British South Africa found herself, on the outbreak of war, with German forces on her frontiers. In the German colony of South-West Africa there was a large and well-equipped German army, and in German East Africa there were other forces. Further, there were some Boers who had not yet become resigned to British rule, and it was thought--as afterwards proved to be the case--that they had been bribed by the Germans, and would seize the opportunity to rise in rebellion. South Africa could not, therefore, send forces to help the mother country; but, under the command of General Botha,[240] who himself had been a leader of the Boers[241] in the late war, she undertook to guard herself and attack the Germans on her borders without the help of soldiers from Great Britain or from any of the Dominions. We shall see in the next volume how she carried out this duty. Meanwhile she sent many gifts of money and produce to Great Britain. * * * * * There was no part of the British Empire, however small, which did not, to the best of its ability, help the mother country in her hour of need. From the Barbadoes came £20,000; from the Falkland Islands, £1 per head of the population, as well as £750 for the Prince of Wales's Fund.[242] St. Kitts and Nevis, in the West Indies, sent £5,000 to the same fund; Mauritius, British Guiana, and Jamaica sent large gifts of sugar; Southern Rhodesia sent maize, and Hong Kong a large donation to the Prince of Wales's Fund. Take a map of the world and search out one by one the overseas possessions of Great Britain. You cannot find a single place under the Union Jack that did not rally to the Empire as soon as the call to arms was sounded. No wonder the King was deeply touched by these tenders of loyal service, and no wonder that he thanked his overseas subjects in a noble message. The hearts of all Britons in the mother country were deeply stirred to feelings of joy and pride when they knew that the men of the Dominions were "Welded, each and all Into one Imperial whole, One with Britain, heart and soul-- One life, one flag, one fleet, one throne! Britons, hold your own!" [Footnote 217: The home of the Army Council and of the Headquarters Staff in Whitehall, London. The Army Council completely controls the army. At the head of it is the Secretary of State for War, who is a member of one of the Houses of Parliament and of the Cabinet.] [Footnote 218: So called because raised by Lord Strathcona (1820-1914) who rose from a clerk in the Hudson Bay Company to be head of the company and High Commissioner for Canada. The construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway was almost entirely due to him.] [Footnote 219: City of Saskatchewan, Canada; 400 miles west of Winnipeg, on the Canadian Pacific Railway.] [Footnote 220: Chief city and commercial capital of Canada, on the St. Lawrence, Province of Quebec.]