POWER OF THE CHIEFS. 35 



the Capites for not having done it before. Surely there 

 has been enough intellect in South Africa to have thought 

 of this long ago, had it been possible. Unfortunately, the 

 greater part of the trees are evergreen, and therefore 

 rather unfit for a blaze. Let the wise proposer try his 

 success on his boxwood hedges, or his rhododendrons, and 

 then imagine patches of forty square miles of similarly 

 constituted vegetation ; he will at once see that burning 

 is not so very simple a process. 



It is scarcely to be wondered at that in civilized coun- 

 tries, man should bow to his fellow-man, and quietly 

 submit to be his slave, as very many are compelled thus to 

 cringe for their daily bread. But it does appear extraor- 

 dinary that amongst savages this same submission and 

 obedience should be practised, as the chief is frequently 

 undistinguishable from his commonest man, and the latter 

 is independent of the former as regards food, clothing, 

 or any other of the world's goods. Yet no clansman in 

 Scotland yields half the homage to the head of his clan 

 that the African savage does to his chief. This feeling of 

 obedience would render almost useless any attempt to 

 employ the Kaffirs as our soldiers, a plan that appears 

 now to have some supporters in England. We might 

 give our orders to these black troops, but if a chief 

 winked his eye, or held up his finger, not a man would 

 obey us until he had received his chief's permission. 



The Kaffir's ornaments are simple, but characteristic ; 

 such as strings of beads interspersed with the teeth of 

 wolves, lions, or hyaenas, while necklaces made of the 

 claws only are generally worn by chiefs of distinction. 



