APPENDIX A.
LORD DERBY’S DISPATCH ON THE CONVENTION OF 1884.
To MESSRS. KRUGER, DU TOIT,
AND SMIT.
DOWNING STREET,
15 February, 1884.
GENTLEMEN,
I have the honour to acknowledge the
receipt of your letter of the 13th inst., in which
you intimate your readiness to accept the arrangement
proposed by me at our recent interview, whereby the
debt of the Transvaal State to Her Majesty’s
Government would be reduced by L127,000. I will
not delay to recommend this proposal to the consideration
of Her Majesty’s Government.
I have considered the representations
and suggestions made in the fourth and following paragraphs
of your letter, and I do not think it would now be
practicable to carry out the arrangements which you
propose for the settlement of the questions referred
to. Her Majesty’s Government are willing,
however, that the 20th Article of the Convention of
Pretoria shall be retained in the new Convention,
with such verbal alterations as are requisite, and
I am glad to understand that this course will meet
your views.
When I had the pleasure of receiving
you here on the 8th inst. we discussed the other principal
questions which, in addition to those of the boundary
and the debt, you had submitted to me in previous
correspondence, and I explained to you generally the
nature and extent of the concessions which Her Majesty’s
Government would be able to make in regard to them.
You were satisfied with these explanations, as far
as they were put before you; and the progress which
has been made appears to me to render it convenient
that I should now transmit for your perusal a draft
of the new Convention which Her Majesty’s Government
propose in substitution for the Convention of Pretoria.
In this draft the Articles of the Convention of Pretoria,
which will be no longer in force, have been printed
alongside of the proposed new Articles, and where
an Article is retained and altered, the alterations
have been shown in order to explain clearly the changes
which will be made. You will find that in the
draft, and the map which accompanies it, the conclusions
which have been arrived at in the course of our communications
have been closely adhered to and accurately expressed,
and I trust that you will experience no difficulty
in understanding and agreeing to each of its provisions.
If, however, there should be any point as to which
you are doubtful, it may be convenient that you should
again meet me here and receive such further explanations
as may be desirable.
It does not appear to me to be necessary
that I should refer in detail to each Article of the
draft. You will observe that in the preamble and
throughout the Convention the wish of your Government
that the designation “South African Republic”
should be substituted for “Transvaal State”
has been complied with. In the first Article the
extension of the Western boundary is precisely defined
as agreed to. By the omission of those Articles
of the Convention of Pretoria which assigned to Her
Majesty and to the British Resident certain specific
powers and functions connected with the internal government
and the foreign relations of the Transvaal State your
Government will be left free to govern the country
without interference, and to conduct its diplomatic
intercourse and shape its foreign policy subject only
to the requirement embodied in the fourth Article
of the new draft that any treaty with a
foreign State shall not have effect without the approval
of the Queen.
There are other provisions in the
draft which have not been the subject of discussion
with you; they are for the most part a renewal of those
declarations made on behalf of the Transvaal State
in the Convention of Pretoria, which it is desirable
(as I trust you will agree in thinking) to maintain
as an assurance to all parties that there will be no
withdrawal of those securities for liberty and equal
treatment which your State has always professed itself
ready to afford. I would, however, refer more
specifically to the 19th Article of the draft, in
which it is proposed that in consideration of the discontinuance
of all direct interference by this country in the
government and control of the natives within the Transvaal,
it should be formally declared that your Government
will adopt and carry out the assurances which, with
their assent and approval, were given to those natives
by Her Majesty’s Commissioners.
I trust that I may soon hear from
you that there is no obstacle to my informing Her
Majesty’s Government that the Draft Convention
can be adopted.
I have, etc.,
DERBY.
A CONVENTION CONCLUDED BETWEEN HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN, &C., &C., AND THE
SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC.
NOTE. The words and
paragraphs bracketed or printed in italics are proposed
to be inserted, those within a black line are proposed
to be omitted.
Her Majestys Commissioners for the settlement of the
Transvaal Territory, duly appointed as such by a Commission passed under the
Royal Sign Manual and Signet, bearing date the 5th of April 1881, do hereby
undertake and guarantee, on behalf of Her Majesty, that from and after the 8th
day of August 1881, complete self-government, subject to the suzerainty of Her
Majesty, Her Heir and Successors, will be accorded to the inhabitants of the
Transvaal Territory, upon the following terms and conditions, and subject to the
following reservations and limitations:
Whereas the Government of the Transvaal
State, through its Delegates, consisting of Stephanus
Johannes Paulus Kruger, President of the said State.
Stephanus Johannes Du Toit, Superintendent
of Education; Nicholas Jacobus Smit, a member of the
Volksraad, have represented to the Queen that the
Convention signed at Pretoria on the 3rd day of August,
1881, and ratified by the Volksraad of the said State
on the 20th October, 1881, contains certain provisions
which are inconvenient, and imposes burdens and obligations
from which the said State is desirous to be relieved;
and that the south-western boundaries fixed by the
said Convention should be amended, with a view to
promote the peace and good order of the said state,
and of the countries adjacent thereto; and whereas
Her Majesty the Queen, &c., &c., has been pleased to
take the said representations into consideration.
Now, therefore, Her Majesty has been pleased to direct,
and it is hereby declared that the following articles
of a new Convention shall when ratified
by the Volksraad of the South African Republic, be
substituted for the Articles embodied in the Convention
of 3rd August, 1881; which latter, pending such ratification,
shall continue in full force and effect.
Signed at Pretoria London
this 3rd day of August 1881,
HERCULES ROBINSON, President and
High Commissioner EVELYN WOOD, Major General, Officer Administering the Government
J.H. de VILLIERS.
We, the undersigned, Stephanus Johannes
Paulus Kruger, Martinus Wessel Pretorius, and Petrus
Jacobus Joubert, as representatives delegates of
the Transvaal Burghers, South African Republic,
do hereby agree to all the above conditions, reservations,
and limitations, under which self government has
been restored to the inhabitants of the Transvaal
Territory, subject to the enzerainty of Her Majesty,
Her Heirs and Successsors, and we agree to accept
the Government of the said Territory, with all rights
and obligations thereto appertaining, on the 8th day
of August 1881, and we promise and undertake that
this Convention shall be ratified by a newly elected Volksraad of the Transvaal
State South African
Republic within three six months from
this date.
Signed at Pretoria, London,
this 3rd day of August 1881
S.J.P. KRUEGER
M.W. PRETORIUS
P.J. JOUBERT
APPENDIX B. (TRANSLATION).
THE ANNEXATION OF THE DIAMOND FIELDS.
In his speech at the opening of the Cape Parliament on the
18th April, 1872, Sir Henry Barkly said:
“The Sovereignty of Her Majesty
was therefore proclaimed and brought into operation
with the full consent of the diggers, and the
Government has since been carefully and efficiently
administered, notwithstanding considerable difficulties.”
The Diamond News of the 1st May, 1872, says, in
referring to this speech:
“Of the three short paragraphs
which immediately concern us, the first is one of
self-congratulation the diggers and other
inhabitants of Griqualand accept the British Government
with heartfelt satisfaction. Sir Henry says nothing
of the unaccountable and daily increasing dissatisfaction
with that Government, and perhaps he knows nothing
of it, as it would be an act of suicide for the Commissioners,
which they would not be guilty of, to report about
the prevailing feelings.”
On the 30th May, 1872, the Diamond Fields said:
“There can be no doubt that
the population of the Diamond Fields are strongly
opposed to annexation to the Cape Colony.
“If anything like a plebiscite
could be taken, the votes against being put under
the Cape Government would be in the proportion of nine
to one ... even the Free State Government would get
two votes to one if the Cape Town Government were
the only other candidate.”
In December, 1871, scarcely a month
after the dispersion of the Free State authorities
and the constitution of Sir Henry Barkly’s junta,
lynch law broke out. Lawlessness and general insecurity
prevailed everywhere (see Diamond News, 17th
January, 20th March, 17th July, 1872).
One reads in the Diggers’
Gazette of the 26th April, 1872:
“No one would wish to ask for
a continuation of the existing state of affairs.
Only entirely mischievous people could wish for the
continuation of such a failure as our Commissioners
of British rule have brought about on these Fields.
We have formerly expressed ourselves openly about
this matter, and our local contemporaries have done
the same.”
The following remarks were made in
the Diamond News of the 16th December, 1871:
“A description of Du Toit’span
by night lately appeared in the Diamond News
as it used to be under the admittedly unsatisfactory
Free State police, and, by way of contrast, as it
now is, after the withdrawal of that police.
The comparison is not flattering to the strength of
mind or administrative capability of our present rulers,
and a comparison of Free State administration with
Cape administration would in no way be more favourable
to the latter.
“The British Government, so
highly prized, which would put everything to rights
and would do so much for the diggers, has brought the
camps back to their original position of having to
protect themselves.”
In the Diamond News of the 10th July, 1872 (eight
months after the constitution of Sir Henry Barklys rule), the following
criticisms appear:
“Robberies are becoming so frequent
that if we were only to relate the particulars of
those that have been brought to our notice we would
require more space than our limits will allow.
Innumerable petty thefts are passed by without punishment.
This is certainly a charming state of affairs!
And the question naturally arises how long
will this continue? Thieves, black and white,
experienced and dangerous, and yet no night police
to stop their illegal actions! Shall we get no
night police, or must the scoundrels, who are poisoning
our camps continually, enjoy the immunity and freedom
which they now appear to have?”
On the 26th July lynch law and revolt
broke out afresh in an extensive way at New Rush,
the principal diggings. The Diggers’
Gazette made the following remarks about this:
“As long as Judge Lynch remains
free to hold his court and to levy his punishments,
for so long can the whole framework and machinery of
lawful authority just as well cease to exist.
“Authority cannot maintain its
claim to be respected as long as persons suffering
under the sense of having been injured take the law
into their own hands, solely because of the proved
incapability of those in authority to protect them
where their interests mostly need protection.
“Day after day, and night after
night, the one or other part of the camp is entertained
by the edifying spectacle of natives being thrashed,
tents being burnt, and white people surrounded by ferocious
crowds who can scarcely be kept back from carrying
out their desire for vengeance by a small truncheon
and a thick thong.
“We do not wish to justify this
state of affairs, but we cannot shut our eyes to the
injustice which almost makes it a necessity. No
magistrate, however exceptional, counts against the
absence of such laws, discipline, and police as our
circumstances demand, and through want of which there
is no other prospect than that terrorism which arises
out of a blind struggle against anarchy.”
The Diamond News, in its issue of 20th July, 1872,
says:
“The copious news in our columns,
and the reports of meetings, as well as the scenes
which take place every night at mass meetings in this
time of excitement, uproar and confusion, take up
nearly all our principal columns. We heartily
wish that the fire may be speedily got under, or else
it is very much to be feared that the end will be dreadfully
injurious to the safety and welfare of the innocent.”
On the 19th July, 1872, a very large meeting of diggers was
held at the Market Square, New Rush, when the following resolution, among
others, was unanimously passed:
“As this meeting is of opinion
that, with a view to the prevailing disturbances in
this camp, the Commissioners ought at once, with the
Diggers’ Committee, to make such amendments in
the existing unsatisfactory state of the law as will
as far as possible prevent the thefts of diamonds
by native labourers, and their purchase by unprincipled
dealers, and will also make such alterations in the
law so as to promote the general welfare.”
In the Cape Parliament, commencing the 5th June, 1872, Mr.
Merriman said:
“The Fields ... were annexed
and a form of government was introduced there which
could not be more ludicrous. A sort of irresponsible
Commission (the Rovers junta) was established, in which
the members could not agree, and were not responsible
to anybody; he could imagine nothing more ridiculous
or which worked worse. The Orange Free State had
given the people a sort of representation, but the
first act of our Government was to abolish all the
Commissions, and the result was that the people were
burdened with an irresponsible body.
