LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 Accession ......... .9.1.6.22 ........ Class _ 
 
 
 
The Truth of Africa 
 
 AGRICULTURAL MINERAL 
 
 A Short History of the present conditions of 
 
 Central and South Africa* Its mountains, rivers, lakes, 
 
 climate and climatic changes in all sections* 
 
 BY 
 
 H. L, SCOTT 
 
 OAKLAND, CAL. 
 J90J 
 
 PRICE, TWENTY-FIVE CENTS 
 
 WM. H. DA"\ 
 26 O'FARRELL STREET, S. F. 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 This pamphlet is intended to show particularly the 
 advantages which other countries, and especially South 
 Africa, offer to the emigrant. Life is not so easy in the 
 United States but that one may consider whether other 
 countries do not in some respects offer better oppor- 
 tunities. 
 
 During the extent of my travels I have paid par- 
 ticular attention to the advantages presented for agricul- 
 tural pursuits in the various countries in which I have 
 resided and in none have I found the great promise 
 which South Africa holds out to the industrious. A 
 great part of this little work is therefore taken up with 
 references to the parts of Africa best suited to farming 
 and stock raising. I have attempted to show in some 
 degree the quality of the soil, the climate and the w r ater 
 resources. 
 
 I have been a planter in the United States and in 
 South Africa. I have also worked on farms in various 
 parts of Australia and sugar plantations in the South 
 Seas. 
 
 I therefore present this pamphlet in the hope that 
 it may be found of some use to the reader. 
 
 HORATIO L, SCOTT, 
 Oakland, Cal. 
 
GENERAL REMARKS 
 
 The great continent of Africa, which is only just now 
 beginning to be thrown open for the enterprise and 
 commercial industry of the twentieth century, is about 
 11,000,000 square miles in area. Its population is 
 roughly estimated at 200,000,000. It has lain dormant 
 so long that it seems impossible to consider that it is 
 really awaking. 
 
 The development of the Congo region is perhaps the 
 most striking proof of the development of the internal 
 resources of Africa. Dutch, French and Belgian trading 
 companies have established about twenty stations on the 
 upper river between Stanley Pools and Stanley Falls. 
 There is a flourishing Dutch station at Stanley Falls, 
 1300 miles up the river. Several steamers, the property 
 of these companies, ply up and down the Congo river. 
 Large ferries are being made for the convenience of 
 caravans, and the small streams are being bridged. No 
 one ever imagined that the Congo river trade would 
 advance with the strides that it is now making, and it 
 
 must be remembered that all these evidences of prosperity 
 arise from trading with the natives only 
 When we come to consider the actual advance made 
 in the better colonized and more civilized portions of the 
 country the facts are staggering. The development of 
 the mineral resources has brought every other develop- 
 
 -[3]- 
 
 91622 
 
ment in its train. Shipyards, railways and all the plants 
 for the carrying on of great enterprises are fast coming 
 into being, and a railroad to run from the extreme north 
 to the farthest south is only a question of a short time. 
 This road will run through a beautiful, fertile and well 
 watered country, most of which is now known as Rhodesia. 
 This district is situated, roughly speaking, between lati- 
 tude 1 6 North and 22 South; and longitude 20 West and 
 33 East. 
 
 The largest part of the extent of the country is from 
 3,500 to 5,000 feet above the sea level. High lying parts, 
 like the Transvaal, have a climate which is suitable to 
 all settlers from the temperate regions. The air is clear 
 and invigorating, and although the days are hot with a 
 heat which is, however, strengthening rather than debil- 
 itating, 'the nights both in winter and summer are 
 delightfully cool. There are no such nights anywhere 
 as one gets in South Africa. A light easterly breeze 
 blows all day from the early morning and subsides again 
 at nightfall. On the high plateau which reaches from 
 Buluwayo to Salisbury and across to Manicaland the 
 thermometer generally registers from 80 to 90 degrees 
 in the shade. This sounds very uninviting, but, as a 
 matter of fact, unless there happens to be an atmospheric 
 depression, it is seldom felt. There are sometimes rapid 
 changes of temperature. I have known a thermometer 
 to show a variation of twenty degrees in a few hours, 
 but my experience leads me to the conclusion that the 
 extremes are not so great as in some parts of the United 
 
 -Ul- 
 

 States, or even in California. The climate of Rhodesia 
 itself is certainly more temperate and less liable to 
 sudden changes. 
 
 The soil throughout the greater part of South Africa 
 is dark and rich, and well adapted to all kinds of cereals. 
 Corn , pumpkins, beans, potatoes and tobacco thrive well. 
 In my opinion fruit would grow well throughout the 
 northern portion of South Africa. I have successfully 
 grafted tame fruits on wild fruit trees there. My ex- 
 periments in the direction of fruit culture in South Africa 
 have been almost entirely successful, and I have com- 
 plete faith in the establishment of a high profitable fruit 
 industry in that country. 
 
 Fruit raising and farming are still in their infancy. 
 The cultivation of the soil has received little or no atten- 
 tion from migrants who go to Africa to seek gold or 
 diamonds, or to trade with the natives, and give no 
 attention to the more solid but less exciting pursuits of 
 agriculture. The result is that farming is almost at a 
 standstill, and the prices of farm produce are exceedingly 
 high. One can practically depend upon a crop every 
 year, and in some parts two crops may be usually 
 realized. The acreage every year is diminishing in ex- 
 tent, for many of the natives who used to farm small 
 plots of land have been iattracted by the high wages 
 offered in the mines, and the prices of farm produce are 
 censequently continually on the rise. 
 
 It must not be imagined, however, that there are no 
 drawbacks to farming in South Africa. Occasionally 
 
 -[5]- 
 
great swarms of locusts cover the whole face of tne 
 country and destroy all the cereals for many miles. It 
 therefore is a better policy to take up with some crop 
 which is exempt from locusts such a crop is tobacco. 
 This crop is never troubled with pests of any sort. 
 
 I have every confidence in the cultivation of tobacco; 
 it can be made exceedingly profitable. The tobacco 
 grown in South Africa is of a very fine quality. If it 
 were to receive anything like the care and attention to 
 its culture, which is expended upon it in other parts of 
 the world, I am sure that it would excel the products of 
 other regions in fineness and in delicacy. The most 
 promising of all crops in South Africa, in my estimation, 
 is the tobacco crop. The climatic conditions favor its 
 growth in every respect. 
 
 The question of rainfall is naturally a serious matter 
 when considering the adaptability of a country for the 
 purposes of cultivation. The rainy season and the warm 
 season are found together. This season begins, generally 
 speaking, about November and ends in March. 
 
 In Rhodesia, the rainfall varies from 14^ inches to 
 about 45 inches in a season. Vegetation grows with 
 almost extraordinary rapidity and to a degree which is 
 seldom found elsewhere. I have seen grass grow to the 
 height of between five and six feet. If there is any un- 
 healthy season in South Africa, it is the rainy season. 
 The districts to which the term unhealthy can be applied 
 are few in number and are to be found in the low, marshy 
 lands. Where the vegetation is very thick in the marshy 
 
 -[61- 
 
districts, it decomposes, and thus gives off gases which 
 tend to the propagation of malaria. Where the low 
 places have been cultivated and the marshes reclaimed 
 and planted, the fever disappears and these districts lose 
 their bad reputation for unhealthiness. 
 
 The best districts are: Cape Colony, the Orange River 
 Colony, the Transvaal and Bechuanaland. In all these 
 colonies the climate is healthy and mild. In the Orange 
 River Colony and the Transvaal the climate is a little 
 cold, owing to their elevation. They have an altitude 
 of about 4,500 feet above the sea level. In all these dis- 
 tricts the land is exceedingly adaptable for stock raising 
 and farming purposes. There are several large rivers 
 with abundance of water, which could be utilized for 
 irrigating great tracts of country. In some places it 
 would be necessary to raise the water by pumping; in 
 other cases ditches might be dug. 
 
 In the northeastern parts of Bechuanaland, along the 
 Limpopo river, vast tracts of uncultivated land lie, wait- 
 ing the agriculturist to convert them into waving fields 
 of rich and valuable grain. Many fine and promising 
 tracts of land lie along the route of the proposed line of 
 railway from the Cape to Cairo. I have traveled for 
 hundreds of miles over the proposed route and have 
 seen beautiful valleys and water courses, whose only 
 inhabitants were wild beasts and innumerable flocks of 
 wild fowl. They lie there, smiling, in the sun, full of 
 the promise of fertility, asking for the hand of man to 
 cultivate them. Many of these valleys are in districts 
 
 -[7]- 
 
7,000 feet above the sea level, and they are accordingly 
 very healthy and the climate exceedingly mild. 
 
 Of course, the existence of such places cannot be kept 
 secret and already many people from foreign countries 
 are going to Africa and penetrating the interior. They 
 are settling down and making comfortable homes along 
 the proposed line of railroad. The main idea of this 
 railroad enterprise is to tap the resources of Central Africa 
 and to obtain laborers for the great mines of the Rand. 
 
 For mining work native labor is preferred to all 
 other. Native labor is very scarce in Cape Colony, be- 
 cause so many of the native people have homes and 
 farms and small businesses of their own. They are also 
 employed by the white inhabitants as domestic servants, 
 and by the Government in the Postal, Telegraph and 
 Railroad Departments. For cheaper labor, therefore, 
 the agents of the great mining companies must go into 
 the interior. This question of obtaining sufficient 
 native labor is at present almost incapable of solution, 
 because the journey into the interior involves much 
 time and considerable hardship. As soon as the railroad 
 is built, however, these difficulties will vanish. The 
 road into the midst of a teeming native population will 
 then lay wide open and the almost inexhaustible resources 
 of labor in the native races will be tapped and exploited 
 for the benefit of the commercial speculators on the Rand. 
 However one may lament the break-up of the native 
 population, the result will nevertheless be accomplished, 
 and the native races of the African jungles will, by their 
 
 -18]- 
 
labor, minister to the comfort and wealth of thousands 
 of investors in Europe and America. 
 
 Commercial interests in Africa have thus early assumed 
 considerable importance. The Congo region, to which 
 reference has already been made, is particularly 
 rich and is adding to its value continually. French, 
 Dutch and Belgians are engaged in active rivalry and 
 the country is filled with their trading stations. The 
 Dutch alone have at least five steamers on the Upper 
 Congo. The value of the exchanges with the native 
 tribes must be very considerable, or we should not wit- 
 ness this struggle to obtain trade. This strenuous 
 rivalry speaks well for the resources of the Congo re- 
 gion . And it must be remembered that these resources 
 are only in their infancy and obtained by the crude 
 methods naturally employed by the natives. 
 
 These facts do not escape the eye of the European 
 statesman and they are, consequently, engaged in a 
 struggle to obtain more and more African territory for 
 the purposes of colonization. Protectorates are being 
 established everywhere, and vast tracts pass into the 
 hands of the European Foreign Offices. Native terri- 
 tory has consequently been distributed with such indus- 
 try that it can only be a very short time before nothing 
 will remain in the hands of the native people. One of 
 the pioneers of Matabeleland says: 
 
 "The possibilities of this great country of ours are 
 incalculable. It will be wonderful if Rhodesia does not 
 uphold the reputation of South Africa as being a land of 
 
 -[9]- 
 
surprises and latent wealth. The colony produces 
 diamond mines and wool. The Free State also produces 
 wool, horses and diamonds. Namaqualand produces 
 copper; Basuto land produces grain and horses; Natal 
 produces coal, sugar and tea; the Transvaal has its far- 
 famed gold mines. Surely Rhodesia, with a territory 
 almost as vast as all these put together, will produce 
 something. Coal we have here in abundance and of a 
 very good quality. The principal beds are situated to 
 the south of the Zambesi river, about 180 miles from 
 Bulawayo. Within the last few years good coal has 
 been found along the line of the railway, not many miles 
 from Palapye. If this, as we anticipate, turns out well, 
 it will be a source of supply for Tati and all the sur- 
 rounding country, as well as for the stations along the 
 line to the north and as far south as Kimberley, which 
 itself will be a large consumer. The coal is an impor- 
 tant factor in the economical working of gold mines in a 
 country like this, where we have no water power for 
 motive purposes. The consumption of coal will be great. 
 The mines may be able to go on for a few years using 
 wood for fuel, but wood, plentiful as it is in certain 
 parts will soon get exhausted, and then we must fall 
 back on the indispensable coal. To the north and west of 
 Bulawayo there are timber forests which stretch over 
 hundreds of miles of country. These contain a hard 
 grained native teak. The wood is capable of taking a 
 beautiful mahogany polish, and furniture made from it 
 }s equal to the best imported material of the same nature, 
 
 -[10]- 
 
if not better. The market in South Africa, let alone 
 Europe, when it becomes generally known, should be 
 unlimited. 
 
 Salt pans of great extent exist on our southwest- 
 ern side, and steps will presently be taken to' 
 open them up. To the north, besides the gold, 
 it is known that there are extensive copper mines, 
 which are said to contain an unlimited quantity 
 of almost pure copper. Indications of petroleum have 
 been found in two or three parts of the country, but 
 the ground has not been thoroughly prospected. There 
 are a hundred and one other things which the country 
 is known to produce, but we must leave them alone for 
 the present. To go into the agricultural and stock 
 raising possibilities of South Africa would require a 
 volume of matter, which I cannot presently supply. 
 Suffice it to say that the country is eminently adapted 
 for the production of all sorts of grains and fruits. 
 
