that negotiations with Natal began in the year following that in
which responsible government was granted. The desire was that they
should return as soon as possible. The Natal Government, however,
repeatedly urged postponement of the execution of such decision. But,
as the Imperial Government was wholly responsible for sending Dinuzulu
to St. Helena, and as his stay there depended on the length of his
sentence, it was essential to bear in mind that repatriation was later
on inevitable. It was accordingly resolved to make this one of the
conditions of annexation. The agreement finally arrived at between the
Governments was that, although Dinuzulu was to be restored, he should
not return until Zululand had been actually annexed, and then only on
condition that he agreed to become a servant of the Natal Government
at a salary of £500 per annum, and to serve in the capacities of
Induna and Chief on clearly defined terms. These terms, being of
great importance in appreciating the position and difficulties that
subsequently arose, are set forth _in extenso_:
"Dinuzulu will be taken into the service of the Government of Zululand,
his position being that of Government Induna. A house will be provided
for him on a site to be selected by the Governor, and a salary of £500
per annum will be attached to his office.
"He must clearly understand that he does not return to Zululand as
Paramount Chief. He must respect, listen to, and obey those officers
of the Government who are placed in authority over him. The position
assigned to him by the Government, and the salary allotted to it, will
be held during the pleasure of the Government, and will be strictly
dependent on the manner in which he behaves and obeys the laws laid
down for his guidance, but will not be withdrawn without the approval
of the Secretary of State.
"As Government Induna, he will be liable to be employed in Native
matters that may arise and be brought to the notice of the Governor's
representative in Zululand, such as questions of inheritance and others
on which it may be desirable to obtain independent evidence and opinion.
"He will be the Chief over those people residing in the location marked
off for the Usutu. He will govern amongst and will rule them by the
same laws and form of Government as other Chiefs of tribes in Zululand,
and he will himself, like those Chiefs, be under the laws of the
Government of Zululand."[338]
The foregoing was agreed to before Dinuzulu left St. Helena. He knew
that, in accepting the office of Induna, it would be obligatory on
him to live within three or four miles of the principal Government
officer in Zululand,--for an induna is the principal Native executive
officer on anyone's staff, be he Secretary for Native Affairs, Resident
Commissioner, or Magistrate.
On his arrival with his uncles at Durban, on the 6th January, 1898,
seven days after issue of the proclamation of annexation, a copy of
the conditions, as well as a translation thereof into Zulu, were
handed to him by the senior officer of the Native Affairs Department.
The Chiefs were thereupon escorted to Eshowe by the Magistrate of
that district. At Eshowe, Dinuzulu occupied the house which had been
specially constructed and furnished for him at public expense. Although
it was not expressly stated in the conditions where he should reside,
it was understood by the Governments that he would live at Eshowe,
at any rate for the time being. It was inexpedient, with matters as
they then were, to name a particular place in conditions intended to
be permanent. Although the Resident Commissioner had, ever since the
Imperial Government took over the administration, been stationed at
Eshowe, except for a short while during the disturbances of 1887-88, it
was conceivable that, with a change of control, the headquarters might
have to be altered. As a matter of fact, they have not been changed
to this day. At the same time, as Chief over a tribe nearly 100 miles
from Eshowe, it was recognized that he would have a little difficulty
in controlling its affairs. There were, however, and still are, many
Chiefs in Natal whose tribes are broken up and distributed over various
magisterial districts, thereby necessitating the appointment of headmen
to exercise jurisdiction over each section in the absence of the Chief.
Thus, for Dinuzulu to manage his tribe from Eshowe, was a by no means
unexperienced or insuperable difficulty.
After an absence of nine years, he and the others very naturally
desired to return to their respective homes. This desire was so
strongly urged, that the Minister for Native Affairs (Mr., now Sir,
J.L. Hulett) agreed, on the 22nd January, to allow him and his uncles
to go back permanently. The same concession was granted to his old
enemy, Zibebu, who had, for some years, been required to live in Eshowe
district. Dinuzulu was allowed to build kraals for himself, including
that which he named Usutu. His position then gradually became that of a
Chief pure and simple, instead of Government Induna, as prescribed in
the conditions. It is true that he paid periodical visits to Eshowe and
Pietermaritzburg, and there discussed political and other affairs with
the Commissioner for Native Affairs, but these were of short duration
and discontinued altogether after the appointment of the Commission
in 1903 (of which Mr. Saunders was a member), to set apart land for
the occupation of Natives and Europeans. We find, then, that between
1898 and the beginning of the Rebellion, the principal condition under
which Dinuzulu had returned to Zululand was being practically ignored.
