26 



Gogga Brown 



As soon as he had completely recovered from 

 this fell scourge he set out for the interior, making 

 presumably for Aliwal North, and probably on 

 foot, for there were no trains, and he had no 

 money to pay for post-carts. 



It is pleasing to note that on his journey inland 

 he enjoyed that wonderful hospitality from the 

 Cape Dutch farmers, which every early traveller 

 has recorded, and which even modern ones know 

 that they can still expect to receive in these lonely 

 widely-separated homesteads. There the trekker 

 knows that, as the sun goes down, he has only 

 to make for some little whitewashed gable or 

 some dimly lighted window to be sure of sharing 

 the evening meal and getting one of the best 

 rooms in the house to sleep in. In these days 

 of motor cars and modern hotels this delightful 

 feature of the olden days is not so often taken 

 advantage of, but the Karoo is still a good place 

 for anyone who chances to be benighted. It still 

 happens there that the children are turned out of 

 their warm beds on to the hard floor, in order 

 that some passing stranger may sleep softly on 

 down and yielding springs. Early-morning coffee 

 is still on tap for every guest, followed by a good 

 breakfast, even if the larder should be strained 

 and others go hungry. Then a firm grip of the 



