SOUTHERN AFRICA. 405 
The decided tone in which he spoke, at the head of his 
small party, when surrounded by British troops ; his prepos- 
sessing countenance, and tall muscular figure, could not fail 
to excite a strong interest in his favor. An open and manly 
deportment, free from suspicion, fear, or embarrassment, 
seems to characterize the Kaffer chiefs. Though extremely 
good-humoured, benevolent, and hospitable, they are neither 
so pliant nor so passive as the Hottentot. The poorer sort 
are sometimes led to seek for service among the boors, and 
engage themselves for so many moons in consideration of so 
many head of cattle ; and they never suffer themselves to be 
duped out of their hire like the easy Hottentots. The con- 
versation with Congo ended by recommending him to with- 
draw his people and their cattle from the banks of the Sun- 
day Eiver, to which he gave a kind of reluctant assent. 
The whole of the party that accompanied this chief were 
tall, upright, and well made men ; atibrding a clear proof 
that animal food is by no means necessary to promote the 
growth of the human species ; or to add strength of fibre to 
the muscular parts of the body : on the contrary, reasoning 
from the general make and stature of the Dutch boors, who 
gorge themselves with animal food floating in fat, from morn- 
ing till night, one would be apt to conclude, that so far from 
being necessary, it is not even conducive to strength of 
muscle; but that its only tendency is to produce a laxity of 
the fibres, a sluggish habit of body, and extreme corpulency; 
for the Dutch boors, though of a monstrous size, possess 
neither strength nor activity. Perhaps, indeed, these two 
qualities may be considered as correlatives, and that the do- 
