Kruger as Vice-President of the Transvaal Republic. Steps were taken to beacon off the line as arranged, but in the midst of the work a message was brought from the High Commissioner, stating that the British Government would not allow Kruger to act as umpire. No other course was suggested, and the treaty of peace fell through. Shortly afterwards the British Resident sent an invitation to Mankoroane to meet him at a place called Boetsap. The chief started off

at once, under the impression something was going to be done for him. But the only comfort he got was a recommendation to try and arrange matters as best he could.

Massouw, the catspaw of the Boers, was persuaded by them to offer a cession of the territories alleged to belong to him, but de jure belonging to Mankoroane, and de facto in possession of the Boer freebooters, to the Transvaal Government. The latter snapped eagerly at the offer, despite the provisions of the Convention of Pretoria. The British Resident interfered, and pointed out the infractions of the convention occasioned by the Boer Government treating with and taking cessions of territory from native chiefs outside the Transvaal.

About the same time the Resident proposed to the Transvaal Government to despatch a joint commission to the border to investigate the position of affairs, and especially to inquire into the murder of a number of natives belonging to Jan Massibi's tribe. The Boer Government, in what was characterized afterwards in the House of Commons as a most "impudent" manner, refused to co-operate in the investigation, on the ground that certain Kaffirs, who had gone to Natal to complain to the Lieutenant-Governor about the Boers,

and to ask the English to take over the country again, had not been arrested as rebels and handed over to them. Mr. Bok, the State Secretary, in a letter to the British Resident, stated:—

The Government (i.e. the Transvaal Government) must continue to insist upon a satisfactory explanation of its conduct by the Natal Government. . . . So long as the Government has received no proof that any one colonial English government in South Africa co-operates with it in confirming its lawful authority over the Kaffirs within the Republic, it must, however much it regrets it, defer the carrying out of any investigations into Kaffir cases beyond our borders, however weighty they may be in regard to humanity."

This snub was received by the British Resident with all proper humility, and Mr. Rutherfoord (my coadjutor in the jail laager during the siege of Pretoria) was despatched alone as a commissioner to investigate.

When the freebooters found the so-called treaty unrecognized, they cut the knot by helping themselves. They appropriated nearly the whole of Mankoroane's territory, and cut it into farms. A township was laid out, and called " Vrijburg" (Freetown), which was proclaimed as the capital of a new republic called "Stella-land."

In the meantime, Montsiwe had been the subject of similar lawless proceedings. The catspaw in his case was the subordinate chief, Moshette, who was joined by Boer allies, mostly from the Transvaal, which country they used as their base of operations, and as a receptacle for captured cattle. The old chief held out till October, 1882, and would have held out longer, but his people compelled him to make peace. The negotiations were conducted on the part of the Boers by

5 See the Blue Book C. 3486, p. 23.

Snyman, a commandant of the Transvaal Republic. By the treaty both Montsiwe and Moshette pledged themselves to keep the peace towards each other under the protection of the South African Republic, all differences to be submitted to the final decision of that Government. The Boer freebooters were to be rewarded with grants of farms, and a boundary-line was to be beaconed off to show how much ground was to be left for Montsiwe. The South African Republic were to be umpires in case of any dispute, and were to have power to "punish the guilty to extremity."

About seven-tenths of the country belonging to Montsiwe, and that the best part, containing about ninety-five per cent. of the arable land, was taken from him. The tribe consisted of about 13,000 souls, and of these the part left to Montsiwe had been barely able to support 2000.

The freebooters in Montsiwe's country, like their brethren in theft to the south, established a republic under the name of "Land of Goshen." This republic was subsequently consolidated with Stella-land.

Before proceeding further with the history of the Betshuana-land freebooters, I must refer to an episode which occurred within the borders of the Transvaal, and for which the Boer Government were directly responsible. It will be remembered that when the Boer rebellion broke out, the British in Zeerust were protected by Ikalifui, one of the chiefs of the Bahurutse. This was remembered against him, and vengeance was promptly taken. A pretext was found in the erection of some "schauses" (stone walls), put up by Ikalifui to protect himself against an attack threatened by Moshette. A Boer commando, under the leadership

of Joubert, was sent against him. He submitted, and was fined in cattle to the amount of 21,000l. odd. Poor Ikalifui was unable to pay the large fine imposed upon him, and the Boers swept down on his village and carried everything off, leaving his formerly prosperous tribe starving and ruined. I have seen letters from Englishmen actually serving on the commando, in which they described the rapacity of the Boers as disgraceful. Joubert took advantage of the opportunity to send letters of warning to my old friend Sechele, and to Gatsisiwe, the chief of the Bangwaketsi, in which he stigmatized Colonel Moysey, the accredited agent of the British Government, as an adventurer, a traitor, and a prison-strewer. The Transvaal Government were requested to explain this immoderate language. Joubert wrote a letter to them defending it, and declining to apologize. The Transvaal Government stated that they were satisfied with Joubert's explanation, and the English Government, as usual, pocketed the affront.

Mr.

Mr. Rutherfoord visited both the Boers and the chiefs on his tour of inspection. He found the Boers in laager close to Maffeking, Montsiwe's station. Vorster, a prominent Boer from the Transvaal, was with the Boers, and two cannon, one of them looking like a Krupp, were in position pointing to Maffeking. It would be interesting to know where these guns came from, and whether they formed part of the artillery handed over to the Boers when the English left the Transvaal. At Maffeking Mr. Rutherfoord met Montsiwe, and heard the story of the chief's grievances. He also obtained evidence of outrages perpetrated by the freebooters, information about which may be found in the Blue Books, but which would weary the reader

if particularized in detail. From Montsiwe's he went to see Moshette, but was only able to get at him in the presence of the Boers. He then went to Mankoroane. On his return he summarized his impressions. He stated that he had no doubt Massibi's men had been foully murdered. As regards Montsiwe and Mankoroane, he said: "

The position and calamities which have fallen upon these chiefs are very lamentable. It is no exaggeration to say that during the time of my visit their country was being appropriated by the white people precisely in whatever locality and to what extent they pleased.

I have no reason to believe otherwise than that this lust of land has day by day since I left that part of the country increased, and been practically developed rather than abated, and that immunity from interference in the shape of some powerful factor from outside will daily add to the wrongful acquisition of land and property until an uninhabitable desert or the sea is reached as an ultimate point. The continued immunity from interference by some civilized and sufficiently powerful government will inevitably lead, is daily leading, to an accession to the number of "freebooters " both of land and property from the Transvaal, the Free State, and also from colonial borders. Tribe after tribe will be pushed back and back upon other tribes, or absolutely perish in the process which is going on; the only "peace" that will be made will be continually progression, subjugation, or extinction.

What is going on in Montsioa's-the Barolongs' country in general in fact, and among the people of Mankoroane and his congenerswill become the history of tribes and country beyond them on all sides. What is recorded in my report strongly indicates this.

It is just impossible to record in a report necessarily limited to its special subject what any one who will visit these parts of the country will see day by day. All observance, nay all sense, of law, of right, of reason, is being daily increasingly obscured and rejected. To see land, property, cattle, is to lust for and to seize them.

I have long since much modified any extreme negrophilist" views I may have held in earlier years, but not believing that the "final " of the existence of natives in such immense numbers in South Africa is only that they should be wiped out, and believing, on the

cause

See the Blue Book C. 3486, p. 56.