Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1899-11-03
CAUSES OF THE WAR
In South Africa Between Beers and
BritOns

AS Explained by the Editor of the New
York Press in Answer to a Query
from a VermOnter.
The difference was originally entirely
between the Beers and Outlanders. the
miners, merchants, brokers and other busi-
ness and professional men, who. with their
families, make up the $4,000 white popu-
lation of Johannesburg Four wears ago
these alien residents, who are by no means
all British, pettioned for the redress of
certain grievances. The dynamite monop-
oily, by which an exorbitant price is
charged for mining materials, was only one
of these. Among others was the exclusion
OF all languages but the Dutch from the
schools, although other than the Dutch
supported them; the refusal of munich
pal government to johannesburg, which
was ruled from the Transvaal capital. and
the Withholding of the right of trial by
jury and of the right to vote of those who
paid tive-sixths of the enormous taxes of
the country. These are S20,000,000 for a
population of 100000, or much less than
that of the state of Vermont. They are
$50 per capita, an amount unparalleled in
country without either great war debt,
as In France, or elaborate public works,
like Australia. This petition was deris
lively rejected by the Rad or Senate, the
only legislative body with full power The
Jameson raid, the act of the Chartered
company, which governs Rhodesia, and not
OF the British Imperial government or the
Outlanders themselves, was one of the con-
sequences. Upon Jameson's defeat op-
preston was increased. Power was given
to President Kruger to expel any Outlander
/ and tn pOn fiepata HE moods Tho ,,,rrJor
OF an Outlander by Boer policeman and
his release under light bail led last winter
to petition to the British Crown for re-
dress by over 81 900 Outanders.
The British government then asked that
the Outlanders receive the same suffrage
as the Beers upon five years. residence
the same period demanded here. They
were to relinquish their allegiance to
Great Britain at the same time. They
were to have, in fact, precisely the same
rights as the Dutch residents of the
British state of Colony. This proposal
was declined. A protracted correspondence
followed, in the course of which at one
time the Beers tentatively yielded the en-
reimbursement asked. This concession
was, however, withdrawn and negotiations
broken off when the British government
suggested that the English members of the
Rad when elected) be allowed to use
their own language in the deliberations OF
the Rad, as the Dutch members of the
Cage Colony legislature land the French
members of the Canadian parliament) are
allowed to use theirs. The British govern
ment then proposed to formulate new pro-
posals, but before it had done so the
Transvaal declared war and attacked the
British in Natal, Cape Colony and
Bechuanaland. The suzerainty was never
relinquished by Great Britain, but the
point was not raised by the British govern
ment in this negotiation. Moreover
though Mr.. Kruger raised it and asked
REIMBURSEMENT, the break did not come
on this point. These are the exact facts
in the case, which should be separated
from assumptions as to latent motives and
Interior designs. On this head it is only
safe TO say that for years a struggle has
been going on between British and Dutch
for racial supremacy in the South African
states, and that on the result of the strug
gle over the Outlanders, in diplomacy as
well as arms, the final victory depended
Had the franchise been granted to the Out
landers the Dutch would have been out
numbered and overwhelmed in the Trans
vaal. Since it has been withheld and the
treatment of the Outlanders as subject
and degraded race continued the British
upon suffering it, would lose:control of the
Cape Colony (where there is even now &
Dutch majority in the legislature), ant
the formation of Dutch United States o.
South Africa would be only a question o.
time.