Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-12
A BOER ON BoER DESIGNS.
Some Statements Tint Are at Least
Out of the Ordinary.

From the London Times
We have received the following letter
appropriately headed "Boer Ignorance"
The writer bears well-known Dutch
name. and gives as his late address the
name of a well-known town in a Dutch dis
trict of Cape Colony:
TO THE EDITOR.
Sir: In your paper you have often COM
mented on what you are pleased to call
the ignorance of my counrymen, the
Boers. We are not so ignorant as the
British statesmen and newspaper writer's,
nor are we such fools as you British are.
We know our policy, and we do not change
IL. We have no opposition party to fear
nor to truckle to. Your boosted conserva-
tive majority has been the obedient tool
of the radical minority, and the radical
minority has been the blind tool of our far
seeing and intelligent president. We have
desired delay, and We have had 1t, and we
are now practically masters of Africa from
the Zambesi to the Cape. All the Afrikand-
ers in Cape Colony have been working for
years for this end, for they and We know
the facts.
l. The actual value of gold in the Trans
vaal is at least f2o0.Gs9,O00,OU0. and this
is well known to the Emperor of Ger
many and Russia as it is to us. You esti-
mate the value of the gold at only 100000
coo or. at least, that is what you pretend
to estimate il at But Germany, Russia
and France do not desire you to get posses
sion of this vast mass of gold. and so. after
encouraging you to believe that they will
not interfere in South Africa they will GER
tainly do so, and very easily find casus
belli, and they will assist us directly and in
directly to drive you out of Africa.
2. We know that you dare not take any
precautions in advance TO prevent the on
slaught of the great powers, as the opposi-
ton, the great peace party, will raise the
question of expense, and this will win over
your lazy, dirty, drunken working classes,
who will never again permit themselves to
be taxed to support your empire, or even
to preserve your existence as a nation.
g. We know from all the military auIhori-
ties of the European and American conti-
ncnts that You exist as an independent
power merely on sufferance and that at any
moment the great Emperor William can
arrange with France or Russia TO wipe you
off the face of the earth. They can at any
time starve you into surrender. You must
yield in all things to the United States also.
or your supply of corn will be so reduced by
the Americans that your working classes
would be compelled to pay high prices for
their food. and rather than do that they
would have civil war, and invite any for
elgn power to assist them by invasion, for
there is patriotism in the working class
eS of England, Wales or ireland.
4. We know that your country has been
more prosperous Than any other country
during the last fifty years (you have had no
civil war like the Americans and French 10
tone up your nerves and strengthen your
manliness). and consequently your able
bodied men will not enlist in your so-called
voluntary army. Therefore you have TO
hire the dregs of your population 10 90
your fighting. and they are deficient in
physique in moral and mental ability, and
in all the qualities that make good fighting
men.
s. Your military officers we know to be
merely pedantic scholars or frivolous socie-
ty men without any capacity for practical
warfare with white men. The Afridts were
more than match for you, and your VIC
tory over the Sudanese was achieved be-
cause those poor people had not rife
among them.
6. We know that your men, being the
dregs of your people. are naturally feeble,
and that they are also saturated with the
most horrible sexual diseases, as all your
government returns plainly show, and that
they cannot endure the hardships of war.
I. We know that the entire British race
is rapidly decaying, your birth rate is rap
idly falling, your children are born weak.
diseased and deformed and that the major
part of your population consists of females.
cripples. epileptics, consumptives, cancer
Gus people, invalids and lunatics of all
kinds whom you carefully nourish and pre-
serve.
s. We know that nine-tenths of your
statesmen and higher officials, military and
naval, are suffering from kidney diseases,
which weaken their courage and will pow
er and make them shirk all responsibility
as far possible.
O. We know that your navy is big. but
we know that 1t is not powerful and that
it Is honeycombed with disloyalty-as wit
ness the theft of the signal books the as
willful injury of the boilers and machinery,
which all the vigilance of the officers is
poWerless to prevent.
10. We know that the conservative gov
eminent is mere sham. and that ii largely
reduced the strength of the British srtii-
lery in 1SSS-S9. And We know that 1t does
not dare to call out the militia for
training, nor to mobilize the fleet, nor to |
give sufficient grants to the line and vol
unteers for ammunition to enable them TO |
become good marksmen and efficient SOL |
Il; u-n lyya haf RrifiSh soldiers
sailors are immensely inferior as marks |
men. not only to Germans. French and |
Americans but also to Japanese, Afridis,
Chileans, Peruvians. Belgians and Rus
slams
II. We know that no British government |
dares to propose any form of compulsory
military or naval training for the British |
people would rather be invaded. conquered |
and governed by Germans. Russians or |
Frenchmen than be compelled to serve |
their own government.
u. We Beers know that we will not be
governed by set of British ours. but that |
we will drive you out Of Africa altogether,