The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-03-27
GREAT, EVEN If CIVIL"
Strong Terms Used Against Rhodes,
but All Admit His Ability.

strong Terms Used Against Rhodes,
but All Admit His Ability.
Cecil Rhodes was born in Herts, Eng
land. July 3, 1858, the fourth son of Rev.
Francis w. Rhodes, Vicar of Bishop
Stanford, He was educated at oxford,
and made two visits to South Africa while
yet student. Chinese Gordon helped to
develop Mr. Rhodes, they being warm
friends. They first met in 1881 in Basu-
toland, South Africa, when Mr. Rhodes,
then newly elected member for BarkIy
West in the Cape Colony legislative as
SelnDly-a constituency which continued
his through 1fe-WaS serving in the COM
penSatlon commission. When Gen. Cor
den Went to I<hartoum he asked Mr..
Rhodes to accompany him The young
Legislator declined and accepted the 4reas-
try.
Mr.. Rhodes was the originator of the
cape Colony scheme and considered his
greatest achievement the keeping of Be
chuanaland in British hands, to the ex-
clusion of the Beers. He was treasurer
general of Cape Colony in 1884 deputy
commissioner of Bechuanaland in 1884,
and managing director of the British
South African company whose charter
was granted through his efforts in 1889.
Afterward he became chairman of the
company, director of the De Beers mines
missioner. of crown lands and minister of
native affairs and served in Malta belle
land in 1856
Mr.. Rhodes read chiefly the classics and
was a collector of old furniture, china and
cur1oS generally. He was a sportsman and
| good shot and owned a whole menager. g
Of lions, etc; He remained in guarded re-
tlrement at Kimberley the first months Of
the pending war, his capture by the Beers
being threatened constantly.
Beers Put Price on His Head.
Cecil Rhodes was once designated by an
enemy as the evil genius of South Afri-
ca Whether or not this appellation was
just, tine Developments of an uncertain fu-
tEre alone can tell. 1t is matter of history
that the vortex CT the bloody conflicts
which have marked the history of South
Africa In the last twenty years has fol-
lowed his course. Wherever he went,
both war and civilization followed To
his activity in BUILDING a British empire
in South Africa is attributed the present
| deadly struggle between Boer freedom
and the advance Of British power Presi-
dent Kruger called him murderer and
| placed a price on his head. Englisnmen
have denounced him as a coward and
| criminal, and cIamored for his downfall.
but his great personality continued to
make history in South Africa, and
! through success and defeat he continued
to stand forth pre-eminently the great
est Englishman in South Africa.
The projects Which have been carried
I out by Cecil Rhodes were too great to
be measured by the standards of Ordi-
| nary men. The methods he used were
accordingly often in. violation of ordi-
| nary standards. A great general, both
! of finance and conquest, he used all hu-
| man agencies to accomplish his ends. He
| sacrificed lives and all else which stood in
! his way, and the history of conquest in
| South Africa is a history of bloodshed
! and dishonor, but tt1is also a history of
| magnificent achievement; of vast fortunes
torn from molten 5soil of vast states
| Wrested from the rule of Savages and Civ
| en- to the uses of civilization; of the prog
| reSS OF modern civilization along the
| route from cape to Cairo, and the great
/ nSure In this history was Cecil Rhodes.
| Genius Struggles with Patriot.
The early operations Of the Chartered
| company furnish heroic pages In South
| African history. Hardly had the charter
| been issued before President Kruger di-
| vined the object Of the company and tried.
to defeat it. The race for the Zambesi
| over the trackless veIdt began. When
| the English arrived in the chartered
! territory they found the Beers there be-
] fore them. Rhodes sent for troops. The
1 government. furnished them and drove
4 off the encroaching Beers. Hne struggle
! between Rhodes, the English genius, and
Kruger, the Boer patriot, began bloody
struggle. which still continues today be-
| tween their followers
| The Boer trek was headed off. Boer
expansion was stopped the TranSVaal
| republic was cut off from the growth
! which was the hope of it's future indie
| pendence and greatness All this was
/ done by one stroke by Cecil Rhodes. He
accomplished it more by the power Of
| his millions than by genius. In the height
| OF MS success he was made premier or
Still holding his power in politics.
Rhodes continued the work Of the Char
/ tered company. First. Matabeland was
| conquered and opened up by the Char
| tered company. Bechuanaland was added
/ 70 the British domain. A bloody war was
fought with the Matabele tribe and the
| British domain extended to the Zambesi
| 1t passed the stream which had once been
me goal Of the race. Nyossaland was
ADDED and the British Central Africa
colony was the result. The advance OF
/ the portuguese into the interior was
stopped. The whole of Rhodesia was Sc
| cured 70 the Chartered company. Africa
from cape to Cairo might have been
| gained to England had Rhodes been the
| government He had extended the do
man mar to the shore eof Tanganyika lake,
! 2,OO0 miles north of Cape Town. He had
| conquered a country five times the size
| OF the British isleso but the British gov
eminent had not the mood to follow his
| 1ead. The great interior OF Africa. ex-
| plored by British. who first discovered
| us Wealth was allowed TO slip into other
nands, and the empire Of the dream was
| thus curtailed. .
| Els the Blame for Boer War.
The Jameson raid was the one great
mistake OF Rhode career. It was that
| raid which caused fEnglishmen to de-
ncunce him as a coward and criminal:
| Whlch drew the bitter epithet Of ''mur-
/ derer from Kruger. 1t was a colossal
on plunder which an ordinary man would
| De incapable Of making. In 1896 the world
| was started to learn that an army COM
1 manded by Dr. Jameson,-who had served
| the Chartered company in it's continuous
conflicts with native tribes, had invaded
| the Iransvaal to inaugurate a rebellion
| against the government of Kruger. The
raid was short and inglorious. Jameson
and his men, what was left of them when
| the ngnung was over, was captured by
the. Beers. The raid was a disaster.
| The disaster fired the natives in Rhode
| sia- The Matabele tribe broke out in
bloody revolt. The war which followed
L L IN 10
pany. Even its lirnitless millions could
not stand the drain which came upon
| them The land was devastated with all
the horror Of savage warfare. One Of