Class fr44-0 Book__J43__ CflEMRIGHT DEPOSIT. r. See page 22. Towering Palims of Rio. Rio de Janeiro^ Brazil. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS A PRINTER'S IMPRESSIONS OF MANY LANDS BY SAMUEL MURRAY Author of "From Clime to Clime" NEW YORK MOFFAT, YARD AND COMPANY 1918 GcA .\\<\ Copyright, 1918. by MOFFAT, YARD AND COMPANY Published, February, 1918 APR 18 1918 )G!.A492963 INTRODUCTORY I WAS early aboard the fastest ship that ever foamed the seas. Later, a long, strong whistle blast blew — the signal for starting — and soon she headed southward, the great vessel traveling through New York harbor to Sandy Hook as noiselessly as a bobsleigh drawn through two feet of unpacked snow. I had secured a second class ticket to Buenos Aires, Argen- tina, by way of England, this marking the first of several legs of the world over which I had planned to travel. Thirteen hundred and fifty dollars, representing years of economical liv- ing, was the sum deemed as necessary to accomplish what I had purposed doing. By trade I am a printer and linotype operator. In earlier years money for traveling expenses was of little concern, for the fascination that accompanies prowling about freight trains seeking an empty box car, or the open end door of a loaded one in which to steal a ride, or of turning one's back to the tender of a locomotive to protect the eyes from hot cin- ders coming from a snorting passenger engine while standing on the draughty platform of a " blind " baggage car — one without end doors — the train at the same time traveling at a speed of from 45 to 50 miles an hour — the " cinder days " during the catch-as-catch-can periods of traveling through coastwise tracts of country, across unbroken prairie stretches and over mountain fastnesses, are pleasant ones to recall, not forgetting the hungry, cold and wet spells that all men meet with who are enticed by the gritty allurements to beat their way about the country on railroad trains. Since Benjamin Franklin's day it has been a custom with printers to travel from place to place, and, as some of the dev- otees of the " art preservative of all arts " had covered large territories of the world from time to time, I wished to be nam- INTRODUCTORY bered among those at the top of the list. A union printer has h'ttle trouble in getting work in the United States, by reason of the large Sunday newspaper editions requiring extra men during the latter part of the week, and by vacancies taking place through the " moving spirit " of the workers, which has al- ways characterized the printing trade. This fascination, however, like other diversions of a rough nature, lost its charm in time, as it proved more comfortable traveling by passenger trains — inside the coach and sitting on a cushioned seat — than riding on the platform of a car that was being constantly pelted with red-hot cinders. I had gradu- ated from the " free-ride " school. On a trip through North America I had visited Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Big Tree Grove, Yellowstone Park, the Grand Canj^on of Arizona, Mexico, Mammoth Cave, Niagara Falls, and the Thousand Islands after I had enrolled in the " Cushion College." Later on, having saved $400, a trip to Europe was made, visiting in that part of the world most of the chief points of interest. I had gone as far East as Vienna, Austria, when my funds became so low that two meals a day was all they would allow of, and I resorted to traveling at night on railroad trains with one compulsory aim in view — to save lodging money. After I had bought my steamship ticket in Rome, Italy, for New York, two weeks before the ship was to sail from Naples, the best I could figure out of the surplus money I would have at the time of sailing — on a two meals a day basis — was four francs — eighty cents. My savings for years, in short, had passed over the office counters of railroad and steamship com- panies. As the major portion of my travel was by water, the nautical word Leg has been chosen as a designating term for the differ- ent sections of the world visited, embracing South American cities, South Africa, Zululand, and Victoria Falls, in Rhodesia; Australia, New Zealand and principal South Sea Island groups; then back to Africa and up the East Coast to Zanzibar and Mombasa; next through British East Africa to and across INTRODUCTORY Victoria Nyanza into Uganda. Leaving Africa, we sailed over the Indian Ocean to India, visiting, among other features in that country, the Himalaya Mountains, and afterwards Ceylon. From Colombo we traveled eastward to the Straits Settle- ments, Philippines, China and Japan, concluding observations at the Hawaiian Islands. The journey was from New York to New York over the territory briefly outlined in the foregoing itinerary. From Sandy Hook we sail for England. CONTENTS Introductory PAGE iii-v LEG ONE CHAPTER I Incidents of Ocean Travel — Sights and Scenes in Eng- land — London Railways and Traffic — Public Insti- tutions Contrasted 3 CHAPTER II Off for South America — Storm in Bay of Biscay — Im- pressions of Lisbon, Portugal — Madeira Island — Novel Public Hack — " Neptuning " Passengers — Crossing the Equator — Southern Cross . . . . lo CHAPTER III Brazilian Ports — Rio de Janeiro — Monroe Palace — Towering Palms of Rio — Uruguay — The River Plate — Characteristics of the People — Buenos Aires — Off for South Africa i9 LEG TWO CHAPTER I A Tramp Ship at Sea — Wonderful Birds — Ashore in South Africa 37 CONTENTS CHAPTER II PAGE Durban — Its Mixed Population — Sanitary and Clean — The Christ Thorn — Novel Ways of Trapping Mon- keys — The Indian Coolie, a Taxed Ulcer — " Spik- ing " a Hindu's Tongue — Horned Ricksha Pullers — Labor in Politics — Harpooning and Cutting up Whales 43 CHAPTER III Trip to Zululand — Home Life of the Natives — Wives for Cows — Calling on an Old Printer .... 74 CHAPTER IV South African Railway Travel — Scenes of Massacres — Johannesburg — Transvaal Gold Mines .... 90 CHAPTER V Pretoria and the Boers — The Kruger Monument — Puz- zling Names 109 CHAPTER VI On to Mafeking — Interesting Natives and Souvenirs — Sighting Rhodes' Grave — Rhodesia — Bulawayo — Victoria Falls, a Mile of Amber-Colored Lace — Falls Compared — Deadly African Fever . . . . .115 CHAPTER VII Kimberley, the Diamond City — Bloemfontein, the Con- vention City — Crossing the Dry, Barren Karoo Country — The Ostrich — Capetown — Climate the Best in South Africa — Table Mountain . . . .129 CONTENTS LEG THREE CHAPTER I PAGE Leaving the Baltic Sea for Australia — A White Country — The Gold Fields — Crossing the Great Australian Bight — Melbourne — Pensions for Aged — Immi- gration Encouraged 145 CHAPTER n Trip to Adelaide — Finest Homes in the World — Kanga- roo Called the Native — Visit to Ballarat . . . .157 CHAPTER HI The Heads — Sydney, Its Noted Harbor — Rural Educa- tion on Wheels 162 CHAPTER IV Crossing Bass Straits — Tasmania — Hobart — Port Ar- thur and Its Prison Walls and Memories . . . .170 LEG FOUR CHAPTER I Crossing the Tasman Sea — Last White Settlement — Dunedin, a Scotch City — Christchurch — Welling- ton and Its Splendid Harbor — Peloros Jack, the Pilot Fish 179 CHAPTER II To Maoriland — Rotorua — Geyserland — The Maori — Nose-Rubbing — Auckland — Courteous, Prosperous People , . . , , 190 CONTENTS CHAPTER III PAGE South Sea Islands — The Fijians — Free Railroad Travel — A Vegetable Marvel I99 CHAPTER IV An Ocean Park — Natives of the Samoan Group — No Locked Doors — The Samoan a Fatalist .... 208 CHAPTER V Friendly Islands — Pretty Harbor of Vavau — Customs — A Striking, Strapping King — Sacred Animals . 215 LEG FIVE CHAPTER I A " Red Ticket " for South Africa — Eight Weeks' Travel for Ninety Dollars — Portuguese East Africa — In- hambane, Where Death Revels — Beira, the " Trol- ley Town " 225 CHAPTER II German East Africa — Women in Iron Yokes — Zanzibar — Old Slave Mart — Cloves Thrive — Tanga . . 232 CHAPTER III Mombasa — A Three Years' Residence Limit — In the Big Game Country — Nature's " Greatest Show on Earth " — Nairobi — Dead Left to Wild Beasts . . 240 CHAPTER IV Naked Natives — Victoria Nyanza — Bubonic Flea — Uganda — African " Freight Train " — Sleeping Sickness — Deadly Tsetse Fly — Beautiful Entebbe — The Rubber Country — Ant Eaters — Kampala — Jinja and Ripon Falls — River Nile .... 250 CONTENTS LEG SIX CHAPTER I PAGE Off for India — Ship Doctor Hunting for Jiggers — Seychelles — Bombay — The Parsi — Towers of Si- lence — Handsomest Railway Station .... 265 CHAPTER II In Baroda — Sacred Monkeys — Ahmedabad — Birds, Animals and Insects Worshiped — Agra — The Taj Mahal — Plural Wives — Delhi, Rebuilding — Ele- phant " Rocks " the Cradle . 278 CHAPTER III Aligarh — Novel Water Carrier — Cawnpore — The Massacre Well — Lucknow — Benares — Hindu Gods — Monkey Temple — Bathing Ghats — Sar- nath and Its Temple Ruins 292 CHAPTER IV Himalayas — Magnificent Views — Kinchinjanga, the Giant — Darjeeling — Mountain Tribes .... 306 CHAPTER V Calcutta — Memories of " The Black Hole "— Blood Of- ferings — A Mecca for Hindu Widows Who Bathe — Madras — First Christian Church in India . .316 CHAPTER VI Colombo — Ceylon — Cinnamon Tree Industry — Trot- ting Bullocks Afford Rapid Transit — Kandy — Buddha's T ooth — Elephants in Trucking — Nut- meg Trees 327 CONTENTS LEG SEVEN CHAPTER I PAGE Nine Weeks to the Orient — Singapore — Malay States Rubber Mad — Straits Settlements — Hogs in Bas- kets — Chinamen in Motor Cars — A "Dutch" Wife — OfE to Hongkong — A Horseless Town — Mountain Travel 335 CHAPTER n Canton — Chinese Pirates — Lost Within the City Walls — City of the Dead — " Feeding " the Dead — Quaint Home Customs — Chinese Industrious — No Waste Land 347 CHAPTER HI Manila — Poor Water, Whisky Plentiful — Consump- tion — Squirrel Nest Homes — Chinese Opium Smugglers — Evicting the Dead — No Vault Rent, No Resting Place — The Manila Wall .... 354 CHAPTER IV Shanghai — Professional Weepers — Family Feeding by Contract — Wheelbarrow Transit — The Bund — Leaving Wusung for Japan — Japanese Girls Coal- ing Ship 362 CHAPTER V The Inland Sea — Kobe — The Jap's Home — Street Cars and Rickshas in Competition — Men, Women and Children in Harness — Income Tax on Labor — Kyoto Paper Houses — Kyoto Temples — Yokohama — Kamakura — The Daibutsu Bronze Giant . .371 CONTENTS CHAPTER VI PAGE Tokyo — Mikado's Palace — Asakusa Temple — Geisha Women — Hari-Kiri — Black Teeth — Nikko, Its Temples — Funeral Festivals 383 CHAPTER VII To Honolulu, Hawaii — Recrossing the i8oth Meridian — Cheap Ice and Bananas — "Don't Spit" Signs — Sugar Cane — The Prize "Black Maria" of the World — Education — Natives Seek Easy Jobs — Home of the Last Queen — Hilo — To Kilauea Crater — The Volcano in Action — An Appalling Scene 394 Itinerary 405 Map. ILLUSTRATIONS Towering Palms of Rio. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (See page 22) Frontispiece FACING PAGE Southern Cross. (See page 17.) 16 Plaza de Mayo (top) and Avenida de Mayo (bottom). Buenos Aires, Argentine 30 Jim Fish Was the Swiftest Puller that Ever Wore a Brace of Horns. Durban, South Africa. (See page 61) 60 Zulus " Scoffing " Mealy Meal. Zululand, South Africa 78 Native Huts and Kafir Corn (top) ; African Transport (bottom). South Africa 96 Victoria Falls, Rhodesia. (See page 122) . . . 122 Parliament House, Melbourne (top), and Victoria Mar- kets, Sydney, Australia (bottom) . . . .162 Maori Women Cooking by Boiling Springs (right). (See page 193.) Maori Women's Salute — Rubbing Noses and Shaking Hands (left). New Zealand. (See page 195) i94' Interior of Samoan Home, Built of Breadfruit Tree, Se- cured by Coir; No Nails Used. Samoa. (Seepage 213) 2^2 ILLUSTRATIONS FACING PAGE Vigil on the Veld (top), British East Africa; " Trolley " Pushers (bottom), Beira, Portuguese East Africa. (See page 230.) 248 Parsi (right), Bombay, India. (See page 271.) Bhisti (Water-Carrier) (left). India. (See page 293.) 270 Types of Indian Soldiers. The Goorkha (right). (See page 311.) The Sikh (left). (See page 311.) . 290 Mount Kinchinjanga (Himalayas). Center Peak in Circle, Mount Everest. Darjeeling, India. (Photo, Burlington) 312 Small Colony of Half a Million Sampan Dwellers of Pearl River ; These Water Homes Save House Rent. Canton, China. (See page 351.) . . . -352 Panorama of Honolulu, Hawaii 398 LEG ONE SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS CHAPTER I A PUZZLING phase of ocean travel soon becomes apparent during a passenger ship's journey to one making his first voyage — sometimes when a vessel has been at sea not more than a few hours. He is apt to find himself at a loss to account for the absence of the many persons who crowded the deck rails of the steamship — chatting, saying good-by to friends and some bidding a final farewell to their country — before and imme- diately after the vessel pulled away from her dock into the harbor. After a few days, however, the mystery gradually un- folds. Vacant chairs in the dining saloon become occupied from time to time as the journey advances ; more passengers are taking part in deck amusements ; new faces are seen in the social hall and smoking saloon — the ship's " family " surely grows. On voyages of from two to four weeks' duration this feature becomes even more interesting. Frequently, when the ship has reached the end of the journey, before which every one would seem to have become used to the sea, " strangers " will be observed leaving the vessel. One cannot help thinking the ship has stopped during the night hours and taken on passengers from the main. This is explained by some voyagers keeping to their cabins from the time of sailing. Seasickness is largely responsible for this perplexing phase of water travel. Women are more affected than men, and the man who will discover a remedy for seasickness will find his name immortalized. Many women will travel for weeks on the water so sick they cannot raise their heads, yet not a com- 3 4 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS plaining word will be uttered by most of them. This form of bravery seems to be the only comforting thing that accompanies the sea wreaking out its vengeance on womankind. Six days after leaving Sandy Hook found us in Liverpool, England. Passengers disembarked early in the forenoon, who, having heard so much of England's dull atmosphere, were all surprised to find the sun shining. The orb was of a vapory appearance, though, which suggested that perhaps it had been on a sea voyage also, as there was a marked resemblance be- tween the appearance of the sun and some of the passengers who had undergone a sick trip across. Most of us boarded a train for London. Railway train service in England is fast, the speed on main lines being from 45 to 50 miles an hour. The passenger coaches are of compartment design, which are comfortable to ride in when only half filled, or four persons to a compartment ; but when from six to eight passengers — the latter number being the full seating capacity — occupy one compartment, travel proves very uncomfortable, as there is no room to stretch one's legs in any direction, since the passengers sitting on one side face those seated on the other side. It is a case of knees to knees. Railroad fare is two and three cents a mile; a higher rate is charged for hauling freight in England than that prevailing in America. Food, however, is cheaper than on American trains. The locomotives are small — some of them not half the ton- nage of the American engine — but the driving wheels reach to the top of the boiler, which accounts for the high speed schedules of the English railroads. One misses the ringing of the locomotive bell, as there are no bells on English engines. Another feature of the English railroads that seems odd to an American is the small freight cars, which in some instances are not one-third as large as some of the American cars and trucks. Trains in England have not the solid appearance of the Ameri- can train, for the reason that their wheels are not like the American wheel, but have spokes, like those of a wheelbarrow. The convenience a union railway station affords the traveling SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 5 public, found in many cities of America, is much missed when visiting the metropolis of England. Naturally, numerous rail- ways center in London, and the terminus of each seems to have been located as widely apart from each other as the boundaries of the city will allow. None of the stations seen here can favorably compare with those found in the larger cities of the United States. The cleanliness of London's streets is the first impression one has of the premier city of Europe. And how obliging the public conveyance employees are ; and the policemen, also. It is a pleasure to go about in London, as every one seems willing to answer questions, to point out to a stranger places of in- terest, and to make one comfortable in every sense of the word. " London traffic," a feature of this city one often hears men- tioned, is accounted for, to a large degree, by the absence of surface car lines or elevated railroads coursing the streets of London City proper, and also to the narrowness of many of the main thoroughfares. With such an immense population, one can infer the great demand placed upon 'buses, public hacks, taxicabs and private vehicles, which at once suggests light-tire traffic. Heavy trucks, loaded with all sorts of mer- chandise, are not seen in corresponding sections of London as one finds them in populous American centers. In the sub- ways, or tubes, are but two tracks, which prohibit, of course, fast travel. On the other hand, sixteen underground rail- ways intersect the city and suburbs. The atmosphere of a subway is perhaps a more cosmopolitan phase than any other of our industrial factors. Were a blind person — one familiar with our underground railway odors — to sail from New York for Europe, being ignorant of the presence of subways there, and later, in London or Paris, find himself at the entrance of a " tube," he would at once know he was at the approach of a subway by the presence of the smell, as a similar atmosphere emanates from all of them. • Street car fare is higher for long distances than in most American cities. Though short distance rides are cheaper, some of the five cent rides in America would cost fifteen cents 6 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS in London. Motor 'buses, which are numerous, go a certain distance for two cents, but the next " stage " is another two- cent charge, and by the time eight or ten miles are traveled one will have paid from lo to 15 cents. Most public conveyances are double decked. Electric trolley cars are operated outside of London City proper, and the fare on these is similar to that charged by the 'buses. One can ride a long distance in a cab for 25 cents, however. Newspapers here generally have not the attractive nor the prosperous appearance of those in the United States. Until recently most of the London dailies sold for two cents, and even more. Periodicals and books also are more expensive in Great Britain, although the average wages paid artisans in this in- dustry is about half those paid in America. Mechanics en- gaged in other trades received from $11 to $15 weekly, and consequently the British mechanic in America doubles the salary of his own country, plus other advantages. House rent, gen- erally paid weekly, runs from $3.50 to $5. Most of the work- ing people of London live in the suburbs, and are charged but half price — about 8 cents — for return railway tickets if bought for trains reaching the city before 8 o'clock in the morn- ing. The government collects an income tax on all yearly salaries of $600 and over. It looks strange to American visitors in London to see only boys engaged in keeping the streets clean. One may not quite agree with the practice of boys doing that sort of work — for the reason it looks as if men should be engaged at such employ- ment — but the fact remains the streets are very clean. The sweepings are not put in cans, as is customary in some American cities, where they might be tipped over by mischievous boys, but iron bins are placed in the sidewalk close to the curb, into which the refuse is emptied. This custom seems much better than the American system. Seen drawn about the streets here, close to the curb, is what one would call a street sprinkler. It is a sprinkler, but the liquid running from the pipes is a disinfectant, a carbolic acid odor being noticeable. