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To assure a high quality text, +the original was typed in (manually) twice and electronically compared. + + + + + +Native Life in South Africa, Before and Since +the European War and the Boer Rebellion +By Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje + + +[South African (ethnic Tswana) Editor, Author, Statesman. 1876?-1932.] +First Secretary-General of the South African Native National Congress +(forerunner of the ANC), 1912-1917. Author of "Mhudi", +generally considered the first novel written by a black South African. + + +[The two portraits are not available for this ASCII text. They are titled +"The Author." and "Mrs. S. T. Plaatje. Without whose loyal co-operation +this book would never have been written."] + + + + + +[Note on text: Italicized words or phrases are CAPITALIZED. +Some obvious errors have been corrected (see Notes).] + + + + + +Native Life in South Africa, Before and Since +the European War and the Boer Rebellion + +By Sol. T. Plaatje +Editor of `Tsala ea Batho', Kimberley, S.A. +Author of `Sechuana Proverbs and their European Equivalents' + +Fourth Edition + + + + +Foreword (Native Life in South Africa electronic text): + + + +Sol Plaatje began work on `Native Life in South Africa' in 1914, +while on his way to Britain to plead with the Imperial Government +against the Natives' Land Act of 1913, as part of a deputation +of the South African Native National Congress. The book was intended +as a means of reaching the British public with the deputation's message. + +The method seemed sound enough -- it was quite similar in form +to the successful deputation which had pleaded to keep Bechuanaland +(modern Botswana) under direct Imperial control in 1895. +But circumstances were different in 1914 -- South Africa +had been granted self-government, and the First World War began +shortly after the deputation's arrival in England and distracted all parties. +This latter event also influenced the final form of the book, +as Plaatje played to the patriotic sentiment so strong in Britain at the time. +For all his appeals, Plaatje did not succeed: the Act went on to become +one of the first steps toward the system of Apartheid. For all that, +there is sometimes in defeat the seeds of victory -- these troubles +united black South Africans like nothing before, and Plaatje's successors, +in the form of the ANC, finally succeeded in the early 1990's. + +The Natives' Land Act of 1913, which forbade natives to buy or rent land, +except in a few small reserves consisting largely of wasteland, +was finally overturned in 1991. + + +Thanks should be given to Neil Parsons, for his advice on this subject, +and for being so kind as to research and write the introduction that follows. + + +Alan R. Light + July, 1998. + Monroe, North Carolina (USA). + + + + + +Introduction, by Neil Parsons + + + +"Native Life in South Africa" is one of the most remarkable books on Africa, +by one of the continent's most remarkable writers. It was written +as a work of impassioned political propaganda, exposing the plight +of black South Africans under the whites-only government of newly unified +South Africa. It focuses on the effects of the 1913 Natives' Land Act +which introduced a uniform system of land segregation between the races. +It resulted, as Plaatje shows, in the immediate expulsion of blacks, +as "squatters", from their ancestral lands in the Orange Free State +now declared "white". But Native Life succeeds in being +much more than a work of propaganda. It is a vital social document +which captures the spirit of an age and shows the effects of rural segregation +on the everyday life of people. + +Solomon Tshekeisho Plaatje was born in 1878 in the lands of +the Tswana-speaking people, south of Mafeking. His origins +were ordinary enough. What was remarkable was the aptitude he showed +for education and learning after a few years schooling under the tuition +of a remarkable liberal German Lutheran missionary, the Rev. Ludorf. +At the age of sixteen Plaatje (using the Dutch nickname of his grandfather +as a surname) joined the Post Office as a mail-carrier in Kimberley, +the diamond city in the north of Cape Colony. He subsequently passed +the highest clerical examination in the colony, beating every white candidate +in both Dutch and typing. + +From Kimberley the young Plaatje went on to Mafeking, where he was +one of the key players in the great siege of 1899-1900. +As magistrate's interpreter he was the vital link between +the British civil authorities and the African majority +beleaguered inside the town's military perimeter. Plaatje's diaries +from this period, published long after his death, are a remarkable record +both of the siege and of his early prose experimentation -- +mixing languages and idioms, and full of bright humour. + +After the war Plaatje became a journalist, editor first +of one Tswana language newspaper at Mafeking and then of another at Kimberley. +Like other educated Africans he came out of the war optimistic that +the British would enfranchise all educated and propertied males +in the defeated Boer colonies (Transvaal and Orange Free State) +without regard to race. But in this he, and the others, +were soon sorely disappointed. The British gave a whites-only franchise +to the defeated Boers and thus conceded power to a Boer or white Afrikaner +parliamentary majority in the 1910 Union of South Africa +which brought together the two Boer colonies with Cape Colony and Natal. +Clinging to the old but diminished "colour blind" franchise of the Cape, +Plaatje remained one of the few Africans in South Africa +with a parliamentary vote. + +Plaatje's aggravation with the British government can be seen +in an unpublished manuscript of 1908-09 titled "Sekgoma -- the Black Dreyfus". +In this booklet he castigated the British for denying legal rights +(specifically habeas corpus) to their African subjects +outside the Cape Colony. + +Plaatje became politically active in the "native congress" movement +which represented the interests of educated and propertied Africans +all over South Africa. He was the first secretary-general +of the "South African Native National Congress", founded in 1912 +(which renamed itself as the African National Congress or ANC +ten years later). + +The first piece of major legislation presented to the whites-only +parliament of South Africa was the Natives' Land Act, eventually passed +in 1913, which was designed to entrench white power and property rights +in the countryside -- as well as to solve the "native problem" of +African peasant farmers working for themselves and denying their labour power +to white employers. + +The main battle ground for the implementation of the new legislation +was the Orange Free State. White farmers took the cue from the Land Act +to begin expelling black peasants from their land as "squatters", +while the police began to rigorously enforce the pass-laws +which registered the employment of Africans and prescribed +their residence and movement rights. + +The Free State became the cockpit of resistance by the newly formed SANNC. +Its womens' league demonstrated against pass law enforcement +in Free State towns. Its national executive sent a delegation to England, +icluding Plaatje, who set sail in mid-1914. The British crown retained +ultimate rights of sovereignty over the parliament and government +of South Africa, with an as yet unexercised power of veto over +South African legislation in the area of "native affairs". + +The delegation received short shrift from the government in London which was, +after all, more than preoccupied with the coming of the Great War -- +in which it feared for the loyalty of the recently defeated Afrikaners +and wished in no way to offend them. But, rather than return empty-handed +like the rest of the SANNC delegation, Plaatje decided +to stay in England to carry on the fight. He was determined to recuit, +through writing and lecturing, the liberal and humanitarian establishment +to his side -- so that it in turn might pressure the British government. + +Thus it was that Plaatje resumed work on a manuscript he had begun +on the ship to England. "Native Life in South Africa". +The book was published in 1916 by P. S. King in London. +It was dedicated to Harriette Colenso, doughty woman camnpaigner +who had inherited from her father, Bishop Colenso, the mantle of advocate +to the British establishment of the rights of the Zulu nation in South Africa. + +While in England Plaatje pursued his interests in language and linguistics +by collaborating with Professor Daniel Jones of the University of London -- +inventor of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) and prototype for +Professor Higgins in Shaw's "Pygmalion" and thus the musical "My Fair Lady". +In the same year as Native Life was published, 1916, Plaatje published +two other shorter books which brought together the European languages +(English, Dutch and German) he loved with the Tswana language. +"Sechuana Proverbs" was a listing of Tswana proverbs with +their European equivalents. "A Sechuana Reader" was co-authored with Jones, +using the IPA for Tswana orthography. + +Plaatje returned to South Africa but went once again to England +after the war's end, to lead a second SANNC delegation keen to make its mark +on the peace negotiations in 1919. This time Plaatje managed to get +as far as the prime minister, Lloyd George, "the Welsh wizard". +Lloyd George was duly impressed with Plaatje and undertook +to present his case to General Jan Smuts in the South African government, +a supposedly liberal fellow-traveller. But Smuts, whose notions of liberalism +were patronizingly segregationist, fobbed off Lloyd George +with an ingenuous reply. + +Disillusioned with the flabby friendship of British liberals, +Plaatje was increasingly drawn to the pan-Africanism of W. E. B. Du Bois, +president of the NAACP in the United States. In 1921 Plaatje sailed +for the United States on a lecture tour that took him through +half the country. He paid his own way by publishing and selling +18,000 copies of a booklet titled "The Mote and the Beam: an Epic +on Sex-Relationship 'twixt Black and White in British South Africa" +at 25 cents each. In the following year, after Plaatje had left, +this new edition of "Native Life in South Africa" was published, +by the NAACP newspaper "The Crisis" edited by Du Bois. + +Plaatje returned home to Kimberley to find the SANNC a spent force, +despite its name change to ANC, overtaken by more radical forces. +At a time when white power was pushing ahead with an ever more intense +segregationist programme, based on anti-black legislation, +Plaatje became a lone voice for old black liberalism. He turned from politics +and devoted the rest of his life to literature. His passion for Shakespeare +resulted in mellifluous Tswana translations of five plays +from "Comedy of Errors" to "Merchant of Venice" and "Julius Caesar". +His passion for the history of his people, and of his family in particular, +resulted in a historical novel, "Mhudi (An Epic of South African Native Life +a Hundred Years Ago)", dedicated to his daughter Olive who had died +in the influenza epidemic while Plaatje was overseas -- +described in the dedication as "one of the many victims of a settled system". + +"Mhudi" was published by the missionary press at Lovedale in 1930, +in a somewhat bowdlerized version. It has since been republished +in more pristine form and is today considered not just the first +but one of the very best novels published by a black South African writer +in English. + +Plaatje lived an extraordinary life but died a largely disappointed man. +His feats of political journalism had been largely forgotten +and his creative talents had hardly yet been recognised +-- except in the confined world of Tswana language readership. +But today Plaatje is regarded as a South African literary pioneer, +as a not insignificant political actor in his time, +and as a cogent commentator on his times. He was an explorer +in a fascinating world of cultural and linguistic interaction, +who was in retrospect truly a "renaissance man". + + +Related Reading: + +Sol T. Plaatje (ed. John Comaroff with Brian Willan & Andrew Reed), +"Mafeking Diary: a Black Man's View of a White Man's War", +Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press & Cambridge Meridor Press, 1990. +(1st edn. London: Macmillan, 1973, publ. as The Boer War Diary +of Sol T. Plaatje). + +Sol. T. Plaatje (ed. Tim Couzens), "Mhudi", Cape Town: Francolin, 1996; +definitive edition. + +Brian Willan, "Sol Plaatje: South African Nationalist, 1876-1932", +London: Heinemann, 1984. + +Brian Willan (ed. & comp.), "Sol Plaatje: Selected Writings", +Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1996. + + + +Neil Parsons is a Professor of History at the University of Botswana. +He is author of "King Khama, Emperor Joe, and the Great White Queen", +which details the journey of the Batswana delegation to England of 1895, +and other books relating to the history of the region. + + + + + + To + Miss Harriette E. Colenso, + "Nkosazana Matotoba ka So-Bantu", + Daughter of the late Rt. Rev. J. W. Colenso + (In his life-time Bishop of Natal and "Father of the Zulus"). + + In recognition of her unswerving loyalty to + the policy of her late distinguished father + and unselfish interest in the welfare of + the South African Natives, + + This Book is Dedicated. + + + + + +Contents + + + + (A) Who is the Author? + (B) Prologue +Chapter I A Retrospect +Chapter II The Grim Struggle between Right and Wrong, + and the Latter Carries the Day +Chapter III The Natives' Land Act +Chapter IV One Night with the Fugitives +Chapter V Another Night with the Sufferers +Chapter VI Our Indebtedness to White Women +Chapter VII Persecution of Coloured Women in the Orange Free State +Chapter VIII At Thaba Ncho: A Secretarial Fiasco +Chapter IX The Fateful 13 +Chapter X Dr. Abdurahman, President of the A.P.O. / + Dr. A. Abdurahman, M.P.C. +Chapter XI The Natives' Land Act in Cape Colony +Chapter XII The Passing of Cape Ideals +Chapter XIII Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, the Pioneer Native Pressman +Chapter XIV The Native Congress and the Union Government +Chapter XV The Kimberley Congress / The Kimberley Conference +Chapter XVI The Appeal for Imperial Protection +Chapter XVII The London Press and the Natives' Land Act +Chapter XVIII The P.S.A. and Brotherhoods +Chapter XIX Armed Natives in the South African War +Chapter XX The South African Races and the European War +Chapter XXI Coloured People's Help Rejected / The Offer of Assistance + by the South African Coloured Races Rejected +Chapter XXII The South African Boers and the European War +Chapter XXIII The Boer Rebellion +Chapter XXIV Piet Grobler + Epilogue + Report of the Lands Commission + + + + + + ----------------------------- + + Native Life in South Africa + + ----------------------------- + + + + + + (A) Who is the Author? + + + +After wondering for some time how best to answer this question, +we decided to reply to it by using one of several personal references +in our possession. The next puzzle was: "Which one?" +We carefully examined each, but could not strike a happy decision +until some one who entered the room happened to make use +of the familiar phrase: "The long and the short of it". +That phrase solved the difficulty for us, and we at once made up our mind +to use two of these references, namely, the shortest and the longest. +The first one is from His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught, +and the second takes the form of a leading article in the `Pretoria News'. + +== + Central South African Railways, + High Commissioner's Train. + +On February 1, 1906, Mr. Sol Plaatje acted as Interpreter +when I visited the Barolong Native Stadt at Mafeking, and performed his duty +to my entire satisfaction. + + (Signed) Arthur. +Mafeking, + February 1, 1906. +== + +== +We commence to-day an experiment which will prove a success +if only we can persuade the more rabid negrophobes to adopt +a moderate and sensible attitude. We publish the first of a series of letters +from a native correspondent of considerable education and ability, +his name is Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje. Mr. Plaatje was born +in the district of Boshof, his parents being Barolongs, +coming originally from Thaba Ncho, and trekking eventually to Mafeking. +He attended the Lutheran Mission School at the Pniel Mission Station, +near Barkly West, as a boy, under the Rev. G. E. Westphal; +and at thirteen years he passed the fourth standard, which was as far +as the school could take him. For the next three years he acted +as pupil-teacher, receiving private lessons from the Rev. and Mrs. Westphal. +At the age of sixteen he joined the Cape Government service as letter-carrier +in the Kimberley Post Office. There he studied languages in his spare time, +and passed the Cape Civil Service examination in typewriting, +Dutch and native languages, heading the list of successful candidates +in each subject. Shortly before the war he was transferred to Mafeking +as interpreter, and during the siege was appointed Dutch interpreter +to the Court of Summary Jurisdiction, presided over by Lord Edward Cecil. +The Magistrate's clerks having taken up arms, Mr. Plaatje became +confidential clerk to Mr. C. G. H. Bell, who administered Native affairs +during the siege. Mr. Plaatje drew up weekly reports on the Native situation, +which were greatly valued by the military authorities, +and in a letter written to a friend asserted with some sense of humour +that "this arrangement was so satisfactory that Mr. Bell was created a C.M.G. +at the end of the siege." + +Had it not been for the colour bar, Mr. Plaatje, in all probability, +would have been holding an important position in the Department +of Native Affairs; as it was, he entered the ranks of journalism +as Editor, in the first place, of `Koranta ea Becoana', a weekly paper +in English and Sechuana, which was financed by the Chief Silas Molema +and existed for seven years very successfully. At the present moment +Mr. Plaatje is Editor of the `Tsala ea Batho' (The People's Friend) +at Kimberley, which is owned by a native syndicate, having its headquarters +in the Free State. Mr. Plaatje has acted as interpreter +for many distinguished visitors to South Africa, and holds autograph letters +from the Duke of Connaught, Mr. Chamberlain, and other notabilities. +He visited Mr. Abraham Fischer quite lately and obtained from him +a promise to introduce a Bill into Parliament ameliorating the position +of the Natives of the Orange River Colony, who are debarred by law +from receiving titles to landed property. Mr. Plaatje's articles +on native affairs have been marked by the robust common sense and moderation +so characteristic of Mr. Booker Washington. He realizes +the great debt which the Natives owe to the men who brought +civilization to South Africa. He is no agitator or firebrand, +no stirrer-up of bad feeling between black and white. He accepts +the position which the Natives occupy to-day in the body politic +as the natural result of their lack of education and civilization. +He is devoted to his own people, and notes with ever-increasing regret +the lack of understanding and knowledge of those people, +which is so palpable in the vast majority of the letters and leading articles +written on the native question. As an educated Native with liberal ideas +he rather resents the power and authority of the uneducated native chiefs +who govern by virtue of their birth alone, and he writes and speaks +for an entirely new school of native thought. The opinion of such a man +ought to carry weight when native affairs are being discussed. +We have fallen into the habit of discussing and legislating +for the Native without ever stopping for one moment to consider +what the Native himself thinks. No one but a fool will deny +the importance of knowing what the Native thinks before we legislate for him. +It is in the hope of enlightening an otherwise barren controversy +that we shall publish from time to time Mr. Plaatje's letters, +commending them always to the more thoughtful and practical of our readers. +-- `Pretoria News', September, 1910. +== + +(The writer of this appreciation, the Editor of the Pretoria evening paper, +was Reuter's war correspondent in the siege of Mafeking.) + + + + + (B) Prologue + + + +We have often read books, written by well-known scholars, +who disavow, on behalf of their works, any claim to literary perfection. +How much more necessary, then, that a South African native workingman, +who has never received any secondary training, should in attempting authorship +disclaim, on behalf of his work, any title to literary merit. +Mine is but a sincere narrative of a melancholy situation, +in which, with all its shortcomings, I have endeavoured to describe +the difficulties of the South African Natives under a very strange law, +so as most readily to be understood by the sympathetic reader. + +The information contained in the following chapters is the result +of personal observations made by the author in certain districts of +the Transvaal, Orange "Free" State and the Province of the Cape of Good Hope. +In pursuance of this private inquiry, I reached Lady Brand +early in September, 1913, when, my financial resources being exhausted, +I decided to drop the inquiry and return home. But my friend, +Mr. W. Z. Fenyang, of the farm Rietfontein, in the "Free" State, +offered to convey me to the South of Moroka district, +where I saw much of the trouble, and further, he paid my railway fare +from Thaba Ncho back to Kimberley. + +In the following November, it was felt that as Mr. Saul Msane, +the organizer for the South African Native National Congress, +was touring the eastern districts of the Transvaal, +and Mr. Dube, the President, was touring the northern districts and Natal, +and as the finances of the Congress did not permit an additional traveller, +no information would be forthcoming in regard to the operation +of the mischievous Act in the Cape Province. So Mr. J. M. Nyokong, +of the farm Maseru, offered to bear part of the expenses if I would undertake +a visit to the Cape. I must add that beyond spending six weeks +on the tour to the Cape, the visit did not cost me much, +for Mr. W. D. Soga, of King Williamstown, very generously +supplemented Mr. Nyokong's offer and accompanied me on a part of the journey. + +Besides the information received and the hospitality enjoyed +from these and other friends, the author is indebted, for further information, +to Mr. Attorney Msimang, of Johannesburg. Mr. Msimang toured +some of the Districts, compiled a list of some of the sufferers +from the Natives' Land Act, and learnt the circumstances of their eviction. +His list, however, is not full, its compilation having been undertaken +in May, 1914, when the main exodus of the evicted tenants +to the cities and Protectorates had already taken place, +and when eyewitnesses of the evils of the Act had already fled the country. +But it is useful in showing that the persecution is still continuing, +for, according to this list, a good many families were evicted +a year after the Act was enforced, and many more were at that time +under notice to quit. Mr. Msimang, modestly states in an explanatory note, +that his pamphlet contains "comparatively few instances +of actual cases of hardship under the Natives' Land Act, 1913, +to vindicate the leaders of the South African Native National Congress +from the gross imputation, by the Native Affairs Department, +that they make general allegations of hardships without producing +any specific cases that can bear examination." Mr. Msimang, +who took a number of sworn statements from the sufferers, +adds that "in Natal, for example, all of these instances +have been reported to the Magistrates and the Chief Native Commissioner. +Every time they are told to find themselves other places, +or remain where they are under labour conditions. At Peters and Colworth, +seventy-nine and a hundred families respectively are being ejected +by the Government itself without providing land for them." + +Some readers may perhaps think that I have taken the Colonial Parliament +rather severely to task. But to any reader who holds +with Bacon, that "the pencil hath laboured more in describing +the afflictions of Job than the felicities of Solomon," I would say: +"Do, if we dare make the request, and place yourself in our shoes." +If, after a proper declaration of war, you found your kinsmen +driven from pillar to post in the manner that the South African Natives +have been harried and scurried by Act No. 27 of 1913, you would, +though aware that it is part of the fortunes of war, find it difficult +to suppress your hatred of the enemy. Similarly, if you see +your countrymen and countrywomen driven from home, their homes broken up, +with no hopes of redress, on the mandate of a Government +to which they had loyally paid taxation without representation -- +driven from their homes, because they do not want to become servants; +and when you know that half of these homeless ones have perforce +submitted to the conditions and accepted service on terms +that are unprofitable to themselves; if you remember +that more would have submitted but for the fact that no master has any use +for a servant with forty head of cattle, or a hundred or more sheep; +and if you further bear in mind that many landowners are anxious +to live at peace with, and to keep your people as tenants, +but that they are debarred from doing so by your Government +which threatens them with a fine of 100 Pounds or six months' imprisonment, +you would, I think, likewise find it very difficult to maintain a level head +or wield a temperate pen. + +For instance, let us say, the London County Council decrees +that no man shall rent a room, or hire a house, in the City of London +unless he be a servant in the employ of the landlord, adding that +there shall be a fine of one hundred pounds on any one who attempts +to sell a house to a non-householder; imagine such a thing and its effects, +then you have some approach to an accurate picture of the operation +of the South African Natives' Land Act of 1913. In conclusion, +let me ask the reader's support in our campaign for the repeal of such a law, +and in making this request I pray that none of my readers may live +to find themselves in a position so intolerable. + +When the narrative of this book up to Chapter XVIII was completed, +it was felt that an account of life in South Africa, +without a reference to the war or the rebellion would be +but a story half told, and so Chapters XIX-XXV were added. +It will be observed that Chapters XX-XXIV, unlike the rest of the book, +are not the result of the writer's own observations. +The writer is indebted for much of the information in these five chapters +to the Native Press and some Dutch newspapers which his devoted wife +posted to him with every mail. These papers have been +a source of useful information. Of the Dutch newspapers +special thanks are due to `Het Westen' of Potchefstroom, +which has since March 1915 changed its name to `Het Volksblad'. +Most of the Dutch journals, especially in the northern Provinces, take up +the views of English-speaking Dutch townsmen (solicitors and Bank clerks), +and publish them as the opinion of the South African Dutch. +`Het Westen' (now `Het Volksblad'), on the other hand, +interprets the Dutch view, sound, bad or indifferent, exactly as we ourselves +have heard it expressed by Dutchmen at their own farms. + +Translations of the Tipperary Chorus into some of the languages +which are spoken by the white and black inhabitants of South Africa +have been used here and there as mottoes; and as this book is a plea +in the main for help against the "South African war of extermination", +it is hoped that admirers of Tommy Atkins will sympathize with +the coloured sufferers, who also sing Tommy Atkins' war songs. + +This appeal is not on behalf of the naked hordes of cannibals +who are represented in fantastic pictures displayed +in the shop-windows in Europe, most of them imaginary; +but it is on behalf of five million loyal British subjects who shoulder +"the black man's burden" every day, doing so without looking forward +to any decoration or thanks. "The black man's burden" includes +the faithful performance of all the unskilled and least paying labour +in South Africa, the payment of direct taxation to the various Municipalities, +at the rate of from 1s. to 5s. per mensum per capita (to develop and beautify +the white quarters of the towns while the black quarters remain unattended) +besides taxes to the Provincial and Central Government, varying from +12s. to 3 Pounds 12s. per annum, for the maintenance of Government Schools +from which native children are excluded. In addition to these +native duties and taxes, it is also part of "the black man's burden" to pay +all duties levied from the favoured race. With the increasing difficulty +of finding openings to earn the money for paying these multifarious taxes, +the dumb pack-ox, being inarticulate in the Councils of State, +has no means of making known to its "keeper" that the burden +is straining its back to breaking point. + +When Sir John French appealed to the British people for more shells +during Easter week, the Governor-General of South Africa +addressing a fashionable crowd at the City Hall, Johannesburg, +most of whom had never seen the mouth of a mine, congratulated them +on the fact that "under the strain of war and rebellion +the gold industry had been maintained at full pitch," +and he added that "every ounce of gold was worth many shells +to the Allies." But His Excellency had not a word of encouragement +for the 200,000 subterranean heroes who by day and by night, +for a mere pittance, lay down their limbs and their lives +to the familiar "fall of rock" and who, at deep levels ranging from +1,000 feet to 1,000 yards in the bowels of the earth, sacrifice their lungs +to the rock dust which develops miners' phthisis and pneumonia -- +poor reward, but a sacrifice that enables the world's richest gold mines, +in the Johannesburg area alone, to maintain the credit of the Empire +with a weekly output of 750,000 Pounds worth of raw gold. +Surely the appeal of chattels who render service of such great value +deserves the attention of the British people. + +Finally, I would say as Professor Du Bois says in his book +`The Souls of Black Folk', on the relations between +the sons of master and man, "I have not glossed over matters +for policy's sake, for I fear we have already gone too far +in that sort of thing. On the other hand I have sincerely sought +to let no unfair exaggerations creep in. I do not doubt +that in some communities conditions are better than those I have indicated; +while I am no less certain that in other communities they are far worse." + + + + +Chapter I A Retrospect + + I am Black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, + as the curtains of Solomon. + Look not upon me because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: + my mother's children were angry with me; they made me + the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept. + The Song of Songs. + + + +Awaking on Friday morning, June 20, 1913, the South African Native +found himself, not actually a slave, but a pariah in the land of his birth. + +The 4,500,000 black South Africans are domiciled as follows: +One and three-quarter millions in Locations and Reserves, +over half a million within municipalities or in urban areas, +and nearly a million as squatters on farms owned by Europeans. +The remainder are employed either on the public roads or railway lines, +or as servants by European farmers, qualifying, that is, +by hard work and saving to start farming on their own account. + +A squatter in South Africa is a native who owns some livestock and, +having no land of his own, hires a farm or grazing and ploughing rights +from a landowner, to raise grain for his own use and feed his stock. +Hence, these squatters are hit very hard by an Act which +passed both Houses of Parliament during the session of 1913, +received the signature of the Governor-General on June 16, +was gazetted on June 19, and forthwith came into operation. +It may be here mentioned that on that day Lord Gladstone signed no fewer +than sixteen new Acts of Parliament -- some of them being rather voluminous -- +while three days earlier, His Excellency signed another batch of eight, +of which the bulk was beyond the capability of any mortal to read and digest +in four days. + +But the great revolutionary change thus wrought by a single stroke of the pen, +in the condition of the Native, was not realized by him +until about the end of June. As a rule many farm tenancies expire +at the end of the half-year, so that in June, 1913, not knowing +that it was impracticable to make fresh contracts, some Natives +unwittingly went to search for new places of abode, which some farmers, +ignorant of the law, quite as unwittingly accorded them. +It was only when they went to register the new tenancies +that the law officers of the Crown laid bare the cruel fact +that to provide a landless Native with accommodation was forbidden +under a penalty of 100 Pounds, or six months' imprisonment. +Then only was the situation realized. + +Other Natives who had taken up fresh places on European farms +under verbal contracts, which needed no registration, actually founded +new homes in spite of the law, neither the white farmer nor the native tenant +being aware of the serious penalties they were exposed to +by their verbal contracts. + +In justice to the Government, it must be stated that no police officers +scoured the country in search of lawbreakers, to prosecute them +under this law. Had this been done, many 100 Pound cheques +would have passed into the Government coffers during that black July, +the first month after Lord Gladstone affixed his signature +to the Natives' Land Act, No. 27 of 1913. + +The complication of this cruel law is made manifest by the fact +that it was found necessary for a high officer of the Government +to tour the Provinces soon after the Act came into force, +with the object of "teaching" Magistrates how to administer it. +A Congress of Magistrates -- a most unusual thing -- was also called +in Pretoria to find a way for carrying out the King's writ +in the face of the difficulties arising from this tangle of the Act. +We may add that nearly all white lawyers in South Africa, +to whom we spoke about this measure, had either not seen the Act at all, +or had not read it carefully, so that in both cases they could not tell +exactly for whose benefit it had been passed. The study of this law +required a much longer time than the lawyers, unless specially briefed, +could devote to it, so that they hardly knew what all the trouble was about. +It was the Native in the four Provinces who knew all about it, +for he had not read it in books but had himself been through its mill, +which like an automatic machine ground him relentlessly +since the end of the month of June. Not the least but one of +the cruellest and most ironical phases -- and nearly every clause of this Act +teems with irony -- is the Schedule or appendix giving the so-called +Scheduled Native Areas; and what are these "Scheduled Native Areas"? + +They are the Native Locations which were reserved for the exclusive use +of certain native clans. They are inalienable and cannot be bought or sold, +yet the Act says that in these "Scheduled Native Areas" Natives only +may buy land. The areas being inalienable, not even members of the clans, +for whose benefit the locations are held in trust, can buy land therein. +The areas could only be sold if the whole clan rebelled; in that case +the location would be confiscated. But as long as the clans of the location +remain loyal to the Government, nobody can buy any land within these areas. +Under the respective charters of these areas, not even a member of the clan +can get a separate title as owner in an area -- let alone a native outsider +who had grown up among white people and done all his farming +on white man's land. + +If we exclude the arid tracts of Bechuanaland, these Locations +appear to have been granted on such a small scale that each of them +got so overcrowded that much of the population had to go out and settle +on the farms of white farmers through lack of space in the Locations. +Yet a majority of the legislators, although well aware of all +these limitations, and without remedying any of them, legislate, +shall we say, "with its tongue in its cheek" that only Natives may buy land +in Native Locations. + +Again, the Locations form but one-eighteenth of the total area of the Union. +Theoretically, then, the 4,500,000 Natives may "buy" land in only +one-eighteenth part of the Union, leaving the remaining seventeen parts +for the one million whites. It is moreover true that, numerically, +the Act was passed by the consent of a majority of both Houses of Parliament, +but it is equally true that it was steam-rolled into the statute book +against the bitterest opposition of the best brains of both Houses. +A most curious aspect of this singular law is that even the Minister, +since deceased, who introduced it, subsequently declared himself against it, +adding that he only forced it through in order to stave off something worse. +Indeed, it is correct to say that Mr. Sauer, who introduced the Bill, +spoke against it repeatedly in the House; he deleted the milder provisions, +inserted more drastic amendments, spoke repeatedly against +his own amendments, then in conclusion he would combat +his own arguments by calling the ministerial steam-roller +to support the Government and vote for the drastic amendments. +The only explanation of the puzzle constituted as such by these +"hot-and-cold" methods is that Mr. Sauer was legislating for an electorate, +at the expense of another section of the population which was without +direct representation in Parliament. None of the non-European races +in the Provinces of Natal, Transvaal and the "Free" State +can exercise the franchise. They have no say in the selection of members +for the Union Parliament. That right is only limited to white men, +so that a large number of the members of Parliament who voted for this measure +have no responsibility towards the black races. + +Before reproducing this tyrannical enactment it would perhaps be well +to recapitulate briefly the influences that led up to it. +When the Union of the South African Colonies became +an accomplished fact, a dread was expressed by ex-Republicans +that the liberal native policy of the Cape would supersede +the repressive policy of the old Republics, and they lost no time +in taking definite steps to force down the throats of the Union Legislature, +as it were, laws which the Dutch Presidents of pre-war days, +with the British suzerainty over their heads, did not dare enforce +against the Native people then under them. With the formation of the Union, +the Imperial Government, for reasons which have never been +satisfactorily explained, unreservedly handed over the Natives +to the colonists, and these colonists, as a rule, are dominated +by the Dutch Republican spirit. Thus the suzerainty of Great Britain, +which under the reign of Her late Majesty Victoria, of blessed memory, +was the Natives' only bulwark, has now apparently been withdrawn or relaxed, +and the Republicans, like a lot of bloodhounds long held in the leash, +use the free hand given by the Imperial Government not only to guard against +a possible supersession of Cape ideals of toleration, but to effectively +extend throughout the Union the drastic native policy pursued by the Province +which is misnamed "Free" State, and enforce it with the utmost rigour. + +During the first year of the Union, it would seem that General Botha +made an honest attempt to live up to his London promises, +that are mentioned by Mr. Merriman in his speech (reproduced elsewhere) +on the second reading of the Bill in Parliament. It would seem +that General Botha endeavoured to allay British apprehensions and concern +for the welfare of the Native population. In pursuance of this policy +General Botha won the approbation of all Natives by appointing Hon. H. Burton, +a Cape Minister, to the portfolio of Native Affairs. That the appointment +was a happy one, from the native point of view, became manifest +when Mr. Burton signalized the ushering in of Union, by releasing +Chief Dinizulu-ka-Cetywayo, who at that time was undergoing +a sentence of imprisonment imposed by the Natal Supreme Court, +and by the restoration to Dinizulu of his pension of 500 Pounds a year. +Also, in deference to the wishes of the Native Congress, +Mr. Burton abrogated two particularly obnoxious Natal measures, +one legalizing the "Sibalo" system of forced labour, the other prohibiting +public meetings by Natives without the consent of the Government. +These abrogations placed the Natives of Natal in almost the same position +as the Cape Natives though without giving them the franchise. +So, too, when a drastic Squatters' Bill was gazetted early in 1912, +and the recently formed Native National Congress sent a deputation +to interview Mr. Burton in Capetown; after hearing the deputation, +he graciously consented to withdraw the proposed measure, +pending the allotment of new Locations in which Natives evicted +by such a measure could find an asylum. In further deference +to the representations of the Native Congress, in which they were supported +by Senators the Hon. W. P. Schreiner, Colonel Stanford, and Mr. Krogh, +the Union Government gazetted another Bill in January, 1911, +to amend an anomaly which, at that time, was peculiar to the "Free" State: +an anomaly under which a Native can neither purchase nor lease land, +and native landowners in the "Free" State could only sell their land +to the white people. + +The gazetted Bill proposed to legalize only in one district +of the Orange "Free" State the sale of landed property by a Native +to another Native as well as to a white man, but it did not propose +to enable Natives to buy land from white men. The object of the Bill +was to remove a hardship, mentioned elsewhere in this sketch, +by which a "Free" State Native was by law debarred from inheriting +landed property left to him under his uncle's will. But against +such small attempts at reform, proposed or carried out by the Union Government +in the interest of the Natives, granted in small instalments of a teaspoonful +at a time -- reforms dictated solely by feelings of justice and equity -- +ex-Republicans were furious. + +From platform, Press, and pulpit it was suggested that +General Botha's administration was too pro-English and needed overhauling. +The Dutch peasants along the countryside were inflamed by hearing +that their gallant leader desired to Anglicize the country. +Nothing was more repellent to the ideas of the backveld Dutch, +and so at small meetings in the country districts resolutions were passed +stating that the Botha administration had outlived its usefulness. +These resolutions reaching the Press from day to day +had the effect of stirring up the Dutch voters against the Ministry, +and particularly against the head. At this time General Botha's sound policy +began to weaken. He transferred Hon. H. Burton, first Minister of Natives, +to the portfolio of Railways and Harbours, and appointed General Hertzog, +of all people in the world, to the portfolio of Native Affairs. + +The good-humoured indulgence of some Dutch and English farmers towards +their native squatters, and the affectionate loyalty of some of these +native squatters in return, will cause a keen observer, arriving at +a South African farm, to be lost in admiration for this mutual good feeling. +He will wonder as to the meaning of the fabled bugbear anent the alleged +struggle between white and black, which in reality appears to exist +only in the fertile brain of the politician. Thus let the new arrival go +to one of the farms in the Bethlehem or Harrismith Districts for example, +and see how willingly the Native toils in the fields; see him +gathering in his crops and handing over the white farmer's share of the crop +to the owner of the land; watch the farmer receiving his tribute +from the native tenants, and see him deliver the first prize +to the native tenant who raised the largest crop during that season; +let him also see both the Natives and the landowning white farmers +following to perfection the give-and-take policy of "live and let live", +and he will conclude that it would be gross sacrilege to attempt to disturb +such harmonious relations between these people of different races and colours. +But with a ruthless hand the Natives' Land Act has succeeded +in remorselessly destroying those happy relations. + +First of all, General Hertzog, the new Minister of Native Affairs, +travelled up and down the country lecturing farmers on their folly +in letting ground to the Natives; the racial extremists of his party +hailed him as the right man for the post, for, as his conduct showed them, +he would soon "fix up" the Natives. At one or two places +he was actually welcomed as the future Prime Minister of the Union. +On the other hand, General Botha, who at that time seemed +to have become visibly timid, endeavoured to ingratiate himself +with his discontented supporters by joining his lieutenant +in travelling to and fro, denouncing the Dutch farmers for not +expelling the Natives from their farms and replacing them with poor whites. +This became a regular Ministerial campaign against the Natives, +so that it seemed clear that if any Native could still find a place +in the land, it was not due to the action of the Government. +In his campaign the Premier said other unhappy things which were +diametrically opposed to his London speeches of two years before; +and while the Dutch colonists railed at him for trying to Anglicize +the country, English speakers and writers justly accused him of speaking +with two voices; cartoonists, too, caricatured him as having two heads -- +one, they said, for London, and the second one for South Africa. + +The uncertain tenure by which Englishmen in the public service +held their posts became the subject of debates in the Union Parliament, +and the employment of Government servants of colour was decidedly precarious. +They were swept out of the Railway and Postal Service +with a strong racial broom, in order to make room for poor whites, +mainly of Dutch descent. Concession after concession +was wrung from the Government by fanatical Dutch postulants for office, +for Government doles and other favours, who, like the daughters of +the horse-leech in the Proverbs of Solomon, continually cried, "Give, give." +By these events we had clearly turned the corner and were pacing backwards +to pre-Union days, going back, back, and still further backward, +to the conditions which prevailed in the old Republics, +and (if a check is not applied) we shall steadily drift back +to the days of the old Dutch East Indian administration. + +The Bill which proposed to ameliorate the "Free" State cruelty, +to which reference has been made above, was dropped like a hot potato. +Ministers made some wild and undignified speeches, of which +the following spicy extract, from a speech by the Rt. Hon. Abraham Fischer +to his constituents at Bethlehem, is a typical sample -- + +"What is it you want?" he asked. "We have passed all the coolie* laws +and we have passed all the Kafir laws. The `Free' State +has been safeguarded and all her colour laws have been adopted by Parliament. +What more can the Government do for you?" And so the Union ship +in this reactionary sea sailed on and on and on, until she struck an iceberg +-- the sudden dismissal of General Hertzog. + +-- +* A contemptuous South African term for British Indians. +-- + +To the bitter sorrow of his admirers, General Hertzog, +who is the fearless exponent of Dutch ideals, was relieved of +his portfolios of Justice and Native Affairs -- it was whispered +as a result of a suggestion from London; and then the Dutch extremists, +in consequence of their favourite's dismissal, gave vent to their anger +in the most disagreeable manner. One could infer from their platform speeches +that, from their point of view, scarcely any one else had any rights +in South Africa, and least of all the man with a black skin. + +In the face of this, the Government's timidity was almost unendurable. +They played up to the desires of the racial extremists, with the result that +a deadlock overtook the administration. Violent laws like the Immigration Law +(against British Indians and alien Asiatics) and the Natives' Land +were indecently hurried through Parliament to allay +the susceptibilities of "Free" State Republicans. No Minister found time +to undertake such useful legislation as the Coloured People's Occupation Bill, +the Native Disputes Bill, the Marriage Bill, the University Bill, etc., etc. +An apology was demanded from the High Commissioner in London +for delivering himself of sentiments which were felt to be too British +for the palates of his Dutch employers in South Africa, and the Prime Minister +had almost to apologize for having at times so far forgotten himself +as to act more like a Crown Minister than a simple Africander. +"Free" State demands became so persistent that Ministers seemed +to have forgotten the assurances they gave His Majesty's Government in London +regarding the safety of His Majesty's coloured subjects within the Union. +They trampled under foot their own election pledges, made during +the first Union General Election, guaranteeing justice and fair treatment +to the law-abiding Natives. + +The campaign, to compass the elimination of the blacks +from the farms, was not at all popular with landowners, +who made huge profits out of the renting of their farms to Natives. +Platform speakers and newspaper writers coined an opprobrious phrase +which designated this letting of farms to Natives as "Kafir-farming", +and attempted to prove that it was almost as immoral as "baby-farming". +But landowners pocketed the annual rents, and showed no inclination +to substitute the less industrious "poor whites" for the more +industrious Natives. Old Baas M----, a typical Dutch landowner +of the "Free" State, having collected his share of the crop of 1912, +addressing a few words of encouragement to his native tenants, +on the subject of expelling the blacks from the farms, said in the Taal: +"How dare any number of men, wearing tall hats and frock coats, +living in Capetown hotels at the expense of other men, order me +to evict my Natives? This is my ground; it cost my money, not Parliament's, +and I will see them banged (barst) before I do it." + +It then became evident that the authority of Parliament +would have to be sought to compel the obstinate landowners to +get rid of their Natives. And the compliance of Parliament with this demand +was the greatest Ministerial surrender to the Republican malcontents, +resulting in the introduction and passage of the Natives' Land Act of 1913, +inasmuch as the Act decreed, in the name of His Majesty the King, +that pending the adoption of a report to be made by a commission, +somewhere in the dim and unknown future, it shall be unlawful +for Natives to buy or lease land, except in scheduled native areas. +And under severe pains and penalties they were to be deprived +of the bare human rights of living on the land, except as servants +in the employ of the whites -- rights which were never seriously challenged +under the Republican regime, no matter how politicians raved +against the Natives. + + + + +Chapter II The Grim Struggle between Right and Wrong, + and the Latter Carries the Day + + Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness + which they have prescribed; + To turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the fruit + from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, + and that they may rob the fatherless. + Isaiah. + + + +On February 18, 1913, General L. Lemmer, member for Marico, Transvaal, +asked the Minister of Lands: -- (a) How many farms or portions of farms +in the Transvaal Province have during the last three years been registered +in the names of Natives; (b) what is the extent of the land so registered; +and (c) how much was paid for it? + +The Minister of Lands replied: (a) 78 farms; (b) 144,416 morgen; +and (c) 94,907 Pounds. + +Some very disturbing elements suggest themselves in this question +and in its prompt answer. A question of the kind should have taken +some time to reach Pretoria from the seat of Parliament; more time +to search for and compile the necessary information, and further time +to get the answer to the Table of the House of Assembly in Capetown. +For instance, on March 11 Mr. T. L. Schreiner called for an explanation +in connexion with the same return. He had to ask again on April 1, +the answer in each instance being that the required "information +had been telegraphed for and would be laid on the table when it is available" +(vide Union Hansard, pp. 777 and 1,175). It was only on May 13 +-- two months and two days after -- that an answer to Mr. Schreiner's +question of March 11 could be furnished. + +Again, on May 20 Mr. Schreiner called for a similar return, +embracing the four Provinces of the Union.* If it were so easy +for General Lemmer to get a reply in regard to the Transvaal, +where most of the registration took place, it should have been +relatively more easy to add the information from the Cape and Natal, +since no registration could have taken place in the Orange "Free" State, +where Natives cannot buy land. But strange to say, all that Mr. Schreiner +could get out of the Minister was a promise to furnish a reply +when it is available, and it does not appear to be on record +that it was ever furnished during that session. Therefore, a Native +cannot be blamed for suspecting that when General Lemmer asked his question, +the return was "cut and dried" and available to be laid on the table +as soon as it was called for. + +-- +* It does not appear to have occurred to any one to call for a return + showing transfers of land from blacks to whites. +-- + +Another significant point is that the questioner did not want to know +the extent of land bought by Natives, but of the land +"registered in their names" during the period; and Mr. Schreiner +was able to show later in the session by an analysis of the return +that it mainly comprised land awarded to Native tribes +by the Republican Government, some of it when they conquered the country. +They include farms bought or awarded to Natives as long ago +as the early 60's and 70's, but the owners were not able to obtain titles +as the late Republican Government did not allow Natives to register land +in their own names. They had been held in trust for them +by European friends or missionaries, and it was only during +the last three years that the owners claimed direct titles, +which right was restored to them since the British occupation. + +But the Lemmer Return did its fell work. It scared every white man +in the country. They got alarmed to hear that Natives had +during the past three (!) years "bought" land to the extent of 50,000 morgen +per annum. + +Thanks to Mr. Schreiner's questions, however, the misleading features +of the statistical scarecrow were revealed -- but, unfortunately too late. + + + Origin of the Trouble + +On February 28, 1913, Mr. J. G. Keyter (a "Free" State member) moved: +That the Government be requested to submit to the House +DURING THE PRESENT SESSION a general Pass and Squatters Bill +to prohibit coloured people (1) from WANDERING ABOUT WITHOUT A PROPER PASS; +(2) from SQUATTING ON FARMS; and (3) from SOWING ON THE SHARE SYSTEM. + +Mr. T. P. Brain,* another "Free" Stater, seconded the motion. + +-- +* This gentleman died during 1913. +-- + +Mr. P. G. W. Grobler,* a Transvaaler, moved (as an amendment) +to add at the end of the motion: "and further TO TAKE EFFECTIVE MEASURES +TO RESTRICT THE PURCHASE AND LEASE OF LAND BY NATIVES." + +-- +* Mr. Grobler forfeited his seat when he was convicted of complicity + in the recent rebellion. +-- + +Mr. Schreiner strongly protested against both the motion and the amendment. + +The Minister for Native Affairs* spoke somewhat against Mr. Keyter's motion +but promised to comply with Mr. Grobler's amendment, which promise he redeemed +by introducing a Natives' Land Bill. + +-- +* Hon. J. W. Sauer, Minister of Native Affairs, died a month after the Bill + became law. +-- + +Before the Bill was introduced, the Minister made the unprecedented +announcement that the Governor-General had given his assurance +that the Royal Assent would not be withheld from the Natives' Land Bill. +Section 65 of the South African Constitution provides that the King +may disallow an Act of Parliament within twelve months +after the Governor-General signed it. And the abrogation of the Constitution, +as far as this Bill is concerned, literally gave licence +to the political libertines of South Africa; as, being thus freed +from all legislative restraint, they wasted no further time +listening to such trifles as reason and argument. + +The following are extracts from the debates on the Natives' Land Bill +as reported in the Union Hansard of 1913. + +== +The adjourned debate on the motion for the second reading +of the Natives Land Bill was resumed by + +MR. J. X. MERRIMAN (Victoria West). It was with very great reluctance +(the right hon. gentleman said) that he rose to speak on this measure. +It would have been more convenient to have given a silent vote, +but he felt, and he was afraid, that after many years of devoted attention +to this question of the native policy of South Africa, he would not +be doing his duty if he did not give this House -- for what it was worth -- +the result of his experience through these years. + +He should like to emphasize a brighter side of the question, +and that was to point out that the Natives, if they were well managed, +were an invaluable asset to the people of this country. (Hear, hear.) +Let them take our trade figures and compare them with +the trade figures of the other large British Dominions. +Our figures were surprising when measured by the white population, +but if they took the richest Dominion that there was under the British Crown +outside South Africa, and took the trade value of those figures +per head of the white population, and multiply those figures +by our European population, then they might very well apply +any balance they had to our native population, and then they would see, +strangely enough, that upon that basis it worked out that +the actual trade of three Natives was worth about that of one white man. +That, of course, was a very imperfect way of looking at +the value of these people, because the trade value of some of these Natives +was far greater than the trade value of some of our white people. +He had merely indicated these trade figures to show what an enormous asset +we had in the Natives in that respect. Let them think +what the industry of the Natives had done for us. Who had built our railways, +who had dug our mines, and developed this country as far as it was developed? +Who had been the actual manual worker who had done that? The Native: +the coloured races of this country. We must never forget +that we owed them a debt in that respect -- a debt not often acknowledged +by what we did for them. Proceeding, he said that they ought to think +what they owed to the docility of the Natives, and the wonderfully easy way +in which they had been governed when treated properly. He also paid a tribute +to the honesty of the Natives. + +What must strike any one was the fact that though this Bill was really, +to a certain extent, a beginning, or was thought to be in certain quarters, +of a revolution in their dealing with the native races, +it was not even mentioned in the speech of the Governor-General. +It fell upon them like a bolt from the blue. He remembered the afternoon. +They had heard a very impassioned and very heated speech +from the hon. member for Ficksburg on the enormous danger of squatting +in the Free State, and that was the occasion for introducing +a general statement of the policy of the Government towards the Natives +and the introduction of this Bill. He did not think that that was the way +they liked to see a thing of this magnitude approached. +They often heard demands for what was called a general declaration of policy +with regard to native affairs -- a policy which should be applied +to the highest civilized Native, the owner of a farm, and the naked barbarian. +They could not do it. People who demanded a general declaration of that kind +had not had the experience which some of them had had. +The hon. member who spoke before him said that he was in favour +of the underlying principle of the Bill. What was the underlying principle? +The underlying principle was what one read into the Bill. +One hon. member read into it that it was the separation of the two races. +That might have been done when the two races first came in contact +at the Fish River, but it could not be done now. Since then +they had been developing the country with the labour of these people. +They had been advancing by our aid. They had mixed themselves up +with these people in an inextricable fashion and then some said +"Haul your native policy out of the drawer and begin with +a policy of separation." He was sure that the hon. member +who had brought in the Bill had no idea of that sort in his mind. +Another person had the idea that they were going to set up a sort of pale -- +a sort of kraal in which they were going to drive these people. +Then another gentleman sneered at the policy hitherto adopted, +and he said that one side said that the policy towards the Natives +should be firm and just, while the other side said that it should be +just and firm. + +It seemed to him that they had not got sufficient information. +Beyond the bald statistics which were given by the Minister +in the course of his interesting and moderate speech, they had nothing. +They were going into a thing that would stir South Africa from end to end, +and which affected hundreds of thousands of both races. +They had no information as to what were the ideas of the Natives. +It was unfortunate that, owing to this lack of information, +wrong ideas had got about with regard to this Bill. It was difficult +to find out what the Native thought about these things; he doubted +whether anybody could say that he had got at the mind of the Native. +The only way, and he must say that he did not take it as a real indication, +was what they wrote in their newspapers. He was alarmed, but not surprised, +at some of the articles in their newspapers, because they took their views +from the heated speeches and writings in party newspapers +all over the country, and they were very much alarmed. He thought +that before a Bill of this sort was passed, there should be some attempt made +to get their views. As far as one section was concerned, +the Bill was going to set up a sort of pale -- that there was going to be +a sort of kraal in which all the Natives were to be driven, +and they were to be left to develop on their own lines. To allow them +to go on their own lines was merely to drive them back into barbarism; +their own lines meant barbarous lines; their own lines were cruel lines. +All along they had been bringing them away from their own lines. +It reminded him of what an English writer said about a similar policy +in Ireland, because when the English went to Ireland +they regarded the Native Irish in the way some extreme people here +regarded the Natives of South Africa. They thought they would root them out. +They treated them as dogs, and thought that they were dogs. +They set up a pale. They set the Irish within that pale, +to develop upon their own lines, but there were always Englishmen +living in that pale, just as in the same way they found Europeans +living among Natives. Sir George Davis in describing this policy wrote +that it was the intention of the Government to set up a separation +between English and Irish, intending in time that the English should +root out the Irish. If they changed the Irish for Natives they would see +how the illustration would apply. A policy more foredoomed to failure +in South Africa could not be initiated. It was a policy that +would keep South Africa back, perhaps for ever. (Hear, hear.) +What would be the effect of driving these civilized Natives +back into reserves? At the present time, every civilized man +-- if they treated him properly -- every civilized man +was becoming an owner of land outside native reserve, and therefore +he was an asset of strength to the country. He was a loyalist. +He was not going to risk losing his property. He was on +the side of the European. If they drove these people back into reserve +they became our bitterest enemies. Therefore, he viewed anything +that tended that way with the gravest suspicion. Again, in this Bill +there was not sufficient distinction between those Natives +who tried to educate themselves and the ordinary raw barbarian. +They were all classed under the word "Native". + +He came now to what was the main object of the Bill, and that was: +to do away with the squatting evil. Why was there a squatting evil? +Was it the fault of the Native? (An hon. member: No.) +Was it the fault of the law? (No.) They had got the most stringent +laws concerning Natives of all the laws in the whole country, +in the Province of which his hon. friend (Mr. Keyter) was a member. +He did not think anything was more surprising than when they came to look +at the increases in the native population in the Orange Free State. +They had a huge native population in the Cape, and the increase +during the census periods from 1904 to 1911 -- he wanted hon. members +to pay some attention to this, because it showed the value of legislation -- +the increase in the Cape Province during that period was 8.33 per cent. +In Natal, which had a huge -- in fact, an overwhelming -- native population, +curiously enough, the increase was the same, even to the actual +decimal figure, viz., 8.33 per cent.: but some allowance must be made, +because a large number of Natives were out at work in the mines. +Now, in the Transvaal -- and in taking the Transvaal figures +these did not apply as regarded squatting, because the increase was mainly due +to the number of Natives employed in the mines. In the Transvaal +the Natives increased by 30.1 per cent. Now, when they came +to his friend's little State, where the most stringent laws were made +to keep out the Natives, how much did they suppose the Natives increased +in the Free State? By no less than 44 per cent. (Opposition cheers.) +Was that the fault of the Natives? No, it was because +-- having the most stringent laws -- the people found it best +to evade those laws. (Hear, hear.) He hoped his hon. friend +would be a little tolerant. Do let him pick the mote out of his own eye +before he tried to pick the beam out of other people's. (Hear, hear.) +In the Free State these laws were very severe; for instance, +punishments -- amazing punishments -- were given, and yet the result +was the increase in five years by 44 per cent. of their native population. +This was something that they should take a warning by. They were going +to do away with the squatter in appearance, but he would still survive +as a labour tenant. They might do away with the labour tenant, +and he would still be surviving as a labour servant. How was the Government +to distinguish between these? They had in the Cape a law which stated +how many labour tenants a man should have upon his farm. + +What they wanted in this country was administration and not more legislation, +and if they were to put the laws which they had into force in the Free State +at the present time he had no doubt that there would be a rebellion. +(Hear, hear.) They would have platforms swarming with people +who would say that they could not grow one bag of mealies without the Natives. +But they had the laws to do it. Now they went and tried in this Bill +to make a uniform law. Turning towards the Minister, Mr. Merriman said: +"My poor friend! that after all the years we had laboured together +he of all people should be the author of a uniform law on native matters! +(Laughter.) I say this more in sorrow than in anger -- (laughter) -- +because the conditions were totally different in the four Provinces." + +In the Free State, proceeded Mr. Merriman, the people had most excellent laws +from their point of view for keeping out the Natives -- +stringent, Draconian, and violent laws, but they were not carried out, +and the Natives had flooded the country. All they wanted to do +was to turn the Native from a tenant to a labour tenant, and then salvation +would be at hand. He could not see very much difference between the two, +except that one was a contented advancing man and the other a discontented man +approaching very closely to the Russian serf -- he was a soul. +Shortly we should hear of a farm being up for sale with so many souls. + +In the Transvaal the problem had been complicated by +the decisions of the Court and the curious way in which some ground +had been given out in the Zoutpansberg district, where, he was told, +farms had been given out on which the Natives had been living for years, +and these farms -- with the Natives on them -- had come into +the possession of companies and individuals, and now it was proposed +to turn the Natives off. That would not be an agreeable thing, +but he would not offer an opinion now as to the justice of it. + +He would like to revert to the state of things which had grown up +under the Draconian laws of the Free State. According to +a very interesting Blue-book containing reports of magistrates, +one magistrate had reported that "the pernicious system of squatting +was detrimental to the working farmer, the Native reaping +the whole of the benefit." The man who worked generally reaped +the whole benefit in the long run. In the Harrismith district +there were some 40,000 Natives against some 8,000 Europeans. +How did they get there? Having been a Free State burgher +he knew that the Natives had not forced their way in. +These Natives ploughed on the half-shares, and he would like to know +whether they were labour tenants or squatters. If they were squatters +it would require very little dexterous management to convert them +into labour tenants. The Magistrate of Hoopstad, went on Mr. Merriman, +had referred to the pernicious system of native squatters. +But why did not the Free State magistrates do something and put the law +in force? That was the principal reason why the House was forced +to pass that Bill without information, and without giving +any opportunity to people who had the deepest interest in this matter +to have their views heard, or to let them know what the House was going to do +because the magistrates in the Free State would not enforce the law. +He did think that was rather hard. In conclusion Mr. Merriman said: +I dare say I may have said a great many things which may be distasteful +to my hon. friends, but I do claim their attention because at a time +when they were not in such a dominant position as they are now, +I pleaded for right and justice for them. Therefore, they should not +take it amiss from me, because now they are in a dominant position, +I plead also for justice, toleration, moderation, and delay in this matter. + +MR. H. MENTZ (Zoutpansberg) said the right hon. gentleman +had earned their gratitude for the high tone in which he had carried +the debate. The speech which he had delivered was a most instructive one, +and although the speaker was not in entire agreement with him on all points, +he was in agreement on the point that the matter was one to be handled +with prudence, but it was to be regretted that under the Bill +a Commission was to be appointed. The Minister should not listen +to the request for a postponement of the question, by referring it +to a Select Committee. If they were to refer the Bill to a Select Committee, +it would never be passed this year. + +MR. G. L. STEYTLER (Rouxville) expressed his thanks to the Government +for bringing forward the Bill. He said he felt that it was not +a complete solution of the whole question, but it was certainly +a step in the right direction. + +MR. A. FAWCUS (Umlazi) said that as the representative of 70,000 Natives +in Natal, not one of whom so far as he knew had a vote, he should like, +on their behalf, to thank the right hon. member for Victoria West +for the manner in which he had handled this question. +In the course of his speech the right hon. gentleman asked, +what did the Natives think about this Bill before the House? +His (Mr. Fawcus') opinion was that the Natives did not think anything at all +about it. He should not think there was one Native in a thousand +in South Africa who was aware that this matter, so vitally affecting +their future, was at present at issue. The hon. member for Middelburg +had referred to the Natives as "schepsels".* He believed +the day was rapidly passing away when we should refer to Natives +as "schepsels". They were an easy-going folk, and they thought little +about title deeds and land laws. So great was the Native's attachment +to the land on which he lived, in many instances, that they could not +rackrent him off it. These were the people that the Bill wished +to dispossess and drive off the land. The figures placed before them +showed that THE LAND HELD BY EUROPEANS PER HEAD WAS FIFTY TIMES THE AMOUNT +HELD PER HEAD BY THE NATIVES. Surely there was no need at the present time +for legislation which would prevent Natives getting a little more land +than they now had. He did not think it could be put down +to the fault of the Native if he was willing to buy and live on land +rather than pay rent. The figures given in this connexion +were very instructive. EIGHT ACRES PER HEAD WERE HELD BY THE NATIVES +IN THE CAPE, SIX ACRES IN NATAL, ABOUT 1 1/2 ACRES in the Transvaal, +and about one-third of an acre in the Free State. He thought this Bill +was perhaps coming on a little before there was any necessity for it. + +-- +* Creatures. +-- + +MR. C. G. FICHARDT (Ladybrand) said he felt very much +that the Bill that was before the House did not carry out +all that should be carried out, and that was equality of justice. +IF THEY WERE TO DEAL FAIRLY WITH THE NATIVES OF THIS COUNTRY, +THEN ACCORDING TO POPULATION THEY SHOULD GIVE THEM FOUR-FIFTHS OF THE COUNTRY, +OR AT LEAST A HALF. How were they going to do that? As he said +in the earlier part of his remarks, he was prepared to accept the Bill +as something to go on with, but he hoped that in the future +it would not constitute a stumbling-block. He would much rather have seen +that the matter had been gone into more fully, and that some scheme +had been laid before them so that they might have more readily been able +to judge how the Bill would work. It was because of all these difficulties +that he felt that they could only accept the Bill if it laid down +that there was no intention of taking the country from the white people +and handing it over to the blacks. + +MR. J. G. KEYTER (Ficksburg) said he wished to openly denounce, and most +emphatically so, that the people or the Government of the Orange Free State +had treated the coloured people unreasonably or unjustly, +or in any way oppressively. On the contrary, the O.F.S. had always treated +the coloured people with the greatest consideration and the utmost justice. +The O.F.S. had made what Mr. Merriman called stringent laws. +He (Mr. Keyter) called them just laws. They TOLD THE COLOURED PEOPLE PLAINLY +THAT THE O.F.S. WAS A WHITE MAN'S COUNTRY, AND THAT THEY INTENDED +TO KEEP IT SO. (Hear, hear.) THEY TOLD THE COLOURED PEOPLE +THAT THEY WERE NOT TO BE ALLOWED TO BUY OR HIRE LAND, +and that they were not going to tolerate an equality of whites and blacks; +and he said that they were not going to tolerate that in the future, +and if an attempt were made to force that on them, they would resist it +at any cost to the last,* for if they did tolerate it, +they would very soon find that they would be a bastard nation. +His experience was that the Native should be treated firmly, +kept in his place and treated honestly. They should not give him +a gun one day and fight him for it the next day. They should tell him, +as the Free State told him, that IT WAS A WHITE MAN'S COUNTRY, +THAT HE WAS NOT GOING TO BE ALLOWED TO BUY LAND THERE OR TO HIRE LAND THERE, +AND THAT IF HE WANTED TO BE THERE HE MUST BE IN SERVICE. + +-- +* By passing the Bill, the Government conceded all the extravagant demands + of the "Free" Staters; yet, a year later they took up arms + against the Government. +-- + +MR. J. A. P. VAN DER MERWE (Vredefort) deprecated sending the Bill +to a Select Committee, arguing that the House itself should decide it. +He referred to the difficulties experienced by farmers in the Free State. +If a farmer refused to allow a Native to farm on the share system +he simply refused to work. There were thousands of Natives on the farms there +who hired ground and did little work. The farmers had to keep their children +at home to do the work. Some of the Natives hired ground, did some sowing, +then went to work in Johannesburg, and paid the owner of the farm +half what he reaped from the harvest. That was not satisfactory. +He was pleased to see the provisions the Minister proposed to make +in this regard, and expressed the hope that the Native +would only be tolerated among the whites as a labourer. The Bill would meet +what he considered a great want, and, as it was an urgent matter, +he hoped the proposal for a Select Committee would not be agreed to. + + + Third Reading Debate. + +SIR LIONEL PHILLIPS (Yeoville): But why should a Bill of this sort +be brought before them now? The Government in the past had not been bashful +in the appointing of Commissions, and one question he would ask was why, +in this important matter, the Government had not appointed a Commission +to take all the evidence and then come to the House with a measure which +the House would have to approve of. Instead of that, they were cancelling +the rights the Natives had in South Africa, and creating a very awkward hiatus +between the time the Commission would be appointed and the time the Commission +could define the areas which would be regarded as white areas and the areas +which would be regarded as native areas. That was the one serious blot +upon this measure. + +He could see no justification, except that the hon. Minister, +yielding to pressure from a certain section on that side of the House, +had hastily brought on this measure. He thought from the speeches +made in the House it was the consensus of opinion that Natives +should not have farms in areas that were essentially white, +just as it was desirable that white men should not be found in areas +essentially native. And especially when they told the native population +that they were taking away from them a right they had to-day, +and they were going to substitute that right by appointing a Commission, +they were giving them very little justification for being satisfied +with this measure. He did not think they were going to gain anything +by putting the cart before the horse. He did not know +if Mr. Schreiner was accurate, but he told them that, roughly, +in the Transvaal, where the matter was most acute, the Native population +had bought something like 12,000 or 15,000 morgen of land in twelve years. +That, he thought, showed there was no extreme urgency for the measure. +To that extent he agreed entirely with the hon. member, and he believed +the Minister would be well advised to send the Bill to a Select Committee, +so that many of the details, which were extremely complicated and difficult, +might be thrashed out in that atmosphere, rather than on +the floor of the House. (Opposition cheers.) + +MR. E. N. GROBLER (Edenburg) said: The present was one of the best measures +that the Government had so far brought forward, and it appeared clear +that they had a Government which truly represented the wishes of the public. +It was impossible to delay the solution of the Native problem, +and legislation on the subject had for a long time past been asked for.* +At the same time, he did not entirely agree with the methods, +proposed to be applied, and he did not like the system of allocating reserves +for Natives. When once those reserves had been allocated, would it not result +in injury to agriculture and cattle breeding? The farmers would suffer +from lack of labour, and that deficiency would be a growing one. +Neither could he agree to the principle of expropriation of land +belonging to whites in order to increase the size of the native reserves. +He considered the Bill was a complicated one. The matter should be settled +by way of taxation, in the following way. All Natives who +were in the service of whites should be exempted from taxation, +and treated as well as possible, and other Natives should be encouraged +to take similar service. There were enormous reserves where the Natives +could go and live,** and if they refused to go there they should be required +to pay a stiff tax. Then they would go and work for white people. +The hon. member for Tembuland had offered many objections to the Bill. +They should make that hon. member king of Tembuland. +In a country of the blind a man with one eye would be king. + +-- +* By a "solution of the Native problem", "Free" State farmers generally mean + the re-establishment of slavery. +** It will be observed that these and similar mythological disquisitions + subsequently formed General Botha's assurances to Mr. Harcourt. + See Chapter XVI. But some light is thrown on the subject + of these visionary Native Reserves by Mr. Fawcus' speech + based on official statistics (page 36 [above -- last Fawcus quote]). +-- + +MR. P. DUNCAN (Fordsburg) said he hoped the Minister would not take +the view of the last speaker. Under the Bill it would be possible +for farmers to accumulate on their land as many Natives as they could get, +so long as they could use them as servants. (Labour cheers.) +So far as he could see, even if it were carried out to the extent +that it was proposed to go, it would not very much reduce the social contact +which at present existed between whites and natives. + +SIR W. B. BERRY (Queenstown) said he would like to know why the Minister +had run away from the Bill that had passed the second reading, +and now tabled another Bill in the shape of many amendments. +One would naturally complain that, seeing that they had in that House +a Native Affairs Committee, a non-party committee, specially chosen +to consider all matters relating to native affairs, that Bill, +which was a most important matter and dealt with native affairs from A to Z, +should have been referred to that committee. The same thing +happened last session in reference to a Bill the Minister of Native Affairs +kept on the paper until nearly the end of the session, and the House +had to take the very unusual step almost on the last day of moving +that committee proceedings on that Bill be taken that day six months. +He (Sir W. B. Berry) proposed to move a similar amendment +to the motion now before the House. In the remarks he addressed +when the Bill came up for second reading he had ventured to say +that there was no call for a bill of that nature at all; +there was no need for a Bill revolutionizing the attitude of the Union +with respect to the natives generally. The only clue they could get +to the reason why the Bill was introduced was that a few die-hards +on the other side of the House had given the Minister to understand that +unless he brought in a Bill of that kind, or of a similarly drastic nature, +the position of the Government was in danger. He hoped +some of these die-hards would come forward that evening +and tell them plainly and bluntly why they wanted that Bill, +why they were going to thrust it on the country without any notice, +and why they were calling on the House to revolutionize +the whole tenour and the whole order of things in regard to land matters +as far as the Natives were concerned. Proceeding, the hon. member said +the only justification that had been offered for this Bill was that +a large amount of land had been transferred from Europeans to Natives. +An analysis of the return, however, showed that only sixteen farms +in the Transvaal had been so transferred during the last three years. +Surely that was not any justification why the European people of the Union +should get into a panic and why the administration of the day +were seeking to place on the Statute Book this most drastic legislation. +Another reason why he objected to this Bill was that it purported to appoint +a Commission to investigate to what extent and in what parts and in what time +land should be selected by the Commission for the purpose of being reserved +as additional native areas within the Union. They were not given +any guarantee that the Commission was going to be appointed +nor any guarantee that it would ever report, but at the same time +whilst these indefinite assurances were attempted to be given to the House +there was no getting over this fact, that there was no time limit in the Bill +by which the real enacting clause in the Bill was to have any cessation. +When he spoke on this Bill before he supported it only on the understanding +that a time limit was to be put in, or that it should be an annual Bill. +He said unhesitatingly that the whole tendency of the Bill, +as it stood at the second reading, and more especially as it stood +with the amendments by the Minister on the notice paper, +was to drive the Native peasant off the land. The only refuge +that that Native had was the town. + +The country had not been prepared in any way for a Bill of this kind. +A cry had been heard throughout the land against the iniquities +proposed in the Bill. If it had been found absolutely necessary +that legislation of this kind should be introduced, the least +that could be expected was that ample time should be given to the Natives +to thoroughly acquire a knowledge of the contents of the measure. +That opportunity had not been given them, and in this respect +there was a very serious grievance. For the good order and peace of the Union +there was a very great danger ahead. He had understood from those +well versed in native affairs that one of the greatest dangers +that could threaten us was to give the Natives anything +in the shape of a common grievance. Divide and rule had been +a wise precaution in the government of the Natives. When a common grievance +was found by four or five million people one could understand how great +that grievance must be. One amendment the Minister had put on the paper +must give serious pause. The late Minister of Native Affairs +issued to members last session a Squatters Bill. The greatest objection +to that measure, and one which he thought led to its withdrawal, +was that it proposed to remove thousands upon thousands of natives +from land which they had been in the occupation of for scores of years. +It was in consequence of the disturbance which that Bill caused +throughout the Union that it was withdrawn. In one of the amendments +on the paper the present Minister of Native Affairs brought back +in a somewhat clandestine manner the most objectionable feature of the Bill +that was withdrawn. + +Mr. Speaker: The amendment is not yet before the House. + +SIR W. B. BERRY: What Bill is it then that is to go into Committee? +(Hear, hear.) Is it the Bill which was read a second time +or the Bill comprised in the Minister's amendments? He moved that the House +go into committee on the Bill this day six months. + +MR. T. L. SCHREINER (Tembuland), in seconding the amendment, +said that sufficient notice had not been given of the provisions of the Bill, +although the Natives, thanks to the time which had elapsed +since the second reading, were better acquainted with the measure +than they were a little while ago. + +Mr. Schreiner proceeded to quote opinions from native newspapers on the Bill. +The `Tsala ea Batho', of Kimberley, said: "We are standing on the brink +of the precipice. We appealed to certain members of Parliament against +the suspension clause in Mr. Sauer's Land Bill, and the result of our appeal +has been an agreement between Sir Thomas Smartt and the Minister +to the effect that the first part of the Bill only be proceeded with. +The effect of this agreement is infinitely worse than the whole Bill. +In its entirety, there were certain saving clauses, one of them +practically excluding the Cape Province from the operation of the Bill. +Under the present agreement, all these clauses are dropped, +and section 1 of the Bill, which prohibits the sale of land +between Europeans and Natives (pending the report of a future Commission) +is applicable to all parts of the Union, including the Cape Province. +Now, then, if this suspension clause becomes law, what is going to happen? +It is simply this: That the whole land policy of the Union of South Africa +is the land policy of the Orange Free State, and it will be as difficult +to abrogate that suspension as it is difficult to recall a bullet, +once fired through some one's head, and resuscitate the victim. +Our object then should be to prevent the pistol being fired off, +as prevention is infinitely better than cure." One paper +that he was quoting from was (Mr. Schreiner went on to say) pleased, +because it believed that this Bill was going to Select Committee. +There was another native paper, published in Natal, which acknowledged +the efforts which the missionaries had made on behalf of the Natives +in regard to this Bill. There was a native paper, published at Dundee, +which said that, if the Bill were in the interests of the Natives, +and the Government were actuated by a sincere regard for them, +they would not have hesitated to publish it broadcast, instead of being +in such haste to push the matter through the House.