CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. PROCLAMATION. By His Excellency Lieutenant-General Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith,Bart.

New Zealander, Volume 4, Issue 267, 20 December 1848, Page 3

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. PROCLAMATION. By His Excellency Lieutenant- General Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith, Bart.

Whereas the wicked lebsllion, txuied and fomented by one Auduua Wilhelmus Jacobus Picumui, Ins beeti effectually put down by force of her Majesty's arms at '• Boom Pl'iats,' 1 wheie 'lie rebels dired to dispute ihe passage ot her Majesty's troops, thereby causing a cot flict in which tor'.y-nine burghers were left dead upon the field — upwards of 15'J wounded— <md ihe remauid'T, many ot them leaving behind their horsei, arm-, and clothing, di^per^eii and put to flight in every dtiection; and tbß insult offered to her Majesty's autionty having been thus avenged, as was declared in my Manifesto of the 29ili M-uch lant such act should be; -and whereas the extreme penalty of tha law— d atlt — was curried 'nto execution, nt B'oem Fontein, on ihe morning of tlu- 4th S^pteinoer, upon the bodies of cerain tebels, viz .—Thomas Dreyer, burgher, an-i JVJHiael Qumlmg, a c esert r fro'i) her Ma« jesty's service; And whrre<iB, 1 have this day onueJ al Wmburs; with a body of troops to enforce nil- awd obedience to tho comm.inds oi hei" Maj sty the Q'uen of England; — and whereas on the 3rd Febinary last, I did Jpioclaim the sovereignty of her Moj'iiyover ihe teint >ry [row the Orange River north, to the Vaal River, which a band of rebels bat ye tured t; oppose; 1 now re-proclaim that sovereign y, under a royal silute of twenty-one guns — having by torce of anus dispeised these rebeis. ( And (or the better and more efficient government of the territory in tue east and north of Great Orange River, over whuh her Majesty's authority has been tXtended, I do hsreby proclaim and declare the tract of coutitiy situated between the Sand River and the Vaal lliver, and bounded towards the south by the Diaakberg Mountains, to be constituted a Fourth District ot the sovereignty aforesaid. Thus the c \\M ha— 1. The distiici of Bioem Fcntein, under the Biitish Resident, Major Warden. 2. The district of Caledon, to which I have appointed Thomas Vowe, E«-q , civil couiinis>ijncr and uiagisttatf. 3. The district of Wiubur?, compiling the territory extending fr«m the Bioem Fontein district to the Sand River, and up o the Diaakberg Mountains, to which I apppomt, pending my futthur decision, Frederick HiX, Esq., civil coranmsbioner and magisiratc. 4. The district of Vaal River, to wb eh I appoint as Landrost thdt peace-loving and well- disposed burger Hpn.lnU Potgieter, who will select and nominate his field-commandants and field-cornets, and will be held lespoiiMbie to me to observe obedunre and gond faith towards her M- jesty, and the authority in me vesttd. And he salary ot ihe Landmst, and the amount of quit-rents, wliu.li will be trifling;, shall be hereafter detei mined, when I see Mynheer Potgi.ter and other ii flueut'al men. And when as these rebels did commit various wanton acts, and did nlao wickedly pill»ge many houses, the piopeity of wel-disposed persons at Winburg, I hereby proclaim, that I shall appoint a commissioner, to levy such fines upen those who took part in the rebe lion, as shall not only aid in defraying the exprnses entailed upon Government by this wicked w&r, but indemnify the good men for their losses, who suffered by the acts of the evil; and I will banish from the district of W inberg all rebels and disturbers of the peve,and will confiscate their property, with the exception of Mynheer Paul Hester, of the W.