s an
infamous act of piracy by England, and an infringement of the
Republic's rights, which the Dutch papers denounce most vehemently.
The Boer Government made it clear, not less in their purely internal
policy than in these matters of extensions of territory, that they
intended pursuing a line of their own.

In 1882, the property known as 'Moodies,' consisting of a number of
farms bearing indications of gold, was thrown open to prospectors.
The farms had been allotted to Mr. G. Piggott Moodie when he was
Surveyor-General, in lieu of salary which the Republic was unable to
pay. This was the beginning of the prospecting era which opened up De
Kaap, Witwatersrand, and other fields; but it was a small beginning,
and for some time nothing worth mentioning was discovered. The
Republic was again in a bad way, and drifting backwards after its
first spurt. The greatest uncertainty prevailed amongst prospectors
as to their titles, for in Lydenburg, at Pilgrim's Rest, and on the
Devil's Kantoor, concessions had been granted over the heads of the
miners at work on their claims, and they had been turned off for the
benefit of men who contributed in no way to the welfare and
prosperity of the State. It has been stated in the Volksraad that not
one of those concessionaires has even paid the dues and rents, or
complied with the other conditions stipulated in the contracts.
district was practically locked up for fourteen years owing to the
concession policy, and has only lately been partly released from the
bonds of monopoly.

In 1884 Messrs. Kruger and Smit proceeded to Europe to endeavour to
raise funds, which were badly needed, and also to obtain some
modifications of the Convention. The attempt to raise funds through
the parties in Holland to whom the railway concession had just been
granted failed, but the delegates were more fortunate in their other
negotiations. They negotiated the London Convention which fixed
certain hitherto undefined boundaries; and in that document no
reference was made to the suzerainty of Great Britain. They also
secured the consent of the British Government to the alteration of
the title of the country. Instead of Transvaal State it became once
more the 'South African Republic.'{07} During this visit there
occurred an incident which provides the answer to Mr. Kruger's
oft--_too_ oft--repeated remark that 'the Uitlanders were never asked
to settle in the Transvaal, and are not wanted there.' Messrs. Kr