* + +-- +* All efforts to induce the South African Government to circulate + translations of the Natives' Land Act among the Natives of the Union + have proved fruitless. -- Author. +-- + +Mr. Schreiner (continuing) referred to the resolution passed +by the Natal Missionary Conference, and the views expressed +by the Chairman of the Transvaal Missionary Conference in opposition +to the Bill. He mentioned that it had been decided in Johannesburg +to call a meeting of missionary societies throughout the Union, +to determine what action could be taken in case clause 1 was proceeded with. +He had also received a telegram from the Witwatersrand Church Council, +stating that a telegram had been sent to the Minister strongly protesting +against section 1 being enacted before the proposed Commission +had thoroughly investigated the whole question of alternative areas. +Mr. Schreiner urged that, if they proceeded with this Bill, +and passed clause 1 of the old Bill, and appointed a Commission, +these restrictions with regard to purchase and sale, which the Natives +had feared, and which the missionaries, on behalf of the Natives, +feared and protested against, would become a fact. For that reason, +he said they should rather put off the Bill. + +Every one was feeling the pressure of their legislative duties. Was this +the time, therefore, for passing a measure of such a far-reaching character, +and where every clause demanded the most careful consideration and scrutiny? +Was it the right thing because he had a majority at his back +for the Minister to say that they must get this Bill through this session? +He held that this was not right. It was not fair to those who had +the solution of the question at heart. (Cheers.) + +SIR E. H. WALTON (Port Elizabeth, Central) said he entirely supported +the amendment of the hon. member for Queen's Town. He had a telegram +from a mass meeting of Natives held in Port Elizabeth, in which they hoped +that the House would postpone decision on this question until the Commission +had sat and reported. That seemed to him an entirely reasonable request, +and it seemed all the more necessary that this should be done +on account of the very large alterations that it had been found necessary +to make in the Bill. + +They had native protests from all parts of South Africa against this measure, +and when one saw what was proposed in this Act, they could not wonder +at these protests. (Hear, hear.) Therefore he put it that these protests +should receive fair consideration from members on all sides of the House. +Legislation of this kind was unfortunate from the point of view +of the Natives. The more intelligent of the Natives in this country +were asking for time. They said: "You are putting this thing upon us, +give us time to consider it. Allow this Commission to get to work, +allow this Commission to put before us the provisions you are going to make +for us, and when this is done we will submit to anything that is fair." +No man, and the Native was just a man like the rest of us, +liked the old arrangements to be disturbed, because it upset him, +and the Native might oppose it, because he was frightened. +They must admit that they had not given the native leaders and chiefs +an opportunity to come down to Cape Town and give their views. +It was unfortunate that this measure had been more or less rushed. +There was no mention of it in the Governor-General's speech, and therefore +the Natives were not prepared for the consideration of the question. + +MR. M. ALEXANDER (Cape Town, Castle) said he was still of opinion +that a very dangerous principle was introduced in the Bill, +especially so far as the Cape was concerned. In the speech +delivered by the Governor-General at the opening of the session +there was not the slightest reference to the present measure, +which apparently had been brought in as an afterthought, and something +must have occurred after the Governor-General's speech was delivered, +otherwise one could not conceive of such an important Bill being omitted +from the speech. As it was the Bill would simply hang things up +until the Commission reported, and now the House would be legislating +in the dark. The vast majority of Natives had declared themselves +to be against the Bill. He had had no desire whatever that party capital +should be made out of the measure -- (hear, hear) -- but he desired +to see a measure which would bear the mark of statesmanship, +and not of panic and hurry. Their Commission could report +before next session, and then in the early stages of the session +a Bill could be introduced and be adopted on its merits. +In the interests of South Africa, in the interests of the Natives, +and in the interests of just legislation let the Government withdraw the Bill, +and appoint a Commission, and then justice and not injustice would be done. +(Hear, hear.) + +DR. A. H. WATKINS (Barkly) said that there was a tacit understanding +that the Minister would refer this Bill, if he were not prepared +to accept a purely temporary measure, to a Select Committee. +During the three years of the Union Parliament every matter +practically dealing with Natives had been brought before +the Select Committee on Native Affairs and their opinion had been asked. +For some reason, which it was difficult for him to understand, +the Minister had not seen fit to carry out that course. +Sixteen days had elapsed since the second reading of this Bill was taken +on which the Select Committee could have sat morning after morning +and dealt with the Bill. + +The necessity of passing only a temporary measure instead of appearing +to pass a measure which would permanently deal with this question, +was more evident to-night than when they took the second reading. + +MR. H. M. MEYLER (Weenen) said that he would support +the motion of Sir Bisset Berry. He thought it would be +a great injustice to the Natives, and especially the Natives of Natal, +who really knew nothing of this measure, to force it through now. +Since the second reading, his attention had been drawn to certain provisions +in this Bill, which made it more dangerous still to hurry legislation, +because he found that, although there was an exemption in the Bill as regarded +agreements lawfully entered into, the vast majority of the agreements +at present in force amongst the Natives of Natal were not strictly lawful, +according to their Statute law. As they had no less than 380,000 Natives +squatting on private lands in Natal, according to the Minister's own figures, +it would be a fatal mistake to do anything to upset these people, +until they had something ready to provide for them instead. +The difficulty was that under the Natal law no oral contract was binding +for more than twelve months, and many of those squatters +had not got oral contracts, but were more or less on sufferance on the farms. +It would be a great danger to pass legislation which would lead to +the moving of a large portion of these people before they got an inch of land +provided for their use. He objected to legislation being brought forward +too hurriedly, and when they had got 4 1/2 millions of Natives, only an +infinitesimal portion of whom could possibly know the nature of the Bill, +and seeing that it affected them as well as the white population, +they had a perfect right to have it explained to them +by the Government officials and let their members of Parliament +for the divisions in which they lived give their opinions on the question. +That would take months, and it was impossible to get a proper +opinion of the Natives until hon. members had been away from the House +for some time. The Right Hon. the Prime Minister admitted +they should stand as the guardians of the Natives, and admitted +that they should go slowly, and he hoped the hon. Minister would be willing +to reconsider the Bill and allow it to be put off, and let them have +an interim report, at any rate, from the Commission, before they were asked +to pass legislation in that matter. +== + +The Bill was contested at every stage and numerous divisions were challenged. +In each instance, the Speaker would put the Question, and the "steam-roller" +would go to work with the inevitable result. The division lists ranged +from 17 against 71 to 32 against 60, the majority in each case +being in favour of repression. It would be just as well +to give at least one of these division lists. The English names +in the majority are those of some Natal members (Ministerialists) +or representatives of purely Dutch constituencies: -- + + + DIVISION + +Dr. A. H. Watkins (Barkly) called for a division, which was taken +with the following result. + + + AYES -- 32. + +Andrews, William Henry +Baxter, William Duncan +Berry, William Bisset +Blaine, George +Boydell, Thomas +Brown, Daniel Maclaren +Creswell, Frederic Hugh Page +Duncan, Patrick +Fawcus, Alfred +Fitzpatrick, James Percy +Henderson, James +Henwood, Charlie +Hunter, David +Jagger, John William +King, John Gavin +Long, Basil Kellett +Macaulay, Donald +Madeley, Walter Bayley +Meyler, Hugh Mowbray +Nathan, Emile +Oliver, Henry Alfred +Quinn, John William +Rockey, Willie +Runciman, William +Sampson, Henry William +Schreiner, Theophilus Lyndall +Searle, James +Smartt, Thomas William +Walton, Edgar Harris +Watkins, Arnold Hirst + +Morris Alexander and J. Hewat tellers. + + + NOES -- 57. + +Alberts, Johannes Joachim +Becker, Heinrich Christian +Bosman, Hendrik Johannes +Botha, Louis +Brain, Thomas Phillip +Burton, Henry +Clayton, Walter Frederick +Cronje, Frederik Reinhardt +Currey, Henry Latham +De Beer, Michiel Johannes +De Jager, Andries Lourens +De Waal, Hendrik +Du Toit, Gert Johan Wilhelm +Geldenhuys, Lourens +Graaff, David Pieter de Villiers +Griffin, William Henry +Grobler, Evert Nicolaas +Grobler, Pieter Gert Wessel +Joubert, Christiaan Johannes Jacobus +Joubert, Jozua Adriaan +Keyter, Jan Garhard +Kuhn, Pieter Gysbert +Lemmer, Lodewyk Arnoldus Slabbert +Maasdorp, Gysbert Henry +Malan, Francois Stephanus +Marais, Johannes Henoch +Marais, Pieter Gerhardus +Merriman, John Xavier +Meyer, Izaak Johannes +Myburgh, Marthinus Wilhelmus +Neethling, Andrew Murray +Neser, Johannes Adriaan +Nicholson, Richard Granville +Oothuisen, Ockert Almero +Orr, Thomas +Rademeyer, Jacobus Michael +Sauer, Jacobus Wilhelmus +Serfontein, Hendrik Philippus +Smuts, Jan Christiaan +Smuts, Tobias +Steyl, Johannes Petrus Gerhardus +Steytler, George Louis +Theron, Hendrik Schalk +Theron, Petrus Jacobus George +Van der Merwe, Johannes Adolph P. +Van der Walt, Jacobus +Van Eeden, Jacobus Willem +Van Heerden, Hercules Christian +Venter, Jan Abraham +Vermaas, Hendrik Cornelius Wilhelmus +Vintcent, Alwyn Ignatius +Vosloo, Johannes Arnoldus +Watt, Thomas +Wilcocks, Carl Theodorus Muller +Wiltshire, Henry + +H. Mentz and G. A. Louw, tellers. + + + + +Chapter III The Natives' Land Act + + I blush to think that His Majesty's representative signed a law like this, + and signed it in such circumstances. + Rev. Amos Burnet + (Chairman and General Superintendent of + the Transvaal and Swazieland District, + Wesleyan Methodist Church). + + + +Up to now we have dealt with the history of the Land Act +from its commencement, and all the speeches and official documents +we have mentioned hitherto say nothing about restricting Europeans +in their ownership of land. And no matter what other principles +one might read into the Act, it would be found that the principles +underlying it were those of extending the "Free" State land laws +throughout the Union -- an extension by which Natives would be prohibited +from investing their earnings in land whereon they could end their days +in peace. + +There seems to be good reason for believing that the Government were advised, +by the legal advisers of the Crown, that the Natives' Land Bill +would be class legislation of a kind that would never be allowed +by His Majesty's Government. The originators of the Bill, however, +were determined so to circumvent the constitutional quibble +raised by the legal advisers as to seal our doom; and by adroitly manipulating +its legal phrases, it seems that it was recasted in such a manner +as to give it a semblance of a paper restriction on European encroachment +on native rights. But class legislation the Act is, for whereas +in his travels about South Africa, since the passing of this Act, +the author has met many a native family with their stock, +turned out by the Act upon the roads, he never met one white man so hounded +by the same Act, and debarred from living where he pleased. + +The squatters form a particular section of the community specifically affected +by the Land Act; and there is no such person in South Africa +as a white squatter. Although it is insistently affirmed that the law applies +both to Europeans and Natives, the conclusion cannot be avoided that +it is directed exclusively against the Native. This is the naked truth that +turns all other explanations of the fact into mere shuffling and juggling. +And the reader will find that in Section 11, at the end of the statute +which is here reproduced (whether the omission of Europeans +was a mistake of the Parliamentary draftsmen, or the printers, we know not), +it is expressly stated that "this Act may be cited for all purposes +as the NATIVES' Land Act, 1913." Who, then, will continue to argue +that it was intended for Europeans as well? + +== +No. 27, 1913.] + + ACT + TO +Make further provision as to the purchase and leasing of Land + by Natives and other Persons in the several parts of the Union and for + other purposes in connection with the ownership and occupation of Land + by Natives and other Persons. + +Be it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, +the Senate and the House of Assembly of the Union of South Africa, +as follows: -- + +1. (1) From and after the commencement of this Act, +land outside the scheduled native areas shall, until Parliament, +acting upon the report of the commission appointed under this Act, +shall have made other provision, be subjected to the following provisions, +that is to say: -- + +Except with the approval of the Governor-General -- + + (a) a native shall not enter into any agreement or transaction + for the purchase, hire, or other acquisition from a person + other than a native, of any such land or of any right thereto, + interest therein, or servitude thereover; and + + (b) a person other than a native shall not enter into + any agreement or transaction for the purchase, hire, + or other acquisition from a native of any such land + or of any right thereto, interest therein, or servitude thereover. + + (2) From and after the commencement of this Act, no person other than +a native shall purchase, hire or in any other manner whatever acquire any land +in a scheduled native area or enter into any agreement or transaction for +the purchase, hire or other acquisition, direct or indirect, of any such land +or of any right thereto or interest therein or servitude thereover, +except with the approval of the Governor-General. + + (3) A statement showing the number of approvals granted +by the Governor-General under sub-sections (1) and (2) of this section +and giving the names and addresses of the persons to whom +such approvals were granted, the reasons for granting the same, +and the situation of the lands in respect of which they were granted, +shall, within six weeks after the commencement of each ordinary session +of Parliament, be laid upon the Tables of both Houses of Parliament. + + (4) Every agreement or any other transaction whatever entered into +in contravention of this section shall be null and void ab initio. + +2. (1) As soon as may be after the commencement of this Act +the Governor-General shall appoint a commission whose functions shall be +to inquire and report -- + + (a) what areas should be set apart as areas within which natives + shall not be permitted to acquire or hire land or interests in land; + + (b) what areas should be set apart as areas within which + persons other than natives shall not be permitted to acquire or hire + land or interests in land. + +The commission shall submit with any such report -- + + (i) descriptions of the boundaries of any area which it proposes + should be so set apart; and + + (ii) a map or maps showing every such area. + + (2) The commission shall proceed with and complete its inquiry +and present its reports and recommendations to the Minister +within two years after the commencement of this Act, and may present +INTERIM reports and recommendations: Provided that Parliament +may by resolution extend (if necessary) the time for the completion +of the commission's inquiry. All such reports and recommendations +shall be laid by the Minister, as soon as possible after the receipt thereof, +upon the Tables of both Houses of Parliament. + +3. (1) The commission shall consist of not less than five persons, +and if any member of the commission die or resign or, owing to +absence or any other reason, is unable to act, his place shall be filled +by the Governor-General. + + (2) The commission may delegate to any of its members +the carrying out of any part of an inquiry which under this Act +it is appointed to hold and may appoint persons to assist it or to act +as assessors thereto or with any members thereof delegated as aforesaid, +and may regulate its own procedure. + + (3) The reports and recommendations of the majority of the commission +shall be deemed to be the reports and recommendations of the commission: +Provided that any recommendations of any member who dissents +from the majority of the commission shall, if signed by him, +be included in any such report aforesaid. + + (4) The commission or any member thereof or any person acting +as assistant, or assessor, or secretary thereto may enter upon any land +for the purposes of its inquiries and obtain thereon the information necessary +to prosecute the inquiries. The commission shall without fee or other charge +have access to the records and registers relating to land in any public office +or in the office of any divisional council or other local authority. + +4. (1) For the purposes of establishing any such area as is described +in section TWO, the Governor-General may, out of moneys which Parliament +may vote for the purpose, acquire any land or interest in land. + + (2) In default of agreement with the owners of the land +or the holders of interests therein the provisions of the law in force +in the Province in which such land or interest in land is situate +relating to the expropriation of land for public purposes +shall apply and, if in any Province there be no such law, +the provisions of Proclamation No. 5 of 1902 of the Transvaal +and any amendment thereof shall mutatis mutandis apply. + +5. (1) Any person who is a party to any attempted purchase, +sale, hire or lease, or to any agreement or transaction which +is in contravention of this Act or any regulation made thereunder +shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine +not exceeding one hundred pounds or, in default of payment, to imprisonment +with or without hard labour for a period not exceeding six months, +and if the act constituting the offence be a continuing one, +the offender shall be liable to a further fine not exceeding five pounds +for every day which that act continues. + + (2) In the event of such an offence being committed by a company, +corporation, or other body of persons (not being a firm or partnership), +every director, secretary, or manager of such company, corporation, or body +who is within the Union shall be liable to prosecution and punishment and, +in the event of any such offence being committed by a firm or partnership, +every member of the firm or partnership who is within the Union +shall be liable to prosecution and punishment. + +6. In so far as the occupation by natives of land outside +the scheduled native areas may be affected by this Act, the provisions thereof +shall be construed as being in addition to and not in substitution for any law +in force at the commencement thereof relating to such occupation; +but in the event of a conflict between the provisions of this Act +and the provisions of any such law, the provisions of this Act shall, +save as is specially provided therein, prevail: + +Provided that -- + + (a) nothing in any such law or in this Act shall be construed + as restricting the number of natives who, as farm labourers, + may reside on any farm in the Transvaal; + + (b) in any proceedings for a contravention of this Act + the burden of proving that a native is a farm labourer + shall be upon the accused; + + (c) until Parliament, acting upon the report of the said commission, + has made other provision, no native resident on any farm + in the Transvaal or Natal shall be liable to penalties + or to be removed from such farm under any law, + if at the commencement of this Act he or the head of his family + is registered for taxation or other purposes + in the department of Native Affairs as being resident on such farm, + nor shall the owner of any such farm be liable to the penalties + imposed by section FIVE in respect of the occupation of the land + by such native; but nothing herein contained shall affect any right + possessed by law by an owner or lessee of a farm to remove + any native therefrom. + +7. (1) Chapter XXXIV of the Orange Free State Law Book and Law No. 4 of 1895 +of the Orange Free State shall remain of full force and effect, +subject to the modifications and interpretations in this section provided, +and sub-section (1) (a) of the next succeeding section shall not apply +to the Orange Free State. + + (2) Those heads of families, with their families, who are described +in article TWENTY of Law No. 4 of 1895 of the Orange Free State +shall in the circumstances described in that article be deemed to fall under +the provisions of Ordinance No. 7 of 1904 of that Province or of any other law +hereafter enacted amending or substituted for that Ordinance. + + (3) Whenever in Chapter XXXIV of the Orange Free State Law Book +the expressions "lease" and "leasing" are used, those expressions +shall be construed as including or referring to an agreement or arrangement +whereby a person, in consideration of his being permitted to occupy land, +renders or promises to render to any person a share of the produce thereof, +or any valuable consideration of any kind whatever other than +his own labour or services or the labour or services of any of his family. + +8. (1) Nothing in this Act contained shall be construed as, -- + + (a) preventing the continuation or renewal (until Parliament + acting upon the report of the said commission has made + other provision) of any agreement or arrangement lawfully + entered into and in existence at the commencement of this Act + which is a hiring or leasing of land as defined in this Act; or + + (b) invalidating or affecting in any manner whatever + any agreement or any other transaction for the purchase of land + lawfully entered into prior to the commencement of this Act, + or as prohibiting any person from purchasing at any sale + held by order of a competent court any land which was hypothecated + by a mortgage bond passed before the commencement of this Act; or + + (c) prohibiting the acquisition at any time of land or interests in land + by devolution or succession on death, whether under + a will or on intestacy; or + + (d) preventing the due registration in the proper deeds office + (whenever registration is necessary) of documents giving effect + to any such agreement, transaction, devolution or succession + as is in this section mentioned; or + + (e) prohibiting any person from claiming, acquiring, + or holding any such servitude as under Chapter VII, + of the Irrigation and Conservation of Waters Act, 1912, + he is specially entitled to claim, acquire, or hold; or + + (f) in any way altering the law in force at the commencement of this Act + relating to the acquisition of rights to minerals, + precious or base metals or precious stones; or + + (g) applying to land within the limits in which a municipal council, + town council, town board, village management board, + or health committee or other local authority + exercises jurisdiction; or + + (h) applying to land held at the commencement of the Act by any society + carrying on, with the approval of the Governor-General, + educational or missionary work amongst natives; or + + (i) prohibiting the acquisition by natives from any person whatever + of land or interests in land in any township lawfully established + prior to the commencement of this Act, provided it is + a condition of the acquisition that no land or interest in land + in such township has at any time been or shall in future be, + transferred except to a native or coloured person; or + + (j) permitting the alienation of land or its diversion from + the purposes for which it was set apart if, under section + ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-SEVEN of the South African Act, 1909, + or any other law, such land could not be alienated or so diverted + except under the authority of an Act of Parliament; or + + (k) in any way modifying the provisions of any law whereby + mortgages of or charges over land may be created + to secure advances out of public moneys for specific purposes + mentioned in such law and the interest of such advances, + or whereunder the mortgagee or person having the charge + may enter and take possession of the land so mortgaged or charged + except that in any sale of such land in accordance with such law + the provisions of this Act shall be observed. + + (2) Nothing in this Act contained which imposes restrictions +upon the acquisition by any person of land or right thereto, +interests therein, or servitudes thereover, shall be in force +in the Province of the Cape of Good Hope, if and for so long +as such person would, by such restrictions, be prevented from +acquiring or holding a qualification whereunder he is or may become +entitled to be registered as a voter at parliamentary elections +in any electoral division in the said Province. + +9. The Governor-General may make regulations for preventing +the overcrowding of huts and other dwellings in the stadts, +native villages and settlements and other places in which natives +are congregated in areas not under the jurisdiction of any local authority, +the sanitation of such places and for the maintenance of the health +of the inhabitants thereof. + +10. In this Act, unless inconsistent with the context, -- + +"scheduled native area" shall mean any area described in the Schedule +to this Act; + +"native" shall mean any person, male or female, who is a member of +an aboriginal race or tribe of Africa; and shall further include +any company or other body of persons, corporate or unincorporate, +if the persons who have a controlling interest therein are natives; + +"interest in land" shall include, in addition to other interest in land, +the interest which a mortgagee of, or person having charge over, land acquires +under a mortgage bond or charge; + +"Minister" shall mean the Minister of Native Affairs; + +"farm labourer" shall mean a native who resides on a farm and is bona fide, +but not necessarily continuously employed by the owner or lessee thereof +in domestic service or in farming operations: + +Provided that -- + + (a) if such native reside on one farm and is employed + on another farm of the same owner or lessee he shall be deemed + to have resided, and to have been employed, on one and the same farm; + + (b) such native shall not be deemed to be bona fide employed + unless he renders ninety days' service at least + in one calendar year on the farm occupied by the owner or lessee + or on another farm of the owner or lessee and no rent is paid + or valuable consideration of any kind, other than service, + is given by him to the owner or lessee in respect of residence + on such farm or farms. + +A person shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act +to hire land if, in consideration of his being permitted +to occupy that land or any portion thereof -- + + (a) he pays or promises to pay to any person a rent in money; or + + (b) he renders or promises to render to any person a share of the produce + of that land, or any valuable consideration of any kind whatever + other than his own labour or services or the labour or services + of his family. + +11. This Act may be cited for all purposes as the Natives' Land Act, 1913. +== + +The foregoing result of a legislative jumble is "the law", +and this law, like Alexander the coppersmith, "hath done us much harm". +Mr. Sauer carried his Bill less by reason than by sheer force of numbers, +and partly by promises which he afterwards broke. Among these broken promises +was the definite assurance he gave Parliament that the Bill +would be referred to the Select Committee on Native Affairs, +so that the Natives, who are not represented in Parliament, +their European friends and the Missionary bodies on behalf of the Natives, +could be able at the proper time to appear before this committee and state +any objection which they might have to the Bill. But when that time came, +the Minister flatly refused to refer it to the committee. +This change of front is easily explained, because the weight of evidence +which could have been given before any Parliamentary committee +would have imperilled the passage of the Bill. + +As might have been expected, the debate on the Bill created the greatest alarm +amongst the native population, for they had followed its course +with the keenest interest. Nothing short of a declaration of war against them +could have created a similar excitement, although the hope was entertained +in some quarters, that a body of men like the Ministerialists in Parliament +(a majority of whom are never happier than when attesting +the Christian character of their race) would in course of days +attend the Holy Communion, remember the 11th Commandment, +and do unto others as they would that men should do unto them. +Our people, in fact a number of them, said amongst themselves +that even Dutchmen sing Psalms -- all the Psalms, including the 24th; +and, believing as they did that Dutchmen could have no other religion +besides the one recommended in the New Testament and preached by +the predikants of the Dutch Reformed Church, were prepared +to commend their safety to the influence of that sweet and peaceable religion. +However, some other Natives, remembering what took place before +the South African war, took a different view of these religious incidents. +Those Natives, especially of the old Republics, knew that +the only dividing fence between the Transvaal Natives and complete slavery +was the London Convention; they, therefore, now that the London Convention +in fact had ceased to exist, had evil forebodings regarding +the average Republican's treatment of the Natives, which was seldom influenced +by religious scruples, and they did not hesitate to express their fears. + +Personally we must say that if any one had told us at the beginning of 1913, +that a majority of members of the Union Parliament were capable of passing +a law like the Natives' Land Act, whose object is to prevent the Natives +from ever rising above the position of servants to the whites, +we would have regarded that person as a fit subject for the lunatic asylum. +But the passing of that Act and its operation have rudely +forced the fact upon us that the Union Parliament is capable of producing +any measure that is subversive of native interests; and that +the complete arrest of native progress is the object aimed at +in their efforts to include the Protectorates in their Union. +Thus we think that their sole reason for seeking to incorporate Basutoland, +Swaziland and Bechuanaland is that, when they have definitely eliminated +the Imperial factor from South Africa, as they are unmistakably trying to do, +they may have a million more slaves than if the Protectorates were excluded. + +In this connexion, the realization of the prophecy of an old Basuto +became increasingly believable to us. It was to this effect, namely: +"That the Imperial Government, after conquering the Boers, +handed back to them their old Republics, and a nice little present +in the shape of the Cape Colony and Natal -- the two English Colonies. +That the Boers are now ousting the Englishmen from the public service, +and when they have finished with them, they will make a law +declaring it a crime for a Native to live in South Africa, +unless he is a servant in the employ of a Boer, and that from this +it will be just one step to complete slavery." This is being realized, +for to-day we have, extended throughout the Union of South Africa, +a "Free" State law which makes it illegal for Natives +to live on farms except as servants in the employ of Europeans. +There is another "Free" State law, under which no Native +may live in a municipal area or own property in urban localities. +He can only live in town as a servant in the employ of a European. +And if the followers of General Hertzog are permitted +to dragoon the Union Government into enforcing "Free" State ideals +against the Natives of the Union, as they have successfully done +under the Natives' Land Act, it will only be a matter of time +before we have a Natives' Urban Act enforced throughout South Africa. +Then we will have the banner of slavery fully unfurled (of course, +under another name) throughout the length and breadth of the land. + +When the Natives' Land Bill was before Parliament, meetings were held +in many villages and locations in protest against the Ministerial surrender +to the Republicans, of which the Bill was the outcome. +At the end of March, 1913, the Native National Congress met in Johannesburg, +and there a deputation was appointed to go to Capetown +and point out to the Government some, at least, of the harm +that would follow legislation of the character mapped out in Parliament +on February 28 when the Land Act was first announced. They were to urge +that such a measure would be exploitation of the cruelest kind, that it +would not only interfere with the economic independence of the Natives, +but would reduce them for ever to a state of serfdom, and degrade them +as nothing has done since slavery was abolished at the Cape. +Missionaries also, and European friends of the Natives, did not sit still. +Resolution after resolution, telegraphic and other representations, +were made to Mr. Sauer, from meetings in various parts of the country, +counselling prudence. Even such societies as the Transvaal Landowners, +who had long been crying for a measure to separate whites from blacks, +and vice versa, urged that the Bill should not be passed during +the same session in which it was introduced, that the country should be given +an opportunity to digest it, in order, if necessary, to suggest amendments. +The Missionary bodies, too, represent a following of Natives +numbering hundreds of thousands of souls, on whose behalf +they pleaded for justice. These bodies urged that before passing a law, +prohibiting the sale and lease of land to Natives, and expelling squatters +from their homes, the Government should provide locations +to which the evicted Natives could go. But all these representations +made no impression upon the Government, who, instead, preferred to act +upon the recommendation of thirteen diminutive petitions +(signed in all by 304 Dutchmen in favour of the Bill)* than to be guided +by the overwhelming weight of public opinion that was against its passage. +Thus it became clear that the Native's position in his own country +was not an enviable one, for once a law was made prohibiting +the sale of landed property to Natives, it would be almost impossible +to get a South African Parliament to amend it. + +-- +* One of these thirteen petitions had only four signatures, + which was but one better than that of the Tooley Street tailors. +-- + +The Government, which at the beginning assured Parliament of their +humane intentions, proceeded to delete the mildest clauses of the measure +and to insert some very harsh ones; and almost each time +that the Bill came before the House, one or two fresh drastic clauses +were added. But it is comforting to note that even Parliament +was not entirely satisfied with this, its heroic piece of legislation. +Thus Mr. Meyler of Natal did, as only a lawyer could with a view +to recasting the Bill, some very useful work in pointing out +the possible harm with which the Bill was fraught. We wish that +his clever speeches and observations (much of which have come true), +might yet be sifted out of the big Parliamentary Reports, +and published in a concise little pamphlet. + +Sir David Hunter, another member of Natal, expressed himself as follows: -- + +== +While every one seemed animated with a desire to do what was right and just +to the Natives, there was a feeling that certain of the details of the measure +required amendment. He was more than pleased when the Minister +closed the debate by a speech in which he seemed to be willing to meet +the wishes of those in the House who thought that amendment was required. +He could not have imagined that the Bill would develop into the shape +into which it had developed, and had he known that so great an alteration +would take place in the general effect of the measure +from what was foreshadowed by the hon. Minister when he had made +that interesting speech on the second reading he (the speaker) +could not have conscientiously voted for the second reading. +He would have been better pleased had a resolution been taken +not to bring in a Bill until the Commission had reported. +That was the position he had taken up all through and he would much rather now +that the matter should be dealt with in that way. If, however, +the Bill was to be pressed through there should be guarantees in it +which should allay all suspicion. Anything affecting the native people +required to be done gradually and should be placed before them +a long time before the change took place. He hoped there would yet be +some steps taken to give them a greater sense of security. +To give some idea of the feeling in the minds of the Natives +he read a letter from a gentleman in Natal, largely interested +in the Natives, which had expressed the opinion that the Natives +stood uncompromisingly against any change in their present status +until the Commission had reported. He hoped the hon. Minister +would even yet endeavour to do something to meet their views. + +Mr. C. H. Haggar (Roodepoort) said that from the point of those +who had worked successfully in turning the uncivilized man +into the civilized man the Bill was bound to be a failure. +It was necessary not only to have legislation theoretically just, +but also practically right and good. But there were many who felt +that so far from the effect of that Bill being good it would be disastrous +to a very large extent. The great sin which they had been committing +was that they had always been legislating ahead of the people, +and there had not been sufficient preparation for the changes +which were proposed in that Bill; the Natives were not ready for it. +The hon. member for Victoria West had said that there was a disposition +in certain directions to repress the Natives. He (the speaker) believed +that there was a feeling that white men had some divine right +to the labour of the black, that the black people were to be +hewers of wood and drawers of water, and he wanted to say that while men +were obsessed with that feeling they would never be able to legislate fairly. +They had no more divine right to the labour of the black people +than they had to the labour of the white. To his mind the great point was, +should their policy be one of repression or a policy of inspiration? +They had inspired the Natives to a certain extent, but no sooner +had they created an appetite than they had told the Natives +they should go no further. Their policy was the policy of Tantalus. +That Bill would create a feeling of insecurity in the minds of the Natives. +There were those who said that if the Natives would not submit to dictation +they should be wiped out. But that should not be their policy. +They must cease the policy of repression and let it be +one of wide inspiration. +== + +But alas! these and similar pleadings had about as much effect +upon the Ministerial steam-roller as the proverbial water on a duck's back. +With a rush the Natives' Land Bill was dispatched from the Lower House +to the Senate, adopted hurriedly by the Senate, returned to the Lower House, +and went at the same pace to Government House, and there receiving +the Governor-General's signature, it immediately became law. +As regards the Governor-General's signature, His Excellency, +if Ministers are to be believed, was ready to sign the Bill +(or rather signified his intention of doing so) long before it was introduced +into Parliament. This excited haste suggests grave misgivings +as to the character of the Bill. Why all the hurry and scurry, +and why the Governor-General's approval in advance? Other Bills +are passed and approved by the Governor, yet they do not come into operation +until some given day -- the beginning of the next calendar year, +or of the next financial year. But the Natives' Land Act +became law and was operating as soon as it could be promulgated. + +After desperately protesting, with individual members of Parliament +and with Cabinet Ministers, and getting nothing for their pains, +the delegates from the Native Congress wrote Lord Gladstone, +from an office about two hundred yards distant from Government House, +requesting His Excellency to withhold his assent to the Natives' Land Bill +until the people mostly concerned (i.e. the Natives) had had a chance +of making known to His Majesty the King their objection to the measure. +His Excellency replied that such a course "was not within +his constitutional functions." Thereby the die was cast, +and the mandate went forth that the land laws of the Orange "Free" State, +which is commonly known as "the Only Slave State", shall be +the laws of the whole Union of South Africa. The worst feature in the case +is the fact that, even with the Governments of the late Republics, +the Presidents always had the power to exempt some Natives +from the operation of those laws, and that prerogative had been liberally used +by successive Presidents. Now, however, without a President, +and with the prerogative of the King (by the exercise of which +the evils of such a law could have been averted) disowned by +the King's own Ministers on the spot, God in the heavens alone +knows what will become of the hapless, because voteless, Natives, +who are without a President, "without a King", and with a Governor-General +without constitutional functions, under task-masters whose national traditions +are to enslave the dark races. + + + + +Chapter IV One Night with the Fugitives + + Es ist unkoeniglich zu weinen -- ach, + Und hier nicht weinen ist unvaeterlich. + Schiller. + + + +"Pray that your flight be not in winter," said Jesus Christ; +but it was only during the winter of 1913 that the full significance +of this New Testament passage was revealed to us. We left Kimberley +by the early morning train during the first week in July, +on a tour of observation regarding the operation of the Natives' Land Act; +and we arrived at Bloemhof, in Transvaal, at about noon. +On the River Diggings there were no actual cases representing +the effects of the Act, but traces of these effects were everywhere manifest. +Some fugitives of the Natives' Land Act had crossed the river in full flight. +The fact that they reached the diggings a fortnight before our visit +would seem to show that while the debates were proceeding in Parliament +some farmers already viewed with eager eyes the impending opportunity +for at once making slaves of their tenants and appropriating their stock; +for, acting on the powers conferred on them by an Act signed +by Lord Gladstone, so lately as June 16, they had during that very week +(probably a couple of days after, and in some cases, it would seem, +a couple of days before the actual signing of the Bill) +approached their tenants with stories about a new Act which makes it criminal +for any one to have black tenants and lawful to have black servants. +Few of these Natives, of course, would object to be servants, +especially if the white man is worth working for, but this is where +the shoe pinches: one of the conditions is that the black man's +(that is the servant's) cattle shall henceforth work for the landlord +free of charge. Then the Natives would decide to leave the farm +rather than make the landlord a present of all their life's savings, +and some of them had passed through the diggings in search of a place +in the Transvaal. But the higher up they went the more gloomy +was their prospect as the news about the new law was now penetrating +every part of the country. + +One farmer met a wandering native family in the town of Bloemhof +a week before our visit. He was willing to employ the Native +and many more homeless families as follows: A monthly wage +of 2 Pounds 10s. for each such family, the husband working in the fields, +the wife in the house, with an additional 10s. a month for each son, +and 5s. for each daughter, but on condition that the Native's cattle +were also handed over to work for him. It must be clearly understood, +we are told that the Dutchman added, that occasionally the Native +would have to leave his family at work on the farm, and go out +with his wagon and his oxen to earn money whenever and wherever +he was told to go, in order that the master may be enabled to pay +the stipulated wage. The Natives were at first inclined to laugh at the idea +of working for a master with their families and goods and chattels, +and then to have the additional pleasure of paying their own small wages, +besides bringing money to pay the "Baas" for employing them. +But the Dutchman's serious demeanour told them that his suggestion +was "no joke". He himself had for some time been in need +of a native cattle owner, to assist him as transport rider +between Bloemhof, Mooifontein, London, and other diggings, +in return for the occupation and cultivation of some of his waste lands +in the district, but that was now illegal. He could only "employ" them; +but, as he had no money to pay wages, their cattle would have +to go out and earn it for him. Had they not heard of the law before? +he inquired. Of course they had; in fact that is why they left +the other place, but as they thought that it was but a "Free" State law, +they took the anomalous situation for one of the multifarious aspects +of the freedom of the "Free" State whence they came; they had scarcely thought +that the Transvaal was similarly afflicted. + +Needless to say the Natives did not see their way to agree +with such a one-sided bargain. They moved up country, but only to find +the next farmer offering the same terms, however, with a good many more +disturbing details -- and the next farmer and the next -- +so that after this native farmer had wandered from farm to farm, +occasionally getting into trouble for travelling with unknown stock, +"across my ground without my permission", and at times +escaping arrest for he knew not what, and further, being abused +for the crimes of having a black skin and no master, he sold some of his stock +along the way, beside losing many which died of cold and starvation; +and after thus having lost much of his substance, he eventually worked his way +back to Bloemhof with the remainder, sold them for anything they could fetch, +and went to work for a digger. + +The experience of another native sufferer was similar to the above, +except that instead of working for a digger he sold his stock +for a mere bagatelle, and left with his family by the Johannesburg night train +for an unknown destination. More native families crossed the river +and went inland during the previous week, and as nothing had since +been heard of them, it would seem that they were still wandering somewhere, +and incidentally becoming well versed in the law that was responsible +for their compulsory unsettlement. + +Well, we knew that this law was as harsh as its instigators were callous, +and we knew that it would, if passed, render many poor people homeless, +but it must be confessed that we were scarcely prepared +for such a rapid and widespread crash as it caused in the lives of the Natives +in this neighbourhood. We left our luggage the next morning +with the local Mission School teacher, and crossed the river +to find out some more about this wonderful law of extermination. +It was about 10 a.m. when we landed on the south bank of the Vaal River -- +the picturesque Vaal River, upon whose banks a hundred miles farther west +we spent the best and happiest days of our boyhood. It was interesting +to walk on one portion of the banks of that beautiful river -- +a portion which we had never traversed except as an infant in mother's arms +more than thirty years before. How the subsequent happy days at Barkly West, +so long past, came crowding upon our memory! -- days when +there were no railways, no bridges, and no system of irrigation. +In rainy seasons, which at that time were far more regular and certain, +the river used to overflow its high banks and flood the surrounding valleys +to such an extent, that no punt could carry the wagons across. +Thereby the transport service used to be hung up, and numbers of wagons +would congregate for weeks on both sides of the river +until the floods subsided. At such times the price of fresh milk +used to mount up to 1s. per pint. There being next to no competition, +we boys had a monopoly over the milk trade. We recalled +the number of haversacks full of bottles of milk we youngsters often carried +to those wagons, how we returned with empty bottles and with just +that number of shillings. Mother and our elder brothers +had leather bags full of gold and did not care for the "boy's money"; +and unlike the boys of the neighbouring village, having no sisters of our own, +we gave away some of our money to fair cousins, and jingled the rest +in our pockets. We had been told from boyhood that sweets were injurious +to the teeth, and so spurning these delights we had hardly any use for money, +for all we wanted to eat, drink and wear was at hand in plenty. +We could then get six or eight shillings every morning +from the pastime of washing that number of bottles, +filling them with fresh milk and carrying them down to the wagons; +there was always such an abundance of the liquid that +our shepherd's hunting dog could not possibly miss what we took, +for while the flocks were feeding on the luscious buds of the haak-doorns +and the orange-coloured blossoms of the rich mimosa and other wild vegetation +that abounded on the banks of the Vaal River, the cows, similarly engaged, +were gathering more and more milk. + +The gods are cruel, and one of their cruellest acts of omission +was that of giving us no hint that in very much less +than a quarter of a century all those hundreds of heads of cattle, +and sheep and horses belonging to the family would vanish +like a morning mist, and that we ourselves would live +to pay 30s. per month for a daily supply of this same precious fluid, +and in very limited quantities. They might have warned us +that Englishmen would agree with Dutchmen to make it unlawful +for black men to keep milch cows of their own on the banks of that river, +and gradually have prepared us for the shock. + +Crossing the river from the Transvaal side brings one +into the Province of the Orange "Free" State, in which, +in the adjoining division of Boshof, we were born thirty-six years back. +We remember the name of the farm, but not having been +in this neighbourhood since infancy, we could not tell its whereabouts, +nor could we say whether the present owner was a Dutchman, +his lawyer, or a Hebrew merchant; one thing we do know, however: +it is that even if we had the money and the owner was willing to sell the spot +upon which we first saw the light of day and breathed the pure air of heaven, +the sale would be followed with a fine of one hundred pounds. +The law of the country forbids the sale of land to a Native. +Russia is one of the most abused countries in the world, +but it is extremely doubtful if the statute book of that Empire contains a law +debarring the peasant from purchasing the land whereon he was born, +or from building a home wherein he might end his days. + +At this time we felt something rising from our heels along our back, +gripping us in a spasm, as we were cycling along; a needlelike pang, too, +pierced our heart with a sharp thrill. What was it? We remembered +feeling something nearly like it when our father died eighteen years ago; +but at that time our physical organs were fresh and grief was easily +thrown off in tears, but then we lived in a happy South Africa +that was full of pleasant anticipations, and now -- what changes for the worse +have we undergone! For to crown all our calamities, South Africa has by law +ceased to be the home of any of her native children whose skins are dyed +with a pigment that does not conform with the regulation hue. + +We are told to forgive our enemies and not to let the sun go down +upon our wrath, so we breathe the prayer that peace may be to the white races, +and that they, including our present persecutors of the Union Parliament, +may never live to find themselves deprived of all occupation and +property rights in their native country as is now the case with the Native. +History does not tell us of any other continent where the Bantu lived +besides Africa, and if this systematic ill-treatment of the Natives +by the colonists is to be the guiding principle of Europe's scramble +for Africa, slavery is our only alternative; for now it is only as serfs +that the Natives are legally entitled to live here. Is it to be thought +that God is using the South African Parliament to hound us +out of our ancestral homes in order to quicken our pace heavenward? +But go from where to heaven? In the beginning, we are told, +God created heaven and earth, and peopled the earth, +for people do not shoot up to heaven from nowhere. They must have had +an earthly home. Enoch, Melchizedek, Elijah, and other saints, +came to heaven from earth. God did not say to the Israelites +in their bondage: "Cheer up, boys; bear it all in good part +for I have bright mansions on high awaiting you all." But he said: +"I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, +and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; +for I know their sorrows, and I am come down to bring them +out of the hands of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land +unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey." +And He used Moses to carry out the promise He made to their ancestor Abraham +in Canaan, that "unto thy seed will I give this land." It is to be hoped +that in the Boer churches, entrance to which is barred against coloured people +during divine service, they also read the Pentateuch. + +It is doubtful if we ever thought so much on a single bicycle ride +as we did on this journey; however, the sight of a policeman ahead of us +disturbed these meditations and gave place to thoughts of quite another kind, +for -- we had no pass. Dutchmen, Englishmen, Jews, Germans, +and other foreigners may roam the "Free" State without permission -- +but not Natives. To us it would mean a fine and imprisonment +to be without a pass. The "pass" law was first instituted +to check the movement of livestock over sparsely populated areas. +In a sense it was a wise provision, in that it served to identify +the livestock which one happened to be driving along the high road, +to prove the bona fides of the driver and his title to the stock. +Although white men still steal large droves of horses in Basutoland +and sell them in Natal or in East Griqualand, they, of course, +are not required to carry any passes. These white horse-thieves, +to escape the clutches of the police, employ Natives +to go and sell the stolen stock and write the passes for these Natives, +forging the names of Magistrates and Justices of the Peace. +Such native thieves in some instances ceasing to be hirelings +in the criminal business, trade on their own, but it is not clear +what purpose it is intended to serve by subjecting native pedestrians +to the degrading requirement of carrying passes when they are not +in charge of any stock. + +In a few moments the policeman was before us and we alighted +in presence of the representative of the law, with our feet +on the accursed soil of the district in which we were born. +The policeman stopped. By his looks and his familiar "Dag jong" +we noticed that the policeman was Dutch, and the embodiment of affability. +He spoke and we were glad to notice that he had no intention +of dragging an innocent man to prison. We were many miles +from the nearest police station, and in such a case +one is generally able to gather the real views of the man on patrol, +as distinct from the written code of his office, but our friend +was becoming very companionable. Naturally we asked him about +the operation of the plague law. He was a Transvaaler, he said, +and he knew that Kafirs were inferior beings, but they had rights, +and were always left in undisturbed possession of their property +when Paul Kruger was alive. "The poor devils must be sorry now," he said, +"that they ever sang `God save the Queen' when the British troops +came into the Transvaal, for I have seen, in the course of my duties, +that a Kafir's life nowadays was not worth a ----, and I believe that no man +regretted the change of flags now more than the Kafirs of Transvaal." +This information was superfluous, for personal contact +with the Natives of Transvaal had convinced us of the fact. +They say it is only the criminal who has any reason to rejoice over +the presence of the Union Jack, because in his case the cat-o'-nine-tails, +except for very serious crimes, has been abolished. + +"Some of the poor creatures," continued the policeman, +"I knew to be fairly comfortable, if not rich, and they enjoyed +the possession of their stock, living in many instances just like Dutchmen. +Many of these are now being forced to leave their homes. +Cycling along this road you will meet several of them in search of new homes, +and if ever there was a fool's errand, it is that of a Kafir +trying to find a new home for his stock and family just now." + +"And what do you think, Baas Officer, must eventually be the lot of a people +under such unfortunate circumstances?" we asked. + +"I think," said the policeman, "that it must serve them right. +They had no business to hanker after British rule, to cheat and plot +with the enemies of their Republic for the overthrow of their Government. +Why did they not assist the forces of their Republic during the war +instead of supplying the English with scouts and intelligence? +Oom Paul would not have died of a broken heart and he would still be there +to protect them. Serve them right, I say." + +So saying he spurred his horse, which showed a clean pair of hoofs. +He left us rather abruptly, for we were about to ask +why we, too, of Natal and the Cape were suffering, for we, +being originally British subjects, never "cheated and plotted with +the enemies of our Colonies", but he was gone and left us still cogitating +by the roadside. + +Proceeding on our journey we next came upon a native trek +and heard the same old story of prosperity on a Dutch farm: +they had raised an average 800 bags of grain each season, +which, with the increase of stock and sale of wool, gave a steady income +of about 150 Pounds per year after the farmer had taken his share. +There were gossipy rumours about somebody having met some one +who said that some one else had overheard a conversation +between the Baas and somebody else, to the effect that the Kafirs +were getting too rich on his property. This much involved tale +incidentally conveys the idea that the Baas was himself getting too rich +on his farm. For the Native provides his own seed, his own cattle, +his own labour for the ploughing, the weeding and the reaping, +and after bagging his grain he calls in the landlord to receive his share, +which is fifty per cent of the entire crop. + +All had gone well till the previous week when the Baas came +to the native tenants with the story that a new law had been passed +under which "all my oxen and cows must belong to him, and my family to work +for 2 Pounds a month, failing which he gave me four days to leave the farm." + +We passed several farm-houses along the road, where all +appeared pretty tranquil as we went along, until the evening +which we spent in the open country, somewhere near the boundaries +of the Hoopstad and Boshof districts; here a regular circus had gathered. +By a "circus" we mean the meeting of groups of families, +moving to every point of the compass, and all bivouacked at this point +in the open country where we were passing. It was heartrending +to listen to the tales of their cruel experiences derived from +the rigour of the Natives' Land Act. Some of their cattle had perished +on the journey, from poverty and lack of fodder, and the native owners +ran a serious risk of imprisonment for travelling with dying stock. +The experience of one of these evicted tenants is typical of the rest, +and illustrates the cases of several we met in other parts of the country. + +Kgobadi, for instance, had received a message describing +the eviction of his father-in-law in the Transvaal Province, without notice, +because he had refused to place his stock, his family, and his person +at the disposal of his former landlord, who now refuses +to let him remain on his farm except on these conditions. +The father-in-law asked that Kgobadi should try and secure a place for him +in the much dreaded "Free" State as the Transvaal had suddenly +become uninhabitable to Natives who cannot become servants; +but "greedy folk hae lang airms", and Kgobadi himself +was proceeding with his family and his belongings in a wagon, +to inform his people-in-law of his own eviction, without notice, +in the "Free" State, for a similar reason to that which sent +his father-in-law adrift. The Baas had exacted from him +the services of himself, his wife and his oxen, for wages of 30s. a month, +whereas Kgobadi had been making over 100 Pounds a year, besides retaining +the services of his wife and of his cattle for himself. +When he refused the extortionate terms the Baas retaliated with a Dutch note, +dated the 30th day of June, 1913, which ordered him to "betake himself +from the farm of the undersigned, by sunset of the same day, +failing which his stock would be seized and impounded, +and himself handed over to the authorities for trespassing on the farm." + +A drowning man catches at every straw, and so we were again and again +appealed to for advice by these sorely afflicted people. +To those who were not yet evicted we counselled patience and submission +to the absurd terms, pending an appeal to a higher authority +than the South African Parliament and finally to His Majesty the King who, +we believed, would certainly disapprove of all that we saw on that day +had it been brought to his notice. As for those who were already evicted, +as a Bechuana we could not help thanking God that Bechuanaland +(on the western boundary of this quasi-British Republic) was still +entirely British. In the early days it was the base of David Livingstone's +activities and peaceful mission against the Portuguese and Arab slave trade. +We suggested that they might negotiate the numerous restrictions +against the transfer of cattle from the Western Transvaal and seek an asylum +in Bechuanaland. We wondered what consolation we could give +to these roving wanderers if the whole of Bechuanaland were under +the jurisdiction of the relentless Union Parliament. + +It was cold that afternoon as we cycled into the "Free" State from Transvaal, +and towards evening the southern winds rose. A cutting blizzard +raged during the night, and native mothers evicted from their homes +shivered with their babies by their sides. When we saw on that night +the teeth of the little children clattering through the cold, +we thought of our own little ones in their Kimberley home of an evening +after gambolling in their winter frocks with their schoolmates, +and we wondered what these little mites had done that a home should suddenly +become to them a thing of the past. + +Kgobadi's goats had been to kid when he trekked from his farm; +but the kids, which in halcyon times represented the interest on his capital, +were now one by one dying as fast as they were born and left by the roadside +for the jackals and vultures to feast upon. + +This visitation was not confined to Kgobadi's stock, +Mrs. Kgobadi carried a sick baby when the eviction took place, +and she had to transfer her darling from the cottage to the jolting ox-wagon +in which they left the farm. Two days out the little one began to sink +as the result of privation and exposure on the road, and the night +before we met them its little soul was released from its earthly bonds. +The death of the child added a fresh perplexity to the stricken parents. +They had no right or title to the farm lands through which they trekked: +they must keep to the public roads -- the only places in the country +open to the outcasts if they are possessed of a travelling permit. +The deceased child had to be buried, but where, when, and how? + +This young wandering family decided to dig a grave under cover of the darkness +of that night, when no one was looking, and in that crude manner +the dead child was interred -- and interred amid fear and trembling, +as well as the throbs of a torturing anguish, in a stolen grave, +lest the proprietor of the spot, or any of his servants, should surprise them +in the act. Even criminals dropping straight from the gallows +have an undisputed claim to six feet of ground on which to rest +their criminal remains, but under the cruel operation of the Natives' Land Act +little children, whose only crime is that God did not make them white, +are sometimes denied that right in their ancestral home. + +Numerous details narrated by these victims of an Act of Parliament +kept us awake all that night, and by next morning we were glad enough +to hear no more of the sickening procedure of extermination +voluntarily instituted by the South African Parliament. +We had spent a hideous night under a bitterly cold sky, +conditions to which hundreds of our unfortunate countrymen and countrywomen +in various parts of the country are condemned by the provisions +of this Parliamentary land plague. At five o'clock in the morning +the cold seemed to redouble its energies; and never before +did we so fully appreciate the Master's saying: "But pray ye that your flight +be not in the winter." + + + + +Chapter V Another Night with the Sufferers + + Heureux ceux qui sont morts dans le calme des soirs, + Avant ces jours affreux de carnage et de haine! + Ils se sont endormis, le coeur rempli d'espoirs, + Dans un reve d'amour et de concorde humaine! + + Ils n'ont pas entendu la sinistre remeur + Qui monte des hameaux consumes par la flamme, + Ni les cris des enfants et des vierges en pleurs, + Ni le gemissement des vieillards et des femmes! + Heureux les morts! + Maurice Kufferath. + + + +We parted sadly from these unfortunate nomads of an ungrateful +and inhospitable country, after advising them to trek from the Union +into the arid deserts of Bechuanaland. In our advice we laid special stress +upon the costliness of such an expedition as theirs and upon +the many and varying regulations to be complied with, on such a trek, +through the Western Transvaal. But, cost whatever it may, +they, like ourselves, understood that as the law stood +they would be better off and safer beyond the boundaries of the Union. + +From here we worked our way into the Hoopstad district. There we saw +some Natives who were, as it were, on pins and needles, their landlords +having given them a few days in which to consider the advisability +of either accepting the new conditions or leaving their houses. +Our advice to these tenants was to accept, for the time being, +any terms offered by their landlords, pending an appeal to His Majesty +the King; we also passed through a few farms where the white farmers were +visibly sympathetic towards the harried Natives. Some of the white farmers +were accepting Natives as tenants on their farms in defiance of the law. +We naturally thanked these for their humanity and went our way, +promising never to disclose their magnanimity to the Government officials. +"What has suddenly happened?" one of these landlords asked. +"We were living so nicely with your people, and why should the law +unsettle them in this manner?" + +We may here mention that a fortnight later we were in General Botha's +constituency in the Transvaal. A few days before we arrived there +a meeting of white farmers was held at one of the Dutch farm-houses +at which it was resolved to take the fullest advantage of the new law, +which had placed the entire native population in the hands of the farmers. +It was further resolved that a Kafir who refused to become a servant +should at once be consigned to the road. + +A similar resolution was passed at another meeting of landlords +at another place. Part of the proceedings of this meeting +was reported in some, though not all, of the Dutch newspapers. +Without breaking our promise not to disclose any names of landlords +who felt it a duty to resist injustice, even though it bears the garb of law, +we will mention Mr. X., a Boer farmer, of the farm ----, near Thingamejig, +between the town of ---- and the river ----. He protested at the meeting, +stating that the Transvaalers were not compelled to turn the Natives out, +and that they were only debarred from taking any new native tenants; +that it was wicked to expel a Kafir from the farm for no reason whatever, +and so make him homeless, since he could not, if evicted, go either +to another farm or back to his old place. For expressing his views so frankly +Mr. X. was threatened by his compatriots with physical violence! +His opponents also said that, if he continued to harbour Kafirs on his farm +as tenants, they would hold him responsible for any stock +that they might lose. The incidents of the meeting were related +to the Natives by Mr. X. himself. He told the Natives, further, +that he would go to the expense of fencing his farm with the Natives inside, +so that they may be out of the reach of his infuriated neighbours. + +We spent the next night in some native huts on a farm +in the district of Hoopstad. On that occasion we met a man +who had had a month's notice to leave his farm, and was going +from farm to farm in search of a new place. He had heard +alarming stories about evictions wherever he went. During that evening +we were treated to some more pitiful stories concerning +the atrocities of the wretched land Act. Many native wanderers +had actually passed that farm during the preceding few days, +trudging aimlessly from place to place in search of some farmer +who might give them a shelter. At first they thought +the stories about a new law were inventions or exaggerations, +but their own desperate straits and the prevailing native dislocation +soon taught them otherwise. + +The similarity in the experiences of the sufferers would make +monotonous reading if given individually, but there are instances +here and there which give variety to the painful record, +and these should yield the utmost satisfaction to the promoters of the Act, +in proving to them the fell measure of their achievement. +One example of these experiences was that of a white farmer +who had induced a thrifty Native in another district to come and farm +on his estate. The contract was duly executed about the end of May, 1913. +It was agreed that the Native should move over to the new place +after gathering his crops and sharing them with his old landlord, +which he did in the third week in June. On his arrival, however, +the new landlord's attitude towards him aroused his suspicions; +his suspicions were confirmed when, after some hesitation, +the landlord told him that their contract was illegal. Having already +left his old place the legal embargo was also against his return there, +and so his only course was to leave that place and wander about +with his stock and family. They went in the direction of Kroonstad, +and they have not been heard of since. + +The next example is that of the oldest man in the "Free" State. +He had been evicted (so we were told during that evening on the farm) +along with his aged wife, his grey-headed children, +the children's children and grandchildren. We may here add that we read +a confirmation of this case in the English weekly newspaper of Harrismith. +The paper's reference to this case will also illustrate the easy manner +in which these outrageous evictions are reported in white newspapers. +There is no reference to the sinister undercurrent and hardships +attending these evictions. The paper in question, the `Harrismith Chronicle', +simply says: -- + +== + AN ANCIENT COUPLE + +A venerable Native whose age is no less than 119 years, +accompanied by his wife, aged 98, and a son who is approaching 80, +left Harrismith on Tuesday by train for Volksrust. The old man +acquired some property in the Transvaal, and is leaving this district +to start a new home with as much interest in the venture +as if he were a stripling of twenty. The old lady had to be carried +to the train, but the old man walked fairly firmly. The aged couple +were the centre of much kindly attraction, and were made +as comfortable as possible for their journey by the railway officials. +It is difficult to realize in these days of rapid change +that in the departure from the "Free" State of this venerable party +we are losing from our midst a man who was born in 1794, +and has lived in no less than three centuries of time. +Good luck to them both; may they still live long and prosper! +== + +Now, as a matter of fact, this "ancient couple" had not left the "Free" State +of their own free will. Their stock had been expelled from +their grazing areas, and they were told that they could only continue to graze +if the centenarian tenant agreed to supply a certain number of labourers +to work on the landowner's farm and with his sons ceased to do any ploughing +as tenants. This system of sharing the crops has been followed +ever since the Boers planted themselves in the "Free" State, and the family +had had no other means of support. Happily the aid of Providence +in the case of this "ancient couple" was speedy, as the old people +quickly found an asylum on the farm of Mr. P. ka I. Seme, a native solicitor +in the Transvaal. + +At the same place on the same evening we were told of a conversation +between a well-known Dutchman and a Native. "The object of this law," +said the Burgher, "is to goad the Natives into rebellion, +so that the Government may legally confiscate what little ground +was left to them, and hand over the dispossessed Kafirs and their families +to work for the farmers, just for their food." The policy of +goading the Natives into rebellion is not wholly foreign to Colonial policy; +but the horrible cruelty to which live stock is exposed under the new Act +is altogether a new departure. King Solomon says, "The righteous man +regardeth the life of his beast, but the tender mercies of the wicked +are cruel"; but there is a Government of professed Bible readers who, +in defiance of all Scriptural precepts, pass a law which penalizes +a section of the community along with their oxen, sheep, goats, +horses and donkeys on account of the colour of their owners. +The penalty clause (Section 5) imposes a fine of 100 Pounds on a landowner +who accommodates a Native on his farm; and if after the fine is paid +the Native leaves his stock on the farm to go and look for a fresh place, +there will be an additional fine of 5 Pounds for every day +that the Native's cattle remain on that farm. They must +take the road immediately and be kept moving day and night +until they die of starvation, or until the owner (who is debarred, +by Section 1, from purchasing a pasturage for his cattle) disposes of them +to a white man. + +Such cruelty to dumb animals is as unwarranted as it is unprecedented. +It reads cruel enough on paper, but we wish that the reader had accompanied us +on one journey, say, during the cold snap in the first week in August, +when we travelled from Potchefstroom to Vereeniging, +and seen the flocks of those evicted Natives that we met. +We frequently met those roving pariahs, with their hungry cattle, +and wondered if the animals were not more deserving of pity than their owners. +It may be the cattle's misfortune that they have a black owner, +but it is certainly not their fault, for sheep have no choice +in the selection of a colour for their owners, and no cows or goats +are ever asked to decide if the black boy who milks them shall be their owner, +or but a herd in the employ of a white man; so why should they be starved +on account of the colour of their owners? We knew of a law to prevent cruelty +to animals, but had never thought that we should live to meet in one day +so many dumb creatures making silent appeals to Heaven for protection +against the law. "What man has nerve to do, man has not nerve to see", +and oh! if those gifted Parliamentarians could have been mustered here +to witness the wretched results of one of their fine days' work +for a fine day's pay! But "they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne", +then draw their Parliamentary emoluments and retire to the quiet +of their comfortable homes, to enjoy more rest than is due to toilers +who have served both God and humanity. + +During this same night in Hoopstad district we were also told of the visit +of a Dutch farmer in the middle of June, 1913, to his native tenants. +One of the Natives -- named Kgabale -- was rather old. His two sons are +delving in the gold mines of Johannesburg, and return home each spring time +to help the old man and their two young sisters to do the ploughing. +The daughters tend the fields and Kgabale looks after the stock. +By this means they have been enabled to lead a respectable life +and to pay the landowner fifty per cent. of the produce every year, +besides the taxes levied by the Government on Natives. +Three weeks before our visit, the farmer came to cancel +Kgabale's verbal contract with him and to turn the family +into unpaid servants, in return for the privilege of squatting on his farm. +As Kgabale himself was too old to work, the farmer demanded of him +that his two sons should return immediately from Johannesburg +to render manual service on his farm, failing which, the old man +should forthwith betake himself from the place. He gave Kgabale seven days +to deliver his two sons. + +Naturally this decision came upon Kgabale and his daughters +like a bolt from the blue. The poor old man wandered from place to place, +trying to find some one -- and it took him two days to do so -- +who could write, so as to dictate a letter to his sons in Johannesburg, +informing them of what had happened. The week expired before he could get +a reply from Johannesburg. The landlord, in a very abusive mood, +again demanded the instant arrival of his two sons from Johannesburg, +to commence work at the farm-house the very next morning. +Kgabale spent the whole night praying that at least one of his sons +might come. By daybreak next morning no answer had arrived, +and the Dutchman came and set fire to the old man's houses, +and ordered him then and there to quit the farm. It was a sad sight +to see the feeble old man, his aged wife and his daughters +driven in this way from a place which they had regarded as their home. +In the ordinary course, such a calamity could have been made more tolerable +by moving to the next farm and there await the arrival and advice of his sons; +but now, under the Natives' Land Act, no sympathetic landowner +would be permitted to shelter them for a single day. So Kgabale was said +to have gone in the direction of Klerksdorp. + +One of the sons arrived a week after the catastrophe. He found +his old home in ruins, and that his aged parents and their children +had become victims of the turpitude of an Act of Parliament. +The son went in search of his relatives across the Vaal, +but it was not known if they succeeded in finding the refuge +which the law had made unlawful. + +Among the squatters on the same farm as Kgabale was a widow named Maria. +Her husband in his lifetime had lived as a tenant on the farm, +ploughing in shares until his death. After his death +Maria kept on the contract and made a fair living. Her son and daughter, +aged fourteen and sixteen respectively, took turns at herding her cattle +and assisting the mother in other ways. During the ploughing season, +they hired assistance to till the fields, but they themselves +tended and reaped the harvest and delivered 50 per cent of the produce +to the landowner. Such were the conditions on which she was allowed +to live on the farm. Maria, being a widow, and her son being but a youth, +it was hoped that the landlord would propose reasonable terms for her; +but instead, his proposal was that she should dispose of her stock +and indenture her children to him. This sinister proposal makes it evident +that farmers not only expect Natives to render them free labour, +but they actually wish the Natives to breed slaves for them. +Maria found it difficult to comply with her landlord's demand, +and as she had no husband, from whom labour could be exacted, +the Dutchman ordered her to "clear out, and," he added with an oath, +"you must get another man before you reach your next place of abode, +as the law will not permit you to stay there till you have a man +to work for the Baas." Having given this counsel the landlord is said +to have set fire to Maria's thatched cottage, and as the chilly south-easter +blew the smoke of her burning home towards the north-west, Maria, +with her bedclothes on her head, and on the heads of her son and daughter, +and carrying her three-year-old boy tied to her back, +walked off from the farm, driving her cows before her. +In parting from the endeared associations of their late home, +for one blank and unknown, the children were weeping bitterly. +Nor has any news of the fate of this family been received +since they were forced out on this perilous adventure. + + + + +Chapter VI Our Indebtedness to White Women + + O woman! in our hours of ease + Uncertain, coy, and hard to please, + And variable as the shade + By the light quivering aspen made; + When pain and anguish wring the brow, + A ministering angel thou. + Scott. + + + +Some farmers (unfortunately too few) who had at first intended +to change the status of their native tenants, had been obliged +to abandon the idea owing to the determined opposition of their wives. +One such case was particularly interesting. Thus, at Dashfontein, +the wife of a Dutch farmer, a Mr. V., on whose property some native families +were squatting, got up, one morning, and found the kitchen-maid +very disagreeable. The morning coffee had been made right enough, +but the maid's "Morre, Nooi" (Good morning, ma'am) was rather sullen +and almost bordering on insolence. She did her scullery work as usual, +but did not seem to care, that morning, about wasting time inquiring +how baby slept, and if Nonnie had got rid of her neuralgia, and so on. +She spoke only when spoken to and answered mainly in monosyllables. +Mrs. V. was perplexed. + +"What is the matter, Anna?" she asked. + +"Nothing, Nooi," replied Anna curtly. + +Mrs. V. tried some of her witty jokes, but they seemed to be wasted on Anna. +After jesting with the servant had failed, scolding was next tried, +but nothing seemed to bring back the girl's usual cheerfulness. +"Oh, Anna," said the mistress at length, "you make me think of the olden days, +when such disagreeable whims on the part of frowning maids +used to be cured by ----" + +Anna was evidently not listening, and, if she had heard the mistress, +she did not care two straws (or one straw for that matter) what cures +Mrs. V.'s great-grandmother had prescribed for sullen servant girls. +In fact, Anna had become a wild Kafir, for though she went about her work +in silence, her face bore an expression which seemed to speak louder +than her mouth could have done. She was clearly engaged +in serious thought. The mistress tried to dismiss from her mind +the inexplicable attitude of her servant, but the frowning look on Anna's face +made the attempts unsuccessful. The fact that when Anna went home, +the previous night, she was happiness personified, did not decrease +Mrs. V.'s perplexity. + +"There must be something wrong," Mrs. V. concluded, after vainly trying +ruse after ruse to get a smile out of her servant girl. "Something is amiss. +I wonder if one of those well-dressed Kafirs from Potchefstroom +had been prowling about the farm and instilling in Anna's simple mind +all kinds of silly notions, about town flirts and black dandies, +silk dresses in Potchefstroom and similar vuilgoed (rubbish). +And if a town Kafir is going to marry Anna, where on earth am I going to get +a reliable servant to whom I could securely entrust my home when I have +occasion to go to town or to the seaside on a shorter or longer vacation? +Who could cook and attend to my husband's and children's peculiar wants, +if Anna is going to leave us? It seems certain that Anna's heart +is not on the farm," she said to herself. "It was there right enough +when she went home last night, but it is clear that some one has stolen it +during the night. Anna is helplessly lovesick. I must find out who it is. +The swain must be found and induced to come and join, or supervise, +our squatters. We cannot let him take her away, for what will the homestead +be without Anna? I was looking forward to her marrying on the farm +and giving her a superior cottage so that other Kafir girls may see +how profitable it is to be good. Anna leaving the farm, O, nee wat! (Oh, no). +We must find out who it is; but wait, there is old Gert (her father) coming, +with old Jan (her uncle). I must find out from them who had been intruding +into the company of their daughters last night. I should warn them +to be on the alert lest Anna elopes to Potchefstroom with somebody, +probably to take the train and go farther -- to Johannesburg or Kimberley, +as did Klein Mietje, whom I had hoped to train as our housemaid ----" + +"Good morning, Auta Gert, how is Mietje and the kleintjes (little ones)?" + +Auta Gert's demeanour was a greater puzzle to Mrs. V. than his daughter's +when he replied, "So, so." + +Mrs. V. (between horns of the same dilemma): "And you, Auta Jan?" + +"Ja, Missus," replied Jan. + +Mrs. V.'s perplexity was intense, for it became evident that the two Natives +were there as a deputation, charged with some grave mission. +Before she uttered another word the two Natives asked for an interview. + +"Not to waste much time, Missus," began old Gert, "a thunderbolt has burst +on the native settlement on the farm, and Dashfontein is no longer +a home to us ----" + +"No longer a home!" exclaimed Mrs. V. "I hope you idiotic Kafirs +are not going to be so foolhardy as to leave me, leave the Baas, +and leave the farm upon which your fathers and mothers lie buried. +Do not you know that during this very week numbers of Natives have been +calling on the Baas, asking him for places of abode, complaining that +they have been turned adrift, with their little ones and their hungry animals, +for refusing to become servants to farmers on whose property +they had been ploughing on shares? White men have suddenly +become brutes and have expelled Natives with whom they have lived +from childhood -- Natives whose labour made the white man wealthy +are turned away by people who should treat them with gratitude. +And are you going to leave your old home just when the Devil +appears to have possessed himself of the hearts of most farmers? +In your own interest, apart from my own and the Baas's, Auta Gert, +you should have left us long ago when you could find a place elsewhere. +Are you so deaf and blind as not to hear and see the change +which has come over the country of late? White men formerly punished a Kafir +who had done some wrong, now they worry him from sheer cussedness. +You must be mad, Auta Gert, to try and leave us. What is going +to become of your family and your beautiful cattle. No wonder that Anna +is so upset. I have been thinking that some rondlooper (vagabond) +from the towns had been trying to take her away." + +As Mrs. V. spoke she was agreeably surprised to find the sobering effect +which her rebuke seemed to have upon her husband's native tenants. +She knew her influence over them, especially over the old native families, +but in all her dealings and close association with them she could not remember +an impromptu speech of hers that produced such immediate results. +The faces of the two Natives brightened up, and they kept +looking at one another as she spoke. At length she turned round +towards the stoep and there was Anna, for the first time that morning, +interested in and delighted by what she said. Usually it would have been +a serious breach of the rules of the house for Anna to listen +when the Missus was speaking about something that did not immediately concern +her scullery duties; but Mrs. V.'s satisfaction was unbounded +on seeing the bright look on her servant's face, which she had hitherto +vainly sought. + +"Now, you see," said Anna to her father, "I told you it would never happen +if the Missus can help it." + +At this, the men could scarcely suppress a laugh. The Missus +looked round again, and said: + +"Anna, have you Kafirs plotted to fool me this morning? Because I take +such a deep interest in your welfare, you have so far forgotten yourselves +that you connived with your parents to come over to my house and fool me +on my own farm? What is the meaning of all this?" + +Auta Gert unfolded his story. The Baas was at the native settlement +the previous day. He called a meeting of the native peasants and told them +of the new law, under which no Kafir can buy a farm or hire a farm. +He added that, according to this law, their former relations +of landlord and tenants have been made a criminal offence, +for which they could be fined a hundred pounds, and he gave them ten days +to decide whether they would become his servants or leave the farm. + +"Go away, Auta Gert; you were dreaming, my husband would never talk +such nonsense. You have been with him from childhood, +long before I ever knew him, and yet you do not know that my husband +is incapable of uttering anything half so wicked?" + +"He said it was the law, the new law." + +"Of course you need some stringent measures against the useless, +sneaking and prowling loafers, but there is no fear that such laws +could apply to Natives like you and Mietje and your children." + +"But, Nooi, the Baas told us to leave the farm as the law +did not permit him to ----" + +"Get you gone, Auta Gert, he was joking. You must know that the law +did not buy this farm. The old Baas purchased it from Baas Philander. +I personally helped to add up the number of morgen and to calculate the money, +and there was not a penny piece from any Government. Go home, Auta Gert, +and leave everything to me, and do not let me hear you saying +Dashfontein is no longer your home." + +"Well, Nooi," assented the Natives with some relief, "if you say +it is all right, then it must be so, and we will go back and reap our mealies +in peace, and if a policeman comes round demanding a hundred pounds +we will tell him to arrest us and take us to the Nooi of the farm. +Good-bye, Nooi." + +"Good-bye, Auta Gert; good-bye, Auta Jan ---- Poor Anna, my dear little maid, +why did you not tell Nooi this morning that you were worried over this matter. +Really, Anna, I was thinking that you were lovesick. How did poor old Mietje +take it? Sadly, did she. Well, I will speak to the Baas about it. +He had no business to attempt to bring bad luck over us +by disturbing our peaceful Natives with such godless tidings. +Tell your mother that Nooi says it will be all right." + +A few days later, Hendrik Prins, the farm manager in the employ of Mr. V., +was due at the native settlement to see the steam sheller at work +and also to receive the landowner's share of the produce. Instead of Prins, +Mr. V. attended in person. Each Native regarded this unusual occurrence +as the signal for their impending eviction and thought that day would see +their last transaction with their old master and landlord. + +Mr. V. counted the separate bags filled with mealies and Kafir corn +placed in groups around the sheller. He counted no fewer than 12,300 bags, +and knew that his share would total 6,150, representing about +3,000 Pounds gross. Could he ever succeed in getting so much, +with so little trouble, if poor whites tilled his lands +instead of these Natives? he thought. After all, his dear Johanna was right. +This law is blind and must be resisted. It gives more consideration +to the so-called poor whites (a respectable term for lazy whites), +than to the owners of the ground. He, there and then, resolved to resist it +and take the consequences. + +The grain was all threshed; a number of native girls were busy +sewing up the bags, and the engine-driver ordered his men +to yoke his oxen and pull the machine away. Mr. V. ordered Auta Gert +to call all the `volk' together as he had something to tell them. +Auta Gert, knowing the determination of his mistress, +did so in confidence that they were about to receive some glad tidings. +But the other folks came forward with a grievous sense of wrong. +The fact that some Natives on the adjoining property +had been turned away three days before and sent homeless about the country, +their places being taken by others, who, tired of roaming about and losing +nearly everything, had come in as serfs did not allay their fears. +Auta Hans was already conjuring up visions of a Johannesburg speculator +literally "taking" his Cape shorthorns for a mere bagatelle, +as they did to William Ranco, another evicted squatter from Hoopstad. + +Mr. V., the farmer, mounted a handy wagon hard by and commenced to address +the crowd of blacks who gathered around the wagon at the call of Gert. + +"Attention! Listen," he said. "You will remember that I was here last month +and explained to you the new law. Well, I understand that that explanation +created the greatest amount of unrest amongst the Natives in the huts +on my farm. Personally, I am very sorry that it ever came to that, +but let me tell you that your Nooi, my wife, says it is not right +that the terms under which we have lived in the past should be disturbed. +I agree with her that it is unjust, and that the good Lord, +who has always blessed us, will turn His face from us +if people are unsettled and sent away from the farm in a discontented mood." +(Loud and continued applause, during which Mr. V. took out +his pouch of Magaliesburg tobacco and lit his pipe.) "The Nooi," he continued +after a few puffs, "says we must not obey this law: she even says, +if it comes to physical ejectment, or if they take me to prison, +she is prepared to go to Pretoria in person and interview General Botha." +(More cheers, during which the Natives dispersed to cart away their mealies +amidst general satisfaction.) + + * * * * * + +The writer visited Dashfontein in July, 1913, when the above narrative +was given him word for word by old Gert. + +As old Gert narrated the story, Aunt Mietje, his wife, +who had had timely notice of the impending visit of the morulaganyi (editor) +from her husband (who slaughtered a sheep in honour of the occasion), +superintended with interesting expectations over frizzling items +in the frying-pan on her fireplace. Her bright eyes, beaming from +under her headkerchief, suggested how she must have been +the undisputed belle of her day. The rough wooden table was covered +with the best linen in the native settlement, and on it were laid +some clean plates, and the old yet shining cutlery reserved for +special occasions, besides other signs of an approaching evening meal. +Having learnt the art from an experienced housewife on whose farm +her people were squatting, and improved upon her teaching, +she was famous in the neighbourhood for the excellence of her cooking. +Her only worry in that department was her seeming lack of success +in training her daughters up to her elevation. She is usually sent for +when important visitors come to Dashfontein, and would then don +her best costume of coloured German print, and carry down with her +the spotless apron which Mrs. V. gave her the preceding New Year; +and in spite of her advancing years, she would cause Anna, +and every other upstart at the homestead, instinctively to play +second fiddle to her. And when we suggested that our wife +could measure swords (or, shall we say, forks) with her as a cook, +she giggled and remembered some white man's proverb about +the proof of the pudding being in the eating. + +After the harrowing experience of the previous week, during which +we were forced to see our fellow-beings hounded out of their homes, +and the homes broken up; their lifelong earnings frittered away +by a law of the land, their only crime being the atrocious one of having +the same colour of skin as our own, and finding ourselves suddenly landed +on an oasis, the farm of a kind Dutchman and his noble wife, +on whose property, and by whose leave, little black piccaninnies +still played about in spite of the law, it can be readily understood +with what comfort we sat down and did justice to the good things +provided by Aunt Mietje. In the course of her preparation +every step of hers suggested that she entertained no sort of misprised opinion +about her superiority over her compeers; and nothing pleased her better +than when she dazzled her husband and family connexions +with deeds which proved her superiority over her contemporaries, +in everything that tends to make the virtuous and industrious house-wife. +She gave a dramatic ending to her husband's narrative when she said -- + +"Who would have thought that Hannetje, naughty little Hannetje, +who was so troublesome when my sister used to nurse her -- +who would have thought that she would ever prove to be +the salvation of our people? Who ever anticipated that all the strong Boers, +on whom we had relied, would desert us when the fate of our whole tribe +hung in the balance? Natives have been moving from north to south, +and from south to north, all searching at the same time +for homes and grazing for their cattle. During the last few weeks +the roads were hidden in clouds of dust, sent up by +hundreds of hoofs of hundreds of cattle, their owners with them, +vainly seeking places of refuge; but in the case of Dashfontein, +we reclined on a veritable Mount Ararat, by grace of naughty little Hannetje, +whom God in His mysterious foresight had raised up to be Mrs. van V., +proprietress of Dashfontein. If my prayers are of any value, +God will appoint in heaven a special place for her when she gets there, +though, for the sake of our people, I hope that time is very far distant. +However, I hope to be somewhere near: in truth, I should like +to accompany her, when Elijah's chariot comes for her soul, +so as to render her what little aid I can on board, when she soars +through unknown tracts of space to the spirit world on high, +so that if there be any uncomfortable questions about her maiden vagaries, +I may be there to attest that she has since atoned a hundred fold for each, +and thus accelerate her promotion. No no, Hannetje is not a Boer vrouw, +she is an angel." + + + + +Chapter VII Persecution of Coloured Women in the Orange Free State + + Ripe persecution, like the plant + Whose nascence Mocha boasted, + Some bitter fruit produced, whose worth + Was never known till roasted. + + + +When the Free State ex-Republicans made use of the South African Constitution +-- a Constitution which Lord Gladstone says is one after the Boer sentiment -- +to ruin the coloured population, they should at least +have confined their persecution to the male portion of the blacks +(as is done in a milder manner in the other three Provinces), and have left +the women and children alone. According to this class legislation, +no native woman in the Province of the Orange "Free" State can reside +within a municipality (whether with or without her parents, or her husband) +unless she can produce a permit showing that she is a servant +in the employ of a white person, this permit being signed +by the Town Clerk. All repressive measures under the old Republic +(which, in matters of this kind, always showed a regard +for the suzerainty of Great Britain) were mildly applied. +Now, under the Union, the Republicans are told by the Imperial authorities +that since they are self-governing they have the utmost freedom of action, +including freedom to do wrong, without any fear of Imperial interference. +Of this licence the white inhabitants of the Union are making the fullest use. +Like a mastiff long held in the leash they are urging the application +of all the former stringent measures enacted against the blacks, +and the authorities, in obedience to their electoral supporters, +are enforcing these measures with the utmost rigour against the blacks +because they have no votes. + +Hence, whereas the pass regulations were formerly never enforced by the Boers +against clergymen's wives or against the families of respectable +native inhabitants, now a minister's wife has not only to produce a pass +on demand, but, like every woman of colour, she has to pay a shilling +for a fresh pass at the end of the month, so that a family consisting of, +say, a mother and five daughters pay the municipality 6s. every month, +whether as a penalty for the colour of their skins or a penalty for their sex +it is not clear which. + +There is some unexplained anomaly in this woman's pass business. +If the writer were to go and live in the "Free" State, he could +apply for and obtain letters of exemption from the ordinary pass laws; +but if his wife, who has had a better schooling and enjoyed +an older civilization than he, were to go and reside in the "Free" State +with her daughters, all of them would be forced to carry passes +on their persons, and be called upon to ransack their skirt pockets +at any time in the public streets at the behest of male policemen +in quest of their passes. Several white men are at present undergoing +long terms of imprisonment inflicted by the Orange "Free" State Circuit Courts +for criminally outraging coloured women whom the pass laws had placed +in the hollow of the hands of these ruffians. Still many more mothers +are smothering evidence of similar outrages upon innocent daughters -- +cases that could never have happened under ordinary circumstances. + +The Natives of the "Free" State have made all possible constitutional appeals +against these outrages. In reply to their petitions the Provincial Government +blames the municipalities. The latter blame the law and the Union Parliament, +and there the matter ends. We have read the "Free" State law +which empowers the municipalities to frame regulations +for the control of Natives, etc., but it must be confessed +that our limited intelligence could discern nothing in it +which could be construed as imposing any dire penalties +on municipalities which emancipate their coloured women +from the burden of the insidious pass law and tax. Hon. Mr. H. Burton, +as already stated, was Minister for Native Affairs before the Union Government +surrendered to the "Free" State reactionaries. A deputation +consisting of Mrs. A. S. Gabashane, Mrs. Kotsi and Mrs. Louw, +women from Bloemfontein -- the first-named being a clergyman's wife -- +waited on him in Capetown on the subject of these grievances, +and he assured them that in response to representations made +by the Native Congress, he had already written to Dr. Ramsbottom, +the Provincial Administrator, asking him to persuade +the "Free" State municipalities to relieve the native women from this burden. +And if to relieve native women in the "Free" State from a burden +which obtains nowhere else in the Union were unlawful, +as the municipalities aver, Mr. Burton -- a K.C. -- would have been +the last person to ask them to break the law. + +Subsequently the women petitioned Lady Gladstone for her intercession. +But we wonder if the petition was ever handed to Lady Gladstone +by the responsible authority who, in this instance, would have been +the Department of Native Affairs. Notwithstanding all these efforts, +native women in the "Free" State are still forced to buy passes +every month or go to prison, and they are still exposed +to the indecent provision of the law authorizing male constables +to insult them by day and by night, without distinction. + +After exhausting all these constitutional means on behalf of their women, +and witnessing the spread of the trouble to the women and children +of the country districts under the Natives' Land Act, the male Natives +of the municipalities of the Province of the Orange "Free" State +saw their women folk throwing off their shawls and taking the "law" +into their own hands. A crowd of 600 women, in July, 1913, +marched to the Municipal Offices at Bloemfontein and asked +to see the Mayor. He was not in, so they called for the Town Clerk. +The Deputy-Mayor came out, and they deposited before him a bag +containing their passes of the previous month and politely signified +their intention not to buy any more passes. Then there occurred +what `John Bull' would call, "----l with the lid off". + +At Jagersfontein there was a similar demonstration, led by +a jet-black Mozambique lady. She and a number of others +were arrested and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. +The sentences ranged from about three weeks to three months, +and the fines from 10s. to 3 Pounds. They all refused to pay the fines, +and said their little ones could be entrusted to the care of Providence +till their mothers and sisters have broken the shackles of oppression +by means of passive resistance. As the prison authorities +were scarcely prepared for such a sudden influx of prisoners +there was not sufficient accommodation for fifty-two women, +who were conveyed on donkey carts to the adjoining village of Fauresmith. + +When this happened, Winburg, the old capital of the "Free" State, +also had a similar trouble. Eight hundred women marched +from the native location to the Town Hall, singing hymns, +and addressed the authorities. They were tired of making friendly appeals +which bore no fruit from year's end to year's end, so they had resolved, +they said, to carry no more passes, much less to pay a shilling each +per month, PER CAPITA, for passes. A procession of so many women +would attract attention even in Piccadilly, but in a "Free" State dorp +it was a stupendous event, and it made a striking impression. +The result was that many of the women were arrested and sent to prison, +but they all resolutely refused to pay their fines, and there was a rumour +that the Central Government had been appealed to for funds and for material +to fit out a new jail to cope with the difficulty. + +This movement served to exasperate the authorities, who rigorously +enforced the law and sent them to jail. The first batch of prisoners +from Bloemfontein were conveyed south to Edenburg; and as further batches +came down from Bloemfontein they had to be retransferred north to Kroonstad. +In the