-nburg district, and Mynheer Gert Kreiger, of the dUtiict of Vaal Rivir, to whom I extend her M.jesty's gracious pardon. These men, although they wickedly turned out, did endeavour to restrain the acts ot violence and b oodshed of that arch rebel Pieturtus. And I hereby make known, that all marriages heretofore contracted in the district of Winliuig, and not recorded as set forth in my proclama'ion, are ill-gal; and tha off-prmg ihereot can inherit no properly within the colony. And 1 hi ieby prohibit all public meetings ; and I hold any oue guilty of felony who shall eudeavour to convene any ; and if they attempt to do so, I have posted at iiiOLm Fon em, a large lorce of guii9, cavahy, and infantry, to suppress the «arne by fo'ce of arms ; and will constiuct such a forufica'ion at Bloem Fontein, well def nded by cannon, as shall ensure its satety during the absence of the tioops in the fie d. And whereas ii appeari that the Post established for public convenience und utility, between Winbutg and Natal, has been interfered with, and ietten opened, I do hereby make known, that any person who shall interrupt the same shall br guilty of felony. And I do likewise make known, that any person who shall disseminate any papers or documents of a treasonaole niture, or shall connive nt their dissemination, or shall hold any intercourse with Pretorius, Jacobs, and o hers pio>cubed, shall be guilty of lelony, And haviug, in my proclamation ot the 2nd Septenv er, offered the sum of five hundred founds for the appreiuMsion of one Willem Jacobs, I now double that sum; and I hereby offer the like sum for the apprehension of one Antilles Spies, a notorious rebel, and five hundred pouuds,for Frederick Bezuidenhout. And I do hereby offer a reward of five hundred pouudi for Adrian Slanders, and do now make known lih conduct to the world, affording as it does an ample example of the state of society beyond the Orange Rivei . This man wa-i living in intimacy with, and close to, Mr. Erwee, — ami.it respectable farmer j— he was even very lately at t ,c funeral of one of Mr. Erwee's soni. Scarcely had the outbreak commencedi whtn he leized his neighbours property as his own ; anothei rel el, of the name of Jacobus Meyer, a' the same time tfki<i£ poise»»iiin of Bioem Fon'ein, und actually ploughing Major Wardeu'o fvld. Suih instances of a total ignorance of the rights of man must be blazoned foith. The desire of plunder, not a Iteliug ot patriotism, actuates the reb"l l>v wh"-ra private property is neither respected nor re^arde I. And I hereby proclaim, that the information which

l e d me to impute to Mynheer Kryoauw the heinous ; crime of having been one of the first to order the rebels ! to fire, proving to be false, he having left the rtbel j camp, — I do absolve him of the s<me. And I hereby proclaim my marked approbation of the conduct of Mynheers Gert Heudnk Mejer, Wessels, and their party at Winburg, who manfully and gallantly formed themselves into a camp near W.nbug, and did resist and repel any attempt made liy the rebels upon them ; and also that of Field-Com-mandant Sneymau, of Hie Caledon River, who, wilh upwards of five hundred families, did the same, as likewise of that of Mr. Erw<-e, FieldCommandant Erasmus, and Field Comet Clott?, and Field-Cornet M. Oveilaster, and their people, all of whom have, by thin uniting themselves, preserved the gieiter part of their flacks and )herds tiom rob bers'; and I will not omit to muke such meritoriou conduct towards rebels against Her Majesty's, au ho- , ttty, and oppressors of their telloW'Mibjetts, known to ihe Quern. 1 alsj highly applaud the conduct ol Mynhfer Pot»ietiT, in consideration of which I have appointed him Laudro-t. My manifesto is now verified, and I hereby desire all the inhabitant! of the Na'al district to return to their huaits. If they neglect this warning, and do not do so, they had better look af.er their herds and cattle, lest I sweep them off Thess ny the out lints of my pr cecdings pending further information: and I »nn x hcreunder my prociamation ot the 2nd September at Bloem Fon'ein ; thai all may know, that however deciMus I am and have alv\d>» proved noysrjf to be fo. ttid welUre of the Dutch community, intuit t> Her Majesty's authouty is, and ever shall be av^ny;' d. God s<ive the Qiren I Given under my hand and seil at Winburg. the 7th day of September, 1848. H. G Smith, By order of His Excellency Her Majekty's High Corainissioaei • Richard Southey, Secretary.

