forgot that when one
wants to perform an act open to certain well-defined objections there must
be a great aim in order eventually to explain and excuse the doing of it.
The Raid had no such aim. No one made a mistake as to that point when
passing judgment upon the Raid. The motives were too sordid, too mean, for
anyone to do aught else but pass a sweeping condemnation upon the whole
business.

If he did not, Rhodes ought to have known that the public would most
certainly pass this verdict on so dark and shameful an adventure, one that
harmed England's prestige in South Africa far more than ever did the Boer
War. But though perhaps he realised beforehand that this would be the
verdict, he only felt a vague apprehension, more as a fancy than from any
real sense of impending danger. He had grown so used to see success attend
his every step that his imagination refused to admit the possibility of
defeat.

As for the people who engaged in the senseless adventure, their motives
had none of the lofty ideals which influenced Rhodes himself. They simply
wanted to obtain possession of the gold fields of the Transvaal and to
oust the rightful owners. President Kruger represented an obstacle that
had to be removed, and so they proceeded upon their mad quest without
regard as to the possible consequences. Still less did they reflect that
in his case they had not to deal with a native chief whose voice of
protest had no chance to be heard, but with a very cute and determined man
who had means at his disposal not only to defend himself, but also to
appeal to European judgment to adjudge an unjustifiable aggression.

Apart from all these considerations, which ought to have been seriously
taken into account by Doctor Jameson and his companions, the whole
expedition was planned in a stupid, careless manner. No wonder that it
immediately came to grief. It is probable that if Rhodes had entered into
its details and allowed others to consult him, matters might have taken a
different turn. But, as I have already shown, he preferred to be able to
say at a given moment that he had known nothing about it. At least, this
must have been what he meant to do. But events proved too strong for him.
The fiasco was too complete for Rhodes to escape from its
responsibilities, though it must be conceded that he never tried to do so
once the storm burst. He faced the music bravely enough, perhaps because
of the knowledge that no denial would be believe