In the Commons on Tuesday, on the vote for the
Transvaal Concessions Committee, Mr. Markham made an attack of extraordinary violence on Messrs. Eckstein, Wernher, Beit, and Co., and again and again described them as "a gang of common thieves and swindlers." He was, he insisted, prepared to stand an action for libel before a jury of his countrymen on this accusation. Mr. Markham's chief object in speaking was apparently to "work off" his libel, but he hitched it on to an attack on the Government for putting Mr. Loveday on the Concessions Committee, since that gentle- man was connected with the firm of Eckstein. Mr. Chamber- lain very naturally and very properly denounced Mr. Markham's libellous innuendoes, and repudiated in the strongest possible way the notion that a man was to be held unfit for public, service in the Transvaal of the kind rendered by Mr. Loveday because he was connected with a firm of capitalists. Mr. Lyttelton, who was Chairman of the Concessions Committee, dealt with what remained of Mr. Markham after Mr. Chamber- lain's castigation. As Messrs. Eckstein have taken up the glove thrown down by Mr. Markham, and the whole question will now come before the Courts, we will only say here that it is clearly monstrously unjust to denounce a man because he is or has been connected with a firm of capitalists, while bringing no proofs whatever of wrongdoing. Meantime we may fairly accord praise to Mr. Markham for the willingness he showed to place his charges in an actionable shape. He at least has the courage of his opinions. We commend his example to Sir Robert Reid.
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