The Convention spirit was active, and public men of very party made speeches extolling the Union and ttering peans of congratulation at the burial for all ime of racial animosities. But the test of practical politics put an end to pious aspirations and comforting dreams. Elections for the Union Parliament took place in 1910, and it may be interesting to recall a dramatic incident. The seat at Standerton was a safe one for of th General Botha, but he decided, unwisely, as it turned dout, to contest the Pretoria East constituency against en Sir Percy Fitzpatrick. After an exciting fight, he was t, e e. beaten by 95 votes, and, for the moment, he took the rebuff greatly to heart. The polls, however, were quite decisive, giving the South African Party 67 seats-a majority of thirteen over the rest of the House-which time comprised, in addition, 37 Unionists, 13 Natal Indepen dents, and 4 Labour members. The success of his Party restored General Botha's equanimity, and he then accepted dar the Losberg seat and became Prime Minister of the Union. La ty 19 Aspirants for the fame and flesh-pots of office abounded; and no Cabinet of workable size could have been created that would not have left a good many ambitions unsatisfied, with the inevitable foundation for opposing factions to build upon. Still, the principles at stake were vital, and the psychological moment presented itself for a really great statesman to have taken the risk of drawing a diagonal line across racial boundaries once and for all. A man with the strength of character and vision of Lord Chatham would have amb taken the plunge, even had he been overwhelmed in Dus consequence. General Botha preached goodwill and conciliation in season and out of season, but he failed at that moment to put into practice the one effective step towards harmony by disregarding the racial origin of SOUL and em race Tec Ministers. While it is true that the seven members out of the Cabinet were not exclusively Dutch South-Africans, to they were predominantly so; and, with the exception tstof Mr Hull, who became Treasurer, they had all been, in estirevious days, exclusively identified with the South ed African Party. The one man whose inclusion in the ough Cabinet would have been accepted as the true emblem of racial union, Sir Starr Jameson, was omitted. Thus it came about that the first elections for Union parliament, held in September 1910, were fou practically on the old lines; and to-day we appear to as far from the 'one-stream' policy as we were th But appearances may be deceptive. Experience & education, not unmixed with lessons of the Great W are at work; and, although no practical steps have been taken to bridge the gulf, there are not want signs of an impending change. The Dutch themsel have recently split into two factions; the one, styled ↑ Nationalist Party, under General Hertzog, wishes disregard the pledges given at Vereeniging; the oth called the South African Party, under General Smi respects them. The latter party, on account of its lo attitude and more progressive outlook, has attracted its ranks considerable support from the inhabitants British birth or origin, with the general result that f English-speaking section has partly lost its identity the South African Party, and is otherwise about equa represented by the Unionist and Labour members. a Dut It is devoutly to be wished for South African p gress and happiness that some means may be fou of speedily bringing about more stable conditions in t political arena. The republican propaganda need not t viewed with undue apprehension, because a consideral section of the Dutch, born and bred under the Briti flag, would be against its disappearance. The whole the English, of course, are of the same mind; and t natives would be most unquestionably opposed to t formation of what they would regard as Republic. They have a lively recollection of the description as scepsels (creatures) in the old Transva grondwet (constitution). I am impelled to say at th point that Mr Bonar Law could hardly have give weighty consideration to the statement he made in th House of Commons on March 30 of this year (in th debate on Irish Home Rule), that, if the self-governin dominions chose to-morrow to say, "We will no longe make a part of the British Empire," we would not try t force them.' The Cape of Good Hope is one of the mo important strategic points in the whole Empire; and it secession would probably be viewed at home and in th rest of the British Empire somewhat in the same ligh O For as that in which the North viewed the proposed secession of the South from the United States of America. to General Botha came over to England to attend the the Imperial Conference in 1907 and 1911; and upon these as on all other occasions his romantic figure marked him out for special popularity in this country. The keynote of his attitude in regard to Imperial affairs has been freedom of action for the Dominions in their domestic policy, and unity in all external matters. His quarrel with Hertzog originated over the latter's unbridled antiimperial speeches, particularly in connexion