ssue of this week's movements would be a
battle leading to the thorough defeat, the military destruction, of the
Boer army before Kimberley. A less valuable result would be the raising
of the siege of Kimberley without fighting, a result which is not to be
preferred, because a force that retires before battle has to be fought
later on. For this reason the true Boer game is to retreat in time.

It will be interesting to watch the effect of the new campaign upon the
ripening resolve of the British Nation to have, its Army set in order.
Upon many minds, and no doubt upon Ministers and their adherents, the
impression made by success in the field will be that reform is needless.
The true impression would be that it is as urgent as before, and that
the right way to begin is to give authority to the right man, the
commander who is now revealing his strength.

CRONJE'S SEDAN

_February 22nd_, 1900

A week ago the news was that Lord Roberts had begun his movement, that
he was moving with fifty thousand men against Commandant Cronje, and
that General French with the cavalry division had crossed the Modder,
the sixth and seventh divisions following him between the Riet and the
Modder.

The great object was to strike down Cronje's force before it could
receive help, and the design must have been to cut off his retreat to
the eastward. On Thursday, the 15th, French marched from the Modder to
Alexandersfontein, attacked the rear of the Boer line investing
Kimberley, and in the evening entered the town. He had left the sixth
division at the drifts of the Modder. This movement of French's appeared
to imply that Cronje's army was known to be retreating to the west or
north-west, and that French took the road through Kimberley as the
shortest way to reach a position where that retreat could be
intercepted. It could hardly be imagined that the move was made for the
sake of Kimberley, of which the relief was assured whether Cronje stood
to fight or retreated in any direction. The essential thing was to find
where Cronje's force was--if it was at Magersfontein to surround it or
drive it to the west; if elsewhere to delay it with the cavalry and
pursue it with the infantry. But Cronje was not found. When French was
in Kimberley, Cronje, retreating eastwards, passed through the fifteen
miles gap between the town and Kelly-Kenny. Kelly-Kenny on Friday
discovered this and set off in pursuit while French was following a Boer
force