I779-: regular blotches or fpots on their ikin. After a very difagree- January. . -v-^» able day’s march, through a dry ftony country, we arrived at night at the Sundays River, which is diftant from the Cape Town about nine hundred miles. This river was the extent of Mr. Mafon’s journey to the eaftward. There are ftill fome of the Hippopotami found here, but they are very ihy. The following day I viiited one of the Dutch boors, who had refided in that part of the country for many years. This man was poffeffed of numerous herds of ca ttle; but had no corn, and fcarcely a houfe to live in, though the place was favourable for both. But the generality of thofe people are of fo indolent a difpolition, that they feldom trouble themfelves either to build houfes or to cultivate the ground. Thofe of them who chufe to be induftrious, and to make the moil: of their advantages, are enabled to live in a very comfortable manner. One of our companions, Mr. Tunies, left us on the thirty- firft, and we were joined by Jacob Kock, an old German, whom I mentioned at Swart Kops Rivier. Mr. Van Renan and I went on towards the Great Fifh River. At noon we overtook our waggon at a place which, in the Hottentot language, is called Curnow. We were informed by our fervants, that they had been diiturbed in the night by fome Elephants, which came very near the waggon. In the afternoon we continued our journey to a plantation, called the Sand Fleet, belonging to our fellow traveller, Jacob Kock. The country here is extremely beautiful and pi&ù- j*™™. refque, very hilly, and the hills are ihaded with impenetrable '— »— ' Woods ; the vallies well watered and covered with grafs, which affords excellent pafture for cattle. Great numbers of quadrupeds inhabit this neighbourhood, fuch as Lions, Panthers, Elephants, Rhinocerofes, Buffaloes, Spring Bocks, &c. At a little diftance to the eaftward are fome Kraals belonging to the tribe of Hottentots, called Chonacquas. Thefe people are much darker in their complexion, and better fhaped than any of thé other tribes I had before feen. Whether this difference arifes from their mixing with the Caffres, feveral of whom dwell in this part of the country, or from any other caufe, I could not afcertain. It is not very uncommon for the Caffres and Chonacquas to quarrel, which generally ends in an engagement. In thefe encounters feveral hundreds of the Caffres fometimes unite to oppofe their enemies, who very feldom bring a proportionable force into the field. But the dexterity with which the Hottentots ufe their bows and arrows, and the pra&ice of poifoning the latter, render them very dangerous enemies to thofe who only ufe the Haffagai. The difputes between thefe people generally originate about cattle, of which both nations are extremely avaricious. We dire&ed our courfe eaftward, to the Boihman’s River, and at noon I viiited a Kraal belonging to a Hottentot captain, called De Royter. This man has upwards of two hundred Hottentots and Caffres in his fervice, 'and a few hours before our arrival, had fought againft a number of Caffres,
27f 61
To see the actual publication please follow the link above