Extract from History of Methodist Church in South Africa
The disappointed soldiers in Cape Town renewed their
appeal to the Missionary Committee, who, not without hope
that a second attempt might succeed, sent out the Rev.
Barnabas Shaw. He and his wife sailed in the Eclipse from
the Thames on December 20, 181 5. In order to take
advantage of the trade winds, the vessel crossed the South
Atlantic as far as Rio de Janeiro, where they remained two
weeks provisioning the ship. Then, putting again to sea, they
completed a weary voyage of 116 days, and landed at Cape
Town on April 14, 1816.
This man, to whom African missions became an exalted
passion, was born in 1 788, at EUoughton, a village about eight
miles from Hull, in Yorkshire. His father, Thomas Shaw,
was a yeoman farmer ; and from a boy Barnabas, like most
youths of his class, had to handle the plough, the sickle, and
the flail. Though tall and thin, he was strong, athletic, and
vigorous. The hard training of the farm fitted him to endure
the severe labours of a new mission in a desert land. He had
a taste for mechanics, and when occasion required he could
make a plough or build a house with his own hands. He was
converted when young, and at the age of twenty began to
preach. No difficulty or opposition daunted his buoyant
spirits. When designated by the Missionary Committee for
Cape Colony, he at once commenced the study of the Dutch
language, under Baldwin Janson, then resident in London,
and the author of a Dutch grammar ; and before Mr. Shaw
had been a year in South Africa he could preach fluently in
that language.
The spiritual condition of the population of Cape Town was
lamentable. The religious needs of the soldiers were supplied
by the military chaplains in a cold, perfunctory manner. The
few English families were unprovided with any pastor.
Thousands of slaves were without religious knowledge, and
their owners preferred that they should remain ignorant.
Official opposition continued, and Lord Somerset expressed
his regret that he could not sanction the commencement of
a Wesleyan Mission in Cape Town. But Mr. Shaw calmly
moved forward. * Having been refused the sanction of the
Governor,* he wrote, * on the following Sunday I commenced
without it. If His Excellency was afraid of giving oirence to
the Dutch ministers and the English chaplains, I had no
occasion to fear either the one or the other. My congregation
was at first chiefly composed of pious soldiers, and it was in
a room hired by them that I first preached Christ crucified
in South Africa.*
The military officers took alarm. They cherished the notion,
happily long ago exploded, that if soldiers became Christians
they would be spoilt as fighting-machines. At Wynberg the
men had built for themselves a little Wesleyan Church ; but
the colonel of the regiment ordered it to be burnt to the
ground. They then built another in the forest, on land
belonging to Captain Proctor, who did not share the colonel's
alarm, and in it Mr. Shaw held his services. At Simonstown,
the only place in which he could preach, was a small room
belonging to a soldier of the 83rd Regiment. Discouraged by
the persistent opposition, and chafing against the narrow limits
of his work, Mr. Shaw's thoughts began to turn to the heathen,
for whose evangelization he considered he had been chiefly
sent out.
But where was he to go ? He sought the advice of Lord
Charles Somerset, as one who had an extensive knowledge of
the country ; but the Governor, whilst expressing his readiness
to assist in having the heathen taught 'habits of industry,'
could not recommend any particular place, as the natives were
scattered thinly over the land. So Mr. Shaw prayed, and
waited for direction.
Several months elapsed, and then, as he believed, the direc-
tion came. The Rev. H. Schmelen, of the London Missionary
Society, and whose station was in
Great Namaqualand, arrived in Cape
Town, accompanied by about twelve
native Christians. Mr. Shaw invited
them to his house, and the account he
received of the degraded condition of
the various Hottentot clans, and of
their wiUingness to receive the Gospel,
deeply impressed him. He seemed to
hear a voice from the unknown beyond,
saying, * Come over and help us.'
Mr. Schmelen offered him the use of
part of his own house, and his aid in
acquiring a knowledge of the Namaqua
language. But the undertaking in-
volved such hardship and peril that
Mr. Shaw shrank from proposing it
to his wife. When, however, Mr. Schmelen spoke in her
presence of the desire of the Namaquas to receive the Gospel,
Mrs. Shaw exclaimed : * We will go with you. The Lord
is opening our way to the heathen.' Mr. Shaw, though
delighted with the heroic spirit of his wife, said : * But look at
the cost of a waggon, and oxen, and stores!' The brave
woman replied : * If the Missionary Society is offended, tell
them we will bear all the expense ourselves. We have a little
property in England, and for this let it go.' Mrs. Shaw shares
with her husband the honours of the Namaqua Mission.