 ' ' In most parts of South Africa, sickness is general 
 among horses in the wet season much more so than in 
 the dry season in the northern part of South Africa. Mules 
 and donkeys seem to stand the sick season better than 
 the horses. Horses that are kept on the highlands 
 stand the sickness better than those that are kept on 
 the lowlands." 
 
 As in all other countries, sickness will disappear in 
 Africa to a great degree before the advance of civiliza- 
 tion. The best animals for farm and transport use are 
 oxen, as they are satisfied with a diet of grass. Of the 
 
 -L"h 
 
horses, however, those that are raised in Basuto land 
 and the Orange River Colony, suffer but slightly from 
 sickness. 
 
 TOWNS 
 
 The most important towns on the south and southeast 
 coast are: Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East, London. 
 All these are in Cape Colony. In Natal, we find the 
 town of Durban. These are all seaport towns and have 
 large and growing populations. Steam railways run 
 from each of these towns to the smaller ones in the interior 
 Each town has its own system of electric roads, and each is 
 fully provided with all the conveniences and comforts 
 which may be expected from towns of their size. 
 
 THE TRANSKEI, A TYPICAL DISTRICT 
 
 I have already referred to the opportunities for agri- 
 culture and stock raising which exist in such large num- 
 bers all through South Africa. The case of the Transkei, 
 however, is now cited as a fair sample of the most prom- 
 ising districts. It is by no means an isolated case, it is 
 really typical of many such . 
 
 There is no intention on the part of the writer to boom 
 the places, but as I have set out on the task of laying 
 the truth about South Africa before you, it is only just 
 that you should learn of these places at first hand. 
 
An old resident, speaking of the Transkei, which is in 
 the northeastern part of Cape Colony, writes: 
 
 ENTHI,AMBI, NEAR BUTTERWORTH, TRANSKEI. 
 
 April 8, 1899. 
 SIR: 
 
 As one who has resided over twenty years in these 
 parts, I am convinced that the people of the Colony 
 proper know little or nothing of this portion of the coun- 
 try, looking upon it as an outlandish place, inhabited by 
 thousands of half savages. Stray visitors through this 
 marvelous country are simply astonished, and, as they 
 journey, become actually astounded at its beauty, its fer- 
 tility, its richness in everything agricultural a land 
 truly flowing with milk and honey. Yet it is so little 
 known to practical, hard working farmers, striving to 
 make ends meet a poor and hard-earned living. L,ook 
 at the picture on this side. The black pastoralist with 
 his flocks thriving and increasing under the rudest care 
 behold him reaping where he can scarcely be said to 
 have sown, his agricultural attempts being simplicity in 
 the extreme. He scatters the seed and then scratches 
 the earth over in the roughest possible manner, yet 
 reaping large crops, far beyond his own needs and flood- 
 ing the colonial markets with grain, living a life of ease 
 and contentment. Probably in no other part of the 
 world could such a life be possible. Read what Professor 
 Hahn says to the Farmers' Conference at the late 
 Grahamstown Exhibition: ' 'A greater contrast in the 
 general aspect of the two countries can hardly be con- 
 
 -[13]- 
 
ceived the one a stony desert with a scanty vegetation, 
 dry and uncertain climate, depending on irrigation from 
 boring and dam constructing chiefly for its agricultural 
 prospects. There across is Kei, a beautiful grass cov- 
 ered and wooded valley, with plenty of water a veritable 
 Garden of Eden which, unfortunately, is very little 
 known in the Colony. Grain of all kinds, vegetables, 
 tobacco, hemp, flax, cot ton, coffee, pineapples, trees of every 
 kind (useful and ornamental) flourish and grow profusely, 
 needing no expensive irrigation. The Enthlambi valley 
 has long been known to many for its richness of soil and 
 as a grand grazing run for cattle, sheep, goats and 
 horses. Yours, etc., 
 
 OKSIS. 
 
 The above I repeat is not quoted as an advertisement; 
 it is simply to show that places of exceedingly great 
 fertility exist in South Africa. The history of the recent 
 war has given the great mass of people more information 
 respecting the appearance and climate of South Africa 
 than they had hitherto possessed, or than they would 
 have been likely to gain in a lifetime under ordinary 
 conditions. But such information has come in a way 
 that is not altogether satisfactory. There has been too 
 much picturesque writing for the truth to have been alto- 
 gether stated. The glamor of the excitement of war and 
 the consequent exaggeration in the description of the 
 country has tended to the depicting of the natural disad- 
 vantages in more or less sombre colors. The ordinary 
 reader is convinced that South Africa is a hot, sterile 
 
 -[14]- 
 
plain or rolling prairie, and that it possesses no attrac- 
 tions for the ordinary man. He thinks it is a burning 
 district, devoid of shade, the corrugated iron roofs of 
 whose houses reflect the heat back from their inhospitable 
 and poverty-stricken walls. 
 
 It is to correct such an impression that I have men- 
 tioned Transkei. There is nothing in which Transkei 
 excels many other places, the names of which are un- 
 known outside their immediate neighborhood. In my 
 travels, I have met in many places in many parts of 
 Africa spots that compare very well with the description 
 of Transkei, as I have just quoted it. In all these places 
 there is the same luxuriance of vegetation, the same 
 facility of production, the same beauty of scenery and 
 the same charm of climate and of life. Nowhere else in 
 the world has it been my fortune to see such places; 
 nowhere else in the world has such a longing possessed 
 me to cease my wanderings and settle down to enjoy life 
 and the fortune which appears to spring spontaneously 
 from the soil. Pondoland, East Griqualand and Natal 
 have scores and scores of places which compare very 
 favorably with Transkei. In Zululand, I could go to 
 many places equally favored by nature and equally well 
 equipped with every material for happiness. In the 
 interior of Africa that magic unknown land which lies 
 far behind mountain ranges and through deep forests, 
 there are hidden in its recesses many such paradises. It 
 is a libel upon the country to describe it as barren and 
 desolate. It is like a rough shell, which, if you will 
 
 -[15]- 
 
take the trouble to pierce, serves but as the shelter for 
 the wonderful richness of the fruit within. So it is with 
 South Africa. The dreary veldt, the barren mountains, 
 the dry plains are but the husk of the country; within is 
 the beauty, the prosperity and the peace of places like 
 Transkei. Railroads are running through some of these 
 districts already. In a few years they will all be tra- 
 versed by the railroad. 
 
 In these fertile districts, there is a possibility for all 
 kinds of cultivation. One industry must, before long, 
 assume considerable importance which has, up to the 
 present, by no means received the attention which it has 
 deserved. There is a scarcity of timber for building and 
 kindred purposes. The mines also require great quan- 
 tities of timber. It has been discovered that blue gum 
 and black wortle trees grow very rapidly when planted 
 in South Africa, and the growth of these trees will, be- 
 fore long, piove to be a very valuable industry. Fenc- 
 ing, and hundreds of other demands incidental to the 
 growth of a new country, will keep up the demand for 
 timber of the nature of which I have spoken, and the 
 farmer who takes time by the forelock, and gets to work 
 at the raising of paying lumber will never regret the 
 experiment. 
 
 In fact, nearly everything that can be grown brings a 
 fair return, and that because the demand for all agricul- 
 tural products is exceeeingly unusual, since the enter- 
 prise and energy which would, under normal conditions, 
 be devoted to agriculture and kindred pursuits, are, at 
 
present, engaged in the search for gold and precious 
 stones, and in crowding into the new cities in the hope 
 that some sudden turn of the wheel of fortune may place 
 the lucky speculator beyond the need of earning a living 
 by work. 
 
 CENTRAL EQUATORIAL AFRICA 
 
 Central Equatorial Africa is a country which offers 
 many inducements. This seems a curious statement to 
 make of a land which within so short a time was really 
 a land of mystery. All across the map of Africa was 
 written, not very long ago, the word "unexplored." 
 Now, the country is one which tenders the very richest 
 rewards to the energetic and persevering. The names 
 of Stanley and Livingstone are reminiscent of adventure 
 and danger, of unenligtened men and savage beasts. But, 
 such wonders are worked nowadays in a moment of 
 time, as it were, and we are already speaking of Central 
 Africa, as a probable place for settlement, and before 
 very long, the whole of that great country will be dotted 
 with homes. The land will be cultivated and the post- 
 man will be bringing letters to the inhabitants from 
 relatives in Europe and America. More than that, be- 
 fore very long, there will be little towns in those dis- 
 tricts with telegraph and telephone, electric cars and all 
 that go to make up the features of the modern city. The 
 inhabitants will stroll round the fountain on the plaza 
 and listen to the music of Strauss, just as they do in my 
 own Oakland. It is very strange to think that men will 
 
 -[17]- 
 
grow up with a pride of citizenship in Central Africa- 
 that the time will come, and not be very long coming, 
 when one shall say with a touch of pride, that he is a 
 native Central African, just as people now pride them-: 
 selves on being native New Zealanders and native Cali- 
 fornians. Such, however, will be the working of 
 destiny, and I cannot imagine a fairer nor a brighter 
 country to claim as one's own. 
 
 It is a high plateau, healthy and invigorating, with 
 all that the best of climate and the most fruitful of soils 
 can offer in the direction of human happiness. The 
 scenery is surpassingly beautiful. There are chains of 
 great lakes, which sparkle in the sun like the sea itself; 
 lakes beside which those of Michigan are almost small. 
 The rivers abound and many of them are very large and 
 navigable for miles and miles. The means of commu- 
 nication afforded by these rivers and lakes are almost 
 perfect. No irrigation is required; nature herself pro- 
 vides everything that is needed. The reader will say 
 that I am prejudiced in favor of Central Africa, and, 
 frankly, I am. But I have no axe to grind. I describe 
 just the impressions which the country made upon me, 
 as I hunted and traded through it. As for the lakes and 
 rivers, I have steered my pioneer boat upon them; I 
 have hunted in the forests; I have ridden through the 
 beautiful, deserted valleys, and I have supped and slept 
 among people who have all the luxuries of life, as far as 
 their simple tastes require luxuries, without any of the 
 strenuous toil, which our laborers have to put forth to 
 
gain even a scanty subsistence. The wealth of the 
 native, as I have said before, is the best proof of the 
 natural productiveness of the soil. He has all that can 
 satisfy his elementary needs, and, as we have seen, is 
 able to make trading with him, on the part of the Euro- 
 pean, profitable and extensive. It may be imagined, 
 therefore, that the wealth which is possible of extraction 
 from the country by those skilled in modern methods, 
 energetically and skillfully applied, must be very large. 
 These facts cannot possibly escape public notice, and as 
 soon as the opportunity comes, Equatorial Africa will be 
 invaded by a host of men, anxious fora first choice of the 
 rich districts. It is only waiting for the railroad to 
 open. When the railroad is through, the door, which 
 hides the magic treasures of Equatorial Africa from the 
 knowledge of the world, will be unlocked, and its won- 
 derful wealth will be open for the sight of the nations. 
 And this cannot be very long. It is a very few years 
 since Khartoum was a distant town on the Nile, the 
 capital of a powerful native race. It seems 
 but yesterday since the story of Gordon's relief 
 column and its failure fascinated and horrified the civil- 
 ized world, and yet today Khartoum is a growing and 
 prosperous city, the centre of a great trade, a city which 
 is as accessible as New York, and to which the excursion 
 agents run regular excursions. Events move so rapidly 
 and are so full of significance that it is nonsense to place 
 any bounds upon the possibilities of advance. Equatorial 
 Africa will, before long, be a well recognized place for 
 
 -[19]- 
 
immigration, and will find a place in the world's market 
 for the disposition of its products. Even now in Africa 
 the movement has begun. Long trains of wagons, mov- 
 ing slowly along, drawn by oxen, are tending, step by 
 step and mile by mile, to these regions. Already the 
 whisper of the riches of the interior has penetrated to 
 the colonies, and those adventurous spirits, who are ever 
 eager and alert for the newest opportunities, are already 
 on the move and are bending their course along the hard, 
 long trail, which leads into the great interor. Month 
 after month they will be on the march; month after 
 month the oxen will be inspanned in the morning and 
 outspanned again at night. They will crop the coarse 
 grass on the veldt, and settle down to sleep under the 
 wonderful African sky. The little children, which 
 started as babies in the great caravan, will grow in the 
 beautiful fresh air with every mile of the journey, and 
 before the end of it is reached, will be fine and sturdy 
 specimens of the race with which the new continent is to 
 be peopled. Then, one day, they will come to a beautiful 
 lake in the interior, and they will unharness their beasts 
 
 for good, and the smoke of the settlement will rise into 
 the clear, pure air. Along the shores of these lakes there 
 are untold miles of the most beautiful meadow land,, such 
 land as is seldom seen. Here there is water and grass for 
 millions of cattle and the natural home of a pastoral and 
 stock raising people. Even now the natives drive their 
 herds along the lakes and water their stock at the brim 
 
 of the fresh water ocean. 
 
