The time of this last visit of mine to the diamond-fields was a period of vast importance to South Africa. Events were then taking place which, as far as my judgment goes, could not have otherwise than a wide influence upon the country generally, especially with regard to the solution of the native question; I allude to the conflicts between the colony and the tribes on the east, and those between Griqualand West and the tribes farther still in that direction, all which minor conflicts were the forerunners of a great Zulu war. Another disturbing element was the annexation of the Transvaal by the British Government.
My views upon this subject generally were stated in a pamphlet which I put into circulation at the time; and as a great deal of what I then said has actually come to pass, I hope I may be excused if I here refer to that little publication, which was issued not simply at my own option, but by the desire of several influential men in South Africa, to weigh the comparative merits of the several aspects of this subject. “Recent events,” I wrote, “clearly show that in South Africa, as in North America, England has taken greater hold upon the continent than any other colonized nation. Her mode of action has been in many respects the same in either case, but the native element here differs so much from that in America that it was impossible for the same treatment to have a like effect. The European colonists were ruled by two very opposite prejudices; one party, overlooking the fact that the natives had been accustomed time out of mind to their burdens, regarded them as wrongfully oppressed; the other party deeming all negroes as of so inferior a race as to be scarcely human at all. Practical men who by long residence in the country had gained some insight into the native character, and who consequently took a more moderate view of the case, were in so great a minority, both with respect to numbers and position, that they were unable to exercise any influence.”
When I wrote my pamphlet in 1875 I did not know to how great an extent my ideas corresponded with those of many experienced colonists, but ultimately these ideas seemed to gain such ground that they became the basis of public questions.
There are certain tribes of South Africa who in their intellectual development and adult powers of comprehension seem to me to be about equal to children of our own of six years of age; and there are tribes that, according to their varying degrees of culture, possess separate tribal characteristics just in the same way as may be noticed amongst the individual members of a civilized family. One tribe, for instance, will be remarkable for its good-nature, one for its industry, and another for its thievish propensities. No doubt these various traits, as far as they are independent of association, may be accounted for in a great degree by the larger or smaller size of the brain.
The Hottentots, Griquas, and Korannas may perhaps not inaptly be compared to children that allow themselves to be attracted by anything that amuses them, and clutch at whatever takes their fancy. For this reason alone, in spite of anything they may acquire of the mechanical arts of reading and writing, they must be unfit to be admitted as yet to the privileges of a civilized race. It seems to me indispensable that before they can be held entitled to the ordinary rights of citizenship they must be cultivated to receive correct views about labour, capital, and wages, to appreciate better methods of husbandry and architecture, to take more pains about the cleanliness of their persons, and especially to recognize the moral principle that should guide their transactions alike amongst themselves and with the white men.
Hitherto the worst obstacle to civilization has been superstition; nor can I believe that much will be accomplished towards the elevation of the natives until they are brought to understand that the supply of the necessaries of life is not dependent upon the influence of magicians, fetishes, and rain-doctors.
I ventured to point out to the Government that a different future awaited the South African negroes from that of the North American Indians, and that accordingly we ought to protect them from some of the abuses by which the latter were decimated. For one thing, there ought to be restrictions put upon the sale of brandy to the black population in the colony; but more than this, there should be an absolute prohibition of its introduction into any of the adjacent native independencies. The rulers of a few tribes are already rendering considerable assistance in this way by preventing the sale of alcohol in any form upon their territory; and I am glad to testify that in at least a part of Africa the measure has been beneficial both to white men and blacks. Beyond this, I pointed out that it was necessary, alike for the Government and for private individuals, to pay particular attention to the separate characters of the tribes and of the chiefs with whom they were holding intercourse; and I went so far as to point out that the application of several native rulers to be incorporated with the English colonies ought to be entertained with the utmost caution.
The cases of Mankuruane, the Batlapin ruler, of Sechele, the Bakuena king, and still more recently that of the Damara people, and that of Khame, the sovereign of the Bamangwatos, have proved much of what I stated in my pamphlet; and I am now more than ever satisfied that the portrayal I made of the Zulu character was in every respect accurate. Whatever opinion I may once have held, I have long ceased to think that after once quelling the Zulu power it is desirable for Great Britain to extend her colonial possessions in South Africa. I am convinced, on the other hand, that it would work far better for the interests of trade and for the ultimate opening up of the continent, if one or more commissioners, duly authorized, were maintained permanently at the separate independent native courts—arms and ammunition being, of course, excluded as articles of traffic.
There has hitherto been an erroneous impression in Europe that the English are greedy to devour all the land in South Africa on which they can lay their hands; but the opponents and critics of their colonial policy do not seem to understand that in well nigh every case the cession of the territory has been made by voluntary surrender on the part of the native rulers. Before I undertook my third journey I entertained a very sanguine hope that there would be a highway of commerce opened into Central Africa, but my expectation all centred on the idea that this was impossible until the entire district between the Vaal and the Zambesi should be subjected to British rule. I see things now very differently, and am consequently gratified to know that in several instances Great Britain has declined to annex native territories, even although they have been ready to submit to her authority.
Just at the time when my pamphlet was written, several of the native princes were, it was said, on the point of making their spontaneous cession; and it was my desire to warn the Government to act with caution in every transaction of the kind. I said: “Here is Mankuruane, the Batlapin king, with one tribe, and here is Montsua, the Barolong king, with another. They tell us that they want to be numbered among our subjects, but before their request is complied with they should be made to declare whether it is by their own wish or by that of their people that they seek to be reckoned as British subjects; they should be forced to confess whether it was their friendship to the English or their fear and hatred of other white men that prompted them to make the proposal; they should be bound to declare whether it was not simply because they were threatened by some neighbouring chief that they sought English protection; or, again, they should be obliged to disclose the truth as to whether there was a rival chief in the territory whom it was sought to paralyze. Two years after they had been annexed the Damaras acknowledged that they had had no other motive in seeking incorporation under the British sceptre, except this last of getting rid of a rival chief. Further than this, I beg to suggest the necessity, even after the true origin of the proposal has been ascertained, of making strict investigation into the character of the chief and the grade of culture of the tribe, before any treaty of affiliation is concluded.”