1 ^^^^^ iJ MM ^mH Hifei_''.v^.ff;i?i*;i A o A=i — g 0— i 1 ^m 4 § ? ti \ ■■wartBWiiiMgiaMMiiitn/intiriihiiiii>ggAei»«&j<«wiga8a8>^^ ^^r THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE m < .> rr ■ f- ''.1- ?-^\f '", iT/ fk. (f^ u-o^ 'i'J- ■TON, 11 COLE STREET, J^ENSINGTON , MY COMMAND IN ( SOUTH AFEIOA. 1874-1878. COMPRISING EXPEEIENCES OF TEAVEL IN THE COLONIES OF SOUTH AFKICA AND THE INDEPENDENT STATES. GENEEAL SIE AETHUR THURLOW CUNYNGHAME, G.C.B. THEN LIEUTENANT GOYEI.NOE AND COBIMANLER OF THE FORCES IN SOUTH AFRICA. WITH MAPS. SECOND EDITION, WITH A NEW FREE ACE. MACMILLAN AND CO. 1880. [Hiyhl cf Trar.slatiim and lieproduction reserved.] C ^^ LONDON : PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, bTAMFOBU BTRBBI AND CUABING CKOSK. DEDICATED ^0 ti)£ iWemorj) of THOSE GALLANT OFFICERS AND MEN, MV FRIENDS AXD COMPANIONS IN ARMS, WHO FELL ON THE 22nd of JANUARY, 1870, EORKE'S DRIFT AND ISANDLWANA. PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. The noble efforts to found colonies which have been made by England have been rewarded by results unequalled either in ancient or modern times. Many problems have yet to be solved. One of the most important of these is, how to pre- serve the independence of the colonies without causing them to lose their filial affection for their mother country. Some of the difficulties of this problem will be illustrated in the following pages. They contain descriptions of the country and anecdotes of its inhabitants. The Book is divided into five parts. Chapters I. to XI. contain an account of a journey from Cape Town to the Eastern Frontier, the Free States, and Basuto land. Chapters XII. to XVIII. describe my visit to Pondo land and Natal. In Chapters XIX. to XXII. I give an account of the threatened rebellion in the Diamond Fields!, and the expedition sent to check it. Chapters XXIII. to XXX. deal with the annexation of the Transvaal ; and Chapters XXXI. to XLI. are devoted to a description of the war on the eastern frontier of the Cape Colony. In these pages I shall often have the pleasure of praising the conduct of my own officers and others ; sometimes I shall be obliged to speak severely of men from whose policy I differed, but I am sure that I have not put down anything in malice, and I take this opportunity of thanking those of my friends in South Africa VI PREFACE. whose kindness so greatly contributed to the pleasure of my stay. By far the greater part of the information in this volume is derived from personal observation, but many interesting facts have been gatliered from articles written in the colonial news- papers by gentlemen of knowledge and ability, to whom, as a body, I wish to acknowledge my gratitude for their valuable assistance. The colonies of South Africa, taken all together, are in area about 450,000 square miles, or equal in size to United Germany, France, Belgium, and Holland ; and nearly five times as large as Great Britain. The total population is rather more than two and a half millions, of which about 440,000 persons are white. There are only five principal ports in South Africa ; Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, and Delagoa Bay. With the exception of the last named, none of them possess very great natural advantages, and some are mere road- steads. The coast is rocky. The rivers run between high banks, and are torrents in winter, and streams in summer. The coldest time of the year is in our summer, but the climate is delightful, and excellent for pulmonary complaints. The country is very varied, containing mountain chains, deserts, scanty forests, and boundless plains, once swarming with game, which have been destroyed in enormous quantities. Copper, coal, gold and diamonds form the chief mineral wealth of the country, but almost every species of metal exists. The chief pursuit is cattle-grazing, and the chief export is wool. Fruit-trees grow well all over the colony, and naartjes (Tangerine oranges) cost, in the season, a penny for twelve. In Natal, pine-apples gi-ow by the wayside. The vine, apricot, apple, pear, loquot, and cherry, all thrive there. Fish are plentiful, and you can live well on that food for Qd. a-day ; but they are not of so good a kind as those in the northern seas. Housekeeping at Cape Town costs P HE FACE. vn on the average much the same as in England. While fruit and fish are cheap, and meat not so dear as at home, butter is very- expensive. European luxuries cost about one-fourth more than at home, and clothes perhaps one and a half times the price here. This is due to the difficulty of finding good workmen in Cape Town to cut them out and make them. Kepairs of all sorts are very expensive, particularly if they require any degree of skill. The arts do not flourish at the Cape. You might try every shop in Capetown and not be able to buy an oil canvas or colours, but music is cultivated, and many pianos come over from England. Reading is practised to a limited extent only, and even the barristers, whom one would expect to find provided with good libraries, seem to rely in argument rather upon readiness and elocution than upon an extensive reference to authorities. The chief amusements of all classes are riding, driving, shooting, and billiards ; and un- fortunately there is too great a tendency on all sides, from the highest to the lowest, to " take a glass with a friend " at all hours of the day, a practice which, to say the least of "it, involves a considerable waste of time and money. Life proceeds at the colony at rather a slower pace than in England — tliere is more breathing-time, and the happy faces and jovial manners of the inhabitants suggest tlie iilea of a people accustomed to a rude plenty, and not harassed to death by constant worries. Trade morality, I fear, does not rise to a very high level at the Cape. I dare say it is not worse tlian in other lauds, and, being a soldier, I am not, perhaps, very well qualified to ex- press an opinion. I can only go by what I have heard, but I certainly recommend any young gentleman who lands in Cape Town with money i\\ his pocket to look well to the bargains he makes, and, above all, to be careful of the speculations in which he embarks. I now propose to give a short sketch of the history of the various colonies in South Africa. VIU FJiEFAOE. 1. The Cape Colony. — Area, 220,000 square miles ; popu- lation, 235,000 white, 820,000 black. This colony was first formed by the Dutch as an invalid station for persons on their way to India. The Dutch garrison was small, and when the first importation of slaves took place from the Guinea coast, they outnumbered the whites. In its early days the colony never flourished very brilliantly. Its first encoimtei with savages was with the Hottentots. These people and the Bushmen may be looked upon as the aborigines of South Africa. An earlier race is believed to have preceded them, so barbarous in character as almost to furnish an example of the " missing link " between man and the ape. The Hotten- tots are a yellowish-coloured African race, not of a very warlike disposition, and capable of being civilised. They are, however, now so mixed with Kafirs and other races, that it is doubtful whether any men of pure blood remain. The Bushmen are diminutive savages, who present an example of the lowest known form of human life. Almost impossible to tame, active as iinimals, and quick-sighted as birds, they seem incapable of understanding what it is to live in peace with their neighbours. ^Yhen hunted in their rocks they retire, and never surrendering, fire poisoned ariows at the invaders. They do not seem to understand that their opponents can have any other wish than to destroy them, so that, like wild animals, they fight to the last. They have been hunted like game by the Kafirs, and I regret to say that on some occasions white men have been guilty of very great cruelties towards them. In 1795 the English first appeared in the colon}-. They did so under authority of, and in trust for, the Prince of Orange, the last Stadtliolder of the Dutch Kepublic, who was then a refugee in England. In 180(), however, the English took the colony for themselves. This step was little noticed at home, for at that time all England was ringing with the news of the battle of Trafalfjar. FEEFAGE. ix During the time that the whites — the Dutch first, and the Englisli afterwards — were effecting a lodgment on the western side of the peninsula, another race was advancing round it from the north-east. These were the Kafirs. By the word Kafir we designate all who belong to any one of five or six great tribes or families of barbarians who have come down from some unknown region in the centre of the continent. Savage in war, idle in peace, of predatory habits, uncivilised, and incapable of ac- quiring civilisation, they broke the power of all nations that opposed them ; and, had they not met white races more deter- mined still, they would undoubtedly have swept over the whole of South Africa. Then ensued a series of collisions. The first of any importance was in the year 1811, and is known as the first Kafir war. After this other Kafir wars took place, of which tliat in 1835 was the most sanguinary. In most of them the whites were unprepared; in all of them, after temporary reverses, they were successful. The arms of the Kafirs then consisted almost entirely of assegais, with which they could do but little damage to regular troops, and the Boers never found any difficulty in conquering, killing, and enslaving natives armed only. with such weapons. But not only were there wars with the natives. Intestine troubles succeeded. The Boers rebelled in 1815, and it was necessary to slioot some of them. DIeanwhile the boundaries of the colony were being pushed further and further eastward. In 1834 a measure of great importance was passed — the slaves were manumitted. Com- pensation was ordered to be made, but an unfortunate delay took place in the payment of the money, so that the Dutch slave-owners, in despair at no longer having absolute control over their farm-servants, and of ever receiving the promised equivalent, sold their rights to Jews and middlemen for a trifle, and "trekked" far out of the country into the districts now known as Griqualand, the Orange Free State, and the PREFACE. Transvaal. The question of slavery has ever been a sore one with the Dutch. They arc so attached to that institution that they will not readily consent to live in any country where it is abolished ; and it is to the desire of the Boers each to " A\ hop his own nigger " in peace, that we may trace the opposition which has been experienced in our endeavours to bring the Transvaal and tlie Orange Free State under English rule. The colony still continued extending its boundaries, occa- sionally fighting, and ever growing more populous till the year 1872, when a responsible government was granted it, with a Legislative Council and House of Assembly, composed of members elected by various constituencies. As regards national feelings the colony may be roughly divided into east and west. In the west the old Dutch element is in the ascendant, in the east tlie English prevail. Although the Dutch community is well united in opinion, Englishmen of the east are divided into two groups, corresponding to the two ports of Elizabeth and East London, between which ports there is considerable commercial jealousy. A government which rests mainly on the support of the Dutch is thus able by playing off one section of the English against the other to create sufficient dissension amongst the members of the opposition to give it a majority, and this I believe has been the practice of governments hitherto. Li 1867 the first diamond was found, and there soon flowed into the colony a tide of wealth as welcome as it was unex- pected. Railroads were commenced on a scale I think rather too extended at the commencement. To facilitate the making of these railways immense gangs of natives were employed, and by permission of their chiefs they were allowed to leave their own localities far away in Kafir land. To make them work only one inducement was effectual — the permission to purchase fire-arms. There was a law in the colony for- PREFACE. XI bidding the acquisition of arms by natives without a special permit, to be given in tbose cases only in which the magistrate empowered to do so was personally acquainted with the cha- racter of the applicant. Unfortunately this salutary provision was not attended to, and permits were given with a laxity quite alarming. Companies of natives marched home, each bearing his musket over his shoulder. Instances occurred in which justices of the peace granted permits to natives in reckless pro- fusion in order to curry favour with traders. The government set the example, and for a while, blinded by a desire to secure cheap labour, the colonists allowed the natives to arm, until at least 400,000 muskets and rifles, some of them breech-loaders, had been acquired. This was not done without protest. Warnings appeared in the newspapers, and the older colonists, who knew the Kafirs, were uneasy. I need hardly say that I fulfilled my duty by repeatedly pointing out to the Ministry the danger they were incurring. The circumstances which attended the sixth and last of our Kafir wars will be found stated in the last part of this work up to the time when my command ceased, at which period I consider that the first part of the war was virtually at an end. The late war against the Zulus may be regarded as the second part of the sixth Kafir war, 2. Kaffrakia. — Area, 10,000 square miles ; population, 450,000 blacks. The district lying to the east of the Cape Colony is called Kafifraria. It is occupied chiefly by Kafir tribes. Amongst these are the Fingoes and Gaikas, who occupy part of Britisli Kaffraria, sometimes called the Cis-Kei and the Galekas, Fingoes, Pondos, Pondomise, Tambookies, and Griquas, who occupy Kaffraria proper, or the Transkei. (See the map of Kaffraria, page 316.) These tribes have the same language, and are undoubtedly derived from the same stock. Amongst them the Fingoes, w hose name signifies " dogs," and who have been persecuted almost to extinction by the others, are our only firm XU PREFACE. friends. Under British rule, tliougli at first cowardly, they have developed fighting powers, and always joined our side. They have lived peacefully in their locations, and are by far the richest in cattle. The whole of the Transkei is now under British protection, and in a sliort time we may expect that the barbarous customs which have hitherto prevailed there will be forcibly put an end to. The disarmament of all the natives has been decreed, and it is to be hoped that it will be vigorously carried out. No one will, I presume, object to depriving the Kafir of his gmi, on the pseudo-philanthropic principle that it is like depriving a child of its toy. 3. Basuto land contains a population of about 150,000 of contented natives, easy to govern. They were reduced to a miserable state by the wars of Chaka (the Zulu). The battle of Berea was fought in 1852 between them and the English, and peace established. In 1869, after continued war with the Free State, the boundaries were established, and the Basutos placed themselves under British protection. 4. Natal. — Area, 18,700 square miles; population, 19,000 white, 300,000 black. Natal was thickly populated by black races in the com- mencement of this century. In 1820 it suffered the first incursion of the Zulus. These formidable people inhabit the country to the north of Natal, and their renown is due to Chaka. He organised a military system so complete that the Zulus, since his time, may be considered the Prussians of South Afi-ica. In the year above mentioned he desolated Natal, murdering men, women, and children ; and laid it so com- pletely waste that it became a desert. This he did, not that he wanted territory, but as an amusement. From the year 1825 to 1834, a body of English settlers occupied Natal. In the meantime Chaka was murdered by his brother Dingaan, a monster, whose deeds of cruelty filled all Zulu laud witli blood. PREFACE. Xlll x\bout the year 1834, the Dutch Boers made their first appear- ance in Natal, under the leadership of Pieter Eetief, who, however, having been decoyed to a conference, was treacherously murdered with all his followers by Dingaau in 1837. Ten thousand Zulus then marched on Natal, which they almost succeeded in surprising. As it was, they murdered about 600 persons, besides Ketief's party. An attempt was made to avenge this by the advance of a body of men, mostly Kafirs under white leaders, styling them- selves "the grand army of Natal." But the Zulus, after a desperate battle, completely destroyed it. In 1838 General Pretorius, the first president of the Transvaal, marched from thence with about 460 men, supported by a smaller force. Being attacked by about 10,000 Zulus, they killed 3000 of them with a loss of only four men killed, advanced into Zulu land and seized the capital. This was followed by a revolution in Zulu land, and a battle between Dingaan and Panda, his brother, by whom Dingaan was defeated and deposed. In 1834 Natal was seized by the British, in whose possession it has remained. Since that time it has steadily increased in prosperity. When Panda died, his son Cetewayo succeeded him. The martial system of Chaka has been steadily kept up since his time with but few relaxations. 5. The Orange Free State. — Area, 37,000 square miles ; population, 30,000 white, 15,000 black. The Free State was colonised chiefly by those Boers who left the colony in disgust at the emancipation of the slaves. In 1848 it was declared British territory, and after a fight with the English at Boomplaats the Dutch submitted. But in 1854 an unwise dread of expenditure caused the British Government to abandon the colony ; and it became a republic, with a repre- sentative government and a president. 6. The Diamond Fields, or Griqualand West. — Area, xiv PREFACE. 