HomeMy WebLinkAboutExeter Advocate, 1899-11-9, Page 7• ..
TRANSVAAL FARM HOUSE.
As Described by a Lady Correspondent et
the London Graphic.
Let me introduce you to, a Dutch
farin house in the Transvaal as I saw
it one fine afternoon, says a lady cor-
respon.dent of the London Geaphio,
It was situated some miles from any
town or vittage; the typical Boer doea
not desire near neighbors, The •way
to it lay over the high veldt, along
vast plains, with here ancl there a
range of hills presenting the appear-
ance of huge pudding moulds turnec.
upside down, only slightly more
rugged of surface but scarcely less
bare. The road (by courtesy so called)
led over small heaps of stones and red-
dish sand, varied, by deep ruts and
shafts, the 'beds of dried-up rivers, and
now and then gliding gradually into
the burut-up pasture land, over tufts
of struggling, anwholesome-looking
grass. There were no hedges, no
fences, no walls. Our vehicle was a
Irina of buggy, a hybrid, between a
Cape cart and an old, fashioued
Winding round the base of one of the
big pudding basins we carne upon a
little valley, in which two or three
green trees of the willow species
hewed the preseilte of wmer, and
son afterwards arrived at the house.
It was a low building of stone, with
a corrugated iron roof ; along the
front ran the stoop, which. is raised
causeway or verandah, built also of
stones laid. one ova another, and
covered with earth beaten down hard.
This is the place whereon. a Boer
loves to lotuage, smoking his eternal
pipe, and. reenipatiug, when lie is net
laying down the law with regard. to
Rooinelts (Englishmen) or Uitlanders
generally. At the back were two
little paddocks enclosed by stone
walls loosely put together and cattle
kraal, also of stone, but partly thatch-
ed. Two mules were standing in the
e.f tome= sun, whining their long
ears in futile attempts to scare the
flies, which were exploring every por-
tion of their lean bodies. A. yoke of
°eon browsing at some distance com-
pleted the prominent features of the
landscape, until, at the sound of
Wheels a couple of dogs of the lumber
kind appeared. and greeted us with
furious barks. Two black boys, call
-
ad "Sunday" and "Shilling," came
to take charge of our horses and con-
veyance, and we were ushered in by
the back entrance through. the Ititolien.
The distinguishing feature of this
Jtpartment, after the genereal. squalor
of the whole, was a stout cord stretch -
d across one end with strips of meat
banging over and tied. to it, this was
the greater part of a. sheep, which I
afterwards understood was killed the
.day before. The practice is to cut it
tip, without any apparent regard to
joints, in various shapes and sizes,
and to hang it in the air, or often in
the sun, to dry; this constitutes the
biltong which they use on ther jour-
neys, or in war time, and whicli is
said to be most nourishing and sus-
taining food. We passed. on into the
inner room, which was breakfast
Toone dining room, and drawing
room combined; it was rather long
and narrow, with a deal table, also
narrow, and a few wooden chairs.
Against one wall was a wooden box,
evhich. with two or three cushions
on it, posed as a couch. A small har-
monium stood at ane end, and in two
corners were little cupboards or what-
nots, draped with cretonne or colored
print. The floor was composed. of a
mixture of clay and. cow dung beaten
down hard and firm. I was inforraed
that this kind of floor was consider-
od very good for health. I was intro-
duced to my bedroom leading out of
'the dining room, and found it simply,
but a little more comfortably furn-
ished, muslin curtains to the window,
but no blinds! As I Stood on the stoep
later, there came to me a fair vision
of farm houses in dear old England,
with their trim, smooth lawns, veg-
etable and flower gardens, and I
thought, oh! for a little industry and
enterprise in this desert, which could
be made to blossom as a rose. The
soil is so fertile that it is commonly
acid if you throw a plant at the
ground and water it, it will grow.
Here all around it was little better
than a wilderness; a pool lay at the
bottom of the bare patch which should
have been a garden, and a few ducks
stood among the reeds, or disported
themselves on the water. No green
gelds of wheat or barley waved in the
aoft, sweet air. The Boer does not
seem to believe in cultivation save for
o little ground roughly scratched over
for patches of Indian corn, here called
mealies, of which, when finely ground
and sifted, they make their bread ;
vary good it is when quite fresh, but
after a day or two it becomes hard
and sour.
Through all the years in which the
Boers have held the Transvaal it
Imams never to have occurred to them
that, with some labor nd care, they
could have made this oountry both
profitable and fair to look upon.
