Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-02-13

| a a.
don, by contrast. we find n wide
awake, essentially IpOdern English
town. with much that might recall
Brighton or Harwich and very little
to make one realize that this is all
some COCO miles from home, writes
POultncy EigclUw in the European
edition of the New York Herald. At
| Durham we seem To be in Il totally new
world-part India, part savage Africa.
| Banana trees, bungalows, punkahS,
palms, XuluS-thcse arrest the eye of
the newly arrived and distract his at
tention from the excellent municipal
administration and the many evil
denccs of modern progress at this es-
sentially up TO date port.
Only Il few miles farther is Il SPLEEN
did Portuguese failure, LUurcncU Mar
queS, in DclagOa Bay. picturesque from
a distance, but full of foul smell and
saddcning prospect when one APP
proachcS to within hailinS distance.
This Portuguese pest hole reminded
me OF certain Turkish towns of the
lower Danube which seemed like bits
of romance from the Arabian Nights"
for ut a distance one perceived only the
minarcts shining in gorgeous sunlight,
the battlcmcnts of the medieval walls
or the domcS of sacred buildings. But
to preserve our Illusions in such cOun-
tries we should never 20 ashUre-pad-
die past them far away under the OPP
poSite bank and read Byron rather
than contemporary history.
BlocmfOntein prepares one for Pre-
toria. as San Antonio, in Texas. sug-
gcsts the typical Mexican city. Bloem-
fontcin ANA Pretoria both bear the
stamp of their bucolic origin in the
vast open place ut the center where
long ON trains can find rest and the
farmers dispose of their produce or
find quarters during the periods of re-
lGious congregation. The great squares
in the midst of Bocr towns have their
"ountcrparts in those of Mexico and
wherever the cattle interest predomi-
mates.
Pretoria is not today so pretty town
as Blocmfontein. but that is for rca-
sons which may be obvious. Bloem-
fontcin gives the impression of good
taste. of general comfort. of harmo-
NOUS developments At Pretoria, on
the contrary. we find Boer cabins with
mud floors ranged alongside of protein
IlDuS government bullttlSS hblll bpNl-
ously To impress the bcholdcr 10y their
size. The Bocr government in 1881
was practically without money except
.aG for the Indispensable. The gold
mines suddenly threw into the empty
treasury Of this cowboy" administra-
tion SO much money that it was rather
embarrassing To know what To do with
IT. When Yankee cowboy returns TO
civilization with n pocket full of mon
cy. we all know what he * apt to do.
OF course the first thing is TO make n
round OF the barroOmS. treat every one,
then buy SOME GaUdy jewelry. n few
iaShy garments. go driving about town
in the handSomest carriage procurahle.
and when the money is all gone think
of investing.
The Boer legislators. who had prob
ably never seen Il 81 note until the nit
landers opened the mines at Johannes
burg. commenced their career Of politi-
cal Independence much in the same
way. Instead Of working slowly and
spending the money for the future good
OF the country bv establishing good
schools and building roads. bridges and
things calculated to increase comfort.
they acted on the assumption that in
tercourse with their neiGhborS was a
bad thing and that TO be strong they
must remain peculiar and isolated
people. The money which should have
gone to the construction of railways
was diverted into the building of huge
forts. Instead of welcoming Afrikan-
ders 10 assist in their administration
they preferred TO import clerks direct
" from Holland and Germany. as
though these might prove more loyal 10
them than even their own kinsmen
reared AT the Cape or Natal The pri-
waite residences AT Pretoria are over
topped 10y monstrous government Of
Gees, where much money has been
spent for show and little for beauty.