DARK DAYS.
Oft expectation fails, and most oft there where most it promises.
_Shakespeare._
Up to the 27th February, 1900, the Republican arms were on the whole
successful. The Boers fought well and many a brilliant victory crowned
their efforts, and encouraged them to continue their struggle for
freedom. True, they had to sacrifice many noble lives, but that was a
sacrifice they were prepared to make for their country. Fortune smiled
on them; as yet they had met with no very serious reverses.
Magersfontein, Stormberg, Colenso, Spion Kop, were so many offerings of
scarce vanquished Boers to the veiled Goddess Liberty. But towards the
end of February, 1900, clouds gathered over the Republics. The tide of
fortune was turned; disaster after disaster courted the Boer forces;
blow after blow struck them with bewildering force. Then came the news
of Cronje's capture. No sooner had we crossed the Orange River during
the retreat from Stormberg than we learnt that stunning news of the
disaster at Paardeberg on the 27th of February--the anniversary of
Amajuba. Cronje captured--the General in whom we had placed such
implicit confidence and on whom we relied for the future! Cronje
captured--the man who had successfully checked the advance of the
English forces on Kimberley at Magersfontein; the hero of many a battle;
the man who knew no fear! His men captured--the flower and pick of the
Boer forces, with all their guns, and brave Major Albrecht as well!
Many a burgher who up to that fatal day had fought hopefully and
courageously lost hope and courage then. Some, we regret to say, were
so disconsolate that they renounced their faith in that Supreme Being in
whose hands are the destinies of nations. Their reliance on their
country's God ended with Cronje's capture, as though their deliverance
depended solely upon him. This, however, does not appear so strange when
one recollects that the Boers could not afford to lose so many of their
best men at a time when all were precious for their country's safety. As
to the siege itself, we, not having been in it, cannot enter into its
details. One of the besieged, who, in spite of a terrific bombardment
and repeated attacks by the enemy, kept a diary of the events of each
day, gives this striking description on the 10th and last day:
"Bombardment heavier than usual. The burghers are recalcitrant and
in consequence the General's authority wanes rapidly. There is
hardly any food, the remaining bags of biscuits are yellow from the
lyddite fumes, so is everything, damp and yellow. The stench of the
decomposed horses and oxen is awful. The water of the rivers is
putrid with carrion. A party of men caught three stray sheep early
on the morning of the 10th. In haste they killed them and started
to skin them desperately; but they had half done when a lyddite
shell bursting close to them turned the mutton yellow with its
fumes and it had to be abandoned reluctantly. The sufferings of the
wounded are heartrending. Little children huddled together in
bomb-proof excavations are restless, hungry and crying. The women
are adding their sobs to the plaintive exhortations of the wounded.
All the time the shelling never abates. The arena of the defenders
is veneered. Nearly every man, woman and child is lyddite-stained.
The muddy stream is yellow. The night was an awful one. For two
days the men are without food, but worse still are the pestiferous
air, the loathsome water, and the suffering of the wounded. It is
too much for flesh and blood. The morning of the 27th February saw
the first white flag hoisted by a Boer general. It was a woeful
sight when 3600 Boers, undisciplined peasants, reluctantly threw
down their rifles among the wreck of the shells and ambled past the
English lines. They had withstood the onslaught of 80,000 British
troops with modern death-dealing implements of war, and, towards
the end of the siege, about 1000 guns were brought to bear upon
them."
How far this disaster can be attributed to General Cronje is difficult
to say. The following considerations may, however, throw some light on
its causes.
During the early part of the war we hardly realised the great value and
necessity of good scouting. It was only after General Cronje and his men
had fallen into the hands of the enemy that a regular scouting corps was
organised and placed under the control of the brave Danie Therou.
Lord Roberts's forces were almost on Cronje's laager before they were
perceived, and unfortunately they were even then entirely
under-estimated and consequently thought light of. Flushed by the
victory at Magersfontein, the General did not contemplate the
possibility of such a bitter reverse. He was going to strike another
hard blow at the enemy--he did strike it, but at too great a cost. Had
he realised his position the first or second day after the siege was
begun, he might still have escaped. The convoy would have been captured,
but the men would have been saved. The old gentleman was determined to
hold all, and consequently lost all.