course of our tour in connexion with the Natives' Land Act +in August, 1913, we spent a week-end with the Rev. A. P. Pitso, +of the last-named town. Thirty-four of the women passive resisters were still +incarcerated there, doing hard labour. Mrs. Pitso and Mrs. Michael Petrus +went with us on the Sunday morning to visit the prisoners at the jail. + +A severe shock burst upon us, inside the prison walls, +when the matron withdrew the barriers and the emaciated figures +of ladies and young girls of our acquaintance filed out and greeted us. +It was an exceptionally cold week, and our hearts bled to see +young women of Bloemfontein, who had spent all their lives +in the capital and never knew what it was to walk without socks, +walking the chilly cemented floors and the cold and sharp pebbles +without boots. Their own boots and shoes had been taken off, +they told us, and they were, throughout the winter, +forced to perform hard labour barefooted. + +Was ever inhumanity more cold-blooded? + +Do these "Free" Staters consider their brutality less brutal +because it happens to be sanctioned by law? + +Is Heaven so entirely unmindful of our case that it looks on with indifference +when indignity upon indignity is heaped, not only upon our innocent men, +but even upon our inoffensive women? + +Tears rolled down our cheeks as we saw the cracks on their bare feet, +the swellings and chronic chilblains, which made them look like sheep +suffering from foot-and-mouth disease. It was torture to us to learn +the kind of punishment to which they were subjected and the nature of the work +they were called upon to perform; these facts were stated to us +in the presence of the prison officials, and they were communicated by us +to the Native Affairs Department merely as a matter of course. +But what must be the effect of this brutal punishment upon girls +who knew only city life? To our surprise, however, they vowed +never to buy passes, even if they had to come back. + +A month later, when we visited Bloemfontein, a majority of those +who were at the Kroonstad jail had already returned to their homes, +and the family doctors were doing a roaring trade. Their practice, too, +was most likely to continue to boom as the sufferers were still determined +to buy no more women's passes. + +This determination caused a white man to suggest that "instead of being +sent to prison with hard labour, these madcaps should be flogged" -- +and this because the women refuse to be outraged by law. + +Our visit to Kroonstad took place just after the Circuit Court +had convicted the white superintendent of the Kroonstad Native Location +for an outrage upon a coloured woman. He arrested her in the location +ostensibly because she could not produce her residential pass, +and in the field between the location and the town through which +he had to escort her to prison he perpetrated the atrocity. +In sentencing him to four years' hard labour, the Chief Justice said +for a similar crime upon a white woman a black man would be liable +to the death penalty. + +When General Botha assumed the portfolio of Native Affairs +at the time of this trouble, the writer, as General Secretary of the Congress, +telegraphed to him the greetings of the South African Native Congress, +and pointed out to him that over two hundred coloured women were at that time +languishing in jail for resenting a crime committed upon them, +a crime which would have been considered serious in any other place +outside the "Free" State. The chivalrous General replied in a Dutch telegram +containing this very courteous reply: "It shall be my endeavour, as hitherto, +to safeguard the just interests of the inhabitants of this land +irrespective of colour." + +General Botha's assurances are so sweet, especially when they are made +to persons who are not in a position to influence his electoral support. +The Natives, who know the "sweets" of these assurances cannot be blamed if +they analyse the Premier's assurances in the light of their past experience, +especially the phrase "as hitherto". To them it conveys but one idea, namely, +"If the future policy of the South African Government found it convenient +to send coloured women to prison in order to please the ruling whites, +they will, AS HITHERTO, not hesitate to do so." + +While on the subject of native women, it is deeply to be regretted that during +this year, while the Empire is waging a terrible war for the cause of liberty, +His Excellency the Governor-General in South Africa should have seen his way +to issue a Basutoland Proclamation -- No. 3 of 1915. This law decrees +that under certain penalties, no native woman will be permitted +to leave Basutoland "without the permission of her husband or guardian". +The Proclamation on the face of it may look comparatively harmless, +but its operation will have wide and painful ramifications +amounting to no less than an entrenchment of the evils embraced +in polygamy; and in carrying out this decree civilization +will have to join hands with barbarism to perpetuate the bondage, +and accentuate the degradation, of Basuto women. + +It is a fact that no respectable Mosuto woman wants to leave +her husband or guardian; but the economic conditions of to-day +press very heavily on polygamous wives. Their lord and master +finding himself no longer able to provide for half a dozen houses at a time, +bestows on them the burden and anxieties of wifehood without its joys, +namely, a husband's undivided care and the comforts due to wives +in monogamous marriages. + +Some of these polygamous wives have from time to time +sought relief in emigrating to European centres where they could +earn their own living and send food and raiment to their little ones. +A woman cannot always be blamed for having entered into +a polygamous marriage. More often than not, she did so in obedience +to the wishes of her aged parents. The old people, in many instances, +have judged present day economics from the standard of their own happy days +when there was plenty of land and rainfalls were more regular; +when the several wives and children of a rich cattle-owner +could always have enough grain, eat meat, drink milk and live happily. +But times are altered and even a monogamist finds the requirements of one wife +quite a stupendous handful. The country is so congested +that the little arable land left them yields hardly any produce. +I have seen it suggested in official documents that sheep-breeding +should be limited in Basutoland as there is not enough grazing for the flocks. +And under this economic stress these surplus wives are sometimes driven +to accept the overtures of unscrupulous men who gradually induce them +to wallow in sin; hence too, they give birth to an inferior type of Basuto. + +That such a law should be adopted during the reign of Chief Griffith, +their first Christian Chief and the first monogamist +who ever ruled the Basuto, is disappointing. And while +we resent the policy of the British authorities in the Union, +who promote the interests of the whites by repressing the blacks, +we shall likewise object to an attempt on the part of the same authorities +in the native territories to protect the comfort of black men by degrading +black women. God knows that the lot of the black woman in South Africa +is bad as it is. One has but to read the report of the Commission recently +appointed by the Union Government to inquire into cases of assault on women +to find that their condition is getting worse. Presumably the evidence +was too bad for publication, but the report would seem to show +that in South Africa, a country where prostitution was formerly unknown, +coloured women are gradually perverted and demoralized into a cesspool +for the impurities of the family lives of all the nationalities +in the sub-continent. + +In her primitive state, the native girl was protected against +seduction and moral ruin by drastic penalties against the seducer, +which safeguards have since the introduction of civilized rule +been done away with. With tribes just groping their way +from barbarism towards civilization natural hygienic and moral laws +have been trampled upon, and for this state of affairs +the white man's rule is not wholly free from blame. It should be a crime +to defile a potential mother and a woman should continue to be regarded +as the cradle of the race and her person remain sacred and inviolate +under the law, as was the case in former times. + +The only charge that could be brought up against primitive native socialism +was that by tolerating polygamy it had incidentally legalized concubinage; +but taking all circumstances into consideration, it is doubtful +if the systematic prostitution of to-day is a happy substitution +for the polygamy of the past. + +There were no mothers of unwanted babies; no orphanages, because there were +no stray children; the absence of extreme wealth and dire poverty +prevented destitution, and the Natives had little or no insanity; +they had no cancer or syphilis, and no venereal diseases +because they had no prostitutes. + +Have we not a right to expect a better state of affairs +under civilized European rule? + +It is apparently in revolt of similar horrible conditions +that when the war broke out, British and Continental women +were fighting for the vote with a view to liberating their sex and race +from kindred impurities, for the soul rises up in "divine discontent" +against a state of affairs which no nation should tolerate -- evils to which +the coloured women of South Africa are now a prey. + +To this kind of degeneracy may also be traced the undoing +of the finer elements of the native social system, the undermining +of their health and of the erstwhile splendid physique of the African race +and the increasing loss of the stamina of our proverbially magnificent +men and women. The effect of these evils and of the abuses +inherent to the liquor traffic is manifest in several of the tribes +who are to-day but shadows of their former selves. + +The safeguarding of our maidens and women folk from the evils of drink, +greed and outrages resulting from indefensible pass laws +and the elimination of bad habits among men by a rightful policy +will restore that efficiency, loyalty, and contentment which aforetime +were the boast of pioneer administrators in British South Africa, +and which if fostered will render them a magnificent asset to the Empire +for all time. + +But as often as the coloured woman has been attacked she has humbly presented +"the other cheek". Evidence of her characteristic humility +is to be found in the action of the coloured women of the "Free" State, +whose persecution by the South African Government, at the instance of certain +"Free" State Municipalities, prompted the writing of this chapter. +After the war broke out (the Bloemfontein `Friend' tells us) +the native women of that city forgot their own difficulties, +joined sewing classes, and helped to send clothing to the afflicted Belgians +in Europe. Surely such useful members of the community deserve +the sympathy of every right-minded person who has a voice +in the conduct of British Colonial administration; so let us hope +that this humble appeal on their behalf will not be in vain. + + + + +Chapter VIII At Thaba Ncho: A Secretarial Fiasco + + Man's inhumanity to man makes countless thousands mourn. + Burns. + + + +The beginning of September, 1913, found us in the Lady Brand district. +Besides numerous other sufferers of the land plague, +the writer was here informed of one case that was particularly distressing, +of a native couple evicted from a farm in the adjoining district. +After making a fruitless search for a new place of abode, +they took out a travelling pass to go to Basutoland with their stock. +But they never, so the story went, reached their destination. +We were told that they were ambushed by some Dutchmen, +who shot them down and appropriated their stock. To a stranger +the news would have been incredible, but, being a Free Stater born, +it sounded to us uncommonly like the occurrences that our parents said +they used to witness in the early days of that precious dependency. +We were further told that one of the Dutch murderers +had been arrested and was awaiting his trial at the next criminal sessions. +As both the native man and woman were shot, it seemed difficult to conceive +how the prosecution could find the necessary evidence to sustain +a charge of murder. + +The trial duly came off at Bloemfontein a month or two later, +and the evidence in court seemed more direct and less circumstantial +than we had expected. For, not only were the stolen cattle found +in the possession of the prisoner, but the bullet picked up +near the bodies of the dead refugees (according to the evidence +given in court) fitted the prisoner's pistol. General Hertzog +personally attended the court at Bloemfontein and conducted the defence; +and, presumably more by his eloquence than anything else, +he convinced a white jury of the guiltlessness of the accused, +who was acquitted and acclaimed outside the court by his friends +as a hero. In justice to the police it must be added +that they re-arrested this man and charged him with the theft, +or with being in possession of the deceased Natives' cattle. +On this charge the prisoner was convicted before the Circuit Court +a few months later, and in sentencing him to three years, with hard labour, +the presiding judge is said to have made some references +to the previous trial and the manner in which the prisoner had escaped +the capital sentence. + +From Lady Brand we travelled south towards Wepener, not far +from the Basuto frontier. Evictions around here were numerous, +but beyond the inevitable hardships of families suddenly driven +from home, they had not suffered any great amount of damage. +Being near to the Basuto border, a Native in these parts, when ejected, +can quickly take his stock across the boundary, and leaving them +in friendly pastures, under sympathetic laws, go away to look for a new place. +But it became abundantly clear that the influx of outsiders into Basutoland +could not continue at the rate it was then proceeding +without seriously complicating the land question in Basutoland, +where chieftains are constantly quarrelling over small patches of arable land. + +A pitiable spectacle, however, was the sight of those who had been evicted +from the centre of the Orange "Free" State. It was heartrending +to hear them relate the circumstances of their expulsions, +and how they had spent the winter months roaming from farm to farm +with their famishing stock, applying in vain for a resting place. +Some farmers were apparently sympathetic, but debarred from entertaining +such applications by the sword of Damocles -- the 100 Pound fine +in Section 5 of the Natives' Land Act -- they had perforce to refuse +the applicants. The farms hereabout are owned by Boers and English settlers, +but many are owned by Germans, Jews, Russians, and other Continentals. +Some of the proprietors do not reside on the farms at all; +they are either Hebrew merchants or lawyers, living in the towns and villages +away from the farms. Many have no wish to part with the Natives, +who seem invariably to have treated their landlords well, +but they are forced to do so by the law. + +It seems a curious commentary on the irony of things that South Africa, +which so tyrannically chases her own Natives from the country, +receives at this very time with open arms Polish, Finnish, +Russian and German Jews, who themselves are said to have fled +from the tyranny of their own Governments in Europe. With a vengeance, +it looks like "robbing Peter to pay Paul". + +Standing by the side of a kopje, very early on that September morning, +it was a relief to see the majestic tops of the mountains of Basutoland, +silhouetted against the rising sun, beyond the Caledon River, +which separates the "Free" State from Basutoland. + +A number of fugitives were at that time driving little lots of stock +across the broad and level flats which extend in the direction +of the Basutoland Protectorate. How comforting to know +that once they crossed the river, these exiles could +rest their tired limbs and water their animals without breaking any law. +Really until we saw those emaciated animals, it had never so forcibly +occurred to us that it is as bad to be a black man's animal +as it is to be a black man in South Africa. + +To think that this "Free" State land from which these people are now expelled +was at one time, and should still be, part and parcel of Basutoland; +and to remember that the fathers of these Natives, who are now fleeing +from the "Free" State laws, were allies of the Boers, whom they assisted +to drive the Basutos from this habitable and arable part of their land; +that with their own rations, their own horses, their own rifles, +and often their own ammunition, they helped the Boers to force the Basutos +back into their present mountain recesses, and compelled them +to build fresh homes in all but uninhabitable mountain fastnesses, +in many instances inaccessible to vehicles of any kind, +in order (as was said at the time) to give themselves "more elbow-room"; +to see them to-day fleeing from the laws of their perfidious Dutch allies, +expelled from the country for which they bled and for which +their fathers died; and to find that, at the risk of intensifying +their own domestic problems in their now diminutive and overcrowded +Mountain State, the Basutos are nobly offering an asylum to those +who had helped to deprive them of their country; and to remember +that this mean breach of faith, on the part of ex-Republicans towards +their native allies, is facilitated by the protection of the Union Jack, +sheds, in regard to the Basutos, a glorious ray of light +upon black human nature. + +Look at these exiles swarming towards the Basuto border, some of them +with their belongings on their heads, driving their emaciated flocks +attenuated by starvation and the cold. The faces of some of the children, +too, are livid from the cold. It looks as if these people +were so many fugitives escaping from a war, with the enemy pressing hard +at their heels. + +It was a distressing sight. We had never seen the likes of it +since the outbreak of the Boer War, near the Transvaal border, +immediately before the siege of Mafeking. Even that flight of 1899 +had a buoyancy of its own, for the Boer War, unlike the present +stealthy war of extermination (the law which caused this flight), +was preceded by an ultimatum. But the sight of a people +who had loyally paid taxation put to flight in these halcyon times, +by a Parliament the huge salaries of whose members these very exiles, +although unrepresented in its body, have meekly helped to pay, +turned one's weeping eyes to Heaven, for, as Jean Paul says, "There above +is everything he can wish for here below." But if the Native of other days +has been sold by the perfidy of his Dutch allies of the day, +the British soldiers and British taxpayer of the present day +have been deceived by "we don't know who". They fought and died and paid +to unfurl the banner of freedom in this part of the globe, +and the spectacle before us is the result. This must be +what A. H. Keene referred to when he said, "The British public were also dumb, +and with that infinite capacity for being gulled which is so remarkable +in a people proud of their common sense, acquiesced in everything." + +Visiting the farms, we found some native tenants under notice to leave. +We informed them that Mr. Edward Dower, the Secretary for Native Affairs, +would be in Thaba Ncho the following week, and advised them +to proceed to the town and lay their difficulties before +this high representative of the Union Government, with a request +for the use of his good offices to procure for them +the Governor-General's permission to live on farms, +a course provided in Section 1 of the Natives' Land Act. +We made no promises, as previous requests for such permission +had been invariably ignored. But we hoped that the Government Secretary's +meeting with the sufferers and speaking with them face to face +would soften the implacable red-tape and official circumlocution, +and perhaps even open the way towards a modification of the administration +of this legislative atrocity; but we were mistaken. + +The meeting duly took place on Friday, September 12, 1913. +A thousand Natives gathered at the racecourse on the wide level country +between the railway station and Thaba Ncho town. A few historical facts +relative to Thaba Ncho might not be out of place. + +Thaba Ncho (Mount Black) takes its name from the hill below which +the town is situated. Formerly this part of Africa was peopled by Bushmen +and subsequently by Basutos. The Barolong, a section of the Bechuana, +came here from Motlhanapitse, a place in the Western "Free" State, +to which place they had been driven by Mzilikasi's hordes from over the Vaal +in the early 'twenties. The Barolongs settled in Thaba Ncho +during the early 'thirties under an agreement with Chief Mosheshe. +The Seleka branch of the Barolong nation, under Chief Moroka, +after settling here, befriended the immigrant Boers who were on their way +to the north country from the south and from Natal during the 'thirties. +A party of immigrant Boers had an encounter with Mzilikasi's +forces of Matabele. Up in Bechuanaland the powerful Matabele +had scattered the other Barolong tribes and forced them +to move south and join their brethren under Moroka. Thus during the 'thirties +circumstances had formed a bond of sympathy between the Boers and Barolongs +in their mutual regard of the terrible Matabele as a common foe. + +But the story of the relations between the Boers and the Barolong +needs no comment: it is consistent with the general policy of the Boers, +which, as far as Natives are concerned, draws no distinction +between friend and foe. It was thus that Hendrik Potgieter's Voortrekkers +forsook the more equitable laws of Cape Colony, particularly that relating +to the emancipation of the slaves, and journeyed north to establish +a social condition in the interior under which they might enslave the Natives +without British interference. The fact that Great Britain +gave monetary compensation for the liberated slaves did not apparently assuage +their strong feelings on the subject of slavery; hence they were anxious +to get beyond the hateful reach of British sway. They were sweeping +through the country with their wagons, their families, their cattle, +and their other belongings, when in the course of their march, +Potgieter met the Matabele far away in the Northern Free State +near a place called Vecht-kop. The trekkers made use of their firearms, +but this did not prevent them from being severely punished by the Matabeles, +who marched off with their horses and live stock and left the Boers +in a hopeless condition, with their families still exposed to further attacks. +Potgieter sent back word to Chief Moroka asking for assistance, +and it was immediately granted. + +Chief Moroka made a general collection of draught oxen +from amongst his tribe, and these with a party of Barolong warriors +were sent to the relief of the defeated Boers, and to bring them back +to a place of safety behind Thaba Ncho Hill, a regular refugee camp, +which the Boers named "Moroka's Hoek". But the wayfarers +were now threatened with starvation; and as they were guests of honour +amongst his people, the Chief Moroka made a second collection of cattle, +and the Barolong responded with unheard-of liberality. +Enough milch cows, and sheep, and goats were thus obtained +for a liberal distribution among the Boer families, who, compared with +the large numbers of their hospitable hosts, were relatively few. +Hides and skins were also collected from the tribesmen, +and their tanners were set to work to assist in making veldschoens (shoes), +velbroeks (skin trousers), and karosses (sheepskin rugs) +for the tattered and footsore Boers and their children. +The oxen which they received at Vechtkop they were allowed to keep, +and these came in very handy for ploughing and transport purposes. +No doubt the Rev. Mr. Archbell, the Wesleyan Methodist missionary and apostle +to the Barolong, played an active part on the Barolong Relief Committee, +and, at that time, there were no more grateful people on earth +than Hendrik Potgieter and his party of stricken voortrekkers. + +After a rest of many moons and communicating with friends +at Cape Colony and Natal, the Dutch leader held a council of war +with the Barolong chiefs. He asked them to reinforce +his punitive expedition against the Matabele. Of course they were to use +their own materials and munitions and, as a reward, they were to retain +whatever stock they might capture from the Matabele; but the Barolongs +did not quite like the terms. Tauana especially told Potgieter +that he himself was a refugee in the land of his brother Moroka. +His country was Bechuanaland, and he could only accompany the expedition +on condition that the Matabele stronghold at Coenyane (now Western Transvaal) +be smashed up, Mzilikasi driven from the neighbourhood +and the Barolong returned to their homes in the land of the Bechuana, +the Boers themselves retaining the country to the east and the south +(now the "Free" State and the Transvaal). That this could be done +Tauana had no doubt, for since they came to Thaba Ncho, the Barolong had +acquired the use of firearms -- long-range weapons -- which were still unknown +to the Matabele, who only used hand spears. This was agreed to, +and a vow was made accordingly. To make assurance doubly sure, +Tauana sent his son Motshegare to enlist the co-operation of a Griqua +by the name of Pieter Dout, who also had a bone to pick with the Matabele. + +Pieter Dout consented, and joined the expedition with a number of mounted men, +and for the time being the Boer-Barolong-Griqua combination +proved a happy one. The expedition was successful beyond +the most sanguine expectations of its promoters. The Matabele were routed, +and King Mzilikasi was driven north, where he founded +the kingdom of Matabeleland -- now Southern Rhodesia -- having left the allies +to share his old haunts in the south. + +This successful expedition was the immediate outcome of the friendly alliance +between the Boers in the "Free" State and Moroka's Barolong at Thaba Ncho. +But Boers make bad neighbours in Africa, and, on that account, +the Government of the "Free" State thereafter proved a continual menace +to the Basuto, their neighbours to the east. Pretexts were readily found +and hostile inroads constantly engineered against the Basuto +for purposes of aggression, and the friendliness of the Barolong +was frequently exploited by the Boers in their raids, +undertaken to drive the Basuto further back into the mountains. +This, however, must be said to the honour of the mid-nineteenth century +"Free" Staters, in contrast to the "Free" Staters of later date: +that the earlier "Free" Staters rewarded the loyalty of their Barolong allies +by recognizing and respecting Thaba Ncho as a friendly native State; +but it must also be stated that the bargain was all in the favour of one side; +thereby all the land captured from the Basuto was annexed to the "Free" State, +while the dusky warriors of Moroka, who bore the brunt of the battles, +got nothing for their pains. So much was this the case that Thaba Ncho, +which formerly lay between the "Free" State and Basutoland, +was subsequently entirely surrounded by "Free" State territory. + +Eventually Chief Moroka died, and a dispute ensued between his sons +concerning the chieftainship. Some Boers took sides in this dispute +and accentuated the differences. In 1884, Chief Tsipinare, +Moroka's successor, was murdered after a night attack +by followers of his brother Samuel, assisted by a party of "Free" State Boers. +It is definitely stated that the unfortunate chief valiantly defended himself. +He kept his assailants at bay for the best part of the day +by shooting at them through the windows of his house, +which they had surrounded; and it was only by setting fire to the house +that they managed to get the chief out, and shoot him. As a matter of fact +the house was set on fire by the advice of one of the Boers, +and it is said that it was a bullet from the rifle of one of these Boers +that killed Chief Tsipinare. + +President Brand, the faithful ally of the dead chieftain, +called out the burghers who reached Thaba Ncho after the strife was over. +He annexed Thaba Ncho to the "Free" State, and banished the rival chief +from "Free" State territory, with all his followers. +The Dutch members of the party which assassinated the chief +were put upon a kind of trial, and discharged by a white jury at Bloemfontein. + +Of course, Boers could not be expected to participate in any adventure +which did not immediately lead to land grabbing. But, fortunately for +some Barolongs, the dead chief had in his lifetime surveyed some farms +and granted freehold title to some of the tribesmen. In fact, +his death took place while he was engaged in that democratic undertaking. +The Boer Government, which annexed the territory, confiscated all the land +not yet surveyed, and passed a law to the effect that those Barolongs +who held individual title to land could only sell their farms to white people. +It must, however, be added that successive Boer Presidents +have always granted written exemptions from this drastic measure. +So that any Native who wanted to buy a farm could always do so +by applying for the President's permission, while, of course, +no permission was necessary to sell to a white man; several Natives, +to the author's knowledge, have thus bought farms from Natives, +and also from white men, by permission of the State President, +and the severity of the prohibition was never felt. But after +the British occupation in 1900, the Natives keenly felt this measure, +as the Governor, when appealed to by a Native for permission to buy a farm, +always replied that he had no power to break the law. +Thus, under the Union Jack, sales have gone on from black to white, +but none from white to black, or even from black to black. +In the crowd which met Mr. Dower that morning were two Barolong young men +who had lately inherited a farm each under the will of their deceased uncle, +and the law will not permit the Registrar of Deeds to give them title +to their inheritance; their numerous representations to the Union authorities +have only met with promises, while lawyers have taken advantage of the hitch +to mulct them in more money than the land is worth. The best legal advice +they have received is that they should sell their inheritances to white men. +Now the Natives' Land Act, as applied to the whole Union of South Africa, +is modelled on these highly unsatisfactory conditions relating to land +in the "Free" State. The six months' imprisonment, the 100 Pounds fine, +and other penalties for infringement of the Land Act, are borrowed from +Chapter XXXIV of the "Free" State laws, to which reference is made +in Section 7 of the Natives' Land Act. Section 8 of the Natives' Land Act +is a re-enactment of some of the reprehensible "Free" State land laws +which had been repealed by the Crown Colony Government +after the British occupation in 1900. When the Natives' Land Bill +was before Parliament the Opposition moved that the remaining native farms +be scheduled as a native area, where Natives might purchase farms, +of course from other Natives. The passage of such an amendment +was more than could be expected as the real object of the Natives' Land Bill +was to block every possible means whereby a Native may acquire land +from a Native, or from any one else; but when the motion was rejected +the Natives of Thaba Ncho were exceedingly alarmed. They telegraphed +their fears to Mr. Sauer, who promised to visit them when Parliament rose, +but his purpose was frustrated by his death, immediately after +the passage of the Act. + +To return to Mr. Dower's meeting, the Native Affairs Secretary +received a warm welcome from the Natives, who hoped that his coming +would show them a way out of their dilemma. As already stated, +a thousand Natives came from the surrounding farms, some on horseback, +others on bicycles, and other conveyances such as carts, wagons, etc.; +they included evicted wanderers and native tenants under notice +to leave their farms, with letters of eviction and other evidence +in their pockets; they included some refugees, who had likewise been evicted +from other districts -- refugees who, as one of them put it, +were "constantly on the move, and hurried hither to plead for shelter +for our homeless families, now living in wagons." + +The morning was showery. Thaba Ncho Hill in the background, +always visible for scores of miles in every direction, towered high above +the surrounding landscape. Its stony slopes covered with a light mist +from peak to base, it stood like a silent witness to the outraged treaty +between the Barolong and the Boers. + +Mr. Dower, who was accompanied by his secretary (Mr. Apthorpe) and +the Thaba Ncho Magistrate (Major Robertson) and the Location Superintendent, +addressed the Natives for half an hour. The speeches were +correctly interpreted by Mr. Jeremiah Makgothi, a native farmer, +and formerly a local school teacher, who collaborated +with Canon Crisp in the translation of the Scriptures into Serolong +for the world-renowned S.P.C.K. The Rev. P. K. Motiyane, +the local Wesleyan minister, also assisted in the task of interpretation. + +Mr. Dower made some pathetic references to the life and work +of the late Hon. J. W. Sauer, the great Cape politician +who had just passed away; then he proceeded to refer at length +to sundry inconsequential topics of minor local significance; +and, having repeated his great pleasure at seeing them, +without making a single reference to the momentous measure +that was ravaging the Natives of the country, the Government Secretary +resumed his seat amidst looks of astonishment and consternation +from the assembled Natives. + +The Rev. J. D. Goronyane, a gentleman who, as secretary to the late chiefs, +played a leading part in the Boer-Barolong relations +of the nineteenth century, was the next speaker. He thanked the Secretary +for coming. No people, he said, regretted Mr. Sauer's death +more than the Barolong; they had looked forward to meeting him +in connexion with the new cloud now looming over the country +in the shape of the Land Act, and they were sorry that his coming +had been frustrated by a Higher Power. Turning to Mr. Dower, he said: +"All the people you see before you are frightened by the new law. +They have come here for nothing else but to hear how they are expected +to live under it." + +Other speakers followed, but when the actual sufferers began +to narrate their experiences there were so many who wished to come forward +that the leaders decided that, their cases being more or less similar, +they should wait and hear how the representative of the Government +would deal with the cases of those who had already spoken. + +== + MR. DOWER'S REPLY + +He regretted that, as one speaker had said, some people read the Act +through the spectacles coloured by their desires. Others seemed +to be glad at the uncertainty and endeavoured to keep on turning +the wheel of discontent. It was true that some people were imposing +on the Natives, but, on the whole, there was a reasonable desire +to comply with the Act, although it was not always properly understood. +Few individuals had been evicted, though many had received notice. +Some of the notices given under a misapprehension, and with a desire +not to contravene the Act, had, since the Magistrates' explanations, +actually been withdrawn. "So your best course is to explain the facts +to your Magistrates, if possible, in the presence of the master." +(A Voice: "Who'll bring him there?") After explaining +that the principle of the Act was a first step towards +territorial segregation, Mr. Dower said it gave protection +to some parts of the country which formerly were not so protected. +He mentioned as an instance that more than one-half of the farms +formerly owned by Natives in that district were no longer in their possession. +In other Provinces THE ACT WAS RESTRICTIVE, while IN THE FREE STATE +IT WAS PROHIBITIVE. The old practice of "sowing on the halves" +might continue so long as the lawfully executed contracts lasted; +but at the expiration of those contracts the practice should cease, +as Parliament had decided on its abolition. It amounted to a partnership +between a white man and a black man. With a civilized Native +the system might have been good, but a raw Native always got +the worst of the partnership. He would advise them to make +the best temporary arrangements within the four corners of the law. +It might be by adopting one of three alternatives: (1) Become servants +(in which case it would be legal for a master to give them pieces of land +to plough and graze a number of stock); or (2) move into the reserve -- +(voices: "Where is the reserve?"); or (3) dispose of the stock for cash. +(Sensation.) The arrangement would only be temporary until Parliament +took further steps in terms of the Commission's report. It would be better +than trekking from pillar to post, till all the cattle had died out, +and eventually returning penniless. Farmers always had the right +to evict their native tenants. (A voice: "But we could go elsewhere.") +Because some old laws which had been repealed had now been re-enacted, +let them not think that there was a desire to oppress. +"They may have been unjust, as you say, but understand that this law +is not the last thing said by Parliament. A final settlement must depend +on the recommendations of the Commission, and such action will be taken +as will be to the lasting interests of white and black. +The Lands Commission has already held its first sitting, +and you will be serving your best interests by bringing all your information +to the Magistrate, so that it be laid before the Commission. +Show by your wise action that you are inspired by the justice of your case. +The course of agitation will not help you. Remove suspicions and mistrust +from your minds, and bring cases of real hardships to the Magistrate, +who will see that this Act is administered as smoothly as possible. +But THE ACT DOES NOT PROVIDE FOR ANY SPECIAL CASES IN THE FREE STATE +being submitted to the Governor-General under the first section of the Act." +== + +The concluding statement settled the minds of those who +had expected from the Government any protection against the law, +and the disappointment under which the meeting broke up was indescribable. +This law is full of rude shocks, and this day this spokesman of the Government +told the Natives that in the other three Provinces the Governor-General +will only exercise his right in exceptional cases, while in the "Free" State +the law did not permit him to exercise it even in such cases, +so that the Government alone knows why that provision was inserted. + + + + +Chapter IX The Fateful 13 + + He hath disgraced me and laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, + scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, + heated mine enemies; and what is his reason? I am a Kafir. + Hath not a Kafir eyes? hath not a Kafir hands, organs, dimensions, + senses, affections, passions? Is he not fed with the same food, + hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, + healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same summer and winter + as a white Afrikander? + If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? + If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, + shall we not revenge? If we are like you in the rest, + we will resemble you in that. + Merchant of Venice. + + + +The Natives of South Africa, generally speaking, are intensely superstitious. +The fact that they are more impressionable than tractable causes them, +it seems, to take naturally to religion, and seems a flat contradiction +of Junius's assertion that "there are proselytes from atheism, +but none from superstition." With some South African tribes +it is unlucky to include goats amongst the animals paid +by a young man's parents as the dowry for his bride; it was equally bad +to pay dowry in odd numbers of cattle. The payment must be made +in an even number of oxen, sheep, or other animals or articles, +such as two, four, six, eight, ten, and so on. The man who could not afford +more than one sheep to seal the marriage contract would have +to exchange his goat for a sheep to make up a presentable pair. +If he were too poor to do that, a needle or any other article +was admissible to make up the dowry to an even number, +and so avoid giving one or three, or more odd numbers of articles. +Conscious as they were of the existence of some Supreme Being, +but worshipping no God, true or false, the white man's religion +which makes such a worship obligatory through a mediator found easy access +among so susceptible a people; and with equal ease they likewise adopted +the civilization of the white man. But the Natives received +not only the white man's civilization and his religion, +but have even gullibly imbibed his superstitions. Thus is +their dread of the figure 13 accounted for. The Native witch-doctors +in the early days took advantage of their credulity, whilst civilized people +traded on their susceptibilities, and the semi-civilized Natives also traded +upon the fears of their more impressionable brethren. + +To give a concrete case or two, we might say that when +the main reservoir of the Kimberley waterworks was built, +one of the labourers one week-end lost the whole of his weekly pay. +He inquired, and searched everywhere he could think of, +but nobody had seen his missing purse. But on Monday morning +he conceived a plan for the recovery of his lost purse. +In pursuance of this plan, on the Monday he asked for and obtained a day off; +then he declared to the gang of labourers that he was going +to the nearest location to consult a bone-thrower. Instead of going +to the location, however, he went to the open country, gathered some plants, +returned to the dormitories while the others were at work, boiled the herbs +in a pot of water and put it aside to cool. When the workmen returned +for their midday meal he announced an imaginary consultation he had had +with the bone-thrower, and that that functionary had divined +the whereabouts of the purse; it was to the effect that the purse +had been stolen and was in the possession of a fellow-worker. +"The doctor," he said, "gave me some herbs. I have cooked them, +and by his direction each of you is invited to immerse his hands +in the decoction which is now cool. If you are not the thief, +nothing would happen to you, but to the one who has stolen my money," +he added with emphasis, "the doctor said that the medicine +will snap the thief's fingers clean off and leave him only with the palm." + +One by one the men dipped their hands in the "medicine", +and as they took turns at the pot, one young fellow at length +became visibly disturbed, and believing that the concoction was true, +he confessed to the theft and undertook to refund the money, +rather than lose his fingers. + +Another case was this. "A Transkeian missionary once heard +of the serious indisposition of a Native. It was not a natural sickness, +it was believed, but was the effect of sorcery, and news in that sense +was noised abroad. Such cases primitive Natives believe +to be beyond the skill of a medical man. White doctors, +they would say, know next to nothing at all about such things. +They do not believe in witchcraft and how could they be expected +to be able to smell it out of a patient. Only a witch-doctor +-- if he is more skilful -- can smell out and subdue the charm +directed by another witch-doctor into the body of the bewitched. + +Having heard this piece of native philosophy on witchcraft, +the missionary startled the Natives by telling them in their own tongue +that he could cure the disease. And he did cure it. +He captured a baby lizard from the rocks which abound +in the craggy undulations of most parts of the Transkei. +He hid it in the inside pocket of his coat and proceeded to the sick-bed +with some real medicines in his hand. "When a man who is not sick +imagines himself sick," says Dr. Kellogg, "he must be sick indeed," +and truly, in accordance with this saying, the Native was dangerously ill. +A bone-thrower, who had in the presence and hearing of the sick man +divined his malady, pronounced that he was not only bewitched by a snake, +but also that the reptile was within him and was eating him to death. +In these circumstances the missionary administered an emetic +to the reluctant patient, in the presence of some incredulous spectators, +who had never known a white man to extract a reptile +from the person of a bewitched Native. Further, by some agility of the hand, +the missionary produced from his pocket unobserved, just as +the emetic was acting, the baby lizard he had taken from the rocks. +So smartly was this done that everybody, including the patient, +believed the reptile to have been extracted from his body +by the power of the medicine administered by the missionary. +The sick man at once stood up and walked, and the missionary was known, +by all who witnessed the marvel, as the greatest witch-doctor +of the neighbourhood. + +In like manner, when some civilized Christians made remarks +on New Year's Day about the figure 13, there was much gossiping +among the more superstitious Natives as to the form of trouble +which the year 1913 had in store for the Natives, although none knew +that a revolutionary law of Draconian severity would be launched +in their midst during this eventful year. + +The powerful African potentate, Menelik of Abyssinia +(whose death had been falsely circulated no fewer than seven times +during the past dozen years), really died in 1913. + +Letsie II, paramount chief of the semi-independent Basuto nation, +departed this life during this same year. + +Dinizulu (son of the great Cetewayo, whose impis slew the Prince Imperial +in 1879), who was born to inherit the throne of his fathers, and who lived +to be one of the most disappointed men of his day, spent many years +in prison and in exile, and was known in his lifetime as the Black Napoleon; +was released from prison by the Union Government, and given back +his pension of 500 Pounds per annum. Sharing the hopes of his people +that in accordance with the Government's erstwhile good intentions +now tottering before a growing Republicanism, Zululand would be restored +to the Zulus, and he established as their ruler under the Crown. He, too, +died in the year 1913. + +An unusually large number of good and noble men of greater or lesser renown +were gathered to their fathers during this year. + +It is perhaps not generally known that few British statesmen +did so much for the South African Natives, in so short a term of service +at the Colonial Office, as the Hon. A. Lyttleton. And he, too, left us +rather suddenly during this troublous year of 1913. In this year, too, +South Africa was visited by a drought which for severity was pronounced to be +unprecedented in the knowledge of all the old inhabitants. +Remarks -- some pithy, some ugly -- were made upon the drought by Dutchmen. +They all remembered how the God of their fathers used to send them +nice soaking rains regularly each spring-time, and that it usually continued +to nourish the plants and other of the country's vegetation +throughout the summer, and they concluded that there must be some reason +why He does not do it now. The majority of Dutchmen whom the writer +thus overheard attributed the visitation to the sins of the foreigners, +who are fast buying up the country, and cursing it by settling godless people +upon it. One or two saw in it the vengeance of the Supreme Being +for the unnecessary persecution of His black creatures, but they were afraid +to say this aloud. "See," said one, "is the drought not worse +in the `Free' State where Kafirs seem to be very hard hit by this new law?" +This was true. Dutchmen's cattle were dying of poverty in the "Free" State, +and the land was so parched in some parts that it seemed difficult +to believe that grass could ever grow in these places again, +supposing the long-looked-for rain came at last. + +On our birthday, October 9, 1913, they hanged four murderers +who had been condemned to death at the preceding criminal sessions. +The selection of the morning of our birthday for the execution +of four prisoners at our home was curious as executions in Kimberley +take place only about once or twice in ten years. The event, of course, +was purely accidental; but middle-aged Natives seemed +to have an aptitude for remembering catastrophes which, +in the lives of their fathers and their fathers' fathers, +followed such coincidences. Whilst the executions were taking place, +on the morning of our birthday, an ugly ocean tragedy +was taking place away out on the Atlantic. The `Vulturno' was ablaze +with a number of passengers on board. Innocent white men and women +were being roasted alive, because the sea was too rough +to permit their transfer from the burning ship to the rescuing liners; +and so they perished, literally, "between the devil and the deep sea" -- +within full view of relief. + +Dutchmen as a rule are like Natives in that they live as long as they can, +and die only when they must; but in the Transvaal a Dutch farmer +all but exterminated his family on this day with a revolver, +which he had previously secured for the purpose. On this day also +the mind of an English miner at Randfontein having suddenly become unhinged, +he shot his wife, his baby, and his aunt, then coolly pocketing the pistol, +he cycled down to the school, called out his two children, +shot them down in cold blood, and retired to a quiet place +where he put an end to his own life. During that fateful week +in which disaster followed disaster in rapid succession, +there occurred the following, namely, the colliery disaster at Cardiff, +which left a thousand dependents without breadwinners, to say nothing +of the damage to property, which is estimated at over 100,000 Pounds. +There were also railway accidents and aviation disasters, +causing damage to life and property. There were commercial troubles +due to the Johannesburg strike in July, and this effect of the strike +indicates the influence exercised by the "golden city" +over South African commerce. In that sad upheaval in the labour world +many innocent people lost their lives and property, and unfortunately, +as is always the case, besides adding largely to the taxpayers' burdens, +seriously affected people who had nothing to do with the strike. +Yet when some of our friends expressed thankfulness that the year did not have +thirteen months, we were obstinate enough to refuse to waste valuable time +in considering the subject. + +Individuals, like communities, suffered heavily from one cause or another +in the year 1913. Thus the writer's little family also had +its baptism of sorrow. On New Year's Day of that year 1913, +his little boy, a robust child of three months, was prattling in the house. +He first saw the light in the last quarter of 1912, on the very day +we opened and christened our printing office, so we named him after +the great inventor of printing type: he was christened Johann Gutenberg. +Somehow or other he could never keep well after the New Year, +for though he tried to look pleasant, it was visibly +under serious difficulties. It had been our fortune, +during a married life of fifteen years, to keep our children +in remarkably good health; but the health of this little fellow +showed unmistakable evidence that this immunity was reaching its end. +Vehement attacks of whooping cough now overtook the little ones. +The others got rid of it during the winter months, but with Gutenberg +the disease developed into inflammation of this organ, and of that; +and taking the whole year from January to December, it would not be too much +to say that the little boy scarcely enjoyed three full months of good health. +And by the end of the year it was clear that he was going the way +of half a dozen cousins who were gathered into eternity +all during one month -- December, 1913. Before the New Year was a week old, +the doctor, who had then become a regular member of the family, +gave us the final warning. + +For a month past loving aunts had tenderly relieved the child's +inexperienced parents of the daily ministrations and of the more exacting +night watches. After the doctor's warning there came "the calm +before the storm". It only lasted for one day; the deceptive strength +which had temporarily buoyed the little patient up was now passing away +and the inevitable reaction was setting in. Oh, if he were only a year older +so that he could have communicated to us by speech his feelings and his wants! +His little body, which stood the long sickness with such fortitude, got frail. +His bright eyes, high forehead and round cheeks remained, however, to defy +the waste of the disease. The parson came and uttered words of encouragement. +"Symptoms of death," he said, pointing to the sick-bed +(and he was no novice in such matters) "were very far from there," +but the surroundings of the sick-bed seemed to us to ring out the command +with a force as strong as six peals of thunder, saying "Suffer little children +to come unto Me," and such Divine orders, comprehensible only to those +to whom they are issued, took precedence of any words of encouragement +that may be uttered by a mortal minister of religion. +That these good men of God know the ways of their Master is patent +in that they always couple the encouragement to the sick, +or to the friends of the sick, with the advice to surrender +to the Divine injunction. The grandmother of the child was composed. +"When the Lord's will is to be done," she said, "no mortal can stay it," +but his aunts were restless. "Go, call the doctor at once," +they demanded. He came, gave a solemn look and stood silent. +After feeling the pulse he said: "The child has collapsed. +I have done all I could and can do no more." Next came the anxious looks +of the other attendants, the footfalls of inquiring neighbours, +messages to nearer and further relatives about the pronounced "collapse". + +This was at noon, and each one expected that he could hold out for two hours +at the most; but he breathed throughout the afternoon with a gallantry +that was wonderful in its way. His large round eyes turned upward +as though they had become blind to their immediate surroundings. +It seemed that those eyes could no longer see the objects in the room +and its anxious inmates; truly they could no longer see +the sun or the moon and stars that night. Kimberley was no longer a home +to the little chap whose short lease of life was clearly drawing to an end. +A new outlook seemed to have dawned over his now brightening face. +His eyes were riveted on the New Jerusalem, the City of God, +and he seemed to be in full communion with the dear little cousins +who preceded him thither during the previous month. Evidently they +were beckoning him to leave this wicked South Africa and everything in it, +and come to eternal glory. In this condition we left him +early in the afternoon to answer the call of our daily and nightly drudgery +-- it would be gross extravagance to call it "duty" -- an occupation +which has no reverence for mournful occasions. At 9.15 p.m., +just about the time of his birth sixteen months before, the little soul +was relieved of its earthly bonds. + +There he lay robed in a simple white gown, his motionless form +being an eloquent testimony of the indelible gap left in our domestic circle +as a visitation of 1913. But the celestial expression of his face, +his deep-brown colour, and his closed eyelids, seemed to say to us: +"Be at ease, I have conquered." + +Still, it must be confessed that to us this wrench was +a most painful experience, and that the doctrine of "Thy will be done" +was found to be a great deal more than a mere profession of faith. +The sympathies of relatives, friends, and other mourners, +their deeds and words of condolence, followed by a solemn religious service, +took the sting out of the affliction, although it must again be confessed +that so deep was our sorrow for the dead child's mother that for some time +we could not bear to look her in the face. + +Painful and unusual solemnities and formulae were gone through +during the next day, and these again were lightened by +the kind and sympathetic assistance of genuine friends, +like Messrs. Joseph Twayi, H. S. Poho, and others, some of them delegates +to a Temperance Conference then sitting in Kimberley. + +In the absence of the pastors of St. Paul's Mission, who were both +attending the annual synod at Pniel, two Wesleyan ministers -- +Rev. Jonathan Motshumi of Kimberley, and Rev. Shadrach Ramailane of Fauresmith +-- took charge of the funeral service, and a row of carriages +followed the hearse to the West End Cemetery. + +As the procession turned round Cooper's corner into Green Street, Kimberley, +something caused us to look out of the carriage window; +we then caught sight of one of the carriages that formed the procession +in which some little girl friends and relatives of the deceased were driving, +their plain white dresses relieved only by a scrap of black ribbon +here and there. Their silent sympathy, expressed with +girlish shyness, was evident, though their snow-white dresses +were in striking contrast to the colour of their carriage and of the horses, +and the sombre black of the rest of the funeral party. +As we saw the solemn procession and heard the clank of the horses' hoofs, +we were suddenly reminded of that journey in July, 1913, +when we met that poor wandering young family of fugitives +from the Natives' Land Act. A sharp pang went through us, +and caused our heart to bleed as we recalled the scene of their night funeral, +forced on them by the necessity of having to steal a grave +on the moonless night, when detection would be less easy. +Every man in this country, we thought, be he a Russian, +Jew, Peruvian, or of any other nationality, has a claim +to at least six feet of South African soil as a resting place after death, +but those native outcasts, who in the country of their birth, +as a penalty for the colour of their skin, are made by the Union Parliament +to lead lives like that awarded to Cain for his crime of fratricide, +they might, as in the case of that wandering family, be even denied +a sepulchre for their little ones. + +The solemnity of the funeral procession, of which we formed the mainmast, +almost entirely disappeared from our mind, to be succeeded +by the spirit of revolt against this impious persecution +as these things came before us. What have our people done +to these colonists, we asked, that is so utterly unforgivable, +that this law should be passed as an unavoidable reprisal? +Have we not delved in their mines, and are not a quarter of a million of us +still labouring for them in the depths of the earth in such circumstances +for the most niggardly pittance? Are not thousands of us +still offering up our lives and our limbs in order that South Africa +should satisfy the white man's greed, delivering 50,000,000 Pounds +worth of minerals every year? Have we not quarried the stones, +mixed, moulded and carried the mortar which built the cities of South Africa? +Have we not likewise prepared the material for building the railways? +Have we not obsequiously and regularly paid taxation every year, +and have we not supplied the Treasury with money to provide free education +for Dutch children in the "Free" State and Transvaal, while we had to find +additional money to pay the school fees of our own children? +Are not many of us toiling in the grain fields and fruit farms, +with their wives and their children, for the white man's benefit? +Did not our people take care of the white women -- all the white women, +including Boer fraus -- whose husbands, brothers and fathers were away +at the front -- in many cases actively engaged in shattering our own liberty? +But see their appreciation and gratitude! Oh, for something to -- + + Strike flat the thick rotundity o' the world! + Crack Nature's moulds, all germins spill at once! + That make ungrateful man! + +When one is distressed in mind there is no greater comforter +than an appropriate Scriptural quotation. Our bleeding heart +was nowhere in the present procession, which apparently +could take care of itself, for we had returned in thought +to the July funeral of the veld and its horrid characteristics; +and a pleasant reaction set in when we recalled a verse of Matthew which says: +"The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, +but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head." How very Christlike +was that funeral of the veld. It resembled the Messiah's +in that it had no carriages, no horses, no ordained ministers, +nor a trained choir singing the remains into their final resting place. +The veld funeral party, like the funeral party of the Son of Man, +was in mortal fear of the representatives of the law; it, like that party, +had not the light of the sun, nor the light of a candle, +which charitable friends in our day would usually provide +for the poorest of the poor under ordinary circumstances. +Still, it was not cold at Golgotha, or should not be to-day +as it was on the first Good Friday; but even the Madonna and the disciples +must have had some house in which to gather to discuss the situation. + +One of the most astounding things in connexion with +the unjust treatment of the Natives by the Whites of South Africa +is the profound silence of the Dutch Reformed Church, +which practically is now the State Church of South Africa. +This Christian body does not only exclude coloured worshippers +from participating in its services, but would arraign them before the law, +or otherwise violently assault them should they visit its places of worship +at other times. + +When it is remembered that the predikants of the Dutch Reformed Church +in the old Republics dare not pronounce the benediction +on a coloured congregation, we think it will not be considered +unfair to say that the calculatingly outrageous treatment +of the coloured races of South Africa by the Boer section of that community +is mainly due from the sanction it receives from the Dutch Reformed Church. +If the predikants of the Dutch Reformed Church would +but tell their congregations that it was gross libel on the Christian faith, +which they profess, to treat human beings as they treat those +with loathsome disease -- except when it is desired to exploit the benefits, +such as their taxes and their labour which these outraged human beings +confer upon the Dutch: we say that if the predikants +would but instruct their congregations so, then this stain, +which so greatly disfigures the Christian character of the Boers +would be removed. + +The Dutch almost worship their religious teachers; and they will continue +these cruelties upon the Natives as long as they believe that they have +the approval of the Church. Let the predikants then tell their people +that tyranny is tyrannical even though the victims are of a different race, +and the South African Dutch will speedily abandon that course. + +Just two instances by way of illustration. Ten years ago we attended +an election meeting at Burghersdorp, a typical Dutch constituency at the Cape. +The present Minister of Railways and Harbours was wooing the constituency, +and he appeared to be the favourite candidate among three others. +Dutchmen from the surrounding farms flocked to attend the meeting. +The speeches were all in the Taal. No hall in the town was large enough +to hold the number that came, so the four candidates addressed the gathering +in the Market Square. This was how Mr. Burton asked the Dutch electors +for their votes: "Whenever you speak of making South Africa comfortable +to Afrikanders, do not forget that the blacks are the original Afrikanders. +We found them in this country, and no policy can possibly succeed which aims +at the promotion of the interests of one section of the Afrikander race +to the neglect of another section." + +There were a few native listeners in the throng, and we blacks +at once thought that the speaker had held out the red-rag to the bull, +and that every word of this candid statement would cost him +at least fifty Dutch votes. But we were agreeably surprised, +for the open air rang with the loud cheers and "Hoor, hoors"* +from hundreds of leather-lunged Boers. One old farmer turned round to Tommy +-- the blackest Native in the crowd -- held him by the shoulders, +and shouted as brusquely as his tongue could bend to the vernacular: +"Utloa, utloa, utloa!"** + +-- +* "Hear, hear", in Dutch. +** "Hear, hear", in Sesuto. +-- + +Mr. Burton was returned at the head of the poll. + +A more recent instance: In 1913, the South African Asiatic laws +operated so harshly against British Indians that Westminster and Bombay +demanded instant reform. In deference to this outside intervention +the Union Government appointed the Solomon Commission +to inquire into the matter. While the investigations were in progress, +emphatic protests were constantly uttered against this "outside interference". +Some of the South Africans went as far as to assert that "if Imperialism +meant a `coolie'* domination in South Africa, then it was about time +that South Africa severed her Imperial bonds." The clamourers +who designated the inquiry as a concession to outsiders +seemed almost to dictate to the Commission not to recommend anything +that "savours of a surrender to the coolies".* + +-- +* A contemptuous South African term for British Indians. +-- + +But when General Smuts, in terms of the Commission's report +and as a concession to Anglo-Indian feeling, tabled a Bill in 1914, +to amend the hardships before they had been a year in operation, the clamour +at once died down; and we have not heard that any one in South Africa +was a penny the poorer as a result of this "outside interference", +and its consequent "surrender to the coolies". + +Dutchmen only follow their leaders. Hence, let the leaders +direct them into cruel ways as they are seemingly doing +at the present time, then if Mr. Burton's assertions be right +(and we think no one will deny that he is right when he says +the one-sided policy can never succeed), these leaders, +instead of producing a South Africa which is rich and contented, +will only succeed in producing a South Africa which is poor and discontented. +Those, too, who wish well for South Africa and are at the same time +sympathizers of the present Government, let them also strive to induce +the Ministry to cease its policy of dilly-dallying and of equivocation +at the expense of the coloured tax-payers. So that the Dutch +throughout South Africa, as did the Dutch of Cape Colony, +under the able leadership of Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, may pursue a fresh course -- +the course of political righteousness. When the Labour Party discover +that white votes alone will not give it the reins of Government, its leaders +will most probably advocate a native franchise in the Northern Colonies +similar to the native franchise of the Cape. And we can assure them +that the first man who would successfully tackle such a problem +will not only secure for his party the votes thus created, +but that sheer gratitude will in future place at his disposal +the coloured vote of the Cape as well. + +It is also our belief, in regard to the Dutch, that if a trusted leader +from among them were to propose a native franchise for the Northern Provinces, +the proposal would ultimately be accepted. + +The predikants of the Dutch Reformed Church, who largely influence +the leadership of the South African Dutch, ought to know +that the English colonist can be just as devilish as the Boers +on questions of colour; and that some of them, with their +superior means and education have almost out-Boered the Boer in this matter; +but that even they have been held in check by the restraint +imposed upon them by the English Churches in the country. +Thus, knowing the Dutchman's obedience to the commands of his pastor, +we are afraid that if ever there come a day of reckoning +for the multifarious accumulation of wrongs done to the Natives, +the Dutch Reformed Church, owing to its silent consent to all these wrongs, +will have a lot to answer for. + + + + +Chapter X Dr. Abdurahman, President of the A.P.O. / + Dr. A. Abdurahman, M.P.C. + + (Native of the Cape, and M.B.C. of Edinburgh) + + President of the African Political Organization + on the South African Colour Trouble + + + +The following presidential address was delivered by Dr. Abdurahman +at Kimberley on September 29, 1913, at the opening of the tenth annual +Conference of the A.P.O. His Worship Councillor E. Oppenheimer, +Mayor of Kimberley, presided: -- + +== +Nearly two years have elapsed since we last met in Conference -- +two years crowded with events that have an important bearing +on the future of South Africa, and especially on the Coloured races. +Thanks, however, to the A.P.O. newspaper, every intelligent Coloured man is +acquainted with those events, and there is no need for me to dwell in detail +on any one of them. Nevertheless, a cursory enumeration will be desirable +in order to answer certain questions I propose to submit to you: it will be +further necessary to make a retrospect of the conditions that prevailed +at the time when White South Africa, amid exuberant exultations, +and a chorus of hosannahs, wildly welcomed the Act of Union +as a beacon light, that would blaze down through ages of history, +indicating the commencement of peace and prosperity for the land, +and the birth of a new nation -- the foundation of a new nationalism. + +Ushered in by its authors with the blare of trumpets, +and with an incense of self-adulation for their vaunted achievement, +it surely cannot have belied their sanguine hopes, and proved to have been +nothing more than a dream of Alnaschar. Whether Europeans +are wholly satisfied with the results of Union is their business; +but I think we are warranted in looking for some indication +of the fruits of that Act from our point of view. But, before doing so, +let us take a cursory glance at the condition of the Coloured races +in pre-Union days, and then, after a rapid review of the legislation +since that memorable date, we will ask ourselves: How have those events +impressed the minds of the Coloured races, and what is our duty +to ourselves and to our country? + +Such are the questions that I propose to put myself to-night, +and I shall endeavour to answer them in the most candid and straightforward +manner possible. Justice and equity are our demands -- +are inherent rights of every man, especially a free-born British subject, +even in South Africa. Heedless, therefore, as to whether some of our views +please or displease the privileged section of this country's population, +we are in duty bound to speak out our honest convictions +boldly and fearlessly. I shall endeavour to state my opinions, therefore, +without any heat, but with a cold, passionless calmness that is possible +only to those who, despite bitter experiences, base their remarks +on stern facts and undeniable realities. + +Of late, it has become the fashion in the Press of the Union +to dub any one who has to utter unpleasant truths an emotionalist. +That is, of course, not argument. The silent suffering of years +that must have been undergone by the Coloured man in South Africa +is not likely to have left much of the emotional side of humanity +in his composition. However, unpalatable as the facts may be +that I have to present for your consideration to-night, +I trust that my critics will be honest enough on this occasion +to face them boldly. They may question their accuracy, if they will, +or dispute the validity of my deductions from these facts. +That is the honest course for them to adopt. Furthermore, I trust that +White South Africa, especially those who boast loudest of British traditions, +will remember that it is an inalienable right of a British subject, +no matter in what part of the Empire he may be, to address his fellow-subjects +on the momentous question of Government. "If," declared an English lawyer, +"no man could have awakened the public mind to the errors and the abuses +in our English Government, how could it have passed on from stage to stage, +through reformation and revolution, so as to have arrived from barbarism +to such a pitch of happiness and perfection?" Such an inquiry +as I now propose will not be without its lessons. If South Africa +is worthily fulfilling her mission; if she has been faithful to her trust; +if she is promoting the cause of civilization, and if her actions +are based upon humanitarianism, then she may strenuously and conscientiously +proceed on the course she has been following. But if it can be shown +that there is no ethical basis to her policy of dealing with Coloured races, +that humanitarianism as a dominating factor is invariably wanting, and that +underlying her present policy is the principle of class aggrandizement, +then we may urge her to halt ere it is too late, and pursue another course. + + + Cape Colony + +Now although there never was a time when the white and the black races +stood on a footing of practical equality -- civilly and politically -- +it is a fact that, under the old Cape constitution, theoretical equality +was ensured to all, irrespective of race or creed. The Coloured races were, +in this Colony, treated with much consideration, if not with +absolute equality. The advancement made by them under that regime was always +held up to the world's admiration. It was regarded as convincing proof +that a policy based upon justice was the right one to be followed +in governing subject races. The peaceful habits of the Coloured races +since the granting of the old Cape Constitution is a complete vindication +of the broad liberalism entertained by English statesmen sixty years ago. +"It is the earnest desire of Her Majesty's Government that all her subjects +at the Cape, without distinction of class or colour, should be united +by one bond of loyalty, and we believe that the exercise of political rights +enjoyed by all alike will prove one of the best methods of attaining +this object." Thus reads the dispatch of the Duke of Newcastle to +Governor Cathcart, when transmitting "to the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope +Ordinances which confer one of the most liberal constitutions enjoyed +by any of the British possessions." + +But even in the Cape, prior to Union, signs were not wanting that +some slight reactions had set in. By degrees the doctrine of equal rights, +which formed the basis of the Cape Constitution, despite its resuscitation +by the famous declaration of the great Rhodes, was losing its force. +However, in the face of minor infractions of the principle of equal rights, +and some invasions of the necessary corollary to that principle, the right +to equal opportunity -- in the industrial as well as in the political world -- +we were not wholly dissatisfied with the White man's rule in the Cape. + + + The Northern Colonies + +Now let us consider the position in the Northern Colonies, especially in +the misnamed Free State. There a very different picture is presented. +From the days that the voortrekkers endeavoured to escape English rule, +from the day that they sought the hospitality of Chief Moroka, +the history of the treatment of the blacks north of the Orange River +is one long and uninterrupted record of rapine and greed, +without a solitary virtue to redeem the horrors which were committed +in the name of civilization. Such is the opinion any impartial student +must arrive at from a study even of the meagre records available. +If all were told, it would indeed be a blood-curdling tale, +and it is probably well that the world was not acquainted +with all that happened. However, the treatment of the Coloured races, +even in the Northern Colonies, is just what one might expect +from their history. The restraints of civilization +were flung aside, and the essentials of Christian precepts ignored. +The northward march of the voortrekkers was a gigantic plundering raid. +They swept like a desolating pestilence through the land, +blasting everything in their path, and pitilessly laughing at the ravages +from which the native races have not yet recovered. Their governments +were founded on the principle that is subversive of all Christian ethics, +that the Coloured man was entitled to no recognition +either in Church or State. Cruelty and oppression amounting to serfdom were, +and still are, the outstanding features of the Free State. +And he would be a bold man who would assert that the native races +have progressed at all as a result of contact with the white man +in the Free State. Progress could not be looked for under such circumstances, +for nowhere are there any signs that the Free State was ever inspired +by altruistic motives. + +Such was the condition of things at the time of Union. Injustice, repression, +and inhumanity characterized the treatment of the Coloured races in the north: +justice, benevolence, and equality of opportunity in the south. +Now, it is said that "where slavery is prohibited, there civil liberty +must exist; where civil liberty is denied, there slavery follows." +These maxims, every student of history will admit, have been +abundantly verified in the history of South Africa. Take, for instance, +a comparison of the condition of the Coloured people of this town +and that of Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange Free State. +Your member of Parliament has stated that in Kimberley our people are a credit +to the district, and the most advanced and progressive Coloured people +in South Africa. This is no doubt due to the excellent educational facilities +with which you have been provided for some considerable time, +to the liberty and freedom you enjoy, and to the kindly treatment +you have received at the hands of the Europeans. In Bloemfontein, +on the other hand, there are practically no educational facilities +for children, who, as soon as they reach the age of fifteen, +must enter the service of a white man, or be cast into prison. +There is no freedom, no liberty, and the result is that +the Coloured people of the capital of that British Slave State +are uneducated, poor, and degraded. + +Here, then, one can easily see the results produced by +the two different systems of governing Coloured races -- +the benevolent and the despotic. In the north the denial of civil rights +produced a state of virtual slavery, and the recent denial +of the complete enfranchisement of the Coloured people in the Union +has similarly resulted in the passing of an Act -- the Natives' Land Act, +which means nothing less than the partial enslavement of the races +throughout the Union. With two such divergent policies in force +in South Africa, it is not surprising that the Coloured races +viewed with the gravest apprehension the Union of the Colonies upon a basis +which would give the Northern Colonies sufficient power and influence +to shape the legislation of the Union. And I have no hesitation +in declaring that when Union was accomplished, and the Coloured people +were partially disfranchised, the death-knell of political equality +for the Coloured races was sounded, and the triumph of the north +over the south was heralded. + +Sincere regrets were expressed by our friends at the abridgement of our rights +and the curtailment of our privileges that were effected +by the South Africa Act. Fervent hopes were entertained +by Cape politicians that not only would we not suffer any injustice, +but the position of the Coloured races in the north would be improved, +and their rights eventually be admitted. They fondly believed +that the leavening influence of the Cape ideas would mitigate +the barbarity of those of the northerner. We had no reason to doubt +the sincerity of our friends' beliefs, but we had no faith +in the northerners -- men whose public professions and practice +were void of a vestige of justice or honour in their dealings +with the Coloured races. + +In November, 1904, when the question of Union was under discussion, +I expressed myself thus: "In a central Parliament there would be +the danger of the policies of the north slowly creeping into our Colony, +and undermining our Constitution. The men of the north have already told us +what they would do if they got into power; and European friends, +numerous and influential as they might be, would not be able +to safeguard the interests of the Coloured people." How far +that prediction has been verified is well known to every Coloured man. + +The position of the Coloured man at the time of the Union +was such as I have described. + + + Since Union + +Scarcely had the blessing of the Almighty been invoked on the proceedings +of the Union Parliament at the opening of its first session when, +to its eternal shame and infamy, it placed upon its statute book a law +that would debar Christ Himself from membership of the Dutch Reformed Church. +A Parliament capable of such blasphemy is capable of any iniquity. + +Then followed the Marriage Bill and the Squatters' Bill, +both abortive measures, but, nevertheless, showing clearly +the attitude of mind of the white rulers towards the Coloured races. +In order to find employment for poor whites, Coloured railway employees +who had served the country faithfully and well were dismissed. +A white South Africa has been declared in the Union Parliament +and from every platform. The white race must preserve its dominance. +To this end a rigorous policy of repression was adopted; +and the enthusiastic hopes of an extension of franchise rights +to our northern fellow-men, that was entertained by Cape politicians +and the Imperial Parliament, is now as far distant as the Greek Kalends. +I shall not recount the long catalogue of other persecutions and injustices. +We have all felt some of them in one phase of life or other. + +So serious had matters become in 1911 that in my warning to the Coloured races +against the dangers that such a policy must entail, I was bold enough +to declare at our Johannesburg Conference that when Europeans were ready +they would enter upon a war of extermination. I was severely taken to task +for imputing such inhuman motives to Europeans. I was denounced +in even worse language than has been used towards the labour leaders +in the recent strike. No vituperative epithet was strong enough +to fling at my head. My statement met with almost universal condemnation +at the hands of the editors of the white Press; but it was condemned +not on account of any falsity in it, but simply because +it was unwise and inexpedient to make such remarks. Barely eighteen months +have elapsed from the time when I made that prediction +ere we find the Union Parliament pass the Natives' Land Act, +which creates conditions, if not amounting to extermination, yet designed +to enslave the Natives of this country. That tyrannical mandate is scattering +multitudes of Natives from their homes. Mother earth is to them now +only a step-dame. They may enter either into perpetual bondage on the farm, +or spend "a sunless life in the unwholesome mine". + +To-day there is also a revival of persecution in the Free State. +The old laws of the dark days are being enforced with relentless rigour. +The sanctity of homes is violated. Wives are compelled to carry passes. +Mothers driven to abandon their offspring of tender years and seek employment. +Daughters are wrenched from parental care and control, +and forced into the service of some white scoundrel. Husbands are not allowed +to work at their trades for themselves without paying 5s. per month +for the privilege. Such is the condition of things in the slave State. +And all this is done behind the power of the British flag +which floats over that Province, and yet these acts were impossible +while the Free State lacked the power to face British public opinion. +Moreover, in the Cape Colony the Free State laws are gradually +being introduced. The Curfew Laws are enforced. A distinct colour line +is being drawn in every phase of life, more distinctly since General Smuts +declared that colour and colour only is to be the dividing line. + +Such a long list of tyrannical acts of persecutions as I could make out +-- persecutions of the Coloured people as a class as well as individually -- +can point to but one conclusion, and that is that the whites are determined +at all hazards to repress all aspirations of the Coloured people +for a higher life, to deny all opportunities of betterment, +to keep them politically, civilly and industrially as slaves, +and even to force those who have risen back into a state worse than slavery. +South Africa is fast becoming + + A land of tyrants, and a den of slaves, + Where wretches seek dishonourable graves. + + + Duty of Europeans + +What is the duty of Europeans towards the Coloured races of the country? +Take the oft-repeated assertions of Europeans themselves. +Their leaders are fond of talking of their responsibilities to us. They have +everlastingly had, or used to have until quite recently, on their lips +these nice-sounding phrases about "our duties and our responsibilities +to our Coloured brothers". But are such phrases not hollow and meaningless? +If Europeans have duties towards the Coloured people, what else is implied +than the need for humane dealings, and endeavours to ameliorate their lot, +and uplift them in the scale of civilization. If that is what +their duties mean, let us ask how far they have fulfilled them. + +Instead of kindly, humane treatment, we find barbarous cruelty and inhumanity. +Instead of ameliorating our lot they endeavour to accentuate its bitterness. +Instead of aiming at our upliftment they seek to degrade us. +Instead of lending a helping hand to those struggling to improve themselves +they thrust them back remorselessly and rigorously. +Instead of making it possible for them to enjoy the blessings +of an enlightened Christianity and a noble civilization, +they refuse them the right to live, unless they are content +to slave for farmers or descend into the bowels of the earth +to delve the gold which enslaves the world, and before whose charms +all freedom flies. In short, the object of the white man's rule to-day +is not to develop the faculties of the Coloured races so that they may live +a full life, but to keep them for ever in a servile position. +The spirit that underlies this view of governing Coloured races +spread into this Colony with the Union, and is now universal +throughout South Africa. + +The Coloured people resent this, and one cannot be astonished +at the feeling of violent hostility that has sprung up. +It is a natural result. And, in the words of Carlyle, it may be said +that "to whatever other griefs the Coloured people labour under, +this bitterest grief -- injustice -- super-adds itself: +the unendurable conviction that they are unfairly dealt with, +that their lot in this world is not founded on right, +nor even on necessity and might, is neither what it should be, +nor what it shall be." The Coloured peoples are sentient beings. +Their souls smart under the stigma of injustice. They are nursing +a sullen revengeful humour of revolt against the white rule. +They have lost respect for the white man, and are refusing to give their best +to the country. + +The duty of Europeans is plain. Show the Coloured people that the Government +is for the good of all, not for the privileged class. Prove that +the first aim is not to keep us as hewers of wood and drawers of water +to men who have the power. Engage the Coloured races by their affection. +Grant them equal opportunities. If you do so, then the happy harmonization +of the whole community will be achieved, and you may be sure of receiving +the grateful return of the affection and respect of the Coloured races. + +The treatment we might reasonably expect from the dominant race +is just what they themselves would expect were they in our position. +We have as much right to the land of South Africa as they. +We have as much right as they to be governed on the same basis of humanity. +In the language of one of England's greatest statesmen, Europeans themselves +would have been shut out from all the blessings they enjoy, +of peace, of happiness, and of liberty if there had been any truth +in these principles which some gentlemen have not hesitated to lay down +as applicable to the case of Africa. "Had those principles been true, +we ourselves," said William Pitt, "had languished to this hour +in that miserable state of ignorance, brutality, and degradation, +in which history proves our ancestors to have been immersed. +Had other nations adopted those principles in their conduct towards us; +had other nations applied to Great Britain the reasoning +which some of the Senators of this very Island now apply to Africa, +ages might have passed without our emerging from barbarism; +and we, who are enjoying the blessings of British civilization, +of British laws, and British liberty, might at this hour have been +little superior either in morals, in knowledge, or refinement, +to the rude inhabitants of the coast of Guinea." + +Such were the words of Pitt in a speech he delivered in 1792 +in the course of a debate on the Slave Trade. His opinions +were vastly different from those of our South African Premier, +who only refrains from using the sjambok, so he has told us, +on no other ground than that it might also hurt himself, +and who is determined to allow no native representative +in the Union Parliament as long as the Almighty spares him to be overlord. +He does not look forward as Pitt did to the day when "We (British) +might behold the beams of science and philosophy breaking in upon Africa, +which, at some happy period, may blaze with full lustre." +But this policy of repression cannot last much longer. +If a handful of Indians in a matter of conscience can so firmly resist +what they consider injustice, what could the Coloured races not do +if they were to adopt this practice of passive resistance? +We must all admire what these British Indians have shown, and are showing, +in their determination to maintain what they deem to be their rights. +The inhumanity of the Free State has driven our women to resist the law. +Numbers of them went to jail rather than carry passes. The Coloured races +applaud the noble actions of those brave daughters of Africa. +I am convinced that if our people as a whole were prepared to suffer likewise +we could gain redress of our most serious grievances +while General Botha is still alive. Are we to be driven to that course? +Europeans should ask themselves that question, and ask it promptly. +For example, if the 200,000 Natives on the mines were, +in the language of the white Labour Party, to "down" tools, +and prefer to bask in the sun than to go down the mines; +if the farm labourer at harvesting time refused to work +for one shilling and sixpence a day, the economic foundation of South Africa +would suddenly shake and tremble with such violence that +the beautiful white South Africa superstructure which has been built on it +would come down with a crash, entailing financial ruin +such as the world has never witnessed before. If Europeans +wish to prevent such a calamity in this country, they must +pursue the right course and encourage the Coloured people of South Africa +to improve their position and become more useful citizens +than they have ever been. They will themselves participate +in the blessings that spring from our improvement and prosperity, +and they will receive "ample recompense for their tardy kindness +(if kindness it can be called) in no longer hindering" our progress. + +We also should urge Europeans to go back to the path of justice, to retrace +their steps along the route they appear to have been travelling of late. +They can influence the Legislature. Whatever Parliament does +is done in the name of the white people, and whites should, +if they wish to see South Africa a happy, prosperous and peaceful country, +check the Parliament in its mad career. It is worse than insensate folly +to pursue that path any further. Many people have revolted at less oppression +than we have had to suffer. At present we have no other course +than to endure in silence the persecution of our tyrants, +and conform to the servitude imposed on us. We may well exclaim +that this is a country where + + The wanton whites new penal statutes draw + Whites grind the blacks, and white men rule the law. + +Nevertheless, it is not too late to mend. The estrangement +between the two races is not irreconcilable. Europeans could, +with advantage to the country, if they would only be men, +show the Coloured people that the white man's rule is for the good of all, +not for the privileged class only. If they grant the Coloured races +equal opportunities, and do not penalize them on account of race or colour, +they may see a happy realization of the dreams of the wisest statesmen +that all classes should be contented, and should work together +for the good of all. +== + +Dr. Abdurahman's address provided material for leading articles +in the South African papers during that and the following week, +the criticisms, with very few exceptions, being more or less hostile. +Not one of them, however, accused him of telling untruths; +but they vehemently resented the tone of his speech, which they characterized +as inflammatory. One daily paper showed some inconsistency in the matter. +It upbraided the doctor for his attack upon oppressive legislation, +and two days later, presumably after second thoughts, +came out with a leading article urging Europeans to check +their oppression of the blacks, and in their own interests +deal justly by the native and coloured sections of the population. +By the Natives it was said that under the present circumstances +the speech could have been better for a little moderation; +but they nevertheless pronounced it the clearest and most accurate +representation of their condition under the Union Administration +that was ever uttered on a South African platform. + +It should be remembered that Dr. Abdurahman delivered his address +at a time when the operation of the Land Act was raging like a plague +in the Northern Provinces, and its victims included an old man of 119 years, +respected by his white neighbours, with his nonogenarian wife, +and his sons aged seventy and eighty. + +From the point of view of the Native, it is satisfactory to note +that such sincere white students of the native question +as Dr. J. E. Mackenzie of Kimberley, and Rev. Chas. Phillips of Johannesburg, +when asked to dissociate themselves from Dr. Abdurahman's charges +of "cruelty, inhumanity," etc., refused to do so until it could be pointed out +that he had spoken untruths; that, however, could more easily be done +by a shrug of the shoulders than by adducing substantial facts. + +Again, it is doubtful if any South African journalist possesses +the experience of Mr. Vere Stent, the editor of the `Pretoria News'. +Mr. Stent as a Kimberley youth spent many years in the de Beers +mining compounds, working with Natives of nearly all African tribes. +He was war correspondent in Ashanti and other parts of Africa, and also with +the Republican troops under General Joubert in the Northern Transvaal +in the 'eighties, and saw the Boers (whose primitive artillery +could not dislodge a native tribe that was impregnably entrenched +inside a cave) closing up the mouth of the cave and sealing up the masonry, +then leaving the Natives, men, women and children, to smother to death +with their belongings inside the cave. Further, Mr. Stent +accompanied Cecil Rhodes to the Mattopo hills, where the late Colossus +went unarmed to hold with the Matabele chiefs the pourparler +which brought about the peace of Southern Rhodesia. In the siege of Mafeking, +Mr. Stent was Reuter's war correspondent, and all things considered, +it must be conceded that he is better qualified to write +on a subject of this kind than all the critics of Dr. Abdurahman. + +Commenting on Dr. Abdurahman's address, in the course of a leading article +Mr. Stent said: + +== +Here is no paid agitator, but a professional man and a scholar, +who is addressing the Coloured workers of South Africa +from the lowest Aborigine to the Bantu, from the Bantu +to the Coloured tradesman, from the Coloured tradesman +to the professional man, of whom there are a few like himself, +a great mass of unenfranchised human beings that suffer +under disabilities and actual and obvious injustice. + +This vast proletariat is slowly cohering. Tribal feuds +are being forgotten. The anti-colour laws of South Africa, +and particularly of the north -- which makes no difference +between the savage Zulu fresh from his kraal and the stately Malay, +between the Mashaangan and a man like Dr. Abdurahman himself -- +are welding together this vast human mass, in the flux of a single grievance, +and that grievance, the disability put upon colour qua colour by the law. + +What if some day, and sooner than we think, that great mass becomes mobile, +learns to co-operate, and moves irresistibly together? + +What, again, which is more likely, if its molecules +realize the power of their inertia, if they simply decide +quite constitutionally and without violence to do nothing, +pending a remedy of their grievances? + +It will, of course, be said that Dr. Abdurahman is a picturesque extremist; +that his position is an abnormal one; that he does not speak for +the Coloured people and the Natives as a whole. Do not let us be too certain +on the last point. + +As to the first, there runs through the speech, holding it together +and making it difficult to attack, a single plain statement in it -- +a steel strong thread of truth. + +He throws quite a new light upon the Voortrekkers when he says: -- + +"The northward march of the Voortrekkers was a gigantic plundering raid. +They swept like a desolating pestilence through the land, +blasting everything in their path, and pitilessly laughing +at the ravages from which the native races have not yet recovered." +But from the point of view of the native races, the description is a true one. + +To say of the Natives' Land Act, "That tyrannical mandate is scattering +multitudes of Natives from their homes" is extravagant. Only a few so far +have been disturbed, but many must be disturbed for the Natives' Land Act +is tyrannical. In fact, though couched in the flowing language of an orator, +the speech on the whole is not an unfair summing up of the grievances +of the coloured people, and there is a very solemn