When Lord Charles Somerset was applied to for a permit
to proceed beyond the frontier, he advised Mr. Shaw not to
leave the Colony, and even offered to appoint him as a minister
of one of the Dutch churches if he would remain ; but he
replied, * I feel my mission is to the heathen — I must go.*
Very reluctantly the passport was granted. The Governor
was autocratic, hot-tempered, and proud of his aristocratic
descent, but he could respect a man of Mr. Shaw's courage
and devotion.
A waggon and twelve oxen, with everything requisite for the
journey, were purchased, and, on September 6, 181 6, Mr. and
Mrs. Shaw set out with Mr. Schmelen on his return to Bethany,
intending to settle in Great Namaqualand. The country
through which they travelled was sparsely inhabited, and after
they had passed Picquetberg they entered a district utterly
destitute of roads. There were no waggon-tracks in the shift-
ing sands. Often the heat was excessive, and the oxen suffered
from the want of water. The Dutch farmers on the way
treated them with profuse hospitality. Mr. Van Aarde offered
them open house whilst they rested on his farm. Mr. Van
Zyl, of Uitkomst, supplied them with a bag of meal, three
goats, and five sheep, and, when payment was preferred,
generously said : * You come and dispense to me and my faniily
the bread of life. It would be strange indeed if I could not
give you a little provision to help you through the wilderness.*
These were not the only instances of Dutch hospitality. The
Rousseaus, of Picquetberg ; the Englebrechts and Coetzees, of
Kamiesberg ; and the Bassons of Groot Vallie, always extended
a hearty welcome to the Wesleyan missionaries in their
journeys to and from Namaqualand. After nearly a month's
travel the missionary party arrived at the Olifants River, which
was swollen by heavy rains. The contents of the waggons had
to be taken across in a boat, and the waggons were drawn
through the flooded stream with great difficulty. Then followed
a journey over the Karee, or arid desert, in which they found
a little water, but it was salt and black with impurity.
They had not advanced many miles across the Karee when
Mr. Shaw received what he considered to be a clear providen-
tial indication of his future sphere of labour. Wearily travel-
ling over the sandy plain, he was met by Jantje Wildschot,
the chief of Little Namaqualand, and four of his tribe, who
were on their way to Cape Town to procure a Christian teacher.
They had already come 200 miles, and Mr. Shaw was deeply
impressed by this unexpected meeting in the trackless desert.
Had either party started but half an hour earlier on its journey
they would not have met. He who brought Philip and the
eunuch together near Gaza — the one to receive, the other to
give, of the Word of Life — had again, in a far-distant scene,
brought together for a similar purpose Mr. Shaw and Jantje
Wildschot. Mr. Shaw readily consented to accompany the
Namaquas to their own country. When within a few miles of
the chief's winter residence, Naamrap, they were met by twenty
Namaquas riding on oxen, which were guided by wooden bits
thrust through the cartilage of the nose. Drawing up in line,
they uncovered their heads, and, waving their hands, they
shouted to Mr. and Mrs. Shaw : * Good day ! Welcome !
Welcome to our land !* They then rode off at full speed to
announce the approach of the visitors. If the reception was
somewhat dramatic, it was sincere, and augured well for the
future.
The day after their arrival a council of the tribe was held,
and Mr. Shaw preached to the people, Mr. Schmelen acting as
interpreter. Every face was lit up with a smile when it
became known that the Christian teacher was willing to dwell
among them. They would give land for a station, and water
with which to irrigate the garden. The missionary could keep
cows and goats for the use of his family. They would gladly
assist to erect a church and a house. They were eager to
learn the way of salvation, faint rumours of which had come
to them from other tribes. So the final step was taken. Mr.
Schmelen departed on his way to Great Namaqualand, and
left Mr. and Mrs. Shaw behind, not without tears on both sides
and warm hand-clasps, as of men and women who knew they
were not likely to see another white face for months, perhaps
for years.
