The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1899-05-24
The Transvaal.

Aho ltItio OOu1u hlTlChu IepuullC, III
habited by Paul Kruger and his broth
er Beers, is just now dividing the
attention of the world with the Philip
pines. Each days news recites some
new disturbing event in the dominions
of Paul Kruger, or some new move
ment of England to guard her interests
in the south of Africa, threatened by
the aggressions of the Beers in their
restrictive policy toward the Uitlander,
or foreigner,
The Uitlander, although he consti-
tutes the great majority of the popula-
ton of the Transvaal, owns some three
fourths of the value of the landed
property and furnishes nine-tenths of
the revenue of the republic, has no
rights the Boer feels bound to respect.
The Boer loads him down with oppres-
sive duties on everything he brings
into the Transvaal for his business or
his personal necessities. To compel
the foreigner to use the Dutch dialect
instead of the English language a tax
of 100 per cent is placed on printed
matter, excepting newspapers, period
icals and school books. A magistrate
was recently fined S25 for questioning
witness in English.
The grievances of the Uitlander are
not wholly economic. His political hard
ships are even more rigorous. The
situation in this respect is thus stated
by the New York Sun:
BY the law which was passed in 1894, and
is still operative, it is provided that those
who settle in the South African republic
can obtain full burgher rights after four
teen years, but only proUidtng the majority
of warders in an applicants ward shall sig
Nifty in writing their desire that he should
obtain them, and proUided, also, the pres-
dent and executive shall see no reason for
not granting them. Mr.. Chamberlain, for
his part, has proposed that this fundamen-
tai grievance should be remedied by grant
OF the franchise after period OF five years
residence. This concession has been, thus
dominant faction in Pretoria, which is rep
resented by President Kruger, on the
ground that, il they grant such franchise,
they will sign away their independence.
They are haunted, TO use Mr.. Chamber
lain's words, with the fear that the first
use which the enfranchised newcomers
would make of their privileges would be to
upset the republican form of government.
This Dutch republic, one OF the most
unique of the powers OF the earth, has
long had the sympathy of the peoples
Of the earth. The rugged independ-
ence of the men who founded its gov
eminent, who have defended their
homes and possessions against the foes,
both savage and civilized, that environ
them, has commanded TIE admiration
of the world, in spite of their boorish-
ness and certain disregard, or def
auce, in their laws and customs, of the
''inalenable rights" of man. But these
laws and customs have become 80 OPP
pressive, so opposed to the rules aud
principles that have come to regulate the
commercial and political intercourse
of all civilized peoples, the hardships
they impose upon Uitlanders have be-
come so unreasonable and intolerable,
civilization everywhere, even in Ger
many, whose emperor espoused the
cause of the Beers at the time Of James
sons raid, is protesting, and in Eng
land the protest is assuming the form
of increased ornaments, the despatch
to the Cape of additional troops and
batteries of artillery. Its isolation
and pettiness, and its anomalous char
acter, have hitherto protected the Boer
republic. Shrewd Paul Kruger has
been to it what armies and navies have
been 10 more imposing powers. But if
the little principally does not bend to
some of the exactions of civilized po-
litical and commercial intercourse, it is
clear that the time when it must break
is not far away.