Evening journal., 1900-02-28
sUen FARMERS.
They Spend Their Days in Ease and
Content.

Content.
with his pipe ana tobacco and his
constantly replenished cup Of so
called coffee the country BOer is con-
tent TO spend his days Ia comparative
idleness From his homemade chair
OF le?ther thongs on a wooden frame
standing On the verandah of his home
stead, he shouts directions to the
various boys" or natives at work ia
the wagon house or down by the
stream. As for himself, particularly
If he has grown-up sons, he does lit
tie, If any, manual work. and still less
mental. He vegetables, ruminates and
cXpectOrates IN the beatitude of moth
ing accomplished, nothing done to
earn a nights repose.
Very good tobacco is grown in the
| Transyaal particularly in the Potchef-
stroom district, and under the Maga-
liesberg Mountains, near Rustenberg
IL is always home cured and dried
AT first IL strikes one as peculiar, and
not altogether palatable. as it is very
dry and almost powdery, with an in
dividual flavor which is all its own;
but gradually one grows accustomed
TO It. and eventually one refuses to
smoke any ling else. Il is absolutely
!
It all day long, and there is no throat.
tickling. no harshness and no heat
about it. The farmer produces it for
about 18 cents a pound. and it is sent
to the town in great circular rolls,
weighing about 40 pounds each. When
cut and unraveled, IL is retailed at 25
and 80 cents pound, and search the
world over you viii find nowhere bet
ter pipe tobacco.
Among the older Beers It was con
sidered highly indecorous for a wOm-
an to allow her hair to be seen, even
by her sons or daughters. II was al
ways, night and day, carefully con-
cealed beneath a gigantic sunbonnet
( or "kappie' which projected far Ia
front of the face. somewhat after the
fashion of the old polle bonnet.
The women's dress is almost always
black-of a heavy twill material akin
to baiize or bombazine II sticks out
straight all the way around like
sort of crinoline.
On an outlying farm, which may be
anything from 20 TO 200 miles from a
town Of any sort. the shOpping-apar
from the quarterly visit TO Nachtmaal,
or Holy Communion-is conducted
through the agency of "smaus.' This
Is to all intents and purposes, a ped
dler who goes from farm to farm with
a tray or jewelry and nicknacks in
front of him and pack upon his back
ready to deal in anything and every
thing that viii yield handsome
profit
A few quaint. homemade medicines
are kept at hand in every farmhouse
for the Boer is always falling sick Of
] 60 inn frfr I'd narrt.
plant. and wants to be coddled doc
tered and physiced with all manner Of
extraordinary concoctions. favorite
remedy for children's commissions is
dogs blood made hot and mixed with
vinegar, while vultures fat and jack
ais liver combined is supposed TO
cure ague and shiverllg fever.
The juice OF wild aloes is a sort OF
general all-around tonic, which is
given frequently and freely for colds
and coughs. and an Oinment made
from the fat OF q viakvark. or wild
pig Is always used for sprains or
bruises All these things are "oid
women's remedies" but whether It IS
that faith has a good deal 10 do with
a cure Il Is quite certain that many
OF them are extraordinarily efica-
clous Some of the prescriptions for
preparations of herbs have been hand
cd down to the Beers by native doc.
tors, and are very often successful in
mitigating, If not in curing, minor
ailments.
Before the advent OF the railway in
the Transvaal, and even now IN those
districts into which the iron horse has
! not yet penetrated the whole OF the
transport, or carrying trade. is con
Quoted by kuveyors Every other
Boer farmers son IS. or was a lgur.
veyor. or carrier Their only stock
in trade was a wagon or l6 oxen. The
former, usually built IN the Cape Col.
ony at one or other OF the famous
wagon dorps. is a strong, heavy, well.
put-together concern. either half OF
fully tented, capable Of carrying goods
10 a weight of five or six tons. and
drawn by eight spans. of two each. OF
. patient. meek-eyed oxen. These yer
3 table beasts of burden can walk f0l
eight hours a day at a uniform pace
T Of three miles an hour. At the head
d OF the team strioes a little nearly
naked, kaiiir boy. called the "vOor
3 looper" He guides the long strinl
of oxen by a short nempje. o. strap
@ attached to the horns of the near sid,
q leader. On the wagon sits the ker
J. veyor. fourishing a twenty-foot whiI
;. at the end OF a long bamboo whiI
u stick With quite extraordinary dex
g tcrity he is able to flick any one o.
D. his team on any part Of the body.
e he thinks that particular OK is lagglnl
a bit, or not doing his share OF thi
l- pulling. The worst OK Of the team
II the one which always comes in 70
d. the most punishment is. in a spiri
'f of derision, always called "Engelsch
n- man" or Englishman.
r