The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1900-03-02
THE BOER WAR.
English Quaker Writes to Senator
Hoar that He Might Under
stand the Situation.

The New York Tribune prints let
ter upon the subject of the South Afri-
can war from John Bellows, of Glouces-
ter, England. John Bellows reputa-
ton is worldwide as an antiquarian,
linguist and man of letters. He is also
one OF the foremost living members of
the Society of Friends. His letter is
cordially to be commended to all who
wish to read a temperate and authori-
tative statement of the British side of
the unhappy controversy with the
South African Republic. The letter
bears date of Gloucester, Second Month,
Third Day, February 81 1900, and from
it we take this extract:
The cause of the dispute was this: In
1884 convention was agreed on be-
tween Great Britain and the Transvaal
acknowledging the independence of the
Transvaal, subject to three conditions:
that the Beers should not make treaties
with foreign powers without the con-
sent OF the paramount power in South
Africa, i. e., England; that they should
not make slaves of the native tribes,
and that they guarantee equal treat
ment for all the white inhabitants of
the country as respects taxation. As
the whole war has arisen out of Kru-
gers persistent refusal to keep his
promises, both verbal and in writing,
that he would observe this condition,
l append the clause giving rise to the
convention:
"Article XIV 1854 convention)-All persons
other than natives, conforming themselves to
the laws Of the South African Republic, will
not be subject in respect to their persons or
or property or in respect of their commerce
and industry, to any taxes, whether general
or local, other than those which are or may
be imposed upon citizens of the said Repub-
| lic."
The mines brought so large popula-
tion to Johannesburg that it at last
outnumbered by very far the entire
Boer burghers in the state. Kruger,
seeing that the inevitable effect of such
an increase must be the same amalga-
nation of the new and aold populations
which was going on in Natal and Cape
Colony, and to smaller extent in the
Orange Free State, unless artificial bar
riers could be devised to keep the
races apart, at once set to scheme
modes of taxation that should evade ar
ticle XIV, of the convention, throwing
the entire burden on the Outlanders
and letting the Beers, who are nearly
all farmers, escape scot-free. Farmers,
for example, use no dynamite; miners
do; and President Kruger gave q mo-
nopoly of the supply to a German nom
resident in the country, which taxed
the miners for this article alone
81, ,60O,0 900 year beyond the highest
price it could otherwise have been
bought for. This was his own act, the
Volksrand not being consulted. Besides
the high price, the quality of the ex-
IplOsive was bad, often causing accident
or death. When it did cause accident
or death the miners were prosecuted
by the government from whose agent
they had been compelled to buy it, and
fined for having used it,
AT the time the convention was
Isigned in 1884, the franchise was OBJ.
tainable after two years residence.
president Kruger determined to serve
the Outlanders, however, as George
lIII's government served the American
colonists, that is, tax them while refus
ing them representation in the contro
of the taxes. He went on at one and
the same time increasing their burdens
/
lperlod of residence that qualified for 8
vote, from two years to five, and so on
till he made it fifteen years. Or sever
and half times as long as when the
convention was signed. Nor was thi,
all. He reserved the right personally
to veto any Outlander being placed OF
the register even after fifteen years, i
he thought he was for any reason OBJ
ljectionable. That is, the majority o
the taxpayers were disfranchised for
ever.- These Outlanders had bOugh
and paid for 60 per cent. of all tn,
property in the Transvaal, and 80 pei
cent. of the taxes was levied from them
an amount equal to giving every BOel
in the country 5000 year plunder.
Is country that is so governed Just
ly to be called 'sRepublic?"
But even the Beers themselves hav,
been adroitly edged out of power b,
Paul Kruger. This Grondwet, or Con
stitutiOn, provides that to preven
abuses in legislation, no new law shouli
be passed until the bill for it had beel
published three months in advance. Z,
evade this Kruger passed all kinds o
) measures as amendments to existing
laws; which, as he explained, not beinI
; new laws, required no notification
Finally, however, he got the Volksraai
to rescind this article to the GrOndwet
and now, as for some time past, any Law
of any sort can be passed by small
clique of Kruger's in secret session Q
the Raad without notice of any sort an
without the knowledge CT assent of tn
J people. The Beers have no more voic
in such legislation than if they wer
, Chinese. The Transvaal is only Re
; public in the same sense that a nutshell
is nut or fossil oyster shell is a
oyster.
All that the British government ha
!, ever contended for with Presiden
Kruger has been the fair and honorabl
spect of equal rights in Article XIV, G
the 1884 conventions. This he has pc,
sistently and doggedly refused, Will
, he has been using the millions of none
he has wrung from the Outlanders t
purchase the material for the war b
has been long years preparing on sue
a colossal scale to drive the English on
of those colonies in which they hav
given absolute equality to all. 1t
} this equality which has upset his ca
} culations, by its leaving too few ma
contents among the Dutch population I
: make any general rising of them po
r sible in Natal or the Cape, on which ri
ing Kruger stakes his hope of succe.
in the struggle. AS for the Transva,
Beers, the only part they have in th
war is to fight for their independents,
!, which was never threatened until the
4 invaded British territory, and tn,
:, compe'led the Queens government
: defend it.
JOHN BELLOWS.