File:Battles of the nineteenth century (1901) (14595843737).jpg

Identifier: battlesofninetee06forb (find matches)
Title: Battles of the nineteenth century
Year: 1901 (1900s)
Authors: Forbes, Archibald, 1838-1900 Atteridge, A. Hilliard (Andrew Hilliard)
Subjects: Battles Military history, Modern
Publisher: London New York : Cassell and Company
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

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ate leaders were anxious ti>defend it. Others held that a stand at Bloem-fontein would only lead to useless loss of lifeand destruction of property. Finally this partyprevailed. Kruger had gone north on the dayafter the battle of Driefontein. Steyn followedhim on the evening of the 12th. All theGovernment officials were paid three monthssalary in advance, and the mayor of the townwas empowered to make arrangements for hand-ing it over peacefully to Lord Roberts. For many years there had been a largeEnglish element in the population of Bloem-fontein. In fact, it has often been described asthe most English-looking town in South Africa.Several of the leading men, even among theDutch, had been opposed to the policy ofalliance whereby the Free State threw in its lotwith the Transvaal. The presence of so manyBritish sympathisers and half-hearted FreeStaters in the town is sufficient to explain notonly the absence of all resistance, but also thefact that no effort was made to get away the
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BLOEMFOXTEI K : THE FORMAL ANNEXATION OF THE ORANGE FREE STATE. thp: hoer war. seventeen or eighteen locomotives and the hun-dreds of railway carriages at the station. It issurprising that the fighting burghers who werein the neighbourhood did not take steps toremove i>r destroy all this rolling stock, thepossession of which was of the utmost aid toLord Roberts in the further prosecution of thewar. Hunler-Weston had managed to blowup a culvert a (nw miles north of the town, afterdark ; but even then a few determined men onthe Bopr;side could easily have wrecked theengines and burned the carriages and waggons. Early on Tuesday, the 13th, Lord Roberts sentan officer with a flag of truce to demand thesurrender of the city. The officer was met by adeputation of the citizens, who were already ontheir wav out with a white flag to arrange withLord Roberts to hand over the town to him.Among them were Mr. Eraser, the leader ofthe opposition in the Free State Volksraad,who had been a member

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