“The Orange Free State had appointed
a responsible official ... who was efficient ... while
we had established a court twenty miles away from
the most populated part; whereby grinding expenses
had been entailed on those who sought justice, just
as if it was the only object of the British Government
to pile up heavy law costs.”
Mr. Knight said: “One of
the chief reasons why he was against Annexation was
that nine-tenths of the population on the fields would
hold up their hands to get rid of the present Government
because they felt that they were far better off before
they were annexed.”
Mr. Buchanan declared: “He
himself, when he visited the Diamond Fields, had wandered
from camp to camp, and from the one sorting table to
the other, and had talked with the diggers in order
to acquaint himself as to their feelings about various
matters, and he had obtained the conviction that there
was a great deal of feeling against the British Government.”
In the subsequent debate in the Cape
Parliament Mr. J.H. Brown said, in regard to
Mr. Orpen’s motion: “That the diggers
look with the greatest contempt on the Government
which was there now, and that this Government was
quite as much hated as it deserved to be.” (Diggers’
Gazette, 12th July, 1872).
In the Diamond News of the 8th October, 1872, one
reads:
“Newspaper after newspaper comes
out, and those who have a claim upon land look eagerly
to see ‘what is happening about the land?’
and all the information the newspaper gives is that
David Arnot, Esq., claims half the country, and that
Francis Orpen, Esq., the Surveyor, has decided that
L30 must be paid before the case of any claimant can
be taken into consideration. It is Arnot and
Orpen and land; and land and Orpen and Arnot, week
after week. They appear to be made one for the
other, and for nothing and nobody else.
“Half a newspaper is filled
with lists of claims of the said David, and it becomes
daily clearer and clearer that the great head chief
of Griqualand West cannot be Mr. Waterboer, but must
be David Arnot because all the claims and
all the kopjes have been provided for, and all are
for Mr. Arnot and nobody else.
“The impression is everywhere
that British protection is invoked not for British
interests, nor for the interests of Britons working
on the fields here, but for the sake of two gentlemen
who hold the reins with far more power than ought
to be given to anyone who is entrusted with the administration
of this country.
“Who has ever heard of a Government
which binds itself to give the surveyorship of a new
country to one man only? Mr. Francis Orpen is
decidedly a first-class man in his profession ... but
that does not justify any Government in agreeing that
he, and he only, is to keep the survey of this territory
entirely in his own hands. Everyone knows what
that must lead to.”
APPENDIX C.
THE REPLY TO MR. CHAMBERLAIN’S DISPATCH ON GRIEVANCES.
DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, PRETORIA.
26th September, 1899.
SIR,
The Government of the South African
Republic has the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of a copy of a certain dispatch dated 10th May, 1899,
addressed to His Excellency the High Commissioner by
the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in consequence
of a petition sent to Her Majesty the Queen of Great
Britain and Irelan,684 signatures appear on this
petition, and are said to have been affixed thereto
by an equivalent number of British subjects resident
at Johannesburg, in this Republic.
This Government notes that Her Majesty’s
Government have thought fit, on the grounds of the
information already in their possession, to make investigation
into the subject matter of the aforesaid petition,
and, as a result of such investigation, to express
to this Government their views on the administration
of the internal affairs of this Republic, which said
views they have at the same time communicated to the
memorialists as an answer to their petition.
This Government may be permitted to point out that the
Convention of London of 1884, entered into between this Republic and the
Government of Her Britannic Majesty, guarantees to the South African Republic
full and free internal administration without any interference from anyone
whatever. As Lord Derby notifies in his dispatch of the 15th February,
1884:
“Your Government will be left
free to govern the country without interference, and
to conduct its diplomatic intercourse, and shape its
foreign policy, subject only to the requirements embodied
in the fourth article of the new draft that
any treaty with a foreign State shall not have effect
without the approval of the Queen.”
In his despatch of the 4th February, 1896, the Colonial
Secretary, Mr. Chamberlain, states:
“In the next place, it is necessary
that I should state clearly and unequivocally what
is the position which Her Majesty’s Government
claim to hold toward the Government of the South African
Republic. Since the Convention of 1884, Her Majesty’s
Government recognised the South African Republic as
a free and independent Government as regards all its
internal affairs not touched by the Convention.”
In a telegram, also from Mr. Chamberlain,
dated 26th March, 1896, the same statement is substantially
made, viz.: “Her Majesty’s
Government do not claim any rights under the Conventions
to prescribe particular internal reforms which should
be made in South African Republic.”
This Government has always felt it
a solemn duty for the Republic to adhere strictly
to the Convention of 1884 in its entirety; at the same
time, it has been consistent in protesting in the most
forcible manner against any interference or intermeddling
with the internal affairs of the Republic, and against
the discussion or treatment of these affairs with
or by any other than the Republic itself, and it can
discover no reasons now which would either justify
such interference or exempt it from the accusation
of being a violation of the Convention of London.
This Government feels convinced that
Her Majesty’s Government would not favourably
entertain a request from British subjects for intervention
because the said British subjects are unwilling (as
was agreed between this Republic and Her Majesty’s
Government in the Convention of London) to conform
themselves to the laws of the land and to respect the
legal institutions and customs of the South African
Republic, and because they feel aggrieved that the
laws are not altered in accordance with their demands.
The friendly relations so highly prized
by this Government which have existed between this
Republic and the United Kingdom, the other party to
the Convention of London, have always been a safe guarantee
to this Government against such a breach of the Convention
on the part of Her Majesty’s Government, and
it greatly deplores the fact that Her Majesty’s
Government has now decided to act in conflict with
the Convention of London by busying itself with the
imaginary grievances of the Uitlanders, and making
representations thereanent to this Government.
Against such action this Government feels that it must
earnestly and emphatically protest, and the Right Hon.
Mr. Chamberlain could not take it amiss if this Government
were to pay no further attention to the charges against
its administration contained in the petition, or if
they declined to discuss further the views of Her
Majesty’s Government about these charges.
This Government has, however, on more
than one occasion, notified to Her Majesty’s
Government that it will attach great value to any suggestions
which may be tendered in the interests of British subjects,
and it will certainly lend a very willing ear to any
friendly advice or hints which may be given by Her
Majesty’s Government as being the representative
of a Power which, with this Republic and the Orange
Free State, protects and fosters the paramount interests
of South Africa.
His Honour the State President was
animated by these sentiments when he accepted the
courteous invitation of His Honour President Steyn
to proceed to Bloemfontein in order to confer with
Your Excellency about matters which are an equal source
of interest to this Republic and Her Majesty’s
Government. These friendly sentiments now prompt
it to take the liberty of drawing serious attention
to the fact that Her Majesty’s Government certainly
appear to be supplied with insufficient and incorrect
data about facts and occurrences from which erroneous
ideas and conclusions are drawn, so that, although
desirous of avoiding subjects the discussion of which
would be contrary to the Convention, this Government
nevertheless feels that it ought to convey to Her
Majesty’s Government the true position of affairs,
and that it ought to point out how the latter is misled,
the condition of affairs as depicted in the dispatch
under reply being in all respects exaggerated, and
in many instances entirely untrue.
In the first place, this Government
wishes to point out that, so far from the petition
which gave rise to the despatch under reply having
been signed by 21,684 British subjects, it appears
indeed that it was signed by very few people in the
South African Republic leaving aside all
mention of British subjects. This has been substantiated
in many cases by sworn declarations, many of which
were handed to His Excellency the High Commissioner
during the Conference at Bloemfontein, and this Government
feels that it may flatter itself that the British Government,
after having examined these documents, will share with
this Government the view that this memorial is in
itself a matter of very slight importance, even although
it may contain the signatures of a certain number
of British subjects who hold the opinion that they
are entitled to a change in the form of Government
because, in violation of the Convention entered into
between this Republic and Her Majesty’s Government,
they will not conform themselves to the laws of the
land, but claim alterations therein at their own caprice.
This Government is all the more convinced
that this memorial is of no great moment, and that
it certainly does not express the feelings of all
the so-called Uitlanders, because another memorial
has been received by it from about 23,000 inhabitants
of this Republic, nearly all Uitlanders, and amongst
whom are several British subjects. The High Commissioner
was informed that the signatures to this memorial were
obtained in a perfectly bona fide way, and this
information was supported by sworn affidavits.
The purport of this memorial bore evidence to the
fact that the thousands of Uitlanders who signed it
were satisfied with the administration and the Government
of this Republic, and did not share the views of the
memorialists to Her Britannic Majesty in respect of
what the latter considered to be legitimate grievances.
This Government may further be permitted
to point out that although the Uitlander population
may have co-operated in effecting an increase in the
revenues of the State, principally, as His Excellency
has been informed, in custom dues, prospecting licences,
railway receipts, etc., so that the revenue in
1898 amounted to L3,983,360, the fact must not be
lost sight of, on the other hand, that gold to the
value of L20,000,000 was exported from the
State during the same year 1898, almost entirely by
the Uitlanders.
At the same time, it must not be forgotten
that although the, chief item in custom dues is collected
on goods which are imported at Johannesburg, yet these
goods are not entirely used or consumed by the Uitlanders,
for a considerable quantity is sent over the whole
Republic by the wholesale merchants to the retail
dealers who do business with the burghers in the villages
and the country, so that much of what is imported into
Johannesburg is destined for consumption by the original
burgher of the Republic.
With regard to the contention that
the mining industry is more heavily taxed than in
any other country, and that the cost of the necessaries
of life is higher, this Government desires to remark
that this contention is entirely contradicted by facts
and statistics. The value of goods imported into
the South African Republic during 1898 amounted to
L9,996,575, and the custom duties levied thereon to
L1,058,224, or 10.6 per cent. Under the Customs
Union of the adjacent British Colonies the import
duties amounted to 15 per cent, of the value of the
goods, a comparison which yields a difference of nearly
50 per cent. in favour of the Republic. When
the matter is examined in detail the case is even
stronger. In the Colonies certain articles, such
as bread stuffs, are subject to a special duty of
2s., say about 30 per cent, of the value, in corn,
and 40 per cent. in meal. In this Republic the
duty on both the foregoing articles is 7-1/2 per cent.;
butter is especially taxed at 3d. per pound, or 30
per cent., under the Customs Union, while in the Republic
it is subject only to the 7-1/2 ad valorem duty.
Coffee and other necessaries of life, on being compared,
would show a similar difference, and this Government
therefore trusts that Her Majesty’s Government
will exonerate it when it points out the incorrectness
and unreliability of the information supplied to the
Secretary of State, on which he bases his conclusion
that the cost of living is unusually high in consequence
of the taxation levied by the State; that such is not
the case will be at once shown by a comparison with
the taxation of the neighbouring Colonies.
The character of the financial administration
must have been erroneously represented to Her Majesty’s
Government if it was simply stated that defalcations
to an amount of L18,590 had taken place. It would
ex facie appear from such a statement that
the above defalcations had taken place during
the past year; as a matter of fact, the Inspection
Department, which has only recently been called into
existence, reported over financial matters covering
the years 1884 to 1896.
It is unfair to characterise all deficiencies
as defalcations, for from the nature of the case
a deficiency does not always constitute a defalcation.
The report specified the sub-divisions of monies which
had yet to be accounted for. The first item in
such deficiencies amounted originally to L12,000,
and of this L6,000 was afterwards collected, and the
balance was only brought forward; another item of L10,808
11s. was brought forward in its entirety, but
L3,000 of this was eventually collected and accounted
for, while continual efforts were made to secure the
balance. Many items not brought forward were collected
long before and accounted for, while during the inspection
of last year it was found that a sum of L800 yet remained
to be paid in out of the deficiencies, which balance
has been accounted for.