Central Africa has lain hidden for so long for two 
 reasons: the absence of harbors and the want of rivers. 
 There are many rivers of great extent and volume of 
 water. They, however, are not proportionate to the 
 size of the country, and the) 7 do not offer any opportun- 
 ity for navigation purposes from the outside. The 
 course of some of the finest rivers is impeded at the 
 lower course by rapids, which cause obstruction and 
 prevent a free access to the interior. 
 
 RIVERS OF CENTRAL AFRICA 
 
 Following are the length and drainage area of some of 
 the larger rivers of Central Africa: The Nile runs through 
 Central Africa for about 4020 miles; the Congo waters 
 the country for a distance of 2883 miles; the Zambesi 
 is about 880 miles long; the Senegal is about 980 miles 
 long. These rivers are such as are well known at the 
 present time and do not form, by any means, a complete 
 or accurate list. There are, necessarily, many more 
 rivers and streams which are neither investigated nor 
 discovered and which have not even been examined 
 with regard to their capacities for carrying freight or for 
 manufacturing purposes. The rivers of Africa are, as 
 yet, comparatively unknown their extent is by no means 
 thoroughly settled. Perhaps the best guide to the water 
 facilities of a country is a man who is thoroughly com- 
 petent to judge, and who has traversed the country with 
 a purpose, keeping an observant eye on the various 
 possibilities of the land through which he passes, who 
 knows the advantages of a good water supply and is 
 
able to detect deficiency in that respect. The writer of 
 this claims to be such a man. He has traveled through 
 too many countries not to have acquired the capacity 
 of measuring the potentialities of the various lands 
 through which he goes. After close and accurate ob- 
 servation by actual personal experience, I am con- 
 vinced of the fact that the water supply of Equatorial 
 Africa will meet all the needs of the settler, and will, 
 morover, furnish many good opportunities for internal 
 commerce and communication between different parts of 
 the country, as well as provide the motive power for the 
 making of electricity and the working of machinery, 
 such as is now used in the civilized and settled districts of 
 the modern world. 
 
 LAKES OF CENTRAL AFRICA 
 
 Reference has already been made to the size and 
 beauty of most of the lakes of Central Africa. It is a 
 country which possesses many and beautiful stretches of 
 freshwater. Conspicuous among these are: Victoria 
 Nyanza, which has an area of 32,160 square miles; Ny- 
 assa covers an area of 18,000 square miles; Cad, 13,149 
 square miles and Tanganyika, 12,140 square miles. Al- 
 bert Nyanza is 1,780 square miles in extent and the 
 beautiful little lake of Ngami is 297 square miles in area. 
 Of these lakes it must be said, as in the case of the 
 rivers, that the facts given are by no means final. Much 
 exploration and investigation have yet to be carried on 
 before we arrive at anything like accuracy in estimating 
 
 -[22]- 
 
the magnitude and the resources of the Central African 
 water system. What has been given is an approximation 
 more or less accurate, of such of the lakes as have been 
 explored, and concerning which certain data which can 
 be fairly well relied upon, have been collected* 
 
 From this, however, it may be seen that there i3 
 Very little probability of any lack of water. This water 
 has been utilized before for irrigation purposes and there 
 is no reason why it should not again be put to the same 
 uses. Many ditches are found now filled with sand, but 
 which were evidently, some time or other, in the more 
 remote past, irrigation ditches. The ancient occupants 
 of this country, whoever they may have been, evidently 
 had some comprehension of the uses of irrigation and 
 some way of handling the water for purposes of cultiva- 
 tion. There are many signs that the interior was at one 
 time inhabited by a race of superior culture and consider- 
 able efficiency in some of the arts. The granite build- 
 ings, the ruins of which are frequently discovered, are 
 of tremendous size. The plan of their construction, as 
 far as can be determined, from the size of the stones and 
 the manner in which they have been laid, shows much 
 architectural skill and a degree of power over the hand- 
 ling of heavy and bulky masses of stone, which is really 
 remarkable, considering the machinery, which they must 
 have been able to bring to their aid. There is no lack 
 of artistic finish, either, about the buildings. The stones 
 are beautifully carved and intricate, and in some respects, 
 really artistic designs show that the work was carried 
 
out by a race which was capable of some degree of 
 artistic feeling and was probably possessed of a very 
 considerable degree of refinement and culture. 
 
 Among the remains of a civilization, now long passed, 
 may be mentioned the old gold mines which are frequently 
 found. At least, it is generally supposed, that they were 
 gold mines, though no positive proof is forthcoming upon 
 that score. It is said that these mines were worked by 
 the slaves of King Solomon, and that this is the Ophir 
 which is mentioned in the scriptures as being the place 
 which supplied to him a large portion of his gold used in 
 the ornamentation of the sacred places. However, this 
 may be, there does not seem any reason to set any par- 
 ticular date for this mining, and there is certainly no 
 very cogent reason to ascribe the work to the artisans of 
 the great Hebrew king. On the other hand, it does not 
 appear unlikely that the Arabs came down from the 
 north in search of gold and opened up the mines. They 
 would work them with their slaves and would form a 
 powerful colonization party. To the south and all 
 around them, however, lay the native tribes, strong and 
 fierce, and the time may easily have come when the 
 attacks of these tribes would be sufficiently vigorous to 
 cause the abandonment of the work by the Arabs. This 
 must have happened a very long period of time ago and 
 possibly in the days of King Solomon, but of this we 
 have no knowledge. 
 
 In the latter part of the century just passed when the 
 Europeans went into Mashonaland, they found 
 
natives at work mining. The Portugese undoubtedly 
 carried on an exchange with the natives for gold, and 
 this gold must have been mined and smelted by the 
 natives. Whether they evolved the production of gold 
 out of their own experience, and found its utility as a 
 matter of tribal knowledge, cannot be stated. It hardly 
 appears probable that this was so; it seems more likely 
 that they learned it from the outside. 
 
 The buildings show specimens of pottery with images 
 of birds and beasts adorning it. This is a mark of 
 higher civilization than we find at present in these dis- 
 tricts. The ability to make pottery is a recognized proof 
 that a people has attained a certain footing in the march 
 of progress which may entitle them to be considered as 
 being directly on the road to what is termed civilization. 
 Either the peoples of this district have retrograded or 
 they must have derived their art fromsome outside source. 
 What makes this appear all the more likely is the fact that 
 large quantities of gold beads and chains are found in two 
 or three places and show a degree of art which is not 
 often, or ever, attained among savage people. It is evi- 
 dent, at all events, that gold mining was, at one time, a 
 very important industry in the district in question, and 
 that it has been practically abandoned. Perhaps the invad- 
 ers broke up their strongholds and departed when they had 
 all the gold which they were able to get by the use of the 
 crude implements which they possessed. It is astonish- 
 ing, when we examine these implements, to understand 
 how they managed to extract the tremendous quantiti^ 
 
 -[25J- 
 
bf quartz, which we find piled up in heaps around the 
 old woi kings. It seems that when they got to a hard 
 reef they proceeded to soften it by means of fire, which 
 they built upon the exposed portion of the reef. They 
 then dug down. As they could not go beyond the water 
 level, for, of course, they had no means of contending 
 with the water, only the surface of the reef was touched. 
 The marks of the fires,which they built to soften the reef, 
 are visible in many of the old workings. The extraction 
 of gold could not have been a paying enterprise, as we 
 understand it. The quartz was all crushed by hand be- 
 tween stones and the sand was then carried to the near- 
 est waterand carefully washed in a wooden or earthenware 
 dish. Large numbers of the old stones and mortars used 
 by them are still to be found lying about the country in 
 various places. 
 
 It is evident that the mineral resources of Central 
 Africa are by no means gauged, and that there ought to 
 be many chances for the miner and the prospector. This 
 pamphlet, however, does not undertake to deal with 
 those aspects of South African life, but devotes itself 
 exclusively to the country, as viewed from the standpoint 
 of the practical agriculturalist . If it were intended to 
 examine the mineral resources and the capabilities of the 
 country for the production of the precious metals, the 
 scope of the work would have to be greatly extended. 
 
 The writer is a firm believer that the happiest life is, 
 after all, the agricultural. That the unhealthy excite- 
 ment and the uncertainty of the miner's life do not tend 
 
to ultimate happiness, even when the efforts to gain 
 wealth have been crowned with success, as is the exper- 
 ience of the writer, and in how few instances do they 
 even approximate to success. The best life and the 
 most free from worries of all description is that of the 
 farmer. Nowhere can the farmer enjoy life with greater 
 zest than in Central Africa. Nowhere can he attain the 
 advantages of climate, of productive soil and of promise 
 for the future as he can there. 
 
 It is hard to drop the subject of Central Africa I con- 
 fess to being an enthusiast about it. Many and many 
 times I lie in bed, thinking of the glorious excursions 
 through that beautiful district. I can see, over and 
 over again, the wonderful beauty of the valleys th-rough 
 which I passed; I can see the happy native kraals with 
 their freedom from care and their prosperity; I can see 
 the great fertile places untilled and calling for the pre- 
 sence of man and joy of production, and I make up my 
 mind to go there again before I finish my work on this 
 side. It lingers in the mind as beautiful scenery always 
 does and makes a joy of its own. 
 
 It will be a happy day when the railroad goes through 
 the districts with its burden of eager and optimistic 
 settlers and if one may venture upon a prophesy, never 
 were settlers more satisfied with their lot than they will 
 be who take possession of the valleys and fields of Cen- 
 tral Africa. 
 
 This consideration of my wanderings in Central 
 Africa brings me to the recollection of travels elsewhere, 
 
particularly in Australia, and I had perhaps just as well 
 deal with them here as at any other time. 
 
 AUSTRALIA 
 
 It was in the early eighties that I went to Australia. 
 I had the gold fever very badly, and I was as keen after 
 the yellow metal as anyone ever was. That was before 
 South Africa. Experience and common sense had put 
 new ideas into my head and I had discovered that there 
 was something better in life than burrowing all the time 
 with one's head in the hole on the off-chance of making 
 a stake, a stake which, by the way, is very seldom 
 materialized. A great gold excitement had struck one 
 of the southern colonies, and, like thousands of others, I 
 started headlong for the fields. Then I set to work at 
 the usual game, digging prospect holes erery where. 
 They were, as a fact, never anything but prospect holes, 
 for I was not, by any means, successful as a miner. 
 
 The desire for farming possessed me very strongly in 
 spite of my mining experience and I watched the possi- 
 bilities of the country from the agricultural standpoint 
 very closely as I passed through, and I saw many beau- 
 tiful farms and orchards and fields of rich waving grain. 
 
 There is little doubt of the prosperity of the average 
 Australian farmer. His farm is kept in good order. He 
 has, as the Englishman has everywhere, a comfortable 
 house and he is fairly well equipped with the world's 
 goods. He works very hard, however, and is thrifty, 
 and his success may be fairly ascribed to these qualities. 
 
In many parts of the country the land is heavily tim- 
 bered. The soil is of a dark brown color and very rich 
 in most places. But there is one difficulty that stands 
 like a shadow over Australian farming; that is the ab- 
 sence of water. It is the greatest obstacle to the de- 
 velopment of Australia, that there is no steady supply of 
 water, upon which reliance can be placed without re- 
 sorting to irrigation. Great irrigation works have been 
 constructed, however, and have redeemed great dis- 
 tricts, so that the outlook is more promising than it was, 
 but still the creation of great works necessitates a great 
 company behind them. Such irrigated land has, how- 
 ever, been frequently found to possess many advantages 
 for cultivation, and comfortable fortunes have been made 
 by farming it. 
 
 The price of land is not extortionate. Farming lands 
 cost from five to twenty-five dollars an acre. The farmers 
 find no difficulty in getting a market for their produce 
 and the chances of exportation increase every year. It 
 is one of the most striking facts, in connection with the 
 enterprise of the Englishman, that the commodities of 
 Australia in the way of perishable farm produce and 
 even dairy produce and fruit command a ready sale in 
 the British markets. This comes partly from the prompt- 
 ness which they are despatched and partly from the pains- 
 taking skill with which the commodities are packed, so 
 as to retain their freshness and flavor. The canning and 
 refrigerating business is a staple industry of the Colonies. 
 Thousands of carcasses of sheep and rabbits are cut up 
 
 -[291- 
 
and frozen and shipped to foreign countries, The Aus- 
 tralians have even turned their plague of rabbits to prac- 
 tical account, and sell them by the million to the home 
 population. 
 
 Mountainous and desert regions form a greater part of 
 the Australian continent. This area is about 2,970,000 
 square miles. The highest mountain is 7,500 feet 
 high and is known as Mount Kosciusko. The only 
 great river is the Murray, which is 1,550 miles long and 
 drains an area of 270,000 square miles. Several consid- 
 erable streams empty themselves into the Gulf of Car- 
 pentaria, while those flowing to the Pacific Ocean on 
 the east and to the Indian Ocean on the west are of con- 
 siderable importance. There are several inland salt 
 lakes, which constitute a peculiar feature of the country. 
 
