Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1892-06-14


Some Very Queer Costumes : sscdseans ana ]
Quackery Dancing.
The traveller q speak Of one who Is !
supposed to understand Boer speech and |
habits) arrives at a farm house in. say,
the Orange Free state. A farm house |
may have one field of forage and stone
kraal: otherwise the farm Is open colln-
try. He will not of saddle his horse
without receiving permission; this having
been asked for and granted, the farmer
leads him through the half doors into the
main apartment. There is home made
furniture, numerous pink and white
paper flowers, and painted on the
walls vases Of fruit like those seen
depicted on the London pavements
Tie visitor will proceed to shake hands,
commencing with the stout vrauw
and ending with the baby in arms. This
is not the English ..handshake, z but
resting Of palm within palm. The coffee,
which is made from sunrise to sunset, is
then brought in in bowls, tobacco
pouches are exchanged, and converse
ton. which seldom varies, commences.
The visitor and the farmer answer or re-
ply pretty much as follows: 1.-THE weld Is
green. The clouds are heavy; there will
be thunderstorm tomorrow. have q
very fine red horse running. NachtmaaI
(communion) will be next month. NV
vrauw has a cold. TIE president is
fine man. Japie de villiers pronounced
Vile, and minus the prefix has had q
ram born with Eve heads. The English
are thieves. The handwriting cere-
mony is then repeated. the horse, fed
and rested, is brought round; the trav-
eler mounts, smncks HIS sjambock, shows
off his steed and proceeds on his journey.
/ The farmers have trained ponies to a
special pace called cripple" and q
good ..trippler" is always priced. With
this pace no '.porting" Of the saddle Is
required, and on long journey the trip
pier will arrive each night without turn
ing hair, while the trotting horse, his
companion. may be done up. Distance
is reckoned by time-six miles to the
hour. II an Engiishman near the hour
of sunset asks Dutchman where such q
| village lies, he will be answered BY q
raised hand and "a little way over that
hill" You then ride ten miles and sleep
out in thunder storm. perhaps. You
reach the village the following midday.
Superstition and fear of contagious dis
eases are great among this people.
The Dutch are accomplished herbal.
lists, doubtless obtaining the knowledge
of the Hottentots and Bushmen; they
have herb brandies for colics and plants
for sores. They are often the prey Of
quack doctors; the more as genuine prac-
titioners. who have to go long distances,
| <,1.o ha, x-sIx A su caficEa<
with the treatment so long as his medica
adviser brings to the house quart bottlt
of physic; if he present him with small
vial he doubts his skill and sends for an
! other man. The dead are buried on tn,
: farms. and over them travelling mason
, erect mausoleums of brick. Dutch wo
men are enormous in size, good cooks il
their style, gobble sweets and cakes al
day and take little exercise. But nov
! and then Dutch wife and her daughter
! may be seen kraaling the sheep at even
! ing. A Boer likes his wife's company
, and will leave passengers by his wagol
: stuck in the mud and half starved Will
: he tracks of fifty miles with anothe
q vehicle to pay visit to the vrauw
!. Feather beds are greatly priced by thi
people; they generally carry their bed
: with them on journeys.
The trekkings of the Beers are n
q markable. Annually the farmhouse o
$ the Glow veld'' is shut up, and the shee
: and cattle are taken scores of miles u
v to the "high veld'' for mountain Ia,
ture. Beside some rushing stream til
q wagons are camped, perhaps tents al
= pitched, and domestic life goes on {
y usual. Fowls cluck among the vii
Ii grasses, and the cows are MIXED beneat
l. the shadows of mighty mountains. II
p general belief in the excellence OF Boz
/, shooting is no delusion.
The people are excessively fond I
music and dancing; concertina, harm
;, MUM and fiddle are their delight.
& withered Hottentot dwarf will draw
: strain from the sole of an old shoe strur
- with sinew, and men and maidens w
~ vigorously dance to it for hours. F,
Y dancing there is no touching the Engli
ly Afrikander, and his measures seem qui
g, original. The Beers have b;
20 character for piIfering. When t
al men and the women ent
. an up country store they are allowed
~ carry off small goods like sweets or RI
u, in the bill. The farmers are not oft
ID rich in money, their wool crops bel
ar mortgaged sometimes to the stores
ok two seasons ahead. Young bloods" 8
I'd impudent and wild. A smart curveti
de horse and hat with white ostrich pluI
To usually denote this species. When
- Boer drinks he ia an entire fool.
~ order to keep firm hand over the you
oy men riding transport, the elders Of
er free state recently passed bill prohit
nd ing the sale of liquor at wayside CO
&C. teens, and thereby lest large reven'
les However, there are slnugglers
The Beers are great religious formalis
and OF certain times they and their ia
lilies ride into the villages from great {
no tances to celebrate the Nachtmaal (nis
"a. meal or corlmunion), their wagons loat
with produce-presents for the parse
N' At this time business is brisk and
streets are like 2 fair. Yet, where natl
GU and land are concerned, the Eoer's c.
slant violation of tie Connlandme
I'm does not need pointing out. The Be-
are by no means modest. and their fan
lsk conversations are at tunes ooistesou
The indecent. Household arrangements, s
on rich farms. are necessarily rleae
and the traveller must be prepared tosl
ine on the floor in the midst OF four or
sisters and their three or four broth'
all grown up, while the head couple sn
mt on an elevated and polderous feather
I'M in q curtained corner of the room. vi
sleeping at superior Transvaal fal
hous. If l. we'll 10 eyau1ine the mattr