Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-05

siCtUAy over TIE BOOTS naQ QlSOrganiZe0
the community. On thes south border an
army of 10000 Zolos were threatening in
| vasion- Loss of confidence had produced
commercial ruin and state bankruptcy,
war between themselves. All these things
would tend to shake the prestige of the
whites in South Africa, and place every
European community 10 peril. Further
| implied these requirements from the Trans
vaal republic
This view was taken BY many residents
of the Transvaal. The Change of govern
ment was effected without any disturba nee.
and as proof that no force was used. Sir
Theophilus had an escort of only sixteen
mounted police.
AS soon as the natives learned that the
country had passed under British rule they
laid down their arms and sent messages of
friendship to the British governor The
country remained TRANQUIL until 1879. when
Cetywayo with twenty thousand troops.
invaded the country. Although the British
garrison was small the Beers refused to
give them any assistance. while some of
were justly punished. At the close of the
war Sir Bart1e Frere was sent to Pretoria
where he found a revolutionary spirit de-
veioptns among the Beers. He used all his
with the other colonies, as his predecessor
had done, but without success The fol-
lowing year they broke. out in open rebel
lion, captured most of the British posts
mlstfce Was signed. A convention at Pre-
toria followed. whereby the Beers were
given the right 20 make and administer
their own laws. but the right to regulate
and superintend their relations with the
natives. the adjustment of frontier o,1es-
tons with neighboring tribes and the con-
troll of foreign relations were reserved by
the imperial government.
The Convention of 1884.
In 1884 the Beers asked for a convention
70 40,
was granted, and the convention took place
IN London The main object of the Beers
was an extension of territory and the right
to make foreign treaties. The former was
granted. but the latter was not. A five
years franchise was also agreed upon for
the Ultlanders. Soon after this emigrat ton
increased so rapidly that the Uitlanders
equaled the Beers in numbers. The Beers.
fearing they would be swafneed by the new
settlers, withdrew the franchise in 1889.
Later. think in 1892 a twelve years fran
chise was given, on condition that at the
END OF Twelve years two-thirds of the Beers
of his community consent to his being nat
uralized. The Uitlanders complained. and
began to agitate for more liberal condi-
tons. Emigration increased. The city of
johannesburg sprang up like magic. This
led the Beers to believe that the Jitlanders
had come to stay. To make sure of re-
manning the dominant power they passed a
law in 1894 excluding everybody from cit
zenship whose father was not born in
South Africa. Soon after this they nressed
number of British subjects for military
expedition against native chief although
Germans. French and Portuguese were ex-
empt. The British appealed to the impe-
rial government, which instructed Lord
Loeb to insist on their release The Roers
resented this interference. and commenced
a system of taxation and tyranny that has
never been equaied. 81
The Uitlanders organized the Raform
League and sent petition to the volksraad
signed by 10000 members. This petitjon
contained the names ofethe best men in
the country. There WASH. H. Hammond
the American enginee1 who gave up the
largest salary ever paid Il man of his pro-
fession rather than live under such condi-
IONS. Mr.. Fitzpatrick was the secretary
OF the league. He is no1o manager for the
Ecksteines mines. Mr.. fyVybergh, a mining
engineer, was chairma n; and was tod nv
the Beers to stop agitating or leave the
country. He gave up an eeight-thousand-
doiiar position and left the country. Mr..
Hosken the president oflthe chamber of
commerce, was an active member and.
ike Mr.. Dodd. an ardent young reformer.
was lay preacher in his leisure hours. There
or a mechanic or miner on the Rand that
was not in the league. When the petition
was read 1t was received with jeers and
laughter and cries of ..I.et them come and
fight for their rights II they want them,
Or. Jamison took them at their word. and
the Jamison raid followed 1t was nm
fortunately. I think, for South Africa. a
failure. This encouraged the Beers to he
more tyrannica! than ever. They suppressed
lltlander newspapers and imprisoned the
editors. They forbade them holding public
meetings. The English language was for
hidden in the public schools and courts in
johannesburg, where not one in thou
sand knew any other. They were not allow
ed to possess arms of any kind although
hving in community where there are ten
half-savages to one white man while every
fOer armed n no
pense of the government Wherever the
ultlanders settled and began to build a viii
iaSe the Beers began to build forts around
1t, till you cannot look out of the citu of
Johannesburg without looking into tho
mouth of cannon. If any one was known
TO belong to the Reform League he was
expelled from the country, and the domi-
neering of the police was unbearabIe These
conditions continued up to the time of the
Lombard outrages" and the Edgar and
Applebe murders. when the Uftlanders he d
an an lndignation meeting fin the opera house
OF johannesburg. They had hardly taken
their seats when q gang of Boer rowdiess
supported by armed police, rushed in and
cleared the house
The Negotiations of 1898,
After that the Uitlanders gave up all
hope of obtaining any redress from the
Beers, and sent that great petition to the
queen which was received by Mr.. Cham
herlain. Then a series of negotiations COM
menced between Mr.. Green, the British
agent at Pretoria, and Mr. SHUTS, the
states attorney for the Transvaal, which
lasted up TO the commencement Of the war.
Inc result of the negotiations was an offer
OF seven years franchise an increase of
eight members in the volksraad This
would have given the 100000 Uitlanders
eight representatives and the 100000 Beers
twenty"eight. In return for this so-calIed
franchise the British government was to
renounce all further protection of the Tit
landers and forfeit the suzerainty of the
queen: This proposition was absurd Mr.
Chamberlain sent word to President Kru-
ger that if proposals more reasonable were
not submitted her majesty's government
would make proposal and undertake to
enforce 1t. Then came Mr.. Kruger's ulti-
matum.
In justice to the Uitlanders it should be
stated that they own more than half the
land, which they bought from the Beers
Even MIR. Kruger himself took advantage of
the Uitlanders' boom when he sold his large
farm at Geduld for four times as much as
he thought it was worth. They pay six
seventies Of the taxes, besides the three
million dollars tribute that johannesburg
pays to the dynamite monopoly" They
control nine-tenths of the business and con-
stitute two-thirds of the population. In
1856 when the Uitlandefs first began to