 It is not difficult to preempt land, as the same laws, 
 practically, are in force as in the United States. The 
 people are exceedingly kind to strangers and of a most 
 hospitable and generous nature. The same opinion may 
 be expressed about the New Zealanders and the Tas- 
 manians. In fact, the geniality of the Australasians is 
 most marked, and that, coupled with my African ex- 
 periences, leads me to consider this a marked characteristic 
 of the British colonists wherever they may be found. 
 Their entire freedom from any prejudice against the 
 colored people is one of the most striking, and, at the 
 same time, one of the most charming of their traits. A 
 man goes at his value in the Colonies, independent of 
 his nationality. Good conduct and industry are all that 
 
 -[30]- 
 
is required to establish a standing, and the people that 
 chose a Hindoo to represent one of their great London 
 constituencies will never let the color of one of their 
 subjects be a bar to the rise of that subject. 
 
 Australia is much noted for its sheep. Their fatness 
 and the fineness of their wool have won them an inter- 
 national reputation. One-fourth of all the sheep in the 
 world are raised in Australia. Horses also are reared in 
 great numbers and there is a tremendous export of them 
 to India annually. 
 
 Such are a few unsatisfactory and general statements 
 about this great Australian continent, which is now or- 
 ganized into one great Federation, but which preserves, 
 to a wonderful degree, its loyalty and affection to the 
 British Empire, and which sends its sons to battle for 
 the old country for the sake of the old association and 
 not for any benefit of its own. This is a wonderful fact, 
 one of the most striking in modern history and one that 
 will be pointed to with wonder by the future, how an 
 Empire, unable to maintain her sons at home, yet re- 
 tained their affection when they went many thousands 
 of miles under new conditions and amid fresh surround- 
 ings, how these sons made a great country for themselves 
 at the ends of the world, and still loved the name of the 
 land from whence they had come, so that they and their 
 children called it home, and they sent their children to 
 fight for it as their own children had done. Such love 
 and constancy of peoples has been seldom seen it is a 
 credit to the motherland and to the children whom she 
 
 -[31]- 
 
has raised. Remembering this and that the motto of the 
 Australian colonists is "Advance Australia" we can 
 leave them in the full faith that they have a great and 
 prosperous career before them, and that whoever chooses 
 to throw in his lot with them will not make a mistake. 
 They have already taught the world much in the direc- 
 tion of social legislation and they will have other lessons 
 of much significance to the world in general, of which to 
 teach. In calling at Australia on the way to South 
 Africa, one can leave the southern continent behind and 
 return again to the latter country. 
 
 CLIMATE OF SOUTH AFRICA 
 
 There are not any meteorological reports on South 
 Africa. This is not surprising when we consider the 
 shortness of time which has elapsed since the coloniza- 
 tion of that country began, and the absence of a service 
 approaching in accuracy the meteorological department 
 of the United States. It appears, however, as might be 
 expected, that the temperature of the coast districts is 
 more equable than that of the plain. The mean daily 
 range between the maximum and the minimum readings 
 for the coast is only 15 )4 degrees. At Kimberley and 
 Bloemfontein it is nearly double that. On the coast west 
 of Durban the mean maximum for the month seldom 
 reaches 80 degrees, whilst in Kimberley it frequently 
 reaches 90 degrees. We may look at the question of 
 emigration to South Africa from many standpoints, but 
 
there can be but one opinion upon it from the standpoint 
 of health. For those who are physically weak and are 
 yet obliged to earn a living, South Africa is the very best 
 place in the world. It is impossible for the invalid to go 
 to a health resort in this country or in Europe, generally 
 speaking, because of the difficulty in obtaining employ- 
 ment, but South Africa is one great health resort as far 
 as the sick are concerned that is, its climatic effects 
 are so beneficial that it has all the advantages of the best 
 health resorts, and combines with them the possibility of 
 making a living. 
 
 The varying elevation gives great diversity of climate 
 and consequently of rainfall, hence there is opportunity 
 for a great variety of occupations. It is quite conceiv- 
 able, for example, that the tending of sheep on the great 
 Karroo might easily prove too strenuous an occupation 
 for one, but such a person has an almost infinity of call- 
 ings to draw from, and he may devote himself to semi- 
 tropical pursuits, as the growing of tea or sugar on the 
 Natal coast. I know of no country which offers the 
 same selection and administers in the same way to the 
 comfort or luxury required by the individual appetite. 
 
 Of course, it will be remembered that as South Africa 
 lies south of the equator, the seasons are the reverse of 
 our own. Thus, the summer extends from October to 
 the end of March, and the winter from April to Septem- 
 ber. This, among many other things, with the news 
 received of late from South Africa, has made the world 
 perfectly familiar with. 
 
 -[33]- 
 
THE PLATEAU 
 
 The coast plateau, which may be said to form the first 
 step in the ascent of the continent, as it were, is about 
 600 feet in height and varies from a few miles in breadth 
 to fifty. This forms the broad base of the great staircase 
 by means of which we climb into Africa from the sea. 
 The plateau adjoining the west coast is bounded east- 
 ward by the irregular mountains of Namaqualand and 
 by the Olifant and Drakenstein ranges. 
 
 The south coast plateau is of much greater importance 
 and is divided from the highlands of Southern Karroo 
 by the Zondereine L,ange Bergen, Outen-iqua and L,angen 
 Kloof Mountains. Further eastward the well-defined 
 character of the plateau becomes less obvious, and, in 
 some instances, where the base of the mountain is almost 
 washed by the sea, it can be hardly said to exist. The 
 intermediate plateau of southern and central Karroo 
 is replaced by confined ranges of mountains and hills, 
 which are connected by long, swelling uplands, peculiar 
 to this part of the country. The chief characteristics of 
 this part of the country are warmth and moisture. It is 
 a mild and damp climate a good climate for crops and 
 not a very good one for those who suffer from pulmonary 
 complaints. 
 
 THE RAINFALL 
 
 The greatest rainfall in South Africa is experienced 
 on Table Mountain itself. Here the fall is from 58 to 78 
 inches per year. The average of the whole of the cape 
 
 -134 1- 
 
peninsula is 40 inches, most of it falling on the eastern 
 side of Table Mountain. It varies, however, very con- 
 siderably in places only a few miles distant. Thus, in 
 1888, the rainfall at Bishop's Court was 82^ inches, and 
 at the Town Hall, Cape Town, only five miles away, 
 only 2^/2, inches. 
 
 Immediately to the east of Cape Town and as far as 
 the Knysna, there is a decrease of from 15 to 28 inches. 
 The well wooded Knysna is itself the best wooded dis- 
 trict of South Africa, with an average rainfall of 40 
 inches. When we leave the forest region for the Port 
 Elizabeth region we find a rainfall of 21 inches. But a 
 further rise occurs in the forest clad slopes of the Kaft- 
 rarian coastlands, the rainfall at St. Johns for 1888 being 
 53 inches, while at Durban the average for fourteen years 
 has been about 30 inches. 
 
 The distribution of the rainfall is by no means a con- 
 stant factor; it varies considerably at different seasons. 
 Byfar the greater part on the coast of Cape Colony falls 
 during the winter months, between April and September. 
 This is very noticeably the case in the west, where the 
 summer breeze from the southeast blows in fresh and 
 dry from the Antarctic seas and are more inclined to take 
 in moisture from the land than to lose it by condensation. 
 The two hottest months are January and February, and 
 these are almost rainless. At Cape Town, on the south 
 coast, the average rainfall for these same two months, is 
 two inches. The coast lands east of Port Elizabeth 
 differ from Durban in this respect. St. Johns and other 
 
 -[35]- 
 
places in its vicinity receive most of their rain in the 
 summer, that is, at the time when the rainfall is ex- 
 pected in the Transvaal and the Orange River Colony. 
 Here the winters are dry and clear and the summers are 
 relieved by rains, which occasionally are rather violent 
 in their character, but for the most part gentle and re- 
 freshing. 
 
 The percentage of humidity in the coast district of 
 Cape Colony averages 75 per cent in the summer and 81 
 per cent in the winter months. It is clear from this that 
 the coast climate is not well adapted to cases of py thisis, 
 but it is yet exceedingly healthy, and many individuals, 
 suffering from bronchial affections or whose blood is 
 tainted by consumption, enjoy a degree of health in this 
 part of Africa that they could never have had at home in 
 England. Still, it is safer for those who are unsound 
 and whose constitution is unsuited to a warm, dry cli- 
 mate, to settle further inland and to make their African 
 home a few hundred feet above the sea level. 
 
 The humid district contains most of the important 
 towns, most probably because it has been longer settled. 
 These towns on the coast are Cape Town, Mossel Bay, 
 Knyena; Port Elizabeth, Port Alfred, East London and 
 Durban. The towns of greatest elevation in the interior 
 of this country are Malmesbury, with an elevation of 363 
 feet; Paarl, 405 feet; Stellenbosch, 364 feet; Swellendam, 
 500 feet; Caledon, 800 feet; Riversdale, 200 feet; George, 
 620 feet; Humansdorp, 360 feet and Uitenhage, 170 feet. 
 
 In the southern Karroo' and the warm Bokke veldt, 
 -[36]- 
 
north of the coast plateau, the ground rises more or less 
 abruptly to the second plateau, which may be regarded 
 as lying between the Ywaartbergen and the Coast Range. 
 To the west the rise is gradual through the fertile Gou- 
 dini Valley. Here are situated the towns of Worcester, 
 at an elevation of 780 feet; Montagu, 750 feet and Rob- 
 ertson, 600 feet. Further eastward the vegetation and 
 the climate partake more of the character of the Karroo, 
 the Oustvoorn Valley and the many Kloofs to the east 
 being generally known as the Southern Karroo. In this 
 district the chief towns are Leadsmith, with an elevation 
 of 1860 feet; Oudtshoorn, with an elevation of 1890 feet 
 and Uniondale, 2222 feet. In the eastern districts the 
 plateau is not so well marked . 
 
 In comparing the Southern Karroo climate with that 
 of the Castland, a very great alteration is noticeable. 
 The rainfall, except in the mountain slopes, is much 
 less and the range of temperature is somewhat greater. 
 The rich Goudini Valley changes to bare and uninterest- 
 ing veldt as one passes along to the north. This veldt 
 is seamed with deep gulleys, which are not visible even 
 at a short distance. These are the terrible places which 
 served as rifle pits in the war. Here large bodies of 
 men could hide all unseen, and, as the enemy came 
 within range, could pour a heavy fire upon their foes, 
 who had no idea of their whereabouts and frequently 
 could not even see where they lay concealed. This was a 
 tremendous obstacle to the invading force. So deep are 
 these gulleys that a large body of cavalry could ride in 
 
 -[37]- 
 
them right across the front of the enemy without detec- 
 tion and make their attack at whatever part of the ad- 
 vance they might choose to deliver it. 
 
 These gulleys are dry and deep in the dry season, but 
 in the wet season they are frequently roaring torrents, 
 down which the turbid water flows in a rushing mass, 
 laden with the mud of the veldt. Beyond the gulleys 
 and stretching against the skyline are the masses of 
 barren looking mountains, high and forbidding. No 
 greater change can be imagined than from that of the 
 fertile valley to the sterile veldt with its dry seamed sur- 
 face and the grim fringe of black and barren hills. The 
 steep sides of these hills appear to be altogether destitute 
 of vegetation. We have climbed from a country 
 abounding in moisture and full of all that a fertile soil 
 and a favorable climate can produce to a district where 
 rain seldom falls and whose exterior is forbidding in the 
 extreme. But these valleys are by no means as barren 
 as they appear to be. On the contrary, the soil is ex- 
 ceedingly rich it requires irrigation. Once get water 
 upon it and the appearance changes completely. It pro- 
 duces rich and luxuriant crops, and the preliminary work 
 of cultivation over, well repays any investment of time 
 or labor which may have been bestowed upon it. Not 
 far from Worcester is a pass which is renowned all over 
 the world for its beauty and the wonderful attractiveness 
 of its scenery. This is Mitchell's Pass, which leads 
 from Worcester to a small plateau known as the warm 
 Bokkeveldt, on which stands the village of Ceres, at an 
 
 -[38!- 
 
elevation of 1,493 feet. This is an exceedingly salu- 
 brious place and is a sort of sanatorium for the invalids 
 of the towns on the coast. There is always more or less 
 gaiety in this little place and there are few prettier or 
 more charming resorts anywhere in the world. 
 
 It thus appears that rainfall is sufficient everywhere 
 to insure good returns. In places where irrigation is 
 required, the water is easy to get and easy to store. It 
 does not require any expensive machinery and the indi- 
 vidual farmer will be able to accomplish it by his own 
 efforts, generally speaking, and thus avoid the depen- 
 dence upon a company and the consequent semi-slavery 
 which is usual in irrigated districts. 
 
 GREAT OR CENTRAL KARROO 
 
 The great plain of the Karroo lies beyond the Zwaartz- 
 bergen, whose peaks range from five thousand to seven 
 thousand feet in height. For three hundred and fifty 
 miles it runs from east to west at a level of from two to 
 three thousand feet above the level of the sea. Its 
 northern boundary consists of the Nieuwveldt and great 
 Sneewwberg ranges. The highest peak of these is 
 the Kompassberg, which reaches to an elevation of 
 7,800 feet. 
 
