1811. 
PAUCITY OF RIVERS.— ROBBERS. 
261 
shoulder and powder-horn by his side, he had little resemblance to 
the costume of any nation on the globe, and would have raised a 
smile in any but Hottentots, who seemed much to envy him the 
possession of that charming hat. And Hannah, I doubt not, the 
more she looked at it, the more she admired her husband. 
We passed through an opening in one of the ridges of hills, 
which bore the name of Poort egaal (The Equal Pass), on account, 
most probably, of the road continuing through it, on the same level 
with the land on either side : I stopped the waggons a few minutes 
to take a sketch of this view. 
After a journey of fourteen miles, we arrived at the Riet liver 
(Reed river), the place where it had been agreed to wait for the 
missionaries. Captain Berends, we now found, had already left the 
spot : we therefore concluded that lie was waiting for us at the 
Karree river, the last appointed rendezvous, 
The Reed river, although at present notliing more than a line 
of ponds, is, in the rainy season, a considerable stream. This, the 
Sack river ninety-three miles further, and the Braldce river, are all the 
rivers worth notice, that were met with in the road from the Roggevelcl 
mountains to the Gariep, a distance of 358 miles. And even these 
cease to flow during more than six months in the year. They are 
said to unite with the Sack river, and afterwards to find their way 
into the Gariep ; but it is most probable that their waters never flow 
so far, unless in years when there happen to fall an unusual quantity 
of rain. 
The range of the thermometer to-dav was remarkable : bein<r, at 
a quarter before nine in the forenoon, so low as 33°, and at three in 
the afternoon, so high as 72°. (0°*55, and 22°'2 Centig.) 
The Hottentots chose their abode in the farm-house, and it was 
fortunate that I had already taken the resolution of always sleeping 
in the wap-con : for, between one and two o'clock in tlie nirht, wIjcmi 
I had not long put out the light, and was nearly asleep, I felt by tlie 
motion of the waggon that some one was endeavouring to get in. 
Thinking it might possibly be one of my own people searching lor 
something, I called out, but receiving no answer, I drew a pistol from 
under my pillow; yet finding that no attack was intended, but 
