December. f * 0! ^ are able to pierce a man or a gazel through the body at the diftance of twenty paces. I then Ihot at a fheet of paper with a fowling-piece, and as they appeared to be very much amazed at the holes that were made, and at the fame time to be very deiirous o f keeping the paper, they took it without any ceremony, but ihortly after offered to give it me again for a morfel o f tobacco. The Gmaquas Hottentots moreover were graziers, and in ibme fort tillers o f the ground, as the Caffre nation is likewife faid to be. Th e kind of corn which they fbw, is the bolcus Jorgbmn, which is likewife uied in the fouth o f Europe, and known to yield abundantly. The colonifts call it Caffer-corn. The ftalks ihoot up to the height o f a man, and as thick as a ruih. They terminate in a pedicle or branchy ear, a foot and a half long, with feeds o f about the fame iize as thofe of rice; two or three of theie ears generally yield three quarters o f a pint o f corn. The time o f lowing this feed, is faid to be in Auguft or September. But in the beginning o f November, while I yet remained in Sitficamma, I faw it already fit for cutting, at a farmer’s who fet little itore by it, giving it only to his, cattle. The Caffres ufe to bruife this corn between Hones, and make it into loaves, which they hake under the embers. They moftly, however, ufe to ferment it with a certain root and water, t i l it produces a kind of inebriating liquor. They generally confume their whole ftock, which, however, is not confiderabJe, immediately in the autumn. The Gaffire prince PaiuOo, whom the colonifts called king PHARAOH, raoh, is faid to have killed himfelf with drinking this De'c^ e r. liquor. On feveral accounts we haftened our departure from hence. Our courfe was now to the north, over plain level fields, for the greater part covered with a dry arid grafs to the height of about two feet. Out guide took us firft to a well of lukewarm water, and afterwards at night to another pool o f water, at the bottom of a river that was dried up. Both places were very acceptable to us as well as to our cattle, though the water was none df the heft. Near this latter fpot we took up our night’s lodging. It was not without difficulty, that we could collect wood enough round about the neighbourhood to boil our teakettle ; and after all, we ran a great rifk o f having an end put to our whole expedition by a fire. A Hottentot, in looking for fomething with a piece o f lighted Wood, happened, to fet the dry grafs on fire, which fpread itt it almoft as i f it had been oakum; fo that had we not been very quick, in flopping the progrefs of the flames, and moreover mutually affifted each others we ibovild foon have feen the whole diftridt in one continued flame, and our waggon would have been entirely demoliihed in the conflagration, and: blown up into the' air ; for there was not only a good deal of coom about it, hut it alfo contained many inflammable matters ; fuch, as the fail-cloth tilt, dried herbs and paper, a cafk full of fpirits, and about twenty pounds weight of gunpowder. The wind blew hard from the fouth-weft, the thermometer at eleven at night being 66, and the next day about dawn at 64, when we faddled our horibs and put our oxen to the waggon. At nine we C 2 got
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