The life and times of Sir Richard Southey, K.C.M.G., etc., formerly colonial secretary of the Cape Colony and lieut.-governor of Griqualand West;

Appendix

LONDON

CAPE TOWN. PAARL. BULAWAYO and PRETORIA

I'RINTED BT

WILLIAM CLOWKS AST) SONS, LIMITED,

LONDON AND BECCLE8.

DT

SlUJlo

SIR GILBERT PARKER, M.P.

CHAIKMAN OF THE IMPEKIAL SOUTH AFRICAN ASSOCIATION

THIS BIOGRAPHY

OF

A TRUE AND LOYAL SUPPORTER

OF

THE EMPIRE IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

IS RESPECTFULLY

DEDICATED

A. WILMOT London, \sl October, 1904 iir%si,5'j

Preface

'T^HE life of such a man as the subject of our biography -"- comprises to a large extent the history of South Africa during the nineteenth century. Sir Eichard Southey, who died in 1901, at the great age of ninety-one, was a typical Colonist of the best class — a class of which their Mother Country and the lands of their adoption may alike be proud ; a class of men brave, patient, sagacious, and industrious, who have taken so great a part in the formation and consolidation of that Greater Britain which now forms an important part of the Empire, and, it may be added, a class difficult of creation except under conditions found only in new countries, where the elements of ever-present difficulty and danger make men quick in observation, cautious in decision, and determined in action.

Accompanying his parents to South Africa in 1820, when only twelve years old, Eichard Southey was one of the youngest of the band of English settlers who had been induced by grants of land to occupy a tract of country between Grahamstown and the sea, to keep the Kafir tribes within their proper boundaries.

The settlement was neither well planned nor adequately supported, and these pioneers led hard laborious lives, rearing small herds and flocks on indifferent pasturage, and

Vlll PREFACE.

wringing scanty crops from poor soil, while the near neighbourhood of the Kafir hordes kept them in constant fear, and the depredations of wild animals demanded unceasing vigilance.

Under such conditions the young settlers grew to manhood hardy and self-reliant ; but what made most of them qualified to be good soldiers or competent frontier farmers meant more in the case of Mr. Southey, who was gifted with mental powers of a high order, which soon attracted attention, and assured success in the many responsible positions he was chosen to fill. To a quick eye and ready hand he added the capacity for patient observation which made sure of facts ; the power of weighing opposing evidence, and allowing for conflicting circumstances, while his opinions were firmly held without obstinacy, so that he was always open to conviction. He possessed also that pearl of great price — a temper that nothing could ruffle — which gave him no small advantage in discussion and debate over more excitable opponents. He used to say that the sight of an angry man moved him to laughter.

These qualifications of courage, tact, and temper made him not only a man who could be trusted in matters of importance and in times of difliculty, but a wise and prudent counsellor to be welcomed by any ruler. Added to this, he was in the best sense of the word absolutely loyal. He never abandoned a cause or deserted a friend. Not cast, perhaps, in a fully heroic mould, or at least not enjoying opportunities of rising to the highest distinction, he was a man of whom Englishmen, especially Colonists, and above all Cape Colonists, may well be proud. The story of his long laborious life is written with the aim

Pit EF ACE. IX

of setting before a younger generation an example that may well be followed. It is at the desire of Sir Eichard Southey's family that this book is published.

Attention is called to the fact that reflections and remarks on public affairs by Sir Eichard Southey appear in the Appendix, and that, in a spirit of fair play, the full case of the Diamond Field annexation by the Imperial Government is also published. Here, without any comment or attempt at curtailment, are the arguments of both sides. These comprise important historical documents not easily accessible, and now put on record as a help to the accurate study of South African History. The Digest of Despatches throws light on the narrative of events in Chapters X. and XI., while the letter from Messrs. Tucker and Ling exhibits the case of the Kimberley agitators.

So far as materials are concerned, there was an embarrassment of riches in the chests entrusted by the Executor to the writer of this work. Careful selection has been made, and interesting correspondence is published, throwing considerable light on contemporaneous history, from Secretaries of State, Governors, Members of Parliament, prominent men of various shades of opinion, and Colonial Officials. A large number of these appear in the text. In publishing so many it was remembered that even minor details connected with politics and official life are useful.

The work has necessarily been an extremely arduous one, and in concluding it the writer apologizes for his shortcomings, and asks the kind indulgence of the reader.