The contention that advances to officials
amounting to L2,398,506 16d. have remained
unaccounted for is also absolutely incorrect; and the
endeavour to pass this circumstance off as constituting
defalcations on the part of officials bears ample
witness to the strong desire to mislead which has
actuated the informants of Her Majesty’s Government.
Any person who is even superficially
acquainted with financial administration will readily
admit that this is due to a system of accounting which
was followed until recently by Her Majesty’s
Government, and which obtains in some British Colonies,
in Natal, for instance, at the present moment.
This system may deserve condemnation;
it does not, however, necessarily follow that because
the advances may not be speedily accounted for they
have been embezzled, and it does not appear either
from the report of the Inspector of Offices, or from
the debates of the Volksraad, that such accusations
were made. But in addition to this a sum of at
least L1,968,306 is included in the aforesaid total
of L2,398,506 16s 8d. (but which is not comprised
in the customary advances), such as Orphan Chamber
L80,000, Indigent Burghers L150,000, Postal Orders
L60,000, various loans to School Committees, Sanitary
Boards, and for Waterworks, Hospitals, Committees,
monies placed at interest in Europe, provisional loans
to Railway Companies, purchases of food stuffs and
mules in time of famine, and many others.
Items, too, of considerable importance
appear in the advances, although they have really
been accounted for up to within a pound or two, because
for one reason or another it has not been possible
to write off the exact total, the amounts still to
be accounted for having dwindled to a very insignificant
figure.
The contention that during 1896 a
sum of L191,837 was paid out of the Secret Service
Money is also absolutely unfounded, for in that amount
a sum of L158,337 was included which was used for
special Government Works, as was expressly stated
in a foot-note on page 44 of the Estimates for 1897.
The Secret Service Fund for that year (1896) did not
amount to more than L33,500. This faulty information,
supplied to Her Majesty’s Government, is apparently
taken from the said Estimates, it would seem with
the fixed determination to ignore the explanatory
foot-note on page 44.
It is incorrect to state that the
system of granting concessions remains in full force.
Where the Right Hon. the Secretary of State in his
despatch refers to industrial concessions, this Government
may remark that these are privileges granted in order
to stimulate and protect local industry, and the contention
that these concessions will develop into practical
monopolies is not supported by any evidence; results
will show that misleading information has been given
here as well.
With regard to the question of education
which has been dealt with in the dispatch of the Right
Hon. the Colonial Secretary, this Government wishes
to point out that the amount expended on education
during the year 1898 was L226,219 4d. In
the former year it was less. Of this amount L36,503
17d. was devoted to Education on the Gold Fields
(for State as well as for subsidized schools).
As the number of scholars under Act 15, 1896, as well
as that of the teachers, have considerably increased,
the amount during the current year will probably be
L53,000. The conditions on which this money
is given are certainly not such as to exclude the
children of Uitlanders from its benefits. According
to Volksraad Resolution of 1st June, 1892 (and amendments),
schools where a foreign language was the medium of
instruction were entitled to a subsidy of 20s. per
pupil per quarter for the lower standard, and 25s.
for the middle standard, provided that certain requirements
as to knowledge of the official language of the country
were complied with. These requirements are a standard
lower than that for children of burghers in the country,
who are taught in schools governed by Law No 8 of
1892.
Few, if any, Uitlanders avail themselves
of this offer; the few who have done so are now satisfied
with it, and continue to enjoy the privileges of the
resolution, although it was only renewed in 1898 for
those schools which made a bona fide use of
it. Law No 15, 1896, made provision for the
children of poor parents and strangers on the proclaimed
gold fields entirely at State expense, and 13 schools
have been established by this law with
51 teachers and about 1,500 scholars at
Barberton, Pilgrims’ Rest, Kaapsche Hoop, Johannesburg
(5, viz., 1 in von Brandis Street, 1 at Braamfontein,
1 at Union Ground, 1 at Vredesdorp, and 1 in Market
Street), Maraisburg, Krugersdorp, Randfontein, Klerksdorp,
and Nigel. In addition to these, preparations
are being made for State schools at the City and Suburban,
Bertramstownship, Johannesburg, and at Roodepoort (Krugersdorp).
Out of the above-named 13 schools,
English is the medium of instruction in four, and
of the remaining nine English is the medium for the
children of English-speaking parents, and Dutch for
those of Dutch-speaking parents. In these nine
schools a little more time is devoted to learning
Dutch in each standard than was the case in the former
standard, so that equality in both languages is reached
at the 5th standard.
Altogether there are 27 Dutch Africander
or Hollander teachers, and 24 teachers of English
origin in these 13 schools. The Dutch Africander
or Hollander teachers are obliged to possess a thorough
knowledge of English, and have either to pass an examination
or produce a certificate to that effect.
The object of the system of education
in this Republic is to ensure in the first place the
foundation of general knowledge. Law No 8, 1892,
provides this for the children of the original Boer
population in their mother tongue, in which the necessary
schoolbooks must be written, with this understanding,
however, that in the 3rd standard three hours, and
in the higher ones four hours, per week out of the
25 must be devoted to education in a foreign language.
With regard to the schools formed
under the above-mentioned Resolution, teaching is
carried on through the medium of a foreign language,
but at least 5 hours per week must be devoted to the
study of the official language of the country.
Of the 13 schools formed under Law
15 of 1896, the children of strangers are instructed
in their own language, while the number of hours for
instruction in and by means of Dutch is increased in
each standard.
According to a Resolution of the First
Volksraad, dated the 8th August, 1898, Article 731,
a certain number of the School Board members required
by Article I of Law 15 of 1896 have to be nominated
and chosen by the Executive Council out of enfranchised
persons (Article 2, Law 8, 1893) proposed by the fathers
of the school children, on the understanding that
the persons so chosen shall constitute less than half
of the whole School Board, and further, that the persons
so proposed shall always be double the number of the
people actually nominated. The above facts clearly
prove, according to the opinion of this Government,
that Her Majesty’s Government has also been
misled in respect to the matter of education.
It is clear that one-fourth of the whole educational
vote has been devoted to the gold fields, so that
the children of Uitlander residents can make use of
it; that proper provision is made for education in
the mother tongue whatever it may be, while at the
same time compulsory education of the language of
the country is also provided for. That both by
the Resolution of the 1st June, 1892, as well as by
the Law 15 of 1896, more has actually been done for
the Uitlanders than for the original inhabitants,
and that more time is given to the mother tongue of
the children in the schools on the gold fields of this
Republic than in any country in the world, and that
here again information of a misleading character must
have been given to His Excellency and the British
Government.
Law No 15, 1896, and the schools
thereby established have been defended by Englishmen
in various newspapers. (See the S.A. News,
10th May, 1899; The Star, 22nd March, 1899;
Manchester Guardian, etc.).
With reference to the Municipality
of Johannesburg, this Government desires to remark
that in accordance with the promise made in 1896, the
grant of Municipal Administration was made to the inhabitants
of Johannesburg by which the control of that town
and its suburbs was conferred upon them.
Her Majesty’s Government seem
to think that this Municipality does not answer its
purpose, in the first place because half of the members
must be naturalized burghers (not fully enfranchised
burghers as the dispatch under reply erroneously contends),
and in the second place because the financial powers
of the town council are restricted.
With regard to the first objection,
it is impossible that this should be a great grievance,
because a residence of two years in the Republic is
sufficient for naturalisation; as a matter of fact,
more than the necessary half of the members are burghers;
this shows conclusively that the requirement of burghership
is in no sense an obstacle. The objection as
to the restriction of the financial powers of the council
is not conclusive, because there is no Municipality
in the world the financial powers of which are not
restricted by the law under which they are created,
and the restrictions in the case of the town council
of Johannesburg are the usual ones in such cases.
The Advisory Board recommended by
the Industrial Commission would have proved inefficient
because the laws with the administration of which
that body would have had to concern itself can be carried
out in a better and more efficient way by an official
like the State Attorney, who has almost unlimited
power and means of doing so. This is exactly
what has happened. All complaints with regard
to gold thefts have actually disappeared; one no longer
hears of complaints as to the operation of the pass
law; while latterly, as Her Majesty’s Government
must be well aware, the Chamber of Mines and other
bodies of the Witwatersrand have repeatedly expressed
their satisfaction with the stringent way in which
the liquor law has been upheld. No local body,
however well informed, would have been able to do what
the State Attorney has done in this matter, and that
is sufficient justification of the action of both
Government and Volksraad in refusing to establish
such an Advisory Board.
The Government now passes on to the
discussion of the administration of justice, of which
so much is made in the dispatch under reply.
With regard to these allegations,
this Government perceives that much importance is
attached in the dispatch to the so-called Lombard
incident, the so-called Edgar case, and the so-called
Amphitheatre occurrence.
A brief consideration of the facts
referring to these three matters will show how unfounded
are the accusations of Her Majesty’s Government.
With reference to the Lombard incident,
this Government wishes to point out that no complaint
was lodged with any official in this Republic for
a full month after the illtreatment of Cape coloured
people was alleged to have taken place, and that neither
the Government nor the public was aware that anything
had taken place. The whole case was so insignificant
that some of the people who were alleged to have been
illtreated declared under oath at a later period before
a court of investigation that they would never have
made any complaint on their own initiative. What
happened, however?
About a month after the occurrence
the South African League came to hear of it; some
of its officials sent round to collect evidence from
the parties who were alleged to have been illtreated,
and some sworn declarations were obtained by the help
of Her Majesty’s Vice-Consul at Johannesburg
(between whom and this League a continual and conspicuous
co-operation has existed). Even then no charge
was lodged against the implicated officials with the
judicial authorities of the country, but the case
was put in the hands of the Acting British Agent at
Pretoria.
When the allegations were brought
under the notice of this Government, they at once
appointed a commission of enquiry consisting of three
members, namely, Landdrost Van der Berg,
of Johannesburg, Mr Andries Stockenstrom, barrister-at-law
of the Middle Temple, head of the Criminal Section
of the State Attorney’s Department, and Mr. Van
der Merwe, mining commissioner, of Johannesburg;
gentlemen against whose ability and impartiality the
Uitlander population of the Republic have never harboured
the slightest suspicion, and with whose appointment
the Acting British Agent also expressed his entire
satisfaction. The instructions given to these
officials were to thoroughly investigate the whole
case, and to report the result to the Government; and
they fulfilled these instructions by sitting for days
at a time, and carefully hearing and sifting the evidence
of both sides. Every right-minded person readily
acknowledges that far greater weight ought to be attached
to the finding of this Commission than to the declarations
of the complainants, who contradicted one another in
nearly every particular, and who caused the whole
enquiry to degenerate into a farce.
According to the report, nothing was
proved as to the so-called illtreatment; the special
instances of alleged illtreatment turned out to be
purely imaginary; it was clearly proved and found that
the complainants had acted contrary to Law, and the
Commission only expressed disapproval of the fact
that the arrests and the investigation had taken place
at night, and without a proper warrant. It fills
this Government with all the greater regret to observe
that Her Majesty’s Government bases its charges
on ex parte, groundless, and in many respects
false declarations of complainants who have been set
in motion by political hatred, and that it silently
ignores the report of the Commission.
The Amphitheatre occurrence is used
by Her Majesty’s Government to show how incapable
the police of the Witwatersrand are to fulfil their
duties and to preserve order. The League meeting
was held at the so-called Amphitheatre at Johannesburg,
with the knowledge of the State Secretary and State
Attorney, and the accusation is that in spite of that
fact, the uproar which arose at that meeting was not
quelled by the police. The following are the
true facts: Mr. Wybergh and another, both
in the service of the South African League, informed
the State Secretary and the State Attorney that they
intended to call this meeting in the Amphitheatre,
and asked permission to do so; they were informed that
no permission from the authorities was necessary,
and that as long as the meeting did not give rise
to irregularities or disturbances of the peace, they
would be acting entirely within their rights.
