Through Shot and Flame / The Adventures and Experiences of J. D. Kestell Chaplain to President Steyn and General Christian De Wet

by J. D. Kestell

The Delegate who spoke first said that the terms of the English were not such as had been desired, but that under the circumstances no better ones could be expected. It was his opinion that they should be accepted. This Delegate had hardly sat down when General Nieuwoudt rose and expressed it as his view that the meeting should immediately proceed to vote.

This was a bold move, intended, as everyone could see, to obtain a vote for the continuance of the struggle. And this would have happened if a vote had now been taken, for the meeting was just then in a mood to reject the English proposals, which had made a very unfavourable impression. This was well understood, and several members remarked that in such an important matter the meeting should be careful, and not act without due caution; if it did it might prove fatal. The discussions then continued, until a resolution was come to on the afternoon of the third day, Saturday, the 31st of May.

As things had gone in the beginning, so they went now. There were two parties, and the views were distinctly and clearly marked; the one side maintaining that it was the duty of the people to continue the struggle, whilst the other party held that, whatever one might wish, it was no longer possible to do so. I shall not note here all that was said, for much that had been said on the 15th, 16th, and 17th of May was repeated. I shall now again, as I did in a former chapter, summarise and arrange.

There were some who pointed out that, however one might regard the matter, it was impossible to continue the war. As before, it was remarked that we stood on the threshold of a famine, and that it was want of food that was forcing us to discontinue the struggle. It was also stated that horses had become so scarce that almost three out of every ten burghers had to go about on foot, and that the horses which we still possessed were so weak that they were unable to do the work that was required of them, especially now that no forage was any longer obtainable and they had to subsist on grass only. It had also become undeniably evident that the commandos had grown gradually weaker. Where we lost men we could not fill up their places. Thus General de la Rey—the man who had never shown any signs of discouragement—declared that since his last great fights he had lost 300 men, dead, wounded, and prisoners, and that his cattle had been captured by 40,000 mounted troops. Commandant-General Botha also referred to the fact that the English had 31,400 of our men prisoners-of-war, that of these 600 had died, and that 3800 of our burghers had fallen in battle. He said that if the war continued in the same manner we should eventually be exhausted, and should not again have a chance to negotiate. General Smuts made it clear to the meeting that it was possible to continue the war from a military point of view for three or six months longer; but the war was not a mere military matter, it was a national matter; and he added, "Why did we fight? Merely for the sake of fighting; merely to shoot and be shot? No, it was for our Independence. Well, then, was there any chance left, humanly speaking, of retaining it?"

But what was more specially urged was the miserable plight of our women. Many of them had hardly any clothes left, and they were in danger of dying of famine. When the commandos brought them food it was taken away by the English forces, so pitilessly that they took, as it were, the food out of the mouths of the children. So far from the truth was it that the English had removed our wives to the concentration camps from charitable motives, that during the last six months they had refused to receive them when, driven by want, they had sought refuge in the camps, and had, since the need had become most pressing, sent them back to their ruined dwellings when the women had gone to the towns for help. Moreover, every Delegate there knew well to what dangers the women were exposed, and that whenever they most required the protection of the men those men had to retire before the overwhelming numbers of the enemy, thus leaving the women behind, exposed to indescribable insults from Kaffirs and soldiers. This surely could not continue.

On the other hand, it was argued that if the proposal was accepted the nation would thereby be extinguished. It was said that if the war was continued then there was a hope of winning it; but by accepting the proposal the deathblow would be given to our national existence. The unsatisfactory nature of the terms offered by England were also dwelt upon. The arrangement offered in the proposal as to compensation for losses suffered by the war was insufficient, and the people would be reduced to the greatest poverty. It was further urged that we should not allow our courage to sink on account of the dark hour we were passing through. In the past there had also been dark days. Dark had been the days when the chief towns had been taken by the enemy, when General Prinsloo surrendered, when the railway lines fell completely into the hands of the enemy. But we put our trust in God and carried on the struggle, and no one was made ashamed. After the sifting, those who were left had remained steadfast. The outlook had also been dark when the ammunition was spent. General de Wet said that he used to shudder when he saw a burgher coming towards him with an empty cartridge-belt. And yet later on so much was taken from the English that there was now a sufficient supply. The fact also that England was at this moment ready to negotiate was a proof that by persisting we had gained something, for there had been a time when Lord Salisbury had insisted on unconditional surrender. Another Delegate also reminded the meeting that there was a time when Lord Roberts would not meet General Botha, and now the English were negotiating with us! Why then, some Delegates asked, should this be the last chance of negotiating? Even if the proposal was now declined—this had been done before several times in the past—England would be willing to negotiate, and the chances were that at each negotiation they would obtain better terms.

So the Representatives of the People discussed the great question; but it was as if they were grasping at the last straw floating on the stormy waters of a whirlpool. We could not resist the conviction that the Africander nation was exhausted. Gradually it was becoming evident that it was impossible to continue the war. Even those who saw a chance to hold out in their own districts and with their own commandos began more and more to perceive that they could not do so if they stood alone.

This conviction acted on the minds of the Delegates, and, as General Beyers remarked, a spirit of aversion to further resistance arose. Against this spirit it was seen to be impossible to struggle. Judge Hertzog also showed that, although he wished to make no accusation against anyone, the holding of this meeting had been a great mistake, for the meeting had taken away the last plank upon which they had stood. For at this meeting the Delegates had been obliged to declare what the true state of the country was, and those who still had courage would now, after learning to what a pass matters had come, grow disheartened. General de la Rey also pointed to this when he said, "You may say what you will, resolve what you will; but whatever you do, here in this meeting is the end of the war!" The same was said by General Smuts. "This is for us," he said, "a great moment, perhaps the last in which we shall meet as a free people and a free Government."

It was in vain that voices were still raised for continuing the struggle. In vain that one referred to posterity, and declared that future generations would blame their forefathers that they had laid down their arms when they should have continued the struggle. In vain was it shown that they had been enjoined by their constituents to continue the struggle. "Injunction or no injunction, it is you," said General de la Rey to the Delegates, "who must decide, and you will have to decide, not for your own village or for your own district, but for the whole country."

The inevitable, the hard inexorable, stared the meeting in the face. It was simply impossible any longer to struggle against the stream. It was evident that although, from a military point of view, we had not been conquered, yet the war could not, for the sake of the People, be carried on any longer. The Boers had held out as long as they could; nay, months and months longer than they really could, and now—The bitter end had come!