THE GERMANS AND THE BOERS.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE " SPEOTATOR:] STE,—The following point, to which my attention has been drawn by a German friend of strona English sympathies, curiously illustrates the principle, "who can tell how oft he offendeth ? " It is unfortunate, he pointed out to me, that in returning the lists of Boer casualties, we have no other form to use in English but "killed so many, wounded so many." A German in recording those who have fallen on the field of battle would use gefallen or perhaps geblieben ; but the word "killed," when rendered into German literally as getodtet, has a somewhat sinister effect, and rather suggests "put to death" than "fallen in action." Whether deliberately or unconsciously, the German Press, so far as he was familiar -with it, has generally rendered " killed " by getodtet, and the result with the unreflecting public in that country, who are not familiar with the English formula and do not realise that -we employ the same expression to chronicle our own casualties, has been to create the impression of a deliberate
hunt to death.—I am, Sir, &c., R.
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