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 7 The sale of matches by persons who seem to be in needy circumstances, seen at almost every corner of the business sec- tions of the city, leads one to think that they must be used even for stove fuel. The proportion of poorly dressed people is much larger than in American cities. Any of the homeless who apply for shelter are provided with sleeping accommodation by the authorities. The price of food in a similar class of restaurants seemed more expensive in London than in New York. At a second class hotel where I stopped the rate was $1.25 for room and breakfast, but heat was not included. A fireplace in the room contained smoky, bituminous coal, and to have this lighted cost 25 cents. So with the room, fire and breakfast, the charge came to $1.50 a day. Chairs are scattered about the London parks, and an Ameri- can naturally thinks seats in public places are free, as in the United States; but one is not sitting long before a man appears and asks for a " check." The person resting then learns that it costs two cents to occupy a chair in these places. The benches, however, are free, but these are few compared to the number found in American parks. Similar conditions will be met with in some of the parks of Berlin, and also in Paris, but the resting places in the French capital are more liberally sup- plied with free seats. Many men may be seen in London wearing a " plug " hat, a sack coat and trousers turned up to the ankles. Those en- gaged at clerical employment usually wear this sort of head- gear to the office. Mechanics, also, boast of a " stove-pipe " in their wardrobes. While the high hat may be retained by some artisans as a memento of their wedding day, still many may be seen worn by this class of breadwinner when attending church services. No people spend less time in public eating and drinking places than Americans. In Continental Europe they have their cafes, chairs and tables inside the buildings and out on the sidewalks and streets, and these are used to a large extent as offices by patrons, as proprietors furnish writing paper and ink 8 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS to customers. In England they have their tea rooms, where men sit and sip tea and smoke their pipes for hours. Cake or scones are usually served with tea, an additional charge being made. To no people more than Americans have so many heirlooms of memory been handed down by England. How the serious thought of one is aroused by a visit to Westminster Abbey or St. Paul's Cathedral; how youthful days stand before one, so to speak, when a visit is made to London Bridge, Hyde Park, the Tower, the great British Museum, or to historic places in and about the city where great Englishmen lived and died. Hearing so much of the English Parliament building, one is led to believe that he will see the best legislative structure in the world when his eyes rest on this historical edifice. He may see in his mind's eye an imposing structure of white marble or granite built on an elevated plot of land, as most Capitols are, rich with ornamentation and strikingly im- posing. But, on the contrary, the building, located on the River Thames, is rather mediaeval in appearance. America is far behind some of the European countries in art galleries, good roads, docks, and splendid cathedrals, but there are features of the United States which neither Europe nor other divisions of the world can equal. For instance, no capitol can com- pare with the admirable appearance of the United States' legislative building; in no country will one find such splendid municipal parks as are found in some American cities. We have not seen Hagenbeck's Zoo in Hamburg, Germany, but, apart from that city, Bronx Zoo in New York is foremost of those seen in other cities; the Museum of Natural History in Gotham is unexcelled; our great bridges are unequaled; the interior of the Congressional Library in Washington, D. C, will stand comparison with any, and the inspiring Washington Monument, also located in the national capital, stands alone when dealing with campaniles, towers, and pagodas. To the foregoing " prides " of the new world may be added towering Mariposa Big Tree Grove, peerless Yosemite Valley, won- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 9 derful Yellowstone Park and the marvelous Grand Canyon of Arizona. ,, , . „ After a short stay in London we boarded a boat train — an English travel convenience — for Southampton, from which port the steamship on which we had booked passage sailed for South America. CHAPTER II On reaching the Bay of Biscay a storm was encountered, the decks being vacated by passengers and the cabin berths made use of for some time. During the night sounds were heard at intervals that reminded one of a large tree falling. The piano in the social hall had been forced loose from its fastening by the rolling and pitching of the ship, and while in what might be termed its periods of tantrum the big musical instrument seemed bent on smashing all the furniture " in the house." Most of the passengers were awake, and a great many were inquiring if the ship was breaking to pieces. Those starting on long journeys should provide themselves with a passport. One may travel for years through certain sections of the world and not be called upon to show his na- tional voucher to verify his identity; yet it is a good thing to have one in one's possession. One may be taken into custody in some foreign city through mistaken identity, or be detained in other ways, when a passport would clear matters at once with small inconvenience and little delay, compared to much uneasiness and considerable time lost, if one has neglected to include in his traveling outfit this means of identification. Again, when visiting a consulate, one will not have conversed with the officials long before he will be asked, directly or in- directly, if he has his passport with him. If the visitor should not have one, the conversation is usually of a casual nature. On the other hand, if the visitor has his government's creden- tials, an interesting chat will often result, during which in- formation may be gathered of the character of the country he is traveling in that would not be volunteered to an American who had failed to identify himself with the standard voucher. When leaving the consulate, the person with a passport is gen- erally invited to " call any time while in the city." Further- 10 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS ii more, if the assistance of a consul were needed in any con- tingency, that government officer, if he should not care to offer a helping hand, may evade a reasonable duty, and defend his actions behind the fact that the " alleged " American did not have a passport. If the person in need of official assistance had this means of identification, that same officer, fearing he would be later called upon by his government to explain why he neglected to do his duty, would exert himself and lend aid to his countryman. An American with a passport in foreign lands has a better standing with his government's representa- tives than a citizen who has not provided himself with one. Being good for only two years, and not generally recognized after that time, in order to keep in good standing with his country, one must, if living in foreign parts, have his passport renewed or extended. Only in exceptional circumstances is a consul allowed to issue passports ; these must come from Wash- ington. A consul may extend one, however, for an additional two years ; but the passport cannot be extended more than once. Application should be made to the Secretary of State, Washing- ton, D. C, when tv^^o blanks — native and naturalized — will be sent to the applicant. If a native, he fills out the native blank and will have the contents sworn to before a notary public. The verified blank will then be sent to the Secretary of State, when a passport will soon reach the applicant. The charge is one dollar, plus the notary's fee. " I wish I had one of those fat, juicy beefsteaks that I was served with while traveling across America," said a Portuguese woman globe-trotter, as some of us, like chickens after rain, began to appear on deck when the storm had subsided. " I never ate beefsteak in any country that tasted as good as those I got in America," she added, with a perceptible smacking of her lips. She wasn't the only one who wished they had a succulent piece of American beefsteak. But the commissary of the ship had little to do while traveling from Cape Ushant to Cape Finistierre — the former marking the north and the latter the south boundaries of the Bay of Biscay, 365 miles across. At Lisbon, Portugal, the chilling winds of the north and the 12 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS raw weather were succeeded by soft, south breezes and warm sunshine. Entering the Tagus River on our way to the Portu- guese capital, we passed a commanding fort, the banks green with grass and vegetables. Reaching the city, women in their bare feet and none too tidy, bearing heavy burdens on their heads, mostly in baskets — fish, vegetables, coal, flowers, and other marketable commodities — revealed a condition in South- ern Europe not pleasant to contemplate, and which is seen in few countries of Continental Europe. The first suggestion of the tropics was had at Lisbon, by reason of a great many of the people, dark skinned, appearing in thin clothing and bare feet. Verdure was growing on every side — it was the month of February. Travelers cannot fail to show a slight weakness for the small Latin country, for Portugal was the home of Vasco da Gama, the explorer — a really great traveler — whose daring achievements late in the fifteenth century laid the foundation of an empire, and who discovered places and countries we are to visit later. " Look ! " said a man w^earing the cloth of a church official, who was showing a number of visitors around a Lisbon ca- thedral. We were in the crypt, where, in expensive coffins, rested the remains of some of the distinguished dead of Portu- gal. He had opened the lid of a casket and invited his visitors to look inside. To our astonishment, in the gruesome light, our eyes rested on the crumbling remains of a personage who, the official said, had passed away a long time before. More coffin lids were turned back, and in the boxes were seen, in the murky light, the grim, long outline of a human being. iWe had never known any one to go so far to obtain a fee. American-made street cars are in use in the Portuguese capital, and were easily recognized from those manufactured in other countries, as the American car is single, while those of other countries are mostly of a double-decked pattern. Pavement of dark gray and white colored stone in that city looks odd, laid at twisting angles. A plaza is paved entirely with this deceptive stone, which sailors call ** Rolling Motion SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 13 Square." This square is located close to the wharf, and sail- ors, having finished their shore leave and returning to their ship, usually find trouble in getting ofE " Rolling Motion Square." Egg soup is a delicacy made in Lisbon. When served, it resembles consomme, with halves of a hard-boiled egg swim- ming in the dish. The business section of Lisbon is built between two high hills, which necessitates using an elevator, in some instances, if one is going from the center to the higher part of the city. The buildings are of stone and brick, faced with cement. One of the most attractive avenues in the world runs through the com- mercial district of the city. This boulevard is unusually wide, the center comprising a broad park place, with roadways of a good width on each side. Nearly half a million people com- pose the population of this Latin capital. Portugal was a Roman province as early as 200 B. C. Funchal, Madeira Island, located about 450 miles west of the Moroccan coast, was next reached, being favored with a good sea from Lisbon, the first since leaving Southampton. This place, with a population of 20,000, is the chief port of Madeira, and its attractiveness — flowers, vines, spreading trees, climate and tidy appearance — proves a magnet to many Europeans who seek rest and recreation. A strange and unusual public " hack " here arrests one's attention. This vehicle, covered with canvas and drawn by oxen, is really a sleigh, although it is doubtful if a flake of snow has ever fallen in this section. The runners, as those of a snow sled, are shod with strips of steel, which are pulled over streets paved with cobblestone. When ready to start, the driver says a word to the oxen, and off they go, the sleigh glid- ing over the paving nearly as smoothly as if drawn over snow. The steel runners, passing over them for years, have worn the stones quite smooth, even slippery in some instances, hence the practicability of the sleigh-hack. , Madeira Island, termed the Pearl of the Atlantic, a Portu- guese possession, has an area of 315 square miles, and is 35 14 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS miles long and 12 wide. It is very productive of fruit — oranges, lemons, figs, pomegranates, pears, peaches and grapes. The island is more noted for its good climate and vi^ines, how- ever, most of the inhabitants being engaged in the grape growing industry. The United States came to the fore in 1871 by saving the grapevines here, which were being destroyed by a pest. The American grapevine stock was introduced and grafted to the native stump, which withstood the attacks of phylloxera. Funchal is a sea junction, as most of the passenger steam- ships plying between Europe and South American ports stop at this place. Passengers coming north from South America and going to South Africa come to Madeira, and those coming from South Africa and going to South America also transship at this island. Getting a glimpse of the places mentioned in the foregoing will account for one traveling from the United States to South America by way of England. The fare was also cheaper for the same accommodation than by going direct from New York. We regretfully return to our ship, there being no more stops for eight days, as we are to recross the Atlantic Ocean di- agonally. The big vessel, with a crowded passenger list and loaded to the water line with cargo, was headed toward the equatorial line, sailing on a velvety sea. Sailors were busy stretching canvas over the decks to make the hot weather soon to be encountered more bearable, while the electric fans in the cabins were being put in order. Every one had settled down for the sail to Pernambuco, Brazil, the next port. During the trip British third-class passengers enjoyed the benefits of the good maritime laws of their country, while pas- sengers from other countries traveling in the same section of the ship did not fare so well. Britishers were allowed priv- ileges on a portion of the upper deck, as provided by law, while third-class passengers who embarked at ports south of South- ampton remained on the third-class deck. It is surprising how time slips by during long voyages, and it is interesting to note the national grouping of travelers. The SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 15 French passengers will be found assembled on a certain portion of the deck, the Spaniards likewise, also Germans — each na- tionality generally keeping to itself. Our breakfast was ready at 8 o'clock, and a light lunch served two and a half hours later. Ship inspection usually takes place at from 10 to 11 o'clock in the forenoon, the captain, the purser, the doctor or the chief steward being the officers who form this committee. Each deck is visited, when the dining saloons, kitchens, berths, bedding and other furnishings of the cabins generally receive the critical attention of the inspectors. Passengers having com- plaints to make or suggestions to offer concerning ship condi- tions may do so at this time. At half-past twelve dinner was ready. In the second class section mealtimes are designated as breakfast, dinner and supper; in the first-class, breakfast, luncheon and dinner. When ready, these are generally an- nounced by ringing a bell, beating a gong, or by bugle call. Many passengers take a nap in their cabins after dinner, and, if not in the cabin, one is pretty sure to find them in the Land of Nod in their steamer chair on deck ; others read a great deal and divide the time with sleep. The sleepers are sometimes hurriedly awakened from their slumbers, however, as what is termed *' fire practice " takes place several times a week on well- conducted ships. Bells clang, without warning; the ship's whistle blows shrill blasts; sailors, stewards and officers hurry to the lifeboats to which they had been assigned before sailing, which are soon raised from their davits, swung outward, and lowered at the sides of the vessel ; members of the crew may be seen wearing life-saving devices, and the passengers generally give evidence of anxious concern on such occasions until they learn it is but a " fire drill " that is being enacted instead of the ship being really afire. Beef tea was served in the cool climate and ices when the hot zones were reached between noontime and supper. Light lunch — generally cheese and crackers and tea — was served between the evening meal and bedtime. Music was furnished twice a day by an orchestra. Religious services — those of the Church of England — on British pas- senger steamships are made obligatory by maritime law. On i6 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Sunday mornings many of the passengers attended, which took place in the social hall of the first-class section, the ritual being read by the captain or purser. Most of the ship's crew must be present, some of whom generally lead the singing and furnish the music. It often happens, however, preachers are among the travelers, when one of them will be invited to preach. First class passengers are expected to appear in evening dress for dinner on vessels of some of the popular British lines run- ning to far Southern ports. So far as bird life is concerned, the sea is a graveyard when sailing through the equatorial zone. All fowl leave the ship when the sun gets hot and the breezes become warm. The only winged life appearing in this hot section of the sea wa^ flying fish, sometimes hundreds of them rising from the water at the same time. These fish are from four to ten inches in length, slender, and resemble young mackerel. They spring from the sea by a quick stroke of the tail, and, with fins out- spread, are able to sustain and prolong their leap for a minute or more. The fins measure several inches across and become transparent in the sun, but do not flap like the wings of a bird. As the fish rise only from six inches to a few feet from the water, their flight, in a choppy or rough ocean, is generally not more than from two to twenty feet, as they disappear on coming in contact with a wave. On a calm sea, however, their isin- glass-like " wings " will often remain outstretched for a distance of a hundred yards or so, when the fish will dart into the water as suddenly as they emerged from it. ** Neptune " is a " game " played only at sea, and the " sport " is generally indulged in when a passenger steamship is sail- ing under the equator. A canvas tank is fixed on deck and nearly filled with water. It is an unvarying rule with some travelers that one who has not crossed the equator must be " Neptuned." A " coaster," as one is termed who has never crossed the equatorial line, is reminded by the Simon-pures that, in order to be a full-fledged traveler, he must take a plunge in the canvas tank. Most passengers who are not sick comply with the request, but there are some who do not take kindly to Southern Cross. