ons and discussions began on May 18 and
lasted until June 29. By the irony of events, a few months later
(October 10) a war broke out, in which the Dutch people felt a great and
sympathetic interest, between the two Boer republics of South Africa and
Great Britain. Bitter feelings were aroused, and the queen did but
reflect the national sentiment when she personally received in the most
friendly manner President Krueger, who arrived in Holland as a fugitive
on board a Dutch man-of-war in the summer of 1900. The official attitude
of the government was however perfectly correct, and there was never any
breach in the relations between Great Britain and the Netherlands.

The marriage of Queen Wilhelmina, on February 7, 1901, with Prince Henry
of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was welcomed by the people, as affording hopes,
for some years to be disappointed, of the birth of an heir to the
throne.

The elections of 1901 found the liberal ministry out of favour through
the laws enforcing military service and obligatory attendance at school.
Against them the indefatigable Dr Kuyper, who had returned to active
politics in 1897, had succeeded in uniting the three "Church"
groups--the democratic anti-revolutionaries, the aristocratic Historical
Christians (both orthodox Calvinists) and the Catholics of all
sections--into a "Christian Coalition" in support of religious teaching
in the schools. The victory lay with the coalition, and Dr Kuyper became
first minister. The new administration introduced a measure on Higher
Education, which was rejected by the First Chamber. A dissolution of
this Chamber led to the majority being reversed, and the measure was
passed. Another measure revised the Mackay Law and conferred a larger
subsidy on "private" schools. The socialist party under the able
leadership of Troelstra had won several seats at the election; and in
1903 a general strike was threatened unless the government conceded the
demands of the socialist labour party. The threat was met with firmness;
an anti-strike law was quickly passed; the military was called out; and
the strike collapsed. The costly war in Achin, which had been
smouldering for some years, burst out again with violence in the years
1902-3, and led to sanguinary reprisals on the part of the Dutch
soldiery, the report of which excited indignation against the
responsible authorities. Various attempts had been made in 1895 and 1899
to introduce protectionist duties, but unsucces