A. WILMOT,

Legislative Council, Cape Town,

Chapter I

The British settlers of 1820— The Southey party— War of 1 828— An exposition of the politics of the day in Judge Cloete's speech — War again — Richard Southey at the head of volunteers — Farming — War of 1834 — Colonel Smith and the Corps of Guides — Richard Southey captain — Colonel Smith and the war — Hintza : his escape and death — Case against the colonists — The Southeys move to GraaffReinet

CHAPTER n.

1836 to 1846 : Ten years of private life — Arrival of Sir Harry Smith — Mr. Southey, Private Secretary and Special Agent — The Sovereignty and Moshesh — Letters from Sir H. Smith, Messrs. Shepstone and Godlonton — Reports from Mr. Southey — Letters from Messrs. Moffat and Fraser — Correspondence 29

CHAPTER in.

Affairs in the Cape Colony — Separation — Letters from Halse, Meurant, Bisset, Moffat, Shepstone, and others — John Montagu — The anti-convict agitation — Letters from Godlonton and Cock 61

CHAPTER IV.

Mr. Bailey on the convict question — Mr. Godlonton's letters — Sir H. Smith — Southey Civil Commissioner of Swellendam — The war of 1850-2 85

Xll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER V

Mr. Southoy again Acting Colonial Secretary — Mr. Rawson appointed — Southcy Secretary to Lieut.-Governor in Grabamstown — Lettera from Sir George Grey, Commandant ( 'urrie, Mr. Kawson, and Lieut.-Geueral Wynyard — The missionaries and native affairs — Kawson goes to England, and Southey acts as Colonial Secretary — Parliamentary proceedings and politics in the Cape t'olony — Letters from Mr. Eawson and Sir (^eorge Groy 109

CHAPTER VI.

The Colonial Parliament of 1861 — The Acting Colonial Secretary's success —Letters from Sir George Grey and Commandant Currie — Arrival of Sir P. E. Wodehouse — Letters from Sir John Cowell — Land laws — Letters from Sir P. E. Wodehouse — The dispute with Moshesh — Letters from Sir John Barrow — Mr. Southey appointed permanently to be Colonial Secretary — Politics of the day — The Session of 1865 — Visit of Prince Alfred — Sessions of 1866, 1867, and 1868 133

CHAPTER VIL

Letters from Sir John Barrow — Commandant Currie and the Koratina robbers — Diamond discoveries, and Diamond Field politics — Letters from Mr. Giddy and Dr. Atherstone — Cai)e Colony politics — Outline of Budget speech — Responsible Government — Correspondence 161

CHAPTER VIH.

Frontier aftairs — Correspondence — Waterboer's claims and Mr. David Arnot — Diamond Field aflfairs — Correspondence — Mr. Molteno and Responsible Government — Arguments of both sides — Manifesto of the Southey Cabinet — Letter from Mr. Southey — General correspondence 188

CONTENTS. Xlll

CHAPTER IX.

PAGE

Mr. Souther's Memorandum on the claims of the Free State to the Diamond Fields — Sir Henry Barkly's comments — Mr. Campbell's letters — Correspondence — Keate's Award — Arnot's Letters- Session of 1872 — Responsible Government carried — Letters from Mr. Southey and Sir Henry Barkly — Mr. Southey declines to take office under new rgghne — Responsible Government — Sir H. Barkly and a summary of the situation — Mr. Southey made C.M.G., receives a pension and flattering testimonials 213

CHAPTER X.

Mr. Southey the Lieutenant-Governor of Griqualand West — Early days of the Diamond diggings — The New Rush — The Triumvirate — Right of the coloured man to dig — Sir H. Barkly offers a Constitution— The Diggers' Committee— The Griquas and their history — Waterboer, Adam Kok, Albania — The land question — President Parker — The Vooruitzigt Syndicate — The new ofiBcials — Gambling at the Diggings — Claim rents — The Elections — The Diggers' leaders — The Legislative Council — Boer plots with Natives — Sufferings of Natives going to Diamond Fields — Settling English in Transvaal 236

CHAPTER XI.

Blr. Southey Lieutenant-Governor of Griqualand West — Lord Carnarvon and Fedeiatiou — Tiie Mining Ordinance — Aylward and the malcontents — Difficulties wifh Waterboer — The Legislative Coimcil — The Land Question — Betrayal by Attorney-General — Kimberley malcontents — Ordinances disallowed — Aylward and his followers — Sir H. Barkly's vacillations — An outbreak imminent — Troops sent to Kimberley — End of Lieutenant-Governorship ... 261

CHAPTER XII.