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 17 the idea. In such instances a half dozen, or a dozen passengers if necessary, bend the will of the unwilling one to their idea of maintaining this tradition of the sea by literally picking up the unbeliever and pitching him into the canvas tank of water. He then has been " Neptuned." Danger of taking cold from this outdoor plunge is slight, as often the tar in the cracks between boards on deck of the ship is bubbling from the intense rays of the sun. Having reached the southern division of the world, the heav- enly bodies forming the Southern Cross appear. The cross is not composed of a thickly starred upright beam, neither is there a compact panel of stars forming the crosspiece. Four stars located at certain sections of the heavens form a distinct outline of a cross. The great crucifix at times appears to be standing straight, but more often it will be seen in the heavens in a reclining position, so to speak ; again it will be observed resting on its side, but never pointing downward. The section of the sky in which the cross is to be found is the southeast. At one season of the year it will rest near the center of the firmament and in the "Milky Way " ; at another period it will be seen closer to the horizon. Lesser bodies appear in the zone embraced by the four stars that compose the profile of the ensign of Christianity, but these neither add to nor detract from the formation of the solemn emblem of suffering that stands out so clearly among the millions of orbs in the starry firmament. Two bright stars below, in direct line with the bottom star of the cross, are called " the pointers." What a difference is at once apparent in the period of day- light north of the equator and that south of the equatorial line. From a slow setting sun and a lingering twilight north of the great line to a rapidly setting sun and a comparatively short twilight south of the equator is observed. Fifteen to twenty minutes after the sun sets darkness will have settled. " Holy stoning a ship " is a nautical term that, when first heard by a landsman, arouses his curiosity concerning the par- ticular duty the phrase suggests in a sailor's routine. A holy stone — somewhat larger than two bricks placed together, of i8 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS cream color and of a soft or sandy material — is used to whiten the deck of a ship. Most persons would conclude that a thor- ough washing of a deck with clear water should satisfy one possessed of even super-neat exactions. But a sailor's concep- tion of the terra " spick and span " does not end in this matter with the merit of water alone. The holy stone is secured in an iron frame similar to that of a house mop, with handle attached. It is also pushed forward and pulled backward when used to clean a deck in the same way that a mop is used to clean a floor. The deck is made wet before " stoning," then sprinkled with fine white sand, and is next thoroughly gone over with the " cleaner." When the sailor has finished his hard " scrubbing " task the deck appears many shades brighter than it would if only water had been used. The term " holy stone " is said to have originated through the first stones used in bleaching ship decks having been taken from the ruined walls of a church in Cornwall, England. CHAPTER III Security of life in an Indian's bark canoe, even when going over river rapids, would seem assured, compared to the chances against one being able to keep his feet on a Brazilian catamaran sailing on the broad ocean. Men stand on two logs tied together, these about a foot each in diameter and from eight to ten feet in length, the upper side flat, with a small pole fastened in one of the logs, to which is secured a piece of canvas — as flimsy a sample of sea craft as one may see in a lifetime. No provision being made for a seat on the shaky and risky " boat " — no room for one, in fact — it seemed dangerous to sail it even on a small lake ; yet a number of these were seen skimming over the sea several miles outside the harbor of Pernambuco, Brazil. We had reached South America at the beginning of March, which is Northern August south of the equator. The winter season of the year in the northern is the summer in the southern division of the world. Passengers leaving the vessel entered a large basket by a door. When six persons had got inside, the winches on the ship began to revolve, raising the basket high enough to clear the deck rail, and the passengers were slowly lowered to a lighter below. Chug! They had reached the bottom, and if any of the trav- elers had their tongue between their teeth at that moment it would be safe to infer that that member had suffered from the bump. This carrier was six feet deep, made of reed or wicker, and was kept in shape and supported by circular iron bands, like the hoops round a barrel, which, in this case, were inside the basket. Passengers embark by the same means. Crude and odd devices of this sort lend spice to travel. Bahia, the oldest city in Brazil, was the next stop. At this 19 20 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS port no basket was used for disembarking, passengers leaving the ship by a side ladder and being taken ashore in launches. An unusual number of men seemed to board the vessel, and later, when the gong sounded for visitors to go ashore, most of them left with their pockets bulging with goods bought aboard. Pertaining to this, an amusing feature came to light — the cus- tom officers, who had been stationed at the gangway and other parts of the ship to prevent smuggling, seemingly not noticing the difference in the girth of a man on leaving the vessel to that when he boarded her. Sailing on the same smooth sea on which we had started from Madeira Island ten days before, Rio de Janeiro, the capital and metropolis of Brazil, was reached later. The harbor of this city is considered the finest in the world. The noted haven is entered by a deep channel, three- quarters of a mile wide, flanked by two imposing stone mountains, rising nearly 1,300 and i,ioo feet, respectively. Tropical vegetation grows luxuriantly on the shores, and beyond a circle of high, evergreen mountains offer an unusually fascinating foreground. The harbor is sixteen miles long and from two to seven miles wide, this area being dotted with over a hundred islands, also heavily verdured with a tropical growth. One feature, however, robs Rio de Janeiro and her harbor of a scenic climax. To the left, on which side of the bay the city stands, rise low hills, which shut from view, until opposite the wharves, what otherwise would reveal a panorama of the metropolis in keeping with that of the fame of the harbor. One is at a loss to account for the absence of docks here, con- sidering this city has a population of nearly a million inhabitants and is the commercial center of Brazil. Before, and also after, the ship anchored in the bay, where a large number of passengers left, the deafening noise made by hack barkers and hotel runners, shouting from boats below, exceeded anything of this nature heard elsewhere. Here it was a medley of whistles on yachts, launches and similar craft, together with blasts from horns, a racket from other noise- making devices, and the raucous voices of fruit vendors, crying SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 21 their wares from rowboats. For a quarter of a mile about the vessel hundreds of small craft were bumping into each other, their owners cursing and shouting at those in approaching boats who sought a more advantageous place where a fare might come their way; in no place in the world, one would feel safe in saying, could there be more turmoil and confusion under similar circumstances. No one seemed to be in charge; every one was bending his every effort for a fare. Evidently a great deal of revenue would be cut off from a considerable number of the population of Rio were the government to build docks. Having read of cholera in Rio years before would lead one to entertain a belief that he is entering an unclean city, and the great number of blacks and half-castes one sees before he gets off the ship suggests nothing to the contrary. But, when in the city proper, what a surprise one meets with. No place is better supplied with small parks than this metropolis, and public con- veniences and sanitation in general, which are so essential to the physical welfare of a people, are creditable features. To be sure, the old part is of Spanish style — brick and cement houses, with narrow streets. The object in building narrow streets is to foil the sun — to keep cool — as the narrower they are the more shade is cast. One will soon notice the difference in comfort when walking between narrow or wide streets in hot climates — the narrow, shady ones will be given the preference. Only one vehicle can travel in a street, and for this reason traffic passes through one and returns by another. They are one-way streets. Two persons moving in opposite directions can just manage to pass without one of them stepping off the walk. Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in South America, and good management of this tropical center was in evidence. Looking down Avenue Central, one of the principal thor- oughfares, composed largely of business buildings, a scene of architectural beauty is revealed rivaling any metropolis in the world. No street cars run on this avenue, but brightly painted, well designed, small motor 'buses are in use. The artistic effect reflected by the arrangement of lights and trees is in keeping 22 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS in every detail with the admirable designs of the buildings on each side. A municipal theater on this street, prominent by its striking exterior ornamentation, together with handsome gov- ernment buildings, add greatly to the attractiveness of Avenue Central. To an American the street view at the head not only equals the lower portion, but is enhanced, for there stands the Monroe Palace, a memorial to James Monroe, whose name is immortalized as the father of the Monroe Doctrine, serving as a fitting cap-sheaf, and at the same time infusing patriotic senti- ment to the harmonious foreground and attractive environ- ments. From Monroe Palace, which is shaded by trees grow- ing in a beautiful park at the side, Avenue Central verges into a long boulevard, built alongside the walled harbor, fringed in places with rows of palm trees, fifty to sixty feet high; under tropical verdured hills, with parks, flowers and shade trees bordering the thoroughfare to the shore of the Atlantic Ocean. This palm tree of Rio is the highest we have seen either of nut-bearing or non-nut-bearing species. The trunks are smooth, straight and round, free of limbs, and gradually taper to their full height, where a circle of fronds branch broadly from every side. Standing between these tropical, sentinel-like columns, high above the spectator will be seen an arch formed of long, broad leaves. As some of these double rows of palms extend for considerable distances, this light-green archway grows more enchanting as, down the pillared vista, the fringed-frond arcade gradually lowers and contracts until the trees converge into a narrow bower. The symmetrical finish to the towering palms of Rio will remain in one's mind long after other of Nature's masterpieces, of equal merit but differing in form, will have been forgotten. American money and enterprise have added much to the mod- ern public utilities of Rio, for the street car and lighting systems are headed by Americans. " Bond " is the name for street cars here. To raise capital to construct the system bonds were issued, and as the word bond was much used before construction began, the Brazilians, when the cars started running, called them ** bonds." SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 23 The Portuguese language is used in the Brazilian republic. But what a mixed population these Brazilians are! Most of them are dark-skinned and the greater number are black. From observation, there seems to be little or no distinction between the races. Yet this race possesses a knowledge rarely displayed by others in erecting buildings suited in every respect for business purposes, and in giving them an artistic finish at the same time. Immigrants from many countries have settled in this republic during the last decade. European customs are strongly in evidence, the most notice- able being lounging about cafes. The habit of living on the sidewalk and in the street outside of cafes is the same here as that which strikes one as being strange on his first visit to Paris and other places in Continental Europe. One often has to maneu- ver his way through little iron-legged tables and chairs, used for refreshments. Some of the patrons are seen sipping black coffee from cups no larger than half an eggshell ; others may be found drinking vari-colored liquids, of which there is a great variety, and many will have cigarettes between their lips or between their fingers. Still one cannot fail to note the improvement these cafes are on the American saloon. There are no back door entrances to these places ; no front doors closed ; no curtains — everything open and above board. And, as with Europeans, seldom is a person seen intoxicated or disorderly. Prosperity is suggested by crowded cafes, for refreshments in Rio are expensive. Women seem to have an easy time in Brazil, in the capital, at least, for men are seen looking after rooms in hotels, sweeping, dusting — doing general housework. Two meals a day seem to be all the Brazilians desire. A cup of coffee is taken early in the morning, as the regular time for breakfast is from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Dinner is served from 5 to 7 :30 o'clock in the evening. Everything one buys in the Brazilian metropolis is expensive. Manufactures are few — almost everything is imported, and the customs duty is exorbitant. Street car fare, even, is double that charged in most large cities. Small articles costing from ten to 24 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS fifteen cents in the United States cost a milrei in Rio. Very few things can be had for less than 33 cents. Soda water and other soft drinks generally cost from 9 to 12 cents. The Portuguese money system — reis and milreis — is that of Brazil. The value of a milrei in American money is 33 cents, and a rei is equal to one-thirtieth of a cent. In financial figures the dollar mark is used to denote milreis, but is placed between the figures instead of in front — thus: io$ooo. Money is on the decimal system, i ,CK)0 reis making a milrei. One unaccustomed to Portuguese money is apt to feel per- plexed when presented with a bill for 50 cents. This is how a 50 cent dinner bill would look: i$50o. The figure i represents a milrei — 33 cents — and the 500 is 500 reis — half a milrei — 16% cents. One hundred reis is three cents in American money. Only among the poorer class are coins of less than 100 reis in use. Paper bills are used for a milrei and larger sums. The coins are mostly of nickel. At Sao Paulo, over three hundred miles from Rio, woolen and cotton mills have been established, and so far have proved a good investment. English money is represented in this indus- try. American money and machinery figure largely in the development of the ore mines of that large country, so with English capital erecting mills and American money opening and developing mines business development is assured. Brazil pro- duces three-quarters of the world's annual consumption of coffee. Rubber is another staple product of this republic. The tropical scenery about Rio adds much to the attractive- ness of the capital of Brazil. High hills and mountains almost circle both the harbor and city, and from these elevated points one looks down through a dense growth of trees bearing flowers, large blooming vines, wide-leaved palms, and clumps of high, swaying bamboo — an expansive botanical garden — on to the thousands of gray houses, with their red-tiled roofs. Similar scenes and objects, attractive when viewed from less favored vistas, seen through a tropical foreground, assume an enchanted charm. Though very little English printing is done here, a number of SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 25 good Portuguese daily newspapers are published, the offices being equipped with linotype machines, web presses and stereotyping machinery. The wages paid workers in this trade range from $25 to $30 a week. As there is little manufacturing in Brazil, and the tariff is so exorbitant on imports, together with high dwelling rentals, $30 a week would not be considered good wages in America under such conditions. One seldom sees a Brazilian carrying bundles in his hands — such as valises, etc. The people who make their living at that sort of work carry a strap with them, which is thrown over the shoulder. If two valises are to be borne, one is placed in front and the other at the back, each fastened to the end of the strap. Church bells here, as in the City of Mexico, are ringing in most parts of the city all the time. As a rule good photographs exaggerate and flatter objects, but when looking at a picture associated with Rio de Janeiro, no matter how pretty and artistic it may appear, one should not discount the picture as being overdrawn, for Rio would very likely carry away the honors if entered in a " beautiful city " exhibit. At Santos, another coffee mart of Brazil, enterprise was in evidence when our ship drew up to a dock. This was the first dock the ship pulled alongside of since leaving Southampton, England. Santos is also the port for Sao Paulo. From this place we continue southward. Twelve hundred miles south of Rio, Montevideo, Uruguay, is located at the delta of the River Plate. This city is the capital of Uruguay. Most of the ships head for the River Plate, and a great many sailing southward and through the Straits of Magellan stop at this port, allowing passengers time to look about the city. The River Plate (La Plata in Span- ish) spreads out at this point to a width of a hundred miles. A great number of vessels sail up the Plate from time to time, and it ranks high in the list of waterways of the world. A glimpse of Montevideo revealed but little difference in architecture to that of the Spanish style — brick and mortar. Most of the dwelling houses are but one story in height, the 26 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS outside steps and stairways, however, being of white marble, which gives the building a strikingly clean appearance. More than one night in this city is required to become used to the noise made by mouth whistles before a light sleeper can rest. These are blown by the police, who keep in touch with each other by this means. A striking feature of Montevideo to one who has been in Brazil is the large size of the Uruguayan. Deep-chested, broad-shouldered and of good height, he appears to possess double the strength of the Brazilian. While the people are of dark complexion, no blacks are seen. The money unit of Uruguay is higher than that of any. country in the world. It is known as the dollar, and its value is $1.04. Uruguay is a republic, its principal industry being agriculture and stock raising. Flattering inducements are offered by that government to immigrants who intend to make their home there. These are in the nature of giving land to homeseekers, the government even promising to stock the farms with cattle. How little some of us who pay but passing attention to sea commerce know of the tremendous volume of business carried over the world in vessels, and the long runs made. At Rio de Janeiro I left the ship that I sailed on from Southampton, England, and after several weeks' stay in the Brazilian capital continued my journey southward by another line, tickets being interchangeable. The ship from Rio that landed Argentine passengers at Montevideo proceeded southward to and through the Straits of Magellan, to Valparaiso, Chile; up the Pacific coast as far as Callao, the port for Lima, Peru, stopping at sev- eral places between, distributing passengers and cargo at each. From among the passengers Brazil, Uruguay, Argentine, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia and Peru received its quota. From England to Callao six weeks' time was required to make the voyage. The manner in which these merchantmen slip in and out of bays, deep and shallow harbors, crawl up rivers and down again — into commercial nooks of every character — reminds one of the unexpected places to which the sun so often finds its way. