Page:The Annual Register 1899.djvu/214

 206] ENGLISH HISTORY. [ocr.

with us the conscience of an empire and the material resources of an empire, and might look forward without undue misgiving to a contest which we had done everything consistently with honour to avoid.

Sir Charles Dilke had grave doubts touching the wisdom of Sir Alfred Milner's policy, though he had not a word to say in defence of the South African Republic, the Government of which he believed to be both corrupt and unjust. In the end, he acknowledged, the war had been forced on this country, and he should vote for the supplies asked for by the Government. Sir H. Meysey-Thompson related an interesting conversation he had had in October, 1897, with Mr. De Villiers, Chief- Justice of the Orange Free State, who pressed him strongly to say whether in his opinion there was any chance of inducing England to give up her suzerainty over the Transvaal. He could not understand why the Chief Justice was so anxious on this point until he stated that if England was willing to do this the Orange Free State would at once amalgamate with the Transvaal, and that they would already have done so had it not been for the English suzerainty over the Transvaal. That disposed altogether of the contention that the suzerainty was abrogated by the Convention of 1884 and was gratuitously raked up by Mr. Chamberlain.

Mr. Dillon moved an amendment declaring that the war was to be ascribed to the assertion of claims which were in direct violation of the Convention of 1884, and submitting that recourse should be had to arbitration for the purpose of settling the differences between the two Governments. This was seconded by Mr. Labouchere, and the debate was con- tinued by Mr. Drage, Mr. Lowles, Sir E. Ashmead-Bartlett, and Col. Saunderson on the Ministerial side of the House, and on the other by Mr. Davitt, Mr. Pickersgill, Mr. Field, and Mr. W. Redmond, who joined in deprecating the war.

On a division Mr. Dillon's amendment was rejected by 322 votes against 54.

The attack on the Government, and particularly on Mr. Chamberlain, was however renewed on October 18. At the opening of the sitting on that day a royal message was read announcing the impending embodiment of the Militia and the calling out of the Militia Reserve. The debate on the Address was then resumed by Mr. Philip Stanhope (Bwrnley), who moved an amendment expressing " strong disapproval of the conduct of the negotiations with the Transvaal, which had involved us in hostilities with the two South African Republics." There was in Mr. Stanhope's speech an element of marked personal bitterness against Mr. Chamberlain, whose conduct in relation to the inquiry into the raid, and his whitewashing of Mr. Rhodes's honour, the speaker contended, had been calculated to make the Boers suspicious. Mr. Stanhope solemnly affirmed that he had come to the absolute conviction that, while he