The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-12-03
HERoTHoD1, CHIEF OF THE BAsuTos.

smuggling. until. accidentally, they
discovered that the smoke stack of the
steamer, which was unusually large
for vessel that size. was lined with
muskets intended for Pondo trade.
The guns sold tothese Pondos were
usually old flint-lock muskets. at which
an early Pilgrim Father would have
turned up his nose After a Pondo had
found means to purchase one, he would
go to a locksmith, who eked out his
existence in the country by doing odd
jobs and the locksmith would replace
the flint lock with a percussion cap
nipple. Then the PondoS soul would
indeed swell within him. He was now
the equal of any living man and he re-
quired neither angels nor ministers OF
grace to defend him. 1t never seemed
to occur to him that practice was nee
essary to make the weapon useful in
his hands and if it had he could not
afford to waste good money on powder
and lead just TO shoot at a target. He
would put the gun carefully away in his
hut and when the next native hunting
party was organized he would join his
companions proUdly Drans-Sn1ng ms
death-dealing instrument to-Ihe uncon-
cealed envy of the other less fortunate
hunters. When he loaded his gun. he
loaded to kill. n handful of powder
and a double handful of Slugs were
surely enough to wipe out of existence
anything that ever wore a hide. When
an antelope appeared the Pondo would
excitedly point his gun-perhaps in the
direction of the buck, perhaps not
shut his eyes and pull the trigger. At
this juncture it was always safest for
the bystander to be in the rear of the
dusky hunter. The usual result was
that the game Scampered off unhurt
while the astonished POndo ruefuily
picked himself up some twenty feet
from the spot where he fired and while
gasping for wind. felt carefully if all
his limbs were still in position Some
times the gun would burst and bowl
over few of the bystanders. If this
happened to chief, he would swear,
some one had an EVIL eye" on him and
would employ witch doctor to dis
cover the culprit and knock him on
the head.
Habits of Boer
Apologizing to the reader for this d.
eression, / will return to the gentleman
we are at present studying-the Trans
vaal Boer. This individual is an anonl-
ally. There are several points in his
character and customs which are so
obviously contradictory that it might
be interesting. out of pure curiosity to
observe them. He is gregarious in
treking and recluse in private life.
While loving a social pipe with his fell
low Boer. he wants his neighbor to live
so far away that his chimney smoke
cannot be seen from the veranda.
While protesting the tenets of the
Christian religion and considering him.
self no unworthy representative of it.
his real religion is that of the old testa-
ment. While witnessing evidences all
around him of the utility of progress
sive civilization. he is opposed to any
innovation. While enjoying the in
creased comforts which the Uitlander's
money has enabled him to buy, he has
a general snd hearty dislike for the in
dividual VINO furnished the coin. Too
indolent and unenteTprising TO develop
the mineral wealth on his own farm he
resents the success of the foreigner
who has purchased the farm from him.
Claiming that his one and only dream
of life is liberty, pure and undefiled, he
is content to exist under a most gro
tesque travesty of it-krugerism. There
is one thing. though. in which he is
notably consistent. and that is social
equality. The old folks. are all -ooms'
and "tanteS" and the young people are
all nephews and nieces. This equality
does not prevent them from having So
cial disturbances. In fact there is al
most as much slandering and backbit-
ing among a group of Beers. as one
can find in fashionable drawing room.
I give an apology taken from a promi-
nent Dutch paper. where it was print
ed in both Dutch and English, to give
it the utmost publicity 1t speaks VOL
umeS for Boer life.
~. the undersigned, acknowledge that
with my low mouth and low. jealous
heart. l have unjustly accused the noble
MIR. Willie Vogel and my respectable wife.
Sesielja Johanna Wilimina Forster. also
acknowledge that have often slandered
other gentlemen with my low and jealous
mouth. bat l have always prevailed upon
them to settle IL with my cowardly
crocodile tears But this time have been
deceived by my low mouth and jealous
heart. as this noble gentleman is too re-