican members of the House Mer- | chant Marine Committee respecting the ship subsidy bill, and as a result of this | conference the whole aspect of the case | has been changed and the passage of the | bill is practically agreed upon. Another conference will be held to-morrow night, when the bill is likely to be completa and made ready for reporting to the House. The objection heretofore had to the original bill has been partly overcome, and certain features will be eliminated | when it is reported to the House. Ona great objection to the Hanna-Payne | measure was it would allow a subsidy to | many old hulks and tank steamers, and this will be avoided in some manner, pre- sumably by providing that ships applying for a subsidy shall be examined by an inspector and only first-class vessels al- | lowed upon the list. Senator Hanna sald he felt certain the bill would be agreed upon and that the amended document would suit all Republicans.