THE ECONOMICS OF THE EAST COAST FEVER AS 



ILLUSTRATED BY THE TRANSKEIAN 



TERRITORIES. 



By Rev. John Robert Lewis Kingon, M.A.. F.L.S. 



On three outstanding- occasions tlie natives of the Cape 

 Province have suffered great losses of cattle. The first occasion 

 was the extraordinary cattle-killing delusion of the Amaxosa in 

 1856-57, which took place at the instigation of Umhlakaza — 

 some say that the real instigator was Kreli, and Umhlakaza was 

 only the agent. But, be that as it may. it resulted in the death 

 of many thousands of natives, and i\n unparalleled redistribution 

 of the native population. 



Mr. Chas. Brownlee, the (jaika Commissioner, estimated 

 that 30,000 Kaffirs entered the Colony and obtained work, 

 20.000 died, and at least 150,000 cattle were killed. He wrote 

 on 27th October, 1857: — 



P'roni the Butterworth Drift to tlic I'honias River, all the cuuntry 

 for 15 miles on either side of the K'ei is now uninhahited, with the excep- 

 tion of a kraal here and there, containing a few individuals, who cannot 

 lonjj continue to drag out the miserai)le existence they now lead. A'ly totn- 

 on the Kei was shortened h\' the failure of provisions, caused hy sharing 

 with the people 1 found hy the way. 



Dr. G. :McCall Theal says :— 



Between the lirst and last days of 1S57 the official returns of British 

 Kafifraria showed that 67.000 had perished or dispersed. . . . The 

 lowest computation tixes the numher of those who perished on both sides 

 of the Kei at 25.000; ordinary calculations give double the number. The 

 power of the Kosa tribe was for the time completelv broken. 



From these two quotations we see what very serious results 

 followed upon the loss of cattle in 1856-57. In these days of 

 rail and motor a similar situation is not possible ; but we see 

 how serious is the situation following upon losses of cattle, and 

 how it is modified by the operation of these factors. 



The second great occasion was when rinderpest invaded the 

 Territory in 1897. It has been said that 90 per cent, of the 

 cattle perished then,* and it will be remembered that the disease 

 spread well into the Colony. As the eft'ects of the rinderpest 

 are in the main similar to those which we shall consider in con- 

 rection with the East Coast Fever, there is no need for us to 

 deal with it at any length, except to show that the present 

 experiences oi the natives are not the first of the kind; that 

 since then the communications of the Transkei have been con- 

 siderably improved by rail and road ; and finally, when we come 

 to flealing with the probable effects of the present losses of 

 cattle, we shall base part at least of our argument upon the 

 experience of the rinderpest days. 



The third great occasion is that with which we are im- 

 mediately concerned, the East Coast Fever. We shall attempt 



* South African Native Races Committee Report. 2. 266. 



