New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-02-22
FROM JOHN BELLOWS TO SENATOR HoAs
Dear Friend:

Dear Friend:
1 glad to receive thy letter as IL give.
me the opportunity Of pointing out a misconcep-
ton into which thou hast fallen in reference 10
the TransvaaI and it's position with respect 10
the present war.
Thou sayest: II myself a great lover OF
England; but I 10 not like to see the two coun-
tries joining hands for warlike purposes. and
especially to crush out the freedom Of small
and weak nations"
To this 1 willingly assent. I am certain that
war is in all circumstances opposed to that sym
pathy all men owe one to another. and to that
Greater Source of love and sympathy in which
I'VE live and move and have our being" Where
this bond has been broken We long for its resto-
ration; but 1t cannot but tend 10 retard this
restoration, 10 imPUte 10 one or other OF the
parties concerned motives that are entirely for
eign to its action Peace. to be lasting, must
stand on a foundation Of truth: and there is no
truth whatever in the idea that the English
Government provoked the present war. or that
it intended. at any time during the negotiations
that preceded the war. an attack the indie
pendence either of the TransvaaI or Of the
Orange Free State 1t is true that President
KRUGER has for many years carefully propagatsd
the fear of such an attempt among the Dutch
in South Africa, as means Of separating Beers
and Englishmen into two camps. and as an In
centtve to their preparing the colossal ar1na-
ment that has now been brought into play, not
TO keep the English out of the TransvaaI but to
realize what is called the Afrikander programme
Of a Dutch domination over the whole OF South
Africa. Thus. he some years ago imported from
Europe 10000 rifles; nearly five times as many
as the whole military population OF the Trans
wall, clearly with a view TO arming the Cape
Dutch in case Of the general rising he hoped
for
grievance he wanted to persuade these Cape
Dutch that England sought to crush the Trans
vaal.
An examination of the blue book which con-
tains the whole Of the correspondence tmmsdt-
ateIy preceding the war will at once show the
patient efforts put forth by the London Cabinet
to maintain peace There are irritating
words used. and the last dispatch OF Importance
before the outbreak of hOstilities dealing with
the insfnuation just alluded TO, is not only most
courteous and conciliatOry in tone. but it states
that the Queens Government will give the most
solemn guarantees against any attack upon the
independence of the TransvaaI either by Great
Britain or the colonies. or by any Foreign
Power. 1 am absolutely certain that no Anert-
can reading that dispatch would say that Presi-
dent KRUGER was justified in Selling the Neither
lands Railway line tCitBjH one tCeek after he had
received it, and cutting the telegraph wires, to
prepare for the invasion Of British Territory, in
which act Of violence lay his last and only hope
Of forcing England TO fight his last and desper-
ate chance Of setting up a racial domination in
stead of the freedom and equality Of the two
races that prevail in the Cape and Natal. and
that did prevail in the Orange Free State
The cause of the dispute was this: In 1884
convention was agreed on between Great Britain
and the TransvaaI acknowledging the inde-
che
ditions; that the Beers should not make treaties
with foreign Powers without the consent OF the
paramount Power in South Africa + e. Eng
land; that they should not make slaves OF the
native tribes. and that they guaranteed sTgCI
treatment for all the ,rhits inhabitants OF the
country as respects tGFGtiOH AS the whole war
has arisen out Of Kruger's persistent refusal 70
keep his promises both verbal and in writing,
that he would observe this condition. append
the clause giving rise TO the contention:
Article NV uSS4 Convention)-Au persons
other than natives conforming themselves %
the laws of the South African Republic viii rot
be subject in respect TO their persons or properly
or in respect OF their commerce and industry, 70
any taxes. whether general or local other than
those which are or may be imposed upon cits
zens of the said republic.
The mines brought so large a population 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 amalgamation OF
the new and old populations which was going
on in Natal and Cape Colony, and to a smaller
extent in the Orange Free State. unless artificial
barriers could be devised to keep the races
apart at once set to scheme modes OF taxation
that should evade Article XIV OF the cOnven-
ton throwing the entire burden the Out
landers and letting the Beers. who We're nearly
all farmers escape scotfree. Farmers, for ex-
ample. use no dynamite; miners do; and Presi-
dent Kruger gave a monopoly of its supply TO .
German nonresident in the country, when
taxed the miners for this article alons
S2.6OOOOO a year beyond the highest price i
could otherwise have been bought for This
was his own act, the VOlksraad not being CON.
suited. Besides the high price. the quality o.
the explosive was bad. often causing accldsn'
or death. When it did cause accident or deata
the miners were prosecuted by the Government
from whose agent they had been compe4eD
buy It, and fined for having used H.
At the time the convention was signed
1884 the franchise was obtainable after tHo
years residence President Kruger detern tas-
10 serve the Outlanders. however, as Georse Ia'
Government served the American coohsN
that is tax them while refusing them reHi'
sentation in the control OF the taxes. he Ws-
on at one and the same time increasing t's
burdens nonstrously. while he prolchss1 =
period OF residence that qualified for vo'e' i',
tlrO years TO IRE and on till ne Hla1s
fifteen yedrs OR Seren and hall tnleS % -.
as srhen the contention TGS signed. NOR was
all. He reserved the right persohailS -,
any Outlander being placed on the ~
even after the fifteen years II ne thousD "a