History of South Africa from 1873 to 1884/Chapter 1
History of South Africa
From 1873 to 1884.
Chapter I.
Events in the Cape Colony from 1873 to 1876.
The modern history of South Africa may with good reason be regarded as commencing with the year 1873. The Cape Colony, the most important section of the country, then entered upon a career of progress undreamt of before the era of self-rule. Previous to 1873 the industries of the entire land were almost entirely agricultural and pastoral, for gold mining was carried on only in a very small way at the Tati and Eersteling, copper mining was confined to the secluded district of Namaqualand, and diamond digging consisted of nothing more than excavating holes from the surface of the ground. There were poor people, it is true, but the European inhabitants were very much nearer on an equality than in any state of Western Europe, and there were no white mendicants on one side and enormously wealthy capitalists on the other. The richest man in the country did not possess a quarter of a million pounds sterling. The general aspect was thus altogether different from what it is to-day, for the old dull, easy-going, happy condition of life has given place to the struggling anxious existence that is everywhere in evidence now. In short, we have been brought under the law that impels Europeans to struggle for knowledge and power, and have fallen into line with the most energetic communities of our race.
There have been many wars and droughts and disasters of various kinds in South Africa since 1873, yet the country has advanced with rapid strides in population, in commerce, and in many other respects. The Europeans were then only about 325,000 in number, namely in the Cape Colony 235,000, in the South African Republic 35,000, in the Orange Free State 27,000, in Natal 18,000, in Griqualand West 9,000, and scattered over territory occupied by independent Bantu tribes 1,000. The only railways, exclusive of the one in Namaqualand belonging to the Cape Copper Mining Company which was constructed and used solely for the purpose of transporting ore through the desert to Port Nolloth, were a line from Capetown through Stellenbosch and the Paarl to Wellington with a branch from Salt River to Wynberg in the Cape Colony, and one from the Point to Durban and on to the Umgeni in Natal, only about eleven kilometres or seven English miles in length. On the other hand the whole pubHc debt of the colonies and republics combined did not exceed £1,750,000.
Of the great Bantu military tribes that sprang into existence during the wars of Tshaka, only the Makololo had disappeared. The Zulus under Ketshwayo, the Matshangana under Umzila, and the Matabele under Lobengula were still threatening the peace of wide sections of the country and keeping their neighbours in a constant state of unrest. The various tribes between the rivers Kei and Umzimkulu, living under independent chiefs, were almost perpetually quarrelling with each other, and were far less subject to missionary and civilising influence than they have since become.
To those living uninterruptedly in the country the rapid change in its condition has not been so apparent as to those who have gone abroad for a few years and then returned; such persons often found themselves in a new and strange environment.
On the 24th of April 1873 the parliament of the Cape Colony met in Capetown, and as the ministry had taken care to have all the important bills to be introduced published in ample time to be studied carefully, there was no delay in proceeding to business. Provision was made for the preliminary work of construction of several lines of railroad and telegraphs, particularly for the survey of routes, that everything might be in readiness for final decision in the following year. Harbour improvements were also resolved upon, and a subsidy of £10,000 a year for ten years was promised to a company that undertook to lay down and keep in working order a submarine cable from the colony to Aden via Natal, Mauritius, and Zanzibar. This came to nothing, however, as the company failed to carry out its agreement. A bill for the amendment of the constitution by dividing the colony into seven circles instead of two provinces for the purpose of electing members of the legislative council was carried by a large majority in the house of assembly, but was thrown out by the casting vote of the president in the council. A voluntary bill, or bill to cease paying the salaries of clergymen by the government, was also passed by the assembly, but thrown out by the council. On the 26th of June parliament was prorogued, after the shortest session on record, but one in which much useful work was done.
One act of this session must be more particularly referred to. This was the creation of the university of the Cape of Good Hope, to supersede the old board of examiners. It was based upon the model of the London university, and was purely an examining body, with power to confer degrees. The first council consisted of Sir Sydney Smith Bell, chief justice of the Cape Colony, the reverend John Brebner, M.A., professor of classics, Gill college, the reverend James Cameron, B.A., LL.D., professor of classics, South African college, Langham Dale, B.A., LL.D., superintendent-general of education, the honourable John Henry de Villiers, attorney-general, Henry Anderson Ebden, M.D., president of the colonial medical committee, Charles Bletterman Elliott, holder of a first-class certificate in literature and science, the reverend Phihp Eduard Faure, D.D., moderator of the synod of the Dutch reformed church, the venerable Peter Parry Fogg, M.A., archdeacon of George, Francis Guthrie, B.A., LL.B., professor of mathematics, Graaff- Eeinet college, Johannes Zacharias Herman, M.D., the reverend William Impey, general superintendent of Wesleyan missions, the reverend Edward Judge, M.A., colonial chaplain, the reverend John Murray, professor of the theological seminary, Stellenbosch, the reverend George Ogilvie, M.A., principal of the diocesan college, William Porter, M.L.A., late attorney-general, the honourable Charles Abercrombie Smith, M.A., commissioner of crown lands and public works, the reverend David Smith, M.A., Peter Gordon Stewart, M.D., and Edward James Stone, M.A., astronomer royal.
The first meeting of the council took place on the 1st of September 1873, when Dr. Dale was elected vice chancellor and Mr. Cameron registrar. It was provided that as soon as the members of convocation should reach one hundred a chancellor should be elected. This condition was fulfilled in February 1876, when Mr. William Porter, the former attorney-general of the Cape Colony, whose name was one of the most respected in South Africa, was unanimously chosen to fill the position of honour. Mr. Porter was then residing in Ireland.
On the 8th of August 1877 her Majesty Queen Victoria was pleased, at the instance of Lord Carnarvon, who was then secretary of state for the colonies, to confer a royal charter on the university, thereby giving its degrees a status equal to those of any other in the empire.
To obtain the mechanics and labourers needed for con- structing the railways and other public works in contemplation, the reverend Thomas E. Fuller (later Sir Thomas) was sent as emigration agent to England. It was intended to employ Bantu to do the roughest of the work with the pick and wheelbarrow, but even for this European navvies were largely needed. It was also intended to assist private individuals who would guarantee fixed employment at stated wages, by engaging and sending out the men applied for, upon their depositing with the commissioner for crown lands and public works £7 towards the cost of passage of each statute adult. On the 3rd of November 1873 the first party of mechanics engaged by Mr. Fuller in England arrived. It consisted of thirty-seven men and twenty-eight women and children. This disproportion of the sexes was even more marked in parties that arrived at a later date, and it cannot be said that these immigrants added materially to the permanent European population of South Africa.
Within two years, or before the close of 1875, Mr. Fuller sent out 2,629 men, 230 women, and 260 children. A sufficient number of navvies could not be obtained in Great Britain, so several hundreds were engaged in Belgium and Germany. The proceeds of land sales in the colony were set apart to cover the cost of sending these people out. Most of them gave satisfaction by working well and behaving in an orderly manner, but a few caused much trouble by riotous conduct and going on strike. They had been accustomed to work in countries where house accommodation could always be had and where beer was obtainable without difficulty, and they objected to living in tents far away from the nearest habitations and having only coffee or tea to drink. These men managed to obtain Cape brandy, which they used to excess, so that it was often a relief when they absconded. But one of the grievances they put forward would certainly be regarded as well founded to-day: it was that they were required to work longer than fifty-two fifty-two hours and a half a week. In course of time the Bantu labourers became so expert that they only needed supervision, and then fewer white men were required except for mechanical purposes.
On the 1st of January of this year the existing line of railway from Capetown to Wellington was transferred to the government by the Company that owned it. The branch from Salt River to Wynberg, however, remained in private hands until July 1876, when it too became the property of the government. On the 1st of July 1873 the telegraphs were purchased also, and since that date have been exclusively owned by the state.
It was resolved that the gauge of the lines of railway about to be constructed should be 106.5 centimetres or 42 English inches. They were to run inland from Capetown, Port Elizabeth, and East London, so that none of these ports should be favoured more than either of the others. At the last named of these places Mr. J. C. Molteno, the prime minister of the colony, who was then making a tour through the eastern districts, on the 19th of August 1873 turned the first sod of the line to Queenstown, and also tilted the first load of stones for the breakwater.
In February 1873 a monthly mail service was commenced by the Union Company between Capetown and Aden, the steamships calling each way at Natal, Delagoa Bay, Mozambique, and Zanzibar.
