"Life-long unions, ideal unions" Read the full letter
| Letter Reference | Olive Schreiner BC16/Box1/Fold3/1896/5 |
| Archive | University of Cape Town, Manuscripts & Archives, Cape Town |
| Epistolary Type | Letter |
| Letter Date | 17 January 1896 |
| Address From | Middelburg, Eastern Cape |
| Address To | |
| Who To | William Philip ('Will') Schreiner |
| Other Versions | Rive 1987: 264 |
| Permissions | Please read before using or citing this transcription |
| Legend |
The Project is grateful to Manuscripts and Archives, University of Cape Town, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Manuscripts and Archives Collections. The year this letter was written in can be dated with reference to the Jameson Raid and the 'fall' of Rhodes. Schreiner was in Middelburg from early January to mid February 1896.
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1
Jan 17th
2
3 Dear Laddie
4
5 I enclose two letters from a great friend, of mine, a man of much
6influence in Johannesburg. They are of course private, but I thought
7it might interest you to get an impartial statement of what at least
8some Englishmen up there feel & think. Please return at once. I know
9he would not mind my sending them to you.
10
11 Two things must happen in South Africa if there is ever to be peace
12between Dutch & English in this country – Rhodes must depart from
13public life, & the Charter revoked. If Rhodes comes back he will never
14rest till there is war to the death between Dutch & English. To cause
15that is the one way in which he can yet justify himself & creep back
16to power. He will do it indirectly, but he will do it.
17
18 He must never come back to any form of power this side of the Zambeze.
19Since he is going to fight we too must be prepared to stand by our
20guns, with pen, & tongue.
21
22 Olive
23
24
25
2
3 Dear Laddie
4
5 I enclose two letters from a great friend, of mine, a man of much
6influence in Johannesburg. They are of course private, but I thought
7it might interest you to get an impartial statement of what at least
8some Englishmen up there feel & think. Please return at once. I know
9he would not mind my sending them to you.
10
11 Two things must happen in South Africa if there is ever to be peace
12between Dutch & English in this country – Rhodes must depart from
13public life, & the Charter revoked. If Rhodes comes back he will never
14rest till there is war to the death between Dutch & English. To cause
15that is the one way in which he can yet justify himself & creep back
16to power. He will do it indirectly, but he will do it.
17
18 He must never come back to any form of power this side of the Zambeze.
19Since he is going to fight we too must be prepared to stand by our
20guns, with pen, & tongue.
21
22 Olive
23
24
25
Notation
Rive's (1987) version omits part of this letter and is also in a number of respects incorrect.
Rive's (1987) version omits part of this letter and is also in a number of respects incorrect.