15,500 square miles ; permanent population, 1000 white, 4000 blacks ; fluctuating population of diggers, 40,000. This tract of country, lying to the west of the Orange Free State, had originally been occupied by the Griquas, a mixed race of Dutch and Hottentots under Waterboer, Cornelius Kok, and Adam Kok. It was for a time nominally governed by the Orange Free State. Adam Kok, son of the above named Adam Kok, made an exodus with his people from Griqualand West in 1861 into a country north of Kaffraria, which, having been visited by the Zulus, had acquired the significant title of No Man's land. Here his tribe now reside. It is called Griqua land East. In 1867 the first diamond was found ; and in 1869 a rush took place to the Diamond Fields, and in a short time a very large European community was established. In 1871 Mr. Campbell was sent to the Diamond Fields to act as magistrate. This was done by virtue of an Act of Parlia- ment (of Great Britain), which provides for the trial in a colonial court of any persons not under the jurisdiction of a civilised community who shall commit a crime in any place on the globe south of the 22nd S. parallel of latitude. But as it was considered that this Act did not give Mr. Campbell full powers, a commission was obtained for him from Waterboer, the Griqua. Then occurred the rush to Kimberley, or "the New Kush Mine," the richest deposit of all. In 1873 the country was declared a Crown Colony, the rights of the Orange Free State being abandoned on considera- tion of a payment of about £100,000. 7. The Transvaal. — Area, 120,000 square miles ; popula- tion, 40,000 white, 250,000 black. The boundaries of the Transvaal towards the north-east and west have been always vague. The land is very fine and well watered, and the pasturage rich. There are fine forests, abundance of minerals and grain, fruits and all vegetables grow luxuriantly. A great future may be expected from it. PREFACE. XV When the emigration of the Boers from Natal took place, the Republic was under the rule of a chief named IMsilikazi. After several encounters, the Boers defeated him and drove him out of the country. After the battle of Boomplaats, the unsuccessful Boers retired from the Orange State and joined those who had established themselves in the Transvaal. General Pretorius was invested with the chief military com- mand, a man whose honesty, moderation and talent, both as a general and statesman, entitle him to the highest praise. The same timidity which caused the British Government in 1852 to abandon the Orange Free State caused them also in 1854 to abandon the Transvaal, and in that year it was erected into a Republic under the presidentship of Pretorius. For many years the country was almost unknown. During this pei'iod the Boers appear to have enjoyed the greatest happi- ness. Few in number and owning enormous tracts of country, they lived free from any rule except their own pleasure. Not that they indulged in deeds of violence, for they are not a violent or cruel race, but each was lord of his own family, and absolute in his own dominions. There were no school boards or inspectors, or commissioners or police to trouble them. Undisturbed even by the semblance of parental government, the thing they most detest, they led pastoral lives, varied only by the excitement of hunting and of an occasional skirmish with the natives. It is only fair to say that on such occasions they inflicted terrible vengeance whenever they had the power to do so, and when they had killed the men they made slaves of all the children. But with the election of President Burgers the system was altered. A party which may be described as the progres- sionist got the upper hand, and liberal improvement became the order of the day. But progress requires great skill in its conduct, and President Burgers was too rapid for his times. His improvements and projects split the inhabitants of the XVI PJREFACE. Transvaal into two parties, the Conservative and the rro- gressionist. Nevertheless the movf ment went on, and it was not until he had rendered the state almost bankrupt, and provoked the native tribes all round him by confiscating their land, that the English Government thought it time to intervene. It is at present a disputed question whether our annexation of the Transvaal has been popular or not with the Boers. For my j.art I believe that, on the whole, it has. But whether popular or not I feel convinced that it will ultimately tend to the good of the country and ensure its progress. It is, how- ever, to be hoped that we shall not this time commit the imprudence of giving a responsil le government to the Trans- vaal too early. The history of 'the Colonies has shown that a country must be well advanced before it is fit for a responsible government. For a responsible government requires constant watching, and much pressure from the outside to prevent it from becoming a nest of incompetency, jobbery and corruption, and this supervision cannot be properly exercised unless the press and the people have considerable political education. At present the internal difficulties of the Transvaal are being settled by the strong hand of Sir Garnet Wolseley. Although there is some show of resistance at present I do not think it will be permanent. 8. Zulu land. — Area, about 10,000 square miles ; popula- tion 250,000 (black). This country is inhabited by the most war- like of all the Kafir tribes. Cetewayo, the present king, almost rivals his uncle Dingaan in cruelty, and his uncle Chaka in military talent. After a sanguinary battle with his brothers, in which he was victorious, he was crowned by Sir Theophilus (then Mr.) Shepstone, secretary for native affairs at Natal. During the Presidentship of Mr. Bui-gers, disputes arose be- tween the Transvaal and Cetewayo, principally in consequence of grants of Zulu land having been made without right by the P HE FACE. XVll Transvaal Government. In these disputes, Mr. Shepstone a(!ted as mediator, upholding Cetewayo against the Boers. But as soon as the Transvaal had been annexed by the Englisli, and Mr. Shepstone made Governor, Cetewayo perceived that times had changed. Upon this his demeanour grew steadily more and more warlike, and in 1878 his attitude became so threaten- ing, that the safety of the colonies of Natal and the Transvaal was seriously threatened. This induced Sir Bartle Frere to bring matters to a head, and last year an ultimatum was sent to him, requiring that the warlike customs of his tribe should be abandoned, and that he should give certain guarantees for keeping the peace. In the meantime the boundary dispute between him and the Transvaal had been made the subject of arbitration, and an award given, which, while it gave most of the land to Cetewayo, guaranteed the rights of the private persons who had settled thereon under authority from the Boers. Cetewayo considered this not a bond-fide restoration of the land. The ultimatum of the English Government having been virtually rejected, and a delay demanded, which is well-known to be the natives' mode of refusal, an attack on the country was made by Lord Chelmsford, whose forces advanced from three points over the Tugela and Buffalo rivers. The invading forces were thus disposed. The first column, under Colonel Pearson, prepared to advance into Zululand at the south-east angle, near the mouth of the river Tugela ; the second and third columns, under Lord Chelmsford, prepared to cross at Rorke's Drift, about the centre of the south border of Zululand ; and the fourth column, under Colonel Wood, was intended to operate from the north-west. The first to cross was Colonel Pearson, who engaged the enemy at Inyasani. After this he advanced to Ekowe, wliere he entrenched. His object was to detach, if possible, a portion of the Zulu army, and thus weaken the defence of the Zulu capital. h XVI U PREFACE. Meanwhile Lord Chelmsford, having crossed the Tugela at Rorke's Drift, marched straight towards the centre of Zulu- land, his object being to destroy the king's great kraals at Ulundi. The unfortunate reverse which the British then suffered needs no recapitulation. It is enough to say that the two centre columns were completely disorganised, and had to fall back on Natal. Lord Chelmsford returned to Pieter- maritzburg to take steps for the public safety. On hearing of the disaster, Colonel Pearson sent his mounted men back into Natal, and prepared to stand a sort of siege. Colonel Wood fell back on Utrecht, for it was at first feared that the Zulu army, flushed with success, would turn its whole strength against him. About two months were thus spent in forced inactivity, while the arrival of troops, which had been im- mediately telegraphed for, was expected. No incident of any note occurred, except a minor casualty to Major Moriarty at Intombi, who was killed while superintending the convoy of some waggons to Luneberg in the Transvaal, where a detach- ment was stationed under Major Tucker. As soon as the reinforcements arrived, which was about seven weeks after the fight at lusandula. Lord Chelmsford's first care was to relieve Ekowe. For this purpose he organised a strong force under his personal command, with which, having crossed the Tugela, he fought the battle of Gingelovoo, in which he defeated the Zulus, and after which he relieved Ekowe and returned to Natal. Meanwhile Colonel Wood, in order to create a diversion, made a raid into Zululand, in the course of which Colonel Buller's troops, which had been separated, were caught at Zlobane and seventy men killed. But the next day Colonel Wood avenged the disaster at Kambula, where, after four hours' hard fighting, the Zulu corps, which W^ood's movement had the intended effect of diverting, was defeated with con- siderable slauo-hter. PREFACK xix General Crealock then took command of the lower column, and remained on the south side of the Tugela near the moutli ; and Lord Chelmsford, having organised a fresli invading cohimn under General Newdegate, took up his hea'l- quarters at Utrecht, so as to be near both Newdegate and Wood, and prepared a second time to invade Zululand. He did not cross again at Rorke's Drift. The reason of this was that the surveys made before the battle of Insandula had led to the belief that no practicable road existed from thence to Uluudi. It was therefore resolved to make a detour. Colonel Wood's column having moved down to join General Newdegate, the two columns advanced, leaving posts to protect their com- munications as they proceeded. It was about this time, and while Lord Chelmsford's head- quarters were still at Utrecht, that the Prince Imperial joined the army, and soon afterwards met with his death at the Isipisi mountain, about thirty miles within tlie frontier of Zululand. Lord Chelmsford's furce then advanced on Uluudi, where a battle took place. The following account of this important victory is ex- tracted from an account given by a staft'-officer who was present on the occasion : — "The night before the battle of Ulundi will be long- remembered by all ranks present. Late at night we were awoke by the war-song of the Zulus, a large force had come down to the river, and had been met by a regiment that came from a distant kraal to congratulate them on their supposed victory over the white man during the recc>nnaissance of the morning, and to talk to Panda's snake. The moon was full, and some of the Basutos, who knew the war-song, believed that it preceded an attack, so as quietly as possible the horses whi(;h were outside the laager were brought in. Once a stray shot from the outpost roused the picqnet on the east of the laager. But soon the Zulu chant died away, as they retired to their h 2 XX PREFACE. kraals, and no further alarm roused us duriDg the night. At daylight the whole force was under arms, and a hasty breakfast was made under the waggons. By 6 a.m. the Flying Column and 2nd Division had fallen in, and very shortly after, led by Ijord Chelmsford, marched down to the Umvolosi river ; this took only half an hour to cross. Just the other side was a very nasty bit of bush, but Buller was well in front covering the ground with his mount, d infantry, and we knew he would give us ample warning of an attack. Still it was an anxious time, and glad we were when the rear of the column had cleared the bush. Buller, who by his gallant reconnaissance of the day before, had discovered the best position for the action, was covering the front and left, the Lancers under Colonel Drury Lowe in the rear, and Captain Shepstone on the right with his mounted Basutos. The conduct of this officer was a sufficient answer to the abuse which has been in some quarters bestowed on the Colonists. As soon as the column emerged from the bush, the Zulus were seen in great force descending the hill ; we knew Cetewayo had 20,000 men, while our colnmn consisted of less than 4000. But now that we had cleared the bush there could be no fear as to the result ; a large square was formed, the front and rear lace marching in four deep, the two sides in lours right and left, guns at the angles, carts (ambulance and ammunition) in the centre, with the Natal Native Contingent, and the sCj[uare was advancing in the following order : — in front the 80th Regiment with 2 guns, commanded by Colonel Harness ; in the centre, on the left flank, the 13th and li4th ; on the right flank, the 90th and 58th, each flank having in the centre a detachment of the Riiyal Artillery with 9-pounder guns; the rear face of the square was formed by the 21st ; behind the front face were companies of the Mounted Irregulars and Mounted Basutos, with the Dragoons; in advcxnce of the rear ranks were the 17th Lancers and Mounted Irregulars ; Gattlings were posted at PREFACE. XX] each corner of the front face, and another company of the Royal Artillery with 9-pounders, was in the centre of the rear face. All arrangements were made under the personal superintend- ence of Lord Chelmsford. As the square moved on, the different regiments of Zulus formed for the attack on every side of the square. On the right, near the Nodwengu kraal, was the Nkobamakosi regiment. These men had fought at Isandlwana, and had suffered heavily there. Soon the reports of rifles told us that Colonel Buller and Captain Shepstone were engaged, and we could see the Zulus in clouds advancing rapidly, and the mounted infantry and Basutos steadily retiring. Just before we came to the position where the square was halted to repel the attack, we found the bodies of three men killed during Colonel Buller's reconnaissance ; one was so frightfully mutilated that the square was for a moment halted, while a party of the Eoyal Engineers buried him, a chaplain reading a short service. The square was then halted, and at about 9 A.M. the Zulus had advanced near enough for the 9-pounders to come into action. They made some excellent practice, the shells bursting among the advancing hordes, who, however, did not hesitate, but came boldly on, driving our mounted men into the square. As soon as our front was clear, the infantry opened fire, firing volleys by sections, half companies, and battalions. The action now became general, and as the firing of the infantry was steady (there being no independent firing) the aim of the men was not much impeded by the smoke. Our men now began dropping, but the rear ranks took their place ; and an incident occurred here which is worthy of mention. Two men of the OOtli Eegiment fell back, one dead, the other wounded; their places were immediately taken by two Basutos, who remained firing away with their white brethren till the end of the action. The Zulus were now within about 200 yards and were still advancing. Their firing was (luckily for us) bad, and very high ; but on the rear face, a large body came with a xxu PREFACE. rush up to within about sixty yards of the square ; such a withering volley was, however, poured in by the 21st that they were stopped. The guns now plied them with case, and volley after volley was poured in. No troops could have advanced under such a fire, and they turned and fled. As they turned, the men of the 2l8t Fusiliers who formed the rear face of the square, cheered, and this seemed to frigliten the Zulus on the other flanks, who got up out of the grass and retired sullenly. They were plied for a time with shot and shell, and when sufficiently broken the rear face of the square opened out, and amidst the deafening cheers of the whole force — the Lancers and Dragoons rode out, followed by Col. Buller's Mounted Infantry and Shepstone's Mounted Natives. The lances went crashing through the Zulu shields, and in a very few minutes had accounted for 150 of the enemy. Colonel Buller, after inflicting great loss on the retreating body, now rode for the Uluudi kraal — Lord William Beresford racing for the lead and getting first into the kraal. Cetewayo's house was almost empty, but a little ivory and a few curiosities were secured, and then it was set on fire ; and also the great kraal with its 2000 huts, and soon from all the great military kraals volumes of smoke arose, which proclaimed to the furthest parts of Zululand the victory of Lord Chelmsford. The scene on the field was curious — within 60 yards of the square, at the rear face, lay a black heap of Zulus; they had fallen in all sorts of fantastic attitudes, some with their shields still raised in their stiffening hands — others still clenching their assegais. One man lay only 28 yards from the square, and many within 40 and 50. A great many wore belts and pouches, taken from the dead at Isandlwana. The dead of the different regiments could be distinguished by their shield and head-dresses, and it was found that nearly every regiment was represented. Four hundred men lay close round the square. But it has been ascertained that 1500 men were lost to the Zulus that day. PREFACE. xxiii Our losses were 115 killed and wounded, and 19 officers wounded. Three officers were killed, Capt. Wyatt Edgell, of the 17th Lancers ; Hon. W. Drummond and Lieut. Pardoe, of the 1 3th Eegiment. Submission now came in on every side. Lord Chelmsford resigned, and Sir Grarnet Wolseley, having pacified Natal, pro- ceeded to the Transvaal to settle the difficulties created by the discontented Boers. Zululand was divided into a number of tribal sovereignties, liberty given to the inhabitants to marry, the importation of arms forbidden, and the military system put down. With the capture of Cetewayo, which was soon afterwards effected, all show of resistance ceased, and the second part of the Zulu war came to an end. 9. AswASi LAND. — This countiy lies to the north of Zulu- land. The Aswasis are probably as brave as the Zulus, but have not the same military discipline. They are hereditary enemies of the Zulus, and if backed by Europeans would pro- bably fight against them. They assisted the Boers in their attack on Secocoeni's country, in the north of the Transvaal, and fought whilst the Dutch ran away. 10. The settlement of Lorenzo Marques (Delagoa Bay) is Portuguese. It has been from this port that the Zulus have obtained most of their arms ; and it is much to be wished that it should be acquired by the English. It will probably be the port of the future for the Transvaal. Since the war with the Zulus some English ships have gone there to stop the