The Reform Committee had sent a letter to Jameson (as per agreement?) requesting his aid to obtain their demands, as is proved by the letter Jameson had received, signed by five of the leading members of the Reform Committee. The Reform Committee had promised Jameson (so he declared) to send two thousand men to aid him in pushing his way through to Johannesburg. But what did these brave reformers do—these followers of Mirabeau, Rousseau, and who knows, perhaps, Marat? When Jameson was on his way, as per agreement with them, to fight with them, and for them, these reformers (?) sent a deputation to Pretoria and concluded an armistice with the Government, by which they bound themselves not to do anything to break the peace, or to give the Government cause to send a force against them for a stipulated time. A very laudable thing, and tending towards a peaceful solution, you would think. Quite so; only why did they not do so before? Why did they first entice Jameson to place himself in peril, and in danger of life on their behalf, and then utterly desert him. This much can be said on behalf of Jameson, and is freely acknowledged by the Boers, that he at least was no coward, and kept his part of the agreement, even though it was in an ignoble cause; but it only proves that there is sometimes honour among thieves, even though the honour was all on one side here.
How can the action of the Reform Committee be explained? I am afraid it can be explained no more than the action of C. Leonard (the leader and president of the conspirators on the Rand) can be explained. His cowardly action seemed to have given a very bad example to his fellow-conspirators, and utterly demoralised them. What did he do? He threw the fat into the fire by the issue of his famous manifesto, and when he had succeeded in thoroughly rousing the public and the Government, and when Jameson was on his way, in answer to his invitation to come and aid him and his gang in their nefarious work—in short, when he saw the moment of danger had come, like a cur, he put his tail between his legs and fled the country, leaving his friends to get out of their position of danger, where he had helped to place them, as best they may. When Leonard had fled, the rest of the conspirators seemed to realise the danger of their little game of bluff. They had hoped, as one of their members had said months before, that the Boer Government would funk it (excuse the slang), and give them all they demanded.
Fools!
They had been living amongst the Boers for so long, and ought to have known that, while there was life, no Boer would give up the much-treasured and dearly-bought liberty of the nation.
Strange that these reformers (?) should have run their noses against a wall, without first making sure that the wall would give way without hurting their precious noses. But now, when the mischief was done, they seemed to realise their danger, and began to stop and consider. Now, when Jameson was fighting for life or death in their cause. Now, when thousands of poor women and children had fled from the scene in destitution and want. Now, when the veld along the Vaal and beyond was covered with these destitute, unprotected, unsheltered, barely-clothed and starving women and children, and were depending for daily bread on the very Boers whom the Reform Committee were trying to destroy. Now, when many a home was in mourning and woe for loved ones lost at that terrible railway accident at Glencoe, when a train, loaded with fugitives from the Rand, was wrecked, causing the death of many a mother, a father, a child, or some other loved one, while many a one lived to bear some terrible mark of the accident for life. Now, when the whole country was in commotion and disorder by their action. Now, when the powers of Europe were glaring in distrust at each other, ready to spring at each other’s throat, and cause endless war and bloodshed. Now, when (worst of all for South Africa) a bitter and insatiable race hatred has been started anew in the whole of South Africa. Now only, I say, the few scheming, plotting and unscrupulous persons who had caused all this, began to bethink themselves, and now only, because they began to see that their own precious hides were beginning to be in danger, and followed in the footsteps of their leader, C. Leonard. They may plead that they stopped to avoid further bloodshed; but why have they started shedding blood at all? Why first invite a foreign force to invade the country on their behalf, and then desert their accomplices?
No, all excuse is vain, they knew exactly what they were doing when they began their guilty plots to rob a nation of freedom and country; and they knew (unless they were idiots, and fit inmates for the lunatic asylum) what to expect. The only sensible thing the Reform Committee ever did was, when Jameson was a prisoner and the whole mess was spoiled, to accept defeat and lay down their arms. (I am not referring to the time when they concluded the armistice, while Jameson’s fate was undecided, but the following week, when they laid down their arms, as we shall see farther on).
But the great guilt of the Reform Committee lay in their ever having taken up arms, and in ever having plotted to light the torch of civil war, with no other object than to throw the South African Republic into the arms of Rhodes. As to the professed object of the revolution and the demands contained in the manifesto, we shall take occasion a little farther on to show how much—or how little—cause there was for the taking up of arms.
CHAPTER XVIII
PRETORIA DURING THE CRISIS
Pretoria, as became the capital of the State, followed in the footsteps of the Government, and kept calm and cool during all this bustle and uproar in Johannesburg. It is true there were a few hot-headed, ignorant young men (late arrivals mostly) who talked big amongst themselves, and said that the time had come for England to step in and again take possession of the Transvaal; but it was noticed that these young men either kept out of the way of, or were very quiet in the presence of, the Burghers or Afrikanders generally. But the majority of, in fact nearly all, the inhabitants of Pretoria were very orderly and quiet. There were those who in their inmost hearts wished for Jameson’s and Johannesburg’s success, and even said so at first; but as soon as information of Jameson’s defeat was received, even these became Government supporters and sympathisers—at least so they said (?). But from the first the leading inhabitants and public men gave the Government to understand that all their influence would be given to support law and order; and on the arrival of the news that the country was being invaded by Chartered troops, the inhabitants held a meeting, at the suggestion of a leading citizen, and resolved to form themselves into a vigilant corps, to protect life and keep order. This was done. Every man of whatsoever nationality became a member of the corps, and did duty night and day, patrolling the streets and vicinity of the town. All this was done under the orders and with the assistance of the authorities, thus showing the good understanding between the Government and the inhabitants of Pretoria.