Water is to be found generally at a
depth. of 30 feet ; certainly locusts and
drought are formidable foes, but in
Natal, where these drawbacks are also
known, and the climate ranch hotter,
good deal of land is under cultiva-
tion. It is not that the Boer bestows
much time on mental attainments or
the study of books, on aesthetic cul-
ture or care of personal appearance;
his only book, usually, is the Bible,
his letters are never written, his
toilet accessories are of the most prim-
itive kind, and those not.often used.
The average Boer does not undress
when he retires to rest, consequently
is whole attire is of the frowsiest; he
is unshorn, unwashed, -unbrushed, his
skin, hair and clothing are all of the
same hue, in close affinity with the
color of the ground,—thence, we may
conclude, arises their favorite appel-
lation. "Sons of the Soil." As the
sun Milk behind. the hills, and the
short twilight faded into darkness,
a dismal sound arose from the afore-
mentioned pool and its neighborhood,
—the loud croaking of many froge,
resembling the distant lowing of
cattle. Supper over I went, to bed.
Though wearied with xny journey
sleep did not visit my eyelids; a rest-
less feeling came over me, and soon I
became aware that the blanket cover-
ing me was apparently the camp of
armies a insects of the sprightly
kind, whence they issued in battal-
ious and attacked me at
EVERY 'VULNERABLE POINT.
,Added to this misery alaeavy thunder-
storm, with rain dashing against the
window, came on, so I was fain to
light my candle and while away the
greater part of the night with a book.
Morning at length came, and with it
our breakfast; the strips of meat I
had seen on the string in the kitchen
the day before now appeared on the
table, cooked., evidently, in a frying
pan; this -with Boer bread and butter,
tea and coffee furnished our frugal
meal. I chose coffee, but immedi-
ately afterward fervently wished I
had, asked for tea; both were fillfaCt*
ently bad, but Boer coffee is simply
execrable; compounded of various
mixtures in wnioli ground mealios
bear a large proportion, and some
coffee, which is often roasted at
home, this concoctiou is both meat
and drink, and it is said. to be in cone
sequence of their drinking it so many
times a day that the Boer women at-
tain, to such gigantic proportions as
they frequently do in middle life, and
sometimes in youth also. Several
anale relatives of the household came
• to breakfast, and displayed very
good apptites. One peculiarity of the
men's clothes is that they appear to
be borrowed; they never fit (I am
speaking now, of course, of the low
class Baer), there is too amen ankle,
often stoekingless, shown, and too
much wrist to agree with the modern
idea of fitness. It was a brilliant
morning, and the sun soon dried up
the excessive moisture of the previous
night. Presently three members of
the family offered to accompany me
on a ramble. We walked some dis-
tance and came upon the ruins of an-
other farm house—a few stones let one
upon another, and the same utter
poverty of surroundin.gs, no trees, no
trace of garden, or orchard. On re-
turning to the house coffee was serv-
ed, but I did not take any. Now came
a surprise, and I ceased to wonder at
my lively visitors in the still hours of
the night before when I discovered
that in two corners of the dining
room. under the two arrangements of
shelves or whatnots, were two liens
sitting on eggs. Moreover the other
hens and chickens wandering in and
out from the steep at their sweet
will. In this particular household it
seemed the rule to begin to think of
preparing dinner when everyody felt
very hungry, and we did not dine be -
for half -past two o'clock. Later on
a party of Dutch arrived "trekking"
in an ex -wagon from one farm to an-
other. I noticed that they all seemed
to regard me with suspicion, and to
examine me much as they would have
done
SOME STRANGE ANIMAL
newly imported. I, on my part, was
not carried away with admiration or
consuming respect for these gentlefolk
but submitted to their questioning and
gave information with regard to my
own doings with as good grace as I
could command. They are very in-
quisitive, but it is pleasant to add
that they are usually kind and hospit-
able to such strangers as can converse
with them in the teal, which is Low
Dutch, and the same language as that
in which His Honor, the Staat-Presi-
dent, preaches in the little Dopper
Church near to his residence at Pre-
toria. Among the people yon see
young girls, fresh looking and rather
pretty, but they grow terribly fat or
miserably thin with increasing age.
I have seen ugly old women in differ-
ent parts of the world, but, beyond
doubt, for utter and hopless ugliness,
the aged. Dutch vrouw carries the
palm! Some of these old women are
more bitter against the rooineks and
rooibatjies (i. e., English soldiers)
than even the men, who often hate
the English simply because they are
English, and more refined than them-
selves. So the evening again passed
away, and early next morning I de-
parted on my way to Johannesburg.
- • _ I. --.- it
fr,
More Than Sesquipedalian.
