Before we reached the town, we were obliged to cross the
Sunday river three times : its greatest depth was, at this time, about
three feet.
The missionary’s letter began by stating, that they had endeavoured
to dissuade me from the attempt to cross the Bushman country;
and that, although they had thus written letters, they had little expectation
of their ever reaching their destination. Mr. Kicherer, before
he was appointed minister of this place, had spent several years as
missionary among the Hottentots and Bushmen. For the latter people,
he opened a mission at the Zak river ; and when that failed, he accompanied
those Hottentots who, it has been stated, (vol. I. p. 361.)
were living an unsettled life on the banks of the Gariep, and persuaded
• them to remain stationary at Aakaap, whence they finally
removed to Klaarwater. He was therefore well acquainted with the
nature of that settlement; and expressed surprise at the fact of the
missionaries there, not having been able to render me assistance in
hiring the required number of Hottentots; and wondered at their
making objections to my opening a road to Graaffreynet, which he
considered as an important discovery, and highly advantageous for
the missionaries themselves.
CHAPTER V.
TRANSACTIONS AT GRAAFFREYNET.
B e f o r e noon we entered Graaffreynet; where I was introduced by
Mr. Kicherer to his family and friends, as the person on whose account
they had suffered so much alarm. The news of my having
arrived in peace, soon spread through the village; and when busy
report had reduced my dreaded party of three hundred, back again
to eight, and had changed the expected hostile attack, into a friendly
visit, all further apprehensions ceased, and the folly of the mistake,
became a source of considerable amusement.
The landdrost who, I was afterwards informed, was at first so much
alarmed as to give orders for guarding all avenues to the village, told
me that he had received a correct report of the number of my men,
but could get no one to believe that it was so small; and that it
was found difficult to quiet the fears of the inhabitants, who magnified
their danger to a distressing, though ridiculous, degree.
The affair, which had cost me so long and fatiguing a journey,
being to myself of more importance than every other object, I lost
t 2