OUR CHRISTENING COMPETITION
_I declare the Original War ended and a New One
begun--Enteric's ravages._
"The Friend" of April 4th contained a column of offers of a new name
for the Orange Free State in response to our promise of a five guinea
prize to the propounder of the most suitable new title for the
country. We published a ballot form for use by our readers in voting
for whichever five of the proposed names they preferred. All our
readers were asked to vote, and it was to be our part to discover what
person was the earliest to send in either the five most popular names
or the greater number of them. This gave us such an addition to our
labours that I suspect we were all as sorry as I know that one of us
was for having gone into this gift enterprise.
I was the author of the "leader" of the day upon "The End of the War."
In this I said that the war first planned by the Boers was already
over and won by the British. That was a war of extermination of the
British in Natal and the Cape, which two colonies were to be the scene
of the fighting, and to be captured by the Dutch. "It was to be
fought out on British soil to the damage of British property and the
slaughter of such British as did not flee from their homes. That war
ended quickly in a complete failure. Now," I continued, "another
struggle is going on to settle whether the two races are to live in
peace together, whether the Boers are to continue to obstruct modern
progress, and whether white men who live in South Africa are to enjoy
white men's rights and white men's liberty."
We published an interesting review of the life of the late Sir Donald
Stewart, who had just died in England.
Mr. Landon wrote an editorial requesting the editors of the
mischievous Capetown organ of the Bond, _Ons Land_, not to send their
wretched paper to our office, and he added that if we could have our
way no such publication would exist.
Mr. Gwynne was the author of the witty paragraph on "How History is
Made."
Enteric, the ravages of which were assuming extraordinary proportions,
now began to exact attention from our contributors. One of these wrote
recommending the transfer of enteric patients to a building put up as
a retreat for lepers six miles away, at Sydenham. He argued that it
was "not fair" to mass the fever patients in the buildings of
Bloemfontein. I cannot have seen this article at the time, or it would
have been either left out or answered by me with a modest suggestion
that the "unfairness" might possibly be in allowing those of us who
were well and strong to remain in the hotels, all of which, together
with as many dwellings as were needed, could, perhaps, be turned into
hospitals. To leave the fever-stricken men out in rain-soaked tents
set up on muddy ground, where the most ordinary demands of nature had
to be met at a risk of death--if this could be avoided, this was the
unfair thing. I would have proposed that the sick soldiers and the too
vigorous pro-Boers of Bloemfontein change places, putting our enemies
in the tents, if such a course were possible.
* * * * *
THE FRIEND.
(_Edited by the War Correspondents with Lord Roberts' Force._)
No. 16.] BLOEMFONTEIN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4, 1900. [Price One Penny.
TO THE INHABITANTS OF BLOEMFONTEIN.
NOTICE.
There is a great want of bedsteads for the use of the sick and wounded
in the various hospitals here.
An appeal is hereby made to the charity of the general public. All who
can possibly spare any single bedsteads with mattresses and pillows
complete, are earnestly requested to communicate with Colonel
Stevenson, Principal Medical Officer, Maitland Street, who will
arrange to receive them. Labels, with name and address of owner,
should be affixed to each bedstead lent, so as to ensure its return
when no longer required.
G. T. PRETYMAN,
Major-General,
Military Governor.
April 3rd.
PROCLAMATION.
WHEREAS: it is deemed expedient and necessary for the welfare of the
Orange Free State that the Railway Service shall be resumed in the
aforesaid Republic as far as circumstances permit,
NOW THEREFORE,
I, FREDERICK SLEIGH BARON ROBERTS OF KANDAHAR, K.P., G.C.B., G.C.S.I.,
G.C.I.E., V.C., Field Marshal and Commanding-in-Chief of the British
forces in South Africa, do hereby appoint Lieutenant Colonel Edouard
Percy Cranwill Girouard, D.S.O., Director of Railways, South African
Field Force, Administrator of the State Railways in such portions of
the Orange Free State as have been or may hereafter be occupied by
British Troops. And I do hereby order that the Railway and Railway
Telegraph Services shall be resumed in the portions of the aforesaid
Republic already referred to, from the nineteenth day of March, 1900,
under the existing Laws and Conventions of the Orange Free State,
subject to such alterations as may from time to time be notified, and
to the requirements of the army.
Given under my hand at Bloemfontein, this Thirtieth Day of March,
1900.
GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!
ROBERTS, Field-Marshal,
Commanding-in-Chief British Forces
in South Africa.
* * * * *
"THE RUSSIANS CAPTURE LONDON."
BY H. A. GWYNNE.
BLOEMFONTEIN, Thursday, received Friday.
Kruger is reported to have proclaimed the annexation of the Free State
to the Transvaal.
It is also reported that he is circulating a proclamation that England
is in dire straits, the Russians have occupied London and proclaimed
it Russian territory (Reuter).
It is painful to think that Lord Roberts is totally unaware that he is
fighting for a country that has ceased to exist, that St. Paul's is
now a Greek Chapel, that the Thames is called the Temsky River, that
our beloved Queen is a prisoner at Moscow, and that Lord Salisbury is
already trudging on the weary snow-bound way to the mines at Kara, in
Siberia.
Why do you laugh?
To us it seems awful!
* * * * *
CAUGHT BY THE BOERS.
After three weeks spent in "bluffing" the Colesberg Boers, by holding
various kopjes with a half company at the bottom, I found myself one
fine February morning seized with a sudden attack of "Mauseritis," and
so forced to watch the rest of a disastrous rear-guard action without
taking part in it.
