The Diary of
Dr Andrew Smith, Director of the ‘Expedition for exploring
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Edited by Percival R.
Kirby. The musicologist, Percival
Kirby, discovered the diary in the South African Museum where it remained,
unknown, since 1913. Hendrik Hendricks |
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Andrew Smith, an army doctor, arrived in the |
Congregation at Lishuane |
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The second volume of Smith's diary picks up the
expedition with descriptions of Baralong social
life. The party travelled through the |
as we advanced to the eastward.
Very few shrubs and only on the hills a few thinly scattered dwarf trees. Firewood scarce.
Abram Kok, one of the chief’s
sons, lives near where we halted, He has a mat house
and no furniture. His wife [was] dressed in leather and his face [was] painted
red to protect it against the sun and wind. [He] has a little land under
cultivation. Several other spots of cultivated land
observable from the road. The place where we halted is called Bank Fonteyn,’ and belongs to Adam Kok.
Here is a small river which runs during the rainy season; also a little land
under cultivation which requires to be irrigated, and for that purpose a dam
has been formed above the land. A person living here in the capacity of a
servant asked 8 Rds. for a small year old calf and
would take nothing less. They evince but little desire to part with their
property, and they appear to fancy that we must take what they offer and at any
price they choose to fix. In this respect they approximate to the Colonial
farmers. Everywhere complaints about the Boers, and
about losses they sustain by having the grass eaten off by their cattle. The
complaint appears just, as everywhere immense flocks and herds are to be seen
feeding over the entire country in this direction, and even the farmers are
actually residing close to the houses of the Bastards, and threatening them, if
they do [not] rest quietly, that the circumstance will be reported to
Government. The places will then be taken and measured out to the colonists.
The Bastards in consequence of these observations appear very miserable, and
will neither sow nor build, if their own statements are to be
credited, lest they should by a step of Government might
lose both labour and property. Their minds ought to
be set at rest on this subject.
12 SEPTEMBER (FRIDAY).
About o’clock left Bank Fonteyn,
and about ½ past reached Bosch Spruit, the property
of a Bastard from the Roggeveldt. He purchased this
property from Hendrick Hendricks for 100 Rds. It is well supplied with water, having close to the
house in the channel of the stream four or five very large deep holes. The
water, however, is so low at present that it cannot with the means he possesses
be led out. By means of a pump a sufficiency would be obtained to irrigate a
very considerable portion of land. He complains of being very poor, having only
about 200 goats. Several persons reside in the place with him, who have come there in consequence of the drought in other
directions. On the flats, but especially on the hills, an
abundance of dry crass. Close to him are farmers residing with their
flocks, and actually the cattle of those individuals may be seen feeding almost
upon the very precincts of the house. Wherever the eye can be
turned nothing but flocks of sheep and herds of cattle are to be seen together,
with here and there a wagon or two, the temporary abodes of the farmers.
Bastards acknowledge one serious inconvenience
which is experienced on this side of the Colonial boundary, namely the
non-existence of firm and just laws. They speak of the great proportion of
inhabitants being in one family and of the chief not being inclined to go
against his own relatives.