On the 26th of August, Mr. Chamberlain made a speech on the occasion of a garden-party at his place at Highbury, in which, among other things, he said "Mr. Kruger dribbles out reforms like water from a squeezed sponge, and he either accompanies his offers with condi-ons which he knows to be impossible, or he refuses to allow us to make a satisfac tory investigation of the nature of these reforms.... The sands are running own in the glass.. The knot must be loosened.. or else we shall dave to find other ways of untying it."
On the 30th of August, he sent a dispatch in which he stated, among other things, that Her Majesty's Government assumed that the adoption in principle of the franchise proposals would not be hampered by any conditions which would impair their effect; that Her Majesty's Government were unable to appreciate the objections entertained by the Government of the South African Republic to a Joint Commission of Enquiry; that Her Majesty's Government, however, would appoint 2 commission on their side to institute an enquiry into the law and to make the necessary suggestions to the Government of the Republic, and trusted that different conditions, as to. previous registration, qualification and behaviour, would be omitted from the proposed new law. With regard to the conditions of the Government of the South African Republic, Mr. Chamberlain said, as regards intervention Hor Majesty's Government hoped that the fulfilment of the promises made and the just treatment of the Uitlanders in future would render unnecessary any further interference on their behalf, but that Her Majesty's Gorernment could not debar themselves from their rights under the Conventior (N.B.—The Convention of 1881 had lapsed, as is known.) With regard to the Suzerainty, Mr. Chamberlain referred the Government to a former dispatch, in which he maintained that the Suzerainty still existed.
Sir A. Milner Urges Extreme Measures.
On the Bist of August, Sir Alfred Milner telegraphed to Mr. Chamberlain "The purport of all the rep: sentations made to me is to urze prompt and decided action; not to deprecate further interference on the part of Her Majesty's Government.. British South Africa is prepared for extreme measures.... I fear seriously that there will be a strong reaction of feeling against. the policy of Her, Majesty's Government if matters In reply to. Mr. Chamberlain's dispatch of the 30th of August, the State Secretary, on the 2nd of September, wrote to the British Agent at toria that the Government of the South African Republic had heard with the deepest regret that Her, Majesty's Government had not seen their way to accept the proposals which were set forth in the Notes of the 19th and 21st of August, under the conditions attached thereto, the more so as the Government had supposed from semiofficial discussions that it might infer that its proposal would have been accept able to Her Majesty's Government.
With reference to a tribunal of arbitra~ tion the Government was pleased to see sudden attack on the part of ty's Government, were pre-Before the final steps were reached, pared to enter into negotiations with re President Steijn of the Orange Free Btate gard to the form and scope of such tri-had intervened in order to mako every burial. It was however not clear to it: effort, on his side, to avoid, war.
(a) If Her Majesty's Government consents that burghers of the Orange Free State may also be appointed as members of such tribunal.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.