My company and one other, having spent a very cold night on a kopje
N.W. of Rensburg, came down at 5 a.m. to find our other companies "not
lost but gone before" to Arundel, and a sudden and unexpected Boer
cross-fire brought on the aforesaid "attack." From 6 to 8 I lay
watching little puffs of dust in the immediate vicinity, caused by our
men returning the fire, as a lot of the Boers had followed us up and
were lying down about 300 yards from me.
At 8 our fire stopped, and up galloped batches of the ragged
ruffians, the first two pointing Mausers at me and asking, "Rooinek
wounded?" My answer, "Yes," seemed to relieve them, and they jumped
off their horses, and quickly relieving me of carbine and belt (the
only things they took) galloped on. At intervals of ten minutes all
sorts and conditions followed them with, "Good morning, old chap," and
they seemed very sorry at seeing me wounded. At 10, four of them,
under the guidance of a commandant, carried me in a bit of sacking a
mile to Rensburg Station, to the "Station Commandant's" Room, and I
spent a happy day till 5 p.m. with 11 of our men, all air prevented
from coming in by our inquisitive friends, the enemy, who "held" both
doors and windows with great success, making the place a regular Black
Hole.
They seemed quite happy, just standing still, staring at us, and never
uttering a syllable, though they would do anything we asked. At last,
after hours of waiting, they moved us to a coachhouse close by and
"dressed" us. We stayed there till 5 the next day, and had many
interesting talks with them. One old man gave us a blessing, with "I
wish Chamberlain was here to see you now." Their sole idea was that
Jos. C. and Rhodes were entirely responsible for the war. Many such
questions as "Were you compelled to fight?" &c., were asked you, and a
small box of "sparklets" cartridges was a source of much wonder. My
next move was to an empty store in Colesberg, where Hofman (of the
Cape Parliament) had a Russian-German and Dutch Ambulance combined
(one of his men had been fighting against us and now, covered with Red
Crosses, helped to carry us about). I stayed there a week, having
devoured more figs and grapes than ever before.
All the English ladies and the Dutch Minister in particular brought us
fruit, and I should like to thank them personally. Only the Dutch
people were allowed in to see us, and were very keen on getting our
buttons and badges as keep-sakes.
They turned us out of the field hospital one night at 9, and we were
jolted along in buck-waggons till 5 the next morning, then a halt of 5
hours, and at last we got to Norval's Pont at 5 p.m., after the worst
journey I ever hope to have. It was quite a treat seeing trees again,
as some of the country we passed through was really pretty. Our
ambulance train consisted of layers of stretchers, one above the
other, on a large "bogey" truck. At Springfontein, we were entrusted
to a German ambulance, from Hamburg, covered with crosses, doctors,
nurses and patient helps, but they were very kind to us.
We got news daily from the station telegraphist, Mr. Fryer, and Mr.
Shipp, also employed on the station, till the escape from Pretoria put
an end to our visitors. The hospital was half full of Boers, and they
seemed perfectly happy sitting still the whole day long doing nothing,
but smoking hard. Two engines were always left ready for emergency,
the line being 100 yards away, so sleep at night was a matter of
difficulty. Just when I was hoping we should be relieved, they moved
us under the safe keeping of a Bloemfontein policeman in a gorgeous
blue uniform to the Volks Hospital here, passing through hundreds of
sleeping burghers in the station. Here we languished in the utmost
comfort, till the famous Tuesday when little black specks on the veldt
and the arrival here of "Bobs" made our scarce-believing eyes quite
certain that we were no longer Boer prisoners.
ANON.
* * * * *
ENTERIC FEVER.
BY AN ARMY SURGEON.
No disease causes such havoc in modern campaigns as typhoid or enteric
fever, and it becomes the duty of every one having authority to
impress this fact upon the men committed to their charge. More
especially is this duty imperative when troops are on the march, for
many a valuable life is thrown away by the want of the strong hand of
a wise discipline. When thirsty, men will drink anything, and it is
here that good may be done. It is reported that one regiment on the
march recently made the use of water-bottles a matter of drill, the
word of command being given every hour for a mouthful of water to be
drunk. As a result, men arrived in many cases at their bivouac with
some water still left from their morning supply, without being one
whit more thirsty than their neighbours.
Typhoid in the vast majority of cases is waterborne, and hence the
greatest care should be taken to avoid any dubious pan or pool. The
only real preventative of this disease is to boil all water used, and
although this may be impracticable on service, surely discipline will
prevent the drinking of doubtful water. No medical observer can help
wondering why more men were not inoculated on their way out from home.
The inoculation does no harm, its pain is a small matter, and its
utility in modifying the severity of the disease is now well
established. Take a case in point: two officers in the same regiment,
one aged 31 and the other 24, contracted the disease on the same day
from the same source. On the usual lines, the younger man should have
had the worst attack, and yet, although physically the weaker, he
recovered and his senior died. The younger man had been inoculated but
the other had not! Some will say that it was the senior's kismet, but
let that pass. The campaign is now well begun, and it is not too late
even now to furnish supplies of lymph to Medical Officers for use with
their units.
The disease now so rife is marked by an absence of abdominal symptoms
and may, in its early stage, be overlooked. It is during this period
of uncertainty that harm may be done by a solid diet, and it is safer
by far for any one suspecting himself to be suffering from influenza
or other vague disease to restrict himself for a few days to a milk
diet. Then if the febrile condition passes off, no harm is done, but
it is to be feared that few will take this amount of trouble over
themselves.