THE WILD FAUNA OP THE EMPIRE 37 



niont notices to show to any white man attempting to come from 

 ■Leydsdorp direction. Of course, a great deal of the land being 

 private simplifies matters, as prospectors have less opening. So 

 far, no representative of the Companies has been down. 



' Singwitsi Game Eeseeve. 



' Major Eraser in charge, with a staff of twelve native con- 

 stables, 



' Game. 



' Only sparingly distributed ; there is rather more on the 

 Singwitsi River than elsewhere. Some districts appear completely 

 denuded not only of buck, but of all feathered game as well, 

 presenting a vivid contrast in both these respects to the adjoining 

 country south of the Oliphants River. 



' From the tracks, I gather that all the varieties of game known 

 in the Sabi Eeserve are present, but in such limited numbers that 

 they are seldom or never seen by the traveller, and, in fact, in a 

 Journey up of 300 miles we only saw game on two occasions. 



' Causes of Scarcity of Game in the Singwitsi Reserve. 



' The principal causes of the present low ebb of the game are — 

 -^irst, the method of hunting adopted by the Dutch hunters, who 

 overran the country in the winter months until this year. Secondly, 

 the immense destruction caused to the game by the natives living 

 in the Reserve. This, unlike the white man's warfare against the 

 Same, goes on all the year round and is waged equally against 

 birds and beasts. It was in full tide when I visited the Reserve, 

 and is still going on, and can only be repressed by stern measures. 

 During the period when the young are produced, natives will do 

 even more destruction than white men are capable of. 



' Comparing my visit to the Reserve last September to that 

 just concluded, I am driven to the conclusion that the game has 

 actually decreased in the period in certain places. That the 

 Policing adequately of the Reserve was put off so long was, 

 Unfortunately, unavoidable owing to the limited means at our 

 disposal, and it would have, been bad policy to have depleted the 

 more important Reserves of the South. 



' Hunting Implements of Natives. 



'Our journey towards the north savoured of a surprise visit, 

 an d in nearly every kraal we found fresh skins, bones, in some 

 pases meat, newly snared partridges and guinea-fowl, hunting 

 nnplements, including snares of all kinds, iron traps, spears, bows 

 a,1 d poisoned arrows, ammunition, bullet-moulds and guns. The 

 nien of the villages as a rule ran into the bush on our first 

 a Pproach, carrying, presumably, anything incriminating that they 

 c °uld lay hands oh, and owing to my police not knowing the 

 country, and being of a different tribe to the inhabitants, it was 

 nnpossible to get information or effect arrests except in one or two 

 cases. 



