Facsimile of a page of the Peace Proposals as submitted
by the British Representatives and amended by the Boer
Representatives. The alterations are in the handwriting of
General Smuts and Mr. Advocate N. J. de Wet 117

Facsimile of the original proposal by Commandant H. P. J.
Pretorius, seconded by General Chris. Botha, to accept the
British Peace Proposals 202

Facsimile of the document on which the voting on the proposal
by Commandant H. P. J. Pretorius, seconded by General Chris.
Botha, to accept the British Peace Proposals was recorded 206

PREFACE

The want has been repeatedly expressed of an official publication of
the Minutes of the Negotiations which led to the Peace concluded at
Vereeniging on May 31, 1902, events which have hitherto been a closed
page in the history of the Boer War. As the Republics had ceased to
exist, the question arose: Who could publish such Minutes? It is true
that some very incomplete Minutes appeared in General de Wet's book,
but although they were in all probability reliable, yet they had not
the seal of an official document.

The only way in which the want could be met appeared to be for the
Secretaries, who had been appointed by the two Republican Governments
to minute the Negotiations, to publish those Minutes after they had
been read and approved of as authentic by persons competent to do so.

This is what has been done by this publication, which places the
reader in possession of all the correspondence leading up to the
Negotiations, exact reports of what was said and done, not only at
Vereeniging, but also previously at Klerksdorp, and, finally, all the
Negotiations which took place at Pretoria between the two Republican
Governments and the British Government, represented by Lord Kitchener
and Lord Milner.

We, however, were not satisfied to publish this record, which we had
most carefully taken down, merely on our own authority. We felt that,
if only this and nothing more were done, the world would after all
have only our word to rely upon, and that, although the record thus
published would always serve as a highly reliable book of reference,
it would lack the authority of a document properly authenticated by a
body competent to do so.

In order, therefore, to obtain this desirable seal of authenticity to
our record, we submitted our manuscript to President Steyn, Acting