The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 24, 1899, Page 1

R T NI, ¢ AT N TIN5 Ve W P e s war 1 h ¥ ur r the same grief that have for- loses 1 rcen . wi ge Colley, upon s sword and belmet my TES than over Boer rela- to paint the the old gen- 70 years of age, ™1 Plet h's sword and he breathed his la the bravest general and just sald, “You soldier I bave ever met in any battle. as bacomes the General Plet Joubert *“bravest gent sword and heim A general, and ahe In turn thanked him, not & hint of bitterness tnging her grati- tude. I don't know whether Lady Colley is liv- = coM ing or dead, but I do know that that let- ter of hers Is one of the most prized pos- sessions in the Joubert family. I know, moreover, that none mourned more sin- the death of her husband than General Plet Joubert. Oom . Piet’s house in Pretoria is rather more modern and pretentious than the President’s. Like Oom Paul, he was first & rancher and then a mine owner, and a very wealthy one. He has most of tne modern comforts in his home and many of the luxuries, In our country money does not put bolts or bars on rich men's doors. They swing as wide welcome for pauper as for noble- man. Eo all classes are seen at General Joubert’s; rich and poor are greeted with the same hospitality, none leaving with- out “Kopple Koffle,” many carrying away something more substantial. 1 fear I have given the impression that General Joubert is a talkative, demon- strative man. To the contrary, he is very quiet, his speech seldom growing impas- sloned, and then only on the subject of war. Withal there is something so kindly about Kim that you give him confidence irresistibly. The children in our family worship him. We in Africa eall Joubert eur “Napo- leon,” and consider him as fine a strate- gist as the “Little Corporal.” His general- cerely PAL L. EY BFE ORGE CoLL JOM PIETs A N QO ship s never questioned, the burghers un- der him fighting as the soldler does who has full faith in his commander. General Joubert has always taken great interest in tralping the young Boer for the life of the soldler. His confidence In their fighting litles was shown by his oft-quoted remark while drafting men for the front In 'SL. He counted one Boer to ten Englishmen, saying, “There, I think that ought to be enough. The Boers are taught foreign tactics of warfare. Since the years of 'S0 .and 'S1 they have been Instructed by the finest masters of gunnery from Germany and France. But there are not the distinc- tions in the Boer army that exist else- where. True, there are officers and pri- vates, but that is a military distinction, not & socfal one. The private may be a son of his commanding officer. The atti- tude of private and officer is more like that in the American volunteer army than in any regular army. Oom Paul once sald that if the English bullt walls as high as those of Jericho around- the Transvaal the Boers would live for ten years. The last war taught the Boers to train the second and third generations in modern warfare and to husband supplies. Oom Paul and General Joubert are both devoted churchmen and leaders in the E= XEAVTE =Ma- two dlvistons of the Dutch church. Oom Paul's wife, Tant Zina, is an inva- 1d and, ltke most Boers, very religious. For her sake Oom Paul had a church bullt directly across the street from their home, g0 that she can attend services with little inconvenience. Oom Paul and Oom Plet have traveled e, General Joubeft more extensively the President. During President Harrison's administration General and Mrs. Joubert were entertalned at the ‘White House and traveled as far West as Chicago. General Joubert always speaks with great pleasure of his American tour and, ltke President Kruger, expresses ad- miration for the Americans. Boer disrespect for the British and their soverelgn has been quoted and exagger- ated. What of British disrespect for the Boer? The following scene I myself wit- nessed crossing the Church Square with my mother. President Kruger came to- ward us, when an Englishman, newly ar- rived, hastily put himself between us. Instead of saluting the President as a gentleman if not a subject should, he de- liberately turned and bowed, facing mot the President, but the opposite bulldings. The incident went the rounds and aroused so much resentment that the man was arrested and released only upon promising to apologize for bhis stuplid rudeness. Oom Paul was not more in- censed at it than his burghers. Oom Paul enjoys repartee and always has a Roland for your Oliver. It was at the wedding of his granddaugh that he gave his now famous bon mot as to the color of the British flag. One of his younger grandchildren put the question, “What color is the British flag? “I have only seen white ones!” made answer Oom Paul. He afterward repeated this in publie and it is now perhaps the most quoted of his terse sayings. I don't think I ever saw Oom Paul as jovial and happy as at this wedding of Tina Elof, his eldest granddaughter. He was very much pleased with the cholce of husbands—a gallant young Orange Free Btate Boer. Tina's trousseau was as elaborate as the wealthy American girl's, Oom ul hu- moring his favorite in her love of finery. Another wedding gift from her grand- father was & house furnished just as she desired. I recall particularly the number of beau- tiful “lamas” which Tant Zina, Oom Paul's wife, gave her grandchild for a wedding gift. The “lama” is the scarf which the Madagascar maldens weave of silk and wear instead of our conventional walsta OOM PAUL AND HIS WIFE AT CHuURe One of the * purple and goid was made b a walting maid of Qu she learned that was unfaithful Queen nay her handm tried In vain to Karonna's weave another pattern. Queen Ranavalon ma” to my father lled. Tina Elof asked b her collection and he perforce gav her. I felt that the “lama’ be presented 1st before While In Madagascar with father I had met the unfort weaver and had been deeply intere er romance, and shoc! at her un fate. It had a significance for me t made it more valuable than it could possibly be to her. Just before I left for erica the sub- Ject was broached n see that I had any ' ma.” Oom Paul 1 a apparently paying r t denly he turne Even as | write this the British flag may be fluttering in the Transvaal. But ls i & white one? BANNIE KRUGER,