APPENDIX.

No. I.

Stuurman's Kraal.-(Vide vol. i., p. 110.)

THE following account of the fate of David Stuurman and his followers, is extracted from an article in the New Monthly Magazine, for January, 1828, from the pen of my friend Mr. Pringle, who has also embodied the same affecting story in the notes appended to his poems written in South Africa. Mr. Pringle mentions that he obtained the details from a gentleman in the Cape colony, who knew the circumstances well, and had himself been a personal witness of many of them :—

"On the death of Klaas Stuurman, who was killed in hunting the buffalo, his brother David, who had been his faithful associate in peace and war, succeeded him, by the unanimous suffrages of the little community at Kleine Rivier, as their chief or protector.

"The existence of this independent kraal gave, however, great offence to the neighbouring boors, the more especially as the two Stuurmans and their followers had particularly distinguished themselves in fighting against the Christians' during the late disturbances. The policy of the Batavian government, in protecting them in independence, was much blamed; and Stuurman and his people, though conducting themselves inoffensively, were jealously watched, and every possible occasion embraced of preferring complaints against them; with the view of getting them rooted out, and reduced to the same state of servitude as the rest of their nation had been now universally subjected to. For several years no suitable opportunity presented itself to obtain the accomplishment of this purpose; but with such feelings of mutual enmity and suspicion, occasions of offence could not fail to occur; and, at length, in 1810, when the colony was once more under the government of England, this Hottentot captain and his associates became outlaws in the following manner :

"Two individuals, belonging to this village, or kraal, had engaged themselves, for a certain period, in the service of a neighbouring boor; who, when the term of their agreement had expired, refused them permission to depart-a practice at that time very general, as at this day it still continues to be. The Hottentots, upon this, went off without permission, and returned to their own village. The boor followed them thither, and demanded them back: but

their chief, Stuurman, refused to surrender them. Next day the Veld-cornet, a petty local functionary, came with a party of armed boors to take them by force. Stuurman, on the approach of this band, drew up his men, and called out to the veld-cornet to beware -for, if he attempted to enter his kraal in arms, he would fire upon him. On this the boors laid down their guns, and tried to cajole him, by fair words, to yield the point. Stuurman, however, was staunch to his friends, and refused. A report of his contumacious conduct was, therefore, made to the landdrost; and that formidable functionary issued an imperative order for the Hottentot chief to appear instantly before him, to answer for his audacity. Stuurman was so infatuated as to delay compliance; and, in consequence of this, his arrest, and the destruction of his kraal were forthwith determined on. But as he was well known to be a resolute man, and much beloved by his countrymen, who regarded him as a sort of champion, it was considered too hazardous to attempt his seizure by open force, and the following stratagem was fallen upon to accomplish this purpose.

"A boor named Cornelius Routenbach, a heemraad (or petty justice) of the Uitenhage district, had by some means or other gained Stuurman's confidence and friendship; and this man was employed to entrap him. On a certain day, accordingly, he sent an express to his friend Stuurman, stating that the Caffers had carried off a number of his cattle, and requesting him to hasten over with the most trusty of his followers to aid him in pursuit of the robbers. The Hottentot chief and his party instantly equipped themselves and set out. When they reached Routenbach's residence, Stuurman was welcomed with every demonstration of cordiality, and with four of his principal followers was invited into the house. On a signal given, the door was shut, and at the same moment the Landdrost (Major Cuyler), the Veld-commandant Stolz, and a crowd of boors, rushed out upon them from an inner apartment, and made them all prisoners. The rest of the Hottentot party, who had remained outside, perceiving how their captain and comrades had been betrayed, immediately dispersed themselves. The majority, returning to their kraal, were, together with their families, distributed by the landdrost as serfs to the neighbouring boors. Some fled into Cafferland; and a very few were, at the earnest entreaty of Dr. Vanderkemp, permitted to join the missionary institution at Bethelsdorp. The chief and those seized along with him were sent off prisoners to Cape Town, where, after undergoing some sort of trial before the court of justice, upon the evidence furnished by their mortal enemies, they were condemned to work in irons for life, and sent to Robben Island to be confined among the other convicts.

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Stuurman's kraal thus effectually broken up, the Landdrost Cuyler asked and obtained, as a private grant for himself, the grounds the Hottentots had occupied. This magistrate likewise obtained

possession of the cattle belonging to Stuurman and some of his people-upon what terms is not precisely known; but he alleged (and I question not the fact) that due compensation' was made to the prisoners. Moreover, this functionary took into his own service (from the most laudable motives, as he alleged, though without either legal contract or regular wages) the children of the two Stuurmans; and in his service some of them still remained in 1826. David's son was confined in prison for some time, without being accused of any crime, after his father had made his escape from confinement-merely with the benevolent view of preventing the youth from taking refuge with his outlawed father in Cafferland. "Stuurman and his comrades, after remaining for some years prisoners in Robben Island, contrived to make their escape, and three of them (the chief and two others) succeeded in effecting their retreat through the whole extent of the colony into Cafferland, a distance of seven hundred miles. Impatient, however, to return to his family, Stuurman, in the year 1816, sent out a message to a missionary, from whom he had formerly experienced kindness, intreating him to endeavour to procure permission for him to return in peace. This missionary, as he himself informed me, made application in his behalf to the Landdrost Cuyler-but without avail : that magistrate recommended that Stuurman should remain where he was. Three years afterwards, however, the unhappy exile ventured to return into the colony without permission. But he was not long in being discovered and apprehended by his old persecutors, and was once more sent a prisoner to Cape Town. Here he was kept in close confinement till the year 1823, when he was finally transported as a convict to New South Wales.

