152 -Recollections of Adventures 



of administration he intended to inaugurate. I told 

 him that unless Messrs. M. W. Pretorius, P. Kruger 

 and P. Joubert, accepted office, I did not think his 

 scheme would be permanently successful. He asked 

 me to see these gentlemen, and try to arrange 

 matters. Messrs. Pretorius and C. Bodenstein were 

 prepared to consider proposals, if other influential 

 Boers would join. P. Kruger would have nothing 

 further to do with it, and the project came to nothing. 



I refused to accept office as I considered the 

 scheme unworkable. An Executive was appointed 

 which had no influence in the country and proved a 

 failure. A legacy left by Burgers' government was 

 the Sekukuni trouble. When the Boer commando 

 retreated, some forts were built near the Zulu moun- 

 tains, and paid volunteers, mostly foreigners, were 

 left to harass the natives, to take their cattle, and 

 prevent them cultivating their crops until another 

 commando could subdue them. For this purpose Sir 

 T. Shepstone despatched Col. Rowlands with a force. 

 On request, I showed Colonel Rowlands and Captain 

 Harvey the map of Sekukuni's country, explained 

 the features as to water, roads, the best approaches 

 to the strongholds, etc., and specially warned them 

 against taking advice from Captain Clark, (after- 

 wards British resident in Basutoland), who was then 

 in Fort Burgers, as he had been unfortunate with 

 Sekukuni and would lead them into difficulties. I 

 knew the country well, but was too busy to go 

 myself, so I hired Franz van der Burg to go with 

 them as a guide. I went with the force as far as 

 Lower Elands River, to help them get " en route," 

 then returned to Pretoria. Rowlands got on as 

 far as near Krokodil Heuvel, when Captain Clark 

 persuaded him that I was wrong. The force was 

 taken back to Ol if ants River (the old Commando 



