Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-09-28
SHARP BRITISH NOTE.
CAMBERLAIN'S MESSAGE TO
BOERS MADE PUBLIC.
WAR SEEMS STEP NEARER
Imperial Government Announces 1t Is
Compelled to Consider Situation
Afresh and Formulate Own Pro-
posals for Final Settlement-Insin-
uated Breach Of Faith Resented.

London, Sept. 26-The officials Of
the foreign Office Monday gave out
the text OF the letter Of the secretary
of state for the colonies, Mr.. Chamber
lain, to the British hign commission in
South Africa, Sir Alfred Miner, dated
Sept. %. The British reply expresses
regret that her majesty's offer, No.
5, of Sept 8, had been refused, and
says:
The object her majesty's govern
ment had in view in the recent negO-
tiations has been stated in a manner
which cannot admit Of misapprehen-
sion, viz:
ITO obtain such substantial and i'm
mediate representation for the out
landers as will enable them to secure
for themselves that fair and just
treatment which was formally prom
ised them in 1881, and which her maj
esty intended to secure for them when
she granted privileges of self-goVern-
melt to the Transyaal. No conditions
less comprehensive than those con-
tanned in the telegram of Sept. 8 can
be relied on to effect this object.
THE refusal of the south African
government to entertain the offer thus
made, coming as it does after four
months of protracted negotiations,
themselves the climax Of five years of
extended agitation makes it useless to
further pursue the discussion on the
| lines hitherto followed, and the i'm
perial government is now compelled to
consider the situation afresh and for
mulate it's own proposals for final
settlement Of the issues which have
| been created in south Africa by the
policy constantly followed for many
years by the government Of south
Africa. They will communicate the
result of their deliberations in a later
| dispatch"
In a communication dated Sept. p
the imperial government takes up the
by Secretary of State Reitz on Sept. 16
(which we cannot pass over in ST.
lence" Chamberlain then says: The
proposals made by the south African
republic in its letters of Aug. 10 and &c
were not induced by suggestions given
by the British agent by the state at
tOrney, as claimed. On the contrary
the state attorney sounded the British
agent, both in writing and in CONVEX
satiOn, as to the conditions on which
the imperial government would waive
it's proposition for joint inquiry and
result of these communications was the
proposals made by the south African
government in these letters 1t is i'm
possible that the south African govern
ment could have had any doubt as tG
the imperial governments answer t.
the conditions named and my reply
was actually the same as the British
agent had foreshadowed to the state
attorney and which therefore, the
south African government must have
anticipated in making the proposals.
The imperial government also denies
that it's telegram of Sept. 8 substituted
an entirely new proposal for join
commission on inquiry. The imperia
government then quoted a dispatch
from south Africa Of Aug. 10. contain
ing an alternative proposal identica
with that which the imperial govern
ment is said to have substituted, and
the communication then pro
ceeds as follows: 'FThe imperial
government sees no ground for mis-
apprehension on the part Of the south
Africa republic as to its answer re-
garding nOn-interference and suez-
rainty, as the imperial government has
already stated that it would not press
its proposition for the appointment OF
a joint commission on inquiry in view
of the fact that such inquiry would, in
opposition to the government of the
south African republic, prejudice the
right of full independence repeatedly
recognized by the imperial govern
ment" AS to the use Of the English
language in the voiksraad the imperial
government regards this as reasonable
and is astonished that the government
of the south African republic should
deem it unnecessary and make point
of denying that the government of the
south African republic ever proposed
the same to the British agent.
Volksraad Listens to Dispatch.
Pretoria Sept. 26.-The imperial
dispatch was read Monday in the
volksraad. President Kruger answered
that the reply of the government OF
the south African republic would be
presented to the volksraad today.