Mr. Southey Member for Grahamstown — Sir Bartle Freres Rule, Session of 1877 — Ministry formation, Session of 1878 — Lord Carnarvon's blunders — Mr. Southey receives a knighthood — Closing years and family history 290

XIV

CONTENTS.

APPENDICES.

PAGE

A. War Services of Lieut.-Colonel Southey H17

B. iCreZi and the Native Question, by R. Southoy 322

C. Despatch of Lieut.-Governor Hay 337

D. Protest of Orange Free State 342

E. Proposal for British Immigration to Transvaal, by R. Southey ... 368

F. Glen Grey, by R. Southey 375

G. Government Notice — Reply 379

H. Letter from Messrs. H. Tucker :in<l W. Ling, Diamond Fields ... 402

I. Pre'cis of Despatches— Sir H. Barkly and Mr. Southey 406

K. Memorandum on Kafirland, by Sir P. E. Wodehouso 419

L. The Shooting of Hintza, by George Southey 423

PHOTOGRAVURE PLATES.

R. SouTHEY (Middle Age) frontispiece

Sir R. Southey (Aged 90) facepage 310

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF

SIR RICHARD SOUTHEY, K.C.M.G.

CHAPTER I.

The British settlers of 1820— The Southey party— War of 1828— An exposition of the politics of the day in Judge Cloete's speech — War again — Richard Southey at the head of volunteers — Farming — War of 1834 — Colonel Smith and the corps of guides — Richard Southey captain — Colonel Smith and the war — Hintza : his escape and death — Case against the colonists — The Southeys move to Graaff Reinet.

ENGLAND arose exhausted from the great European combat which terminated at Waterloo. Thousands of impoverished people clamoured for employment, and among other means of relieving distress, a plan of colonization to the Cape was adopted. The selection of the fittest was exemplified by six thousand settlers being chosen out of ninety thousand applicants. In the ranks of the successful were George Southey, heading a party from Somersetshire, with his family, which comprised four sons, named "William, Eichard, George, and Henry, and two daughters, as well as two servants. This was the day of small sailing vessels, which took about three months to perform the voyage from Gravesend to Algoa Bay. In one of these, named the Hennersley Castle, the Southeys embarked, and safely arrived in the eastern province of the Cape Colony

B

2 SIR RIGEABD SOUTHEY.

in the year 1820. On this occasion Great Britain "threw her bread on the waters" in the form of hardy, indefatigable emigrants, whose exertions subsequently resulted in commerce which more than a hundredfold repaid the original expenditure.

Eichard Southey, the subject of our biography, was a boy of twelve years of age when he first trod the shores of Algoa Bay, having been born at Culmstock, a small town in Devonshire, on the 25th April, 1808. It should be mentioned that the genealogical table of the Southey family dates from 1545, and commences with the name of Johannes Southey. Five generations thereafter we come to the names of John Southey, and of Eobert Southey the poet, who were first cousins. It was John's eldest child and son who was the father of Eichard Southey, and the head of the Southey party of 1820 settlers.*

The destination in South Africa of the Southey party was close to Eound Hill, between Bathurst and Grahamstown, and here young Eichard joined in the pioneer farming efforts of his people, and acquired that love of sport which continued throughout his long career. However, in 1824, when he was only sixteen years of age, he was sent by his father to Grahamstown, where he served as a clerk in the mercantile establishment of Messrs. Heugh and Fleming. This life seems to have been distasteful, and he sighed for a wider field and scenes of adventure, as we find him, when he attained his twenty-first year, setting out on a trading and hunting expedition in Pondoland and Bovanaland. His brother Henry tells us that the expedition was not a success financially, for although Eichard was well received by the natives, they were far too "slim" for him, as on many occasions when he counted his cattle, it was found that a

* It seems that an American gentleman named Southworth recently went to England to trace his ancestry, and in so doing discovered that in the thirteenth century the forefathers of the Southeys bore the name of Southworth, and in this way were distantly related to him.

EIS MARRIAGE — VOLUNTEERS AGAINST FETCANL 3

beast had unfortunately died, apparently from natural causes, but really put to death in order to form the material for a feast.