During this time, the house at Eshowe was available whenever he felt
disposed to reside there. Although not discharging the functions of the
principal appointment, he continued to draw a salary, liberal when at
Eshowe, but excessive when in so remote and uncivilized a quarter as
Usutu kraal, with only a Native Chief's duties to perform.
Living the indolent life he did at Usutu, he, as has been seen, became
exceedingly corpulent. This, no doubt, is one of the reasons why, after
the Commission referred to ceased to exist, he failed to visit Eshowe.
He, as well as the Commissioner, knew that his residing continuously at
Usutu was an infringement of the conditions. His friends also, among
them Miss Colenso, knew. It would have been possible for him, or for
them, at any time to have insisted with success on the original terms
being fulfilled. He might have been given a piece of land near Eshowe
on which to locate a few of his kraals, as was done in the case of the
previous Government Induna. For reasons best known to himself, nothing
appears to have been done, not until he urged Sir Henry McCallum to
take action, nearly ten years after his release. That the man was
allowed to go on as he was doing, was undoubtedly an error on the part
of the Governments. And yet the Imperial Government had, in 1897,
foreseen with remarkable clearness what might arise. Here are the words
of Lord Ripon:
"The internal politics of Zululand are such that under the arrangement
referred to [_i.e._ installing Dinuzulu as a tribal Chief, with
authority over a strictly-defined district, inhabited by devoted
followers], Dinuzulu might, in the course of time, have been drawn
into a false and embarrassing position with respect to the Government,
however desirous he might be at the outset to work loyally under it."
When one looks back on this period, he cannot but wonder how it
happened that successive Secretaries of State omitted to inquire how
far the conditions under which Dinuzulu had been returned to his
country were being fulfilled, and, if inquiries were made, why the
Natal Government was not pressed to conform to the spirit and letter of
the agreement.
One of the chief indirect causes of the Rebellion, as well as the
key-note of Dinuzulu's trial, was the isolated position he occupied
at Usutu. That it put him into a false position is undoubted; that
Dinuzulu knew he was in a false position, and that he knew he was
himself primarily responsible for being therein, admits of no question.
The reason why he tolerated it was because he realized it gave him an
opportunity of gradually building up his influence among the Natives
without the knowledge of Government, until too late to exercise
effective control. If responsibility rests to some extent with the
Natal Government for permitting him to drift into the position he did,
he himself (30 years of age when repatriated) cannot be absolved from
blame, especially as it was at his own request that he was permitted to
go to his tribe.
This is the state of affairs which anyone who desires to understand the
underlying causes of the Rebellion must have clearly in mind. After
leaving Eshowe, Dinuzulu assumed the duties of a Chief, though because
of his parentage, not of an ordinary Chief, whatever the wording of
the conditions might have been. Instead of being in close touch with
the larger political and social affairs of the territory, as would
have been the case had he continued to reside near the Commissioner,
he preferred to limit himself ostensibly to those of his tribe and
be under the jurisdiction of the Magistrate of the district within
which his ward happened to fall. Being the eldest son and successor of
Cetshwayo,--descendant of still more notable kings,--it was impossible
to repress feelings of loyalty and affection exhibited towards him
by many staunch adherents of the royal house in all parts of the
territory. More than this, in consequence of the military assistance
given him in 1883 and 1884 by the Boers, a large section of the
north-western portion of Zululand was granted by him to the Boers. Such
land, although promptly cut up into farms, was extensively occupied
by some of his most devoted followers, among them the Baqulusi. To
this day, the staunchest followers will be found in the districts
of Vryheid and Ngotshe. If many people showed loyalty towards the
senior representative of the royal house, it is not surprising that
even greater devotion was displayed by those in the districts named.
Nor is this all. With large numbers of those in Zululand and many
others in the districts referred to (which, of course, were under
an entirely different government,--for annexation to Natal did not
take place until after the conclusion of the Boer War), it is only
natural to suppose that numbers of other Natives in Natal, Transvaal
and elsewhere should also have become partial to Dinuzulu. With the
increase of European population in Natal, scarcity of land, higher cost
of living and higher rents, in addition to other exacting conditions,
Natives keenly felt the necessity for having a protector of their
own flesh and blood--someone whom they could trust to voice their
interests, and one who, because of his rank, would ensure adequate and
prompt attention being given thereto. The more Dinuzulu allowed these
exhibitions of feeling to go on, the more Natives in an ever-widening
circle looked on him as their natural champion, and as one who in every
way _ought_ to lay their grievances before the Government. They wanted
him to stand up for them with a view to the ancient life, habits and
customs--with which, for so many centuries, they had been intimately
associated--being allowed to continue with less restrictions and
innovations than had become customary. Dinuzulu, of course, had no
complaint to make on account of receiving these demonstrations. He
would have been the last person in the world to have complained about
such a matter as that. It would have been unnatural in him to do so.
