Colonel Baden-Powell, in his letter, which was several thousand words in length, told his besieger that it was utter folly for the Boers to continue fighting such a great power as Great Britain, that the British army was invincible, that the Boers were fighting for an unjust cause, and that the British had the sympathy of the American nation.  General Snyman made a brief reply, the gist of which was, “Come out and fight.”

[Illustration:  GENERAL SNYMAN]

A British nobleman, who was captured by the Boers at the Moester’s Hoek fight in the Free State in April, was the author of a large number of communications which were almost as mirthful as Colonel Baden-Powell’s effort.  When he was made a prisoner of war the Earl had a diary filled with the most harrowing personal experiences ever penned, and it was chiefly on that evidence that General De Wet sent him with the other prisoners to Pretoria.  The Earl protested against being sent to Pretoria, asserting that he was a war correspondent and a non-combatant, and dispatched most pitiful telegrams to Presidents Kruger and Steyn, State Secretary Reitz and a host of other officials, demanding an instant release from custody.  In the telegrams he stated that he was a peer of the realm; that all doubts on that point could be dispelled by a reference to Burke’s Peerage; that he was not a fighting-man; that it would be disastrous to his reputation as a correspondent if he were not released in order that he might cable an exclusive account of the Moester’s Hoek battle to his newspaper, and finally ended by demanding his instant release and safe conduct to the British lines.  The Boers installed the Earl in the officers’ prison, and printed his telegrams in the newspapers, with the result that the Briton was the most laughed-at man that appeared in the Boer countries during the whole course of the war.

Several days before Commandant-General Joubert died he related an amusing story of an Irishman who was taken prisoner in one of the Natal battles.  The Irishman was slightly wounded in one of his hands and it was decided to send him to the British lines together with all the other wounded prisoners, but he refused to be sent back.  After he had protested strenuously to several other Boer officers, the soldier was taken before General Joubert, who pointed out to him the advantages of being with his own people and the discomforts of a military prison.  The Irishman would not waver in his determination and finally exclaimed:  “I claim my rights as a prisoner of war and refuse to allow myself to be sent back.  I have a wife and two children in Ireland, and I know what is good for my health.”  The man was so obdurate, General Joubert said, that he could do nothing but send him to the Pretoria military prison.  An incident of an almost similar nature occurred at the battle of Sannaspost, where the Boers captured almost two hundred waggons.