Winburg, Olh Sipt., 1843. Minu'es of ihe proceeding* of a meeting, convened by his Excellency the Governor of the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope and High Cornmusioner, at which were prenent the G virnor, the Chiefs Moshesh, Morokko, Molit»wni, »ud Carolus Eblju ; also the leading and influential burgher*, or their represeniativcs, of the Caledon and Bloem Fontein districts, and the burghers of the district of V\ mburg, viz , that tract of teiritory extending from the Bloein Fontein district tothewe&t ward, north to the Vaal River, eastward to the high ground between the Sanl and Vaalsch R veri, and tae Draakerberg Mountains to the south. Present of the burghers of the Wmburgh district, upwards of 150 j and Mr. Paul Bester was deputed to answer for some hundreds of the Vanl River,— the distance preventing them from attending. The meeting was opened by the Governor. His Excellei cy said : — Gentlemen, in January last you invred me among you. and proposrd that I ihould establish a government for you, as you regarded yoursdve? as British subjects. It was impossible for me to do go, thu ter itory not being annexed as part of the colony, without proclaiming it to be undei the Sovereignty of her Majesty. 1 consulted your leading men, with the Chiefs Moshesb, Moroklto, Molitsani, Sinkomella, J*» Bloem, Adam Kok, Carolus Batju, and leveml <jtli-rs ; all prayed me to do what you know J I have done, as Set forth in my proclamations of the 3rd of February and 8h of Mirch lusf,— after nhich, uiikeii agitator* attempted to interrupt the pi ogressin^ haimony: and 1 issued my manifesto of the 29. h March hut; notwithstanding which a wicked rebellion was excited, and which has been put down by force of arms, as you well know, and a* is set fonh in my proclamations of the 2nd of September, issued at Bloem Fontein, and of the 7th Spptember, issued at Winburg, under a royal salute of twenty-one guns at each place. The iwrked agitator cf this rebellion, daring to conceive that he ciu!d wage wai against all-powerful England, tampered with the great Chiefs now present to indure them to join him,— sgainst whom ? Yourselves ! To 10b you of youi flocks and herdi— take away the doots and windows from your houses ss he hai done, — ana drive your wives and '"ami'ies into the fields, 'llipy comltm^d the acts of this villain Prctorins, and firmly adher d to their alliance with her Majesty, and obedience to the sovereignty proclaimed. Ihese Chiefs are in full amity and friendship with the remote Chief Panda, but ii they were not so, they defy his power.— ls it not to, Moshesh, Morokko, Molitsani, and >ou other Chiefs ? [Moshesh here replied that Panda and he were at brothers, — that everything they had was at each other's service.] Now, gentlemen, this insult to her Majesty's authority has been most fully avenged by trie and her Majesty's soldiers, of whom you see I have plenty, and can bring them in a few days here at set forth in my manifesto— and by the ignominious death of two rebe's at Bleom Fontuin, on the very ipot where the rebel Preto ius insulted her Majesty* authority. I can only regret thai he himself is not one of them ; on whose head i» all the blood ani misery he has caused ? The districts or B\oem Fontein and Caledon were flourishing and most happy, rrpeatedty assuring me I could do no mure than 1 had done for their welfare. They themselves could propose nothing to improve my measures. In Winburg disunion existed ; and the district beh)g in my opiuion too larsje, I have now formed a portion of it into a fourth division, or the Vaal River District, under a Landrust, a highly respected man among yourselves. As you called me in JVuary to form a Government for you, which I did, and which wai insulted — which insult I have avenged — I call you together to declare your gentimer.ts and whether you are prepared to protect your magistrate fiom insult if I leave him at your desire wi'h you — alwajs beating in mind tha^ a strong post is now established at Bleom Fontein, of cannon, cavalry, and inlantry, r. a 'y to move to your support. Let me have your well considered opinion. Take your time— and let tho»e who wish for the magistrate bold up their hands. [The whole