tlander the gold mines have attracted; add to
them, mechanics and the most highly skilled artisans: for it is to the
interest of the mines which pay high salaries to employ the most skilled
labour.

A population such as this, has nothing in common with the adventurers
who rushed to the placers of California, or with the fancy picture of
the "wealthy metal-hearted mine owners," presented to us by Dr. Kuyper.

5.--_Distribution of the Gold Production._

Dr. Kuyper speaks of "the vultures" who come to rob the country of its
gold; we would point out to him that before gold can be extracted from
the rock, a vast amount must be sunk in it. We have just seen that the
cost of production often exceeds the profits.

Dr. Kuyper, in his childish innocence, imagines that "the vultures"
carry off the gold as soon as it is extracted.

Had he taken the trouble to ascertain the facts, he would have seen that
the greater part of this gold remains in the Transvaal, and either goes
to the Government, or to defray the cost of production.

I borrow the following figures from the supplement to _The Critic_ of
July 8th, 1899.

Let us take the last five years:--

Gross Profits. Dividend to Paid to Boer
Shareholders. Government.

1894 L7,930,481 L1,595,963 L2,247,728
1895 8,768,942 2,329,941 2,923,648
1896 8,742,811 1,918,631 3,912,095
1897 11,514,016 2,923,574 3,956,402
1898 15,942,573 4,999,489 3,329,958
----------- ----------- -----------
L52,898,823 L13,767,598 L16,370,387
=========== =========== ===========

Thus upon L52,898,823 worth of gold produced between the years 1894 and
1898 only 25 per cent. of this amount went to the shareholders, 30 per
cent. was paid to the Transvaal Government, while the cost of production
absorbed 45 per cent. The two last figures show that about 75 per cent.,
that is to say, three-quarters of the entire production remained in the
Transvaal; and we have only taken the average of the last few years,
during which the cost of production has been reduced to a minimum,
thanks to the perfecting of the methods of working.

Let us add that while according to the above table in 1898 the estimate
of the revenue was L3,329,000, the expenditure rose to L3,476,000. In
1899, the estimate of the revenue was L4,087,000.

From 1894-97 the amount paid directly into the Transvaal Ex