GEN. BOTHA'S BRILLIANT CHARGE--OUR FRENCH GUN CAPTURED--MAJOR PRETORIUS
CAPTURED--A CLOSE CALL BUT ALL ENDS WELL--GEN. DE WET'S DARING WORK.
In the month of November, although on the high veldt there was daily
skirmishing with the English, there was but one really good fight,
and that was one of the most brilliant and dashing of the war. In the
eastern part of the high veldt, many of the English columns were at
their same old game, trying to corner General Louis Botha. For the
tenth time, he had outwitted them and escaped from their clutches.
He at once left those parts, and came to our section in the west. At
Brakenlaagte, not far from the little town of Bethel, he discovered an
English column. He collected some of the small commandos near and found
he had 470 men. This he considered sufficient for his work.
Brakenlaagte is a beautiful grassy plain, very tempting for a cavalry
charge. About a mile behind the main column, the English commander,
Colonel Benson, left a strong rear guard and two guns. General Botha
decided to charge first the rear guard and then the main column, which
was about 1,500 strong. He gave the word, and off the Boers went at
high speed, whooping and yelling and crying, "Look out, Khakies, we are
coming." The rear guard mounted and fled, leaving two guns behind them,
but the most of the burghers passed the guns and continued the chase.
So demoralized were the English, that many of them threw away helmets,
rifles, belts, etc., and ran in all directions in hope of escaping. A
part of the column, however, stood its ground well and poured in a hot
fire on the Boers near the two captured guns. Finally the whole column,
with its four remaining guns, fled, leaving wagons, carts, etc., in the
hands of the Boers. General Botha with 470 had, by a dashing charge,
won a most brilliant victory. Over 300 English were killed and wounded,
and nearly 400 taken prisoners. These men were released. This column
never again took part in the war, and was for months laid up for
repairs. Its brave commander, Colonel Benson, was mortally wounded and
soon died.
Among the first captured was one Tommie, with whom a young burgher had
exchanged clothes, and by accident General Botha saw this Tommie and,
taking him for one of his burghers who was lagging behind, struck him
with his whip and ordered him into the fight.
[Illustration:
WILL BARTER, JOHN HYGELSEN KLOPPER.
The Treasury Department in the Field. Wm. Barter, chief of the Money
Printing Division, on the left.]
The poor fellow was scared half to death, but found words enough to
murmur, "I am an English prisoner." General Botha then saw what had
happened to the young fellow, and he immediately apologized. The young
fellow said in reply "That he was proud that he could say that he had
been struck with a whip by such a brave man, and the commandant general
of the Boer Army."
Among Colonel Benson's letters was one written that day to his wife,
and in it he stated that he had been searching for the Boers all day
and had been much disappointed in not finding them, for he was longing
for a fight. The letter was returned to be forwarded. Colonel Benson
had a great reputation as an artillerist, and was undoubtedly one of
the bravest and most dashing officers in the English Army.
General De Wet and some of his commandants had a few small fights in
the Free State, but none of any importance. General Smuts was creating
considerable excitement in Cape Colony, and some of the commandants
were doing likewise. One of Smuts' commandos captured about 200 men
in one fight. The English press claim that these men deliberately
refused to fight, and laid down their arms on a preconcerted agreement.
I do not know how much truth there is in this, but I do know that
the Tommies were getting tired of being shot down. Many hundreds of
prisoners taken on the high veldt would fairly beg not to be released,
and said they would be glad to live on mush and meat. They were
so utterly disgusted with the war that many, after being released,
would follow up the Boer commandos, and then beg not to be sent away.
Sometimes they had to be sent in with an escort. We could have put many
in the bush veldt where there was food, but had any of them died of
sickness, the English would have sent the news broadcast that they had
been murdered. Evidently they preferred to be so murdered by the Boers
rather than be actually murdered by their incompetent English officers.
With few exceptions, certain it is that the British soldier had but
little respect for the British officer. Many times Lord Kitchener sent
his cablegrams charging the Boers with maltreating or murdering some of
the English prisoners, and after peace was made some British officers
took pleasure in throwing this libellous charge into my face. In every
instance I replied "Yes, you make this charge against the Boers; but
call up some of the men who were taken prisoners at the same time, and
let me hear what they have to say about it." Not one of them would
think of doing this, because they said that an English officer's word
was as good as his bond. No English officer would dare to submit the
case to such a test, because he knows that the first man questioned
would prove him a liar.
I came near getting into trouble with some of them on this subject,
for at times my retorts were very warm and to the point, considering
that I had just surrendered my rifle, and was being closely watched
by a lot of hounds. The very fact that every one took particular
pains to bring up this subject was proof in itself that they were
lying, and trying to find some one who might say that possibly he had
seen one man unfairly shot. I have seen and talked with hundreds of
English prisoners, but never heard one make any such a charge. In fact,
everyone will tell you that the Boers treated him as a soldier and a
man, wounded or not wounded. In other parts of the land, there was no
fighting of any consequence.
