§ MR. ALFRED PEASE (Yorkshire, Cleveland)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will inform the House as to the arrangements that have been made, if any, for the relief of natives in the Transvaal and Orange River districts whose cattle and grain have been seized or destroyed, or who have been otherwise rendered destitute, in connection with the military operations against the Boers in those districts, and whether he will institute such inquiries and give such directions as may serve to materially lessen the privations to which the natives are exposed through disturbances for which they are in no way responsible.
§ MR. J. CHAMBERLAINI have not received any information pointing to the necessity of special arrangements at the present time for the relief of natives, but I called the attention of Lord Milner to the possibility of scarcity some months ago, and I will make further inquiry of Lord Kitchener. Meanwhile, I notice 261 that a large proportion of the population in the refugee camps are coloured persons.