ns, and take no
responsibility on yourselves for the debts? We are acknowledged by you
as a belligerent party, and, therefore, we have the more right to
expect that if you walk off with the assets of the country, you must
also take upon yourselves the responsibility for the debts; if the
British Government attains its great object, then a minor matter like
this ought not to stand in the way. We do not come here to haggle at
little things, but to contend for something that is an actual
difficulty, and you must agree that if we tell you something here, we
really mean it. And if we wish to make peace, every one must not draw
his own line, but we must take each other by the hand. Now we say that
this matter stands in our way. We personally have not signed so many
receipts, but the inferior officers who have signed the most mainly
constitute the meeting at Vereeniging. In some cases special persons
were appointed entrusted with this work.

Lord MILNER: We do not take over the assets of the country without its
liabilities. We take over all the debts which the country had before
the war, and we have even agreed to take over a debt--a lawful
debt--in the shape of notes, the contracting of which we are aware was
necessary only on account of the war, and therefore we already pay a
share of the expenses incurred to fight us. I thought that this was a
very great concession, and when I agreed to put it down, I said that I
thought, and I still think so, that the British Government would take
exception to it, although I hope that they will not do so. But to go
further than that and to ask that we shall pay not only a debt
incurred for the purposes of the war, but every debt incurred by every
officer of both armies for the purpose of fighting us, is in my
opinion a very extreme proposal. In reply to what General Botha has
said, I must say that the Commission appear to think that we have no
one behind us whose feelings and prejudices (if you wish it) we must
consider. If this will cause you difficulty with your burghers, the
proposal now made will, I am sure, cause the British Government the
greatest difficulties with the people whose feelings they must
consider.

Chief Commandant DE WET: I would like to explain the position of the
Orange Free State. In the Transvaal a law was passed authorising the
Government to issue L1,000,000 in notes. In the Orange Free State this
was not done, because the Government had the right to pay with
re