warning in it. +The European labour agitators may well envy Dr. Abdurahman: +his logic, his doctrine and his power of invective. He has so much +to complain of, he asks for so very little. Just equality of opportunity. +He does not propose to set up any Trades' Hall government within a government; +he does not talk about or attempt to incite to riot or revolution; +he does not speak for a few skilled artisans who are living in comfort, +and sometimes luxury, upon the sweat of the black man's brow; +he speaks for the dark, submerged 5,000,000 South Africans upon whom light +is very slowly breaking. +== + +It should also be recorded that long before Dr. Abdurahman +became President of the Coloured Organization, white men +have been delivering speeches, some of them rather indignant, +on the treatment of His Majesty's coloured and native subjects +in South Africa. We will refer to just a few for example: + +== +"I will leave out of account altogether," said His Excellency, +"the unwise and hard things said by reckless and unthinking white men +about Natives; I will only ask white men to consider whether they have +ever calculated the cumulative effect on the Natives of what I may call +the policy of pin-pricks? In some places a Native, however personally clean, +or however hard he may have striven to civilize himself, +is not allowed to walk on the pavement of the public streets; +in others he is not allowed to go into a public park or to pay +for the privilege of watching a game of cricket; in others he is not allowed +to ride on the top of a tram-car, even in specified seats set apart for him; +in others he is not allowed to ride in a railway carriage except in +a sort of dog-kennel; in others he is unfeelingly and ungraciously treated +by white officials; in others he may not stir without a pass, +and if, for instance, he comes, as thousands of Natives do, +from the farm on which he resides to work in a labour district +-- (an act which is highly beneficial to the State and commendable +in the eyes of all white men) -- he does not meet with facilities, +but with elaborate impediments. In the course of his absence from home +he may have to take out at least eight different passes, for several of which +he has the additional pleasure of paying, though he would be much happier +without them; and it is possible that, in an extreme case, +he may have to conform to no fewer than twenty different pass regulations. +Now, let a white man put himself in the position of a black man, +and see how he would like it, and let him ask whether +such regulations and laws really make his task easier?" -- Lord Selborne, +before the Congregation of the University of the Cape of Good Hope, +February 27, 1909. +== + +The Hon. Dewdney W. Drew, M.A., who was member of the Legislative Council +under the Crown Colony Government in the Orange River Colony, now misnamed +the Orange "Free" State, is one of the leading South African journalists. +In his pamphlet on the Native Question, about four years ago, +Mr. Drew made the following remarks: + +== +Most Europeans adopt towards the Natives the privilege of the aristocrat -- +not always with the manners of an aristocrat. Many whites expect +as a matter of course obeisance and service from all Natives, +and think it perfectly natural to cuff and correct them when +they make mistakes. Any resentment is apt to draw down severe punishment. +In the law courts the Natives do not get the same justice as the whites. +A Native convicted of an offence gets, in the first place, the punishment +which a white man would get and something extra for the colour of his skin -- +often lashes. The bias of white juries in trying Natives +charged with offences against whites is such as to have brought +the jury system into disrepute, and become a chief argument among lawyers +for its entire abolition. The Natives suffer various restrictions +on their liberty; they may not use the side-walks, nor visit a friend's house +after a certain hour at night, nor move abroad, or even exist +anywhere in this "white man's country" without a pass. +All the police, if not all Europeans, have the right +to arrest and search them, and the exercise of this right is made sometimes +a means of shamefully molesting their women. In one Colony +the Natives are not allowed to own land, and in another they can only do so +under virtually prohibitive conditions. If the tenant families +residing upon a farm grow beyond a certain limited number -- three or five -- +the surplus are liable to be driven off by the police. As a rule +only the worse-paid forms of work are permitted to the Natives, +and even these are grudged them. A legislator rises in one Colony to move +that all native messengers and other native servants in the Government offices +be immediately discharged and replaced by poor whites. In another Colony, +the papers and the public chorus with joy to hear that the C.S.A.R. +has been able to reduce its native staff, and hopes ultimately +to get rid of them all. There are municipalities in which Natives, +if they drive a cab, have to pay a higher licence than a white man, +and in which they are not permitted to make bricks unless they do so +for a white employer. In these municipalities they are not allowed +to educate their children above the age of sixteen, nor may they keep +their daughters at home under their own protection after that age, +except the girls find positions in service, in which case they may sleep +under the roof of their parents if the distance is not too great. +And, of course, the Natives pay relatively a higher taxation than the whites. +Articles which they use, but which are little bought by the whites, +are marked for special customs duties. For instance, +the white farmers' machinery is duty free, but in several Colonies +the native hoes pay an ad valorem tax of 25 per cent. +So of shawls; the Customs officer is content to take 12 1/2 per cent +on the kind used by Europeans, but when he comes to the native shawl, +the duty is again 25 per cent. In addition to these stiff indirect taxes, +the Native pays direct taxes amounting to one-sixth part of their average +annual wage. Not only they, but even the most respectable coloured people, +are in some places not allowed to ride in trams or walk in the parks, +or attend public sports, or evening concerts, or even follow a deceased white, +though he should be their own father, to his last resting place +in the European cemetery. As to the laws, they realize, +in all the Colonies but one, Wellington's great ideal for the people, +by having nothing to do with them except obey them. In addition +to this treatment, varying from mere pin-pricks to oppression, +they are mostly referred to in the Press, in public speeches, +and private conversation, with words of opprobrium and contempt +as "niggers" and "black brutes". The occasional outbreaks of a few, +usually maddened with drink which Europeans have sold to them, +are put to the discredit of the whole race. Those who, +when they hear of a case of rape, talk about the black peril, +forget apparently that it is largely the result of a bad environment. +In their own country the Natives are by no means lacking in respect +to white womanhood. A European lady travelling in Basutoland without escort +would probably be safer there than in England under the like condition. +The Hon. H. Burton, Attorney-General of the Cape Colony, +reports, after visiting the Transkei, that in that great reserve, +where ten thousand Europeans are surrounded by a million Natives, +the molestation of white women is a thing unheard of. . . . +Obviously the treatment which the Natives get is not on the whole +such as he can be expected to like, and the drift of things +appears to be towards greater harshness, especially towards +severer pass laws and the stricter denial of property rights. +In one of our Parliaments a Commission has just reported +in favour of breaking up the reserves and bringing the Natives +under a system resembling slavery. +== + + + + +Chapter XI The Natives' Land Act in Cape Colony + + It must not be lost sight of that all land held by Europeans + in Africa has been acquired by conquest or diplomacy, + and that the aboriginal Natives have been ousted by the white man: + that being so, I cannot see any reason why the Native + should not be allowed to buy back what he has lost; in my opinion + he should be encouraged to do so. . . . + He is a better citizen than the thriftless European who lives + from hand to mouth and makes no effort to better his circumstances. . . . + Legislation should be carefully watched lest endeavours be made + to deprive deserving Natives of the privilege of acquiring title to land. + In the Transvaal strong efforts are being made to restrict + the acquisition of land by Natives; but I can see + neither justice nor reason in such a measure. If the Native + by his education, honesty, thrift and industry has got the means + to buy land, even in the Transvaal, why should he not be allowed + to do so? . . . + The Natives are already pretty tightly "squeezed" in the matter of land + in South Africa, and it is time this "squeezing" process came to an end. + They must have somewhere to live. What would we do in this country + without them? + Mr. J. Hemming, a Cape Magistrate. + + + +During the month of October, 1913, the fell work of the iniquitous +provisions of the Natives' Land Act was done so remorselessly +that the British blood of certain editors of Natal dailies +rose superior to their Colonial prejudices and they lashed out against +such wicked and wholesale injustice on the part of the legislation +against the peaceful native population. It has already been pointed out +that when the Secretary for Native Affairs started to tour the districts, +to teach Magistrates how to enforce the new Plague Act, +some people thought that the tour was part of a scheme to alleviate +the distress that followed the enforcement of the Natives' Land Act, +but the Natives and those of their sympathizers who followed +Mr. Dower's itinerary very soon discovered that the authorities +were waging a war of extermination against the blacks; +and that they were bent upon reducing the independent black peasantry +to a state of thraldom. Commenting on Mr. Dower's visit to the "Free" State, +the `Natal Advertiser' of October 4, 1913, said: -- + +== +The explanation of the Natives' Land Act, given to the Barolongs of Thaba Nchu +by Mr. Dower, is so illuminative of the wretched unsatisfactoriness of the Act +that the occasion certainly merits notice. It would be difficult +to conceive a more thoroughgoing and drastic condemnation of the Act +than this attempt at faint praise of it, delivered by +the Secretary of the Native Affairs Department. All he can say +to these unfortunate Natives is, that it would be better +to engage as labourers or sell up than to trek from pillar to post, +till all their cattle had died. As to saying that farmers +always had power to evict, the interrupting Native hit the nail on the head +by his ejaculation: "But we could go elsewhere." +== + +On October 5, the daily papers published the following telegram +from Johannesburg: + +== +As the result of the passing of the Natives' Land Act, groups of Natives +are to be seen in the different Provinces seeking for new land. +They have crossed over from the Free State into Natal, from Natal +into the Transvaal, and from the Transvaal into British Bechuanaland. . . . + +Yesterday a native arrived in Johannesburg from the Umvoti district, Natal, +and reported that a chief, together with his tribe, had been evicted +from a farm in the Greytown district, Natal, and that feeling in the matter +had become acute. + +In the Western Transvaal hundreds of natives are crossing over +into the Bechuanaland Protectorate, and in the Eastern Transvaal +they are concentrating on three farms in the Wakkerstroom district +that have been bought by a native land company. + +At present the attention of those working for the repeal of the law +is being concentrated on the collection of funds for the purpose of sending +a deputation to England. They hope to arouse public opinion there +by lectures and other means. +== + +The `Natal Mercury' said: + +== +We pointed out at the time that the Act was passed that it was being +rushed through the House without any proper inquiry and without much regard +for native opinion or native feeling in a matter that affected +their most vital interests. It was replied that the administration of the Act +would be carried out on sympathetic lines, and that Mr. Sauer +would make himself personally responsible for the administration +being carried out in a manner which would inflict the least possible hardships +on the Natives affected. The industrial crisis was followed +by the untimely end of Mr. Sauer which made his tour impossible, +and the Act now seems to be put in force on the most approved red-tape lines, +with the result that the Natives are in a state of great alarm and agitation. +At the recent Missionary Conference at Maritzburg on July 8, +the question was the subject of considerable discussion, +and a series of resolutions were passed. + +What is happening is that in many places the Natives are being driven off land +where they have been from time immemorial, so to speak. They consider the Act +as an attempt to drive them into slavery, and numbers of them are being placed +in the position of having no place to which to go. +== + +It must not be supposed, however, that all English colonial journalists +regretted the operation of this atrocious law. The `Cape Times', +for instance, vied with the Hertzog press in congratulating the minister +on having successfully passed it, and in belittling the hardships +of the victims of the Act. One English farmer wrote to the `Farmer's Weekly' +that the evictions were effective, but at the same time he regretted that +"as long as the Native kept to the public road he still had a resting place +for the hollow of his foot." The Native had been successfully legislated +off the land, and apparently this farmer wanted him to be legislated +off the roads as well. Another English journalist wrote to the `Sunday Post' +that the hardships are exaggerated, as he had himself seen +only twelve families evicted in one day and on one farm. +The question which this statement suggests is: How many families +must be ejected from one farm in one day to constitute a hardship; +and whether this journalist would view with the same coolness +a law which forcibly turned twelve white families off a farm, +against the wishes of themselves and the landowner? + +Again, it cannot be said that South African politicians as a whole +were indifferent to the suffering of the luckless victims of the Land Act, +but they eased their consciences with the palliative thought +that the sufferers were not so many. However this blissful +though erroneous self-satisfaction was nailed to the counter +by the Rev. A. Burnet of Transvaal, when he said: "I have yet to learn +that a harsh law becomes less harsh, and an act of injustice less unjust, +because only a few people are affected by it." + +The section of the law debarring Natives from hiring land +is particularly harsh. It has been explained that its major portion +is intended to reduce the Natives to serfs; but it should also +be noted that the portion of the Act that is against Natives +acquiring any interest whatsoever in land aims directly +at dispossessing the Natives of their live stock. Section 5 +provides for a fine of 100 Pounds, or six months' imprisonment, +to a farmer convicted of accommodating a Native on his farm. +And if after the fine is paid, the Native leaves the stock on the farm, +for a number of days, while he goes to search for another place, +there will be a fine of 5 Pounds per diem for each day the cattle remain +on the farm. The cattle should be consigned to the road +immediately the order is given for the ejection, and they should remain +without food till their owner sells them, or finds employment under a farmer +as a wage-earner. Thus it would seem that the aim of Section 5 +is not only to prohibit native occupation of land, but, in addition to it, +makes it impossible for him to be a cattle owner. + +When this harsh provision of the law was brought to the notice +of Cape politicians, they shrugged their shoulders and remarked +that they were happy that things in the Cape were not so bad. +But this is no excuse at all, for in accordance with the wording of the Act, +as substantiated by its results upon the Cape Natives, +the condition of these Natives is worse in many instances +than it is among the Natives of Natal, or of the Transvaal. +In these two Provinces a European who has no intention of evicting his Natives +may retain their services under certain restrictions (see Sub-sect. 6 (c)); +but in the Cape and the Orange "Free" State, the Native, +according to Section 1, may retain no interest whatever in land, +including the "ploughing on shares". + +Well-to-do Natives, from Grahamstown to the Transkeian boundaries, +mainly derived their wealth from this form of occupation. It enabled them +to lead respectable lives and to educate their children. The new prohibitions +tended to drive these Natives back into overcrowded locations, +with the logical result that sundry acute domestic problems, +such as disordered sanitation caused by the smallness of the location, +loss of numerous heads of cattle owing to the too limited pasturage +in the locations, are likely to arise. These herds of cattle +have been the Natives' only capital, or the Natives' "bank", +as they truthfully call them, so that, deprived of this occupation, +the down-grade of a people, under an unsympathetic quasi-Republican Government +like the present Union Administration, must be very rapid. + +The fact that the traditional liberal policy of Cape Colony +has broken down through this law can no longer be disputed: +indeed, the only comfort that had been held out to the Natives +was that Mr. Sauer would make the Natives' Land Act a dead letter. +This statesman having since died, we were anxious to see how the Cape Natives +were faring under the Act, so we left Kimberley on November 1, 1913, +on a tour of observation in the eastern districts of the Cape Province. +Our programme included visits to two alleged defenders of the Act, +in the persons of Rev. James Henderson of Lovedale, and Mr. Tengo Jabavu +of King Williamstown, editor of the Xosa Ministerial newspaper. +Our object in visiting these gentlemen was to acquaint ourselves +with their point of view, and if possible to arrive at an agreement with them. + +We reached Alice in the forenoon and walked through the town +to the famous Native Institution. We made our first acquaintance +with Lovedale, and we hardly remember having seen so many native boys +housed in any one place before. But it pained us to think what must be +the future lot of this great gathering of young fellows, who are now +debarred by law from rights of ownership of the soil of South Africa, +their own homeland. + +During our three hours' stay at Lovedale we had an interview +with Mr. Henderson, the Principal, about things in general, +and the Native College Scheme in particular, and lastly, but not least, +about the Native Land Act. Unfortunately we could learn nothing +from the eminent educator, for we found that his conclusions +were based on second-hand information. He had never met +any member of the Government, or their representatives, +in fact it was news to the Principal that in going to Lovedale, that morning, +we had met men on their way from the Magistrate's office in Alice, +not far away, who had been definitely warned by the Magistrate +against re-ploughing their old lands on the farms. Of course Mr. Henderson +was moved with sympathy for a people so ruthlessly treated by a Government +they had loyally served. And it would seem that the Principal of Lovedale +had since made independent inquiries, for we have read in the Lovedale paper +other evidence of the operation of this drastic law that had not come under +our own observation. Thus in supporting the case of the Native Deputation +in the Imperial Parliament on July 28, 1914, Sir Albert Spicer +effectively read passages from the `Christian Express', the organ of Lovedale. + +One of the instructors at Lovedale very kindly lent us a horse, +and Mr. Moikangoa accompanied us to an all-night meeting at Sheshegu, +a famous political "rendezvous" which has acquired this distinction +because it is the centre of numerous little locations, +within easy reach of four surrounding Magistracies. At the all-night meeting +at Sheshegu there were chiefs, headmen, and other Natives from the Peddie, +Fort Beaufort and Alice districts. There were a number of school teachers +also from these districts, and two or three native storekeepers. +The disclosures made by the several speakers concerning +the operation of the Land Act among the Natives made one's heart bleed. +The chieftain Kapok Mgijima, who entertained many of the visitors +to the meeting, had his own peculiar experience under the Act. +Not only had he been debarred from re-ploughing his own lands, +but he had also been ordered to move his oxen from a farm owned by a European, +where for fourteen years he had grazed his oxen. Another Native, +who had been ploughing in the direction of King Williamstown, +was warned by the authorities not to resume his ploughing in 1913. +He could only do so as a servant in the employ of a white landowner. +He was further warned that if he connived with the white man to cheat the law, +by representing themselves as master and servant, they would, when found out +to be still carrying on their old relation of landlord and tenant, +be dealt with very severely. + +The landlord was furious. "Why," he asked, "did you tell them +of your intention? You should have done your business quietly; +now that you have apprised them they will watch us, you fool." + +"But," said the Native, "owing to the existence of East Coast fever +in Transkei, no animals can be taken from one plantation to another +without a magisterial permit disclosing the object of the removal. +I had to tell what I wanted to come here for. I was asked +at the Magistrate's office if I did not know the law. +I said that I was aware of such a new law, which had created +a lot of disturbance in the Northern Provinces, but I had never heard +that it was applicable to the Cape. To this the Magistrate's clerk replied +that it was not a Provincial law, it was a law of the Union, +of which the Cape formed part. There were certain exemptions, +the clerk added, but they did not exempt the Cape Natives from +the prohibition of ploughing on white men's farms and grazing their cattle +on those farms." + +Other speakers narrated their experiences under the Act, and these experiences +showed that the Plague Act was raging with particular fury +in the old Cape Districts of Fort Beaufort, Grahamstown, King Williamstown, +and East London. At this meeting it was resolved to support a movement +to send an appeal to His Majesty the King, against this law. + +Our visit to these places took place just after the glorious showers +of the early summer. On the wider tracts of land owned by Europeans +the grass looked invitingly green. The maiden soil, +looking beautiful and soft after the soaking rains, cried silently +for cultivation. The people who had hitherto depended on such cultivation +for their subsistence were now prohibited by reason of their colour +from earning their usual livelihood, as directed by Almighty God, +"In the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread." + +This prohibition seems particularly contemptible when it is remembered +that the majority of the Natives of these locations are Fingoes, +and that their fathers in the early days joined the British +in fighting most of the Kafir wars, side by side with British troops. +They shared in all the massacres and devastating raids +committed upon the British settlers by unfriendly native tribes. +As a mark of recognition of their loyalty to the Government, +and of their co-operation with the British forces in the field of battle, +this country was given, in the name of Her late Majesty Victoria, +to their chiefs by a British Governor. But in spite of this treaty, +the people have been gradually dispossessed of the land during the past +three-quarters of a century. Hence the occupation, now crystallized +into ownership, passed bit by bit into white hands. Hitherto the right +to live on, and to cultivate, lands which thus formerly belonged to them +was never challenged, but all that is now changed. Naturally the ingratitude +meted out to these people by the authorities in return for services +consistently rendered by three successive generations of them will be a blow, +not only to the economic independence of a loyal and patriotic people, +but to the belief in British sense of justice. + + + + +Chapter XII The Passing of Cape Ideals + + Naboth was right to hold on to his home. There were garnered memories + that all the wealth of Ahab could not buy. + Ward Beecher. + + + +From the great meeting place -- Sheshegu -- we went through +the Alice district. In this district we met several men +who would get no crops -- their annual income -- the next year, +as the law had placed an embargo on their ordinary avocation. +King Williamstown was also visited, and there at a meeting +held in the Baptist Church, which was kindly lent for the purpose +by the Rev. Mr. Pierce, it was unanimously resolved to appeal +to His Majesty the King against the Natives' Land Act. +Mr. W. Sebe presided over this meeting of representative Natives, +and Mr. Bassie translated the Act. + +At Queenstown a similar resolution was passed by practically +the whole meeting. Beyond answering questions at each of these meetings, +the writer said little else besides reading the Act, which told its own tale. +Many Natives who had never seen a copy of the Act before, +but who had heard its praises sung by interested parties and had believed +the false teachers, attended the meetings to oppose any undue interference +with "the law". But these men were appalled when the law was read to them, +sentence by sentence, and translated by their own teachers +in their own tongue. Then a discussion would follow, invariably ending +with the query: "Can a Parliament capable of passing such a law +still be trusted by the community concerned?" + +The Queenstown meeting, which was held in the Native Baptist School +kindly lent by Messrs. Damane and Koti, was more interesting than the others +because it is the only one of the many native meetings we attended +where there was any dissent. There were four dissentients +at Queenstown, and we take this opportunity of congratulating +all genuine enemies of native welfare on the fact that they had +four staunch protagonists of colour, who showed more manliness +than Mr. Tengo-Jabavu because they attended the meeting. +Still, if the courage of these opponents was admirable, +we confess we did not like the gross callousness, and what seemed to us +an indecent disregard of native suffering that was manifest in their conduct: +when the story of the hardships of unfortunate victims of the Land Act +was narrated they laughed, and repeated the newspaper excuse +that the evictions were not directly due to the Act. + +We agree with them that evictions have always taken place, +since the first human couple was sent out of the Garden of Eden, yet they +must admit that until the Union Parliament passed the Natives' Land Act +there never was a law saying to the native population of South Africa, +"You must not settle anywhere, under a penalty of 100 Pounds, +unless you are a servant." These unsympathetic Natives made no effort +to defend the Act itself, but attempted to bluff the meeting +with the supposed danger of "reprisals by spiteful Boers, who, they said, +will be more vindictive if Natives dared to appeal to the King, +over the heads of the Boer Government." But the meeting would not be bluffed. +One speaker especially remarked that the Act embodied +the very worst form of vindictiveness, and the sooner the whole world +understood the Union Parliament's attitude towards the blacks +the better it would be. The meeting agreed that no slavery could be worse +than to be outlawed in your own homes, and the motion was carried +against the said four dissentients. + +We interviewed a number of the Natives passing through Queenstown, +and the result showed that many and varied were the vicissitudes +of the Natives in the eastern districts of the Cape Province. + +From Queenstown we touched some of the north-eastern districts +of the Cape Province. In one of these districts a fairly prosperous Native +was farming as a tenant on a farm. By sheer industry +he had earned and enjoyed the respect of all who knew him. +His landlord, a white man, was particularly proud of him. +This Native went into town one morning and as he passed the Magistrate's Court +on his way to the stores, a messenger hailed him inside. +Having entered the office, the Assistant Magistrate served him with a notice +to leave his hired farm, on which he had been a tenant since his youth, +and which was as much a home to him as to the proprietor. +The landlord, on hearing of this, naturally resented this usurpation +on the part of the authorities, who, he said, had unduly interfered +with his private affairs. Next day the Baas drove into the town to interview +the Magistrate, and to remonstrate with him on what he thought to be +the unauthorized interference of the Assistant Magistrate. + +He and the Magistrate read and re-read the Natives' Land Act, +and both came to the conclusion that it was a law that was as complicated +as it was unnecessary; but the Magistrate, being a representative of the law, +decided that, rightly or wrongly, it must be obeyed. + +This visit of the Baas to the Magistrate had made our native friend hopeful +that it would result in averting the calamity that threatened +him and his family, but, to his utter dismay, the landlord on returning soon +undeceived him and gave his own opinion of "the most peculiar and wicked law" +that he had ever heard of. Although Dutchmen had known and had heard of +some strange laws, yet this Dutchman was so full of indignation +at the strangeness of this law that his description of it +was made up of largely untranslatable Dutch adjectives. These adjectives, +however, could not relieve the suffering of his native tenant +from the wound inflicted by the law in his sudden expulsion from his home. +It seems clear that no South African Native, on leaving a Dutch farm, +had ever received a more respectable send-off than our friend did +on leaving his farm in compliance with the Natives' Land Act. +The white landlord accompanied him right up to the boundary of the farm +which for seventeen years had been his home, and which he was so cruelly +forced to leave. For the first time in his life, as the Dutchman said, +he shook hands with a Kafir. And, as he did so, he called down +the direst curses upon the persons responsible for the impasse -- +curses, by the way, which seem to be liberally answered. + +It would, perhaps, be interesting to add what has happened since. +Our native friend took his family to the town, because the Act +is not enforceable in municipal areas. Leaving his family there, +he started roaming about the districts, looking for a place +where he could graze his cattle. In the course of the wandering +his stock thinned down, owing to death from starvation and other causes. +At home his old master found he could not get on without him, +so learning of the whereabouts of the Native and also of his sad plight, +the master sent out to him and advised him to return home, +graze his stock there, and "hang the legal consequences." +May they never be found out. + +It has now amounted to this that white men who wish to deal humanely +with their native friends must resort to clandestine methods, to enable +a Native and his stock to drink the fresh water and breathe the pure air +in the wide tracts of South Africa, for by law Natives have now less rights +than the snakes and scorpions abounding in that country. +Can a law be justified which forces the people to live +only by means of chicanery; and which, in order to progress, compels one +to cheat the law officers of the Crown? This case is but one of many +that came under our own observation, and there may be many more +of which we know nothing. + +The `Cape Times', the leading Bothaite daily newspaper of the Cape, +has defended every action of the Union, including the dismissal +of English Civil servants. It justifies this last act +by alleging that the dismissed officials did not know Dutch. +Consequently it could not be expected that this journal +could have any qualms about a law enacted specifically to repress black men. +It supported every harsh clause of the Natives' Land Bill, +including Clause 1. However, when the native deputation to England +gave proofs of the ravages of the "plague law" in Cape Colony, +the `Cape Times', instead of defending its pet law, said: +"The complaint to which they give precedence is particularly instructive," +and so, quoting from the deputation's appeal which says: "In the Cape Colony, +where we are repeatedly told that the Act is not in force, +the Magistrates of East London, King Williamstown and Alice +prohibited native tenants from reploughing their old hired lands last October, +and also ordered them to remove their stock from grazing farms," +this ministerial daily adds: "It is unnecessary to consider +the justice or otherwise of this complaint for it is perfectly clear +that if a Magistrate oversteps the bounds of the law, it is a matter +to be dealt with by the Union Government." + +It will be observed that this is an insinuation that the Magistrates +who administer the Land Act at the Cape are exceeding their authority +and should be "dealt with by the Union Government". Now, what are the facts? +It is well known that all Magistrates, including those at the Cape, are paid +to administer every legislative instrument, whether sensible or absurd, +passed by the partly literate Parliament of the Union of South Africa. +Hence, these Magistrates, in ordering Natives off their farms, +and turning native cattle off the grazing areas, are only carrying out +Section 1 of the Natives' Land Act. One Cape Magistrate who ruled +that to plough on a farm was no breach of the law, WAS "dealt with +by the Union Government", for a peremptory order came from Pretoria +declaring such a decision to be illegal. + +Therefore, so far from the Cape Magistrate "overstepping +the bounds of the law" in expelling Natives from the farms and native cattle +from their pastures, these Magistrates could legally have done worse, +inasmuch as they could, under Section 5, have sent these Natives to prison +for contravening Section 1. In justification, then, +of its own and of its party's share in this legislative achievement, +the `Cape Times' should have sought a more worthy excuse than thus attempting +to make scapegoats of a band of fair-minded men who presumably, +prior to the Union, never thought it would be part of their duty +to administer from the Cape bench an Act which inflicted such gross cruelty. + +Who, in the days of the Murrays, Mr. F. Y. St. Leger, and subsequently +of Mr. F. E. Garrett, could have thought that the `Cape Times' +would in this manner have destroyed its great traditions, +built up during the nineteenth century, by sanctioning a law +under which Cape Magistrates would be forced to render homeless +the Natives of the Cape in their own Cape of Good Hope? The one Colony +whose administration, under its wise statesmen of the Victorian era, +created for it that tremendous prestige that was felt +throughout the dark continent, and that rested largely +upon the fact that among its citizens, before its incorporation +with the northern states, it knew no distinction of colour, +for all were free to qualify for the exercise of electoral rights. +The old Cape Colony of our boyhood days, whose administration, +despite occasional lapses, managed during a hundred years +to steer clear of the familiar massacres and bloodshed of punitive expeditions +against primitive tribes, massacres and bloodshed so common +in other parts of the same continent; the old Cape Colony whose +peaceful methods of civilization acted as an incentive to the Bechuana tribes +to draw the sword and resist every attempt at annexation by Europeans +other than the British: a resistance so determined that it thwarted +the efforts to link German South West Africa with the Transvaal Republic, +and so kept open the trade route to Rhodesia for the British. +All this done without any effort on the part of the British themselves, +and done by the Natives out of regard for Cape Colony ideals. +But alas! these Natives are now debarred from tilling the soil of the Cape, +except as Republican serfs. What would Sir George Grey, or Bishop Gray, +or Saul Solomon, say of this? What would these Empire builders say if they +came back here and found that the hills and valleys of their old Cape Colony +have ceased to be a home to many of their million brawny blacks, +whose muscles helped the conqueror to secure his present hold of the country? +What would these champions of justice say if they saw how, +with her entrance into the Union, Cape Colony had bartered +her shining ideals for the sombre history of the northern states, +a history defiled with innocent blood, and a territory +soaked with native tears and scandalized by burying Natives alive; +and that with one stroke of the pen the so-called federation +has demolished the Rhodes's formula of "equal rights for all civilized men, +irrespective of colour"? How are the mighty fallen! + +But while we sing the funeral dirge of Cape ideals, the Republicans +sing songs of gladness. Thus, when Mr. Sauer, a noted disciple +of the late Mr. Saul Solomon, died, the `Bloemfontein Friend', +the leading Ministerial daily of the "Free" State, said: + +== +He stood uncompromisingly for Rhodes's ideal of complete equality, +and it was an open secret that Mr. Sauer, who piloted the Natives' Land Act +through Parliament last session, would, had circumstances been different, +have been its strongest opponent. It was the irony of fate that made him +Minister of Native Affairs when a law had to be passed which appeared to be +in entire conflict with his cherished lifelong convictions. +The Act he passed embodied the hated northern principles which +he had consistently opposed during the whole of his political career, and, +as in the case of the Act of Union, it was only Mr. Sauer's influence that +allayed the feelings of the intransigent section of the native population. + +Mr. Sauer was a convinced disciple of the teachings of Saul Solomon, +who founded and preached the gospel of the Cape native policy. +In our view that was a mistaken policy. Its principal modern exponent has now +been taken away, and if God, and not man, shapes the destinies of nations, +we may be pardoned the belief that Mr. Sauer's death at this juncture +means something more than the mere passing from the finite into the infinite +of one human being. +== + +If this is a brutal utterance, it is at any rate more frank, +and therefore more manly, than the vacillating policy of the `Cape Times', +the Ministerial organ of the Cape Colony. It is said that "politics +make strange bed-fellows", but not even the shrewdest of our political seers +could have predicted that in 1913 the `Cape Times' would be found +in the same camp as its Republican contemporaries which sing glees +over the demolished structure of Cape traditions, and over +the passing away of Victorian statesmen and the principles they stood for -- +Victorian principles, which the `Cape Times' of other days helped to build up +in another political camp! How are the mighty fallen! + + Dear lovely bowers of innocence and ease, + Seats of my youth when every sport could please, + How often have I loitered o'er thy green, + Where humble happiness endeared each scene! + + How often have I paused on every charm: + The shelter'd cot, the cultivated farm, + The never failing brook, the busy mill, + The decent church that topt the neighbouring hill, + + The hawthorn bush with seats beneath the shade + For talking age and whisp'ring lovers made! + How often have I blest the coming day, + When toil remitting lent its turn to play! + + And all the village train, from labour free, + Led up their sports beneath the spreading tree; + With bashful virgins' sidelong looks of love, + The matron's glance that would these looks reprove. + + These were thy charms, sweet Province, sports like these, + With sweet succession, taught e'en toil to please; + These round thy bowers their cheerful influence shed, + These were thy charms -- but all these charms are fled. + + Sweet smiling village, loveliest of the lawn, + Thy sports are fled and all thy charms withdrawn; + Amidst thy bowers the tyrant's hand is seen + And desolation saddens all thy green: + + And trembling, shrinking from the spoiler's hand, + Far, far away, thy children leave the land. + Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, + Where wealth accumulates and men decay. + +The Cape Native can thoroughly endorse these sentiments of Oliver Goldsmith, +which, however, compared with his own present lot, are mild in the extreme; +for it could not have been amid scenes of this description, +and with an outlook half as bad as ours, that the same author further sings: + + A time there was e'er England's grief began, + When every rood of ground maintain'd its man; + But times are alter'd: Trade's unfeeling train + Usurp the land and dispossess the swain. + + Those gentle hours that plenty bade to bloom, + Those calm desires that ask'd but little room, + Those graceful sports that grac'd the peaceful scene, + Liv'd in each look and brighten'd all the green, + These far departing seek a kinder shore, + And rural mirth and manners are no more. + + In all my wand'rings round this world of care, + In all my griefs -- and God has giv'n my share -- + I still had hopes my latest hours to crown, + Amidst these humble bowers to lay me down. + + + + +Chapter XIII Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, the Pioneer Native Pressman + + Egotists cannot converse; they talk to themselves only. + Alcott. + + + +There is issued in King Williamstown (Cape) `Imvo', the second oldest +newspaper published in any one of the South African native languages. +This paper formerly had a kind of monopoly in the field of native journalism, +and it deserved a wide reputation. In later years the `Izwi', +another native journal, appeared on the scene; and then +the King Williamstown pioneer could hardly hold its ground +against the new rival. The `Izwi', though somewhat too pronounced +against the traditional policy of the Dutch, appealed to a large section +mainly by reason of its Imperial sentiment. The result was that +Mr. Tengo-Jabavu's paper began to sink into difficulties and had to cast about +for a financial rescuer. Prominent supporters of the present Ministry +came to the rescue; three out of the ten members of the first Union Cabinet +became shareholders in the sinking `Imvo', so that the editor, +in a sense, cannot very well be blamed because his paper is native +only in language. However, we do not think that he does full justice +to his ministerial employers. + +God forbid that we should ever find that our mind had become +the property of some one other than ourselves; but should +such a misfortune ever overtake us, we should at least strive +to serve our new proprietor diligently, and whenever our people +are unanimously opposed to a policy, we should consider it a part of our duty +to tell him so; but that is not Mr. Jabavu's way of serving a master. +Throughout the course of a general election, we have known him +to feed his masters (the S.A. party), upon flapdoodle, +fabricating the mess out of imaginary native votes of confidence +for his masters' delectation, and leaving them to discover +the real ingredients of the dish, at the bottom of the poll, +when the result has been declared. + +He did the same thing in the case of the Natives' Land Bill. +Thus when he found that the trouble was organizing the Natives +on an unprecedented scale, and that the Native Press and the Native Congress +were unanimous in denouncing the Grobler-Sauer Bill, +a Reuter's telegram appeared in the newspapers purporting to give +the proceedings of a meeting of the Natives of King Williamstown, +who, it was alleged, approved of the Bill. When the author reached +King Williamstown, during this visit, he found the King Williamstown Natives +disgusted with what they said was Reuter's speculation upon their feelings. +But Reuter's agent on the spot, whose office we also visited, +knew nothing about the meeting. The only meeting ever held in the place, +we were told, was one of nineteen persons presided over by Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, +and when Mr. Jabavu asked the other eighteen Natives present in the meeting +besides him to signify their approval of the legislation, +Mr. W. D. Soga (a well-known native politician) asked the chairman +to place a motion before the meeting, as he was ready to move an amendment. +The temper of the meeting having already shown itself unfavourably +to the chairman's suggestion, the latter, instead of challenging +a positive defeat, suggested an adjournment. This was agreed to +for the simple reason that nineteen persons were too few +to express the wishes of the 100,000 Natives of King Williamstown. +But, the next morning, the message "from Reuter's agent at King Williamstown" +appeared in all the daily papers, except that of King Williamstown, +conveying the Natives' approval of the Bill, and Mr. Sauer, in Parliament, +made capital out of the "mess"-age. But Mr. Tengo-Jabavu lived +to rue his action in this matter before very long. His authority, +or rather his leadership, of the Natives, was put to the test in March, 1914, +when he contested the Tembuland seat against Dr. W. B. Rubusana. +Dr. Rubusana had always been supposed to occupy the second place, +and Mr. Jabavu the first place, in the estimation of the Natives +of the Cape Province: yet, to the surprise of everybody, +Mr. Jabavu, although assisted by the Dutch vote, polled only 294 votes, +while Dr. Rubusana, who relied entirely on the coloured vote, polled 852. + +We mentioned, in a previous chapter, the names of Principal Henderson +and Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, as those whom we especially desired to interview +during our trip. Having stated the fulfilment of this desire +in regard to Mr. Henderson, we now proceed to state it +in regard to Mr. Jabavu. + +There was to be a meeting of the Natives of King Williamstown, +in the Baptist Chapel, on November 3, 1913, to discuss the Natives' Land Act. +To this meeting we had been invited by telegram; and in going +to King Williamstown we made up our mind to invite Mr. Jabavu +to this meeting of Natives of his town, and in fact, to treat him +with the same respect as we had shown the Principal of Lovedale +with such happy results; but, to our horror, we found that Mr. Jabavu +was not only preaching the Backvelders' dangerous politics, that were ruinous +to native interests, but that, besides their dangerous politics, +he had imbibed their baser quality of ingratitude. For this man +had not only enjoyed our free hospitality on three occasions, +when he visited up-country, and the hospitality of our relatives +at various times in other parts, but when he was about to leave for Europe, +on a holiday jaunt, and wanted some one to take charge of his work, +we left our own affairs and went to King Williamstown, at our own expense, +to fill that post, and we filled it without a fee; but, see his retaliation. + +We reached King Williamstown on Saturday evening and called +at Mr. Jabavu's house on Sunday afternoon. Mrs. Jabavu said her husband +had gone to Stutterheim, and would be back by a late train. On Monday morning +we called at Mr. Jabavu's office, and his son whom we saw said his father +would be there in the afternoon. We called in the afternoon and was told +that he was inside and would see us later. We waited from 2.30 +till nearly 4 p.m., chatting with his son, while Mr. Jabavu was closeted +in the next room, evidently unwilling to see us. As his son had to leave, +we also went away, but returned to his office at 6 p.m., just an hour before +the opening of the public meeting to which we wished to invite him. +Mr. Jabavu sent a verbal message, with the young lady who had taken in +our card to him, to the effect that he was not prepared to see us. +That in brief was our reception by the man who edits "a native paper". + +We went to the meeting at the Baptist Chapel, which was a huge success. +Mr. W. Sebe presided. The editor of the King Williamstown daily paper, +an Englishman, attended the meeting in person and took notes for his paper, +while no reporter represented the soi-disant native paper +of King Williamstown. + +When the proceedings of the meeting appeared in the King Williamstown +English paper, Mr. Jabavu attempted to discount the report by writing +in his own paper that "the `Cape Mercury' evidently does not know that there +are Natives and Natives, as well as King Williamstown and King Williamstown, +there being town and country," etc. This being a veiled insinuation +that the rural native view was opposed to the urban native view +at King Williamstown, we could not leave the matter unchallenged, +so we posted the following challenge to Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, which he evidently +found it impossible to accept: -- + +== +Dear Sir, -- + +`Imvo' comments disparagingly on Monday's meeting, and adds that +the Natives who composed the meeting were a handful drawn by curiosity. +Now, I challenge `Imvo', or Mr. Tengo-Jabavu, to call a series +of three public meetings, anywhere in the district of King Williamstown. +Let us both address these meetings immediately after the Natives' Land Act +has been read and interpreted to each. We could address the meetings from +the same platform, or separately, but on the same day and at the same place. +For every vote carried at each of these meetings in favour of his views +on the Act I undertake to hand over 15 Pounds to the Grey Hospital +(King Williamstown), and 15 Pounds to the Victoria Hospital (Lovedale), +on condition that for every vote I carry at any of the meetings, +he hand over 15 Pounds to the Victoria Hospital (Mafeking), +and 15 Pounds to the Carnarvon Hospital (Kimberley). + +That is 30 Pounds for charity, if he will accept. + +I will not place difficulties in his way by inviting him to meetings up here, +but leave him to call meetings among his own people (if he has any) +in his own district, and I will attend at my own expense. + + Yours, etc. + (Sgd.) Sol. T. Plaatje, + Editor of `Tsala ea Batho', and Secretary S.A. Native National Congress. +14, Shannon Street, Kimberley. +== + +== + "IMVO'S" REPLY + +Dear Sir, -- I am instructed by the Editor of "Imvo" to acknowledge +the receipt of your letter, and to inform you that as he has not been +reading and following your writings, etc., he cannot understand +what you mean by it. In short, to let you know that he takes no interest +in the matter. + + I am, Sir, + Yours truly, + (Sgd.) A. M. Jabavu. +"Imvo" Office, King Williamstown, + November 24, 1913. +== + +Poor fellow! He had not met a single member of the Government +since the plague law was so rudely sprung upon an unsuspecting country, +and since it sent unprotected widows and innocent children adrift, +to wander about with their belongings on their heads. +Mr. Jabavu had not met any member of Parliament and discussed the measure +with him or with a responsible Government official; so he found it awkward +to accept a challenge to substantiate his arguments, in the presence of one +who had not only discussed the measure with members of Parliament, +with Cabinet Ministers and their representatives, but who had also witnessed +the ravages of the Act amongst the Natives in the country. + +The general complaint of the Natives of King Williamstown, +his fellow-townsmen, is that he refuses to attend their meetings and relies +on the white daily papers for information about the Natives at large. + +But Mr. Jabavu is nothing if he is not selfish. We are informed, +and have every reason to believe, that, three months after the Act was passed, +he wanted to raise a loan of 200 Pounds on landed security, +but was debarred by the Natives' Land Act. The next issue of his paper +praised the Act for the sixtieth time and noted the following exception: +"There is only one flaw in this otherwise useful Act, +which is occasioning a manifest hardship through harsh administration, +and that is the provision relating to lending money." + +Now, from our point of view, this seems to be the only defensible provision, +as it would tend to discourage usury, a common evil in money transactions +between Europeans and Natives; but because it interfered +with Mr. Jabavu's personal aims, that is the only flaw. +The cold-blooded evictions and the Draconian principle +against living anywhere, except as serfs, are inconsequential +because they have not yet touched Mr. Jabavu's person. + + + + +Chapter XIV The Native Congress and the Union Government + + Pity and need make all flesh kin. There is no caste in blood + which runneth of one hue; nor caste in tears, which trickle salt with all. + Sir Edwin Arnold. + + + +A native meeting was called to meet at Johannesburg on July 25, 1913, +under the auspices of the South African Native Congress. + +The Congress was attended by Natives from as far south +as East London and King Williamstown, and from as far north +as the Zoutpansbergen in Northern Transvaal, and also from Natal, Zululand, +and from Bechuanaland; in fact from nearer and distant centres +in all parts of the country they had gathered to discuss +the situation arising from the serious conditions created +by the Natives' Land Act. Thus the proceedings of the meeting +were conducted under a grave sense of responsibility. +There was little of the customary loquaciousness which characterizes +native gatherings; and there was much less free translation of the speeches +for the benefit of the European visitors. Translations, as a rule, +take up a great deal of valuable time, and it was their curtailment +on this occasion, apparently, which caused the `Transvaal Leader' +-- a morning paper of the Rand -- to complain that Natives +had become unusually secretive and had ceased to be as communicative +as at previous meetings. The `Rand Daily Mail', on the other hand, +referred to the closing session in a very few lines. It said: +"Last evening, a number of Native women attended the Native Congress, +attired as befitting the solemnity and importance of the occasion. +The orderly behaviour of the 200 or more delegates was attributable +to the presence on the platform of Mr. Dube, an able chairman, +supported by two native solicitors who passed their B.A. in London." + +Mr. R. W. Msimang is a solicitor who was articled to +a firm of solicitors in England; but the reference to +the second "native solicitor" and "London B.A." is about +the most undeserved compliment ever paid to the author, +who, until 1914 (a year after the Congress reported by the `Mail'), +had never been on board a ship, nor inside a London college. + +At the annual Congress, March, 1913, a deputation had been appointed +to proceed to Capetown and to present to the Government the native objections +against the proposed embargo on the purchase and lease of land. +The deputation consisted of Mr. J. L. Dube, Dr. W. B. Rubusana, +Mr. Advocate Mangena, Rev. L. Dlepu, Messrs. W. Z. Fenyang, S. Msane, +L. T. Mvabaza, D. Le Tanka, and S. T. Plaatje; the writer, however, +was not able to proceed to Capetown at the time. The July Congress +was specially called to receive the report of the delegates to Capetown, +and further to consider what other steps it might be necessary to take. + +Dr. Rubusana gave a report on the deputation to Capetown. They had +four interviews with the Minister of Native Affairs, and several interviews +with members of Parliament, urging the setting aside of some Government farms, +to which evicted native tenants might go, as the effect of the Bill, +then under discussion, would inevitably be to make numbers of them homeless. +The Minister, he said, never denied the possible hardship +that would follow the enforcement of such a law, but he seemed to be driven +by a mysterious force in the face of which the native interest did not count. +What that force was, he said, could only be surmised. General Hertzog, +who had always advocated some such measure (though he had never been able +to carry it out), had just been excluded from the Botha Cabinet; +to placate his supporters, who were very angry over his dismissal, +the Government carried out this alleged policy of his, +so that while General Hertzog in office was not able to bring about +the enslavement of the blacks, General Hertzog out of office succeeded +in getting the Government to sacrifice their principles of right and justice +and to force the Act through Parliament, in order to retain +the support of the "Free" State malcontents. + +When every effort with the Ministry failed, the delegates asked +for a postponement of the Bill pending the report of the Commission. +This also was refused by the Government. Finally he wrote a letter +to Lord Gladstone, asking him to withhold his assent to the Bill +until he had heard the native view. To this His Excellency replied +that such a course was "not within his constitutional functions". +All this took place in May, 1913. + +In July, Mr. Dube, the president of the Congress, wrote to Lord Gladstone +asking for an interview to lay before him the nature of the damage +that the Act was causing among the native population. Again His Excellency +replied that it was "not within his constitutional functions". + +The Natives' Land Act, which was then law, was read to the assembled Natives, +most of whom narrated their experiences and the result of their observations +of the effect of the Act during the six weeks that it had been in force. +Congress considered these, and as a result of their deliberations +it was resolved to appeal to His Majesty's Government; and also to take steps +to apprise the British public of the mode of government carried on +in British South Africa under the Union Jack, and to invoke their assistance +to abrogate the obnoxious law that had brought the Congress together. + +The Congress considered at length how His Majesty the King +and the British public could best help the Natives in these matters; +and it was concluded that if South Africa were really British, +then any suffering taking place in that country must be of concern +to His Majesty the King and the British public. The next point +for inquiry by the Congress was the journey of a deputation to be chosen +to proceed on this mission, a journey consisting of six thousand miles by sea +and a thousand miles by rail. When the Europeans of South Africa +went to England to ask the Imperial Government for a Constitution, +their delegates were easily sent, because the native taxpayers, +although with hardly any hope of benefiting by the gift +-- which amounted to a curtailment of their rights -- were compelled +to contribute to the travelling and other expenses of these envoys; +but in the Natives' own case no such funds are at his disposal, +even though he goes to the Imperial Government to point out +that his taxes had been used by a Parliament in which he is unrepresented +as a rod for his back. In order to meet this necessary demand for +ways and means, Mr. Msane was deputed to tour the country and ask for funds +from the Natives. A Johannesburg committee was appointed +to superintend this effort and take charge of the funds which he might raise. +The members of the said committee were: Messrs. W. F. Jemsana (chairman), +Elka M. Cele (treasurer), D. S. Letanka, R. W. Msimang, H. D. Mkize, +B. G. Phooko, D. D. Tywakadi, D. Moeletsi, M. D. Ndabezita, +H. Selby Msimang (hon. sec.), S. Msane (organizer). Finally a deputation +was appointed to proceed to Pretoria to lay before the Union Government +three resolutions that the Congress passed. The first, +condoling with the Government on the death of Hon. J. W. Sauer, +late Minister of Justice and Native Affairs, who died just as the Congress +was about to meet; the second resolution, that the Natives +dissociated themselves entirely from the industrial struggles +on the Witwatersrand and elsewhere, and preferred to seek redress +for their grievances through constitutional rather than by violent means. + +The third resolution, that humble representations to the authorities against +the eviction of Natives from farms, having proved unavailing, the Natives +had now decided to raise funds for the purpose and convey their appeal +to His Majesty the King and to the British public. That Mr. Msane +had been appointed organizer of the appeal fund and that a safe conduct +was requested for him to tour the native villages. The following deputation +was appointed to present these resolutions to the Union Government +at Pretoria: Chief Karl Kekana and Mr. S. M. Makgatho of the Transvaal, +Mr. E. Mamba of the Transkei (Cape), Mr. Saul Msane and Rev. R. Twala (Natal), +Mr. S. T. Plaatje (Kimberley), and Mr. J. M. Nyokong +of the Orange "Free" State. + +Mr. S. F. Malan, the Minister for Native Affairs pro tem. +received the deputation in the Government Buildings, +which were the Transvaal Houses of Parliament before Union. +With the Minister of Native Affairs were Messrs. E. Barrett, +Assistant Secretary for Native Affairs, Mr. Pritchard, +the Johannesburg Commissioner, and Mr. Cross, a Rand Magistrate. +The Minister readily received the resolutions and confessed to +a feeling of relief at the moderation of their tone. Further, +he listened to the story of hardships already suffered by the Natives, +as a result of the enforcement of the Land Act, specific instances of which +were given, some being of Natives not far from Pretoria, +who, after being evicted from their old homes and having found new homes, +were told by the Commissioner that they could not settle therein. + +The delegates submitted to the Minister that their complaint +was not a sentimental grievance, but real physical suffering. +The Minister having listened to these statements, pointed out +that this Act was the law of the land, which must be obeyed. +He was not so sure, he said, that the Natives could achieve anything +by means of a deputation to England as the law had already been signed +by His Majesty's representative on the spot without hesitation. +He could not see why the Natives should be interfered with +when holding meetings and organizing a deputation to go to the King, +as long as they kept within the four corners of the law. But it seemed to him +that they should have waited until a commission had been appointed +under Sections 2 and 3 of the Act. An appeal to the Sovereign, he added, +was the inherent right of every British subject; but he expressed the desire +that the appeal to England should be dropped until the commission +had first made its report. The delegates explained that as the law +had in six weeks done so much harm, it was alarming to think +what it might do in six months, while there was nothing definite to hope for +from the report of a commission not yet appointed, and whose report +might conceivably take six years. + +The deputation made it clear that the appeal to the King +would be dropped if the Government undertook to amend the law +pending the report of the commission. + + + THE NATIVES' LAND ACT IN NATAL + +In the following months both the Minister in charge of Native Affairs +and the Chief Native Commissioner of Natal asked Rev. John L. Dube, +President of the S.A. Native National Congress, to furnish them +with information and particulars of Natives in misery +as a result of the Natives' Land Act. Mr. Dube had been collecting +some concrete cases of hardship, including Chief Sandanazwe of Evansdale, +Waschbank, who stated that he and fifty members of his tribe +"are given notice to remove, and that he has made representations +to the authorities in Maritzburg asking for land without success." + +Mr. Dube sent the following letter to the Secretary for Native Affairs, +with a list of evicted farm tenants, on September 12, 1913. + +== +Sir, -- + +The Chief Native Commissioner for Natal approached me +shortly after the publication in the Press of my open letter* +with a request similar to that made by you, viz., that I should furnish him +with particulars and information. From time to time +I did so furnish those names to the Chief Commissioner, +and I send you herewith a list of those names and also additional names +which have come to my knowledge since my correspondence +with the Chief Native Commissioner. + +-- +* Mr. Dube was here referring to an open letter which he sent + to the `Natal Press', explaining the hard lot of the Native victims + of the Act, and appealing to the colonists to intercede + with the South African Government on behalf of the sufferers. +-- + +In regard to the concluding paragraph of your letter to the effect +that the only result of the Chief Native Commissioner's request +was the submission of the case of a Native in the Weenen County +who received notice from his landlord over a year ago, +you must be misinformed. As you will see from the list, +scores of names were furnished to the Native Commissioner, and furthermore, +some of the individuals themselves who were suffering hardship +were sent by me to the Chief Commissioner and were interviewed by him. +The trouble has been that the Chief Commissioner, instead of dealing +with these individual cases himself, has, I am informed, in many instances, +sent the individuals on to the Magistrates, and my letters also +have been forwarded to the Magistrates, with the request that Magistrates +would go into the matter. However anxious the Magistrates may be +to help in this matter they are but human, and in many cases, +I am informed, they are overweighed with other work and have been unable +to give the attention to these matters that they required. +Moreover the Magistrate acts purely as an official, and the Native +who is wandering about the country helpless does not get +the immediate sympathy and attention which his case deserves and demands. +In many cases the individuals I sent on are under the impression, +rightly or wrongly, that nothing is being done for their relief. + +If I might make a suggestion, it would be that some independent gentleman +should be appointed to investigate these cases -- some gentleman +who would have sufficient time to devote to the investigation +of the various instances of hardship that would come before him, +and who would be empowered to do what was necessary to relieve the deserving. + +I may say further that since the introduction of the Squatters Bill +during the 1912 session of Parliament eviction by farmers has been +much increased, possibly in view of the impression that prevailed generally +among the farming community that the Squatters Bill or some similar measure +was to be re-introduced by the Government, the result being that those Natives +who had been evicted by farmers now the Natives' Land Bill has become law, +are prevented from entering into agreements with land owners +as rent-paying tenants, and only under servile conditions, with the result +that in many cases they become wandering and helpless vagrants. + +Another form of hardship which prevails very generally +as the result of the Natives' Land Act is this: The younger Natives +do not receive the wage from farmers as can be easily earned, +say, on the Rand mines, with the result that the younger men +leave their homes and their fathers and proceed to the mines; +the father is unable to supply the labour demanded by the landlord +owing to the absence of his sons, and as a result he is evicted -- +many cases of this sort can be cited. + +I may here cite two cases within my personal knowledge: +(1) Bhulose was living on Mr. R. Miller's farm, "Dalmeny", +near Phoenix. He was evicted with his wife and family in June last. +He is seeking a place now to reside on, but cannot obtain one. +(2) A native woman Vatplank, a widow with a family, was evicted +from the property of a farmer, Mr. Adendorff, near Newcastle; this woman +with all her household goods and her family had to camp out on the veld. +She was barred by the Act from going to neighbouring farmers for a residence. + +I have done my utmost to give you concrete examples and names of persons +suffering hardship. If I can supplement the information +contained in this letter and in the accompanying list I shall only be +too happy to do so. + +Might I suggest further that you should ask the Chief Native Commissioner +to forward to you all my correspondence with him on this matter? +This will show you and the Government that the statements contained +in my open letter are not mere fabrications, but are based upon solid facts. + + John L. Dube. +== + +Mr. Dube's list includes evictions from the districts of Greytown, +New Hanover, Ekukanyeni, Homeless (a very appropriate name +in the circumstances), Howick, Estcourt, and Mid-Illovu. + +Here is a specimen of notice: -- + +== +I hereby give you Mandwasi notice to leave my farm Blinkwater +by the end of July, 1913. + + (Sgd.) + July 20, 1913. Freestone Ridge. +== + +"The wheels of administration moved slowly" (to borrow an official phrase) +between the Native Affairs Department and the other departments of State. +Thus, while the authorities were temporizing with this +and similar representations, the Natives' Land Act was scattering the Natives +about the country, creating alarm and panic in different places. +The high officials of State, instead of relieving the distress thus caused, +were interviewing Natives and urging them not to send a deputation to Europe. +The Natives received this advice hopefully. They believed +it was an indication that the Government was about to amend the law, +in which case, of course, the deputation would be unnecessary; +but, besides this advice, the officials in each instance promised no relief. + +The Natal Native Commissioner held a similar meeting with a number of Zulus. +The meeting asked for some relief for the evicted tenants +who were roaming about the country, but the official significantly +evaded the point. The disappointment of the meeting, created by +his evasive replies, having overcome the proverbial native timidity +when in the presence of authority, resulted in one petty chief +saying to the Commissioner: "Local authorities levy a tax every year +on each of our dogs. We don't know what they do with the money. +You have never complained against that waste, so why should you complain +if our money is spent in sending a deputation to the King?" The answer, +if there was one, is not reported. + +General Botha, until then, never met native tax-payers +to discuss their grievances with them. But in the latter part of 1913, +he actually met some Natives in the Eastern Transvaal, who desired +to inform him of the ravages of the Act. But instead of holding out any hope +that an asylum would be found for the wanderers, he proceeded +to advise them against sending a deputation to England. The Natives +having given specific instances of the plight of certain evicted tenants +in the neighbourhood, asked for an abode for them, but on that point +the Premier would not be drawn. The Government's indifference +to native sufferings being thus revealed, the Natives of Vryheid +became more eager to help to organize the proposed deputation. + +General Botha's efforts against the deputation, without offering any homes +to the evicted Natives, was probably the best stimulus +towards the deputation fund. The Premier visited a northern tribe +some time after and was said to have warned the chief and his people +against the pretensions of the Native Congress. When Mr. Dube called there +a few days later, they handed him 200 Pounds towards the deputation fund, +which they had collected since General Botha's visit. Mr. Saul Msane +similarly raised 360 Pounds for the fund in the Eastern Transvaal +where the Premier first warned the Natives against the deputation +without offering them any relief. + +Those Natives who were not immediately affected by the Act +were rather lukewarm regarding the proposed deputation. +But when the officials warned them against wasting their money on a deputation +and told them in the next breath that it was a breach of the law +to find an abode for the evicted wanderers, these Natives, +perceiving the hollowness of the Government's advice, +determined that as a last resort a deputation should be sent to England. + + + + +Chapter XV The Kimberley Congress / The Kimberley Conference + + Sorrow like this draws parted lives in one, and knits anew the rents + which time has made. + Lewis Morris. + + + +When everything was ready another special Congress was called +to meet at Johannesburg in February, to carry out the deputation's scheme +and appoint the delegates to proceed to England. In view of +the dissatisfaction of the Government after the July Congress, +the author considered it his duty to inform the Government +that a meeting was about to take place. This information +called forth a peremptory intimation from the Government +that because of the recent strike of white men (from which the Natives +had publicly disassociated themselves) the Native Congress could not be held. +But at the time that this telegraphic prohibition reached us +General Smuts, Minister of Defence, was announcing in Parliament that +the embargo on public meetings, in areas where, owing to the recent strike +(of January, 1914), martial law was proclaimed, had been removed. +Logically then General Botha's decision made the previous day +in regard to the Congress meeting fell to the ground; and so we telegraphed +to Senator Schreiner and Dr. Watkins, members of Parliament, +to ascertain if this was so. Both these gentlemen answered +that in spite of the removal of the prohibition of public meetings of whites, +the Prime Minister directs that the one in regard to the "Native Congress" +must stand. Thereupon the writer, after consulting a few native residents +in Kimberley, intimated to the executive of the Congress that: + +== +Kimberley, my home, is not yet a Republic in its sentiments. +There we have not reached the stage where some one's permission +must be asked before a meeting can be held. So we invite the Congress +to hospitable and British Kimberley, where public meetings close +with singing the British National Anthem and not with singing +the "Volkslied" or the "Red Flag", as is the case in meetings +at some other South African centres. +== + +After the notices were out the Government sent an intimation to the effect +that the Congress was not actually prohibited. That it was only deemed +undesirable to allow it to be held at Johannesburg, where a strike +had taken place; and that even there the Government no longer objected, +provided it be held indoors. But this belated reconsideration was unnecessary +as the Kimberley preparations were far advanced and some of the delegates +were already on their way to Kimberley. + +The Congress was opened in St. John's Hall at 10 a.m. on +Friday morning, February 27, 1914, by the Rt. Rev. W. Gore-Browne, +Bishop of Kimberley and Kuruman. His lordship was accompanied +by Archdeacon de Rougemont and Rev. I. I. Hlangwana of St. Paul's Mission, +who gave out the native hymns. In the absence of the president, +who reached Kimberley in the afternoon of that day, the Bishop +was received by Mr. Makgatho, vice-president of the Congress. +After the religious exercise had ended, the Bishop counselled the Congress +not to ask for a repeal of the whole Act, but only for relief +from the oppressive clauses, and then to wait for the Commission's report +in regard to the remainder of the Act. "There may be something good in it," +added the Bishop, "as the glittering diamonds of Kimberley are found +in blue clay." + +Mr. Makgatho, in thanking the Bishop for opening the Congress, thanked him +for the allegory, but added, however, that he had never heard of a father +who said to his child, "You are hungry, my son, and I am going +to prepare some dinner for you, but meanwhile you had better wait outside +in the rain." After the Bishop gave the Congress his benediction, +Prince Malunge-Ka-Mban-deni of Swaziland was introduced to him, +as were the Chiefs Molotlegi and Mamogale of Transvaal, +Moiloa of the Bahurutshe, and Messrs. Elka M. Cele of Natal, +Meshach Pelem from the Cape, J. M. Nyokong, S. Litheko of the O.F.S., +and other native leaders. + +In the evening a large public reception was held in the City Hall +in honour of the delegates. Kimberley joined wholeheartedly in the function. +De Beers Company, which had hitherto shown the greatest hospitality +only to European assemblies and not to native conferences and organizations, +acted otherwise in the case of this Congress and its requirements. +Presumably Mr. Pickering, the secretary of De Beers, had had information +that even the mining labourers in the enclosed mining compounds were +heart and soul with their countrymen outside; and so the Company's hospitality +was extended to the native delegates. + +Bioscope films were projected by Mr. I. Joshua, the chairman of the A.P.O., +Messrs. Lakey and September, other A.P.O. committee men, acting as +masters of ceremonies. The coloured people attended in their hundreds, +and cheered the musicians of their native brethren who entertained the people +who thronged the City Hall till many were refused admission. +The Coloured People's Organization sent a speaker, Mr. H. Van Rooyen, +to welcome the delegates on behalf of the African Political Organization. +The president of their Ladies' Guild, Mrs. Van der Riet, +a school teacher and musician of long standing, attended and played +the accompaniment for the Greenport Choir on the pianoforte; +Miss M. Ntsiko, who had borne the brunt of the evening's accompaniment, +was thus relieved. + +Mr. Joseph Kokozela, on behalf of the Kimberley and Beaconsfield +branches of the Congress, welcomed the Congress to Kimberley, +and presented Mr. Dube, the president, with an address, +which was beautifully illuminated by the Sisters of St. Joseph Convent, +of Mafeking. Mr. H. Van Rooyen associated his people with the Natives +in their present struggle for existence, and Dr. J. E. Mackenzie, +who spoke on behalf of the Europeans, made a fine speech. +He said that nobility was not confined to any particular race or colour; +that men with black skins have been known to be just as noble +as men with white skins. Amongst other questions he asked, +"What could be more noble than the Bedford boy leader who subsequently became +the St. Augustine of Central Africa, or what could be more noble +than the action of the two servants of Dr. Livingstone, who carried his body, +for hundreds of miles, through difficult forests, to the coast, +and thus ensured his burial in Westminster Abbey?" + +Dr. Mackenzie's speech was afterwards referred to by several native delegates +to the Congress. They said that before they came to Kimberley +they felt certain that English ideas were utterly obliterated +in the Union of South Africa, and that English sentiments +were things of the past; but that Dr. Mackenzie's speech had given them +fresh hope, as it was like cold water to a traveller in the desert. +It was, they said further, like a dream to hear a white man talk like that +in a mixed audience. + +The Congress received sympathetic telegrams from such +old residents of Kimberley as Sir David Harris and Dr. Watkins. +Both these gentlemen telegraphed their felicitations from Parliament. + +Mr. H. A. Oliver, member for Kimberley, a great Wesleyan +and Sunday School leader, who was at Capetown for the Parliamentary session, +instructed his manager at Kimberley to book seats on his account +for the senior classes of the Newton Wesleyan Sunday School +to attend the Congress entertainment. + +The Resident Magistrate of Kimberley telephoned to us on this same day +that he had received the following telegram from the Secretary +for Native Affairs: -- + +"LEAVING TO-NIGHT FOR KIMBERLEY TO ATTEND THE NATIVE CONGRESS. +INFORM PLAATJE." + +It had never previously happened that a representative of the Government +attended a coloured political assembly, and it was felt +that wiser councils had prevailed with the Government, +and that as a result it had decided to meet the Natives, at least half-way. +If gambling was one of the indulgences of the Natives, +some at least of the delegates would have wagered that Mr. Dower +was conveying a concession to the Native Congress, by which +it would be unnecessary for the latter to send a deputation to England. +So thoroughly was the idea of a concession associated +in the mind of the Congress with the approaching visit of Mr. Dower +that it postponed the election of delegates for the mission to England. +This anticipation was a reasonable one as the Union's recent legislation +was in the melting-pot. + +The law against British Indians, passed at the same time +as the Natives' Land Act, was just then recommended for modification, +under pressure brought to bear upon the Imperial Government +by the Government of India and other agencies. Again, the Labour members +were creating difficulties both at Capetown and Westminster +over General Smuts's Deportation Bill, which compelled the Government +to amend its conditional banishment clause -- a hardship that was not +as vital or as absolute as the banishment clauses against black tenants +in the Natives' Land Act. Consequently, the native delegates to Congress, +representing as they did an overwhelming majority of the inhabitants +of South Africa -- a section that had received nothing but violent legislation +from the South African Parliament since the inauguration of Union -- +had every reason to expect that, for the first time, +a Government emissary was carrying an olive branch to the Natives; +but, alas! unlike the industrial strikers, the Natives had no votes +to create a constitutional difficulty; unlike the British Indians, they have +no Indian Government at their back; therefore, their vital interests, +being negligible, could comfortably be relegated to the regions of oblivion, +and this hope, like all its predecessors, was falsified. + +Mr. Dower attended the Congress on Saturday, February 28, +and again on Monday, March 2, and made speeches. + +He was profuse in expressions of the gratitude of the Government +to the Natives, their leaders and their chiefs, for the loyal co-operation +they have always rendered the authorities, and he came to ask them, +he said, to perpetuate that loyal co-operation and to refrain +from appealing to Great Britain on the Natives' Land Act. +To appeal would be to put back the clock of the Native Affairs Department +for many years. Of course, it did not matter about +the putting back of the Natives' own clock, since its only use +is that of an index for the registration of Government taxes, +municipal pass fees at one shilling or more per month per Native, +and similar phases of the black man's burden. Thus, in answer to questions +put by the members of the Congress, Mr. Dower was not able to say +that one iota of the provisions of that Draconian law would be modified +before the Commission made its report, nor could he give a pledge +in the name of the Government that if the Commission reported +favourably to the Natives, Parliament would carry into effect +the Commission's report, even though the pledge sought +took no account of the possibility of the Commission's report being hostile +to the interests of the Natives. This then was the character of the visit +which the Government Secretary paid to the Native Congress. +It was entirely barren of results, and as such it left the Congress +as it found it, in bewilderment and gloom. + +Fresh fears took hold of the Congress. When the commissioners' names +were gazetted, they were not received with any great amount of enthusiasm +by the native population, for the best that could be thought +of the Natives' Land Commissioners was that they were not associated +with any political party. With such a view, it can be understood +what were the feelings of the Congress when it thereafter learnt +that four of the five commissioners were present, as delegates, +at the conference of the Ministerial party held at Capetown two months before +(the conference at which Generals Hertzog and De Wet definitely severed +their connexion with General Botha), nor was there anything to show +that the fifth commissioner was not there also. Therefore, the situation +amounted to this, that this Land Commission, which should be +composed of impartial members, or, if made up of party politicians, +it should at any rate represent the three political parties +as well as the Natives, was in reality but a branch of the Ministerial party +which foisted this very Land Act upon the country. + +It was finally resolved to appoint a deputation of five +to accompany the president, Mr. Dube, to England if further efforts failed. +The Congress nominated nine names, and the election of five delegates +from these was entrusted to a committee of fourteen members of the Congress, +who balloted for five and reported the result to the full Congress +as follows: -- + + S. T. Plaatje 13 + S. M. Makgatho 9 + Saul Msane 6 + W. Z. Fenyang 3 + T. M. Mapikela 3 + Dr. W. B. Rubusana 2 + A. K. Soga 2 + M. Pellem 2 + Chief Mamogale 1 + +The first-named five were therefore declared elected. Mr. Fenyang +subsequently stood down in favour of Dr. Rubusana; Mr. Makgatho was not able +to reach Capetown in time for the steamer's departure, so the deputation +that eventually accompanied the president to England were: -- + + 1. Dr. Rubusana. + 2. S. T. Plaatje. + 3. Saul Msane. + 4. T. M. Mapikela. + +Their instructions were first to approach the Prime Minister and ask him +to undertake on behalf of his parliamentary majority to repeal +the Natives' Land Act, failing that, to endeavour at least +to get the clause rescinded which prevents evicted native tenants +from finding settlements anywhere except as servants, and that +if the Prime Minister should refuse to grant this request, they were forthwith +to appeal to the Imperial Parliament and the British public. + +It may be added that the Congress, before it rose, received telegraphic +advices from Mr. Gibson of the Cape Church Council, and also from +the Hon. W. P. Schreiner, not to appeal to England. These communications +encouraged the delegates to believe that intermediate relief was being +arranged for, to ameliorate the condition of the wandering evicted Natives, +in which case there would, of course, be no occasion to appeal to England. +But it subsequently transpired that the Natives were advised against +making an appeal to England without the offer of any relief. + +Before Congress rose votes of thanks were passed in favour of +the Bishop of Kimberley and Kuruman, the De Beers Company, +the `Diamond Fields Advertiser' for its liberal reports of the proceedings, +Mr. Dower for entertaining the delegates to a dinner on Monday, +and also to the residents of Kimberley. + +The special thanks of the Congress were voiced by Mr. Makgatho +to the various committees, whose strenuous efforts for +the comfort of the delegates left nothing to be desired. These were: -- + + COMMITTEES OF LOCAL BRANCHES + +KIMBERLEY. -- Messrs. Thos. Leeuw (chairman), S. Marogo (treasurer), +Bill Tshabalala, H. Ndlovu, Z. Jumane, A. R. Mashoko, T. Diniso (secretary). + +BEACONSFIELD. -- Messrs. J. Smith (chairman), W. January, +S. Pehla (treasurer), Jas. Ngcezula, Ntshenge, B. Mradu, +J. S. Kokozela (secretary). + +LOCAL ACCOMMODATION AND REFRESHMENTS COMMITTEE: Mesdames J. Smith, +S. Sidziya, M. Mahuma, S. Kawa, Mildred Kokozela and L. Skota; +Messrs. J. Chologi, J. Matsebe, S. Pehla, Soga, J. Ngcezula and A. Ntshoko. + +CITY HALL RECEPTION COMMITTEE: Mesdames J. J. van der Riet and M. Ntsiko; +Messrs. Isaac P. Joshua, Sidney Motlhabi, P. W. Mama, T. Diniso, +Tony Msengana and J. G. Motlhabi. + +An honorarium of 10 Pounds was voted in favour of the honorary secretary, +Mr. S. T. Plaatje. + +After the deputation reached Capetown on May 13, 1914, we wrote Lord Gladstone +informing him that we were bearers of a petition from the native population +to His Majesty the King, which we would ask His Excellency +to graciously convey. Of course we expected a short note from His Excellency +to the effect that "it was not within his constitutional functions" +to meet us, but to our surprise this time His Excellency wrote +appointing a meeting with us at noon on May 15 at Government House. +But, in the interview, the reason why that particular appointment +came within the pale of His Excellency's constitutional functions +became apparent: for the Governor-General only made it the opportunity +to urge the deputation not to go to England. + +The deputation replied that, even in native politics there was always +an appeal from the action of an induna to the native chief +and from the latter to the ruler; that it was straining the loyalty +of the black millions of South Africa to tell them that there was no appeal +to His Majesty the King against the oppressive laws of a Parliament +in which they had no representatives. + +It must be added that although the Governor-General did not say so, +yet the barbarous cruelties of this relentless law appeared to have produced +a sympathy that was visible in his facial expression. Astonishment and pity +were amongst the sensations which seemed to be depicted +on Lord Gladstone's face. Still, he held out no hope that his good offices +would be used to secure an amelioration of the conditions complained of. +All His Excellency advised us to do was to abandon the appeal to England. + +"But, your excellency, what about these cruelties that are now in progress?" +we asked. + +"Oh, well," said Lord Gladstone, "the Natives are not the only sufferers, +even in England people have suffered hardships from time to time, +till they were compelled to emigrate to America and other places." + +"That is true, your lordship, but it is to avert such a contingency, +if possible, that the Natives appointed a deputation to lay their case +before His Majesty the King, as they have no means to emigrate to America, +or any other country." + +"Oh, no," he answered, "don't misunderstand me; I only use that +as an instance, not that Natives must emigrate." + +The Governor-General then repeated the advice not to appeal to the Crown, +but he held out no hope of an amendment in the Act, and so the deputation +sailed for England. + +Previous to this interview, no less a personage than General Botha himself +-- Premier and Minister for Native Affairs -- condescended to meet +the deputation. Prior to this meeting, the deputation entertained +strong hopes that the Premier would come to it with an offer of, say, at least +allowing the hiring of land by Natives, pending the report of the Commission, +even though the prohibition to buy land remained in force. +But instead of such a minimum, the only hope that General Botha held out +was that he had not evicted the Natives on his own farm, +and that he had further told some farmers not to evict their Natives. +These personal acts of the Premier on his own farm, and with regard to +some other farmers, had not helped the entire native population of the Union +since the Act was promulgated. Nor would they assist those native wanderers +who are now without a home on earth, as General Botha himself +could not allow any of them to settle on his farm without breaking the law. +Again, it did not seem quite clear how General Botha's efforts +in this direction could make any impression on private landowners when +his own officials were carrying out wholesale evictions of native tenants, +on the Government farms at Standerton and elsewhere, and sending them adrift +about the country. The only remedy, and that a partial one, +would be to legalize the settlement of tenants who have been evicted. +But to this General Botha said, "If I went to Parliament now +with a Bill to amend this law they will think I'm mad." + +That statement confirmed the decision of the deputation to proceed to England, +and accordingly they at once made arrangements for sailing. + +One painful fact which these interviews revealed was +the ignorance of the Government in matters relating to the Natives. +The 5,000,000 blacks of the Union are taxed to maintain +what is called the most expensive Civil Service in the world. +The officials of the Native Affairs Department, in return for +their huge salaries, paid out of the proceeds of taxes levied from +relatively the most poorly paid manual labourers in the world, +namely, the Native taxpayers, are called "the guardians of the Natives"; +but General Botha, the Minister of Native Affairs, "Father of the Natives" +and supreme head of the Civil Service, seemed (or pretended) +to know absolutely nothing of the manner in which his official underlings +play battledore and shuttlecock with the interests of the Native population. +To mention but one instance: at one stage of the interview we attempted +to enlist his sympathy on behalf of the "Free" State Natives in particular, +who, in spite of prohibitive laws in the Boer statute books, +had not to our knowledge been debarred by the Boer Government +from buying or leasing land. General Botha not only denied that his was +the first Boer administration which definitely enforced these prohibitions +but he also asserted, with all the dignity of his office, +that no living Native had ever bought a farm in the "Free" State +from a white man -- in short he accused us of telling lies. +Fortunately Mr. E. Dower, who remembered that some Native landowners +in both the Hoopstad and Thaba Ncho districts of the "Free" State +had acquired their properties from white people under the Republican regime, +was present at the interview and he then bore out our statement: +thus on May 15, 1914, the Prime Minister and Minister of Native Affairs +heard for the first time in his life that there were some Natives +actually living in the "Free" State who pay him quit-rent on farms +which they had bought from white people under Republican rule. + +The assertion that "Free" State Natives lost nothing by the enforcement +of the Natives' Land Act is but one phase of the maze of ignorance +through which the Union Government is groping in a hopeless attempt +to discharge their trust to the native taxpayers. + +The co-operation of intelligent and responsible native taxpayers, +which could sweep away these administrative cobwebs of ignorance, +is always at the disposal of the Government if they deigned +to avail themselves of it; but they prefer, at enormous cost +to the taxpayers (including native taxpayers), to purchase +from the non-native section of the community arm-chair views +based largely on hearsay evidence, which is often tainted by colour prejudice. +Hence the shroud of ignorance which surrounds the native policy +of the Union of South Africa. + + + + +Chapter XVI The Appeal for Imperial Protection + + Of all the characters of cruelty, I consider that as the most odious + which assumes the garb of mercy. + Fox. + + + +On arrival in London the native delegates were received +by several friends, including Dr. Chas. Garnett, M.A., +of the Brotherhood League; Rev. Amos Burnet, of Transvaal, +introduced them to the Wesleyan Missionary Committee in session +at Bishopsgate; the Anti-Slavery and Aborigines Protection Society +communicated with the Colonial Office regarding an interview. +The Colonial Secretary agreed to see the deputation on condition +that they were accompanied by no one from the Society. + +When the native deputation reached England there were +a number of South African missionaries on furlough in England +who had taken part in Church meetings in Africa, of protest against the Act. +Some of these gentlemen had witnessed the cruel operations of the Act; +but the decision to receive the native delegates by themselves +meant that no such eyewitnesses as these could testify +to what they had seen of the working of the Act. + +In accordance with the time fixed for the interview, the deputation +duly waited upon the Secretary of State, whose reply was more fully given +in Parliament. At the interview he took notes on nothing, and asked +no questions. On every point he had "the assurance of General Botha" +to the contrary. + +No headway having been made with the Government, it was resolved upon +that the delegates should appeal to the British Parliament +and thence to the British public in terms of the native mandate. + +Later on Messrs. T. Buxton and J. H. Harris, the secretaries +of the A.S. and A.P.S., arranged a meeting for the delegates +to meet certain members of Parliament. The meeting took place +in No. 11 Committee Room of the House of Commons. The British peerage +was represented by Lords Emmott and H. Cavendish Bentinck. +After hearing the delegates and asking them questions, +the members of Parliament intimated that their decision would be +arrived at later in the absence of visitors. It must be mentioned here +that besides the above secretaries of the A.S. and A.P.S. there were also +present at this meeting a few sympathizers who were not members of Parliament. +They included Miss S. Colenso of Amersham, and the Rev. Dr. Howie of Stirling, +and Mrs. Howie, etc. + +By the kindness of Mr. and Mrs. Buxton, Mr. and Mrs. Cobden Unwin +(in conjunction with Mrs. Saul Solomon), Lady Scott of Westminster, +Mrs. S. J. Colenso of Amersham, and Mr. H. E. Wood, J.P., of Camberwell +(the latter being a prelude to a successful meeting of the delegates with +the Baptist Council of England), Sir Albert Spicer, M.P., and Lady Spicer, +and Mr. and Mrs. Harris of Dulwich, receptions -- some of them attended +by English and Colonial guests -- held at the residences of the friends named, +were given in honour of the delegates. + +== + IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS + +Mr. P. ALDEN: I wish to bring to the notice of the right hon. Gentleman +the question of the native lands in South Africa. I happen to have been +responsible for a Resolution passed unanimously in this House +previous to the passing of the Act of Union, and in the discussion +which took place on that occasion the Under-Secretary of State to the Colonies +laid it down as one of the duties of the Imperial Parliament +to protect in every possible way the interests of the Natives in their land, +and protect their rights and liberties in that respect. +If we take away the land from the Native we take away his liberty. +In reference to the Natives Land Act of 1913, I want to put +two or three points before the right hon. Gentleman. +In the Union of South Africa, blacks own about 4,500,000 morgen of land, +and the whites own fourteen times as much land as the blacks, +though, of course, they are very much smaller in number. The inequality +is very noticeable in the Transvaal, where there are 300,000 whites +holding 31,000,000 morgen of land, and the 1,000,000 Natives +only have 500,000 morgen of land which they can call their own. + +It has been said over and over again in South Africa that this law +applies equally to Europeans and whites as well as to the Natives. +There is, they say, no injustice. The European is estopped +from this purchase of land, just as the Native is estopped. +All I can say in answer to that is that the fallacy is shown +the moment you begin to ask what land the Natives have to sell. +The native areas are already overcrowded, and they positively have no land +which they could sell. When once a Native leaves his farm or is evicted, +or has to quit for any reason whatever, the Act does not allow him +to purchase, hire or to lease anywhere else for farming purposes +except from Natives, who have not the land to lease or to sell. +He therefore must become a servant on the farm. There is absolutely +nothing else for him to do but to become a servant. This Act has already +produced very great hardships. It has produced hardships to the people +who were under notice to quit at the time the Act was passed, +to the people who have actually since then been evicted from their farms, +to the Natives who were in search of land and who are wandering about +with their families and stock and have nowhere to settle, +and to the Natives who have had to leave their crops unreaped. +There are many hundreds of such cases of hardship which have been inflicted +under the Act which is being enforced on all sides. I do not wish to go +into this question at very great length, because the right hon. Gentleman +knows more about it than anybody in the House in all probability, +and he knows the difficulties of the situation. + +I want to put before him just one point with regard to what can be done. +WE CALL OURSELVES THE PROTECTORS OF THE RIGHTS OF THE NATIVES, +and we claim that we have always, in season and out of season, +insisted that those rights should not be infringed, and that no action +should be taken against their liberties. The Imperial Government cannot, +of course, intervene in the sense of asking the Government of South Africa +either to rescind an Act of Parliament or to amend an Act of Parliament, +unless it is their own wish, but I must point out that +Clauses 1, 4, and 5 do operate most harshly against the Native, +and it might be possible, on the representation of the right hon. Gentleman, +for the Prime Minister of South Africa to mitigate the hardships. + +Mr. CAVE: The subject to which the hon. Member has referred +is no doubt of importance, and no one can quarrel with the tone of the speech +in which he has introduced it. + +Sir ALBERT SPICER: I quite realize that in South Africa +we have a self-governing country, and, therefore, one would be +desirous to be very careful in what he said with regard to +its administration and legislation. But this, at any rate, +is the right place to express the views that are held +by very large numbers of people in this country, who have devoted +a good deal of time and money in doing what they can to educate and uplift +the native races of South Africa. Those of us who know South Africa, +are perfectly well aware that whilst it is now a country +owned by the white races, it can only be properly and fully developed +with the help of the native races, and the better educated they are, +the better work they will be able to do for South Africa. +This Native Lands Act was passed very hurriedly. Of course, +we cannot blame South Africa for passing legislation hastily, +seeing that we are accustomed sometimes to do the same thing +in the Mother of Parliaments. Again, the appointment of the Commission, +which is now inquiring into the subject and is taking evidence, +is helping, I think, to produce injustice in some cases, +so far as the Natives are concerned, because the introduction of the Lands Act +has led farmers to take action to enforce their rights. They have terminated +the rent-paying agreements of former tenants, and, knowing that these +are precluded from making new agreements for the hire of land, they have +either ejected them or have demanded from them three months' unpaid service +per annum, which has had the indirect effect of reducing a free people +to a condition of service. I could give instances of that +from well authenticated sources. I will refer to one only. +It is the case of a chief and his people living on land +which they and their fathers have dwelt upon for eight generations. +The farm was recently purchased by a farmer resident in another province. +He decided to terminate the rent-paying conditions previously in existence +between the former owner and the Natives, and to substitute labour conditions, +under which even the chief, an old man, has been required to give service. +The people were called upon to quit their houses, square buildings, +timbered and thatched, and in connexion with this the owner gave +less than one month's notice in the following terms: -- + + "This is to notify I can let you have the school building + no longer. I bought the farm and wish to receive the same + at the end of your school quarter." + +We desire to speak with all due respect of the self-governing Dominions +of South Africa, but I think we may fairly ask the Colonial Secretary +to help the Union Government to realize that there is a strong feeling +in this country in favour of everything possible being done +to secure just and reasonable treatment for the Natives. +One may fairly ask the right hon. Gentleman to use all reasonable influence +with the Union Government to secure for the Natives a fair quid pro quo +for the loss of their former rights of land purchase, which would mean +in some cases an extension of the native area, and if it were possible +to suspend to some extent the operation of the Act until the Land Commission +has reported. Having been connected with South Africa for a good many years, +having travelled through it, and given a good deal of time to it, +I desire to do what I can for the uplifting of the people of that country, +and that is my reason for intervening in this Debate. +== + +Other sympathizers, including the Member for Woolwich, +rose in different parts of the House to support the foregoing appeal, +but the Colonial Secretary stopped them by delivering his reply. + +== +The RT. HON. L. HARCOURT: The hon. member for Tottenham (Mr. Alden) +and the hon. Baronet the Member for Hackney (Sir A. Spicer) +have drawn attention to the South Africa Land Act. It is not +a sudden inspiration of the Botha Government. It is the outcome and result +of a Commission appointed by Lord Milner some years ago, +presided over by Sir Godfrey Lagden. The Commission was appointed + + "In view of the possible federation of the South African Colonies + to gather accurate information as to native affairs so as to arrive + at a common understanding on questions of native policy." + +That Commission sat for two years. It had upon it representatives +of every colony and territory. It arrived at what I believe +was a unanimous (sic) report,* and this Act is practically doing no more +than carrying out its recommendations. The Act has already been +in operation for twelve months. The Commission of Inquiry, +which was to be instituted under the Act, is now sitting. +It is bound by the terms of its appointment to report within two years, +and will probably report by Christmas next.