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 27 Passengers from Great Britain seemed to be in the majority of those traveling south of the equator. A greater number of men than women are always to be found, though almost every ship carries young women who will be on their way to meet and marry their fiances located in the interior of the South Ameri- can republics. Buenos Aires, capital of the Argentine republic, the New York of South America, is located 124 miles up the River Plate. Many entertain the opinion, gathered from newspaper accounts, that, 6,000 miles south of New York, there is a good-sized city — Buenos Aires, But what a diiference there is between read- ing about something and seeing it! It is said of a visitor that " a look at New York will knock his eye out," and to travel through the busy waterway of the big harbor of this South American metropolis, and look through the dense thicket of masts, spars, shrouds, ropes, pennants, flags and many-colored funnels from ships that stretch for miles about the outer and inner 'harbors, will surely cause one's eye to bulge with aston- ishment. Such an influx of merchantment visit this city at certain periods of the year that, for as long as three and four weeks, ships loll at anchor in the outer harbor before dock room can be made for unloading their cargoes. The dock system is good ; and one may gather an idea of the harbor space available when he learns the River Plate is thirty-five miles wide at Buenos Aires. Up to the interior of South America ships ply for 1,000 miles on the Plate to the Bolivian border, going up loaded and sailing away to sundry parts of the world with cargoes submerging the vessels to their water lines. It seemed that every ship sailing south of the equator on the western side of the Atlantic Ocean was headed for the River Plate or for other coast ports of the Argentine. A more intimate acquaintance with matters will reveal a Briton at the helm of those ships of industry or the hidden power behind the scene. Every passenger ship leaving a British port for the River Plate carries brain and brawn from Great Britain. English money figures prominently in the industrial advancement of the Argentine, upward of a billion dollars 28 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS having been expended in building railways and developing the lands. The flower of Great Britain will be found engaged at farming, connected with shipping, railroads, banking, or other pursuits; and English advice on governmental legislation is often sought. In Buenos Aires one finds a busy city of nearly a million and three-quarters of people, largely of a cosmopolitan character. Sixteen big, well-printed daily newspapers of evening and morn- ing editions are published in this commercial center. Besides the native, or Spanish language, are those printed in the French, Italian, English, Swedish and other languages. The wages paid artisans engaged in this industry do not compare with those paid in the United States. The highest paid for newspaper work is $3.50 a day, but $2.50 is the general daily wage, paid monthly. Working time is seven and eight hours a day. On the other hand, living expenses are higher than in American cities. House rent is very high, and the price of food in ordi- nary restaurants is as high, and generally higher, than that charged in similar grade eating places in American cities. Anent cheap living in other countries, about which one hears so much in the United States, I have come to look upon such alleged facts as mythical, for, speaking generally, I have yet to come across them, and my unsuccessful search for these " much- cheaper " places has not been from lack of effort. The Argentine silver dollar is about the same value as the Mexican dollar — 44 cents. Another dollar is in use, however, pertaining to shipping, customs charges and government tariff of a general nature, known as the gold dollar, and is worth 96 cents. But it is the 44-cent dollar that is in general use for retail purposes, wages, etc. The great number of street cars running through and about the city is in keeping with the large number of ships seen in the harbor. There are only two streets in the business district — and for a considerable distance beyond — on which street cars do not run. Any one who has lived in busy centers will natu- rally glance about when crossing streets, to see if the way is clear. But in Buenos Aires one must be on the alert for street SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 29 cars even when walking along walks between the crossings. The Spanish system of laying out a town — narrow streets — is the rule in Buenos Aires, in the older section of the city. To build street car lines in the center of the streets would shut oflE vehicular traffic to a great extent, as there is not room for a truck and car to pass between the car line and the curb at the same time. The car tracks, therefore, are laid at the side of the street, by which plan car and vehicular traffic have room to move together, but only in one direction. To make matters worse, a " trailer," or two cars, are in use on many of the lines. A sidewalk fender is secured to the rear platform of the front car and to the forward platform of the " trailer." This device is formed of strips of steel, bowed half-barrel shape, which extends over the walk, and is attached to prevent pedes- trians from falling between the cars. The walks also are pro- portionately narrow, aflFording room for only two persons to pass at the same time. Were a person to become thoughtless or one's mind be occupied with something foreign to street traffic, while walking at the outer edge of the walk, or when stepping to one side to allow another to pass, the half-barrel shaped steel-strip fender is apt to scrape his leg. Being fearful of com- ing in contact with the fender at any moment when walking the streets prompts one to frequently look behind. Ten cents (Argentine money) is the fare, equaling four cents in American money. That sum will carry a passenger from one end of a car line to the other. By reason of the nar- row streets, the two-car system, and the great number of cars running on the different lines, tie-ups, turmoil and confusion result. On boarding a car, there is no telling when one will reach his destination. Improvements, hov,?ever, were in prog- ress. Among the park squares of Buenos Aires (termed "plazas" in Latin-speaking countries). Plaza de Mayo is perhaps the most popular, and the first laid out in the Southern metropolis. This plaza is located at one side of the business center of the city, with government buildings, hotels, a cathedral, and business houses fronting the four sides. Attractive palms adorn this 30 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS pretty resting place, together with trees, shrubbery, flowers all the year round, lawns and good walks. Historical memories, dear to the Argentinian, however, prove of greater interest to the populace than that wrought by the landscape gardener, as in this section of the city in early days a decisive battle was fought with Britishers. At one side of the square stands a memorial shaft that marks the place of surrender to native forces by the invaders early in the nineteenth century. Within the city limits are six parks, a number of promenades, thirty-eight squares, and many public gardens. Avenida de Mayo is the promenade and show section of Buenos Aires. Starting at Plaza de Mayo, it extends for nearly a mile to Congreso, or Congress Hall. The Avenida is one of the two streets on which cars do not run, and is the only one of fair width in the busy center of the city. It is paved with asphalt, most of the others being paved with stone blocks. The best hotels line the Avenida, and the other buildings are of attractive appearance. Prizes are offered by the city for the best building designs, and the result of this municipal pride is frequently observed. Through the Continental custom of blocking the sidewalks in front of hotels and cafes with tables and chairs one often finds difficulty in walking. The park sys- tem of the city is creditable, and there are good boulevards in the suburbs. Here, too, as in Rio de Janeiro, one wonders what women do to occupy their time, as men make the beds, do the dusting, look after rooms, sweep the carpets, and do general household duties one is so accustomed to seeing women perform in North America. Neither is there any chance for a woman to earn her living working in eating places, as men seem to have made that source of livelihood a " closed shop " to women. The clumsy way the Argentinian hitches horses to a cart strikes one as odd. Carts, instead of trucks, are mostly in use. Often three or four horses will be attached to a cart — one horse between the shafts, and one hitched to the cart on each side of the shaft horse. The horse in the lead will precede the second horse by a space of from three to five feet, and the sec- • Plaza de Mayo (top) and Avenida de Mayo (bottom), Buenos Aires, Argentine. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 31 ond horse will be in advance of the shaft horse the same dis- tance. How the animals can see is a puzzle, for a heavy leather fringe reaches from the top of the horse's head to the nose. To see men embracing each other, with radiant faces, strikes one from the North as an unusual custom. While Americans greet with a handshake, Argentinians embrace. A novel way to keep " park residents " from occupying seats in some of the park squares is amusing. The park workers keep moving the seats from shade to sun, and in the evening and on cloudy days the " never-works " are told to " move on." But the idlers enjoy sweet revenge from the fact that no one else has a chance to sit in the shade in the daytime. It is hard on one who has been used to three meals a day to practice the principle of the old adage, " When in Rome, do as the Romans do," for only two meals a day are served. Of course, one gets coffee and rolls for breakfast, but more than that brief menu is unknown to the Argentinian. The noon- time meal is called breakfast, and dinner is served about 7 o'clock. Olives, potato chips, peanuts and cigarettes are accessories that go with refreshments at the " sidewalk dining-rooms " in Buenos Aires, People may be seen for hours taking sips of liquid from small glasses, then a potato chip will be snapped in two parts; next a few puffs of a cigarette; another sip; a peanut shell is then cracked and a kernel eaten; another sip of liquid ; next an olive ; more cigarette puffs, and so on. Churches and church holidays being numerous, banks are closed on these occasions for four or five days. What is known as " the American Church " attracts many of the English- speaking people of that city. In addition to the Argentine being a grain and cattle country, fruit trees and grapevines bear heavy yields. Fig and peach trees, which are numerous, yield abundant good fruit, and some bunches of grapes will half fill a water bucket. Gentility is denoted in the Argentine by a long little finger- nail. A fingernail could not grow from one to two inches long on the hand of one engaged in daily toil, for it would break off. 32 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Hence a man with a long fingernail is included in the list of " retired " citizens. The dwelling houses and buildings of all sorts are substan- tially built. Brick is generally used, and this is covered with several inches of cement. A courtyard is a feature of all buildings, with a veranda around, and more rooms open on the court than on the street. Strong iron bars protect the windows in a great many instances, while the street doors are very heavy and the locks big and strong. Most of the dwelling houses are one and two stories in height, but some of the hotel and business buildings are from three to seven stories high. The higher buildings are of steel frame construction, which is known as " the American system." One will find splendid stores, with goods attractively dis- played in large, wide windows. Church buildings are numer- ous, and some of the government buildings large and imposing. Several of the newspapers are large, newsy and well printed. Linotype machines, web presses — all the modern machinery in use in the North — will be found in the emporium of South America. Portuguese is the language of Brazil, Spanish of the Argen- tine, and any one going to these countries to transact business without first acquiring an inkling of these languages will find himself at a great disadvantage. The foreigner who can speak both languages will succeed much better than the person who sticks to his native tongue. The pickpocket of Buenos Aires is said to be as deft at his trade as are his clever colleagues in the City pi Mexico. The great number of thieves here may be the reason for the presence of bars in front of windows, heavy doors and strong locks on buildings. I had work ojEEered to me at my trade in that city, but one who had been used to receiving $5 a day does not relish working for $3 a day for the same duties. Besides, just then the surface of my funds had been scarcely scratched. I stopped at a boarding house, paying $2 a day for my keep, occupying a small room next to the roof, with the only window SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 33 a little larger than the port hole of a ship. It behooved one to be promptly in his seat at the table at mealtime, in order to prevent remonstrance that would justifiably be made by the inner man until the next meal if the rules of strict punctuality were not conformed to. One notices an improvement in the condition of the working people in both Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires over that seen in Lisbon, Poverty is not a feature of either city, more par- ticularly in Buenos Aires. My fare from New York to Buenos Aires was $150, and the distance traveled was 9,852 miles. From New York direct to Buenos Aires is some 6,000 miles, and the fare, third-class, $90, first-class, $240, there being no second-class rate. Third-class travel is generally unsatisfactory, and a first-class ticket would have cost more than I cared to spend on the first leg of my jour- ney. It was a 26-day sail from Southampton to Buenos Aires. From Buenos Aires direct across to Capetown, South Africa, is 3,600 miles ; by way of Madeira 9,500 miles, and second-class fare $250. This large sum of money for a ticket set me inquiring if there was no other way to get to South Africa without travel- ing nearly half the distance around the world. A tramp ship going to Asia and stopping at Durban, South Africa, for bunker coal was one's only hope of avoiding the long and tedious jour- ney by way of Madeira and the big expense. Four different captains who had received orders to sail to India did not want to take a passenger with them, giving as their reason that " it was against the Act " for tramp ships to carry travelers. The fifth captain seen, however, agreed to take me across to Durban for $50. Here was a saving of $200. That being my first introduction to tramp ship travel, I faced the voyage with some mistrust, as merchantmen, as a rule, are slow, are not equipped with wireless telegraphy appliances, and one does not know what may happen when sailing on the high seas. But the captain had a good face, which inspired me with confidence. " Meet me at the British Consul's ofiice to-morrow morning at 10 o'clock," the captain instructed, " for you'll have to ship 34 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS as an 'A. B.' (able-bodied seaman), as the 'Act' does not allow us to carry passengers." " Aye, aye, sir," in sailor style, was my answer to his instructions. "How much are you going to pay this man?" asked the consul. " Ten shillings ($2.40) a month," answered the captain. " A pretty cheap ' A. B.' " sagely remarked the consul. " The ship is the one with a red funnel, having a yellow circle around it close to the top. Bertha Clay is her name. Be aboard at 3 o'clock at the latest, as we shall sail between 3 and 4," was the final instruction by the captain. " You found her all right ? " the skipper remarked, when he had come aboard his ship. A cargo of coal had just been unloaded, and the dust was an inch deep on the deck. Later a long blast from the whistle was blown, and in a short time a rope from a tug had been fastened to the Bertha Clay, when she was slowly drawn from the dock into the narrow channel, which w'as solidly walled by ships. We had started for " Darkest Africa." LEG TWO CHAPTER I The evening sun was sinking fast as we were being towed from the inner harbor of the Argentine metropolis to the broad expanse of gray-colored water of the River Plate. Berths were short on the Bertha Clay, as the skipper had informed me before I had boarded his ship I would have to sleep in the chart room. Charts and other navigating para- phernalia were kept in this room, and the wheel house was on top of the chart room roof. " Sleep on the couch to-night," instructed the captain, " and to-morrow I'll try to have a berth put up for you, which will be more restful." Next morning found the tramp ship at sea, and behind, in the distance, the panorama of Montevideo, built on a hillside, was kept in view till lost to sight. " If you prefer land to sea view," the captain remarked later, " take a good look yonder, for, with the exception of a small, uninhabited island 1,200 miles to the east, it is the last land we shall see until we reach the South African coast. That is Lobos Island, off the Uru- guayan coast, at which we are looking, on which large numbers of seal assemble." For six days out from the Plate the weather was summer- like, and these were pleasantly spent sailing over a smooth sea. Talent is generally found among sailors, and during the evening some of the crew would sing, others dance, or boxing bouts would take place ; wrestling matches also were listed among the means of entertainment. Then the weather changed for the worse, and evening sports were discontinued. The captain had brought with him eight sheep and a couple of dozen live chickens, as this ship carried no ice. A sheep was killed each week, and we had chicken twice weekly, so, between the sheep and the chickens, we had fresh meat three times a week. 37 38 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS " Keep a look out for Gough Island," suggested the captain to his first officer, " for it should be in sight by four o'clock." At 4:15 the mate, opening the door, reported, "Land port abeam, sir! " The island proved to be a small, rocky and unin- habited sea " oasis." " No more land until we reach Africa," said the skipper. The weather had grown stormy, the sea rough, and the Bertha Clay was rolling badly. She pitched, tossed and rolled so much, in fact, that the " A. B." had " callouses " on his hips through being slammed back and forth against the sides of his bunk in the chart room. Masters of ships usually have an easy time at sea. After they have left a port, the next few days are occupied in straightening their accounts. From then on, if the weather be at all favor- able, little work is done save at noontime, when the sun is sighted, by which means alone the course is maintained. Each officer has a sextant, and from two to four of these are pointed sunward from ten to fifteen minutes before the orb has reached the zenith. A captain of a tramp ship is generally sent from port to port by cable from the owners to their agent. After the cargo has been unloaded, he may remain in a port for days, or even weeks, waiting for orders to sail; but sometimes he has little idea to what part of the world he may be directed to go. The cable directions may read " Capetown." He heads his ship for that port, but does not know whence he will be sent until given instructions by the company's agent on arrival. The salary paid some sea captains is small, compared to the responsibility assumed. English and other European shippers pay masters of tramp ships from $100 to $130 a month, while captains of American ships receive double that sum. Perqui- sites, however, may come to a skipper in connection with his calling. Coal firms generally give the master of a ship a com- mission on fuel supplied, and chandlers maintain the same custom when furnishing stores. Sea charts with which captains are furnished are marvels of exactness to a landsman, shoals, rocks, lights, jutting points of SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 39 land, sea currents and courses being as clearly marked as are rivers, turnpikes and railways on land maps. With a good navigator there is little danger of getting off the course if the sky be clear at noontime. It is in cloudy periods, when officers cannot get their bearings from the sun, that danger may occur. Rainy weather and clear days are the same to a sailor aboard merchantmen. Though sailors on a tramp ship rest on Sunday, firemen and officers have no day off. Chinese, Arabs and Indians, the latter called '* lascars," form the crew of a large number of British ships. From $12 to $16 a month were the wages then paid. On American ships white sailors receive $40 a month. Two hundred miles a day was all the Bertha Clay was traveling. Her smoke funnel was white with salt from the waves of the sea dashing against it. Some of the officers gathered in the little saloon every evening, when the hours were whiled away until bedtime by indoor amusements. Sea birds of the Southland are different from those that accompany ships above the equator. No traveler who has the noble albatross as a companion can refrain from devoting hours and hours of time during a voyage to watching and admiring the smooth, graceful movements of this large bird. Sometimes as many as a hundred of these handsome soarers may be seen encircling the ship for as long as an hour at a time, seldom flapping their wings. In far southern waters the albatross generally joins an outgoing vessel from 2(X) to 400 miles from shore, and is not seen when a ship is the same distance from land at the other side of the ocean, although companions for weeks before. Its color is generally gray and white, but some are snow white, and occasionally brown-colored ones are seen with the others. These birds are as large as a swan, some measuring twelve feet from wingtip to wingtip. But many a sailor has lost his life when falling from a vessel in parts of the sea inhabited by the albatross. The great bird will pounce on anything it sees in the water, and, being so strong, the beak will penetrate the skull of a person at the first attack. Navi- gators say that it will not live during transit across the equator. 