Their attention was then drawn to the fact that owing
to the action and the propaganda of the South African
League, this body had become extremely unpopular with
a large section of the inhabitants of Johannesburg,
and that in all probability a disturbance of the peace
would take place if a sufficient body of the police
were not present to preserve order. To this these
gentlemen answered that the police were in very bad
odour since the Edgar case, that the meeting would
be a very quiet one, and that the presence of the
police would contribute, or give rise to, disorder,
and that they would on those grounds rather have no
police at all. The State Secretary and State
Attorney thereupon communicated with the head officials
of the police at Johannesburg, with the result that
the latter also thought that it would be better not
to have any considerable number of police at the meeting.
The Government accordingly, on the advice of these
officials of the League as well as their own police
officials, gave instructions that the police should
remain away from the meeting; they did this in perfect
good faith, and with the object of letting the League
have its say without let or hindrance. The proposed
meeting was however advertised far and wide. As
the feeling amongst a section of the Witwatersrand
population was exceedingly bitter against the League,
a considerable number of the opponents of that body
also attended the meeting. The few police who
were present were powerless to quell the disorder,
and when the police came on the scene in force some
few minutes after the commencement of the uproar,
the meeting was already broken up. Taken by itself,
this occurrence would not be of much importance, as
it is an isolated instance as far as the gold fields
of this Republic are concerned, and even in the best
organised and best ordered communities irregularities
like the above occasionally take place.
The gravity of the matter, however,
lies in the unjust accusation of Her Majesty’s
Government that the meeting was broken up
by officials of this Republic, and that the Government
had curtly refused to institute an enquiry.
This Government would not have refused
to investigate the matter if any complaints had been
lodged with it, or at any of the local Courts, and
this has been clearly stated in its reply to Her Majesty’s
request for an investigation.
The Government objects strongly to
the systematic way in which the local authorities
are ignored, and the continual complaints which are
lodged with the Representatives of Her Majesty about
matters which ought to be decided by the Courts of
this Republic. Instead, however, of complaining
to Her Majesty’s Government after all other reasonable
means of redress have been vainly invoked, they continually
make themselves guilty of ignoring and treating with
contempt the local Courts and authorities, by continually
making all sorts of ridiculous and ex parte
complaints to Her Majesty’s Government in the
first instance; Her Majesty’s Government is
also thereby placed in the equivocal and undesirable
position of intermeddling in the internal affairs
of this Republic, which is in conflict with the London
Convention. Had the complaints been lodged with
this Government, or with the proper officials or Courts,
the facts could have been very easily arrived at,
and it would have been proved that the few officials
who were present at the meeting as a section of the
public had done their best to prevent the irregularities,
and that some of them had been hurt in their endeavours
to preserve order.
Instead of expressing their disapproval
of such complaints, and referring the petitioners
to the local Courts, Her Majesty’s Government
accepts those complaints, and gives them an official
character by forwarding them for the information of
this Government, and by publishing them in blue books
for the information of the world.
Her Majesty’s Government will
readily acknowledge that there is no State in the
world with any sense of dignity, however weak and insignificant
it may be, which can regard such matters with an indifferent
eye; and when the relations of the two Governments
are strained, then the mainspring must be looked for
in this action of its subjects, which is not disapproved
of by Her Majesty’s Government, and not in imaginary
or trumped-up grievances.
The Edgar case is referred to by your
Government as “the most striking recent instance
of arbitrary action by officials, and of the support
of such action by the Courts,” and this case
is quoted as a conclusive test of the alleged judicial
maladministration of this Republic; it will therefore
be of interest to pause for a moment and consider it.
What are the true facts?
A certain Foster, “an Englishman,”
was assaulted and felled to the ground, without any
lawful cause, by a man named Edgar during the night
of the 18th December, 1898; he lay on the ground as
if dead, and ultimately died in the hospital.
Edgar escaped to his room, and some police came on
the scene, attracted by the screams of the bystanders.
Amongst the police was one named Jones. When they
saw the man who had been assaulted lying as if dead,
they went to Edgar’s apartments in order to
arrest him as a criminal (he had indeed rendered himself
liable for manslaughter, and apparently for murder).
As he was caught in the very act, the police officers
were, according to the Laws not only of this Republic,
but of all South Africa and of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland, justified in breaking open
the door in order to arrest the culprit. While
doing so, Edgar, with a dangerous weapon, struck Jones
a severe blow. Under the stress of necessity the
latter shot Edgar, from the effects of which he died.
The question is not if Jones was justified in taking
this extreme step, for the State Attorney of the Republic
had already given effect to his opinion that this was
a case for the jury by prosecuting him for manslaughter.
The question is solely whether any jury in any country
in the world would have found a man guilty of any
crime under the circumstances set forth, and whether,
if they did not find him guilty, the fact of their
doing so would have been stamped and branded as a
flagrant and remarkable instance of the maladministration
of justice.
This Government is convinced that
the English Judicial administration affords numberless
instances where the facts are as strong as in this
case, and it cannot see why an occurrence which could
happen in any part of the world should be especially
thrown in their teeth in the form of an accusation.
This Government does not wish to pass
over in silence the censure which has been passed
by Her Majesty’s Government on the Public Prosecutor
of Johannesburg, by whom the prosecution of this case
was conducted; the fact that he is of pure English
blood, that he received his legal training in London,
that he is generally respected by the Uitlander population
on account of his ability, impartiality, and general
character, will naturally not be of any weight with
Her Majesty’s Government against the facts of
his action in calling witnesses for the prosecution
who were intended for the defence, and thus rendering
an imaginary cross-examination abortive.
This Government only wishes to point
out that the fact that the Edgar case is the strongest
which Her Majesty’s Government has been able
to quote against the administration of justice in
this Republic affords the strongest and most eloquent
proof possible that, taking it in general, the administration
of justice on the gold fields of this Republic not
only compares favourably with that on other and similar
gold fields, but even with that of old and settled
countries.
The untrue representations of this
occurrence in the Press prove conclusively that the
newspapers of the Witwatersrand, the atrocity-mongering
tactics of which constitute a share of the organised
campaign against the Republic and its Government, have
been compelled to resort to mendacious criticisms
on imaginary instances of maladministration which
were often simply invented. Where the Press is
forced to adopt such methods, the true grievances must
of necessity be unreal.
Her Majesty’s Government now
proceeds to discuss certain laws of this Republic,
with the object of showing that the Uitlander population
is also oppressed by the legislature of this country,
the Press Law, the Aliens Expulsion Law, and Law No
1 of 1897 being especially instanced. But it
can also be proved that the population of the gold
fields have no solid grounds of complaint in regard
to the laws in question.
Respecting the existing Press Laws,
No 26 of 1896, and No 14 of 1898, it is necessary
to remark that no printer, issuer, or editor of a
newspaper can be prosecuted unless he has made himself
guilty of criminal libel, so that the principle of
the Grondwet of 1858 has in this respect been rigidly
adhered to. Her Majesty’s Government will
at once see that these laws cannot in any way bear
harshly upon the writing public, a fact which is clearly
borne out by the way in which the newspapers of this
country are edited. Nowhere else in the world
has the liberty of the Press so degenerated into license.
No newspaper in any country in the world would for
one moment dare to speak of the Government, the Legislature,
and authorities of the country as the Star,
the Transvaal Leader, and similar newspapers
do every day in this Republic.
The imaginary nature of these grievances
is not dispelled by the fact that the power is vested
in the State President of prohibiting either entirely
or provisionally the circulation of any printed matter
which is contrary to good morals or public order,
because the very same Supreme Court, which in the
opinion of Her Majesty’s Government only exists
at the mercy of this Government, has pronounced that
it has no power to prohibit the circulation of any
newspaper; the freedom of the regular Press thus remains
as unrestricted as under the old Grondwet.
As a matter of fact, any person who
has any practical experience of the Press of this
Republic will regard the accusation as ridiculous,
and as evincing an entire ignorance of the true facts.
This power has not been exercised by the Judges on
many occasions, but only once, and in that instance
the High Court annulled the decision.
With regard to the Aliens Expulsion
Law, this, like the Press Law, ought to be estimated
according to its spirit and operation. Since this
law has come into force the State President has only
on one occasion made use of the power vested in him
of expelling an undesirable individual, and his action
was endorsed by the approval of the Press and the public
of the country. As similar laws exist in nearly
every civilised country in the world, it is difficult
to see why such a law in this Republic should prove
so objectionable in the eyes of Her Majesty’s
Government.
With regard to Law No 1 of 1897,
and the dismissal of Chief Justice Kotze by virtue
of its provisions, this Government can only state that
it was with the bitterest regret that it felt itself
compelled, in consequence of the arbitrary action
of the said Chief Justice, to take comprehensive measures
in order to prevent absolute constitutional and judicial
disorder and chaos. It was an instance where a
Chief Justice in conflict with a law existing for,
at least, forty years, and in direct contradiction
of his own decisions, suddenly adopted and applied
a new principle, which affected the legality of the
laws of the Republic, and produced real constitutional
chaos. Would not any other Government under similar
circumstances have done exactly what this Republic
did, namely, pass a special law in this unusual case,
in order to remove the exceptional difficulties?
This law was only applicable to this
particular instance, and became inoperative immediately
after its application; and this Government cannot
understand how suspicion can therefore fall upon the
impartial administration of Justice in this Republic.
If the Government had acquiesced in the position taken
up by the late Chief Justice, then all titles dependent
upon Volksraad resolutions would have been called in
question, which would not only have dealt a heavy blow
to existing rights, but also have plunged the administration
of Justice in great uncertainty and doubt.
By this law the Judges, instead of
being brought under the influence of the Executive
Council, were really placed in the same constitutional
position as any Judge in the Supreme Court of England,
who is unable to question the validity of any law.
This Government has now traversed
the various contentions of Her Majesty’s Government,
which have been submitted in order to prove that the
policy of this Government, with regard to the Uitlander
population and the administration of the laws, especially
on the gold fields, are the causes of the strained
relationship at present existing between the two Governments.
This Government believes that this
explanation and answer will clearly show that these
causes are in no way sufficient to have resulted in
the aforesaid tension. It is of opinion that
the source of evil must be sought for elsewhere, and
it trusts that Her Majesty’s Government will
not take it in bad part if it now proceeds to explain
what the real root of the evil is from its point of
view; and in the first place it remarks as a very
noticeable and prominent fact that although there are
thousands of subjects of other Powers in Johannesburg,
there are few complaints heard from them or from their
Governments about the so-called grievances of the
Uitlanders. If these grievances existed in reality,
and if they pressed equally on all so-called Uitlanders
(and Her Majesty’s Government does not contend
that in this respect a difference is made between
British subjects and subjects of other Powers), how
does it happen that the complaints always come from
British subjects, and that the subjects of other Powers,
as a rule, express their sympathy with this Government
and promise it their support?
But this Government wishes to go further.
Even in regard to those Uitlanders who are British
subjects, it is a small minority which, under the
pretext of imaginary grievances, promotes a secret
propaganda of race hatred, and uses the Republic as
a base for fomenting a revolutionary movement against
this Government. Ministers of Her Majesty have
so trenchantly expressed the truth about this minority
that this Government wishes to quote the very words
of these Ministers with the object of bringing the
actual truth to the knowledge of Her Majesty’s
Government, as well as to that of the whole world,
and not for the purpose of making groundless accusations.
