The Washington times., 1904-06-05
.HEREROS GOADED
INTO REBELLION
Germany Alone Response
BILE for Its Little War.
LONG CAMPAIGN IS AHEAD
Government Failed to Promote Colonial
WellBeing and Administered
Laws With Cruelty.

BERLIN. June 2.-Over the Basuto-
land border Germans are still having
trouble Of an imminently serious charac-
ter.
The Hereros control nearly the whole
Of the country. 1t is probable that
General Won Trotha with his brilliant
STAFF of 300 officers and army Of 1000
men will have a long campaign.
Thoughtful people throughout Germany
methods have not proven failure in
this case. and If they will not have TO
be radically revised if the Kaisers dear
est wish Of an over sea empire is to be
realized.
Not a Vicious Race.
Before the rebellion broke out Ger
man colonists and missionaries alike
agreed the Hereros arc naturally mild
and good tempered. Missionaries Of all
denominations reported the EererOs had
been able to grasp the principles of
Christianity better than any African
race. so much so that number OF
missionaries saw no objection to making
Hereros their lawful wives
Herr Roloff. the German engineer who
has carried out the public works in the
colony says:
The Hereros are good. willing work
men. They are quiet. orderly. indus
trious and extremely sober. They must
be treated like children. with justice
and kindness"
DR.. Hartman's Praise.
DR. Hartman, another expert who
spent many years in the colony. ex-
presses equally favorable opinions OF
the Hereros.
So it seems they were goaded into re-
bellion by brutal treatment. German
methods of government are responsible
for all of the trouble. The unfettered
freedom which is one of the chief
charms Of genuine colonization has been
wanting I'm German Southwest Africa.
Germans who emigrated to escape
from the crushing burden of militarism
and police rule at home found them
selves confronted by still more oppres-
sive forms Of government. Not only
trade and agriculture, but also the per-
sonal liberty of the colonlsts have been
restricted by absurd police rules ana
regulations imported from Prussia
Genuine colonial enterprise and colon
ial sentiments of patriotism and at
tachment to the fatherland were crush
ed by a relentless and aarrow-ininced
lof1cialdom. German colonis;s were
forced to regard the German govern
ment and German authority rs the curse
/ Of their lives.
A Backward Colony.
! In these circumstances. it is not sur
prising that. after a possession OF TWEEN
| ~ years. there are only 400 German
colonists In a country larger than Ger
many itself
The practical result Of the vexatlous
conditions imposed by German official
dom was TO render honest and Iegiti-
mate trading impossible The internal
commerce of the colony passed into the
I hands of a class Of unscrupulous ad-
venturers.
These traders secured the privilege of
selling goods 10 natives on credit. TAX
Ing mortgages on the native flocks aand
I herds. instead Of ready money In most
/ cases. the value Of the mortgage far ex-
ceeded the worth of the articles SUD-
Piled by the traders. who thus exploited
the natives mercilessIy.
Heavy debts thus incurred by the
Hereros and other natives. in Ignorance
of the consequence to themselves. were
not paid with unfailing punctualitv.
The traders set the law in motion and
had the Hereros' herds conhscated and
sold at auction by German officials.
Cruel Administration of Law.
The law was administered with in
credible cruelty. The Hereros, who
really never grasped the meaning Of
mortgages, naturally came to regard
German colonists and German officials
as their oppressors and enemies. DR..
Hartman, the German colonial author
ity, writes:
1T Is inexplicable TO me why the
Hcreros did not rebel sooner II Is COM
prehensible how n native race unac-
customed 10 written laws should fail
10 grasp the inticacies Of German leg
islation in reference 20 debts and mort
cages. The local courts Of justice which
have administered laws made IN Ger
many never took the trouble to ascer-
tain whether they could Justly be ap-
Piled to the cause that came before
them