So far the General deserves censure and is accountable for the disaster
which had such a far-reaching and bad moral effect on the rest of the
burghers. The only sweet drop contained in the bitter cup extended to us
was the fact that Cronje and his burghers surrendered _as men_, and not
as _cowards_. Once surrounded and brought to bay they resisted every
attack with admirable fortitude and valour. Surrounded along the banks
of the Modder River, at a spot where they had no cover at all, exposed
to a terrific cannonade and charged by thousands of the enemy from time
to time, these farmers fearlessly repelled every onslaught. It was one
thing to surround them, another thing to capture them. They were not to
be taken with cold hands. The enemy, especially the Canadians, had to
pay a great price before the white flag announced Cronje's unconditional
surrender.
During the siege attempts were made by General De Wet to relieve
Cronje, but none succeeded. Several of the relieving forces, including
the pick of the Winburg Commando with Commandant Theunissen, were
themselves surrounded and captured in trying to break through the lines
of the besiegers.
To intensify the gloom, Ladysmith, which was daily expected to fall, was
relieved on the day of Cronje's surrender. For certain reasons the late
Commandant-General P. Joubert had evacuated the positions round
Ladysmith and retreated to the Biggar's Range. General Louis Botha, who
was engaging Buller's relieving forces at Colenso, was then also
compelled to retreat.
After Cronje's capture the way to Bloemfontein and Pretoria lay open.
The Boers made one more stand at Abraham's Kraal, where the enemy
suffered heavily, but carried the day by their overwhelming numbers.
After the British occupied Bloemfontein the Transvaal burghers became
reluctant to offer battle in the Free State, on the ground that there
were no positions from which they could successfully check the
ever-advancing foe. Many of the Free Staters were discouraged and
hopeless; but rest renewed their strength and zeal, and they shortly
returned to the struggles.
The second disaster which befell the two Republics was the ignominious
and cowardly surrender of Prinsloo, which took place on the 1st of
August, 1900. For various reasons this surrender was more keenly felt by
the Boers than that of Cronje. The one, though he might have blundered,
nevertheless acted the part of a brave, though obstinate, man; the other
that of a coward.
Some six weeks after the occupation of Bloemfontein the British troops
resumed their northward march, and so quickly did they advance, almost
day and night, that Pretoria was soon occupied. What this rapid movement
meant, we could not quite understand. Did Lord Roberts think that the
occupation of Pretoria would terminate hostilities? The British forces
in their swift march to the Transvaal capital left Free State burghers
behind them as they advanced. These men rallied again under General De
Wet and seriously threatened the English line of communications,
capturing seven hundred of the British at Roode Wal.
Large forces under Hector MacDonald and Bruce Hamilton recrossed the
Vaal in order to crush the Free Staters. Then Prinsloo surrendered.
Having accompanied the commandos that surrendered under him, we will
relate the story of that most sad incident of the War.
On the occupation of Bethlehem by the British in the beginning of July,
1900, the Boer commandos, under General De Wet, retreated to the
Wittebergen, a mountain range to the south-east of Bethlehem, forming a
semi-circle round Fouriesburg, a small village on the Basutoland border.
This range, with its towering peaks and steep slopes, formed an
impregnable stronghold. The burghers thought that, once behind those
heaven-high mountains, with all the passes in their possession, with
abundant war supplies, and all the necessaries of life, they would
resist successfully every attack. The camps were pitched at the base of
the mountains. The burghers began at once to make turf-bulwarks for the
guns, and trenches for themselves, in the various passes.
General De Wet, who did not seem quite at ease in this enclosure or
kraal, for such it was, organised the Bethlehem-Heilbron burghers into a
commando 2500 strong and left with these in the direction of Heilbron.
General Roux from Senekal was instructed to organise another commando,
1000 or 1200 strong, and advance with that in the direction of
Bloemfontein. For some reason or other, General Roux's departure was
delayed, and so he with all his men fell into Prinsloo's meshes.
On Monday, 23rd July, the enemy made a general attack on all the Boer
positions, except Naauwpoort Pass. These attacks, though very
determined, were unsuccessful. From sunrise to sunset the firing never
ceased. The burghers in Slabberts Nek, where we happened to be, were
subjected to a dreadful cannon fire. This pass was guarded by Captain
Smith with two Krupp guns and Lieutenant Carlblom with a pom-pom. Upon
these guns the English directed two Howitzers and six Armstrongs. Here,
just before sunset, the gallant Captain Rautenbagh was blown to pieces
by a lyddite shell, which exploded in front of him.
Thus repulsed by day, the enemy succeeded in scaling the heights to the
left of the Boers at Slabberts Nek by an unguarded footpath during the
night. As soon as the crimson light of a July dawn had exposed the
frost-covered ridges, the dark overcoats on the left of the Boer
positions revealed the unwelcome fact that the enemy had gained their
object of the day before, and had outflanked the Boers.