On his return from the trading expedition, Eichard Southey determined to settle in life. In the first place, he went to the parental home at Southey's Hoek, Trompetter's Drift, and while there married Isabella, the youngest daughter of Mr. John Shaw, and shortly afterwards returned to Grahamstown, where he engaged in cattle dealing. Soon afterwards, in conjunction with his brothers, he purchased the farm Kap Eiver, and there resided until the outbreak of the Kafir War in 1834-5. But in the mean time an important episode took place which requires special mention. In the year 1828 the Government of the Cape Colony called for volunteers to take charge of military outposts on the frontier — while his Majesty's troops went on special service into Kafirland. Eichard Southey was one of those who responded to this demand, and at the age of twenty we find him armed, mounted, and equipped, at his own expense, to respond to the call of duty. In a memorandum found amongst his papers he writes —

"In the year 1828, the Government received information that a tribe of natives, designated the Amafetcani, was moving down from the north-east towards Kafirland, destroying all before them, and that the Pondos, Tambookies, and other natives occupying the country beyond our frontier were so much alarmed that there was danger of their rushing in amongst us for safety. Under these circumstances, the Government determined on sending a strong military force into the country to check the advance of the marauders. To do this it was necessary to obtain the services of burghers of some kind to take charge of the frontier outposts during the absence of the soldiers, and volunteers were called for to perform those duties. I was one of those who responded to the call, and performed military duties at Fort Beaufort, until the return of the troops. These troops met the enemy somewhere about the sources of the Bashee, or Umtata River (I think). A fight ensued, in which the Fetcani lost some

4 SIB BIOEARD SOU THEY.

of their number, which caused them to abandon their intention of advancing further in this direction, and instead to return to their own country. They were not previously acquainted with the effect of our weapons (guns), and didn't like to risk a second ncounter."

At this stage it seems desirable to furnish a brief resume of a speech delivered in the Legislative Council in August, 1836, by an educated and impartial colonist, Mr. Cloete (afterwards Judge Cloete).* It is a clear and just epitome of frontier history. The subject was the motion of the Attorney-General to refer to a sub-committee the Martial Law Indemnification Bill. Mr. Cloete said " that this was the first time that anything connected with the policy hitherto pursued by the Government towards the Kafir tribes had to his knowledge come before them, and he considered that he should fail in his duty to the country, to the place he held, and to his fellow-colonists, were he to allow that opportunity to pass without expressing his sentiments with regard not only to the line of policy formerly pursued, but to that which had recently been substituted for it. This duty he felt to be more imperative when he considered the manner in which a Committee of the House of Commons had proceeded in its inquiries into this subject. It was but too evident that not only the conduct of the colonists, but of the Colonial Government, had been shamefully misrepresented ; the former as characterized by the most heartless and unfeeling barbarity, and the latter as only actuated by a grasping ambition, which sought by oppressing the native tribes and seizing their possessions and territory to aggrandize the colony. Neither of these positions, however, had been, nor could be, substantiated, and the truth had only to be brought forward to set at rest such unfounded calumnies.

* See the Kcport of the speech in the Commercial Advertiser, Cape Town, of the 28th August, 1836.

JUDGE GLOETE'S SPEECH. 5

"With regard to the colonists, it would be sufficient to show that they were possessed of the feelings of human beings to repel the accusations brought against them. "We know that self-interest and self-preservation are the very first springs of human action, and it is literally a matter of absurdity to suppose that the isolated farmer, residing with his wife and family some ten or fifteen miles from the nearest neighbour on whom he could call for assistance, should be actuated by feelings of aggression against a bold and warlike people, a single whistle of whose chief would surround his house with hundreds of savage warriors. That no single act of aggression ever at any period took place, it would be the height of absurdity to deny. This would be saying that the colonists were not men but angels. When, therefore, it was found that, instead of bringing forward tangible charges against individuals, the enemies of the colonists confined themselves to vague and general accusations, and when it was also seen that where they had attempted to substantiate these accusations their facts had failed, he hoped the Council would see sufficient grounds for acquitting the colonists.

" With regard to the Colonial Government as an individual conversant with its acts, he took upon himself to say that nothing could be more unfounded than the charges insinuated against it. Early in the century the British Government took over the colony, with an acknowledged and guaranteed boundary. Then it was found that some of the principal chiefs had crossed this line and settled themselves between the Bushmans and Sundays Eivers, frequently carrying their inroads to a distance of three hundred miles westward of the Fish Eiver. During the Governments of Baird, Bourke, and Lord Caledon, no steps were taken to expel these invaders.

