President Steyn had arrived from the Free State. He, together with all the Transvaal officers and officials, concentrated their influence on President Kruger to persuade him to go to Holland, as he was very feeble and it required so many men to guard his safety. He positively refused to go, saying that he could not leave his people and that he would look after himself. His idea was to go to Pilgrims' Rest, but that little town was far away and it required many days of hard travel through the fever stricken bush-veldt to reach it. In the end President Kruger was practically forced to take the train for Delagoa Bay en route to Holland, and as the train moved off the staunch old patriot's eyes filled with tears and he sank down broken hearted. He handed to General Botha 40,000 sovereigns, ($200,000) for the use of the burghers. This was his own money. He had no government money in his possession and the few thousand dollars that he carried to Holland belonged to him. All the burghers felt very sad at the good old man's departure and such was their love for him that they one and all resolved to fight harder than ever and bring back their great friend and patriot. On hearing of the old hero's departure, Lord Roberts found a good opportunity to use his pen again. In effect he cabled the news that Ex-President Kruger had deserted his wife, his people and land, and gone to Holland, taking with him a very large amount of gold belonging to the people. He also had some abusive opinions to express about the good old man. _When Lord Roberts wrote and sent those cablegrams, he knew that he wilfully, maliciously and deliberately lied and I would be exceedingly happy to tell him so to his face._ Of course, Robert's idea in sending such a slanderous statement was to deceive the Boers throughout the land, and lead them to believe that President Kruger was really guilty of such infamous conduct; but the Boers had known the good old man too many years to be so deceived, and Lord Roberts only succeeded in making them love him still more. Roberts and Kitchener each issued many proclamations, all teeming with treachery and unscrupulousness, and if either had a grain of honor, and were forced to read his own proclamations to a public audience in any civilized country, I am sure that each would be stricken with a vomiting fit. I will have more on the subject of proclamations before I finish.