** The whole of this Act +is a temporary measure until that Commission reports. A native deputation +has come over and seen me, and I believe many other members. +That deputation left Africa against the advice of General Botha, +and against almost the entreaties of Lord Gladstone. They knew that the Act +would not be disallowed, because it had been announced months before +in South Africa. The day the deputation saw me the period of twelve months +during which that Act could be disallowed on my recommendation +had already expired, and it is now an act which can only be suspended +by the Government and Parliament of the Union of South Africa. + +-- +* Col. Stanford (the Cape Colony representative on the Lagden Commission) + and Messrs. Campbell and Samuelson (the Natal representatives) + sent in two strongly-worded minority reports against such restrictions. + Vide S.A. Native Affairs Commission, 1903-5, Vol. I. -- Author. +** After Christmas the Commissioners' "terms of appointment" were altered + from two years to three years. +-- + +Sir W. BYLES: Does it forbid the holding of land by Natives? + +Mr. HARCOURT: Perhaps the hon. member will allow me to complete my statement +as the time is short.* The suspension of the Act would be worse than useless +at the present stage. It would suspend the Inquiry which is taking place +at this moment in the interests of the Natives themselves. I cannot believe +that any further Commission is necessary, as the existing one seems to me +both efficient and sufficient. + +-- +* Mr. Harcourt would have shortened the time considerably, + had he said "Yes" or "No", instead of replying in sixteen words. +-- +== + +It is not clear why Mr. Harcourt made this statement as the Natives, +in their petition to the King, never asked for a suspension of the whole Act. +All that they wished was that the harshest clauses of the measure +might be suspended, leaving the others in operation until the Commission +rendered its report. + +When Mr. Harcourt's reference to the Commission was made known in South Africa +the Commissioners, then sitting in Pretoria, were informed of the plight +of evicted Natives. The Commissioners replied that any grievance +arising out of the operation of an Act of Parliament was beyond +the scope of their enquiry, and that they could not consider such grievances. +This was exactly what they had previously told the Natives +at King Williamstown and elsewhere. At Harrismith the Commission heard +the complaint of a son of Chief Wietzie, who, during the Basuto wars, +had always remained loyal to the "Free" State Boers. The son had been +evicted from the ground on which he and his fellow-tribesmen +had resided for generations and he was forced to live on an urban location +where it is impossible to do any farming. The President +(Sir William Beaumont) said he was sorry to hear that a son of Wietzie +found himself homeless, but he regretted that the Commission +could not help him. Mr. Harcourt, therefore, must have been +incorrectly informed regarding the functions of the Commission. + +Yet another puzzle. After the appointment of this Commission +in September 1913, there was a newspaper report to the effect +that the Commission found the native difficulty most acute +in the "Free" State, and that it had decided on setting aside without delay +a strip of territory in the Western "Free" State as a native settlement. +Immediately after the appearance of this report in the Press, +angry meetings of the whites were held in Boshof and Hoopstad +to protest against the proposals attributed to the Commission. +In reply to these protests, Mr. Theron, the Minister of Lands, +evidently speaking on behalf of the South African Government, +not only repudiated the report but he also added significantly +that "the Government had no intention of creating a native area +in Hoopstad or anywhere else." So, where do we stand? Can it be wondered +that the Natives are beginning to conclude that their position under the Union +is hopeless? + +But, to return to Mr. Harcourt, the Colonial Secretary also gave +the Imperial Parliament a fresh explanation of the Natives' Land Act. +It is a pity that we cannot reproduce his explanation side by side +with the four explanatory circulars issued by the Union Government in 1913. +Such a reproduction would show the discrepancy between the five explanations. +We wrote to South Africa but could only secure one of these circulars, +which purports to be an explanation of a previous explanatory circular -- +an explanation of an explanation. However, the definition of the Act, +as given by the other three circulars, leaves, as far as we can remember, +the root principle of the Act unexplained. Moreover, the statements set forth +in these circulars are not in harmony; they have only one point of agreement, +namely: that when Natives are driven out of their homes by the law, +and are debarred by the same law from establishing other homes +(the only provision made for them being that they should live +as servants of the whites) the circumstances give them +no ground for complaint. + +Take for instance only two sentences in Mr. Harcourt's explanation. +In the first of these, he appears to approve of the system of forced labour +established by the Act; in the second, he denies the evictions that took place +in July when he spoke, and those that took place subsequently. He seems +to flatly deny not only what is admitted by Lord Gladstone and General Botha, +but he likewise contradicts the terms of the Act itself. +Indeed, if we had not been there and heard him we should have felt, on reading +this part of his speech, that he had been misreported in Hansard. Thus -- + +== +If the Natives are farm labourers there is no limit to the number +who may reside on white property. If not, they are not dispossessed +until Parliament acts upon the report of the Commissioners, and then only +when suitable land is provided by addition to a native reserve.* + +-- +* At Downing Street Mr. Harcourt informed the Deputation + that he had the "assurance of General Botha" that the Natives + have too much land already. +-- +== + +The Imperial explanation being as obscure as the Colonial explanations +which preceded it, the reader's remedy is to fall back +on the plain English of the Act (Chapter III), which alone has +the force of law. Again Mr. Harcourt: -- + +== +If General Botha breaks his word I have no power to enforce it. +I cannot bind his successors. If the Government of South Africa +is not to be trusted in this matter they are to be trusted in nothing; +and we know perfectly well that they can be trusted in these matters. +NOTE WHAT HAS BEEN DONE WITH RESPECT TO THE INDIAN IMMIGRATION ACT. +THIS WAS PASSED NOT FROM LOCAL DESIRE, BUT FROM IMPERIAL CONSIDERATIONS. +THE PROVISIONS OF THAT ACT HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE COLONISTS +AND BY THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE INDIANS, WHO CONSIDER IT +THE MAGNA CHARTA OF THE INDIANS IN SOUTH AFRICA. I think that that should be +a sufficient guarantee as to the way in which General Botha proposes to act. +General Botha, too, used THESE WORDS in Parliament: -- + +"He had told the deputation that he had given standing instructions +to the magistrates throughout the country that if they found +any one in their districts ejecting Natives from the farms +they had to go and make inquiries and report to him. He had +in all those cases which had been brought to his notice +used the influence of his Department." +== + +All we can say in regard to "these words" is that the Magistrates +apparently ignored the "standing instructions" alluded to, +for they allowed the officials of the Department of Lands +to scatter the native tenants from Government farms at Standerton, +Colworth and elsewhere and sent them adrift over the country, +well knowing that they could find no other shelter. + +On the 31st of January, 1914, the Magistrate of Ladysmith, +presumably acting under instructions from one of General Botha's Departments, +issued the following notice to 79 native families in his district: -- + +== +"To Vellem Sibisi, Kraal Head residing on one of the following farms, +viz. Remainder of Brakfontein, Remainder of Weltevrede, etc., + +"Take notice in terms of Section 4 of Law 41 of 1884 that you are required +to remove with your Kraal and inmates from whichever of the said farms +you may be residing on, six months from this date, the aforementioned farms +having all been purchased by Government for closer settlement purposes." +== + +The Magistrate who so ruthlessly ejected these and other native families +acted under the orders of the Government, who settled white people +on the farms at the expense of a Treasury maintained also by native taxpayers. +And it seems difficult to conceive how a Government which proved +so indifferent regarding the fate of its own native tenants or of tenants +on farms freshly acquired at the public expense, could be solicitous about +the welfare of Natives evicted by private landowners. The statement, +on the face of it, is incongruous. + +In his heroic efforts to defend South Africa's giant wrong, +Mr. Harcourt gave away his case when he referred approvingly +to what he calls "the Magna Charta of the Indians in South Africa". +Now, what is this "Magna Charta"? In 1913, when the South African Parliament +was at the noontide of its "mad career", it passed this iniquitous land law +to repress the native race; and also a law imposing the most +humiliating limitations on British Indians. Yet it must be added +that the Indian law was the milder of the two, as it did not prohibit +Indian residents in South Africa from living on the land. +The Rt. Hon. A. Fischer, Union Minister of the Interior, +who died two years ago, called these two laws of 1913, +"the Kafir law and the Coolie law". + +As already stated, the London Committee of the Wesleyan Methodist Church +asked to see Mr. Harcourt and inform him how drastically the "Kafir law" +was operating against their converts and other Natives in South Africa, +but Mr. Harcourt discreetly refused to see the Committee. + +As for the Indians, no one in South Africa paid any heed to their complaints +against the "Coolie law"; but their cry reached India and Lord Hardinge +demanded the redress of their grievances. His Lordship insisted so forcibly +that (unlike the Wesleyan missionaries) he could not be ignored. +The result was that the South African Parliament, "not from local desire, +but from Imperial consideration", was obliged in the next session (1914) +to amend the "Coolie law" with a "Magna Charta of the Indians +in South Africa", and Mr. Harcourt's reference to this episode +conveys the suggestion that what is sauce for the Indian goose, +with Lord Hardinge at its back, can be by no means sauce for the native gander +without the backing of a Viceroy. + +We cannot believe that to boast in one and the same speech +about a "Magna Charta of the Indians" and dismiss the native appeal +against a vital wrong is true Imperialism. For if Imperialism stands +for the protection of a few thousand Indians in South Africa because they are +supported by a Viceroy, and the neglect of the groans of five million Natives +because (unlike a Viceroy) the missionaries who plead for them +cannot enforce their claim with a political or diplomatic blow, +then there would appear to be the suggestion of more fear than justice +in Imperialism. + +Mr. Harcourt further credits the Milner Commission, presided over by +Sir Godfrey Lagden, with the origin of the Natives' Land Act. We do not wish +to defend the policy of these two former South African Statesmen, as we +feel certain that they can take care of themselves. But we must say at once +that we read the recommendations of the Lagden Commission ten years ago, +as carefully as we have since read the controversy of the Natives' Land Act; +and with the knowledge thus gained, we can safely tell the reader +that that Commission never recommended that: -- + +1. "Except with the permission of the Governor-General", Europeans must +be debarred from buying land from Natives (who have no land to sell), +and Natives must be debarred from buying land or leasing land from Europeans, +who alone deal in land. -- (Sect. 1 of the Nat. Land Act). + +2. When evicted Natives apply for the said "permission of +the Governor-General" they should be told that that permission +"will only be granted to a few exceptional applicants" +and that it could under no circumstances be granted to Natives +in the colony in which the applicants resided (The Government's reply +to the "Free" State wanderers). + +3. The Government should always take from three to six months +to deliver this refusal, during which period applicants may have +already become serfs or fled the country. (This has been +the experience of all applicants within the writer's knowledge.) + +4. There should be a fine of 100 Pounds or six months' hard labour +on any farmer who provides the Native with a shelter while he is waiting +for this disappointing reply to his application (Sect. 5 Nat. Land Act). + +5. Native tenants to be hounded out of the Government farms +long before the segregation takes place and that white people, +who are not debarred from buying or leasing land for themselves, +be settled thereon at Government expense. (See magisterial notice above.) + +If Mr. Harcourt has been told by any one that the Lagden Commission +recommended any of these pitiless iniquities, then we are afraid +that his informer is a romancer of the superlative degree. +The Lagden report was never discussed in any South African legislature, +much less adopted by any Parliament in South Africa; indeed, it is detested +because it recommended a Native Franchise for South Africa +like the Maori Franchise of New Zealand. + +One member of Parliament (Mr. Joynson-Hicks) said South Africa +was a Home Rule country and he wondered what would happen if after Home Rule +had been granted to Ireland some one asked the Imperial Parliament +to interfere with Irish legislation. + +We wonder who could have told this hon. Member that there was Home Rule +in South Africa! There used to be Home Rule in the Cape Colony alone, +but this has been swamped by the Act of Union, which has since +established an oligarchic Government throughout the country. +And if by Home Rule to Ireland it is intended to give the franchise +to a selfish, greedy and tyrannical few; and give carte blanche +to this few, telling them thereby to do what they wish +with the rest of the population of Ireland, and telling them further +that they will be accountable to nobody for any good legislation +that they might enact on the one hand, or any maladministration +that they might perform on the other hand as is the case in South Africa -- +if that be what is meant by Home Rule for Ireland, then God have mercy +on the Irish. + +When the reply of Mr. Harcourt was published in South Africa, +supporters of this cruel law bubbled over with joy concerning it. +One Dutch writer, after saying in a Dutch journal some very fine things +about Mr. Harcourt, wound up a high-sounding eulogy +by congratulating South Africa on having such a good Colonial Secretary +at Downing Street. "Had Mr. Harcourt's predecessors been like him," +said this writer to his readers, "South Africa would have been saved +many tears." We doubt if Mr. Harcourt, the object of this appreciation, +would feel flattered by it if he knew that all the black victims +of this cruel law, and all their European sympathizers, +stood firmly by the Imperial Government and by the Colonial Government +in the present struggle, while the gentleman at whose instance +it was introduced in Parliament, as well as the Dutch editor of the journal +alluded to, are at present (May 1915) committed for trial +on charges of high treason; and the proprietor of another Dutch journal, +in which we read similar vaunting adulations of Mr. Harcourt, was fined +60 Pounds (so his paper says) for alleged complicity in the recent rebellion. +These facts should impel the Rt. Hon. the Colonial Secretary to stop, +look round and inquire "who's who" among his South African admirers. + +Two members of the South African Parliament -- Senator T. L. Schreiner +and Mr. Wilcocks, M.L.A. -- the former an opponent and the latter +a supporter of the Natives' Land Act, recently discussed the Act +from separate points of view; and both came to the conclusion that the measure +was designed to keep the blacks in subjection. This conclusion is in harmony +with the bitter experiences of the native races since this Act was enforced. +Yet in the face of this unanimous testimony of different observers, +Mr. Harcourt equivocates behind the irrelevant "assurances of General Botha" +about a possible segregation, which question is not now before the country. +Assurances on segregation only serve to confound the issue. +If the Beaumont commission, or its successor, should ever report +then the question of segregation may come before Parliament +some time in 1926. The point before the country now is not segregation, +but the Natives' Land Act of 1913, which is now scattering the Natives +about the country. That is the measure against which the Native appeals +for Imperial protection. Not the future segregation. + +The only serious objection with which Mr. Harcourt apparently was able +to charge the native deputation, and one which the Natives do not deny, +is that they came to England against the "entreaties of Lord Gladstone" +(who previously had twice refused to see them), and against +the "advice of General Botha", by whose Cabinet the measure +was enacted and enforced. + +It is a pity that Mr. Harcourt did not at the same time +tell the House of an authentic case where an aggrieved party +ever sued for redress with the consent and advice of his oppressor. +In this connexion, the scope of our reading being limited, +our ignorance is possibly abysmal; but it must be confessed that we have +never heard of such an interesting appellant and we are inclined to believe +that there never has been one. + +If General Botha wished to tell the whole truth, instead of making +vague assurances to Mr. Harcourt, he would say: "I foresaw all +the difficulties under which the Natives are suffering; and when Mr. Grobler +proposed the summary stoppage of the sale and lease of land to Natives +before the areas are segregated, I warned the House against this trouble, +but the Hertzogites being too much for me I had to give in." +Gen. Botha could go further and say to Mr. Harcourt: "If you will turn up +page 579 of the South African Hansard (first column) reading from +the top of the page, you will find my warning in these words: -- + +== +Unless they went slowly and carefully, there was a danger that they might +take steps which would be unreasonable, unjust, and unfair on one section. +For that reason, he regretted the amendment proposed by General Hertzog, +because the amendment would have bad results if it were accepted. +It would lead to an over-hasty measure of a most impracticable kind. +This House would have to demarcate exactly and immediately +those parts where the Natives would have to live, and he asked them: +was this House able to do so? (Cries of "No".) It was all very nice +to talk and take a map and draw lines on it. On the map they might be able +to beacon off parts, and say, "This is for the Natives," +but then, when they put their scheme into effect, they might find +that the ground of many individuals had been taken away +without any inquiries or any investigations having been made. +(Laughter, and "Hear hear".) This House would expropriate +the rights of many white people, and they would meet with +the greatest opposition. Where were they going to put these people then? +In the Transvaal, farmers certainly would not consent to this; he did not know +the people of the Free State so well, but he doubted whether they would agree. +(A Free State Member: "No, they certainly will not.") Instead of taking +any steps like this, they should be practical, and not land themselves +into greater difficulties than they could help. Governments before them +had done their best. He agreed that the squatting of Natives should be +put an end to as soon as possible, but they should not lose sight of the fact +that many Governments before them had done their best to put an end +to this squatting evil. He knew well how the Transvaal Government had, +year after year, taken up this matter. But what did they find? Simply that +when they had passed a Squatters Law they could only put it into operation +in one small part of the country. (Hear, hear.) To introduce +another Bill like that would simply mean deceiving the country +-- (hear, hear) -- and the Natives. If they accepted +the proposal of the Minister of Native Affairs to appoint a Commission +to investigate the various conditions prevailing throughout the country, +he thought they would be taking a step in the right direction. (Hear, hear.) +However, care was essential, because they must prevent causing +a sort of revolution through the country. What they wanted +was a measure which would be acceptable to the white man +as well as to the Native. (Hear, hear.) +== + +These were General Botha's views when the Land Act was first mooted, +but in defiance of his solemn warning, the Bill, when gazetted, provided that +the eviction of native tenants should precede the Commission's inquiry; +harsher and still harsher clauses were inserted in the Bill until the Act +finally embodied all the proposals brought forward by General Hertzog. +The promise to refer the Bill to a Select Committee was also broken, +presumably as a result of pressure from the caucus. The Government +could not face a Select Committee after this complete change of front +as they must have known that reason was absolutely against them. + +It might be asked: How could a Minister turn round afterwards +and give "assurances" concerning the benefits of a measure +which he had opposed before? To such a question we would hazard +the following explanation: Our Prime Minister, on the one hand, +is a British Privy Councillor and a General in the British Army; +and, on the other hand, he is a simple Afrikander Boer, +who only speaks Dutch in Parliament and addresses English audiences +through an interpreter. And so in the eyes of General Botha, +the British Crown Minister, if the Natives be treated justly, +as British subjects should be treated, it is right; and, again, +in the eyes of General Botha, the Afrikander Boer, if the Natives be treated +harshly and barbarously, that too is right. + +It is not unusual to find these two natures contending against each other +in one and the same person, whenever the Prime Minister +deals with native questions; then more often than not the Boer view, +being that of his own nature, dominates the British sentiment, +which is a fresh acquisition. + +Having given above a striking extract from a speech on native policy, +by the Rt. Hon. Louis Botha, Premier of British South Africa, +we will now proceed to give an extract from another declaration +by General Louis Botha, the Transvaal Boer. The Union Premier +was giving evidence before the Labour Commission in Johannesburg +and this is what he then said: -- + +== +11,302. Sir GEORGE FARRAR: You said that you would recommend +the breaking up of Locations like Swaziland, Zululand and Basutoland +and the putting of white settlers there? General BOTHA: I would suggest +that these countries be given up to the white people to live in. . . . + +11,337. The general tenor of your remarks is that there is sufficient labour, +and it only wants a little patience to wait for it, that is all? +I have distinctly stated that there is a greater amount of labour +than has at present been obtained. But there are farmers who have farms, +and have no Natives living on these farms. For these people it is difficult +to obtain Natives because the Natives who are not living on the farms +are in locations. If the locations were broken up the Natives would be made +to live on farms. + +11,338. You suggest that we should break up such land as Basutoland, +Swaziland and Zululand? Yes, I say that such places are a source of evil. +It is building up a Kaffir kingdom in the midst of us which is not only +bad for the Kaffirs themselves but is a danger in the future.* + +-- +* One of the Chiefs in these locations gave General Botha 200 bullocks + to feed his troops engaged in crushing a rebellion of white men. +-- + +11,339. But take Zululand, for instance; there is a quarter of a million +people there. What would you do with them if you break up their territory? +They would all live on the farms as the white people are doing now. + +11,340. Oh, you want to cut up the land into farms, +give it to the white people and retain the Kaffirs on the farms? Yes. + +11,343. But what will the white people do with the Kaffirs, +pay them wages or charge them rent for the ground or what? +My opinion is that Kaffirs who now live in locations should work +for the white people, and the land should be exploited. The white people +would pay them for the work they did and this would civilize them. + +11,344. A nation like the Basutos you would deal with +in the same way? -- Yes. + +11,345. They at present occupy the land, we have had it in evidence before us +to the effect that every inch of land in Basutoland is occupied and worked +by the Kaffirs themselves as their own property? -- That is just +my argument . . . because there is opening for the Kaffirs there +they go and live there without doing anything. + +11,347. But they do something. They work the whole country, +they have a lot of grain? -- Yes, for themselves. + +11,352. . . . I have shown you that Basutoland is fully occupied by Kaffirs, +and they work it. Do you want to apply your scheme to Basutoland? -- +I do not know very much about Basutoland, I have never been there personally; +but I am well acquainted with Zululand and also Swaziland, +and I want to state this, that in my opinion it is not only a wrong policy, +but also dangerous policy to have large tracts of country inhabited +by uncivilized races, and to keep them there on the present terms. + +11,353. But these Natives lived there from time immemorial. +It was theirs before we came here. How can we drive them off the land now, +and take it for ourselves? I think we are feeling very happy +that we drove them from Johannesburg in the olden days. +They lived in this country too just the same and the Kaffirs +who became civilized under us have improved.* + +-- +* `Transvaal Labour Commission', pp. 717-726. +-- +== + +In the foregoing extract the reader has the root principle +of the Natives' Land Act in a nut-shell. Not from hearsay "assurances" +but from what fell from the Premier's own lips. + +Mr. Jacob de Villiers Roos, head of the Union Law Department (who knows more +about South African law than outsiders who have to rely on "assurances",) +says in his evidence given before the Select Committee on Public Accounts, +February 25, 1914, incidentally or accidentally: -- + +== +"A circular was issued by our Department, at the instigation +of the Native Affairs Department, asking that prosecutors +under the Natives' Land Act, before commencing prosecutions, +should refer to the Native Affairs Department as otherwise +IT WAS FEARED THAT AN UPHEAVAL MIGHT RESULT. The Transvaal Attorney-General +drew our attention to this circular and said that it was +an infringement of his powers. . . . When Mr. Beyers went away on leave +Mr. Greenlees was appointed Acting Attorney-General, +and he first drew the attention of the Minister to it. +The Minister took no action until Mr. Beyers returned +when the matter was again raised and then this circular was withdrawn."* + +-- +* S.C. 1-'14, pp. 136-137. +-- +== + +Now, what, in the name of common sense, does a supposedly civilized Government +want with a law that it knows will cause "an upheaval"? + +This Act should be abolished in the interest of the morality of the State +and for the sake of the reputation of the Union Jack, +because of the harm it does to the Natives and because its promoters +have rebelled against the Crown. The Act has benefited no one; +it has driven the Natives from the country to the cities, +and has also disappointed the White Labour Party, who supported it +in the belief that by its clause forcing Natives to work for white farmers +it would keep the Natives away from the industrial centres. + +It should be abolished in the interests of the Boers, +for it has aroused the bitterest enmity of the blacks +against the Dutch section of his Majesty's subjects. + +Further, the Act should be abolished because it has lowered the prestige +of the Union Jack in the eyes of the coloured subjects of the King, +who have suffered and are still suffering untold misery under it. +Perhaps nothing illustrates more clearly this changed feeling of the Natives +than the present state of things in South Africa. Thus, if German +South-West Africa had been annexed to the Cape before the Union, every Native, +south of the Zambesi, would have approved of the step, whereas to-day, +as a result of the Natives' Land Act, there is a different feeling extant. +For now the Natives know that annexation to the Union will mean +the elimination of the Imperial factor, and that as Capetown, like Pretoria, +has ceased to represent British ideas of fair play and justice, +such a change would in the annexed territory establish "Free" State ideals +under the aegis of the Union Jack. The Natives of the Union +shudder at the possibility of the Damaras, who are now under +the harsh rule of the Germans, being placed under a self-governing Dominion +in which the German rule will be accentuated by the truculent +"Free" State ideas of ruling Natives. And they think that +in the existing state of circumstances, Portuguese or French rule would be +infinitely better for the Damaras than a Government which, although protected +by the Union Jack, yet is inspired from Pretoria and Bloemfontein. +And it is to be feared that the pernicious principles +which Tommy Atkins is now fighting on the Continent to suppress, +are going to be rigorously applied in a South-West Africa +under Burgher rule. The prosperity of no State can afford to alienate +the sympathy of any considerable portion of its tax-payers. And so, +as 5,000,000 blacks have been alienated in their sympathies to the Union +by this oppressive law, and as the Union Government is unable or unwilling +to amend it, in the interest of the Union Government, no less than +the 5,000,000 blacks, outside intervention becomes a necessity. + +During three separate white men's upheavals in the last two years +-- two bloody strikes and a civil war -- white revolters made frantic efforts +to embroil the Union in a native rising, but the Natives very sensibly +sided with the Government. The native leaders, in order to counteract +this mischief-making, had to incur the expense of journeys by rail +besides financing their own mission to reach the scene of the would-be +native disturbance. + +The time will come when these leaders will tire of spending their own money +in paying fares to the Government Railways, to render free services +to a Government which taxes them to pay other people lavishly +for similar work, while it does not even tender them so much +as a word of thanks. + +Instead of the smallest recognition for our voluntary services, +the Union Government repays our loyalty by persecuting +our widows and fatherless children with the cold-blooded provisions +of the Natives' Land Act. These cruelties are euphemistically described +as the first step towards the segregation of white and black, +but they might more truthfully be styled the first steps +towards the extermination of the blacks. + +When the war broke out, the Government promptly suspended +the inquiries of the Commission, whose report is naively alleged +to be pregnant with the fruits of the millennium, but the cruel evictions +under the same law of the rebel Grobler are pursuing their course +while the war lasts and the Union Government remains unconcerned. +It was only when a whole tribe was evicted during the war +that the Government interceded on behalf of the victims, +but then, the only extent of the intervention has been to secure +exemption for the chief of the tribe alone, on the condition that +HE FORCED THE REST OF HIS TRIBE TO RENDER EVERY YEAR THREE MONTHS' LABOUR +TO THE LANDOWNER. Yet these people could live happily on some other farm +did not the Government prohibit their happiness at the behest of a rebel who, +at or about the time of this enthralling compromise, was conducting +treasonable operations against the Government. + +The sublime ingratitude of the Union Government is wellnigh unbearable! + + + + +Chapter XVII The London Press and the Natives' Land Act + + Slaves cannot breathe in England: if their lungs + Receive our air, that moment they are free; + They touch our country, and their shackles fall. + Cowper. + + + +The native deputation (thanks to Mr. H. Cornish, secretary of +the Institute of Journalists) can truthfully assure their people, +at the present critical state of their position, of the sympathy +of the London Press. It is hardly necessary to mention +that religious papers, to which the object of the deputation was made known, +published some very encouraging articles on the same, +and bespoke the deputation a cordial reception and a sympathetic hearing +throughout the United Kingdom; but the mission might have been +somewhat monotonous had we friends only and no enemies in the London Press. +And a weekly paper with a yellow cover, called `South Africa', +did its best to fill the role of an enemy. + +It abused the Brotherhood Movement and the Aborigines Protection Society for +taking up the cause of the deputation. The General Press Cutting Association, +however, through whom we learnt of the attacks of `South Africa', +did not tell us whether this journal also abused our other friends +represented by the London Press. Such has been our good fortune +in this respect that friends frequently congratulated us +on the unanimity of the Press in our favour. In this we think +they were right, as a cause with only one enemy could very well be depended on +to take care of itself. + +On one occasion some of our friends heard that the author +was going to interview the fine-fingered editor of the `Westminster Gazette' +by appointment, and they strongly advised us against doing so. +"Why not?" we asked. "Oh," said our friends, "he edits the leading +Government organ, and he is going to pump you of all information +in order to use it against your cause and in favour of the Government." +But we went -- firstly, because we refused to believe +that the editor of that great organ of British thought +was capable of taking such a mean advantage of us; and secondly, +because we were confident of being able to take care of ourselves +against any kind of pump; and we can now say with satisfaction that, +on the part of the British public, there was such a demand +for back numbers of the two editions of the `Westminster Gazette' +which contained a report of our interview and a photograph of the deputation +that in a fortnight both issues were sold out of print. Further, +it is safe to say that from the wide area from which inquirers wrote to us +mentioning the `Daily News', it would seem that either that journal +has a very big circulation or its readers are mainly interested +in South African Affairs. And what, may be asked, are the qualifications +of the newspaper `South Africa' which attempted to run counter +to this overwhelming opinion in our favour? + +Unlike some of its contemporaries, `South Africa' has not +a single native contributor to its columns. Some London newspapers +are in regular receipt of exchange copies from native newspapers +published in South Africa, London papers which never claimed +a monopoly over South African thought; yet here is a paper, +South African in title and in pretensions, which cannot even boast +of a South African native paper on its exchange list! What information, then, +can the editors of such an exclusive London paper possess +about an Act specifically enacted to operate against Natives? +Logically, they would know absolutely less than next to nothing +about such a law or its fell work. That alone should dispose of +the qualifications of this enemy of the deputation, and his authority to speak +on the subject of its mission. + +The `African World' is an Anglo-African weekly which has +native newspaper exchanges and several African correspondents +both white and black. Its editor-in-chief was born in South Africa +and was a journalist there before he came to reside in England; +and it must be admitted that a paper with such connexions +is in a better position to discuss the subject from both points of view. +And so the `African World' says: + +== + THE SOUTH AFRICAN NATIVE DEPUTATION + +It must be admitted that the South African Native Deputation +now in this country have gone about their business with decorum. +They have not pressed themselves forward unduly, and, so far, +the publicity given to them has been moderate in its tone, and the expressions +by the members of the deputation have been equally moderate. +Of course, their best friends discountenanced this visit, as we have noted +from the South African Press, but it seems to be the general opinion +that even though no appeal lies under the Union Constitution +to the British Crown as regards native rights, an extraordinary anomaly +seems to exist in this: That the Natives of South Africa within the Union +appear to have fewer rights than those outside the Union, especially so far +as an appeal to London on various matters affecting their interests +is concerned. We are aware that Mr. Harcourt treated the deputation +with the utmost discretion when he received them. We also know +that Mr. Harcourt and General Botha are on very friendly personal relations, +and under these circumstances, without wishing to dictate +any action in the matter to the powers that be on both sides of the water, +we would like to join our contemporary `The Globe'. +== + +And what did `The Globe' say? + +== + THE NATIVE APPEAL + +The complaint of the South African Natives who have laid their grievances +before certain members of Parliament amounts in effect to a complaint +that Parliament is not Imperial. Their grievances are real and pressing, +as anybody can discover who troubles to look up the recent proceedings +of the Union Parliament, but they have no constitutional means +of ventilating them. No native franchise exists in South Africa, +and although certain members of the Union Senate are presumed +to keep an eye on native questions their influence has proved ineffective. +No appeal exists under the Union Constitution to the Crown +as regards Native rights, for although this omission was pointed out +at the time the Act of Union was debated in the Imperial Parliament +and was adversely commented on, no steps were taken by the Colonial Office +to rectify the constitution in this respect. We are, therefore, +brought up against the extraordinary anomaly that Natives of South Africa +within the Union have fewer rights than those outside -- for the Basutos, +who remain under direct Imperial control, have successfully appealed to London +on various matters affecting their interests -- or even than +the Natives of Crown Colonies elsewhere, as the appeal of native landowners +on the Gold Coast against recent legislation in that territory attests. +In the latter case the appeal to the Colonial Office +was successful in modifying the offending enactments; +in the far more serious grievances of the South African Natives +the Colonial Office has no constitutional title whatever. +Nevertheless the relations between Mr. Harcourt and General Botha +in other respects are notoriously so close and confidential that we may hope +the Colonial Secretary will take the present occasion by the hand +and urge upon the head of the South African Government +the wisdom of dealing with native discontents in his own proper sphere +before he prosecutes his claim for the inclusion of the Basutos and Rhodesia +in the Union -- a claim which both the black Natives and the white colonists +have repudiated with all the emphasis at their command. +General Botha could scarcely fail to give heed to private advice +from the Colonial Office. In the case of the Natal Indians, whose grievances +he recently redressed, he proved himself a man capable of taking +a broad and generous view of a difficult question. There is no reason +to anticipate until the contrary is proved, that he will fall below +his own level in the present not less difficult or dangerous case. +== + +== + VIEWS OF THE `DAILY NEWS' + +"The South African National Congress, after resorting to +every constitutional means of pressing their case against the Land Act +on the Union Government, have sent five of their number to London +in the firm conviction that the King of England, to whom they look +as their natural defender and vindicator, will turn no deaf ear +to their pleas. Two of the five -- the Rev. J. L. Dube and Mr. Saul Msane -- +are Zulus; Dr. Rubusana is a Xosa; Mr. Mapikela, a Fingo; +and Mr. Plaatje, the secretary of the National Congress, a Bechuana. +All of them are men of obvious culture and with a striking command +of the English language." + +"Having failed to make any impression on the Union Government +(`If we had votes,' Dr. Rubusana observed, `we could fight our own battles') +the deputation has come to England in the hope of influencing +the Imperial Government through the Colonial Secretary. + +"What they ask for is: + +"First, a suspension of the operation of the Act pending the report +of the Delimitation Commission: + +"Second, an inquiry into native grievances under the Act; and, + +"Thirdly, an assurance that the Home Government will express its concurrence +with certain promises made recently on behalf of General Botha, +but obviously depending for their value on the continuance of +his personal political supremacy. + + + Four Blacks to One White + +"In carving out estates for themselves in Africa the white races have shown +little regard for the claims of the black man," says the `Daily News'. +"They have appropriated his land, and in appropriating his land +have taken away his economic freedom, and have left him in a worse case +than they found him. How the Native has been dispossessed may be illustrated +by the facts in regard to the Union of South Africa. Here the blacks, +as compared with the whites, are in the proportion of four to one; +but they are in legal occupation of only one-fifteenth of the soil. + +"Under the Natives' Land Act, which has brought the matter to a crisis, +even the poor fragment of rights in the soil that remains seems doomed. +For under the Act the Native is denied the right -- except with +the quite illusory `approval of the Governor-General' to purchase, hire, +or acquire any rights in land from a person other than a Native. +Under this provision, the Native whose tenancy expires, or who is evicted +from a farm, is legally denied any career except that of a labourer. +He cannot own, he cannot hire, he cannot live a free man. + + + A Legal Serf + +"In the language of Mr. Dower, the Secretary for Native Affairs, +he must `sell his stock and go into service.' He must accept any conditions +the white farmer chooses or the mine-owner gives, and an ingenious clause +encourages the white farmer to exact unpaid service from the native tenants. +In a word, the Native is a legal serf in his own land. + +"As British subjects, the deputation of Natives now in England +have appealed to the Imperial Government for protection. +They asked for its help to secure the suspension of the Act +until the Land Commission report is before Parliament, +and for machinery to inquire into and redress their grievances. +They have got no satisfaction on these points. + +"It is time that Parliament gave some attention to its obligations +in regard to the South African Native. He has no vote and no friends -- +only his labour, which the white man wants on the cheapest terms. +And the white man has got this by taking his land and imposing on him +taxes that he cannot pay. In fact, the black man is `rounded up' +on every side, and if, as the deputation suggest may be the case, +he is forced to acts of violence, it will not be possible to say +that he has not had abundant provocation. + + + Rights to the Soil + +"There is only one principle that can be applied for his protection. +It is the principle that he has rights in his native soil. +Perhaps segregation is the only remedy now, but if so +the reservations allocated to him in the Union area ought to have +some relation to his needs. We cannot do much for him there, +but we should do what we can." +== + +Mr. Advocate F. A. Silva wrote to the `Daily News': -- + +== + AN APPEAL FOR JUSTICE + +Sir, -- Will you please allow me space, while appreciating +your editorial of this date, to bring to the kind notice of your readers +the distinction between "British justice as supposed to be" +and "British justice as it is" with regard to the subject races, +especially the black men? + +If even the "hair" of a "white" British subject were to be touched in China +or Japan or Turkey or Russia, the whole of the political parties of England, +with their usual patriotism, will rise to the occasion, and with one accord +demand the use of physical force against that country. + +But here in South Africa, on the day the "Act" came into law, all agreements +with regard to land were terminated, and thousands of the Natives +found themselves ruined and homeless. From tenants they have become serfs. + +If the Imperial Parliament looks with complacency on these +tyrannical proceedings of a local Parliament, then the British public +should not be surprised if the intelligent and thoughtful +among the subject races of "Britain" consider "British justice" +and "Russian tyranny" to be synonymous terms. +== + +Let us draw attention to one more letter, by an Anglo-African +to the `Daily News', which was typical of the rest: -- + +== + THE BLACK MAN'S BURDEN + +Sir, -- Those of your readers who, like myself, have some +first-hand knowledge of the Natives of South Africa, know that this grievance +voiced by the native deputation is a very real one. That such a deputation +should have to come to England to urge such a plea is humiliating enough +to them and to us. That their plea should be urged in vain +would be disastrous to the last degree. + +If the Natives' Land Act is the best thing the Union Government can do +in the discharge of its responsibilities to the native tribes +placed under its care by the King, then many of us would have to revise +our faith in self-government as a fit instrument of national evolution; +and would, moreover, strenuously resist the ultimate incorporation +of the northern territories within the Union as being infinitely worse +for the black man than even government under Chartered Company control. + +One hopes that it is not yet too late for both Boer and Briton in South Africa +to see that this debasement of the whole idea of self-government +is to affront and discourage all in Great Britain who saw +in the grant of its own political freedom to that great country +a healing for its many woes. In the meantime Liberalism +must back the native deputation at all costs, and it is well +that `The Daily News and Leader' should lead the way. +== + +== + ONE OBJECT OF THE S.A. WAR: THE LIBERATION OF THE NATIVE + +One object of the South African War was to liberate the Native +in the Transvaal. One result of it is that we have practically +less opportunity to interfere in his behalf than we had +under the Convention with the South African Republic. Interference in +the internal affairs of a self-governing colony -- in this case a colony +in which a small number of white men govern a large number of black -- +has ceased to be within the realm of practical politics. +But if this political interference is impossible, moral remonstrance +is all the more in point. There is in all parts of the world +a better and more enlightened as well as a duller and more callous +public opinion, and the better opinion of a colony is powerfully reinforced +by judicious expression of feeling in the mother country. +There are occasions when that opinion should even be formally expressed +by the Colonial Office or by a resolution of the House of Commons. +Now, there is at present a deputation of South African Natives in this country +appealing against the ratification of the Natives' Land Act of 1913. +Mr. Harcourt has told them that he cannot interfere, nor can he +any more than if he were an ornamental registering clerk. +But he can if he chooses speak winged words to the South African Government, +which, having alienated the entire white working population, +is now exciting the same hostility among the blacks. +The Act itself probably has a deeper motive. It prevents +the sale of white men's land to the Natives or native land to the white men. +This would have the effect of securing to the Native +that very small portion of his own country which he has still managed +to retain. This probably commended the measure to those +who because they care for elementary justice are called negrophile, +the colour of justice in a white man's eyes being apparently black. +The other effect would be to prevent those Kafirs who are +becoming educated and rising in the social scale from acquiring land. +As in proportion to population the white man has by far the greater +amount of land, it is clear that he does not come badly out of the bargain. +However, it is not the Act itself of which the most serious complaint is made. +What makes matters worse is the interim arrangement that +pending the delimitation of native land by a Commission +no Native whose lease of land has expired shall be able to renew it +for a money rent or for any consideration whatever except labour service. +It is contended that farmers are taking advantage of this prohibition to exact +unpaid labour services from Natives, and are thus in effect reducing them +to serfdom. It is clear that the position in which the Native is placed +renders this only too possible, and it is an extraordinary thing +that any such violent alteration of status should be made +before instead of after the report of a Commission. For our part +we cannot believe that men like Generals Botha and Smuts deliberately desire +to reduce the Native to the condition of a semi-servile, landless labourer, +and we would venture on behalf of the many Liberals who fought steadily +for the right of South Africa to govern herself to appeal to them +to extend a similar consideration to the people of whose destinies +they have become responsible, and to suspend the operation of the Act +until the administrative preparations for carrying it out with equity +have been completed. -- `Manchester Guardian'. +== + +== + VIEWS OF THE "STAR" + +We have always realized that one of the gravest problems of self-government +in South Africa is the native question. On the one hand, +South African Colonial opinion -- by which is meant "white" opinion -- +will bitterly resent any shadow of dictation from Downing Street; +on the other hand, the conscience of the British people cannot remain +indifferent to any flagrant oppression of or injustice to the native races +under the British flag. A very difficult question of this kind +is raised by the deputation of South African Natives, +which is now in this country, seeking to move the Colonial Office +on the subject of the Natives' Land Act recently passed by General Botha. +The ultimate object of General Botha's plan is the greatest exodus +since the days of Moses; it is apparently to get rid of black landholders +in areas in which the majority of the landowners are white, +and to buy up tracts of land elsewhere from white landowners, in order +to settle Natives upon them. In this way the black and the white races, +so far as landholding is concerned, will be segregated into separate areas, +with a reduction of possible cause of friction, and in some respects +this is an excellent policy. But the trouble is that General Botha +has passed the first part of his policy and has left the second part +to the future. The Land Act provides that hereafter, +"except with the approval of the Governor-General" -- which proviso +is mere leather and prunella -- a Native shall not buy or hire any land +from a person other than a Native. The effect of this is that +at the termination of any existing tenancy a Native will have +to relinquish his farm, and will not be able to hire or buy another +from any white owner. If the Government had provided farms +in the proposed native reserves for these men, their policy would be complete, +but nothing has been done, and the fulfilment of that promise depends upon +General Botha's continuance in office, and does not bind his successors. +It is not surprising the South African Natives regard this Act +as a means of driving them into the labour market either at the mines, +or for white farmers. Mr. Dower, the Secretary for Native Affairs, +addressing a meeting of Natives at Thaba Nchu, in the Free State, +gave a strong hint of this when he said: "My best advice to you +is to sell your stock and go into service." Here at home we hear a great deal +about the "magic of property" and the importance of giving the worker +an interest in the soil he tills; but in South Africa they apparently agree +with the southerner in the `Biglow Papers' that + + Libbaty's a kind o' thing + Thet don't agree with niggers. + +It is clear that it is the duty of the Colonial Office to guarantee, +in conjunction with the South African Government, the carrying out +of the full policy as outlined by General Botha, and we hope +occasion will be taken to urge action on these lines. -- `Star'. +== + +== + CAN BRITAIN PREVENT SLAVERY + +A question of great importance and a question which may easily strain +the links that bind the various parts of the Empire and the Mother Country, +has arisen in South Africa owing to the operation of the Natives' Land Act +passed last year by the Union Parliament. The Native question is by far +the greatest problem South Africa has to solve, and its difficulties +are so great that nobody has been able to advance any feasible scheme +for its settlement, though there have been many suggestions +as to the broad lines on which the matter may be settled. +The Land Act is an attempt to establish modified segregation -- +i.e., confining the white man and the black to separate areas of the country. +It is by no means a well-thought-out nor a very practicable enactment, +and unfortunately has had the effect of greatly irritating the Natives +throughout the Union. The Natives do not think they are being treated fairly, +and have used every legitimate means to obtain a hearing. +These means, however, are exceedingly meagre, practically non-existent, +since they have no one to represent them, and as they have no vote +they can bring no pressure on Parliament. Having failed in South Africa, +they have sent a deputation to Great Britain, since, as they are +British subjects, they consider that Great Britain should look after them. +Arriving here, they find the Home Government cannot interfere +in the internal policy of a self-governing colony, and so are left +with no means of obtaining redress. It is surely impossible to admit +that Great Britain can do nothing for the mass of the native population, +although at the moment it appears to them that though +they are subjects of the King he cannot even hear their appeal, +and will do nothing for them, and has abandoned them, a state of affairs +which is quite incomprehensible to them and leads them to depend +solely on themselves to obtain redress -- and that way rebellion lies. +Britain is in an awkward position as she still has obligations +to secure justice to the Natives. If South Africa were to enact slavery, +would Britain still be able to do nothing to prevent it? + + + Ousting the Native + +Surely Mr. Harcourt can suggest to the South African Government +the necessity of appointing a Commission to inquire into +the working of the Act, a Commission which would include Natives +as well as whites. That the Natives have a material grievance is certain. +The Act says that there shall be certain areas in which no Native +can own or lease land, and similarly areas in which no white +can own or lease land. That within a certain period the Natives owning land +in the white area must sell out, and when their leases run out +they shall not be renewed, similarly for the whites in the black area. +Now at present no black area has been delimited, and the Commission +performing this task will not report for a year or more; +meanwhile the blacks are being turned off the land and have nowhere to go. +The only course left to them is to hire themselves out as servants +to the white; and, in fact, that is the real object of the Act. +The farmers found that the Natives were acquiring land rapidly, +and working for themselves rather than for the white man. +There was a shortage of labour, and farmers wished to force the Natives +to work for them rather than for themselves. This ejection +with no other alternative is obviously most unfair, especially as +there are indications that the native areas will not be delimited +for a considerable time. The South Africans have always feared +a combined action of all the native tribes, but surely by this Act +they have chosen the simplest way of irritating every Native in South Africa. +This condition of affairs is exceedingly grave, and, though the results +are suppressed at present, there is no knowing what may happen +if the British Government, whom the Natives regard as their final +court of appeal, shows itself powerless. We know that the native question +in South Africa is terribly difficult, but it is an obvious course +to be pursued in order to maintain good relations between the two races +that grievances should be fairly heard and dealt with justly. +-- `Review of Reviews'. +== + + + + +Chapter XVIII The P.S.A. and Brotherhoods + + The Brotherhood must help not only the spiritual part of life, + but also in social matters. They should always help the down-trodden, + showing the brotherly feeling which was portrayed throughout + the life of Christ. + Rt. Hon. A. Henderson, M.P., + President of the Brotherhood Movement, at Weston-super-Mare. + + + +In a previous chapter we mentioned a yellow-covered newspaper which +abused our English friends for supporting the appeal of the native deputation. +It characterized the advocacy of the aims of the deputation by the Brotherhood +as "Rubbish -- a commodity which can always be picked up, +and quite a lot of people spend much of their time in collecting it." +"Why," exclaims this paper with indignation, "we had imagined +that the `Brotherhood' movement was of a religious nature." + +Our answer to this taunt is, that just because the Brotherhood movement +opposes the Natives' Land Act it must be religious, +for Anglican Bishops in South Africa have denounced this law +in their episcopal charges (vide `Church Chronicle', 1913, October issues), +and Anglican Bishops in South Africa are nothing if they are not religious. +Nonconformist Ministers have condemned this law in their annual +synods and conferences. Ex-Premier W. P. Schreiner, K.C., C.M.G., +at present the London representative of the Union of South Africa, +is the son of an old South African missionary. He was member of +the Union Parliament when this law was passed and was one of the few senators +who had the pluck to vote against it after condemning it; +and it is monstrous to suggest that these pious and learned men +could conspire to denounce a law just for the pleasure of denouncing it. +And to our untutored mind it seems that if it be true that all these good men +are working for the spread of Christ's Kingdom in South Africa, +then we must be pardoned the inference that in the same country +protagonists of this Act are working for the establishment of another kingdom. +This inference grows into a belief when it is recalled that the men +who are responsible for the recent commotion are the very men +who forced this law upon the Government. + +In the various reports of the South African Church Synods of 1915, +the character of this "Church closing" law stands out in bold relief, +and it is there revealed as an opponent of Christ and His work. Let us refer +to only one of them. "The native work of the (Transvaal) District +has been seriously hampered by the operation of the Natives' Land Act. +As the result of evictions under the Act, some of the Churches on farms +have ceased to exist." -- Cape `Methodist Churchman', Jan. 22, 1915. + +The numerous South African opponents of this law had no share +in the recent upheaval, and the Brotherhoods by lending their platforms +to a campaign in opposition to a law that emanates from such a quarter +show that their cause, in addition to religion, is on the side of law, +order, and constitutional liberty. We know, of course, +that no doctrine of liberty would be acceptable in South Africa +that did not also imply "liberty to ill-treat the blacks". +Hence the Brotherhood propaganda, being colour-blind, +explains the fury of the London mouthpiece of "lily-white" South Africa. + +Early in July the deputation called at the Brotherhood headquarters +in Norfolk Street, Strand, to explain to the National Brotherhood Council +the object of their mission. Mr. William Ward, the national secretary, +received the deputation in person; Mr. John McIntosh, secretary to +the London Federation, Mr. W. Mann and other officers being also present. +They invited the deputation to the Quarterly Meeting of the London Federation +at Bishopsgate on July 14, 1914, after which the deputation received +invitations to address meetings in various parts. Some of these engagements +still remain unfulfilled. A list of the centres visited is given +at the end of this chapter. + +At the Bishopsgate gathering Mr. Will Crooks, M.P., was the "star turn". +He welcomed the deputation and regretted the cold reception accorded to it +by the Colonial Secretary. He added, however, that if they proceeded +along the same moderate lines followed by Dr. Rubusana and Mr. Msane +(the two members of the deputation who spoke that evening) +he felt certain that they would do more good for their cause in the country +than they did at the Colonial Office. + +The `Brotherhood Journal', the newspaper organ of the movement said: -- + +== + Bear ye one another's Burdens + +For Brotherhood men and women there can be only one response to their appeal. +For Brotherhood is not only between man and man, but between +nation and nation, and race and race. + +In our movement, at any rate, there can be no colour bar to love and justice. +If our Brotherhoods did not rise to a cause like this, we might well question +the reality of their fraternal pretensions. + +We are told that the problem has its difficulties. No doubt. +But they can be overcome, if only our statesmen will act +in a spirit of courage and faith. Surely empire means not only +privilege and power and glory, but also responsibility and obligations. +If it means only commercial profit, and injustice is to be done with impunity +under the Imperial flag, + + Of what worth is such an Empire? + +This is a matter in which every one of our members should exert +the force of opinion on the side of right. Let us open +to our coloured brothers' cause our platforms and our hearts. + +The five members of the deputation will be in this country for some months, +and are prepared to address Brotherhoods and Sisterhoods, +and to send information as to their case to any who wish it. + +We doubt not that they will find in our midst not only +a most sympathetic hearing, but active help in educating public opinion +in this country, in order that a great wrong may be righted. +== + +How unlike so many poor attempts at brotherhood, organized in +the name of Christianity, especially in our part of the globe, +where "they have made the welkin ring with the sorrowful tale +of the unfortunate condition of the weak, but, like the rich man +in the parable, they liked their Lazarus afar off," and considered their +fraternal pretensions satisfied if they sent their dogs to lick his wounds. +No, the Brotherhood movement is no such parody. It is practical Christianity +which knows no distinction of colour or boundaries between nations. +Our nine months' association with Brother Martin and Brother Timberlake, +of the Shernhall Brotherhood, confirms this view; and our acquaintanceship +with other members of this wonderful movement (which counts +judges and members of Parliament as well as factory hands +among its office-bearers) satisfied the writer that they are always ready +to practise what they preach. + +A noteworthy occasion in connexion with the campaign was our visit +to the Southall Brotherhood on Sunday, March 14. We can hardly +forget the day; it was on Crocus Sunday when thousands of Londoners +went to Hampton Court in crowds to see the crocus bulbs in bloom. +It was a glorious day and we remember it as the second day in 1915 on which +the European sun shone through a cloudless sky from sunrise to sunset. +Thousands of people attended at Hyde Park to witness the church parade, +and still more thousands took advantage of the glorious spring day +after a strenuous winter to flock to Epping Forest and other popular resorts. + +In the afternoon we took part in an Imperial indoor demonstration +organized by the "Southall Men's Own" at the Central Hall. +Mr. William Cross of Hanwell represented England; Mr. T. Owens, F.C.I.S., +represented Wales; Mr. S. S. A. Cambridge, a black barrister, +represented his homeland, British Guiana; Miss Ruth Bucknall, the celebrated +lyric soprano, who artistically contributed the solos, represented Australia; +while Scotland and the Emerald Isle were also represented +in the orchestra and elsewhere in the hall; Mr. and Mrs. Lionel Boote, +of Auckland, New Zealand, represented "the most English of the Colonies" +(unfortunately the Indian representative could not reach Southall in time), +and the writer represented South Africa, the baby member +of the British family. + +Among such intellectual giants, one was inclined at the outset +to feel somewhat out of place, but thanks to the encouraging Brotherhood cheer +which always accompany their reception of a speaker, the stripling +soon finds himself at home, as is always the case on any Brotherhood platform, +and that was how we felt that day. + +Mr. W. Cross said, in part, that one of the most striking proofs +of the unity of the Empire was shown in the splendid way +that men had come forward to assist the Mother Country +on the battlefields of Europe from all parts of our Dominions. +The coloured men from India had come as free men and fellow-subjects +to do their share. The Empire was composed of territories and people -- +once separated by race and creed, now united under one flag. +There was a great resemblance between Brotherhood and Empire. +In it all kinds of religion were represented, yet all were united +in one great principle. It had been said the soul of Russia was pity, +of France reason, and of Britain justice. No Empire could be built to stand +unless based on justice and freedom. The principle of freedom underlay Empire +as it underlay Brotherhood also. There was no limit to the Empire +that was founded upon unity, toleration, justice, and liberty; +it surely had no end. Similarly there was no frontier +to the kingdom of Brotherhood, and they looked for a kingdom out-spanning +far beyond the roll of British drums -- the kingdom of Brotherhood -- +the kingdom of Christ. + +Referring to the limitations of colour in South Africa, Mr. Cambridge said: +"Have you no cattle and sheep in South Africa? Are there no birds? +Have you not observed that they are of different colours and yet are not +restricted in their flight on that account; and are you going to run counter +to the work of nature in regard to human beings? The British Empire +has a population of over 430,000,000, of which less than 100,000,000 +are white, and there was a big problem to solve: `How to rule +with justice and equity this great multitude of various races and creeds +and consolidate them as fellow-subjects of one great and mighty Empire.' +The future of the British Empire could be secured by following +the high ideals of `Brotherhood' which were foreshadowed by Christ +in the Bible, and by great writers such as Shakespeare and Addison. +The fall of Rome was due to her failure to recognize the duty +of welding her subjects together as brothers one and all +under the Fatherhood of God. . . ." + +It is a pity that the argument used by Mr. Cambridge would not go down +with the majority of the rulers in South Africa. If it did +one would remind them that even South African ladies pay +higher prices for black silks than they do for white silks; +that the value of domestic animals does not as a whole appear +to be influenced by their colour: thus, whereas the fleece of white sheep +commands a higher price in the South African wool market +than the fleece of black sheep, their mutton has about the same flavour. +Again of horned cattle, which give the same quality of beef, +irrespective of colour; farmers will tell you of them +that coloured cattle are among the best for farming and other purposes, +while white bullocks are subject to sore eyes, and white cows +continually suffer from erythema of the nipples (`Garget-mammitis'); +yet we have not heard that this peculiarity had any influence +on the quality of their beef or the quality of the milk they give. +The springbuck, whence the best South African venison is obtained, +has the colours of black, white and brown; and this blend has not prevented it +from having the reputation of being the prettiest and most graceful antelope +in the world. But argument in this respect is simply wasted +on the ruling caste in South Africa: there, Mr. Cross's views +about "freedom, liberty," etc., will simply be laughed out of court, +unless he limits them to white men; so that one sometimes wonders +whether Christ's metaphor about "casting pearls before swine" does not find +an application here. Look at the weighty arguments delivered +inside and outside Parliament against the Natives' Land Act. +Surely no legislature with a sense of responsibility could have +passed that law after hearing arguments of such force and weight against it; +but the South African legislature passed that Act and seems to glory +in the wretched result of its operation. + +Mr. Boote expressed his pride in finding how shining was the native policy +of New Zealand when contrasted with the native policy of South Africa. +"Why," said Mrs. Boote to us, with evident satisfaction, +"we have got Maori members of Parliament and our country +is all the better for it." She had every justification to look pleased +at the comparison which reveals the justice of her country's rule, +for we remember how the women of New Zealand got the vote. +The white members of Parliament in New Zealand were equally divided +on the Women's Enfranchisement Bill; but for the native members, +there would have been a tie, as was the case in South Africa three years ago, +when the white members of the South African Parliament, +as seemed likely there, wheedled the Women's Suffrage Bill out of the House. +Happily for Women's Franchise in the Antipodes the Maori members +voted solidly for the Bill and secured the passage of a reform which, +judging by the satisfactory results in Australia and elsewhere, +gave the lead to the rest of the Empire. + +It was at Hammersmith, where the chairman after hearing +our story of the operation of the Natives' Land Act, +in moving a resolution, in a sympathetic speech, asked: "Why did we +spend 240,000,000 Pounds and kill 10,000 men in the South African War +if this is the result?" He asked the permission of the audience to change +the last hymn on the programme and sing the Brotherhood Song of Liberty. + +As the newspaper `South Africa' seems to insinuate that +the Brotherhood movement by allying itself with our cause +had deviated from its aims and objects, we would explain that the chairman +did not run out of the meeting to borrow a book from somewhere +containing that song. The song is No. 26 of the `Fellowship Hymnal' -- +the hymn-book of the P.S.A. and Brotherhoods. + +At subsequent meetings it had often been our pleasure, +after delivering the message from the South African Natives, +to sit down and hear the chairman give out that hymn, +and the orchestra lead off with the tune of Costa's March of the Israelites. +A pleasant variety was lent to it at the Victoria Brotherhood +in Monmouthshire, which we visited on the first Sunday in 1915. +There the chairman gave out the now familiar hymn, and the grand organ chimed +the more familiar tune of "Jesu, lover of my soul" (Hollingside's), +and the variety lent extra freshness to the singing of +the Brotherhood Song of Liberty, which is reproduced: -- + + Men whose boast it is that ye + Come of fathers brave and free, + If there breathe on earth a slave, + Are ye truly free and brave? + If ye do not feel the chain + When it works a brother's pain, + Are ye not base slaves indeed -- + Slaves unworthy to be freed? + + Is true freedom but to break + Fetters for our own dear sake, + And with leathern hearts forget + That we owe mankind a debt? + No! true freedom is to share + All the chains our brothers wear, + And with heart and hand to be + Earnest to make others free. + + They are slaves who fear to speak + For the fallen and the weak; + They are slaves who will not choose + Hatred, scoffing, and abuse, + Rather than in silence shrink + From the truth they needs must think: + They are slaves who dare not be + In the right with two or three. + + J. R. Lowell. + + + ------------------------------------------------------------ + P.S.A. and Brotherhood Societies Addressed by the Deputation + and the Order in Which They Were Visited + ------------------------------------------------------------ + [Modified from original table format] + + [a] Society. [b] Name of President or Secretary. + [c] Where Meetings are Held. [d] By Whom Addressed. +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + +[a] 1. London Federation of Brotherhoods [b] Mr. John McIntosh +[c] 230, Bishopsgate, E.C. [d] Mr. Saul Msane, Dr. W. B. Rubusana + +[a] 2. Tooting Brotherhood [b] Rev. E. Aldom French +[c] Wesleyan Central Hall, Tooting, S.W. [d] Mr. Saul Msane, +Dr. W. B. Rubusana + +[a] 3. Willesden Green Men's Own Brotherhood [b] Mr. H. J. Weaver +[c] Baptist Church, High Road, Willesden Green [d] Mr. Sol T. Plaatje, +Mr. T. M. Mapikela + +[a] 4. Westbourne Park Brotherhood [b] Dr. J. Clifford, MA.DD. +[c] Baptist Church, Bayswater, W. [d] Dr. W. B. Rubusana + +[a] 5. Willesden P.S.A. [b] Mr. W. Springbett +[c] Primitive Methodist Church, Willesden Green [d] Dr. W. B. Rubusana, +Mr. T. M. Mapikela + +[a] 6. East Ham Brotherhood [b] Rev. W. H. Armstrong [c] Central Hall, +Barking Road, East Ham [d] Dr. W. B. Rubusana, Mr. T. M. Mapikela + +[a] 7. Tooting Graveny Brotherhood [b] Mr. A. Riding [c] Central Hall, +Tooting, Broadway [d] Mr. Saul Msane + +[a] 8. Men's Brotherhood [b] Rev. A. Clifford Hall +[c] Congregational Church, Greenwich Rd., S.E. [d] Mr. Saul Msane + +[a] 9. Hammersmith Brotherhood [b] Mr. J. W. Butters +[c] Albion Congregational Church, Hammersmith [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 10. Shern Hall Brotherhood [b] Mr. W. H. Jennings +[c] United Methodist Church, Whipps Cross [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 11. Swanscombe Brotherhood [b] Mr. E. Pallant [c] Wesleyan Church, +Swanscombe, near Northfleet [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 12. Clifton Brotherhood [b] Rev. F. Hastings +[c] Congregational Church, Peckham Rye [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 13. Abertillery P.S.A. [b] Mr. Wm. Davies [c] The Pavilion, +Abertillery, South Wales [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 14. Abertillery P.S.A. [b] Mr. E. Jefferies [c] Wesleyan Church, +Abertillery, South Wales [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 15. Barking Brotherhood [b] Mr. W. Barnard [c] Wesleyan Church, +Barking, Essex [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 16. Willesden Green Men's Own [b] Mr. C. E. Pink [c] Baptist Church, +High Rd., Willesden Green [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 17. Victoria Brotherhood [b] Mr. J. W. Hall [c] Wesleyan Church, +Newport, Monmouthshire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 18. Marsh Street Men's Own Brotherhood (Men's Meeting) +[b] Mr. E. K. Fuller [c] Queen's Cinema Electric Theatre, Walthamstow +[d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 19. Greenhithe Brotherhood [b] Mr. S. W. Lineham +[c] Wesleyan Church, London Rd., Greenhithe [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 20. Marsh Street Men's Own (Evening Meeting: Mixed) +[b] Mr. W. F. Toynbee [c] Queen's Cinema Electric Theatre, Walthamstow +[d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 21. Dartford P.S.A. [b] Mr. H. Keyte [c] Primitive Methodist Church, +Dartford, Kent [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 22. Southall Men's Own Brotherhood [b] T. Owen, Esq., F.C.I.S. +[c] Central Hall, Southall, W. [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 23. Lloyd's Park P.S.A. [b] Rev. R. P. Campbell +[c] United Methodist Church, Lloyd's Park [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 24. Men and Women's Meeting [b] Mr. F. Mercer +[c] Independent Church, Edmonton, North [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 25. Chiswick Brotherhood [b] Mr. D. J. Hawkins [c] Brotherhood Hall, +Turnham Green Terrace [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 26. Abney Brotherhood [b] Mr. W. A. Procktor [c] Abney Church, +Stoke Newington [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 27. Uxbridge P.S.A. [b] Mr. W. Ashton, J.P. +[c] Old Meeting House (Congl.), Uxbridge [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 28. West Ealing P.S.A. [b] Mr. S. Garrard +[c] Primitive Methodist Church, West Ealing [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 29. New England P.S.A. [b] Sir Richard Winfrey, M.P. +[c] P.S.A. Hall, Peterborough, Northampton [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 30. Shern Hall Brotherhood [b] Rev. James Ellis +[c] United Methodist Church, Walthamstow [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 31. Leighton Men's Meeting [b] Mr. G. F. Drew [c] Corn Exchange, +Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 32. Pembury Grove P.S.A. [b] Mr. Ernest Prior +[c] United Methodist Church, Clapton [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 33. Shepherd's Bush Brotherhood [b] Mr. F. C. Simpson +[c] Shepherd's Bush Tabernacle (Baptist) [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 34. East Ham Brotherhood [b] Mr. G. Sorrell [c] Central Hall, +Barking Road, East Ham [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 35. Botwell Brotherhood [b] Mr. J. Matson [c] The Cinema, +Hayes, Middlesex [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 36. Kingsland P.S.A. [b] Mr. J. Harding [c] Congregational Church, +High Street, Kingsland [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 37. Heathfield Brotherhood [b] Mr. Hy. H. Castle +[c] Recreation Hall, Heathfield, Sussex [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 38. Men's Own Brotherhood [b] Rev. A. Hallack, M.A. +[c] Angel Street Church, Worcester [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 39. Greenwich P.S.A. [b] Rev. W. T. Penny [c] Central Hall, +London Street, Greenwich [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 40. Hither Green P.S.A. [b] Mr. P. Duff [c] Congregational Church, +Torridon Road [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 41. Whitefield's Men's Meeting [b] Rev. W. Charter Piggott +[c] Whitefield's Tabernacle, Tottenham Court Road [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 42. North End Brotherhood [b] Mr. Elwin Wrench [c] North End Hall, +Croydon, Surrey [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 43. Trinity Men's Own [b] Mr. A. J. Walker [c] Congl. Church, +Victoria Park, Sth. Hackney [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 44. Acton Brotherhood [b] Mr. James McIntosh [c] Congl. Church, +Churchfield Rd., Acton, W. [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 45. P.S.A. Brotherhood [b] Mr. W. G. Brown [c] Wesleyan Church, +High Rd., Tottenham [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 46. Northampton Men's Own [b] Rev. R. Morton Stanley, M.A., B.D. +[c] Doddridge Church, Northampton [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 47. Cheshunt and Waltham Cross P.S.A. [b] Mr. A. W. Ashmead +[c] Drill Hall, Waltham Cross [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 48. Staines P.S.A. [b] Mr. R. C. Edwards [c] Town Hall, +Staines, Middlesex [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 49. Snell's Park P.S.A. [b] R. Green, Esq., C.C. +[c] Congregational Church, Upper Edmonton [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 50. Camberwell P.S.A. [b] Mr. H. A. Spong [c] Masonic Hall, +Camberwell, Surrey [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 51. Norbury Brotherhood [b] Mr. J. L. Moody [c] Wesleyan Church, +London Rd., Norbury [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 52. Hastings Brotherhood [b] Mr. A. G. Strickland +[c] Congregational Church, Hastings, Sussex [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 53. Evesham Men's Own Brotherhood [b] Mr. G. H. White +[c] Cowl St. Church, Evesham, Worcestershire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 54. South Bank Brotherhood [b] Mr. T. Bosher +[c] South Bank-on-Tees, Yorkshire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 55. Tees-side Brotherhood [b] Mr. T. Summers +[c] Wes. Church South Bank, Yorkshire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 56. Shepherd's Bush, P.S.A. [b] Rev. W. G. Davis +[c] Wesleyan Church, Shepherd's Bush [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 57. Stockton United [b] Mr. W. Weighell [c] Baptist Tabernacle, +Stockton-on-Tees [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 58. Wembley Brotherhood [b] Mr. H. W. Hagger [c] Union Hall, Wembley +[d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 59. Watford Men's Own [b] Mr. A. G. Baker [c] Beechen Grove, +Ch. Watford, Hertfordshire [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +[a] 60. Clerkenwell Men's Own [b] Mr. R. G. Pursaill [c] Peel Institute, +Clerkenwell Green [d] Mr. S. T. Plaatje + +------------------------------------------------------------------------------ + In addition to the Brotherhoods and P.S.A.'s, we are indebted to + the Sisterhoods, Adult Schools and several Church bodies who gave us + many occasions to speak, the response to our message being most gratifying. + + + + +Chapter XIX Armed Natives in the South African War + + Oh, where is he, the simple fool, + Who says that wars are over? + What bloody portent flashes there, + Across the Straits of Dover? + Nine hundred thousand slaves in arms + May seek to bring us under + But England lives and still will live, + For we'll crush the despot yonder. + Are we ready, Britons all, + To answer foes with thunder? + Arm, arm, arm! + + + + The Gallant Bakhatla Tribe + +When Bechuanaland was invaded by the Republican forces +at the outbreak of the Boer War, the British Police Force +in the Bechuanaland Protectorate, finding themselves hopelessly isolated +in that far-away region, decided to evacuate Gaberones and effect a junction +with Colonel Plumer's force which was then coming south from Rhodesia. +The British Commissioner, before leaving Gaberones, +advised the Native Chiefs of the Southern Protectorate +to make the best terms possible with the invaders until the Transvaal Republic +was conquered by the advancing British Army. + +Chief Lentsue of the Bakhatla, acting entirely on his own responsibility, +sent his brother Segale with a message to the Dutch Commandant, reminding him +that the war was a white man's war, and asking him at the same time +not to traverse his territory with armed Boers; he also added +that any invasion of his territory would be resisted with all the means +at his disposal. Naturally, this message was treated with the contempt +that a Boer would habitually treat any frankness on the part of a "Kafir", +and the Boers, in utter disregard of this warning, invaded Bakhatla territory. +Chief Lentsue was not in a position to attack the Boers +at the beginning of the invasion. He had the men but hardly enough ammunition +to last for a whole day, so he had to bide his time, scheming the while +to secure an arsenal. The Dutch contempt for Lentsue's threats +advanced by 100 per cent when they overran his outer villages on two occasions +and he failed to offer any resistance, but they had not calculated +that his Intelligence Department and War Office were hard at work +in order that his threat to the Boers might not come to naught. +Accordingly on a certain day a convoy of huge buck-wagons, +each drawn by sixteen African bullocks, carrying ammunition +to the Dutch troops in Bechuanaland, meandered its way slowly +in the direction of the Marico River, escorted by a squadron +of mounted Burghers. All of a sudden they were surprised and disconcerted +by a fusillade of musketry, and the situation grew in gravity +from the fact that whichever way the members of the convoy scampered, +they appeared to be running from the frying-pan into the fire. +The ruse was swift and successful, indeed so successful +that the train of ammunition and provision wagons proceeded on its way +to Lentsue's town, Mochudi, but under a different escort. + +What had happened was this: The sub-chief Segale, who has since +been known as Lentsue's fighting general, had closely watched +the movements of the Dutch and studied their plans, till he was able +to anticipate the coming of this convoy and to waylay it. +He captured enough ammunition in this and succeeding attacks +to enable the Chief Lentsue to arm his men. Thus they repulsed +two invasions of the Boers, followed the enemy into his territory, +and came home with numbers of head of cattle, and Lentsue's territory +was never again invaded by the Boers. + +This isolated action of the Bakhatla Chief and people +in a remote corner of the Empire, on the boundaries of the late Boer Republic, +had its moral and material value. The Boers, who virtually owned +the whole of Bechuanaland to the south, except Mafeking town, +found that it would pay them better to adopt a friendlier attitude +towards the other Bechuana tribes. Thereby a Dutch Field Cornet +pronounced all the Bechuana Chiefs as the original Afrikanders -- +with the exception of Lentsue of the Bakhatla, and Montsioa of the Barolong +in Mafeking. These two chiefs, the Field Cornet said, +were traitors to their country as they had joined the foreign Rooineks +against their black and white fellow Afrikander. But the armed Burghers +ceased to help themselves to native property, and the Government's +huge compensation bill at the end of the War became less formidable +in consequence. Furthermore, the task of that unacknowledged hero +-- the native dispatch runner -- became so appreciably easier that +an almost regular bi-weekly communication was maintained between headquarters +at the Cape and the siege garrison at Mafeking, for the native runners +after crawling through the lines of the investing Boers, +under cover of the night, could move through the peasant villages +with much less danger of detection by Boer patrols. + +But it must be confessed that Chief Lentsue's defensive activities +were wholly illegal, inasmuch as the Boers, although they had declared war +against Lentsue's sovereign Lady, Queen Victoria, were not at war with him. +It was defined, by an uncanny white man's mode of reasoning, +that the war was a white man's business in which the blacks +should take no part beyond merely suffering its effects. The Natives' retort +to this declaration was in the words of a Sechuana proverb, +viz., "You cannot sever the jawbones from the head and expect to keep +those parts alive separately." It was this principle, we presume, that guided +Lentsue's action. Still from the standpoint of white South Africa, +the Chief's operations were a purely filibustering adventure; +and while it seemed difficult to indict Lentsue on any definite charge, +some of his men were arrested for having taken part +in a cattle-raiding expedition in Transvaal in the course of which +they shot and killed a German subject of the Transvaal Republic. +These men were tried at Pretoria after peace was declared, +and three of them were sentenced to death. All through the trial +the Chief stood by his men, who pleaded justification. He accompanied them +in the first instance to Pretoria, and afterwards paid for their defence +at the trial, and it was evident that he took the verdict and sentence +very much to heart. + +If the verdict strained the loyalty of the Bakhatla, +it had the effect of satisfying the Boers across the Bechuana border, +in the Western Transvaal, who had to live down the sad memory of a victory +gained by a black chief over their white army and of their purposes thereby. +From a Dutch point of view nothing could be more humiliating +than that black men should have gained such a signal success over them, +and they are constantly crying out for the repression of Lentsue +and his "proud" Kafirs. The Boers' demand that the Union authorities +should make the thraldom of the Natives more effective, +forgetting that the armed forces of the Boers when left to themselves +during the temporary British evacuation of Bechuanaland were unable to do it. +Notwithstanding this fact, the newspapers, especially the Rand Sunday Press, +seem always to have open spaces for rancorous appeals to colour prejudice, +perhaps because such appeals, despite their inherent danger, +suit the colonial taste. Preceding the introduction of the Natives' Land Act, +the clamour of a section of the colonists and most of the Transvaal Boers +for more restrictive measures towards the blacks was accompanied +at one of its stages by alarming reports of "Native disaffection", +"Bakhatla insolence", and similar inflammatory headlines. One Sunday morning +it was actually announced in the Sunday Press of Johannesburg +that the Bakhatla had actually opened fire on the Union Police +and were the first to draw blood. Our own inquiries proved +that the British Protectorate, in and around Lentsue's territory, +where the Bakhatla dwell, was abnormally quiet. All that had happened +was that two Dutch policemen had unlawfully crossed into Bechuanaland +with firearms; that the Natives had disarmed them and taken them +to their chief, who in turn handed them over to the British authorities +at Gaberones, where they were tried and sentenced. + +It is not suggested that Sunday papers in giving publicity +to disturbing reports lend their space to what they know to be untrue; +but the fact remains that, right or wrong, their editorials seem ever ready +to fan the glowing embers of colour prejudice into a blaze; +and after arousing in this manner a most acute race feeling, +the editors, upon discovering their mistake, if such it was, +did not even trouble to tell their readers that they had unwittingly published +exaggerated accounts -- since after a fair trial before the British tribunal +at Gaberones, the offending Union Police were fined 50 Pounds. +The fact is that while under the quasi-Republican laws of the Transvaal +a native policeman dare not lay his "black hands" on a "lily-white" criminal, +even if he caught him in the very act of breaking the law: +in British Bechuanaland, "there shall be no difference in the eye of the law +between a man with a white skin and a man with a black skin, +and the one shall be as much entitled to the protection of the law +as the other," and so in spite of scaremongers' ravings to the contrary, +Chief Lentsue proved himself once more on the side of the law of his Empire. + + Go mokong-kong ko Tipereri, + Go mokong-kong gole; + Go mokong-kong ko Tipereri, + Go mosetsana montle. + Dumela, Pikadili, + Sala, Lester-skuer, + Tsela ea Kgalagadi, Tipereri, + Pelo ea me e koo. + "Tipperary" in Rolong. + + + The Barolong and the War + +The Barolong and other native tribes near Mafeking were keenly interested +in the negotiations that preceded the Boer War. The chiefs continually +received information regarding the mobilization of the Boer forces +across the border. This was conveyed to the Magistrate of Mafeking +with requests for arms for purpose of defence. The Magistrate +replied each time with confident assurances that the Boers +would never cross the boundary into British territory. +The Transvaal boundary is only ten or twelve miles from the magistracy. +The assurances of the Magistrate made the Natives rather restive; +the result was that a deputation of Barolong chiefs had a dramatic interview +with the Magistrate, at which the writer acted as interpreter. +The chiefs told the Magistrate that they feared he knew very little about war +if he thought that belligerents would respect one another's boundaries. +He replied in true South African style, that it was a white man's war, +and that if the enemy came, Her Majesty's white troops +would do all the fighting and protect the territories of the chiefs. +We remember how the chief Montsioa and his counsellor Joshua Molema +went round the Magistrate's chair and crouching behind him said: +"Let us say, for the sake of argument, that your assurances are genuine, +and that when the trouble begins we hide behind your back like this, +and, rifle in hand, you do all the fighting because you are white; +let us say, further, that some Dutchmen appear on the scene +and they outnumber and shoot you: what would be our course of action then? +Are we to run home, put on skirts and hoist the white flag?" + +Chief Motshegare pulled off his coat, undid his shirt front +and baring his shoulder and showing an old bullet scar, received in +the Boer-Barolong war prior to the British occupation of Bechuanaland, +he said: "Until you can satisfy me that Her Majesty's white troops +are impervious to bullets, I am going to defend my own wife and children. +I have got my rifle at home and all I want is ammunition." + +The Magistrate duly communicated the proceedings to Capetown, +but the reply from headquarters was so mild and reassuring that one +could almost think that it referred to an impending Parliamentary election +rather than to a bloody war. But the subsequent rapid developments of events +showed that the Natives of Mafeking were in advance and that those +at headquarters were far behind the times. In a short time +after the interview of the chiefs with the Magistrate, +the Boers, following the terms of their ultimatum, crossed the border +between the Cape and Transvaal, cut the lines of communication +north and south of Mafeking and, before any arms could reach this quarter, +Mafeking (a little village on the banks of the Molopo) was surrounded, +with Montsioastad, a town of 5,000 native inhabitants. +The population of these places was largely increased by refugees, +both white and black, from outside the town, and also from the Transvaal. + +At this time of the investment General Cronje sent verbal messages +to the chief advising him not to mix himself and his people +in a white man's quarrel. This view of General Cronje's was, +at the beginning of the siege, in accord with local white sentiment. +The European inhabitants of the besieged town had a repugnance +to the idea of armed Natives shooting at a white enemy; +but the businesslike method of General Cronje in effecting the investment +had a sobering effect upon the whole of the beleaguered garrison; +the Dutch 100-pounder Cruesot especially thundered some sense into them +and completely altered their views. + +The Barolong youth had his baptism of fire on October 25, 1899, +when General Cronje tried to storm the garrison by effecting an entry +through the native village. He poured a deafening hail of nickel +into the native village. The Natives who were concealed behind +the outer walls of Montsioastad waited with their rifles in the loopholes, +according to Captain Marsh's instructions, till the Boers +were quite near to them, then returned the fire with satisfactory results. +After this encounter the whites, for the first time, regretted that +there were not any arms in the place with which to arm all the Natives. +As this attack was unmistakably severe and a Red Cross wagon +moved around the Boer lines in the afternoon, it was feared +that the native casualties were heavy, and medical aid was offered +by the white section of the garrison. But all were agreeably surprised +to find that beyond slight damages to the housetops there were no casualties +among the Barolongs. The following was the only injury: +A shell burst in front of Chief Lekoko as he was engaged +in repelling the Boer attack, but no fragments of it touched him. +One piece of shell, however, struck a rock and a splinter of the rock +grazed his temple. At best only a few rounds of ammunition +could be handed out to those of the Barolongs who used their own rifles, +and it is doubtful if so little ammunition was ever more economically used, +and used to greater advantage. + +The investment of Mafeking was so effective that only +certain Natives could crawl through the Boer lines at night. +Throughout the seven months of the siege only one white man managed, +under the guidance of two Natives, to pass into the village. +All the dispatches which came into and out of Mafeking +were carried by Barolong runners. Before the Boers moved their stock +into the far interior of the Transvaal, the Barolongs continually +went out and raided Boer cattle and brought them into the besieged garrison. +Often the raiders had to fight their way back, but sometimes as they returned +with the cattle in the night the Dutch sentries preferred to leave them alone. +The result was that General Snyman, who commanded the besiegers +after General Cronje went south, issued a general order +authorizing the shooting dead of "any one coming in or out of Mafeking", +armed or unarmed. + +At his village called Modimola, ten miles outside the beleaguered garrison, +there lived Chief Saane, uncle of the Mafeking chief. +Being apparently harmless he was not for some months molested by the Boers. +Later, however, they rightly suspected him of supplying the garrison +with information. They then took him and his followers to Rietfontein, +where they placed him under surveillance, but Chief Saane proved +even more useful in captivity than in liberty. He used the seemingly +inoffensive young men of Rietfontein, to glean all first-hand information +from the Boers, who still had command of the lines of communication. +Then he sent the news in verbal messages to his nephew, the paramount chief +in the siege, who in turn communicated it to Her Majesty's officers +in command. By means of this self-constituted intelligence bureau +the garrison learnt of the surrender of Cronje -- a happy consummation +of the battle of Paardeberg -- shortly after the good news +reached their besiegers; and when official confirmation came from the Cape, +more than a week later, Chief Saane's messengers were there again +with fresh news of the surrender of Bloemfontein. This news, +as might be well supposed, was glad tidings to the besieged people. +They were in fact the truths that King Solomon thus sets forth: +"As cold water is to the weary soul, so is good news from a far country," +for, in those days, before the invention of aeroplanes and Marconigrams, +no country in this wide world was further than a besieged garrison. + +Among the first civilian bodies raised in Mafeking for +purposes of garrison defence was the "Cape Boy Contingent", +a company of mixed classes in varying degrees of complexions. +Sergt.