had coiled itfelf five or fix times round the body of a lizard.
As I was endeavouring to fet at liberty the captive animal, one
of the .Hottentots took out with the point of a ftick, from the
fliort Hem of his wooden tobacco pipe, a finall quantity of a
thick black mattef which he called tobacco oil. This he applied
to the mouth of the fnake while darting out its tongue, as
thefe creatures ufually do when enraged. The effe£t of the
application was . inftantaneous almoft as that of an eleftric
ihock. With a convulfed motion, that was momentary, the
fnake half untwiiled itfelf, and never ftirred more ; and the
mufcles were fo contraâed that the whole animal felt hard and
rigid as if dried in the fun. The Hottentots confider the oil of
tobacco among the moft aitive o f poifonous fubftances ; but it
is never applied to the points of their arrows, being probably of
too volatile a nature to retain its deleterious quality for any
length of time.
In the courfe of our long hunting excurfions, feveral kraals,
or dwelling-places of Bosjefmans, had been feen, but all of
them deferted ; and from many circumftances it was evident
that moft of them had recently been evacuated. Their inhabitants,
no doubt, had fled at the appearance of fo large a party
of Europeans, which they could confider in no other light than
that of an enemy. The commandant now announced to his
people, that for a time all hunting parties muft be fufpended,
and that the fame regular order and obedience to commands
Ihould be obferved as in their ufual expeditions. He allured
us that unlefs this plan was adopted we might pafs through the
heart of the Bosjefmans’ country without feeing a human
creature,
creature* as there was little doubt of their being already well
apprifed of our approach. This in fa£t was the principal obje£t
of our prefent journey, that we might be eye-witnefles of the
manner in which the farmers conduced their expeditions
againft thefe miferable fet of beings. I thought it, however, a
neceflary ftep to make a previous ftipulation with the commandant,
that the extent of hoftilities againft thefe favages
ihould be that of furrounding one of their kraals; that after
this had been done we ihould a£t only on the defenfive; and
he was enjoined to deliver to his people a moft ferious charge
not to fire a fingle ihot unlefs it ihould be found abfolutely ne-
ceflary for their own perfonal fecurity ; for that the foie object
of our journey was to bring about, if poflible, a converfation
with fome of the chiefs of this people. On thefe conditions, a
party, confifting of fix farmers and as many Hottentots, were
ordered out after fun-fet to reconnoitre, with inftruftions to
examine well if any fires ihould appear on any of the hills by
night; to watch well, from fome concealed fpot, the plains by
day; and to make a circuit from eaft to north, not exceeding
thirty miles from the prefent encampment. I f nothing ihould
appear before the expiration of the third day; they were then
to join us again at a certain fpot upon the banks of the river,
to the northward.
The following morning, at day-break, one of the fcouting
party, attended by a Hottentot, returned with intelligence that
they had difcovered from a high hill feveral fires at the bottom
of a narrow defile about twenty miles to the eaftward. In confequence