Britain's Mistakes in South. Africa

Bruce Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 3101, 22 September 1899, Page 8

Britain's Mistakes in South. Africa

7[BT F. Q. EWINGTON.] In no part of 'the world have British statesman made greater, political blunders than in South Af.iica.7 In all -^science /it was, bad enough to drive the American colonies into revolt against, and severance from. JSngland.; to ruin the trade of Ireland, and incur the undying hatred of the Irish nation ; 'to. repudiate the right of sovereignty over New Zealand, despite .the warnings and prayers of British settlers, until the French nearly seized it; to squander millions of money and thousands of lives in the Crimea " in mistake," as Lord Salisbury recently said. But none of those mistakes exceed in gravity the Beries of blunders made in South Africa, and we shall fail to understand the great problem now demanding solution in the Transvaal unless we remember past history. Very great mistakes have been made in South Africa, and we shall almost certainly see Ihem culminate in war in a few dayß or weeks. Intervention is inevitable. Who can read South African history without indignation and Bhame ? British settlers, and Boers, too, were disgusted and dismayed by Britain's cruel and insane policy. Those in the Orange Biver territory imploring that England would not abandon them, declared in face of a Basuto trouble, they " would nail the British ensign, festooned with crape, half-mast high, and hold out until the British Parliament should decide their fate." " Those people, shamefully abandoned by the British Government, have evolved the Orange Free Statewhom Britain despoiled of the Kimberly diamond fields, and has repeatedly implored to join a South African confederation. It was very unfair of the British to suppress the Dutch language at the Cape about 60 years age. Down even to 1882 the English language only could b_ used in debate in Parliament, in courts of justice, and in public documents. The hardship of such a measure is proved by the fact that until quite lately Dutch was spoken by threefifths of the white population at the Cape, and by a still larger proportion of tho colored population. One of the Uitlander grievances now is the undue prominence given to the Dutch language in the Transvaal. We are reaping what we sowed. History ia only repeating itself. Evil begets evil. When the British had the power they ruthlessly suppressed the Dutch language ; now the Boers are uppermost in the Transvaal they are paying us back in our own coin. How careful statesmen and nations should be to observe the Golden Rule. The pendulum is sure to swiDg back. It did so iv Ireland ; it did so in the legislative and industrial sphere in New Zealand. Of course, two blacks do not make one white, and the Boers must give way * but unless people bear these things in mind, they wili fail to understand the ferocity of the comingwar, which, possibly, may involve aU South Africa. Then, again, the rollicking Jack-in-office liberation of the Boers' slaves was a right thing done in a wrong waymaking the Boers hate us. The flat tering delusion that " The British flag can never float over a slave," belied by the fact that Britain tolerated slavery in Zanzibar until 1890, leads some to conclude that the Boers deserved no fairplay in the liberation of slaves. Bah ! Some of tho Boers' slaves were quite as well off as some of the white slaves in Auck'and are now. First of all the British Government, that wastes millions cf money in reßentiug in-ult to its flag by some half- clad semi savage, not only drove a hard bargain with the Boerd, but actually paid them in scrip instead of cash. It made the scrip payable in London, and it depreciated, like our own volunteer land scrip. Then many of the Boers were swindled in London, and some were too ignorant and disgusted to apply for the money at all. Hence, they hate tbe very memory of British official dealings. Tho Boers were simply driven by official Btitish folly and bounce to trek into the waste howling wilderness. They could get no adequate protection against bloodthirsty Kaffir robber gangs, and were forbidden to take the law into their own ; hands in defence of hearth and home. And what were those Boers ? Sir B.DJamine DUrban, Governor of the jCapej officially informed the British '• Government that ■'the Dutch farmers r^JodPf $® Colony Vfßrß „bXrVfQ,

