ention of Messrs. Sampson
and Davies, and whilst the Industrial Commission was exposing the
gold thefts and denouncing the complicity of the police, Mr. Kruger
decided to remit three-fourths of the sentence and to discharge
the thief unconditionally. Is it to be wondered that such ill-advised
action called to mind the prisoners' boast, and that it was
contrasted prominently with the treatment of the two Reformers?

Three events of importance marked the year 1897 in the history of the
Transvaal. The first was the High Court crisis in February; the
second, the appointment of the Industrial Commission of Inquiry; the
third, the Queen's Record Reign celebration.

The High Court crisis arose out of the case of Brown _v._ The State,
already referred to.{46} Brown had acted within his legal rights
according to the terms of a proclamation. That proclamation had been
illegally withdrawn, and the Government realizing that they would
have to stand the consequences of their action in the courts of the
country, introduced a law which was immediately passed by the
Volksraad, absolving them from all liability, and practically
non-suiting all claimants. Mr. Kotze in his judgment declared this
law to be improper and in conflict with the Constitution, and gave
judgment in favour of Brown, but left the amount of damages to be
determined later after hearing further evidence.{47}

The first Volksraad was then in special session, and the President
promptly introduced a law known as Law 1 of 1897, which empowered him
to exact assurances from the judges that they would respect all
resolutions of the Volksraad as having the force of law and declare
themselves not entitled to test the validity of a law by its
agreement or conflict with the Constitution; and it further empowered
the President in the event of his not being satisfied with the
character of the replies to summarily dismiss the judges. The judges
protested in a body that they would not submit to such treatment. The
High Court was adjourned and all legal business was stopped.
Particularly emphatic was Mr. Justice Gregorowski. He stated that
no honourable man could possibly sit upon the Transvaal Bench as long
as Law 1 of 1897 remained upon the Statute Book. At this juncture Sir
Henry de Villiers, Chief Justice of Cape Colony, came to Pretoria for
the purpose of effecting a compromise and averting a crisis. The
compromise was practically an armistice. The judges promised not to
exer