Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-08-15


as the most cruel of modern African
monarchs. With his army of $4,000
thoroughly disciplined troops, he was
veritable African Sitting Bull, and
gave the English no small amount of
trouble. Had his army been equipped
with modern implements of war the
birth of Rhodesia would doubtless have
been considerably deferred, if not in
definitely postponed. But like the
long, dark procession of South African.
monarchs, including the Inflated
Ceteyuayo, which had gone before
him, the naughty Lobengula was over
come, submitted to the pale-face, &C
cepted the scarlet coat and annuity of
rum and tobacco, and very soon after
ward completed the example by sud-
denly dying.
Rhodesia lies entirely within the
tropical belt, extending north from the
tropic of Capricorn to the Zambesi
river, bordered on the east by strip
of alleged Portuguese territory, which
separates it from the Indian ocean:
and on the west it infringes on the
possessions of the British South Afri-
can company.
The capital of Rhodesia is Salisbury,
a town already claiming considerable
pretensions. 1t is pleasantly situated
near the eastern slope of the Fura noun
tains and is in touch with the world by
means of the telegraph wire.
While South Africa offers rare in
.lucement for farming and stock raising
his fact alone could never have led to
the phenomenal development of q coun-
try so remote and little known to the
world.
The discovery of the fabulous dia-
mond deposits in Griqualand west,
back in the early '70s, thrilled the
world and brought to the scene armies
of hardy, adventurous men from every
quarter thereof. But when hundreds
of square miles of ground had been
overturned and searched, and the spark
ling gems had been traced to the parent
mine, where Kimberley has since sprung
up, many disappointed miners organ
lied prospecting parties and moved to
the north.
No more diamonds were found, but
soon rich discoveries of gold were
reported. These were principally To-
Gated within the territory of the Boer
state, the Transvaal republic. Being
long distance from the seaboard, and
no other mode of transportation for
food supplies or machinery than by
the slow OK team, these new gold
mines were somewhat slow in develop
| ment. But capital was soon attracted,
and the construction of railroads be-
gan. Now these gold fields are reached
by rail both from Cape Town and
| Natal; and Johannesburg, the seat O..
the principal mining industry, which
ten years ago was desert waste, is
now fiourishing city of more than 50.-
900 inhabitants, and her adjacent
mines are yielding an output of about
$1,000, 600 worth of gold per month
But the thirst for gold is insatiab BILE;
still northward, with rifle and pick,
the prospector has pressed, following
| the enchanted lead through parched
desert and across mountain range, into
Mashonaland and Matabele, where it
is declared the true and original Edo
| RADIO has been found. That most mar
velous deposits of gold have been
| located in this region there is no deny
| ing; but the actual yielding capacity of
| these discoveries cannot be estimated
| until proper mining Machinery has
been brought to operate upon them.
| At all events the new discoveries have
| been the means of giving to the world
| OF nations new state, Rhodesia-
J. w. SILER