A CAPE CART JOURNEY. 35 



indispensable, most precious possession — his eye- 

 sight^ — passing away from him. I shall never forget 

 the gloom and sadness of that little household in 

 the wilderness, the despairing husband, the anxious 

 wife, the poor unkempt children, pursuing their 

 little games here and there with a sort of subdued 

 depression. They, poor mites, knew there was 

 something wrong, though what exactly they could 

 hardly tell. Truly a hard and bitter lot was these 

 poor people's. Comfort under such circumstances 

 was almost out of the question. We could only urge 

 the man to go at once to Port Elizabeth and see 

 an oculist, or at all events a doctor ; but I fear the 

 malady was too far gone for medical or surgical 

 assistance to be of much avail. Often since that day 

 have I thought of his family, and wished them well 

 out of their heavy affliction. 



At our next outspan, two hours later, we knee- 

 haltered and turned loose the horses near a mimosa 

 grove in a charming valley, through which the bed 

 of a periodical river ran. One of the most interesting 

 and astonishing sights in the bird life of this country 

 is the extraordinary profusion of doves and pigeons 

 to be met with in many localities. Here among the 

 mimosa and other bushes there were many hundreds 

 of these beautiful birds. Frank, who wanted some 

 practice, wandered about, shooting here and there, 

 until he had obtained some eight or ten brace of the 

 pretty creatures, enough for a pie or two — it seemed 

 almost a shame to shoot them for so base a purpose 

 — when he desisted. Amongst his captures we 

 noticed that dainty little pigeon La tourterelle of Le 

 Vaillant {^na capensis), distinguished by its dark 

 red wing feathers, edged with rich brown, its glossy 



