forts at Pretoria and Johannesburg in order to terrorise British subjects; the police were exclusively burghers, ignorant and prejudiced, and were a danger to the community; jurors were necessarily burghers, and justice was impossible in cases where a racial issue might be involved. [Sidenote: Petition of the Uitlanders] The petition went on to state that indignation was finally aroused by the murder of Edgar and the favouritism displayed by the Public Prosecutor. A petition to the Queen, presented by 4000 British subjects, was rejected in consequence of informalities. For taking a leading part in getting up the petition, Messrs. Dodd and Webb were arrested under the Public Meetings Act, and were only released on giving bail of £1000, five times the amount required for the murderer of Edgar. A meeting within a closed place, permitted by law and sanctioned expressly by the Government, was called by the South African League on January 14. This was broken up by an armed and organised band of burghers and police in plain clothes led by Government officials. The police refused to interfere. The behaviour of the British subjects was orderly. They did not retaliate, preferring to lay their grievances before Her Majesty. No arrests were made either of the officials responsible or of the rioters. The condition of the British subjects, the petition concluded, was intolerable. They were prevented by the direct action of the Government from ventilating their grievances; 'wherefore the petitioners pray Her Majesty {177} to extend her protection to them, to cause an inquiry to be held into their grievances, to secure the reform of abuses, and to obtain substantial guarantees from the Transvaal Government and a recognition of the petitioners' rights.' This important petition was accompanied by affidavits substantiating the various allegations made in it.