Second Journey (MS 107/1/1-2)
4th January 1778
transcription
[4th January 1778]
4
myne baggasie nog niet komende reed na prinselo met de beer, daar komende vond dat sy na my toe waren gekomen, dog ons misgereden waren. liet de beer daar die naar de camdebo te rug ging, en vertrok te rug naar de grote visrivier.
rencontreerde te voet zynde met sons ondergank langs godissa dorp passerende vier caffers vrouwen die my om tabak versogten dog niets hebbende om hen te geven naar hun dorp gingen. hier houden enige leeuwen, zy hadden voor agt dagen weder twe beesten gedoodt men had hier drie grote mannetjes gesien, passeerde nogtans sonder geweer, alleen met myn pistolen zonder iets te vernemen, zynde het donker toen aan de visrivier quam. hoorde hier dat de
[page 16]
bosjesmans twe veewagters vermoord en omtrent 200 beesten genomen hadden. de sorgeloosheid omtrent het vee is hier groot, de wagters gaan leggen slapen, hebbende ik vele troppen vee dus ontmoet, dan komen de wilden die dat van de bergen af sien, en vermoorden hun nooyt met openbaar gewelt.
het had gepasseerde nagt niet gedawt sterk n:w: gewaayt met sware rukken desen morgen goed weer west wind. [illegible insertion in the margin] vond de barometer aan de rivier 28 d. in den agtermiddag quamen er enige donderwolken uit den n:w: over de bergen en keerden met regen uit den z:o: so als gewoon te rug.
sag een grote hagedis in de visrivier swemmen, kon hem niet krygen, zy swemmen en duiken dog lopen niet over het water hebbende geen vliesen tussen de poten.
translation
[4th January 1778]
4
My baggage not yet having arrived, I rode to Prinsloo's with De Beer. When we arrived I found that they had come towards me and that we had ridden past each other. Left De Beer there: he is returning to the Camdebo. I travelled back to the Great Fish River.
Being on foot while passing Godissa’s village at sunset I encountered four Caffre women who asked me for tobacco; but not having any to give them they went off to their village. There are some lions living here; they again killed two head of cattle eight days ago. Three large males have been seen. Nevertheless I continued on my way without a gun, only with my pistols and arrived at the Fish River after dark without noticing anything.
[page 16]
Heard here that the Bushmen had murdered two herdsmen and taken about two hundred cattle. The carelessness about cattle is enormous here: the herdsmen go to sleep and I have come across many herds in this state. Then the savages, who have seen what is happening from the mountains, come and murder them, never using open violence.
There was no dew last night. There was a strong north-west wind blowing with heavy gusts. Good weather this morning, the wind west. [illegible insertion in the margin]. Found 28 inches opn the barometer at at the river. ln the afternoon some thunderclouds came from the north-west across the mountains and returned with rain, as usual, from the south-east
Saw a large lizard swimming in the Fish River. Could not get it. They swim and dive but they do not cross the water since they do not have membranes across their paws.