40 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS The moUemoke is another companion sailors have with them when traveling south of the equa,tor. This bird, while not so large, resembles the larger specie both in poise and color, and also mingles with the albatross during a voyage. Feeding on garbage thrown from the ship seemed to be the chief attraction to the fowl. A very pretty sea bird seen in far southern waters is the Cape pigeon. The pigeon is as large as a sea-gull, but in color is like the guinea fowl — spotted white and black — but of much brighter color. The snowbird is another com- panion that follows a ship in the southern seas, but only in sections where the weather has become chilly. The petrel is also found in these parts, and still another, a small, dark colored bird, no larger than a swallow, appears in large numbers at intervals. Sailors call these Mother Carey's chickens. All these fowl are one's unfettered companions while traveling through watery Southland, save an occasional whale. Sea-gulls do not appear. It was eighteen days since we sailed from Buenos Aires, and twelve of these had been stormy. The " A. B." was near the captain while he studied the chart, at 9 o'clock one evening, when the mate came into the chart room. " Mr. Jones," said the captain to the first officer, " keep a sharp lookout, as we should see the Cape of Good Hope light by 10 o'clock, or thereabouts." " Aye, aye, sir," he replied, as he passed out, and then scaled the ladder to the bridge. The sea had calmed as we neared the African coast. Less than an hour later the skipper and the " A. B." were chatting, when the door opened. The mate, putting his head between the door and jamb, in sea manner, announced: "Flash light port abeam, sir!" It was the Cape of Good Hope light. We had reached another con- tinent — the African. For five more days we sailed in sight of the green, treeless hills of South Africa, using glasses frequently, as may be im- agined, eager to see houses, cattle and grain fields. Finally we came in sight of the Bluff, the beacon of Port Natal. Soon we were opposite the entrance channel to the harbor, when anchor was cast. Shortly after a harbor boat was seen coming through SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 41 the channel. Later a rowboat, manned by Zulus, headed toward the Bertha Clay, in which was a white man dressed in a white suit. The captain shouted to the man in white, asking if we could get into the harbor before night. It was then nearly sunset. The answer from the rowboat was, " I'm coming." This was the skipper's first trip to a country where white clothes were worn, and he mistook the man in the row- boat to be the port doctor. One unfamiliar with customs in that part of South Africa — or, in fact, anywhere — would never dream of seeing a grizzled sea pilo,t dressed in an immacu- late white suit of clothes. It proved to be the man who was to steer our ship safely to harbor. " All well ? " he inquired — the usual salute — when his rowboat had reached speaking dis- tance of the tramp ship. " All well," replied the master of the Bertha Clay. When the pilot had drawn alongside our vessel, he began to wriggle up the rope ladder at the side of the ship, the usual means of boarding and disembarking under such circumstances. We anchored in the harbor as twilight was hastily changing to darkness. " Supper is ready," announced the steward when the anchor chain was silenced. As ship food had no charm for the " A. B." when land food was available, he hurriedly made steps for the ladder at the side. This settled matters concern- ing eating supper aboard ship that evening, as the captain shouted, " Wait." Soon the skipper also started down the ladder, and the master of the Bertha Clay and his passenger had dinner ashore. We had stepped foot on Leg Two. The captain wished the " A. B." to return to the ship and sleep in his recently vacated bunk in the chart room that night — "the last night," as he put it — but my feeling of relief at the thought of not having longer to occupy that " cabin," in which the bedclothing had often been made damp through waves dashing against and over the ship, together with several inches of water at times covering the floor, might be compared to those that one would experience on leaving a " house of trouble." " You'll have to come to the port office in the morning and 43 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS get paid oflF and discharged," remarked the captain, after we had finished eating the best meal we had had for nearly a month. Meeting at the time designated, the formality of paying off was gone through with, in accordance with maritime law. The " A. B." was handed $2.40 for his " work " during the voyage, but the money did not reach his pockets, as it was handed back to the genial skipper. The provisions of the " Act " had been complied with — in name. The Bertha Clay, with her bunkers full of coal, left the following day for Cochin-China — 6,000 miles further east — thirty days' more sailing. " Sixty cents a day " (the minimum legal charge for a per- son's food on English ships) " is all it will cost you if you will come with us," inducingly spoke the captain to his discharged " able seaman," while shaking hands warmly, a short time before the Bertha Clay sailed out of the harbor. The skipper's generous offer was declined. The passenger left behind sought the highest point of the seashore to watch the tramp ship sail on her initial stretch to Asia. She dipped her nose in the sea and wobbled and pitched as she had done for twenty-three days during her former voyage. It was not long before only an outline of the hulk was in view. Then that disappeared altogether, when all that remained in sight was the smoke funnel. Soon that also had faded to but a speck, and a short time later the Bertha Clay became hidden in a hazy horizon. CHAPTER II With a population of a hundred thousand, Durban is the chief seaport of South Africa. Located on the Indian Ocean, it is known also as Port Natal. Among the inhabitants, colored people of varied races comprise two-thirds of the population. With the native black there is the Indian, or Hindu, Arabs, Malays and half-castes from islands located near the East African coast. The phrase " Darkest Africa " is even more emphasized by the presence of the dark races that are not natives of the country. Untidiness and unsanitary conditions invariably prevail where black races are in the majority, especially so where the per- centage is three to one white person; but a pleasant surprise is met with here in this respect, as few cities anywhere surpass Durban in cleanliness, whether composed entirely of white people or a predominating number of blacks. Almost the whole white population is British. To the east and south, as one comes through a channel from the sea to the harbor, a ridge of land known as the BlufF, thickly verdured with low trees and wild flowers, offers such an inviting setting to a visitor that one forms a favorable opin- ion of Durban before he has stepped off a ship. That fore- ground is as green in the winter months as during the summer, for it is summertime in Durban the year round. After having passed through the channel into the bay, the harbor is seen landlocked on one side by the city, and on the other side and end by the evergreen Bluff and more verdure. It is Durban's splendid harbor, reasonable port dues, up-to-date facilities for coaling ships, and splendid docks that has gained for her the title of premier seaport of the South Indian Ocean. Her mod- ern maritime facilities are the result of energy by the Durban 43 44 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS business man more than to natural advantages, for the entrance channel had to be dug out and the harbor dredged. The business houses are built of brick, cement and stone, some of them being seven stories high. The stores are large, of fine appearance, with attractive windows. No place of Durban's size can boast of better buildings or better stores. One of the largest and best built structures to be found south of the equator is the Durban Town Hall. This building, of brick and cement, is a city block in size and three stories in height. The scope of this hall may be understood when it is mentioned that under its roof is contained a public museum, an art gallery, public library, theater, councilors' chambers, besides offices for the city officials. The building is not only large and imposing, but the architects have succeeded in giving the struc- ture an artistic finish. The Town Hall of to-day should meet the requirements of the Durban Corporation centuries hence, and would be a credit to a city of a million inhabitants. A good bathing beach and a well-laid-out and well-appointed park do not, as a rule, go together, but one finds this dual com- fort at this part of the Indian Ocean. Scattered about the terraced lawn have been built substantial kiosks and pagodas, with thatched roofs, which lend to the surroundings a decidedly Oriental air. These have been provided with comfortable seats, and, with the soft breezes nearly always coming from the Indian Ocean, enviable restfulness is assured to even nervous wrecks. Then stone walls, with alcoves built in to add to the seating capacity of the park, together with flowering vines creeping up and over and then drooping, form a means of shelter and rest, adding more attractiveness to the surroundings. Above the beach and park are splendid hotels, some without doors, and all with wide, inviting verandas. Sharks — man-eaters — are so numerous along the Natal coast that the bathing enclosure is closely studded with iron rods to prevent the voracious sea beasts from mangling and killing bathers, as would happen were there no means provided to keep the sharks away from the holiday-maker. The Berea is a residential section of Durban, and for land- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 45 scape and floral effect is a notable feature. On a range of hills rising several hundred feet, overlooking the business portion of the city and the Indian Ocean, many Durbanites live in broad- verandaed homes, shaded w^ith semi-tropical flowering trees, perpetually blooming plants, vines growing so luxuriantly that the porches, and often the sides, of the houses are shut in by a green and floral portiere, as it were. Added to this attractive- ness are various species of palms and clusters of giant and Japanese bamboo. Some of the flowered hedges enclosing these building plots are so gorgeous in rich color and shape as to make a Solomon green with envy. The flambeau tree, indigenous to the Island of Mauritius — " the flower garden tree," it may be termed — is conspicuous on the Berea, both as to numbers and floral beauty. This tree, with fern-shaped leaf, does not grow over twenty-five feet in height, but it is of a spreading nature, its shade in some instances measuring fifty feet across — twice its height. It is in flower about a month, from the middle of December to the middle of January — Junetime south of the equator. The color of the flower is a bright red, as large and the shape of a sewing thim- ble, and grows in clusters of eight and ten in number. When in bloom, this bright red aerial garden may be seen from a distance of a mile, so the reader can picture what a gorgeous floral effect is displayed when hundreds of these handsome trees are in flower at the same time. The rosebush seemed to be the only plant of the nature of bush or tree that overrides lines, climates and seas. It is no doubt the most cosmopolitan plant that grows, and is to be seen in about the same beauty and diffuses its fragrance in the same degree in nearly all parts of the world. All the trees seen growing south of the equator appeared foreign to those growing in the United States. The Christ thorn — said to be the same as the one that pierced the brow of the Savior on Mount Calvary — grows abundantly in Natal. In some instances the bush is used for hedge fences, and when allowed to grow to a height of from two to four feet it makes a spiky obstruction, as the prongs are 46 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS an inch in length, grow numerous on the stock, little thicker than a knitting needle, and are almost as sharp as a sewing needle. The thorn, which is of a creeping nature, like a grape- vine, is more generally used as a border for a flower pot, however. As its name naturally calls up memories of the deep- stained crime of nearly 2,ocx) years ago, one scrutinii:es it closely. The Christ is a flowering thorn, and the flower is red, not larger than a wild strawberry's. These grow in a group from one stem, each cluster numbering from two to ten flowers — always even — two, four, six, eight and ten — never in odd numbers. Some of the trees growing here bud and bloom twice a year. These interesting changes do not take place in the same way that nature does her work in the colder climates — by the leaves falling off in the fall of the year and the buds coming in the spring. With these trees the old leaf remains until forced off the limb by the new bud. About six weeks' time is required for nature to change from the old to the new. During this period new buds bulge from the tips of the limbs, when the old leaf will fall to the ground. This change is gradually progressing, until sections of the tree offer a clean, fresh, bright, green- leafed appearance, while on other parts the dull-green, dust- soiled leaf offers a striking contrast. Between the months of February and March and August and September the new leaf replaces the old. There is really little timber in South Africa, as the trees grow low and are of a spreading character. Naturally, the shade cast by them is much wider than that afforded by high trees. Where brush grows, it is found to be a dense thicket or jungle, in which monkeys disport themselves at will, and is often the home of the python also, a reptile frequently seen along the Natal coast. Shooting monkeys in the brush is a common amusement. Outside the city are banana plantations, and sometimes patches of corn and pumpkins. In order to prevent crops from being partly eaten by monkeys, laborers are out in the fields at daylight setting traps to catch the " missing links " or shoot- ing them. The monkeys are very destructive to crops growing SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 47 in fields bordered by bushy land. A monkey's gluttony often renders his cunning of no avail, and for that trait he becomes an easy prey. Calabashes grow everywhere in South Africa, and it is by this vegetable the monkey is generally trapped. The calabash is dug out, or partly so, and cornmeal, calabash seeds and other monkey edibles are put inside and then made fast. A small hole, just large enough for a monkey to wriggle his supple fingers in and contracted paw through, is made in the vegetable. When no one is about, the monkey makes a start for the calabash trap and is soon eager to find out what is inside. He then begins working his paw through the opening, and when he has reached the cornmeal, seeds and other bait he grabs a handful. It is then that his gluttony proves his down- fall. The opening that admitted his empty paw is too small to allow his clenched fist to be withdrawn, so he pulls and tugs for hours to get his paw through the hole, but will not let go of the food even while being put to death by his captors. ** Are there any automobiles in South Africa ? " asked a friend in a letter. Perhaps others will ask a similar question concerning the presence of other modern appliances in a far-ofE part of the world. One will not meet with elevated railroads, tunnels under wide rivers, underground railway systems, or buildings from twenty to fifty stories in height, for the reason that the cities of South Africa are not large enough to require these modern public utilities; but one will meet with modern electric light systems, telephone, telegraph and wireless telegra- phy systems, automobiles, motorcycles, motor trucks, most up-to- date fire-fighting apparatus, modern farm machinery, typesetting machines, web presses — all the modern machinery and appli- ances with which cities of the same size In the North are equipped will be found in the cities of the far Southland. White drill clothes are worn by two-thirds of the men of Durban ; also white shoes and a white, light-weight helmet. A suit costs from $2.50 to $6, and a wardrobe contains from three to half a dozen. In addition to the drill, a majority of me- chanics and clerks can vary their apparel by wearing woolen, flannel and even evening-dress suits. Women also generally 48 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS adhere to white clothes and often a helmet similar to the style worn by men, together with white shoes, white hand-bag, and white parasol. The standard of intelligence of the people is high. A ma- jority in the coast cities are from the United Kingdom. Scotch and English are the more numerous, the Irish and Welsh being less in evidence. Among a group of men, the colonials (white persons born in South Africa of British parents) are nearly al- ways in the minority. It is only in very small towns in South Africa where a public library would not be open to all who wished to take advantage of its benefits. Durban is well supplied with public schools, a technical school open for both day and night classes; Y. M. C. A., Y. W. C. A. institutions, splendid library, art gallery, museum ; is thickly spired and turreted with good church build- ings; and, for recreation, there is a promenade, fringed with beautiful palms and shady trees, with seats under them, for a mile on one side, and the bay on the other; parks and sports grounds scattered throughout the city; a botanical garden and a zoological park. All these institutions of education, religion and recreation are to be found 10,000 miles from America, on the fringe of " Darkest Africa." In order that the reader may clearly distinguish between white and black, a note of the distinctive terms in use here might not be out of place. A " native " is a kafir or negro ; a " colonial " is one born in South Africa of white parents, gen- erally applied to English-speaking people; Dutch means a Boer, and Boer means Dutch ; the word " Africander " also means Dutch. But for all whites — Dutch, colonial, and foreign- born — the word "European" is used to designate the white from the black. The word " white " is seldom used. Indian coolie, or Indian, is a native of India, or of Indian parentage. " Colored " means a person of Malay and white blood. Half- castes are of negro and white blood. A " boy " means a kafir servant or a laborer. A native servant 40 years of age would be called a " boy." House servants in South Africa are native boys, and Indian SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 49 women and girls are often employed as nurses. Occasionally one sees a native woman looking after children ; but the native boy — the " umfaan," as he is called in the Zulu language — from 10 to 18 years of age, is the standby as a house servant in the Province of Natal. The houseboy w^ears clothes that denote his occupation, and generally presents a neat appearance. His wage varies from $2 to $5 a month. Most of the umfaans make good servants, particularly the Zulu boys. Unlike his American brother, he is an early riser. " Umfaan peril — protection for the children " — is the light in which a great many of the Europeans see their dependency on the umfaan as the servant. While Indian women and some native women look after the children, more umfaans will be seen wheeling baby carriages than black maids. Such a thing as a European servant is almost unheard of in South Africa. So. how to have the children looked after by other than black male servants is a burning question in the province. Conven- tions are held regularly at the instance of women's children protection societies, leagues and similar organizations, at which the ablest minds of the country deal with the " umfaan peril." But no solution has yet been found to check the degradation that follows in the wake of such a system of taking care of children. Men and women who have made a study of the " peril," and who are familiar with customs, are loth to place all the blame for undesirable conditions on the native, neverthe- less. A large number of native girls are not allowed by their parents to come to the cities or towns as servants. While they live in the kraal on the veld no concern is felt for the future of the girls; but so soon as they leave the native hut to go into service in the towns their future is in doubt. So, with no na- tive girls to be had as servants, the umfaan's services for the present are indispensable. South Africa has proved an Arcadia for a great number of poor girls. Mill and shop girls of Great Britain who had dreamed of being the wife of a man dressed in white clothes from feet to head, of living in a wide verandaed house, trel- lised all around, with flowering vines climbing all about the 50 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS porch, with the picture varied by the hum of bees or humming birds; with palms, exotics and flowers growing about the house and yard; with bearing banana plants, mango trees and rows of luscious pineapples growing in the yard — all encompassed by a flowering hedge of big, bright hibiscus bush; with a fore- ground of a steepled city and a broad blue ocean, and a back- ground of spreading fern-leafed trees emblazoned with scarlet and lavender-colored flowers; with an ayah (Indian maid) to be at her beck and call and a black boy to do the housework and bring her breakfast to her room; to be drawn from her home to the shopping center of the city and back by a big and swift Zulu ricksha puller, with long cow horns secured to each side of his head — that dream has come true to thousands of poor girls who have married in this section of South Africa. Most wives from Great Britain, however, prove white ele- phants to men living in the colonies. They are eternally going " home," as the British Isles are termed, and the husband's nose is " kept on the grindstone " to meet the expense required. The home " holiday " is seldom less than six months, and is fre- quently eighteen months, during which period the husband is maintaining two homes — the one In the colony and sending money to Great Britain to meet the expense of his family in that country. On the other hand, the climate of Southern Natal and Zululand is hard on the white woman. The easy life they live, and their fascinating surroundings, are not re- flected In face or in physique. It is unusual to see a buxom, rosy-cheeked woman or girl in Durban. The face is white and features lifeless. The climate In