The following words are those of the Ministers of the Cape
Colony, who are well acquainted with local conditions and fully qualified to
arrive at a conclusion:
“In the opinion of Ministers
the persistent action, both beyond and within this
Colony, of the political body styling itself the South
African League in endeavouring to foment and excite,
not to smooth and allay, ill-will between the two
principal European races inhabiting South Africa is
well illustrated by these resolutions, the exaggerated
and aggravated terms of which disclose the spirit which
informs and inspires them.
“His Excellency’s Ministers
are one in their earnest desire to do all in their
power to aid and further a policy of peaceful progress
throughout South Africa, and they cannot but regard
it as an unwise propagandism, hostile to the true
interests of the Empire, including this Colony as an
integral part, that every possible occasion should
be seized by the League and its promoters for an attempt
to magnify into greater events minor incidents when
occurring in the South African Republic, with a prospect
thereby of making racial antagonism more acute, or
of rendering less smooth the relations between Her
Majesty’s Government or the Government of this
Colony and that Republic.”
Race hatred is, however, not so intense
in South Africa as to enable a body with this propaganda,
aiming at revolutionary objects, to obtain much influence
in this part of the world; and one continually asks
oneself the question “How is it that
a body so insignificant, both in regard to its principles
and its membership, enjoys such a large measure of
influence?” The answer is that this body depends
upon the protection and the support of Her Majesty’s
Government in England, and that both its members and
its organs in the Press openly boast of the influence
they exercise over the policy of Her Majesty’s
Government. This Government would ignore such
assertions, but when it finds that the ideas and the
shibboleths of the South African League are continually
echoed in the speeches of members of H.M. Government,
when it finds that blue books are compiled chiefly
from documents prepared by officials of the South
African League, as well as from reports and leading
articles containing “malignant lies” taken
from the Press organs of that organisation, thereby
receiving an official character, then this Government
can well understand why so many of Her Majesty’s
right-minded subjects in this part of the world have
obtained the impression that the policy advocated
by the South African League is supported by Her Majesty’s
Government, and is thus calculated to contribute to
the welfare and blessing of the British Empire.
If this mistaken impression could
be removed, and if it could be announced as a fact
that the South African League, as far as its actions
in the South African Republic are concerned, is only
an organisation having as its object the fomentation
of strife and disorder and the destruction of the
independence of the country, then it would very soon
lose its influence, and the strained relations existing
between the two Governments would quickly disappear.
The Africander population of this country would not
then be under the apprehension that the interests of
the British Empire imperatively demand that the Republic
should be done away with and its people be either
enslaved or exterminated. Both
sections of the white inhabitants of South Africa would
then return to the fraternal co-operation and fusion
which was beginning to manifest itself when the treacherous
conspiracy at the end of 1895 awakened the passions
on both sides.
APPENDIX D.
THE FINAL DISPATCH OF MR. STATE SECRETARY REITZ.
ENCLOSURE.
DEPARTMENT FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS, GOVERNMENT
OFFICE, PRETORIA, 3rd March, 1899.
Sir,
Acknowledging the receipt of your
letter of the 11th inst. re the meeting of
the South African League held in the Amphitheatre at
Johannesburg on the 14th January, 1899, I have the
honour to communicate the following to you.
The complaint that the Government,
or its duly authorised officials, have acted with
partiality in this matter is entirely devoid of truth,
and this Government regrets that such an unfounded
and insulting accusation should have been made nearly
a month after the occurrence in question.
Messrs. Dodd and Webb have been duly
arrested and committed for trial on account of what
took place on the 24th December, 1898, upon sworn
affidavits which left nothing else for the proper officials
to do but to prosecute.
With reference to the Amphitheatre
occurrence, not a single British subject has lodged
a sworn complaint against anybody with the proper
officials, so that it can hardly be expected that this
Government should now take any steps against the alleged
disturbers of the peace.
Regarding the accusation that officials
of this Government have contributed to the instigation
of uproar on the said occasion, this Government can
only state that no complaints have been made to it
or the proper authorities, either from British subjects
or from subjects of other Powers, so that this Government,
to its regret, can do nothing in this matter.
In case, however, of such complaints being lodged with
the proper authorities, the Courts of the country
are open to them.
I have the honour to be, Sir, Your
obedient servant, F.W. REITZ, State Secretary.
To THE HON. CUNYNGHAME GREENE, C.B.,
British Agent, Pretoria.
APPENDIX E.
CONVENTIONS BETWEEN HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN AND THE
TRANSVAAL OR SOUTH
AFRICAN REPUBLIC.
SAND RIVER CONVENTION, 1852.
Minutes of a meeting held in the place
of Mr. P.A. Venter, Sand River, on Friday, the
sixteenth day of January, 1852, between Major W. Hogge
and C.M. Owen, Esq., Her Majesty’s Assistant
Commissioners, for the settling and adjusting of the
affairs of the eastern and north-eastern boundaries
of the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope on the one part,
and the following deputation from the emigrant farmers
residing north of the Vaal River:
A.W.J. PRETORIUS, Commandant-General.
H.S. LOMBARD, Landdrost.
W.F. JOUBERT, Commandant-General.
G.J. KRUGER, Commandant.
J.N. GROBBELAAR, Raadslid.
P.E. SCHOLTZ.
P.G. WOLMARANS, Ouderling.
J.A. VAN ASWEGAN, Veld-cornet.
F.J. BOTES, do.
N.J.S. BASSON, do.
J.P. FURSTENBERG, do.
J.P. PRETORIUS.
J.H. GROBBELAAR.
J.M. LEHMAN.
P. SCHUTTE.
J.C. KLOPPERS: on the other part.
The Assistant Commissioners guarantee
in the fullest manner, on the part of the British
Government, to the emigrant farmers beyond the Vaal
River the right to maintain their own affairs, and
to govern themselves according to their own laws without
any interference on the part of the British Government,
and that no encroachment shall be made by the said
Government on the territory beyond to the north of
the Vaal River, with the further assurance that the
warmest wish of the British Government is to promote
peace, free trade, and friendly intercourse with the
emigrant farmers now inhabiting or who hereafter may
inhabit that country, it being understood that this
system of non-interference is binding upon both parties.
Should any misunderstanding hereafter
arise as to the true meaning of the words “the
Vaal River,” this question in so far as regards
the line from the source of that river over the Drakenberg
shall be settled and adjusted by Commissioners chosen
by both parties.
Her Majesty’s Assistant Commissioners
hereby disclaim all alliances whatever and with whomsoever
of the coloured nations to the north of the Vaal River.
It is agreed that no slavery is or
shall be permitted or practised in the country to
the north of the Vaal River by the emigrant farmers.
Mutual facilities and liberties shall
be afforded to traders and travellers on both sides
of the Vaal River, it being understood that every
waggon containing ammunition and firearms coming from
the south side of the Vaal River shall produce a certificate
signed by a British magistrate or other functionary
duly authorised to grant such, and which shall state
the quantities of such articles contained in said waggon
to the nearest magistrate north of the Vaal River,
who shall act in the case as the regulations of the
emigrant farmers direct. It is agreed that no
objection shall be made by any British authority against
the emigrant Boers purchasing their supplies of ammunition
in any of the British Colonies and possessions of
South Africa, it being mutually understood that all
trade in ammunition with the native tribes is prohibited
both by the British Government and the emigrant farmers
on both sides of the Vaal River.
It is agreed that so far as possible
all criminals and other guilty parties who may fly
from justice either way across the Vaal River shall
be mutually delivered up if such should be required,
and that the British courts as well as those of the
emigrant farmers shall be mutually open to each other
for all legitimate processes, and that summonses for
witnesses sent either way across the Vaal River shall
be backed by the magistrates, on each side of the
same respectively, to compel the attendance of such
witnesses when required.
It is agreed that certificates of
marriage issued by the proper authorities of the emigrant
farmers shall be held valid and sufficient to entitle
children of such marriages to receive portions accruing
to them in any British Colony or possession in South
Africa.
It is agreed that any and every person
now in possession of land, and residing in British
territory, shall have free right and power to sell
his said property and remove unmolested across the
Vaal River, and vice versa, it being distinctly
understood that this arrangement does not comprehend
criminals or debtors, without providing for the payment
of their just and lawful debts.
This done and signed at Sand River
aforesaid, this 17th day of January, 1852.
(Signed) A.W.J. PRETORIUS, Comdt.-General.
H.S. LOMBARD, Landdrost.
W.F. JOUBERT, Commandant-General.
G.J. KRUGER, Commandant.
W.I. HOGGE, Assistant Commissioner.
C. MOSTYN OWEN, Assistant Commissioner.
J.N. GROBBELAAR, R.L.
P.E. SCHOLTZ.
P.G. WOLMARANS, Ouderling.
J.A. VAN ASWEGAN, Veld Cornet.
F.J. BOTES.
N.J.S. BASSON, Veld Cornet.
J.P. FURSTENBERG, Veld Cornet.
J.P. PRETORIUS.
J.H. GROBBELAAR.
J.M. LEHMAN.
P. SCHUTTE.
J.C. KLOPPERS.
In presence of
(Signed) JOHN BURNET,
Clerk to the Civil Commissioner of Winburg.
(Signed) J.H. VISAGIE, Secretary.
CONVENTION OF PRETORIA, 1881.
Preamble. Her Majestys Commissioners for the
Settlement of the Transvaal territory, duly appointed as such by a Commission
passed under the Royal Sign Manual and Signet, bearing date the 5th of April,
1881, do hereby undertake and guarantee on behalf of Her Majesty that, from and
after the 8th day of August, 1881, complete self-government, subject to the
suzerainty of Her Majesty, her heirs and successors, will be accorded to the
inhabitants of the Transvaal territory, upon the following terms and conditions,
and subject to the following reservations and limitations:
Article I. The said territory, to
be hereinafter called the Transvaal State, will embrace
the land lying between the following boundaries, to
wit: [here follow three pages in print defining
boundaries.]
Article 2. Her Majesty reserves
to herself, her heirs and successors (a),
the right from time to time to appoint a British Resident
in and for the said State, with such duties and functions
as are hereinafter defined; (b), the right
to move troops through the said State in time of war,
or in case of the apprehension of immediate war between
the Suzerain Power and any Foreign State or Native
Tribe in South Africa; and (c) the control
of the external relations of the said State, including
the conclusion of treaties and the conduct of diplomatic
intercourse with Foreign Powers, such intercourse to
be carried on through Her Majesty’s diplomatic
and consular officers abroad.
Article 3. Until altered by the
Volksraad, or other competent authority, all laws,
whether passed before or after the Annexation of the
Transvaal territory to Her Majesty’s dominions,
shall, except in so far as they are inconsistent with
or repugnant to the provisions of this Convention,
be and remain in force in the said State in so far
as they shall be applicable thereto, provided that
no future enactment especially affecting the interest
of natives shall have any force or effect in the said
State, without the consent of Her Majesty, her heirs
and successors, first had and obtained and signified
to the Government of the said State through the British
Resident, provided further that in no case will the
repeal or amendment of any laws enacted since the
Annexation have a retrospective effect, so as to invalidate
any acts done or liabilities incurred by virtue of
such laws.
Article 4. On the 8th day of
August, 1881, the Government of the said State, together
with all rights and obligations thereto appertaining,
and all State property taken over at the time of Annexation,
save and except munitions of war, will be handed over
to Messrs. Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, Martinus
Wessel Pretorius, and Petrus Jacobus Joubert, or the
survivor or survivors of them, who will forthwith cause
a Volksraad to be elected and convened, and the Volksraad,
thus elected and convened, will decide as to the further
administration of the Government of the said State.
