The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1899-10-25
Story OF BoER AND BRIroN
The Record ofBritish Greed and Boer
Determination for Hundred |
Years.

The Record of British Greed and Boe
Determination for Hundre
Years.
Columbia State.
81 have but one lamp by which 10
feet are guided" said Patrick Henr
on the eve OF the American Reyolu
tion, "and that is the lamp OF expert
ence. know no way of judging OF tn
future but by the past
SO the Beers can say in their ISSUE
with England, and so can they iustif,
themselves in their distrust of tn,
British amity which prompts the dis
patch OF $4,000 troops to their borders
Should they, relying upon tho just anC
benevolent purposes.of Great Britain
have waited until an army more nu
merous, it is boasted, than Wellington
ever commanded could surround then
with its Gordon OF steel? That is 8
question which is answered by their
past, which is illuminel by the light Of
their experience.
| The record will show why the Beers
do not have confidence in the respect
of Great Britain for their liberties. 1t
| will show that the present war is but
the elimination OF u bloody feud of gen.
| erations, the product Of q century OF
British aggression. Time after time
the Dutch Of the Cape settlements have
migrated from their homes, seeking in
the desert escape from the rule OF Eng
land, and as often the long arm OF Eng.
lish power has been stretched after
them. To the south and the east and
the west o! them the British seized
lands and hemmed them in, and ow
they are cut off from the north as we'll
by Cecil Rhodes new territory of
British South Africa. There is no be-
yond. They are surrounded, and mi
grafton cannot serve again to preserve
their cherished independence. The
purpose OF England made known to
them by long experience and by pres
ent menace they have no recourse ex-
cept to fight for their liberties il thew
wish to maintain them. Though the
chance OF success be desperate it is still.
chance, and in waiting there is no
color of hope.
The first white settlement in South
Africa was made by the Dutch, who
planted colony at Cape Town in 1862
In 1864 they were reinforced, US South
Carolina was, by an inilux of French
Huguenots, exiled by he revocation of
the Edict OF Nantes. Nine years later
the little colony attempted TO throw
OIL the Dutch sovereignty, but England
sent fleet to coerce it and reestab-
lished the authority of the Prince of
Orange. This was done, Engla how
ever, retaining control of the country
until 1902, when Holland was given
possession. Within four years it was
seized again by Great Britain and has
been part of the empire ever since.
The Beers, disappointed in their
hopes of independence, were restive
under British rule and in 1885, their
"A ie, fn1 i.1
OF slavery in the Cape Colony, they
began to migrate to the north ward.
Large numbers sold their farms at a
sacrifice and moved beyond the Orange
river into I'll Katlir country Here
they had iong and exhausting coLtlicts /,
with the nat YES, and q part of them
moved eastwrd crossed the Draken-
berg mountains a nd established the in
depend ent republic OF Natal there main
tanning themselves against the DOW
erful Zulu nation. But the time came
when they were almost exhausted in
with the negro hosts, and
England took that time as q fl one to
seize Natal and proclaim her sover-
eighty. This was in 1912, and the next
year the Natal Beers migrated again.
One body went to the Orange Free !
State, by that time established, and the |
other proceeded farther north, to the
present Transvaal. The Boer republic
of Natal was extinguished and that
has since remained in British |
hands.
Those Beers who had remained In |
their first settlement north of ihc Or |
ange river retained their independence |
until 1845 when they came into collis-
Ion with the Griquas. The British |
governor Of Cape Colony, Sir Harry
Smith, took the side of the negroes, |
and together theJ defeated the Beers. |
British resident was appointed and |
In lS4S the colony was annexed by En- |
gland as the Orange River British SOW
ereig nty. Pretorins, a Boer leader,
led revolt and expelled the British,
but they returned In force and rcestab- |
lished the sovereignty OF the crown. |
The Boers were never placated, and |
the state OF the country was 80 menac-
ing that In 1852 England deemed it |
wise to withdraw and two years later |
recognized the independence OF the |
Orange Free State.
In 1867 Pretorius, who had crossed |
beyond the Vaal where the Transvaal |
republic was forming, induced Eng |
land to recognize the virtual independ-
ence OF the country under the name |
Of the Dutch African republic. Six |
years afterward the name was changed |
TO the South African republic. The |
republic in 1877 was greatly weakened |
by wars with the natives and England |
took advantage OF it's condition to an
mex 1t. This high handed act was bit
terly resented by the Beers and in 1880 |
they rcvolted and IN 1881 they routed |
tne British in several engagements, !
with the result that the Gladstone gov
withdrew it's claims and rec
Ognized the independence of the re-
public. A treaty In 1884 removed the
only remaining shadow OF British suz-
erainty.
Such is the record. IT tells for 100
years the same story OF British greed
and Boer indomitableness. England
began with making conquest OF the
colony of foreign country under pre-.
tense OF restoring 1t to the motherland.
It's people went out into he wilderness
to maintain their lib tiles and Eng
land followed them. Whenever these
Dutch republics were weakened by
wars with the natives England ad-
vanced and annexed them, at one time
aiding the negro tribes to conquer the
Beers and then selling the country as
its spoil. The Beers migrated while
they could to get out OF the way OF
England. When they could 70 longer
migrate they fought.
Now the two survivors of the three
Dutch reUubliCs are at tho end of thoir