meeting here held up their hands ] Nj power but her M jesty shall induce me to make any al eration m the Bloem Fonem and Caledon Diitiict*, because the airan^em »ts there are what nine persons in ten desire. I have even been told that nineteen in twenty wish for them. You wish then for ft magistrate, and will protect j bio;, I will thrrafore leave you one. Mr. FJiddu ph having be j n wounded, Mr. Rex. shall peiform hits duties until he 13 well. Gentlemen of Wmburg,— always bearing in mind that you have promised to protect your magistrate, you will understand that tbeie h not to bs a post left ut Winburg— but that there will be a strong one at Bloem Fontein — stiong enough to reiist even Fieoch soldiers — j to support you; and, in cuse of need, if a wan is sent off for assistances the troops will be with \ou in three

I now wish (0 k'low how many men there are to be depended on in each district. [In the Bloem Fo .tein Di«tiict, Fi<»ld Commandant E annas nnsweie.l for 41 0 men ; Field < 'or net Cloeto for 300; Fnld Cornrt Oveialster for 250 men ; and Mr. Erwee answered, in the name tf Field Conamandant Sneyman, for 451 in the Ca'eJon District. Total, 1400 men, all armed and able-bodied.] Thus there arc 1400 men, well disposed to government in these two districts alone, and yet Pretorius d.ired to come with fcOO or 1000 men, most of them boys, or brought fiom a areat distance, having notninq; to d » with tins paitol the countiy, .>nd to tell me that the whole land was against government, These MOO men ,ire icady'to support the people of Winbnrg. aided by the poit at Bloem Fontoiu. 11 must look to them lor their assistance j and they mast look, to it when they want help. Arc you satisfied with ymr land being measured out to you as at pi esent laid down in my proclamation of the Bth March ? I desiie no stuct measurement ; all I wish is, tint each mm should know his own, get a land cettific.ite, and be thus enabled to bequeath hi* property to bis children. (The whole meeting here expressed their satisfaction.) Itemembei that no man is to t,i],e any land from any native chief, without peimiss'on fiom the said chief, as well as lioin the Governor. Do you desirr to have churches and schools ? or do you ciosiie to be renegade Christians, and that you r cliildien should he as ignorant as the untutored wild man ? (All expressed their desire for churc ies, &c.) Are you satisfied with my Mauiago Act which relieves your children and giandclnlilmi from bdstardy, and enables them to mlieiit any pioperty you J may have within the col my? (All expressed t'.eir satisfaction.) Have \ on anything- to say on the subject of Quitrents ? 1 have beloie spoken of them as intended to vary from £i to £8 ; but 1 have already often said that it does not follow that you are all to pay £8. That is j the sum which is not to be exceeded— aud many • f you I will probably have to pay very little; but this will depend on yourselves (The meeting replied that they had nothing to remark on this subject) The-e are the leading points for consideration. lam now ready to bear what you may propose in evtry wayj but remember 1 leave y<iu to your own resource-, suppoited by the law, and by the Post at Bloem Foutein. In the colony, the. half of you served under me when Kaffirs invaded tin liukl ; and here you must defend >oui selves irom the robbero from whom I have lecently le-tucd you. What is the difference be* tween a white robber and a black one? Both equally desenc the sentence and the power of ihe law, and must abide by it. Look how manfully Wesseb, Meyer, and their loyal paity defended thenisebes against Pretorins before I smashed his band! H«\v many of these misguided men's bones are bleaching on the field of blooJ and war ! How many of them aie gro <nh>g under the pain of Mjveio wounds— How maiy, now seeingtheir enor, have brought me their arms, and voluntarily, heart and soul taken the oath of allegiance to Her Majesty, stating their willingness to contiibute towards the expense of the «ar, as I desire— the brightest example of whom is Field ommandant Hester. He has this day paid 300 dx dollars to aid in the expenses of the war ; he has erred, but is repentant ; — we have all shaken hands with him, and he