The peace negotiations between the governments of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, and the representatives of the British government, which terminated in the peace concluded at Vereeniging on the 31st May, 1902Kestell, J. D. (John Daniel)
History
The peace negotiations between the governments of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, and the representatives of the British government, which terminated in the peace concluded at Vereeniging on the 31st May, 1902
Kestell, J. D. (John Daniel)
South Africa -- History; South African War, 1899-1902
General Liebenberg (Potchefstroom) spoke about the commandos of
Potchefstroom under his command. During the past eight or nine months
blockhouses had been established in his division, and he had only a
narrow space of about twelve miles wide where he could exist. A
considerable amount of corn had been sown, but their fields had
recently fallen into the hands of the enemy, and now everything had
been destroyed, burnt, and trampled down by the horses. They had still
93 families. Some women from the Orange Free State had been placed on
the boundary between the districts of Lichtenburg and Potchefstroom by
the British. These were in a most deplorable condition, and were
almost dying from misery. These women had informed him that unless
matters improved they would proceed to Klerksdorp on foot. He had
advised them to wait until after the completion of the negotiations.
His commando consisted of 400 mounted men and about 100 dismounted. He
would be able to continue the struggle for some little time yet, and
then he would have to seek salvation elsewhere.
General du Toit (Wolmaransstad) informed the meeting that provisions
were very scarce with him, and that they had 500 families to support.
The horses were in a very poor condition, but by making _detours_ he
could always manage to get out of tight corners. His commando was not
large--it consisted of only about 450 mounted men--and the cattle they
had were in good condition, but grain was scarce.
Commandant de Beer (Bloemhof) stated that he had 444 mounted men and
about 165 unmounted burghers. Grain was not plentiful in his district,
nor cattle, but Bloemhof had never had much cattle. The families with
them were not yet suffering very much from scarcity of provisions, and
he thought he would be able to continue the struggle for another year.
General Kemp said that he had under his command portions of the
commandos of Krugersdorp and Rustenburg, and portions of the commandos
of Pretoria and Johannesburg. In the Krugersdorp district they could
not sow any more, and the majority of the cattle had been taken from
them. And yet they were not suffering from want. Indeed, he thought
they should never be in want if they had such a large commissariat
upon which they could draw, namely, the Zoutpansberg district, where
General Beyers was in command. He took from the Kaffirs what he
required, but what he took was not the property of the natives, but
what they had stolen from the burghers. He could hold out for two
years longer.
Chief Commandant de Wet asked why those commandos in the eastern
portions of the Transvaal could not do the same as those under command
of General Kemp, and re-take their property from the Kaffirs?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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