The Norfolk weekly news. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1888-1900, 1900-02-15
MACRUM TALKS OUT.
Former Consul at Pretoria
Gives Reasons for Return.
IGNORED BY STATE DEPARTMENT.

briti-h Censor.
WASHINGTON, Feb i5.--rhe follow.
ing signed statement was given out by
Charles E. Macrum, former United
States consul at Pretoria:
"Thc situation in Pretoria was such,
first, as an official, conld not ROMAN
there while my government ut home
was apparently in the dark as to the OK
act conditions in South Africa. Sec
ondly, rs man and n citizen OF the
United States, could not remain in
Pretoria, sacrificing my own self re-
! spoct and tho people of Pretoria while
the government at home continued to
leave me in the position OF British
consul and not an American consul. l
want to say right here that there was
not one single request made OF me
through the department of state look
ing to the care of British interests i'll
Pretoria which did not fulfill and re.
port upon according to my orders On
the other hand, American interests in
South Africa were in that condition
which demanded that the department
of state should be cognizant of them.
issued the statement issued from the
state department, that Americans must
remain neutral. In the face of this
Americans are constantly going to the
front and taking up arms in the inter
ests of the Beers. could not help but
, know that many of these were citizens
, of the United States. | also knew that
many of them, in utter despair ut the
| apparent attitude of our own govern
mont were taking the oath Of allegiance
to the Transvaal government. When
affairs had reached that state, when
Vice Consul Van Amering closed up his
business, took the oath of allegiance to
the Transvaal and went to the front as
burgher, l thought the time had come
to make report Of the affair.
OMcial Mail Opened by British Censor.
ut was over four weeks after the
opening of the war before I received
single dispatch or u personal letter from
the government. The mail for the
Transvaal had Ill been stopped at Cape
Town by order of the high commits
sioner. When this mail was finally
forwarded to me, after Colonel Stowe,
the consul general Mt Cape Town, had
secured its release, had the humiliation
as tho representative of the American
government of sitting in my Office i'll
Pretoria and looking upon envelopes
bearing the official seal of the American
government opened and officially sealed
with a sticker, notifying me that the
oontents had been read by the censor ut
Durham. l looked up International law,
but failed to find anywhere that one
military power can use it's discretion as
to forwarding the official dispatches of
neutral government to its representa-
tive i'll a besieged country.
Asks Leave of Absence.
"The misrepresentation which had
been going on before the war and after
it opened were of such serious nature
and would require such detailed ex-
planation that on Nov. filed cable
to the department, stating that wished
leave of absence in order to visit the
United States. set forth in this cable
that my vice consul had enlisted in the
Boer army, that Mr.. Atterbury, an
American, whom had known very ia
vorably for more than year, could take
charge of the office until my return. In
reply to this dispatch, l received from
the department areply advising me that
my presence at Pretoria was important
to public interest Nov. II l again
wired the department, stating that l
could not leave without permission,
that would forfeit my post if the
reasons which | would make to the
department did not prove satisfactory
To this received n reply which was a
relteration of the reply to my first cable
Upon receipt of this reply | immedi-
ately wrote to the department, accept.
ing the refusal to grant my absence, and
stating that | would abide by the de.
cision of the department and attempt to
convey an intelligence for the depart.
ment's guidance of the conditions there
III mail dispatches. On Dec. | re-
ceiyed n reply from the department. to
my cablegram of the lith 1t read as
follows:
"'You may come home. Put After.
bury temporarily i'll charge
Hollis Takes Charge.
"A few days later received "a telegram
from Mr., Hollis, consul at Dclagoa Bay,
stating that he had been instructed to
come to Pretoria to take charge of my
/ o..ice during my absence and until a
man should arrive from Washington!
| lett Pretoria Dec. l6 and arrived in
Washington Feb. 8 and reported to As.
sistant Secretary Hill of the state de.
partment, who officially informed me
that Secretary Hays son had been ap-
pointed in my place and that he was on
his way to Pretoria
Il appreciated the seriousness of the
conditions i'll South Africa to the extent
that on my way to Washington, believ-
ing that | was still the consul in Pre-.
toria, refused to make any statement
that would in any way involve the de,
partment or embarrass it. My one OBJ
Ject was to lay the information before
the department as to the true state of
affairs i'll South Africa. If the depart
ment thought these facts were of a