supply of muskets and ammunition to the Zulus. The question of Federation and the native questions are dis- cussed in tlie following pages. I wish merely to add to what I have said there, that I think one of the great defects in the ad- ministration of native affairs, is the want of an efficient secret native police service. It happened repeatedly when I was in command that it was impossible to discover the motives and intentions of the various chiefs. Their characters could only be XXIV PREFACE. guessed at, and native councils of war often took place within two or three miles of our towns, within the colony, without the magis- trates having the least idea of what had been said. Our secret information was derived from precarious rumours, and though the magistrates at various posts did far more in this respect than could have been expected of them, and frequently sent in admirable reports, neither means nor money were placed at their disposal sufficient to enable them to do what they might have done. The spelling of South African names is rather a difficult matter, and depends much on "the taste and fancy of the speller." I have adopted the spelling as I foimd it. To those however who wish for accuracy in this respect as well as a concise and excellent history of the Cape, I recommend Theal's ' History of South Africa,' a work printed by natives at the Lovedale Institute near Alice. The statistics above given are the best I could procure. I cannot vouch for their accuracy, as Government returns have as yet only been given for part of the colonies. The unfortunate issue of the first engagement, if compared with the battle fought between the Zulus and General Pretorius, will show the danger of arming savages with rifles. It is with the greatest pain that I have seen in the melancholy list of the killed in that action the names of many of my intimate friends and comrades. Although South Africa is a rising colony, I hardly think it offers to the emigrant the chances which he would obtain in Australia or New Zealand. South Africa is not a very rich country, labour is hard to obtain, and it will be years before irrigation can be carried on on a sufficient scale to make agri- culture a brilliant success. Nevertheless, land is so abundant, that the energetic colonist is sure at least to make a living, and provided he does not drink, has a good chance of becoming a rich man. The most valuable emigrant is the man who, having PREFACE. XXV a strong bodily frame and knowing a trade, can turn his hand to anything. A blacksmith for instance, who is something of a hand at carpentering, and on occasion can mend a lamp or a clock, or do a little simple builder's and architect's work, is sure to command an excellent position in the Transvaal, especially if he has a portable forge, some tools, and a small lathe with him. He would commence as a smith ; but in a very few years I believe he would become a landowner. On the other hand, it must not be imagined that the Transvaal is a paradise of wealth. Large portions of it, especially the Lowveldt, are very unhealthy during a portion of the year. Althougli there are minerals, they do not exist in very plentiful quantities, and although there is land well adapted for corn-growing, it is limited in amount. I shall often have to speak of the large farms owned by the Transvaal settlers, but it must be remembered that these huge areas are often arid and profitless, and only in part fit to use as grazing land. Hence let intending settlers remember, if they go to South Africa, that they cannot make certain of getting more than a comfortable independence, free from care, in a good climate, and with plenty of food for themselves and their families. But let them not look forward to returning as " nabobs " to England. Fortunes are sometimes made, but it is the exception, not the rule. Besides, the native question in the Transvaal is in some confusion, and the mere defeat of the Zulus which has taken place will by no means settle the matter. There are con- flicting native and white interests in the Transvaal to an extent which an Englishman can hardly imagine, and which will I believe for years impede a thorough settlement of the country. The chief political questions afi'ectiug the colonies are federation, the disarmament of the natives, the formation of a force for colonial defence, and the reformation of the law. The first three will be discussed in the following pages. The state XXVI PREFACE. of the law in South Africa offers a most interesting spectacle to the jurist. Ostensibly Dutch, it is really En<,^li.sh, so that instead of consisting of a series of English statutes grafted on a Dutch root, the text-books of the famous Dutch jurists are either treated as obsolete, or else as mere ordinances ; the spirit of the law being entirely English. A short time ago the free disposition of property by will was introduced. This change is sure to come about when a foreign system of laws is for a long time administered by English judges. Unfortunately the law remains very technical, and it is greatly to be wished that Con- solidation Acts should be passed resembling those which have done so much to render litigation simpler and less costly in England. London, Nov. 10th, 187'J. 1 CONTENTS. BOOK I. — The Cape Colony. The Okange Free State. Chap. Page I. Cape Town 1 n. Osteich-Farmin'g .. .. .. .. .. .. 11 III. Wine-Growing 20 IV. SWELLENDAM .. .. .. ,. .. ., .. 30 V. Bound for the Eastern Frontier ., .. .. .. 39 VI. Volunteer Cavalry .. .. .. .. ,, .. 52 VII. OuTSPAN — Locusts .. ,. .. .. .. .. 62 VIII. Dutch Characteristics — Sport .. .. .. .. 75 IX. Basuto land .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 82 X. Back to Port Elizabeth .. .. .. .. .. 96 XI. Federation and Colonial Defence .. .. .. 100 BOOK II.— Kaffeaeia and Natal XII. The KoiiGHA XIII. Gangaleswe XrV. WlTCHCRAET XV. TJmthonthlo XVI. Jojo — Griqualand East XVII. PlETERMARlTZBURG XVIII. The Tugela 108 . 119 .. 125 139 145 . 157 . 164 BOOK III.— The Diamond Fields. XIX. Griqualand AVest — The Diamond Fields .. XX. Start for the Diamond Fields XXI. The Kimberley Diamond Mine XXII. The Lovedale Institute 171 177 194 215 XXVJll CONTENTS. BOOK IV.— The Transvaal. Chap. XXIII. The Annexation of the Transvaai, .. XXIV. Tour to the Transvaal XXV. Botse Bello XXVI. Leydenburg XXVII. Pilgrims' Best XXVIII. Start for the Return Journey XXIX. POTCHEFSTROM XXX. The Transvaal Farming — Sport Pagb 218 238 246 253 260 268 274 281 BOOK v.— The Sixth Kafir War. XXXI. " The Frontier Scare "—War 296 XXXII. State of the Forces .. .. .. ,. .. 306 XXXIII. The First Part of the War — Griffiths drives the Galekas OVER the Bashee ., .. ., .. ., 316 XXXIV. Stutterheim 323 XXXV. Further Spread of Disaffection — The Fight at Umzitzani .. .. .. .. ,. ,. .. 327 XXXVI. March of the British Troops over the Kei .. 338 XXXVII. Attack by the Kafirs upon the Mails between the Cis- and the Transkei.. .. ,. .. .. 343 XXXVIII. The Operations of the British Troops in the Transkei 351 XXXIX. Use of the Telegraph in the War.. .. .. 357 XL. Dismissal of the Ministry .. ,. .. ,. 368 XLI. The Fight at Quintana .. ,. .. .. 372 MAPS. The South African Colonies Kaffraria Plan of the. Fight at Quintana , Frcmtispiece, to face 316 372 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFEICA. BOOK I.— The Cape Colony. CHAPTER I. CAPE TOWN. In the summer of the year 1873 I made an excursion to the north of Europe, travelling through Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Eussia, and found myself at Moscow in the month of August. Whilst at Moscow I received by telegram an inti- mation that it was her Majesty's intention to entrust to me the command of the forces in South Africa ; so, relinquishing the remainder of my tour, I lost no time in returning to London. At the commencement of October I sailed with my family and my personal staff in the Union Company's steamship Teuton for the Cape of Good Hope. I need not allude to the incidents of the outward voyage, as they differed little from those which have been so often told in voyages across the line. The Teuton was then a vessel of about 1500 tons, but, by the ingenuity of mechanics, she was subsequently increased by another thousand tons, introduced amidships, which in no way appeared to interfere with her speed, while it very much improved her capacity and comfort. In our voyage out we touched at Madeira and at St. Helena. /L 2 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap, On the 15th of November we steamed into Table Bay, Cape Town. Hardly had the anchor dropped than we received news of an outbreak of one or more of the Kafir tribes, in the Crown Colony of Natal, which was also under my military command. This news was conveyed to us by the Harbour-master, and corroborated by a letter from the Governor handed to me by an aide-de-camp, together with a newspaper article, from which the following is an extract : — Natal, November 1st, 1873. — This morning's post brought in- telligence that thirty Carabineers under ]\Iajor Durnt'ord had occupied a pass unsupported for some time ; and being almost devoid of food they were obliged to catch a bea^t, kill it, and eat it raw. A strong body of Kafirs came up the pass with a large number of cattle ; there was an encounter, with the following casualties : Privates Erskine (son of the Hon. Mr. Erskine, the Colonial Secretary), Putterill, and Bond, and three native auxiliaries, killed. A letter from Colonel Milles, 75th Kegi- ment, commanding her Majesty's troops, to the Hon. Mr. Erskine, says, "Your son behaved gallantly, and but for his saddle turning round would have returned safe." Langale- balele has escaped ; his camp was found quite empty. The following letter has come to hand from Drill-instructor Clarke: "The facts am these; we arrived at the top of the Bushman's Pass just as the Kafirs were taking their cattle up. We stopped them, when Major Durnford was himself attacked, and but for his shooting both his assailants, would have been killed ; he was wounded, and Captain Boyes had a narrow escape. Elijah the interpreter had been stabbed before he fell, but was shot through the head as he lay. When young Erskine fell, owing to his saddle turning, he was instantly surrounded and stabbed to death. " The encounter took place not far from headquarters. Lnnga- I.] A DISASTER IN NATAL. 3 lebalele's people came on, sharpening their assegais, and taunting the Carabineers, who had orders not to commence hostilities. Mr. Shepstone was twenty or thirty miles distant, stationing guards at the different passes, but was immediately sent for. The Carabineers undertook their own commissariat arrangements. The troops are in pursuit of the rebels." Another letter said : " We were three days on the top of the berg, without food fur either horse or man; we were in the saddle on Sunday evening and Monday morning for eighteen hours, and twenty- one hours from Tuesday to last night. The Kafirs are well armed and drilled." These extracts were sufficient to show me the military errors of this expedition. In the first place it was evident that the conduct of it was not intrusted to a military man, and indeed it would seem that four different authorities were in command, each exceedingly anxious to use his best endeavours, but all acting without cohesion or combination. Sir Benjamin Pine, the Governor himself, took the field, thereby ignoring the position of Colonel Milles. Mr. Shepstone commanded the native auxiliaries, and the volunteers were placed under Colonel Durnford. Due regard was not paid to transport or supplies, the volunteers making their own feeble and spasmodic arrangements for their rations. Her Majesty's troops acted as a reserve, and their military arrangements were satisfactorily secured. One fatal error had been committed. Orders had been given that the troops were to withhold their fire until they were attacked, thereby giving the enemy an undue advantage, of which they showed that they were well able to avail themselves. The result of these errors was confusion, valuable lives uselessly expended, the advance of the enemy, the retreat of the European colonial forces, and a general mismanagement and collapse, ending in violent recrimination. Precisely the same B 2 4 MV COMMAND IN SOUTH AFBICA. [Chap. thinf^ occurred four years later in the Cape Colony, from the same causes. Blany weeks had been expended in Pietermaritz- l)urg in making arrangements for the attack upon LangALe- balele. His tribe inhabited a district on the borders of Basuto hmd, a country which was in charge of a British Eesident Commissioner from the Cape Colony; and yet no intimation of the intention to attack this chief was made either to the Governor of the Cape, the Commander of the Forces, or even to the Resident in Basuto land. This omission was never explained. In the sequel it did not prove as disastrous as it might easily have done, but it demonstrated clearly the want of combination in South Africa, and gave me the first intimation of the benefit which would arise from Federation. Nothing could convince the public generally on that subject, until the lamentable war of 1877-78 threw a new light upon it. On hearing of the rebellion of Langalebalele, and that his warriors had escaped over the Drakensberg Mountains into Basuto land, no time was lost in directing a force' of the Frontier armed police to march from King William's Town through Tembu and Pondo lands and the lower spurs of the Drakensberg, if possible to intercept them, and to prevent the seeds of rebellion being sown in other provinces. The march of this force was conducted with great vigour and celerit}', and it was mainly owing to their exertions on their arrival in Basuto land, directed by the Commissioner, C. Griffiths, that the rebellion was so quickly brought to an end. I regret to say that the exertions and privations which the police underwent in the most inclement season of the year were rewarded by the Colonial Government with merely a military record of praise. The large prize in cattle captured in Basuto land was given over to the Natal Government, which, though profiting by their exertions, refused, as far as I could learn, to distribute any l)art of it to the Cape Colonial Police. I.] LANGALEBALELE'S RISING. 5 All these matters gave me cause for serious reflections, as I saw what difficulties must be encountered should war or rebel- lion occur in South Africa, and they induced me to make repre- sentations upon the subject. The answer I received was, that there was no occasion to contemjjlate a state of things which would be never likely to occur, such as a "Kafir war" or a "Kafir insurrection." These were the arguments used by the Colonial Ministry even up to the moment when, in 1877, the Frontier settlers were being murdered and their homesteads burned. The rebellion of Langalebalele was soon quelled. He was not supported by the neighbouring chiefs ; the possession of fire- arms had not as yet become general, and the want of success which attended this first demonstration boded ill for the na- tives. Cetewayo (pronounced Ketchwyo), the Zulu King, was on good terms with the English, having been lately crowned in Zulu land by Mr. Shepstone, the Natal IMinister for Native Affiiirs. Langalebalele was confined first in Eobben Island, near Cape Town, and afterwards by a sort of ticket-of-leare on a farm on the Flats near Cape Town. His treatment called forth a deal of acrimonious feeling. Bishop Colenso of Natal visited London for the express purpose of interceding in favour of Langalebalele, in which he was most successful. The trial of this chief having been conducted in an irregular manner, an indemnity was directed to be paid to the neigh- bouring tribes whose property had been confiscated. The wives and children belonging to them were apprenticed to the Natal far.mers, while the husbands became daily labourers in the colony. Thus ended the Kafir chief's dream of in- dependence, and of setting the white man at naught ; Langa- lebalele, with three of his wives and his son, now smoke the calumet of peace in his little farm near Cape Town, com- plaining more of his scanty ration of tobacco than of the loss of his kingdom. This rebellion being, in fact, extinguished as 6 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. rapidly as it had come into existence, there was no need for my immediate presence in Natal. The first necessity of my household was that of being pro- perly lodged. The increasing wealth at the Cape, in conse- quence of tlie sudden augmentation of trade caused by the discovery of diamonds, had changed as it were by a magic wand the value of everything except the fixed incomes of British officers. Meat — which a few years since had been about 2d. per lb. — had now risen to 9(Z. A sheep could be purchased not many years ago for 3a'. Q>d., and now 5s. or 6s. is charged for the tail alone. The tails are of immense size ; they weigh from five to six pounds, and are used instead of butter. Hero- dotus tells us about sheep whose tails were so long that the shepherds had to make them little carts, so that they might move about "carrying their tails behind them." The story has been often laughed at, and cited as a proof of his credulity ; but from what I have seen of the Cape sheep, I could believe that it might have been quite true. A horse which could have been bought a few years ago for lOZ. or 12Z., now costs 50?. ; and house-rent has risen in the same propor- tion. Servants are scarcely obtainable, the most unsatisfactory natives averaging 5s. or 6s. per diem. After a short visit to the Grovernor and before we obtained a house, we stayed for a few days at the Eoyal Hotel. The pet companions of the lady and gentleman late arrivals from Natal, who had rooms next to ours, were a chameleon and a cobra. The first was interesting and harmless; but as the second was of a different character, and lived in a box on the verandah outside our sitting-room, we were reluctantly com- pelled, although the weather was very hot, to keep the window constantly closed. The " liveliness " of our lodgings could not be adequately ap- preciated unless by personal experience ; nothing of a defensive character proved of any avail, although we expended whole jugs I.] THE DOCTOR AT CAPE TOWN. 7 of water on our floors, and prepared our beds with " Keating's powder." It was an early sample of the slovenly habits of the Africander, of which we subsequently had many a night's painful experience. This discomfort, and the inviting appearance of the old Dutch rooms in the fort in Cape Town, made me determine to put them into order, and to inhabit the spacious saloons in