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HomeMy WebLinkAboutExeter Advocate, 1900-4-19, Page 7mong the Invalids Thrilling Experiences Told by Inmates of Netley Hospital. t ee MANY STRANGE AND EXTRAORDINARY CASES "I think I pity the horses more than I do the men,'' said one stalwart young fellow to a visitor to nee at Netley Hospital, , the beautiful spot in the south of England where tike soldiers invalided liome are treated. "Poor beggars! You see 'em all gashed and torn and. reekinc with blood and staggering as though they • can hardly carry their riders; but you know a man ain't going to part with his horse while the horse can carry him and he's under fire. Before he , parts with his horse he wants to get out of range." "No," said the young fellow, "I •don't want to go back any more. I was out in • India, and I've been in Egypt and now in South Africa, and I've done some fighting in all three. I've had enough of it. It ain't the tEighting, though. I don't mind that so mach. It's the roughing " it you get—sleeping out in the open and the food you have to put up with. You ,et soaking wet perhaps, and have to lie out in the open in your wet clothes. You can't have tents to sleep under, you know, except when you are in camp. And when you get your food you perhaps find your meat all full of sand. It's that sort of thing I have had enough of. It isn't the fighting so much. Lor' beesti you, you'd hardly think it was`fight- ing sometimes: Chaps are all joking and laughing, you'd think they were •opt for the fun of the thing. A bul- let`knocks down a horse, perhaps, and there's a laugh and a shout all round, as though it was a part of the game, and somebody sings out, "By Jove! that was meant for me.' " TWO SCOTSMEN TALK. That is the lighter part of the busi- ness of war—where the two sides are popping at .each other from a dis- tance but there are some who tell a ,different tale. On a seat under a spreading fir tree were two Scotsmen •chatting and smoking. The elder of ;the two was in that terrible affair at Magersfontein, and thinks himself pretty well off to have got out, of, the 'business with nothing worse than a ;shot through the shoulder and another snaking a horrible gash in his right hand. He is a stiff -built, determined looking fellow. If his hand would get well, he says he wouldn't object to go back again, though he seems to bane had a very • sickening half hour before that terrible shock. There is no doubt it was a blunder, but then they were all taken in. They had all watched the shelling of that rock, and they none of them believed there were any Boers there. As they cane up towards it they said to one another 'that it was only a wall of rock ; there was nobody •there. But it, was just as -though somebody had pulled a string nd let off ten thousand rifles at once into their close ' columns, and they kept that up without fiagging for twenty minutes. And all they could get to shoot at was just a head peep- ing rip here and there. • "There was no satisfacton to be got alit of 'em," said Sandy, with a sul- len puff et his pipe. - "It was just murder." LEFT HIS LEG IN AFRICA. The Dublin Fusiliers are numerous at Netley just now, and some of them have suffered severely. Two lads in. one of the wards were seated in cosy .easy chairs in front of the fire, both .of -them a good deal damaged. One .of then had only one leg. "And what have you done with the tither one?" „I asked him, as I seated snyself beside hint. 'Oh," he sniilincly replied, "3 left 'that out in Africa for the,.l3oers." "Ah, well, they' seem to be making very good, use of all the legs they can and just now; but how was it done? Was it a shell or a bullet?" "It was an expansive bullet," he. irenlieci.. "It knocked a - hole in the leg, and then I got it poisoned, and Thad to have it taken off. Among the wounded in Netley Hos- pital there is no doubt at all about the use of explosive bullets by the Boers, and the second of these young Irishmen told a story of his having `been.fired upon while he :lay wounded. A bullet had fractured the bone of his leg, and had dropped him 'helpless on the field. And while he lay there, with dead and dying all around him, they fauna a eliell into their midst. midd