CHAP. II.] ACCIDENT TO WAGGON. 35 



night, but got away in the dark unscathed. Little else 

 happened. 



Septemher 12th. — The waggons were sent for, 

 full of things, and as some were still left behind, 

 Mr. Bam kindly lent me his light waggon to fetch 

 them. The oxen could hardly get it back, and to my 

 extreme regret when they did so the axletree was 

 found to have been strained ; it was, of course, a great 

 annoyance to my worthy host, as no seasoned wood 

 was to be had, from which my carpenter could make 

 another one. There are, indeed, only two kinds of 

 timber trees in Damara and the greater part of 

 Namaqua land ; one is the unna, which grows about 

 Scheppmansdorf, and looks something like an elm ; 

 the other is the camelthorn, which also is a fine 

 tree, but more gnarled. Unna wood is soft and porous, 

 and of very little use ; camelthorn is almost too 

 hard to be worked, it is very heavy indeed, and very 

 brittle ; still for want of better wood it has to be 

 used for most carpentering work. We therefore made 

 an expedition with the cart in search of a tree, as 

 none grew within some six miles of Scheppmansdoi'f. 

 Mr. Bam, my carpenter, and myself, went with tools. 

 After a long search. we found one, and my best axe 

 splintered sadly in cutting it down ; it was quite a 

 long job to fell it. As it lay we roughly shaped it ; 

 and even then had to use all our strength to Uft the 

 future axletree into the cart. 



When we got it home, I learnt how to season wood 

 in a hurry : a trench was dug, a good fire made in it, 

 and after a time the ashes swept out ; then water was 



