The danger of Lorenzo Marquez, the port of Delagoa Bay,
which may be of grave importance, is still extreme. The great chief of the interior, Gungunhama, has called off tl:e tribe upon which the Portuguese relied, and the garrison. is reduced to its own resources. The native enemy has approached within a mile of the town, and if it has the nerve to make a rush, may easily master the place and massacre the inhabitants. The Portuguese have sent a battalion from Lisbon, but they may arrive too late to take part in the defence. Mr. Rhodes is surveying the harbour from a steamer, and will see the whole affair, and he is evidently devising some policy on which he intends to act. It seems clear that Lorenzo Marquez, which is to the Boers, and therefore to the South African Dominion, of vital importance, must be placed in stronger hands than those of the feeble Portuguese, and it is possible that this may be effected through some form of lease. The Boers are of opinion that if the place falls, their native enemies may rise ; and we fancy, if South Africa were independent, Delagoa Bay would not remain Portuguese for twelve months.
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