 The whole area of the Karroo is said to extend for 
 100,000 miles. It forms a great plateau. 
 
 It is covered with a vegetation known as the Karroo 
 bush. No more unlikely vegetable ever existed than 
 this. It is burnt up out of all semblance of life by the 
 
 -[39]- 
 
summer heat until it is dry and brittle. But its looks 
 belie it. It is a great deal better than its appearance 
 would lead one to believe. It furnishes good food for 
 millions of sheep and goats. It is the most unpromising 
 material, with the best effective results, that exists any 
 where, as far as my knowledge goes. 
 
 Nothing can be more dreary and forlorn looking than 
 the great Karroo. One cannot cast the eye over the 
 great expanse of desert without a feeling of despair. It 
 is so solitary, so barren, so unutterably dreary, that the 
 mind flies for relief to the stern, forbidding hills that 
 stand at its extremities. Yet people have a great love 
 for the Karroo. The natives there, both colored and 
 white, think that there is nothing in the world that can 
 compare with his beloved Karroo. It repays the farmer 
 who will bring water to the thirsty soil. It is a good 
 deal better than its appearance, as is so much of that 
 part of South Africa, for there is no alkali in the soil to 
 set at nought the effort of the tiller. The vegetation 
 disappears altogether in the hot season; the water in the 
 gullies dries up and the ironstone Kopjes reflect the 
 burning heat from their surfaces as from a mirror. The 
 farmer's dam for the storage of water will put him be- 
 yond the reach of all the harm that the summer can do. 
 His flocks will be able to get ample water, and his garden 
 and the fields surrounding his homestead will derive all 
 that may be necessary from the water stored by him. 
 The possibilities of this country are best observed after 
 the spring rains. Then the whole face of the Karroo is 
 
a carpet of wonderful verdure; the flowers spring every- 
 where. The little farms that looked so cheerless in the 
 summer now peep from their shelter of trees and shrubs, 
 and seem, what in reality they are, the homes of a happy 
 and industrious people. Africa is the land of contra- 
 dictions and there is in it no greater contradiction than 
 the apparent sterility of the Karroo and its real possi- 
 bilities of cultivation. 
 
 The prevailing summer winds are from the north and 
 northwest. These are generally laden with dust and 
 are exceedingly disagreeable. They are followed as a 
 rule by thunder storms, which pour great torrents of 
 rain upon the thirsty soil and supply a large portion of 
 the moisture. In the night time cool breezes blow from 
 the southeast and make a welcome relief to the discom- 
 fort of the day. The rainfall, such as it is, occurs be- 
 tween the months of December and May. In the west 
 the yearly average is about ten inches, increasing to 
 eighteen inches in the east. The winters are bright and 
 clear. The nights are cold, with the thermometer fre- 
 quently below freezing point, and the mountain tops 
 are frequently covered with snow. The snow, however, 
 never lies on the plains. 
 
 The mean daily range of temperature is great, show- 
 ing a variation of about twenty-seven degrees. The 
 coldest, month is July, which has a mean maximum of 
 thirty-six degrees. The hottest month is January with 
 a mean maximum of eighty-seven degrees. Physicians 
 recommend the climate of the Karroo in the winter as 
 being particularly suited to those suffering from pul- 
 
monary troubles, but as the winter season there coincides 
 with the summer season in Europe in point of time, it 
 is somewhat unusual for patients to visit the country at 
 that season. 
 
 In the summer the heat is not felt nearly so much as 
 one would anticipate. The dryness of the air seems to 
 prevent the heat from causing that exhaustion which is 
 generally associated with it. It must be admitted, how- 
 ever, that the sandstorms are a real drawback. 
 
 The principal towns in this district are: Beaufort 
 West, with an elevation of 2,850 feet; Prince Albert, 
 2, 1 20 feet, Lillowmore, 2,760 feet; Graaf Reinet, 2,500 
 feet; Somerset West, 2,400 feet and Aberdeen, 2,850 
 feet. 
 
 THE NORTHERN KARROO 
 
 The Northern Karroo stretches inland from the Great 
 Karroo. It has an elevation of from 2,800 to 6,000 feet 
 above the sea level. Of this country the famous Dr. 
 Baird says: 
 
 "There cannot be said to be any marked division of 
 the year into spring, summer, autumn and winter; 
 rather, it may be described as a long summer and a long 
 winter. The former begins rather suddenly about the 
 month of September, increases till January and then de- 
 creases till the end of April, while the latter may be said 
 to last from the end of April till the month of September." 
 
 The chief towns of this district are: Cradock, 2,856 
 feet (this is one of the principal health resorts in the 
 
 -[42]- 
 
colonies and is tamous foi its dry climate); Queenstowb 
 and Tarkastad are two other important places in the 
 same region. Dr. Symes Thompson, in speaking of this 
 district, says that the air is splendidly suited to con- 
 sumptives, and mentions the fact that a knife may be 
 left for a year on the veldt and not have any rust upon 
 it when taken in. Aliwal North is another famous 
 place for invalids. 
 
 Griqualand West is another district of Cape Colony, 
 lying in the Northern Karroo and possessing the same 
 climatic peculiarities, to which reference has already been 
 made. In the Eastern Uplands, the town of Grahams- 
 town is also recognized as a health resort, but the 
 climate is not so dry and does not possess those advan- 
 tages for the constitution ally weak as do the towns which 
 have been already mentioned. 
 
 Basuto Land is the centre from which flow all the 
 important rivers of South Africa. The Tugela, the St. 
 Lawrence, the Vaal and the St. John's are all replen- 
 ished from the streams which abound in the mountains 
 and valleys of this district. Some of the mountains 
 attain an altitude of 12,000 feet. The scenery is very 
 beautiful and the country has been called the Switzer- 
 land of South Africa. The climate of Natal is warmer 
 than that of the eastern provinces, particularly at the 
 coast line. A wind blows in the summer during the 
 day time and dies again at night, and in this respect the 
 climate of Durban very closely resembles that of San 
 Francisco. The ground rises very rapidly from the sea, 
 
 -[431- 
 
as may be shown by the fact that Maritsburg, which is 
 only ninety miles from the sea, is 2,200 feet above the 
 sea level. 
 
 The Orange River Colony, formerly known as the 
 Orange Free State, lies to the north of Natal and the 
 Eastern Provinces, at a height of from 4,000 to 5,000 feet 
 above the sea level. The area covered by this country is 
 about 50,000 square miles of plain, nearly entirely devoid 
 of timber, except for scrub brush, such as willow and 
 mimosas along the banks of the streams. The staple 
 industries of this district are horse and cattle raising 
 and sheep breeding. The chief town is Bloemfontein, 
 which is an exceedingly desirable place for those suffer- 
 ing from pulmonary troubles, as the air is mild and dry. 
 Bloemfontein has an elevation of 4,500 feet. For the 
 purpose of the visitor, Kronstad is the best town in the 
 Orange River Colony. It possesses a stream which 
 allows of boating and bathing, quite an unusual luxury 
 in South Africa. It is well wooded, which is also not 
 the rule, and is, hence, most sought after. It is situated 
 on a small tributary of the Vaal River. 
 
 The Transvaal lies to the north. of the Orange River 
 Colony and is separated from it by the Vaal River, which 
 forms the boundary line and gives to this Colony its 
 name. From the Vaal River the ground rises to the 
 famous Witwatersrand Range, forming a watershed be- 
 tween the Vaal and the Limpopo Rivers. The height 
 oi this range is about 7,000 feet above the sea level. To 
 the south of the range the climate is healthy, although 
 
 -U4l- 
 
there is a scarcity of good water in parts. Johannesburg 
 is on the southern slope of the range- This is a new 
 town calrcu into being by the industry of mining, which 
 originated in the Rand, upon the discovery of the pre- 
 cious metals and their working by the tremendously 
 powerful companies organized for that purpose. It is a 
 town that owes its inception to the marvelous energy of 
 the British and American settlers and adventurers. The 
 Americans, who have furnished South Africa with a 
 very large proportion of the best skilled mining engineers, 
 have had considerable influence in this part of the 
 country and took part in political movements, with the 
 result that some of them were threatened with death and 
 actually suffered imprisonment for complicity with the 
 Jameson raid, which was an attempt on the part of the 
 foreign residents of the Transvaal to get possession of 
 the government. 
 
 Dust storms are very frequent, even in the winter, 
 and this dust settles upon weak lungs, thereby causing 
 inflammation and frequently death. It is an exceed- 
 ingly good place for people with lung trouble to keep 
 away from. The heat is not so very great, but the rain- 
 fall, which is often heavy, renders the muddy roads 
 almost impassable, and, altogether, the place cannot be 
 described as affording much comfort. The inhabitants 
 are well enough aware of this, but they are not there for 
 comfort or because they like it. The pursuit of rapidly 
 acquired wealth is the great incentive which brought 
 them there and still keeps them. And the wealth has 
 
 -Us]- 
 
been acquired in Johannesburg in such quantities in d 
 few years as to make the stories of fabbled riches seem 
 ridiculous by comparison. Johannesburg is a town only 
 suited to those who wish to plunge into the troubled sea 
 of speculation who desire to accomplish a speedy fortune. 
 In this sort of thing success is a matter of luck, and the 
 streets of Johannesburg are frequently traveled by the 
 feet of the repentant, who have found that, even here, 
 great wealth is not a matter of certainty, and that if they 
 had remained in quieter and less exciting pursuits, they 
 might have been better off and would certainly have 
 enjoyed a happier and more contented existence. 
 
 The best town in the Transvaal for health is Heidle- 
 burg. This is very agreeably situated on the southern 
 slopes of the Rand, to the southeast of Johannesburg, at 
 an elevation of about 5,000 feet above the sea level. It 
 is considered the best sanatorium in this part of the 
 country and is much frequented by invalids from Pre- 
 toria and Johannesburg. 
 
 Pretoria is not at all a healthy town. It has been 
 placed in a hollow and in the winter is a veritable 
 swamp. There is one good feature about the ^lace, 
 however; it has an excellent water supply, a condition, 
 which in the present undeveloped state of the cities of 
 South Africa, is by no means universal. There is a very 
 high degree of heat in the summer and this, coupled with 
 the rainfall, which is at times very heavy, produces a 
 mist not altogether pleasant and quite unhealthy for 
 people with weak lungs. Pretoria has, however, a 
 
 -[46]- 
 
really delightful winter climate. The air is fresh and 
 stimulating in the extreme and every requisite for com- 
 plete enjoyment is to be found. The whole of the north- 
 ern Transvaal district is healthy during the winter, but 
 it is somewhat liable to malaria in the summer, for the 
 rainy season is at the same time hot, and this renders the 
 climate at times very trying to Europeans, but an Aus- 
 tralian or an inhabitant of the United States would not 
 feel it particularly. It is not good to live on low ground 
 in the Transvaal. 
 
 Barberton, which formerly has a bad reputation for 
 fever, is now a healthy place, but the region all about it 
 is apt to be malarious, according to European ideas. 
 
 In the former pages we have been considering the 
 country from the point of view of one with whom health 
 is the first and most important consideration; who, if not 
 an invalid, is yet obliged to consult his physical condi- 
 tion and who is able to carry on ordinary occupations in 
 his own country. To such an one it has been my object 
 to point out the characteristics of the various districts 
 that he may have some idea as to which is most likely to 
 be kind to his particular malady. He will see that there 
 are great expanses of territory in South Africa which 
 contain within themselves the possibility of his enjoying 
 moderate health and engaging in the ordinary business 
 of life. 
 
 This must come as a revelation to those who have 
 been withheld by their sickness from that work which, 
 after all, is the main enjoyment of living. In South 
 
 -147J- 
 
Africa, owing to the pure, clear air of the plateau, the 
 lungs, weary and overwrought with the mists and smoke 
 of our cities, can find that relief which enables them to 
 perform their work effectively, and the whole body 
 strengthened and reawakened by the oxygenation of 
 the blood responds to the joy of living and life takes on 
 a new meaning and a new force. 
 
 These results of the South African climate I can bear 
 personal testimony to. I have seen the poor broken 
 down product of the London slum waken to manhood at 
 the touch of the marvelous air of the veldt. If you want 
 to see the finest physiques in the world, the best devel- 
 oped frames and the most majestic gait and carriage, 
 you must go to the colored races of South Africa. To 
 see a young African marching along, head erect and his 
 wonderful chest expanded, his muscles standing -out 
 upon his limbs, and his firm stride and lofty, self-re- 
 specting carriage, is one of the most striking of sights. 
 
 To those who have been accustomed to see the colored 
 man in a position of inferiority, the sight of the colored 
 man on his own soil with the sky above him and his own 
 land beneath his feet is one of the most surprising of 
 sights. It is easy to talk glibly of improvment of the 
 colored people but until you have seen them at home in 
 their own native land you cannot understand how fine 
 they are. 
 
 The sight of the colored population would convince 
 any one of the natural healthiness of the place. 
 
 -[48J- 
 
A man therefore who wishes to settle in any of the 
 districts which I have named may safely do so and con- 
 fidently expect to reap the rewards of prudence and in- 
 dustry, rewards which in my estimation are greater than 
 can be obtained anywhere else in the world with an 
 equal outlay. 
 
