APR. 1771 HOTTENTOT HABITS AND CUSTOMS 441 



and coarse cheese ; but they are immensely fond of spirituous 

 liquors, and will never fail to get drunk with them if they 

 have an opportunity. 



This little, and no more, of the customs of this much- 

 spoken-of people I had myself an opportunity of seeing : from 

 the Dutch I heard much, and select the following from their 

 accounts : 



Within the boundaries of the Dutch settlements are 

 many different nations of Hottentots, differing from each 

 other in custom very materially. Some are far superior to 

 others in arts. In general, however, all live peaceably with 

 each other, seldom fighting, except those who live to the 

 eastward, who are much annoyed by people called by the 

 Dutch Bosclimen. The latter live entirely upon plunder, steal- 

 ing the cattle of the Hottentots, but not openly attacking 

 them. They are armed, however, with lances or assagais, 

 arrows (which they know how to poison, some with the 

 juice of herbs, others with the poison of the snake called 

 cobra di capelo *), and stones (which some particular tribes 

 throw so well that they will repeatedly strike a dollar or 

 crown -piece at the distance of a hundred paces). They 

 train up bulls, which they place round their crawls or towns 

 in the night : these will constantly assemble and oppose 

 either man or beast that approaches them, nor will they 

 desist till they hear the voice of their masters, who know 

 how to encourage them to fight, or to make them in an 

 instant as tame and tractable as their other cattle. 



Some nations know how to melt and prepare copper, 

 which is found among them, probably native, and make of 

 it broad plates to ornament their foreheads. Others again, 

 indeed most, know how to harden bits of iron, which they 

 procure from the Dutch, and make of them knives superior 

 to any the Dutch can sell them. 



Their chief people, many of whom have a large quantity 

 of cattle of their own, are generally clad in the skins of 

 lions, tigers, or zebras, etc., which they adorn and fringe very 



1 The term cobra di capella is only applied to the common Indian species 

 of the cobra. 



