from twenty to thirty feet without a branch : many are much
larger: the tops are neither bent, nor is the wood lhaken, nor
twifted, as of thofe about Cape Town ; a proof that the winds
are lefs violent in this valley than at the latter place.
Franfche Hoek, and the two Drakenfteens, have neither
church nor any affemblage of houfes that deferves the name of
village, but are compofed o f detached farms, difperfed over the
vale at confiderable diftances from each other. Mod of thefe
are freehold property, that were granted, in the early ftages of
the Settlement, for certain fums of money, or by favor, or
for particular fervices. They confiff each of fixty morgens of'
land, or 120 Engliih acres, and the poffeffors claim the privilege
o f the intermediate wafte-land to turn their cattle upon.
This is a great abufe, which perhaps would beft be checked by
obliging the proprietors to inclofe their juft portion o f 120
acres, and would certainly be the means o f greatly improving
the country.
The chief produce o f the valley is wine. At this time they
were bufily employed in pruning their vines. Thefe are feldom
fuffered to creep up into frames or ftandards, as is moil common
in the fouthern parts of Europe, but are planted in rows, in the
fame manner, and about the fame fize, as currants or goofe-
berry buihes in England. In this part of the colony, which is
not very diftant from the Cape-market, there is no kind of produce
that fo well repays the labor of the farmer as the culture
of the grape. On an acre o f ground may be planted five thou-
fand flocks o f vines, and a thoufand of thefe will generally yield
a leaguer
a leaguer or pipe of 154* gallons of wine.- The retail price of a
leaguer is from 50 to 150 rixdollars, or 10 to 30/. fterling..
That fort which is commonly drank at table under the name,
o f Cape madeira now fells at 12 I. a pipe, as does alfo a pleaf-
ant tart wine not unlike vin de grave, called here the Steen
wine. O f rich fweet wines the colony produces great variety;
a large white Perfian grape, called here , the haenapod, or cock s
foot, makes a delicious but expenfive wine ; the grape being
fleihy, is generally planted for the purpofe of being converted
into raiftns. The mufcadel gives a different wine at almoft
every place in which it grows. Nearly all the wines that are
made at the Cape tafte either very much of the fruit, or other-
wife are meagre or four. The firft may generally be attributed
to the mull not having undergone a fuffieient degree of fermentation
to change its nature, but put up into pipes with
much of the faccharine matter remaining undecompofed. The
latter may probably be owing to the practice of pulling the grapes
before they are ripe, in order to prevent their being confumed
by the numerous tribes of infedts that prey upon them, among
which the common honey bee is not the leaft deftruftive.
The grapes in general that are produced at the Cape are not
inferior to thofe o f any country; and thietfe can be little doubt
that the wines expreffed from them might, by proper management,
be made to rival the bell European wines. Some o f the
farmers have lately turned their attention to the lubjeft, and
have found themfelves amply repaid for any additional labor
and expence they might have incurred in making experiments.
Thpfe few alfo who have "attended to the procefs of diftilling