that part of South Africa seems to not only make them jaded, but crow's-feet and deeper wrinkles mark the faces of most women at a period In life when the features should be free of these ageing signs. The children suffer from the climate to the same degree as the women, most of them having thin bodies, thin arms, thin blood and spindled legs. Men also are affected by the climate, but not to the same degree as women and children. Illustrative of the size of men in Southern Natal, it may be noted that ready made suits of clothes of size 40 and over are not kept in stock by merchants, SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 51 as there k no call for them; few men attain that girtK. It is doubtful also if one could find a collar of size 17. The horse of Natal is a hungry-looking beast. This is owing to the grass generally being of a wiry nature, which the animal cannot digest, and a better quality, if eaten when dew is on it, proves very injurious to the system. Smoldering fires are lit in stables in the evening so that the smoke will keep mosquitoes from the premises. These insects are said to inject disease germs into any horse they bite. Large, vicious flies prove an- other menace to horses. The bite of these flies often draws blood, and as a result white hairs grow from the bitten parts. So many of these white hair spots appear on the bodies of black and bay horses that they often give a beast the appearance of being an iron-gray color. In certain sections of the Province of Natal horses cannot live. Favored with a delightful climate and a good bathing beach, Durban is a noted winter resort in that part of the world. The weather during the " season " — from May to October — is like the American Indian summer save for the absence of Jack Frost. At this time of year people from Johannesburg and other sections of the high veld come in large numbers to this point of the coast to spend their vacations. Circuses also pay their annual visits; hotel-keepers raise prices; rooming house proprietors double rates; fakirs are numerous; talented tramps — street singers — are heard in front of hotels, looking for any spare change that may come from verandas and windows; Zulu ricksha pullers become ambitious for an extra " holiday " fare — every one tries to get rich off the visitor, and the air is charged with music, merriment and life at every turn. In the way of amusement, moving pictures predominate, al- though theatrical people of world reputation frequently tour South Africa. Concerts in the Town Hall Sunday evenings, held under municipal auspices, are a popular form of entertain- ment, these being in charge of the borough organist, a city ofiicial. Militarj' bands in the gala season entertain the popu- lace morning, afternoon and evening at the Beach and in parks. Besides these attractions, boating, fishing, horse racing, military 52 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS sports tournaments, and the general athletic sports figure largely in the life of the place. Dwellings are. nearly always at a premium, these renting for from $15 to $35 a month; but few houses are available for the lesser sum. The standard of living may be gauged by these charges, as people receiving small salaries could not pay high rentals. The wages of clerks, salesmen and mechanics range from $65 to $100 a month. In many Durban homes will be found a piano, a phonograph, good furniture, often a good col- lection of horns and skins, pictures — the home of no working- man of any country could be better furnished than the Durban breadwinner's. "Did you attend the funeral yesterday?" was asked of a lady whose relative had been buried the day before. ** Oh, no ! " she answered, much surprised at the question ; " only men attend funerals." The absence of women at subsequent burials proved this to be the custom here. A body must be put under ground within 24 hours after death. Were a person to die at 7 o'clock in the morning, the burial would take place during the day. When information has been given that a person has died, it is understood that the funeral will take place in a few hours. One making a visit to the black belts would use good judg- ment were he to leave behind the word " woman " when ap- plied to white women. " Woman " in these countries is used only when speaking of black or colored persons. " Lady " is always used when referring to a white woman. One will find a similar distinction in vogue in the negro sections of the United States. " Toff " is an English term used to denote a good dresser — a sort of dandy. As most of the clothes worn by men are tailor-made, a great many " toffs " may be seen in Durban. The cheapest suit one can have made costs $22, but from $25 to $40 is the general price. Natal, unlike the other provinces of South Africa, has always been English, particularly the coast section, which accounts for few manufacturers being in evidence from other countries. But SEVEN LEGS [ACROSS THE SEAS 53 among American products are shoes, sewing machines and illuminating oil. Some powerful locomotives in use are of American manufacture and are imported chiefly to pull trains up heavy grades. The cooking stove in general use here is the kerosene oil sort, most of them of American make. In recent years, exports from the United States to the sub-continent (as South Africa is often termed) have increased to the creditable figures of 35 to 40 per cent. "Will you please look at the fireless stove?" a saleslady asked, as a group of women passed a " kitchen " stall in a fair ground on a provincial fair day. Turning about, there was a dish of baked beans, seldom seen away from America; an apple pie, an article of food as scarce in foreign parts as hens' teeth ; a roast chicken, soda biscuits (called scones in British territory) and baked potatoes. The whole outfit had America stamped on it very strongly. All the women stopped to witness the fireless stove " demonstration." " Where's the fire? " asked one of the women. Then the " demonstration " began, both in ac- tion and word. Her auditors looked with staring eyes and open-mouth as the agent showed them and explained its work- ing. Comparatively few Americans live in the Province of Natal, as at a luncheon given by the American Consul's wife to her countrymen " a table held us all " — thirty being present. In- vitations had been sent to a larger number, but as some of these were missionaries located in remote places of the country all did not attend. The luncheon was served on a Fourth of July, and what a pleasant gathering it proved to be. Some of those present had been away from their native country as long as forty years. Pleasant chats, speeches, toasts — the season of good fellowship that prevailed at that Fourth of July gather- ing, when we were all 10,000 miles from home, will remain among the longest cherished memories that those present will carry with them through life. Though lighting, water, a telephone system and street rail- ways are owned by the city, municipal ownership does not augur cheaper prices in Durban, in spite of the fact that the 54 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS rates charged the consumer and patron insure the city not only a fair return on the capital invested, but generally a snug surplus is shown besides. Street cars are of double-deck style, but the fare is high. The system of paying is by " stage " — four cents from stage to stage, and the distance between " stages " is so arranged that the city receives about three cents a mile from its patrons. Conductors and motormen are Eu- ropeans. While the street car system gives employment to white men, it is the only department of the city that does so. The park system and the street department work is done entirely by Indian coolies, who receive from $3 to $5 a month. They are the most hungry looking, bony, spindle-legged lot of creatures one might set eyes on; but it is largely due to this cheap help that the Durban treasury is in such good condition. The Indian coolie is tricky, treacherous, lying, lazy, dirty and repulsive. He has about his loins a rag just big enough to cover his nakedness, while the wrapping around his head — his puggaree — is as large as a bed sheet. In other words, he makes a loin piece out of a handkerchief, but requires yards of cloth for a head covering. Sugar growing being the principal industry of southern Natal, the Indian coolie was imported to work in the sugar-cane fields. Tea also is grown in the southern part of the province, and In- dians are used in that industry, receiving from $3 to $5 a month and board. As his main food is rice, board does not cost much ; and as he sleeps in any sort of a shed, the sugar grower is not put to great expense for beds and bedding. The coolie used to be brought to South Africa under what was termed the " in- denture system," the indentureship periods being from three to five years, during which he could not leave his employer. It was a mild form of slavery. At the end of his indentureship he was generally shipped back to India, but could be re-em- ployed there and return to Africa. The sugar company paid his transportation either way. But that expense did not greatly shrink the growers' pocketbooks, as the coolie was shipped in the hold of a ship, which, when packed with this class, resembled a SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 55 great ant-hill. Serving two and three terms of successive in- dentureship to the same employer gained for him his freedom, when he could remain in Natal. From then on he became a curse. The Dutch came in full control of South Africa on May 30, 1910, and a month later marked the end of indentured coolies entering the sub-continent. As is generally known, Indian girls become mothers at the age of from 12 to 14 years. Added to a resulting abnormal birth rate, compared with Europeans, polygamy is also a custom of the Indians. Thus will readily appear the great danger to the white interest where the Indian gets a foothold. The Indian patronizes his own people, and for this reason many of the Arab and Hindu merchants soon become wealthy. They aim to oust the white man wherever and whenever they can do so. Their standard of living is so much lower, and their employees work for so much less than the white merchant must pay European help, that they can undersell the white in most lines of business. Some of the wealthiest men in the province are Indian merchants. Most of the money in use in South Africa is gold — gold sovereigns — and silver. The gold sovereign is what the In- dian is after. His savings are sent to India in gold. Through the Durban post office was sent not long since 65,000 gold sov- ereigns. Bankers and business men appealed to the government to put a stop to sending this metal out of the country, and when that method of depleting the gold currency had been checked, it was sent to India secretly, most of it in packing boxes, there being a large trade between the two countries. The Indian having become a running sore on the financial and social body of Natal, the government has tried to tax the race out of the country. The legal age of a girl is placed at thirteen years and that of a boy at sixteen years. The tax on "legal" aged Indians is $15 a year. So, if an Indian father had three girls over thirteen years of age, and two sons over sixteen, making seven in the family of legal age, the head tax would be $105. To impose such an exorbitant tax on poor, low paid people seems a hardship. No " melting pot " that ever 56 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS simmered will assimilate the Indian with the white race, how- ever. They bring with them filthy habits and weird customs, and live the life of an Indian in whatever part of the world they may be located. The destruction of the " gods " — Mohurrum festival — is one of the great holidays of the Indians in Natal. This is the closing climax of a Mohammedan ten-day festival. The fes- tival takes place each year, which shows that Indians do not worship stale gods, as a new one comes into existence ten days after the drowning of the old gods. The gods on this oc- casion were drowned in the Umgeni River, about three miles from Durban. The fantastic hearses, in design a strange mixture of mosque and pagoda, made up of bamboo framework covered with bright colored paper and lavishly decorated with tinsel an^ gaudy ornaments, most of them surmounted by the star and crescent on a dome, emblematic of the Moslem faith, were followed by Indian women in brightly colored garments, and grotesquely painted men scantily clad in loin cloths, weird headpieces, and other trappings, who conveyed the gods to the river. Above the noise that followed this gay holiday crowd, bent on the destruction of Indian gods, could be heard the monotonous and ear-racking din of the tomtom, together with a prehistoric bag- pipe here and there, and these were the only musical instru- ments in use to demonstrate the feelings of this motley crowd. The pagodas are called " taboots," and when these came to a halt ■ — they were drawn by men — the " tigers," men besmeared with lead, ochre and yellow-colored mud and grease from head to foot, would give exhibitions of contortions, which must have been pleasing to the slowly moving gods. At the river where the gods were to meet their death had gathered a great crowd of Indians, natives and Europeans to witness the last part played in the Mohurrum fast and festival. " Taboot " after " ta- boot " was tipped and hurled into the stream, after the priests had taken rice and other grain from it, which they tossed into a small fire burning in an urn. The shallow river was swarm- ing with youngsters, and no sooner had a " taboot " reached SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 57 the water than the boys were at it, and in a short time it was a shapeless wreck. On the shore of the Indian Ocean a group of Hindus were observing a repulsive form of the Buddhist religion. About a dozen in number, they assembled round a brass urn, six inches across and three deep, in which burned an oil fire. Half of this number formed what we may call an orchestra. Two of the instruments were tomtoms and the others rounded pieces of wood, bored out, as large as a croquet ball, and with brass bells attached. These were put over the players' hands, rattling as they moved their wrists, the other members at the same time chanting a dump. Close to the urn stood a cone-shaped wooden frame, two feet high and eighteen inches at the base, covered with flowers. To the rear lay three live hens, with strings tied to their legs. The Hindus then started toward the water to the accom- paniment of bells and tomtoms. Leading were three men, the one between, who appeared nervous, being aided by those on each side. One of the trio had thick, black hair reaching to the waist, but none wore head covering. When the three had waded in up to the armpits, the center man was ducked a num- ber of times. The music then ceased for a short period, after which all returned to the urn. The Indian who had been im- mersed turned out to be a convert to this fanatical sect. The orchestra resumed the chant, the man with the long hair and the convert kneeling by the fire, the third one, a priest, standing. The former began bending his body back- ward and forward, his head touching the sand at each move- ment, also running his fingers through his hair. The convert followed the actions of the other. Both worked themselves into a state of weakness, verging on collapse, during which their hands, at times, came in contact with the flame in the urn, but none of the members made any effort to turn their hands from the fire, which, of course were burned. At this stage of the ceremony both men, their eyes rolling and only the whites showing, lay on the sand, exhausted. The chant ceased. The priest approached the apparently lifeless Indians with a 58 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS phial in his hands. He next placed the open end of the bottle to the nose of one, then to the other, the Hindus raising them- selves to their knees as the orchestra resumed. The half-revived convert then put out his tongue, the priest advancing with what looked like an oyster fork in his hand. The orchestra stopped — all was silent. He next took hold of the dazed, hand-burnt disciple's tongue in one hand, and forced the tines of the fork through that member with the other ; then, quickly stepping to the cone, took two flowers — lavender and yellow in color — and, returning, put one flower on top of the tongue, the other underneath. No blood flowed from the pen- etrated member. The Hindu stood up, apparently in a trance, his tongue spiked. The priest again alertly stepped back and returned with a chicken, snapping the hen's head off as if cut with a scissors. The blood from the headless fowl was sprinkled over the convert ; then another hen was brought, killed likewise, its blood also being sprayed over the supplicant, when the orchestra played. The follower next bended to his knees, after which the flower cone was lifted on his head. He rose; then the group, to the accompaniment of the " music," walked over sand dunes in the direction of a mosque, where, it was said, the fork would be withdrawn from the inducted Asiatic's tongue. The Zulu ricksha puller is the most striking feature of that interesting city to a visitor, as he proves an object of much curiosity and admiration. He is in a class by himself. In stature, he stands from 5 feet 6 inches to 6 feet 4 inches; in color, darker than a mulatto, but not black; with bare legs, strong, muscular and fleet of foot; generally ready to smile, showing his perfect teeth; standing between two shafts by which he draws the ricksha, watching eagerly for a fare — this gives but a meager illustration of the Zulu ricksha puller. The Zulu reaches the culmination of vanity when he has fixed himself up to look like, and to imitate the actions of, an ox, horse or mule, for he has a veneration for these dumb ani- mals. The larger the horns he can wear, which are secured to a piece of cloth that fits tight to the head, the better he is SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 59 pleased. A number of long feathers often extend from be- tween the horns, and van-colored grass and thin reeds, also attached to the same place, fall to and below the waistline. Added to this head adornment, calabashes, sometimes as large as a cantaloupe, protrude from the side of his head. His jacket, sleeveless, which bears designs of plaids and squares, resembling a checker-board, extends midway between thigh and knee. His pants are a slit knickerbocker, also extending to halfway be- tween thigh and knee, but from the hem fall strips of red braid six inches below. The pants are split to allow his legs freedom when drawing the vehicle. The ricksha puller is eternally trying to think of something fantastic and grotesque to wear. One fellow may be seen with his legs and feet painted blue, representing the sky, with white spots dotted here and there to represent stars, another with both legs painted white. At times one leg is painted red and the other white. Also may be seen, fastened to the puller's horns, the skull of a calf or sheep, or perhaps of a monkey. Monkey skins, with tails attached, are worn, one in front and the other on the back. Again, a discarded plug hat may be hung on one horn and an empty vegetable can on the other while he is pulling a passenger about the city. Sometimes his head looks like a small flower garden, as he is seen trundling his ricksha about with bright red hibiscus and carnations stick- ing out of his black, woolly head at the top and from the sides. At night a small light — generally a candle — attached to the axle of his sulky, may be seen at the sides of streets and showing from dark alleys or from under a spreading tree. The puller will jingle the little bell on the shafts of his ricksha to attract the attention of a passerby. The weird trappings, with the dim outline of the Zulu, together with his long horns showing from the darkness, will not inspire confidence in one unfamiliar with the native puller. In short, he appears fantastically inhuman by day and grotesquely brutish by night. His phj'sique, how- ever, is an object of admiration; mentally, he is a child. The ricksha is a two-wheeled, two-shaft sulky, with rubber tired wheels, upholstered, and will seat two persons. A hood 6o SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS is attached to the seating box like that of a carriage. A small bell hangs from one of the shafts, which the puller sounds to give warning of his coming. Under, from the center of the axle depends a bar of iron with a small wheel at the end. This bar prevents passengers from falling out if the ricksha should tip while going up hill. The service is good and the fare cheap — from 6 to 50 cents — the different fare stages being printed on a card. Like every one engaged in similar occupations, the puller knows a stranger, and succeeds often in getting more than the just fare from men, but women generally ask for the schedule card. " Ricksha ! " is the only word shouted when a puller is wanted. Regular stands for them are located in different parts of the city, and if one feels depressed in spirits and wishes to get out of the " dumps," a good way to have the " cloud " lifted is to shout " Ricksha ! " when within 200 to 300 feet from where fifteen to twenty of the pullers are chatting and waiting for a fare. Every one of them will spring between the shafts, like fire horses to harness, and make a dash at full speed to the person who shouted. The noise and rattle a group of pullers make in approaching sounds almost like a collision between two railway trains. The puller rests the shafts on the ground while his passenger is being seated. He holds his big, strong, flat foot on the thills, so the vehicle will not slip while one is getting aboard, until his patron tells him to go. If one cannot speak the native language, not a word will be spoken, for rarely does one meet a native who can speak English. The passenger points his finger in the direction he M^ishes to be drawn. The Zulu raises the shafts and, after a few slow, heavy pulls to get the vehicle started, one is spinning along as fast as a trolley car travels. " Jim Fish ! " " Jim Fish ! " they will call to a passerby, at the same time ringing the small bell on the shafts, while ad- vancing and acting in a manner that suggests the person being approached had forgotten to call a puller. Jim Fish was the swiftest puller that ever wore a brace of horns. In a three mile race with a trolley car Jim cam.e out ahead, but, like Pheidip- Jim Fish Was the Swiftest Puller that Ever Wore a Brace of Horns. Durban, South Africa. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 6i pides, the Greek of the dusty past, after whose run the Mara- thon has been named, he fell dead when he had crossed the finish line. By calling out " Jim Fish " the Zulus imagine the name suggests a fast ride. The puller appears at his best when traveling down grade. Just at the head of the decline he jerks the shafts upward — this movement bringing his back close to the dashboard — when his arms rest akimbo on the thills. He maintains his full height during this change of position, which is in accordance with pro- fessional ricksha pullers' custom. The sulky naturally tilting backward — also the occupants — his body is nearer the axle of his vehicle than when traveling over a level or inclined sur- face. Aided by the weight of his passengers, the ricksha is then almost evenly balanced. Riding on the shafts, he throws to one side, like a jumping-jack, the big leg bearing the painted design of the sky or openwork, and his unpainted leg to the other. He also moves his body from side to side and assumes a labored expression, although resting while being borne on the shafts. His body movement and stern appearance are afEected, and are, as he believes, in keeping with that of a racehorse when coming down the home stretch, which he is imitating. His horns and their adornment, together with the colored grass streamers, feathers, monkey tails, checkerboard designed jacket, calabashes, braid, flowers — all his trappings are then set full to the wind, as the Zulu seems to actually fly through space. In stormy weather, which means good business for the puller, the hood is raised, and a piece of canvas that covers the front of the ricksha is buttoned to the sides, which protects the occupant from rain both from above and in front. Off the Zulu goes, after he has tucked the rug under his passenger's feet and has seen to it that the canvas shelters his fare. The rain may be coming down in torrents, and the water half knee deep in the streets, with the handicap of the raised hood and front canvas against him ; but patter, patter, patter he will continue, watching for depressions, in order to sidestep them so that his passenger will not be jolted, until he has reached the place at which his fare wishes to alight. He will take one home in 62 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS any sort of weather, as his strong legs and body rarely fail him. The puller will often have nothing on but the jacket, short, split-leg pants and trappings. He does not go to his living quarters — the ricksha stable — and get dry clothes, as one might expect him to do, but trundles his sulky about in the rain looking for another fare. He pulls a ricksha from two to three years, when consumption generally claims him as a victim. Twelve hundred of these stalwart natives were formerly engaged in this kind of work, but now there are less than a thousand. The extension of street car lines from time to time accounts for the decrease. The rickshas are owned by a company, and 60 cents a day is paid by the puller for its use. All he makes over 60 cents is his own. It is said he often earns from $2 to $3 a day, but there are also days when his fares do not exceed the rent charge. Most of the pullers work but four days a week. A " curfew " bell rings at 9 o'clock each evening, and the only native seen about the streets who is immune from arrest after that hour is the ricksha puller. After " curfew " a native carries a pass or a note from his employer, either of which will save him from being taken to a police station. It is very amus- ing at times to watch a Zulu policeman question a native as to why he is out late. His only protection is the note or his pass, which the policeman makes pretense at reading, though he does not know A from B. This dusky guardian of the peace is next in interest to the ricksha puller. His uniform is a jacket, dark blue in color, that reaches just below the waist band. His pants are of the same material, reaching to and covering the kneecap, where it is buttoned tight. His legs from his knees down are bare and shine like polished ebony, for they are oiled every day. He wears a stingy head piece called a forage cap, generally made of blue cloth, which covers about one-third of the head — the side — from the arch of the ear to within two inches of the crown. This is held in place by a string looping under his chin or rest- ing between the chin and lower lip. Some caps have a red SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 63 stripe across the top, and all have a dent or crease. His weapon is a knobkerry, a stick an inch round, with a knob on it as large as a croquet ball. A pair of handcuffs is also included among this Zulu officer's equipment. The European policeman of Durban, as many European women of that city, have an easy job. The native police do any ** rough " work required to subdue black offenders, as Eu- ropeans, to whom the white policeman would give his attention, are as a rule law abiding. The native carries his superior's raincoat, overcoat, or any burden that the white officer might need while on duty. A black policeman is not permitted to arrest a European, no matter how serious the offense against the law might be. The worst offenders are Indians ; but big thefts, safe-blowing, house breaking, hold-ups, sand-bagging, etc., are few, which indicates the respect people have for the law in this British stronghold. White policemen receive $75 a month, and natives $15 a month and board. The working time is eight hours a day, with three shifts. A large building without an entrance door would appear as something unusual in Northern cities ; and yet one can find such an oddity in the far Southland. The one in question is built of brick, three stories in height, and contains a hundred fur- nished rooms. The entrance is a high archway, and just inside is an elevator and stairway. It is an English custom to leave one's shoes outside his room door on going to bed, so that " boots " can polish them in the morning. In front of each room, on each side of the aisles, in this hostelry could often be seen from one to four pairs of shoes, yet every pair would be found in the morning where they had been placed the night be- fore, although no porter guards the entrance of the building nor a night watchman the interior. Meat is about the same price in South Africa as in America. Beef, mutton, chicken and pork cannot be had for less than 15 to 25 cents a pound. Irish potatoes are expensive, as most of this standby is imported. Eggs sell at 35 to 60 cents a dozen. Apples are imported from Australia and Canada. Pineapples, oranges and bananas are found on the table of 64 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS nearly every household the year round. Then there are, among other varieties of seasonable fruit, the mango, guava, grenadilla and avacada pear. The pineapple, w^hen picked ripe, is as soft as our pear. These native fruits sell at a reasonable figure. A hundred bananas can often be bought for six cents. Hotel expenses are reasonable, $2 a day insuring good accom- modation. In boarding houses, good board and lodging can be had at from $30 to $35 a month. Splendid furnished rooms can be rented at from $10 to $15 a month. Meals in popular priced restaurants cost 30 and 35 cents. The sun rises from the Indian Ocean here and travels during the day on an almost straight course, shining on the south side of the street, the north side being partly shaded. For this reason the principal business street of Durban is roofed on the south side, as it is exposed to the sun from morning until sun- set. The cold and warm winds also come from a different direction than those above the equator — the warm winds from the north and the cold winds from the south. Even the sun seems to rise in the west and set in the east. Wages paid mechanics range from $3 to $4 a day of eight hours' work. Such employment as teamster, hod carrier, street laborer, 'longshoreman, and park worker is all done by Indians and natives. The native is paid from 25 to 50 cents a day, the latter figure being considered good wages, while the Indian works for 10 to 15 cents a day. Hotel work, waiting on tables, kitchen work, and even cooking, with a few exceptions, is done by blacks, chiefly Indians. A white man " on his uppers " in Durban, or in any black center, for that part, is to be pitied. If he be a mechanic, his chances for work are none too good, and if he be an unskilled worker there is no chance for him at all, as blacks do all the work of that sort. The United States and Canada are the only countries — possibly Mexico, too — in which one can travel on railroad trains without paying fare or being put into a peni- tentiary. Walking on a railway track in Europe is a prison offense. So, taking that as one's cue, a man caught stealing a ride on a train might be tried for treason. As Durban is 7,000 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 65 miles from England, 4,500 miles from the Argentine, 6,000 miles from Australia and 5,000 from India, a fellow " broke " in the coast cities of South Africa is in a sorrowful plight. The cheapest steamship passage from South African ports to Eng- land is $80 to $100. Labor unions exist in South Africa, and the members take an active part in politics. Not long since a spirited campaign was on for a seat in the Senate. One of the foremost business men of that country was a candidate for the office, and a union labor man, a locomotive engineer by trade, was the opposing candidate. The lines were tightly drawn between capital and labor in that senatorial contest. The " one-man-one-vote " clause has yet to be drafted into the constitution of the Union of South Africa. Only a citizen paying a certain amount of tax during the year is allowed to vote. On the other hand, a man holding much property, and this scattered about the coun- try, can, as in England, vote in as many districts as his property is located. A wealthy man may cast half a dozen votes at an election, while the workingman taxpayer will not, as a rule, have more than one vote. The capitalist candidate for the Senate in this election had four votes to cast, while the railroad man had but one. A widely known man from the Transvaal was imported to Natal to do " heavy work " for the wealthy candidate, and prominent labor men from the Transvaal and the Cape of Good Hope Provinces were saying and doing all they could to make votes for their candidate. " We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately," a labor campaigner was heard to say at one gather- ing, quoting Benjamin Franklin's cynical epigram. " Of the people, by the people, and for the people," Abraham Lincoln's immortal words, were also used during the campaign. But the speakers of both parties were tyros compared to the Ameri- can brand of spellbinder. Election day came, and he who had plural votes cast them, and he who had one vote cast it. The result of an election is made known by a judge announcing the figures from the balcony of the Town Hall. "Hear, ye! Hear ye! " a voice was heard to command, the judge addressing 66 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the people assembled. The engineer had 36 more votes than his wealthy competitor, and was the third labor legislator elected to the South African Upper House. Every mechanic has his " boy " — the bricklayer, carpenter, plumber, electrician, painter — to wait on him. One might be located in the black belt for years and not see a mechanic carry even a pair of overalls. A mechanic may be seen any time, when working, asking his " boy " to hand a tool that would not be two inches beyond his natural reach. A bricklayer becomes so painfully helpless that he will neither stoop nor reach for a brick; that is what his "boy" is for. The carpenter must saw boards, because the native cannot saw straight, but in every other respect he is just as helpless as the bricklayer. Clerks even have a " boy " to hand a pen or any other thing they might need in connection with their work. The only trades- man observed who did his work without the aid of a " boy " was the printer and linotype operator. And what applies to printers may be said of editors and others engaged in the print- ing trade. They really work in the old-fashioned way. Were one to take a spade in hand to prepare the garden for vegetables, merely that act of manual labor would be very apt to prove a bar to a further continuance of the respect of his European neighbors, and assuredly so by the natives and Indians. The white man is always at his minimum energy where the black man is depended on to do the work. We need not go farther than our Southern States to learn that lesson, Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, discovered the Prov- ince of Natal five years after Columbus set foot on the North American Continent. Da Gama's first visit to Natal was on Christmas Day in the year 1497. As Christmas Day is the natal day of the Savior, and as the word natal in the Spanish and Portuguese languages is used as is the word birth in the Eng- lish language, this will explain the origin of the naming of Natal. For more than three hundred years that section of South Africa remained as Da Gama found it before white men made SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 67 a settlement among the Zulus. In 1824 a few Englishmen built temporary dwelling places on the shores of the Indian Ocean, more Englishmen joining them from time to time, until Durban has become one of the leading seaport cities of the African continent. The coast section of the Province of Natal is the only part of South Africa in which the Dutch were not the pioneers. A great many humpback whales inhabit the Indian Ocean in the stretch of sea, nearly a thousand miles long, separating Durban from Capetown. Of late years whales have been hunted on a large scale, and each season finds a new whaling company in the field to share in the profits of this lucrative in- dustry. Eight or ten factories, or stations, most of these located a few miles from Durban, are now engaged in utilizing the by- products of the whale. Harpooning whales, or whaling — to use the general term — is engaged in at places separated by thousands of nautical miles, and, like other water industries, has its season. Whales, like wild fowl, migrate at certain seasons to some particular part of the great water expanse, and return again the succeeding year. By nature, this cetacean prefers a cold climate to a warm one. The season for their migration is at a different period to that of the wild fowl, for the " spouter " leaves the zone of the hot sun and swims great distances until he reaches cooler water. Sometimes it is from the North Atlantic to the South Atlantic or Indian Oceans, and at others from the Indian Ocean southeasterly to the South Pacific Ocean, the water of which is cooled by the icebergs of the South Pole section. Whales leaving the North Atlantic in early summer for the South Atlantic Ocean know it is cooler south of the equator than north of it. Americans and Norwegians engaged early in the whaling business in the North Atlantic Ocean, and up to a few years ago American whaling ships made frequent visits to the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans in quest of the oil-producing levia- than. But it is to the Norwegian that credit must be given for 68 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS building up the whaling industry in the Indian Ocean, thereby putting in circulation a large sum of money each season that, until recent years, had been overlooked. From 600 to 800 of these monsters of the deep are harpooned and rendered into oil in the Durban factories in a season — from June to November, inclusive — the cool season in that part of the world. Thirty tons is the average weight of whales killed in the Indian Ocean. Those on exhibition in museums give one some idea of the size of a whale, yet the cured specimen is a poor substitute for one which had been " spouting " an hour before. Whaling boats are little larger than a big tug-boat. The whaler is equipped with one mast, and twenty feet above the deck a long barrel is secured to this, in which one of the crew is stationed when hunting the great monster of the sea. The barrel is called the " crow's nest," and from here the " lookout " scans the ocean in every direction for the " spouting " mam- moth. On the bow of the boat a cannon is secured, out of which a harpoon is shot into the whale. The harpoon looks like a small boat anchor. The length of the harpoon bar is four feet, and at one end are four hooks ten inches long. The hooks are attached to the bar by a spring, and, before being used, are bent down to the bar, and kept in this position by strong cord. Over the end of the bar fits a spear-pointed cap a foot long, and in this cap has been placed a dynamite bomb. Whales are shot within thirty yards of the boat — sometimes twenty feet. The cannon can be adjusted to any angle. When the spear-pointed cap enters the whale, the bomb explodes, snapping in two the cord with which the four hooks were tied to the bar, when the hooks spring outward — like an open um- brella — inside the whale. The vital spot aimed at is the lungs. If the aim proves true, the large mammal falls a victim to the ugly weapon, and dies instantly. If the harpoon goes wide, the whale heads for the bottom. A long, strong rope is secured to one end of the har- poon bar, and the whale is given liberal latitude for his deluded effort to escape. Soon the rope slackens, when the whaler SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 69 knows the " spouter " is coming to the surface to breathe. In the meantime, another harpoon has been placed in the cannon, and when the whale appears this one is shot into the crippled monster, putting an end to his fight for life. It sometimes occurs, however, that the whale breaks the rope fastened to the eye of the harpoon, when he escapes, carrying the treacherous weapon in his ponderous frame. When dead, the great " catch " is drawn to the side of the boat by the rope secured to the harpoon. His tail flippers, which are from 10 to 12 feet long, are cut off, to allow of con- venient handling of the cumbersome carcass. A chain is then put around his delimbed tail, the winches revolve, and, when his tail has been drawn up close to the bow of the boat, a start is made for the wharf, leaving behind a wake of red sea, dis- colored by the blood running out of his mouth and from the rent in his body where the harpoon entered. At the wharf, the boat chain is loosened and the harpoon rope cut. A chain from the shore is ne*ct wound round his tail, a signal given the engineer to start the machinery, and the great cetacean is slowly drawn up a slipway out of the water. When drawn to the head of the slipway, the body continues moving on to a wide flat car, the railway track on which the car rests being sunk to a depth level with the top of the slipway. One flat car is not long enough to afford room for the huge wan- derer of the deep, and a portion is drawn on to a second car. An engine backs down, is coupled to the " whale train," and a start made for the factory. The harpoon remains in the whale until the body is cut to pieces. At the factory, the whale is drawn off the car on to the " dissecting " platform by another chain secured to the tail. Men, with long-handled knives, then make deep cuts — one in its back and another in the underpart — from the point of the jaw to the tail, and another deep cut the full length of the carcass. The spaces between these incisions are three feet at the underpart and from five to six feet on the back. This part of the process is called " flencing," At the point of the jaw