Omaha daily bee., 1899-10-21

struggle of Right Against Greed, of
the Few with the Many"


No mind open to generous impulses and
emotions can consider untouched the pa
thetic nature of the war now beginning in
South Africa. 1t is something more than a
struggle Of the weak against the strong, Of
right against greed of the few with the
many.
All Of these elements of tragedy are pres
ent but they do not tell the whole story
That must be found in the history and
characteristics of the Beers. their surround
ings. their faith and their obvious doom.
The Dutch part Of South Africa is
a lonely land. The rains are scanty and the
water needed for flocks and herds is scarce
Great areas must be used to sustain the live
stock Of one farm. Grain and other crops are
grown with difficulty. So it happens that the
little nations in the Transvaal and the
Orange Free State are spread over a very
large territory. The Beers are few and their
homes are scattered far and wide,
When the whole adult male population is
summoned to meet the professional fighting
men Of England and make desperate strug-
glo against overwhelming numbers only
the women and children, with the very old
men and few who are sick and crippled
are left at homo to keep UP the life OF the
nation. They have to tend the Gocks and
herds. maintain the households sprinkled
'HIouSu lue Miue pldllS anu SudTu against
pillago and possible massacre by the black
population, which far outnumbers the whites
in all parts of South Africa.
Imagine the position of these families of
humble country folk, left without the natu-
raj protectors and masters of the farms.
Wives know that they have none to look to
for help except their little boys, their trusty
rifles and their God Whatever happens,
tho country is stripped OF its strong men.
They are on the frontier singing the psalms
which comforted their fathers in the des-
pcrate loneliness and peril of the days when
Dutch South Africa was won from savage
beasts and more savage men, They stand
as a thin little line of defenders of their
native land against the armies of mighty
empire. They are to do battle against the
murderous dum-dum bullets and Lyddite
shrspnel shells OF the richest and largest
realm that the world ever saw.
In such a situation the faith of the Beers
in the God they worship becomes extremely
touching. The men in the camps and the
women and children in the scattered farm
houses are relying on the favor of heaven
to offset the vast preponderance OF the
enemy's forces. No people equally calm and
sensible would ever have found courage for
such a terribly one-sided war if they had
been less sincere and simple minded in their
faith.
II these conditions in South Africa leave
anything wanting to make complete pic
ture of one of the most pathetic wars in all
history we do not know what it Is. a brave
devoted and honest people, only a few thou
sand families in all, stand at bay in the in
terror OF South Africa. They are cut off from
the sea and from outside help They have
staked their whole hope of preserving their
independence upon their self f-devotion and
their faith in God. The good wishes OF the
world go out to them. But the hard lessons of
the past teach that they must go down in
ruin and death before the tremendous su-
periority OF their foe in numbers and mu-
nitons of war
Ono CT the darkest and saddest tragedies
in the long story of our race has begun.