-Major Taylor, a coloured bricklayer, who led the contingent +and directed the crack snipers of that company, was killed +during the fourth month of the siege, by a fragment of a huge shell +in the outer trenches. + +His funeral was attended by General Baden-Powell and other staff officers, +and was probably the only funeral of a coloured person +in the South African war that was accorded such distinguished +military attendance. + +The language of the Cape coloured or mixed people is the same +as that of the Boers, viz., the Cape Dutch. At times during the siege +our advance lines and those of the Boers used to be less than 100 yards apart, +and when the wily snipers of both sides saw nothing to snipe at, +they used to exchange pleasantries at the expense of one another, +from the safety of their entrenchments. Sometimes these wordy compliments +made the opponents decidedly "chummy", to borrow a trench phrase. +In that mood, they would now and again wax derisive or become amusing, +bespeaking the fates of one another or the eventual outcome of the war. +Whoever got the worst of the argument used to cut off communication +with an unpleasant remark; but when it was mutually amusing, +both sides enjoyed an advantage and each joined heartily +in the resulting merriment. On more than one occasion a convivial Dutchman +momentarily forgot the martial aspect of the mutual hilarity and complied with +an equally convivial coloured man's exclamation to "kyk hier, jong" +(look here, old fellow), and directly he "kyked" the snipers did to him +that which from the enemy's point of view would amount to "devil's work". + +The reader of these reminiscences will perhaps permit us to pay a tribute +to the Dutch Burghers who, under General Snyman, besieged Mafeking. +Whatever we may say against them, in other ways, this much must be said +in their favour, namely, that they left us entirely alone on Sundays. +Such an opportunity gave the Mafeking people a chance to get about, +to have a thorough wash-up, and to keep the Sabbath holy. +Snipers put down their rifles on Sunday mornings, declared a day's peace +among the contending forces between the opposing trenches, +and pointed out to one another landmarks beyond which the opposing sentries +might not cross, since to wander past these beacons would mean +a sudden resumption of hostilities. But as the landmarks +were religiously respected there seldom was any occasion +to desecrate the Sabbath by the clash of arms. We had thus +a whole day's recreation, when the trenchmen used to visit +their families in the women's camp and make all-round preparations +for another week's bombardment. + +The "Cape Boys" fought with distinction and maintained their reputation +right up to the end of the siege. Visitors to Mafeking may now see +near the obelisk in front of the pretty town hall of the famous siege town, +a five-pounder gun "captured by the Cape Police during the siege". +This gun was seized by the coloured Sergeant Bell and two other +subalterns of the "Cape Boys" contingent; their contingent was then +under the command of Lieutenant Currey of the Cape Police. + +Besides the brave coloured men who fell during the defence of Mafeking, +one painful effect of the siege, in connexion with this contingent, +was that of Mr. Swartz, who was blinded by an exploding Boer shell +and has never been able to regain his eyesight. + + Ukude, ukude Tipperary, + 'Kude mpela ku hamba, + Ukude, ukude Tipperary, + Nentombi 'nhle ng' asiyo. + Hlala kahle, Piccadilly + Nawe Leicester Square + Ikude lendlhela yase Tipperary + Kona 'po nhliziyo yami. + "Tipperary" in Zulu. + +Two other small companies who filled their posts without reproach +were the Fingo contingent and the Black Watch, so-called, presumably, +from the jet-black colour of the members. The "Black Watch" included +Mozambique and Zambesi boys, Shangaans and others from among +the blackest races of South Africa. The greatest disaster +sustained by this company was when a party of thirty-three of them +dashed into the Boer lines on an ill-starred attempt to loot cattle +from the enemy's herds. After their night's dash out of the garrison +they got to a hiding place for the day, but they were followed there +and were surrounded by a Boer commando, which peppered them +with a maxim and a big gun. They fought up to the last cartridge, +but were helplessly outnumbered and outranged by the Boers, +who killed them to a man. + +Cattle-raiding was a dangerous business in which the crafty Barolong, +who belonged to the country, alone were well versed. A subtle warrior +among the Barolong, named Mathakgong, was a regular expert in this business. +He led the occasional Barolong dashes into the Boer lines in search of beef +and he invariably managed to rush his loot into Mafeking. +He did this throughout the seven months' siege with the loss of only two men. +The only misadventure of this intrepid looter was when he attempted +to rush in an unusually large drove of cattle which Colonel Plumer had been +buying and collecting at his Sefikile camp about forty miles north of Mafeking +for the besieged garrison. Dutchmen tell us that for days they had learnt +that Colonel Plumer was arranging to send cattle into Mafeking. +They even knew the exact number -- 100 head -- and so they sent scouts +to the north every day to watch the roads and warn the besiegers of the event. +Hence, although they had left Mafeking unobserved, when Mathakgong's party +approached Mafeking on the return trip with the cattle, a strong Dutch force +was waylaying him and waiting to give him and Colonel Plumer's cattle +a hot reception. They opened a rattling fusillade upon the cattle drivers, +which could be heard from Mafeking. Over half of the cattle +were killed in the ensuing fight, and the remainder, +like the fat carcases of the dead bullocks, fell into the hands of the Boers. +The drivers escaped with only two wounded out of the party of twelve. +They said that they owed their escape almost entirely +to the carcases of dead cattle, which they used as ramparts. + +When Mathakgong heard subsequently how the Boers had planned +to annihilate him and his small party, he became very indignant +at what he called "the clumsy European method of always revealing +their intentions to the enemy." + +Away out in Basutoland, "the Switzerland of South Africa", +the Paramount Chief Lerothodi offered to send an army on Bloemfontein +while the "Free" Staters were engaged in the British Colonies +of Natal and the Cape, which they had invaded. Lord Milner strongly +forbade him from taking that step, and it was all that Sir Godfrey Lagden, +the British Resident in Basutoland, could do to restrain the Basuto warriors +from swooping down upon the Orange "Free" State. + +On one occasion, however, the Basuto mountaineers were quickly mobilized. +Word reached Maseru that General De Wet, whose guerrilla career +was then at the height of its fame, was seriously harassed by Imperial troops +in the "Free" State, and that it was feared he would escape +through Basuto territory. In such a case it was ruled that the Basuto +would be justified in opening fire upon the trespassing commandoes, +but not until the Boers actually set foot upon Basuto territory. +Therefore the Basutos, in anticipation of this violation of their territory, +under the leadership of Councillor Philip Modise, made a record turn-out +in one night, in a mountainous country, without telegraphic communication, +and where all the orders were conveyed by word of mouth +by men mounted on the sure-footed Basuto ponies; so that at daybreak +as the Boers at the frontier near Wepener awoke, they found the Basuto border +to be one mass of black humanity. The Basutos made strong appeals to Maseru +for permission to cross the border and rush the Boers, and again +they were forbidden. At length General De Wet, amid a rain of British shells, +withdrew his commando and carried his operations elsewhere. + +General De Wet, in his book on the South African War, admits that +he was once hopelessly cornered and that then his only safe way of escape +lay through the territory of the Basuto. He next proceeds to give his reason +for not violating Basuto territory: it is that the Basutos +showed no hostility towards the Boers, and that he had no wish +to provoke them. No mention is made that armed Basutos barred his way, +but if General De Wet's restraint were voluntary it would be +the first instance in history that a Boer general had shown any regard +concerning the rights or feelings of the Natives. + +General Botha has on several occasions mentioned the loyal assistance +rendered to the Transvaal Burghers by the Natives of the Transvaal. +We may also mention the case of Chief Mokgothu, of the Western Transvaal, +who with his headmen was detained at Mafeking after the siege. +In fact that chief died in the Mafeking prison where he was interned +with the Republican political prisoners for participating in the war +on the side of the Republic. + +On another occasion General Botha (obviously referring to Natives +other than those around Mafeking) unwittingly paid a tribute +to the valour of British Natives during the South African war. +Speaking in the Nieuwe Kerk, at Middelburg, Holland, the General said: -- + +== +The Kaffirs turned against us and we not only had to fight +against the English but against the Natives as well +. . . when the attacks of the Kaffirs increased, our cause became +dark and black. . . . All these facts taken collectively +compelled us to discuss terms of peace.* + +-- +* "De Boerengeneraals in Zeeland", p. 29. +-- +== + +The southern defences of Montsioastad were maintained by the Barolong, +under their own chief Lekoko, in their own way and with their own +rations and rifles. These were only supplemented by supplies of ammunition, +of which there was not too much in the garrison. And the only instructions +which Major Godley and Captain Marsh gave the defenders +was to "sit tight and don't shoot until the enemy is quite close." + +The rest of the native population in the besieged town +was under the fatherly care of Mr. C. G. H. Bell, the civil magistrate. +And the harmonious relation between white and black as a prevailing +characteristic of the population of the garrison throughout the siege +was largely due to the tactful management of Major Lord Edward Cecil, D.S.O., +Colonel Baden-Powell's chief of Staff. At the end of the siege, +Lord Roberts sent General Sir Chas. Parsons to thank the Barolong +for the creditable manner in which they defended their homes +throughout the siege. The veteran soldier evidently thought +that he had not done enough in the matter, so later on he sent +Major the Hon. Hanbury Tracey from Pretoria with a framed address +to the Barolong chiefs, written in gilt letters. + +Colonel C. B. Vyvyan, who was escorted to Montsioastad +by a squadron of the 4th Bedfordshire Regiment, headed by +their band playing patriotic airs, presented the address +in the presence of a large gathering of Barolongs and European visitors. +The ceremony was described by the `Mafeking Mail' as follows: -- + +== +Within the square, seated on chairs and stools, were the Barolong men, +whilst the women, attired in their brightest dresses, +took up positions wherever they could get a view of the proceedings. +On the arrival of the Base Commandant (Lieut.-Colonel Vyvyan) +and the Resident Magistrate (Mr. C. G. H. Bell), a Union Jack was hoisted +to the accompaniment of a general cheer. A large number of civilians +and several military officers witnessed the ceremony, among them being +the Mayor (Mr. A. H. Friend), Mr. W. H. Surmon (Acting Commissioner), +Lieut.-Colonel Newbury (Field Paymaster), Major the Hon. Hanbury Tracey +(the officer who brought the address from Pretoria), and Major Panzera. + +Mr. Bell, addressing the assembled Natives, said: To-day is an historical one +in the history of the Barolongs as represented by Montsioa's people. +I am sure it must be most satisfactory to you all who have so bravely assisted +in the defence of Mafeking to have this honour conferred upon you, +which is unprecedented in the annals of the history of the native tribes +in this country. The Field-Marshal commanding Her Majesty's troops +in South Africa has expressed in the address which is about to be +presented to you his thanks for the services you rendered during the siege -- +an honour which I am sure you will appreciate at its full value, and which +I can assure you is fully recognized by the Europeans who took part with you +in the defence of the town. On many occasions bravery was displayed +by both Europeans and Natives. We have fought and risked our lives together; +we have undergone privations; we have eaten horses and various other animals +of a like character; we have seen our friends fall, shattered by shells; +and we have endured hardships and trials which very few men endure +more than once in a lifetime. We have fought together for one common object. +We have attained that object, and it is now impossible for us to do otherwise +than experience a feeling of fellowship which is accentuated +by the proceedings of to-day. You Barolongs at the commencement of the siege +declared your determination to be loyal to the Queen, +and when we had a meeting here shortly before war broke out +you were assured by General Baden-Powell that if you did remain loyal +your services would not be forgotten, and the Field-Marshal +has endeavoured to-day to convince you of the truth of that statement. +There are certain names mentioned on the address; but I cannot help, +while talking to you now, mentioning the names of other persons +who were of great assistance to us during the siege. It was +altogether impossible to include the names of everybody on the address, +and some of you may think that your names are not there +because you have been overlooked, but that is not so. I will just mention +the names of a few which, had there been room, might have appeared. +First, there is Saane, who remained outside and assisted our dispatch runners, +and who when he heard news sent it to us. It is only those +who suffered from news hunger at the time can understand the pleasure +we experienced at the assistance continually rendered to us by Saane. +Then there is Badirile, who so bravely commanded his young men +on the western outposts, and who on many occasions went through +determined encounters with the enemy. Then again there is Joshua Molema, +Motshegare and Mathakgong, all of whom did good service. +Then there was Dinku, who on the day Eloff came in and when the enemy +was behind him, stuck to his little fort, and who during the attack +was wounded by a shell, which has since caused his death. +His memory will not fade away amongst you Barolongs, as he was well known +as a brave man. + +Colonel Vyvyan then stepped forward and said: Chief Wessels and men +of the Barolong nation, -- Lord Roberts, Commander-in-Chief of +the British Army in South Africa, has sent a special officer from Pretoria +to bring you his greeting and to deliver to you a mark of his approval +and the approval which he expresses on behalf of the Queen. +Gathered here to-day are subjects of the Queen from various parts +of her wide dominions -- men who have come overseas from England, +from Australia, from Canada, and from India -- and they are here +this afternoon to meet her native subjects of the Barolong tribe; +whilst we, the officers and soldiers of the Queen who fought in Mafeking, +wish to show what we think of our friends and neighbours +down here in the stadt. You have done your duty well. You will remember +that some time ago an officer was sent by Lieut.-General Baden-Powell +to thank you for your services, and now the greatest General of all +has sent you a special mark of his esteem in the form of this letter, +which I shall read to you: + + + V [ Crest of Queen Victoria ] R. + + "The Chief Wessels, Lekoko, and the Barolong of Mafeking. + +"I, Frederick Sleigh Baron Roberts, K.P., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E., V.C., +of Kandahar and Waterford, hereby testify my approbation of the loyalty +to H.M. Queen Victoria, and the good behaviour of the Barolongs +under the leadership of Wessels, Lekoko, and the headmen +Silas Molema and Paul Montsioa, throughout the long and trying +investment of Mafeking by the Boers, from October 13, 1899, to May 17, 1900, +and I desire to congratulate these leaders and their people on +the successful issue of their courageous defence of their homes and property +against the invasion of the enemy. + + "(Signed) Roberts, + Field-Marshal. +"Pretoria, July 1, 1900." + + +Addressing Chief Wessels, and at the same time handing him +the letter, the Colonel concluded: I give you this +on behalf of Lord Roberts and the Queen. You are to accept it +on behalf of your nation. You are to keep it and show it to your children +and tell them why it was given to you and that they are to be proud of it. + +The Colonel held out his hand, which Wessels gripped very cordially. +The band played the National Anthem, and the Barolongs joined +in one of their native cheers. + +Wessels then rose, and taking off his white helmet, +replied on behalf of his tribe. +== + +Replying to the address and speeches Chief Wessels Montsioa asked the officers +to convey to Lord Roberts the gratitude of the Barolong +for the relief of Mafeking, adding: "I have gone to extremes +into which my forefathers scarcely ever went in defending their homes. +I have eaten horseflesh, donkey and mule flesh, and had the relief column +not come when it did, I was going to eat dog flesh, if by that means +I would have been enabled to hold up a gun and keep the enemy out of doors, +until Lord Roberts sent relief." + +Mr. Chamberlain, who visited Mafeking two years later, +inspected the old siege position and addressed the largest meetings +we had ever seen in Mafeking. He said to the thousands +of assembled Barolongs: "You ask in your addresses that the conditions +secured to you, when you were transferred from the Imperial Government +to the Colonial Government should remain as they are. I do not think +that Sir Gordon Sprigg or any one who may succeed him will alter them +in any respect, and should any one attempt to alter these conditions, +you will have your appeal to His Majesty's Government." +This was said in the presence of Sir Gordon Sprigg, +the Cape Premier of the day, Mr. Thomas L. Graham, +the Cape Attorney-General (now Judge of the Supreme Court at Grahamstown), +and Sir Walter F. Hely-Hutchinson, Governor of the Cape Colony. +But what must be the feelings of these people, and what must be +the effect of these assurances upon them now that it is decreed +that their sons and daughters can no longer settle in the Union +except as serfs; that they no longer have any claim to the country +for which they bled, and that when they appeal to the Imperial authorities +for redress of these grievances, they are told that there is no appeal? + +A promise of a farm was made to the Fingo and Kafir contingent, +but that promise still remains unfulfilled. + +When His Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught visited Mafeking in 1906, +he was touched by the grateful references which Chief Lekoko made +to the benign rule of His Royal Highness's late illustrious mother. +And he assured the assembled Natives, in the name of His late Majesty +King Edward VII, that the death of their beloved Queen +would "not alter their status in any manner whatsoever as His Majesty took +the same deep interest in the welfare of the native population +as the late Queen did." In view of this statement by His Royal Highness, +Chief Lekoko congratulated his people on having had the honour of receiving +"assurances of Imperial protection, not from an Imperial official, +but from the lips of His Majesty's own brother, and in the King's English," +the Barolong felt that they were reclining on a veritable rock of ages. + +Since the inauguration and meeting of the first Union Parliament, +laws have been enacted which threaten to annul all this. +As far as the Barolongs are concerned, the Colonial Government +is not the only aggressor. + +In the early 'nineties a British Boundary Commission awarded +the territory of Mokgomana to a northern tribe. The award caused +great dissatisfaction amongst the Barolong; accordingly they sent a deputation +to the High Commissioner about the award. It was only after they announced +their unalterable intention to assert their claim to that territory +by means of the sword, that the Imperial authorities, +in the name of the Queen, re-considered the former decision, +and that Sir Hamilton Goold Adams restored that land to the Barolong, +under date March 11, 1896. But the Colonial Office, completely ignoring +Sir Hamilton Goold Adams's signature on behalf of the Queen, +and without referring the matter to the native inhabitants in any way, +lately confiscated that territory and declared it the property of the Crown. +In consequence of this high-handed proceeding there is much bad blood +among the Barolong. + +It might be said in support of this act of the Colonial Office +that strangers will not be settled in the territory, +but Sir Garnet Wolseley once declared that "as long as the sun +shines in the heavens, Zululand shall remain the property of the Zulus." +The sun is still shining in the heavens, and right up to the time +of the outbreak of the European War in 1914, the Union Government +were very busy cutting up Zululand and parcelling it out to white settlers +under the Land Settlement Act of the Union (for white men only), +parcels of land to survey which black taxpayers are forced to pay, +but which under the Natives' Land Act no black man can buy; +and what is true in regard to Zululand, British Kaffraria, +East Griqualand and other native territories, is equally so +in regard to Bechuanaland. + + + + +Chapter XX The South African Races and the European War + + Oh! the Battle-bow is strung, + The Banner is outflung: + From lowlands and from valley, + From mountain-tops, they rally! + L. J. Coppin. + + + +Africa is a land of prophets and prophetesses. In the course of +our tour of observation on the ravages of the Land Act, +we reached Vereeniging in August, 1913, and found the little village astir +because the local pastor, Rev. S. H. Senamela, was returning from +a certain funeral service. To many of the people of the place +the event seemed to be a momentous one, affecting as it appeared more people +than would be ordinarily the case. The person whose death and funeral +caused all this stir was a black seeress of Vereeniging, of whom it was said +that in her lifetime she prophesied the Anglo-Boer War and some such situation +as that created by the Natives' Land Act. Before breathing her last, +this interesting lady (whose sayings carried great weight +among the surrounding native peasants and the Dutch neighbours +on the farms of that neighbourhood) had, it was said, +uttered her last prophecy. It was to the effect that a great war +would take place in the near future, amongst the white peoples of the country, +that there would be much bloodshed, but that the survivors +would live very peacefully with the native population. We are sorry now +that we did not care to listen to the whole story when it was related, +and we very much wish that we had remained to interrogate the narrator +as to whether the black population that would thus remain to share life +with the white survivors in South Africa would be a contented one, or whether +they would be living in chains, of which the thraldom of coming events +appears to be casting its shadow before. But at the time +it sounded parlous to think that anything could interrupt +the calm of the tolerant British colonists and egg them against +their Dutch rulers, who call them foreign adventurers. +Nor could we conceive of any reason why the Boers, who have now more freedom +than they ever dreamt of possessing under their own flag, including the right +to partially enslave the blacks, should suddenly rise up against the English, +whose money and brains are ever at the beck and call of the Dutch! +Here, however, is the war, predicted by the late native seeress, +and evidently we have to make the best of it. + +The writer was in London at the end of July, 1914, when there were +many disquieting reports about the activities of suffragettes, +and when there were still more serious reports about +the unlawful mobilization of volunteer armies in Ireland. + +It was in this exciting period that attention was at once transferred +from Ireland to the Continent of Europe. There it seemed +that every moment was ticking to drive us towards the greatest war +that the world ever saw. And though matters grew hourly more serious, +it did not then occur to the writer, a stranger then of only +six weeks in London, that after seeing the capital of the Empire +under conditions of peace, he was soon to see it under a war cloud +filled with all the horrors of the approaching war storm and all the signs +of patriotic enthusiasm. We were about to see Mafeking over again, +but through the biggest magnifying glass. + +To walk along Oxford Street of an afternoon and see +the multitudes of well-dressed women pouring into the streets +from the underground stations (the "Tube" and the "Met", as they are called +in the vernacular), round Charing Cross and Piccadilly, and see them +walking up and down the thoroughfares and looking at the wares displayed +in the dazzling shop windows; or to come down Bishopsgate of a morning +and see the stupendous swarms of white men rushing to and fro +along the pavements of Threadneedle Street, crowding the motor-buses +round the Mansion House, St. Paul's and Ludgate Circus -- +yet all this throng so well regulated by the City Police that nobody seems +to be in the other's way -- the disproportion of men and women +in the East and West respectively forming a partial segregation +between the sexes: to see these myriads of humanity gave one the impression +that if the Garden of Eden (whose whereabouts has not yet been defined) +was not actually in London, then some very fertile human germ +imported from the Garden must have been planted somewhere +in the vicinity of Trafalgar Square, or the Elephant and Castle. +These great masses of people when the war broke out were swept over, +as already indicated, by a wave of patriotism, and sections of them reinforced +by a regular inflow from the provinces, and foreign tourists +-- Americans, Scandinavians, Orientals and Colonials -- rushing back +from the danger zone on the Continent, stranded in London +with their pockets bulging with useless credit notes, all these joined +the buzzing groups in Fleet Street in scanning the latest telegrams +posted at the windows of the newspaper offices, or, going to Hyde Park, +they listened to the open-air speeches delivered there. +In this gamut of personalities and nationalities there were, at first, +faint murmurs by some of the English against their country joining the strife +and in favour of her remaining neutral and leaving the Continentals +to "stew in their own juice". But when German seamen laid mines +in the English Channel, and capped their deeds by sinking +the `Amphion' and the `Pathfinder', with hundreds of officers and men, +the "protestants" found that their efforts were out of date +and that their arguments could have held water in the good old days, +before the declaration of war, but not after. For the silent determination +of the London crowds, of both sexes and all colours, was so emphatic +that one could almost read it in their thoughts, and see it, +as it were, percolating through every fibre of their systems. +If the weaker races of the world -- (and which race is weaker +than the coloured?) -- are ever to enjoy rest, then the great Powers +must avenge the violation of the neutrality of Belgium. + +Early in August, we left London to visit the Scottish capital, +and as far as the swiftness of the North British Railway +would allow a glimpse, the country towns and villages of the north +appeared to be swarming with Territorials in khaki. A painful sight +at some of the stations was the number of restive horses +forced into the railway trucks by troopers -- beautiful, well-fed animals +whose sleek appearance showed that they were unaccustomed to the rough life +to which the Tommies were leading them. Further, it was sad to think +that these noble creatures by their size were to be rendered easy targets +for the marksmen of the enemy's forces, and that they would in addition +be subjected to the severity of inclement weather conditions, +to which they likewise were unaccustomed. + +At Edinburgh, the Cameron Highlanders marched along some of the streets +in their battalions, flinging the Highland kilt like the plaited reeds +of so many thousands of Bojale* girls. Handsome young Scotchmen, all of them, +and it was shocking to think that these fine young fellows +in the flower of their youth were going to be fired at with a set purpose +to kill them as if they were a flock of springbuck on a South African veld. +Surely it is time that civilization evolved a less brutal and less savage +form of warfare! On Sunday evening we attended divine service +at St. Giles's Cathedral, and the critical political situation +permeated the entire service. This feeling was not lessened +by the announcement that one of the gallant boys who sank with the `Amphion' +was a son of one of the sidesmen of St. Giles's. It was war as unmistakable +as it was grim. + +-- +* Bechuana circumcision rites. +-- + +After the declaration of war between Great Britain and Germany, +the Irish tension at once died away. The self-constituted +opposing armies of Dublin and Belfast, or rather Ireland and Ulster, +came forward and offered themselves and their arms to +the Imperial authorities. They were anxious to proceed at once +to the Continent and assert British prestige on the battlefield; +the suffragettes likewise at the outbreak of the war +declared a truce and offered their humble services to the Empire. +"More power to their hatpins!" But how about South Africa, +the baby-member of the British family? Where does she come in? + +Within a week after the outbreak, Mr. Harcourt sent the following dispatch +to the Governors-General of Canada, Australia and New Zealand: -- + +== +Please communicate to your Ministers the following message from His Majesty +and publish: "I desire to express to my people of the overseas Dominions +with what appreciation and pride I have received the messages +from their respective Governments during the past few days. +The spontaneous assurance of their fullest support recalls to me +the generous self-sacrificing help given by them in the past +to the Mother Country. I shall be strengthened in the discharge +of the great responsibilities which rest upon me by the confident belief +that in this time of trial my Empire will stand united, calm, resolute, +trusting in God. -- George R.I." +== + +More offers of men and money came from the Dominions; +and when such well-deserved Royal encomiums are showered +on the already laurelled heads of other dominions, a self-respecting +South African like ourselves walked the streets with a drooping head. +And when our kinsmen in West Africa under the leadership of British officers, +annexed German Togoland rather early in the campaign, we found these questions +reverting in our thoughts: What is our Government doing? When is it going +to move? Surely our Prime Minister, who is also Minister of Native Affairs, +should now postpone the constant pampering of the back-velders, +hang colour prejudice for a more peaceful time, call out the loyal legions +-- British, Boer, and Black -- and annex German South Africa without delay! +As a British General and Minister of Native Affairs, he should himself +lead the black contingents and leave the whites to be led +by their regular officers. + +At the beginning of August, a special meeting of the South African +Native Congress was called at Bloemfontein, first to express +its disappointment at the cold reception given to the native deputation +by the Imperial Government; and secondly, to express its thanks +to the British public for the kind reception given to the deputation; +and thirdly, to devise ways and means for the deputation +to tour the United Kingdom on a mission, revealing to the British people +the manner in which the Colonial Government discharges its trust +to the coloured people. + +Many of the delegates to the Congress had travelled long distances +by rail and road, but on their arrival at Bloemfontein it was only to learn +that war had broken out between Great Britain and Germany. +Hence the Native Congress, in view of the situation, resolving itself at once +into a patriotic demonstration, decided to hang up native grievances against +the South African Parliament till a better time and to tender the authorities +every assistance. + +Mr. Dube, the president of the Congress, who had just returned from England +in time for the conference, proceeded direct to Pretoria with the Executive, +to lay at the feet of the Government this offer of service +made by the Native Congress. Offers of service poured into +the administrative capital from native chiefs and people +in all parts of the country. Magistrates who held meetings in their districts +on the instructions of the Government to explain the situation to the Natives +received similar offers. And besides all these, offers of service also came +from the Zulu chiefs and headmen, from Chief Dalindyebo of the Tembus, +Marelana of the Pondos, and from Griffiths of Basutoland. +In Bechuanaland, the veteran Chief Khama and other Bechuana chiefs +offered the services of native warriors as scouts in German South West Africa, +and the Swazi princes offered a Swazi impi, besides undertaking to help +in any other manner, as they did in the campaign against Sekukuni +in the 'seventies. The members of the native deputation in England +were longing to catch the first steamer back to South Africa +to join their countrymen and proceed to the front. But while +all these offers were gratefully acknowledged, none were +definitely accepted. Surely there must be something wrong. +Is it that the wretched South African colour prejudice is exerting itself +even in these critical times? + +At Pretoria, Captain W. Allan King, the popular Native Commissioner +of the Pretoria District, held a meeting of Transvaal Natives, +which amongst others was attended by His Worship the Mayor +of the Union capital; and there again native offers of service were tendered. +Mr. Makgatho, the chairman, in his denial of the report +that appeared in the newspapers to the effect that "South Africa +could not take the field as she had a native menace to watch", +voiced the prevailing feeling of the Natives. Captain King, however, +assured the Natives that no such slanders were uttered by the Government. +He further reminded them that the Imperial Government +was face to face with the biggest struggle that ever took place +since the foundation of the world; and that there would be fighting +on land, in the air, on the water and under the water. +He urged the Natives to go to work as usual and see to it that there was +no slackening of industries. He also made a plea for the abiding respect +of the Natives to the German missionaries of the Transvaal, +having regard to what those good men had done in bygone years +for the evangelization of the Natives of that Province. +How little did any one dream at the time that he was thus pleading for others, +that Captain King would be among the victims of the war; +and that he would fall, not from a German bullet, but from one fired +by one of the Dutch traitors, in a brisk fight to quell +the recent Boer rebellion. + + Ku mugama e Tipperary, + E malandalahla; + Ku mugama e Tipperary, + Kwe sona standwa sam. + Bhota, Piccadilly, + Sala, Leicester Square, + Kude le-le-le, e Tipperary + 'Ntliziyo yam ikona. + "Tipperary" in Xosa. + +White men wrote to the newspapers that as France, our great Ally, +was using Native African troops, there could be no objection +against England doing the same -- as if England had rejected +the assistance of her coloured subjects pending a decision by France. +A well-known Natal campaigner wrote to the authorities +offering to raise a crack Zulu regiment composed of men +who had formerly fought for the old flag against their own people. +He said he felt certain that those Zulus could give as good +an account of themselves against any regiment in the field as any force +yet mobilized; but there was no definite acceptance of these offers +by the Government. The native uncertainty that arose from +this attitude of the South African Government went on until October, +when our colleagues of the native deputation returned home from England +and threw themselves into the vortex of the martial enthusiasm +that was then sweeping through the country, and as no offers were accepted +by the Government, Dr. Rubusana made to it the following further offer: -- + +== +The Right Hon. the Minister of Native Affairs, Pretoria, Transvaal. + +Sir, -- Coming as I do so near from the scene of operations in Europe, +I feel that something more practical than mere lip-loyalty is required +from those who boast of the fact that they are British subjects, and are loyal +to the British Crown, more especially during this present crisis. +That being so, I am prepared to raise, if you deem it necessary, +a native levy of 5,000 able-bodied men to proceed to German South-West Africa, +provided the Government is prepared to fully equip this force for the front. +I should, of course, be prepared to accompany them. + + I have the honour to be, Sir, + Your obedient servant, + W. B. Rubusana. +== + +== + Reply. + + Union of South Africa, + Department of Defence, + Pretoria. + November 2, 1914. + +Sir, -- With reference to your letter of the 20th ultimo, I am directed +to state that the Union Government greatly appreciates the loyal sentiments +which are being expressed by the native citizens of the Union. + +I am, however, to refer you to the provisions of Section 7 +of the South Africa Defence Act, 1912, and to state that the Government +does not desire to avail itself of the services, in a combatant capacity, +of citizens not of European descent in the present hostilities. +Apart from other considerations the present war is one which has its origin +among the white people of Europe and the Government are anxious to avoid +the employment of its native citizens in a warfare against whites. + + I have the honour to be, Sir, + Your obedient servant, + H. B. M. Bourne, + Secretary for Defence. +Dr. W. B. Rubusana, + East London, C.P. +== + +General Botha was once confronted with a definite request +to reconcile two conflicting declarations of policies +enunciated by two members of his Cabinet, and in reply to that request +he gave the following highly diplomatic explanation: "The one Minister +has said things which should not have been said, and the other Minister +had said things which should have been said in a different way." + +If there is one document which contains things that should not +have been penned, or that should have been differently worded, surely it +is the document we have just quoted. Fancy refusing native assistance +in the present world's war on the ground of colour! For weeks before +Dr. Rubusana sailed from Europe the Turcos and Algerian and Moroccan troops +had been doing wondrous deeds on the Continent for the cause of the Allies. +These coloured troops also included a regiment of wealthy Natives +from North Africa who had come to fight for France entirely +at their own expense -- a striking evidence of what the Empire is losing +through the South African policy of restricting native wages +to one shilling a day, in a country where the cost of living +is about the highest in the world. The Union Government +rejected the native offer a week after Lord Roberts laid down his life, +having delivered the appreciation of a grateful Empire +to the gallant Indian regiments who with distinction were participating +in the same war; and a month after the first German General Freise +was captured in the course of a daring charge by North African Natives +from the French Colonies; ten days after the Germans at Tsiengtau +had surrendered to the British and Japanese forces; and nearly three weeks +after the Germans had successfully involved Turkey in the strife; +and while the Canadian troops on Salisbury Plain included Red Indians. +Where, then, is the wisdom of telling Dr. Rubusana, who knows all these facts, +that the Government's rejection of the native offer is due to the fact +that the present struggle is an all-white one? The truth of the matter +is that the South African Government worships an idol, which was +best described by Sir Gordon Sprigg as "the demon of ignorance and prejudice", +and the claims of this fetish in South Africa precedes those of the Empire. + +Under the old Republics we had a law which since the Union has become +the unwritten law of South Africa. In this law it is laid down +that a coloured policeman shall not lay his black hands on a white man +even if he found him red-handed in the commitment of a crime. +The duty of a coloured policeman in such circumstances would be +to look around for a white constable and report the misdemeanour to him. +Rather than suffer the humiliation of a black official +taking a white criminal into custody white South Africa +would prefer to have the country overrun with white criminals, +ergo, if the safety of the Crown is at stake and it could be saved +only by employing black men, we would much rather let the Crown go +than suffer the humiliation of seeing black warriors resisting a white enemy. +If there is one point upon which white South Africa is agreed, it is that +the claims of South Africa come first and those of the Empire afterwards. +The "bitter-enders" go further: they say that "the Empire comes handy +only in so far as it is useful to us, but when we have sucked it dry, +like an orange, it must be thrown away."* It may be that the blacks have +their reasons for objecting to these creeds: they would prefer Imperial lines +all the time, for Imperial lines are benevolent while South African lines +are cruel; consisting largely of repression and slavery. + +-- +* General Botha's reply to General Hertzog on the Ministerial crisis of 1912. +-- + +There is a talk in South Africa, which unhappily is not confined +to Dutch-speaking South Africans. It advocates the elimination +of the Imperial factor, because that factor is said to interfere +with colonial liberties, among which is the right to "correct" a Native +in a manner that a colonial deems fit. Thus, under the inconvenience +of the "pestilential Imperial factor", a colonial Magistrate +was forced to fine General De Wet the sum of 5s. on his pleading guilty +to having horse-whipped a Native. Under German rule, which threatened +the Union, the liberty of chastising the Native according to colonial ideas +would be extended, for the German method is that of the old "Free" State, +where a Native used to be tied to a wagon-wheel and whipped. +If he dies in consequence of the beating, his death was but a nominal offence. +This state of things explains the determination of the native races +to fight for the retention of the Imperial factor, or for what vestige of it +still remains in the country. + +A native clergyman sends us the following letter. We are not quite certain +if the reverend gentleman desired to enlist as a private or as a chaplain; +anyway, this is what he says: + +== +Can it be really true that we, too, belong to the British Empire? +This war is growing in such dimensions that it is even affecting +the King's household. The Prince of Wales has gone to the front, +and His Majesty the King has also gone, yet we are told that we are not worthy +on account of our colour to fight for our King and Empire. +White men only must defend the King's Dominions while we remain behind +with the women and children. Surely it cannot be the wish of the loyal Boers +that we must not defend our Empire; it is only the wish of the rebels, +and it seems that our Government will continue to study their feelings +even while they are engaged in shooting down loyal people. +== + +It would seem that the South African Government is so deeply +in love with the Natives that they are scrupulously careful +lest the Natives should singe so much as a hair in the present struggle, +and that white men alone may shoot and kill one another. +But, in point of fact, black men ARE required by the Union Government +to proceed to the front as Government wagon drivers, +driving provisions and ammunition wagons, and acting as orderlies +to the white burghers. In these capacities they are exposed +to all the risks and horrors of the war, yet even if they are shot, +they must not, under any circumstances, be mentioned in the casualty lists, +nor must they carry arms, lest their behaviour should merit recognition; +their heroic deeds and acts of valour must, on account of their colour, +not be recorded. These native drivers are classed with the transport mules, +with this difference, that while the owner of a mule receives +monetary compensation for each animal that falls on the battlefield, +or is captured by the enemy, the Government's interest in the black driver +ceases when he is killed. + +Suppose the services of these muleteers were recognized +in a combatant capacity, some one might get it into his head to ask: +"Why should loyal fighting taxpayers be debarred from +the rights of the franchise that are liberally bestowed +on white rebels and their relations, some of whom are said +to contribute nothing towards the upkeep of the State?" +So then to refuse these Natives the right to carry arms +in defence of the Empire, and to send them to the front without arms, +is to deprive such inquirers of this and similar arguments. + +On St. Patrick's Day, the `Westminster Gazette' appeared +with a leading article, from which we make the following extract: -- + +== +It will be impossible, when we have had the assistance of the Indian Army +in Europe, to restrict the promotion of its officers in the manner +laid down hitherto. It will also be impossible to restrict Natives of India +WHO HAVE PROVED THEIR ABILITY AND EXPERIENCE BY LONG SERVICE +in their own country TO POSITIONS IN WHICH THEY ARE SUBORDINATE TO THE RAWEST +NEW ARRIVAL FROM THE COVENANTED SERVICE. All these discriminations +which rest simply on race and are justified by no natural disability +will have to be swept away, and new and more generous conditions laid down +for the whole Indian public service. +== + +Surely what is true in regard to the Indian public service +is equally so in regard to that infallible South African taxing machine, +the adjunct of the Union Civil Service, which is officially called +the Native Affairs Department. There, raw recruits serve their apprenticeship +while lording it over Natives who have proved their ability and experience +by a quarter of a century's service in their own country. +It is to prevent the application to South Africa of broad-minded views +like those expressed by the `Westminster Gazette' that native Africans +must not serve against the Germans. Therefore it seems +to have occurred to the authorities that the best course +is to engage the Natives in a capacity in which their participation +will demand no recognition. These statements are not mere empty phrases, +for the writer recently caused inquiries to be made through +the Department of Native Affairs in South Africa as to whether there were +any Coloured People who had been killed or wounded while on active service +at the front. And the result was a long list of killed, wounded, and captured +up to the end of October, 1914, among Natives and Coloured People +who had not been mentioned in the casualty lists.* + +-- +* When the enemy airmen attacked the British camp at Garub (G.S.W.A.), + on March 27, 1915, and dropped bombs on General Botha's guns, + Reuter says, "only one Native was slightly wounded." +-- + +This deference to South African prejudice would at least seem reasonable +if the King's enemies also had colour scruples. But so far from that +being the case, Natives living far away from defended centres +are always the first to suffer when a white man's war breaks out. +In fact they are always subjected to indignities from which +they would be immune if they had arms. One of the first steps taken +by the "Free" State rebels under General De Wet during the recent rebellion +was to dash for the nearest native owner of horses and annex their mounts. +The unarmed proprietor's recourse in that case was to take to his heels +and leave the rebels to plunder his stock. Any hesitation to run away +has involved some unfortunate Native in the danger of being horsewhipped +into the service of the King's enemies, and if he took the first opportunity +to escape from the rebel commando, a detection of his act +would positively have meant a bullet behind his neck. + + +The late Dean Green of Natal, writing years ago, said: -- + +== +"Every chief should have his own militia and police. Our common human nature +tells us that it is the duty of every one capable of bearing arms +to fit himself to be able to defend his country and Government. +Were the Government to refuse permission to the chief to enrol his young men, +it would inflict a wrong on them, against which their manliness would revolt. +Our Government, however, is not established to alienate from us +the native races, but to attach them to us by giving them full freedom +to exercise under restraints of Christianity all those instincts and desires +which are proper to their manhood. + +"The Houssas and Soudanese on the north, the negro tribes on the west, +form part of the Imperial forces, and have shown themselves +true, brave, and useful troops. On no possible ground of justice +can the loyal Bantu tribes be placed under a ban, and refused +to serve in the ranks for the defence of the Empire. A youth debarred +from the legitimate opportunities of exercising his manly energies will become +riotous and unruly, and addict himself, for the sake of excitement, +to sheep-stealing, etc." +== + +The `Christian Express', which has always acted as the mediator +between the overbearing section of Colonial opinion +on the one hand and the subject races on the other, tried to allay +the disappointment of our people with the excuse that the Government +refused the native offer on the ground that it desired to use men +from the more advanced races who are capable of being more easily trained.* +In the face of historical records, however, this argument +will not hold a drop of water. British archives are overloaded with instances +of the valour and tractability of the aboriginal races of South Africa +no less than those of their nephews, the Cape Coloured People. +Not having enough space to enumerate them at length we may only refer +to two instances of recent date. + +-- +* The `Express' is now advocating the raising of an army of 100,000 Natives. +-- + +During the South African war, the writer was asked by the military authorities +to recruit twelve young Natives to act as scouts in the Western Transvaal. +The young fellows were handed to Sergt. Clemens of the Cape Police +for training. Three days after they were enrolled we met the Sergeant, +who was highly pleased with his "raw recruits". He told us +with evident satisfaction that, after he had given them oral instructions +in the handling and use of firearms, he took them to the range +to try them at shooting; and all but two of them hit the bull's eye +with the first attempt. This is but one isolated instance +which is typical of the rest. + +It is doubtful if any white man is a greater authority +on the character of the Zulus than Mr. R. C. Samuelson of Natal. +Writing on the outbreak of the European war and the advisability of raising +native levies, he said: -- + +== +During the late rebellion I was captain and adjutant of 350 men +composed of men, half of whom were Christians and the other half +heathens of the Amangwane, a section of the Amabomyu tribe, +who at the beginning of the rebellion were raw recruits, +but who, after three months' drill and manoeuvring, were as expert +in their drill and use of the rifle and riding as any corps in the field. +In all my dealings with all these men and many more, I found them +most attentive, most orderly, most careful about their arms, +most alert on duty, perfectly reliable, and in and out loyal +to the Government and those they were under. Having been a volunteer +for many years, and a cadet at college in the Cape, I can safely say +that I never found our people as a body so easy to manage and train +in the military art, and so orderly and attentive as these natives were. + +I had the honour to be called upon to summon 50 of the Zulu war and Boer war +heroes to be reviewed by the Duke of Connaught; many of these +had the Zulu war medal on, which the Duke took special notice of, +but the Boer war medal was not there. These people were highly complimented +by the Duke, and afterwards gave a free concert to the Royal party +in the Maritzburg Town Hall, which was attended by immense crowds, +the chief song of the evening being a Zulu song specially prepared +by these men, and set to music by them, in honour of the Royal party, +which was also embossed and presented to the Royal party. +The Royal party expressed their appreciation by sending forward to me +one of the officers in waiting on them to thank the singers. + + "Izwe Lakiti" Aug. 12, 1914. +== + +The writer has received several letters expressing the native resentment +of the idea that they should fold their arms and cogitate +while other British subjects, irrespective of colour, +are sacrificing their lives for the defence of the Empire in this, +the darkest period of His Majesty's reign. Our reply to each of these letters +was that the natives should subscribe, according to their small means, +to the several war funds; and our latest information +is that they are subscribing to the Prince of Wales' Fund, +the Governor-General's and the Belgian Relief Fund. +When we last heard from home the Basutos had given 2,700 Pounds +to the National Relief Fund, the list being headed by Chief Griffiths +with a donation of 100 Pounds. Chief Khama of Bechuanaland gave 800 Pounds, +Chief Lewanika of Barotseland 200 Pounds, Chief Lekoko and two other Chiefs, +each 30 Pounds, while the Zulus, Tembus and Pondos were still collecting. +At Kimberley the Natives gave concerts for the benefit of +the Mayor's Relief Fund. At their Beaconsfield concert the Kimberley Band +under Herr Carl Rybnikar, known as the best volunteer band in South Africa, +attended and gave selections; and Chief Molala of the Batlhaping +gave General Botha 200 bullocks to feed the Union troops. + +In April 1915 the Minister of Native Affairs gave the following +testimony of native loyalty and co-operation. Speaking from +his place in Parliament Mr. Malan said -- "he thought it his duty +to say that the attitude of the large number of the Natives +entrusted to their care, all through the troubles, had been +most exemplary and most patriotic. There was one exception to which +he would refer,* but from the commencement, from all parts of the Union, +resolutions came to the Government of expressions of loyalty +on the part of the Natives, and of their support in the measures +Government was taking in connexion with the war. They (the Natives) +gave oxen and supported liberally, according to their means, +the different patriotic funds which had been established, +and generally gave the Government every assistance. The Government +had been able to enrol between 23,000 and 24,000 Natives for service +in German S.W. Africa, in building railways and in transport work. +The chief of the Tembus had volunteered to send his own son +to German S.W. Africa for the purpose of superintending +the members of his tribe, a large number of whom had volunteered +for the front. All that spoke well for the Natives, and he would be +neglecting his duty if he did not testify to that." + +-- +* The "one exception" referred to by Mr. Malan was the Hlubis + of Matatiele district, who forcibly resisted the cattle dipping regulations + because, they said, the frequent dipping killed their cattle. +-- + +In opening the Rhodesian Legislative Council, on April 28, +Mr. Administrator Chaplin concluded by saying that the behaviour and attitude +of the native population since the outbreak of the war left nothing +to be desired. All information available showed that any attempts +by emissaries of the enemy to stir up trouble would fail to meet with support. +"Numerous expressions of loyalty to His Majesty have come from leading Chiefs, +taxes are readily paid, and perfect order has been maintained." + +What a happy land in which to live South Africa would be if, +instead of the present god of colour prejudice, we had some such confidence +as is reposed in the blacks by the British authorities +in East Africa and elsewhere. The naughty white piccaninnies +who always insult inoffensive black passers-by would be taught +that the Native is a useful neighbour whose strong right arm +may be depended upon in times of trouble, instead of being taught, +as they are taught in Transvaal, that every man Jack of them +is a black peril monster who must not only be discriminated against, +but who must be indiscriminately insulted and repressed. +The following dispatch, published in the `Daily Chronicle', +illustrates the confidence of the British authorities in East Africa +towards the blacks: -- + +== + East African Battle won by Native "Non-Com". + +About the end of September the Germans advanced 600 strong, +with six machine guns, from the Vanga side. They were held +at Margerini on September 25 by Captain Wavel's Arab Company, +and some King's African Rifles under Captain Stoner arrived from Jubaland +on the 27th, none too soon to reinforce Captain Wavel, +the enemy in the meanwhile having become very aggressive. + +The German plan of attack was to destroy the Salisbury bridge, +which connects Mombasa island with the mainland, thus securing +one of the most important strategical positions in East Africa. + +The "Koenigsberg" did not arrive, perhaps because of the nearness +of British warships, and the little British force of 300 men +dislocated the land operations of the enemy. "C" Company held off the Germans +until October 2, when they were reinforced by Indian troops. +The Jind Infantry behaved particularly well at Gazi, where they had to face +a very heavy fire from the six machine guns of the enemy. + +The King's African Rifles deserve special mention. Major Hawthorn, +who was in command, and all the European officers, were wounded +early in the engagement, thus leaving the little force leaderless. + +Colour-Sergeant Sumani quietly took charge, and led on his men as if nothing +had happened. He gave the order to charge, and the enemy broke and fled. +This incident has not yet appeared in the bald official announcements, +but it is hoped the splendid conduct of the native colour sergeant +will receive recognition.* + +-- +* Sergeant Sumani has since been decorated with the D.S.O. +-- +== + + + + +Chapter XXI Coloured People's Help Rejected / The Offer of Assistance + by the South African Coloured Races Rejected + + The Africans and their descendants in America have proven to the world + that they do not lack courage and military ardour. This the French + have recognized by enlisting them in their present struggle. + We hope for the sake of the Africans that they will give + a good account of themselves, but the coloured race is like the Irish + who are invincible in fighting for other nations, but not for themselves. + An American on the Great War. + + + +The African Political Organization was early in the field. +Dr. Abdurahman, its president, during the first week of the war, +had a force of 3,000 coloured men at Capetown ready to take the field +against the Germans. These men included those who had fought +for the British flag, side by side with the British troops +in the Matabele wars and other South African campaigns in various capacities. +In a few days the number of this force rose to 5,000 able-bodied men +ready to go to the front. A definite offer of the service of this force +was communicated to the Union Government, who replied that the offer +was under consideration. + +Mr. William Hosken, the famous Johannesburg politician, +member of the Transvaal Parliament before the unification of South Africa +-- a gentleman whose legislative talents are now unfortunately in abeyance, +because his liberal views on colour are too advanced +for the palates of the lily-white voters of his State -- +offered to pay the cost of recruiting such a coloured force. +Application forms were scattered throughout the country, asking volunteers +to send in their names and addresses to the A.P.O. headquarters +signifying their intention to serve as units of the Hosken Division. +Our old friend Mr. N. R. Veldsman, a coloured political organizer +of considerable ability, who had been in retirement for the past year or two, +came forward, took his place among the coloured leaders, +and addressed patriotic meetings at Saron and other Cape districts +on behalf of the recruiting movement. + +== + PATRIOTIC DEMONSTRATION + +The City Hall, Capetown, was packed on Monday night, August 31, 1914, +with coloured citizens of Capetown, who had assembled to express +their loyalty to King George and their determination to support the Government +during the present crisis. + +Sir Frederick Smith, who presided, thought the coloured people +had taken a wise course in calling that meeting to tender +their assistance to the Government while Britain was engaged in war. +He was confident that that demonstration would receive +the grateful appreciation of the Prime Minister, his Cabinet, +and also of H.M. King George. + +Dr. Abdurahman said that the coloured people had met in public meeting +on many occasions, but never in the history of South Africa +had they been called together on a more solemn occasion, +nor at a more critical juncture, and never when the issues were fraught +with greater consequences. + +The coloured people had many grievances, but all that must be forgotten +while danger was threatening the very existence of the Empire. +If the Empire fell, South Africa would fall, Capetown would fall, +and Capetown might even be laid in ruins. + +Although England was engaged in a life and death struggle, +South Africans felt secure and could sleep in peace. That security was due +to the supremacy of the British Navy. They had met that night to decide +how they could assist the Empire. He moved the following resolution: + +"That the coloured citizens of Capetown, in mass meeting assembled, +under the auspices of the A.P.O., hereby express their loyalty +to H.M. King George V, and take this opportunity of placing on record +their recognition of the fact that the security that they at present enjoy +is due primarily to the supremacy of the British Navy; and further, +they pray that Britain's efforts during the war will be crowned with success. +That a copy of this resolution be forwarded to H.E. the Governor-General +for transmission to H.M. the King." (Applause.) + +Mr. J. C. Carelse, in seconding the resolution, remarked that that +was not the time to consider their own troubles, but to show the enemy +that they stood together as a united Empire against any foe who dared +to lower the Union Jack. The resolution was adopted with enthusiasm. + +Mr. N. R. Veldsman appealed to the coloured people to assist those +who as a result of the war might suffer. The coloured people +should spend less on bioscopes and trivialities, and contribute to a fund +which it was proposed to raise. He moved the following resolution: + +"That, in order to alleviate the suffering which inevitably accompanied war, +an appeal is hereby made to the coloured citizens of the Union +to contribute to a fund to be administered by the following committee: +The Rt. Rev. Bishop J. A. Johnson, Mrs. Wooding, Mrs. Abdurahman, Mrs. Gow, +Dr. Gool, Dr. Abdurahman, the Rev. F. Gow, Messrs. C. J. Carelse, S. Reagon, +N. R. Veldsman, S. F. Geyer, P. Grever, H. Hartog, B. Baron, H. Cressy, +A. Arendze, H. J. Gordon, R. Hoedemaker, W. A. Roberts, M. J. Fredericks, +Fred Hendricks, H. A. Gamildien, Pfieffer, and George Fife." + +The Rev. Mr. Gow seconded the resolution, and said that +although the spirit of war was in the air, there was also +a spirit of helpfulness in the air. They should at this period +forget race and creed and contribute to the fund. + +Mrs. Wooding, who spoke in support of the resolution, +remarked that the coloured women would be found ready to do their duty +whenever the call went forth. The best way to show loyalty to the Empire +was by rendering some service. The resolution was unanimously adopted. + +Dr. Gool said that another way of giving practical assistance to the Empire +was by raising volunteer corps for active service. He moved: + +"That the offer made through the A.P.O. to raise volunteers +for active service at home or abroad be approved, and that this meeting +tenders to the Union Government its loyal support during the present crisis." + +Mr. S. Reagon, who seconded, said that they were excluded +from the Defence Force. But as the Empire was endangered +he hoped an opportunity would be given the coloured people +to take a part in the fighting line. + +The resolution was agreed to. The sum of 37 Pounds was raised +during the evening. + +Mr. H. Seymour rendered some patriotic selections on the organ. +The meeting concluded with the singing of the National Anthem. +== + +At Johannesburg, Mr. Koopman presided over a crowded meeting +of the Rand branches of the Coloured Organization, which unanimously +endorsed the proposal to raise the corps. Similar meetings, +under the respective chairmanship of Mr. Keiler, Mr. Samuels, +and Mr. I. Joshua, were held by the Pretoria town and country branches +and at Kimberley. At Pretoria, Revs. G. Weavind and Mr. Hanford, +both missionaries, also spoke offering to associate themselves +with the coloured people in any benevolent efforts undertaken +to alleviate the distress that might follow the outbreak of the war. +Port Elizabeth and other district branches also moved +in the same direction. Capetown, the headquarters of the Organization, +was the centre of these activities, and a number of coloured women +wrote to the A.P.O. secretary offering their services as nurses +to accompany the coloured volunteer force to German South-West Africa, +so that the coloured people, as the A.P.O. newspaper puts it, +"have closed their book with its ugly record against the Botha Government, +and offered the Prime Minister their loyal support during the war." + +But while these things were in progress, the Union Defence Force, +which had mobilized near the German frontier under Colonel Maritz, +rebelled against the Crown, and with their arms and ammunition +they joined the Germans. This act of rebellion occasioned the greatest alarm +among the coloured population near the boundaries of German South-West Africa. +And they appealed to the Government for arms to protect +their homes and properties. They remembered what happened +during the Boer War, when the Dutch inhabitants of those districts +joined their kinsmen from across the Vaal, and how that Natives who were armed +always remained free from molestation. That their present fear +was not groundless the following declaration shows: -- + +== +I herewith declare that my brother and I were on a visit +to the farm Groen Doorn, Cape Province, on the morning of September 16, 1914. + +When we got opposite the police camp, we were surprised to see the camp +invaded by Germans. The Germans then beckoned us to come up, +and told us that we were prisoners, and that we must go with them +to the station of Ukamas. My brother on hearing that +turned his horse and galloped back. The Germans called on him +to halt at once, but he did not stop. Then they fired at him, +and shot him dead. + +My brother was left lying where he fell. After he was shot +I asked if I could go to him, but the Germans would not allow me. +Afterwards I was taken to the German camp, where I found +all the coloured people of Groen Doorn that were captured by the Germans. +Two old women who were too weak to walk all the way were left half-way +without either food or water; one of the two was a cripple, +and the other an old woman between sixty and seventy years of age. + +I stayed at the German camp at Nakob till the first German patrol +went back to Groen Doorn to guard. Then that same evening I ran away +from the German camp, and fortunately got safe home to my house at Nudab. + +I again declare that this story is an exact reproduction of what I have seen +with my own eyes. + + (X his mark) + Jacobus Bezuidenhout. +Witness: T. Kotzee. + Signed at Keimoes this 6th day of October, 1914. +== + +This statement was conveyed to the Union Government by Mr. M. J. Fredericks, +secretary of the African Political Organization. With it there was a request +by a meeting of coloured people at Calvinia and adjacent districts +near the German frontier asking for arms. General Smuts replied, +regretting the situation in which the coloured residents of +the districts of Calvinia, Kenhardt, Keimoes, and Upington found themselves; +and said that he hoped the Union forces would ere long remove the cause +of their anxiety. He added that the question of arming coloured citizens +had been carefully considered by the Government, but that, for reasons +already published, their request for arms could not be complied with. + +Finally General Smuts expressed regret at the shooting of the brother +of Jacobus Bezuidenhout. "Apparently the deceased had been shot +because he attempted to escape, and in the circumstances," added the General, +"the Germans were clearly justified in shooting him." + +If General Smuts is right in his concluding remarks, then the Germans are +quite justified in pillaging Belgium, as the reason they ravaged that country +was because the Belgians refused to comply with a plain request +to allow German troops to proceed through Belgium to France. But whatever +the view of the South African Government might be on these subjects, +we would like to point out that it is against a coloured man's grain +to obey the orders of a man, no matter who, if he is at war +with the coloured man's chief. It would be nothing unusual for a German +to order a coloured man about in times of peace, but once war was declared, +it became an outrage upon the traditions of the blacks to obey Germans +who were now the enemies of their country. + +General Smuts will no doubt remember his own operations in 1901, +before he became a British subject. How he then invaded Cape Colony, +and got a number of recruits from among the Dutch inhabitants +of certain Cape districts. How eventually, when he came +to the district of Calvinia, his burghers, reinforced by rebels, +found a coloured blacksmith there, by the name of Abraham Ezau. +How the burghers demanded certain information from this man, +and he refused to supply enemies and rebels of the Crown with any information. +That the man was severely ill-treated and tortured, but that +he would not disclose anything. And how that a gang of Boers +dragged this coloured man out of the town and shot him down; +that they also looted Abraham Ezau's shop and took away +the murdered man's tools, which his widow never recovered, and for which +the writer has been informed she never received any compensation. +The Cape Government, prior to the Union, erected a tombstone +over the grave of this man, who sacrificed his life for it rather than betray +his country. And the sight of that memorial stone was no doubt +a grim reminder to the inhabitants of Calvinia of what would happen +if the rebels invaded Calvinia once more. + + Burra dur hai Tipperary + Bahoot lumbah koouch wo + Burra dur hai Tipperary + Sakki pas pownchenay ko + Ram ram Piccadilly + Salaam Leicester Square + Burra, burra dur hai Tipperary + Lakin dil hoaye phus-gayah. + "Tipperary" in Hindustani. + +The Natives and the Cape coloured Afrikanders were not alone in tendering +loyal offers of service to the Government. The Indians of Natal +and other coloured residents likewise offered their services +to the Government, besides subscribing liberally according to their means +to the various war funds. The St. Helenians of Capetown passed +the following resolutions, which Mr. S. Reagon, the secretary, +forwarded to the Government: -- + +(1) That this meeting of St. Helenians expresses its unswerving and devoted + loyalty to His Majesty King George and His Governments. + +(2) That it expresses its full confidence in the Union Government + in the present crisis through which the Empire and Union are passing, + and congratulates General Botha, and expresses its deep appreciation + of his practical patriotism in having taken command of the Union Forces + in the field. + +(3) That the services of the Association and its members be hereby offered + to the Union Government in whatever manner they may be of assistance + to ensure the triumph of the Empire and for the maintenance + of law and order. + +Shortly after the outbreak of the present war, Dr. Abdurahman +offered the Government the services of the 5,000 coloured warriors +recruited through the A.P.O., and General Smuts replied that the offer +was under consideration. Meanwhile the A.P.O. recruiting agency +had been continuing its work, and no fewer than 13,000 coloured men +had sent in their names and addresses and signified their intention to take +the field. So Mr. Fredericks, the secretary of the A.P.O., wrote once more +to General Smuts, on October 23, offering the services of these men +in the name of the Coloured People's Organization. This offer brought forth +the following definite reply, which is couched in identical terms +to the one sent on the same date to Dr. Rubusana, who wrote offering +the services of 5,000 Natives: -- + +== + Department of Defence, + Pretoria, + November 6, 1914. + +Sir, -- With reference to your letter of the 23rd ult., +I beg to inform you that the Union Government greatly appreciates +the offer of service of the Cape coloured people. + +I am, however, to refer you to the provisions of Section 7 +of the South African Defence Act, 1912, and to state that the Government +does not desire to avail itself of the services in a combatant capacity +of citizens not of European descent in the present hostilities. +Apart from other considerations, the present war is one which has its origin +among the white peoples of Europe, and the Government is anxious to avoid +the employment of coloured citizens in a warfare against whites. +== + +No doubt the Government of British South Africa was actuated +by the loftiest motives in rejecting voluntary offers of service +from citizens of non-European descent; but it is clear that such a reply +at such a time ought not to please many people in Great Britain who had +to offer the cream of British manhood to defend their portion of the Empire, +and then to offer in addition more men to lay down their lives +for the safety of the Colonies, including South Africa, +a land with thousands of able-bodied and experienced warriors +who are willing to defend their own country. For the same reason +this decision ought not to please our French Allies, who, +besides sacrificing men and money on the battlefields of Continental Europe, +must provide more men and money to guard their colonial possessions +in different parts of the globe. This decision ought not also to cheer +any one in Belgium, where fathers and mothers and their children +are separated and starving, a nation living practically in exile, +or in bondage, its brave monarch sojourning in foreign territory. +On the other hand, if there is any one place where this decision +of the Government of British South Africa would be hailed +with the liveliest satisfaction, it is certainly Berlin, +and that particularly after the bitter experiences of German troops +in encounters with native African troops, both in Continental Europe +and in East and West Africa. + +Similarly this decision of the South African Government ought not to please +the Boers themselves, inasmuch as, finding the request for volunteers +amongst the whites failed to secure sufficient men, the Union Government +had perforce to resort to coercion, in that some 300 Boers who refused +to enlist for service in the expedition to German South West Africa +were fined or imprisoned. This course, which is practically conscription, +would have been unnecessary had the Union Government accepted +the offered service of the 18,000 and more volunteers whom it curtly rejected. + +The coloured people, judging by the letters that many of them have sent +to the Press, felt humiliated to find that during the Empire's darkest hour +a Government to which they pay taxation is publishing decisions +that ought to wound the feelings of the Allies' sympathizers +and give satisfaction to the enemy. + +It is just possible that the Government refused the offer +of the coloured people in deference to the wishes of a section +of the white people of the Union; but judging from the African Press, +that section, although somewhat noisy, was an infinitesimal one. +This section, as is shown from the extract below, also discussed +the voyage of the Indian troops to Europe. The `East Rand Express', a paper +published in one of the most important suburbs of Johannesburg, said: -- + +== + COLOURED TROOPS AND THE WAR + +The news that Great Britain intends to employ Indian native troops +against the Germans has come as a shock to many South Africans. +We can but hope the news is incorrect. In our opinion it would be +a fatal mistake to use coloured troops against the whites, more especially +as plenty of whites are available. From the English standpoint +there is probably nothing offensive in the suggestion. Most Home people +do not seem to see anything repugnant in black boxers fighting whites, +but they have not had to live in the midst of a black population. +If the Indians are used against the Germans it means that +they will return to India disabused of the respect they should bear +for the white race. The Empire must uphold the principle that a coloured man +must not raise his hand against a white man if there is to be any law or order +in either India, Africa, or any part of the Empire where +the white man rules over a large concourse of coloured people. +In South Africa it will mean that the Natives will secure pictures of whites +being chased by coloured men, and who knows what harm such pictures may do? +That France is employing coloured troops is no excuse. +Two blacks in any sense do not make a white. The employment of native troops +against Germany will be a hard blow on the prestige of the white man. +== + +These emotionalists urge the Imperialists against the use of black warriors +for the simple reason that it would give them (the emotionalists) "a shock". +So that the agony of British troops and the anxiety of British +wives and mothers is not to be lessened, nor the perils of non-combatants +greatly minimized, or the war hastened by a decisive concentration +of the Empire's forces on the battlefield, because of the "shock" +it would give the emotionalists for black to fight against white. +The common-sense view would show the advantage in permitting all subjects, +including the coloured races of South Africa, to take part in the struggle +and thus enable the authorities to place more men on the Continent, +instead of sending drafts of Imperial troops to take the places of men +at the outposts of the Empire, who are disqualified solely by their colour. + +Last New Year the author received a letter from a well-known British mother +conveying her well-wishes besides the following moving particulars: -- + +== +We are almost beside ourselves with grief over this awful war. +My young nephew has been home on a nine days' holiday at Christmas +and he has now returned to the front. He has been awarded the D.S.O. for +blowing up a bridge and so delaying the Germans in the march upon Paris. +My cousin, Mrs. ----, has lost her two only sons -- both killed +on the same day -- December 21. Besides other English friends and relatives +fighting on the British side, I have also a young German cousin +fighting on the other side. He has been so badly wounded in his throat +that the vocal chords have received such an injury as to lead +to the loss of his voice, and his career as a barrister is probably at an end. +His poor mother is a widow and has only one other son, who is very delicate. +== + +The writer has during the past six months come across +instances of the loss of an only son, but all these agonies count as nothing +to your colourphobic emotionalists, who must, at any price, +be spared their "shock" regardless of the sufferings of others. +Now ask these men what they would offer the Empire as a substitute +for the coloured troops whose employment against the enemy +gives them "the shock", and you will find that they have nothing to offer +but their colour prejudice. + +What, for instance, could the leader-writer of the `East Rand Express' +offer to the Empire in place of the generous help rendered to it +by the Maharajah of Mysore, a lad of only eighteen years of age, +who besides the services of his men gave the "trifle" of 330,000 Pounds, +or in place of the present of the Nizam of Hyderabad, +who contributed 396,000 Pounds towards the cost of the Hyderabad contingent; +or the Maharajah Scindia of Gwalior, who handed to King George, +as a Christmas present for the troops, a "tiny fleet" +of forty-one motor-ambulances, four motor-cars for officers, +five motor-lorries and repair wagons, and ten motor-cycles; +or to come nearer home, and to deal with a more modest gift, +the two hundred bullocks which Chief Molala Mankuroane, near Kimberley, +gave General Botha to feed the Union troops? + +And when these liberal sacrifices are made by black men +for the safety of the Empire, INCLUDING BRITISH SOUTH AFRICA, +one is constrained to ask: Where are those loud-mouthed pen-men who, +possessed of more pretension than foresight, wrote bombastic articles +in the Transvaal Press before the war, threatening that "South Africa +will cut the painter", and "paddle her own canoe", if men and women in Europe +made themselves a nuisance by advocating ideas of justice +in favour of the blacks? General Botha confessed last September +that the South African Government tried to, but could not, +borrow more than 2,000,000 Pounds; that the Imperial Government +had come to the rescue and "helped the Union out of its embarrassment +with a loan of 7,000,000 Pounds" of British money. When from his seat +in the Union House of Assembly the Prime Minister announced this failure, +why did not these secessionists come forward and display +their "paddling" capacity? What has suddenly become of them? + +Is it not about time that the Empire recognized the unprofitableness, +and even the ruinous policy, of these gentlemen, and that it ceased +paying so much attention to those whose views are distorted +by colour prejudice, whose object is to inflict unnecessary harm +on the minds, bodies and spirits of loyal subjects of the Crown? +One cannot help saying that if their career in this respect is not checked, +their evil policy will land the Empire in a tangle of difficulties +from which its rescue will require the highest statesmanship, +much expenditure of treasure, if not also the shedding of blood. + +We have already stated that coloured men ARE serving the Empire at the front, +but mainly in capacities that do not involve their recognition. +We have recently read of the trial of two coloured men at Willowmore, +in the Cape Province. They were said to have expressed the view +that if coloured persons are not fit to fight for the Empire "in a war +originating entirely among Europeans", they could not be considered fit +to drive military wagons in the same war. Recruiting of military drivers +was in progress at the time, so they were charged under martial law, +and sentenced to nine months, with hard labour, for obstructing +the recruiting work. In this case our difficulty is that, not being a lawyer, +we are not able to draw the fine distinctions between legal phrases. +But to our untutored lay mind it seems that if to give expression +to such logic (whereby ten drivers may think twice before enlisting) +is a crime under martial law, then it should be over ten times more criminal, +under the same law, for a Government to refuse the offer of service, +in the same war, of 18,000 warriors and thereby barring +the enlistment of a possible 80,000. + +One of the best replies to colour sentimentalists which we have ever read +on this subject is quoted from the `New York World' by the `Crisis' +(Professor Du Bois's paper) of the same city. Says the `New York World': -- + +== +The German Ambassador has announced to the United States +that he is "unconditionally opposed" to the use of coloured troops. +This is a curious prejudice on the part of the diplomatic representative +of a Government that is seeking to bring Turkey into the conflict +and trying to persuade the Turk to instigate a "holy war" in Egypt and India +against all non-Mohammedans. + +When Germany went to war with the British Empire she must have expected +to fight the British Empire, and not merely a selected part of the population, +the colour of whose skin happened to meet the approval of Berlin. + +It is natural enough that Great Britain should bring up her Indian troops, +who, by the way, are as completely identified with the Aryan race +as the Prussians. But no matter what their race may be, they are +part of the Empire and part of Great Britain's regular military power. + +If Germany were at war with the United States her troops would have to meet +our Negro Cavalry, than whom there are no better soldiers in uniform. + +German denunciation of the Indian troops is as futile as German denunciation +of the Japanese as "yellow-bellies". It is too late to draw +the colour line in war. That line was erased more than fifty years ago +by Abraham Lincoln in that noble letter to the Springfield Convention: +"And there will be some black men who can remember that, +with silent tongue and clenched teeth and steady eye and well-poised bayonet, +they have helped mankind on to this great consummation." +== + +One South African writer to the Press had humanitarian reasons +against the employment on the Continent of coloured troops from India. +He said that 70,000 of them will be like a morning meal +to the trained soldiers of Germany. This sympathetic view +does not appear to be shared by German writers to the `Berliner Tageblatt', +who have a high regard for the ferocity of "these Eastern devils". +Apparently this is the only German view which is in harmony with +the dispatches of Generals French and Joffre. His Majesty the King has since +been to the front, where, in the presence of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, +Sir Pertabh Singh and other high Imperial officers, His Majesty personally +decorated Havildar Darwan Sing Negi (an Indian) of the 39th Garhwal Rifles, +with the Victoria Cross, and we need hardly add that V.C.'s are not awarded +for fun. + +On the first Saturday in March, 1915, King George went to Aldershot and acted +as starter in the big military race in which over 500 soldiers competed. +Her Majesty the Queen was also present and graciously distributed the prizes. +The race was won by Private Stewart, a black trooper from Jamaica. +Even the Coldstream Guards have their coloured private in training +for the front; but South Africans inform you that the heavens will fall +if coloured troops are sent against the white Germans, +who, from the beginning, never scrupled to send black warriors +against the British. + +In regard to the award of the V.C. to Indians, many writers sent letters +to the Press claiming that it was unprecedented for coloured warriors +to wear the V.C. Whitaker and similar publications might have told them +that a Native African sergeant of the West Indian Regiment wears +the V.C. won on the Gambia River as long ago as 1892. + + + + +Chapter XXII The South African Boers and the European War + + I slept and had a vision; and what was it about? For lo and behold, + the sky was covered with a dark cloud on which was impressed + the number 15, and blood issued from this cloud. Thereupon I beheld + General Jacobus De la Rey returning to his Lichtenburg home + without a hat on his head, and he was closely followed by a carriage + full of flowers. + Niklaas Rensburg (the Boer Prophet). + + + +When the war broke out, there was no question, as far as +one section of the whites were concerned, as to the duty of South Africans, +but the majority of the unofficial Dutch and German sections +were for remaining neutral and taking no part whatever in the struggle, +either for or against the Crown. Among the Backvelders there appeared +to have been some misunderstanding as to whether the South Africans +were subjects or merely friends of the British Government. +This bewilderment became more confusing during the interval +between the outbreak of the war and the meeting of the Union Parliament. +All kinds of ideas were expressed in the Press. The progressive section, +mainly English, urged not only that South Africa had no alternative +but to join the struggle, but they actually raised volunteer corps, +which they proceeded to equip for service in Europe. + +The regular volunteer forces of the country went forward +at an early period of the campaign, and took the German ports. +In connexion with the mobilization of these forces a regrettable catastrophe +must be recorded here. The long train in which the Kaffrarian Rifles, +mostly English, were going from King Williamstown, via Capetown, to the front, +was derailed near the Hex River, and the gallant Riflemen +had eight killed and about a hundred wounded. They are sons +of the old English settlers of the Eastern Province, and some are members +of European families who are very popular with the Natives of the Cape, +so that white and black alike felt deeply the result of the catastrophe. +General Lukin, who was in charge of the advance forces, quickly went up +the South-Western Coast, and forced the enemy to evacuate his ports +and retreat inland towards Windhuk, the capital of the German Colony. +General Beyers and the rest of the Defence Forces which were entrusted +with the land operations also mobilized. The mobilization of this force +took an extraordinarily long time, but it was satisfactorily explained that +the marshalling of the citizen forces had to await the sanction of Parliament, +which did not meet until September 10, 1914. + +A special session of the Union Parliament took place on this day, +at which General Botha, the Union Premier, made a great speech. + +== +In the course of his speech General Botha said that the Imperial Government +had informed the Government that certain war operations +in German South-West Africa were considered to be of strategic importance. +The Imperial Government added that if the Union Government +could undertake these operations they would be regarded as of great service +to the Empire. The Empire to which South Africa belonged was involved +in one of the greatest and cruelest wars which had ever befallen humanity. +General Botha continued: + +The Government, after careful consideration, had decided to comply +with the request in the interests of South Africa as well as of the Empire. +(Cheers.) There could only be one reply to the Imperial Government's request. +There were many in South Africa who did not recognize +the tremendous seriousness and great possibilities of this war, +and some thought that the storm did not threaten South Africa. +This was a most narrow-minded conception. The Empire was at war; +consequently South Africa was at war with the common enemy. (Cheers.) +Only two paths were open -- the path of faithfulness to duty and honour +-- (cheers) -- and the path of disloyalty and dishonour. +A characteristic of the South African people was their high sense of honour, +and they would maintain their reputation for honourable dealing untarnished. +(Cheers.) To forget their loyalty to the Empire in this hour of trial +would be scandalous and shameful, and would blacken South Africa +in the eyes of the whole world. Of this South Africans were incapable. . . . + +With regard to the operations in South-West Africa, General Botha declared +that there could be only one response to the Imperial Government's wishes +unless they wished to contemplate a situation much more serious +than that which now confronted them. The mode of operations +could not be discussed in the House; it must be left +to the commander of the Union forces.