The master was immediately applied to, and readily consented
to relinquish him. Upon which the Hottentot, highly pleased with
the change, got himself ready in less than half an hour, with his wife
and his budget, to set oif with the rest of our party.
The name of this Hottentot was Stoffel Speelman * ; his height
was above the common standard, being about five feet seven inches :
he was of thin and bony figure, and had a very upright port,
acquired, perhaps, during his military service, and possessed a share
of activity, which in a Hottentot might be accounted considerable.
His age, at a guess, (for a Hottentot scarcely ever knows how old
he is) might be about forty ; and though his countenance exhibited
no features of beauty, it displayed a look of intelligence and readiness,
which soon prepossessed me with the opinion, that he would
prove a very useful addition to my little party. His eyebrows were
stronger than usual in this nation; his cheek-bones protuberant ;
cheeks hollow; nose flattened and wide, with large distorted nostrils ■
his mouth large, and lips thick and projecting; the chin narrow,
having several unusual protuberances; and the beard very scanty,
excepting on the upper lip.
On making enquiry into his character, I learnt that he was an
excellent marksman ; an important and valuable qualification, and
one which was indispensably required for such an expedition. He
was besides, a great traveller, and had visited most parts of the
colony. The opportunity of seeing the country beyond the Gariep,
and a wish he had long entertained to go to Klaarwater, were the
great inducements to add himself to my party.
His wife, Hannah, was a genuine Hottentot; and her com-
* His portrait is given at Plate 2. It was drawn in September 1814, at the time
when he quitted my service; in exactly the same dress which he happened then to wear.
His cap, which is a fashion of his own, was made of caif-skin prepared with the hair on.
A red cotton handkerchief was bound round his head, and a blue one of the same kind,
loosely tied about his neck. H e wore a pair of leathern trowsers and a blue cloth jacket,
over which was buckled a higel-tas (bullet-pouch) made by himself, from the skin of a tiger
which he bad shot.