 Portuguese South Africa is decidedly unhealthy for 
 foreigners. Delagoa Bay is the most healthy part and 
 that is unsuited to the average man. Further north the 
 country is swampy and malarious and is a very bad 
 country to the immigrant. But even here some allow- 
 ances have to be made for the climate is not universally 
 dangerous. It is said on good authority that though 
 the climate is by no means such as to constitute this 
 part of the country a health resort, it is still not so bad 
 but that miners and others need to be deterred from 
 settling there for climatic reasons . 
 
 Bechuanaland goes in continuation of the Great Karro 
 north from the Orange River. The elevation of the 
 plain is from four to six thousand feet and their rainfall 
 is about equal to that of the Northern Karro namely 
 about ten inches . 
 
 Cereals grows very well in this district. The only' 
 drawback is a malaria which sometimes makes itself felt 
 when first the soil is broken, a condition which is not 
 at all uncommon in subtropical countries when the soil 
 is broken for the first time. 
 
 There is a scarcity of water in the dry season but a 
 careful use of dams and other means of saving for irriga- 
 
 -[49]- 
 
tion would remedy that defect. 
 
 On the whole Bechuanaland though a new district is 
 not by any means a discouring one for the immigrant 
 and there will undoutedly be a future in store for this 
 section of the country. 
 
 German South Africa is a further continuation of the 
 Bechuanaland plateau what is generally known as 
 the Khalahari Desert lies between them. There is a 
 smaller rainfall here even than in Bechuanaland. 
 Though the mountains are nearly seven thousand feet 
 in height, yet so slight is the humidity of this district 
 that there are no running rivers, and stranger still the 
 river beds are scarcely more than shallow depressions, 
 although it is said that it is possible to get water from 
 them at a short depth below the surface. Between the 
 mountains and the coast there is a strip of land from 
 fifty to a hundred miles in width which consists of a 
 belt of sand, unhealthy and nearly destitute of water. 
 It thus appears that the German possessions are not 
 such as to invite immigration, and this is the case 
 exactly. It affords a very good explanation of the 
 backwardness of the German colonization. In 1897 I 
 .crossed from Portuguese West Territory through the 
 German Territory and over the Kalahari Desert into 
 Cape Colony. I found the desert fairly well timbered, 
 and although I carried water on pack donkeys all the 
 way, I am of the opinion that water can be got in the 
 desert in many places at a very slight depth from the 
 surface. 
 
 -1501- 
 
Territory of the British South African Company covers 
 an area equal to that of the half of all Europe. It s 
 climatic variations must therefore necessarily be great. 
 The railway was completed in 1898 and thus has done 
 away with a long and very toilsome journey. The 
 climate on the whole is very satisfactory. In the high- 
 lands the weather is cool and invigorating with frosty 
 nights. It is sometimes hot in summer but as the hot 
 days are generally succeeded by cool nights it really 
 does not render the climate unhealthy. There is not the 
 slightest reason why foreigners should not settle down 
 in this country and enjoy the best of health. There is 
 not the terrible dryness of the Karroo or of Bechuana- 
 land for rainy days occur every month and as in the 
 Transvaal the rainy season is at its height in the 
 summer. The climate can only be endured in the low- 
 lands and valleys during the dry season as the rains and 
 floods render existence on low lying ground exceed- 
 ingly disgreeable. Draining, however, and the plant- 
 ing of the Australian blue-gum will have a good effect 
 upon the climate in the course of tinie and the land will 
 become more suitable in every respect for cultivation. 
 The uplands may be described as thoroughly healthy 
 now, and such disease as may occur is nearly always due 
 to a careless mode of living or to a dissipated condition 
 of life. The district where the swamps and standing 
 water are to be found are naturally the most unhealthy, 
 but it can easily be seen that the course of time and the 
 settlement of the country will obviate this drawback. 
 
 -[51]- 
 
North of the Zambesi the high plateaux are good 
 places for settlement. The climate is bracing and the 
 whole conditions are suitable. In the lowlands how- 
 ever and in the valleys the tendency to malaria renders 
 the district unsuitable for invalids. Good strong sound 
 men however can live and thrive in any of these 
 districts 
 
 A certain amount of attention to one's health is neces- 
 sary but such is the case everywhere. Undue exposure 
 should be avoided and habits of temperate eating and 
 drinking cultivated. Plenty of good nourishing food 
 should be taken, then the immigrant may easily bid 
 defiance to most of the climatic obstacles in this part of 
 the country. Owing to the altitude, in spite of its near- 
 ness to the equator, I have seen thin ice in the months 
 of August and September here, when further south in 
 lower altitudes ice never appears. It may thus be seen 
 how the attitude modifies climate, more so than in the 
 same latitude in Australia or Central America. 
 
 Nyassaland includes that portion of the territory of 
 the British South African Company which lies North 
 of the Zambesi. These plateaux have a very fine 
 climate, and the distance and the height above the sea 
 level are no drawback. A clever parallel has been 
 drawn between this part of the country and the north- 
 ern part of South America and with the city of Bogota 
 in particular, which is a large and flourishing city, 
 although situated at an elevation of more than nine 
 thousand feet and distant from the sea a hard journey 
 of more than three weeks duration. 
 
 -[52]- 
 
The rainfall reaches an average of seventy-five 
 inches, January being the month which has the greatest 
 fall. 
 
 AGRICULTURAL CLASSIFICATION. 
 
 The coast belt of Cape Colony is somewhat sandy and 
 gravelly and is not therefore so prolific of crops as is the 
 Karro district which is probably as fertile as any land in 
 the world. The vast plains of the country are practically 
 untouched and there are tremendous expanses of soil 
 which offer to the cultivator at least as good returns as 
 could possibly be derived from the famous prairie states 
 of this country, if irrigated. 
 
 A well-defined wet and dry season is generally admitt- 
 ed to be the most suitable for the raising of cereals. The 
 best wheat-growing district of South Africa is generally 
 conceded to be on the Western slopes of the Maluti 
 Mountains in that part of the Orange River Colony 
 known as "The Conquered Territory ". It lies at an 
 elevation of from four to five thousand feet. The 
 average return is estimated at thirty fold but in the 
 estimation of the writer there are many parts where a 
 much better crop may be anticipated for an equal 
 amount of labor. Cereals grow well in the upper parts 
 of Natal but in the lower mid-lands the temperature is 
 too high for these crops, and maize, sugar, vegetables 
 and fruit and tea take their place. This generally 
 applies to all the coast belt to the north of Natal and to 
 
 -[53]- 
 
the parts of the interior lying to the north of the Vaal 
 River and at a lower level than from 2000 to 3000 feet 
 above the sea. 
 
 The cereals flourish, at all events, north of the 
 Zambesi River all through the districts of this elevation, 
 and they are of excellent quality, in fact African wheat 
 grown in these localities brings just as good a price as 
 any other in the London market. 
 
 Maize or mealies as they call it in South Africa is 
 usually cultivated by the side of wheat or oats. Mealies 
 forms the staple article of food in the Cape and the 
 Dutch population relies on it almost exclusively : All 
 fruits and vegetables, thrive and those more delicate 
 fruits which have to receive the protection of artifical 
 heat and glass covering in Northern countries thrive 
 easily in the open air at the proper altitude. Peaches 
 and other fruits similar in nature ripen readily and 
 lapidly and preserve an excellent flavor. 
 
 When we come to examine the country regarding its 
 capabilities for stock raising we find that the whole of 
 it may be used for that purpose. There is no desert 
 land from Zambesi to Cape Agulhas if we except the 
 shifting sand-dunes of the German South African pos- 
 sessions. It is true that the low valleys of the Trans- 
 vaal and Mashonaland and Portuguese territory are 
 malarial. 
 
 There is a great variation as to the number of 
 animals which can be fed in a given space. The rich- 
 est pasturage is probably in Matabeleland, Natal, Basuto- 
 
 -[541- 
 
land and a portion of the Orange River Colony, West- 
 ern Cape Colony, the eastern part of Cape Colony, the 
 Transvaal, Bechuanaland, even German Namaqualand 
 and the Kalahari desert are capable of supporting a 
 vast number of animals and by means of even an ele- 
 mentary system of irrigation might easily sustain 
 thousands more herds than they appear to be at present 
 capable of doing. Central Africa affords excellent 
 stock-raising facilities. 
 
 It thus appears that there is every reason to expect 
 that in the course of a short space of time Africa will 
 become a famous agricultural district. The possibi; 
 lities are all there, possibilities that are really undreamed 
 of except by those who know the country and have 
 travelled over it in such a way as to be able to under- 
 stand its tremendous resources. The hidden lands, 
 hidden that is from the eye of the casual traveller, 
 which do not go down upon the map, and which are 
 tucked away in little valleys, and sweet dells are in- 
 numerable. 
 
 Often and often does the voyager as he treks along 
 in his great wagon drawn by the slow moving oxen 
 with sun in his eyes and the pure African breeze blow- 
 ing around him make up his mind that here he will out- 
 span, take up his little piece of land and remain. The 
 tyranny of the trail is insistent, however, and the 
 wagon moves along to find another such place, but a 
 short distance from the last. This in turn has its temp- 
 tation and in turn is left behind. But these little 
 
 -[55]- 
 
paradises are not so easily disposed of, and the visions 
 of them frequently return to tempt the traveller when 
 he has left them far behind and even when he has de- 
 parted to another country. The absolute joy and peace 
 of these places can never be forgotten. 
 
 Some of the African farms and homesteads are really 
 charming. Where the grass grows green and the dam 
 is kept with its steady supply of water, where the corn 
 grows high and the cattle are sleek, few places any 
 where can show that charm and appearance of tranquil 
 prosperity which is displayed by the African farm. 
 
 It is the firm conviction of the writer of this that 
 South Africa to-day offers better inducements for the 
 young agriculturist than any other place in the world. 
 It is a country with a great future before it. It will be 
 a strong and influential part of a tremendous empire 
 before long and will richly reward all those who, pains 
 takingly, assist in hammering out its destiny. 
 
 Experience is required as everywhere else and the 
 man who plunges in, ignorant of the country and unin- 
 formed as to the best way to further his own interests, 
 agriculturally, is more than likely to pay the penalty of 
 his rashness. All information that is possible is supplied 
 by the Government, and the immigrant may be sure of 
 not being discriminated against. There is an absolute 
 fairness shown by the Imperial Government which all 
 who have seen it must bear witness to. There is a very 
 evident determination on the part of the officials to do 
 their duty and that independent of any conditions of 
 
 -[56]- 
 

 race or color. What this means to men of my race may 
 easily be imagined. 
 
 GEOLOGICAL FORMATION. 
 
 A few words on the geological formation of Africa 
 may be of service to some of my readers at all events. 
 It is remarkably uniform. The plains of the interior 
 consist of sedimentary deposits lying on a foundation of 
 granite or metamorphic rock. There are intrusive 
 dykes known as ironstone in many places. These 
 spreading over and protecting the surface from the 
 weather are frequently the cause of the numerous flat- 
 topped hills which are met with so frequently. In the 
 Zoutpansberg, in Mashonaland, and in Matabeleland 
 where the sendimentary deposits never existed or have 
 been washed away, the dykes seem to have been con- 
 verted by pressure into schistose belts through which 
 have filtered the mineralizing solutions forming the 
 quartz lodes, which are now being worked for their gold. 
 
 In the valley of the Paarl in Cape Colony a portion 
 of the granite bed is exposed and in others the culti- 
 vatable land along the coast is largely composed of the 
 detritus which is washed down from the interior. 
 
 One drawback to certain portions of South Africa is 
 hailstorms. These sometimes pass over large portions 
 of country and do a great deal of damage. Very little 
 care has been taken to discover any method of meeting 
 
 -[57]- 
 
these. They have been taken as entirely unavoidable. 
 In the valley of the Loire, in France, it has been found 
 that large masses of trees serve as a protection from hail 
 to the country lying between them. This, it has been 
 suggested, should be taken advantage of when the time 
 comes for a scientific foresting of portions of South 
 Africa upon a large scale. 
 
 Such is a fairly accurate account of natural phenomena 
 as far as can be told in a work of the size of the present, 
 and, short as it is, should serve to give the reader a 
 general notion of the most conspicuous features of the 
 country. 
 
 SHORT HISTORICAL ACCOUNT 
 
 A little more than four hundred years ago South Africa 
 was discovered by the Portuguese whose navigators were 
 then, as were the adventurers of other countries, on the 
 lookout for an ocean route to India. This effort to find 
 a new route to the Orient resulted in the discovery of 
 the American continent on the one hand and the Cape 
 of Good Hope on the other. The Cape of Good Hope 
 was at first called the Cape of Storms. Vasco di Gama, 
 the discoverer of the cape, after he had named it, passed 
 along up the Coast and came upon the lovely country of 
 Natal on Christmas day, whence he called it. He sailed 
 right up the coast and reached Delagoa Bay. This is 
 the only part of the Portuguese possessions which now 
 remains in the hands of the original discoverers. From 
 
 -[581- 
 
there the discoverer passed over to the shores of India 
 and thus found the new route which he had set out to 
 seek, so that, originally, Portugal was the owner of 
 South Africa. 
 
