624 



SOUTH AFRICA. 



ammunition, and to arm every new recruit it was 

 necessary to capture a British soldier. They had 

 -quantities of Lee-Metford ammunition captured 

 from British trains and outposts. While moving 

 .about in front of the pursuing columns the Boers 

 frequently blew up railroad-trains as they crossed 

 the line. Many of them knew how to lay a mine 

 by placing the lock of a Martini rifle and dyna- 

 mite cartridges under the rails. Local troops and 

 British infantry held the passes on the south and 

 east to prevent the escape of any more of the com- 

 mandoes in those directions while Gen. French 

 carried out his northward drive in August and 

 September. The energy with which the campaign 

 was pressed gradually reduced the numbers of 

 the Boers. They were pressed on all sides, and 

 could no longer roam about at will. The railroads 

 were guarded by blockhouses. Toward the end of 

 July Gen. French decided to abandon the tactics 

 of "pursuing individual commandoes, and by a 

 sweeping movement either to drive the Boers 

 against the line of blockhouses extending from De 

 Aar to Stormberg and from Norvals Pont to 

 Naauwpoort or drive them across the Orange 

 river. A large number of parallel columns of 

 about 500 men each marched south from the 

 railroad. The Boers slipped between the columns 

 and went north. When the columns had pro- 

 ceeded as far south as Graaf Reinet they swung 

 round, were reenforced, and marched north again. 

 When the columns on the extreme right came into 

 contact with Kritzinger's commando they pressed 

 forward, driving Kritzinger, Malan, and Wessels, 

 with about 400 men, across the Orange river. The 

 commandos of Botha and Letters in the center 

 were pushed against the blockhouses between Ros- 

 mead Junction and Naauwpoort, but while five 

 columns were converging upon them they escaped 

 on Aug. 14 over a mountain that was believed to 

 be impassable, and went south again to the Crad- 

 ock district. Theron's commando also slipped 

 through the line and returned to the Murrays- 

 burg district after having on Aug. 10 surprised 

 a body of 68 scouts near Bethesda and taken 

 away their horses and supply-train. Scheepers 

 had kept to the south of the columns and when 

 they turned about he made a dash to Willowmore, 

 but turned to the northwest when columns ar- 

 rived by train to enclose his little force. He 

 boasted his intention of wintering in the moun- 

 tains, in which he had collected a great quantity 

 of supplies captured from the British. Kritzinger, 

 Malan, and Wessels were driven before the col- 

 umns and with about 300 men escaped over the 

 Orange river. Kritzinger was overtaken by Col. 

 Gorringe on Aug. 13 north of Steynsburg, and 20 

 of his men were killed. He fled with about 70 

 and crossed the river. Scheepers proceeded south- 

 ward as far as Uniondale, where he came in con- 

 tact with the troops of Gen. Beatson. The Boers 

 in the Transvaal and the Orange River Colony 

 sent several large commandoes to the south to 

 support the Boers in Cape Colony. Against this 

 move Lord Kitchener had made preparations by 

 strengthening the posts in Orange River Colony 

 and on the Orange river. Troops were also sent 

 into the Transkei and Griqualand to prevent re- 

 enforcements from passing through or the Cape 

 commandoes from breaking in. Hertzog and Lat- 

 egan appeared with commandoes in the west near 

 Philipstown and were driven back over the 

 Orange river. Scheepers turned back to the north- 

 west, and Theron, whose small force was com- 

 posed mainly of foreigners, attempted to form a 

 junction with him from the Willowmore district. 

 Myburgh's commando of rebels escaped into Gri- 

 qualand. The total number of burghers and rebels 



still remaining in the Midland districts was esti- 

 mated at the beginning of September at 1,500. 

 A commando of Free State burghers succeeded in 

 crossing the Orange river east of Herschel in the 

 beginning of September. On Sept. 4 Letter and 

 his rebel commando were overtaken by Col. Sco- 

 bell at Bowershoek, near Petersburg, and were 

 captured after a fight in which 19 were killed 

 and 52 wounded. The number of unwounded 

 prisoners was 62. The section of Letter's force 

 commanded by Vandermerwe was caught east of 

 Laingsburg by Col. Crabbe's column, and in the 

 engagement the commandant and 4 others were 

 killed, 7 wounded, and 37 of his men taken pris- 

 oners. On Sept. 18 the commando of Smuts at- 

 tempted to break through the cordon of columns 

 at Elands river poort by rushing a squadron of 

 lancers, killing 3 officers and 20 men and wound- 

 ing Major Sandeman and 30 men. On Sept. 20 

 Kritzinger with a reorganized commando at- 

 tempted to force a passage of the Orange river 

 and reenter the Colony at Herschel. He attacked 

 a post held by scouts, killed Major Andrew Mur- 

 ray, the commander, and carried off a gun, but 

 was repelled, and the gun was retaken. The 

 British casualties were heavy, and in the counter- 

 attack so were those of the Boers. Executions of 

 Cape rebels were going on during the operations, 

 and Scheepers and the other commandants still 

 gained as many recruits as they could provide 

 with weapons. Letter was tried and executed 

 for treason on testimony that he was a colonial 

 who had changed his name. All his officers were 

 also to be shot; the men had their sentences com- 

 muted to life imprisonment. Scheepers had to 

 leave his commando and retire to a farmhouse to 

 undergo a surgical operation, and there he was 

 captured on Oct. 11. He was tried later for kill- 

 ing native scouts, and admitted that he whipped 

 these scouts whenever he caught them and one he 

 had shot after he had been tried as a spy. 



After the issue of Lord Kitchener's proclama- 

 tion the Boers resumed the offensive in all parts 

 of the theater of war. A commando appeared at 

 Acton Homes, southwest of Ladysmith, and the 

 Natal volunteers were called out for the defense 

 of the Tugela. In the Transvaal Gen. Delarey 

 became active again, making Wolmaranstad his 

 base, retiring when Gen. Hamilton appeared with 

 a large force of cavalry, but returning as soon 

 as the British had left. Col. Williams captured a 

 part of Delarey's transport aiter a sharp fight 

 near Klerksdorp on Aug. 19. The columns of 

 Kekewich and Allenby continued to scour the 

 Magaliesberg. Gen. Botha reassembled his com- 

 mandoes and again threatened Natal with a force 

 of 4,000 men. On Aug. 22 a detachment of 68 

 men belonging to Elliot's column was surrounded 

 and captured after 1 was killed and 4 were 

 wounded north of Ladybrand. In the attack on 

 the guard of a derailed train within 20 miles of 

 Pretoria on Aug. 31 Lieut.-Col. Vandeleur and 9 

 men were killed and 17 were wounded. The Dela- 

 goa Bay Railroad was broken near Komatipoort*. 

 In a fight near Jaskraal 16 regulars were killed 

 or wounded. The British captured a Boer laager 

 in the Losberg and took Delarey's brother pris- 

 oner. On Sept. 13 Commandant Theron attacked 

 Heidelberg. On Sept. 17 Major Gough, with- 3 

 companies of mounted infantry and 3 guns, was 

 entrapped near Utrecht and after a fight in which 

 16 officers and men were killed and 29 wounded 

 155 surrendered. The attacking party belonged 

 to Botha's commando. On Sept. 19 Capt. Tufnell, 

 with 137 infantry and 2 guns, was led into an 

 ambush at Vlakfontein in Orange River Colony, 

 and after a stubborn resistance surrendered. Geii. 