r hisnip. c apiece .of it ba 1,} rci.i'e :Further converseti.nn, however, elicit- ed the fact that the fight was not ;really over. It was still proceeding, eiid when this Shell burst all were 'nine down, c a. Well as the � � � , OmlSain.tiS as� disabled.It was not, th refore. a 'case of firing at the wounded. There is, however, among these wounded men at Notley unmistakable evidence in justification of the protest which a Iord Roberts has lotted it necessary to snake against expansive 1 St the use of g s bullets. "Andhow Havethey damaged d you?" I asked one young fellow seat- ed at the fire with outstretched leg elaborately bandaged up. "Oh, a bit of a scratch," he said, with a smile. "What sort of a scratch was it, aud how was it done?'' "Done with an explosive bullet," he said. "Are you sure of that?" "Well, the doctors out there ought to know, and they said it was. Any- how, it knocked a piece out of my leg as big as my fist, and an ordinary bul- let wouldn't have done that." TWO EXTRAORDINARY CASES. A good many of the men have ,no doubt about the character of the MIS - dies they were struck by, though they made little fuss about it. One lad who had no been among the 'prison- ers " taken by the Boers at Nioholson's Nek only because he was among the badly wounded, had had the very curious experience of getting three bullets into him with only two holes. He managed to catch a second bullet exactly in the hole made by a previ- ous one. One extraordinary ease is that of a man' who was struck by a bullet just at the corner of the eye by the side of the nose. The thing went clean through his head aud came out at the back. It did not destroy the eye, but the sight of it is gone, and he is par- alysed down one side. There is one man in the hospital, who has had two bullets in his head, one lodged there, and was afterwards extracted, and the other went right through. He was walking about somewhere very much as before. Another man had a shell burst near him, and seems to have brought no small proportion of the fragments home in his 'face. The doctors have taken out five or six pieces of iron, but the X-ray examin- ation of his face shows that he has. still got a piece embedded in his eye- lid—that is apparent, indeed, without X-rays-aud there are other pieces all down the side of his head, in his cheek bonds, and round his terribly battered and mutilated mouth. Whether he will not lose the sight of the eye with the lump of iron over it is at present doubtful. He seems uncommonly cheerful with it all, how- ever, and hopes he shall get back to his regiment all right if the eye is not gone. He got into difficulty at Spion Kop like 'a good many more. The clolefullest glen at Netley are those who have not been out at the war, but are there from aocident or illness, and the shamefaced, despond- ent way in which many of them con- fess this is very observable. They evidently feel it a deep humiliation. Spion Kop's Death -Trap, Lieut. Charles Ker, of the 4th Mounted Mule Battery, bas written to Major Wy ny and an account of the battery's participation in the affair of Spion Kon. "As the battery climb- ed the hill we could see the Boor shells bursting beautifully just in amonust our infantry. Well, the shell fire on the road up was too hot, so Major Kelly, R. A:, who is on War- ren's staff, and who was leading us up the hill, told as to rest for two hours,, and to make the final climb at mid- night. This we did, but just before we marched again, the troops began pouring down from the top under Col. Thornycroft. and finally he himself arrived, and ordered us to retire. It was a bitter blow for us at the time, but, looking at it now with a clear. head, one can see what a death-trap it would have been for us had we gat there. . . *. If we had got the guns to the top all our mules must have been killed, for there was no cover of any kind on top, and the reverse side of the plateau was precipitous. They couldn't have been retired, for the narrow path was too full of supplies, going up to allow of mules going down.'' An Old River.Fording Trick. Pte. Ramsbotham, of Sherton-lane,. in letter to his friends tells how, wlien marching from Estcourt at three o'clock in the, morning, in a heavy