B USHMAN ENCAMPMENT. 2 2 3 



driven from the Shashi, and is now encamped close 

 to the settlement here. I rode through their camp 

 the other day, and felt that I was amongst the true 

 children of the forest, resembling more the North 

 American Indians than the usual Kaffir races of this 

 country. Their huts are made of poles, converging 

 together at the top, these laid over with branches, 

 and finally rudely thatched with long grass. I 

 should say there were between fifty and a hundred 

 of them in the camp." 



To this letter, here cut short, he adds the follow- 

 ing four days later : — 



"October 20th. 



" Last night my two Kaffirs, whom I had sent to 

 the king, to ask leave for me to hunt a little on the 

 Shashani, returned with a favourable answer. I gave 

 the king a shot gun on first entering his country, 

 much to his satisfaction, and I believe it is now his 

 favourite gun out of the armoury he possesses. I 

 had two cases of 200 cartridges each, and gave him 

 one with the gun, and shall now leave the other, 

 together with the rest of his present, with Brown, 

 to be forwarded to him when a waggon goes up. 

 It is everything here to have the king on one's side, 

 as without it one would have a miserable chance of 

 getting on. Even the king does not care to have 

 too many white men in his country, but likes a few, 

 to enable him to trade. He has a great objection 

 to the Boers, who come only to hunt for skins, 

 thus wasting all the meat, but he knows with me 

 it is a different case, and he does not care where 