which the Governors of the Dutch East Indian Colonies once reigned. I had never any cause to repent this decision. After a few weeks' labour, we were finally settled in our Southern home, surrounded by the comforts which, in a soldier's wander- ing career, I had been able to secure. The season was becoming very hot and the town un- healthy, tempered, however, by the wind, without which Cape Town, unhealthy as it is, would have been wellnigh unbearable. Tliis blustering gale, which drives all before it, is called " the Doctor." Report says that it is so violent that cabs are upset in the ranks, and people seen by the dozen clinging to the lamp- posts, whilst those who attempt to walk do nothing but mark time. I have myself seen it raise pebbles from the ground and dash them with great force against the windows, but I cannot say that I can quite answer for these " flying rumours, that gather as they roll " ! Singularly enough, six miles distant on the other side of the mountain no one is incon- venienced by the wind, for while it is blowing a hurricane at Cape Town, a delicious calm pervades the beautiful valleys of Wynberg. The first excursion which I made from Cape Town was to Stellenbosh. I was most kindly received there by Sir Chris- topher Brand, a gentleman of the old school. He had been for very many years Sjieaker of the House of Assembly, and was the father of Mr. Brand, the President of the Free States. He drove us to his handsome Dutch house, containing some grand rooms. The owner is farming ostriches to a very consider- 8 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. able extent. He commenced by purchasing a pair for 55?., and having placed fences in judicious positions, has formed various parks and paddocics. In the second year, 1874, he sold some young birds, but again bred from the original pair. At the termination of this year he had repaid all his outlay, nearly 1000?., and still retained some twenty birds. An ostrich will lay about fifty eggs in one year. Should forty birds be reared, and each be sold at one month old for 10?., a very handsome profit can be made from the investment. Nor is this industry likely to fail for many years to come. At present the greater the supply, the greater apparently is the demand, and ostrich feathers appear never to have been more in vogue than at present. Ladies generally say that it is impossible they should ever get out of fashion, as they are so becoming, and there is no substitute for them ; and as, unlike diamonds, they soon wear out. In 1875 the price of a pair of ostriches went as high as 500?. Even then they may have proved a profitable investment, espe- cially as feathers were selling at from 30?. to 40?. the pound weight. Small ostrich farmers commence by enclosing three or four paddocks with a wire or other fence. They purchase one cock and two hens, for which they probably have to pay 400?. sterling. Each hen may lay fifty eggs in the season. The cock assists in the hatching, sitting even longer than the hen bird. There are many other countries besides South Africa where I am convinced that the ostrich in a tame state might be most profitably reared. Amongst them I may name Scinde in the Bombay Presidency, the neighbourhood of Gibraltar in Spain, and Egypt. In these countries neither food nor labour is so expensive as in South Africa. I hear that this industry is already carried on in Australia, and in parts of America. An attempt is at present being made to breed ostriches in England, but with what success I have not learned. I.] OSTRICH FAUMINO. 9 Eegarding the profits to be derived from ostrich farminjr, I will here quote a few words from the ' Graaff Reiuet Herald.' Many of my readers will think that it is no wonder farmers should relinquish the cultivation of their lands, when so large a j^rofit is to be obtained from rearing these birds : Ostrich Farming. — The total value of ostrich feathers ex- ported from the colony in 1874 is returned as 205,540^., including, we presume, wild and tame feathers. The value in 1865 was 65,662/., almost entirely wild. The increase, however, has been more in value than in quantity. Notwith- standing the number of domesticated birds has increased in that time from a thousand or so up to thirty thousand, the export of tame feathers has not increased in anything like that ratio, and probably the supply of wild feathers has even decreased. Notwithstanding these anomalous results, ostrich farming is at present one of the most profitable occupations on the face of the globe. A pair of full-grown birds may still be bought for 300Z. or 400Z. On a hundred acres or so of ground as many pairs as you require may be kept. From each pair, with fair luck, some twenty young birds per annum may be looked for, worth 15/. The young birds increase in value at the rate of between 21. and 3Z. per month. The feathers of a full-grown bird fetch about lOZ. or 12/. per annum. From ten pair of full-grown ostriches, a number which a farmer could easily attend to without even the assistance of a servant, an income of 3000Z. per annum ought to result. If, however, w^e say 2000?., to allow for contingencies, still it is hard to think of any occupation which pays so handsomely with so little trouble. That a farmer should give up the cultivation of his land for ostrich-farming is only too natural. How much labour, how much anxiety, how much difficulty and trouble of every kind would be required before an equal income could be 10 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. I, made by agriculture ! If, however, we conclude tliat the occupation of ostrich-farming is a paying one for the colony, we may be greatly mistaken. We are exporting some 180,000Z. worth, say, of tame feathers, and are importing a great deal more than that value of breadstuffs. So far as the colony is concerned, ostrich-farming is very like the tulip mania of Holland; immense sums of money are changing hands, on the speculation of great returns some day, but the whole occupation is at present more of the nature of com- mercial gambling ; it is buying and selling for a rise. At present also the breeding of young birds is so profitable that the feathers are hardly attended to, and it is well known to farmers that both cannot be attended to with equal profit at the same time; brooding destroys the feathers, and plucking disturbs the birds and hinders them from laying. As the number of tame birds must be at least doubling, if not quadrupling, every year, and as wild birds are still being captured and domesticated, we shall in a few years come to a crisis. There will be a sudden fall in the price of young birds; farmers will begin to turn their attention to feathers instead of breeding; the supply of feathers will increase suddenly, and their value will necessarily fall. Those who have sold out before the fall will be rich men. Those who have held on, and have mortgaged their farms and run into debt to speculate in ostriches, will be ruined ; and, what is worse, the minds of a large number of our farmers will have been diverted from habits of wholesome industry and directed to merely speculative plans for becoming rich. We are afraid that we shall see this crisis before we see the railway to Graaff Reinet. If the colony was in want of money, a tax of 11. per annum ou every ostrich would bring in a splendid revenue, and only act as a wholesome restraint on speculation. ( 11 ) CHAPTER II. OSTRICH-FARMING. The subject is so interesting, that I shall not apologise for now inserting a few remarks on this strange bird, taken from Mr. De Mosethal's excellent work, which I have every reason to believe to be in all respects truthful. It is a joint work in which one writer exhibits a good deal of research, while the other details the result of his practical observation at the Cape of Good Hope. No pains have been spared by Mr. Harting in consulting all the authorities who have treated of the ostrich, from Xenophon and the Old Testa- ment down to Professor Huxley and Mr. Blyth. Mr. De Mosenthal writes from all that fulness of knowledge with which a Consul-General and a Member of a Legislative Council in South. Africa may reasonably be credited. It seems that the spectacle of a complete assortment of ostrich feathers at the late Vienna Exhibition gave rise to many inquiries ; and the object of this volume is to respond to those calls by compiling a natural history of the ostrich family, and by showing how far it may be possible to increase and develop the traffic in the feathers, which are staple objects of commerce. Whether young ostriches can be turned out like hand-bred pheasants, or whether it will pay to set apart whole tracts of land in Europe for the rearing of these birds, is a question which must remain doubtful. Possibly some additional experience may enable an adventurous young Englishman, with 3000?. or 4000Z. of his own, to set up an ostrich-farm at the Cape, just as he would 12 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFIilOA. [Chap. start a coffee-plantation at Ceylon, or a tea-garden atDarjeeliiig or Cachar. Mr. Harting is at some pains to remove any misconception as to the domicile of origin of these birds. He shows that they are mentioned in tlie Bible, in classical authors, and by ancient and modern travellers in Arabia and Mesopotamia ; and that even to tbis day they are not extinct in the neighbourhood of Damascus. Xenophon, in the ' Anabasis,' several times writes of these " big sparrows," as some Greeks called them. The equivalent for ostrich in modern Persian is " shutur-murgh," or the " camel fowl." This is very like the Greek arpovdo- KdiJL7fko 62 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. CHAPTER VI. VOLUNTEER CAVALRY. All the Volimteer Cavalry paraded ou the occasion of my in- spection at King William's Town. I formed a high estimate of them. Many of the farmers had been non-commissioned officers in our cavalry regiments, and I clearly saw that their influence over the rest would be exercised for good if they were called upon for active service, and that, if only they would pay defer- ence to authority, they would be valuable in war. The Infantry Volunteers, composed of the young men of busi- ness in the city, would doubtless defend it with determination ; but their services need not be relied upon for any concentrated oparations at a distance, as they cannot leave their homes. The corps that eventually did valuable service in the Galeka Land Campaign were principally recruited in the large cities, but they were not comp jsed of those members who had formerly been enrolled in the Volunteer ranks, or of the young well-to-do shopmen. It became apparent that in case of need the colony lacked a force upon which it could rely to put down incipient rebellion. I forcibly represented this to the Government. I recommended a militia upon the Canadian model, as a ready and inexpensive method for meeting any difficulties that might arise. Already the frontier settlers were becoming uneasy, as from the manners of the natives they foresaw the coming struggle. A very large sale of firearms, with but slender restrictions, had been going on ; the black man was arming — for what purpose VI.] FIELD SPORTS FOE SOLDIERS. 53 it was scarcely difficult to divine. There was but little or no game in the country, the reckless and wasteful habits of the savage having destroyed it. My warnings, which were yearly repeated, were however little heeded, being met with repeated assurances that there never would be another Kafir war ; and as to arms, that the assegai was far more dangerous in the hands of the native than a musket. How sadly the reverse has been proved in the late war, which has destroyed many a happy homestead! How few have fallen or been injured by the assegai ! how many brave men have been shot down by the musket! Early on the following morning the hounds met within a few miles of King William's Town. We had an excellent run of an hour and a half, killing one buck. Believing in the value of field sports to military men, I have always done my utmost to encourage them. They strengthen the nerves, evoke courage, give effect to natural intelligence, and are much better than loitering round the billiard table, or lounging on the parades or streets of a town. It is most satisfactory to see the general acceptation of these sentiments throughout England. Seme are even in favour of giving marks to phy- sical excellence in competitive examinations, and net treating mental acquirements as the only tests of fitness for military service. Towards the end of the week, under the auspices of the Civil Commissioner, Mr. Eose Innes, an interesting and, to me, novel event took place. A native buck hunt was organised in the Peric Bush, an outlying portion of the Amatola range, rendered memorable by its military and historical recollections. The magistrate gave permission to certain chiefs to assemble their men for the purpose of beating the bush for bucks. Two thousand Kafirs joined in the hunt. The arrangement was that thev should drive the forest for throe davs — enconi- 54 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFItlCA. [Chap. passing a large extent of country, so that on the third day, when the game was supposed to be driven to a centre, the English officers and other invited guests being posted in ad- vantageous positions might have a good chance of killing them. The produce of the three days' chase was about a hundred and twenty head of different species, but only two or three of these fell to the guns of the English sportsmen. The manner in which the natives hunted them was this : No sooner was a buck discovered in the bush than the Kafirs quickly formed a ring round it, gradually tightening the cordon so as to mob the animal in the centre. As they were dexterous Avith the assegai and knobkerrie at short distances, it was easily despatched. They immediately lighted a fire and, after a very superficial cooking, they ate the game then and there. This will account for tlie very short range of ground that was got over during the day, as parties of natives were killing, cooking, and eating the product of the chase in turn, and little was brought out of the forest but the skins and horns. When the hunt was concluded, these savages treated us to a war-dance. Their heated bodies, begrimed with blood, added in no small degree to the diabolical picture in this deep- wooded glen, which became the scene of muc]i bloodshed towards the termination of the war. It is difficult for one who has not visited South Africa to realise the labour of threading one's way through its thorny jungles, but this became better understood when the Kafirs, under Sandilli, subsequently ensconced themselves in these fastnesses. On my way home I was struck by the want of costume of the natives. The men were ploughing and cultivating their fields entirely in a state of nature. The women were simply attired in a tiny apron, rather prettily adorned with beads. The weather was hot, and no doubt long habit had caused them to consider this garb as suitable as well as pleasant. VI.] THE PURCHASE OF QUNS BY THE BLACKS. 55 Before leaving King William's Town I had ample opportu- nities of conversing with those who were well acquainted with the natives both within the colony and in the semi-indepeudent states beyond. The general impression was that the natives would not settle down without at least one more trial of their strength, that the last war was only remembered by the old men, and that the young chiefs now growing into manhood felt themselves quite equal to the white man. An opinion prevailed that we were afraid of them, and desired to court and conciliate them. Otherwise why did we allow them to extort such enormous wages for working on the railroad, two and sixjjence and three shilHiigs a day, when the current rate throughout the frontier, previous to these Government works, had not been more than one shilling ? And why did we allow to purchase arms and ammunition ? This was an exceedingly dangerous state of things, and there were few on the frontier who did not feel anxiety. Men of experience and in high position all stated their conviction that mischief was brewing. Generally the Government policy of allowing the natives to buy guns promiscuously was condemned by those resident on the frontier. But a sort of infatuation possessed the people in the West and the Colonial IMinistry. The Prime Minister stated in his speech at Sir John Coode's public entertainment that " the frontier newspapers made these assertions as attacks against the Ministry, and that the farmers on the frontier had grown to be cowards ! " Eestrictious against the possession of arms were enacted, but they were so defective as not to be capable of ex[)lanation by the highest law officers of the colony. In the opinion of some, it was even lawful to kill a native who, being armed and carrying no licence, attempted to resist disarmament ; but others contended that this oflence could only be dealt with by a lengthened process of law, and })unished with a very small 56 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. fine. The law was carried out in so lax a manner that Kafirs on all sides (whether by permission or not) obtained arms, and it was scarcely necessary that muskets slionld be sold by traders under fictitious names, like that by which they were known to the Kafirs, '' Baboons' thighs." On Friday, the 22nd of May, we left King William's Town. At Fort Cunynghame and Grey town we came upon a large number of Gaika Kafirs, who had come from their location to enjoy themselves with Cape brandy, at the canteen or shop. Numbers of them were lying on the ground, each with his bottle beside him. The facility with which these untamed savages can obtain anv amount of villainous drink is one of the most fruitful sources of danger. Some of the chiefs, being aware of the evil, forbid canteens in their locations ; and have repeatedly re- quested that the same prohibition should be extended among the adjoining districts. The answer of authority has always been *' that the natives should place a moral restraint upon themselves, and not imbibe more than is beneficial ; and that trade cannot be impeded simply because it may engender evil consequences amongst the natives." At the Dohne toUbar, some few miles beyond Greytowu, the Chief Saudilli met me by invitation. He was a tall, good- looking man, and it is surprising how young he seemed for his age, more especially as he is reputed to be continually under the influence of liquor. He was delighted with the present I made him of a large tartan rug, but he begged for some spirits; and he asked for sixpence from each of my staff. I cannot believe that the request for so trifling a sura was made solely with the object of obtaining means for the temporary enjoyment of a bottle of " Cape Smoke." I imagine it was as a sort of recognition of his superiority before the bar of native opinion, so that those about should see that he received a sort of tribute even from the officers of the white men in the colony. VL] BLANKETS FOR KAFIBS. 