Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-12-03
ksts'r Of Education is Causing TroubN for
British in the Transvasl
NATIVE SCHOOLS MAY Be > SHED
Negotiation Are in Prog Wesn Gov
eminent and Eduoa' nmlttee,
FRICTION IN THE Oh. t RIVER COLONY
Working Agreement in that State Nay B
0verthrown Any Time,
UNCERTAlN1YINwoaN OF ADMINISTRATION
People Uneasy and Question May BE
Deferred Until Next Assembly I'm
less Orange River system
is Accepted.

| JOHANNESBURG, Dec. 2.-(Special Ca
| blegram to The Bee.)-The subject of edu-
! cation is engaging Lord Selborne's atten-
! tion at the present time. Negotiations were
/ lately carried on between the government
and the Christian National Education COM
mttee which is responsible for the poor
| opposition schools throughout the country.
| 1t will be remembered that in both colonies
| these opposition schools were started stimuli
| taneously under the same aegis, but last
| March an eminently satisfactory arrange
| ment was concluded with the Orange River
| colony, and the so-called national schools
! ceased to exist. An agreement providing for
the absorption Of the Transvaal schools
awaits ratification but the government has
not yet divulged it's terms This confession
of weakness is sufficiently alarming. The
agreement with the Orange River colony
worked we'll for six months in spite of the
abuse levelled by the Het Volk leaders at
their brethren across the Vaal. II the
former made better terms with the Trans
vaal government peace and educational
progress in the Orange River colony would
Immediately be jeopardized.
! A still more cogent objection to the atti-
tude Of the TransvaQl government is the
fact that the Orange River colony agree
ment represents the maximum Of the con-
! cessions that can safely be made That
agreement was the result Of the frmness
and tact shown throughout the educational
controversy by the lieutenant governor and
Mr.. Gum, director OF education. In the
! Transvaal ever since Mr.. Sargent re-
linquished the control of the education de-
partment, the educational policy OF the gov
ernment has suffered from uncertainty.
while Het Volk has been encouraged in the
belief that II It only maintained its oppo-
sition a little longer the government would
surrender all along the line. 1t is possible
that a disadvantageous agreement would
already have been concluded had not the
Orange River colony government protested
against such betrayal Of it's interests
People Are Uneasy.
Considerable uneasness is felt locally
and the government will probably be asked
to suspend negotiations until the next as
sembly is elected unless 1t is able to adopt
the Orange River colony agreement. This
stipulates that English shall be the me-
dium of instruction. and II may be men
toned that this clause was accepted at the
negotiations practically without comment
It is we'll known that Boer parents in the
Transvaal are just as keen as Orange par
ents that their children shall learn Eng
!
of the Het Volk have always urged claims
that the Taal shall be the medium of In
struction It has been pleaded that many
Boer children in the Transvaal are ig-
: norant Of English and therefore the Taa'
must be used as the medium of instruction
! The same. however. applies to the Orange
River colony. 1t is easy to keep such chill
dren unplaced in any definite standard
until they have learned sufficient English
The government is under no necessity tc
. hasten the absorption of the opposition
schools Public education Is being con
Quoted on sound lines, and twice as many
children are being educated than before
the war in spite Of Het Volks efforts
y Eventually the opposition schools mus
shut down for want Of funds and the fac
! that Het Volk has reopened negotiations in
dicates that these are running low. II is
pity under the circumstances that tn
government should not stay its hand fl
view of the importance of sound educa
: tonal policy.
[ Distress in the North.
e The tales Of distress in the northern dis
d tricts of the Transvaal recently became s.
i persistent that direct investiga ton on tn
i part of the government seemed imperatlv
I. and Sir Arthur and Lady Lawley undertook
A a long tour through this least familiar pOr
o ton OF the colony. The impressions forme
= by his excelency have an interesting bear
n ing on the economic problems of the Trans
vaal The zoutpansberg has always bee
more or less Inaccessible. but before tn
ravages of cattle disease It was able, as
good stock country, to make both end
,fnfr1 -