The peace negotiations between the governments of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State Part 16

The names of the members of the two Republican Governments were now filled in.

The doc.u.ment given hereunder was telegraphed to the British Government, the last paragraph of Clause II, which deals with the Government notes, the receipts and the sum of 3,000,000, having been added during the Conference between all the representatives of both parties on the terms drafted by the sub-committee. (See page 125.)

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Facsimile of a page of the Peace Proposals as submitted by the British and amended by the Boer Representatives. The alterations are in the handwriting of General s.m.u.ts and Mr. Advocate N. J. de Wet._]

The doc.u.ment was read out in English and Dutch, and was as follows:--

General Lord KITCHENER OF KHARTOUM, _Commanding in Chief_,

and

His Excellency Lord MILNER, _High Commissioner_, on behalf of the BRITISH GOVERNMENT,

and

Messrs. S. W. BURGER, F. W. REITZ, LOUIS BOTHA, J. H. DE LA REY, L. J. MEYER, and J. C. KROGH, acting as the GOVERNMENT of the SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC,

and

Messrs. M. T. STEYN, W. J. C. BREBNER, C. R. DE WET, J. B. M.

HERTZOG, and C. OLIVIER, acting as the GOVERNMENT of the ORANGE FREE STATE, on behalf of their respective BURGHERS,

Desirous to terminate the present hostilities, agree on the following articles:--

1. 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, a.s.sistant Commandant-General de la Rey, and Chief Commandant de Wet.

2. BURGHERS in the Field outside the limits of the TRANSVAAL or ORANGE RIVER COLONY, on surrendering, will be brought back to their homes.

3. All Prisoners of War, at present outside of South Africa, who are Burghers, will, on their declaring their acceptance of the position of Subjects of His MAJESTY KING EDWARD VII., be brought back to the places where they were domiciled before the War.

4. The BURGHERS so surrendering or returning will not be deprived of their personal liberty or their property.

5. No Proceedings, CIVIL or CRIMINAL, will be taken against any of the BURGHERS so surrendering or returning for any Acts in connection with the prosecution of the War.

6. The DUTCH language will be taught in public schools in the TRANSVAAL and the 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.

7. 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.

8. MILITARY ADMINISTRATION in the TRANSVAAL and ORANGE RIVER COLONY will at the earliest possible date be succeeded by CIVIL GOVERNMENT, and, as soon as circ.u.mstances permit, Representative Inst.i.tutions, leading up to Self-Government, will be introduced.

9. The question of granting the Franchise to natives will not be decided until after the Introduction of Self-Government.

10. No Special Tax will be imposed on Landed Property in the TRANSVAAL and ORANGE RIVER COLONY to defray the Expenses of the War.

11. A JUDICIAL COMMISSION will be appointed to which Government Notes issued under Law No. 1 of 1900 of the SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC may be presented within six months.

All such notes as are found to have been duly issued in the terms of that law, and for which the persons presenting them have given valuable consideration, will be paid, but without interest.

All receipts given by the Officers in the Field of the late Republics, or under their orders, may likewise be presented to the said Commission within six months, and if found to have been given _bona fide_ for goods used by the Burgher Forces in the Field, will be paid out to the persons to whom they were originally given. The sum payable in respect of the said Government Notes and Receipts shall not exceed 3,000,000 sterling, and if the total amount of such Notes and Receipts approved by the Commission is more than that sum, there shall be a _pro rata_ diminution. Facilities will be afforded the Prisoners of War to present their Government Notes and Receipts within the six months aforesaid.

12. 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 a.s.sisting 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, &c., indispensable to the resumption of their normal occupations. Funds for this purpose will be advanced by Government free of interest and repayable over a period of years.

Lord MILNER: If we agree, it is the English doc.u.ment that will be telegraphed to England, and it is that doc.u.ment upon which His Majesty's Government will decide and which will be signed.

General BOTHA: Will a Dutch translation not be attached to it?

Lord MILNER: I have no objection that a Dutch translation be annexed. Well, that is the doc.u.ment that we are prepared to submit to the British Government.

General BOTHA: There are a few points I wish to talk about. The first is with reference to receipts given by our officers. I would like to have them added to the paragraph referring to the Government notes.

These receipts were given on instructions issued by our Government for the purchase of cattle or grain or necessaries, for the support of our commandos, and the chief officers now here, as well as all other officers, have acted in accordance with these instructions and issued receipts. For this reason, I make this request. Some of these receipts were discharged in full, and others in part, in Government notes, but many were not paid at all. I do not think that the amount is large, but it will strengthen our hands by enabling us honourably to terminate this matter, because our honour is in so far concerned that we have signed these receipts. It will be a great point for us if we can meet the delegates, most of whom are officers, and inform them that they have been protected in this matter.

