The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-12-09
PR0-BOfR MEETING
GREAT BRITAIN IS SEVERELY
CENSURED.
CocKRAN'S GREAT SPEECH
President Roosevelt Will Be Asked to
Endeavor to Bring the War
to a Close. liz,
(By Associated Press.)


Chicago, Dec. 9.-An immense audi
ence cheered the eloquent address Of
bourke Cochran on the situation in
South Africa last evening.
short addresses We're delivered by sew.
eral prominent gentlemen and fully 500
people occupied the stage
Resolutions were passed severely cen-
suring Great Britain and asking the
president to use his influence to bring
the war to a close.
Mr.. Cockran's speech was in part as
follows:
However men may differ abou: the in,
vasion of the South African republics
are all agreed that the estoration Of
peace is in the highest degree desirable.
There are but two ways In which the
war can be terminated. either the Beers
must surrender or the English govern.
ment must abandon the attempt to sub.
due them.
Cannot Be Successful.
1t is quite generally assumed that the
resistance Of the Boer can not be sue.
cessful and if this be true, they would
not be justified in continuing the stru9,
gle which involves fruitless loss of life
and waste of property, even though thu
lossec inflicted on their enemy were
ten fold greater than what they sufs
fered themselves, for bloodshed Is useless
and is always indefensible. But Is Il
true that the resistance of the Loers n
hopeless? Since the fall Of Pretoria. II
certainly has not been fruitless; it haS
been justified by most important resultef
Lord Salisbury's position that nothing
but absolute surrender would be con.
sidered has been abandoned, and today
the burghers could secure almost any
for chnr oP NoA>
ment of their independence. As .heir re-.
sistance has not been fruitless neither is
their struggle for independence hopeless.
On the contrary, if their resistance be
prolonged for a few months, the aban.
donment of the struggle to subdue them
by Great Britain Is inevitable. This
statement Is not based on any special
information concerning the war. but on
the conviction that it will be impos.
sible for the government to secure tho
passage of many more war appropria.
tions through the house of commons.
The last budget was passed only after
immense difficulties. All sources Of tax
alton have practically been exhausted
and the attempt to effect another large
war loan would result in such a fall in
the price of consols as would seriously
jeojpardize British industries. II, then,
the Boer forces can hold the field little
longer, the attempt to subdue the re-
publics must be abandoned for lack of
means to pursue it.
Barbarity Of Methods.
The capacity of the Beers to maintain
the struggle is placed beyond doubt
by the barbarity Of the methods en-
ployed to subdue them.
The English government cannot avoid
supporting the women and children
made homeless by the destruction Of tho
farms. With the support of his woms0
and children imposed upon England
while his lands have been made desc.
late and unproductive, the Boer soldier
is free to continue in the field as lon&
as he can secure by capture abundant
supplies of food and arms from the En-
glish forces. His reputation for hui
manity and courage make the English
soldier prefer surrendering to facing his
rifle.
Nothing can be clearer than that the
resistance of the burghers cannot be SUP.
pressed and therefore the only possible
way to peace is the withdrawal Of Great
Britain from the attempt to subjugate
the South African soldiers
This meeting has no disposition to-
provoke bitterness or to increase thu
growth of bitterness already too large
the world. As much as WI
might desire the Incorporation of Can.
ada in the union, unless 1t could be 40.
by the consent of the peopis
on both sides Of the frontier. we do not
wish it. but 1t may be we'll to point out
that there was much less Justification
for the assault upon the South African
by Great Britain than there
would be for the annexation of Canada
by this country.
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