Kootenai County Republican. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1899-1903, 1902-04-18
PEACE IN SIGHT.

The Evening News OF Edinburgh,
Scotland, whose editor is in close touch
with Mr.. Kruger, declares the Beers
are prepared to accept the following
conditions:
/. They will not make absolute in
dependence II cardinal feature If they
can come To a satisfactory agreement
~ Ia future International government
>. The Punishment and cOntiScation
or property proclamation must be can
caied and coHtiscatcd property must
be restored to its owners with rcmun-
Grafton for private stock and property
destroyed or taken by the British.
3. Full recognition OF state debts
contracted before and after hostilities
and up to the date Of the annexation
proclamation published by Lord Rob
erts.
4, The language question Is to be
mutually agreed upon.
.. Amnesty for the Cape rebels.
q. The release Of all political prison.
crs
7. A date to be fixed when all pris-
oners OF war will be returned to South
Africa. The offers of one or two
friendly powers TO be accepted to
superlntend the carrying out Of the
terms OF peace.
The foregoing proposals will nodoubt
form the basis for peace negotiations
between Great Britain and the Beers.
From time to time there have been
rumors Of peace and there Is but lit
tie doubt that the Boer leaders have
been anxious that hostilties be termi-
mated, but so long as they insisted
upon absolute independence 1t was
apparent To all that the British gov
eminent would not sheath the sword.
II is not too much to say that the great
mass OF Britons are MS anxious for
peace as the Beers, and at no time
since hostilitieS commenced would
they have turned down almost any
peace proposition from which absolute
independence was eliminated. And,
had the Boer representatives not been
bnoyed up with the hope that for
eign Intervention would ultimately
come, 1t Is reasonable to suppose they
would have waived that demand and
/ brought about cessation of hostili-
ties upon terms.somethlng like those
they now offer. With no hope OF in
teryention, the world has long recog-
nlzed that the Beers were lighting a
hopeless tight, and that there could be
but one result. Right or wrong, Just
or unjust, MS may have been their
course, the odds against them were
too overwhelming, and though they
have Waged gallant fight, and have
held At bay for over four years one OF
the strongest military powers in the
world, at last they have been forced To
acknowledge they are beaten.
j II now remains To be seen whether
the British war office is disposed Il
meet the Roers half way. There are
several features Of the proposed terms
In which Great Britain would willing.
~ acquiesee, but there are others she
4 Is not likely 10 endorse. While the
world Will expect her, and reasonably
So 10 he generous In fixing conditions
OF peace. II Is not Ia be supposed that
she Will tie her hands quite 10 ctfectu
ally rs the reported Boer proposals
J would involve. And for that matter
the Beers are, perhaps, not SO foolish
ms To cling To any such belief. How
ever, II Is To be hoped, and that sin
cercly, that the war will speedily
terminate upon terms alike honorable
Ia both combatants and consistent
With the recognized rules Of Justice
and generosi,s