By a rough mountain journey over rugged and dangerous
passes, Mr. and Mrs. Shaw and the Namaquas proceeded to
Lilyfontein, in the Kamiesberg, the summer residence of the
tribe, and there, in the midst of barbarism, the missionary and
his heroic wife settled. The loneliness of their position was
often painfully felt. No postal system linked them with dis-
tant friends : they were effectually cut off from civilization. On
the other hand, the station was healthy ; the mountains rose
picturesquely 5,000 feet above sea-level, and a perennial stream
of pure water gushed out from under one of the peaks. The
air was dry and bracing. In the west, on a clear day, could
be seen the blue waters of the Atlantic. But that which
chiefest gave courage and hope was the conviction that they
had been led thither by the guiding hand of God.
THE MISSION TO THE NAMAQUAS.
THE Namaquas were a Hottentot tribe of unmixed
descent, for in their desert home they had come little
into contact with other races. They were of a yellowish
brown colour, and their hair grew on the head in tufts.
Their noses were flat and broad, their eyes wide apart, their
lips thick, and their cheek-bones prominent. They had small
hands and feet, and beautifully white teeth. Their dress, when
they wore any, consisted of a kaross made of the skins of goats
or wild cats. Their chief food was milk and the flesh of
animals killed in hunting. Their language abounded in clicks
made by striking the tongue against the palate or the teeth.
They lived in mat huts, which were an imperfect protection
against the cold mists and gales that occasionally rolled up
from the Atlantic.
• Sore pierced by wintry winds, they sink
Into the sordid hut of cheerless poverty.'
Of religious truth the Namaquas appeared to know little.
They had scarcely any knowledge of a Supreme Being, and
when taught they were puzzled with the problem of an omni-
potent God and human suffering. * If there is a God,* angrily
said an aged man, * why does He not cure the pains in my
back ?' Another, who had lost his horses, said : * If I find the
horses I will believe. If I do not, then there is no God.' Any
attempt by Mr. Shaw to explain the nature of sin, or the
necessity of conversion, was met by a shake of the head, and
the avowal : * I cannot understand it.* They had a feeble com-
prehension of numbers. * Many could not count five,' wrote
Mr. Shaw ; * a few could proceed as far as ten, and then only
by using the fingers.* One or two, clever beyond others, could
count up to twenty with the extra aid of the toes. If asked to
add two and four and six, they had to abandon the attempt in
despair. Yet these same men could detect the absence of a
single sheep or goat out of a flock of several hundreds. It
must not, therefore, be supposed that the Namaquas were
mentally feeble. In the desert, without written language or
literature, there was little to stimulate their mental develop-
ment. As might be expected, they were acute in observation,
but weak in abstract calculations.
The Namaquas had few wants, and were consequently
indolent. To have plenty of meat and milk, to lie in the sun
and smoke, to possess numerous wives who did the heavy
labour — this was a Namaqua paradise. They could not be said
to have any morals, and their feasts were scenes of gross sen-
suality. New-born children were often thrown into the bush
to die of cold or be devoured by wild beasts. The neighbouring
farmers were frequently heard to say, no doubt in scorn, that
the Namaquas were *a species of wild dogs, and had no souls/
The work of Christianizing these degraded people seemed
hopeless, but Mr. Shaw was full of enthusiasm. *Were I
seated on a throne,' he said, * I would gladly descend from it
to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to these African
Gentiles.*
At first Mr. and Mrs. Shaw lived in a native hut, without
door, window, or chimney. It was so small that they thought
it was an advantage to have no furniture. They sat on boxes,
and slept on the floor. The erection of a small cottage was a
laborious task, for there was no suitable timber within thirty
miles, and besides the journey to the Naauwe River, the cutting
down of the trees, the sawing into planks, and the building of
the house, had to be done by Mr. Shaw himself. He also
made tables of slabs of granite. No corn or vegetables could
be obtained, so he dug up a piece of ground and sowed it with
lettuce, peas, onions, and radishes. The growth of the plants
was carefully watched, and when a little later Mr. and Mrs.
Shaw were seen eating the lettuces, the Namaquas, to whom
agriculture was an unknown art, exclaimed : * What a wonder-
ful thing is this, that the mistress and you can eat grass !
