RECEPTION IN MUSEMANYANA.Page 249.
RECEPTION IN MUSEMANYANA.
Page 249.
As we quitted the village we were greeted by another storm of vituperation, which, as we did not condescend to take any notice of it, became more furious than ever; but so uproarious did the shouting become that the riot unfortunately startled our oxen, and caused them to swerve aside so suddenly that our front axle snapped in two. No more untimely accident could have befallen us, and we involuntarily raised a cry of dismay. I congratulated myself most thoroughly on not having come into overt collision with the people, for, in spite of their being cowards and the worst of marksmen, they might, by a stray shot from their old muskets, have done us a very serious mischief; moreover, to have come to grief amongst the Barolongs or Makalahari would have been a very different thing from finding ourselves helpless in the midst of an infuriated crowd of odious Korannas.
As it was, I relied very much upon the effect of my firmness with regard to the water, and was right in my conjecture that the natives would not try to take advantage of our misadventure. They no sooner saw what had happened than they hurried back from the enclosures to which they had retreated, and began laughing, hooting, and screaming around us; the children danced merrily at the fun. At a hint from me my people, who had been sitting on the front of the waggon with their guns on their knees ready for action, laid them aside, and joined in the general laugh; this had a wonderful effect in bringing the crowd into good humour; I took the opportunity of telling the old barefooted overseer that I should have to water my cattle at his pools oftener than I expected; however, I was quite willing, I said, to pay him properly, and he was soon in as amicable a mood as the rest, and recommended me to send for a certain man in the village of Marokana, who would be able to replace the damaged axle.
Within the last ten years, and especially since the introduction of spirituous liquors into the country, wherever the Hottentot element has mingled with the Bantu, or whenever the Batlapins, Barolongs, or other kindred tribes have not had capable and responsible men for their chiefs, they have been corrupted by the Korannas, Griquas, and others who have adopted all the vices, and none of the virtues of the white men. The consequence has been that drunkenness, idleness, robbery, and even murder, have become rife among them. It is sincerely to be hoped that the measures lately taken by the government in Griqualand West with regard to the Korannas will have beneficial results.
The arrangement that I made with the overseer was that our cattle should have as much water as they wanted at the rate of a shilling a day each; he was even considerate enough to direct me to some clean pools that had never been used by the villagers. Before I set out again, I engaged the services of two native lads for eight shillings a week each. Pit’s wages were ten shillings a week.
MUSEMANYANA.
MUSEMANYANA.
Musemanyana is the most northerly possession of the Koranna king of Mamusa; on the north and east it is bounded by plains abounding in game. To these plains I have given the name of “Quagga Flats;” they belong to Montsua, and are the common hunting-grounds of Batlapins, Barolongs, Korannas, and Dutch farmers, who come either from the Western Transvaal, or have been permitted by various chiefs to settle on their territory. On the west lies the small dominion of the Marokana chief who nominally owns allegiance to Montsua, the king of the Barolongs, but without any payment of tribute.