57 The next time I met Sanclilli was at G-reytovvn, where he was enjoying himself at the canteen with a circle of friends. My son took a very good likeness of him there. I have never seen him since, although I frequently hoped to have done so as a prisoner in Robben Island. His acts of rebellion justly entitled him to be lodged there. Towards the end of the war this wretched chief was shot in his retreat at the Perie Bush. On the borders of Sandilli's location there were five canteens in about thirty-five miles of road. The sale of spirits in these houses in the aggregate was considered to amount to about two hundred and fifty gallons in the week, &nd it was stated that at least 2000Z. passed over each small bar in the course of the year. We here first came upon the gennine Gaika Kafirs. They do not now generally use the karofs, or prepared skins of the tiger, wild deer, or fox, but adopt our bhmkets. They manipu- late them in their own special way by mixing a quantity of red clay with grease, with which they thickly smear the blanket. By this process it acquires some of the properties of the skin karofses which it has replaced. It keeps out the cold, renders the covering fdmost waterproof, and makes it last very much longei*. The red clay is also stated to have the effect of protecting the persons of the wearers from vermin, and the ochre colour has not an unpleasant appearance, particu- larly on the women, whose bodies resemble a well-cleaned copper kettle. Many of the latter, however, now partially adopt our ladies' dress. A storekeeper at Peeltown told me that he excited the cupidity of a Kafir by telling him, that if he refused to purchase a lady's bodice at \l. 17s. he would give it to his own wife. Upim this the native said "No; it having been offered to him he had a right to buy it," paid the money at once and took it away to his own location. 58 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. The Bontebok flats consist of excellent agricultural lands, but they are not now tilled, or very partially so. Some years since a Company was started for the purpose of establishing farming and horse-breeding on them. The finest of mangels and turnips were grown, and excellent horses of first-class English blood were bred; but all enterprise in the Cape Colony was then stagnant, the Diamond Fields had not been discovered, there was no call for horses, no war to recpiire them in India or Europe, and but little demand for fat mutton. Thus the enterprise fell through, involving its originators in a very considerable loss. We stopped for the night at Pusey's Hotel, immediately over the Kei river. Here we met with some gold diggers returning from Pilgrims' Kest in the Transvaal. They showed us some nuggets, each three or four ounces in weight, averaging in value about 4Z. sterling per ounce ; but they all seemed to agree that the labour of extracting them was out of all proi)or- tion to their value. In this opinion a subsequent visit that I made to these far distant gold regions induced me to concur. All the ground we were now traversing became the arena of constant contention during the war of 1878. We were on the borders of the Amatolas, to the kloofs and forests of v\hich the Kafirs are sure to retire in the event of being pressed. A few miles beyond Tylden, and near a station which was occupied for their young reeruits by the mounted police, we came to the Krauz or rocky defiles, renowned for the drawings of the Bushmen. These diminutive people have long since retired from this portion of the country or have been exterminated. Their hand was against every one. They appear to have been irre- claimable, and the hand of every one was against them. These pigmy savages never erected houses or kraals wherein to shelter themselves, but made use of caves in tlie sides of the moun- tains. They held ready near the mouth of these holes a bush, VI. J THE BUSHMEN'S TiOGK DRAWINGS. 59 which they dragged after them when they entered ; peering through tlie intervening spaces from beliind, they readily fired their small poisoned arrows at any one who might be passing, with deadly effect ; nor was it often easy to discover whence these arrows came. As long as the Bushmen (Bosjesmans, as they were called by the Dutch) were in this country it is said that no man could travel with safety. They stealthily approached when least expected and, with murderous aim, shot an arrow into their victim. When they could not steal or carry off his horse, they shot at the animal, which at first showed no signs of injury, but ultimately, with fatal certainty, it had to be left on the Yeldt to perish. When the traveller left, the horse was eaten by these incarnate savages, while the flesh was yet warm and quivering. Very few are now to be met with in the colony, as nearly the last of them were said to have been destroyed about the year 1871 by an expeditionary force under Malappa, a son of Moshesh, the Basuto, in the low^er spurs of the Drakensberg. The men would not surrender, and were killed. Some of the women were caught and sent into the colony, where they were apprenticed to farmers. How strange it is that these creatures, so low in the social scale, should have possessed artistic skill superior to most savages ! They have portrayed on the rough rocks scenes of the chase and of native customs with such vigour, with a few colours of so permanent a character, that the spectator might take them for rough first sketches by some untrained artist, executed only a short while since. Each animal is characteristically rendered, and the manner of chasing and securing it, with the figures of those who assisted in running it down, are faithfully shown. Possessing such admirable talents in so high a degree, these people were yet incapable of attempting the erection of any 60 MT COMMAND JN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. description of house, but sheltered themselves in such caverns and rocky niches as nature happened to provide. Some of these drawings include forty or fifty figures, correctly representing the chase of the lion, the eland, the rhinoceros, the gnu, the blesbok, and many other wild animals, all vigorously drawn and coloured in a species of distemper. These little people aie described as wonderful hunters, their sense of sight being scarcely surpassed by that of the eagle, or their sense of hearing by that of the wolf. Their hardihood and endurance far surpassed that of any animal of the field, while their cunning and adroitness was only equalled by the fox. Queenstown is a pleasant town. It was originally laid out hexagonally, somewhat in the form of an American House of Correction, so that every approach could be readily observed, and a cannon so placed that it could be turned on any avenue of attack. This plan was abandoned as the town increased, so that a fire can now be readily directed upon the market-place, the central point, from the houses which have been built out- side it. As a stronghold it is badly situated, being built immediately below a commanding line of hills. It seems to be progressing in wealth, and the railway, which will reach it in a few yeais, will cause it to develop rapidly, especially if the harbour at East London should prove a success. In that case the line "will probably be extended to the Free State by way of Aliwal ; though if it were made to pass by Bergersdorp, the necessity of constructing a bridge over the Caledon river would be avoided. It was with some anxiety that I called for the account at the hotel at Queenstown ; but I was reassured when I found that only 5?. was asked for myself and staff for the night, more especially as I had been told that no less than 105Z. had been charged to the Duke of Edinburgh for one night's lodging, with entertainment for himself and staff. VL] HOTEL CHARGES IN THE COLONY. 61 It is frequently supposed by hotel keepers that the expenses of all officers and Government servants are met by the Govern- ment, and in all newly-settled colonies the Government is universally regarded as a tree from which everybody is entitled to pluck fruit. The charges at Queenstown are known to be exorbitant, but I do not think that they are generally so on the eastern side of the colony. On the western, amongst the Dutch, they are so, for the English officer is specially looked upon there as fair game, whom it is right to spoil as far as possible. It is reported that a late Governor, when travelling in the west, was charged 20?. for a common breakfast at an hotel'; he remarked to the landlord that eggs must be very scarce and dear in those parts. The answer was, '' No, but Governors are both scarce and dear, and it is a pity that they are not more frequently to be met with ! " Loyalty to her Majesty is proverbial throughout the colony. In Queenstown the respect for. our Queen was so great that the barber refused to desecrate her birthday by cutting my hair. 02 MY COMMAND JN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. CHAPTER VII. OUT SPAN — LOCUSTS. Early on tlie morning of the 24tli of May we left Queenstown, and outspanned upon the Veldt.- To outspan is a very expressive Africander phrase, and is continually in the mouth of all travellers. Should the day's drive be over forty miles of road, and if this is to go on for some hundreds of miles, it is indispensable to be most watchful of your cattle. It is, therefore, advisable to start always, even in the winter season, by 6 A.M. A regular breakfast must not be thought of, but a cup of coffee, which there is sometimes a difficulty in obtaining at that early hour, must content the traveller. After having driven rather slowly for two hours, some convenient place should be selected near a river for the Outspan, or taking out the mules from the carriage. No sooner are the animals released, than each selects a soft part in the sandy road and proceeds to have a roll ; nor is the driver perfectly satisfied unless they severally turn themselves right over, and roll on both sides. Persons experienced in African travelling look upon this roll as even more valuable than food, and if the beast omits it, he is considered to show signs of not being up to his work. There is one point which requires especial attention in South Africa. Both horses and mules, but especially the former, are subject to looseness, which, if neglected, is almost sure to lead immediately to the most serious consequences. It is requisite, therefore, to be provided with medicine against this common VIT.] A DAY'S TREK. C3 trouble. Some prefer a mixture of two ounces of opium witli one of cutcha; this is placed in a soda-water bottle, half a bottle being given when the horse is affected. Others provide themselves with Brown's chlorodyne, and give as a dose half a small bottle, mixed with brandy. While the horses are being taken care of by the drivers, a certain duty is allotted to each of the party. Some, with small hunting-axes, cut wood, if there be any, and if there bo not, they collect in sacks the dry, hard manure, plenty of which is sure to be at hand : others make the fire ; wliile the cook, who is indispensable in all such expeditions, cuts up the meat, prepares the pots, boils the water, and makes the soup or curry. The whole of this, from the moment of halting to that of the sharp crack of the thong whip, the signal of departure, may be got through completely in two hours, but no idleness must be shown by any one. The horses or mules being refreshed will travel even better than before, and three more hours can be run without another halt. Thus thirty miles may probably have been accomplished, when it will be wise to outspan a second time ; a piece of bread and cheese may be taken, and after a delay of three-quarters of an hour, the second iuspan should take place, after which the remaining ten miles can be readily and easily accomplished before nightfall. For very long journeys it is my opinion that mules are to be preferred to horses ; they certainly do not travel so rapidly, but they are much hardier and not so liable to sickness. They can more readily stand deprivation of food and water, and they bear cold infinitely better. It is frequently necessary to tie them to the cart at night, witli no shelter, but slight covering and scanty food ; as the weight and space taken up by their clothing and forage will scarcely allow more than one sheet for each mule and one good feed. 64 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. The mule is of a muc-h less excitable temperament than the horse. He is usually ready to eat as soon as he is outspauned and lias had his roll. This is by no means the case with all horses, as a nervous animal will decline food perhaps for hours, so that he soon loses condition and succumbs to fatigue. During this day's trek we encountered an enormous flight of locusts ; they were smaller in size than those I had seen in India, but, like their Hindoo cousins, they cause frightful destruction. Each flight was not more than eighty yards continuously, but always in the same direction; the swarm alighting for a minute or so probably to take a bite of grass, and then recommencing its journey eastwards. The natives in the neighbouring country of Basuto land catch locusts in large numbers. They cook and pound them into powder, which, when well dried, will keep a considerable time. It is looked upon as excellent eating, and very much relished; I confess I thought il bitter, resembling very old caviare of the mullet, but not sturgeon caviare. We now gained the foot of the Stormberg range of mountains. The cold was piercing, ice being about three- quarters of an inch thick upon all the pools of water. It is frequently imagined by those at home that South Africa is one continuous sandy plain. There can be no greater mistake. Probably there is no country in the world which is more diversified than South Africa. Mountains of stupendous height rise above plains of great extent. There are sterile tracts of sandy country, fertile slopes of great richness and beauty, forests, rivers, and waterfalls, and, in short, every description of scenery. In all the small South African inns the cofiee is most execrable, butter quite unknown, preserved milk invariably used, beef-steaks like leather, and the " bradie " the universal resource. " Bradie " would appear to contain every conceivable VIL] DIRT DEVILS. 65 edible, chopped up fine and baked into a sort of forced-meat pudding. It is to be regretted that our Cape colonies are so backward in conveniences for travelling, particularly in rest-houses and in means of movement. In the most distant parts of India the Government charge themselves with erecting rest-houses, where the traveller is sure to find a clean room, a bedstead, a table, and a sofa, and care is taken that fire and a supply of water for tea should be provided at small expense. At the larger and more frequented stages, fowls, bread, and other food can be obtained at fixed prices. On the following day we saw a good many sand whirlwinds, or " dirt devils." In the southern hemisphere these are stated always to circle from left to right, whereas in the nortliern their course is from right to left. As far as I could see, this statement was verified on every occasion. On the 27tli of May we left again early, encountering droves of oxen coming from the Orange Free State. All of them were in very poor condition, lung sickness, it was said, having made great havoc amongst the cattle. It was reported that red water, a disease ■which had first shown itself in Natal, and had been so fatal there as almost to destroy transport trafiic, had broken out on the northern side of the Caledon River. The only cure appears to be to inoculate the tail of the animal with the virus of the disease. This causes the greater part of the appendage to drop off, but it saves the beast, and tail- less oxen are consequently everywhere to be met with. Some of the Kafirs are so proud of the oxen that they would prefer to see them die rather than they should lose their tails. Hence the difficulty of stamping out the disorder. Aliwal is certainly a rising town, and the bridge which is now being constructed over the Orange River will add very much to its importance aud wealth, as a large portion of the trade with the Free State now passes through the place. F 66 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. It derived its name from the victory of Sir Harry Smith, who was Governor of the Cape, and had previously commanded a division of the army on the Sutlej, defeating the Sikhs at the battle of Aliwal. Having been told of the natural warm spring running into a tepid lake near the town, I determined to visit it. After about two miles drive we reached this curious lake. There were two or three basins of water, the largest of which appeared to be about fifty yards across. In its centre there was a floating bath- house. The water in these basins was perfectly clear, so that the minutest grain of sand was readily discernible at the bottom. Its temperature was, as well as I could judge, about 90 degrees Fahrenheit, a most agreeable warmth for a bath. The depth of these pools I should judge to be about fifteen feet. We bathed, my staff officers jumping in and swimming about in the clear water. The hot sulphurous vapours were, however, somewhat overpowering, and I found I could not remain in it very long. The after effect to us all was a severe headache. These baths will no doubt some day be much frequented. Since our visit I have been told that bath-houses and lodffinof- houses have been erected, and are now occupied. There was a grand cricket match going on at Aliwal North. The young men from distant places were assembled, and a musical entertainment was held in the evening. There is a very extensive native settlement of Tamboukies to the east, which is called Herschell, to which I shall again allude when I describe our return from the Free State to Port Elizabeth. On the following day we crossed the river by the pout, which is placed somewhat lower down than the ford or drift at which the waggons cross. It took us a considerable time to embark our carts and mules and reach the opposite bank. A waggon that was fording the river lower down was halted midstream, and could not move, although thirty-two bullocks were attached to it. VII.] INTO TItE ORANGE FREE STATE. 