56 JOURNAL OF A 
of our cattle were not with the waggons, but driven loose as relays. 
Among these a wolf descended from the mountain, and was choos- 
ing his prey, when he was observed by one of the Hottentots, 
and frightened away by the cracks of the long whip. The wolf 
of the Cape is a solitary, cowardly animal, when not impelled by 
hunger. 
14th. We had now passed the great mountain called, the Haue 
Hoek, and again halted on the Botte Revier, where we breakfasted. 
Most of the company then retired into the waggons to sleep ; but, 
always hoping to meet with some remarkable production of nature 
in this strange land, I walked along the banks of the river towards 
the hill. The country is dreary in the extreme. A solitary cottage 
attracted my attention, and making towards it, I overtook Sister 
Clemens examining the pebbles of various colours which cover 
part of the bank. They were fragments of sand-stone coloured 
by iron. We entered the cottage togethei% and found a friendly 
woman in it, with two slaves, and some black children. She in- 
formed us, that her relations lived on the other side, in two farm- 
houses. A slave-girl, who had been at Gnadenthal, offering to 
show us the way, conducted us across the river, over a rocky part 
of its bed, and through some vineyards and gardens, to the first 
house. Here an old Dutch farmer, with a grey beard of a week's 
growth, came out to meet us, but seemed not disposed to give us 
a friendly reception. At length, hearing that we came from the 
Cape, his curiosity to know, for what purpose a Dutch fleet had 
arrived in Table-Bay, made him ask us to sit down. Leaving 
his inhospitable dwelling, we walked on to the next farm, where 
our reception was very different. The good-natured housewife 
even asked us to pluck the fruit of some mulberry-trees, standing 
before her door. On our return, we found the black slave-<>-irl 
a 
waiting for us at the fording-place. She presented Sister Cle- 
mens with a nosegay of wild flowers, and very carefully helped her 
across the stony bed of the river. 
When Ave again entered her mistress's hut, we were treated with 