downpour of rain, his regiment came to a rivery;wh.ich they wre ordered to ford. "We had," be states, `no pon- toons or materials for bridging, so we were forced to get through by first sending a mounted scout over 'to as- certain the depth, which took ne • n l? to our chests. Then the horse came back again and a chain of men, hold- ingon to one another's straps, the p, first man clip in to the horse, was horse, thewaythe tri -1 c t was done. It was laughable then but'miserable after, g r, for we had to stand seven hours in the rain until thep ontoons came from Estcourt. ' However, one of the col onial scouts ettin impatient, , g g show ed the engineers a dodgeHe made a team of bullocks swim the river and drag a bigea on to the other side, g half way up the bank; then another, and „another, until they formed a bridge by which the trans ort was p brought over.' NICKNAMES OF T 1�r E(IIMENT 1 SPECIAL DESIGNATIONS OF THE BRI- TISH ARMY BATTALIONS. Almost Evory Corps' Has a Nam,. Heaig- natu In too Popular` No,neuolature— j ollowiaz lit tho Most Co,upletu Mut of tho Nieicna,nes of the British Itera. augots Luer Published. Royal IIorse Guar ds ---•"Oxford Blues," 1st Life Guards "Piccadilly But- chers," 1Jn1stion1StaDragoon Guards — "Trades 2nd Dragoon Guards—"Bays," El5th Dragoon Guards — "Green ct'sa." 7th Dragoon Guards (1) "Straw Boots;" (2) ''Black. Horse," 7th Hussars "The Young Eyes." Sth ITussars—`",The Georges." 10th IIussars --- Baker's Light Bobs.,:, 1,lth IIussars—(1) "Cherubims;" t2) "Cherry Pickers.'' 14th IIussars' "Hamilton's Run a ways." t 17th Hussars - (1) "Death or Glory Boys;" (2) "Bingham's Dan - 19th Hussars—"The Dutnpies." Grenadier Guards -(1) "The Old Eyes;" (2) "The Sand Boys." 1st Batt, Border Regt.-'Orange LIllies," est and 2nd Batt. Cheshire Regt.— "The Two Twos." 1st Batt. Connaught Rangers — "'Plae Devil's Own." ist and and Batt. Devonshire Regt. —"The Bloody," lst Batt. Dorsetshire Regt.—"The Green Linn ets." 2nd Batt, Duke of Cornwall's L. I. —"The Non Mi Iteeordos." 2ncl Batt. Essex Regt.—"The Pom- padours. 1st Batt. Gloucestershire Regt. — LADY sA.IIAH 'WILSON. "The Heroine of Mafeking," Besieged with Baden-Powell. "The Slashers." 1st Batt. IIaulpshire Regt.—"The lindens." 2nd Batt. Highland L. I.—"Assayo Regt." lst Batt. Irish Fusiliers --"The Old Fogs." 2nd Batt. Irish Fusiliers — (1) "13laney's Bloodhounds;" (2) ."The Ilollickers." ist and '2nd Batt. Irish Rett. — "Paddy's Blackguards." ist Batt. Irish Rifles Regt. --- "FitcL's Grenadiers. 1st and 211d Batt. East Kent Regt. —(.1) "The Old Bluffs;" (2) "Nut- crackers;" (3) "Resurrectionists." 1st Batt. West Kent Regt. — (1) "Dirty half Hundred;" (2) "Blind Half Hundred. ist and 2nd Batt. K. 0. Scottish Borderers — (1) "The Kobs;" (2) "Celestials;" (3) "Kokky Oky Birds." ist and 2nd Hatt. Lancs. Fusiliers —(1) "Minden Boys.," (2) "Two - Tens;" (3) "Kingsley's Band." lst and 2nd Batt. East Lancs. Refit. -"The Triple X." 2nd Batt. East Lancs. Regt.— "Lilywhites," lst and 2nd Batt, Lancaster Regt. --"Borrel's Blues." lst and 2nd Batt. Leicestershire Regt.--``,Bengal Tigers." .est and 2nd I3att. Lincolnshire Regt.—``The Springers." ist and 2nd Batt. Lothian Regt. --"Pontius Pil•te's Bodyguard." 2nd Batt.' Manchester Regt.—"Lea Miserables."` lst Batt. Middlesex Regt.-"Die bards.'', • 2nd Batt. Middlesex Regt.—"Pot- hooks." 1st 13att. Munster Fusiliers—"The Dirt- Shirts.", 1st and 2nd Batt. Norfolk Regt.— "Holy Boys." 1st and 2nd Batt. Northumberland Fusiliers—(1) "Old and Bold;" (2) "Fighting Fifth." 21,d Batt. Oxfordshire L. I. — ',Light Bobs. 1st Batt, Royal Highlanders—"The Black Watch." 1st and 2ncl Batt. Scots Fusiliers— "The usiliers--"The Earl of Mar's Grey Breaks." 2nd Batt. Seaforth 'Highlanders -- ''King's ''King's Men.'' 1st Batt. Shropshire L. I.`— (1) "13ricicdusts;" (2) ".The Old Five and '.1'hreepeniiies." 211d Mil,. Rhrolishiro L. L —"Teas Elegant Extract 1st, Taft.St,., iffo csha e Regt,-- 'Pump emt,—'PunpTortoise.'' 1 s I3ii.tt 1?ast surrey l.egt•,—'' Th e Young Buffs." est andti c Batt. West Surrey y Regi -(1) •"l.<arke's Lambs;" (2) "Sleeping QueetiG. 2nd Wales 1St,�'a,hd .Batt, Sou 13(irders-"Ilefg•nl ]'igors." :lst ' � and 2nd Tintt. Warwickshire Regt.