You will never die of starvation.' By the end of the year
Mr. Shaw was an adept in making his own butter and soap
and candles. His manual labour was a daily object lesson to
the Namaquas, teaching them the simpler crafts of civiliza-
tion. The evenings and the Sabbaths were devoted to religious
instruction.
Occasionally the difficulties of his position appalled him.
Here I toil and labour, and see but little fruit. The best of
my days are going, and I gain no useful knowledge, and I am
forgetting all I ever knew. My companions are ignorant
Hottentots. O ! this Africa ! this solitary land, this land of
darkness, of fatigue, and non-improvement !* This bittern-like
cry was, however, but for a moment. Courage and hopefulness
soon returned.
The Namaquas had hitherto led a nomadic life, subsisting
on the spoils of hunting. To induce them to settle on the soil
and become agriculturists Mr. Shaw made a plough. He had
brought with him from Capetown some ploughshares, coulters,
and tools. He made a rude forge, and the people flocked
around, watching with wonder the evolution of the strange
implement. When the iron was taken out of the fire and sub-
mitted to the strokes of the hammer, they fled before the sparks,
exclaiming: * We never saw anything like this before ; the fire
flies after us !' When the plough was finished and put to
work their astonishment was unlimited. They laughed and
shouted : * Look ! look at its mouth, how it bites and tears up
the ground !* The achievements of the plough excited many
of the Namaquas to desire one, and in a short time six ploughs
were made and put to work. The reproach that missionaries
devote too much time to spiritual duties and too little to
material improvement could not be cast at Mr. Shaw. With
him both were promoted with almost equal zeal. Before he
left Lilyfontein nearly 2,000 bags of wheat were annually
grown where before not a grain had been sown.
Mr. Shaw preached in Dutch, as many of the Namaquas
had acquired a knowledge of that language whilst in the employ
of Dutch farmers. For those who understood Namaqua only
it was easy to find an interpreter from amongst those who
understood both languages. At first the services were held
every Sabbath, and frequently during the week, in the open
air, in the shadow of a rock, or under the branches of a mimosa
tree, and often after the toils of a laborious day spent in building
or ploughing. But Mr. Shaw knew that the best results could
not bs obtained until a place was set apart for Divine worship.
In the second year of his residence he attempted to erect a
church. The building proceeded with painful slowness. A
drought had set in, food was scarce, and the people were too
weak to undertake heavy manual labour. Many were wearing
* hunger girdles,' straps drawn tightly round the waist to lessen
the pangs of hunger. Assisted by Jantje, the chief, Mr. Shaw
obtained a donation of about thirty sheep and goats from the
wealthier men and offered to feed the labourers in return for
their work. The building was now carried on with alacrity.
Aged men made the bricks, young men quarried the stone and
cut the timber, the women wove matting for the roof, and the
children tramped clay for mortar, singing in their toil verses
of Dutch hymns. When the building was completed, it was
dedicated to God with prayer and praise ; and though no lofty
spire rose above its roof, and no light fell on the congregation
from richly painted windows, within its humble walls many a
Namaqua found the Lord.
The services were from the first marked by deep attention
and great emotion. Savages are but children, and have no
idea of restraining their feelings. Often during the sermon
they would weep and moan over their sins. Individuals fell
prostrate upon the floor, and seemed unable to rise. Some of
the Gospel narratives, as the healing of blind Bartimeus, the
woman of Samaria, and the Canaanite mother who cried after
Jesus, made a deep impression on their untutored souls. Some
were plunged into deep distress, and lay on the ground weeping
bitterly. Jantje sobbed : * All the sins that I have committed
from my childhood to this day are put before my eyes.'
Hendrik lamented \ * After I heard the word, such was my
distress I fell to the ground, and my sins, like a great nail,
seemed to fasten me to the earth.* A woman said: * I feel
something like a serpent in my heart ; I hate it, but know not
how to get rid of it.*
These simple Namaquas in their distress cried unto the
Lord ; they resorted to the glens and the rocks and spent
hours in prayer. By faith they rested on Christ for salvation,
and their darkness was turned into day. A vein of surprise
runs through their confessions, as though they felt such wealth
of Divine mercy could not be intended for poor heathens like
themselves. With hand on mouth, an a^ed man said : * When
I think on the love of God in the gift of His Son, and of the
sufferings of Christ for me, my thoughts stand still, and I am
dumb.* Peter Links quaintly said : ' I have been like a poor
silly lamb that turns first to one bush and then to another, and
runs away from its mother. But the ewe will not forsake it,
and does all she can to induce it to follow. So has the Lord
cared for me.* Another convert expressed himself: * Before we
received the Gospel, we were like a chicken in the ^gg ere it is
hatched. We were surrounded with darkness and could see
nothing ; but the Gospel broke the shell, and now we see the
light of day.*
The Namaquas abandoned their deeds of evil. Formerly,
when the moon was at the full, they had been accustomed to
spend the night in Bacchanalian dancing, drunkenness, and
debauchery. Now they made the moonlight nights vocal with
song. The converts went from hut to hut, chanting some
favourite hymn, as :
• Faith loves the Saviour and beholds
His sufferings, death, and pain ;
And this shall ne'er be old or cold
Till we with Him shall reign. '
As the singers passed on and called upon the head of each
family to engage in prayer the night- fires brightened, and the
hills were covered with silvery beauty by the full-orbed moon.
In June, 181 7, the first two converts were baptized ; two were
united in matrimony ; and the sacrament of the Lord's Supper
was administered. Thus the churcjj grew and took form.
Many of the converts became school teachers, local preachers,
and class leaders, and proved to be faithful Christians. Not
a few carried the Gospel to other tribes. Robert Links was
a hero in his way. With gun in hand, and a water-vessel
slung at his back, and depending for food on what he might
shoot, he explored for weeks at a time the dreary Kalahari
Desert, that he might preach to the wild Bushmen. His
sufferings on these trips broke down his constitution, and he
died early. Johannes Jager, in his eagerness to learn, carried
his book into the lands that he might learn in spare moments.
Jacob Links was simple, but intensely earnest. When an
mquirer, he climbed to the roof of his hut, thinking that God
would hear him better if he were higher up ; but his passion to
do good led him far and wide, and he lived for a time with
Bushmen, subsisting on their famine fare that he might teach
them the way of salvation. Peter Links, his brother, was
a remarkable man, and could work as thatcher, mason,
carpenter, and blacksmith. He was an eloquent preacher in
Namaqua. He went through all kinds of danger, and once,
when hunting, was severely lacerated by a lion, which, leaping
upon him dashed him to the ground, and crunched his arm
between its teeth. His brother Robert shot it through the
head, kilHng it immediately ; but it was months before Peter
recovered.
The physical aspect of Lilyfontein changed. Instead of the
wild, unfenced veldt, were gardens and lands ; and in harvest-
time were fields of wheat. The Namaquas acquired civilized
manners. Men who had been accustomed to lay all hard work
on their wives took their full share of labour. Instead of
living on ant larvae, roots, and locusts, they had com and fruit.
They appeared in the house of God decently clothed. The
contrast between their present and former mode of life was so
striking that one of the Namaquas said : ' I would rather that
a bullet were shot through my head than the time should
come that we should be without the Gospel of Christ*
Another declared : ' Formerly I used to hunt dassies (rock
rabbits) and other wild animals; but I have a better living
now. When did we eat such bread before? When did we
buy so many clothes of the merchant ? Who could hunt
better than I? Yet I live better than I ever did.* Peace
reigned where once wars were frequent. The Bushmen dared
not attack the Namaquas now that they were dwelling
together, and the Namaquas had no desire to harry their
former enemies. Their cattle and sheep multiplied, and the
general comfort of the people increased. Within fifteen years
of the commencement of the mission, the inhabitants of Lily-
fontein possessed 3,000 sheep, 3,000 goats, 150 horses, and
400 head of cattle.
When Lord Charles Somerset heard of the success of the
settlement, he took steps to make it permanent. He granted
the Namaquas a tract of country, containing about 200,000
morgen, on which they were given rights of grazing and
cultivation. He placed the district under the control of a raad
or board, elected from amongst themselves on the first day in
each year, and the Wesleyan missionary in residence was
appointed chairman. This raad still meets once a month, and
manages the commonage and the lands, grants grazing rights,
and settles disputes.