At this time the mails between the Cape and England were conveyed twice monthly by the Union Company, under a contract which allowed thirty-seven days for the passage each way. As this contract would shortly expire, the imperial authorities entered provisionally into a new one with the same company to convey the mails to the 1st of January 1881 three times monthly each way, the passages not to exceed thirty days, and the postage on letters to be one shilling the half ounce, of which the company was to receive ten pence. This arrangement caused much dissatisfaction in South Africa. In 1872 the Cape parliament had agreed with Mr. Donald Currie to convey a mail monthly to and from England at a greatly reduced rate of postage, upon payment of £150 for every day under thirty in which the passage should be made, and this plan seemed to answer better than the other. On the 17th of May 1873 the steamer Windsor Castle, of Mr. Currie's line, arrived in Table Bay after a passage from Dartmouth of twenty-three days and fifteen minutes, the shortest run on record by some fifty hours. This was used as a strong argument against the provisional arrangement made in England, which was therefore not carried out.
Negotiations with both companies were then commenced, but were not completed until 1875, when the arrangement made was for a mail weekly to and from England. The Union and the Castle lines were to run steamers alternately, which were to perform the passage in twenty-five days. For every day under twenty-five of a passage the Cape government was to pay the company owning the steamer £100, and for every day exceeding twenty-five the company was to pay the same amount. The postage on letters was to be at the rate of six pence the half ounce, of which the imperial government was to receive one penny, the colonial government one penny and the company conveying the mail four pence. The contracts were for five years, and were approved of by the Cape parliament in 1875.
This arrangement was modified in the following year, when Mr. Molteno was in England. He arranged with the two companies for a weekly service for seven years commencing on the 5th of October 1876. For every twelve hours of a passage above twenty-three and under twenty-six days the company owning the steamer was to be paid £50, for every twelve hours under twenty-three days it was to be paid £75, and for every twelve hours over twenty-six days the company was to pay a fine of £50. These premiums for speed had the effect that nearly every steamship built by either of the companies was an improvement upon the others then existing, and soon a passage of three weeks came to be looked upon as nothing unusual. Increase in the passenger and freight traffic necessitated ever and ever larger and more powerful ships, until before the close of the century the Cape mail steamers were among the finest in the world, and the passage between Southampton and Capetown was regularly made with the punctuality of an express train in sixteen days. Intermediate steamers of the same lines were running weekly, making the passage in twenty-one days, calling at Teneriffe or Grand Canary and at Saint Helena, and carrying passengers at cheaper rates than the more luxuriously furnished mailboats. Several other lines of steamers, that would once have been considered magnificent ships, were then conveying passengers and cargo to and from the Cape, usually making the run to and from England in twenty-one days, and some of them had accommodation but slightly inferior to that in the intermediate boats of the then united Union-Castle line. This enormous progress in ocean traffic was typical of the general progress of South Africa, from which it naturally resulted.
In the coastal service corresponding improvements were constantly going on, and Mossel Bay, Port Elizabeth, and East London were as amply provided for as was Capetown.
The inland mails were conveyed in carts until railways were constructed, but these ran more frequently than formerly. From the beginning of 1874 there was a daily mail between Capetown and Port Elizabeth.
In October 1873 a good carriage road was completed through the Tradouw gorge in the mountain range skirting the karoo, near the town of Swellendam. It was formally opened by the governor, Sir Henry Barkly, who named it Southey's pass.
On the 8th of December 1873 the chief justice, Sir Sydney Smith Bell, retired from office, owing to ill health, when his place was taken by the attorney-general, the honourable John Henry de Villiers, later Sir Henry, later still Lord de Villiers, who in after years proved himself one of the most eminent judges in the British empire. His place as attorney-general in the ministry of Mr. Molteno was taken by Mr. Simeon Jacobs, who held it until August 1877, when ill health obliged him to retire, and Advocate Stockenstrom succeeded.
No other change in the ministry occurred until the 20th of July 1875, when the auditor-general, Mr. Eldred Mowbray Cole, retired on pension, and the honourable Charles Abercrombie Smith (later Sir Charles), commissioner of crown lands and public works, was appointed to succeed him. Mr. Smith made an excellent auditor, but there was much dissatisfaction expressed on his appointment, as it was not considered proper that a minister should be transferred to an important position in the civil service. The matter came before parliament in the next session, and in May 1876 the house of assembly by a large majority affirmed the inexpediency of a ministry appointing one of its members to a permanent office. No such transfer of employment, consequently, has since been made. To succeed Mr. Smith as commissioner of crown lands and public works, Mr. (later the right honourable) John Xavier Merriman was appointed.