A (=respondent sends us a German
word, copied from a German periodi-
cal, which is longer than the word
of forty-two letters printed recently.
It is as follows:
Napolitanerdudelsackspfeifergesells-
ohaftterstiitzungsverein.
This word contains sixty letters.
It means, approximately speaking,
"The Neapolitan aid associtaion of
bagpipe players." They ought to be
long-winded set.
A Church Curiosity.
A oharch in which only two services
are held during the year is surely a
curiosity, yet such a one is to be
found in the middle of a large field
near the village of Towton, in Eng-
land. It was originally erected as a
memorial to Lord de Clifford, who
fell in the battle of Towton in 1461.
••••••••••••••••••••
A BOER GENERAL INSPECTING HIS. VOLUNTEERS IN THE TRANSVAAL
These are the men British troops must race in their great war upon Ocau Paul's republic. They are not
showy, as they appear in the accompanying sketch, made by the Johannesburg artist of The Illustrated London
News, but they are pluck personified, and they can shoot to kill. The Field Corneas couriers have already ridden
throughout the republic, and thousands of Boer sharpshooters are armed to the teeth.
•
THE MAJUBA HILL FIGHT.
Bow a Brilliant British General Was
Beaten the 11°6""
Here is a description of the fight on
Majuba Hill, which shows that all the
blame for the disaster cannot be laid
on Sir George Pomeroy -Colley, who
was a brave and brilliant soldier.
Majuba Hill is a flat topped and
very steep mountian, which com-
mands 1aing's Nek, After his first
repulses, Colley found himself en-
eamped apposite the Boor position
waiting, for reiaforcements. The
Boers were steadily entrenching their
position at the Nek, so that the storm-
ing of it would be far more difficult
than it had proved when. first attempt-
ed. So far the Boers had made no
start at holding Majuba Hill, on ac-
count of the difficulty of ascending it.
Consequently, (a) if the Boers oc-
cupied it they would complete their
chain of fortifications, (b) if the Brit-
isb occupied it they would outflank
the Boer line, and, when the rein-
forcements arrived, could attack with
excellent chances of success. Sir
George Colley accordingly deliberate -
' 'Cooiniandant T. £ Cronje.
en'
Cronje, the captor of Jameson, is the
active commander of the Boers in the
field. He will direct much of the fierc-
est fighting. He is under General
Joubert, but Joubert is rather old for
active campaigning. -
ly kept back his reinforcements, a
strong force of infantry and cavalry,
at Newcastle, so as not to tempt the
Boers to occupy the hill, seized it by
a night march, and then ordered by
flag signal from the hill that these
troops be hurried to the front. In
two or three days they would be at
his main camp, and then a combined
attack would be made. This plan
hinged upon one consideration; that
neither of the two small bodies into
which he thus divided his army could
be attacked and overwhelmed in de-
tail. The hill appeared to be impreg-
nable, and Sir George carefully pro-
vided for the defence of the main
camp. The force which set out for
the hill in the night was smaller than
is generally given. It mustered 554
rifles, and 200 of these were left at
two detached posts on the four -mile
road to the hill.
A HOLLOW IN THE HILL.
The top of Majuba Hill is flat, tri-
angular, and covers about ten acres,
and the crest -line measures about 1,-
200 yards, so that 350 men made a
small garrison for it. A hollow occu-
pied part of the top. At the angle
nearest the Boors the hill rose steeply
to the edge, and then from this tip a
slope ran up for about 150 yards to a
ridge, about forty feet higher, which
cut across the top. Eehind this ridge
lay the central depression, and from
the summit of the' ridge, owing to
the convexity of the scope, the tip of
the hill could not be seen, much less
1 the steep hillside. At the corner of
the plateau nearest the Boers and in
advance of the carving slope just
mentioned, was a kopje (or koapie),
a rooky mound, 4 party of High-
hindersafterwards reinforced by some
58th men, held this kodje as an. out-
post, Behind them, on the true edge
of the hilltop, was a line of troops
composed here of Highlanders. Be-
hind the transverse ridge, in the cen-
tral hallow, lay the reserves. Fin-
ally there seems to have been three
paths up the hill. One was by the
Highlanders' kepi°. The second was
in rear of and to the right of the
transverse ridge. The third was that
next to the British camp, by which
the force hwl ascended.
When the Boers preceived the troops
on the hill, and determined to attack,
a number of parties advanced to the
lower slopes of the hill, and from
early morning until 1. :30 direoted a
heavy fire on the mountain top. Only
three or four of the British were shot,
and the fire appeared absolutely wast-
ed. But while this was going on
smaller parties of the Boers were sil-
ently climbing the hill. A good deal
of the hillside is "dead ground,"
i. e., cannot be seen from the crest of
the hill, so that they could climb
safely over these portions. The fire
from the covering force at once at-
tracted the attention of the British,
and by making it unsafe to show one's
self on the skyline prevented them
from watching the slopes of the hill.
