SOUTHERN AFRICA. 
383 
language fpoken by the one being perfedly unintelligible to the 
other ; nor could they fpeak or underftand a word of Dutch. 
Our next encampment was at the houfe or hovel of a Dutch 
peafant, fituated at the entrance of a narrow defile between 
two ranges of mountains. The figure that prefented itfelf at 
the door truly reprefented a being of a different country from 
that which we had left behind. It was a tall old man, with a 
thin fallow vifage, and a beard of dingy black, that extending 
to the eyes where it met the ftraggling hair of the forehead, 
obfcured the face like a vifor. Never was a finer figure for 
the inhabitant of a black tower or enchanted caftle, in the 
page of a romance. Not accuftomed to receive ftrangers, he 
feemed, on our arrival, to be fomewhat agitated. In one corner 
of the chimney of his hovel, which confifted of one apartment, 
fat an old Hottentot woman, over whofe head had paflied at leaft 
a century of years. To her natural fallow complexion was 
fuperadded no fmall quantity of foot, fo that fhe was at leaft 
as black as her bearded mafter. A female flave next made 
her appearance, of a piece with the two former. The faggot 
prefently crackled on the hearth ; a quarter of a fheep was laid 
on the coals to broil ; and the repaft was fpeedily ferved up on 
the lid of an old cheft, for want of a table, and covered with 
a remnant of the fame piece of cloth worn as a petticoat by 
the female flave, which, it feemed not unlikely, had alfo once 
been employed in the fame fort of fervice. 
It turned out in converfation, that the old gentleman had 
long refided in this fequeftered fpot far removed from all 
foclety I 
