led out of Cape Colony sixty years before, had suffered many perils and
triumphed over many foes, had recovered their independence by their own
courage when Britain had deprived them of it, had founded a commonwealth
upon their own lines and could now keep it as their own only by the
exclusion of those aliens in blood, speech and manners who had recently
come among them. They had not desired these strangers, nor had the
strangers come for anything but gold. True, they had opened the land to
them, they had permitted them to buy the gold-reefs, they had filled
their coffers with the taxes which the miners paid. But the strangers
came with notice that it was a Boer State they were entering, and most
of them had come, not to stay, and to identify themselves with the old
citizens, but to depart after amassing gain. Were these immigrants of
yesterday to be suffered to overturn the old Boer State, and build up on
its ruins a new one under which the Boer would soon find his cherished
customs gone and himself in turn a stranger? Had not the English many
other lands to rule, without appropriating this one also? Put the
grievances of which the Uitlanders complained at their highest, and they
did not amount to wrongs such as had in other countries furnished the
usual pretext for insurrection. Life, religion, property, personal
freedom, were not at stake. The worst any one suffered was to be
overtaxed and to want some of those advantages which the old citizens
had never possessed and did not care to have. These were hardships, but
were they hardships such as could justify a recourse to arms?

The other question which an observer asked himself was whether an
insurrection would succeed. Taking a cooler view of the position than it
was easy for a resident to take, he felt some doubt on this point, and
it occurred to him to wonder whether, if the Government was really so
corrupt as the Uitlanders described it, the latter might not attain
their object more cheaply, as well as peaceably, by using those
arguments which were said to prevail with many members of the Volksraad.
Supposing this to be impossible,--and it may well have been found
impossible, for men not scrupulous in lesser matters may yet refuse to
tamper with what they hold vital,--were the forces at the disposal of
the Reform leaders sufficient to overthrow the Government? It had only
two or three hundred regular troops, artillerymen stationed at Pretoria,
and said to be not ve