THE TRANSVAAL

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6553, 2 August 1899, Page 3

THE TRANSVAAL

;.,.-. THE. BOERS ; ARMING. ;i :■ ■■ ■ • .'• ■'■ : ■ ' ■ ■-„-■'-. -, ■ ' ; PREPARATIONS FOR WAR: ; United Press Association— By Electric . Telegraph — Copyright. ' ..,,.' • LONDON, August 1- ■ The "St James's Gazette" announces that the Boers are iriaking headlong preparations in case of emergencies. . Asnmunitien as being distributed in both Republics, i ■'■'.- PRETORIA, August 1. General Joubevfc lias accepted tlie preferred services of a Reserve of Artillery numbering 1000, many, of whom are German, Dutch, and French ex-soHiers. . • - - Commandant Viljoen will organise Volunteer Cavalry of Continental ex-soraier's. Six hundred lanoes and 600 sabres have been • ordered from Germany. . LONDON, August 1. The "Standard" states that the feeling at Pretoria is one of indignation and annoyance. The Boers beMeved that seven years' franchise would have sufficed. Some fear that insistence on the irreducible 1 minimum by England implies annexation, and they advocate arming forfchwitlh, and declare that the Transvaal is ready with 30,000 and the Orange Free State wif-h 20,000 troops. Both the "Daily Telegraph?' and tihe " Daily News " state that the Transvaal Government will accept a Joint Commission of Inquiry, if arbitration, as -well as all outstanding points, are included. . THE JAMESON* RAID— STATEMENT BY MR RHODES. CAPETOWN, August 1. An altercation has taken place in the Legislative Assembly between Mr . Cecil Rhodes and Mr John Xavier Merriman. Mr Rhodes declared that he was aware at the time of the Jameson raid of the nature of a letter sent by Mr Merriman, who was a member of the Cape Jameson Raid Committee, to the Johannesburg Reform Committee. He, however, did not divulge the contents, although, they might have proved that so far from his being solely responsible for the raid, the whole Cape Ministry, of ■which he was then head, was with lam.