Article 5. All sentences passed
upon persons who may be convicted of offences contrary
to the rules of civilised warfare committed during
the recent hostilities will be duly carried out, and
no alteration or mitigation of such sentences will
be made or allowed by the Government of the Transvaal
State without Her Majesty’s consent conveyed
through the British Resident. In case there shall
be any prisoners in any of the gaols of the Transvaal
State whose respective sentences of imprisonment have
been remitted in part by Her Majesty’s Administrator
or other officer administering the Government, such
remission will be recognised and acted upon by the
future Government of the said State.
Article 6. Her Majesty’s
Government will make due compensation for all losses
or damage sustained by reason of such acts as are in
the 8th Article hereinafter specified, which may have
been committed by Her Majesty’s forces during
the recent hostilities, except for such losses or
damage as may already have been compensated for; and
the Government of the Transvaal State will make due
compensation for all losses or damage sustained by
reason of such acts as are in the 8th Article hereinafter
specified, which may have been committed by the people
who were in arms against Her Majesty during the recent
hostilities, except for such losses or damages as
may already have been compensated for.
Article 7. The decision of all
claims for compensation, as in the last preceding
article mentioned, will be referred to a Sub-Commission,
consisting of the Honourable George Hudson, the Honourable
Jacobus Petrus de Wet, and the Honourable John Gilbert
Kotze. In case one or more of such Sub-Commissioners
shall be unable or unwilling to act the remaining
Sub-Commissioner or Sub-Commissioners will, after consultation
with the Government of the Transvaal State, submit
for the approval of Her Majesty’s High Commissioner
the names of one or more persons to be appointed by
them to fill the place or places thus vacated.
The decision of the said Sub-Commissioners, or of
a majority of them, will be final. The said Sub-Commissioners
will enter upon and perform their duties with all
convenient speed. They will, before taking evidence
or ordering evidence to be taken in respect of any
claim, decide whether such claim can be entertained
at all under the rules laid down in the next succeeding
Article. In regard to claims which can be so entertained
the Sub-Commissioners will, in the first instance,
afford every facility for an amicable arrangement
as to the amount payable in respect of any claim,
and only in cases in which there is no reasonable ground
for believing that an immediate amicable arrangement
can be arrived at will they take evidence or order
evidence to be taken. For the purpose of taking
evidence and reporting thereon, the Sub-Commissioners
may appoint Deputies, who will, without delay, submit
records of the evidence and their reports to the Sub-Commissioners.
The Sub-Commissioners will arrange their sittings
and the sittings of their Deputies in such a manner
as to afford the earliest convenience to the parties
concerned and their witnesses. In no case will
costs be allowed to either side, other than the actual
and reasonable expenses of witnesses whose evidence
is certified by the Sub-Commissioners to have been
necessary. Interest will not run on the amount
of any claim, except as is hereinafter provided for.
The said Sub-Commissioners will forthwith, after deciding
upon any claim, announce their decision to the Government
against which the award is made and to the claimant.
The amount of remuneration payable to the Sub-Commissioners
and their Deputies will be determined by the High
Commissioners. After all the claims have been
decided upon, the British Government and the Government
of the Transvaal State will pay proportionate shares
of the said remuneration and of the expenses of the
Sub-Commissioners and their Deputies, according to
the amount awarded against them respectively.
Article 8. For the purpose of
distinguishing claims to be accepted from those to
be rejected, the Sub-Commissioners will be guided by
the following rules, viz.: Compensation
will be allowed for losses or damage sustained by
reason of the following acts committed during the
recent hostilities, viz., (a), commandering,
seizure, confiscation, or destruction of property,
or damage done to property; (b), violence done
or threats used by persons in arms. In regard
to acts under (a), compensation will be allowed
for direct losses only. In regard to acts falling
under (b), compensation will be allowed for
actual losses of property, or actual injury to the
same proved to have been caused by its enforced abandonment.
No claims for indirect losses, except such as are
in this Article specially provided for, will be entertained.
No claims which have been handed in to the Secretary
of the Royal Commission after the 1st day of July,
1881, will be entertained, unless the Sub-Commissioners
shall be satisfied that the delay was reasonable.
When claims for loss of property are considered, the
Sub-Commissioners will require distinct proof of the
existence of the property, and that it neither has
reverted nor will revert to the claimant.
Article 9. The Government of
the Transvaal State will pay and satisfy the amount
of every claim awarded against it within one month
after the Sub-Commissioners shall have notified their
decision to the said Government, and in default of
such payment the said Government will pay interest
at the rate of six per cent. per annum from the date
of such default; but Her Majesty’s Government
may at any time before such payment pay the amount,
with interest, if any, to the claimant in satisfaction
of his claim, and may add the sum thus paid to any
debt which may be due by the Transvaal State to Her
Majesty’s Government, as hereinafter provided
for.
Article 10. The Transvaal State
will be liable for the balance of the debts for which
the South African Republic was liable at the date of
Annexation, to wit, the sum of L48,000 in respect of
the Cape Commercial Bank Loan, and L85,667 in respect
to the Railway Loan, together with the amount due
on 8th August, 1881, on account of the Orphan Chamber
Debt, which now stands at L22,200, which debts will
be a first charge upon the revenues of the State.
The Transvaal State will, moreover, be liable for
the lawful expenditure lawfully incurred for the necessary
expenses of the Province since the Annexation, to
wit, the sum of L265,000, which debt, together with
such debts as may be incurred by virtue of the 9th
Article, will be second charge upon the revenues of
the State.
Article 11. The debts due as
aforesaid by the Transvaal State to Her Majesty’s
Government will bear interest at the rate of three
and a-half per cent., and any portion of such debt
as may remain unpaid at the expiration of twelve months
from the 8th August, 1881, shall be repayable by a
payment for interest and sinking fund of six pounds
and ninepence per cent, per annum, which will extinguish
the debt in twenty-five years. The said payment
of six pounds and ninepence per L100 shall be payable
half yearly in British currency on the 8th February
and 8th August in each year. Provided always
that the Transvaal State shall pay in reduction of
the said debt the sum of L100,000 within twelve months
of the 8th August, 1881, and shall be at liberty at
the close of any half year to pay off the whole or
any portion of the outstanding debt.
Article 12. All persons holding
property in the said State on the 8th day of August,
1881, will continue after the said date to enjoy the
rights of property which they have enjoyed since the
Annexation. No person who has remained loyal
to Her Majesty during the recent hostilities shall
suffer any molestation by reason of his loyalty, or
be liable to any criminal prosecution or civil action
for any part taken in connexion with such hostilities,
and all such persons will have full liberty to reside
in the country, with enjoyment of all civil rights,
and protection for their persons and property.
Article 13. Natives will be allowed
to acquire land, but the grant or transfer of such
land will, in every case, be made to and registered
in the name of the Native Location Commission, hereinafter
mentioned, in trust for such natives.
Article 14. Natives will be allowed
to move as freely within the country as may be consistent
with the requirements of public order, and to leave
it for the purpose of seeking employment elsewhere
or for other lawful purposes, subject always to the
pass laws of the said State, as amended by the Legislature
of the Province, or as may hereafter be enacted under
the provisions of the Third Article of this Convention.
Article 15. There will continue
to be complete freedom of religion and protection
from molestation for all denominations, provided the
same be not inconsistent with morality and good order,
and no disability shall attach to any person in regard
to rights of property by reason of the religious opinions
which he holds.
Article 16. The provisions of
the Fourth Article of the Sand River Convention are
hereby re-affirmed, and no slavery or apprenticeship
partaking of slavery will be tolerated by the Government
of the said State.
Article 17. The British Resident
will receive from the Government of the Transvaal
State such assistance and support as can by law be
given to him for the due discharge of his functions;
he will also receive every assistance for the proper
care and preservation of the graves of such of Her
Majesty’s forces as have died in the Transvaal,
and if need be, for the expropriation of land for
the purpose.
Article 18. The following will be the duties and
functions of the British Resident:
Sub-section 1. He will perform
duties and functions analogous to those discharged
by a Charge d’Affaires and Consul-General.
Sub-section 2. In regard to natives
within the Transvaal State he will (a) report
to the High Commissioner, as representative of the
Suzerain, as to the working and observance of the provisions
of this Convention; (b), report to the Transvaal
authorities any cases of ill-treatment of natives
or attempts to incite natives to rebellion that may
come to his knowledge; (c), use his influence
with the natives in favour of law and order; and (d),
generally perform such other duties as are by this
Convention entrusted to him, and take such steps for
the protection of the person and property of natives
as are consistent with the laws of the land.
Sub-section 3. In regard to natives
not residing in the Transvaal (a) he will report
to the High Commissioner and the Transvaal Government
any encroachments reported to him as having been made
by Transvaal residents upon the land of such natives,
and in case of disagreement between the Transvaal
Government and the British Resident as to whether an
encroachment has been made, the decision of the Suzerain
will be final; (b) the British Resident will
be the medium of communication with native chiefs
outside the Transvaal, and, subject to the approval
of the High Commissioner, as representing the Suzerain,
he will control the conclusion of treaties with them;
and (c) he will arbitrate upon every dispute
with Transvaal residents and natives outside the Transvaal
(as to acts committed beyond the boundaries of the
Transvaal) which may be referred to him by the parties
interested.
Sub-section 4. In regard to communications
with foreign powers, the Transvaal Government will
correspond with Her Majesty’s Government through
the British Resident and the High Commissioner.
Article 19. The Government of
the Transvaal State will strictly adhere to the boundaries
defined in the First Article of this Convention, and
will do its utmost to prevent any of its inhabitants
from making any encroachment upon lands beyond the
said State. The Royal Commission will forthwith
appoint a person who will beacon off the boundary line
between Ramatlabama and the point where such line
first touches Griqualand West boundary, midway between
the Vaal and Hart Rivers; the person so appointed
will be instructed to make an arrangement between the
owners of the farms Grootfontein and Valleifontein
on the one hand, and the Barolong authorities on the
other, by which a fair share of the water supply of
the said farms shall be allowed to flow undisturbed
to the said Barolongs.
Article 20. All grants or titles
issued at any time by the Transvaal Government in
respect of land outside the boundary of Transvaal State,
as defined, Article 1, shall be considered invalid
and of no effect, except in so far as any such grant
or title relates to land that falls within the boundary
of the Transvaal State, and all persons holding any
such grant so considered invalid and of no effect will
receive from the Government of the Transvaal State
such compensation either in land or in money as the
Volksraad shall determine. In all cases in which
any native chiefs or other authorities outside the
said boundaries have received any adequate consideration
from the Government of the former South African Republic
for land excluded from the Transvaal by the First
Article of this Convention, or where permanent improvements
have been made on the land, the British Resident will,
subject to the approval of the High Commissioner,
use his influence to recover from the native authorities
fair compensation for the loss of the land thus excluded,
and of the permanent improvement thereon.
Article 21. Forthwith, after
the taking effect of this Convention, a Native Location
Commission will be constituted, consisting of the
President, or in his absence the Vice-President, of
the State, or some one deputed by him, the Resident,
or some one deputed by him, and a third person to
be agreed upon by the President or the Vice-President,
as the case may be, and the Resident, and such Commission
will be a standing body for the performance of the
duties hereinafter mentioned.
Article 22. The Native Location
Commission will reserve to the native tribes of the
State such locations as they may be fairly and equitably
entitled to, due regard being had to the actual occupation
of such tribes. The Native Location Commission
will clearly define the boundaries of such locations,
and for that purpose will, in every instance, first
of all ascertain the wishes of the parties interested
in such land. In case land already granted in
individual titles shall be required for the purpose
of any location, the owners will receive such compensation
either in other land or in money as the Volksraad shall
determine. After the boundaries of any location
have been fixed, no fresh grant of land within such
location will be made, nor will the boundaries be
altered without the consent of the Location Commission.