shall everfind a faithful friend in me. Kreiger and Krynauw aie other instances ; and I will bes ow watchful care upon them. What objec have 1 to torm a government for you, but your own peace and happiness among yourselves and among the natives, who have, I say, behaved to jou most kindly. I shall inarch in two or thiee days, but I shall leave b hind me my secretary, Mr. Southey, with a body of cavaliy, to collect the war tribute, aud 1 now read to you my instructions thereon • (The instructions were here read ) Now select a field commandant and three or four field coi nets, that I may confirm their appointments, and issue then* commissions, aud that they may take the oath of allegiance. (Mr. Marthinus was here chosen as Field Commandant, and Mr. Jury Wessels, L. Badenhorst, JanSchutte, William Venter, and R. Van Rooyen, as Field Cornets.) As regards the Vaal Rber district, under the Landrost Potgieter, I daily expect him, when I shall have much upon which to confer with him, as I hive had with you In the mean time, until his arrval, I appoint a commission to act lor bun, as Landiost for the Vaal River distiiet, consisting of Piet Venter and Paul Better. (At the suggestion of Mr Venter and Mr. Bester, Mr. Louw Botha was here named as Field Comtnandaut for the Vaal River district, and John Dreyer and Hendnck Van Vuuienas Field Cornets.) If Paul Hester will iell me anything that the people at the Vaal River require, 1 will do it. 1 will spare no exertion to do good and establish pc ice, which the troops you see, will ever effect. And 1 have this day wrifeu to coun ermand a movement or Her Majesty's soldiers at Natal (whom I had reinforced for the purpose from Cape Town), to be made through the Draakberg Mountains. And I again desire the inhabitants of the Natal district to return to their homes within thiee months, or all their firms shall be ioiieited. Now we parti with I hope, a clear understanding that Her Majesty's sovereignty has been re established, and that you are in possession ol the government you seek. The chief Moshcsh beie spoke— and pointed out Mr. Piet Venter, saying— This is one of the first Boers that came to my country, and I point him out as a good man. At that time, I and the Korannas were at war, aud one of my biotheis was wounded- 1 asked assistance of Venter aud the people with him, bu> he refericd me to the Colonial Goveinnent; and it is to the words he then said, 1 owe my first knowledge of that government. I point him out to jour Excellency as the man 'o whom 1 owe my acquaintance with a Government with which I now stand in such friendly iclations. It is owing to Venter that 1h ye now (pointinj; to his Excellency), a Gicat Chief to lookup to. lam uothcic to day to spe.de of blood, but of gra'itude to the British Government and to Venter. And I will only add my deep gratitude to his Excellency for all be Ims done tor tins land, and to congratulate him on the resultof the latp distmhancp. His Excellency said — Gieat Chief ! I thank you for telling me of g<od done by a countryman. The creed of all good men is, that there is one God over <11, white and black. I speak in praise of all )ou chiefs— Mosliesu, Morokko, Molipsani, Carolus Udtju, aid others. \ou asked me what jou should do in the late affair ; 1 said, " Sit still." You did so. 1 thank you all - The buighers being now asked if any one wished to speak— Field Commandant EraMiuisassuied Elis Excellency that he ielt as->uicd that every woid in the main-* festo had been carried out— that he trusted that every one would see that this was the case, and for the futme be faithful to Her Majesty. Mi* Paul Bester declared in. i\>e most earnest manner, that he would do everything that lay in his powei to preserve order. A great many took the oath of al egiance— latheis bringing in their sons and many (nearms have been deliveie! up. The feeling at the meeting, as demonstrated by a few words, from raauy persons, was most satisfactory, and i t the conclusion, thiee cheers lor the well aie of Her ■ jajesty resounded through the camp. John GakvocH, Major, ; Private SeeieUiy,

C 25" Why is a new^iopsr like a too'h-brush ? BeCHU^e everybody »h m d hare Qn ■ of h.» own aud uut borrow his neighbour ;>. , . ._ 4