with the South African contribution to the Navy, and his 'twostream' policy, under which he advocated racialism of lothe worst kind. Botha finally expelled him from his -led t hes 1 othe ted t nts of at the ity i pre ot be ab be onger the Cabinet. From that event sprang the consolidation and Botha at first failed to realise the penalty that always The forces of disorder were allowed to accumulate, and di the gold-mining industry was brought to a standstill. Extremist sections marched from mine to mine and forced the workers to come out on strike, until by the Ligh end of the week everything was closed down and th market-square at Johannesburg, which holds tens thousands of people, contained a seething mass strikers and sight-seers, inextricably mixed up. nightfall on the evening of Friday, July 4, the tu bulent and destructive elements burned down the Pa Station and the 'Star' offices, and were only prevente from wrecking the Corner House by the police usin their fire-arms. On the following day, General Botł and General Smuts came over to the Rand and fourthat order could not be restored without a great e penditure of innocent blood besides that of the di turbers of the peace. Botha, not having realised th effect of previous inaction, was, I think, justified i refusing to face the horror then confronting him. H therefore, surrendered to the strikers. Work w resumed on the following Monday under condition better imagined than described. The white miners, wh regard themselves as the workers, in spite of most ‹ the work being done by the natives, were masters of th situation and did exactly what they liked. Within si months, a further strike was threatened, and indee begun; but, profiting by the experience previousl gained, the Government took adequate precautions, an the stoppage of the industry lasted only half a day On this occasion, the leaders of the movement did nc succeed in gaining anything by the turmoil they ha created. The strikes of July 1913, and of January 1914 are remarkable examples of the effect of weak or o strong government; and no one, I think, grasped th situation more clearly than Botha. While it would be out of place here to discuss a length the subject last referred to, it is worth while to point out that the white man in South Africa (whe enjoys the position of a supervisor, on the one hand but claims, on the other, all the rights of combination copied from the procedure in England) is placing himself in a very dangerous situation, because he has but tc teach the native worker (which he is doing) to follow his example, and some day he will find himself as well as his fellow-citizens in a most precarious position. So much has been written of General Botha's course the in He, ions whe st of the asi the of action since the outbreak of the world-war that it s of would be superfluous to dwell at length upon that period, s of but that he never wavered for one moment from his Aallegiance to the Empire is unquestionable. That the necessity for crushing rebellion among his own comPark patriots must have been abhorrent to him is equally certain. He was a man whose cast of mind turned to compromise, conciliation, and persuasion as the way of winning through. To be forced to pursue and destroy men of his own race, even in open rebellion, must have caused him the keenest pain, but he never hesitated. dis Great Britain was at war, and South Africa was at war; there could be no question in his mind of optional neutrality. He appealed to Mr Steyn, former President of the Orange Free State, to use his influence to bring the rebels to reason, but the answer was unfavourable, as Mr Steyn objected to General Botha's invasion of South-West Africa. Botha brought that campaign to a rapid conclusion in a series of brilliant tactical moves, with but little loss of life. He then deputed his chief lieutenant, General Smuts, to take control of the East African campaign, which proved to be a much more lengthy and arduous undertaking. Finally, when the horrors of the struggle in Europe and elsewhere were brought to a close by the Armistice of November 1918, General Botha came over to England for the Peace Conference, visiting countries in Europe where problems had to be studied in anticipation of the Treaty of Peace. He was welcomed here with all the marks of affection and esteem to which he had been accustomed on previous occasions, and, of course, had he so desired, would have received almost any honour or decoration to which he might have aspired. No doubt partly in deference to the views of his compatriots, he declined any titular distinction, but became a member of His Majesty's Privy Council, having previously accepted an honorary Generalship in the British Army, which he valued very highly as a mark of distinction rarely granted. His intimate friends were aware that the state of his health left much to be desired, but no one anticipated his early death, which took place at midnight on Aug. 27, 1919. મને UN deed usly and day DOT bad 914 of The briefness of this narrative necessitates the omission of a great many points in this distinguished |