Not only at Slabberts Nek, but also at Reliefs Nek the Boers were
outflanked the same night. At the latter pass a number of Highlanders
had occupied the rocky heights during the stillness of the night, so
that when the Boer pickets discovered them the next morning they found
the enemy commanding a position higher than their own, which they
forthwith abandoned. The enemy, now in possession of two mountain
passes, forced the Boers to evacuate all the other passes, by
threatening an attack on our rear and surrounding us. So on Tuesday
morning, at about 9 A.M., the commandos quitted the mountains and fell
back on Fouriesburg.
Our situation was becoming hourly more and more embarrassing. There was
just one thing to be done, and that was to move as quickly as possible
all along the base of the mountain range, and to seize a pass called
Naauwpoort Nek farther northwards. That pass was not yet occupied by the
enemy, and there it was possible to secure a safe exit; and higher up
the mountain range, at the farm of Salmon Raads, was another pass which
could be reached in due time.
If Prinsloo had, in his heart, desired to save his commandos, he could
have done so easily. But no sooner had we left the mountains than we
noticed that strange whispers were passed from man to man; we heard it
said that a further prolongation of the war was absolutely useless;
that many of the officers and burghers were tired of it, and would like
to go home. In short, we saw what was coming, and anticipated the
surrender.
When the commandos arrived at Naauwpoort Pass they found their exit cut
off there by the enemy. Instead of hastening on to the next pass, the
officers held a council of war to discuss the situation, or, more
correctly, to deliberate on a surrender. The meeting lasted almost all
night. Some of the officers were deadly opposed to a surrender;
others--and they were the majority--were in favour of it. Nothing,
however, was decided at that meeting, for a Hoofd Commandant had first
to be elected before any steps could be taken.
A second meeting of officers for the purpose of electing a Chief
Commandant was next held. In that meeting Prinsloo was elected Chief
Commandant, but, as not all the officers were present, some of them
being still in the positions, it was beforehand agreed that the man
elected by that meeting should have no authority before the votes of the
absent officers were taken, and when their votes came in it was found
that General Roux, and not Prinsloo, was elected.
The latter, however, entered into negotiations with the enemy before
this question as to whom was to be Chief Commandant was settled. He
first asked for an armistice, which was refused. Then he asked for
terms, to which General Hunter replied: "Unconditional surrender is
demanded." Prinsloo, well aware that the burghers would not surrender
unconditionally, pleaded and insisted on terms.
At this juncture Vilonel, the deserter, who had been sentenced for five
years' imprisonment for high treason, but who was, unfortunately,
released, appeared on the scene. He came from the British lines, met
Prinsloo, and officiated as intermediary between Generals Hunter and
Prinsloo. Something in the shape of terms was drawn up, but these terms,
if tested and analysed, amounted to unconditional surrender. As soon as
Prinsloo was in possession of these conditions, he forwarded a report to
the different commandants that he had been successful in obtaining good
terms from the English, and that they must evacuate their positions so
as to arrange for a surrender. This report was sent on to Commandant
Potgieter of Smithfield with instructions to forward it to the next
commandant.
General Roux, on learning of Prinsloo's doings, at once dispatched a
report to the different commandos notifying to them that Prinsloo had no
right to negotiate with the enemy, to ask for or accept terms for a
surrender. Also, that the burghers must on no account abandon their
positions. He, so the report ran, would personally go to protest against
the illegal surrender. The General went, but did not return. Why he went
himself, and did not send one of his adjutants with a written protest,
seems still very strange to us. He was warned not to go. General
Fourie's last words to him were: "Good-bye, General; I greet you, never
to see you again in the Boer ranks." He did not heed the warning, and so
we lost one of our bravest and best leaders.
Unfortunately, General Roux's report fell into the hands of Commandant
Potgieter, who, siding with Prinsloo on the question of a surrender, had
it destroyed whilst Prinsloo's was forwarded. This settled the whole
affair. The positions were evacuated, and in part occupied by the enemy.
