A SOUTH AFRICAN ARCADIA. 655 



family descends to the eldest son ; practically, it is exercised by the 

 strongest member of the family who is most likely an uncle of the 

 heir around whom the other members group themselves as depend- 

 ents. The position of the women is not essentially different from 

 that of the women of the working-classes in Europe. The work is 

 divided between the two sexes about as it is in Europe, and the women 

 are not called upon to do men's work, except in case of need, while 

 the men are willing enough to help in the peculiar women's work 

 whenever they can make themselves useful and have nothing better to 

 do, provided no strangers are in sight. Polygamy is freely allowed, 

 and as many alliances as possible are formed by the head of the fam- 

 ily, as a means of strengthening his influence and conciliating his 

 neighbors and rivals. The provisions of matrimonial alliances are 

 carefully considered and guarded, so that each family may receive all 

 the honor it is entitled to, and neither shall get the advantage of the 

 other. Slavery exists in a mild form, but the sale of slaves seldom 

 occurs. Children are taken into the council of their parents, and are 

 consulted about important matters from a very early age ; and the 

 parent will seldom disregard the advice of his child, or exercise con- 

 straint upon him in any matter except indirectly and in the most gen- 

 tle way. 



The most wealthy cattle-owners number their herds by the thou- 

 sand head. It is impossible to keep them all in one place, and they 

 are therefore distributed at different stations under the charge of par- 

 ticular herdsmen. The herdsman's position is a considerable one, and 

 brings with it privileges enough to make it desirable. The cattle are 

 not distinguished by any specific marks, and the owner's only means 

 of recognizing them is by his personal acquaintance with them. This 

 requires him to be continually on the w T atch, and to go frequently 

 the round of the stations to inspect them, else his herdsmen might 

 make some of them their own. Most owners become extremely skill- 

 ful in noticing and recognizing the individual peculiarities of their 

 animals. 



The system of inheritance is determined by the circumstances of 

 the country and its customs, which require that the head of the family 

 must be strong and wise enough to maintain his rights. By its opera- 

 tion, when a chief dies and leaves a family of minors, his whole per- 

 sonal estate goes, not to his widow and children, but to the nearest 

 man of might in the family. The cattle and servants become his, and 

 the widow and children become his wife and children, the latter on an 

 equal footing with his own children, so precisely that the language of 

 the country has no word for step-father and step-child. One of the re- 

 sults of the system is that the rich and powerful grow more wealthy 

 and influential the longer they live, while the children and younger 

 members of the family receive nothing as of right. It has, however, 

 become customary for the children to be given particular animals as 



