(_Edited by the War Correspondents with Lord Roberts' Force._)
[Footnote 2: Copyrighted in England and America; used here by Mr. Kipling's leave.]
Certain Boers, having blown up a Bridge, departed in the Face of the British Army, which, arriving at that dynamited Place, made Outcry to the Gods, saying, "Oh, Jupiter, these Ruffians have blocked the Traffic, and we are vastly incommoded. Is there Anything worse than the Boer?"
This being reported to the Railway Authorities, they caused a Railway Staff Officer to be sent to that Bridge with Instructions to facilitate Matters by all means in his Power.
Later on They picked up What was left of the British Army in those parts--one dusty Shovelful, and its Lamentations were louder than before.
"Ungrateful Wretches," said the Military Authorities; "what would you now have?"
And the Remnant of the British with one Accord answered, "Give us back the Boer!"
Our hero was a Tommy, with a conscience free from care. And such an open countenance that when he breathed the air He used up all the atmosphere--so little went to spare. You could hardly say he breathed,--he commandeered it.
For, nowadays, you'll notice when a man is "on the make," And other people's property is anxious for to take, We never use such words as steal, or "collar," "pinch," or "shake:" The fashion is to say he "commandeers" it.
And our simple-minded hero used to grumble at his lot; Said he, "This commandeerin's just a little bit too hot. A fellow has to carry every blooming thing he's got, For whatever he lets fall they'll commandeer it."
So, at last in desperation, this most simple-minded elf, He thought he'd do a little commandeering for himself; And the first thing that he noticed was a bottle on a shelf In a cottage, so he thought he'd commandeer it.
"What ho!" says he, "a bottle! and, by George, it's full of beer! And there's no commandin' officer to come and interfere. So here's my bloomin' health," says he; "I'm on the commandeer." And without another word he commandeered it.
Sir William Lockhart's death, as recently announced in Army Orders, will be deeply deplored by his many friends in the Army in South Africa. It was known that he had been seriously ill last September, but he had seemingly recovered when he visited Burma in December. On his return to Calcutta in January, symptoms developed themselves which caused great anxiety, and, although he telegraphed to the effect that he hoped soon to be all right again, the end was not far distant.