Still, at the eleventh hour, there was a possibility of escape. The long
trail of waggons would have been captured, but most, if not all, the
burghers could have found their way out. But no, they were to be duped
by a set of unscrupulous officers. They were told they could get all
they desired, except their independence. All could go home, each would
get a horse-saddle and bridle, their private property would not be
confiscated, and they would be allowed to follow their agricultural and
pastoral pursuits undisturbed. And the poor officers--well for them that
there were no extenuating terms, no mercy. So, at least, said Commandant
Polly de Villiers, of the Ficksburg Commando. He, when posing as a
martyr, announced these conditions to the burghers, who, after such long
separation from their families, found it impossible to withstand such
charming terms. Sorrowfully were they disillusioned after they had laid
down their arms.
To make the surrender a complete success, all sorts of rumours were
freely circulated. The burghers were told that all who did not surrender
would be shot as rebels when captured, that the pass, higher up the
mountains, was guarded by twenty-five lyddite guns, so that every exit
was cut off by the enemy. When these reports were brought to bear on men
already depressed and discouraged it did not require great pressure to
effect their surrender. Still, if these men had not been misled, if they
had known that Ceylon and India would be the final destination of many
of them, they never would have surrendered, and very few of them would
have been captured there and then. All this they found out when it was
too late.
These unfortunate burghers we do not wish to criticise too severely. The
officers were to blame. Many of them certainly fell into the hands of
the enemy through no fault of their own. There were, however, some who
were only too ready to lay down their arms, and these were the majority.
They did not act the part of men; for they deserted shamefully those who
still struggled bravely for freedom. Nor am I willing to judge these.
Let conscience speak to such as these.
Some officers, animated by a truer love of their country, protested
strongly against such an illegal and shameful surrender. One of these,
General Olivier of the Rouxville Commando, called his burghers together
and told them plainly what he thought. He warned them not to place too
much credence in British promises, and promised that those who would
follow him he would lead out safely. Of his whole commando--about four
hundred strong--scarcely seventy followed him. The others surrendered.
Besides attending to his men, General Olivier also took charge of most
of the Boer guns, which were to have formed no mean part of the booty,
for Prinsloo had promised the British some thirteen guns, one pom-pom,
and a few maxims with all their ammunition. In the pass at Salmon Raads,
General Hector MacDonald met Olivier with the guns. He at once ordered
him to go no farther, as he was a surrendered man. Olivier tarried as
long as it pleased him, and then proceeded, taking the guns along with
him.
Of all the Boer forces concentrated in the Wittebergen, only about six
hundred did not surrender. To secure these also every means were
resorted to. No fewer than three times were messengers sent to them with
reports from the enemy. At first we were courteously invited to return
and surrender. To prove to us the validity of the surrender, all the
papers bearing on the negotiation from first to last were forwarded to
us. The excellent conditions granted to the surrendered burghers were
also transmitted to us. In these conditions we observed that the
surrendered burghers would each be provided with a horse to ride to
their destination, which would be Winburg, till further orders. We saw
also that they would be kept as prisoners-of-war until the war was over,
which meant, though they did not suspect it then, two years longer.
Their private property was to be respected. How the last condition was
violated is well known.
Olivier and his men were, however, not to be easily ensnared. He
politely rejected the proffered terms, stating at the same time that
Prinsloo's surrender was illegal. A few days later, and lo! in the
distance we beheld another flag-of-truce, a second report. The polite
request had failed, intimidation must now be tried--that might succeed
better. We were admonished urgently to come back at once, and surrender
without further delay. Failing that, we must not expect to receive such
generous and lenient treatment as would be extended to those surrendered
already. All our goods would be confiscated, etc.
On receiving this report, Olivier sent back the somewhat curt and abrupt
reply: "That if the British wanted his rifle they would have to capture
him as a man, for he would not surrender like an old woman. And he would
receive no more white flags on this matter." Consequently the third
messenger was sent back without being interviewed.
So much for the Prinsloo disaster. It was a sad one for those still
struggling against overwhelming odds. Many a heart beat low, and many a
sigh was heaved. That was an "unkind cut," which wounded the hearts of
thousands. Many a one, even of those who stood to the last day, never
recovered from the effects of that shock. They fought bravely, and did
their duty towards their country, but hope for an ultimate victory was
dead within them.
And those who surrendered, what lessons they had to learn! Even to-day,
a year after the close of the war, some of them have not reached their
homes, but are on lonely islands, and in distant India, while many have
passed away to the unseen world on those foreign shores. Those that came
back, what did they find? A country strewn with ruins, their homes
destroyed and burnt, and their sheep and cattle stabbed and shot lying
in heaps upon the ground. What a sad sight did greet their eyes! How
many of their beloved families were missing, having died in the
Concentration Camps. But when they reflect on the past the saddest
thought should be their vanished freedom.