—"Saucy Sixths." lst and 2nii Batt. Welsh Fusiliers --L`(;1) "Welsh ,Nanny' Coa,ts`'; (2) L,oya1 Goat.s , " � 1.st Batt. West Riding Rogt,-"H a- vercakc 2nd ' ]3att. West RidingRegt. "Seven en and Sixj7ennies," 1st Batt., Wiltshire Regt. "Tho Wil+slli,t'e Spritigera,'' 2nd Batt, Worcestershire Regt. -- "Saucy Gleiens " ist L al d 21r al. c Batt. Yorkshire o Itcgt, Gu cn llowae ds.' 1st and 2nd Batt, West Yorkshire Rent. - - "Calvert's Entire," FOUR DUKES TO THE FRONT. Wm Crane of Nerioilc Resitins us I'08t- ,k,aster-t'ien.+ra1 10 Oe to' The Duke:. of Norfolk recently re- aigned signed his post as Postmaster -Gen- eral and sailed for South Africa on ileo 31st -Marcel as an officer of the Imperial Yeomanry, This will make four Dukes at ilie front, as the Dukes of ,Westminster, THE DUKE OF NORFOLK, Marlborough and Roxburghe are al- ready in South Africa, His Grace the Duke of Norfolk, for- mer Postmaster -General of England, Knight of the Garter, hereditary earl- marshal of England and Premier Duke and Earl, is said to have been influenced by several reasons for re- signing his post ` to accept a quite subordinate .post • at the front. In the first place, he is said to have felt keenly the pro -Boer tendencies of the Vatican, and as the first Roman Catholic in England he desi,red to show that he was a patriot first and a. Roman Catholic after. Then he has been bitterly dlsap- pointed in his earnest desire to do work in the post office. Here he has struggled in vain with the hide- bound "red tapeism" of the perman- ent officials who have thwarted his attempts for reform and advancement by the quiet, bland and effective ob- struction of which they are past masters. Thus hurt in his strong religious feelings, foiledin his desire , for a useful career, afflicted by the death of his sister, and always melancholy on account of, the idiocy of his only son, the premier Duke of England has gone to the front. There he will find the Dukes mentioned above, twc, marquises, twenty earls, three vis- counts, twenty-three barons, fifty- two heirs to peerages; and thirty baronets, who are showing that the aristocracy does not forget that' nob- lesse oblige. ROYAL ViEWS OF KRUGER. They Are of a Good and Kindly Sort-- . The Quse,', Prayer. An interesting item appears in a periodical called The Gem, giving the opinio}z of the royal family on Presi- dent Kruger, culled from an album belonging to the Duchess of Fife. The Prince of Wales wrote: "Mr. Kreger is a good judge of tobacco and a bad judge of English people." The Duke of Cambridge, former Commander -in -Chief of the Forces, wrote: "I am an old man, and so is Kruger. As he is, so ani I—an old soldier. Z have so many faults my- self, how can I judge another2" The Queen wrote: "May God guide him 'and all cf us out of our troub- les aid difficulties." SNAP SHOT OF JOUBERT. An interesting War 1'icture of tho Lr.to liner Leader... Herewith is a rare picture. It Is one of the few snap shots taken in- side the Boer lines and sent across the sea but recently. It shows the grim : old Boer loader, Gen. Joubert, taking breakfast in camp. The ven- erable and kindly expression of the old soldier strikes you first. You will note also the absence of formality with which the burghers crowd around their general as they take breakfast Pith him. Th;-; tall, G18N1Il $ .7.O1713E11T AT DI Eli. bearded rnan standing directly behind Gen. Joubert, the one in his • shirt sleeves, is the General's son. 'I'M: man in clerical clothes Who ;..its cross 'legged at his right is the Gei- ei'al's chaplain, find a jolly fellow he 1 appears to be. Notice that the .commander-in-cl i o 1 of of the Boers eats breakfast; outdoors. Ile holds a, plate in oiie hand and a roup of nonce in the other. There are no tabieS, no napkins, no ,servants, 'I7le photograph .from. 