The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-05-19
THE CASE OF THE BOERS.

The President of the Boer Republic
has had a group of uitlanders arrested
and charged with conspiring to bring
about a rebellion and the overthrow of
the republic President Kreuger by
this action has again nipped in the
bud designs promoted by foreigners in
tended to bring ON a war within the
republic. That most of the men ar
rested and charged with treason are
alleged ex-arny officers of the English
service is significant One might safely
wager that these men are the secret
agents of Ceeh Rhodes. despite the
story that they are, if ex-off1cers long
since retired, and appear TO be stupid
fellows
That this schemer, remarkably astute
man and great financier, is at the bot
tom of the present trouble, just as he
was two years ago, can be safely
counted upon. That he was acquitted
by English inquiry of the former
charges makes no difference. In the
eyes of the world he was guilty of pro-
voking the difficulty. We are prepared
to believe that for the third time a
parcel of Englishmen have been plot
ting to overthrow the Boer Govern
ment. and that they had so far pro-
crossed as to justify the arrests which
have been made. We are prepared to
believe, also, that England as a gov
eminent stands ready upon the slight
est pretext to join hands with any fair
ly excusable attempt to seize and DOM
mate the Boer country.
OF course we are to expect grave and
emphatic denial Of all this upon the
part of English statesmen, but the
world will accept all such denial with
much doubt of it's sincerity. If the
English Government assumes the at
utude OF defenders of the arrested
parties now at Pretoria charged with
treason, it is not therefore to be con-
Guided that it is part of the scheme
to seize the Transvaal For to the
she looks after the rights of her sub
Jects wherever and with whatsoever
charged when in foreign parts. But If
beyond securing them fair trial the
English Government goes; If it insists
upon their liberation regardless of their
guilt; II it makes their cause its own
when It develops that they plotted
against the State in which they were
folerated-we may be sure that the end
of the Boer Government is near.
Germany has practically abandoned
the little African State, and left
to contend alone against English arms
Its fate will not be uncertain. We en-
terrain the belief, and it is not a pleas
ant one, that the English Government
does contemplate the absorption of the
whole of the South African country,
and that her first morsel will be the
Transvaal. But the resistance, if the
issue comes to war, will be stubborn
and long The hardy Beers who went
out to this southland to erect free
State bought and paid for their lands,
and We're driven back by English ag-
&4~ES'AOAA 4AOll Lie S6tL COdSl 10 Their
present internal station, which they
wrested from the wilderness, will fight
bitterly and courageously for the indie
pendence in which they should not be
disturbed
A peaceful people ordinarily, pro-
foundry religious, exceedingly strict in
their customs and manners, desiring
little communication with the outer
world, and resisting the encroachments
by the vices of outside civilization,
they desire to be left alone completely.
Not because they hold themselves so
much better than others, not because
they are unfriendly with mankind, not
because they hate their neighbors, but
because they are convinced that to pre-
serve themselves cleanly and pure
minded and their little State strong
and safe, they must to the full of their
powers exclude those influences which
make for the destruction of peoples,
the corruption of youth. the contamina-
ton of community life, and tend to
introduce into their simple wholesome
methods Of living vices destructive OF