It is with unbounded satisfaction that we record the result
of the Referendum in Natal. For the Union of South Africa there were 11,121 votes and against it only 3,701. Every constituency polled a majority in favour of Union. The Pieter- maritzburg correspondent of the Times says that the result surprised even optimistic supporters of the Union. They had failed to realise that a noisy minority may bluff successfully until the last moment. We must confess that we had some doubts whether the Referendum could save Natal from the suicidal policy recommended by some of her leading men. But the result is not only a triumph for Union, it is a triumph for the principle of the Referendum. It shows that, in spite of dust-throwing and wirepulling, the mind of the electorate may be trusted to work steadily beneath the surface and to vindicate the reputation of a British democracy for common- sense. We heartily congratulate the people of Natal, and feel sure that they will never regret the step they have so decisively taken.
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