SOUTH AFRICA.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 518, 27 May 1909, Page 5

SOUTH AFRICA.

. PROBLEMS ALONG WITH PROSPERITY. NATAL AND THE UNION. ' OTHER STATES WII,I, JOIN HANDS IN ANY CASE. ' ■ (BY TEr.EOBAriI—'PtIESS ASSOCIATION—COPimanT.) (Rec. May 26, 10.83 p.m.) • Pletormarltzburg, May 26. The Charabor of Commorco/.by 'ij) votes to 12, defeated a resolution in favour of the ' South African Union. ' • . Thc Piotcrmaritzhurg correspondent of "The Times''.states that when the Transvaal Parliament assembles, General Botha, Premier'of tho" Transvaal, will announce that tho Union of tho .othor colonies . will.take ! place whatever Natul's. decision? may he.' Mr. F. R. Moor, Premier of; Natal, and General-Botha havo arranged .for an adjust- • mont of railway rates on competitive' traffic, -• to come' into force immediately the Act of Union is proved. '' ..''GENERAL BOTHA AND HET VOLK. V NATAL A SPOILT CHILD. • • (Bcc. May 26, 11.20 p.m.) - . Pretoria, May 26.

[ Gehoral Botha, addressing the Congress of the Het Volk! (Boer) party now sitting in Pretoria, regretted tho attitude of a section of , the. people of Natal regarding the Union..-'-, No colony, he said, had received so many concessions,. Never beforo in tho history of'Sqnth Africa' had'there been such solid signs of prosperity.

The Congress approved the Union Constitution, and '.the agreement' between tho Transvaal ..Government and the Portugucas Administration of Mozambique (which has caused dissatisfaction in Natal).

THE ORANCE RIVER COLONY. LANGUAGE QUESTION, i Eloomfonteln, May 23. A meeting held at Blocmfontcin protested against tho dismissal of Messrs. M'lntosb, Fraser, and Brady,. Inspectors of Schools.

A. resolution was adopted declaring that every Britisher was entitled to havo his childrentaught'whqlly in. English, and adding that, tho Act introduced last year by General Hertzog (Attorney-General) placed the Eng-lish-and Dutch, languages on an equality. ■:•■

. [General .Hertzog's Education Bill gave rise to' some controversy;lost year in the .Oriinge River Colony Parliament, but: was . finally adopted in August'on the basis of a compromise, whereby children may be exempted from learning the English or the Dutch lantpiase, or from accepting either as a medium of instruction. ,It was. provided that no education officer should he dismissed on account of not knowing Dutch. Education' was made compulsory under a Council of Education.. • The Constitutionalists, (British party) strongly opposed the compromise."! -. :'■; - ' ■'■' ■ ■••'-.! ' ':"' V ; ; "BOOM IN KAFFIRS." '■"'.> GEB'ATEST/ACTIVITY. SINCE 1895,

(Rec. May 26, 11.20 p.m.) London, May 26. The biggest boom jn "Kaffirs" (South

African stocks) since 1895 is in progress on' the; Stock Exohange. V■ -" ■ .-.'.- ft Randfonteins 'are higher than' they, wore in 1895. f . In' three' weeks "Cllartereds" (the British; : South --Africaft-.Company, the old Chartered Company) have .risen from 75.9 d. 'to'_26s;' j < -:' : . : -,. 1 ' / : :ft' :; '-"-""'- ft,ft ; ;'') ; ■ Other leading stocks have risen sharply owing ; to the Witwatersrand gold output reaching £10,173,030"in.-.the first:four months.of tho present 'year. '■-,:, • TRANSyAAt. OUTPUT'FOR'tHREE YEARS. '.In 4906 the Transvaal gold .output .was ,£24,579,987; in 1907, . £27,403,738;; in 1908, J529,957,610. ."And judging by the first four months-of .1909,; this year will see, still higher figures/ ■•'...':- ■-.-' .',;';:;>;..,: '■'■'■■■ -. v ft •'. The Rnndfontoin Estates Gold. Mining Company is apparent company of the. Eand,'owning; a'.vast-acreage'in the .western "Vfltwaters-, rand, and also large holdings in the companies formed to acquire claims from-it. In 1895—the year of a boom,- the waves of which reached New Zealand goldfields—Eandfontein' sharos rcaohed their high-water mark, .41.-. The.total capital 1i5'.£3.000,000. : " -::.=_■■'■ / r. • -The British South Africa Company has a capital, including .loans,, of .i 7.250.000.' The .territory .covered., by the . Charter ; , aggregates some .750,000 square miles, and the company has,' in addition to its territorial rights, ; vast mineral, railway, telegraph, and. trading interests.l It has never paid, a .dividend. .