He felt and knew he was being gradually driven by multitudes, living
far beyond the confines of his own area, into a position much falser
than the one in which, as we have seen, he had deliberately placed
himself. But it exactly suited his plans. In his dealings with the
Natal Government, he perpetually bore in mind that behind him was the
Imperial Government. His constant effort was apparently to bring about
by degrees such a state of affairs in Zululand as to induce, if not
compel, the latter Government to intercede with Natal on his behalf,
and get himself appointed Paramount Chief, instead of being merely an
Induna and Chief. The latter appointments, although accepted by him,
were not really to his liking; they were restrictive, and derogatory.
In the countries of Basutoland and Swaziland, formerly subject to
Zululand, there were Paramount Chiefs. In India, too, many states had
their Feudatory Princes or Paramount Chiefs; what had Zululand done,
asked Dinuzulu, to be so discriminated against as to be without a
Native protector of its interests? Even the Boers, though recently
conquered, had been granted the most liberal form of autonomy.
Throughout the time he was at Usutu, up to the outbreak of rebellion,
is nothing but a tale of the spreading of his influence by one
means or another in all directions, and this notwithstanding the
clearly-expressed condition that it was not as Paramount Chief that
he was returning to Zululand. With such an environment, the people
so prone in many parts to regard him as their natural head, is it
surprising that when the mysterious order that all pigs, white fowls,
European utensils, etc., were to be killed or discarded was circulated,
reference should have been made to him by many to ascertain his will
and pleasure?
* * * * *
One of the ways in which his influence was considerably augmented,
but which involved him in trouble with the Government at a later
time, occurred towards the conclusion of the Boer War. Guerilla
warfare was then going on in the Transvaal and elsewhere. To denude
country occupied by the Boers of stock was recognized as one of the
most effective means of bringing hostilities to a close. The idea of
organizing raids along the north-western border of Zululand occurred
to the authorities, whereupon one Colonel Bottomley was dispatched to
arrange accordingly. Bottomley went to Dinuzulu and, without obtaining
the authority of the Natal Government, ordered the Chief to arm and
assemble his men. Dinuzulu reported to the Magistrate, who objected to
Natives being employed in such way. The Magistrate, however, as well as
the Commissioner, were overruled under martial law, then in force in
Zululand, whereupon Dinuzulu went forth with some twenty-four companies
(_i.e._ about 1,500 men), and, at a hill called Dhleke, successfully
performed the required duty. It is claimed by him that, in consequence
of this demonstration and other assistance in the shape of scouts, the
magistracy was prevented from being attacked, as happened at four other
magistracies in Zululand.
During the Dhleke expedition, besides looting stock, some firearms were
taken from a Boer waggon. Dinuzulu seems afterwards to have attempted
to call in the guns, but, because there had been bloodshed (a couple
of his force having been killed), his men refused to produce them.
He declares that Bottomley then allowed the men to retain the guns.
Later, in 1902, the Magistrate ordered the weapons to be brought in for
registration. A few that were produced were not, apparently, returned
to the holders. Such retention seems to be the reason why other holders
refused to produce theirs. The matter seems then to have dropped. It is
idle to suppose that Dinuzulu could not have called in every gun had
he been so inclined. Universally-recognized Zulu law requires that all
loot shall go to the King as a matter of course, who thereupon deals
with it as he sees fit.
During the same War took place the Holkrantz massacre referred to in
a former chapter. Owing to the tribe (Baqulusi) which carried out the
massacre being known to be intimately associated with the Zulu royal
house, credit for the achievement was regarded as attaching principally
to Dinuzulu as head of the house. The massacre created a profound
impression on Natives in general; it revealed new and unexpected
possibilities.
The attitude assumed by him when questioned by the Government for
allowing messengers to come and see him about the poll tax and the
pig-killing order can be readily understood. He practically said:
"You allowed me to come back, but gave me a position not in keeping
with my rank. This, Natives at large, have begun to see. Although
my jurisdiction is limited to my particular ward, and such fact is
well known, it is impossible for me to prevent people coming to see
me." When Sir Henry McCallum spoke to him at Nongoma in 1904, he was
distinctly instructed to report the arrival of people from tribes other
than his own. These instructions he frequently disobeyed, and such
disobedience was subsequently admitted by his induna, Mankulumana, as
well as by himself.
There is another aspect in regard to the man which should not be
lost sight of. The question arose many years ago as to whether the
Chiefs of Zululand were prepared to surrender the status conferred
on them by Sir Garnet (afterwards Viscount) Wolseley, in order that
Cetshwayo should become Paramount Chief. On the Chiefs in question
being approached, several objected in the strongest terms, among them
Zibebu and Hamu. The Zulus regarded it as impossible to serve a King
who had been conquered by another race, and whose restoration was on
the condition, _inter alia_, that the regimental system should be done
away with, and his jurisdiction confined to territory reduced by about
a third of its original size. This opposition to his father or his
becoming Paramount Chief, is what was always uppermost in Dinuzulu's
mind, and what it was ever his greatest care to break down or remove.
