432 CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. 



very high and prominent cheek-bones and a sharp chin ; they are not 

 much inclined to steady employment : the attending of cattle, and the 

 indolent and wandering life in which they pass their time, suit their 

 disposition. They at times hire themselves out to the farmers, re- 

 ceiving cattle as wages. In the colony they do not bear a very high 

 character for honesty and faithfulness. They are expert drivers of 

 wagons, but are otherwise careless and inattentive. They are deemed 

 an improvident race, though there are some instances of their showing 

 great attachment to individuals who have treated them well. Their 

 numbers now are variously stated ; but little dependence is to be placed 

 on the accounts given, as is evident by their ranging from ten to thirty 

 thousand. 



Upwards of thirty thousand slaves in the colony have been manu- 

 mitted ; but the success of these as free labourers is by no means 

 encouraging. The cooleys or bearers have regular employment, but 

 the great majority of these are Malays or people from India. 



I had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with Mr. Thompson, the 

 intelligent African traveller, to whom the world is indebted for his 

 interesting accounts of the Bushmen, and the chief knowledge we 

 have of the interior of the colony. We are indebted to his exertions, 

 through the liberality and joint action of some gentlemen of the Cape, 

 for the many attempts that have been made to penetrate into the inte- 

 rior of Africa. When the difficulties and perils of such efforts are duly 

 considered, it is not surprising that so little success has been met with 

 in the various expeditions undertaken with this view. To those who 

 would wish to seek adventure, the exploration of Africa offers at 

 present a wider and more novel field than any other portion of the 

 world. 



The colonial government has of late years had much trouble with 

 the Caffre tribes on the eastern limits of the colony. These have 

 frequently made incursions, and driven off the cattle of the settlers, 

 in revenge for the injuries they have sustained from the whites. The 

 usual result is taking place ; here, as elsewhere, civilized man is 

 driving the savage before him, and occupying their hunting-grounds 

 for permanent agriculture. The missionaries have in some cases 

 pushed their establishments among these savage races, and from them 

 the accounts of the Caffres have been mostly derived. Their appear- 

 ance as well as character seem to indicate a totally different origin 

 from the negro and Hottentot tribes. One of the marked peculiarities 

 about them, is that they avoid marrying the women of their own tribe, 

 preferring to purchase wives from their neighbours, for whom they 

 barter their cattle. Tamboukie women are preferred, although they 