The next ordeal through which the Republicans had to pass began with the
denudation of the two States. As arms alone could not subdue the Boers,
some other expedient had to be tried--the starvation process was
resorted to; all food-stuff had to be destroyed or removed, so that the
burghers should not obtain sustenance. The country had to be cleared of
cattle and sheep--in fact, of everything which could keep the Boers
alive. This was considered the most feasible way of defeating the
so-called _marauding_ bands of armed Boers.
But what about the women-folk, if the country is to be cleared? Well,
these must go to Concentration Camps, from which so many never returned.
We do not wish to dwell on the sufferings of Boer women and children;
but what we are proud to note is that when military operations were
conducted against the weak and defenceless, the burgher was touched to
the centre of his heart. Call a Boer by what name you please, but of
this be assured--he is a man who, above all, loves his family, and has
pride and pleasure in his home, be it never so humble. When, therefore,
a destructive policy was adopted, who shall realise fully what passed
through the minds of these as they stood watching the lurid flames of
their burning homes, and heard how in the camps their families were
dying in scores? Cronje's capture, Prinsloo's surrender, and all the
hard fighting they had to do, seemed but trifles as compared to this, by
far the saddest, phase of the South African War.
Another dark day, and the curtain drops. We refer to that day when the
documents were signed and peace was concluded. Then, indeed, the
darkness seemed tangible Who shall number the tears shed on that
day--tears of men, women, and even children? Tears of men who had fought
for almost three years, who had sacrificed their all, who had but one
object in view, one ideal to pursue; who loved liberty and independence,
with an amazing love. Tears of women, who had spent many months either
in camps, or in the open veldt; women whose husbands and sons had fallen
in the war, whose infants were laid low in many a graveyard. Tears of
children, who had lost their parents, children who never more would know
the love of a mother, the protection of a father. With one voice the
whole people lamented the loss of their beloved Fatherland.
And how did the officers who had to subscribe to these terms of peace
feel? Let one[A] who was present speak:
"Never shall I forget what I witnessed there. General De Wet showed
that there was no chance any longer of continuing the struggle ...
I see him yet, that unyielding man, with his piercing eyes, his
strong mouth and chin--I see him there still, like a lion fallen
into a snare. He will not, he cannot, but he must give up the
struggle! I still see the stern faces of the officers, who up to
that moment had been so unbending. I see them staring as if into
empty space. I see engraved upon their faces an indescribable
expression, an expression that seemed to ask: 'Is this the bitter
end of our sufferings and our sorrows, of our faith and our strong
crying to God?' How great was their emotion! I saw the lips of men
quiver who had never trembled before a foe. I saw tears brimming in
eyes that had been dry when they had seen their dearest laid in
the grave....
"Everything was as silent as death when acting President Burger
took the pen in his hand. I looked at my watch; it was five minutes
past eleven on the 31st day of May in the year 1902.
"President Burger signed. President Steyn was not there. Our hearts
bled at the thought that he had been seized by a dangerous malady;
and yet it seemed to me that something was owed to that malady,
since it prevented the President of the Orange Free State from
doing what would have caused him the greatest pain in the world. He
had said once: 'To set my hand to a paper to sign away the
Independence of my people--that I shall never do.' Sad
circumstances, which he might then almost have called fortunate,
had brought it about that what he would not do, that he could not
do. The document was signed! All were silent in that room where so
much had been spoken."
We quote the terms of peace in full:--
"His Excellency General Lord Kitchener, and His Excellency Lord
Milner, on behalf of the British Government, and Messrs. M.T.
Steyn, J. Brebner, General C.R. De Wet, General C. Olivier, and
Judge J.B.M. Hertzog, acting as the Government of the Orange Free
State, and Messrs. S.W. Burger, F.W. Reitz, Generals Louis Botha,
J.H. de la Rey, Lucas Meyer, and C. Krogh, acting as the Government
of the South African Republic, on behalf of their respective
burghers, desirous to terminate the present hostilities, agree on
the following articles:--
"I. The burgher forces in the field will forthwith lay down their
arms, handing over all guns, rifles, and munitions of war in their
possession or under their control, and desist from any further
resistance to the authority of His Majesty King Edward VII., whom
they recognise as their lawful Sovereign. The manner and details of
this surrender will be arranged between Lord Kitchener and
Commandant-General Botha, Assistant Commandant-General Delarey, and
Chief Commandant De Wet.
