The Star. SATURDAY, JUNE 15, 1929. THE SOUTH AFRICAN ELECTIONS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18786, 15 June 1929, Page 4

The Star. SATURDAY, JUNE 15, 1929. THE SOUTH AFRICAN ELECTIONS.

THE REJECTION of General Smuts and the South African Party will undoubtedly lead to a continuance of the racial and national bitterness that has marked South African politics for some time, because it shows no appreciable trend of public opinion away from the secessionalists and disloyalists. At best, the South African Party expected nothing more than a political deadlock, and were quite prepared for the return of General H’erlzog with the support of the Labour Partj’, as before, but the latest figures suggest that he has a clear majority, and this in itself may not be a very bad tiring. The aftermath of the Hertzog-Creswell alliance was not creditable either to the Nationalist Parly or io the Labour Party% and least of all to Colonel Creswell. whose betrayal of British sentiment in connection with the suppression of the Union Jack created the most bitter feeling in tire Union since pre-war days. It is stated that General Hertzog stampeded tire northern provinces into believing that white civilisation was endangered by tire South African Party’s policy', and on top of that there has alway's been the feeling that Geireral Smuts could never live down in the minds of the Labour sections, at all events, the memory' of the firm and final way in which he put down tire Rand Revolution. The result of the election was not hard to forecast, but unfortunately it will not tend to bring South Africa into closer union with the British league of nations, and General Herlzog’s suspicion of Britain will tend to keep alive memories that a young nation should be glad to forget.