ethnic support to win a narrow victory in a general election in 1948.12
White Politics, I9IO-I939
During the years 19 10 to 1939,' the successive South African admin-
istrations were all concerned to consolidate white power in the new
state.P
In spite of a rural uprising by aggrieved Afrikaners during World
War I, militant strikes by white workers, one of which escalated into a
bloody' confrontation on the Witwatersrand, and intermittent resistance
by Blacks, the reach of thestate
increased steadily and scarcely anyone
questioned its legitimacy. When Whites talked about "the racial ques-
tion," they were referring to the ethnic cleavage between Afrikaners and
English-speaking white South Africans. They vented much of their politi-
cal energy in internal squabbles over symbols-postage
stamps, anthems,
and flags. Insofar as they differed over "native policy," it was in the search
for the most effective means to advance their own material interests and
ensure their security.
The general election of 19 10 was won by the South African party led by
Louis Borha and Jan Smuts, the former republican guerrillas who had come
into power :inthe:Transvaal in 19°7. Botha, a progressive farmer with vast
landholdings, and Smuts, an able and ambitious Cambridge-educated in-