DE WET'S SENTENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 24 June 1915, Page 4

DE WET'S SENTENCE.

There will probably "be a consensus of opinion that the sentence passed on De Wet for his acts of rebellion in South Africa is an extremely light one. for many a man has been shot for the same crime. llis aversion (o the British has, apparently, been kept alive and fostered, while the great majority of the Boer leaders have become loyal subjects of the Empire. Under normal circumstances, (hat morbid feeling would no( have mattered, but when the existence of tiie Empire was at stake, for De Wet to have rai-ed a force of rebels to assist German operations and cause embarrassineiit lo the South African Union, as well as to the Empire, was an act of treachery deservine of the death penalty. For the culprit to say that he had been actuated by deep religious convictions ivas little less than an indication id childishness. It was a deliberately planned act of vengeance, and, as the Judge remarked, but for De Wet there would have been no rebellion. The loyal Boers cannot but feel that De et has left a sta in on their loyailv which must be purged. At the same time, it is r|iii(e conceivable that in fixing the seidcnce the Judge was aware of tlie feelings of the South African Government on (lie matter. Though the offence i; a. most serious one. there was nothing to be gained by making the sentence savor of vindictiveness. Six years' imprisonment and a fine of '.'2000 will probably be more cfi'ecfivc in the oircuiiislances than the exaction of ii«> -upreme penalty. The discrace of imprisonment, even had it been for only twelve months, should to a man

of Do Wet's temperament, bo extremely punitive. The peculiar circumstances connected with the government of South Africa naturally tend to a policy o? conciliation, rather than suppression. On that ground, if 011 no other, it ivns, perhaps, advisable to make the sentence as light ns possible, having in view the nature of the offence. There can he no possible ground for any 0 f De Wet's sympathisers regarding him as a martyr, and the punishment is so evidently tempered with mercy that it should be hailed with satisfaction iby his compatriots. In all probability, after the war is over and the time lias passed for any exhibition of rebellion to be of any eonsequence, a portion of the imprisonment may be remitted. Meanwhile, it is satisfactory to know that such a firebrand is removed from the danger zone and given the opportunity to reflect on the evil he committeed, as well as to see the error of his ways.