, 1900-02-22
THE BoER
Some Facts Relative to the South Afri-
q Republic and the Causes Of
the Present War.

of misrepresentation among nearly
all classes of people in this coun-
try with regard to the trouble be-
tween the Beers and the English
at this time and THE Sun will en-
deavor TO give the facts as gather
ed from the most reliable sources,
believing hat such information
will be appreciated by all fair
minded people.
There is a great deal of similar
ity between the past history of the
Beers and the Mormons. The
Mormons crossed the desert and
settled in a locality where they be-
lieved they would be able to live
and practice their peculiar relig-
ious belief, which included a plur-
atty of wives, for many years,
perhaps centuries without any in
reference from the outside world.
In a few years the tide of immi-
grafton began to flow around them
and they saw that their retreat was
liable to be invaded. Brigham
Young organized a band of desper-
ate men and attempted, by muir
der, intimidation and threats, to
keep the gentle" away. But all
in vain The attempt of Young
to set up an empire within the do
mains of the United States, which
should be an entirely separate and
independent government, failed,
and the strong hand of the United
States government was laid on
both he and his people and they
have been compelled, not only to
quit numbering and plundering
the gentiles, who had gone among
them, but to abandon the practice
of polygamy and make their re-
ligious practices conform to the
laws of civilization.
AS for the Beers, who had set
tied in Cape colony, they, too, had
peculiar" religious views and
civilization stifed them. Negro
slavery was their pet institution
and their treatment of their slaves
vas cruel and unmerciful in the
extreme. They murdered them
on the slightest provocation, The
British government, which was
then in control of that countrv,
abolished slavery and punished
with death 80 Beers who were
found guilty of numbering their
slaves. So the Beers resolved to
trek. They went north until they
found a land where they could
practice slavery, as they thought,
without interference of the hated
English.
But again the waves of progress
and civilization began to sound in
their ears and again they
made their way still further
into the desert, to n country be.
yond the Vaal river, hence the
name Transvaal. They still chung
to their institution of slavery.
In their advance into the wilds
of Africa they encountered savage
tribes of natives with whom they
were in constant conflict, so that
the Boer grew up a born warrior
and an adept with the rifle. AT
times these conflicts with the
natives, whom they slaughtered
like sheep, became of such a san
culinary nature, that the Beers were
glad to place themselver under the
protection of the British flag and
call upon that government to come
to their aid in subduing their en-
emies, which the English always
did. More than once has the
strong arm of Great Britain pre-
vented the complete humiliation
of the Beers by the savages of AT
RIGA.
Az regards civilization, the
Beers are but little removed from
savages themselves. They do not
believe in education, and the abil-
ity to read and write is the limit
they place upon their children's
schooling. They cherish the idea
that the earth is flat and that they
are ruled over by God himself.
They scorn any advancement and
their lives are lived upon the lines
that governed their ancestors three