67 We were now in tlie Orange Free State, a country noted for its flatness, and towards evening we arrived at the Caledon Eiver, about thirty-two nules distant from Aliwal. Here we found a small hotel kept by an Englishman, who had come to the Free State for his health. He had brought his young wife, and, as he was delighted at meeting people from the old country, he was most anxious to oblige us. He much regretted that he could not make us more comfortable, as his furniture had not yet arrived, and all tluit he could offer us for supper was a few tins of salmon and some black bread. His wife appeared to be very much above her position, and talked very feelingly of her home in Loudon, which she seemed deeply to regret ever having quitted. She said she had come against her parents' wishes but cared for nothing but to tend her husband, cind to let him try the air of the Free State in the neighbourhood of Bloem- fontein, so highly recommended for pulmonary complaints. The next day we crossed the Caledon river by a punt, but had not left it more than a mile when the pole of our cart gave a growl, then smashed, and in an instant, falling backward, our feet were in the air. The mules did not regard this as at all unusual or out of the way. They stood passively, cocking their ears and wagging their tails, not objecting to their temporary respite from labour. Crawling out we soon found ourselves in the road ; but here was a predicament — a bioken pole, the widespread veldt, and no house near. A little consideration decided me to attach the broken cart in rear of the sound one, so as to Ibrni a sort of four-wheeled spider. The plan was quite successful. Six mules were thus compelled to draw the two carts, while four mules ran loos?. Every thoughtful and experienctd driver in South Africa is cMreful at the commencement of his journey to be supplied with rims, or strong leather thongs. These aie narrosv strips of untanned leather, cut from the hides of bul- locks. They are extremely tough, and much more durable F 2 68 MY COMMAND JN SOVTH AFRICA. [Chap. tlian rope. We were well supplied with these useful articles, which enabled us once more to take the road. Fortunately a farmer passed us. His spring cart only contained his boy and himself. On seeing our difficulty he kindly offered me a seat to Smithfield, which was about ten miles distant. My first care on arrival was to see the wheelwright, and get him to form a new pole as soon as possible from a stout tree of assegai wood. By the time the carts had arrived, very considerable progress had been made towards our refit. This wheelwright and blacksmith was the only workman at these trades in Smithfield. He had arrived on the previous day from the town of George in the " old colony " (as the colony of the Cape of Good Hope is familiarly called). He said that his brother had made him a present of a sufficient sum of money to find his way up, and that now he should soon be a made man. His brother had arrived in the colony only a few years since and had "gone in," as he expressed it, "for ostrich farming." He had been fortunate, and was now the owner of about 200 birds, the aggregate value of which could not be less than 2000?. This man made a new pole in a few hours, and although it was not quite so smart looking as the one made in King William's Town, it served every purpose. It was very rough but strong. In fact it was little more than a young tree fitted to the socket in the cart. For this we were required to pay 3Z., and we considered ourselves fortunate in getting this rough stick even for that sum. The wages of artisans of very common abilities are very high in the Free State. The daily rate of carpenters and brick- layers was IZ. ; blacksmiths about the same price. The sum demanded for shoeing a horse was 1?., while the price of living, taking it all round, was about the same as it is at home. Thus, if a man is sober and industrious, he is sure to succeed very quickly in the Free State. We spent the next night in the open veldt, lying on the VI r.] A TB EEL ESS COUNTRY. C9 ground under our little tent. It was bitterly cold. The water in our tent froze, and there was no means of making a fire. The country is entirely devoid of wood ; not one single tree did M'e meet with during the whole day's journey, and we could obtain no kraal dung. Wood for building purposes is at a fabulous price, and no one could be induced to commit such a sacrilege as to burn a log. All fires are made of cow-dung, which is an excellent substitute for coal, provided it can be obtained in sufficient quantities. We were glad to inspan on the 30th and be ofi". Shortly after we passed the farm of Jacob Tolyards, where we purchased a loaf of bread for 2s. Qd. It is singular how phlegmatic the Dutch farmers are. It might be tliought that men so far removed from the world would be glad to have a word with a stranger, but they do not wish to move ten miles from their own door, nor to see one who comes from ten miles beyond it. The country in the Orange Free State consists chiefly of wide open plains. Rifles are now so common in the colony that the deer have no rest within a considerable range of the roads. The game, however, is so far privileged, because the black man is seldom allowed to carry arms. We did not meet with a single native kraal or village, for the Boers forcibly drove out all the aborigines when they took possession. Bloemfontein. On entering the city of Bloemfontein, we saw on our right a handsome monument dedicated to those who fell in the Basuto war. It is conspicuously placed on rising ground above the town in the immediate neighbourhood of the fort. A lightning conductor was attached to every building. The storms in summer are both frequent and dangerous, the hail- stones being stated to be of immense size, frequently pene- 70 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFIilCA. [Chap. tratinj^ even the cormgated iron roofs of the buildings, and beating down sheep in large nnmbers when in the open without shelter. We were directed by the officer who met us to drive to the Free State Hotel, wliere we were most comfortably lodged. After breakfast we attended at the Church of England Cathedral, a very handsome building, to which is attached a comfortable roomy house for the Bishop of Bloemfontein. The service was conducted on the High Church system, the vestments of the clergy being handsomely decorated, and astonishing the simple Lutherans or Presbyterians, who from curiosity witnessed the service. Mr. Brand, the President, received me with great kindness. He expressed himself courteously, but firmly, as regards the British Government on the subject of our annexation of the Diamond Fields. There is but little doubt that we were obliged to take that step. On the first discovery of these rich deposits, people from England, America, and the colonies of the Cape of Good Hope and Natal, at once flocked to them in large numbers. These wild lands were at that time very thinly inhabited by stolid Dutch Boers, who received the interlopers with fear and dislike. It would cause too long a digression to enter upon the merits of the controversy whether these farms belonged by right to the Free State or to Great Britain. Circumstances compelled the Governor of Cape Colony to take them under liis rule, other- wise perfect anarchy and riot must have reigned. The Dutcli had not the power of controlling the inhabitants, and had we not stepped in, not only would the Free State Government have been defied by these temporary visitors from the four quarters of the world, but the Republic itself would have been annexed hy them. Thus a difficulty on the borders of the Cape Colony had arisen which it would have been most dangerous to have permitted to continue. A settlement of this mncli-vexed VII.] TABA-UNCIIU. 71 question has, however, now been arrived at, in a most satis- factory manner, a payment of more than 100,000^. having been made to the Free State in compensation for any supposed claims they might have had in respect to Griquahuid. This sum is in addition to another 100,000?. paid by our Government to the persons who first purchased the farm upon which the New Rush Mine at Kimberley now is. Mr. Brand, the President, is the son of Sir Christopher Brand, the late Speaker of the House of Assembly at Cape Town. He is much liked and highly respected throughout the Free State and in the colony. In the afternoon we visited the castle. It is somewhat rude in structure, apparently very little having been done to it since it was originally built by the English. From the castle there is a fine view of Taba- Unchu, a mountain about forty miles distant, the intervening country being a perfect plain. This monntain stands boldly out, a very prominent feature and noted landmark for miles round. It is from this direction that the attacks were made upon the settlers in Bloemfontein during their war with the Basutos, and many an anxious gaze was then directed from the castle to see if the enemy were advancing to endeavour to destroy the city. When they read accounts of the prosperity which settlers enjoy, those who reside in quiet England scarcely bear in mind the anxieties which they must face. T^oo frequently their prosperity is only to be obtained by many a sleepless hour of watching the movements of a savage foe, whose discordant yells may suddenly wake them from dream-land, in the quiet hours of the night, to see their houses and homesteads in flames, their cattle driven off. They are fortunate if they are not left lifeless corpses on their own freeholds. The fort contains some very useful Whitworth breech-loading cannon, which are stated to have proved most eftectual in the Basuto campaign. 72 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. On the following morning I attended tlie President to the House of Assembly, where a debate upon education was pro- ceeding. It was conducted in the Dutch language. I was informed that it teruiinated by a vote of a very large sum towards the advancement of schools throughout the State. A liberal grant was also made this year towards the construction of public buildings in Bloemfontein. Handsome structures are very numerous in the city. Amongst these, scliools for all denominations and for both sexes predominate, but banks and private residences are progressing with great rapidity, and my subsequent visits assured me of the future prosperity of the place, from the immense advantages which had accrued to it during the great and increasing development of trade, and the benefits it derived from the Diamond Fields. So great has been the advance of the Free State in late years, that one pound bank notes, there called *'blue books," which are now at par, in 1872 were selling at lis. Qcl. each. After the country was annexed by Sir Harry Smith, the value of property increased, but when it was again relin- quished, on orders from home, its prosperity was grievously retarded. The climate of Bloemfontein is especially noted as being highly beueficial in pulmonary complaints, and the best physicians in Europe speak in glowing terms of its restorative powers. Most remarkable instances are quoted in which patients, who, on their arrival, were hardly able to crawl about, have, after a residence of a few months, been completely restored. Each year the number who seek this dry atmo- sphere is increasing. It has been found requisite to build lodgings and to make arrangements upon a European model for the convenience of visitors. The difficulties to be over- come are the distance from England to South Africa, the remoteness of Bloemfontein from Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, and Natal, the desperately bad roads to be traversed, the VII.] A SOUTH AFJil CAN HEALTH BESOBT. 73 primitive nature of the conveyances, and the great expense of the journey. One disadvantage to a temporary residence is the extravagant price of everything. This can be readily understood ^vith European articles, especially as the charge for carriage from Cape Town amounts at least to 6c?. the pound weight, and the customs duty (which goes to the benefit of the Cape Colonial Government) is equal to about 12 per cent, on each article ad valorem. This will not account, however, for the high prices of the commonest necessaries of life. Meat, though of very inferior quality, costs as much as in England, while bread is double the price, and butter from 5s. to 6s. per pound. Veget- ables are so scarce that 2s. Qd. is generally asked for a cabbage, potatoes cost about 4^d. to Qd. a pound, and eggs are not unfrequently M. each. I \\as told that a gentleman of this city, who understood gardening, gained at least 300Z. a year from the sale of vegetables from a garden not more than one acre in extent. What is the reason for such high prices where land is of unlimited extent, and boundless acres of pasturage are to be seen on all sides? It is owing to the general apathy of the Boers, and the lack of energetic European settlers. The Dutch themselves are perfectly contented to live on coarse meal dampers ; and buck venison, shot on the veldt, serves in place of beef or mutton. The markets are generally very distant from their home- steads, and the sale of everything which costs them trouble to produce is somewhat uncertain. Heretofore they have not been accustomed to be paid in coin for what they have to sell. Added to this, the price of garden seed is very high, the cost of all utensils used in manufacturing equally so, and the more pressing claims of their farms, such as banking rivers and herding sheep, leave them no opportunity for a more advan- tageous outlay of their time and capital. 74 MY COMMAND JN SOUTH AFBTCA. [Chap. YIT. In 1854 about 50 bales of wool left Bloemfontein for the southern markets. In 1874 10,000 bales were sent soutli. The imports of that year into tlie Free State were valued at 5UO,OO0Z. ; the exports 600,000/. The custom duties on all these imports went to the advantage of the Cape Colony and Natal. ( 75 ) CHAPTER VII r. DUTCH CHARACTERISTICS — SPORT. The Orange Free State contains a large Dutch population, and in its wilder parts may be found true specimens of the Dutcli Boer. The habits of the Boer are very primitive. I visited the farm of a Dutchman called Petrus Lombard, who when young had trecked with his family from the colony. Old Lombard must have weighed at least twenty-five stone, and appeared to be in the last stage of dropsy. The house, far from a large one, was crammed with women and children of all ages and colours, and in every stage of nudity. What clothes they possessed were of the old Dutch kind of cloth or greasy sheep-skin. Such shouting, squalling, and holloing I think I never heard. Every now and then the voice of old Lombard rose above the din, calling for brandy. We supped upon our own provisions, and were lodged for the night in an outhouse, where the skins of lately killed buck, beans, corn, and bacon were stored, and where what sleep we could get was disturbed by the host's voice calling, " Sarah, bring water." I ought here, once for all, to acknowledge the civility of the gentlemen of the Orange Free State. On many occasions they sent their carriages with beautiful horses for miles to meet us, and on our arrival at their farms they spared no pains to make our stay pleasant. 76 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. Next perhaps to tlie minister, whose position, both in the western part of tlie Colony and in the Free State, is quite supreme, the district surgeon is the man of greatest impor- tance. There is nothing which a Dutchman looks upon as so requisite as physic. He will send hundreds of miles to procure it, and although extremely penurious in all otlier ways, nig- gardly, in fact, to the last penny, he will not scruple at the slightest symptom of illness to send for the doctor. Should a surgeon once obtain repute, deservedly or otherwise, his fortune is certainly made. The most ridiculous circumstances often ensure to him this good luck, and the amount of money he receives yearly is sometimes very surprising. I was told that a medical practitioner lost his credit by simply prescribing the use of liberal ablutions to an elderly lady. Her husband was dreadfully angry, making his remon- strance in the following terms : Young man, you are a stranger in this country, and recom- mend new customs, which are contrary to usages which we know to be the true rules for health. I have been now married to ray ' vrow ' for thirty-five years, during which time water has scarce touched her body. It is not, sir, by your persuasion that such inroads can be made into our manners; you are ignorant of our mode of life and do not understand our wants. About four years ago a storekeeper received some glass balls about the size of eggs amongst his fancy goods from England. Soon after, a rather tiresome woman, the wife of a Dutch farmer came to his store. To get rid of her he gave her one of these cut balls, telling her that he had found it on her husband's farm. Tlie old woman took it to her lord and master, who at once felt persuaded it w^s a diamond, and that he was possessed of great riches, as he knew from the size and biilliancy of the stone, that it must be enormously valuable. He was ill for VIII.] A DEER HUNT IN THE FREE STATE. 11 three days with deliglit, and then drove over to Wynberg to dispose of it, enhancing its value to the storekeeper there by showing him that it was found ah-eady cut. No persuasion could convince him that he had been made the victim of a hoax. There can be no doubt, however, that stray diamonds are occasionally found. Mr. Harker told us that he had purchased one of five carats weight, which he had every reason to believe was found on the veldt, not far from his own house. Some little time before our arrival a German conjuror had visited this distant little village, when the Doppers were so alarmed at his tricks that they left the room in which he was exhibiting, and assembling in prayer, entreated to be relieved of the devil who had come amongst them. In the neighbourhood of Lady Brand (the name of a town- ship) there is an extensive cave in which the mission resided for some years before the church and station were built. The labours of the missionaries were the more admired by the natives on account of their devotion to their duties, and the acceptance of much privation. It may interest my readers if I describe a day's sliooting in the Orange Free State which I enjoyed at Mr. Wessel's farm, about sixteen miles from Wynberg. We formed a line, and about twelve in number we rode up a gentle rise in the plain, passing over a low range of hills. In a few minutes we were within sight of a herd of game. It was the first time that I had seen blesbok or wildebeest in any number. The scene filled me with surprise and anxiety. Quietly feeding at a distance of 800 yards there were at least 500 of these two kinds of large deer. I endeavoured to profit by the instruction I had received both as to the manner of approaching them, and as to the particular time for firing at them. But I own that excitement made me rather a bad pupil. 