By 1:30 the first of these parties,
about 60 men, was close under the
Highlanders' kopje. Something had
been seen of them, and the post had
been reinforced, but no idea of their
numbers was entertained. The Boers
deliberately prepared for the destruc-
tion of this advanced post. The party
collected. under a rock ledge which
hid them from the soldiers on the
skyline above them. Then, at a word,
they stepped back with their rifles at
the "present," and instantly discharg-
ed. a volley, which brought down al-
most the whole of the picquet. The
rest,
PANIC STRICEICN
by this sudden slaughter of their
comrades, fell back; the line along
the true crest in their rear seems to
have shared the panic, and fell back
to the transverse ridge. To this ridge
Colley and his officers were leading
the reserve, and as the two waves,
the retreating and the advancing,
met, there was a scene of intense con-
fusion, as Highlanders and 58th men
mingled. For a while the retreating
men bore the others back; then the
officers got a little line of battle form-
ed along • this ridge ; and here took
place the fight for the hill. The line
was confused, companies and corps
were mixed up, the men were badly
bunched, the flanks were left weak
and unguarded, the men were dis-
heartened by the sudden and amazing
attack which had befallen them, and
all was wild din and tumult. Then
the Boer force, which had thus storm-
ed the true crest appeared.
Far a while the two lines exchang-
ed a heavy fire, but no loss occurred
on either side. But, the Boers were
hugging the ground, covered by the
convexity of the slope. All the Brit-
ish, saw were spurts of smoke and
rifle muzzles, and here and there a
head cautiously lifted. The British
lead was whizzing over their heads.
The Boer fire was striking the ground
in front of the British line; gradually
it crept up, and the soldiers began to
drop. The Boer line was being fed
by the climbers lower down the hill.
Then a fresh party came up by the
path to the right of the ridge on
which the British line was; then that
right was enveloped with fire, and
outflanked and outshot, the line gave
way in rout. Colley stood to the end
and was killed while urging his men
not to run. The rest was a flight
down the hillside. The official state-
ment showed 20 officers and 266 mea
killed, wounded and missing; a heavy
fall from 850.
A 314or at Two u ty-Seeen.
The youngest major in the British,
army is John Carapbell, of the Cam -
men Highlanders. He is only twenty-
seven—three years younger than any
other major in the service. He has
attained his promotiowi so rapidly
owing to active service. The two cap-
tains above him in his regiment were
shot at Omdurman. Major Campbell
comes of a long line of soldiers—his
father and grandfather were both in
the Cameron Highlanders, and three
of his mother's brothers are command -
beg regiments in India. The young
man had a narrow escape from a death
shamming Dervish after the battle of
Omdurman. Ile was walking over
the battlefield with a companion,
when he noticed a strange appearance
about one of the supposed corpses. "I
don't believe that man's dead," said
he to his comrade, "I believe I saw
his eyelid move." Nonsense; he's
dead, right enough," said the other,
and they walked on. Scarcely had he
spoken than a spear whizzed through
the air from. the hand of the supposed
corpse. Campbell had turned his
head. to speak to his corapanion, or it
must have killed him.
For the Living.
'Twere better to send. a cheap bouquet
To a living friend, this very day,
Than a bushel of roses, white and red,
To lay on his coffin after he's dead.
Cecil Rhodes.
wiwwwwwwwwweseweeramewseessememastorawawswis,
. . .
BY TROLLEY TO PYRAMIDS.
Features or the Blectrie Line To EgYpVis
Heart' Mon u ri ht. ,
The new trolley line from Cairo to
the pyramids, while possibly taking
away some of the local color of the,
hitherto hideous approach to the vil-
lage of the Bedouins to whom is en-
trusted the care of the Sphinx: and Py-
ramids is spoken of gratefully by
travellers in Egypt. The new line
runs frora the west end. of Inasr-el-Nin
bridge, ono mile from the center of
Cairo, extending up the bank of the
Nile a distance of two miles to Gizete
and thence in a westerly direction for
seven and one-half miles to the fook
of the Gizeh pyramids.
