THE TRANSVAAL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10571, 18 January 1896, Page 6

THE TRANSVAAL.

THE DEMANDS OF THE UITLANDERS.

Mr Lionel Phillips, president of the Chamber of Mines at Johannesburg, in a recent speech, voiciDg the claims of at least a considerable j section of Uitlanders, said: —" The new population of this country compose* to-day & proportion of the population at least equal to 3 to 1 of the descendants of the original settlers, and who are our rulers, the power-holdera/- Wo contribute nine-tenths, if not more than ninetenths, to tha revenue of the country, and we ! are taxqd to .this extent without having any \ I representation whatever. Now, I sny that ; such a position as that is an untenable one." i Continuing he said it was evident that tha i administration was going from bad to worse, and it was hopeless to expect any amelioration of their condition except by the most strenuous and combined effort. He went oa to refer to th« petition signed by 32,500 men in April 1895, asking for the franchise.- What wa3 dona ? A c->!urniltoe was appointed to go into the matter, but the committee was specially instructed that it was to do nothing. In addition to that tha tone of the debate was ona which should not be allowed to pass. One member got up in the Volksraad and said, " I chr.ileoga them [the Uitlandei'a] to fight." ■ In conclusion, he said, he hoped wiser counsels weald prevail, and that the Government would pea that its present policy would not do. Nothing, was furthor from hia heart then a desire to see an upheaval, bat it was a mistake to suppose that the community, which consisted of a majority of men born of freemen, would consent to indefinitely remain subordinate to tha minority ia the country." A COUNTERBLAST. There wa9 evidently a suspicion in the minds of the diggers and the other Uitlauders that the agitation waa baiog worked up by tho De Besr'3 Company, thsßritish South Africa Company, nod other large institutions, and a feeling that they would be about as comfortable under the Boers as under the rule of the company managers. This feeling, which probibly acoounts for Dr Jameson receiving so little support, wes given expression to by Mr Brown, an American, at a public meeting. Mr Brown said in the course of his remark* :—" I hive to candidly avow I do not lovo this country's Government—(lnuguter)—not at all. Tha other evening a representative head of the industry and the president of the representative body supposed to be governing the industry—you all know hia name—delivered a famous speech. In that speech he enumerated the grievances of this population, the grisvances which fail to ba redressed by tbe governing p.wern ac Pretoria. He went through i His list; he pointed out the iniquity of taxation I without representation—a condition of things | | opposed to the political economical laws ct ail j nations. Ho dilated upon your oppressions, jhe expatiated upon your wrongs, your wants, ■ your woes. He said you wera toiling here with no schools for your children, no protection for yourselves; and that you were U'-oched and fleeced by the most iniquitous anci most inept Government thai; was ever suffered to exist, and that your prayers and entreaties'for redross got the cold shoulder and the deaf ear. I quite I agree with all that. ■'.■.-

" This Government has not strictly followed tho truo lines o£ Republicanism. I have no occasion to love it or to speak well of it. It has diverted from the paths of true Republican principles. It hag followed erroneous principles. It has constituted itself what I ohall term a select monarchy, and in many directions it requires remodelling and reorganisation, but there is one thing to consider, It is a new country and a new Government. X never had my sympathy, but your instincts of common fairness will direct you to allow it is a new country, and the ways o? new countries are not infallible. Now, I wish to point out very clearly to yon, gentlemen, that it is you, ths thousand men here to-night, who represent the true spirit of the population.—(Applnuse.) You are the bone and sinew of the country, governing tho industry. You are the bone and sinew 01 its wealth and iis prosperity.— (Applause.) When you make a move, we shall all make a move—Americans, Britons, Irishmen, Dutchmen, Frenchmen, Gsrmans, GoroishmeQ — even Scotchmen. — (Laughter.) But we must not make this move, gentlemen, at the behest of those who now suggest it. We must watch what wo do very, warily ; we must, for our ..self-preservation, . very carefully note how we are made the hu'mbla tools and mean instruments of tho means to an end of tho clique of capitalists, of the monopolists, tnd the combination of monopolists that have sJone their personal aggrandisement and their personal further enrichment before them, and nothing else. They would profit by our united action. They will try to move forward at our expense. You must not expect, gentlemen— you dare not hope that your conditions will be bettered by an overthrow of the Government, "by the .united action that the capitalists "•'• mysteriously hint at. The men who now possess millions will make more millions by the subjugation of the working men of the Rand to their whims and desires. We have the example of the C;ipa Colony, of Kimbarley, before us, where no man can make a living.—(Cries of "Question.") I maintain that you men cannot make the money and earn the wigas at Kimborley that you can here. Gentlemen, we muss not tolerate any monopoly or combinations of monopolies. We must vigilantly watch any attempt mado to eeduce our affections from ourselves, and from our well-being.—(Loud applause) There are companies and corporations and groups of capitalists who will profit exceedingly by an overthrow of the Government, and these conspirators are endeavouring to make you their tooh-rttieir instruments. It you men don't want a repetition of the Kimberley episode, iE you do not want to see a De Beers syndicate owned by a few rich men established hare aa the controlling and governing influence paramount, 5 o:v will w&teh this intrigue with very wholesome suspicion, as it is laid here before you to-night in its truo light and trne colours. (Loud applause.)"