In December, although we had the usual daily attacks on the high veldt,
there is but one that I will mention, because I read General Bruce
Hamilton's report of it. At Wilkrans, a high ridge about nine miles
from Ermelo, there were about 300 of us camped, with General Piet
Viljoen in command. From this position, our scouts reported that there
were twenty-eight English camps in striking distance and well around
us. Our chances for escape were none too good. Yet General Piet Viljoen
did not consider that we were in any danger.
Without going into details, I will simply say that at daylight the
following morning, we were surrounded by 4,000 cavalry, and it was a
case of run for your life or surrender. All escaped but sixty-nine
men, and our one cannon. Not a man was killed on our side, that is
certain, and if any were wounded, they were taken prisoners. We
escaped under a hot fire, and this was kept up on us for about three
miles. In his report, General Bruce Hamilton had sixteen killed, many
wounded, whom he left at the farm ruins, and one gun taken, as well
as sixty-nine prisoners. How an English general can report such a
monstrous lie is beyond me, for he knows that his men know, and that we
know that no one was killed on the Boer side. Within half an hour after
the English left, some of the boys rode back to look over the place.
There was but one man killed in that fight, and he was a Scotchman whom
the English half buried before they left. Bruce Hamilton is generally
known as "Brute" Hamilton, and while this name fits him as far as it
goes, yet "Brute Hamilton the liar" would fit him still better.
It was during this month, too, that I suffered the loss of my old
friend and companion, Major J.I. Pretorius. During my absence he and
thirty-three artillery boys were surrounded by about 300 cavalry near
Balmoral Station, and captured. Be it said to his credit that he and
his men never surrendered. Every cartridge they had they fired, and
when they had no more, the English simply came and took them. I was
sure he would never hoist the white flag, and I was sure, too, that
he would never surrender as long as he had a cartridge left. He was a
dashing fellow, thirty years old, and did not know what fear was. He is
one of the great Pretorius family of South Africa, and he made the name
good. Had he not been so reckless, I think he would have been appointed
a general, and I am sure he would have proved himself a most brilliant
one.
To show what a reckless devil he was, I will tell you that one day I
was about 1,500 yards from him and another reckless fellow, Lieutenant
Roos, of the artillery. They wished to attract my attention and have me
come where they were. To do this he and Roos loaded their rifles, took
deliberate aim, and fired at us. The bullets went just over our heads,
and struck not twenty feet from us. We concluded they were English, and
prepared to return the fire, when off they galloped. We went after them
and found them at a house that had only been partially destroyed. We
recognized their horses tied to a tree, and rode up to them. I gave him
blazes, but he simply smiled, and said, "Can't you take a joke?"
Now that he had been captured, I felt very lonely, and took but
little pleasure in every-day life. The English were continually after
us, however, and surrounded about eighty of us at daylight in the
morning. Firing seemed to come from all directions but one, and in that
direction we looked for safety. We went at full speed and had gone but
a few hundred yards when we saw some cavalry just coming up in front of
us. We thought we were gone, and this cavalry thought we were charging
them, so off they went at the top of their speed. We were brave now and
went right after them, scattered them and chased them three miles, when
we stopped, having captured in the race sixty-three of them with as
many fine horses. That is what we considered great luck.
Now I will go into the Free State, and say a few words about one of
General De Wet's most daring deeds.
It was at Groenkop, a high hill on the farm Tweefontein, near the
little town of Bethlehem. It was Christmas eve and all wanted a
Christmas pie. This was a high hill with three very steep, abrupt
sides, while the other was a gentle slope leading to the plain below.
On the top of this hill were about 380 men well protected in about
twelve forts. General De Wet, when it was dark, took 500 men and
approached the steep side opposite the one of easy ascent, because he
knew that the English would all prepare for attack from the easiest
way. He and his men crawled up that hill, and when first challenged by
the English sentry they rushed forward, and after a hot face to face
fight, captured all the force, forts and stores. According to General
De Wet's own report, he lost fourteen killed and thirty wounded, while
the English lost 116 dead and wounded, and 240 prisoners. He took one
cannon, one pom-pom, twenty wagons, a great quantity of ammunition and
rifles, 500 horses and mules, and a load of whiskey, so he and his men
were well supplied for a fine Christmas dinner.
[Illustration: THE GOVERNMENT VELDT MINT IN THE LAST DITCH]
Strange to say, the Boers nearly always took from the English their
Christmas dinners. The first Christmas they took nearly all the Queen's
chocolates, the second Christmas, all the plum puddings, and now
General De Wet, a third Christmas, has taken the poor devils' Christmas
dinner from them again. I heard some prisoners once say that they
wished their friends at home would secretly send them Christmas dinners
three months ahead, so that they could get them and eat them before the
Boers found it out.
Generals Smuts and Kritsinger continued to make things merry in Cape
Colony, and their commandants helped themselves to several convoys,
much to the regret of the English, but with great pleasure to
themselves. Before the month closed, however, General Kritsinger was
severely wounded while trying to rescue one of his wounded men near
a blockhouse, and was in consequence captured. In this was a severe
loss, for he was a dashing and persistent fighter.
Many other small fights took place, and the Boer commandants were
generally successful in taking a few prisoners and wagons.