KUGERISM

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4295, 2 March 1901, Page 3 (Supplement)

KUGERISM

indict:. IEXT BY MR P. BOTHA. ; BOER IGNORANCE AGAIN. 'T have been told that there are people in Europe, in England, and in America who admire Path Kruger.” That writes Air Paul AI Botha, for til year: r. member of the Volksraad of tho laU Orange Free State, in a pamphlet entitled ‘‘From Boer to Boer and Englishman,” which has been translated from tho Dutch by his son for circulation in Great Britain. It is this pamphlet which has made De Wet vow vengeance on tho author if ho can law hands upon him. This old statesman records, with incredulity, this rumour of the opinion held by some persons of the ex-President of tno late Transvaal Republic. He has lived in the Grange Free State since it first existed, and as he lias looked around on tho two States now the scene of war he has reviewed the life of Mr Kruger, and holds him responsible fer all tho bloodshed and suffering and devastation, and for the less of the generous

measure of independence Unit was th( pride of the two peoples, honest, but ignorant, and, as events have shown, easily duped. When his eyes meet the scenes of to-day he says: "I tingle wit! indignation to hear Unit the cruel author of ail this - avoidable misery, rich, snug and safe, is in Europe, and r/oiu<3 to lie received by tho Queen of Holland, and made a, hero of; a hero who was known in tho Free State 3d years ago, before lie found better moans oi enriching himself. as a swindling dealer in oranges and tobacco, and one who we strongly suspected of .being a, v< r,y cute slave dealer.” Those are the words, not of an English Jingo, but of a Boer who served his country in its legislature fer many years, and under President Brand did ail in his power to cement that wise man’s policy of friendliness towards this country. Air Botha admits that the ignorance of t’ne P>oers is responsible lor toe way in which they have been misled by “this rugged old man,” who deceived thorn into I/ o! i loving that he was “a prophet, who, like Moses, was the means or communication between God and His chosen people.” His powerful personality, indomitable will, and undoubted courage r.r© admitted, but the writer holds that he oven “made himself believe- that thcVe were two Geds, one in Heaven, and Paul Kruger on earth.” This late member of the Volksraad then tears' away tho veil of false i'.inance. “Wo know him,” ho says, ‘•an avaricious, unscrupulous and hyprocritical man. who sacrificed an entire people to his cupidity. His one aim and object was to. enrich himself, and he nsod every means to this one end. His ambition for power was subordinate to his love of money. He used tho Transvaal as a milch cow for himself, his children and his following.” KRUGER’S IMITATORS. It will be seen that tho writer doe-;--not mince matters iu drawing in bread outline a portrait of Mr Kruger, who, he hoids, was the creator of the war policy which has led to the present disaster. "This successful anti-British policy of Kruger,” he adds, “created a number of imitators Steyn, .Fischer, Easelen, Smuts and mimberous other young educated Afrikanders ef tuo Transvaal, Orange Free State and tho Capo Colony, who, misled by his successes,, ambitiously hoped by the tame means to raise themselves to tho same, pinnacle. Krugerisnx under them developed into a reign of terror.” As to cx-President Steyn, the author of this frank booklet is in doubt, though he has known him well since he was a young man, whether to write him down as a fool, or worse—dishonest. As ho realises the lost independence of “our dear*little State, dear to us,” he exclaims, “I feel that I could curse Marthinus Theunis Steyn and the Kruger gang, Steyn, a Free Stator, having used Ins country as a stepping, stone for his ignoble ambition and saevified his -whole people for tho furtherance of his private influence.” He charges Kruger with iufluencing the people of the Freo Stale, “by his emissarias, acrents and secret service money,” making ex-Presidont Steyn a tool to reverse the wise, friendly policy of President Brand, ivhe. never, eoa«od to fear the influence of his neighbour.

He (Steyn) sold' his country, body and soul, to the Transvaal, in the hone that Paul Kruger’s mantle would fall on him. Tho first time that Kruger visited the Orange Free State after Steyn’s election, the latter introduced him at a public banquet with these words. “This is my father.” The thought occurred to me at tho time, “i’es, and you are waiting for your fathers shoos.” Ho hoped to succeed “his father’’ as President of tho Transvaal, of tho combined republics, aye, oven of United South Africa!” For this giddy vision he ignored the real interests of our little State—he was false to his oath, and dragged the country, whoso integrity and independence ho had sworn to uphold, into a wholly and absolutely unnecessary and insane war. These are home-made sketches ot the two men who were primarily responsible for plunging the two States into all the horrors cf war and who arc to-day encouraging a remnant of their followers in a futile resistance. At tho same time this Boer statesman recognises that England has made many mistakes in the past, “by blowing hot and cold,” and lotting things slide in South Africa. Now ho appeals' for the best statesmen to govern them, and urges reliance on the advice cf Mr Rhodes, and “men of integrity in the country." such as J. C. Fraser, Advocate J. W. Wessels, Innes and others who know their wants. Ho pleads for strict justice and uniformity of treatment, for the stamping out of foreign intrigue in South Africa, for tho curbing of the disloyal press and for the education of his people, so sadly neglected. He believes that there is a good timo coming for the New British territories, and concludes his advice" to tho Boers with these words :

I repeat, Boer arid Briton must live side by side in South Africa. We must both realise this and make it the keynote to our future. Let us work together to create a- peaceful, united, self-governing South Africa, under the British flag, because. as I have explained, peace and prosperity arc not possible under another flag. If every one- of us does his best towards this end, wo shall still see the words of our beloved old President Brand fulfilled in this unhappy country : “Alles zal recht Komen.”