These Notices Of The Boers Are Not Intended To Produce A Sneer
At Their Ignorance, But To Excite The Compassion Of Their Friends.
They Are Perpetually Talking About Their Laws; But Practically
Theirs Is Only The Law Of The Strongest.
The Bechuanas could never understand
the changes which took place in their commandants.
"Why, one can never know
who is the chief among these Boers. Like the Bushmen, they have no king -
they must be the Bushmen of the English." The idea that any tribe of men
could be so senseless as not to have an hereditary chief
was so absurd to these people, that, in order not to appear equally stupid,
I was obliged to tell them that we English were so anxious
to preserve the royal blood, that we had made a young lady our chief.
This seemed to them a most convincing proof of our sound sense.
We shall see farther on the confidence my account of our queen inspired.
The Boers, encouraged by the accession of Mr. Pretorius,
determined at last to put a stop to English traders going past Kolobeng,
by dispersing the tribe of Bakwains, and expelling all the missionaries.
Sir George Cathcart proclaimed the independence of the Boers, the best thing
that could have been done had they been between us and the Caffres.
A treaty was entered into with these Boers; an article for
the free passage of Englishmen to the country beyond, and also another,
that no slavery should be allowed in the independent territory,
were duly inserted, as expressive of the views of her majesty's government
at home.
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