* The Government had summoned Parliament +so that the representatives of the people should know exactly +what had happened. + +-- +* General Beyers. +-- + +He wished them to understand the seriousness of the position, +and to accept the responsibility which they would be called upon to accept. +He placed himself with confidence in the hands of the House. +General Botha detailed the German entry into Union territory at Nakob. +This force was entrenched in kopjes in Union territory at the present time. +He also described an affair at Schuitdrift in August. In addition to this, +armed German forces were on the Union frontier in large numbers +before there was any question of Union mobilization. The Premier said +he quoted the foregoing to show the hostile attitude adopted by Germans +in the neighbouring territory. + +He next referred to the White Paper on the diplomatic proceedings +on the eve of war. These documents, he declared, showed that +if ever Great Britain entered upon a war with clean hands it was this war. +It was abundantly clear that Great Britain did not want war, +and did her utmost to maintain peace; but war was forced upon them. +Only when it became impossible, without loss of prestige and honour, +to remain out of war did the Imperial Government take that supreme step. +(Cheers.) By the Imperial Government's decision the whole Empire +was involved in the war. (Cheers.) He emphasized that the war +was not a war of aggrandisement or for the acquisition of land, +but that it was undertaken out of a sense of duty and in discharge of +solemn treaty obligations to defend other nations who were +being trampled upon, and whose territory was being violated. +He wished the House to realize that South Africa's future was being decided +on the battlefields of Europe. . . . + +He appealed to South Africans to be tolerant with each other +at the present time. No one could blame the Dutch South African +who did not feel exactly as the British South African felt. +It did not follow that Dutch South Africans were disloyal. +There was no question of disloyalty. Although there might be many +who in the past had been hostile towards the British flag, +he could vouch for it that they would ten times rather be +under the British flag than under the German flag. + +Great confidence had been reposed in the people of South Africa. +They had received a constitution under which they could create +a great nationality. Great Britain had given them this constitution, +and ever since had regarded them as a free people and as a sister State. +As an example of how the Imperial Government treated them, +General Botha said that last July the Union Government wanted to raise +a loan of 4,000,000 Pounds. They had raised only two millions. +As things were it would be fatal to go into the money market just now, +so the Imperial Government had now come to the assistance +of the Union Government and had lent the Union 7,000,000 Pounds. +(Loud cheers.) That was the spirit of co-operation and brotherhood +which invariably animated the Imperial towards the Union Government. +Notwithstanding its own difficulties, the Imperial Government had come forward +and helped the Union Government out of its embarrassment. (Cheers.) + +In conclusion, the Premier said he felt it was the duty of South Africa +to assist in relieving the sufferings and privations inflicted by the war. +The Government therefore proposed to offer South African products +like mealies and tobacco for the soldiers, and brandy for medical purposes. +The farmers had already come forward with offers of products, +and the Government would undertake their dispatch. General Botha indicated +that the matter would be dealt with more fully later, and closed his speech +with an eloquent expression of his belief that South Africa +would acquit herself honourably in the eyes of the world. + + Opposition Views + +Sir Thomas Smartt, Leader of the Opposition, said the message +which the Prime Minister by his speech had given to the Home Country +would send a thrill of pride through the Empire -- a thrill of pride +at knowing that in the day of danger South Africa had +been true to her trust and had remembered her obligations +as well as her privileges of free citizenship. (Cheers.) + +Mr. Cresswell, the Labour Leader, urged that an expedition should be sent +to fight side by side with the Allies on the Continent. + +General Hertzog said that General Botha's motion had come as a great surprise, +and moved the adjournment. Other members supported General Hertzog, +but the motion for the adjournment was rejected by 85 votes to 12. +== + +After this short session of Parliament, enthusiastic meetings were held +throughout the country. Those in the cities were mainly attended +by citizens of English descent. Strong resolutions of confidence +in the Union Government, and of approval in the proposed expedition +to German South-West Africa, were passed at these meetings. +At country meetings, however, the enthusiasm was in the opposite direction. +There, the resolutions condemned the Government's military policy, +and General Botha was roundly accused of not taking the country +into his confidence. When the loyalists urged that the Parliamentary +representatives of the critics, who, by the way, enjoy manhood suffrage, +had authorized the Government policy, the growlers replied that their members +did not consult their wishes. + +General Botha made it as plain as the Dutch language could put it +that the Germans had been in camp near Nakob in their own territory. +That they left their Nakob base on the German side of the Border and came over +to the Union territory for water, and proceeded to entrench themselves +amongst the ridges and kopjes which commanded the water-holes, +and that in addition to the duty of the Union as part of the Empire, +this military trespass on the part of the German forces further strengthened +the case for an expedition into German South-West Africa. + +At these Backveld meetings the story about the Germans crossing the border +was characterized as a bit of ministerial concoction. +Clever geographical students, who mounted the platforms +with maps in their hands, were reported to have demonstrated +to the satisfaction of their auditors that the new map +showing the German position was falsified by the railway surveyors +and that Nakob Sued was clearly depicted in the old maps +as laying in German territory. The Dutch reporters, however, +do not state that the ridges and kopjes referred to by General Botha +were also stated to be on the German side of the line +according to the old maps. So that the position was like this: +at first the Boers would not sanction an expedition against the Germans +until the latter invaded Union territory, and when the Government proved +by means of police reports that the Germans had actually crossed +into Union territory the critics accused the Ministry of telling untruths. +This, then, must have been the cause of so much delay in mobilization, +and which Ministers had to contend against. It must be added, however, +that most of the meetings mentioned took place in Transvaal. +At the Cape the discontent was almost insignificant, whilst as much of it +as had existed promptly ranged itself on the side of the Government +when the "Free" State and Transvaal hoisted the standard of rebellion. + +Matters went ahead somewhat after the meeting of Parliament. +But a rude awakening awaited the people of the Union, if not +the peoples of the Empire, when they got up one September morning and read +the following correspondence relating to the resignation of General Beyers, +the head of the Union forces: -- + +== + GENERAL BEYER'S EXTRAORDINARY ATTITUDE + + Ex-General Beyers to General Smuts + Pretoria, + September 15, 1914. + +Honourable Sir, -- You are aware that during the month of August last +I told you and General Botha by word of mouth that I discovered +the sending of commandos to German South-West Africa for the purpose +of conquering that territory. I was on the point then of resigning, +but hearing that Parliament would be called together I decided to wait, +hoping a way out of the difficulty would be found. To my utmost surprise, +however, Parliament confirmed the resolution adopted by the Government -- +namely, to conquer German South-West Africa, without any provocation +to the Union from the Germans. The Government must be aware +that by far the great majority of the Dutch-speaking people of the Union +decidedly disapproved of our crossing the frontier, +and that two conferences of commandants recently held at Pretoria +bore eloquent testimony to this. I challenge the Government +by an appeal to the people, without making use of compulsion, +to obtain another result. + +It is said that Great Britain has taken part in the war +for the sake of right and justice, in order to protect +the independence of smaller nations, and to comply with treaties, +but the fact that three Ministers of the British Cabinet have resigned +shows that even in England there is a strong minority +who cannot be convinced of the righteousness of a war with Germany. +History teaches us, after all, that whenever it suits her interests, +Great Britain is always ready to protect smaller nations, +but unhappily history also relates instances in which the sacred rights +of independence of smaller nations have been violated and treaties disregarded +by that same Empire. In proof of this I have only to indicate +how the independence of the South African Republic and Orange Free State +was violated, and of what weight the Sand River Convention was. +It is said that war is being waged against the barbarity of the Germans. +I have forgiven, but not forgotten, all the barbarities +perpetrated in this our own country during the South African war. +With very few exceptions, all farms, not to mention many towns, +were so many Louvains, of which we now hear so much. + +At this critical moment it is made known in Parliament that our Government +was granted a loan of 7,000,000 Pounds by the British Government. +This is very significant. Any one can have his own thoughts about this. +In the absence of legitimate grounds for the annexation policy +of the Government you endeavour to intimidate the public by declaring +that the Government are in possession of information showing that Germany +has decided, should the opportunity arise, to annex South Africa. +My humble opinion is that this will be hastened if from our side +we invade German territory without having been provoked thereto +by the Germans, and as to the alleged German annexation scheme, +this is nothing more than the result of the usual native suspicion +attending such matters. The allegations made in Parliament +-- namely, that the Germans have already violated our frontier -- +are ungrounded. See the report of the Information Bureau, corroborated by +Colonel Maritz* and his officers, who are on and near the frontier. +Apparently the Government longed for some transgression by +the Germans of German South-West Africa, and have been disappointed in this, +for so far not a single German soldier has crossed our frontier, +as you know very well. The report is perfectly correct regarding +an involuntary transgression of the frontier some time ago +and the tendering of an apology for so doing. + +-- +* Maritz was at this time on active service, nominally as a Colonel + at the head of a British regiment, but in reality as a General + in the German Army, using British arms, stores, railways, and telegrams + in the service of the Kaiser. +-- + +Whatever may happen in South Africa, the war will be decided in Europe +in any case, so if Germany triumphs and should decide to attack us, +then even Great Britain would be unable to help us. We shall at least +have a sacred and clean cause in defending our country to the utmost +provided we stay inside our borders. Meanwhile, in case we are attacked, +our people will arise as one man in defence for its rights. +Besides, I am convinced that a commando of about 8,000 Germans, +as at present stationed in German territory, will not be so foolish +as to attempt an attack on our country. I have always said, +and represented at Booysens recently, that if the Union is attacked +Boer and Briton will defend this country side by side, +and in such case I will deem it a great honour and privilege +to take up my place at the head of our forces in defence of my fatherland. +I accepted the post of Commander-General under our Defence Act, +the first section of which provides that our forces can only be employed +in defence of the Union. My humble opinion is that this section cannot +thus be changed by informal resolution of Parliament, such being contrary +to Parliamentary procedure. So the Defence Act does not allow us +to go and fight the enemy over the frontier, and to light the fire +in this way. But should the enemy penetrate into our country +it will be our duty to drive him back and pursue him in his own territory. + +In his speech General Botha speaks about the help we had +from the Belgians and French after the South African War. +That assistance is still appreciated by us and by all our people, +but we must not forget that the Germans also were not behindhand, +and have always been well-disposed towards us. So why should we +deliberately make enemies of them? As circumstances are, +and seeing no way of taking the offensive, and as I sincerely love +my country and people, I must strongly protest against +the sending of Union citizen forces over the frontier. Who can foretell +when the fire the Government has decided to light shall end? +For the reasons enumerated above I feel constrained to resign +my post as Commandant-General, as also my commissioned rank. +For me this is the only way of faith, duty, and honour towards our people, +of which mention was made by General Botha. I have always tried to do my duty +to my best convictions, and it sorely grieves me that it must end in this way. + + I remain, etc., + (Signed) C. L. Beyers. +== + +== + General Smuts to Ex-General Beyers + Pretoria, + September 19, 1914. + +Sir, -- It was with regret that I received your letter of the 15th inst. +tendering your resignation as Commandant-General of the Union Defence Forces +and as officer of the Union. The circumstances under which +the resignation took place and the terms in which you endeavour +to justify your action tend to leave a very painful impression. +It is true that it was known to me that you entered objections +against war operations in German South-West Africa, but I never received +the impression that you would resign. On the contrary, +all information in the possession of the Government was communicated to you, +all plans were discussed with you, and your advice was followed +to a large extent. The principal officers were appointed +on your recommendation and with your concurrence, and the plan of operations +which is now being followed is largely the one recommended by yourself +at a conference of officers. My last instructions to you +before I left for Capetown to attend the special session of Parliament were +that in my absence you should visit certain regiments on the German border, +and it was well understood between us that immediately the war operations +were somewhat further advanced and co-operation among the various divisions +would be practicable you should yourself undertake the chief command +in German South West Africa. The attitude of the Government after this +remained unchanged, and was approved by Parliament after full discussion. + +One would have expected that that approval would make the matter +easier for you, but now I find that you anticipated that Parliament +would disapprove the policy of the Government, and that +your disappointment in this became the reason for your unexpected action. +In order to make your motives clearer the reasons for your resignation +were explained in a long political argument which was immediately +communicated to the Press and came into the hands of the Government +long after publication. I need not tell you that all these circumstances +in connexion with your resignation have made a most unpleasant impression +on my colleagues and myself. + +But this unpleasant impression has even been aggravated by the allegations +contained in your letter. Your bitter attack on Great Britain +is not only baseless, but is the more unjustifiable coming as it does, +in the midst of a great war, from the Commandant-General +of one of the British Dominions. Your reference to barbarous acts +during the South African War cannot justify the criminal +devastation of Belgium, and can only be calculated to sow hatred and division +among the people of South Africa. You forget to mention +that since the South African War the British people gave South Africa +her entire freedom, under a Constitution which makes it possible for us +to realize our national ideals along our own lines, and which, for instance, +allows you to write with impunity a letter for which you would, +without doubt, be liable in the German Empire to the extreme penalty. +As regards your other statements, they have been answered and disposed of +in Parliament. From these discussions it will be apparent that neither +the British Empire nor South Africa was the aggressor in this struggle. +War was, in the first instance, declared by Austria-Hungary, +and thereafter by Germany, under circumstances in which the British Government +employed its utmost powers to maintain the peace of Europe and to safeguard +the neutrality of Belgium. So far as we ourselves are concerned, +our coast is threatened, our mail-boats are arrested, and our borders +are invaded by the enemy. This latter does not occur, as you say, +in an involuntary manner and with an apology, which latter, at any rate, +was never tendered to our Government. Under these circumstances +it is absurd to speak about aggressive action on the part of the Union, +seeing that together with the British Empire we have been drawn, +against our wish and will and entirely in self-defence, into this war. +As regards your insinuation concerning the loan of seven million pounds +which the British Government was kind enough to grant us, +and for which the public of the Union, as evidenced recently +in Parliament, are most grateful it is of such a despicable nature +that there is no necessity to make any comment thereon. +It only shows to what extent your mind has been obscured by political bias. +You speak about duty and honour. My conviction is that +the people of South Africa will in these dark days, when the Government, +as well as the people of South Africa, are put to the supreme test, +have a clearer conception of duty and honour than is to be deduced +from your letter and action. For the Dutch-speaking section in particular +I cannot conceive anything more fatal and humiliating +than a policy of lip-loyalty in fair weather and of a policy +of neutrality and pro-German sentiment in days of storm and stress. +It may be that our peculiar internal circumstances and our backward condition +after the great war will place a limit on what we can do, +but nevertheless I am convinced the people will support the Government +in carrying out the mandate of Parliament, and in this manner, which is +the only legitimate one, fulfil their duty to South Africa and to the Empire +and maintain their dearly won honour unblemished for the future. +Your resignation is hereby accepted. + + (Signed) J. C. Smuts. +== + +When the war broke out, the Natives of South Africa, who, in many instances, +are much better in touch with the backvelders than the Dutch editors +who reside in towns, fully expected a general revolt among +the unofficial section of the Boers. But when Holland declared her neutrality +the Natives began to breathe more freely, as that declaration +led them to believe that the Boers would not now rise. +When General Beyers's resignation was published, however, +the Natives again felt that the outbreak was only a matter of days. +In the country, especially the Orange "Free" State, our people +are helplessly mixed up with the Boers, and it can readily be understood +that they felt somewhat insecure, notwithstanding the Government's assurances. +One native farmer sent the following letter to the author in England: -- + +== +I am glad to find that your newspaper, the `Tsala ea Batho', is as up to date +in your absence as when you are at home. It was the first to publish +General Botha's statement to the Natives (about the war), and again the first +to comment on the treacherous resignation of General Beyers. +The resignation was handed to the Government on the 15th, +and the `Tsala' commented on it on September 19, before the daily papers. +I think that the daily papers were still trying to reconcile +their previous articles about the loyalty of ALL WHITE SOUTH AFRICANS with +the resignation. The fact that General De la Rey was shot while travelling +in the same car with General Beyers on the same day that Beyers resigned +is cited as a further proof of the unswerving loyalty of all the Boers. +One cannot understand how these white folks reason; +but the attitude of the Imperial Government and of the Union Government +is incomprehensible. Fancy telling the loyal Rhodesians to come and fight +under a man like that! General Botha ought himself to go to the front, +if a civil war is to be averted, leaving General Smuts +to watch the next Dutch move and nip it in the bud. +== + +One of the tragedies of the first few weeks of the war +was the death of Senator General De la Rey of Lichtenburg, +who was accidentally shot by a "Rand" policeman on the night of September 15, +while travelling with General Beyers in a motor-car. + +His funeral took place on September 20, at Lichtenburg, and was attended +by a large number of Boers, including the Prime Minister, General Smuts, +General De Wet, and other Dutch generals. Mourners and their friends +came to Lichtenburg by the ordinary train and by the special train +which conveyed the body from the Rand. They came in all manner of vehicles +from the surrounding farms, and, for the first time, +the Dutch Reformed Church at Lichtenburg opened its doors to the blacks, +who came to pay their last respects to, and view the body of, a popular Boer, +known among the Bechuana as Koos La Rey. A commando of 400 Burghers +came from Wolmaranstad on horseback. English merchants +from Johannesburg were also present, including Senator Tucker, +representing the Unionist party. The body was draped WITH TWO FLAGS -- +the flag of the old Transvaal Republic and of the old "Free" State Republic. +Besides the officiating clergy, three Dutch statesmen also spoke +at the funeral service, viz., Generals Botha, Beyers, and De Wet. + +The loyalists returned from the funeral service to their path of duty, +while the sullen section of the Dutch remained at Lichtenburg +to fan the embers of rebellion -- though it must be added +that the operations at Lichtenburg were more or less in camera. + +At 8 o'clock on Monday morning, September 21, the day after +General De la Rey's funeral, General Kemp, standing on +General Beyer's motor-car, presided over a gathering of +from 800 to 1,000 Boers. The Rev. Mr. Broeckhuizen opened the meeting +with a short prayer. A verbatim report of this prayer appeared +in the Dutch papers as follows: "Lord, we thank Thee +that Thou rulest our nation through these dark days and stormy circumstances. +We have buried our hero and have gathered to speak in his spirit. +We thank Thee for such a man as General Beyers, beside whom +his friend was shot. We thank Thee also for General De Wet and General Kemp, +and that Thou hast given us such men to lead us. We stand for our people. +Help us, O Lord, towards the salvation of our people and the salvation +of our fatherland. Amen." + +The three personalities mentioned in this prayer became active participants +in the rebellion, and so did the reverend gentleman who prayed. +In fact the latter sent a letter to his congregation three months later +from the Johannesburg prison, resigning his pastorate at Pretoria. + +In opening the meeting the chairman disclaimed all ideas about a revolution. +They had come to consider calmly a decision by the Union Parliament +to invade German South West Africa; but while he was speaking, +some one produced a flag of the old Free State Republic, +and General Kemp rebuked the person for this puerile action. +Whether the rebuke was due to the fact that the Boers +had not yet then made up their minds to rebel, or because Maritz's plans +with the Germans on the south-western frontier had not yet matured, +we do not know. Anyway, General Beyers, in supporting the chairman, +added that his cause was a clean one and there was no necessity +for nonsensical flag-waving. They were there, he said, +to pass a calm resolution and forward it to the Government. + +One Mr. van der Hoff inquired why General Beyers resigned. +The chairman replied that the reasons were clearly set forth +in the letter of resignation. At the request of the gathering +the Rev. Mr. Broeckhuizen read the letter aloud, the reading throughout +being punctuated with cheers. It does not appear, however, +that General Smuts's reply was also read, presumably because +there was no call for it. + +General Liebenberg wanted to know what the situation was that morning; +then he proceeded to say: "The enemy is already inside our borders. +Some one had disturbed a beehive and the result is what +might have been expected. We have three generals before us" +-- (apparently in addition to the speaker) -- "yesterday we buried +the dearest of them all. I want a reply from Generals De Wet and Beyers. +We are British subjects, and it is not improbable that the Government +might instruct their officers to call us out to-morrow." + +General De Wet, the man of the hour, then stepped on to the motor-car +to speak, prefacing his speech with the remark that he could not help +remembering his brother buried the previous day. Then, in beginning +his speech, he said: "Burghers and Brethren, -- If there be any one present +who is not a brother, let him walk away. Since nobody is leaving +I conclude that we are brothers all. If there be any stepbrothers here, +they are all welcome, but a traitor always reminds me of Judas." +Proceeding, he said that "the Germans had been made enemies by the Government. +The fire was already burning, so let us adopt a calm resolution, +expressing the will of the people. Not that I wish to praise my people, +but we are not going to soil our hands, no not even to show our loyalty. +Let us be cool, remembering that we have many sympathizers +in South Africa and elsewhere. If any one wished to gnash his teeth +and hath no teeth his best course is to consult the dentist for a set. +Better an hour too late than a minute too early. We do not all reside +near a telephone or a telegraph office and cannot be conversant with +what goes on at the frontier. Even when Generals Beyers and Kemp are asleep, +keep a watch and remain cool. I believe there are numerous Christians +among us. When it is time the whole of the people will rise up like to-day." + +Some one wished to know if it was possible to recall the forces +already at the border. That, said the chairman, would be decided later. + +The Rev. Mr. de Klerk said General Beyers's letter translated +the real feeling of the people. Even though Generals Beyers, Kemp, and De Wet +had resigned, they still remained Generals. They honoured other officers +who had the pluck to resign with General Beyers (whose names the Government +had not published but had suppressed), including Lieutenant Kol Bezuidenhout. +One Field Cornet to the speaker's knowledge had resigned, +but his name had not been announced." The reverend gentleman +then betrayed his flagrant ignorance of South African history when he said: +"Our people were never known to have robbed any one of land. +All (?) their land had been acquired by means of purchase or barter. +The history of South Africa was a spotless one." After stating +that the Afrikander must express his disdain with respect to +the Jameson raid and the unrighteous annexation of the Republics, +he concluded: "Blood is flowing in Belgium, but is it +in the interest of South Africa to draw the sword on that account? +It may be in the interests of the Empire; but the hem of my coat +is nearer to my body than the coat itself. The sending of troops +to Damaraland is nothing but an attack upon a people that had done us no harm. +I believe it to be our duty to sit still." + +Rev. Mr. Van der Merwe, who said he spoke on behalf of the young people, +said all their officers should resign like General Beyers and others. +He hoped that any officers present would resign before noon that day. + +General De Wet pointed out that the appointment of any Jack, Tom, and Harry +might follow such wholesale resignations, for although he lived in +the "Free" State he held a share in the affairs of that (Transvaal) Province. + +General Beyers: "I consider my own resignation a sufficient protest. +The other representatives of our people should remain at their posts." +(Cries of "No, no, no.") + +Rev. Mr. Broeckhuizen implored the people to stand by +their Commander-in-Chief, General Beyers, as he himself was going to do, +no matter how barking lap-dogs raved. Despite any letters +that some fellows might write to the papers to the contrary, +the world must know that the people stood behind General Beyers. +Although he was still going to suffer -- (as he truly did) -- +they should support him till everything was in order. + +As a parting shot General Liebenberg said: When peace was declared in 1902 +he had such implicit faith in the late General De la Rey +that he (General Liebenberg) remained quietly on his farm and was always +obedient to him. He expected these troubles since 1912. +And now it had become impossible to keep quiet much longer. +According to the latest accounts the Germans were 150 miles +across the boundary. (A voice: "We will beat them back.") + +The speaker: "The same thing was said when they were in Belgium, +but they are now marching on Paris." + +A revised resolution was then put: it declared the reported +action of the Government to be "in conflict with -- + +"1. The wishes of the overwhelming majority of the population of the Union." +(An extravagant assertion considering that there are six million +people in the Union and that the meeting only represented +a section of the half a million Boers.) + +A reply was demanded from the Government before September 30, so as to get it +in time for consideration at a subsequent people's gathering. + +When this was carried, General De Wet said in parting: "If there be still +a few lap-dogs here, friends, don't take any notice of them. +They have now no teeth. We are now more united than when +the difference between the Government and `the People' first began." +(Obviously General De Wet was here alluding to the rupture +between the Government and General Hertzog in 1912, when, +to the disgust of himself and his followers, the latter was forced +to leave the Ministry. One reason why the Natives' Land Act was passed +was in order to "dish the Whigs" and placate the Hertzogites.) + + * * * * * + +On September 24, General De Wet held another meeting at Kopjes, +Orange "Free" State. The Resident Magistrate of Parys +attended the meeting and read a telegram from the Government +announcing that no Burghers would be forced to proceed to the front; +that only volunteers would be asked to serve. This wire, however, +did not satisfy the Burghers. They contended that the expedition +to German South-West Africa was a policy of setting the prairie on fire, +and it did not matter who the originator of the fire was, +for when it was raging the Burghers would be called upon to quench it. + +After the meeting had passed votes of condolences to Mrs. De la Rey, +General De Wet said he was opposed to a war against a nation +that had done him no harm. Whether or not the Government used volunteers, +"who," he asked, "would be responsible for the harm that is likely to follow +a provocation of the Germans? This expedition is to coax them +into our country. You may go if you like," added General De Wet emphatically, +"but I won't." + +Now, the Boers in certain respects are not unlike the Natives; thus when +a grey-haired Native, or a Boer, addresses a crowd of his compatriots +and says to them, "You may do such and such a thing if you like, +but I will not," it is understood by them to be a roundabout way of saying, +"Take my advice and don't." And so when such a declaration is made +by a man as influential amongst his people as General De Wet, +it is not surprising that the crowd shouted in response, "We won't go. +Let the authorities adjust the result of their own bungling. +Ninety-two men in Parliament voted for the expedition +without consulting their constituents, and we are not satisfied." +Thereupon some one shouted, "Where is Mr. Van der Merwe?" +Others said, "Call him; perhaps he is in the crowd." +So the stentorian voice of a Boer equipped with a powerful pair of lungs +called out, "Van der Merwe! Van der Merwe!! Van der Merwe!!!" +and then announced "He is not here." + +Mr. Van der Merwe is the Parliamentary representative of the district +where the meeting was held. + +In conclusion, General De Wet said: "Here is the Magistrate +and there is the prison. If I have said anything that I cannot substantiate +I will willingly surrender myself into their hands." + +The motion against the expedition was then put, 512 Boers voting for it +and only two against it. + + * * * * * + + Es ist sehr weit nach Tipperary, + Es ist sehr weit zu gehn; + Es ist sehr weit nach Tipperary, + Meinen liebsten Schatz zu sehn. + Leb' wohl, Piccadilly, + Adieu, Leicester Square, + Es ist sehr sehr weit nach Tipperary + Doch dahin sehnt mich sehr. + "Tipperary" in German. + +On September 29, General Botha addressed his constituents +at a Transvaal station called Bank, on the Kimberley-Johannesburg line. +A thousand Burghers met the Premier as he left his special travelling saloon +for the place of the meeting and gave him a rousing reception. +Before General Botha spoke, he permitted his opponents +(to the evident displeasure of the majority of the audience) +to unbosom their alleged grievance. Appreciative addresses were read +expressing confidence in the Government and approval of the expedition +to German South West Africa. Addresses opposing the expedition +were also read; they included one that was said to be a petition +from Boer women, strongly objecting to the expedition. +The reading of these addresses took up much time and must have tried +the patience of the Premier's admirers who were anxious to hear +the speech of the day. They called on the readers to "Shut up!" +but the Prime Minister urged them to give both sides a chance. + +After these lengthy preliminaries, the Prime Minister amid cheers delivered +a speech justifying the projected invasion of German South West Africa, +in obedience to the desire of the Imperial Government. He reminded the Boers +that the expedition had been voted for by a Parliament elected by them. +He added that he personally would always lead his people +along the white man's path of honour and Christianity, +and that he would never choose the coward's way of disloyalty and treason. +The whole of the speech might be summed up in a few lines +taken out of General Smuts's reply to General Beyers: "I cannot conceive +anything more fatal and humiliating than a policy of lip-loyalty +in fair weather and a policy of neutrality and pro-German sentiment +in days of storm and stress." + +The Prime Minister further asked what reliance could be placed +on Germany who ravaged Belgium. He pointed out that when +the late President Kruger arrived in Europe -- a fugitive from his country -- +the French and the Belgians welcomed him, while the Kaiser +would not even see the old man. + +General Botha made some remarks at this meeting which displeased +the coloured loyalists. Without wishing to defend the Premier, the remark, +in our opinion, was justifiable. It was more of a recruiting speech +than a declaration of policy, and naturally he had to appeal +to the sentiments of his hearers. Nothing goes down so easily +with the northern Boers as colour prejudice, and in the circumstances +General Botha was justified in denouncing the neutrality party, who advocated +a policy of "sitting with folded arms until German South West Africa +fell into their lap like a ripe apple. The Imperial Government," +he went on to say, "could send a force of 50,000 coolies* +to capture the German Colony, and tell them that, after the war, +they could make a coolie settlement there. Would this have been +in the interest of the country? (Cries of No, no.) But instead, +the Imperial Government had asked the Union to do the work, +and I am proud to have been asked." + +-- +* A contemptuous term for British Indians. +-- + +Nor could Englishmen, having regard to the circumstances, +very well take umbrage at another remark of General Botha's +in the same speech. It was, we believe, a clever appeal +to the feelings of Backvelders when he said: "Can you rely +on the Kaiser's promises? In the South African war, WHEN I GAVE THE ENGLISH +A SOUND THRASHING at Colenso, what did the Kaiser do? +He sent a telegram to Lord Roberts advising him how to stab me in the back, +by marching across the `Free' State." + +The danger that would follow a German victory in South Africa +was so lucidly put by the Premier that many waverers were at once imbued +with the patriotic spirit. Carping criticism, it is true, continued, +but many wobbling defence officers resolved to follow General Botha +to the uttermost. The opposition, on the other hand, told the Boers +that the official element among them who supported the Government did so, +not through patriotic motives, but for the sake of their jobs. +The most credulous section among the Boers seemed to believe that the Germans +would never invade British South Africa. This section at first was baffled +by the contention of the neutrality party that the Government was maligning +the Germans; but they were soon disillusioned. + +On September 26, Colonel Grant took possession of some water-holes +on the line of advance. This step was essential to +the success of the proposed expedition. The enemy retired, +but only to mount their artillery on some ridges overlooking +the camp of the advancing British forces. From those positions +the enemy shelled our troops till their ammunition was exhausted. +The British casualties amounted to sixteen killed, forty-three wounded, +eight missing, and thirty-five captured. These figures +would be insignificant on the battlefields of Europe, +but to lose so many men in only one attack in South Africa +was almost appalling. This reverse having brought home to the waverers +the danger of procrastination, a fresh spirit set in +among the passive loyalists. But the opposition was busy. + + * * * * * + +On the same day that General Botha carried the day at Banks, +Commandant Vermaas addressed over 100 Burghers at a Transvaal farm +called Korannafontein. There were present such notable Dutchmen +as Mr. Sarel Du Plessis and Mr. Cornelius Grobbelaar. +They were so provocative that Commandant Vermaas asked the meeting +with some warmth: "Who do you believe about the occurrences +at the German frontier, the Government who receive all the police reports, +or General Beyers? All I can say is that you will weep +when General Botha gets shot, for I know what he did for this country. +And if you disbelieve the Government, what will be the use of telling you +that the Germans were the aggressors?" + +Sensible speeches were delivered by Mr. D. Louw and others. +This speaker deeply regretted the resignation of General Beyers, and said: +"He had charge of all the Defence secrets and it cost us much money +to let him travel about this country and abroad; and at a critical moment, +when we are face to face with trouble he tenders his resignation." +The meeting, however, insisted that the Union Government were the delinquents. +The Germans, they said, had crossed the border accidentally, +for which little relapse they had tendered a suitable apology. Some speakers +said that the Ministry's ambitious annexation policy was actuated +by a desire for posthumous fame regardless of the blood of Afrikanders, +which was more precious than the deserts of German South West Africa. +The issue would be decided on the battlefields of Europe, +so why the premature invasion, and why the forgery of the railway map +in respect to the position of Nakob where the German forces are? +"Supposing the Germans win in Europe," asked one of the speakers, +"what would be our position after the raid? We prefer to follow +General Beyers." + +While Commandant Vermaas, the Government emissary, was still speaking, +some one shouted: "Three cheers for General Hertzog!" +These were vociferously accorded. + +At this stage one of the young bloods came out with a brand-new defence +of Germany's desertion of the Boer cause during the South African war. +Germany, he said, had a ten years' treaty with England and could not go to war +against the British, who were there again too smart for us. +When Queen Wilhelmina was in Germany the Kaiser said to her: +"Tell the Transvaal not to declare war against England just yet ----." + +Commandt. Vermaas: "And you call it friendship. Why promise us help +when they had a treaty with England?" + +After some dialogues, in which the Bible was quoted on both sides, +for and against the expedition, a resolution was adopted, by eighty-nine votes +to twenty-three, against the invasion of German South-West Africa. + +An aged Dutch gentleman remarked that the late Republican Government +made a mistake in first sending an ultimatum to the English, +and in attacking German South-West Africa the Union Government was repeating +the same mistake. + + * * * * * + + Oom: Who set this ancient quarrel new abroach? + Speak, nephew, were you by when it began? + + Neef: Here were the servants of your adversary + And yours, close fighting ere I did approach: + I drew to part them; in the instant came + The fiery Tielman, who swung about his head + And breathed defiance in my ears . . . + While we were interchanging, thrusts and blows + Came more and more, and fought on part and part + Till the Judge came, who parted either part. + +According to `Het Westen' of Potchefstroom, over a thousand Burghers +packed the Lyric Hall on Friday, October 2, 1914, to hear General De Wet +speak against the invasion of German South West Africa. +Apparently this was an attempt by the Backvelders to challenge +the enthusiasm of the townspeople in the various centres who had been passing +loyal resolutions in favour of the expedition and of confidence in +the Union Government. Not all the supporters of the Backvelders' cause +could gain admission to the hall, which was packed almost to suffocation +before the hour of meeting. Several prominent "Free" Staters +were on the platform with General De Wet. A rabble of roughs +had been brought from the outskirts of the town by opponents of the cause, +so the paper says, to interrupt the proceedings and to create disturbance. +They waited outside and were "responsible for a state of things +which is wholly unknown in the history of South Africa." + +Admission was by ticket, and everything was in order up to eight o'clock, +when Commandant Erasmus took the chair. General De Wet +was carried shoulder high into the meeting amid thunderous applause. +The local police force had had timely notification that the meeting +was arranged for, but the paper complains that only seven of them +were to be seen about the building, and these seven apparently were seized +with a blindness of a mysterious kind, for they saw nothing of the disturbance +that occurred during the meeting, except when it was thought necessary +to arrest an Afrikander. + +The chairman having opened the meeting, Professor Duvenage welcomed +the visitors from near and far, including the ladies in the gallery. +The professor, alluding to the English meeting which took place +in the town hall a few evenings before, observed it was not interrupted +by any one. This meeting, he said further, had been called +to discuss the South African aspect of the war. It had nothing to say +about the operations in Europe; all that they wished to protest against +was the invasion of German South West Africa. Hereupon dead cats, brickbats, +stale eggs and other things were hurled into the hall through the windows, +occasioning an indescribable commotion. Angry Afrikanders +jumped out of the windows and seized some of the offenders and administered +such a sound thrashing to one of them that he only escaped serious bodily harm +by lying down. + +The dead cats, bricks, etc., were picked up and thrown out of the window; +but, as the interrupted meeting was about to proceed, +some one disconnected the electric cable and plunged the building in darkness. +The confusion became confounding. Matches were struck +in several parts of the hall, and it was with considerable difficulty +Generals De Wet and Kemp were heard suggesting an adjournment of the meeting +to the Dutch Reformed Church Square. The crowd passed out of the Lyric Hall +and marched in the direction of the Dutch Reformed Church Square, +closely followed by the hooting band of interrupters. + +A handy carriage procured from somewhere served as a platform and, +under the light of Africa's silvery moon, 1,500 Burghers +crowded round the improvised platform while the turbulent interrupters +screeched some English national airs. General Kemp, who warned the crowd +against the danger of being struck by missiles, asked them to squat +on the ground, so as to be better able to hear General De Wet. +The guerrilla General, having stepped upon the carriage-platform, +said to the audience: "Yes, sit down flat so that those disturbance-makers +may hurl their missiles at me on top of the carriage. (Laughter.) +Some of those who came to interrupt peaceful Afrikanders +may yet become children of death before the evening is far gone. +(Boos from the opponents.) + +"That may be European or Downing Street civilization, but it is unknown +in South Africa; but let us hope that folks with such upbringing will yet live +to change their manners. Those who are standing against the wire fence +are asked to come nearer and not be afraid, if not, then let them go +to their homes, wherever those may be, and leave us alone. +I promise you that within a year this disrespectful crowd +will have been taught to respect the rights of Afrikanders. +That I promise you, and the Afrikander will do it with his own hands. +(Loud cheers.) If I am wrong in this, there is your jail, +your police and the Magistrate, and let them punish me if I am guilty." +(Voices: "They dare not touch you!"). + +Proceeding the General went on to refer to an article of the `Volkstem', +the Ministerial organ of Pretoria. The `Volkstem', he said +"had for long been crowing King, King, but the sun will rise +when the cock will cease to crow. (Laughter.) The Government +has now issued regulations under which we may not speak, but, friends, +bear in mind, and the `Volkstem' must know, that we have not yet a Popedom, +and we are not yet in Russia, for you will search in vain for the truth +in a newspaper." -- (We would very much like to know the opinion hereanent +of the Backveld newspaper organ in which we read of this meeting. -- Author.) +-- "Friends, a newspaper can do a lot of harm, and much of the condition +in which our country finds itself may be attributed to the `Volkstem' -- +that Government adulator (`de regeering se vetsmeer' document). + +"Whereas our people could freely express their views, +the Government now wants to prevent an expression of their bitter feelings +over the land-robbery now engaged in at German South West." +(At this stage, an egg thrown from the back of the crowd +fell uncomfortably near the speaker and aroused some angry remarks +in the crowd, but the speaker continuing said: "Never mind, friends, +I have another coat. The Government talk of calling out volunteers only; +but many children were surreptitiously torn away from their mothers, +and many were taken against the will of the parents. I am ready +to bow under the law, but not when it is broken by the Government. +Our law authorizes us to defend our borders, not to wage war outside." +After some more quarrels, interruptions, blows and fights +in several parts of the crowd, the police arrested a Burgher. +But some men who surrounded the police rescued the prisoner and, it was said, +assaulted a policeman.) + +Proceeding with his speech after the interruption, General De Wet said: +"We can never thank the English sufficiently for their gift of self-government +under a free constitution approved by His Majesty the King; +but it was not implied thereby that we should go and commit a theft." +More interruptions, during which it became impossible for the speaker +to continue. In the turmoil cheers were given for General De Wet, +who, resuming at length, remarked: "You fellows, along the wire fence, +the Lord have mercy on you when I turn my back. You will be responsible +if blood flows in this meeting to-night. As I have had a better up-bringing +I am keeping the people back from tackling you. I have not been brought up +in what they call Waaihoek at Bloemfontein. It was not General Botha's place +to get this country to snatch chestnuts out of the fire for England. +They bluff us with the statement that the coolies* might be asked +to come and take German South West Africa for themselves. Well, let it be so. +They will be in their proper surroundings there amongst the Hottentots. +And if it amounts to that, Kafirs armed with assegais can be sent +against them, for as it now happens the Kafir has got to work for the coolie +in Natal." + +-- +* Contemptuous South African term for British Indians. +-- + +After more disturbances, the General said he was not so certain +that the police were doing their duty, and he would have to report them +to the Government. These men were paid out of his pocket and the pockets +of other Burghers, but the people got no protection from them. +And when in self-defence an Afrikander remonstrates with the hooligans, +he is arrested. He thought there was a Magistrate present, +and can they not get protection? + +Assistant Magistrate Cronin then ascended the carriage and said: +"I expect you all to give the Burghers a fair opportunity to speak." + +Concluding General De Wet said: "It was not a question of Hertzog v. Botha. +The burning point was German South West Africa. The reason +why the people were unarmed was because the Government did not trust them. +Things being so, they should not be surprised that the people +had no confidence in the authorities. Many had guns but no cartridges; +how then could the country be expected to defend itself?" + +Mr. Paul Schutte moved the resolution which was put to the meeting, +protesting against the expedition to German South West Africa. +"At this time," says the Dutch paper that reported these proceedings, +"the throats of the interrupters, not being made of steel, +had become so hoarse and weak that their interruption was ineffective, +except, perhaps, when they dealt out blows." + +Mr. Paul Schutte said, in moving the resolution, that the hand of God +was pressing heavily on the land: poverty, misery, and the drought +finishing the people. Was it not dangerous for the Government +to embark on such an undertaking without the backing of the unanimous will +of the people? + +Mr. Serfontein (presumably one of the two members of Parliament of that name) +said he was going to speak the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. + +He said he would give documentary proof that a map has been forged; +he did not know by whom. It is said that Nakob is in Union territory, +yet according to the original Government map, that place was +on German territory. "There is the map," he said, apparently flaunting it, +"satisfy yourselves." + +Proceeding he said: "General Tobias Smuts had declared that he knew +the Government decision was against the wishes of his constituents, +yet he wanted to support the Government in favour of the war. +General Beyers, who knew all the circumstances, denies that Nakob +is in Union territory. In these circumstances, how can we, as Christians, +ask God to guide us in the undertaking?" + +Professor Postma and the Rev. Mr. De Klerk, the two next speakers, +quoted the Bible to show that to proceed against German South West Africa +was forbidden by Providence. Mr. Furstenburg, who followed, +called on the Burghers to maintain the high character of their people. +After a few words of thanks from General Kemp to the audience +for their attendance, the 1,000 Burghers, amid interruptions, +signified their objection to the expedition by standing on one side. +This act closed a most exciting meeting. + +One of the opponents, the paper says, smacked a Dutch lady on her mouth +and caused it to bleed. She coolly turned round and gave him +such a heavy blow with her fist that he collapsed, saying in +the purest English accent as she did so: "It takes but one woman +to fight a Britisher." Another of the interrupters had to be taken +to the hospital. + +Commandant Els and Mr. Rocco de Villiers, the "Free" State lawyer, +on their way to the meeting, had a mishap with their motor-car, +fifteen miles distant, so that they reached Potchefstroom on foot, +after the meeting. + +"Three cheers for our brown people," shouted one of the disturbers. +"You have forgotten the coolies," retorted a Dutch lady. + +After the meeting, the opposition formed itself into a procession +and marched through the town. They also delivered short speeches +confirming what had been done at a previous meeting of townspeople, +which supported the expedition. They booed General De Wet and his followers, +and dispersed after giving cheers for Generals Botha and Smuts +and singing the National Anthem. + +One item on the programme of the meeting was an address which +should have been presented to General Beyers, the ex-Commander-in-Chief, +but as for some reason or other he was not present, the address +was sent to him instead. It congratulated him on his resignation, +a step which the signatories were sure he would never regret, as it was +in accord with the peace-loving and the most pious part of his people, +who resent the "capture" of German South West Africa. +Further, they thanked him for coming to address them and hoped he would +deliver a speech that would shut the mouths of mischief-makers +who accused him of being a German agent. + +A similar drama was enacted at Johannesburg during the following week, +when General De Wet carried his campaign of protest into +the stronghold of the sections in favour of the Government expedition. +His meeting at the Lewis Cinema was only in progress a few minutes +when bricks, etc., came through the fanlights, and the lights went out. +The meeting was adjourned to Church Square, where supporters of the Government +gained the upper hand and overpowered the "neutral" party so completely +that General De Wet, Mr. Serfontein and Rev. Mr. Postma could not be heard. +Cheers were continually given for the King, for Generals Botha and Smuts, +and the speeches were drowned by the patriotic airs sung by the throng, +and the meeting proved a complete fiasco. + + + + +Chapter XXIII The Boer Rebellion + + Arm, arm, Burghers; we never had more cause! + The Goths have gathered head; and with a power + of high-resolved men, bent to the spoil, + They hither march amain, under conduct + Of Manie, son to old Gerit Maritz, + Who threats in course of his revenge, to do + As much as ever Black Bambata did. + + + +The following telegram was published by the South African Government: -- + +== + October 13, 1914. + +Ever since the resignation of General C. F. Beyers as Commandant-General +of the Citizen Force, there have been indications that something was wrong +with the forces in the north-west of the Cape Province, which were placed +under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel S. G. Maritz. + +The Government at once arranged to send Colonel Conraad Brits +to take over the command from Lieutenant-Colonel Maritz. + +On the 8th instant Colonel Brits sent a message to Maritz +to come in and report to him. To this message Maritz replied +in a most insolent manner that he was not going to report to anybody. +All he wanted was his discharge, and Colonel Brits must come himself +and take over his command. + +Colonel Brits then sent Major Ben Bouwer to take over the command. + + An Ultimatum + +On arrival at Maritz's camp, Major Bouwer was taken prisoner +with his companions, but personally was subsequently released and sent back +with an ultimatum from Maritz to the Union Government to the effect that: + +Unless the Government guaranteed to him before ten o'clock on Sunday morning, +October 11, that they should allow Generals Hertzog, De Wet, Beyers, +Kemp, and Muller to meet him where he was, in order that he might receive +instructions from them, he would forthwith make an attack +on General Brits's forces and proceed further to invade the Union. + +Major Ben Bouwer reported that Maritz was in possession of some guns +belonging to the Germans, and that he held the rank of General +commanding the German troops. + +He had a force of Germans under him in addition to his own rebel commando. + +He had arrested all those of his officers and men who were unwilling +to join the Germans, and had then sent them forward as prisoners +to German South West Africa. + +Major Bouwer saw an agreement between Maritz and the Governor +of German South West Africa guaranteeing the independence of the Union +as a republic, ceding Walfish Bay and certain other portions of the Union +to the Germans, and undertaking that the Germans would only invade the Union +on the invitation of Maritz. + +Major Bouwer was shown numerous telegrams and helio messages +dating back to the beginning of September. Maritz boasted +that he had ample guns, rifles, ammunition, and money from the Germans, +and that he would overrun the whole of South Africa. + +In view of this state of affairs the Government is taking +the most vigorous steps to stamp out the rebellion and inflict +condign punishment on all rebels and traitors. A proclamation +declaring martial law throughout the Union will appear +in a Gazette Extraordinary to-day.* + +-- +* "U. G. No. 10-'15", pp. 22-24. +-- +== + +This treachery was more fully described by a Cape Attorney +-- a subaltern in the Citizen Force under Maritz -- in the following letter +to the `Transvaal Leader': + +== +"We arrived at Kakamas," he writes, "after a long and wearisome trek +through Bushmanland, a company of about eighty, consisting mostly +of raw farmer youths. + +"We remained in camp for about six weeks, and, in the first week of October, +orders came from Maritz for 200 troops, comprising the Calvinia, Clanwilliam, +and Kenhardt men, to strike camp and trek toward the German border. + +"Two days later the remaining men in camp, consisting of +the Kakamas members of the Defence Force, some Kakamas Volunteers, +and our own troop, altogether about 300 men, likewise trekked +in that direction. After two days' riding, we came to a farm +called Blokzijnputs, where we met the first 200 men. + +"The village of Keimoes was crowded with German troops; our men and officers +were walking and talking among them on the friendliest possible terms, +and the German and the old Transvaal Republican flags were flying +side by side. + +"In a very short time we were made fully aware of the position. +The act of treachery which led up to it was being freely discussed +by everybody, and then I realized that `we' -- I say `we', +for I never for one second doubted that most of our men would refuse +to turn rebels -- had been caught like rats in a trap. + +"But a further shock awaited me. About half an hour after our arrival +we were summoned to fall in before Maritz, who then addressed the crowd. + +"He first spoke about the Government wishing to force him over the border +with a lot of untrained and unarmed youngsters, and went on to say +that he refused to sacrifice their lives. + +"After a bitter attack on the characters of Generals Smuts and Botha, +he denounced the British Empire as a whole, and wound up by declaring himself +an out and out rebel. + +"He stated that he was going to fight against the Union +and Imperial Governments for the independence of South Africa, +and called upon all who were unwilling to follow him, +or `had the English feeling in them', to stand on one side. + + "Ten Loyal out of Six Hundred" + +"This speech was followed by a short speech in German +by the representative of the Governor-General of German South-West Africa. + +"Then followed a scene which can never be forgotten by those who witnessed it. +All our men started to shout, cheer, and throw up their hats -- all except +ten of us, who stood there looking, I suppose, more dead than alive. +Just imagine, out of 600 men actually trekking towards the border +to invade German territory only ten refused to turn rebels. + +"However, after recovering somewhat, we approached our captain (Beukes) +and told him we were not going to join Maritz, and asked him to see +that we were not sent to Windhuk. This Maritz had given us to understand +was the only alternative to joining him." + +The writer proceeds to state that after being kept prisoners for some time +they were set free forty miles from a Union troop frontier post. +-- `Central News'.* + +-- +* See also Appendix to the "Report of the Select Committee on Rebellion", + S.C. 1-'15. +-- +== + + In the "Free" State + +General De Wet organized large commandos and took possession +of the town of Heilbron, held up a train and captured +Government stores and ammunition, some prominent Burghers +being among his active supporters; so much so that, a week later, +when President Steyn was endeavouring to get him to Bloemfontein, +in order to persuade him to discuss terms of peace with General Botha, +he had no fewer than 3,000 men under him. + +General De Wet publicly unfurled the rebel banner in October, +when he entered the town of Reitz at the head of an armed commando. +Some of his men assaulted the postmaster, who was in the act +of telegraphing the news to the capital, and destroyed his instruments. +The guerrilla General addressed an open-air meeting, which he ordered +the Magistrate to attend. When that official "refused to attend +a rebel meeting" General De Wet sent six men to compel him, +and to use violence if necessary. + +Having thus forcibly secured the attendance of the Magistrate, +he proceeded to unbosom himself as follows: "Ladies, gentlemen, and burghers, +I have asked you to come together here to explain to you my position." + +Then turning to the Magistrate, he said: "Magistrate, I want you to get +a shorthand writer to take down every word that I am going to say, +because whatever I may do in future I can never commit +a greater act of rebellion than I have already committed. +I am going through to Maritz, where we will receive arms and ammunition, +and from there we are going to Pretoria to pull down the British flag +and proclaim a free South African republic. All those who side with me +must follow me, and those who side with the Government must go to it. +I signed the Vereeniging Treaty and swore to be faithful to the British flag, +but we have been so downtrodden by the miserable and pestilential English +that we can endure it no longer. His Majesty King Edward VII +promised to protect us, but he has failed to do so, and allowed a Magistrate +to be placed over us who is an absolute tyrant, and has made it impossible +for us to tolerate it any longer. I was charged before him for beating +a native boy. I only did it with a small shepherd's whip, and for that +I was fined 5s.* (Here the Magistrate interrupted him and asked him +whether he did not plead guilty. He admitted that he had pleaded guilty, +and ordered the Magistrate to keep quiet, and he would allow him +to say as much as he liked when he had finished speaking, +and if he would not hold his tongue he would make him hold it.) + +-- +* General Smuts, after this, christened the rising as + "the Five Shilling Rebellion". +-- + +"But," continued General De Wet, "after the Magistrate had delivered judgment, +instead of reprimanding the boy and ordering him in future +to be obedient and do his duty, he looked at the Native as if he would like +to give him a kiss. The Magistrate is a brother-in-law of a man +for whom I have the greatest respect and who is very dear to me +(President Steyn), and for that reason I will give him another chance, +otherwise I would have taken him prisoner and handed him over to the Germans. +The Magistrate's father was one of the staunchest pillars of the church, +and if he were alive to-day he would be heart and soul with me +in this movement, and condemn the dastardly act of robbery +which the Government are going to commit. + +"The ungodly policy of Botha has gone on long enough; the South African Dutch +are going to stand as one man to crush this unholy scandal. +Some of my friends have advised me to wait a little longer +until England has received a bigger knock, but it is beneath me and my people +to kick a dead dog. England has got her hands full enough. +I hate the lies which are continually being spread to the effect +that thousands of Australians, Canadians and Indians can be sent to fight us. +Where will England get them from? She has enough to fight her own battles. + +"I am going through the town to take the following six articles, +viz., horses, saddles, bridles, halters, arms and ammunition, +and if anybody should refuse to hand to my men these articles, +if they should be found in their possession, I will give him a thrashing +with a sjambok. I now order the storekeepers to go and open their shops +and I will select men to go round and take whatever I require +apart from the above articles, and they will give receipts for what they take; +and if they do not open their shops willingly I will open them in another way. +My advice to you English is to remain quiet in your houses and not interfere +with my men, and if you don't, beware when I come back! +I have got my eight sons and sons-in-law here with me, +and the only people left on my farm are my wife and daughter. +Anybody can go and see if they like, and I request the Magistrate +to give them any help they may require, if he will do so." + +Mr. Wessel Wessels, a famous "Free" State politician, +having taken possession of Harrismith in the name of General De Wet, +was alleged to have had the audacity to send letters to Chief Ntsane Mopedi, +of the Harrismith district, and to the Paramount Chief of Basutoland, +informing them that, with the assistance of the Germans, the Boers were going +to drive away the English and re-proclaim a Dutch Republic +in South Africa; and requesting those chiefs to remain neutral +while the annihilation of the English was in progress. +Only in case the English should arm the Indians, were they to mobilize +their warriors (the Basutos) on the side of the Boer-German combination. + + Dit is ver weg na Tippererie, + Dit is ver om te gaan; + Dit is ver weg na Tippererie, + Om my hart se punt te zien. + Goen dag, Pikadillie + Vaarwel, Lester-squeer; + Dit is ver, ver weg na Tippererie + Maar my hart le net daar. + "Tipperary" in Cape Dutch. + +The Dutch, like other people, also had a prophet. Many stories +were told since the outbreak of the war by the seer, Van Rensburg, +and among other visions credited to him he was said to +have dreamt of the impending "removal of the British yoke +from the necks of Afrikanders", and the forthcoming expulsion +from South Africa of the English people and their flag, +with the aid of Germany. + +Whatever might be said about what the prophet Van Rensburg +had foretold in other respects, the prophecies attributed to him +in regard to the European War resemble other war prophecies +(credited to French, Russian, and German women), in that the wish, it seems, +is often father to the thought. + +The lower middle-class Boers attach great weight to the guesses +of native bonethrowers. It is strange sometimes when a Malay charmer +is prosecuted for imposing on the public to find Dutch witnesses +giving evidence of the healing powers possessed by the accused and emphasizing +the absurdity of prosecuting a man who benefited them and their relatives +more than many a certificated medical man. + +Moreover, the forecasts credited to Van Rensburg seemed to have found +ample corroboration in the cabled newspaper accounts of the rapid advance +of the armies of General Von Kluck through Belgium towards Paris, +and in the minds of such gullible patriots as the South African Boers +this telegraphic war news acted like manure on a fertile field. + +== + The Seer Van Rensburg* + +-- +* "U.G. No. 10-'15". +-- + +The seer was Nicolas van Rensburg, of Lichtenburg, a simple +and illiterate farmer. He was a prophet not without honour +in his own country. On many occasions he had given proof positive +of the possession of extraordinary powers of prevision, +so men said and believed. It would be out of place here +to give examples of the many telepathic forecasts (or happy guesses) +with which he was credited. It is certain that he had a great hold +on the imagination of thousands of his people. During the Anglo-Boer War +some commandos, when Van Rensburg was in their lager, +neglected all precautions. If "Oom Niklaas" declared that the English +were not in the neighbourhood, it was a waste of energy +to post sentries and keep a look out. + +His reputation had, strangely enough, not diminished since the war. +This was perhaps due to several causes. He had never attempted +to exploit his "gift" and impressed most of those who came +in contact with him with his apparent sincerity. If he duped others, +it seemed he also duped himself. Moreover, and this was perhaps +the secret of his continued success, his "visions" were invariably +symbolic and mysterious; they possessed an adaptability of character +that was truly Delphic. Indeed, his hearers were compelled +to put their own interpretation upon his visions. The seer seldom pretended +to understand or explain them himself. + +General De la Rey took a great interest in the seer, who had belonged +to his commandos during the Anglo-Boer War. Van Rensburg again +had the greatest admiration for General De la Rey, and had frequently +hinted to his circle that great things were in store for the General. +One of his visions had been well known to General De la Rey and his friends +for some years. The seer had beheld the number 15 on a dark cloud, +from which blood issued, and then General De la Rey returning home +without his hat. Immediately afterwards came a carriage covered +with flowers.* What these things portended, Van Rensburg could not say. +He believed that they signified some high honour for the General. . . . + +-- +* General De la Rey was accidentally shot on the night of September 15. + The last house he stayed in was No. 15, and the funeral train + that brought his body to Lichtenburg had a carriage full of floral tributes. +-- + +When the war at last broke out, the effect in Lichtenburg was instantaneous. +The prophecies of Van Rensburg were eagerly recalled, and it was remembered +that he had foretold a day on which the independence of the Transvaal +would be restored. One officer actually called up his men +to be in readiness on Sunday, August 9, as that would be the day on which +the prophecy would be fulfilled. After this, too, certain individuals +could be seen daily cleaning their rifles and cartridges in order to be ready +for THE DAY. Several men in this district claimed to be +in regular communication with German South-West Africa before August, 1914. +Within a week of the declaration of war between England and Germany +the district was further profoundly stirred by the news +(now become generally known) that a great meeting of local burghers +was to be held at Treurfontein on August 15, and that certain local officers +were commandeering their burghers to come to this meeting +armed and fully equipped for active service. . . . + +The meeting was to be addressed by General De la Rey, +and it was generally believed that the assembled burghers +would march on Potchefstroom immediately after the meeting. + +The prophecies of Van Rensburg had a great deal to do with the excitement +which had been produced locally. The strange vision of the number 15, +which had long been common knowledge, was now discussed with intense interest. +The 15, it was said, signified August 15, the day of the meeting. +That would be THE DAY, which had been so long expected -- +the day of liberation. Van Rensburg was now the oracle. +His prophecies with regard to the great war had been signally fulfilled. +Germany was at grips with England, and her triumph was looked upon +as inevitable. + +The day had arrived to strike a blow for their lost independence. +Van Rensburg assured his following that the Union Government was "finished". +Not a shot would be fired. The revolution would be complete and bloodless. + +Between the 10th and the 15th the plotters in Lichtenburg +were actively preparing for the day. There is evidence +that German secret agents were working in concert with them. +The 15th would mark the beginning of a new era. When doubters asked +how they could be so certain that the 15 signified a day of the month +-- and of the month of August in particular -- they were scornfully +if illogically told that "in God's time a month sooner or later +made no difference." + +The Government had been informed by its local supporters +of these alarming preparations. It was quite clear that an attempt +was to be made on the 15th to start a rebellion. Everything would depend +on the meeting which was to be addressed by General De la Rey. +General De la Rey's position in the Western Transvaal was unique. +He possessed an unrivalled influence and was looked up to +as the uncrowned King of the West. His attitude at the meeting +would sway the mass of his adherents and decide the question of peace or war. + +General Botha summoned General De la Rey to Pretoria some days +before the meeting, and was able to persuade him to use his best endeavours +to calm the excited feelings which had been aroused and to use his influence +to see that no untoward incidents should occur. + +On Saturday, the 15th, the great meeting was held. About 800 burghers +were present. General De la Rey addressed them and explained +the situation in Europe. He exhorted his audience to remain cool and calm +and to await events. After the address "a strange and unusual silence" +was observed. A resolution was passed unanimously expressing complete +confidence in the Government to act in the best interests of South Africa +in the present world-crisis. The address seemed to have had +a very good effect. The burghers appeared to have taken their leader's advice +to heart, as they dispersed quietly to their homes. +== + +All danger of a rebellious movement had apparently been averted, +but only for a time. + +The Potchefstroom `Herald' tells a story of what it describes +as "the inner history of a damnable plot", and of how near +Potchefstroom* was to falling into the hands of the rebels through +the treachery of Beyers and his accomplices on the night of September 15, +which was the date on which the late General De la Rey was killed. + +-- +* The old capital of Transvaal where General De Wet and General Kemp + held the dramatic meeting on October 2, 1914. +-- + +== +It is unquestionable (says the `Herald') that Beyers, who was forced to admit +that he was on his way to Potchefstroom when the accident happened, +was to have started an attempt to overthrow the Government +with the aid of the men, over 2,000 in number, who had just finished +their period of three weeks' training in the Active Citizen Camp +at Potchefstroom. Both he and Kemp had resigned their positions, +and, knowing the treacherous mission upon which he was setting out that night +as the emissary of the German enemy, little wonder was it that at Langlaagte +Beyers cowered with fear, and lost his nerve entirely, because he thought +his own arrest was at hand. + +Continuing the account, the paper says: On the morning parade +on Tuesday morning the rebel Colonels Bezuidenhout and Kock +had each addressed their men in an attempt to imbue them +with a spirit of revolt against their own Government. +All the Dutch-speaking Afrikanders were advised not to volunteer +for German South-West; that was the job of the Englishman. +The officers plainly said that they had no intention of doing their duty: +they had other fish to fry. And they permitted the few volunteers +who stood out in spite of them to be jeered at by the "neutrals". +The disgrace of that early morning parade scene must for ever be upon +the traitors concerned. It was certain that dastardly influences +were at work, but thanks to the sterling loyalty of certain men +from among the Dutch population, the plans of the conspirators +were more or less known, and arrangements were made to checkmate them. +All honour to these true patriots who took a big risk +for the safety of the country. + +That evening a meeting of Britishers took place in Potchefstroom +to discuss the situation (says the `Herald'), and it was agreed +that its seriousness was such as to necessitate direct communication +with General Smuts, which was duly carried out. For one thing, +practically all Britishers were unarmed. How critical was the position, +or how near Potchefstroom was to complete disaster, was not then +fully realized. On that night, too, there was another and more sinister +meeting in the town. It was at a certain house in Berg Street, +where a number of residents, male and female, who can be named, +expected the arrival of the chief conspirator. Then, too, +at the Defence Force headquarters Kemp had stored a quantity of ammunition +that was altogether out of proportion to the requirements of his district, +and during the week there had been frequent communications with +the Lichtenburg "prophet". Beyers had arranged to reach the Defence Force +at 3 a.m., where motor-cars waited. + +Later he was to have marched upon the town with all the armed men +he could bring under his influence, knowing full well, +by previous arrangement, that he could rely on the aid of rebels +within Potchefstroom itself. So intense was the feeling of danger +in camp that night that loyal officers slept with loaded revolvers at hand +and all the spare ammunition under the beds. The Union Jack +was to be supplanted and the new Republic was to be declared +with the Vierkleur flying -- or would it have been the German flag? +That was the morning of September 16, and as showing +the concerted character of the traitorous plans, it should be noted that +the proclamation signed by the Governor-General of German South-West Africa, +the "scrap of paper" used as a sop for the Boers, was dated for +the self-same day. + + Plot Providentially Thwarted + +But the motor-car tragedy in the dark at Langlaagte was the second blow +to this criminal plot (continues the paper), and when Beyers, +trembling and unnerved, spoke through the telephone at midnight +on September 15, telling of the fatal shot, and that his journey +had been cut short, those who had waited in the camp and in the town +knew that, for the time being at any rate, the little game was up. +Kemp, of course, at once tried to withdraw his resignation, but luckily +General Smuts gave the snub direct. Already the names of local men +to be terrorized, and even shot, were in the mouths of the irreconcilables +-- skulking cowards for the most part -- of whom more must yet be written +in the interests of public morality. + +That night Potchefstroom might easily have fallen into the hands +of the rebel crew, sharing the fate of the Free State towns or worse, +and loyalists, both English and Dutch, must thank an ever-watchful Providence +for being saved from a position of ignominy and humiliation. +== + +If all this be true,* and the Government had been informed of it, +one cannot understand why General Beyers, with his fingers steeped in treason, +was let loose upon the community to poison the loyalty of the Dutch +along the country-side and to complicate the task of the Government. +It seems that he should have been detained that evening, +and thereby, having been turned from the path of suicide, other lives +would also have been saved. When one considers the amount of harm +that he was able to do subsequently, it is staggering to think +what the task of the loyalists would have been had his plans been reinforced +by the success of this night plot. It would have given +a link of tremendous power to the rebel movement throughout the country +if they had captured the stores, munitions, and a ready army that awaited +General Beyers's arrival at Potchefstroom. The fact that some Burghers +were found organizing rebel commandos in the "Free" State and Transvaal +even after the capture of General De Wet and the drowning of General Beyers +ought to show the prevailing Backveld spirit up to the early months of 1915. + +-- +* The `Herald's' story has since been confirmed by the Government Blue Book + on the Rebellion. +-- + +When the rebels were tried in Pretoria and elsewhere in January and February, +Burghers crowded the law courts and rose to their feet, +as if in token of their fellow-feeling with the prisoners, +each time a rebel was placed in the dock. At Pretoria, +this vaunting demonstration seems only to have been ended +by the announcement of the Magistrate that if they did it again +he would have to clear the court. It is not stated, however, +whether the prisoners duly acknowledged the sympathy thus shown +with a bow from the dock. One member of Parliament (not a rebel) +is said to have swaggered into the Bloemfontein court and, after shaking hands +with the prisoners, conversed with them in an audible tone. + +Nothing better illustrates the unsatisfactory nature of the South African +military appointments than the Press report that the English artillerymen +who served under Maritz were in constant danger of their lives, and that, +realizing this fact, they were compelled sometimes to keep their machine guns +trained on their comrades. The poor men must have had an awful time, +literally "sleeping with one eye wide open". + +When Colonel Maritz at length threw off the mask and openly proclaimed +his treachery, he put these artillerymen under arrest and handed them over +to the Germans as prisoners of war. + +Of course, if the Government of the Union was as well administered +as was the Cape Government before it, such things would have been impossible, +because only tried men with military experience would have been appointed +to the command of the Union Forces -- men whose loyalty was beyond reproach -- +that is to say, if high official appointments went by merit and not by favour. +A professional lawyer like General Beyers would have been the last person +to get a position which should have been given to a trained soldier, +of whom there are many in the country. But as his appointment took place +at a time when some English officials were politely removed +from high positions to make room for influential Dutchmen, +and in certain cases useless posts, such as "Inspector of white labour", +and inspector of goodness-knows-what (all of them carrying high emoluments), +were created for political favourites, General Beyers's appointment +caused no surprise, as the "pitchfork" had already become +part of our Government machinery. But how such a man as Manie Maritz +became a Colonel in the Colonial Defence Force is one of those things which, +as Lord Dundreary would say, "no fellah can understand". + +The man is not only said to have rebelled during the South African war, +but he is also said to have escaped to German South Africa +to evade the consequence, and that he only returned to British South Africa +when the Boers got their constitution. And when British officers +like Colonel Mackenzie and Colonel Lukin apparently acquiesce +in an appointment that places them on a level with a man like that, +the voteless black taxpayer who has no control over these appointments +cannot be blamed for feeling perplexed at the turn events are taking. + +Here is an expression of this perplexity: The old chief Tshabadira +asked the Government Secretary in 1913, at Thaba Nchu, +"How many kings have we? Is there an English King and a Dutch King, +each trying to rule in his own way? And since we cannot very well +follow both, which one are we to obey?" Dutch and English colonists +have ruled the Cape for forty years and no such questions were ever asked. + +If General De Wet were to be tried by a court of native chiefs, +who followed "the wheels of administration" during the past five years, +they would in all probability decide that the British Government, +to which he pledged his allegiance, and the semi-Republican Government +against which he rebelled are two entirely different bodies. +They would possibly reason that he pledged his allegiance +to a Greater Britain -- or to localize it, to a Greater Cape Colony, +not to a Greater Transvaal. + +The Cape Colony is often reproached because native taxpayers +within its boundaries have votes and help their white neighbours +to elect members of Parliament. But strange to say, +when a revolutionary mob seized the South African railways in 1914, it was +the railway men of the much-abused Cape who, in spite of the native vote, +dragged the Government out of a serious situation. Similarly when +these high officers of the Defence Force in Transvaal and Orange "Free" State +rebelled and joined the Germans with their commandos, the Dutchmen of the Cape +(presumably because "they vote side by side with the Kafirs") +denounced the treachery in unmistakable terms. The South African party +at the Cape beat up its followers to the support of the Government, +and the voice of the Cape section of the Dutch Reformed Church +rang from pulpit and platform in denunciation of disloyalty and treason. +But in the Northern Provinces, where white men are pampered and guarded +by the Government against the so-called humiliation of allowing +native taxpayers to vote, there the rebellion, having been regarded +with seeming approval, gained a marvellous impetus. + +And the strangest of all these things is how men with bank balances +like the Dutchmen of Transvaal and the Orange "Free" State +could fail to appreciate the debt they owe to the British Navy, +by which the commercial routes from South Africa to the outer world +are kept open to them, when practically the whole world is ablaze. + +The banner of revolt having been unfurled, the "Free" State towns of Reitz, +Heilbron, and Harrismith being in the hands of "Free" State rebels, +martial law was proclaimed, and General Botha, as forecasted +in the native letter quoted in a previous chapter, assumed command +of the Union Forces and squelched the upheaval. Altogether the rebellion +cost South Africa some of the finest of its young men. +Dutch, English, coloured and native families suffered the loss of their sons +in the flower of their youth, including among many others, +prominent South Africans, such as Mr. W. Pickering, the general secretary +of the Kimberley mines, and Mr. Justice Hopley of Rhodesia, +who each lost a son. + +One loss which the Natives, judging by articles in their newspapers, +will not easily forget is that of Captain William Allan King, +the late Sub-Commissioner of Pretoria. He was shot by a rebel, +on November 23, near Hamaanskraal, whilst helping a wounded trooper. +In his lifetime his duties brought him in touch with employers of labour +in the Pretoria Labour District and with Natives from all over South Africa. +A non-believer in the South African policy of least resistance, he was +without doubt the ablest native administrator in the Transvaal Civil Service, +and as such the vacancy caused by his death will be very hard to fill. +He was an expert on Native matters, and no commission ever sat +without his being summoned to give evidence before it. + +The Natives called him "Khoshi-ke-Nna", which means "I am the Chief". +A firm but just Englishman, with a striking military gait, +he would have been an ideal leader of the native contingents +had the offer of native help been accepted by the Union Government. + +The casualty list on both sides exceeded one thousand. +Over ten thousand rebels were imprisoned, of whom 293 leaders will be tried, +the rest being detained up till the end of the trouble. + +After various encounters with the Union forces under General Botha, +General De Wet suffered a series of heavy defeats. Many of +his followers surrendered, and his son was killed on the battlefield. +He tried to escape to German South West Africa, but was overtaken and captured +in Bechuanaland, with fifty followers, including his secretary, Mr. Oost, +formerly editor of a Pretoria weekly paper. + +Considering his initial bounce and bluster, General De Wet's surrender +was a particularly tame affair. Said the captive to the captor: +"I seem to know you -- are you not Jordaan?" "Yes, General," +replied the captor. "I saw you at Vereeniging where we made peace." +"Very well," rejoined the captive, "I must congratulate you +on your achievement. It was very smart. Anyway, I am glad +that I am taken by you and not by an Englishman."* + +-- +* Gen. De Wet was tried and sentenced by the Special court + to six years' imprisonment and a fine of 2,000 Pounds. +-- + +General Kemp succeeded in eluding his pursuers by means of forced marches +across the Kalahari desert, and effected a junction with Maritz +in German South West Africa; but after only a few weeks' taste of German rule +he returned to the Union and surrendered with his commando and all arms, +evidently satisfied with British rule. Some of his men were wearing +German uniforms. The prophet Rensburg, carrying a big umbrella, +also surrendered with him. + +General Beyers was the first to succumb. Cornered by the loyal forces, +he was driven up against the Vaal River in flood. With his pursuers +on the one side and the raging torrent on the other, he was drowned +in an ill-starred attempt to escape across that treacherous river. +Parties were sent out to drag the river and search for the body, +and a reward of 50 Pounds was offered to the finder. +Mrs. Beyers left Pretoria in a special train with a coffin on board, +to join the search party. She was accompanied by a few relatives and friends, +including one doctor of medicine and one minister of religion. They travelled +along the Johannesburg-Kimberley line as far as Maquasi, near the river, +where they received tidings of the recovery of General Beyers's body. +It was found by a Dutch farmer, who promptly claimed the 50 Pound reward. + +A telegram to Pretoria brought back a reply from General Smuts +stating that it was inadvisable to convey the body to the capital +at the time, so he was buried by the parson on the veld +to the accompaniment of lightning flashes which blind the eye, +and salutes of loud peals of African thunder, which shake the earth +in a manner that is known only to persons who have spent a summer +in the interior of South Africa. + +It is said that the late General insured his life so heavily before +the outbreak that representatives of the several insurance companies concerned +had to meet after his death and consider the matter of their liability. + +The remainder of the story of the "Five Shilling Rebellion" is soon told. +After the proclamation of martial law the Premier assumed +the supreme command of the Union forces and called out all the citizens -- +the whites to arms and the blacks as drivers and manual labourers +at the front. Some Boers who could not give a satisfactory excuse +disobeyed the call, and were sentenced to terms of imprisonment +with hard labour under the Defence Act. Thus backed by the overwhelming +support of the various peoples of the Union of all creeds and colours, +the Prime Minister made a clean sweep of the rising, +and in less than two months the Rt. Hon. Louis Botha was once again +master of the situation from the shores of the Indian Ocean in the east +to the Atlantic coast in the west. And when the rebel leaders +were cogitating over the situation in durance vile, the Prime Minister +was sending a message from German South West Africa, on February 26, +asking Parliament to deal leniently with the rebels. + + Keise qusa Tipereri, + Kgam'se gaqu ha; + Keise qusa Tipereri + Artie ti gxawo si mu. + Hamnci gqo Pikadili. + Hamnci Gqo Lester Skuer + Keise qusa, qusa Tipereri + Mar, ti xawo nxeba ha. + "Tipperary" in Qoranna.* + +-- +* This language is also spoken by the Namaquas and some of the tribes + in German South West Africa. +-- + + + + +Chapter XXIV Piet Grobler + + Lecture delivered by Mr. Sol T. Plaatje before the "Marsh Street Men's Own" + Literary Society in the Lecture Room of their Institute, + Hoe Street, Walthamstow, on February 26, 1915. + + Keep me in chains? I defy you. + That is a pow'r I deny you! + I will sing! I will rise! + Up! To the lurid skies -- + With the smoke of my soul, + With my last breath, + Tar-feathered, I shall cry: + Ethiopia shall not die! + And hand in hand with Death, + Pass on. + + I shall not curse you. But singing -- + My singing fatefully ringing + Till startled and dumb + You falter, the sum + Of your crime shall reveal -- + This do I prophesy . . . + O Heart wrung dry, + Awake! + Startle the world with thy cry: + Ethiopia shall not die! + Otto L. Bohanan.