On the morning of the fifth o f May, after dropping the commandant
at his own houfe, I proceeded inland to the eaftward,
and, palling over, a rough ftony country, reached in two days
the foot o f the Hantam mountain. The inhabitants at this time
were in a ftate o f alarm, on account of the Bosjefmans. A party
o f thefe people had carried oif into the kloofs of the mountain^
feverai iheep and oxen, after feverely wounding two Hottentots
with poifoned arrows, one through the upper part of the arm,
and the other in the ankle joint; The former feemed likely to
do well, but the latter was in a very dangerous way. The point
o f the arrow had broken off and ftuck in the bone. The leg was
fwolen as high as the knee, and gangrene appeared to have commenced
round the wound. The people not knowing in what
manner to treat it, I directed them to apply poultices of bread,
onions, and; oil, and to waih the wound well with a folution of
ammonia praparata, and to give him plenty of vinegar to drink.
At the end of four days, which it took me in rounding the
mountain, the patient was no worfe, but the wound, on the
contrary feemed to put on favorable appearances ; the other
was nearly well.
The Bosjefmans have been generally reprefented as a people
fo favage and blood-thirfty in their nature, that they never fpare
the life of any living creature which may fall into their hands.
T o their own countrymen, who have been taken prifoners by,
and continued to live with the Dutch farmers, they have certainly
Ihewn inftances o f the mod atrocious cruelty. Thefe
poor wretches, if retaken by their countrymen, feldom efcape
being put to the molt excruciating tortures. The party abovementioned,
mentioned, having fallen in with a Hottentot at fome diftance
from any habitation, fet him up to the neck in a deep trench, and
wedged him in fo fall with Hones and earth that he was incapable
of moving. In this fituation he remained a whole night,
and the greater part of the following day; when, luckily, fome
of his companions palled the place and releafed him. The poor
fellow ftated that he had been under the neceffity of keeping his
eyes and mouth in perpetual motion the whole day, to prevent
the crows from devouring him.
The habitations that compofe the divifion of the Hantam, lie
fcattered round the feet of that mountain. The face of the
country is fimilar to that of the Sneuwberg, and the breed of
cattle and of iheep are equally good; the horfes in general
much better, but they are fubjed to the fame- endemic difeafe
that prevails in moft parts o f Graaff Reynet. It is here, however,
very partial, fer while it rages at the foot of the mountain,
there is not the fmalleft danger on the flat fummit, on
which account this part of the mountain is appropriated to the
public ufe, each inhabitant having the privilege of fending
thither eight horfes during the fickly feafon.
A s in the Sneuwberg, they are here alfo very much infefted
with locufts. One troop of thefe infeds, in their laft ftage of
exiftence, palled on the wing along the eaftern fide of the mountain
when we were encamped there. For feverai hours they continued
to hover in the air as they palled along, at fuch a height
as not to be individually diftinguilhed; but their immenfe numbers
formed a kind of fleecy cloud, that completely took off the
2 f radiated