THE MISSIONARIES AND THE NATIVES. 109 



exhortations, and knowing, moreover, that several mission- 

 aries had already established themselves throughout various 

 parts of Great Namaqua-land, he thought that he might use 

 his influence to more advantage with the Damaras, among 

 whom, therefore, he had pitched his tent. Messrs. Rath and 

 Kolbe were his coadjutors in the good cause. 



Seeing that their best endeavors were of little avail with- 

 out a proper knowledge of the Damara language, they work- 

 ed hard in order to master it, but the difficulty was immense. 

 At last, by the merest chance, they discovered the key to it, 

 and from that moment they made rapid progress ; so much 

 £0 that, in the course of a few years, Mr. Plahn was able to 

 return to Germany, where he has compiled and published a 

 grammar and dictionary. 



On the first appearance of the missionaries in Damara- 

 land, the natives were very reserved, and retired with their 

 cattle into the interior. Being wholly dependent on them 

 for supplies of live-stock, the settlers suiFered great hardships 

 and privations. Indeed, on more than one occasion starva- 

 tion stared them in the face, and they lived for a long time 

 in a precarious way on such wild animals as their Hottentot 

 servants managed to kill. The Damaras, moreover, prob- 

 ably judging others by themselves, conceived the idea that 

 the missionaries had come into the country with some sinis- 

 ter object, and that it would be advisable to frustrate it. 

 Accordingly, they assembled in great numbers within a few 

 miles of Barmen for the purpose of exterminating the new 

 settlers. Their diabolical intentions were, however, frustrated 

 by the counsel of one of their tribe. At the time of which 

 I am now writing, Mr. Hahn and his coadjutors had com- 

 pletely succeeded in pacifying and conciliating the Damaras, 

 and a great number of the poorer classes were now living at 

 the station, where, by a little industry and perseverance, 

 many managed to live in tolerable comfort. The great 

 source of their wealth consisted in the cultivation of tobacco, 