* + + -- + * In the Kalahari language, BOHANAN means: `Be combined'. + -- + + + +The gentleman whose name forms the title of my lecture +is a lawyer, a grand-nephew of the late President Kruger and, +till lately, a member of the Union Parliament. He represented +the Dutch constituency of Rustenburg, a district whose Burghers +were responsible for a kind of administrative native land arrangement +in the Transvaal Republic. This arrangement, the result of a petition +from Rustenburg, made it compulsory for native landowners in the Republic +to register their farms in the names of white people. +In accordance with it, Natives who bought land had to register it +in the name of the Minister of Native Affairs. But as such Ministers +did not always command the trust of the Natives they resorted to the expedient +of registering their farms in the names of some European friends, +missionaries or otherwise. Some European gentlemen thus became +the registered owners of land belonging to Natives, giving the Natives +receipts for the money and documents explaining the nature of the transaction. +Other Europeans, including missionaries, were not so scrupulous. +They gave the Natives no receipt, so that after their death +the properties of these Natives passed into the estates of the deceased. +The following case is an example. + +The native peasants on a Transvaal farm found themselves in such a dilemma +after the death of General Joubert, late Superintendent of Natives +of the Transvaal Republic. The black "owners" had no document showing +that they were the real owners of the farm and that General Joubert's name +was only registered to meet the requirements of the Volksraad. +In such circumstances they received notice from his executors +to leave the General's farm. They appealed to the law-courts and adduced +verbal evidence in support of their purchase and ownership of the farm; +the sale had been a public one. Besides, according to their ideas, +it needed no documentary evidence, since they were legally in possession. +The Court, after listening to the evidence concerning the sums paid +by individual Natives of the tribe, of the total sum paid for the farm, +and of the legal reason why the title bore a white man's name, +held that however unfortunate was the position of those Natives if their story +was true, it could only give judgment in terms of the title deeds. +Thus Natives who were originally dispossessed of their land +by conquest, and who swore to having purchased in hard cash +land in their own country from the conquerors, were now for the second time, +so they stated, dispossessed and turned off that land +all owing to the complicated registration under this "Besluit" +from Rustenburg. + +After the British occupation in 1900, the Courts held +that the "Besluit" and its practices did not have the force of law, +and Natives took advantage of the ruling to transfer their properties +to their own names; but in 1913, Mr. Piet Grobler, M.L.A., +moved and succeeded in getting the Natives' Land Act carried +in the Union Parliament, which has placed the Natives of the whole country +in a more terrible plight than were the Natives of the Transvaal Republic +before the war. + +Since he took his seat in the Union Parliament, Mr. Piet Grobler, +like Mr. Keyter of Ficksburg, has given the Natives no rest. He first made +his power felt in 1911, when General Smuts introduced a Bill to consolidate +the marriage laws of the four Provinces. Mr. Grobler then moved +a fatal colour clause which had the effect of killing the Bill, +for the Ministry, on finding that the Bill could only be carried +with the assistance of the Unionists, preferred to drop it +rather than divide the Boer majority; and hence, thanks to Mr. Grobler, +the chaotic confusion still obtains in the South African marriage laws. + +This gentleman, in 1913, led the attack in Parliament on Sir Richard Solomon, +the Union's representative in London, for not keeping his mouth shut +when he is among British foreigners, and for daring to suggest +British emigration to South Africa. As stated above, Mr. Grobler demanded, +among other things, that the Government should introduce +"during this session" (1913) a law to stop the purchase and lease of land +by Natives, and the Natives' Land Act of 1913 was the result of the demand -- +a measure whose destructive severity forced the Natives +to sue for Imperial protection against the South African Parliament. + +When the present European War broke out, Mr. Grobler was among +the Parliamentary clique of representatives whose Christian principles +forbade them to vote for an armed expedition against +their friendly neighbours, the Germans. They said that, +in Deuteronomy 19:14, God specifically warned the Boers +against moving the landmarks of their neighbours. But strange to say, +the religious scruples of these pious objectors never revolted against +removing the landmarks of their native neighbours and of appropriating, +not only their land and their labour, but even the persons +of these neighbours. The Natives, according to Mr. Luedorf, +a German evangelist among the Bechuana, witnessed the Boer trekkers +maltreating conquered Natives and taking their children as slaves. +Children who were unable to walk to their serfdom being +gathered in a heap and burnt alive. This, says Mr. Luedorf, +caused the Natives to exclaim: "Mzilikasi, the Matabele King, +was cruel to his enemies, but kind to those he conquered; whilst the Boers +are cruel to their enemies and ill-treat and enslave their friends."* + +-- +* "The Boer States" (Keane), pp. 137-138. +-- + +Now, Mzilikasi had no Bible, but the Boer has the Bible and professes +to honour it. But his Bible, being of a flexible sort, +it did not prevent a certain clique of Boers from taking up arms +against the Government of which Mr. Lloyd George (a gentleman +who staked his reputation and risked his life in his fearless protests +against the annexation of the Boer Republics) was a prominent member; +and against the Liberal Government, which, as compensation +for the mere change of flags, made them a nice little present +in the shape of the two old English Colonies of South Africa +and the undisturbed permission to rule all that is therein. Mr. Piet Grobler, +the author of most of our miseries, reached the climax of his career when, +after voting against the Union expedition to German South West Africa, +he not only persuaded British subjects not to volunteer for service +in the expedition, but himself joined a force, as alleged +by the South African papers to hand by the latest mail, to shoot down +the King's loyal subjects. He was taken prisoner by General Botha's forces +at the head of a rebel commando, presumably whilst on the way +to join the Kaiser's forces in the German Colony. He is thus +one of the members of the Union Parliament who forfeited their seats +by breaking the Parliamentary oath and participating in the recent rebellion. + +Mr. Solicitor Grobler's ideas about the sacredness of an oath +are curious and original. Every member of the Union Parliament, +before taking his seat, has to subscribe to the following oath of allegiance +"before the Governor-General, or some person authorized by him", +usually a Judge of the Supreme Court: + +== +I, M. . . . M. . . . do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance +to His Majesty King George V, his heirs and successors according to law. +So help me God. +== + +Mr. Grobler, it is said, was caught red-handed in the treasonable act +of leading a force of fifty armed rebels against the Government, +and for his breach of the oath he was taken prisoner. Last week, +whilst his trial was still pending, he applied for bail, +and in support of his application, he pleaded that he was anxious +TO ATTEND TO HIS PARLIAMENTARY DUTIES. Here is a bit of Boer candour +for you! + +The honourable and learned member is further stated to have pleaded +that his district provided the largest proportion of rebels and he was anxious +to be in Capetown when Parliament opens this afternoon,* in order to be able +to represent their case when the Legislature discusses the rebellion. +That is South African logic in a nutshell. The Judge, however, +took a rational view of things and dismissed the application. + +-- +* The S. A. Parliament opened on the afternoon of the same day as the Lecture. +-- + +There may be motives other than those stated by the incarcerated +member of Parliament actuating his desire to get to Capetown. + +Every member of Parliament who absents himself without leave +forfeits 2 Pounds a day out of his Parliamentary emoluments, +so that Mr. Grobler's continued confinement in prison would entail +a serious financial deficit. This was not the only instance in which +anxiety of this kind was betrayed by recipients of Government bounties +in South Africa. There are a large number of well-to-do Boers +who draw annually hundreds of pounds from the Union Treasury, salaries which +a paternal Government taxes the poorly paid labourers of South Africa +to provide. This is particularly the case in the Transvaal. +There, princely salaries are paid for filling such superfluous posts +as that of "Inspector of White Labour", "Field Cornet", and kindred offices. +The Field Cornet of each sub-district of the Transvaal +is a very important gentleman, as is evinced by the intense labour +attached to his office. The duties of this "hard-worked" functionary +consist of the checking of the Parliamentary voters list of his ward, +once every two years, and of acting as chief canvasser and election agent +for the Ministerial candidate, who, however, is usually returned unopposed; +and for these onerous duties he is rewarded by an ungrateful Government +with the "beggarly" salary of 260 Pounds a year. + +Besides these, there are sundry little sinecures, equally remunerative, +to which well-to-do Dutch farmers, who are the more +generally preferred, aspire; and each fills his role +with acceptable dignity and a serious sense of responsibility. +Consequently, there is more gnashing of teeth on the farm +over the loss of one of these appointments than over +the failure of a whole year's crop. + +Several of these nominal "members" of the Union Civil Service +were said to have taken up arms and joined the rebellion. +According to the South African papers, the wife of one of them +applied to the defence office for the salary of her husband. +When it was pointed out to her that her husband was at that time engaged +in fighting against the forces of the Defence Department, +she coolly told the official that that had nothing to do +with his private affairs, i.e., the income from the Government. +In regard to the faithfulness of the class of officials just mentioned, +I cannot refrain from drawing the attention of my audience +to the fact that, as the electoral supporters of the Cabinet, they guided +the policy of the Union Government during the past five years, and they are +the type of legislators in whose tender care the Imperial Government +would fain entrust the liberties of the voteless Natives +without even the safeguard of a right of appeal. + +Personally I am not revengeful, and would wish Mr. Grobler every success +in his defence; the Transvaal native taxpayer, on the other hand, +earns an average wage of 20 Pounds per annum: out of this he pays taxation +on the same scale as the white labourer who earns 25 Pounds a month; +in addition, he pays a native tax of 3 Pounds 4s. per year, presumably as +a tax on the colour of his skin, for no white man pays that. This extra tax, +apparently, is in order that Transvaal Field Cornets and members of Parliament +should more easily draw their pay. In return for all these payments, +and as a result of Mr. Grobler's legislative efforts, +the Transvaal native taxpayer got the Natives' Land Act of 1913; +and I am afraid that HE will not be very sorry to know that some one else +enjoys the 400 Pounds per annum hitherto received by Mr. Grobler, +together with his free first-class travelling ticket +over the South African railways. + +British pioneer officials, in Africa and elsewhere, have for generations +been left in charge of mixed communities of white Colonials and black Natives +and other immigrants. In spite of occasional human lapses, +they have ruled these communities successfully throughout the past century, +and maintained the high administrative reputation of the English +in Africa, Asia and other parts of the globe. The dominant race +in South Africa, on the other hand, may be fit to govern themselves, +but their dealings with us show them to be wholly unfit to rule +the native races. There is no more glaring illustration of this weakness +than the conduct of the rebel Boers and the loyal Boers +during the present war. According to my latest information +from different centres of South Africa, native peasants were horsewhipped +into the enemy's service as soon as the standard of rebellion was unfurled. +There can be no reason to doubt the veracity of my information +when the Press reports have clearly shown that even a white skin +has ceased to be a protection against illtreatment. At least +one loyal Magistrate and a postmaster were violently assaulted by +General De Wet's Burghers, so the official dispatches say. Those shopkeepers +who hesitated to open their stores to the rebels were sjambokked +as were the ordinary Natives, and the Mayor of a "Free" State town +was also flogged. + +After the proclamation of martial law General Botha marshalled +the loyal Boers throughout the country. These loyal Burghers, +taking advantage of the presence of martial law, committed all kinds +of excesses against loyal coloured civilians. These atrocities +not only took place away in the Backveld, but sometimes +in Capetown and Kimberley, the centres of African civilization; +there black men were frequently tied to the wagon-wheels and lashed +by the loyal Boers, and some of these coloured victims, I am told, +have been cruelly done to death. + +Of course, if the particular Burgher who dealt the death-blow +can be identified he will be prosecuted, but that will not resuscitate +the victims. It will only add misery to the innocent family of the offender. +But the fact remains that during the South African War, +South Africa was a huge military camp, yet the unarmed Natives, +many of whom were then in the enemy's service, suffered nothing but kindness +at the hands of Imperial troops, and there never was any conflict +between the military and native civilians. And it but reveals +the unfitness for self-government of the dominant race out there +that the Natives, who sympathize with the Government, +should be exposed to violence immediately the loyal Burghers are armed. +That is the condition of life under true South African ideals. + +Having had the ear of the Union Government since the federation of the +South African States, Mr. Piet Grobler and other men of his way of thinking +have been largely responsible for the repressive native laws +that have found their way into the statute book of the Union. +If the Natives of the other three Provinces had votes +like those of the Cape Province, they would help to return +sober-minded members to Parliament who are not inimical to the public welfare, +instead of which they have been represented in the South African Parliament +by budding subalterns of the German Army in South-West Africa. +But since the Imperial Government in its wisdom when granting +a Constitution to South Africa saw fit to withhold from the blacks +their only weapon of protection against hostile legislation, +viz., the power of the ballot, they surely, in common fairness +to the Natives and from respect for their own honour, +cannot reasonably stand aside as mere onlookers while +self-condemned enemies of the Crown ram their violent laws +down the throats of the Natives. The Imperial Government +by the obligations of its overlordship and its plighted word +to the Natives, at the time of the federation, is in duty bound +to free the unrepresented Natives from the shackles of these laws, +or otherwise, declare its guardianship of the interests of the Natives +to have ceased, and counsel these weaker races to apply elsewhere for relief. + + * * * * * + + + + + Epilogue + + Oh, hear us for our native land, + The land we love the most: + Our fathers' sepulchres are here, + And here our kindred dwell; + Our children, too; how should we love + Another land so well? + Wreford. + + + +After partaking of hot cross buns at the family table +of a dear old English family the day before yesterday (Good Friday), +I went to Walthamstow, and there heard a moving discourse +delivered by the Rev. James Ellis on the sufferings and death of Christ +for the redemption of mankind. + +At my abode this morning, after receiving such tokens of friendship +as Easter eggs and artistic picture cards, I attended an Easter service +at the London University Hall and heard the little choir of four voices +rendering mellifluous anthems to the glory of God. At the invitation +of the Rev. R. P. Campbell this afternoon I went to Lloyds Park +to tell the P.S.A. there about a South African Easter and to deliver +at the same time the native message to the British public. + +In the evening I went to the City Temple, where I listened to +an intellectual Easter sermon, by the Rev. R. J. Campbell, +on the triumph of Christianity, and heard the uniformed choir +artistically sing doxologies to the risen Christ. + +As I recall these services, I am transported in thought +to St. Martin's Church in the heart of the "Free" State, +6,000 miles away, where thirty-seven years ago, as an unconscious babe +in my godmother's arms, I went through my first religious sacrament, +performed by an aged missionary who made the sign of the cross +on my forehead and on my breast. I think also of another church +on the banks of the Vaal River where, over twenty years ago, +another missionary laid his white hands on my curly head and received my vow +to forsake the Devil and all his works. I know that in these two places, +as well as in all other native churches and chapels throughout +South Africa, native congregations have this day been singing +in their respective houses of worship and in a variety of tongues +about the risen Christ. But thinking also of the lofty spires +of the Dutch Reformed churches in the South African towns and dorps, +I am forced to remember that coloured worshippers are excluded from them. +Still, in these churches as well, Dutch men and Dutch women have this day +been singing of the triumphs of the risen Christ. Yet to-morrow +some of these white worshippers, in the workshops and in the parks, +will be expressing an opposite sentiment to that conveyed +in their songs of praise, namely, "Down with the verdoemde schepsels" +(damned black creatures) -- the Natives -- for whom also, +these white worshippers say, Christ died. + +The Infant Christ, when King Herod sought to murder Him, +found an asylum in Africa. + +The Messiah, having been scourged, mocked, and forced to bear His cross +up to Golgotha, and sinking under its weight, an African, +by name Simon of Cyrene, relieved Him of the load. + +To-day British troops are suffering untold agony in the trenches +in a giant struggle for freedom. In this stupendous task +they are assisted by sable Africans from the British, French, +and Belgian colonies of the Dark Continent, thus fulfilling +the Biblical prophecy, "From Africa (Egypt) I have called my son." +But other Africans, again, are debarred by the South African Constitution +on account of their colour from doing their share in this war of redemption. +This prohibition surely carries the conviction that the native complaint +against the South African Constitution is something more +than a mere sentimental grievance. + +The newspapers are telling us of "a growing spirit of justice +in South Africa"; but in the face of what is happening to-day, +the Natives are wondering if the word `justice', in this newspaper allegation, +is not a misprint for `hatred', for up till as late as 1914 +whole congregations have been arrested on leaving some of their farm chapels +on "Free" State and Transvaal farms. They had their passes in their pockets, +but the police contended that they had no special permits, +signed by the landowners on whose farms the chapels are situated, +to attend divine service at the particular places of worship +on that particular day, and the courts upheld this contention. +Up to five years ago no such sacrilegious proceedings interfered +with the Sunday attendances of native worshippers in the same country, +so that there is no mistake as to the kind of spirit that is +"growing in South Africa". + + * * * * * + +When a man comes to you with stories about a "growing spirit of justice +in South Africa", ask him if he knows that in 1884 there was a great debate +in the Cape Parliament as to whether Natives should be permitted +to exercise the franchise, and that the ayes had it. Ask him, further, +if he thinks that such a proposal could ever be entertained to-day +by any South African Parliament. If he is honest, he will be bound +to say "no". Then ask him, "Where is your growing spirit of justice?" + + * * * * * + +In 1909, a South African Governor made a great speech in which + he declaimed against the South African policy of pinpricking the blacks. + +In 1911, another South African Governor authorized the publication + of regulations in which, by prohibiting the employment of coloured artisans + on the South African mines, the pinpricks were accentuated. + +In 1913, a South African Governor signed the Natives' Land Act + which made the Natives homeless in South Africa. Whereas the Government + have announced their intention not to disfranchise the South African rebels, + judging from the present legislative tendency we fear that, + unless the Imperial Government can be induced to interfere, + it is not improbable that should the rebels return to power + after the general election + +In 1916, there will be horrible enactments in store for the blacks. + + * * * * * + +In 1906, His Majesty's Government gave the Transvaal Colony + self-government under a constitution which included a clause placing + the voteless native taxpayers under the special protection of the Crown. + +In 1907, His Majesty's Government likewise gave the Orange River Colony + (now Orange "Free" State) self-government under a constitution + which contained a similar provision. At this time the Governor of Natal, + as representing the King, was Supreme Chief of the Zulus in that Colony. + The Natives lived happily under these protecting reservations, + and the white people had no complaint against the just restraint + of the Imperial suzerainty. + +In 1909, His Majesty's Government passed the Union Constitution, sweeping away + all these safeguards. In that Act they practically told South Africa to do + what she liked with the Natives in these three Colonies and South Africa + is doing it. Where, then, is this "growing spirit"? + + * * * * * + +During the South African War in 1901, the Imperial Government + informed the Federal (Dutch) Government that no peace terms + could be considered which did not extend to the native races + the same privileges -- the rights of the franchise -- which are enjoyed + by the Natives of the Cape Colony. + +In 1902, the British Imperial and Dutch representatives signed the Peace terms + at Vereeniging. In these, the rights of the coloured citizens + were postponed till after the old Republics had responsible Government. + Responsible Government has since been granted, and has in turn + been succeeded by the Union. But when the Imperial Parliament, + +In 1909, considered the Act of Union, English and Dutch South Africans + came over and represented to the Imperial authorities that there would be + a striking demonstration (or words to that effect) against the federation, + and even against South Africa's relation to the Mother Country + if native rights were as much as mentioned in the Constitution; + and the South African Native Franchise has now receded as far off + as the Greek calends. So where is that "growing spirit of justice"? + + * * * * * + +When you speak of converting Mohammedans, let the question be asked: +"What must Mohammedans think of those whose religion having said +`In the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread,' they nevertheless +uphold the policy of rulers who pass regulations debarring +one section of the community from following an honest occupation +in their native land? And what impression must be created +in the minds of black converts who are subjected to discriminations, +including prohibitions that were not in existence five years ago?" + +And if in spite of beautiful voices that I have heard this Easter Sunday +singing anthems concerning the triumph of the kingdom of love the British flag +continues to defend the policy of repression and colour hatred +in South Africa, then I fear that the black victims of this policy, +many of them converted to Christianity through your efforts, +might very well class your Easter anthems and their great teaching +with the newspaper canard relative to a "growing spirit of justice +in South Africa"; for our bitter experience proves that spirit to be at best +but a dwindling one. + +Two years ago I was alarmed by the impious utterances of a coloured man +whose friendship I valued. He being influential among our people, +I gently remonstrated with him lest through his action many of our people +become unsettled in their faith. This was his explanation: +He was going along an East Rand suburb at eleven o'clock one Sunday morning +when the bells were ringing. He saw a number of people entering +a Dutch church, and as he was far from home he mingled with them, +intending to spend the hour at worship instead of continuing his walk. +But no sooner was he inside than the usher jostled him out of the church, +hailed a policeman and handed him in charge, so that he spent the next hour +in the charge office instead of at chapel. On the Monday morning +he was convicted by the East Rand Magistrate and fined 1 Pound +for trespassing on a private place, to wit, a church. +And that was a Dutch Reformed church, the State Church of South Africa. +Others had reproached him before me for such utterances, he said, +but he will have "no more of our religious mockery with its theoretical +`Come unto Me' and its practical `1 Pound or a month with hard labour'." + +John Ruskin, writing on `State Intervention', says: + +== +"When a peasant mother sees one of her careless children fall into a ditch, +her first proceeding is to pull him out; her second, to box his ears; +her third, ordinarily, to lead him carefully a little way by the hand, +or send him home for the rest of the day. The child usually cries, +and very often would clearly prefer remaining in the ditch; +and if he understood any of the terms of politics, would certainly +express resentment at the interference with his individual liberty: +but the mother has done her duty." +== + +Ruskin goes further and depicts the calamities of a mother nation which, +like a foxhunter, complies with the request of its daughter nations +"to be left in muddy independence."* + +-- +* `Political Economy of Art': Addenda (J. E., Section 127). +-- + +Let us appeal to you, in conclusion, to remember that the victorious Christ +"has gathered your people into a great nation, and sent them +to sow beside all waters and multiply sure dwellings on the earth. . . . + +"Let not the crown of your pride be as a fading flower. +But be equal to your high trust: reverent in the use of freedom, +just in the exercise of power, and generous in the protection of the weak." + + * * * * * + +This has been the most strenuous winter that the writer has ever experienced: +a dark, dreary winter of almost continuous rains, snowflakes, cold, +mud and slush. Reading of the severity of English winters at a distance, +I never could have realized that the life I have lived in England +during the past four months was possible. An existence from which +the sun's rays are almost always obliterated by the inclement weather, +by snow and by fog. I cannot describe the sensations caused +by the dismal gloom of the sunless days -- a most depressing life -- +especially in December, when it would suddenly turn dark, +compelling one to work by gaslight when the clocks indicated +that it was high noon. Not till then did I realize why some people are said +to worship the sun. I find that I have unlearned my acquaintance with +the larger planets and heavenly bodies (a knowledge acquired since boyhood) +because the winter fog and clouds have continually hidden the moon and stars +from view. + + * * * * * + +But now that the country is throwing off its winter cloak and dressing itself +in its green, gorgeous array; now that King Day shines in all his glory +through the mist by day, and the moon and stars appear in their brilliancy +in the evenings; now that, as if in harmony with the artistic rendering +of Easter anthems by your choirs, the thrush and the blackbird twitter forth +the disappearance of the foggy winter with its snow, sleet and wet; +now that the flocks of fleecy sheep, which for the past four months +have been in hiding and conspicuous by their absence, +come forward again and spread triumphantly over the green +as if in celebration of the dawn of the new spring; +now that the violet and the daffodil, the marguerite and the hyacinth, +the snowdrop and the bluebell, glorious in appearance, also announce, +each in its own way, the advent of sunny spring, we are encouraged +to hope that, "when peace again reigns over Europe", when white men +cease warring against white men, when the warriors put away +the torpedoes and the bayonets and take up less dangerous implements, you will +in the interest of your flag, for the safety of your coloured subjects, +the glory of your Empire, and the purity of your religion, grapple with +this dark blot on the Imperial emblem, the South African anomaly +that compromises the justice of British rule and seems almost to belie +the beauty, the sublimity and the sincerity of Christianity. + +Shall we appeal to you in vain? I HOPE NOT. + + + + + +[ Map was inserted here. ] + + + + + + Report of the Lands Commission + + An Analysis + + To attempt to place the different people of the country + in water-tight compartments is very attractive in a general way, + but it is bound to fail. + + You have got a comparatively small European population + -- a million and a quarter -- and something like + half a million mixed race, and then you have got between + four and five million of the aboriginal inhabitants of the country. + + Any policy that aims at setting off a very small proportion + of the land of the country for the use and occupation + of the very vast majority of the inhabitants, and reserving + for the use and occupation of a very small minority of the inhabitants + the great majority of the land of the country, is a policy + that economically must break somewhere. You can start and move + in that direction to a certain extent, but you will be driven back + by the exigencies of a law that operates outside the laws of Parliament -- + the law of supply and demand. + + This theory of segregation is to some minds attractive, + but the forgotten point is that you need the Native. + You cannot segregate him because you need him. If you drive him + out of his existing life and occupation, you run a great risk + that you will lose many of your Natives. + Hon. W. P. Schreiner, K.C., C.M.G., + (High Commissioner for the Union of South Africa, + Ex-Premier of Cape Colony,) before the Lands Commission. + + If we are to deal fairly with the Natives of this country, + then according to population we should give them + four-fifths of the country, or at least half. + Hon. C. G. Fichardt, M.L.A. + + The best way to segregate the races would be by means of a boundary fence + along the main line of Railway from Port Elizabeth, + straight through to Bloemfontein and Pretoria, to Pietersburg, + putting the blacks on one side and the whites on the other side + of the Railway line.* + M. J. M. Nyokong, before the Native Affairs Commission. + + -- + * This would give about one-third of the Union to the four and a half + million blacks, the one and a quarter million whites retaining two-thirds. + -- + + + +During the past two years while the Empire was involved in +one of the mightiest struggles that ever shook the foundations of the earth, +South Africa was wasting time and money in a useless and unprecedented attempt +at territorial segregation betwixt white and black. Judging by +the recently published Report of the Lands Commission, however, +she has failed ignominiously in the task. + +Whenever, on behalf of the Natives, the hardships disclosed in this book +were mentioned, the South African authorities invariably replied +that these hardships would cease as soon as the Commission submits its Report. +This has now been done. General Botha laid the Report +on the table of the house on May 3, 1916, and intimated as he did so +that "the Government propose to take no immediate action +upon the recommendations, but will give the country twelve months to consider +the Report and the evidence." Meanwhile the eviction of Natives from farms +continues in all parts of the country, and the Act debars them +from settling anywhere, not even in Natal, although Natal witnesses +(like the Chairman of the Commission) have definitely claimed +the exemption of their Colony from this form of Union tyranny. + +It is a Report of many parts. A good deal of it is instructive and much of it +is absurd. Most of the Commissioners and many of the witnesses have +expressed themselves with a candid disregard for the rights of other people. + +Government publications, at least, should be beyond question; +thus, old Government archives give correct histories of native tribes +for 500 years back, because their compilers invariably sought and obtained +reliable evidence from Natives about themselves. But this Commission's Report +(to mention but one instance among several inaccuracies) tells us, +on page 27 of U.G. 25-'16, of "the original inhabitants of Moroka ward +who had lived in Bechuanaland under the Paramount Chief Montsioa (sic). +Their original chief was Sebuclare" (!) + +No Barolong tribe ever had a chief by this name. The fact is, +that Governments of to-day frequently publish unreliable native records, +for they are mainly based on information obtained from self-styled experts, +who, in South Africa, should always be white. + +Again, it is not explained why the Commission publishes, +in a permanent record, particulars of encumbrances on native farms +such as we find on page 29 of the same volume. Is it to damage +the credit of the native farmers? Supposing some of the hypothecations given +in the "list of mortgaged native-owned farms in the Thaba Ncho District" +were wiped off before the Report was issued, will it be fair +to the native owners to read, say in 1999, that their farms are mortgaged +for those amounts? + +In the published evidence given before other Commissions +questions put to the witnesses are usually printed along with the answers. +This has not been done in the present instance, and consequently +some of these replies are so clumsily put that the reader cannot even guess +what the witness was answering. If the questions had also been printed, +the whole Report might have been illuminating. It is interesting, +for instance, to read what was apparently a lively dispute +between the Commissioners and one witness -- Mr. J. G. Keyter, M.L.A., +the arch-enemy of the blacks and one of the promoters of the whole trouble -- +as to what is, or is not, the meaning of the Natives' Land Act. +Indeed the various definitions and explanations of the Act, +given by the Commissioners and some of the witnesses, contradict those +previously given by the Union Government and Mr. Harcourt. +And while the ruling whites, on the one hand, content themselves +with giving contradictory definitions of their cruelty the native sufferers, +on the other hand, give no definitions of legislative phrases +nor explanations of definitions. All that they give expression to +is their bitter suffering under the operation of what their experience +has proved to be the most ruthless law that ever disgraced +the white man's rule in British South Africa. + +The Report and the evidence at any rate bear out the statement +set forth in this book, namely, that the main object in view +is not segregation, but the reduction of all the black subjects of the King +from their former state of semi-independence to one of complete serfdom. + + + The Commission's Awards + +The population of South Africa is very commonly overestimated. +As a matter of fact there are in South Africa about +one and a quarter million whites and four and a half million blacks. +According to the Census of 1911, the exact figure is a million less +than the population of London, -- viz., 5,973,394 -- scattered over +an area of 143,000,000 morgen -- nearly ten times the size of England. +A morgen is about 2 1/9 English acres. + +But if we are to understand what is proposed, we would have to consider +the position in the sub-continent under different heads: -- + + I. English or Urban Areas, inhabited by 660,000 whites and 800,000 blacks: + 1 3/4 quarter million morgen; and + + II. The remaining 141 1/4 million morgen, which the Commission + would divide as follows: -- + + (a) NATIVE AREAS, for the Bantu and such other coloured races as are + classed along with them numbering just about 4,000,000 SOULS: + 18 1/4 MILLION MORGEN. + + (b) EUROPEAN AREAS, or nearly the whole of Rural South Africa, + for the occupation of 660,000 RURAL WHITES (mainly Boers): + 123,000,000 MORGEN. + +The English Areas (I) are not affected by the troubles which form +the subject of this book. None but the four million blacks will be allowed +to buy land in the Native Area (II(a)); while all the blacks +who hitherto lived on the Boer Areas (II(b)) must clear out. +They would only be allowed to come back to Union territory +as servants to the white farming population. + +That, in a nutshell, is the Report of the Segregation Commission. + + + The Chairman Dissents + +On the whole these drastic findings are against the weight of evidence. +The Report, moreover, shows that the decisions were not carried through +without some difference of opinion. It would seem that Sir William Beaumont, +the Chairman of the Commission, a retired Judge of the Supreme Court +(whose legal training and experience were assuredly entitled to more respect +than they received) gave a saner interpretation of the Natives' Land Act. +He evidently wished to treat the amount of land awarded to Natives +as an instalment to which additions might be made in the future. +This, he said, was quite within the power of the Commission to recommend. +But his colleagues presumably preferred, not the legal, +but their own interpretation, namely, that this sane interpretation was +"contrary to the intention of the legislature". The Chairman's well-weighed +judicial verdict appears on page 42 of volume one of the Report: -- + +== +In my opinion, neither the Natives' Land Act, nor the terms of its reference, +require the Commission to delimit the whole extent of the Union +into European and Native Areas respectively . . . and I think +it is quite competent for this Commission, where this cannot +be conveniently done, to leave undefined areas which would be open alike +to white and black for the acquisition of land. But this opinion +is not shared by my fellow-commissioners, who regard it as contrary +to the intentions of the legislature and the terms of the Act. +== + +Sir William Beaumont's rejected opinion is supported by +the evidence of Senator T. L. Schreiner, who said: -- + +== +When the Bill was before the House, I brought to its notice the fact +that there were areas in the country which it was impossible to declare +native areas or non-native areas. The late Minister said +it was not the intention to divide the whole country of the Union; +therefore I thought that the difficulty was covered (p. 224 vol. ii). +== + +But as in Parliament so also in the Commission it would appear +that the steam-roller was set in motion; and it operated in each instance +in favour of repressing the black races. + +These four Commissioners presumably thinking that Imperial attention +would be too much engrossed with the war to notice such insignificant affairs +as the throttling of the South African Blacks, seem to have decided +that now or never was the opportune moment for degrading the aborigines +into helots; therefore, the Chairman, finding that he could not persuade +his colleagues to adopt his view of things, indited the following +minority report respecting his own Province of Natal and Zululand +(vol. i. p. 41): -- + +== +The conditions in Natal are, and have been, totally different +to those in the other Provinces. There has been no demand in Natal +for the enforcement of a Squatters Act or for any further +segregation of the natives. Indeed, the opinion of Natal, as expressed +in the evidence given before the Commission by those best qualified to know, +is against the application of the Natives' Land Act to Natal. + +In Natal, since it became a British possession, the Natives have always had, +and largely exercised, the right to purchase land outside +their defined locations, and they regard any infringement of this right +as a breach of the terms of the Proclamation issued by Her late Majesty +Queen Victoria at the time the country was annexed by Great Britain. +(See the petitions presented to the Commission.) The Natives in Natal +now privately own about 359,000 acres, on which are residing +some 37,000 Natives. These lands are, in certain areas, +so intermixed with lands owned by Europeans that any line of demarcation +can only be arbitrarily made, and may result in serious hardship or injustice +to both European and Native owners. + +The area set aside for native occupation (including mission reserves) +and preserved for their use by Royal Letters Patent and by +the South Africa Act, amount to nearly two and a half million acres, +or about 15 per cent. of the whole of Natal. These areas are, +according to the native mode of occupation, almost all fully occupied, +and do not afford more than a very limited opportunity +for the introduction of Natives from outside. + +A further point which has to be considered, and it is one +on which the Natives lay great stress, is that it seems unjust +to debar the native from purchasing land in areas where the Indian, +who is alien to the country, is free to do so. + + + Zululand + +As regards Zululand, it is sufficient here to point out +that Zululand was delimited into native reserves and Crown lands +by the Zululand Delimitation Commission of 1902-1904, +the Crown lands being made available for disposal by the Natal Government, +to which the country was annexed. It was not, however, intended, +nor did the Zulus understand, that they were to be deprived of their right +to acquire any portion of the reserved Crown lands by purchase. + +The delimitation was made after a very thorough inquiry +by persons well acquainted with the Zulus and their country; +but, even so, we find that whole tribes or large portions of tribes +who had long been in occupation of their lands -- some of which +were not acquired by conquest but by voluntary surrender -- +were not provided for, and were left on the reserved Crown lands. +There are to-day some 24,328 Zulus and Amatonga occupying these lands, +and they are asking to-day for their lands to be restored to them. +The delimitation was acquiesced in by the Zulus only because +they had no alternative, and the inevitable had to be accepted. +Since the delimitation they have remained loyal and peaceful +and the bitterness of the losses suffered is past. + +The Delimitation Commission in its report expressed the hope +that the delimitation would be: "as final a settlement +as it is possible to effect, and that no further changes +will be initiated in the near future . . ."; but if the question +is now re-opened and European and native areas are defined anew, +I think endless trouble is likely to ensue. If any alterations may be found +necessary in the future, either in the interests of black or white, +the machinery exists whereby such alteration can be effected +with little or no disturbance of the natives. +== + + + Colonel Stanford Reverses His Views + +One redeeming feature in a Report which otherwise is melancholy reading +is to be found in the consistency of the statesmen of Natal, +which is admirable in comparison with the fast degenerating land policy +of Cape Statesmen. Ten years ago the Native Affairs Commission +reported on the question of Land Tenure in South Africa. +Messrs. Marshall Campbell and S. O. Samuelson, Natal representatives +on that Commission -- ably supported by Colonel Stanford, +the Cape representative -- expressed themselves unambiguously against +this limitation of native progress. History was about to repeat itself +in favour of justice in the latest Commission but for the manner +in which Colonel Stanford completely reversed his former attitude. +He is the only member of this Commission who had a seat +on the first Commission, and in 1905 he was reported thus: -- + +== +Col. Stanford dissented from the view of the majority +on the question of restricting to certain areas only +the right of the individual Native to purchase land. He holds that +the acquisition by the more advanced Natives of vested individual interests +in the land is a powerful incentive to loyalty. In his opinion +sufficient cause has not been shown for the curtailment of privileges +enjoyed for many years in the British Colonies. . . . + +The contention that the safety of European races must be guarded +by such restrictions as have been under discussion he does not hold +to be sound. The Church, professions, commerce, trade and labour +are open to the ambition and energy of the Natives, and with so many avenues +open to their advance the danger of their swamping Europeans, if a real one, +is not avoided by denying them the right individually to buy land. + +He can see no decadence of the vigour, the enterprise and the courage which, +since the occupation of the Cape Peninsula by the early Dutch settlers, +have resulted in the extension of European control and occupation +to the limits now reached. Moreover, artificial restrictions +of the occupation of land in the late Dutch Republics +resulted in the evasion of the law by various forms of contract +whereby native occupation of farms was effected, while at the same time +advantage was taken of the opportunities thus afforded of fraudulent practices +on the part of Europeans employed as agents or so-called trustees. . . . + +If the design be to allow purchase by Natives in localities +regarded as unsuitable for Europeans, sight is lost of the fact +that usually the Native who desires to become a landed proprietor +belongs to the civilized class, and such localities offer to him +no attraction. + +Europeans are more and more entering into occupation of land regarded +as set aside for Natives. Missionaries, traders and others are permitted +to establish themselves and carry on the duties of their respective callings. +Townships spring up at the various seats of magistracy and Census Returns +clearly show that such influx is steadily increasing in volume. +It is thus demonstrated that the idea of separate occupation of land +by Natives, even in their own Reserves, is not maintained at the present time, +nor can it be in the future.* + +-- +* `Colonies and British Possessions -- Africa (Session 1905)', + vol. lv. pp. 102-103. +-- +== + +But now we must conclude that the gallant Colonel has fallen a victim +to the new reactionary spirit, for he has deserted Sir W. Beaumont, +the Natal Commissioner, and taken up with the Northerners, +a position diametrically opposed to the noble sentiments he then laid down. + + + The Cape Land Policy + +The pronounced inconsistency of the Cape representative on these Commissions +is in harmony with the reaction which has set in as regards +the Land Policy of the Cape. It is true that the Cape, so far, +has been more liberal in the matter of the Franchise. And the very fact +that some of the Cape voters' lists included some native names +has had a restraining influence on the utterances of certain +Cape members of Parliament who would otherwise have given expression +to reactionary sentiments. But it is no less true that in later years +the same native Franchise has been hypocritically used as a cloak +to cover a multitude of political sins, such, for instance, as free trade +in liquor among the Natives and the systematic robbery of native lands. +To my own personal knowledge, the Cape Government have on several occasions, +arbitrarily, on the slightest pretext, or none whatever, confiscated lands +that were awarded to native tribes by Imperial representatives, +in the name of Queen Victoria, and parcelled them out to Europeans. + +A striking instance of such rapacity on the part of successive +Cape administrations appears on page 30 of the Minute by Sir William Beaumont, +Chairman of the Lands Commission. Sir William shows how +loyal black taxpayers in Griqualand West had been systematically +robbed of Queen Victoria's gifts and driven from pillar to post. +Commission after Commission had been sent out to them +at intervals of ten years, systematic spoliation and pillage following +the visit of each commission. It has been my sorrow to be among those +who witnessed the coming and going of some of these decennial commissions +and the truculent attitude of the Cape Government, who, +trading on the people's ignorance, treated Queen Victoria's awards +like so many scraps of paper, drove these tax-payers from their homes, +and invited white men to occupy their territories. + +This is what Sir William writes about the Commission of the last decade: -- + +== +The case of these Natives calls for special consideration. They were promised +that they would never be removed so long as they remained loyal, +and in the end they were burnt out. There is a very strong feeling +amongst them that there has been a want of faith towards them. + +The subject was specially reported on by Mr. P. Dreyer, +Civil Commissioner of Kimberley, on August 27, 1909. +He made specific recommendations, which appear to be quite sound, +but do not appear to have been adopted. +== + +Now, this is only with reference to Griqualand West. But similar +acts of violence have marked the land-grabbing propensity of the Cape +in Bechuanaland, in Peddie and the Transkei, even during my lifetime. + + + The So-Called Native Areas + +Turning to the evidence, we find that if we omit the depositions +of Natal whites, of Missionaries and of Natives, the remaining witnesses +-- a minority of the whole -- emphatically declared that the aborigines +were not entitled to a square yard of their ancestral lands and that +they should be tolerated only as servants. Those, at any rate, who thought +that we were entitled to some breathing space, were willing to concede +certain little "reserves" in the centre of groups of white men's farms, +into which black men and women could be herded like so many heads of cattle, +rearing their offspring as best they could and preparing them +for a life of serfdom on the surrounding farm properties. +They held it to be the duty of the parent serfs to hand over their children, +as soon as they were fit, to the farmers who would work them out; +and when age and infirmity had rendered them unfit for further service, +they could be hustled back to the reserved pens, there to spend +the evening of their lives in raising more young serfs +for the rising white generation. The Commission's findings +seem to have been influenced largely by the latter type of white witness, +for all that they award us, in our ancestral South Africa, +might be called human incubators considering the amount of space. + +A contemplation of the circumstances attending these selfish recommendations +leads one to wonder whether the Commissioners suffered from +the lack of a sense of humour or an undue excess of it. +In North and South America, for instance, we read that the slave-pens +were erected and maintained by the farmers at their own cost. +That "the interest of the master demanded that he should direct +the general social and moral life of the slave, and should provide +especially for his physical well-being;" but the pens proposed +by the South African Land Commission, on the other hand, are to be maintained +entirely by the slaves, at their own cost, the farmer's only trouble being +to come to the gate and whistle for labourers. + +It is lawful in certain parts of South Africa for Natives +to dispose of or "sell" their daughters to men, the purchase price +being sometimes fixed by the Government. It is thus that white magistrates +have at times condemned unfortunate black girls to cohabit with men +they hated, provided the latter have paid the price; and having regard +to the object for which the proposed native pens are to be set aside, +the reader can picture to himself the coming commercial traffic in black girls +within the enclosures of the said "native areas". + +Several of the witnesses have made the statement that Natives are not making +economic use of the land. As far as we have read, not one of such witnesses +supported his point with figures. But most of those who expressed +the contrary view -- that native lands are shockingly overcrowded -- +have backed their statements with figures. Prominent among them, +there was Mr. Adamson, the Natal Magistrate. In answer to further questions +by Commissioner Wessels -- questions which this Report does not disclose -- +the same witness also said: "I say the Location is crowded because +there are too many Natives for the ground, which is very poor and precipitous. +It is only down towards the valley where they can do a little cultivation. +The population is 12,368." + +Other magistrates and farmers gave similar evidence regarding their districts. +They included Mr. J. S. Smit, the Klerksdorp Magistrate, +who incidentally exploded the stale old falsehood about Natives living +on the labour of their wives. The Rev. J. L. Dube said inter alia: +"It is a fact that none can deny that the white man has got the best land. +In the Free State you can go for miles without seeing anything; +but if it had been native land there would have been an outcry, +`Look at this beautiful land, and the Kaffirs not cultivating it.' +Going to Johannesburg by the mail from here any day one can see waste land +belonging to white people." + +Mr. E. T. Stubbs, Commissioner of Louis Trichardt, said: "The density +of the native population on reserves is 106 to 177 per square mile; +on white farms only 28, and on Crown land 3 to the square mile." +Yet in the face of these and similar official figures, +the Commission reiterates the unsupported allegation of prejudiced witnesses +that "Natives are not making economic use of their land." +But on turning to the Census figures one sees at once how unfounded +is the repeated charge. Take only one of the Provinces -- Cape Colony -- +in which it is said the Natives hold (and therefore "waste") the most land. + + + Province of the Cape of Good Hope + +Cape Colony is about 83 3/4 million morgen in extent. It is usually +referred to as: -- + + (a) THE COLONY PROPER: 78,800,000 MORGEN, feeding 560,000 WHITES + and 1,090,000 BLACKS, with their 1,603,625 cattle, + 240,000 horses and 20 million sheep and goats; and + + (b) THE TRANSKEIAN NATIVE TERRITORIES: 5,000,000 MORGEN, + feeding 20,000 WHITES and 900,000 BLACKS, with their + 1,111,700 cattle, 90,000 horses, 3 1/2 million sheep and goats, + and more poultry and pigs than in the Colony Proper. + +Surely, no further mathematical demonstration is needed to show +on which side of the Kei there is a waste of land, if any. +But it is a maxim in South Africa that, except as mechanical contrivances, +Natives do not count, and cattle in their possession are not live-stock; +thus the districts in which they eke out an existence +are so much derelict land. The Commission, therefore, +propose the following alterations: -- + +The 20,000 whites in the Transkei must not be disturbed. A million morgen +in the Transkei is set aside for them, and it shall be unlawful +for the blacks to live there except as servants. On the other hand +the million odd Natives in the Colony Proper must betake themselves +to the remainder of the Transkei, with their cattle and other belongings. +A million morgen of Kalahari sand-dunes, worthless for farming purposes, +and the small tribal communes near Queenstown and King Williamstown, +are also set aside as native areas. And then the whole of Cape Colony +(supposing the Commission's extraordinary recommendations be enforced) +will balance itself as follows: -- + + (a) EUROPEAN AREAS: 76,392,503 MORGEN, feeding 560,000 WHITES, + their 1,030,000 CATTLE, 180,300 HORSES AND 15 MILLION + SHEEP AND GOATS. + + (b) NATIVE AREAS: 7,356,590 MORGEN, feeding 1,500,000 BLACKS, + with their 1,580,000 HEAD OF CATTLE, 154,630 HORSES AND 8 MILLION + SHEEP AND GOATS. + +At first sight it would appear that these awards allotted +say 288 acres per white and 7 acres per black person; +but, as the bulk of the English (a quarter of a million) +live in towns and are not affected by this trouble, +we may deduct the Urban districts and their white and black populations. +Then the Commission's allotments really work out at about 589.31 acres +per Boer (man, woman or child) and only 10.3 acres per Native. +And even then, this would be by no means the limit of the disproportion. +Appendix VIII (Annexure I) of the same Report recommends +future inroads by whites upon these attenuated native reservations, +but, to the blacks, there is to be no territorial compensation +from the Colony, which an adoption of all these recommendations +would practically depopulate. + +As things are at present, the black population of these areas +is as much as 70 to 90 persons to the square mile. In density of population, +some of these "rural" native districts are second only to Capetown, +Durban, and Johannesburg -- South Africa's most populous centres. +Not one of the other South African "cities" can show +a population of more than 20 to 30 persons to the square mile. +So that every individual inhabitant of a city occupies a larger space +than some of these native farmers can have for themselves, +their livestock and agricultural pursuits. So says the Census Report +(U.G. 32-'12), which is fully borne out by the writer's own observations +in a travelling experience of more than ten years. + +The average density of the rural population in white areas +is about five to eight persons per square mile. In native areas +the average is ten times that number, while the black belt +along the Indian Ocean contains from 100 to 140 Natives per square mile +(see Schedule F. and Tables XIII-XVI, of the Census Report). +Yet the Commission would saddle these congested native areas +with additional populations from the Colony Proper and raise the density +to something over 200 souls per square mile. + +The density of cattle to the square mile in Cape Colony +is 6.39 in white areas, and 61.15 in native areas (see U.G. 32h. 1912. +pp. 1227-1228). Adopt the Commission's Report and you will have +in white areas 0.24 and in Native areas 163.26 cattle per square mile. + +Is it fair or reasonable that the indigenes of an open country +who pay taxation for the benefit of their rulers and not of themselves, +should be forced to live the overcrowded lives of the Belgians without +Belgium's sanitary arrangements, or the precautionary hygienic measures +necessary in other thickly populated areas? + +Is it natural that their cattle should be subjected to this +starvation process, while the grassy tracts of their God-given territories +are mainly untenanted and preserved as breeding grounds +for venomous snakes and scorpions? + +Has it come to this that the standard of our unfortunate country +has sunk so low that dog-in-the-manger stories are now read +in Parliamentary publications? + +It is clear that under the proposed arrangement native cattle must starve +and their owners with them. For it has come out in evidence +that even now (while many Europeans hold large tracts of idle land) +some of the blacks have not enough grazing for their stock. +But that little difficulty the Commission solves by proposing +that Natives should be taught to give up cattle breeding, +which alone stands between them and the required serfdom! + +An African home without its flock and herd is like an English home +without its bread-winner. + +== +"Von Franzius considers Africa the home of the house cattle +and the Negro the original tamer. . . . Among the great Bantu tribes +extending from the Soudan toward the South, cattle are evidence of wealth; +one tribe, for instance, having so many oxen that each village +had ten or twelve thousand head. Lenz (1884), Bouet-Williaumez (1848), +Hecquard (1854), Bosman (1805), and Baker (1868) all bear witness +to this, and Schweinfurth (1878) tells us of great cattle parks +with two to three thousand head, and of numerous agricultural +and cattle-raising tribes . . . while Livingstone describes +the busy cattle raising of the Bantu and Kaffirs."* + +-- +* `The Negro' (Du Bois), pp. 108-109. +-- +== + +But the Commission would force us to give up our agrarian occupation +when we are debarred by Acts of Parliament from following +other profitable industries in our own country. This is equivalent to saying +that Englishmen must be taught to close down their shops, +stop their shipping industry and give up their maritime trade. + + + The Orange "Free" State + +The Provincial difficulties I have endeavoured to point out become +more serious when we regard the conditions in the so-called "Free" States. +There the native position is rendered exceptionally desperate +by a number of rigorous class enactments. Formerly these discriminating laws +were eased by the action of the State Presidents who were in the habit +of issuing exemption certificates to Natives who wished to buy land, +either from other Natives or from Europeans; but now, these harsh laws, +besides being rigidly enforced against all Natives, were made more acute +in 1913, while there is no one in the position once occupied by the President, +who might be able or inclined to grant any relief. + +Whenever by force of character or sheer doggedness one Native has tried +to break through the South African shackles of colour prejudice, +the Colour Bar, inserted in the South African Constitution in 1909, +instantly hurled him back to the lowest wrung of the ladder +and held him there. Let me mention only one such case. + +About ten years ago Mr. J. M. Nyokong, of the farm Maseru, +in the Thabanchu district, invested about 1,000 Pounds +in agricultural machinery and got a white man to instruct his nephews +in its use. I have seen his nephews go forth with a steam sheller, +after garnering his crops every year, to reap and thresh +the grain of the native peasants on the farms in his district. +But giving evidence before the Lands Commission two years ago, +this industrious black landowner stated that he had received +orders from the Government not to use his machinery except under +the supervision of a white engineer. This order, he says, +completely stopped his work. The machinery is used only at harvesting time; +no white man would come and work for him for two months only in the year, +and as he cannot afford to pay one for doing nothing +in the remaining ten months, his costly machinery is reduced +to so much scrap iron. This is the kind of discouragement and attrition +to which Natives who seek to better their position are subjected +in their own country. + + + The Native Affairs Department + +Perhaps the greatest puzzle in this ocean of native difficulties, +to which one can but slightly refer in this chapter, is the attitude +of some of the gentlemen in charge of the Native Affairs Department -- +the only Branch of the South African administration run exclusively +on native taxes. It is perhaps as well to cite one instance +illustrative of their methods of administering native affairs. +The Rev. J. L. Dube, President of the Native Congress, +gave evidence before the Lands Commission and produced letters +addressed to him by certain Natal firms, from which I extract +the following passages: -- + +== +If you are prepared to purchase this land my Company would be prepared +to do business with you. . . . In view of the fact that you and Cele +have already purchased portion of the Company's property adjoining the land +now offered for sale, we think there would be no objection +on the part of the Governor General in giving his consent to the transfer.* + +-- +* U.G. 22, p. 557. +-- +== + +Another extract runs: -- + +== +"We have a piece of land at the edge of our estate cutting right into land +owned by various Natives, and we are willing to dispose of this land to Cele +for this reason. We understood that the Department of Native Affairs raised +no objection, but we were astonished when everything was "cut and dried" +to find them refusing the application."* + +-- +* U.G. 22, p. 557. +-- +== + +How then can the Native be expected to survive this organized opposition, +on the part of the authorities, and also of these official beneficiaries +and prospective pensioners of native taxes? Will it be believed +that these gentlemen of the Native Affairs Department, whose salaries +are actually paid by us, should have sent messengers at our expense +to convene a meeting of their colleagues, at which letters were dictated +prohibiting the sale of this land to Zulus -- the stationery, +the typewriter and the typist's labour, to say nothing of the cigarettes +smoked by those present, being paid for out of native money? + +Is it surprising if we feel that their adverse interference in matters +which so vitally affect us has long since become intolerable? + +It may be asked what useful purpose is served by the Native Affairs Department +as it now stands? This would be my answer: -- + +The Department is responsible for the gathering in of all native taxes +throughout the Union. And after paying the salaries of the staff, +it pays over annually a huge surplus to the Union Exchequer +for the benefit of "a white South Africa". Further, the Transvaal Natives +believe that they would get along much better with the white population, +and with officials of other Departments of State, were not +"the Native Affairs Department continually stirring them up against us." +The justice of this complaint is well exemplified at Johannesburg, +where the autocrats of this department are armed with, and liberally exercise, +the peculiar and exceptional powers of locking up Natives without warrants, +without any charge, and without a trial -- powers which even +the Judges of the Supreme Court do not possess. + + + General Hertzog's Scheme + +It may interest the reader to know that General Hertzog +is the father of the segregation controversy. The writer and other Natives +interviewed him before Christmas, 1912, at the Palace of Justice, Pretoria, +when he was still in the ministry. We had a two hours' discussion, +in the course of which the General gave us a forecast of what he then regarded +as possible native areas, and drew rings on a large wall-map of the Union +to indicate their locality. Included in these rings were several Magistracies +which he said would solve a knotty problem. He told us that white people +objected to black men in Government offices and magistrates in those areas +would have no difficulty in employing them. + +General Hertzog was dismissed shortly after, and it has been said +that in order to placate his angry admirers the Ministry passed +the Natives' Land Act of which this Report is the outcome. +Judging by the vigour with which the Union administration has been +weeding Natives out of the public service and replacing them with Boers +without waiting for the Commission's Report, it is clear +that they did not share General Hertzog's intention as regards +these magistracies. I cannot recall all the magistracies +which General Hertzog mentioned as likely to fall in native areas; +but I distinctly remember that Pietersburg and Thaba Nchu were among them; +while Alice and Peddie (and possibly a neighbouring district) +were to be included in a southern reserve into which the Natives +round East London and Grahamstown would have to move, the land vacated by them +to be gradually occupied by the white settlers now scattered over the would-be +native block. He went on to forecast a vast dependency of the Union +in which the energies and aspirations of black professional men +would find their outlet with no danger of competition with Europeans; +where a new educational and representative system could be evolved for Natives +to live their own lives, and work out their salvation in a separate sphere. +But the lands Commission's Report places this plausible scheme beyond +the region of possibility, for no native area, recommended by this Commission, +includes any of the magistracies mentioned. + +General Hertzog's plan at least offered a fair ground for discussion, +but the Commission's Report is a travesty of his scheme. +It intensifies every native difficulty and goes much further +than the wild demands of the "Free" State extremists. +Thus even if it be thrown out, as it deserves to be, +future exploiters will always cite it as an excuse for measures +subversive of native well-being. In fact, that such legislation +should be mooted is nothing short of a national calamity. + + + How They "Doubled" a Native Area + +Near the northern boundaries of Transvaal there lies +a stretch of malarial country in which nothing can live unless born there. +Men and beasts from other parts visit it only in winter and leave it again +before the rains begin, when the atmosphere becomes almost too poisonous +to inhale. Even the unfailing tax-gatherers of the Native Affairs Department +go there only in the winter every year and hurry back again +with the money bags before the malarial period sets in. +A Boer general describes how when harassed by the Imperial forces +during the South African war, he was once compelled to march through it; +and how his men and horses -- many of them natives of the Transvaal -- +contracted enough malaria during the march to cause +the illness of many and the death of several Burghers and animals. +Of the native inhabitants of this delectable area the Dutch General says: +"Their diminutive, deformed stature was another proof of the miserable climate +obtaining there."* + +-- +* `My Reminiscences of the Anglo-Boer War' (General Ben Viljoen), p. 222. +-- + +When the Land Commissioners contemplated this "salubrious" region, +their hearts must have melted with generosity, for whereas +in our own healthy part of South Africa they have indicated +possible native areas by little dots or microscopical rings +(as in Thaba Nchu for instance), here, in this malarial area, +they marked off a reserve almost as wide as that described +by General Hertzog himself at our Pretoria interview. It is possibly +in this way, and in such impossible places, that the Commission is alleged +to have "doubled" the native areas. In the rest of the country +they ask Parliament to confiscate our birthright to the soil of our ancestry +in favour of 600,000 Boers and aliens whose languages can show +no synonym for HOME -- the English equivalent of our IKAYA and LEGAE! + +The Britishers' vocabulary includes that sacred word: and that, perhaps, +is the reason why their colonizing schemes have always allowed +some tracts of country for native family life, with reasonable opportunities +for their future existence and progress, in the vast South African expanses +which God in His providence had created for His Children of the Sun. +The Englishman, moreover, found us speaking the word `Legae', +and taught us how to write it. In 1910, much against our will, +the British Government surrendered its immediate sovereignty over our land +to Colonials and cosmopolitan aliens who know little about a Home, +because their dictionaries contain no such loving term; +and the recommendations of this Commission would seem to express +their limited conception of the word and its beautiful significance. + + + Natives Have no Information about the Coming Servitude + +All too little (if anything at all) is known of the services rendered +to the common weal by the native leaders in South Africa. In every crisis +of the past four years -- and the one-sided policy of the Union +has produced many of these -- the native leaders have taken upon themselves +the thankless and expensive task of restraining the Natives +from resorting to violence. The seeming lack of appreciation +with which the Government has met their success in that direction +has been the cause of some comment among Natives. On more than one occasion +they have asked whether the authorities were disappointed because, +by their successful avoidance of bloodshed, the native leaders +had forestalled the machine guns. But, be the reason what it may, +this apparent ingratitude has not cooled their ardour in the cause of peace. + +To-day the Native Affairs Department has handed over 7,000 Pounds +from native taxes to defray the cost of the Land Commission, +consisting of five white Commissioners, their white clerks and secretaries -- +the printing alone swallowed up nearly 1,000 Pounds with further payments +to white translators for a Dutch edition of the Report. +But not a penny could be spared for the enlightenment of the Natives +at whose expense the inquiry has been carried through. +They have been officially told and had every reason to believe +that the Commission was going about to mark out reservations +for them to occupy and live emancipated from the prejudicial conditions +that would spring from contiguity with the white race. +For any information as to the real character of the contents +of the Dutch and English Report of this Commission, they would +have to depend on what they could gather from the unsalaried efforts +of the native leaders, who, owing to the vastness of the sub-continent, +the lack of travelling facilities and their own limited resources, +can only reach a few localities and groups. + +It may be said with some reason that English leaders of thought +in South Africa have had a task of like difficulty: that they worked +just as hard to get the English colonists to co-operate loyally +with a vanquished foe in whose hands the Union constitution has placed +the destiny of South Africa. It could also be said with equal justice +that the Boer leaders' task has been not less difficult, +that it required their greatest tact to get the Boer majority +-- now in power -- to deal justly with the English who had been responsible +for the elimination of the two Boer flags from among the emblems of +the family of nations. But the difficulties of their task is not comparable +to that of the native leaders. English and Dutch Colonial leaders +are members of Parliament, each in receipt of 400 Pounds a year, +with a free first class ticket over all systems of the South African Railways. +They enjoy, besides, the co-operation of an army of well-paid +white civil servants, without whom they could scarcely have managed +their own people. The native leader on the other hand, +in addition to other impediments, has to contend with +the difficulty of financing his own tours in a country +whose settled policy is to see that Natives do not make any money. +His position in his own country approximates to that of an Englishman, +grappling single-handed with complicated problems, on foreign soil, +without the aid of a British consul. + + + Bullyragging the Natives + +For upwards of three years the Government of the Union of South Africa +has harassed and maltreated the rural native taxpayers as no heathen monarch, +since the time of the Zulu King Chaka, ever illused a tributary people. +For the greater part of our period of suffering the Empire was engaged +in a titanic struggle, which, for ghastliness is without precedent. +I can think of no people in the Eastern Hemisphere who are absolutely +unaffected by it; but the members of the Empire can find consolation +in the fact that almost all creation is in sympathy with them. +Constant disturbance has brought a realization to the entire universe +that nature, like the times, is out of joint. The birds of the air +and the fishes, like other denizens of the deep, are frequently drawn into +the whirlpool of misery; and a mutual suffering has identified them as it were +with some of the vicissitudes of an Empire at war. And they too +have in their peculiar way felt impelled to offer their condolence +to the dependants of those who have fallen in the combat on land, in the air, +on sea, and under the sea. And while all creation stands aghast +beside the gaping graves, by rivers of blood, mourning with us +the loss of some of the greatest Englishmen that ever lived, +South Africa, having constituted herself the only vandal State, +possesses sufficient incompassion to celebrate the protection +conferred on her by the British Fleet and devote her God-given security +to an orgy of tyranny over those hapless coloured subjects of the King, +whom the Union constitution has placed in the hollow of her hands. + +Is there nobody left on earth who is just enough to call on South Africa +to put an end to this cowardly abuse of power? + +We appeal to the Colonists of Natal, who have declared themselves against +the persecution of their Natives; and would draw their attention to the fact +that in spite of their disapproval, expressed to the Lands Commission, +the Union Government, at the behest of a prisoner, is still tyrannizing +over the Zulus. + +We appeal to the Churches. We would remind them that in the past +the Christian voice has been our only shield against +legislative excesses of the kind now in full swing in the Union. +But in the new ascendency of self and pelf over justice and tolerance, +that voice will be altogether ignored, unless strongly reinforced +by the Christian world at large. We appeal for deliverance +from the operation of a cunningly conceived and a most draconian law +whose administration has been marked by the closing down +of native Churches and Chapels in rural South Africa. + +We appeal to the Jews, God's chosen people, who know +what suffering means. We would remind them that if after 1913 +there was no repetition of a Russian pogrom it was largely because +the native leaders (including the author) have spared neither pains nor pence +in visiting the scattered tribes and exhorting them to obey +all the demands of the South African Government under the Grobler law +pending a peaceful intercession from the outside world. +But for this self-imposed duty on the part of the native leaders, +I am satisfied that numbers of the native peasantry would have been mown down +early in 1914, and humanity would have been told that they were +justly punished for disobedience to constituted authority. + +We appeal to the leaders of the Empire -- that Empire for which +my own relatives have sacrificed life and property in order to aid +its extension along the Cape to Cairo route, entirely out of love for +her late Majesty Queen Victoria and with no expectation of material reward. +We ask these leaders to honour the plighted word of their noble predecessors +who collectively and severally assured us a future of peace and happiness +as our membership privilege in the Empire for which we bled. +They were among the noblest Englishmen that ever left their native shores +to create a prestige for their nation abroad. They included +heroes and empire-builders too many to mention, who all told us that they +spoke in the name of Queen Victoria and on behalf of her heirs and successors. +What has suddenly become of the Briton's word -- his bond -- that solemn +obligations of such Imperialists should cease to count? And if it is decided +that the Victorian Englishman and the Twentieth Century Englishman +are creatures of different clay (and that with the latter honour is binding +only when both parties to the undertaking are white), surely this +could hardly be the moment to inaugurate a change the reaction of which +cannot fail to desecrate the memories of your just and upright forebears. + +We would draw the attention of the British people to the fact +that the most painful part of the present ordeal to the loyal black millions, +who are now doing all they can, or are allowed to do, to help the Empire +to win the war, is that they suffer this consummate oppression +at the bidding of a gentleman now serving his term for participating +in a rebellion during this war. We feel that it must be +a source of intense satisfaction to Mr. Piet Grobler in his cell, +that the most loyal section of the King's South African subjects +are suffering persecution under his law -- a fact which, looked at +from whatever standpoint, is equal to an official justification of the ideals +for which he rose in rebellion. And if there is to be a return +to the contented South Africa of other days, both the Natives' Land Act +-- his law -- and the Report of the Lands Commission -- its climax -- +should be torn up. + + + Courting Retribution + +For three years and more the South African Government have persecuted +my kinsmen and kinswomen for no other crime than that they have meekly +paid their taxes. I had come to the conclusion, after meeting Colonials +from all quarters of the globe and weighing the information +obtained from them, that in no Colony are the native inhabitants +treated with greater injustice than in South Africa.* Yet in spite of all +I had seen and heard, I must say that, until this Report reached me, +I never would have believed my white fellow-countrymen capable of conceiving +the all but diabolical schemes propounded between the covers +of Volume I of the Report of the South African Lands Commission, 1916, +and clothing them in such plausible form as to mislead +even sincere and well-informed friends of the Natives. There are +pages upon pages of columns of figures running into four, five or six noughts. +They will dazzle the eye until the reader imagines himself witnessing +the redistribution of the whole sub-continent and its transfer to +the native tribes. But two things he will never find in that mass of figures; +these are (a) the grand total of the land so "awarded" to Natives; +and (b) how much is left for other people. To arrive at these he has to do +his own additions and subtractions, and call in the aid of statistics +such as the Census figures, the annual blue books, etc., before the truth +begins to dawn on him. They talk of having "doubled" the native areas. +They found us in occupation of 143,000,000 morgen and propose to squeeze us +into 18 million. If this means doubling it, then our teachers +must have taught us the wrong arithmetic. Is it any wonder +that it is becoming increasingly difficult for us to continue +to love and respect the great white race as we truly loved it +at the beginning of this century? + +-- +* Some white South Africans in recent years have migrated + to the Katanga region in the Belgian Congo. I have read + in the South African daily papers, correspondence from some of them + complaining of their inability to make money. They attributed + this difficulty to the fact that the Belgian officials will not permit them + to exploit the labour of the Congolese as freely as white men are accustomed + to make use of the Natives in British South Africa. +-- + +We would submit a few problems in this Report for the British People +and their Parliamentary Representatives to solve: -- + +First: Who are to become the occupants of the lands from which the Commission +recommends the removal of the native proletariat? + +Secondly: In view of certain upheavals which we have seen not very long ago, +and others which might take place in the future, it is pertinent to ask, +concerning the "very small minority of the inhabitants" -- the Whites -- +alluded to by Mr. Schreiner at the head of this chapter, +(a) what proportion is in full sympathy with the ideals of the British Empire; +(b) what proportion remains indifferent; and (c) what proportion +may be termed hostile? + +Thirdly: Does the autonomy granted to this "small minority" +amount to complete independence, or does it not? + +Fourthly: Would it not be advisable also to inquire: +Of "the vast majority of the inhabitants" the King's Black subjects, +doomed by this Report to forfeit their homes and all they value +in their own country, (a) how many of these are loyal, +and (b) how many are not? + +Finally and solemnly we would put it to all concerned +for the honour and perpetuity of British dominion in South Africa, +can the Empire afford to tamper with and alienate their affections? + +As stated already, this "very vast majority of the inhabitants" +of South Africa has been strafed by the "very small minority" +for over three years. And when the burden loaded on our bent backs +becomes absolutely unbearable we are at times inclined to blame ourselves; +for, when some of us fought hard -- and often against British diplomacy -- +to extend the sphere of British influence, it never occurred to us +that the spread of British dominion in South Africa would culminate +in consigning us to our present intolerable position, namely, a helotage +under a Boer oligarchy. But when an official Commission asks Parliament +to herd us into concentration camps, with the additional recommendation +that besides breeding slaves for our masters, we should be made +to pay for the upkeep of the camps: in other words, that we +should turn the Colonials into slave raiders and slave-drivers +(but save them the expense of buying the slaves), the only thing +that stands between us and despair is the thought that Heaven +has never yet failed us. We remember how African women have at times +shed tears under similar injustices; and how when they have been made +to leave their fields with their hoes on their shoulders, +their tears on evaporation have drawn fire and brimstone from the skies. +But such blind retribution has a way of punishing the innocent +alike with the guilty, and it is in the interests of both +that we plead for some outside intervention to assist South Africa +in recovering her lost senses. + +The ready sympathy expressed by those British people +among whom I have lived and laboured during the past two years +inspires the confidence that a consensus of British opinion will, +in the Union's interest, stay the hand of the South African Government, +veto this iniquity and avert the Nemesis that would surely follow +its perpetration. + +Her mind must have been riveted on South Africa when, quite recently, +Ida Luckie sang: -- + + Alas, My Country! Thou wilt have no need + Of enemy to bring thee to thy doom. . . . + For not alone by war a nation falls. + Though she be fair, serene as radiant morn, + Though girt by seas, secure in armament, + Let her but spurn the vision of the Cross; + Tread with contemptuous feet on its command + Of mercy, Love and Human Brotherhood, + And she, some fateful day, shall have no need + Of enemy to bring her to the dust. + + Some day, though distant it may be -- with God + A thousand years are but as yesterday -- + The germs of hate, injustice, violence, + Like an insidious canker in the blood, + Shall eat that nation's vitals. She shall see + Break forth the blood-red tide of anarchy, + Sweeping her plains, laying her cities low, + And bearing on its seething, crimson flood + The wreck of Government, of home, and all + The nation's pride, its splendour and its power. + On with relentless flow, into the seas + Of God's eternal vengeance wide and deep. + But, for God's grace! Oh may it hold thee fast, + My Country, until justice shall prevail + O'er wrong and o'er oppression's cruel power, + And all that makes humanity to mourn. + + + + + +[End of original text.] + + + + +[Original Advertisements.] + + +Some Opinions of the Press on the First Edition + + + +"It is difficult to believe that such barbarities are possible; +but Mr. Plaatje gives chapter and verse for every one of his indictments; +the Act itself is quoted in extenso; various debates +in the Colonial Parliament are given, and arguments for and against the Act +furnished by the different speakers. The whole book is really interesting, +and will come as a great surprise to many English people +who know little of the South African Native as an educated, +thinking human being, and will certainly excite sympathy +with his present precarious state under colonial laws, +which seem to be little inspired by the principles of justice and liberty +which British supremacy formerly guaranteed." -- `Yorkshire Observer'. + +"Whatever may have been the intention of the home Government, +in practice this Act has meant the restriction of Natives +to their reservations, or to servitude among the white population. +Mr. Plaatje states his case clearly and asserts that this movement +is reactionary and a false step on the part of the Government +to placate the extreme Dutch party in South Africa." -- `Glasgow Herald'. + +"The author makes an excellent case for the consideration +of the Imperial Government. He convincingly proves +that the fortunes of the native races should not have been +handed over to the Dutch Republicans without adequate safeguards. +He gratefully acknowledges the enthusiastic support given to the Natives +by the British settlers and appeals for an inquiry. The interest of the book +for the Punjabis consists, not in the similarity of the grievances, +for we here have no such grievance against the Government, +but in showing the way for inviting attention to the injustice involved +in excluding a large class of Hindus from agriculture." +-- `The Tribune', Lahore. + +"It is a serious case, well and ably put, and the evidence embodied in it +is very disquieting. Here at any rate is a book which makes +the native agitation intelligible and may conceivably have an influence +on future events in South Africa -- and at home, for by no legal fiction +can the Imperial power dissociate itself from responsibility +for Native affairs." -- `Birmingham Post'. + +"The supporters of the Act do not make the principles attractive +in explaining them. Mr. J. G. Keyter, Member for Ficksburg, +said "they should tell the Native as the Free State told him, +that it was white man's country, that he was not going to be allowed +to buy land there or hire land there, and that if he wanted to be there +he must be in service." -- `New Statesman'. + +"There is the spice if not the charm of novelty about this book. +It is written by a South African native and he holds strong views +on some recent public questions. He occasionally expresses himself +well and forcibly, and it is all to the good that South African publicists +should have the advantage of reading the opinions of a native observer +when dealing with legislation affecting his race." -- `South Africa'. + +"In this well arranged and lucidly written book the author shows +from authentic sources how changeable and often unreasonable has been +the treatment of the loyal Natives under the South African flag. +Mr. Plaatje is no fire-brand; he writes with moderation, +and his book should attract sympathetic attention." -- `Booksellers' Record'. + +"Mr. Plaatje has marshalled his facts with considerable skill. +He sets forth the case of his countrymen with energy and moderation. +His conclusions seem to be warranted by the information at his disposal, +and the facts he adduces seem to bear but one interpretation. +And lastly, in the existing circumstances, he is fully justified +in appealing to the court of public opinion." -- `United Empire'. + + + + +Books by the same author + + + +730 Sechuana Proverbs +With Literal Translations and their European Equivalents +(Diane Tsa Secoana, Le Maele a Sekgooa, Aa Dumalanang Naco). +By Solomon T. Plaatje. + +An interesting and instructive comparison of African and European Proverbs + + + +A Sechuana Reader +(In International Phonetic Orthography, with English Translations) +By Daniel Jones, M.A., and Sol. T. Plaatje. + +The Texts include native fables and stories of adventure, +and form a collection of reading matter suitable either +for native Bechuanas or for foreign learners. + +Both word-for-word translations and free translations are given throughout. + +In the introduction will be found detailed information with regard to +the pronunciation of the Sechuana language. + + +[End Original Advertisements.] + + + + +Notes to the text: + + + +The Titles listed in the Table of Contents are not always identical +to those in the text. Therefore, the longer versions have been used, +or in those cases where they are significantly different, +both titles have been given. + +Cases of battered type, and even missing letters, where obvious, +are too numerous to be commented on in detail. Less obvious cases +are noted. + + +Chapter II: + +(p. 42) +[ delivered by the Governor-General at the opening af the session ] + changed to: +[ delivered by the Governor-General at the opening of the session ] + +(p. 44) +[ H. Mentz and G. A. Louw, teller ] + changed to: +[ H. Mentz and G. A. Louw, tellers. ] + + +Chapter VI: + +(p. 82) +[ my hushand's and children's peculiar wants, if Anna ] + changed to: +[ my husband's and children's peculiar wants, if Anna ] + + +Chapter VIII: + +(p. 106) +[ under notice to leave, We informed them ] + changed to: +[ under notice to leave. We informed them ] + +(p. 110) +[ Pieter Dout consented, and joined the exlpedition ] + changed to: +[ Pieter Dout consented, and joined the expedition ] + +(p. 112) +[ to mulct them in more money than the land. is worth. The best legal advice +they have received is that they should sell their inheritances to white men ] + changed to: +[ to mulct them in more money than the land is worth. The best legal advice +they have received is that they should sell their inheritances to white men. ] + + +Chapter IX: + +(p. 120) +[ says Dr. Kellog, ] + changed to: +[ says Dr. Kellogg, ] + (This is the correct spelling of the name of a doctor who was famous + about the time that Plaatje was writing, and who was undoubtedly + the source for the quote.) + +(p. 132) +[ Hence, let the leaders direct them into cruel way as they are seemingly ] + changed to: +[ Hence, let the leaders direct them into cruel ways as they are seemingly ] + + +Chapter X: + +(p. 142) +[ went unarmed to hold with the Matebele chiefs ] + changed to: +[ went unarmed to hold with the Matabele chiefs ] + (in accordance with other usage, and another edition.) + +(p. 144) +[ the papers and the public chorus with joy hear that the C.S.A.R. ] + changed to: +[ the papers and the public chorus with joy to hear that the C.S.A.R. ] + + +Chapter XIV: + +(p. 178) +[ and Mid-Illovu, ] (end of paragraph) + changed to: +[ and Mid-Illovu. ] + +(p. 179) +[ July 20, 191. ] + changed to: +[ July 20, 1913. ] + + +Chapter XVI: + +(p. 197) +[ (Mr Alden) and the hon. Baronet th Member for Hackney (Sir A. Spicer ] + changed to: +[ (Mr. Alden) and the hon. Baronet the Member for Hackney (Sir A. Spicer) ] + +(p. 221) +Regarding the reference to `The Biglow Papers', the quote is from No. VI, +and `The Biglow Papers' was written by J. R. Lowell (see below). + + +Chapter XVIII: + +(p. 225) +(subtitle) [ Bear ye one another's Burdens" ] + changed to: +[ "Bear ye one another's Burdens" ] + +(p. 231) +[ F. R. Lowell ] + changed to: +[ J. R. Lowell ] +James Russell Lowell [1819-1891], the Massachusetts poet, wrote these lines, +under the title "Stanzas on Freedom". As the italic forms of "J" and "F" +are similar, and frequently confused, this error is not to be wondered at. +The 1st, 3rd, and 4th stanzas are quoted in the text. The complete text +is presented here: + + + Stanzas on Freedom + + +Men! whose boast it is that ye +Come of fathers brave and free, +If there breathe on earth a slave, +Are ye truly free and brave? +If ye do not feel the chain, +When it works a brother's pain, +Are ye not base slaves indeed, +Slaves unworthy to be freed? + +Women! who shall one day bear +Sons to breathe New England air, +If ye hear, without a blush, +Deeds to make the roused blood rush +Like red lava through your veins, +For your sisters now in chains, -- +Answer! are ye fit to be +Mothers of the brave and free? + +Is true Freedom but to break +Fetters for our own dear sake, +And, with leathern hearts, forget +That we owe mankind a debt? +No! true freedom is to share +All the chains our brothers wear, +And, with heart and hand, to be +Earnest to make others free! + +They are slaves who fear to speak +For the fallen and the weak; +They are slaves who will not choose +Hatred, scoffing, and abuse, +Rather than in silence shrink +From the truth they needs must think; +They are slaves who dare not be +In the right with two or three. + + +Chapter XIX: + +(p. 242) +[ to those of the Barolongs, who used their own rifles, ] + changed to: +[ to those of the Barolongs who used their own rifles, ] + +The Crest of Queen Victoria, mentioned in brackets, is, of course, +unavailable in ASCII. The letters V R. are for "Victoria Regina", +or, "Queen Victoria". + + +Chapter XXI: + +(p. 276) +[ both missionaries, also poke offering to associate themselves ] + changed to: +[ both missionaries, also spoke offering to associate themselves ] + +(p.278) +[ the districts of Calvania, Kenhardt, Keimoes, and Upington ] + changed to: +[ the districts of Calvinia, Kenhardt, Keimoes, and Upington ] + in accordance with other use in the surrounding text. + + +Chapter XXII: + +(p. 291) +[ her privileges of free citizenship (Cheers.) ] + changed to: +[ her privileges of free citizenship. (Cheers.) ] + +(p. 302) +[ half a million Boers. ] & [ people's gathering.) ] + changed to: +[ half a million Boers.) ] & [ people's gathering. ] + Closing parenthesis was at end of wrong paragraph. + +(p. 303) +[ the harm that as likely to follow a provocation ] + changed to: +[ the harm that is likely to follow a provocation ] + +(p. 308) +[ in addition to his own rebels commando. ] + changed to: +[ in addition to his own rebel commando. ] + +(p. 312) +[ assaulted a policeman. ] + changed to: +[ assaulted a policeman.) ] + Clause missing closing parenthesis. + + +Chapter XXIV: + +(p. 336) +[ a petition from Rustenberg, made it compulsory ] + changed to: +[ a petition from Rustenburg, made it compulsory ] + in accordance with other use in the surrounding text. + +(p. 338) +[ Deuteronomy xix. 14, ] + updated to: +[ Deuteronomy 19:14, ] + + +Epilogue: + +(p. 348) +[ signed the Natives' Lant Act ] + changed to: +[ signed the Natives' Land Act ] + +(p. 351) +[ has done her duty. ] + changed to: +[ has done her duty." ] + + +Report of the Lands Commission: + +(p. 357) +[ Chairman of the Commission a retired Judge ] + changed to: +[ Chairman of the Commission, a retired Judge ] + +(p. 358) +[ and the terms of the Act." ] + changed to: +[ and the terms of the Act. ] + unmatched quotation mark removed according to surrounding usage. + +(p. 364) +[ the Klerksdorp Magistrate, who incidentalgl exploded +the stale old falsehood about Natives liviny on the labour ] + changed to: +[ the Klerksdorp Magistrate, who incidentally exploded +the stale old falsehood about Natives living on the labour ] + +(p. 376) +[ the Empire was engaged in a titantic struggle, ] + changed to: +[ the Empire was engaged in a titanic struggle, ] + + + +Terms: + +lager/laager: a defensive camp formed by circled wagons. + +sjambok: a rhinoceros or hippopotamus-hide whip. + + + +The following lines contained characters that cannot be presented in ASCII: + +under the Republican re/gime, no matter how politicians raved + Ils se sont endormis, le c(oe)ur rempli d'espoirs, + Dans un re\ve d'amour et de concorde humaine! + Qui monte des hameaux consume/s par la flamme, + Ni le ge/missement des vie/illards et des femmes! +the inquiries of the Commission, whose report is nai"vely alleged +did its best to fill the ro^le of an enemy. +but who, after three months' drill and man(oe)uvring, were as expert +and that Nakob Su"d was clearly depicted in the old maps +(Sued) + of high-resolve\d men, bent to the spoil, + Goe^n dag, Pikadillie +of these neighbours. The Natives, according to Mr. Lu"dorf, +gathered in a heap and burnt alive. This, says Mr. Lu"dorf, +(Luedorf) +generally preferred, aspire; and each fills his ro^le +* `Political Economy of Art': Addenda (J. E., Section 127). +(Symbol used for "Section") + +Also numerous instances of fractions, here presented, for example, +as 1 1/2 for one and a half, and the symbol for the British Pound, +so that where the original may have said L100 (where L represents +the symbol for Pound) it now says 100 Pounds (Pound or Pounds +has always been capitalized as above in such cases). + + + + + +End of this Etext of Native Life in South Africa, by Sol. T. Plaatje + diff --git a/1452.zip b/1452.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5ff1d2f --- /dev/null +++ b/1452.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. 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