It is at present a siugle traok, with
turnouts for cars to pass each, other.
but the traffic is increasing so much
that double tracks are soon to be laid
throughout. The overhead system. *
used, with closed cars, seatingtwenty-
eicht persons each, with separate com-
partments for first and, second dant
passengers. In testing the speed ef
the cars, two hailers, filled with
Arabs, and weighing, thus loader
twenty tons, were hauled at the rate
of thirtymiles an hour. Both motor-
men and conduotors are native Arabs,
Their uniform is a tight -fitting yel-
low" duck °loth with a, black belt.
The trip from the bridge to the pyre. -
raids can be made in. fourteen min-
utes, but usually an hour is occupied
in the round trip, Judged by Amern.
eau practice, the fare is deoidedIy
high being equal to 50 cents, there
and baele. The ide, however,
well worth. the money.
The route is very attractive, trees
lining the road. an both aides tor about
eight miles. One of the greatest
charms of the ride is the long dis-
tance views of the pyramids which it
affords. The first sign or them of
which the passenger becomes aware
is a great eorie sharply outlined
against the deep blue sky, In the rear
of this two other cones loom heavily
up, and the great aspect of the three,
giants is startingly impressive. The
village of the Bedouin caretakers,
seen from car tracks, limits like a ser-
ies of ruins standing upon the sands
of the desert. Its inhabitants enjoy
monopoly of conducting visitors to
the pyramids. These venerable mon-
uments of antiquity are looked upon
with. great reverence and. awe by the
native Egyptitoes, who can not under-
stand the profane manners of foreign
visitors, who make the occasion of
the visit one of eating and drinking
and singing merry songs. On the
other hand, those who have made the
trip under the old conditions maintain,
that the approach to the pyramids was
so tiresome and disappointing, that
its completion justified considerable
latitude in the matter of celebration.
Now, at all events, the journey can
be made in comfort and enjoyably.
7.2
Great Britain's war with the Boers
is beyond doubt in no small measure
instigated by Cecil Rhodes, the South
African multimillionaire and politi-
cian, who considers the Transvaal a
barrier in the way of his projected
Cape to Cairo railroad.
Delagoa Bay.
....... eele
It is rumored that England bas pur-
chased Delagoa Bay from Portugal for
40,000,000. The Portuguese territory
extends about 52 miles inland to the
Transvaal border, and a railroad con-
nects Delagoa Bay with Pretoria, the
Boer capital.
• MID of South Africa.
This map shows the Transvaal, the
Orange Free State, Natal and Cape
Colony. Natal is a British colony, part-
ly inclosed by the territory of the
Transvaal and the Orange Free State.
AT THE CANADIAN SAULT.
Groat Industrial Enterprises. Planned awl
Already tinder 'Ma y.
The Lake Superior Power Company
have just commenced active eonstruc-
tion work on several new industrial
establishments at the Canadian Sault.
The construction and equipment of the
buildings will call for the expenditare
of several millions of dollars, and will
result in the building up of an impor-
tant manufacturing center, • The im-
mensity of the enterprises projected
at the Canadian. Sault by the people -
who are interested in the water power
canal development here makes appar-
ent what is in store for this side of
the river. One of the projects now
under way is the erection of a plant,
for the manufacture of Ferronickel
steel by electrical treatment, a pro-
cess which has been invented and. sue-
cessfully conducted on an experiment's/
scale by experts employed for that
purpose. This plant will utilize the
iron ore from the Lake Superior
Power Company's mine in the Michi-
picoten district and nickel from its
mine in the Sudbury district. A con-
siderable quantity of the Ferronickel
steel will, it is said, go on contract to
Krupp, the great German gun manu-
facturer.
Another enterprise is a sulphite pulp
mill which will supplement the pres-
ent mechanical wood pulp mills of the
Sault'Ste Marie Pulp and Paper Com-
pany.
A plant is also being built for the
manufacture of sulphuric acid on a,
large scale. With the early comple-
tion of the great industrial enterprise*
now under way and of the Algoma
Central Railway, which will bring to.
them the raw materials to be turned.
into finished products, the growth
of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., into a large
manufacturing center will be a mat-
ter of only a short time. The pros -
petits of the Twin Saults cannot
be brighter.
The Cow Knew.
In this era of railways and newspap-
ers, knowledge is not confined to
cities and towns.
"How savagely that cow looks at
me", said a young woman—a summer
boarder—to a farmer.
"It's your red parasol, ma'am,"
he answered.
"Dear me I" said the maiden. "1
knew it was a little out of fashion,
but I didn't suppose a country cow'
would notice it."
Ottawa is Growing Steadili.
. Ottawa's population is increasing
slowly, but surely. The figures given
out by Assessment Com.miseioner
Pratt show the increase in the pasi
year to be 1,616. The city has in the
past ten years grown from 42,121
RAN of a population -