patient, industrious, orderly, and religious people— -the cultivators, the defenders, and the tax-contributors of the -country." He got recalled for urging the Government to do what afterwards it was compelled to do. Take, too, the shilly-shally, see-saw policy in regard to the Orange Free State and the Transvaal. Britain annexed the Orange Free State, then abandoned it ; refused to grant the petition of the Transvaal Boers, who, having trekked into the wilderness* begged the British Government to take t}iem under their jurisdiction, then some time afterwards annexed the Transvaal, then . gave it back again. She forbade the Boer* to annex land north of the Republic, and led them to believe she wonld not do so herself, but she did; thus destroying every iota of value in the agreements the Boers had obtained from northern chiefs. Then Britain was to let the Transvaal assume control over Swaziland, but she would not keep her promise, and w« were almost as near to war with the Boers over that question in 1890 as we are now. After all the bitterness and hatred possible had been caused, Britain gave way in 1895, and the Boers got Swaziland. The Boers have been mismanaged. But the mistakes are not ali over vet. Delagoa Bay is the most valuable port for men-ofwar between the Cape uf Good Hope and Zanzibar. It is to the Transvaal and Rhodesia what Simon's Bay is to the Cape, and the Waitemata is to Auckland. Britain once could have extinguished all the Portuguese rights to it for about £14,000, but British statesmen could -see no advantage ! Suddenly Portugal the Transvaal, and Britain awoke to its value. The Traosvaalian President, Pretorius, annexed it. Britain and Portugal protested. All three claimed it. The dispute waa referred to the arbitration ot Mr Theirs, President of che French Bepublic. His successor Marshal Macmahon in 1875 declared in favor of the Portuguese. It is now worth aa many millions as the paltry thousands at which Britain failed to acquire it ! And what mistakes were made when the Boers arose to throw off the British yoke in 1880. Lord Wolealey was withdrawn, and the crisis entrusted to a drawingroom soldier, Generai Colley. Sir Garnet, now Lord Wolaeley, had been appointed Governor of Natal, Governor of the Transvaal, and Special Eigh Commissioner for the Territories of South Eastern Africa, and on the spot he had become personally familiar with the Boers and the Transvaal. His recall added blunder to bluuder. General Colley actually tried to subdue the Boers with only 1000 available soldiers, the others being effectively locked up by the Boers in -.he beleagured garrison at Pretoria, Standerton and other places. Then when we were defeated all rouad, 10,000 additional troops were got under way, and Lord Roberts was sent out, but on arriving at the Cape, he learned that Johu Bull had swallowed his peck of dirt at one gulp, and made peace. ! Since then the Boers have cock-a-dodle-dood! and we have got to wipe out Maj üba at last. To crown all, the confusion and omission in the Convention of 188_ have warranted the belief that England waived suzerain rights over the Transvaal, and the very Convention that was intended, and honestly intended, by Britain to establish peace will be the real bone of contention in the forthcoming war. It is dangerous to prophecy until the numbers are up, especially as Mr Rhodes has said the difficulty will be over in a fortnight if Britain remains firm ; but no, the hatred of the Boer is too great, so is his contempt. He thinks all our generals are Colleys, all our statesmen vacillating, and he wiil fight. Britain cannot go back. She has put her hands to the plough. Any hour we may learn the awful news that our beloved country is once more involved in a serious war — a war of which no one can foretell its ultimate dimensions and disastrous consequences — a war that never could happen except for the past mistakes of British statesmen ! Sir George Grey 's policy would absolutely have saved the burying of the British flag in South Africa, the final dismemberment of that regiou. and the perpetual race-hatred that is now culminating in war. But, no - he was recalled for almost accomplishing federation, which Britain would now do anything to accomplish, and which Sir George Grey, on being reinstated as Governor of the Cape, was made to promise he would not attempt to bring about. Time bt\9 justified Sis (Jeorgo Grey,

and one of his most touching memorials is the native. address to Sir Bartle Frere, at the Cape, a few years ago, when the natives, showing they had not forgotten Sir George G-rey, said he was "a good .Governor, good to tie up the hands of bad men, good to plant schools, good to feed the hungry, good to have mercy."