proving that he could put into people's mouths words which had never
been uttered by them. He declared that "at the Bloemfontein Conference
the High Commissioner was personally favourable to the settlement by
arbitration of all the differences between the two Governments." Sir
Alfred Milner had been careful not to go so far as this.

After this inaccurate preamble the following proposals were made by Mr.
Reitz:--

(1) "In future, all questions arising between the two Governments,
and relating to the interpretation of the London Convention to be
submitted to a tribunal of arbitration, with the exception of
questions of trifling importance."

(2) "The tribunal to be composed of two arbitrators appointed
respectively by each government, as for instance the Chief Justices
of the South African Republic, Cape Colony or Natal. The power to
be given to them of choosing as a third arbitrator, someone who
should be a subject of neither of the disputing parties; the
decision in all cases to rest with the majority."

(3) "The instrument of submission to be considered in each case by
the two governments, in order that both may have the right of
reserving and excluding any points appearing to them too important
to be submitted to arbitration."

Sir Alfred Milner remarked that this project was "a mere skeleton
proposal by which too many things were left undefined." For instance,
what did the words "trifling matters" mean? and what was meant by the
third article, which gives to both Governments the right of excluding