The long-continued warfare (1883 to 1887) between Cetshwayo (and,
later, himself) and Zibebu took place for no other reason than that the
latter had refused to acknowledge his father's and, therefore, his own
authority. It was in consequence of this attempt, vigorously carried on
as it was after formal assumption of the administration by the Queen,
that Dinuzulu was arrested, tried and convicted of high treason, and
banished to St. Helena. On coming back, he realized the futility of
waging war as a means of attaining his object. The problem then was:
How am I, by adopting means to which the European Government can take
no reasonable exception, to induce the great mass of the Zulu people to
become unanimous in the proposal of my being appointed Paramount Chief?
Here, as we believe, is the motive for his sedulously promoting the
development of his influence in the extraordinary, irrepressible and
obscure manner outlined above.
It can, therefore, be seen that he found himself ere long in a serious
dilemma. His position has, indeed, always been recognized as difficult.
But, owing to being a Native, and therefore living out of touch with
the European community, the nature and intensity of his embarrassment
could not be realized as completely and as vividly as they were by him
and his immediate followers.
And yet at the beginning of the Rebellion he stood in a singularly
favourable light as far as the Government was concerned. The
Commissioner had, as is commonly known, implicit confidence in his
loyalty; he lost no opportunity of supporting the Chief, repudiating
every allegation and calumny in the most vigorous manner. The earnest
and determined way in which Dinuzulu was defended by this officer
excited the admiration of all who observed it.[339] By his ready
response in paying the poll tax, as well as by protestations of
loyalty, coupled with an offer to take or send an _impi_ to Nkandhla
to deal with Bambata, Dinuzulu at once ingratiated himself with
the Government and the European public, who, though not absolutely
believing in his loyalty, were only too anxious for him to co-operate
at that most critical juncture. But, as it happened, he had already
cast the die which, as time went on and the truth eked slowly out,
rendered it more and more impossible for him to restore those good
relations which, but for his own lapse, would undoubtedly have been
even more cordial than ever before.
It would, we believe, be unfair to assume that he deliberately and
systematically persuaded people to come and see him. He was astute
enough to know that, by adopting a merely passive and nonchalant
attitude, many would be seized by an overpowering inclination to pay
their respects, especially when they observed that an increasing number
of other people came to do so. To visit and get in touch with him
became, from their point of view, quite the proper thing to do. There
is no instinct among the Zulus stronger than that of desiring to do
what everybody else is doing. Such arises, no doubt, from the force
of long-continued custom. Living, as they once did, under the rule
of as despotic kings as could be found anywhere on the globe, whose
political and social habits made all sorts of demands on the people,
they became alive to the necessity of being always on the alert for
fear of being punished unless conforming to what others were doing.
For, whatever others did was supposed to be in accordance with the
will or desire of the king, even though unproclaimed. Apart from this,
respect for authority is ingrained in their natures to a remarkable
degree. As proof of this, it is necessary merely to mention the custom
of _hlonipa_, which universally enforces propriety of behaviour,
especially in the female sex.
Instead, therefore, of sending out messages to persuade people to come
and see him, Dinuzulu adopted the more law-abiding and dignified policy
of waiting until they called.
When, after the promulgation of the Poll Tax Act, agitation arose among
the Natives to such an extent that many sent messages to him, including
Chiefs who, it would seem, had never communicated with him before, he
had a valid answer always ready: "What is the use of your coming to
me? I can do nothing. You are a Chief just as I am. I do not refer to
you when in a quandary. Go to the Government and lay your case before
it for yourself." Profiting by his experience at St. Helena, and not
again wishing to come into conflict with the Government, he at once
made his own tribe comply with the demands. They did so at the earliest
date, viz. January, 1906.
His attitude of allowing people to come and see him began at length to
assume a character more or less criminal. Instead of the messengers
coming to pay their respects, in order to discuss various matters
appertaining to their tribes, they, one and all, came to consult
him about a particular matter, and one having reference to a law
already enacted. This law, moreover, had received the sanction of the
representative of that Government which, as we have seen, was party
to the agreement under which Dinuzulu was restored to the country.
In no case did he report to the Magistrate, the Commissioner, or the
Governor that these visits were being made, and that his advice was
being solicited as to what action should be taken. We have seen the
form of reply to those who came about the poll tax. As regards the
pig-and-white-fowl-killing rumour, he said: "Such order did not emanate
from me; I know nothing whatever about it."