SOUTH AFRICA.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13941, 29 June 1909, Page 6

SOUTH AFRICA.

A MESSAGE OF THANKS

Per Press Association

WELLINGTON, June 28. Tlip acting-Premier, the Hon. J. Carroll, has received the following cable message (sent from Perth by Sir Joseph Ward) from the President of the South African National Convention—"ln reply 'to New Zealand's message of congratulations upon the consummation of South African Union, we thank New Zealand for its good wishes, and sincerly hope that the result may strengthen the wider commonwealth of States within the British Empire." THE UNION QUESTION. A. LOCAL INTERVIEW. In the course of conversation with one of our representatives vestcrday, Air W. Black, of the firm of William and Herbert Black, architects and civil engineers, who has spent the greater part of his life in South Africa, and has seen both its rise and its fall, mentioned one or two points of general interest concerning the Union that has just taken place over there. Air Black is of opinion that the federation of the States will be a good thing for South Africa from all view points, but he is emphatically of the opinion that the injustice which it is proposed to do to the Indians in South Africa, as well as to all the coloured people, in taking away from them the right to vote which they have previously enjoyed, should not be permitted, and. that if it is, it will make for continual strife. Why the coloured people should not be allowed the privilege that they have eiijoyed for so many years he is at a loss to understand in view of the fact that they have done nothing to merit a handicap of this kind. The Indians over there, he says, are of very frugal habits, but are very industrious, and through their industry they aid in the development of the country, while the native coloured people also play their part and arc ehtitled to consideration, until they showed themselves unworthy of it, and they had not done that yet. He could see trouble ahead unless the coloured people were given the- right to vote under the Union.

Speaking of another aspect of the federation, Air Black said that the old saying, "in unity is strength" applied here as elsewhere; and lnoroo\cr, the linking-up process wotild be the means of effecting great economies. Instead of keeping up an army of legislators for each State they would in future have only one set ot legislators to pay. State barriers would also disappear under the terms of fcno Union, and inter-colonial free trade would be x>romoted. The seat of bovernment would be at Capetown, while Pretoria would be the - centre from which the administration would Le conducted. The two places were about 11.00 miles apart, but Pretoria had been fixed upon as the seat of administration because of its central position, and Capetown had been chosen as the seat of Government because it had always been looked upon as the capital city. So far Cape Colony, Orange River, the Transvaal, and Natal had federated, and Rhodesia, i n ' tended to come m. later. As to the financial conditions prevailing in South Africa, Air Black said that when he left, things were very bad. Every part of tiie country was suffering from the effects of the war. Prior to the war / and even while it was on residents of the cities as well as outsiders speculated heaviJy; thinking that after the war there was going to be a great inrush of people to South Africa, but m this they had been sadly mistaken. Instead, trade had fallen away to an alarming extent, money had become scarce and people had been forced to leave the country, leaving property behind them which a few years ago was worth thousands or i/ouuus, to be sold tor i mere song. In many cases it was absolutely unsaleable. How long Soutli Africa was going to feel tho after-math of the war, uo one could tell, but already affairs looked a little brighter in Johannesburg, and it seemed to him that if the agricultural resources of South Africa \*ere developed as they were in New Zealand the country would right itself within the next lew years. The Transvaal, owing to her strong financial position and huge, mineral wealth, was able at present, to dictate to the other btatcs which were m a condition of sennbankruptcy. Une unrortunatc feature was that Britishers in Soutli Africa were apparently to be subservent to the' Dutch, He noticed by papers which he received from Capetown, that recently at Bloemfortein, three out of five English school inspectors had been discharged, and tnere was a general discharge of oublic officials who were net i)f Dutch "origin. The Britisher was at a -disadvantage in this way, in the Transvaal and Orange River Colony. The doctrine of reconciliation was preached after the war but a natural aversion to the Britisher k mained as a result of it. There was an undercurrent of feeling in the minds of the Dutch, against anything British. Of this fact he had seen any amount of proof before he left South Africa. i

Asked about the reports which pictured Rhodesia as a poor man's paradisc, Air Black said it was a good country, but it had its drawbacks. There were some fine' cattle ranches there, but it was no use going there without at least £SOO of capital. With luck, and plenty of pluck and determination a man could make a competence in Rhodesia in a few years. It was a great cattle fattening country, but it was at a disadvantage in being far distant from the markets of world. One was liable there to get malarial fever, and the cattle were liable to be takeu off with rinderpest, but still there were some very rine stamps of men out there in possession of cattle ranches, from which they did Avell with very little hard work. Rhodesia was also very rich in minerals but there was a dearth of money to develop this source of its natural wealth.