 Holland took these possessions from Portugal in the 
 course of the next century and established herself as the 
 dominant power of South Africa. The following century 
 saw the downfall of Holland as a power and the rise of 
 the new force of England. The whole of Western 
 Europe was a scene of turmoil and strife, and there 
 emerged from the confusion the gigantic figure of Na- 
 poleon, with England grappling with him and endeavor- 
 ing to overthrow him. This, thanks to the new machine 
 industry which enabled Great Britain to produce wealth 
 faster than Napoleon could destroy it, she eventally 
 succeeded in doing, and the great emperor fell, -leaving 
 Great Britain, in spite of the loss of the American 
 colonies, practically master of the world. These con- 
 flicts were not without influence upon South Africa. 
 Here the Hollander colonist, unprogressive and caring 
 only for the tending of his flocks and the ministering to 
 his comfort of a subject native race, lived a life un- 
 touched by the fight going on in the world outside, a 
 condition, however, from which he was destined to be 
 soon rudely Awakened. In 1795, Great Britain took the 
 Cape of Good Hope from Holland in this case, merely 
 as a precautionary measure, in order to save it from the 
 French, for in 1802 she returned it to Holland. In 1814 
 a final transfer of the country was made by Holland to 
 
England, by which England agreed to pay thirty million 
 dollars for all the Dutch possessions in South Africa. 
 The bargain was made and England paid over the cash 
 to Holland and received in return these African posses- 
 sions, which have ever since remained as British 
 colonies. A migration of British took place to South 
 Africa upon the annexation of the country. This in- 
 vasion of Dutch soil was made by a people altogether 
 the reverse of the Dutch in character. They were as 
 energetic and progressive as the Dutch were retrogres- 
 sive. They had no particular love for the herdsman's 
 form of living and took more naturally to commercial 
 pursuits and the tilling and farming of the land. They 
 formed steady and fixed communities and did not adopt 
 the nomadic life of the Dutch. Thus there grew up in 
 South Africa two entirely different races with altoghter 
 different notions of life. The one progressive, and per- 
 haps somewhat arrogant in the consciousness of its pro- 
 gressiveness, the other slow, and resentful of the enter, 
 prise of the other, full of suspicion, and apt to brood 
 over fancied wrongs. These race differences combined 
 with governmental mistakes to bring about one of the 
 fiercest wars of modern times nearly a century after the 
 occupation of the country by the English. 
 
 It was in this entire difference of national character 
 that those seeds of misunderstanding and hatred were 
 sown which produced a crop of bloody strife, and which 
 have caused so much ruin and desolation. They lived 
 side by side, but they could not make one people. Th<* 
 
English came in, founded their settlements, and began 
 to improve things, but the Cape Hollander could not 
 tolerate improvement, and as the settlements grew in 
 size and in importance, trekked off, further and further, 
 into the wilderness driving his flocks and herds before 
 him and remaining true to his old nomadic and pas- 
 toral life. 
 
 In the course of time, the Dutch farmers trekked over 
 into what is now known as Natal and before doing so 
 issued a manifesto in which they declared that they had 
 severed their connection with the British government. 
 They founded a republic and began to make war upon 
 the natives. The constant disturbance of the native 
 races might have easily led to a race war which would 
 have endangered the safety and stability of South 
 Africa. Accordingly the British government took a 
 hand in the business and after defeating the Boers took 
 possession of the country and made Natal a British 
 Colony, a colony the loyalty of which has recently been 
 shown in war, as it was invaded and a large part of 
 it overrun by the enemy. 
 
 The Boers or Dutch farmers having been driven out 
 of Natal, for they would not remain under a settled and 
 modern form of government, went to the country in the 
 Orange River district, and there began the same course 
 of conduct with the natives as had distinguished them 
 in Natal. They were driven out of this district again, 
 in consequence, and crossed the Vaal River into what is 
 known as the Transvaal where they set up a govern- 
 
 [-61]- 
 
ment and being remote from the British colonies re- 
 mained to follow their own devices. 
 
 The occupation of these territories by the British was 
 an expensive matter which involved much trouble to the 
 mother country, and was only carried out because the 
 practices of the Boers with regard to the natives kept 
 affairs in a continual state of agitation which was 
 menacing to the safety of the community. In 1852 
 what was called the Sand River Convention was held. 
 According to the terms of this convention the Boers 
 agreed to give up the practice of slavery and to behave 
 in such a manner to the native population as not to out- 
 rage the fundamental conceptions of right and justice. 
 
 In 1854 the Boers of the Orange River territory agreed 
 to the same terms and the Transvaal and Orange Free State 
 were created as two independent Dutch Republics, that 
 is independent, as far as the internal administration was 
 concerned. But things were in an unsatisfactory condi- 
 tion in spite of this arrangement . The Boers would not 
 live up to their agreement respecting the natives and 
 kept invading native territory, burning native villages, 
 and carrying off the native children into servitude until 
 at last the native races would no longer endure the 
 tyranny and rose in anger. 
 
 Secocoeni, the great leader of the Bechuanas took the 
 field and waged successful war, then other tribes joined 
 in and notably Cetewayo, the Zulu chief, so that the 
 colony was threatened with destruction, and the English 
 Imperial government took the field. 
 
 -[62 |- 
 
So strong was the native hatred against the Boers and 
 so completely was the country threatened with ruin that 
 Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the English envoy, and Mr. 
 Burgess, the president of the Boer Republic, agreed that 
 the only thing which could benefit the country was its 
 occupation by the British, and 2,500 burghers petitioned 
 for annexation to England. So the Transvaal was an- 
 nexed and the war with the natives which followed 
 ended in the pacification of the country. 
 
 The rest of the story is known to all my readers. It 
 is too recent and has been written in letters too plain to 
 read not to be the property of all of you. It is written 
 in blood and fire. The sword has carved it out and the 
 deadly fire of cannon and rifle has burned it into the im- 
 perishable granite of history. The dread, the suffering 
 and the anguish of the past two years are known only 
 to those who have seen them, to those who have borne 
 an active part in the fray. The end of it is near, how- 
 ever. The time must necessarily be but short until the 
 last shots shall have been fired and South Africa shall 
 have entered upon her course of reconstruction and 
 recreation. 
 
 There will arise a South Africa by the side of which 
 the old shall seem but a bad dream. The time will 
 come, and soon, when every man shall feel himself free, 
 as every other man, and the whips and slavery practiced 
 upon the colored people shall at least cease to plague 
 and annoy them. 
 
 -[63]- 
 
It will be found in South Africa, as elsewhere, that 
 the Imperial government is the friend of the colored 
 man that he will be able to enjoy under the aegis of the 
 British Empire rights which he cannot obtain in other parts 
 of South Africa. If he gets the right of suffrage, and in the 
 course of time he will get it, he will find that he will be able 
 to exercise it free from the insults of his fellow citizens and 
 that no one dare, on the pretense of discriminating 
 against his color, deprive him of those rights which have 
 been conferred upon him by special legal enactment. 
 
 The establishment of the British Empire throughout 
 the whole of South Africa means that the color mark 
 will be no impediment to the rise of the colored races, or 
 such of them as show sufficient capacity, to the very 
 highest offices in the church and the state. Education 
 will come as the government becomes settled, and the 
 colored people will, as far as in them lies, be free to all 
 that can be obtained for them in the direction of modern 
 culture and education, and, as a result, we shall see, for 
 the first time in the history of the world, a people fresh 
 from the soil sprung, as it were, immediately from prim 
 eval conditions into the very highest and the best that 
 modern life can bestow. 
 
 There is very little doubt on the part of those who are 
 aware of the capabilities of the colored people and their 
 wonderful adaptability that the African races will seize 
 the opportunity presented to them and will gradually 
 come to be a more and more important figure in the 
 N history of nations. Such is no doubt the hope and the 
 
 -[64]- 
 
desire cf the builders of the British Empire who have 
 always shown a most praiseworthy endeavor to do the 
 best that has lain in their power for the native people. 
 
 It is impossible to deny that mistakes, and grievous 
 ones have been made, but the fundamental intention has 
 been of the highest and no one is better aware of that 
 than the native races of South Africa. Their attitude 
 in the war has shown that completely. It has required 
 much prudence on the part of the British authorities to 
 prevent the native races coming actually to their assis- 
 tance. 
 
 The tribes have shown no hesitation about declaring 
 their preferences. This in itself speaks volumes for the 
 efforts of the Imperial government and is a conclusive 
 proof that the natives recognize as fully as anyone else 
 where their best interests have lain. 
 
 To colored people in my humble opinion South Africa 
 offers' the best opportunity in every way that has ever 
 yet been given. As one of the race who sympathise 
 heart and soul with all its best aspirations I have not 
 the slightest hesitation in stating that I consider that 
 country in every way the best field, not only as regards 
 its agricultural and commercial prospects, but as far as 
 concerns the highest interest of the individual. 
 
 Of course in recommending the country I do so on the 
 assumption that those who accept the recommendation 
 to go there will go to work. Rewards in South Africa 
 do not come to the lazy and the shiftless any more than 
 they do to such people anywhere else, but South Africa 
 
does unmistakeabiy hold out her hands with the promise 
 of plenty to those who go in the proper spirit, intending 
 to work resolutely and to hold up the best that is in 
 them and in their race. Of that I do not think that 
 there can be the slightest doubt, and I feel sure that the 
 weight of authority in South Africa would support them 
 in this matter. The country is new, its resources as the 
 reader may easily judge from what has already been 
 said are practically inexhaustible. The promise is in- 
 finitely beyond what I have been able to tell you in 
 these short pages, and the future is rosy with promise. 
 South Africa has not yet begun to live. When peace 
 has returned, when the Imperial government is one and 
 aU supieme we shall see such an awakening as has never 
 yet manifested itself in that country and the epoch of the 
 development of its resources will have really begun. 
 
 INTERESTING PARTICULARS ABOUT TREKKING NORTH 
 
 Interview with Mr. Geyser 
 
 A representative of the Bulayo Chronicle\L&& an interview 
 with Mr. L. Geyser, one of the signatories to the letter 
 sent to the Deputy Administrator, a copy of which 
 appeared in last Friday's issue, giving details of the ex- 
 pedition undertaken by several farmers in March last to 
 Sincolumi's I y and, some 150 miles north of the Zambesi 
 
 -[661- 
 
L F 
 
 in a line almost direct north of Bulawayo. The object 
 of this letter, it may be remembered, was to ascertain 
 whether the British South Africa Company would be 
 able to extend their protection to the proposed settlers. 
 Mr. Geyser, who is practically the leader of the expedi- 
 tion, imparted some interesting details of the journey, 
 the nature of the country the party intend to settle in, 
 etc. Mr. Geyser and the other farmers to whom the 
 paramount chief N'Shetta (Monza) has granted farms 
 free of charge, are setting out on their journey to their 
 new homes on or about the i5th August, and they in- 
 tend taking their families up with them. The party 
 will probably be joined by new members who are desir- 
 ious of accepting the chief's offer, and are willing to 
 comply with his requirements as to settling down and 
 cultivating the land themselves. N'Shetta, who appears 
 to appreciate the value of having the resources of his 
 country developed by white men, informed Mr. Geyser 
 that he would welcome any white men who came up 
 with a view to settling in the country and cultivating it, 
 and gave the latter carte blanche in the matter of bring- 
 ing up suitable white men, to whom farms would be 
 granted. As regards the duration of the trip up, Mr. 
 Geyser said that it would take them at least two months 
 to get up with their trek wagons, as the road for the 
 greater part of the journey is very bad indeed. The 
 route to be taken is almost due north from Bulawayo, 
 crossing the Shangani River and then on across the 
 Zambesi to a distance of some 150 miles. It is satis- 
 
 -[67]- 
 
factory to note that Mr. Geyser's experience of this 
 route is that no difficulty in obtaining water is to be en- 
 countered; and with regard to the nature of the country 
 where it is proposed to settle and its inhabitants, he 
 says that the former consists for the most part of high 
 veld, which is eminently, in his opinion, adapted to the 
 raising of cattle and sheep, but more especially for the 
 Cape bastard sheep and goats. As a grain-growing 
 country it appears also to be admirably suited. The 
 natives are most friendly towards white men. N'Shetta 
 stated that the occasion of the visit of Mr. Geyser's 
 party was the third time only that white men had come 
 into his country within the memory of any of the in- 
 habitants; the first party came up many years ago in 
 his father's time, and the second some time last year. The 
 inhabitants appear to be wealthy in cattle and prosper- 
 ous generally, and this bears out Mr. Geyser's 
 opinion as to the capabilities of the country. Our 
 informant anticipates no difficulty in the new settlers 
 being able to stock their farms with cattle, etc. 
 obtained by barter with the natives. Sincclumi's 
 country appears to be a sportsman's paradise. The 
 party came across wildebeest, zebras, hartebeest, eland, 
 sable, bastard gemsbok, and a quantity of smaller game. 
 In addition they saw the spoor of buffalo and giraffe, 
 and on frequent occasions they heard lions and met with 
 their spoor, but these carnivora caused no trouble what- 
 ever, due probably to the abundance of game. Whether 
 the British South Africa Company promise protection or 
 
 -[631- 
 
not to the settlers in their new home, the latter intend 
 to go up, as they are of the opini( n that there will be 
 little risk. The whole party received very kind treat- 
 ment at the hands of the natives when they arrived in 
 the country suffering severely from Zambesi fever con- 
 tracted through their having gone up in the early part 
 of the year. Mr. Geyser and another member of the 
 party had to be left behind when the remainder started 
 on their return journey, and they were treated with the 
 greatest consideration. 
 