78 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. Starting then at a gallop we rode for tlie herd, wliicli at first, coufusfd by our sudden approach, stood still and stared, giving us an opportunity of getting still nearer to thoni. Selecting their leader, they sprang into motion. It was impos- sible to believe that they were going at a more rapid rate than a canter, so unwieldy did the stride of the wildebeest appear, and so ungainly that of the blesbok. In reality they were fast making away from us, when, at a word from Wessel, every- one jumped off his horse, and selecting his beast, fired. Loading again as rapidly as possible, we galloped after them at full speed. A considerable number of blesbok came across me. Forget- ful of my lesson to allow them to pass so as to enable me to fire at them from behind, I shot at their flank, when to my surprise, although they were not more than 200 yards distant not one fell. I reloaded and fired four or five shots bef ,re they were out of range, but with the same effect. Spring- ing on my horse, I again followed in pursuit. What was my astonishment, in galloping over the ground in precisely the direction which my ball had taken, to see a brawny black fellow spring out of the low bush, armed with a long " brown Bess." He had been hidden, and was waiting in hope that the herd would pass close to his lair. He made spasmodic signs to me to show that my bullets had gone on either side of him and within a few inches of his head. I believe that had they even struck him they would liave had little more effect than they had upon the wildebeest, for his head looked stronger than that of an ox. His dogs were covered with blood. No doubt they had seized one of our wounded bucks, and brought it down, and their master had concealed it in the bush until we should be gone. The Kafir had been hidden from my view by the immense herd of game through which I had fired, and which was running between us ; but he was a brave fellow, and by his grins one might VIIL] THE GUNS FOR CAPE DEER. 79 have imagined that he enjoyed the sliare I gave him of the sport as much as I did the portion which fell to me. How little did I then nnderstand the method of stalking these animals ! Further practice and a knowledge of their habits rendered it so familiar to me, that I could select to a perfect certainty the exact spot in the plain which the herd were sure to pass, and whicli, riding at a gallop, I could reach before their arrival. At this time my aide-de-camp killed a blesbok, and, as he Avas going to despatch it, a deadly snake, called here the " shop- strieker," or sheep-hitter, struck at him and then glided into the bush. Had it not been for the high riding boots which he wore, it would have wounded him, perhaps mortally. My want of success at the first gallop proved to me that I ought to have attended better to the advice of the Boers, not to fire until I got to the rear of the animals. Altliongh you may lose a little in actual distance, the chances of killing them are thus immensely increased ; for the bullet thus 'entering from the rear has less difficulty in reaching the heart. But the wildebest is a tough animal, and I consider that the express bullet of 450 (the military gauge) is too small generally to bring him down. I should much prefer the 500. Subse- quently, I killed many of these animals, but when wounded they generally gave me a run of two or three miles before 1 could ride them down. I seldom had one skinned that I did not find one old bullet in him, and frequently two and even three. I am convinced that the express bullet with a hollow point is not the bullet to obtain the game which is hit. The bullet expands and makes a wide wound, but in my opinion it is not heavy enough to bring down an animal larger than the small antelope. It wounds the larger ones and they no doubt even- tually die, but they are able to run for such a distance alter they are struck as to render the pursuit long and arduous. 80 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. Chap. and wooded countries deprive the sportsman of his chances of recovering them. Every day while we were hunting, our driver was employed in making " Beltong." This he did by cutting the meat of the blesbok and springbok into long slices and rubbing it with salt, then festooning it on a rim placed between the two carts and allowed it to dry in the sun and the cold dry wind. Beltong, when carefully made, is most excellent, especially that of the tender springbok. It is universally used on all journeys in South Africa, and when the wild deer cannot be procured, it is made of strips of beef, which I found quite as good. The Boers are also extremely clever at making a species of rusk, excellent in taste, which will keep for weeks. For an emigrant with some capital there is no part of South Africa which I think would be better than Wynberg. A very fine farm of about 6000 acres with some buildings on it could be purchased for about 2000Z. ; to stock it might cost perhaps lOOOZ. more ; say 500?. for horses, carts, &c., and 500Z. in hand. Thus a young man with a fortune of 4000Z. who possessed prudence and activity would be quite sure of a successful career if he undertook to settle in this part of the Free State. If fond of sport he could enjoy it to his heart's content. It would, however, be prudent for him to forego speculation until he had become well acquainted with the Dutch language, and the manners and customs of the people he is among. The settler must not expect an immediate return for his exertions in money, but he will secure a freedom from those cares and anxieties which encompass a parent whose increasing family and responsibilities bid him look to the future of those he holds most dear. Few people can imagine the quantity of antelopes which inhabit these plains, though no doubt they are rapidly diminish- ing. Mr. Adler told me that he had purchased more than 70,000 skins during the last year alone, and he was but a single Viri.] ANTELOPES. 81 inercliant. The aggref2;ato exportation of skins amounts to nearly one million in the year. These come generally now from the neighbourhood of Kronstadt or from eighty to a hundred miles north of Bloemfontein. The Westley Richard, and now the Martini-Henry, rille are very busily at work. Possibly within the next ten years not a single head of game will exist on this side of the Vaal river. Everywhere we went we found the plains strewed with the skulls of bles- bok and wildebeest, showing the thousands which must be destroyed yearly. 82 31 Y COMMAKD IN SOUTH AFFdCA. [Citap. CHAPTEK IX. BASUTO LAND. After leaving the Orange Free State we went to Basuto land. The Basutos are an interesting race of people and appear more advanced than the Kafir generally. Their late chief Moshesh, " the Shaver," so called because he not only symboli- cally but frequently in real fact shaved off the heads of his enemies, was a man of very considerable ability, and was considered a rare diplomatist. Like Ranjeed Sing, he stuck firmly by the English, and the deepest regret he ever expressed Avas about his war (in which he was anything but conquered) with Sir George Cathcart. On approaching Thaba Bosigo we were met by Masupa, the son of Letsi, the son of Moshesh. He was presented to me by Mr. Griffith, and he was at the head of 300 mounted men. They wore a sort of Dutch uniform, with a wide-awake hat in which was stuck a handsome ostrich feather ; many of his followers were dressed in blue cloth, with hats similarly adorned. These dresses they wear on rare occasions, but no Kafir feels really at home or comfortable unless he is robed in his kaross or blanket. Those whom circumstances have for years compelled continually to use European clothes return with eager haste to their blanket whenever it is possible to adopt it. At Thaba Bosigo we were kindly received at the French Protestant Mission Station. Their very comfortable house had IX.] THE LOVED ALE INSTITUTION. 83 been entirely gutted and destroyed by the Basutos during the war with the Free State Eepublic, but it had now been rebuilt and freshly furnished. A considerable number of pupils attended the school, prin- cipally females, but I failed to discover that they had any other employment than reading and singing psalms. No useful trade was taught them, so that in my opinion a civilising influence was wanting here. At the Catholic station on the other side of the mountain, instruction was given in weaving, cloth- making, and certain trades which could not fail to prove useful. The access to the mountain of Thaba Bosigo, the stronghold of Moshesh, is steep and difficult, and bade defiance to the attack of the Boers, though many brave attempts were made to take it by assault. The buildings upon it are now in ruins The Cape House of Assembly has passed a resolution with regard to Basuto land to the following effect : It is the opinion of this House that there should be established in Basuto land an industrial training school for the education of the Basutos and other natives in trades, handicrafts, and other occupations, upon the system as far as possible of that adopted at the Lovedale Institution, and further, that while the surplus revenues of Basuto land justify a sufficient pro- vision therefrom in aid of this establishment every effort should be made to secure that the Institution should in the future be self-supporting. In this the Lovedale Institution at Alice has been the chief example and now it is beginning to be recognised that the true way to tame a savage is to make him a useful artisan. . "We had come from Mapasa, and from the drift in tlie Caledon river by the same road which had been taken by Sir George Cathcart when he made his attack upon Moshesh in 1853. G 2 84 MY COMMAND JN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. The mountain, upon which the Kafirs attacked tlie 12tli Lancers, lay on our left hand. Had the Kafirs then been armed with rifles, Sir George would have had a very difficult task to have occupied the position by the road which he took, presenting as it did defensible points at every thousand yards. Sir George Cathcart had a noble mind and a courageous heart; but his career and his subsequent death point to a want of prudence, which certainly was exemplified on the occasion. He allowed his cavalry to become separated and disorganised in pursuit of cattle, and they drove the herds towards the river, until a portion of the troopers, getting entrapped in the ravines, were cut off by a very large mounted body of the enemy. Nothing remained but to cut their way through the Kafirs. This they gallantly did, but only to find that they were obliged to descend precipices or be sacrificed. Some succeeded in doing so, while others perished, and to this day the arms and dresses of some of those lancers who fell may be seen. The Kafirs, encouraged by success, then attacked the main body under the General himself, making repeated charges even up to the very muzzles of the two six-pounder guns, which he placed in a most excellent position to resist them. The steadiness of the infantry soldier now displayed itself, as he beat off their repeated assaults, and destroyed with grape the brave natives, who met their death with courage. At length they listened to the voice of their chief Moshesh and retired from the encounter. On the following day terms were arranged with Moshesh, who paid a fine which had been awarded against him by the Governor, and the army retraced its steps, the General being much pleased to get out of the valley. This is an oft-told tale of mountain warfare, where the defenders have so vast an advantage over the attack. Caution is required in the advance. Bull-dog courage is not sufficient to ensure success in such a position as that into which Cathcart IX,] STR GEOIiGE CATHCART. 85 thrust himself and his troo})S. lie afterwards died a glorious death at Inkermaiiu, when the army was crowuiug its victory. I subsequently received from a friend a very interesting^ account of this action, in the following terms : — I'he day after we entered the country of Moshesh by garrison orders our game-shooting (it was stated " witli great regret") must be stopped. On the second day we reached Platberg, the old Bastard location. Mr. Giddy, the missionary, was at his post, though the Bastards had fled before the wrath of tiie great Basuto. On the 13th we made a camp, a meeting was convened, but none of the chiefs thought the day convenient. On the 14th the sons of the chiefs, besides many black princes and kings, called at our lines; bat the Governor put forth an advertisement that he wanted the great chief, and declared that until it was ansvv'ereJ he would not see any of the smaller black ones. Owen, therefore, rode to Moshesh. He delivered this message, and on the 15tli Moshesh turned up. He was very neatly attired in a new dark suit of clothing, and mot everybody with a dignified and affable politeness, whiidi extended to the lancer orderlies, whose hands he shook with fervour,' and also to Morocco, his neighbour (a pigeon he had often plucked). Having been admitted to the hospital marquee in front of His Excellency's tent, he was introduced to the General (Inkose Inkulu). The General, to cut a dash, was dressed in a glittering costume. He thought he had it all his o\\ n way, and came down on " old Mo " pretty stiffly. He desired him to pay 10,000 head of cattle and 1000 horses within three days, or be exterminated. Poor Mo answered and said : " Oh, chief, live for ever ! The Basutos are dogs, and I, O Inkose Inkulu, am but a son of them. Take my cattle, take my lambs, take my people, do ii(5 JUY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. as you please with them — thy servant can do no more ; but," added the old cove, " I cannut send you the cattle in three days, being only a Kafir or a dog, and must take a dog's time to do my work." The General, overjoyed at his knuckling down so quickly, said : " Be off. Mo ; and if every cow be not in by the third day the Inkose will come and take all your cattle ; but, if your people submit without a shot, he will not hunt thera." Whereupon Mo observed, " that if you trod upon the pet corn of a cur he would very likely turn and bite." He then bowed and retired. In ten minutes he was on his way to the mountain, and the Governor telling every one he was sure of his cattle. Three days were nearly spent before any kine appeared, and then at sundown 3400 lean and lazy beasts came in with an escort of 600 mounted Basutos. When Nehemiah appeared it w^as thought that the whole fine had arrived, and the General observed to him that he was glad to see that he had brought the cattle and said, " Ob, I am glad to see that you have paid the fine, you've a great many huts on the road to Thaba Bosigo and I should be sorry to burn them." When the counters reported that the thousand horses and six thousand five hundred cows were short of the fine, Nehemiah was told that he need not dine with his Excellency, but to go home and tell his papa that the Inkose was coming. Next day about two-thirds of the force went to the Caledun river, where they encamped and constructed a pont. This was about nine miles from Thaba Bosigo. Orders were given to march at four next morning with three days' provisions, the infantry to cross by the pont, the cavalry by the ford. The cavalrv brigade was broken up, two hundred sabres were placed under the command of Napier, who went with his IX.] THE BATTLE WITH MOSTIESH. 87 little force round to the left quite out of reach, and without support. Colonel Eyre advanced with 700 foot and 40 mounted Fingoes from the centre ; and the General, with 200 foot, 2 guns, with an escort of 40 Lancers, 25 Cape Mounted Kifles, and his Fingo guard, took to the right. We, the cavalry, got well out of sight, and before we were half- way to Thaba Bosigo, saw nothing but cattle all over the hills Munro and Carey with their troops pushed on and received a volley while getting over a stone wall ; they charged, killing with lance, carbine, or sabre, some twelve or thirteen Basutos. Carey drove his sword right through a savage, and, after a better opposition than we expected, the Basutos dispeised and fled. They then pushed on, we closely following until we came suddenly upon a magnificent herd of cattle. After a hard gallop a few of us managed to head the herd and turn them back to Napier, though not without danger of being hurled over a krantz. I cannot describe to you the force of the stream of cattle which would have escaped, had we not luckily shot an ox or two in a narrow opening between two stones, the only outlet : this stopped the torrent rushing forward. We got back, having rid len between several Kafirs whom I could easily have stabbed, but refrained. After g(;tting the cattle back we were obliiied to let them run to the flats as we could not keep them quiet. Meanwhile Carey and Munro had parted company, the latter having returned to us, while Oakes, Somerset, and ^^^lrrou had joined Carey with a few men, and pushed on to near Thaba Bosigo. The Basutos now assembled in our rear, and Tottenham with twenty-five men drew out to front them and support Somerset. Their numbers exceeded all estimate we had formed of them, and while all our reserve under Napier had gone down to the flats except a few stragglers, we thus had to bear up against a dense mass of disciplined 88 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. horsemen on the liill, one mile and a half from our friends. We did our best, we drove one squadron in, and then another at our best pace, and then confronted their main body more than 800 strong. We now re-dressed our line at 300 yards from their centre, which was three deep, their flanks advanced in an attitude to surround us. At these odds we charged and received at 70 yards' distance a concentric fire from the whole line, after which the semicircle closed its horns upon us, and we were surrounded and cut off. We were there- fore compelled to dash back and re-form close, to them, but their regular and overwhelming advance pushed us on and we were obliged at last to gallop for our lives. Our retreat was headlong, for the enemy had headed us and pursued us with good speed. With difficulty any lived to tell the tale. Tottenham behaved like a hero ; the last to turn, he remained almost the last in the retreat, and by cool courage and good riding managed to save a sergeant-major by shooting a Basuto while just about to stab him. After a mile we were pulled up by a stone wall, and here many fell. I had to run home my spurs and leap it as a last chance. Just before a Basuto had ridden between me and it, I cut him across the shoulder with my sword and saw no more of him. Tottenham got over the wall and saved one of his men. At length some Cape Mounted Riflemen came back to our support, and their carbine shots checked our pursuers. We were still followed, however, and the enemy fired smartly wounding a man of the rear guard whom Tottenham brought off on his own horse. Our captured cattle were now driven on as fast as possible, and though Kafirs collected on our flank, yet tliey would not face Tottenham's little rear guard commanded by himself on foot, and hampered with a wounded man upon his horse. 