CAPE COLONY AND SOUTH AFRICA. 



123 



On Sept. 5 the Transvaal Government re- 

 sponded that it then withdrew its franelii.se pro- 

 posals, which were more liberal than those; put 

 forward by the High Commissioner at Bloemfon- 

 tein. The Transvaal had never desired Great 

 Britain to abandon any right that it possessed 

 in virtue of the Convention of 1884 or in virtue 

 of international law, but it wished to assure itself 

 that Great Britain would abide by the London 

 convention and international law, and that the 

 differences in question would be solved in ac- 

 cordance with the rules of justice and equity 

 recognized by civilized states. If a unilateral 

 inquiry should show that the existing electoral 

 law could be made more efficacious, the Trans- 

 vaal Government was willing to make proposals 

 to the Volksraad on the subject, but was of the 

 opinion that the result of such an inquiry would 

 be of little value. Nevertheless it was anxious 

 to satisfy Great Britain in regard to the electoral 

 law and the representation of the mining dis- 

 tricts, and was ready to appoint delegates to hold 

 a joint investigation. The Transvaal was ready 

 also to negotiate on the question of a court of 

 arbitration, though the restrictions imposed 

 would seem to prevent the object aimed at from 

 being attained. The Transvaal offered seven 

 years' franchise, past residence being counted, 

 without naturalisation or notice being required 

 except from newcomers. Equality of languages 

 was refused, and no further concessions would 

 be made. The Government of the Orange Free 

 State indorsed the reply of the Transvaal. Mr. 

 Chamberlain, in the last sitting of Parliament, 

 intimated that England had the right to insist 

 on the restoration of the franchise of 1881. The 

 Transvaal officials denied that the franchise bill 

 imposed irksome conditions. All an applicant 

 who is not already registered had to do was to 

 hand in his name to the field cornet with the 

 affidavits of two reputable burghers to the 

 effect that he has resided seven years in the 

 country; if he is registered, the affidavits are 

 unnecessary. Even sedition does not disqualify 

 nor any offense against the law except high 

 treason or heinous crime. During the corre- 

 spondence war preparations were actively pro- 

 ceeding on both sides. Large consignments of 

 ammunition and arms were forwarded to the 

 Orange Free State through Cape Colony, and 

 others passed by way of Delagoa Bay into the 

 Transvaal. Mauser rifles were distributed among 

 the burghers in the place of the Martini rifles 

 that they had before. Arms were given out to 

 the Free State burghers as well, and some to 

 the Dutch farmers inside the Natal border. A 

 large force of workmen was employed in making 

 trenches, earthworks, and other defenses about 

 Pretoria. A Boer was arrested in Bechuanaland 

 for trying to incite Khama and* his chiefs to dis- 

 affection. Over 4,000 Germans formed a corps to 

 fight for the independence of the Transvaal in 

 the event of war. Hollanders and other foreign- 

 ers volunteered their services also. In the mid- 

 dle of August two cargoes of Mauser rifles and 

 cartridges were stopped at Delagoa Bay, orders 

 having come from Lisbon to prevent the further 

 landing of war materials. The Transvaal Gov- 

 ernment protested against this breach of inter- 

 national law and treaty rights, sending police 

 officials to investigate, who were placed under 

 arrest when they reached Lourengo Marques. In 

 a few days the Portuguese authorities withdrew 

 their embargo. At the same time the Cape min- 

 istry allowed munitions to pass freely into the 

 Free State, and, when called severely to account 

 by Sir J. Gordon Sprigg, the leader of the Pro- 



gressives, Mr. Schreiner said that, while the re- 

 lations with the Orange Free State were friendly, 

 it would be a violation of the customs conven- 

 tion to refuse permits. He read a dispatch from 

 President Steyn saying that his republic would 

 only take up arms to defend itself or fulfill treaty 

 obligations, that he hoped the differences between 

 Great Britain and the Transvaal were capable of 

 a peaceful settlement, for war would be a crime 

 against civilization. Mr. Schreiner himself pro- 

 tested his loyalty, and said that if war between 

 white men broke out he would do his best to 

 keep the colony aloof as the only salvation for 

 the future, as the two races would have to live 

 together after the storm. The Transvaal Gov- 

 ernment issued a proclamation calling on all the 

 inhabitants to take up arms if martial law 

 should be proclaimed. This was an old pro- 

 vision of the Constitution, but the State Secre- 

 tary assured the British Uitlanders that the 

 Government would never commit the tactical 

 blunder of trying to make them fight against 

 their country or of commandeering any foreigner 

 against his will. 



The Transvaal Government on Sept. 6 asked 

 an explanation of the massing of troops on the 

 frontier, and received from Sir Alfred Milner the 

 reply that the troops were for guarding British 

 interests and preparing against contingencies. 

 Boer troops were mobilized and sent to the Natal 

 frontier. The police at Johannesburg tried to 

 arrest the editor Monypenny and several other 

 leaders of Uitlander opinion; but only the jour- 

 nalist Pakeman was caught, and the authorities 

 at Pretoria denied having ordered the arrests. 

 The rest fled to Durban, and the business men 

 of the city fled also in alarm, causing a cessation 

 of much of the traffic and industry that was still 

 going on, and consequent distress among the 

 working people, many of whom also joined the 

 exodus. The Boer forces encamped at Volksrust, 

 and when more battalions arrived at Durban from 

 England and India and marched up to Lady- 

 smith and Glencoe President Kriiger dispatched 

 an ultimatum demanding the cessation of these 

 movements within forty-eight hours, otherwise he 

 would consider that a state of war existed. (See 

 SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC.) 



Rhodesia. The region south of the Zambesi 

 river lying north of the Transvaal and the 

 Bechuanaland protectorate, and extending from 

 the Portuguese possessions on the east coast to 

 the German sphere in southwest Africa was de- 

 clared a British protectorate in 1888, and was 

 committed in October, 1889, by a royal charter 

 to the British South Africa Company. In con- 

 sequence of the machinations of the company's 

 officers against the Government of the South 

 African Republic and the Matabele and Mashona 

 uprisings the charter was amended on Nov. 25, 

 1898, by an order in Council which vests the 

 High Commissioner for South Africa with direct 

 authority over the military forces and a general 

 control over the administration that he did not 

 formerly possess. A Resident Commissioner is 

 appointed by the Imperial Government, and the 

 administrator of the Chartered Company is as- 

 sisted by a Legislative Council, composed of the 

 Resident Commissioner, the Administrator, 5 

 members nominated by the company and ap- 

 proved by the Secretary of State for the Colo- 

 nies, and 4 members elected by the registered 

 voters of the colony for three years, which is 

 the duration of the Legislative Council. Every 

 colonist has a vote who occupies a house worth 

 75 or receives 50 a year income and can read 

 and write. Ordinances passed by the Adminis- 



