nal number of waggons. The Boer patrols are very venturesome;
they have approached within three and a half miles of the town, and one
party actually removed carcasses ready dressed for consumption from
within the slaughtering lines."

The prospect was far from cheering, particularly as Sir George White was
well aware that his field-guns were ineffective against the powerful
guns of position which the enemy were handling with unpleasant
dexterity. At this critical period the united forces of Ladysmith and
Glencoe only amounted to some 10,000 men, more than half of whom were
infantry. The General, however, put the best face he could on the
matter, telegraphed home for big guns--and waited!

General Joubert now expressed his opinions on the causes of the war. His
ideas, published in the German journals, were of interest as showing the
sentiments of the opposite camp:--

"It was evident to our Government after the Jameson raid, that
Great Britain would be forced in time by various sordid
elements into a war of extermination with the Boers. It was
equally clear that this danger could only be averted by
armaments on a most extensive scale. We were conscious that the
impending war of annihilation would incur the sharpest
condemnation on the part of the other European Powers, but
history had taught us that not one of these Powers would be
roused to intervene in our favour. In these circumstances we
had to rely on our own strength.

"By indefatigable zeal and heavy sacrifices to augment our
forces, and yet to secrete them from the observation of the
British--these were the objects of our noblest exertion. Well,
we succeeded, and hoodwinked the British. Spies were permitted
to obtain glimpses of our obsolete artillery, but until the war
was on the point of breaking out they had no suspicion of the
formidable extent of our stores of modern material.

"We counted on the unreliability of the British announcements
concerning their own preparedness, and attended as little to
their cries of 'To Pretoria!' as did the Germans in 1870 to the
Parisian boasters who shouted 'A Berlin!' Without completely
denuding her colonies of troops, Great Britain cannot possibly
despatch more than about 85,000 men to South Africa. Of this
imposing force, only half will be available for the chief
battles. It may be possible fo