No fresh grants of land will be made in the districts
of Waterberg, Zoutpansberg, and Lydenburg until the
locations in the said districts respectively shall
have been defined by the said Commission.
Article 23. If not released before
the taking effect of this Convention, Sikukuni, and
those of his followers who have been imprisoned with
him, will be forthwith released, and the boundaries
of his location will be defined by the Native Location
Commission in the manner indicated in the last preceding
Article.
Article 24. The independence
of the Swazies within the boundary line of Swaziland,
as indicated in the First Article of this Convention,
will be fully recognised.
Article 25. No other or higher
duties will be imposed on the importation into the
Transvaal State of any article, the produce or manufacture
of the dominions and possessions of Her Majesty, from
whatever place arriving, than are or may be payable
on the like article, the produce or manufacture of
any other country, nor will any prohibition be maintained
or imposed on the importation of any article, the
produce or manufacture of the dominions and possessions
of Her Majesty, which shall not equally extend to
the importation of the like articles, being the produce
or manufacture of any other country.
Article 26. All persons other
than natives conforming themselves to the laws of
the Transvaal State (a) will have full liberty
with their families to enter, travel, or reside in
any part of the Transvaal State; (b) they will
be entitled to hire or possess houses, manufactures,
warehouses, shops, and premises; (c) they may
carry on their commerce either in person or by any
agents whom they may think to employ; (d) they
will not be subject in respect of their persons or
property, or in respect of their commerce or industry,
to any taxes, whether general or local, other than
those which are or may be imposed upon Transvaal citizens.
Article 27. All inhabitants of
the Transvaal shall have free access to the Courts
of Justice for the protection and defence of their
rights.
Article 28. All persons other
than natives who established their domicile in the
Transvaal between the 12th day of April, 1877, and
the date when this Convention conies into effect,
and who shall within twelve months after such last-mentioned
date have their names registered by the British Resident,
shall be exempt from all compulsory military service
whatever. The Resident shall notify such registration
to the Government of the Transvaal State.
Article 29. Provision shall hereafter
be made by a separate instrument for the mutual extradition
of criminals, and also for the surrender of deserters
from Her Majesty’s forces.
Article 30. All debts contracted
since the Annexation will be payable in the same currency
in which they may have been contracted; all uncancelled
postage and other revenue stamps issued by the Government
since the Annexation will remain valid, and will be
accepted at their present value by the future Government
of the State; all licenses duly issued since the Annexation
will remain in force during the period for which they
may have been issued.
Article 31. No grants of land
which may have been made, and no transfer of mortgage
which may have been passed since the Annexation, will
be invalidated by reason merely of their having been
made or passed since that date. All transfers
to the British Secretary for Native Affairs in trust
for natives will remain in force, the Native Location
Commission taking the place of such Secretary for
Native Affairs.
Article 32. This Convention will
be ratified by a newly-elected Volksraad within the
period of three months after its execution, and in
default of such ratification this Convention shall
be null and void.
Article 33. Forthwith, after
the ratification of this Convention, as in the last
preceding Article mentioned, all British troops in
Transvaal territory will leave the same, and the mutual
delivery of munitions of war will be carried out.
Articles end. Here will follow
signatures of Royal Commissioners; then the following,
to precede signatures of triumvirate.
We, the undersigned, Stephanus Johannes
Paulus Krugen Martinus Wessel Pretorius, and Petrus
Jacobus Joubert, as representatives of the Transvaal
Burghers, do hereby agree to all the above conditions,
reservations, and limitations under which self-government
has been restored to the inhabitants of the Transvaal
territory, subject to the suzerainty of Her Majesty,
her heirs and successors, and we agree to accept the
Government of the said territory, with all rights and
obligations thereto appertaining, on the 8th day of
August; and we promise and undertake that this Convention
shall be ratified by a newly-elected Volksraad of
the Transvaal State within three months from this
date.
LONDON CONVENTION, 1884.
A CONVENTION BETWEEN HER MAJESTY THE
QUEEN OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND
AND THE SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC.
Whereas the Government of the Transvaal
State, through its Delegates, consisting of Stephanus
Johannes Paulus Kruger, President of the said State,
Stephanus Jacobus Du Toit, Superintendent
of Education, and Nicholas Jacobus Smit, a member
of the Volksraad, have represented that the Convention
signed at Pretoria on the 3rd day of August, 1881,
and ratified by the Volksraad of the said State on
the 25th October, 1881, contains certain provisions
which are inconvenient, and imposes burdens and obligations
from which the said State is desirous to be relieved,
and that the south-western boundaries fixed by the
said Convention should be amended, with a view to
promote the peace and good order of the said State,
and of the countries adjacent thereto; and whereas
Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland has been pleased to take the said
representations into consideration: Now, therefore,
Her Majesty has been pleased to direct, and it is hereby
declared, that the following articles of a new Convention,
signed on behalf of Her Majesty by Her Majesty’s
High Commissioner in South Africa, the Right Honourable
Sir Hercules George Robert Robinson, Knight Grand
Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael
and Saint George, Governor of the Colony of the Cape
of Good Hope, and on behalf of the Transvaal State
(which shall hereinafter be called the South African
Republic) by the above-named Delegates, Stephanus Johannes
Paulus Kruger, Stephanos Jacobus Du Toit,
and Nicholas Jacobus Smit, shall, when ratified by
the Volksraad of the South African Republic, be substituted
for the articles embodied in the Convention of 3rd
August, 1881; which latter, pending such ratification,
shall continue in full force and effect.
Article 1. The Territory of the South African Republic
will embrace the land lying between the following boundaries, to wit:
Beginning from the point where the
north-eastern boundary line of Griqualand meets the
Vaal River, up the course of the Vaal River to the
point of junction with it of the Klip River; thence
up the course of the Klip River to the point of junction
with it of the stream called Gansvlei; thence up the
Gansvlei stream to its source in the Drakensberg;
thence to a beacon in the boundary of Natal, situated
immediately opposite and close to the source of the
Gansvlei stream; thence in a north-easterly direction
along the ridge of the Drakensberg, dividing the waters
flowing into the Gansvlei stream from the waters flowing
into the sources of the Buffalo, to a beacon on a point
where this mountain ceases to be a continuous chain;
thence to a beacon on a plain to the north-east of
the last described beacon; thence to the nearest source
of a small stream called “Division Stream”;
thence down this division stream, which forms the
southern boundary of the farm Sandfontein, the property
of Messrs. Meek, to its junction with the Coldstream;
thence down the Coldstream to its junction with the
Buffalo or Umzinyati River; thence down the course
of the Buffalo River to the junction with it of the
Blood River; thence up the course of the Blood River
to the junction with it of Lyn Spruit or Dudusi; thence
up the Dudusi to its source; thence 80 yards to Bea.
I., situated on a spur of the N’Qaba-Ka-hawana
Mountains; thence 80 yards to the N’Sonto River;
thence down the N’Sonto River to its junction
with the White Umvulozi River; thence up the White
Umvulozi River to a white rock where it rises; thence
800 yards to Kambula Hill (Bea. II.); thence to
the source of the Pemvana River, where the road from
Kambula Camp to Burgers’ Lager crosses; thence
down the Pemvana River to its junction with the Bivana
River; thence down the Bivana River to its junction
with the Pongolo River; thence down the Pongolo River
to where it passes through the Libombo Range; thence
along the summits of the Libombo Range to the northern
point of the N’Yawos Hill in that range (Bea.
XVI.); thence to the northern peak of the Inkwakweni
Hills (Bea. XV.); thence to Sefunda, a rocky
knoll detached from and to the north-east end of the
White Koppies, and to the south of the Musana River
(Bea. XIV.); thence to a point on the slope near
the crest of Matanjeni, which is the name given to
the south-eastern portion of the Mahamba Hills (Bea.
XIII.); thence to the N’gwangwana, a double-pointed
hill (one point is bare, the other wooded, the beacon
being on the former) on the left bank of the Assegai
River and upstream of the Dadusa Spruit (Bea.
XII.); thence to the southern point of Bendita, a
rocky knoll in a plain between the Little Hlozane
and Assegaai Rivers (Bea. XI.); thence to the
highest point of Suluka Hill, round the eastern slopes
of which flows the Little Hlozane, also called Ludaka
or Mudspruit (Bea. X.); thence to the beacon known
as “Viljoen’s,” or N’Duko
Hill; thence to a point north-east of Derby House,
known as Magwazidili’s Beacon; thence to the
Igaba, a small knoll on the Ungwempisi River, also
called “Joubert’s Beacon,” and known
to the natives as “Piet’s Beacon”
(Bea. IX.); thence to the highest point of the
N’Dhlovudwalili or Houtbosch, a hill on the northern
bank of the Umqwempisi River (Bea. VIII.); thence
to a beacon on the only flat-topped rock, about 10
feet high and about 30 yards in circumference at its
base, situated on the south side of the Lamsamane range
of hills, and overlooking the valley of the great
Usuto River, this rock being 45 yards north of the
road from Camden and Lake Banagher to the forests on
the Usuto River (sometimes called Sandhlanas Beacon)
(Bea. VII.); thence to the Gulungwana or Ibubulundi,
four smooth bare hills, the highest in that neighbourhood,
situated to the south of the Umtuli River (Bea.
VI.); thence to a flat-topped rock, 8 feet high, on
the crest of the Busuku, a low rocky range south-west
of the Impulazi River (Bea. V.); thence to a
low bare hill on the north-east of and overlooking
the Impulazi River, to the south of it being a tributary
of the Impulazi, with a considerable waterfall, and
the road from the river passing 200 yards to the north-west
of the beacon (Bea. IV.); thence to the highest
point of the Mapumula range, the watershed of the Little
Usuto River on the north, and the Umpulazi River on
the south, the hill, the top of which is a bare rock,
falling abruptly towards the Little Usuto (Bea.
III.); thence to the western point of a double-pointed
rocky hill, precipitous on all sides, called Makwana,
its top being a bare rock (Bea. II.); thence
to the top of a rugged hill of considerable height
falling abruptly to the Komati River, this hill being
the northern extremity of the Isilotwani range, and
separated from the highest peak of the range Inkomokazi
(a sharp cone) by a deep neck (Bea. I.). (On a
ridge in the straight line between Beacons I. and II.
is an intermediate beacon). From Beacon I. the
boundary runs to a hill across the Komati River, and
thence along the crest of the range of hills known
as the Makongwa, which runs north-east and south-west,
to Kamhlubano Peak; thence in a straight line to Mananga,
a point in the Libombo Range, and thence to the nearest
point in the Portuguese frontier on the Libombo Range;
thence along the summits of the Libombo Range to the
middle of the poort where the Komati River passes
through it, called the lowest Komati Poort; thence
in a north by easterly direction to Pokioens Kop,
situated on the north side of the Olifant’s
River, where it passes through the ridges; thence
about north north-west to the nearest point of Serra
di Chicundo; and thence to the junction of the
Pafori River with the Limpopo or Crocodile River;
thence up the course of the Limpopo River to the point
where the Marique River falls into it. Thence
up the course of the Marique River to “Derde
Poort,” where it passes through a low range
of hills, called Sikwane, a beacon (No 10) being erected
on the spur of said range near to and westward of
the banks of the river; thence in a straight line
through this beacon to a beacon (No 9) erected on
the top of the same range, about 1,700 yards distant
from beacon No 10; thence in a straight line to a
beacon (No 8) erected on the highest point of an
isolated hill called Dikgagong, or “Wildebeest
Kop,” situated south-eastward of and about 3-1/3
miles distant from a high hill called Moripe; thence
in a straight line to a beacon (No 7) erected on
the summit of an isolated hill or “koppie”
forming the eastern extremity of the range of hills
called Moshweu, situated to the northward of and about
two miles distant from a large isolated hill called
Chukudu-Chochwa; thence in a straight line to a beacon
(No 6) erected on the summit of a hill forming part
of the same range, Moshweu; thence in a straight line
to a beacon (No 5) erected on the summit of a pointed
hill in the same range; thence in a straight line to
a beacon (No 4) erected on the summit of the western
extremity of the same range; thence in a straight
line to a beacon (No 3) erected on the summit of
the northern extremity of a low, bushy hill, or “koppie,”
near to and eastward of the Notwane River; thence
in a straight line to the junction of the stream called
Metsi-Mash wane with the Notwane River (No 2); thence
up the course of the Notwane River to Sengoma, being
the Poort where the river passes through the Dwarsberg
Range; thence, as described in the Award given by
Lieutenant-Governor Keate, dated October 17, 1871,
by Pitlanganyane (narrow place), Deboaganka or Schaapkuil,
Sibatoul (bare place), and Maclase to Ramatlabama,
a pool on a spruit north of the Molopo River.