An experiment that had been made by the Dutch East India Company without success was now repeated and carried on for several years in different parts of the Cape Colony with the same result. This was the production of silk, and it was owing to the energy of Dr. Hiddingh, a gentleman of means, that it was made. He was desirous of turning the time and muscles of the numerous idle coloured women and children of Stellenbosch to some account, and bethought him of the silkworm as a useful agent for that purpose. He procured eggs, and set about teaching the children how to breed the worms and wind the silk. He was an enthusiast, who spared neither his time nor his purse in the undertaking, and he was able to induce people all over the colony to aid in the experiment. A quantity of silk was really produced at Stellenbosch, which was sent by Dr. Hiddingh to England, where it was woven into scarfs. An English firm of manufacturers then offered to purchase as much raw silk of the same quality as could be procured at thirty-six shillings a pound (£3 19s. 6d. a kilogramme), delivered in London. But it takes a very long time and requires a great deal of patience to wind a pound of silk, and though Dr. Hiddingh tried his utmost to persuade the coloured people that it was better to expend that time and patience in earning thirty-six shillings than to be idle and earn nothing at all, he did not succeed in inducing them to continue the task.
The government assisted in the experiment by securing the service of some Italian families who were skilled in silk culture, bringing them out to South Africa, and stationing them at the Knysna, which was believed to be the most suitable locality in the colony for the purpose intended. But no one will work for a shilling when, everything else being equal, he can earn two or three in the same time, and the returns in this industry were so small that success was hopeless. Wherever it was tried the result was the same, and it soon became evident that silk could only be produced profitably in countries where labour was very much cheaper than in South Africa.
The defeat of the bill for the amendment of the constitution was followed on the 20th of August 1873 by the dissolution of both houses of parliament, and an appeal by the government to the country. The elections for the legislative council took place on the 5th of November. There were thirteen candidates in the western province and fifteen in the eastern, and the result of the election was the return of a majority in favour of the ministry. The elections for the house of assembly took place in February 1874.
The new parliament met on the 28th of May 1874. The seven circles bill was introduced at once, and was carried in the assembly by a large majority and in the council by eleven votes to eight. By this act the colony was divided into seven circles, each of which was entitled to return three members of the legislative council, so that the country districts would be more equitably represented than under the old system of two provinces, under which Capetown and Grahamstown secured an undue proportion of votes. It was anticipated by the ministry that the new system would also have the advantage of putting an end to the clamour for separation of the provinces with a distinct government in each, which was still advocated by a large section of the English party in the east. The old principle of electing members was retained, that is an elector could give his three votes to one candidate or distribute them as he pleased, thus securing the representation of minorities. The members were to be elected for seven years, instead of ten as before, and were all to be returned at the same time. The chief justice remained president of the council by virtue of his office, and could take part in the debates. The first election under this system took place in November 1878.
In the session of 1874, which closed on the 31st of July, provision was made for an increase in the number of magistrates in the colony. On the 1st of April 1873 the Wittebergen Native Reserve, previously under a superintendent, became a magisterial district, and was named Herschel. On the 3rd of September 1874 Tarka was proclaimed a magisterial district, on the 19th of the same month Willowmore, on the 23rd of the same month Carnarvon, and on the 10th of October Port Nolloth were similarly proclaimed.
Other important acts of the session of 1874 were one for taking a census, one permitting free testamentary disposition of property, and one for detaining the Hlubi chief Langalibalele and his son Malambule, who had been pronounced guilty of rebellion in Natal, as prisoners on Robben Island, as Natal had no place in which they could be confined in safety, and it was regarded as necessary for the peace of South Africa that they should be kept in security. Provision was made for the construction of three bridges over the Orange river and for the improvement of various ports, among which was Port Nolloth on the coast of Little Namaqualand, where copper ore was shipped for Swansea.
But what makes this session more decidedly a memorable one was the approval of the construction of some eight hundred miles or twelve hundred and eighty kilometres of additional railroad at an estimated cost of £5,000,000. The line was being extended from Wellington to Worcester, in accordance with a resolution of parliament in the preceding year, and now a further extension by way of the Hex river kloof and over the karoo to Beaufort West was authorised. The property of the Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage Railway Company was purchased, and from Zwartkops Eiver, where on the 2nd of January of this year 1874 the line from Port Elizabeth had been opened, there were to be extensions to Graaff-Reinet and to the Bushman's river. From East London there was to be a line to Queenstown, with a short branch from Blaney station to King-Williamstown. This was a tremendous leap forward for a colony with a European population of less than a quarter of a million, but it was a necessary advance if the interior was to be opened up, as there were no navigable rivers, and ox-waggon traffic was not only slow and expensive, but was often interrupted.
