The San Francisco call., 1906-06-17

/ England. where he was petted and
| treated as an African prince.
Tribal customs and traditions are no.
where so engrained and binding as
among the Zulus. The exiled chief was
received on his return from his politi
cal incarceration with acclamation by
his people, who looked upon him as a
martyr hero. and his influence was
J rather enhanced than diminished by
his prolonged absence Dinizulu. who
is q fine specimen of savage chief,
combines all the dignity and sagacity
/ ity and unscrupulousness Of his grand
sire, the terrible Dingaan. whose name.
4 even TO this day, is Il bogieman to
white children in South Africa.
He has by his contact with Europe
ans developed a shrewdness and fore
4 sight rema rkable in a Zulu Such is the
man whose mere nod can throw hun
dred thousand fanatical warriors. the
finest fighters in the world, into the
field. and who. with Letsea. holds the
destinies of the black. and incidentally
| of the white, races in South Africa in
/ the palm of his hand.
| Dinizulu had not long returned and
been reinstated when he got busy"
! and made short work of some recaIci-
/ trant petty chiefs and others who had
attempted during his absence to under
mine his authority and take liberties
not in conformity with his ideas. He
has been chafing all along and is spoil
| ing for q row. His ambitions and pre-
tensions are famed by the counselings
of the educated young chiefs from the
colleges OF Lovedale and Zonnenbloom,
and urged by the more turbulent in
dumas (petty chiefs), he is by no means
unwilling to measure swords with the
whites, and with the assistance of the
warlike and unconquered Basutos, to
bring to pass the prophecy of his fore
father Chaka.
South Africa. although white col
ony, is really black-peopled country,
with a comparatively small number of
whites living in isolated settlements or
dispersed most sparsely in the midst OF
a huge black population that extends
over worry large area If such a pop
ulation should form a combination
against the whites, obviously the dan
ger of the total annihilation of the lat
ter is possible.
The various towns, with the excep-
tion of the coast one, are small and iso-
| lated. Only in comparatively few in
I stances are they connected by rail- and
the mobilization of the white forces in
event of an outbreak would be attended
with the greatest difficulties, even if
the colonies acted promptly and with
unanimity. This last is doubtful. as
each would be inclined to husband it's
resources for self-defense. The danger
of invasion along a frontier, added to
the sraver danger of attack which
could and would be made by the rebels
from the huge native reservations in
the TranslSei Natal and Transvaal
would mako the outlook an exceedingly
dark one for the colonists.
Compassion of Forces.
/ Disturbances have already COM
| menced In February the Mveli tribe.
located in a large reservation near
Richmond, Natal. rebelled, at the i'm
! position of a hut tax, refused to pay it,
killing an Inspector and several troop
ers of the locSl mounted police, who
, had been sent to enforce order. The
Natal Government acted with great
pTomptituGe, called cut the militia and
| dispatched a punitive field force of
mounted infantry and artillery to the
scene of the trouble. Twelve of the
ringleaders were captured and brought
to trial on the charges of High treason
| ard murder. found guilty and sem
! terced to death. They were executed
| by shooting at Pietermaritzburg, the
/ capital, on April 2.
1t was then fendly hoped that any
| attempt at rebellion had been nipped
| in the bud; that the regrettable incl