NEWS OF THE WEEK.
WE trust that before these pages are in our readers' hands the national anxiety in regard to Mafeking will be over. As we write, however, the one thing in men's minds is the fate of Mafeking. It is indeed no exaggera- tion to say that the first thought of all, men, women, and children, when they wake and the last when they go to sleep Mafeking be able to hold out? That the gallant defenders of the beleaguered town will hold their own till relief comes is our firm, belief, and certainly all the news we receive points that way. To begin with, it is clear that the Boers made a desperate attempt to storm Mafeking on Saturday last, but that they failed and lost a hundred men, chiefly prisoners, including Commandant Eloff, President Kruger's grandson. That is good in itself, but still better because it shows that the Boers believe that help is near. They never attack a place which they think they can take without an attack. An assault with them means that they realise that their chance of capturing a position is almost gone. The next good indication is the fact that the Boers report a battle with the southern relieving force at Kraaipan, forty miles to the south of the town. The Boers do not say who won the battle, though they report the capture of a war corre- spondent. But if they could telegraph that fact they could surely have telegraphed "glorious victory." The inference is obvious.