" Sir John Cradock at last found it imperatively necessary to cause the natives to respect the legitimate boundary, and as a means to this end a military force, supported by a large burgher commando, was sent out. Gentle methods were

G SIE RIGUABD SOUTHEY.

tried in the first place. Indeed, when an officer of artillery suggested to Colonel Graham that as the Kafirs were completely exposed he should fire upon them, that gallant officer replied, ' Fire not a single shot until every amicable means be tried.' At this very time, however, the Kafirs were engaged at the other wing in butchering Andreas Stockenstrom, with fourteen of the worthiest burghers of the commando, who ventured among them unarmed, and on an errand of peace. Hostilities then, of course, took place, which resulted in the natives being driven out of the colony."

Mr. Cloete goes on to say that " he happened to visit the frontier line in the years 1813 and 1815, when it was strongly defended by forts ten or twelve miles apart. He had then witnessed the condition of the burghers, many of whom had been eighteen or twenty months from their families. After the general peace, however, this force could not be kept up, and the inroads of Kafirs again commenced, not only desolating but depopulating the country, notwithstanding all the efforts Government made to induce the colonists to occupy the land. It was in vain that Colonel •Cuyler held out the most flattering promises ; such was the insecurity of life and property, that only a few individuals -could be found hardy enough to place themselves in circumstances of such peril, and of these several were barbarously massacred.

" In these circumstances Lord Charles Somerset personally interviewed the Kafir chiefs in the year 1817, and so acknowledged Gaika as paramount chief that the British forces rendered him assistance when in 1819 a portion of his people rebelled. It was in this war that 6000 Kafirs suddenly emerged from the Fish Eiver bush and rushed down upon Grahamstown, which would probably have been taken had not Colonel Willshire happened to have been out that morning exercising the troops, and the Kafirs, suddenly seeing these men, imagined that a strong relief force was advancing.

" Again Lord Charles Somerset interviewed Gaika, and

JUDGE CLOETE'S SPEECH. 7

he found that his men had been perfidiously acting against us. Indeed, one of his chief councillors was stabbed in the act of seizing the reins of Colonel Willshire's horse, and another was found to have advanced up to the muzzles of the guns in the attack on Grahamstown. The country between the Fish Eiver and the Keiskamma was now declared neutral territory.

" It is specially noticeable that on the advent of the settlers of 1820, the then acting-governor, Sir Eufane Shawe Donkin, repaired to the frontier, and with the entire concurrence of Gaika and the other chieftains entered into an agreement providing that, though the tract of country referred to should still remain neutral, it might be occupied by certain masses of persons settling in little towns or villages, Gaika only bargaining for the valley of the Chumie, which until the late war was always considered to belong to his tribe. Ofi&cial acts clearly prove that for at least thirty years previous to the war of 1834 nothing was more distant from the views of Government than the invasion or seizure of Kafir territory.

" Sir Lowry Cole next came upon the scene, and under his direction the location of a body of Hottentots on the Kat Eiver took place. In consequence of this settlement, and the granting of some farms in the Fish Eiver bush, it is manifest that acts of aggression or spoliation did sometimes occur, and the chiefs themselves acknowledged that the Kafirs were in unlawful possession of the country. In fact, the chiefs Macomo and T'Slambie took advantage of indulgences granted to them in time of drought by committing several murders, and stealing so many cattle, as to throw the frontier into such a state of insecurity, that when he (Mr. Cloete) visited it in 1830 he found the inhabitants in the greatest excitement and alarm."

Mr. Cloete cited several cases which came under his own personal notice to show that the colonists did not act in a spirit of aggression, and that law was vindicated when natives were injured. The Chief Justice, on more than one occasion, assured the Kafirs that the courts of the colony were always open to them even for the redress of injuries done in their own country. The Kafirs were placed, as far as circumstances would permit, on the same level as more civilized persons.

" In the year 1830, the chiefs, building on the hopes of disaffection among the people at Kap Eiver, and promised the support of Hintza, were secretly preparing for one of the most dreadful, savage, and unwarranted inroads ever recorded in the annals of any colony." After referring to the wise acts of Government, Mr. Cloete concluded by stating that the name of Sir Benjamin D'Urban would be handed down to future generations, not only as the friend of the colony, but the true friend of the Kafirs themselves.

