The Real Kruger and the Transvaal

# Catalog Note

This 1900 Street & Smith publication presents three complementary perspectives on the Second Boer War and the Transvaal. Fred A. McKenzie's biographical essay portrays Paul Kruger as a "primitive" patriarch—a religiously devout, self-educated leader who rose to autocratic power through personal force rather than modern civilization. McKenzie sketches Kruger's daily routines: dawn prayers, parliamentary attendance, informal audiences with burghers, simple diet, and evening devotions. The text characterizes him as obstinate yet politically influential, controlling the Volksraad through moral authority. C. N. T. du Plessis's contribution presents "The Transvaal Boer Speaking for Himself," offering the Boer perspective on the conflict. Charles T. Bunce concludes with "A Brief History of the Transvaal Republic," attempting factual synthesis. The preface explicitly aims to provide American readers balanced arguments from both English and Boer sides, acknowledging that "wrongs and mistakes" existed on both sides while leaving judgment to the reader.