In 181 7 the Missionary Committee in London sent out the
Rev. E. Edwards to assist Mr. Shaw. After landing at Cape
Town, he rode all the way to Lilyfontein on horseback, a
distance of 400 miles, rather than wait for a waggon. Mr.
Shaw was now able to visit some of the adjacent tribes. More
than once in his journeys he was lost in the desert, and nearly
perished from hunger and thirst. The following year, the
Rev. and Mrs. Archbell arrived, and a new station was formed
at Reitfontein, a place about three days* travel north of Lily-
fontein, in Bushmanland, with the hope that access would be
gained to those shy, diminutive people. In 1820 the Rev. S.
Kay arrived; but within the year he removed to Salem, to
assist the Rev. W. Shaw, then commencing his work among
the British settlers.
In the year 1826 Mr. Shaw was requested by the Missionary
Committee to proceed to Cape Town, where his presence was
considered necessary. His departure caused consternation
among the Namaquas, who loved him lor his work's sake. At
his last service, the church was crowded to the door with
a congregation speechless with grief. Prayers and addresses
were begun, only to be interrupted by the sobs and cries of the
people. When Mr. and Mrs. Shaw and their children had
mounted the waggon, and the oxen commenced to move, some
of the Namaquas lay on the ground in an agony of grief;
others clung to the rails of the waggon until their tired hands
could cling no longer. A number followed as far as the first
outspan and slept among the bushes. The following morning
they stood weeping and waving their hands until a turn in the
road hid the waggon from view.
Lilyfontein was left in the spiritual care of the Rev. E.
Edwards, with Jacob Links as assistant. In 1828 a new and
larger church was built. In successsion, the Revs. R. Haddy,
J. Jackson, J. A. Bailie, G. Parsonson, M. Godman, H. Tin-
dall, and many others, had charge of the station, and rendered
valuable service.
In 1855 a still larger church was completed, capable of seat-
ing 700 persons. It was of Gothic design, and cost over ;^i,ooo
sterling, nearly all of which was given by the Namaquas. Of
money they had little, and their gifts were chiefly in horses,
sheep, oxen, and grain. The manual labour was done by the
Namaquas, under the direction of Mr. J. A. Bailie, and the
church is a monument of his skill and of their industry. The
dedicatory service was conducted by the Rev. R. Ridgill.
The years 1882-83 were calamitous to the Namaquas at Lily-
fontein. An unusually prolonged and severe drought withered
their crops, and made the ground hard and barren as ironstone.
Gradually the stores of food, even the seed corn, were consumed,
and the starving people had to subsist on roots and bits of skins.
Many of the men left for O'okiep and elsewhere in search of work.
Others roamed about with the cattle in order to find pasture.
During the drought a violent wind took away the roof of the
church at Norap,and left only bare walls and rafters. The people
were too poor to repair the damage, and church and school work
were for a time suspended. When rain at last fell, there was
no seed wheat left, and the people had no money to purchase
any. The Rev. H. Tindall, then at Stellenbosch, did not for-
get his former congregation, and, by the help of a few friends
in Cape Town, he sent them seventy bags of wheat, for which
they were to pay if they had a good harvest.
But the black years left their mark on the religious and
social life of the Namaquas. They were scattered, weakened
physically, and dispirited. When the Rev. G. Robson arrived
at Lilyfontein in 1887, the condition of the mission distressed
him. The mission property was in a dilapidated condition, the
church was almost deserted, the society classes had not met for
months, the day-school was as good as closed, and the people,
scattered all over the extensive commonage, were lapsing into
their old heathen customs. By hard manual labour the build-
ings were improved, but years elapsed before the disastrous
results of drought and compulsory dispersion were overcome.
Lilyfontein as a mission station is difficult to work. Every
winter, about the month of May, the Namaquas remove down
to the lower and warmer veldt, and they do not return until
the end of the following harvest in January. From about
January to May the missionary has a good congregation at
Lilyfontein, but scarcely has he arranged the classes and re-
organized the school, when the people again disband, and the
work is arrested. A winter church and schoolroom were built
in the Underveldt by Mr. Jackson, and for many years a num-
ber of persons collected there during the winter months. Large
dams were constructed, and when rains fell there was a good
supply of water ; but in dry years it was not possible for the
people to assemble there. The buildings were chiefly of wood,
and ultimately they were destroyed by the white ants. When
the Rev. M. Godman was at Lilyfontein he devised a plan for
the establishment of a number of out-
stations, under the care of native
catechists, who were to be visited
periodically by the resident missionary.