'i1i(' fiirhtinir now came to an f-ml. IX. END OF THE CAVALRY RATI). 89 I then went to the camp and got some men to cover the passage of the cattle over the river. Somerset's party had had a narrow squeak but managed to prevent being run into by steady courage and good skirmisliing. They readied camp in a sorry plight just when we did, but with a con- sciousness of having done their best, which repays any man for the greatest risks. Somerset brought in a soldier behind him. Simpkin just got in his wounded horse before it fell dead. They were fortunate to get off at all being surrounded by a force so great as to drive them over a krantz. Such was the cavalry fight, which, but for the isolation of our force at so remote a position, must have been a brilliant affair. As it was we held our prize, and boro off four thousand head of cattle to our camp. Of Tottenham's small rearguard twenty fell. Eyre and the Governor fired away till dark. The latter riding forward alone to parley was nearly shot, despite his white flag. Moshesh fortunately sent in for peace. Every one wanted their revenge, and desired to attack the Basutos again, but the Governor refused, not liking to enter the hills again. In the year following my visit to Basuto laud two sons of Let8i, and grandsons of Moshesh, came down to Cape Town, when I was requested by the Governor to show them some small attention. After visiting the fort, and being much astonished at the " great mothers," the parents, as they expressed it, of rifles and muskets, I took them to the shooting grounds at Wynberg, and placing rifles in their hands requested them to compete with ourselves. We were all astonished at their success. The eldest beat all but two of their competitors, at a range of 500 yards. Tiie Catholic bishop had instructed Nehemiah, a very clever son of Moshesh, in the French laugiinge, which he spoke and lead with ease Thus, it was said, he had the advantage of 90 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap, amusing liiinself with all the recent French novels of the day, the contents of which he greedily devoured. In 1876 Neliemiah passed over the lower Drakensberg, and settled in the neighbourhood of Adam Kok's Country in Griqualand East. Here he appears to have borne a part in resisting the Queen's Government. He was arrested and charged with rebellion. The report says that — After the most patient and careful investigation it became obviously apparent to the whole assembly that the rebels were acting not only upon a carefully preconcerted plan of action, but also that they were acting under tlie orders of some head or chief, and it soon became apparent that that head was Nehemiah Moshesh, as two of the principal rebels stated that they were his men, and acting under his orders. Nehemiah was asked repeatedly and most distinctly to clear himself, and has hitherto failed to do so most signally. He was accordingly arrested by order of the chief magistrate, and is now in custody of the Frontier Armed and Mounted Police pending his trial. I am also glad to tell you that the whole meeting unanimously concurred in this course, and universally agreed in the opinion that a most serious crisis had been averted, and that Nehemiah's capture had prevented some- thing like another Langalebalele affair. It is now diiBcult to say iu how far Nehemiah was really involved. He was brought down to King William's Town for trial, but the whole case was at once quashed for want of juris- diction because the crime had been committed in a country which was not part of the Cape Colony. It is surprising that this should not have been foreseen before he was brought to trial, though, as his offence was treason, it is difficult to see why he might not have been indicted. The war of the Free State a The defensive state of the colony was, in my opinion, most defective. I have elsewhere mentioned the sale of arms to the natives, which the late Government, in order to gain a transitory popularity, so foolishly allowed, and wliich resulted in the possession by the Kafirs of upwards of 400,000 muskets. During my command I repeatedly reported that the police, though of excellent material, were badly organised and ill disciplined, the Commissariat defective, the reserves of am- munition and war stores insufficient Thus while the late (Tovernment were allowing the natives to obtain the means of creating a rebellion, they were taking no measures to provide for its suppression. As they often said : " The assegai is more formidable in the bands of a native than the musket; moreover, there will never be another Kafir Mar." The experience of the Boers against Secocoeni has proved the reverse, and common sense seems to indicate that a native armed with both a musket and assegais, must be more dangerous than one provided with assegais alone. But enough of this Government and its follies ! It has been dismissed for its incompetence, arrogance, and obstinacy, and, for the sake of the colony, I hoj^e it may not again be heard of. Federation alone, I believe, would enable the country to take such military measures as, while they involved the least possible cost, would prove efficient to secure life and property. It must be remembered that a colony like that of South Africa cannot afford to pay large sums for troops ; taxes which would be easily paid at home, press hardly upon its rising trades. It is there- fore above all things necessary that the military system shoiihl be cheap. But it should be effective. A bad thing is dear at any price, and I believe that the indirect losses caused by the late war, the paralysis of trade and the stagnation of enterprise, have had a most detrimental effect on the cast of the colony. I do not say that ab>olute security to the colony couhl be obtained for nothing, hut I do say that a good Federation lOG MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [CiiAr. system would enable the colony to maintain a military force, whicli would be far more efiTeetive in proportion to its cost than isolated bands of police or militia can possibly be. Well armed and equipped, it would be ready for immediate action whenever required, so as by vigour at the outset to stamp out incipient rebellion. It is very satisfactory to read in the recent papers from the Cape of Good Hope, that the present Prime Minister is reported to have called the attention of the country, in his speeches in the provinces, to the advisability of a system of Federation. The following remarks in reference to the Transvaal are much to the purpose : — Wliy then delay striving for that confederation under the British flag, which will confer upon us the blessing of real and true independence, the inestimable boon of good con- stitutional liberty, the glorious gift of security in the possession of our property and the peaceful enjoyment of our lives ? The Transvaal will never know true liberty, never know genuine independence, never be safe from panic and trouble, until it forms part of a grand South African Dominion, powerful to suppress insolence and punish incipient rebellion wherever manifested among its subject^, able to maintain peace and remove all stumbling-blocks in the ^\ay of prosperity within its borders. I approve unreservedly of tlie sentiments uttered in the Imperial Parliament by Sir H. Holland : Jf confederation would strengthen the colonies, in no less degree would it strengthen tlie empire as a whole. And there are two other advantages of confederation. By con- federation are secured uniformity of legislation upon all important questions affecting these great outlying dependen- cies of the empire. And by confederation we raised up a XI.] THE nilNClPLE OF CONFEDERATION. 107 school of legislators in the colonies, who from the necessity of their poaitiun were forced to take a broader and more liberal view of the questions which came before them, and to take an imperial as distinguished from a provincial point of view. Their political area was enlarged, and they had a sense of the greater responsibility resting upon them. And lastly, he thought, that some day there would be a closer link between the mother country and the colonies by a more direct representation of the colonies in the Central Legisla- ture of the empire ; the West India Islands grouped under one legislature (as the North American provinces were), the great Australian colonies under another. South Africa under another. Nothing could be more moderate than the manner in which Lord Carnarvon had put the matter before the colonists. A universal assent had been given to the noble lord's proposal of a conference. The Legislative Council of the Cape, Natal, the Orange Free Kiver State, the Transvaal, and Griqualand, had all agreed to the conference. Lord Carnarvon had been bound to submit the scheme for a confederation to the States, and they showed their entire appreciation of Lord Carnarvon's act. ( 108 ) iCuAv. BOOK II. — Kafferaria and Natal. CHAPTER XII. THE KOMGHA. j\[y next tour of military inspection was to Pondo land and Natal. I reached Port Elizabeth by sea, and, having taken the rail as far as it w&s completed, proceeded to Grahams- town. Crowded six in a small coach, we bumped along until near Nazar, where we overtook tlie preceding day's post-cart, standing by the side of the road, one of its wheels having entirely gone to pieces. Our doubts whether we should ever reach Grahamstown were increased when, outspanning at a lonely hut in the wide " veldt," the only cattle we found in the miserable stable were tliree glandered horses. The driver directed four of the mail- contract horses to be spanned in, to which the passengers made no objection, though the Postmaster-General might possibly have done so. The disease of glanders is becoming very prevalent in the eastern division of the colony. It has been found necessary to destroy many horses belonging to the Frontier Field Force. I imagine that the laws with regard to this dangerous disease are either too weak or, what is woise, are not effectually administered. We reached Grahamstown on the evening of the 19th, in a XIL] liOADS AND COACn-BUILDERS. 100 drizzling rain and cold wind, and were glad of the hospitality of the Judge. On the following morning, when the grouse would be falling in the mountains of Connernara and Gal way, we were again on our road. We bowled over the- firm ground in a new American carriage, which the Judge had lately bought in Port Eliza- beth, behind four handsome bays, driven by the m')St expert whip in the country, and drove by two o'clock into Fort Brown. These American carriages (called spiders) are super- seding the English covered spring carts so universally used here. The roads which are common in tlie colony, and connect the largest towns, differ as widely from the road from London to Hounslow as the latter does from a Welsh country lan'\ But it is impossible to fix this in the understanding of an English coachmaker. He is not wise enough simply to imitate a model which would secure him a fine profit, but insists that he knows what the colonists require better than they do them- selves. After a hasty breakfast at Fort Brown, we entered the thick bush by a road which astonished even our Judge, and made his spider tremble, as it bounded over rocks and chasms for ten miles down a precipitous " kloof," a young moon serving to light our way. At nightfall we drew up at Mr. IMiller's farm, close to an old fort, which bore signs of having passed through many vicissitudes. Mr. Miller had been engaged in every Kafir war 8inc(^ tlie year 1835, and his interesting stories secured our eager attention during the rest of the evening. At early dawn the view was really beautiful ; the Fish river winding among the precipitous deeply-wooded hills, sluddfd with aloes, bearing at tliis time of tlie \ear tlu^'r bright scarlet 110 MY COMMAND IN SOUTH AFRICA. [Chap. flowers, which were frequently mistaken by our soldiers in the war for Kafir warriors, and fired upon accordingly. The kloofs I looked upon were the last resting-places of many a poor soldier in one Kafir war. Two soldiers, having strayed into the bush, and mistaking the fires of the enemy for those of their companions, fell into the hands of these devils, and were tortured, their dying screams being heard in the stillness of the night, without it being possible for their comrades to render them any assistance. Attended by about thirty Kafirs, we ascended the hills, being posted in the best position to get a chance of a koodoo. This magnificent deer is almost extinct in the colony, but in Zulu land and on the Limpopo he is still common. He manages his long horns most skilfully while dashing through the bush, carrying them almost level with his back, and on meeting with an obstacle quickly turning them into a sidelong position. Soon a shout was given. A koodoo had broken cover, and rushed wildly towards the very bush behind which I was stationed. I fired through the brake, and grazed the back of the deer. It was a female, of no size ; the male cunningly escaped scot-free. Some smaller deer were driven out, such as bush-buck, raibok, and the tiny bluebok. Attached to us on this occasion was a clever sportsman, a seroeant of police. His keenness as a shot, in my opinion, enhanced his qualifications as a soldier. On Wednesday the 26th of August we left King William's Town, accompanied by an agreeable companion, the Com- mandant of the Frontier Forc.\ The country is open and undulating. We passed a mission station at Peel Town. Here, in the last war of 184G, it is related that the attitude of the Kafirs frightened the XT.] THE MISSIONARY'S PUPIL. Ill missionary, wlio retired to Alice. Having a well-replenislied cellar, he directed a faitliful Kafir to assist him in burying his wine previous to his departure. Some months after, to his horror, he read in a newspaper an account of a cheerful evening spent at Peel Town by some native levies and a Burgher force, and the handsome entertainment which they received from a Kafir left on the station ; dozens of wines, brandies &c., &c., having been placed at their disposition, the faithful Kafir-pupil of the missionary no doubt having his own share. We lunched at Heath's Hotel, Hangman's Bush, the host of which was surrounded by all those comforts which make life valuable. He was an old soldier, who had served in my company in the 60th Rifles, when we were stationed at Coi-fu thirty years ago. It was pleasant to meet an old comrade in arms. The name Hangman's Bush dates from an episode in the last war, when a traitor Kafir was hanged by ord^r of General Eyre, a strict disciplinarian, whom I well remember in the Crimea, and whose determination was on many occasions of the utmost value to the colony. We next outsj)anned at Mr. Kelly'.-!, Draaibosch. Surround- ing the house was a large number of natives, sunning them- selves, and occupied in discussing the merits of sundry bottles of a white spirit known as Boer brandy. These wretched creatures si^end all their money and much of their time in this way, and are fast degenerating from the noblo savag>> into miserable beasts. It is stated that tliey have no ditliculty in swallowing a quart of this vile liquid at a time. A short distanc3 off were groups of women, who approached the canteen in long files, ea'di bearing on her head a bottle. The spirit \vh:ch they procured was used, I am told, for a Iding to their Kafir beer. Near this is a lofty rock, from which in former days wretched 112 MT COMMAND IN SOUTH AFHICA. [Chap. people accused of ssitcbcraft were hurled. Tbi& is reported to have been a daily occurrence. On arriving at the Komgha, guards of lionour were prepared to receive me — one from the Frontier army, and one formed of Mounted Volunteers under Captain Cowie. The volunteer cavalry in this colony are a particularly fine body of men, formed of young and able farmers, thoronglily accustomed to exposure. They are accustomed to regard as an everyday occurrence what others might deem extreme hardship. It is this which makes the force so especially valuable, and the only points in which it can be considered inefficient are its weakness in numbers, the power of its members to relinquish their services at short notice, and their want of military habits. We spent a very pleasant evening at tlie Komgha, and were hospitably received by the officers of the frontier army. The Komgha is the artillery station of this force. It is hei-e that all the troopers are instructed in gunnery. For this purpose an officer of her Majesty's artillery has been attached. I was much gratified with the progress which had been made, which cannot fail to be of essential service. The guns, new breech- loading 12-pounders, were furnished with iron carriages, and, in my opinion, were of too weighty a pattern for effective service either in a mountainous country, or one devoid of roads. I am therefore in hopes that guns of a smaller calibre and pattern in future may be selected, as I am convinced they would be more appropriate for the ufos to which they are likely to be put. At the Komgha we received news which might have caused some anxiety regardingthe Transkei. Her Majesty's Eesident had sent a request that the Frontier Field Force might be held in readiness, their horses carefully foraged, and kept in a fit state for instant movement. The cause of these proceedings was that a number of Pondos, in tbe country to the west of St. John's liiver, umler tbe cbief 1 >amas, had taken possession of a tract