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morning it should be rendered unfordable by sudden rains. At Clarkebury I bid adieu to Lieutenant Robinson, who had accompanied me thus far. Parting thus with one of my armies, I continued my journey with the smaller escort.

The skins of nearly all the Kafirs whom we now met were of a polished Honduras-mahogany red. Both men and women used largely the red-ochre clay; it is said that they are thus protected from the bites of noxious insects and vermin. Fingoes use it as well as Kafirs.

The Commissioner in Basuto land has directed that this red clay should not be introduced into that country, at which the traders complain, as a considerable profit is made from its supply; but in Basuto land the blue coat, round hat, and corduroy trousers, have been adopted to a very great extent, more especially since the opening of the Diamond Fields.

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CHAPTER XIV.

WITCHCRAFT.

THE natives whom we now met, both men and women, generally wore no clothing but a few slight ornaments.

An hour after leaving Clarkebury we reached the Bashee river, crossing it at a difficult and dangerous ford full of slippery rocks and boulders. Our only mishap was one to the cart, the wheels of which getting caught between two rocks received such a severe strain as caused the axles to spread at least six inches out of the level, in which condition they remained until we reached Natal.

We also crossed the Umtata river, noted for the slipperiness of its rocky drift. The water was low, but at other times it is deep and dangerous. Immediately on the other side we met an old man of the name of Kaye, who had served in the Kafir wars with the 2nd Queen's. I shall never forget his delight when he found my aide-de-camp to be the son of his old captain. "My boy," he said, "I look upon you as a son." He was doing well, being sober, industrious and steady, and he possessed good horses, sheep, and a large number of cattle.

Mr. Orpen, the Resident of the St. John's Territory, met us here. Although not previously acquainted with him, having read so many of his letters published in parliamentary documents on this country, I felt as if I knew him. I had many an interesting conversation with him, receiving an immense amount of information as regards the Transkei, Basuto land, the Free State, and the colony.

Contrary to the expectation of many, we had not seen one single head of game in this wide-spread country, neither did we see any, with the exception of half-a-dozen rei-buck, during our entire journey to Natal. The fact is, that where Kafirs live no game can long exist. They persecute them morning, evening and night, in and out of season. No sooner is a deer seen than a whole kraal turns out, and, surrounding the bush into which it is tracked, each armed with a bundle of assegais, they assail the unfortunate animal and destroy it.

We had now entered that portion of the country of the Pondos which is ruled over by Damas, the younger brother of Umquikela, the paramount chief. These two chiefs are both the sons of the great King Faku, who considered that Pondo land should be under the rule of the elder. But the younger, Damas, does not share this opinion, and bids his elder brother take it if he can. A few days ago they declared war, and some few Pondos were watching on the hills the advance of my "army." Otherwise the country was very quiet, so that the intention they had expressed of attacking the Pondomise had evidently been postponed.

We met a friendly old settler, Mr. Owen, at the Umtata. He had been a surgeon in the Old East India's Company Navy, but liking land better than water, and freedom in the wilds more than being cooped up on shipboard, he had exchanged the cockpit for a snug cottage in Pondo land, where he had now resided many years. He had the grazing over an unlimited range of country, and possessed many thousands of sheep and several hundred head of cattle, in addition to a store where everything that a Kafir could require was to be procured. No rents were demanded by the chief for grazing or occupation, but continued presents were expected, and indeed required. Lately a better system had crept in, and a rent of 51. per annum had been arranged to be paid by each settler.

This rent cannot be considered excessive for such a range of

XIV.]

THE DEVIL IN THE WOOD.

127

pasturage. Mr. Owen gave us some home-made bread, a great luxury in this country; he could not procure milk for us. He had allowed his Kafirs to milk his cows after dark; the consequence was, he said, that no milk was forthcoming. A curious custom exists of always milking cows in presence of the calf, indeed a stuffed calf is sometimes kept in sight of the mother, otherwise no milk can be obtained from the cow. The settlers on the Umtata complained that they are constantly robbed of their cattle, but as they live on the borders of the Tambookies and not far distant from the Pondomise, it was impossible to say who were the cattle-lifters. How much this state of things reminded us of what we read regarding the Scottish Border in old times!

In Kafirs two great characteristics are noticeable, superstition and theft. The second, though almost a law of Kafir nature, is held under control by the first, which is often made use of for protective purposes. A settler on the Umtata having been robbed of some wood, a very valuable commodity in this country, and suspecting the Kafirs, bored some of his logs, and, having inserted gunpowder carefully, plugged up the holes. More thefts occurred, but a few days afterwards a report spread that the devil had got into all the wood used at this station. The owner of the wood naturally concluded that his gunpowder had something to do with this extraordinary circumstance, as from that moment no wood was missing.

In the Transkei, accusations and trials for witchcraft still prevail, and are a most profitable source of revenue to the chiefs.

In the protected states, where our Residents are the ruling authorities, it is gradually disappearing, but in Pondo land, both in Damas and Umquikela's division, we hear of it constantly. I was told that at least five men per week were "smelt out," their property confiscated to the chief and themselves put to death. The system is carried on in the following

manner.

One person accuses another, unknown, of having butchered his child, &c. The medicine-man or doctor is then called in for the object of "smelling out" the accused; the accusation generally lighting upon some well-to-do person who possesses cattle. He is seized, and put to various tortures to make him plead guilty; and indeed it is of little use for him to deny it, as the power of the medicine-doctor is used with great vigour. Forthwith, by his prescience, the doctor discovers some sign which he declares proves the guilt. No sooner is the verdict given than the wretched man is seized and murdered, or possibly burned, his property in wives or cattle confiscated, a great portion going to the chief, some to the doctor, and some to the accuser. The best chance for the poor creature is at once to fly for protection to the missionaries, where he is usually safe. He is lucky if he escapes, even though he loses every earthly thing he possesses. The protection enjoyed under the missionaries is very great, for although they are not under the protection of the Government, yet, by custom, they hold a power which in these wild regions places them beyond the control of the chief, so that, without a gun in their possession, they rest as securely as if surrounded by a legion of warriors. It is dreadful that such horrors should exist close to our borders, but there is no way of putting a stop to them except by annexing the country.

“WITCHCRAFT AGAIN."-We are informed that a few days ago a most cruel murder was perpetrated in Kreli's country through witchcraft. It appears from what we hear, that one of the influential men of the tribe discovered or pretended that lung-sickness was among his cattle, and accordingly sought the aid of the witch "Doctor" to find out "the enemy" who had done this. A young man (possibly somewhat wealthy in cattle) was indicated by the witch "Doctor," and measures were of course taken to secure him; but, getting scent of the design,

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