'vtdlich this picture was taken wee nestle; by .Me. Geoego Thy neb, sp o.cial correspond eat of the London itorniog Herald. Mr. Lynch was tal:en prisoner by the Boers and thus had unusual facili- ties for seeing the war fro:n the Boer SHEEP ON .PUBLIC LANDS.; ,Tlee Matter Likely to Excite "Mach Interest In 'Wyoming. There is a veritable sbeep boom throughout Wyoming, says the Denver Republican, and everybody is eager to Convert all other kinds of property and go into the business. Those who .own sheep are in luck.. It is like owning Creek claims ins bYthe Colorado. Springs people or possessing Denver suburban acres in a real estate boom. With wool selling at almost three times the price it commanded at the worst of the depression, it is difficult to think of anything, eveniron, that has expe- rienced greater prosperity. Th t it is not lou the rise in wool that has advanced the market for sheep. Mutton also bas gone up. There has been an advance In meats of all kinds throughoutthe world, in whicb mutton had shared, but in addi- tion ddition mutton has had a separate and special advance of its own, due to an undeniable- increase in its popularity as food. The appetite of mankind is unmistakably drifting toward mutton, so that, while other things are equal, twice as much of it is eaten now as 20 years ago. The Wyoming sheep boom Is calcu- lated to force upon the country some, solution of the grazing land problem in the near future. The public land which belongs to everybody practically be- longs to nobody. Strife and bloodshed over its possession have already begun in. many localities. During the year, in addition to a natural increase of about half a million in the number of sheep in the state, another half million have been brought in to participate' in the great profits of the business. All these new sheep are crowding ranges already sufficiently occupied. But no- body can stop the nrocess under exist- ing conditions of public land tenure. Steaming a Horse's Head: When a horse has a severe cold or throat trouble, it often becomes =very desirable to give the horse a thorough steaming and thus clear the head, says C. P. Reynolds in The National' Stock- man. I recently saw an excellent device for this purpose described and exhibited In a lecture on treatment of throat troubles by Dr. Waterman of the Mich- igan Agriculture! college. 'It consisted of zti common teakettle with the cover soldered on and a small tin tube se- curely fastened in the mit dle of the cover. To this tube, whlfi:"i extended above the cover for perhaps three inch- es, a rubber tube is attached, which carries the steam to a bag drawn' over the horse's nose. The bag itself is about two feet long, with sufficient size so that the nose slips into it easily. The best material is a very heavy canvas or common grain sack, bagging. Two large holes are made in one side somewhere near the nostrils to insure good ventilation. Otherwise the, horse in breathing the same air repeatedly would be injured more than benefited. The tube from the teakettle enters the bag from near the bottom. The mere steaming in itself is good, but it can be much improved if sooth- ing remedies are added to the water so that their vapors escape with the. steam. Among those that will be good are the following, given fresh at each steaming, to about one quart or more of water: Two tablespoonfuls of tar; two teaspoonfuls of tincture of benzoin and from two to three drams of fluid ex- tract of belladonna. These can be giv- en either separately' or together. • Snake Fed Virginia H,un. "Snakes as food for hogs beat chest- nuts, acorns or any of the fancy food- stuffs," said Henry Arbuthnot to the Washington Post. "Of course you know that in some parts of Europe pigs have killed` out the vipers. I was in West Virginia some months ago and found there that a novel industry had been undertaken by a number of men whose lands were overrunby the small variety of snake that infests that sec- tion. The snakes were so numerous as to be a nuisance. One farmer tried the hog as an exterminator. He suc- ceeded so well that he found the drove of animals be had turned loose on the plantation had not only decreased the, number of snakes, but that they were actually thriving on them. He told his neighbors about it, and, now the whole valley is one large hogpen, in which hundreds of the animals are,. feeding literally on snakes. Formerly. no one would buy land there, notwith- standing_ the beauty of the. place, be cause of the snakes, but now that the remedy has been found'' and at the same time big money is made on the pigs that grow fat on snake food the land is destined to be in great demand, as