South Africa and the Boer-British War, Volume I: Comprising a History of South Africa and its people, including the war of 1899 and 1900Halstead, Murat
History
South Africa and the Boer-British War, Volume I: Comprising a History of South Africa and its people, including the war of 1899 and 1900
Halstead, Murat
South African War, 1899-1902
As in Canada, every little town and village and country centre
contributed its quota of enthusiasm and recruits, from end to end of
the island-continent, throughout little Tasmania and in beautiful New
Zealand. The latter Colony was the first to get its troops away, and
on October 21st they sailed from Wellington amid scenes of wild
enthusiasm and in the presence of 25,000 people. The Governor, the
Earl of Ranfurly, briefly addressed the Contingent, and, during the
Premier's speech, when he asked the significant question: "Shall our
kindred in the Transvaal be free?" there was a tremendous shout of
"yes" from thousands of throats. A few days later the Governor
received a cable from the Colonial Secretary expressing the
gratification of Her Majesty's Government at home and the appreciation
of the people generally. The Queensland troops left on October 28th
under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Ricardo, and Brisbane, for the time
being, was the home of immense masses of people and the scene of
banquets, speeches and unlimited enthusiasm. From Melbourne, Sydney,
Adelaide and Perth the various other Contingents sailed about the same
time and amid scenes such as the pen finds it hard to describe in cold
type. It was literally a wave of patriotism in which the Governors and
Premiers--Lord Brassey and Sir George Turner, of Victoria, Earl
Beauchamp and the Hon. W. J. Lyne, of New South Wales, Lord Tennyson
and the Right Hon. C. C. Kingston, of South Australia, Sir Gerard Smith
and Sir John Forrest, of Western Australia--simply represented in their
speeches the feeling of the people, and were supported in doing so by
Opposition Leaders and by every important element in their respective
Colonies; even the Labor organizations having fallen into line where,
in some cases, they had been antagonistic. The Sydney _Daily
Telegraph_ declared, in this connection that "the remarkable
demonstrations in the two great cities of Australia (Melbourne and
Sydney) on Saturday must have convinced the most callous soul of the
deep-seated hold which the idea of Empire has upon the people.... In
offering troops to Great Britain for service in South Africa the
underlying feeling is that we are part of the Empire whose supremacy in
one part of the globe is threatened." Lord Brassey, in addressing the
Victorian and Tasmanian Contingents on October 28th at Melbourne,
clearly and eloquently voiced the same sentiment:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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