"2. All burghers in the field outside the limits of the Transvaal
or Orange River Colony, and all prisoners of war at present outside
South Africa, who are burghers, will, on duly declaring their
acceptance of the position of subjects of His Majesty King Edward
VII., be gradually brought back to their homes as soon as
transport can be provided and their means of subsistence ensured.
"3. The burghers so surrendering or so returning will not be
deprived of their personal liberty or their property.
"4. No proceedings, civil or criminal, will be taken against any of
the burghers so surrendering or so returning for any acts in
connection with the prosecution of the war. The benefit of this
clause will not extend to certain acts contrary to the usage of war
which have been notified by the Commander-in-Chief to the Boer
Generals and which shall be tried by court-martial immediately
after the close of hostilities.
"5. The Dutch language will be taught in public schools in the
Transvaal and Orange River Colony where the parents of the children
desire it, and will be allowed in courts of law when necessary for
the better and more effectual administration of justice.
"6. The possession of rifles will be allowed in the Transvaal and
Orange River Colony to persons requiring them for their protection,
on taking out a licence according to law.
"7. Military administration in the Transvaal and Orange River
Colony will at the earliest possible date be succeeded by Civil
Government, and, as soon as circumstances permit, representative
institutions, leading up to self-government, will be introduced.
"8. The question of granting the franchise to natives will not be
decided until after the introduction of self-government.
"9. No special tax will be imposed on landed property in the
Transvaal and Orange River Colony to defray the expenses of the
War.
"10. As soon as conditions permit, a Commission, on which the local
inhabitants will be represented, will be appointed in each district
of the Transvaal and Orange River Colony, under the presidency of a
Magistrate or other official, for the purpose of assisting the
restoration of the people to their homes, and supplying those who,
owing to war losses, are unable to provide for themselves, with
food, shelter, and the necessary amount of seed, stock, implements,
etc., indispensable to the resumption of their normal occupations.
His Majesty's Government will place at the disposal of these
Commissions a sum of three million pounds sterling for the above
purposes, and will allow all notes issued under Law No. I, of 1900,
of the South African Republic, and all receipts given by officers
in the field of the late Republics, or under their orders, to be
presented to a Judicial Commission, which will be appointed by the
Government; and if such notes and receipts are found by this
Commission to have been duly issued in return for valuable
considerations, they will be received by the first named
Commissions as evidence of war losses suffered by the persons to
whom they were originally given. In addition to the above named
free grant of three million pounds, His Majesty's Government will
be prepared to make advances on loan for the same purposes, free of
interest for two years, and afterwards repayable over a period of
three years with three per cent. interest. No foreigner or rebel
will be entitled to the benefit of this clause."
Statement read by Lord Milner to the Boer delegates:--
"His Majesty's Government must place it on record that the
treatment of Cape and Natal Colonists who have been in rebellion,
and who now surrender, will, if they return to their Colonies, be
determined by the Colonial Governments, and in accordance with the
laws of the Colonies, and that any British subjects who have joined
the enemy will be liable to trial under the law of that part of the
British Empire to which they belong.
"His Majesty's Government are informed by the Cape Government that
the following are their views as to the terms which should be
granted to British subjects of Cape Colony who are now in the
field, or who have surrendered, or have been captured since the
12th of April, 1901: With regard to rank and file, that they should
all, upon surrender, after giving up their arms, sign a document
before the Resident Magistrate of the District in which the
surrender takes place, acknowledging themselves guilty of High
Treason, and that the punishment to be awarded to them, provided
they shall not have been guilty of murder, or other acts contrary
to the usages of civilised warfare, should be that they shall not
be entitled for life to be registered as voters, or to vote at any
Parliamentary Divisional Council, or Municipal election.
"With reference to Justices of the Peace and Field Cornets of the
Cape Colony, and all other persons holding an official position
under the Government of the Cape Colony, or who may occupy the
position of Commandant of rebel or burgher forces, they should be
tried for High Treason before the ordinary court of the country, or
such special court as may be hereafter constituted by Law, the
punishment for their offence to be left to the discretion of the
Court, with this proviso, that in no case shall the penalty of
Death be inflicted.
"The Natal Government are of opinion that rebels should be dealt
with according to the Law of the Colony."
To the Boer, although he had been suffering the manifold miseries of the
battlefield for over two years, such terms made peace a tragedy.
Bitterness was mixed with his cup of happiness when he found himself
once more united to his family.
[Footnote A: Rev. Kestell, 'Through Shot and Flames.']
[Illustration: MR. R. MCDONALD.]