220 SPEED-FOOD-WATER NOT NECESSARY. ous and treacherous disposition. Hans more than once domesticated them, and I myself have had the young alive. The gemsbok may be said to be gregarious in its habits; for, though rarely seen together in any great number, it is not often met singly. Of all the larger quadrupeds of South Africa, with which I can claim acquaintance, the gemsbok is, undoubtedly, the swiftest. Its speed is nearly equal to that of the horse. Unless a man be a light weight," and very well mounted, he has little chance of coming up with it. 66 The food of the gemsbok consists of grass, succulent plants (often of a very acrid taste), shrubs, etc. As with several other animals indigenous to Southern Africa, water is not supposed to be essential to the existence of the gemsbok. Gordon Cumming, indeed, tells us "that it never by any chance tastes water." But this, I apprehend, is a mistake; for I have not only seen it on several occasions, whilst in the very act of drinking, but perfectly well authenticated instances have come to my knowledge where whole troops of these animals have been discovered either dead or in a dying state near pools purposely poisoned by the natives for the capture of wild animals. The gemsbok, it is true, is found in the most dreary and desolate districts far distant from water : “A region of drought, where no river glides, Nor shady tree, nor cloud-capp'd mountain." Nevertheless (more especially at early morn) it occasionally frequents the banks of periodical rivers, flanked or bordered by broken ground or hills; and it is to such localities, when pursued, that it flies for refuge. Though the gemsbok has rarely, if ever, been known to attack man, it is quite capable of defending itself. With its formidable horns, it can strike an object (that is, inflict wounds) in front as well as behind, which, from their pointing backwards, was hardly to be expected. When driven to bay by dogs, it has been seen to place its head between its legs (the tips of its horns, in the while, almost resting on the ground), and to rip open, or toss into the air, such of its assailants as have had the boldness to confront it. In this manner, Hans told me he lost, at different times, the best dogs in the pack. In open ground, the gemsbok, it is said, will stand on the defensive even against the lion himself. Hans, indeed, knew HORNS-FLESH-THE CHASE. 221 an instance where a lion and a gemsbok were found lying dead in each other's grasp; the latter having, with his horns, transfixed his assailant! The carcasses of the two were discovered before decomposition had taken place. The lion seems to have a great dread of the horns of the gemsbok; for, by all accounts, he rarely ventures to attack except by stealth. The horns of this animal are used by the natives for a variety of purposes. When polished, they form strong and handsome walking-sticks. The flesh, which is well-tasted, is highly prized. Owing to the uneven nature of the ground which the oryx frequents," says Gordon Cumming, "its shy and suspicious disposition, and the extreme distances from water to which it must be followed, it is never stalked or driven to an ambush like other antelopes; but is hunted on horseback, and ridden down by a long, severe, tail-on-end chase." This is not exactly correct; for, when on foot, I have killed great numbers of these animals. Moreover, were the option left me, I would rather "stalk" them than pursue them on horseback. Such was also Hans' experience, who, during his seven years' nomade life in Damara-land, has probably killed more gemsboks than any hunter in Southern Africa. I have also known this animal to be driven into pit-falls. The gemsbok, as a rule, runs, like the eland, against the wind when pursued. CHAPTER XXIII. ARRIVAL AT EIKHAMS-NATIVE DOGS; CRUELLY TREATED-JONKER AFRIKANER-THE AUTHOR VISITS THE RED NATION; THE BAD REPUTE OF THESE PEOPLE-THE AUTHOR ATTACKED BY OPHTHALMIA-THE EMBRYO 66 LOCUST-THE FLYING" LOCUST; ITS DEVASTATIONS-THE LOCUST BIRD -ARRIVAL AT REHOBOTH; THE PLACE DESCRIBED. IN the afternoon of the 20th of February, we drove in to Eikhams during a terrific thunder-storm, drenched to the skin. The deluging rain continued to descend the whole of the ensuing night, and the place on the following morning looked like a foaming torrent. In consequence of this inundation, our ox-gear, and, in short, everything untanned, was completely saturated, and greatly resembled a heap of moist wash-leather. The starved native dogs had taken advantage of this circumstance, and devoured rather more than two feet of our "trektouw." The curs are of the greatest annoyance to the traveler in Namaqua-land; for, since the owners rarely feed them, they greedily devour almost everything they come across. I have had my powder-flask, "veld" shoes, and even rifle (the stock of which may have happened to be covered with hide, in order to keep it from cracking) abstracted by them from my side during the night. A person's first impulse, on making the discovery, is to vow vengeance on the head of the thieves; but, on seeing the emaciated state of the poor creatures, in which every rib might be counted, anger is turned into pity-and the up-lifted arm, ready to strike the blow, falls to its place. It has been said with much truth, by a missionary, that "the Namaquas feed their dogs with stripes." From being constantly kicked and knocked about in the most brutal manner, they