94 
TRAVELS IN 
make of them. Some wore large three cornered hats, whh 
green or blue breeches, the reft of the body naked ; fome had 
jackets of cloth over their fheep-fkin covering, and others hard 
flieep-fkins throv/n over linen fhirts. The women were laden 
with bundles, and the men were all armed with mufquets. We 
foon dlfcovered, which indeed they readily confefled, that they 
had been plundering the boors. A Hottentot, among the many 
good qualities he pofTefles, has one which he is mafter of in an 
eminent degree, — I mean a rigid adherence to truth. When 
accufed of a cri-me, of which he has been guilty, with native 
fimplicity he always ftates the fa£t as it happened ; but, at the 
fame time, he has always a juftification at hand for v*^hat he has 
done. From lying and ftealing, the predominant and infepara- 
ble vices of the condition of flavery, the Hottentot may be 
confidered as exempt. In the whole courfe of my travels, and 
in the midft of the numerous attendants of this nation, with 
which I was conftantly furrounded, I can with fafety declare 
that I never was robbed nor deceived by any of them. 
On making inquiry into the particulars of the unpleafant 
tranfadion that had taken place, one of the Hottentots, called 
Klaas Stuiirman^ or Nicholas the Helmfman^ whom they had 
feleded for their chief, ftepped forwards, and, after humbly 
entreating us to hear him out without interruption, began a 
long oration, which contained a hiftory of their calamities and 
fufferings under the yoke of the boors; their injuftice, in firft 
depriving them of their country, and then forcing their offspring 
into a ftate of flavery j their cruel treatment on every flight oc- 
cafion, which it became impoffible for them to bear any longer; 
and 
