Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 4.djvu/194

 146 SOUTH AND EAST AFEICA. aided by a ministry of five members : the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, who is also Preinier, the Treasurer- General, the Commissioner of Crown Lands and Public Works, and the Secretary for Native Affairs. These ministers, who are chosen by the Governor, constitute the Cabinet, responsible to the Chambers. The administration of justice still depends on the British Government, by whom are appointed the field-cornets {veUl konwt), or district magistrates, and justices of the peace. The highest tribunal in the colony is the Supreme Court, which comprises a chief justice and eight puisne judges. The judges of this court hold sessions in Cape Town, and circuit courts in the western districts. The judges appointed to the eastern district courts hold sessions in Graham's Town, and circuit courts in the eastern districts, and the judges assigned to the High Courts hold sessions in Kimberley. Under certain conditions, apjieal may be made from the Supreme Court itself to the Queen in Council. The Roman-Dutch law constitutes the chief legal code, modified by colonial statute law. The British Government also to some extent controls the military forces, although maintaining only a very small number of men at Cape Town and Simon's Town. The colonial armj', paid out of the local revenues, comprises the Cape Mounted llifieraen, eight hundred officers and men, besides a body of about four thousand volunteers of all arms, liy a law passed in 1878, every able-bodied man in the colony between the ages of eighteen and fifty is subject to military service beyond as well as within the colonial frontiers. Thus is constituted a nominal reserve of over one hundred and twenty thousand men. Till recently the Church was still united, to the State, although all denomina- tions did not enjoy a sliare of the public revenues. Since 1875 the principle of separation has been adopted, and the several congregations have now to support their own ministers, salaries being allowed only to those members of the clergy who were appointed before the vote abolishing the State Churches had force of law. The ecclesiastical budget thus decreases from year to year by the process of natural extinction. In 1887 it had already been reduced to £8,600. The largest white communities are the Dutch Reformed and the Episcopalians, which before the late changes were the privileged State churches. But the Wesleyans are far more active and successful in evungelising the natives, and most of the Hottentots and Kafirs in the colony accordingly belong to that denomination. The Malays have remained Mohammedans, and have even made some proselytes. They have mosques both at Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. While the charges on the State revenue for religious worship are gradually diminishing, those for public instruction are on the increase, although the com- pulsory system has not yet been introduced. No doubt the scholastic establish- ments depend chiefly on the municipalities, and are, for the most part, supported by voluntary contributions. Nevertheless the Government promotes the spread of education by means of scholarships for poor but promising students, by supplying books, maps and instruments, and by granting salaries or stipends to the profes- sors. The primary schools are divided into three groups, accorJing to the nationality of the pupils. Thus the racial prejudices which prevail in the