The progress made in the construction of the railroads previously authorised is here shown. From Wellington to Tulbagh Road just beyond the cleft in the first range of mountains through which the Little Berg river flows, the line was opened on the 31st of August 1875, to Ceres Road on the 3rd of November 1875, and to Worcester on the 16th of June 1876. From Port Elizabeth the line was opened to Commando Kraal on the 24th of July 1875, and to Uitenhage on the 21st of September of the same year.
An event that should not pass unnoticed was the opening in February 1874 of the Huguenot seminary for girls, as no other institution in the country has done so much for the education of the daughters of the farmers and their training in habits of neatness and usefulness. This excellent institution owes its existence to the zeal of the reverend Dr. Andrew Murray, who took advantage of a large building at Wellington being for sale, and collected sufficient money to purchase it and adapt it to the purpose of a boarding school. Trained teachers were obtained from Holyoke in America, one of whom, Miss Ferguson, a lady of great energy and ability, was the first principal. The object was to give a sound Christian education and to inculcate habits of tidiness and domestic economy in the pupils, rather than to turn out idle ladies. The school grew rapidly, extensive buildings were erected, largely by means of money contributed in America, and at length a college department was added in which selected girls are trained as teachers and to fill important positions in life, while the lower school continues its highly useful work. The late Mr. John Samuel, organising inspector of schools, testified of the Huguenot seminary that on entering a farm house in any part of the western districts he could see at once whether the daughters had been trained at Wellington or not. If they had, everything was clean and tidy, and the table at meals was laid out in a way that would have been creditable in any town household. He could not speak too highly of the admirable work this school is doing.
Ostrich farming was at this time being rapidly extended throughout the colony, as it was found more profitable than any other industry. It was certainly precarious, as the sale of plumes in large quantities depended entirely upon fashion in Europe and America, but as no other feather can compare with that of the ostrich as an ornament for ladies' hats, there was a likelihood of the demand being maintained. This industry was of great benefit to the colony. The large profits enabled many farmers to redeem the mortgages upon their properties, and fencing, previously almost unknown except for gardens, became common. The plumage of different birds varies in quality and in degrees of whiteness, hence a careful selection was needed for breeding purposes, and choice birds brought almost fabulous prices. The ostrich of North Africa has feathers of purer white than those of the south of the continent, and in 1876 four choice birds were imported from Barbary by Messrs. Adler & Co., of Port Elizabeth. But the expense of obtaining them and bringing them out was so great that when they were offered for sale by auction it was not covered, and the experiment was not repeated.
As if to compensate for the profits derived from ostrich farming, two insect pests at this time made their appearance, and did an immense amount of damage. One of these was the dorthesia, commonly called the Australian bug, because it was first observed on trees of Australian origin. How it came into the country is not known, but in 1873 some blackwood trees in the Cape peninsula were seen to be infested with it. All efforts to destroy it were in vain, and with amazing rapidity it spread until all the beautiful blackwood trees, with which the streets of many villages throughout the colony were adorned, were utterly destroyed. From the blackwood it spread to the orange trees, and soon appeared to be almost omnivorous, not even the strawberry plants escaping. The orange groves of the western districts, from which many families made a comfortable living by selling citrons, limes, lemons, and the most delicious oranges and nartjes at a shilling the hundred, entirely disappeared before it. Year after year its ravages extended farther and farther, not only in geographical extent but in the variety of plants infested by it, when fortunately it was discovered that a Californian ladybird was its natural enemy and capable of destroying it. Men were sent to California by the government, and the ladybird was introduced. It had a large field to work in, but it proved itself a thoroughly efficient agent, and in course of time, thanks to the perseverance of this little beetle, it became possible to plant orange groves once more. The ornamental blackwood tree has not yet been reintroduced.
