Last Saturday died Lerothodi, the paramount chief of the Basutos,
and the most prominent native ruler in South Africa He was the grandson of the great Moshesh, the only statesman who has ever been produced by the Bantu razes, the man who founded the Basuto power, and was wise enough to profit by the dissensions of Boers and Britons, and make peace or war always to his own aggrandisement. His grandson was a smaller figure, who, after the desultory wars of the early "eighties," voluntarily brought his people under the Imperial power. Since 1884 the country has been administered by a British Resident, and remained remarkably loyal during the South African War. There may be some difficulty about the succession; but the Basutos as a people are law-abiding and progressive, and it is improbable that serious trouble will arise. Basutoland, indeed, is a signal instance of the good results which can be obtained by British native administration at its best.
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