an society in the Transvaal a new sense of
brotherhood. Men of different race, as far apart in spirit as the
members of the Kildare Street Club, the Orange Societies, and the
Ancient Order of Hibernians, met and made friends because it was not
only natural but necessary to make friends, since on all alike lay the
burden of doing their best for their country on a basis of equal
citizenship. Nobody out there called the new system an "experiment." The
wrench once over, the thing once done, there was general unanimity that
whatever the difficulties--and there were great difficulties--it was the
right thing to be done under the circumstances, and if this unanimity
was combined, rightly or wrongly, with a good deal of resentment against
the Liberal attitude at home towards Chinese labour, nobody is any the
worse for that. The day will come when even that burning question will
be seen in its true perspective as an infinitesimally small point beside
the great principle of responsible government, which includes the
decision of labour questions, together with all other branches of
domestic policy.

Conservative opinion at home has been slower to change than British
opinion in the Transvaal. But, again, this was natural. Parties had long
been divided on the South African question. The abrupt reversal of
policy was felt as a humiliation, and the ingrained mental habits
engendered by the traditional policy towards Ireland yielded slowly,
grudgingly, and fearfully to the proof of error in South Africa. It is
not for the sake of opening an old wound, but solely because it is
absolutely necessary for the completion of my argument, that I have to
recall the angry and violent speeches which followed the announcement of
the new policy; the dogmatic prognostications of Imperial disruption, of
financial collapse, and of a cruel Boer tyranny in the emancipated
Colonies; the charges of wanton betrayal of loyalists, of disgraceful
surrender to "the enemy." Some of the leading actors in these scenes,
notably Mr. Balfour and Mr. Lyttelton, have since acknowledged that they
were wrong, while apparently feeling it their duty as honourable and
loyal men to give a somewhat misleading turn to an old controversy in
their praise of Lord Milner's services to South Africa. That Lord
Milner, in his administration during and after the war, did, indeed, do
a vast amount of sound and lasting work for South Africa is perfectly
true, and he deserves all honour