To the foregoing account of the British use of railways for military purposes during the course of the South African War it may be of interest to add a few notes giving the experiences of the Boers, as detailed in a statement on "The Netherlands South African Railway Company and the Transvaal War," drawn up at Pretoria, in April, 1900, by the Secretary of the Company, Mr. Th. Steinnetz, and published in _De Ingenieur_ of July 14 and 21, 1900.[46] Under the terms of the concession granted to the Netherlands South African Railway Company (otherwise the Nederland Zuid Afrikaansche Spoorweg Maatschappij) by the Government of the Transvaal Republic, the latter were, in the event either of war or of danger of war, to have complete control alike over the railway and over everything--and everybody--necessary for its use, subject to certain undertakings as to the payment of compensation to concessionaires. By virtue of these powers the Executive Raad issued a decree on September 13, 1899, establishing Government control over the lines, and stating further:--"With the view of ensuring that proper use can be made of the railway, the whole of the _personnel_ of the company are ... commandeered to do duty on the railways in the functions they now occupy, and they are placed under the orders of the Commandant-General and the war officers indicated by him, or of other officials." The Government, in effect, took possession of all the lines, rolling stock, workshops and other properties of the railway company for the purposes of military transport, and they assumed control over the staff in order to ensure the working, not only of the company's own lines, but, also, of the lines in such portions of British territory as might be occupied by the forces of the Republic. Against the possibility of an immediate invasion of the Transvaal--"about which," says the statement, "there was much anxiety on account of the armoured trains, which the English advertised so loudly"--precautions were taken by preparing for demolition some of the bridges on the south-eastern section of the company's lines. Guards were, also, stationed at bridges and other important points throughout the Transvaal in order to protect them against attack or interference by "the great number of Anglophiles" assumed to be still in the Republic; but the statement seems to suggest that, as shown by the small number of attempts made in this direction, the British rather neglected their opportunities.