In the early thirties we see Richard Southey, a young married man, settled quietly with his brothers on their farm at Kap River. There must have been general apprehensions of a native outbreak, but so little special knowledge existed that we find the Southeys eating their Christmas dinner in peace on the very day on which the great Kafir War of 1834 broke out. On the next morning two breathless men galloped up in hot haste. These were George Southey and Richard's brother-in-law, William Shaw, who had ridden over from Grahamstown during the night. Everything had to be abandoned, and the young wife and child (Charles) borne swiftly to the city of the settlers. Almost immediately after, their farm-house was completely burned with their furniture, including a good piano, which was then a rarity in the eastern province, and within twenty-four hours a man who had been enjoying an independent, comfortable life was reduced to poverty. The brothers met together in Grahamstown, and Henry had, unfortunately, to report that John Shaw (Richard's brother-in-law) had been killed by the assegai of the chief Umkai.

Richard Southey exhibited both courage and sound judgment in organizing a force of thirty volunteers, of whom he

KAFIR WAR OF 1834. 9

was the captain, and proceeding to the Clay pits, about twenty-five miles distant, for the purpose of rescuing some fellow-settlers who resided there. A dreadful scene presented itself on their arrival. The houses were burned down or plundered, and the mangled remains of two white men discovered. From this place they lost no time in proceeding to the military posts near the mouth of the Fish Eiver, and then assisted the garrisons to retire on headquarters at Grahamstown. Let us give a narrative of the events of this time in the words of Kichard Southey himself, who says —

" In December, 1834, I was farming on a farm purchased by myself and brothers at the head of the Kap River, in the Bathurst district, and was aroused one night about midnight by the arrival of my brother George and brother-in-law, William Shaw, who informed me that there had been a skirmish between a small party of the Cape Mounted Rifles and a number of Kafirs near Port Willshire, arising out of an attempt made by the former to secure a quantity of Kafir cattle as compensation for thefts committed in the colony by Kafirs, and that the Kafirs were invading the colony in consequence. My brothers, after warning me of the danger, proceeded on to Trompetter's Drift on the Fish River, where other members of the family resided, to warn them, and help them to get away with our stock, etc., if possible. On the third morning after this, at daylight, the two arrived back, to report that the day previous, having left the homestead with two waggons loaded with such articles as they could bring away, the ladies of the family residing there, and all the live-stock, some 900 head of horned cattle, 2000 sheep and goats, and between 30 and 40 horses, they were overtaken by a large body of Kafirs while ascending the Fish River hill, and compelled to abandon the cattle, etc., but succeeded in getting away with the waggons, which was fortunate considering that there were but three armed white men and the two native waggon drivers, five in all, against at least a hundred Kafirs. On reaching the top of Driver's Hill, about ten miles from Grahamstown, they deemed it safe to let one go on with the waggons, and the other two turned ofi" across country to me, arriving at my place a little after daybreak, having travelled all night. Now it was

10 SIB BICHARD SOUTHEY.

ray turn to get away to GrahamstowQ with all possil)le speed. My cattle, sheep, and horses were first sent off by their herds, all Kafirs ; next followed my wife and two children, the eldest only a little over two years, in a cart drawn by oxen ; after that a waggon loaded with such household goods as could be got into it ; after that, myself, brother, and brother-in-law packed away a good portion of what was left in cellars, thinking the Kafirs would not be aware of their existence, then locked up the house and left on horseback for town, and on our way found that most of the people living near the line of road had either left or were leaving, having been warned of danger by my wife on her way to town. Unfortunately, this could not be done to people living in the opposite direction, and my nearest neighbour was murdered within a few hours after I left my home."

There have been two famous historic rides in South Africa. One of these was that of Eichard King, from Natal to Grahamstown, to obtain relief for the British garrison invested at Natal ; the other was that of Colonel Harry Smith, from Cape Town to Grahamstown in six days, on the occasion of the breaking out of the desolating Kafir War in 1834. This officer, invested with full power by the Governor (Sir Benjamin D'Urban), was told that a sloop of war was ready to take him to Algoa Bay. He, however, preferred to ride post, and horses were " laid " for him along a route of six hundred miles in length. He started on the 1st of January, "the heat raging as a furnace," and with a Hottentot as companion rode ninety miles on the first day. The next day he started before daylight, and got to Swellendam for breakfast. After riding another hundred miles he reached George, three hundred miles from Cape Town, and thence over mountains and bad roads to the Uitenhage division, where he had to cross one river seven times, and was " as wet for hours as if he had been swimming, while the sun was on him like a furnace." Here a characteristic event took place. His own horse having knocked up, he asked a Boer who was holding a nice-looking steed ready saddled to allow him to mount, explaining at the same time