gradually become so accustomed to ill-treatment, that flogging produces little or no effect. When struck, they merely shrug up their backs, open their jaws, grin in a ghastly manner, and, if the chastisement be continued, howl most piteously. This, and their skeleton appearance, are enough to sicken a person. It would be somewhat difficult to determine to what species of the canine race these dogs belong, or from what breed they originally descended. They bear some slight resemblance to those I have seen at the homesteads of the Swedish peasants.1 Jonker had removed his werft to some little distance from Eikhams. He invariably did this every year after the rains, in order to save the pasturage for the dry season. I rode over to the village, where I found nearly the whole tribe-women and children, at least-congregated. This was an opportunity I had long desired, since it would enable me to form a rough estimate of their number. Jonker and most of the men were absent; but by counting the huts, and taking the average number of individuals to each, I came to the conclusion that the aggregate of Namaquas, capable of carrying arms, did not exceed five hundred. The servants, or rather slaves, on the other hand, consisting of bushmen, Hill-Damaras, and impoverished Damaras, were probably three or four times as numerous. By supposing each man to be possessed of one gun, which is perhaps below the mark, Jonker's tribe possess in round numbers two thousand fire-locks. If their courage corresponded to their numerical strength, they might prove a formidable body even to Europeans, but this is fortunately far from being the case. Jonker was indebted to us several head of cattle, and we were accordingly anxious for his return; but no person could or would inform us when this was likely to happen. With regard to other inquiries, such as the object and motive of his present journey, the answers were equally unsatisfactory. Nevertheless, the shyness of the natives, when interrogated on these points, coupled with our knowledge that Jonker was accompanied by almost all his warriors, made us suspect that he had gone on a plundering expedition against the Damaras. After a few days' stay at Eikhams, we directed our steps to a 1 Mr. Lichtenstein, when speaking of the bushmen dogs, which may be considered identical with those of the Hottentots, thus writes:-"These dogs, in their size and form, have a striking resemblance to the black-backed fox of Southern Africa, the jackal as he is falsely called, canis mesomelas; so that it seems very probable that the one is really a descendant from the other; only that the properties of the animal are, in the course of time, somewhat changed, from its having been tamed and trained by the hand of man." 224 VISIT THE RED NATION-CORNELIUS. powerful tribe of Namaquas, known as the "Roode-Natie," or Red Nation. I had two objects in view for visiting these people, namely to trade, and to learn something about them and their country. Every one I met, including the missionaries, represented them as the most barbarous and brutal of all the Hottentots in Great Namaqua-land. Only one trader had visited them, and him they treated so shamefully as to discourage others from making a like attempt. I was determined, however, if possible, to ascertain the cause of their evil reputation, and to endeavor to establish friendly relations with them. My reception was such as to corroborate the ill-reports that had reached my ears. At the first werft we came to, they stole a large quantity of clothing belonging to our servants; but after some trouble, we succeeded in recovering the property. At the next village, they threatened to shoot us on the spot if we did not sell our things at their own terms! Three different times their chief sent to say, that if we attempted to stir without his orders, he would fire upon us. To this insolent message, we quietly replied, that he would have been at liberty to prevent our coming to his werft, but, with regard to our departure, we should consult our own convenience. Finding us determined, and that we were preparing to start, he soon came to terms, and in the most humble manner offered an explanation and apology for his rude conduct, which, under the circumstances, we thought it best to accept. We were just about to turn our backs upon the Red Nation, when a messenger arrived from Cornelius, the chief, with a civil and pressing invitation to visit him at his kraal. After some little hesitation, we consented, and speedily followed the envoy. On arriving at the werft, prettily situated at the foot of a hill, near the banks of the Kubakop river, which here forced its passage though a very remarkable range of mountains, I immediately called the tribe together, and reproached them for their bad behavior towards strangers. I, moreover, explained to them the impolicy of such conduct, and how very injurious it would prove to their own interest, since they were entirely dependent on the Cape-Colony for their supplies of arms and ammunition, clothing, and other commodities. My efforts in bringing about a thorough good understanding, were successful. A short time afterwards, indeed, a number of traders, encouraged by my favorable reception, visited these people, and supplied their wants at the same rate as paid by the other Hottentot tribes residing in Great Namaqua-land. Moreover, they have lately admitted a missionary amongst them, and |