Another and still more destructive insect that began to cause alarm in South Africa in 1873 was the phylloxera, that had then done immense damage to the vineyards of France and other parts of Europe. This insect preys upon the roots of the vine, and the first indication of its presence is the death of the plant. How it was introduced into South Africa is not known. When it was realised in 1873 that the scourge was in the country it was hoped that its spread might be checked, for it was supposed to exist in only a few localities, and there the vines were dug up and burnt. Importations of plants of all kinds from abroad were prohibited, through fear of introducing the insect, but this restriction was soon found to have been made too late. The phylloxera spread, and utter ruin was staring a large and important section of the community in the face when a remedy was discovered. There is an American vine whose roots resist the attack of the phylloxera, or upon which it cannot live, and cuttings were obtained and propagated as rapidly as possible. Upon the plant, as soon as it has taken root, the grape bearing vine is grafted, which thus becomes immune from the insect pest. But the expense of replanting a large vineyard is very considerable, and the loss of time before it is in full bearing is a heavy item on the wrong side of the ledger, so that the viticulturists suffered heavily from this plague.
In December 1874 great damage was done in the eastern districts by such floods as had not been known for half a century previously. Rain fell not in drops but in sheets, which caused every river and every streamlet to overflow its banks, and rush down to the sea with terrible force. Such bridges as were not high above the water and resting on piers of great strength were washed away, many houses were wholly or partly destroyed, cultivated ground disappeared, leaving only bare rock or barren subsoil, and great numbers of sheep and horned cattle were drowned. In many places human beings narrowly escaped being carried away by a rush of water in places always before considered perfectly safe. At East London five vessels were wrecked in the great storm, and at Port Natal two, for the floods were not confined to the Cape Colony, but were general throughout South-Eastern Africa.
It is only at long intervals that disasters of this kind occur, though precaution should always be taken when building, especially near streams, to provide against sudden rushes of water. Generally such storms are confined within very narrow limits, and it sometimes happens that deep channels may be washed out along a particular line, while a few hundred paces on each side of it not a drop of rain falls. Such was the case, for instance, in December 1875, when the Doorn river, which runs through the village of Heidelberg in the Cape Colony, suddenly rose and carried away forty-five houses with all their contents, with the loss of two lives. The gardens along the course of the stream were completely destroyed, all the soil being washed away.
Cotton growing was now dying out in the eastern districts, owing mainly to the scarcity of labour in the picking season. In 1874 unginned cotton weighing ninety-two thousand pounds (41,818 kilogrammes) was exhibited in Grahamstown, but this was the last occasion on which any considerable quantity was gathered.
On the 7th of March 1875 a census of the colony was taken. The population was found to have increased in the preceding ten years at the rate of twenty-four per cent, and to consist of
| Europeans | 236,783 |
| Bantu | 287,639 |
| Hottentots | 98,561 |
| Mixed breeds | 87,184 |
| Malays | 10,817 |
| Total | 720,984 |
or 3.6 to the square mile, the Europeans being a little less than one-third of the whole number.
The most prominent subject of discussion throughout South Africa for some time after May 1875 was that of the union of the several colonies and states under one government. It arose from a despatch of Lord Carnarvon, since February 1874 secretary of state for the colonies, to Sir Henry Barkly, dated the 4th of May, desiring a conference to be held in the colony to discuss a uniform system of dealing with the Bantu, the supply of arms and ammunition to those people, and the advantages of confederation. He named the individuals whom he wished to take part in the conference: Mr. Theophilus Shepstone to represent Natal, Mr. Richard Southey to represent Griqualand West, Mr. J. C. Molteno to represent the western province of the Cape Colony, Mr. John Paterson to represent the eastern province of the Cape Colony, a delegate from the Orange Free State, one from the South African Republic, Mr. James Anthony Froude, the historian, to represent Great Britain, and Sir Henry Barkly or Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Augustus Thurlow Cunynghame, who since March 1874 had been in command of the British troops in South Africa, as president. The views of the British government regarding South Africa were thus diametrically opposite to what they had been less than twenty years before, with the exception that now as then the principal object was to save expense.
The intention of Lord Carnarvon was unquestionably good, and there were few thinking men in South Africa who were not in favour of the union of the disjointed sections of the country, but the time was singularly inopportune for such a conference as was proposed, and the very manner in which it was brought forward gave offence to the party in power in the colony. It was inopportune, because the Orange Free State was then irritated by the loss of territory, and certainly would not take part in any discussion if a representative of Griqualand West was admitted. The South African Republic was also irritated by the staggering blow it had received when its south-western districts were declared by the Keate award not to belong to it, and would not take part in any movement that might end in the loss of its independence. It was in favour of union certainly, but union under the republican flag, which the English colonies would resist to the last. Mr. Pieter Jacobus Joubert, who was acting as president during the absence of Mr. Burgers in Europe, put the case of his state clearly when on the 7th of June 1875 he wrote to Sir Henry Barkly enquiring whether the sending of a delegate by the South African Republic would be regarded as equivalent to an acknowledgment of the Keate award.