From Ramatlabama the boundary shall run to the summit
of an isolated hill, called Leganka; thence in a straight
line, passing north-east of a Native Station, near
“Buurman’s Drift,” on the Molopo
River, to that point on the road from Mosiega to the
old drift, where a road turns out through the Native
Station to the new drift below; thence to “Buurman’s
Old Drift”; thence in a straight line to a marked
and isolated clump of trees near to and north-west
of the dwelling-house of C. Austin, a tenant on the
farm “Vleifontein,” No 117; thence in
a straight line to the north-western corner beacon
of the farm “Mooimeisjesfontein,” No
30; thence along the western line of the said farm
“Mooimeisjesfontein,” and in prolongation
thereof, as far as the road leading from “Ludik’s
Drift,” on the Molopo River, past the homestead
of “Mooimeisjesfontein” towards the Salt
Pans near Harts River; thence along the said road,
crossing the direct road from Polfontein to Sehuba,
and until the direct road from Polfontein to Lotlakane
or Pietfontein is reached; thence along the southern
edge of the last-named road towards Lotlakane until
the first garden grounds of that station is reached;
thence in a south-westerly direction, skirting Lotlakane,
so as to leave it and all its garden ground in native
territory, until the road from Lotlakane to Kunana
is reached; thence along the east side, and clear
of that road towards Kunana, until the garden grounds
of that station are reached; thence, skirting Kunana,
so as to include it and all its garden ground, but
no more, in the Transvaal, until the road from Kunana
to Mamusa is reached; thence along the eastern side
and clear of the road towards Mamusa, until a road
turns out towards Taungs; thence along the eastern
side and clear of the road towards Taungs, till the
line of the district known as “Stellaland”
is reached, about 11 miles from Taungs; thence along
the line of the district Stellaland to the Harts River,
about 24 miles below Mamusa; thence across Harts River
to the junction of the roads from Monthe and Phokwane;
thence along the western side and clear of the nearest
road towards “Koppie Enkel,” an isolated
hill about 36 miles from Mamusa, and about 18 miles
north of Christiana, and to the summit of the said
hill; thence in a straight line to that point on the
north-east boundary of Griqualand West as beaconed
by Mr. Surveyor Ford, where two farms, registered
as Nos 72 and 75, do meet, about midway between
the Vaal and Harts Rivers, measured along the said
boundary of Griqualand West; thence to the first point
where the north-east boundary of Griqualand West meets
the Vaal River.
Article 2. The Government of
the South African Republic will strictly adhere to
the boundaries defined in the first Article of this
Convention, and will do its utmost to prevent any of
its inhabitants from making any encroachments upon
lands beyond the said boundaries. The Government
of the South African Republic will appoint Commissioners
upon the eastern and western borders whose duty it
will be strictly to guard against irregularities and
all trespassing over the boundaries. Her Majesty’s
Government will, if necessary, appoint Commissioners
in the native territories outside the eastern and
western borders of the South African Republic to maintain
order and prevent encroachments.
Her Majesty’s Government and
the Government of the South African Republic will
each appoint a person to proceed together to beacon
off the amended south-west boundary as described in
Article 1 of this Convention; and the President of
the Orange Free State shall be requested to appoint
a referee to whom the said persons shall refer any
questions on which they may disagree respecting the
interpretation of the said Article, and the decision
of such referee thereon shall be final. The arrangement
already made, under the terms of Article 19 of the
Convention of Pretoria of the 3rd August, 1881, between
the owners of the farms Grootfontein and Valleifontein
on the one hand, and the Barolong authorities on the
other, by which a fair share of the water supply of
the said farms shall be allowed to flow undisturbed
to the said Barolongs, shall continue in force.
Article 3. If a British officer
is appointed to reside at Pretoria or elsewhere within
the South African Republic to discharge functions
analagous to those of a Consular officer he will receive
the protection and assistance of the Republic.
Article 4. The South African
Republic will conclude no treaty or engagement with
any State or nation other than the Orange Free State,
nor with any native tribe to the eastward or westward
of the Republic, until the same has been approved
by Her Majesty the Queen.
Such approval shall be considered
to have been granted if Her Majesty’s Government
shall not, within six months after receiving a copy
of such treaty (which shall be delivered to them immediately
upon its completion), have notified that the conclusion
of such treaty is in conflict with the interests of
Great Britain or of any of Her Majesty’s possessions
in South Africa.
Article 5. The South African
Republic will be liable for any balance which may
still remain due of the debts for which it was liable
at the date of Annexation, to wit, the Cape Commercial
Bank Loan, the Railway Loan, and the Orphan Chamber
Debt, which debts will be a first charge upon the
revenues of the Republic. The South African Republic
will moreover be liable to Her Majesty’s Government
for L250,000, which will be a second charge upon the
revenues of the Republic.
Article 6. The debt due as aforesaid
by the South African Republic to Her Majesty’s
Government will bear interest at the rate of three
and a-half per cent, from the date of the ratification
of this Convention, and shall be repayable by a payment
for interest and Sinking Fund of six pounds and ninepence
per L100 per annum, which will extinguish the debt
in twenty-five years. The said payment of six
pounds and ninepence per L100 shall be payable half-yearly,
in British currency, at the close of each half year
from the date of such ratification: Provided always
that the South African Republic shall be at liberty
at the close of any half year to pay off the whole
or any portion of the outstanding debt.
Interest at the rate of three and
a-half per cent, on the debt as standing under the
Convention of Pretoria shall, as heretofore, be paid
to the date of the ratification of this Convention.
Article 7. All persons who held
property in the Transvaal on the 8th day of August,
1881, and still hold the same, will continue to enjoy
the rights of property which they have enjoyed since
the 12th April, 1877. No person who has remained
loyal to Her Majesty during the late hostilities shall
suffer any molestation by reason of his loyalty; or
be liable to any criminal prosecution or civil action
for any part taken in connexion with such hostilities;
and all such persons will have full liberty to reside
in the country, with enjoyment of all civil rights,
and protection for their persons and property.
Article 8. The South African
Republic renews the declaration made in the Sand River
Convention, and in the Convention of Pretoria, that
no slavery or apprenticeship partaking of slavery
will be tolerated by the Government of the said Republic.
Article 9. There will continue
to be complete freedom of religion and protection
from molestation for all denominations, provided the
same be not inconsistent with morality and good order;
and no disability shall attach to any person in regard
to rights of property by reason of the religious opinions
which he holds.
Article 10. The British Officer
appointed to reside in the South African Republic
will receive every assistance from the Government of
the said Republic in making due provision for the
proper care and preservation of the graves of such
of Her Majesty’s Forces as have died in the
Transvaal; and if need be, for the appropriation of
land for the purpose.
Article 11. All grants or titles
issued at any time by the Transvaal Government in
respect of land outside the boundary of the South African
Republic, as defined in Article I, shall be considered
invalid and of no effect, except in so far as any
such grant or title relates to land that falls within
the boundary of the South African Republic; and all
persons holding any such grant so considered invalid
and of no effect will receive from the Government
of the South African Republic such compensation, either
in land or in money, as the Volksraad shall determine.
In all cases in which any Native Chiefs or other authorities
outside the said boundaries have received any adequate
consideration from the Government of the South African
Republic for land excluded from the Transvaal by the
first Article of this Convention, or where permanent
improvements have been made on the land, the High Commissioner
will recover from the native authorities fair compensation
for the loss of the land thus excluded, or of the
permanent improvements thereon.
Article 12. The independence
of the Swazis, within the boundary line of Swaziland,
as indicated in the first Article of this Convention,
will be fully recognised.
Article 13. Except in pursuance
of any treaty or engagement made as provided in Article
4 of this Convention, no other or higher duties shall
be imposed on the importation into the South African
Republic of any article coming from any part of Her
Majesty’s dominions than are or may be imposed
on the like article coming from any other place or
country; nor will any prohibition be maintained or
imposed on the importation into the South African
Republic of any article coming from any part of Her
Majesty’s dominions, which shall not equally
extend to the like article coming from any other place
or country. And in like manner the same treatment
shall be given to any article coming to Great Britain
from the South African Republic as to the like article
coming from any other place or country.
These provisions do not preclude the
consideration of special arrangements as to import
duties and commercial relations between the South
African Republic and any of Her Majesty’s colonies
or possessions.
Article 14. All persons, other
than natives, conforming themselves to the laws of
the South African Republic (a) will have full
liberty, with their families, to enter, travel, or
reside in any part of the South African Republic;
(b), they will be entitled to hire or possess
houses, manufactories, warehouses, shops, and premises;
(c) they may carry on their commerce either
in person or by any agents whom they may think fit
to employ; (d), they will not be subject, in
respect of their persons or property, or in respect
of their commerce or industry, to any taxes, whether
general or local, other than those which are or may
be imposed upon citizens of the said Republic.
Article 15. All persons, other
than natives, who established their domicile in the
Transvaal between the 12th day of April, 1877, and
the 8th August, 1881, and who within twelve months
after such last-mentioned date have had their names
registered by the British Resident, shall be exempt
from all compulsory military service whatever.
Article 16. Provision shall hereafter
be made by a separate instrument for the mutual extradition
of criminals, and also for the surrender of deserters
from Her Majesty’s Forces.
Article 17. All debts contracted
between the 12th April, 1877, and the 8th August,
1881, will be payable in the same currency in which
they may have been contracted.
Article 18. No grants of land
which may have been made, and no transfers or mortgages
which may have been passed between the 12th April,
1877, and the 8th August, 1881, will be invalidated
by reason merely of their having been made or passed
between such dates.
All transfers to the British Secretary
for Native Affairs in trust for natives will remain
in force, an officer of the South African Republic
taking the place of such Secretary for Native Affairs.
Article 19. The Government of
the South African Republic will engage faithfully
to fulfil the assurances given, in accordance with
the laws of the South African Republic, to the natives
at the Pretoria Pitso by the Royal Commission in the
presence of the Triumvirate and with their entire
assent (1), as to the freedom of the natives to buy
or otherwise acquire land under certain conditions;
(2), as to the appointment of a commission to mark
out native locations; (3), as to the access of the
natives to the courts of law; and (4) as to their being
allowed to move freely within the country, or to leave
it for any legal purpose, under a pass system.
Article 20. This Convention will
be ratified by a Volksraad of the South African Republic
within the period of six months after its execution,
and in default of such ratification this Convention
shall be null and void.
Signed in duplicate in London this
27th day of February, 1884.
(Signed) HERCULES ROBINSON.
(Signed) S.J.P. KRUGER.
(Signed) S.J. DU TOIT.
(Signed) M.J. SMIT.
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