But the plan proved impracticable .
from the paucity of men fit to occupy
such a position.
During his pastorate, the Rev. G.
Robson built a stone dwelling at
Karkams, and there the minister lives
in the midst of his people during the
winter. At other places the Namaquas
are away from church and school for
months, pasturing their sheep and
cattle on the mountains, or cultivating
patches in the valleys. The educa- rev. m. godman.
tion of the children is interrupted, and
the Sabbath services are suspended. Upon reassembUng at
Lilyfontein for the summer, much of the work of training and
evangelizing has to be recommenced. Continuous progress is
almost impossible.
Centuries of wandering life, with the uncertainty of the
climate, have moulded Namaqua habits. To live in a hut
without furniture, to sit upon the ground doing nothing but
talking and smoking, destitute of trade or literature— this is the
normal condition of a Namaqua. The people enjoy Christian
teaching, but it has too little influence on tribal characteristics.
To preach the Gospel to them is not sufficient. The social
condition of the Namaquas has to receive the careful attention
of the Christian teacher.
The effect of prolonged droughts cannot be overlooked.
Sometimes no rain falls for eighteen or twenty months. No
ploughing can be done. The veldt becomes dry, and brown,
and barren, and cattle and sheep die. The people are reduced
to live on bulbs and boiled ox-hides. Hunger-belts are drawn
tighter and tighter, and some actually perish of starvation.
The families wander far seeking for grass and water for their
live-stock. Every department of mission work suffers. When
at last rain falls, and the Namaquas can return to Lilyfontein,
much of the instruction of previous years has been lost.
But a more dangerous foe than drought is strong drink.
With the opening of the copper mines at O'okiep and Spring-
bok came canteens, and a class of Europeans who demoralized
the natives by the sale of Cape brandy. No alcoholic drink is
allowed to be sold within the area of the mission settlement ;
but, in addition to the temptations of the mines, the Namaqua
Licensing Court has allowed a canteen to be opened just
beyond the southern boundary at Garies. Here any native
can procure drink. The Namaquas are a simple, impulsive
people, and unable to resist the fascinations of spirituous
liquors, and some of them have been known to lose their sheep,
cattle, and goats to pay an unscrupulous canteen-keeper. If
the Licensing Board of Namaqualand had desired to destroy
the mission work of years, they could not more effectually have
accomplished their purpose than by planting a canteen at
Garies. If the Namaquas can be protected from one of the
worst vices of the European, they will triumph over all the
difficulties arising from drought and annual dispersion. Surely
this protection is not beyond the power of Christian statesman-
ship to provide.
Lilyfontein suffered severely during the Anglo- Boer War.
About 300 of the Namaquas were employed by the Government
as scouts, and this excited the wrath of the Dutch commandoes.
The station was left in the care of a few old men, most of
whom were without arms. A body of Dutch burghers advanced
on Lilyfontein, took possession of the station, seized the year's
harvest, which had just been garnered, and burnt down about
forty huts. The Namaquas attempted to oppose the spoliation,
but they were armed only with kerries, and could offer but a
feeble resistance. The Dutch retaliated by shooting down
eight in front of the church, and twenty-two the following day
among the hills, to which they had fled. The church was
battered, the mission house was looted, and books and furniture
were destroyed. The people were scattered over an area ex-
tending from Garies to Port Nolloth. When, at the close of
the war, the Namaquas were able to return to Lilyfontein,
they found that their huts, their grain, their cattle, and their
sheep had all been swept away. They owned simply the
clothes in which they stood. The Rev. J. G. Locke could find
no shelter but a cowshed, and no sleeping- place but a little
room used for the storage of straw. For months the problem
was how to feed and clothe the people. But the Namaquas
did not murmur, and believed that the hand of God was in it
all. They reverently collected the bones of their slain com-
rades from the veldt, and laid them to rest in the burial ground
on the quiet mountain top. Their sufferings seemed to
strengthen and purify their spiritual life, and the latest phase
of their history is a revival, in which 135 persons sought the
Lord, and have been * added to the church.'
More to follow