The colonial ministry objected to the proposed conference because they thought it should originate in South Africa, not in England, and they were annoyed that a delegate had been named to represent the eastern province. The prime minister represented the whole colony, they said, not a part of it only. And as if to strengthen their view of the matter, the old separatist party raised its head again, and began an agitation on the plea that Lord Carnarvon was in favour of their ideas.
On the 14th of April parliament had assembled, and on the 30th of June it was prorogued. The despatch arrived during the session, and was laid before it, when much merriment was created by the name of Mr. John Paterson being included in the number of Lord Carnarvon's nominees, as he was not only an opponent of the existing government, but was far from being of conciliatory disposition. A minute of the ministers was attached to the despatch, opposing the proposed conference on the ground that the time was inopportune, that the despatch resuscitated the separation movement, and that such a measure should originate in South Africa. Many of the members, however, felt grateful to Lord Carnarvon for the interest he was taking in the country and for his advocacy of a measure that might tend to better treatment of the two republics. In the legislative council a resolution thanking him was carried by nine votes to seven, but in the assembly the minute of the ministers, based on the principle that in a colony possessing responsible government such action as that of the secretary of state was unconstitutional, was approved of by thirty-two votes to twenty-three.
On ascertaining that the Cape Colony would take no part in the conference. Lord Carnarvon abandoned the plan of holding it there, and on the 15th of July 1875 proposed that the place of meeting should be Natal, with Sir Henry Bulwer as president. There was then a prospect that the Orange Free State would be represented, as President Brand had expressed his willingness to take part in a discussion upon the treatment of the Bantu and the sale of arms to those people, if the British government would consent to settle the dispute regarding the diamond fields by direct negotiation. To this condition Lord Carnarvon had agreed, and if an amicable settlement should be effected, one difficulty would be removed. The plan of a conference in Natal, however, was soon abandoned.
On the 20th of June Mr. Froude, who had been nominated by Lord Carnarvon to represent Great Britain, arrived in Capetown from England. He had visited South Africa once before—21 September 1874 to 10 January 1875—and had made a tour to the principal towns, gathering information on the country and its people. He announced himself as a private gentleman unconnected with government, and was everywhere well received as a distinguished visitor. To the residents in the Free State he had made himself particularly agreeable by praising their institutions in his speeches at public meetings and commending their love of independence. He could not fail to be impressed with the harsh treatment the Free State had sustained, and as he freely expressed his opinion that a great wrong had been done, the Dutch-speaking people throughout the country together with the moderate English residents—those who placed a higher value upon Great Britain's strict adherence to treaty obligations than upon territorial expansion however alluring—regarded him with much favour. When he arrived the second time he came as a confidential agent of Lord Carnarvon, expecting to take part in a conference, and anxious to carry into effect the wishes of that minister in regard to the union of the colonies and the republics. No abler person could have been selected for the purpose, if it had been practicable.
He found that the colony would not take part in a conference, and that consequently without the member of the proposed confederation that would have to bear the greater part of the burden of defence of the whole, any union of the others would be a farce. He therefore set to work to create such a strong opinion in favour of the measure as would compel the ministry either to change their attitude or to give place to others more tractable. He made a tour through the country, attending meetings at the chief centres of population and speaking of the benefits that would follow the adoption of Lord Carnarvon's scheme. A fluent orator, though he adapted himself to his audience and his observations at one place were often contradictory of those at another, he was able to create enthusiasm, especially among those who for any reason were opposed to the existing ministry. It was a strange spectacle, that of an agent of the secretary of state delivering speeches antagonistic to the existing authorities in a colony possessing responsible government, and it tended to create partisan feeling of a very bitter kind.