it is the most fertile land in West Virginia. This lnay sound like a fairy snake tale, but I assure you tbat it is correct and that hundreds of pigs are sold from that valley every year that have literally become fat on snakes." Popular Perelterons. Secretary S. D, Thompson of the 'American Peticherou Howse Breeders' association says: "Tbe supply of good, serviceable stallions was shol't in this country, and the Importers went again to France, < but found the good ones scarce there r and held at hig11 prices, French Por, theI ieneh breeders, When the im- portation to this country stopped se suddenly In 1891, cjuit breeding to any extent, with the, consequence that the number on hand today is limited. As an illustration of how scarce and !sigh g priced Percheron stallions of servicea- ble age are over. there I vbetere , haveb e me 'a clipping from a French paper, n, given„g �9 a ...list of stallions lately bought by the government tor. fixe in the national studs. Of these 29 -ani- ma.ls 25 were 2 -year-olds, and the goy- ernment paid 99,500 francs for the 29 head, or an average of nearly $700 each, the prices ranging tl'om $600 to $900 each." WHAT TO WEAR. Itemr Concerning the Wardrybo ea the Immediate Future. Velvet is a highly fashionable material,, but is comparatively little used fn the heavy, ;rich, varieties. Thin, soft velvet, which lends itself well to draping, plait- ing and other full arrangements, is pre- ferred. For modest wardrobes where a new gown is seldom added one oe,eleth le at present the most useful, cloth being a.., OLOTH GOWN. material which is worn upon elegant or•' Basions as well as upon ordinary ones: A well made cloth gown may have two or three vests, cravats, etc., which, used in- terchangeably, will allow it to answer many purposes., Bouquets of violets are still as much worn as ever. Often they are artificial,,' but are so skillfully, made as to appear like nature. "Natural flowers are, of course, the more elegant for the corsage,_. especially for the street. A new idea ie to have thebodice bouquet of the same, variety as the flowers which trim the hat: The cut illustrates a gown of pastel,. blue satin cloth. The skirt has tb.ree graduated tunics,` which are pointed in front and lose themselves at the back' under a large box plait. The tunics are edged with stitching and a fold of yellow silk. The tight 'bodice is trimmed with. tiny bands of yellow silk arranged, in. scallops, and the tops and wrists of the. sleeves are decorated in the same way. The vest is of yellow silk laid in bias plaits, with metal buttons down the: - front. The cravat is of white tulle. The hat of pastel blue grosgrain silk is trim- med with yellow irises. Jvnzc CnoLL'ay. FASHIONABLE FABRICS. New Materials Shown For Warm Weather Wear. Brocbe bengaline in simple designs much used for bridesmaids' costumes, and faille in garlanded patterns of the Lonit Quinze order is also employed. Blue is seen in many shades -pastel, periwinkle, sevres, sky, turquoise and tones of the vaguer order. Gray is alsa4 displayed in variety—grays which are al- most white, others tinged with blue; green, yellow or pink, pearl grays and. STREET TOILET, those of it more 'confirmed' tone. Beige,, green and violet arc other fasilionabia colors. A novelty appears in, the guise.of plaid cloth, the ground being a light mastic or, beige, the bars of a variety. 01 colors. ihubroldered batistes are in great force among slimmer materials. Many have striped effects. Other's nyeembroidered in detached designs on a' L slain mound. Doth. [ ted musilns are shown and the, same style of nauslins In which tiny, bowknots or other figures are subslituler] for duty, An illustration tl at on is giyiiti whic!ti shows,' ono of the new spring models for tvall lee gowns. It is of iron grey cloth, end lee skirt is quite tight and laid in eoi'dal plaits bases and front. A pointed yoi., of black velvet is bordered with i knotted fringe of black sill., and there is a vailois of blq ell velvet at the lyrists, and tile belt is of blacl velvet, with an ornamented! buckle tt e back hatcif c a 1 ac and front., The f gray straw is trimmed with en osti'lch plutae, a bow of black velvet and a jew- eled ornament aurao C itotanx?. ; ;