VISIT TO SOUTH AFRICA. 
323 
He was in better health and spirits. I had caught a violent cold, 
and felt unwell. But a packet of letters from England made me 
forget all indisposition. 
5th. In the afternoon, visiting some Hottentot families, I observed 
an unfinished house, the walls of stone, and well built, and inquired 
into the reason of its being left in that state, when I found, that it 
was owing to a want of wood for the doors, roof, and furniture. 
This led to an explanation respecting the possession of the wood, 
and prevented the poor people appealing to the landdrost against 
the overseer, who had very properly prohibited their cutting wood 
at their pleasure, by which, formerly, a great many trees have been 
destroyed. Till better instructed, the Hottentots have no thought 
beyond the present moment, and being too lazy to stoop and apply 
their axe to the bottom of the stem, they chop it off as high as they 
can stand to it, besides maiming others by cutting off their branches, 
or tops, without any attention to the growth of the tree. The ge- 
neral scarcity of wood makes it therefore highly necessary to pre- 
vent such mischief, and as they may have what wood they want, 
to build their huts, if they only apply to the overseer, there is no 
hardship in their asking for it. They were satisfied, when Brother 
Schmitt explained the matter to them. 
In the evening, the family met to a consultation respecting the 
commencement of the building of the new church, and the means 
of providing food and dwelling for any additional hands. 
6th. To-day we began to carry stones from the rocks behind the 
stables, to lay the foundation of the church, and I was much pleased 
to see the zeal and spirit, with which the Hottentots went to work. 
There was indeed a good deal of amusement connected with it, 
which, with them, is a great stimulus to exertion. Many very large 
stones were dislodged, and dragged to the building, on a strong sledge, 
by ten oxen. In separating two parts of an immense block, which, 
by some violence not accounted for, had a crack right through the 
middle, a nest of ants of the largest size, Avas laid open. They 