Lord KITCHENER: I understand that General Botha does not refer to commandeer, or requisition notes, but only to actual receipts given on the Treasury.

Lord MILNER: I do not see the difference between these receipts and commandeer notes. The willingness of people to sell goods does not in my opinion make any difference in a legal doc.u.ment.

Lord KITCHENER: I think that it does make a difference if it is an order on the Treasury or a requisition note. I should limit this to receipts on the Treasury, issued in accordance with the law, which allowed that a certain sum could be spent.

Chief Commandant DE WET: In the Free State no resolution was taken fixing the amount that could be spent.

Lord KITCHENER: Do you mean that this is an undefined amount, or that it falls under the amount fixed by the Volksraad?

General s.m.u.tS: The Volksraad authorised the Government to issue notes to a certain amount, which was done. Apart from this law, the officers in the field had the right to make purchases on behalf of the commandos and to grant receipts therefor.

Lord MILNER: I see no difference between these receipts and requisition notes, and, besides, it is for an unlimited amount.

General s.m.u.tS: These receipts were issued under an entirely different law. They were not paid out of the credit voted by the Volksraad.

Chief Commandant DE WET: I wish it to be plainly understood that I fully agree with what has been said by the Commandant General, that the honour of every officer is affected by these doc.u.ments. And if Your Excellencies agree, you give us a powerful weapon with which we can return to the Delegates.

Lord MILNER: The proposal is, in fact, that the British Government must pay all the money borrowed by the Republics to fight them.

Chief Commandant DE WET: But we were an honourable party in the fight, and if we cease to be a party, it is only reasonable that we are met on this matter.

General BOTHA: Must I understand from your att.i.tude that we must hand over everything, and that you must walk off with the a.s.sets of our country, which amount to millions and millions, and take no responsibility on yourselves for the debts? We are acknowledged by you as a belligerent party, and, therefore, we have the more right to expect that if you walk off with the a.s.sets of the country, you must also take upon yourselves the responsibility for the debts; if the British Government attains its great object, then a minor matter like this ought not to stand in the way. We do not come here to haggle at little things, but to contend for something that is an actual difficulty, and you must agree that if we tell you something here, we really mean it. And if we wish to make peace, every one must not draw his own line, but we must take each other by the hand. Now we say that this matter stands in our way. We personally have not signed so many receipts, but the inferior officers who have signed the most mainly const.i.tute the meeting at Vereeniging. In some cases special persons were appointed entrusted with this work.

Lord MILNER: We do not take over the a.s.sets of the country without its liabilities. We take over all the debts which the country had before the war, and we have even agreed to take over a debt--a lawful debt--in the shape of notes, the contracting of which we are aware was necessary only on account of the war, and therefore we already pay a share of the expenses incurred to fight us. I thought that this was a very great concession, and when I agreed to put it down, I said that I thought, and I still think so, that the British Government would take exception to it, although I hope that they will not do so. But to go further than that and to ask that we shall pay not only a debt incurred for the purposes of the war, but every debt incurred by every officer of both armies for the purpose of fighting us, is in my opinion a very extreme proposal. In reply to what General Botha has said, I must say that the Commission appear to think that we have no one behind us whose feelings and prejudices (if you wish it) we must consider. If this will cause you difficulty with your burghers, the proposal now made will, I am sure, cause the British Government the greatest difficulties with the people whose feelings they must consider.

Chief Commandant DE WET: I would like to explain the position of the Orange Free State. In the Transvaal a law was pa.s.sed authorising the Government to issue 1,000,000 in notes. In the Orange Free State this was not done, because the Government had the right to pay with receipts, and we thought that a receipt was as good and lawful as the notes. And therefore these matters have the same importance for me.

General BOTHA: I don't think that we should be so technical, especially not in your case, because our being together here is with the object of causing hostilities which involve great expenditure of money every month, to cease, and our meeting can have the result of speedily putting an end to these costs. And therefore, by accepting our proposal and paying the receipts, you will greatly reduce your expenses. It will be much cheaper to terminate the war by co-operation than to let the negotiations be broken off; and therefore I think that we must accede to points which stand in the way.

Chief Commandant DE WET: I can give His Excellency Lord Milner the a.s.surance that the idea always lived with the people that, even if everything was lost, they would still, after the war, receive the money in payment of the receipts. And therefore if this is not conceded I cannot conceive what the result will be. I fear that result, and hope that you will try to obviate it.

General BOTHA: It cannot be a particularly large amount; but we do not know how much it is.