A special session of the Cape parliament was sum- moned to consider the matter, and met on the 10th of November. On the following day discussion was prevented in the legislative council by an immediate vote being called for, when a resolution in favour of being represented in the proposed conference was carried by nine votes against six. A little later a despatch was received by the governor from Lord Carnarvon, and was made public, announcing that he had abandoned the design of a conference in South Africa in favour of one to be held in London. Thereupon, after eight days' debating in the house of assembly, a resolution was proposed by Mr. Solomon, accepted by the ministry, and carried by thirty-six votes to twenty-two, that "as it appears from the despatch dated the 22nd of October 1875 that the Eight Honourable the Secretary of State for the Colonies has withdrawn his proposal for a Conference of Representatives of the several Colonies and States of South Africa, this House is of opinion that it is not now called upon to record its continued objection to the holding, at the present time, of such a Conference, or its condemnation of the unconstitutional agitation carried on in the Colony in connection wath this question. The House desires, however, to express its opinion that the Government and Parliament should, if it be desired by the Imperial Government, give it their counsel and assistance in settling the difficulties which have arisen out of the extension of British jurisdiction to the Territory known as Griqualand West."
On the 25th of November Mr. Froude left the Cape to return to England, where he sent in a long and interesting report of his transactions in South Africa, which shows that he failed to grasp the real causes of the failure of the scheme he had advocated so brilliantly. He had not been sufficiently long in the country to understand the feelings of its people.
In response to Lord Carnarvon's invitation to the governments of the several colonies and states of South Africa to send delegates to a conference in London, only Natal complied fully. Messrs. Shepstone, Ackerman, and Robinson were deputed to represent that colony. On the 9th of June 1876 the Cape house of assembly resolved not to appoint delegates to the conference, but to send Mr. J. C. Molteno to give advice and assistance in the settlement of the Griqualand West dispute. Mr. Molteno left on the 7th of July for this purpose, but found on his arrival in England that Lord Carnarvon and President Brand had already concluded an amicable arrangement regarding the disputed boundary. He therefore took no part in the conference. President Brand had gone to England to endeavour to obtain redress from Lord Carnarvon for the seizure of territory belonging to his state, the imperial authorities having consented to deal directly with him instead of through the medium of the high commissioner.
He arrived in London on the 6th of May 1876, and was courteously received by Lord Carnarvon. He asked for the restitution of the territory east of the Vaal river and north of the Vetberg line, that had been seized under the supposition that it belonged to the Griqua captain Nicholas Waterboer, and which had since been pronounced by a British court of justice, after long and patient investigation, never to have been occupied or possessed in any way by Waterboer or his people. This was now indisputable, as was also the fact that it had formed part of the Orange River Sovereignty and afterwards of the Orange Free State. But restitution was then impossible. In that territory were the principal diamond mines, the great majority of the residents were British subjects, and there were vested interests that couid not be disturbed without ruinous consequences. Lord Carnarvon was obliged therefore to decline useless discussion on that point, but offered a pecuniary solatium instead. With the assistance of Mr. Donald Currie the amount of this was fixed at £90,000, and the boundary line was modified so as to restore to the Free State some farms whose owners were particularly desirous of retaining their republican citizenship. Thus one of the causes of unrest in South Africa was removed.
The volksraad of the Free State had empowered the president to attend the conference and discuss the questions of a uniform policy throughout South Africa regarding the treatment of the Bantu and of the supply of arms and ammunition to those people, but not to take part in any debate that might affect the independence of the state. The South African Republic took no notice at all of the matter.
The so-called conference was opened in London on the 3rd of August 1876. Lord Carnarvon presided in person. Sir Garnet Wolseley had been invited to take part in it, and was present. Sir Theophilus Shepstone, as he had now become, and Messrs. Ackerman and Robinson were there, as was Mr. Froude, who had been requested by Lord Carnarvon to represent Griqualand West. These and President Brand constituted the conference. On the 15th Mr. Brand left to return to South Africa, but nominated Mr. H. A. L. Hamelberg to represent him at any future meeting. The whole thing had become a farce, but the secretary of state professed to have obtained sufficient information from it to guide him in framing an act to enable the colonies and states to enter into confederation.
Some events of minor importance that occurred during the period embraced in this chapter may here be recorded.
On the 29th of May 1874 her Majesty the queen was pleased to grant to the Cape Colony the coat of arms now in use. It was designed by Mr. Charles Aitken Fairbridge, of Capetown, and is emblematic of the Dutch, French, and British elements in the population, while the supporters are characteristically South African animals, the gnu and the gemsbok.
On the 14th of January 1875 a disastrous fire broke out in the town of Stellenbosch, and could not be extinguished until engines and three hundred men of the 86th regiment arrived from Capetown. Some fifty houses were burned before the flames were subdued.
During the night of the 1st of October of the same year an almost equally destructive fire took place in the village of Wellington, when some forty houses with their contents were burned.