A PICTURE OF SOUTH AFRICA.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 7, 8 January 1881, Page 4

A PICTURE OF SOUTH AFRICA.

From a letter written by a young tman in the interior of Cape Colony to •a friend in Auckland, we make the following extracts : — ln this district (as 3t is called) of Victoria West, we get on an average two rainfalls a year, aud this jusfc* keeps tbo Dutch farmers •going; bufc jnst before I came there had been fco rain for nino monihs, and the farmers were beginning to grumble ; bufc again, shortly after I arrived, it Tamed for three days in a manner I can only suppose ifc possible to rain in South Africa, which means a downpour which fills riverbeds and floods the " velt "-— as ifc is called here — which means all the outlying ccuniry. Tou may perhaps havo seen many rivers marked on the map of South Africa, but if you should nofc already know, lefc me tell you that thr* re are no rivers as we understand ibem in England, wbich means afc least a continuous stream of "water. No ; our rivers only come down,* as ifc is enllet', when the rain falls very heavily, and then beWare ! for lost is the waggon and span of mules or oxen if tbey aro then crossing the then dry bed, for in a few minutes i the roar of a torrent is heard, and down j it come?, carrying ali before. Most of ihe farmers and settlers are Butch, owning from 5000 to 55,000 acres as their farm. In England these would be enormous fortunes ; bufc remember in tbis (li'-driefc, and far beyond, Ihey are only fib for sheep and goat?, and how the animals live on scrub and small bush is wonderful ; yet- the wool is considered of the finest quality which comes into the market of Engiaud "When travelling from Cape Town here — which is about 430 miles —l had an opportunity of judging of the natural beauty of the country. As I have already said, I know nothing of New Zealand; bufc should there be such a dreadful, wild, dreary, stony, and mountainous country besides thia in existence, I pity the inhabitants. Eor 300 miles — through which lately a line was opened, wbich carries oue at a speed not exceeding 15 miles an hour, and Btops at kraals, or stations as they call them —for the whole of that distance it is one unbroken range of mountains on either side, and nofc one tree to be seen, or even a stream of water, although we crossed several fine bridges over supposed rivers, which are only rivers when the rain comes down. The vegetation — for there is a little —consists of very small bush, which resembles dried peaweed, and where the little bushes are not, then •enormous boulders and stones as large as a man's head. In some parts even you could hardly put the blade of a Imife between the stones, they are so close,- and this is on the flat ground. Of course, grass, or even a blade of •grass, has never been seen there. These Dutch farmers are almost less civilized than the native Kaffir or Zulu. The live anyhow-~live chiefly on meat (mutton), and seldom, if ever, wash themselves ; in fact, there may be a very slight excuse, considering water is generally very scarce. Even when I am, which has a population of GSO people, they cannot manage to get good water, and the first few days I was taken quite ill through it. I have heard ycu say that things are expensive where you are; ifc may interest you to know what I now pay for different things : Beer, only in bottels, from 2s to 2s Gd; brandy, *Bs to 10* 6d; and other liquors in the same proportion. "Washing, 12s a month •, 5s a month, boy to bring water from the public well ; £7 a month for board at hotel ; butter, beefi and many other things not possible to be got. We have a few trees planted in the town, and a public reading room end three churches two of tbem built by tbe Church of England Bible Society. One would have been quite sufficient, bufc I suppose they have more money than they know what to do "with. lam thinking seriously of clearing out, either to England or to New Zealand. I have reason to fear that native wars will always harass the country, if a standing army is not supported; for since 1876 we hare had war with one country or another, and very few young fellows there are that have not seen active service. We have already 5000 volunteers, cavalry and artillery, and now they are to be supported by 2000 more burghers. These Basutoß appear in forces of 5000, 80tiO, 10,000 and 15,000 at a time, and their united forces are about 50,000 men, well trained,, good shots, splendid riders, and well armed.