Height of the Lion’s Rump « 382 yards
----------------- -Sugar Loaf — — 720 m
------------------ W. End of the Table Laud 1174
——>— ——— E. End of the same — 1195
Length of the Table M o u n ta in ^ *~ L7bQf#i
Height of the highest Boint o f the Devil’s ;;
•Berg — -— —| — 1 1 ^ .i a
Height dfithe Shoulder of thesame — 474
These are the. perpendicular heights, of all the mort conspicuous
parts; of this majestic pile of Nature ; a t thelfdnt' of
which, facing vthe Bay, stands • Cape Town. Thé! »BéaOh - On
-landing presents rather an .mriavourable appearance to a>stran>
ger, as tlm fishermen and sailors ih ifsJ%icinity are toöfièdtff the
cleanliest ,, however, this is amply* compensated by the1 town1,
Which for neatness and uniformity of buildirfg, with regularity
of plan* is desorving o f much encomium. I f the capital of
Southern Africa has not to boast of the superbvpalhcëswhioh
decorate many others, yet it is without those wrètehéd edifices
which-are partitioned off for- the-poor. Every inhabitant of
Cape Town is"master of the'entrance to his hofeeV'and! not a
beggar is to be seen in>the streets; as -fcw'~E'uropea/ns, who have
industry Sufficient -to undertake a vOyagelhere^needfee without
employment; The Government of the-Colony also obliges
masters tb maintain their decayed- and;aged indeed,jthe
Dutch are vety indulgent to those African's, (the appellation for
those slaves that are born a t the Cape,) and the Malays employed
for domestic purposes r but the iotof many of those Who
till the vineyards, and the half-naked Mozafnbiques, who are
'^ c ap ied in i^efrjiüg wood!, is very diffident. The conseqdence
of tté martëf is mostly derived from the size oLhis house, rand
the nümbèr óf slaves he is possessed of. 1
Had the, English retained the Colony* the labour of the
woodwood
carriers might have been: dispensed with, as coals might
have- < -been sent from New Holland, as- will hereafter be
shewn; or by working the: mine.s: Qf the»{Go.lony, which there' is
every reason to suppose,* contain abundariee of this article, a
consideration of the utmost importance, where wood: is scarce
or a t a , distance, and the labour of skves exorbitant. <
In the course: of; nay excursions I could not fail remarking
from the heights of Wineberg, commanding a. view ©f both
Bays* th a tlth e sea once occupied what:di snow an Isthmus,
fitereby making the peninsulaof-the Table Mountain, Gape
Foinh^&C! *an island* In travelling-into the interior, you go
over about tewenty miles o f this.dreary Isthmus formed by ridged
o f sand containing shells. The country here is interspersed
with extensive-salt and fresh water lakes,. On the opposite f ide
thedand agaius fiscs, and,a ridjggiof high mountains extending
SL4L[and MuW,. foim/a barrier to the interior* .From these
mountains warm medicinal springs issue in different parts* The
Dutch bavfe'jfermed baths and;built huts »ear them -for.- the u o
commodation of invalids; p ^ icu la rty a t tbeifoWpwing placesr;
flpephant’s River, B.randt?f :¥alley, and Swaart Berg. The bath
first menrionSd is celebrated for the cure of ulcers and eutoje-
otife'eruptions; but from its distance and difficulty ofac cessit is
f i # SO: much frequented as the.others. T h elaccommodations
are thearefore much inferior, and rendered inconvenient from the
only farm-houses in the neighbourhood feeing ©n the opposite
riim o f Sheriverj which is frequently impassable* I t lie» ih a
long narrow valley, scarcely a mile and half in width, bounded
;fey _ rooks almost perpendicular . The banks fef the river ace covered
with bushes eontrining abundance o f game,, particularly
pheasants.
The .springs a t Brandt’s ¥alley me greatly esteemed for gra-
vefiy com p la in t . They,pour, fo rth a little river ©f very .hat
© 2 water.