MISSIONARY LIFE. 43 



of savages, and none of their noble qualities. So long as 

 they are fed and clothed, they are willing enough to congre- 

 gate round the missionary, and to listen to his exhortation. 

 The moment, however, the food and clothing are discontin- 

 ued, their feigned attachment to his person and to his doc- 

 trines is at an end, and they do not scruple to treat then- 

 benefactor with ingratitude, and load him with abuse. 



The missionary is more or less dependent on his own re- 

 sources. Such assistance as he obtains from the natives is 

 so trivial, and procured with so much trouble, that it is often 

 gladly dispensed with. The good man is his own architect, 

 smith, wheelwright, tinker, gardener, &c., while his faithful 

 spouse officiates as nurse, cook, washerwoman, and so forth. 

 Occasionally, to get the drudgery off their hands, they adopt 

 some poor boy and girl, who, after they have been taught 

 with infinite labor to make themselves useful, and have ex- 

 perienced nothing but kindness, will often leave their pro- 

 tectors abruptly, or, what is nearly as bad, become lazy and 

 indolent. 



A Namaqua, it would appear, is not able to appreciate 

 kindness, and no word in his language, as far as I can re- 

 member, is expressive of gratitude ! The same is the case, 

 as I shall hereafter have occasion to mention, with their north- 

 em neighbors, the Damaras, and though a sad, it is never- 

 theless a true picture. 



When wagons were first introduced into Great Namaqua- 

 land, they caused many conjectures and much astonishment 

 among the natives, who conceived them to be some gigantic 

 animal possessed of \^tality. A conveyance of this kind, be- 

 longing to the Rev. Mr. Schmelen, once broke down, and was 

 left sticking in the sand. One day a Bushman came to the 

 owner, and said that he had seen his " pack-ox" standing in 

 the desert for a long time -^dth a broken leg, and, as he did 

 not observe it had any grass, he was afraid that it would soon 

 die of hunger unless taken away ! 



