El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-24

point out that this abuse OF the liquor
law has resulted in the ruin of a large
portion of the native population, In
disease, accidents in the mines, and
other crimes, and the commission also
point out that from 20 to 30 (unoticial
figures give 30 to 4O) per cent. OF the
natives employed in the mines are In
capacitated owing to this abuse of the
liouor law. An attempt was made by
Mr.. Ewald Esselsn, one of the most en-
lightened of the Boer leaders in the
Transvaal republic, who saw the
blot this WAS on his native country, to
remedy il. but in vain.
The next grievance Is that con-
nected with the appointment OF judges.
The judges are all subservient to the
presid ent, and can be dismissed by him
at pleasure, and, in the words OF the
present chief justice, the oath which
they are called upon to take is one
which no man can take with self-re-
spect. This is important in view of
the fact there Ia no trial by q jury of
his peers for the Uitlander.
The police can enter houses without
q warrant, and can treat people with
the erossest brutality, and, though
tenn porariiy dismissed in consequence,
afterward be reinstated. Another
hardship is caused by the alien ex-
pulsion act of 1896, under which the
president has power to expel any Uit-
lander without any trial whatever. In
schools English may not be used after
the third grade, and the regulations
are such that, out of 1915, 600 which ia
raised in johannesburg, only $3.50 is
spent on British children, and no grant
is made to the voluntary Protestant
acd Roman Catholic schools which are
some of the most excellent schools in
the Transvaal.
There is another grievance in re-
gard to the municipality of johannes
burg, that there are $4,000 Uitlsnd err
electors to 1000 Beers, and yet the
Beers elect an equal number sof men,
bers, the chairman of the council has
to be Bo-r, Appointed and paid by
the government, and sthe decisions of
the council. when arrived at, are sub
ject to confirm stion by the executive.
The municipality of johannes burg has
less authority than the old sanitary
com mittee.
These are the principal grievances,
and [ think they are worth putting on
record.
There is also the question OF the
franchise. In 1874, before the first
convention, the franchise could be OBJ
tanned after one years. residence with
out real estate. In 1882, after the first
eption, five years residence and
registration we're required. Registra-
tion since then has become more and
more complicated, and at the begin
ming of the present year it took four
teen years to obtain the franchise,
during twelve of " mich the candidate
was neither British nor a Boer sub
ject, and had to take an oath which
successive colonial secretaries have
described as offensive and superfuous.
Anyone who reads the new
franchise law passed in the present
summer will come to the conclusion
arrived at by Sir Alfred Miner, that
under the present law it
remains within the power of
the Trausvaal government to re-
fuse the fran chise to anyone, owing to
the extremely complicated regulations
aud conditions which are attach ed to
it. 1t should not be forgotten that in
their demand for the franchise the
Uitlanders have been asking Only for
the re-establishment of rights which
now exist in the Orange Free State,
aud which existed in the Transvaal
itself before and after the convention
of 1881.
In fact South Africa is really one
country, in which two races live, in
every district but one. on a footing of
political and social equality. In that
district the Transvaal. one race is the
subject of the open contempt and op-
preston of the other.
A suc ,ession of appeals has been
made by the UitIanders to the Trans