. A naturalist in the Transvaal. ke footways—butbroader—across rugged common lands at home, withdips and hollows, large half-buried stones in someplaces, and small streams and rivulets—spruits—to crossoccasionally, with jolting and bumping, which is themore noticeable on a first journey. But these rollinggrassy plains and bare hills, stretching for hundreds ofmiles around, are not only invigorating, but positivelyexhilarating. It is winter, though the days are rain now falls, and the veld is covered with a closedried-up growth of herbage, giving a light brown tingeto the landscape till
. A naturalist in the Transvaal. ke footways—butbroader—across rugged common lands at home, withdips and hollows, large half-buried stones in someplaces, and small streams and rivulets—spruits—to crossoccasionally, with jolting and bumping, which is themore noticeable on a first journey. But these rollinggrassy plains and bare hills, stretching for hundreds ofmiles around, are not only invigorating, but positivelyexhilarating. It is winter, though the days are rain now falls, and the veld is covered with a closedried-up growth of herbage, giving a light brown tingeto the landscape till it meets the clear blue is at sunrise when these hues become intensified andtinged with the reflected solar light, and pale carmine anddeep umber tints are then exhibited. We change horsesabout every hour at small wayside posting-houses, gene-rally covered with the universal roof of corrugated iron,for here there are neither tiles nor slates, and wood hasto be imported or transported to these treeless CHANGING MULES ON THE VELD. One man drives— Cape Boys excel at this work,—the conductor sits by his side, and it is he who wieldsthe long whip and helps to pilot the driver. The roadis up-hill, amidst mountains and glorious views ; Natalhere bids her farewell to the Dutch Republic, and awilderness again reigns beyond. We pass through thescene of the late Boer War, past Majuba Hill, andthrough Laings Nek: but it is a sorry subject; allthese fights took place on Natal territory which the TO PRETORIA. 11 Boers had invaded, and brave English soldiers sleeparound slain by the unerring bullets of plain Boerfarmers who were held too cheap. Both sides werecomposed of brave men, but the rules of war observedby our commanders were too little marked by thesubtlety of border warfare and too much by parade andfield-day observance. Two small trees, since planted byhis wife, mark the resting-place of the bold, genial, butunfortunate General Colley. These trees st
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Keywords: ., boo, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookpublisherlondonrhporter
