The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-03-14
BRITISH AT BLOEMFONTEIN
Continued from First Page.D

l IIOll lSl rage. J
| ings and honor of the British people.
But now that the prestige of the British
empire may be considered to be as
sured by the capture of one of our
forces by her majesty's troops and
that we have thereby been forced to
evacuate other positions which our
forces had occupied, that difficulty is
over and we can no longer hesitate to
clearly inform your government and
people, in the sight of the whole civil
lied world, why we are fighting and on
what conditions we are ready to re-
store peace"
Great Eritain's Reply.
The following is the reply of Great
Britain:
""rhe Marquis of Salisbury to the Pres
idents OF the South African Repub-
lie and Orange Free State:
Foreign Office, March Ill have
the honor to acknowledge your honors'
telegram, dated March 5, from Bloem-
fontein, of which the purport is princi-
pally to demand that her majesty's gov
eminent shall recognize the incontesta-
BILE independence of the South African
republic and Free State as sovereign
international states and to offer on
those terms to bring the war to con-
clusion.
I'm the beginning of October last
peace existed between her majesty and
the two republics under conventions
which then were in existence. A dis
cussion had been proceeding for some.
months between her majesty's govern
ment and the South African republic
of which the object was to obtain re-
dress for certain very serious grev-
ances under which the British resi-
dents in South Africa were suffering,
I'm the course Of these negotiations
the South African republic had, to the
knowledge of her majesty's government,
made considerable armaments, and the
latter had, consequently taken steps to
provide corresponding achievements Of
the British garrisons at Cape Town and
in Natal. No infringement of the rights
guaranteed by the conventions had, up
to that point, taken place on the Brit
ish side. Suddenly, at two days no
tice, the South African republic, after
issuing an insulting ultimatum, declared
war upon her majesty, and the Orange
Free State, with whom there had not
even been any discussion, took SINH
lar step. Her majesty's dominions were
Immediately invaded by the two repub
lies Siege was laid to three towns
within the British frontier a large por-.
ton of two colonies was overrun, with
great destruction of property and life,
and the republics claimed to treat the
inhabitants of extensive portions of her
majesty's dominions as If those domin-
ions had been annexed to one or the
other of them. In anticipation of these
operations the South African republic
had been accommodating for many years
past military stores on an enormous
scale, which, by their character, could
only have been intended for use against
Great Britain.
Your honors make some observations
of negative character upon the subject
with which these preparations were
made. ] do not think it necessary to
discuss the questions you have raised.
But, the result of these preparations,
carried on with great secrecy, has been
that the British empire has been COM
PEELED to confront an invasion which has
entailed upon the empire a costly war
and the loss of thousands of precious
lives. This great calamity has been
the penalty Great Britain has suffered
for having of recent years acquiesced to
the existence of the two republics.
In view of the use to which the two
republics have put the position which
was given them and the calamities
their unprovoked attack has inflicted on
her maiesty'S domintons har ruaiasty,,s
government can only answer your hon
ors' telegram by saying they are not
prepared to assent to the independence
either of the South African republic or
the Orange Free State"