Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-11-16
LAND OF AFRlKANDERS.
South Africa and Its People as
Seen by an American.
WAY THE B0ERs TRAIN FOR WAR.

Children of Both Sexes Learn to shoot
Before They Learn to Rend-Their
| Wonderful Army Food Diamond
Field of the Future - Beers Thor
oushIy Injured to EIardships.
Harry S. AIic:laels of st. Louis spent
three years in South Africa as pros
pector, having returned early this year.
| Michaels strenuously advises adven-
turous or fight loving Americans TO
stay out of the country, says the st.
Louis Republic. He says that it is not
an FL Dorado ut present.
1.-THE Americans down there now are
none too popular. They are with some
exceptions not representatives of the
United States and do not do US much
credit, outside of those who represent
American concerns in n business way.
johannesburg is the center of the gold
country in the Transvaal, and for 80
miles around it every claim is pegged
out and staked. The mining section
there is on 4 plain. Kimberley, which
is 500 miles away, is the center of the
diamond field. 1t is in the Orange Free
State and Cape Colony neighborhood
and not in the Transvaal.
My belief is that the great diamond
field of the future is around Pretoria.
AS that is the capital CT the Beers re-
public they have been Jealous of for
eigners doing any prospecting there If
too many miners got into the neigh
borhood, guards would be needed, they
argued, and that would give England
chance to send too many troops or po-
lice into the Pretoria vicinity. That is
the reason mining is discouraged near
Pretoria. The war, of course, may
change all this.
Kruger is certainly plain man. He
sits on that famous porch of his and
any man who cares may walk up and
be introduced and take a cup of coffee
with the president on the porch. The
government allows Il good deal OF cof-
fee money.
Colonel Baden-Powell was in COM
mand at the Mashongo rebellion in
1896, while at the head of the Bechu-
analand police. 1 saw him On horse
back often in those days. He seemed
every inch soldier. He is q young
looking man.
1.-The Beers are certainly fine marks
men. When their boys and girls are
old enough to mount a horse and han
die a rife. they are told to learn the
art OF riding and shooting. The boy
is told to take horse and get supper.
He is not supposed to return till he
brings some game with him. l have
seen them shoot the bottom out of a
bottle by sending the ball through the
neck al 1000 yards. They Will certain
ly slaughter lots of Englishmen before
the war is over. The Boer children
learn to shoot and ride before they
learn to read.
"Then, too, they have A great food
that makes n first class army ration
They call it billtongue. 1t is the tongue
of a deer or COW dried in the sun or
smoked till it looks like shoe leather
A slice of this placed in the mouth and
allowed to dissolve sustains a Boer for
"a hours. The billtongues are hard as
a rock and do not take up much room
when the Beers are campaigning.
THE Transvaal is a barren country.
Water is scarce. In winter the Vaal,
the principal river, becomes swollen
and carries away bridges, while in
it dries up. 1 have seen water
carts going through Johannesburg dur
ing the last drought and children with
cups following them in order to catch
the drippings of water. The Beers,
though, are Injured to thirst and can
stand many hardships.
Natal. on the other hand. is the par
adise of South Africa. 1t is green all
the time. 1t is never colder than 80 |
degrees there, and the only ice you see |
is thin coating on the cutters at |
times in winter. Yet one feels the heat |
and cold more there than in St. Louis, |
as extremes are rarer. Durham is as |
pretty as a picture. 1t has 10000 in |
habitants. of whom 1900 are East In |
dams, 5000 are natives and the rest |
are whites. These Indians are filthy, |
live six and seven in q room and can |
and underbid the white bust |
ness men and workingmen.
THE country around Delagoa Bay is |
a marshy, unhealthy place, which is
because it has the nearest |
seaport to the TransvaaL There is q |
railroad extending from Lourenco Mar
ques on the bay shore to Pretoria
Freight rates are very high in South |
Africa, and it is quite a saving to ship |
goods to and from Delagoa Bay to the
TransvaaI rather than over the Cape
railway.
Cape Town is n healthy place, but
once in awhile the stiff southeastern
wind makes it very unpleasant there.
Waterman of st. Louis.
who died last year, was the manager
Of the Cape Town tramways or cleo
ric cars. He was engaged in plans TO
'un electric cars along the streets OF