PRESS COMMENT. Tho speech which caused some sensation was thus commented on by the Cape Times : — " Everybody would lose, not gain, in tha first instance, from any convulsion, and the «apitali3ts most of all. Take a practical illustration. At the present moment the chief grievance againss tha Government is that it leaves Johannesburg' without the proper 'resources of civilisation' against thieves and murderers. Do workmen earning good wsgas— or even bad wages—like being robbad and murdered any better than bloated capitalists ? And will they get any consolation by repenting pious opinions about ths duty of tryiDg to understand tha Boer, and so forth ? We have no very great opinion of the Johannesburg capitalist in politics. But tbe time to snub and sneer at him WJts when he sat beside his nectar, and occasionally talked over the dangers of popular enfranchisement with the President, hot now when he shows oigus at last of stepping out and taking his proper place in politics. We should not b-) surprised tv here that the general intelligence of the working Rand sets this ne-iectly well, and the talk we hay« been discussing dees uot represent the men at large at all. It would be sad iattead to see the discarded clothes of the reptile pre3s donnsd by tho working .man of Johannesburg."

„ THE CHARTERED COMPANY.

Our cablegrams this nioruiug indicate that tbore was seme reason for the suspicion!! of the diggers, aa it is stated the Transvaal Govecnuiaut have proofs that the British Soafch Africa Company intended to seize the whole of the Transvaal. A recent iosue 01 the Melbourne Argus givoa some particulars of this company. Tho charter wan granted on the 15th of October 1889, the principal coceessioaa.ritfs being Cacil Rllodos, Alfred Beit, and the Duke of Abercorn. Alfred Beit'a name throughout Africa was a great powtr. He was closely identified with Rhodes in the Da Beers' diamond mine, and was also one of its life governors. Wernher, Brit, and Co. are the leading German firm in Africa, and Mr Alfred Beit is tho principal partner of that firm. Here, again, tha connection with Mr Lionel Philips (president of the Chamber of Mines} is once mote clearly shown. He is Mr Beii'n representative in Johannesburg, and consequently has an iadireot interest in the Chartered Company. Hence he has alwaya been in friendly relations with Dr Jameson.

, The charter is a very lengthy document, but it will only be necessity to cite tbie leading articles relating to the sovereign rights possessed by England. The boundaries of the company's possessions are first of all (k-iiued to be to the north of Bechuaualaud, to the north and northwest of the South African Republic;, and to the west of the Portuguese possessions. By clause 3 the company is idlowed to acquire further territory by treaty, subject to Home approval; and by clause 6 it is laid down that tho company (shall always remain and be British in character and hiwe its principal offices in England. Cause Bi3 very important as bearing upon the present state of sffiirs, and mast be quoted at some length. It sayo : —"lEst r.ny time tha Secretary of State thinks fit to dissent from or object to any of tho dealings of tho company with ■ auy foreign State, and make known any objections or eipress disapproval, the company shall set in aocotdanee witn such suggestions." Tfc-is in itself is perfectly plain, Btd the position of the Home Government is clearly defined, but clause 18 goes still further in the sama direction, and strictly lays down the line of conduct to bo followed by the officials of the company. It runs as follows: —"The several offieots of the company .shall, subject to the rule of official subardiuation ami to any regulations that may he agreed upon, communicate freely with our High Oommisr.ioaer in South Africa, aud any other of our officers who may be stationed there, aud shall pay due attention to any requirements or requests made by them, and the company shalj be hound to enforce the observance of such fi.ctn." Than that clause nothing ba«nore explicit, us it lavs down that the. ad-

roinistrator of the company must keep the High Commissionar, who is tha Governor of tee Cape Colony, informed as to any action be may intend to take, *nd should his pinna ba disapproved of he taunt at once desist from carrying them into exesution. Clause 22 defines the position of the company with regard to treaties, and it sa ys : —» Tie company shall ba oabjeet to perform and undertake all obligations contained in or undertaken by ourselves under any treaty or agreement bstween ourselves and any other State." Soon after the charter was granted Lord Knuisford, fchon Secretory for State for the Colonies, wrote an important letter to the company calling attention to its principal clauses, and particularly emphasising the position of the company towards the Home Government. " The Queen can," wrote Lord Knutrford, "of. oouree at any. time annex or declare a protectorate over any part of the territory within which the company operates in the absence of any paramount necejsity for such annexation or ' protectorate, cr on account of the failure or misconduct of tbe company. Security of tenure is granted for 25 jears, which is deemed by her Majesty the shortest period within which tbe company can be expected to develop and perfect tbe public part of the enterprise, whilst there |s reserved to the Government of the day at the end of that time, and at every succeeding period of 10 yexre, the right of considering, in the interests oi tbe Empire and South Africa generally, how far tho administration End public power shall be continued."

As showing tho connection of the Chartored Company with many of the Johannesburg mining magnates, it will bo only necessary to recall the circumataucss that attended its issues of capital. The original capital was one million sterling, hut further funds being necessary an issue of debentures was resorted to. The De Bserij' Company subscribed a large amount of these debentures, this measure being decided upon by the iife governors—Cecil Rhodes, Alfred Beit, and " Barney " Barnato. In return, the company granted the sole concession of mining throughout its dominions for diamonds to the De Beers' Company. This is only alluded to as once again showing the indirect connection of the Chartered Company with Johaanesburg. Mr Alfred Beit's position has abrsady been alluded to, and the position of Mr Barnata iv Johannesburg mining circles is too well aud widely known to require comment. His firm is oqc of the richest and mosb influential in the Tran3vaal, so we have two of the lsading Rand bouses directly and largely interested in the welfare of the Chattered Company. Io addition to this, chatters are largely held all round by Johannesburg investors.