to eat of it, the fat, which was yellow and oily, always smelt rather
strong and disagreable; but I cannot assert that such food was ever
found to be unwholesome.
\%th. During the night and this forenoon, there was much rain ;
and being thus prevented drying our meat, we departed from Quakka
Station at an early hour. Soon after setting out, we crossed the river
twice; after which we turned to the south-east in order to visit a
kraal which lay in that direction; having on our right some high
mountains in the distance, and before us an exceedingly large table
mountain, which had been seen for the first time, on our last day’s
journey. This latter is pointed out on my map, by the name of the
Bushman Table-Mountain, and is very remarkable by the perfect regularity
of its form, and by having at each end a small, but equally
high, mountain standing in advance, and apparently separated from
it down to the base. Farther behind this mountain, were several
others of the same formation, and which extended beyond the visible
horizon. From the distance and spot at which it was viewed, it
appeared inaccessible, being surrounded on all sides by a precipice ;
but experience teaches that however steep and lofty a mountain may
appear, its summit should not be pronounced inaccessible until its
ascent have been attempted on every side. I was induced, how justly
I know not, to consider it of greater height than all the other mountains
in this part of the country, by the circumstance of a cloud
resting upon it, an appearance which had not been seen since we
quitted the Roggeveld.
At a little after .three in the afternoon we arri ved at the kraal,
and unpacked our oxen by the side of a rocky hillock at the distance
of two hundred yards.
I was received by the inhabitants with repeated acclamations of
Tway / T w ay! * and with every demonstration of their being glad
at seeing me: although I do not flatter myself that their joy was
entirely personal, as the words Gooen dakka; Tdbakka ! Gooen dakka;
• Their word of salutation. It is pronounced as the Dutch word twee, and would
be written toui by a Frenchman.
Tahakka! * plainly betrayed their expectations and the source of
their gladness. By this they intended to say “ Good day; give us
some tob accow ish ing thus to render themselves more intelligible
by addressing me in Dutch. They were in such high glee, that a
merry spirit of rhyming seemed to have inspired them upon this
occasion: having first converted the word dag into their more favorite
one of dakka, they considered it a happy thought, and quite a new
idea, to transform tabak into tahakka: the only instance I ever
noticed, in these travels, in which that word was spoken as in English.
I do not mean to infer from this, that the Bushmen speak English ;
nor, that I have discovered in them a brilliant poetic genius; but
I have no hesitation in declaring, with such a proof as this, that they
can rhyme as well as many poets of my own country, and possibly
may have as much genius.
Their chief, or captain, was distinguished in a manner so singular,
that my Hottentots were highly diverted at the ridiculous insignia
of his rank; and, as they could not clearly understand his proper
name, gave him that of Oud Kraai-kop (Old Crow-head), as he wore
the head of a crow fixed upon the top of his hair.
It will be immediately perceived that this mode of ornamenting
the head, corresponds with the ancient custom of distinguishing
men in armour, by some figure placed as the crest of their helmet.
Should therefore the science of heraldry ever be introduced among
the Bushmen, the family of the Kraaikops would hereafter be
distinguished by the crow-head as their crest; but what should be
emblazoned on their shield, or whether the field should be gules,
or vert, or sable, can only be determined by the learned men of
their own tribe.
In a country where we found few places marked by particular
names, this was a fortunate circumstance to my men, who always
afterwards spoke of this as the Kraai-kop Kraal, and of the mountain
as the Kraai-kop Tafelberg (Crow-head Table-mountain.)
* By which words, they meant to say Goeden dag ,• Tabak.