 SLAVERY IN SOUTH AFRICA 
 
 From the beginning of their occupation of the country 
 the Dutch settlers had practiced slavery, and that of the 
 very worst description. As early as the year 1658 this prac- 
 tice was legalized by their legislative body; henceforth, 
 it was perfectly lawful for the Dutch to hold slaves and 
 they were protected to the utmost in their property 
 rights. Henceforward the relations of the Dutch with 
 the natives were full of the most horrible cruelty. Raids 
 were made continually on the inoffensive tribes, their 
 villages were burned, their flocks destroyed, and they 
 themselves driven out as prisoners and slaves. They 
 were denied the most elementary rights. The treatment 
 of the slaves by them was brutal in the extreme. They 
 exported them for sale in foreign countries as well as 
 used them for their own farms and the care of their 
 stock. This practice went on unchecked for a period of 
 two hundred and fifty years, and every attempt to miti- 
 
 -F6 9 1- 
 
gate the barbarities of the trade was met by them with 
 resentment, as if it were an invasion of their rights. 
 
 In 1833 the British Parliament passed an act by which 
 it was provided that from and after the first of January, 
 1834, the holding of slaves should cease absolutely and 
 entirely throughout the British dominions. On that day 
 therefore, some 40,000 South African slaves were set 
 free. The greater number of these, by far, were held by 
 the Dutch. $5,000,000 was voted from the Imperial 
 Treasury as compensation to those farmers whose slaves 
 were emancipated under the act. This emancipation of 
 the slaves caused much ill feeling among the Dutch, who 
 resented it exceedingly, and several mistakes were made 
 in the matter of the distribution of the compensation 
 money, so that great irritation arose among them, and 
 this led in its turn to the first trek into Natal and the 
 establishment of a republic there, the fate of which I have 
 already described. Here, however, the Dutch still pur- 
 sued their ill treatment of the native races. 
 
 LIBERIA, THE COLORED REPUBLIC 
 
 The Hon. William H. Beard, minister resident and 
 consul general of the United States to Liberia, has 
 written an exceedingly interesting account of that 
 country. From the introduction to his work the follow- 
 ing is taken: 
 
 * 'LIBERIA (liberty) is situated in West Africa be- 
 tween 4 20' and 7 Q 2o' north latitude. It was founded 
 
 -[701- 
 
In 1822 as an asylum for the liberated and free blacks of 
 North America, by the American Colonization Society 
 in the United States an organized expression of the v 
 Christian philanthropy of that county, 
 
 "The first pieces of land bought from the natives were 
 a small island, known as Providence Island, lying in the 
 Messurado river, near its month, and the Cape Messu- 
 rado, on which Monrovia, the capital city, now stands, 
 
 "Every succeeding year the society sent out, in chart- 
 ered vessels, people of color, as they were liberated by 
 their masters in America and who desired to return to 
 their ancestral home. The increase of population made 
 it necessary for the acquisition of more territory, hence 
 the boundary of the colony was, from time to time, ex- 
 tended to 600 miles of sea coast and 250 miles interior- 
 wards. Since, however, the French took the Cavalla 
 country, the sea coast is reduced to 509 miles. 
 
 "This home was not founded simply as a refuge from 
 the bitter oppression of America, to which the colored 
 man was subject, but that an opportunity might be given 
 them on the soil of their fathers, to exercise their God- 
 given powers in developing real manhood in every 
 sense of the word; and also that they might teach their 
 brethren in Africa the way back to God. 
 
 "The government of the colony was for the most part 
 in the hands of white men sent out from America by the 
 society, with the title of governors until it was declared 
 a republic. Then, and until now, colored men have ruled. 
 
 "The aborigines, being superstitious, and further, be- 
 
 471}- 
 
ii^g demoralized by unprincipled Spaniards, who at that 
 time carried on a lucrative traffic on the west coast, in 
 , that curse of curses, slavery, naturally resisted the colon- 
 ists for a long time. They could not readily conceive 
 that the settling of these people in their midst would be 
 beneficial to them. Having no moral conception of the 
 terrible misery they were entailing upon their people by 
 selling them, they thought only of the seeming gain that 
 was accruing to them by the traffic, and hence they were 
 prepared to resist any and every agency that would have 
 a tendency to undermine the nefarious barter. The 
 colonists, however, strugged on to maintain power and 
 prestige, enduring untold hardships and sufferings, the 
 contingencies of war, poverty and inexperience, until 
 they were masters of the situation. The result of their 
 sweat, blood, tears and prayers is the republic of Li- 
 beria, the only free and independent home that the 
 colored can call his own in all Africa. 
 
 "This republic was founded in 1847 after the colony 
 had existed twenty-five years. The society withdrew 
 its supervision and left the people of the colony to their 
 own government, and on the 26th day of July of the 
 year named they declared themselves a free and inde- 
 pendent nation. Since the declaration of independence, 
 the republic has been recognized by and is in treaty 
 stipulation with all the powers of Europe and the United 
 States of America. 
 
 "England was the first to extend the hand of fellow- 
 ship to Liberia as a nation. 
 
 -[721- 
 
'"'The republic is modelled after that of the United 
 States .of America, having three co-ordinate branches of 
 .government; viz., executive, legislative and judicial. 
 The executive is composed of the president and his 
 cabinet; the legislative, of a Senate and House of Repre- 
 sentatives; the Judiciary, of the supreme and superior 
 ccurts. 
 
 "The republic is divided into four counties; namely, 
 Montscrrado, Grand Bassa, Sinoe and Maryland, and 
 the counties are divided into towns and villages. There 
 are many denominations in Liberia, endeavoring to do 
 Christian work on apostolic lines. They 1 uild their own 
 churches and the ministers preach the gospel and sup- 
 port themselves with their own hands. One denomination 
 alone has founded thirty-one churches and three schools 
 for the training of the 3 ouths of the country; others are 
 doing more or less, according to their ability. The 
 government partially supports about forty-six schools 
 that are open to all without chaige: 
 
 "Liberia is struggling to maintain its existence and to 
 hold up the light of Christianity to its own people 
 through poverty and inexperience. For forty-nine years 
 it has existed as a nation, and during that time 
 thousands of the aborigines have been brought under the 
 influence of Christianity and civilation, and to-day they 
 are clothed and in their right minds and enjoying 
 Christianity. 
 
 The most northerly point of Liberia is Cape Mount. 
 This is a mountain lying on the sea but is quite fertile. 
 
Coffee Is grown upon it and Is covered with prosperous 
 gardens and farms. 
 
 On this mountain more fruits are grown as well as 
 vegetables than are consumed during the year. The 
 land shows indications of iron, silver and gold in 
 abundance. 
 
 The country is productive of palm oil pysava and 
 palm kernels. 
 
 Roysville grows coffee and sugar cane and all fruits 
 and vegetables known to this part of the country. 
 
 Brewersville is very fertile, the main product being 
 coffee. The chief minerals are coppei and silver. 
 
 Virginia is famous for its coffee farms. 
 
 DISCOVERY OF OPKIR 
 
 LONDON, August i, 1901. Dr. Carl Peters, the German 
 explorer, writes to the Times declaring his belief, as a 
 result of his discoveries in South Africa during the last 
 two years, that the country between the Zambesi and 
 the Sabi is the Ophir of Solomon. 
 
 From traces of Egyptian civilization, he believes the 
 mining district was originally discovered by Egyptians 
 and that there was an Egyptian colony there before the 
 Phoenicians took the country, between 1000 and 
 1 100 B. C. 
 
 He intends at an early date to lay all his evidence 
 before the public. 
 
 -[741- 
 
THE COLORED RACES OE SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 The Basutos are large wheat growers as well as stock- 
 raisers. They have many tradesmen among them and 
 they possess several industrial schools, in fact they are 
 progressing in industries of every description. It is a 
 complete contradiction of the oft-repeated fallacy regard- 
 ing inferior races that the Basutos should apparently of 
 their own initiative, have adopted some of the most use- 
 ful and the best features of civilization. They are a 
 very brave people and maintained their right to the 
 retention of their rifles in spite of the objections of the 
 colonial government on the one hand and that of the 
 Boers on the other. They have shown that they are 
 able to make a wise and discreet use of their power and 
 of their opportunities and in the following of their 
 example by the mass of the original inhabitants lies the 
 hope of the native races and the security and peace of 
 South Africa. 
 
 When we consider the native races of South Africa 
 one of their most striking characteristics is their natural 
 and inherent love of music. It is a delight to watch 
 them during the rendering of modern musical composi- 
 tions. They are absorbed in the pleasure of it. There 
 does not appear to be any doubt that if they had an 
 opportunity they would readily adopt a musical training 
 and might have In their midst the possibilities of actual 
 musical creators. They have however no field for the 
 exercise of their talents, as they have no teachers, and 
 
 -[75]- 
 
from my own experience, I feel assured that there are 
 many worse opportunities for teachers of music than are 
 to be found among the colored races. They are docile, 
 obedient, respect their teachers and learn readily. The 
 colored races are by no means sunk in the mire as is so 
 frequently imagined; they are alert, alive, and full of 
 ambition, and the most intelligent, thoroughly aware of 
 the value of civilization. Many of them would be glad 
 to have an opportunity of higher education but the 
 native schools are limited to the third and fourth stand- 
 ards, about the equivalent to our third grade of the same 
 number. Loved ale College, however, and a. few other 
 institutions of a similar character in Cape Colony, have 
 taken up higher education, and at these places the 
 native, who can afford to undertake the course, can get 
 all the advantages of modern education. 
 
 The great and crying need in South Africa for the 
 native is colored teachers. These would form the best 
 kind of teachers for the colored races and by reason of 
 their racial kinship would be more acceptable than white 
 teachers could ever be. Thousands of colored young 
 men and women are being turned out of the American 
 colleges, full of all the blessings which a higher educa- 
 tion can bestow. In Africa thousands of the very pick 
 of the colored race are craving eagerly for an oppor- 
 tunity to acquire even the rudiments of a liberal educa- 
 tion. It seems somewhat a pity that they cannot be 
 brought more closely together. 
 
 -[76]- 
 
There is so little done for the girls in South Africa that 
 it seems as if a great handicap were being placed upon the 
 future development of the colored people. Socially and edu- 
 cationally the girls of the native races are much neglected. 
 They have no opportunities to get out of the rut of hard 
 and unlovely toil to which they are compelled to submit. 
 They are naturally smart and industrious, but their 
 native gifts are wasted from the lack of a chance to 
 develop them. Very few, indeed, of them ever have the 
 chance of learning skilled occupations and thus they are 
 compelled to a life of exceedingly disagreeable and wear- 
 ing toil. They have to do the most laborious of tasks, 
 No work is too hard, too dirty or too rough for a native 
 African woman. This is all the more distressing, as the 
 women have had an opportunity of comparing their lot 
 with that of their more favored white sisters and feel 
 the contrast. 
 
 It must not be supposed that all, or an overwhelming 
 majority of the colored people of South Africa, are of 
 pure blood. In the Cape Colony they have been in touch 
 with the European element for nearly 300 years, and 
 have mixed with them to such an extent that all shades 
 of color are to be found among them. The native lan- 
 guages of these people have become extinct in the 
 course of time, and they speak Dutch or English- 
 mostly Dutch, however, as the Dutch were the first to 
 amalgamate with the natives. 
 
 This discussion of the subject of the position of the 
 native races in these districts may not be altogether 
 
 -[77]- 
 
called for by the subject in hand, but we all recognize 
 its importance. It is the thought that lies nearest to the 
 heart of all of us and it is a good opportunity to let you 
 know my views on the subject of the position of the 
 
 lored races in South Africa. 
 
 There is a wonderful future for these people. They 
 have in their hands the destiny of that part of the world. 
 Upon their power to develop, to receive all that modern 
 progress can teach them 01 culture, and of intelligence, 
 rests the growth of the African people. Never, in the 
 history of the world, has the colored race had such a 
 chance. I feel confident that it will make the very best 
 use of its opportunities. Already it is clamoring for 
 admission to schools and colleges, and step by step it 
 will grow to greater heights of power and responsibility. 
 
 When we consider the shortness of the time which the 
 people of South Africa have had, the turbulent history 
 of that part of the country and the newness of every- 
 thing, it must be admitted that the colored race has 
 shown a wonderful power of adaptation and has made 
 better progress than could have been expected. But, in 
 order to fully grasp what it can do, we must give it 
 more time, peace, a period of relative piosperity and 
 open schools and we shall see such an unfolding of 
 natural powers as we have not anticipated, and the 
 colored race will begin to take that part in the share of 
 the government to which their numbers and the pro- 
 gress of the people entitle them. 
 
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