s was being
purchased at the expense of the "greater number!" Of course, these
charges had been in the air for a long while; but after Friday they,
though still much in the air, matured in intensity. Dissatisfaction was
expressed on all sides. We--some of us--were willing to admit the
necessity of Martial Law, its rigours, severity, and discipline; but it
was too much to expect us to stand mutely by while the Military gabbled
of the "Military Situation," and (as we suspected) inwardly built
temples of fame in the air, in which they would merit a prominent niche
when, say, half a year had passed; when the last horse-chop had frizzled
on the pan; and when incidentally numbers had been killed, maimed, or
starved!

The clamour developed. No fuel was needed to feed the spreading flame of
resentment. None was needed, but it was supplied all the same--and from
a most unexpected quarter, namely, the _Diamond Fields' Advertiser_! It
was a startling _denouement_. The chains that bound the "mighty engine"
were burst asunder. The spell of militarism was broken; the people's
paper was itself again, and the people took it to their hearts as the
champion of their rights and privileges. Its leading article on Saturday
summarised the situation in a nutshell. It is too good to pass.
Commenting on the version of our sorrows supplied by signal, the sturdy
organ in a manner after our own hearts let flow the following deluge of
consoling truths:--

"... What are the facts? We have stood a Siege which is rapidly
approaching the duration of the Siege of Paris; we have practically
defended ourselves with citizen soldiers; for, thankful as we are to
the Imperial garrison, their numbers have condemned them to play a
secondary role; we have raised a large body of mounted troops, who
have on two occasions attacked the enemy's strongholds with the most
magnificent gallantry; and through the genius of Mr. Labram--whose
tragic death yesterday has sent a thrill of sorrow through the whole
community--we have been able not merely to supply ammunition for the
pop-guns sent to Kimberley, but also to produce in our workshops the
only weapon capable of minimising the terrible havoc and destruction
caused by the enemy's six-inch gun, throwing a projectile weighing
100 pounds broadcast over the town at range of three miles. They
shout to us, 'Have patience!' Will they remember that we have fought
al