CHAPTER XI 



WHAT THE DIP MEANS TO THE DESERT 



In describing the early days of South Africa 

 all travellers speak with astonishment at the 

 vast herds of game which used to roam over 

 the velt. Now, in considering the agricultural 

 potentialities of the country this fact should be 

 taken into account. For it is evident that a 

 land which formerly sustained countless herds 

 of wild buck is likely to be equally well suited 

 to support domestic animals. For ages the 

 Buffalo roamed at will over the prairies of 

 the " Far West," where at present we find the 

 sleek Shorthorn or the placid Hereford. And 

 so we find that the grass plains of the Free 

 State where the graceful Springbok once gam- 

 bolled undisturbed now nourish the meek-eyed 

 merino, and pure-bred cattle from the most 

 famous herds of the British Isles and Holland. 

 Ten years ago the reclamation and settlement 

 of the Desert would have seemed an almost 

 hopeless task ; because although the colonist 

 might live there contentedly and grow farm 



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