Many voices are heard: one person demands more police to protect the whites from theft, muggings, and murder; one says that the way to prevent African crime is to give the Africans a worthwhile way of life, with decent education, that increased police protection is no long-term answer to the problem; one insists that more education would decrease juvenile delinquency, and another argues that more education would only mean cleverer criminals; one says that stricter enforcement of the pass laws is the answer, and another says that the pass laws just won't work; one woman objects to the presence of natives at Zoo Lake and says they should be given recreational facilities of their own to keep them out of the whites' places of recreation, and her friend argues that this won't work in practice.
Some propose dividing the country into separate areas for blacks and whites, each with their own lands, cities, and government. The English-speaking churches (Anglican, Roman Catholic, etc.) want more education for natives, more opportunities, and a removal of all governmental restrictions on them, such as the pass laws; the Afrikaan-speaking churches want segregation that will allow the natives opportunity "to develop along their own lines."
Note the organization of the chapter: after the series of short scenes, there is a lyrical passage about "Cry [for] the beloved country." After this passage, the narrative again resumes, but the narrative is also presented in short staccato scenes, as Stephen returns to various points looking for Absalom but finds that the police have already been there before him.
Chapter 13 represents a significant change in Kumalo. He has gradually been sinking deeper and deeper into despair, but at the end of his visit to Ezenzeleni, he tells Msimangu that he is recovered. He has seen an example of the whites helping the blacks, and even the blind have found a purpose in life. This situation gives Kumalo a vision of how the whites and the blacks can work together, which, in turn, gives him hope for the future. Kumalo's optimism will ultimately be fulfilled when Jarvis devotes some of his time to helping the black people.
