CAPE COLONY AND SOUTH AFRICA. 



Controversy with Mr. Chamberlain. As 



s.xm as In- Learned of the infraction of the frontier 

 l.y tlu British South Africa Company's !' 

 PY.v-ic lent Kriiger telegraphed to inquire whether 

 I>r. Jameson's advance- hail the approval of the 

 British Government, and Sir Hercules Robinson 

 and -Mr. Chamberlain repudiated the act, as did 

 afterward the directors of the South Africa Com- 

 pany. On Dec. 29 Mr. Chamberlain sent a dis- 

 patch telling Sir Hercules Robinson to warn 

 Rhodes that the charter of the British South Afri- 

 ca Company might be canceled if the forces of 

 the company broke into the Transvaal. When he 

 knew more definitely of the raid Mr. Chamberlain 

 telegraphed to have Dr. Jameson called back. 

 Again, when confirmation of the raid came from 

 President Kriiger. who told Sir Jacobus de Wet on 

 Dec. 30 that he had taken immediate steps to stop 

 the progress of the raiders. Mr. Chamberlain tele- 

 graphed to Sir Hercules Robinson : " You should 

 represent to Mr. Rhodes the true character of Dr. 

 Jameson's action in breaking into a foreign state 

 which is in friendly treaty relations with her Maj- 

 esty in time of peace. It is an act of war. or, rather, 

 of filibustering. If the Government of the South 

 African Republic had been overthrown, or had 

 there been anarchy at Johannesburg, there might 

 have been some shadow of excuse for this unpre- 

 cedented act. If it can be proved that the British 

 South Africa Company set Dr. Jameson in motion. 

 or were privy to his action, her Majesty's Govern- 

 ment would at once have to face a demand that the 

 charter should be revoked." In a direct telegram 

 to President Kriiger the British Colonial Minister 

 asked: "Can I co-operate with you further in this 

 emergency in endeavoring to bring about a peace- 

 ful arrangement which is essential to all interests 

 in South Africa and which would be promoted by 

 the concessions that I am assured you are ready to 

 make i '' 



Instructions issued to Sir Hercules Robinson on 

 Jan. 4 included urgent representations to be made 

 on the subject of the grievances of the Uitlanders. 

 including the question of granting full municipal 

 privileges to Johannesburg. The Secretary for the 

 Colonies stated that the large interests with which 

 the British Government was charged in South 

 Africa justified friendly representations in regard 

 to matters outside of the convention in which per- 

 sons of British nationality who have for some time 

 cast in their lot with the South African Republic 

 are deeply concerned. If those who are now a ma- 

 jority of the inhabitants of the Transvaal, but are 

 excluded from all participation in its government, 

 were, of their own initiative and without any inter- 

 ference from without, to attempt to reverse the 

 state of things of which they complained. Mr. 

 Chamberlain was of the opinion that they would 

 attract much sympathy from all civilized commu- 

 nities who themselves live under a free govern- 

 ment. On Jan. 13 Mr. Chamberlain sent a dispatch 

 in which he referred to the complete exclusion of 

 the Uitlanders as "an admitted grievance, which is 

 publicly recognized as such by the friends of the 

 Republic as well as by the opinion of civilized Eu- 

 rope," and which would always, as long as the 

 grievance exists, be a danger of internal disturb- 

 ance. In view of the possibility that the President 

 might be induced to rely on the support of some 

 foreign power in resisting the grant of reform or in 

 making demands upon the British Government. 

 Mr. Chamberlain let it be known that Great Britain 

 would resist at all cost the interference of any 

 foreign power in the affairs of- the South African 

 Republic, and drew attention to the flying squadron 

 of powerful men-of-war, with 12 torpedo ships. 

 In another telegram of the same date Mr. Cham- 



berlain said that there could be no settlement un- 

 til the questions he had raised were disposed of; 

 that the people of Johannesburg had laid down 

 their arms in the belief that reasonable concessions 

 would be arranged by Sir Hercules Robinson's in- 

 tervention. Hence the High Commissioner was 

 instructed to use firm language and to tell the 

 President that neglect to meet the admitted griev- 

 ances of the Uitlanders by giving a promise to pro- 

 pose reasonable concessions would have a disastrous 

 effect upon the prospects of a lasting and satisfac- 

 tory settlement. The High Commissioner was as- 

 sured in these dispatches that Great Britain would 

 not tolerate any change in her relations with the 

 Republic, and while loyally respecting its internal 

 independence, subject to the conventions, was re- 

 solved to maintain her position as the paramount 

 power in South Africa. 



The United States Government requested that 

 the British Government watch over the interests of 

 the imprisoned Americans John Hays Hammond, 

 J. S. Curtis. T. H. King. Charles Butters, and Capt. 

 Mein. The Belgian Government made a similar 

 request. In consequence of the representations of 

 these governments Mr. Chamberlain cabled to Sir 

 Hercules Robinson deprecating the arrests, inquir- 

 ing into their grounds, whether bail would be 

 allowed, and what the penalties might be. 



On Jan. 27 Mr. Chamberlain invited President 

 Kriiger to come to England to discuss the griev- 

 ances of the Uitlanders and a policy outlined in the 

 dispatch for their removal. A long dispatch, dat- 

 ed Feb. 4 and summarized in a telegraphic message, 

 recited all the grievances of the Uitlanders and pre- 

 scribed immediate measures which appeared to the 

 British minister necessary for the President of the 

 Transvaal to take in view of the grave issues raised 

 by the incursion of an armed force under Dr. Jame- 

 son. These dispatches were published in England 

 as soon as they were sent. The publication of these 

 communications was resented by the Boer Govern- 

 ment. Their peremptory and dictatorial tone drew 

 from the Transvaal State Secretary the reply that 

 the Government was compelled to observe "that it 

 can not suffer any interference and intermingling, 

 however well intended, with the internal affairs of 

 the country." The endeavors that the Government 

 was making to obtain, through a moderate and 

 pacific course, "the ultimate establishment of a 

 good understanding between the Republic and 

 England" would be. in its opinion, "very much 

 involved in difficulty, to the great danger of the 

 peace and quiet not only of the Republic, but of 

 all South Africa, by again exciting and bringing to 

 a state of unrest the minds of the inhabitants." On 

 Feb. 2o President Kriiger telegraphed that he was 

 prepared to accept the British ministers invitation, 

 provided a basis for discussion could be settled upon 

 that would prove satisfactory to the Volksraad, 

 without whose permission he could not go to Eng- 

 land. The points that he proposed to discuss were 

 not the grievances of the Uitlanders. which were a 

 matter of internal politics, to be settled by the 

 Volksraad. but the question of an indemnity for 

 the Jameson raid, the incorporation of Swaziland 

 with the Transvaal, the superseding of the conven- 

 tion of 1884. because it has in several respects 

 1 to exist and because " it is injurious to the 

 dignity of an independent republic." by a treaty of 

 amity and commerce that would enable the Repub- 

 lic to grant the most-favored-nation clause, the rev- 

 ocation of the charter of the British South Africa 

 Company, and necessary guarantees against a repe- 

 tition of' the violation of territory of the Republic 

 by armed forces coming out of the territory of the 

 Chartered Company or the Cape Colony, and of 

 disturbing military operations and unlawful mili- 