Such was the treatment and the fate of the last Hottentot chief who attempted to stand up for the natural rights of his countrymen."

No. II.

Colonial Proclamation of 1809.—(Vide vol. i. p. 142.)

PROCLAMATION.

By His Excellency, Dupre Earl of Caledon, Viscount Alexander, and Baron Caledon of Caledon, in that part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called Ireland, and one of the Representative Peers of that Kingdom, Governor and Commander in Chief of His Majesty's Castle, Town, and Settlement of the Cape of Good Hope, in South Africa, and of the Territories and Dependencies thereof, and Ordinary and Vice Admiral of the same.

WHEREAS it appears, that the provisions made from time to time, for securing the fulfilling of contracts of hire between the inhabit

ants of this colony and Hottentots, are not sufficient for the intended purpose; and, whereas, for the benefit of this colony at large, it is necessary that not only the individuals of the Hottentot nation, in the same manner as the other inhabitants, should be subject to proper regularity in regard to their places of abode and occupations, but also, that they should find an encouragement for preferring entering the service of the inhabitants, to leading an indolent life, by which they are rendered useless both for themselves and the community at large

I therefore have thought proper to establish and ordain, and by these presents do establish and ordain :

1. That all and every Hottentot in the different districts of this colony, in the same manner as all inhabitants, shall have a fixed place of abode in some one of the districts, and that an entry of the same shall be made in the office of the fiscal, or the respective landdrosts, and that they shall not be allowed to change their place of abode from one district to another, without a certificate from the fiscal or landdrost of the district from which they remove; which certificate they shall be bound to exhibit to the fiscal or landdrost of the district where they intend to settle, for the purpose of being entered in their office; while every Hottentot, neglecting this order, shall be considered as a vagabond and treated accordingly.

2. That every inhabitant who engages a Hottentot in his service for the space of a month, or any longer period, shall be bound with the same to make his appearance before the fiscal, or the land drost, or the field-cornet of his district, and there enter into, and sign, in triplo, a proper written contract, containing,

a) The name of the person who takes into service.
b) The name of the person who enters into service.
c) The terms of the contract.

d) The amount of the wages.
e) The time of payment. And

f) Such further conditions as the persons contracting shall

upon.

agree

Of which contract, after having been duly signed in triplo, each of the parties shall be furnished with one counterpart, and the third counterpart is to remain in the office of the fiscal, landdrost, or field-cornet; while, for the sake of facilitating the execution of this measure as much as possible, the fiscal and respective landdrosts shall, upon applying for the same, be furnished, on the part of government, gratis, with the necessary printed copies for their own offices, and those of the field-cornets under them.

This being neglected, no contract of hire against a Hottentot shall stand good; and in a case where it is proved that the Hottentot was ignorant of these present regulations, upon the existence of a hire contract being satisfactorily proved, the engagement shall stand good in favour of the Hottentot, who shall be entitled to all

the advantages secured by this proclamation, to Hottentots entering into contracts before the fiscal, landdrost, or field-cornet.

3. In such cases, where a Hottentot entering any service, with the consent of the person whose service he engages in includes his wife and children, or any of them, in the contract, the same shall be supplied by such person whose service the said Hottentot enters, with the necessaries of life, (lodging included,) in the same manner as the person who made the contract, provided they have not made a personal engagement for themselves; as in this case a separate agreement must be made with them, and duly signed.

4. That, the agreement expiring on the last day of the time stipulated in the contract, the servant shall not be obliged to continue his services any longer, but be at liberty, with his wife and children, (if they are with him,) and with all his cattle and other property of whatever nature it may be, to leave the master and enter another service, or act in any other manner the laws of this colony admit of, without being hindered by the master or any one on his part, on pain of forfeiting one hundred rds., to be divided in three shares, one-third for the treasury of the district, one-third for the magistrate who prosecutes, and the remaining third for the Hotténtot thus molested.

5. The master shall be obliged to pay the wages agreed for, strictly on the periods mentioned in the agreement; and that, in case of neglect, upon the Hottentot's lodging a complaint, the case shall be tried by a committee of the court of justice, in the presence of the fiscal, if in the district of the town, and by the board of the respective landdrosts and heemraden, if in one of the country districts, which board, upon a summary investigation, shall administer justice; and, in case the complaint is well founded, the master not only shall be obliged to pay the servant his wages, but shall, over and above, forfeit all claim to the further fulfilment of the contract; as likewise all claim on account of such necessaries as he may have provided.

6. That before the said committee of the court of justice, and the board of landdrost and heemraden, in the same manner shall be tried all cases in which a Hottentot lodges a complaint against his master for ill-treatment, when, if upon a summary investigation the fact be found true, the Hottentot shall be discharged from his service, and the master be fined in a fine not exceeding fifty rds., and not less than ten rds., according to the nature of the ill-treatment; and the Hottentot, if found to have urged his complaint wantonly or malignantly, shall receive such correction as the nature of the case shall require.

(This article is not to extend to ill-treatment, accompanied by mutilation or injury done to any part or limb of the body, by which the complainant may be deprived of the use thereof for some time, or for ever; but in these cases the fiscal or the landdrost shall prosecute according to the common law in use in this colony.)