a piece of flesh is cut until it is released from the bone, and a 70 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS small hole is cut out of the released part. A kafir, bare-headed and bare-footed, brings a chain, and the hook of it is put through the hole made in the released end of flesh at the whale's jaw. A signal being given a man at the winches to start, the piece of released hide begins to peel from the jaw, then down to the shoulder, and further still. When the winches stop, a slab of hide 40 to 50 feet long, six feet wide, and six inches thick — from the point of the jaw to the whale's tail — is stretched out on the platform inside up. The skin from the back and sides of the whale peels off almost as smoothly as does the skin of a banana from that fruit. The skin at the underpart, however, does not peel so freely, requiring cutting of the flesh by the flencer in a similar way to that of severing threads when rip- ping a seam in a garment. The underpart of the hide is but three inches thick. These slabs or strips of flesh, of which six or seven are procured from a whale, is the blubber, and from the blubber comes the best grade of oil. Kafirs, with long-handled knives, cut chunks — about 18 inches long and 12 inches wide — from the slabs, which are thrown into a hopper in which are revolving knives, these cut- ting the flesh into small pieces, which drop into elevator buckets, later emptying into boiling tanks located on a floor above. In these vats the oil is boiled out of the blubber. The whalebone, located in the enormous mouth, is yet to be removed. The flesh to which the bone grows is cut with long, strong knives around the inside of the jaw. A point of the flesh is released, a chain hooked to it, the winches again start revolving, and the whalebone begins peeling off the inside of the mouth as freely as did the blubber off the back. Half of the whalebone still remains in the mouth, and this is-jremoved in the same manner as the first half. A great blood-red hulk is all that now remains of the whale. A chain is again wound about and secured to the tail of the carcass, the winches, for the last time, revolve, when the co- lossal frame is moved up an incline to a floor above the platform on which it was skinned. Then kafirs, with axes, begin cutting the hulk to pieces, which are thrown into rendering vats. Dif- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 71 ferent parts of the body are thrown into different tanks, as certain portions of the flesh produce a better grade of oil than other parts. The only portion not boiled is the bone in the mouth. The blood is the only particle not utilized, and it would add proportionately to the whale's value were it shed on shore instead of in the sea. The flesh, after the oil has been boiled out, is sold to farmers for fertilizing purposes. Thirty to thirty-five men take part in disposing of a whale at the fac- tory, and from four to five hours' time is required to get the carcass into the rendering vats. From $700 to $800 is the value of a humpback to the manu- facturer. The average quantity of oil rendered is 50 barrels, and a barrel of oil sells at $12 to $15. Most of the oil from the Durban factories is shipped to Glasgow, Scotland, the whale- bone to Paris, France. Some whalers say the food of a whale is small fish, while other authorities give it, owing to the gullet of some species of these cetaceans being but two and three inches wide, as very small, nutritious marine organisms, or insects, many not visible to the eye, called invertebrates. When feeding, the whale takes great mouthfuls of water, its whalebone serving as a strainer and repository in which the minute sea denizens lodge. The water is then forced out of the mouth, the food extricated from the meshes of the whalebone and advanced to the throat. The mouth is so well protected with this bone, which looks like a low, dense brush thicket, that nothing can enter the throat until it has proved palatable. The whale breathes through two slits, 18 inches long, located on top of the head. Forty-five minutes is as long as the great mammal can remain under water without breathing; but when swimming fast it vdll be seen spouting at intervals of from five to seven minutes. The spouting is caused by the slits or air- holes being slightly under the surface. The tube through which air passes to the lungs is said to be three inches in diameter. The color of the back and sides is black and the skin smooth. The underpart of the body and flippers is white, save for an occasional black speck and fine black lines — mottled. Flutes, 72 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS four inches deep, corrugate the beast's underpart from tail to neck. In these grooves are to be seen a great many small barnacles, and on the neck and lower jaw barnacles grow as large as goose eggs. From $8,000 to $10,000 is the value of a ton of whalebone from a " right " whale, 800 to 1,000 pounds of this elastic sub- stance coming from the mouth. The bone grows in the form of strips, from 6 to 10 feet in length, and 6 to 12 inches in width. One end of a strip is fringed with fine, black hair- fiber, this part of the whale finding its way to the top of persons* heads, as out of it some " human-hair " wigs are made. A "right" whale, 10 to 15 feet longer than a humpback and in value equivalent to eight of the latter, is worth from $5,000 to $7,000, but of the hundreds killed in the Indian Ocean during a season not more than half a dozen of this specie will be among the number. The whalebone from the humpback is in little demand, growing but two feet long, and is of inferior quality. The bone in the mouth of the "right" whale calf — strips a foot long and tender — is of great value. These are shredded, the fine, soft fiber being made into artists' painting brushes. The cow whale brings forth young each year, but triplets or even twins are unknown in the cetacean family. A calf first opens its eyes in the sea and soon finds its way to its mother's side, where, securely snuggled by a strong fin, it re- mains from three to six days. When able to " paddle its own canoe," the baby whale — a born swimmer — keeps close to its mother's side, either up to the surface to " blow," adding a tiny whitecap to the bounding main, or to accompany its ma- ternal guardian to feed in salty pastures of the deep. A whale calf nurses like a colt. When a nursing cow whale is har- pooned, whalers generally kill the calf also, as it would starve if left without its mother's nourishment. At certain times of the year whales move in pairs — male and female. When a hunter meets a couple the female is first selected for slaughter; the sex is known by the cow being larger. The male whale will not desert his dead mate, and thus becomes an easy victim of the hunter's harpoon. On the SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 73 other hand, if the male be shot, the female immediately takes flight. A whale is 17 feet long when born. At three years of age it has attained a length of 30 feet, and during the succeeding eight or nine years reaches its full length — from 45 to 50 feet; so that it requires ten to twelve years to reach its maxi- mum size. Old whalers are loth to hazard a statement con- cerning the natural lifetime of the cetacean. CHAPTER III ZuLULAND was next visited. During the reign of their kings Zulus controlled their own internal affairs — made their own laws, apportioned the land, chastised their subjects, con- ferred with British officials concerning border line rules — were, in fact, in every sense, a distinct, unfettered race of peo- ple. Zululand was Zululand then. War after war, with gatling guns and modern fighting implements pitted against their mediaeval arms — the assegai, or spear — naturally made the tribe submissive and wiped out their border line. So long as they had a king there was always danger of trouble from Zululand. Dinizulu, the last ruler, was taken prisoner, and was " boarded " in a Transvaal penitentiary until a few years ago, when he died. The border line between Natal and Zulu- land passed away, and the interests of the Zulus and the af- fairs of Zululand are now looked after and administered by officials of the Province of Natal. The train, passing through cuts and grades, is half embowered with flowering trees, growing on the banks. The giant bamboo, in obedience to a summery wind, was gracefully swaying to and fro; the aloe, with its flowery top, sixteen feet above the ground, sentinel-like, contributed its share to the floral en- semble, and, together with an almost endless tract of soft, light green sugar-cane growing on each side of the railroad track, offered a mellow landscape found in but few parts of the world. A depressing contrast to nature — the Indian coolie scourge — is witnessed at every stopping place in this part. We were in the sugar growing section of Natal, and, as mentioned previ- ously, Indian coolies are employed entirely in this industry. There they were by hundreds, most of them of objectionable 74 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 75 appearance, and a dirty, almost naked, baby astraddle every woman's hip, the Hindu mother's custom of carrying her child. We reached the Tugela River, the border line between Natal and Zululand, and, thirty miles further, the train stopped at Ginginhlovu, our destination. Ginginhlovu (elephant, in Zulu) was 93 miles from where we started, and the train was seven hours running that distance, running to schedule, too. Indian shanty stores were pleasantly absent, as none but white traders are allowed to do business in Zululand. The post cart is the stage coach of South Africa. Strongly built, it is covered with canvas, has two wide wheels and con- tains two seats. A seat will accommodate three persons in a pinch — the maximum capacity of the coach being five pas- sengers and the driver — but as the latter usually takes up two- thirds of the front seat to handle the large team required to draw the coach, the ordinary capacity of the cart is four pas- sengers, three occupying the rear and one the front seat. A frame at the back serves for luggage, and small hand baggage may be put under the seats. Four or six mules comprise a cart team, the charge being ten cents a mile. We left the railroad, and our mode of travel into the in- terior of Zululand was by cart, wagon — a conveyance drawn by beasts. Five passengers, the maximum number, squeezed themselves into the cart. The next trip inland was on the fol- lowing day, for which we would have to wait, the station-master had informed us, " unless there was a transport going to Eshowe." Eventually a transport — a truck 18 feet long — was found, the driver of which said he thought he had room for another passenger. The transport, ridged with bags of corn- meal five feet high, was drawn by four teams of mules. "Climb on," said the driver to a group of six; "we'll be starting in a few minutes." Three women, two men and a boy began to scale the transport up to the top of the load. " Get up," said the driver to the mules, when a start was made for the interior of Zululand, the passengers sitting on the top tier of cornmeal bags of the loaded African transport. We traveled slowly seventeen miles over a good macadam 76 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS road. " That's the home of Dinizulu, the Zulu king," said the boy passenger, as we passed a frame building close to the road. We reached our destination just at sundown — Eshowe, the old capital of Zululand, and one of the prettiest places visited in South Africa. Shade trees, flowers, comfortable homes built in spacious yards; small, but substantial, public buildings; a good library, a wooded glen just away from the town, in which had been built a splendid cement swimming pool, give an insight into what the old Zulu capital looks like now. The comfortable appearance of Eshowe has been made by the European. Eng- lish and native weekly papers are printed here, and the quality of the work is good. A European boy volunteered to show me about town. He had taken me to the swimming pool, and as we were passing through a timbered portion of this natural park he suddenly shouted, " Look out ! " He then pointed to a big fly that had just passed between us. " If that fly had struck you the bitten part would swell up as large as a hen's egg. Often the effects of the bite will assume the nature of an ulcer," he added. A great number of flies in South Africa draw blood when they strike a victim, whether man or beast. We had 35 miles more to travel before our last stop in Zulu- land would be reached. The post cart left at five o'clock in the morning, with four passengers, and was drawn by four mules. The road was level for the most part, with high grass growing on each side, broken only by an occasional giraffe thorn or mimosa tree. The mimosa was in flower, and so much fragrance was diffused from the thorn tree that one would know of its existence if it were not in sight a hundred feet away. " Hello, Graham! " shouted one of the passengers to a white man who stood in the door of a building at which we had pulled up. We had reached N'Halini, the first relay, where we breakfasted. " Hello ! everybody," returned Graham, for he proved to be the proprietor of the eating station. " I haven't any eggs to serve you this morning, but I'm strong on steak, SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 77 ham and bacon. Bring out a big piece of steak to make up for the eggs," he directed one of his Zulu boys. Graham is a sailor with a wooden leg. He entertained us by telling how many times he had been caught in the net fastened to the boom of a sailing ship — a "wind-jammer," as he termed that style of craft — and how, when encountering the fierce gales that blow in the Straits of Magellan, he had been blown entirely off his feet, his body being lifted in mid-air, his legs suggestive of ribbons, while holding to a deck rail. "Did you get enough to eat?" he asked, when we had finished. And we admitted we had. Graham had two pigs eaten by crocodiles the day before, and he could not restrain himself from bemoaning his luck. "So long, fellows! I'll have eggs for you when you come back. So long!" were the parting words of the onetime sailor, as, with an additional team of mules, we started on our second relay. " Sit forward, please, while we are going up this seven-mile hill; the cart is tilting back too much," said the driver. We had five passengers now, as another one had got on at Graham's place. It's easier to say Graham's place than it is to try to pronounce the Zulu name. On, on we traveled over those beautiful hills of Zululand, the passengers chatting as we moved along. Grassy hills, 500 feet high, bare of timber and even shrubbery, with native huts built on the sides, and small patches of corn growing here and there, proved of interest. Vultures were flying high up in the air, bevies of guinea fowl scurried to cover, and the wagtail, a black and white bird of swallow size, with a tail ten inches long, crossed the roadway from time to time. We had been told of the beauty of Zululand, and nothing had been exag- gerated. Grass — long and short — was growing everywhere, enough to feed millions of cattle, and not a " critter " grazing in sight. The Zulus, before and for some years after the white man settled in South Africa, were a wealthy tribe. Hundreds of thousands of cattle, sheep and goats roamed over and fed off 78 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS these ever-grassy hills ; but tick fever — East Coast fever, it is as often called — had fattened the vultures and made the Zulu poor. We reached the second relay, then the third, but the beauty of landscape did not diminish. Our next relay will be the end of our stage journey — Melmoth — 52 miles from the railroad. " The stopping off place " is a term often heard, but when one reaches a point where there is no railroad and the terminus only of post carts, it is certainly the stopping off place. Euro- peans live in remote places still beyond Melmoth, and their mail is brought to them by native postmen on foot. We reached our destination early in the afternoon. Mail for persons living beyond " the stopping off place," brought with us in the cart, was to start on its way at three o'clock. As it was a week before Christmas, the post contained a great number of Christmas presents. The mail finally being sorted, it was entrusted to the postman's care. All the letters could be put in a coat pocket, but the presents strapped to his body made a heavy load. A Zulu, six feet tall, stood on the porch of the squatty post- office building, looking like an off-colored Santa Claus. Hav- ing reached for a stick a foot longer than his height, he stood up straight, waiting for the word to go. " All right, Jim," the postmaster ordered in the native tongue. " Ba, ba," returned the negro in a low voice, bowing and salut- ing, with one hand raised to the side of his head. He turned round quickly and walked alertly in the direction where white people live, to be made happy by presents sent to them by friends living in distant lands. Thirty-three miles was the distance the Zulu carried the mail. It was three o'clock in the afternoon when he left the Melmoth post office, and was due at the next post station at 9:30 the morning following. " He'll be there on the minute," the postmaster replied to a question as to whether the carrier could travel the distance in the time allotted, considering the heavy load. " He never fails us. Always on time — in hail, rain or shine," he con- cluded. < a In < < o O CO 5Z - E 9 fa Sz o < S N N SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 79 Zulu huts are round, the framework being of poles bent half circular, tied with grass rope. The arch poles are sup- ported with bent poles strung crosswise, these being made se- cure by grass rope. Roof and sides are covered with grass and reeds, secured to the framework with the same kind of rope. The floor is of soil, generally taken from an ant-hill, and be- comes as compact as cement. In the center of the hut, what may be termed a sort of earthen vessel is built, sometimes 18 inches across, and this is the cooking place — the stove. Zulus build good huts. No windows are provided, however, and but one low entrance. The cooking utensils are limited to an iron kettle, with three legs. This is placed in the "stove." Cornmeal (called mealy meal) is the chief food, which is boiled in the three-legged kettle, and, when cooked, the family gathers round it, some sitting on the floor and others resting on their haunches. Each member is supplied with a wooden spoon, and with these they eat mealy meal as long as there is any to be eaten. A ladle to stir the mush, cut out of a cala- bash, is generally seen in a Zulu home. The bed is a cotton blanket, spread on the earthen floor, and a bowed piece of wood, resting on two upright pieces at each end, about four inches high, serves as a pillow. A soap box may occasionally be found in a hut, but no chairs. The interior is generally black with smoke from the " stove," a strong, sooty odor being noticeable. The Zulu tribe does not " colonize " — or, rather, assemble in villages, as each family live by themselves. Huts are nu- merous, of course, but one rarely, if ever, finds a settlement — a town. They live in " kraals." A kraal is a group of huts, numbering from two to ten, surrounded by a fence, generally composed of thorn brush. The collection of huts generally indicates the number of wives that that Zulu has. One hut is always larger than the others, this being occupied by the first wife. Where cattle are kept together in a small area inclosed by a fence, it becomes a cattle kraal. Sometimes one kraal serves as a shelter for both natives and cattle. Polygamy is common. The method of obtaining a wife is by purchase from the father. Cattle is the medium of barter, 8o SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS from lo to 80 cows being the number asked for each girl. A wife who can be bought for 10 cows is just the ordinary girl. The daughter of a petty chief would bring 20 cows, and a girl of royal descent could not be purchased for less than 70 to 100 cows. When a Zulu wishes to marry he comes to an understanding with the girl's father concerning the number of cattle that must be paid for the bride, and he must not forget to include among them another nice beast, which is slaughtered and eaten at the wedding feast. The marriage always takes place at the home of the bridegroom. The bride, with her attendants, arrives the evening before the wedding day. The extra ox is killed early in the morning. The bride wears a veil of beads over her face for several hours while the ceremony is taking place. Certain persons are appointed to celebrate the marriage. Dancing is indulged in during this period. The father of the bride steps forward among the merrymakers and bespeaks the merits of his daughter. An old woman runs backward and forward among the guests, holding in her hand a small stick, pointing upward, and cack- ling like a hen. Dancing is going on all the time, one " group " of dancers holding the " stage " until exhausted, when another group will fill the vacated space and inject renewed life into the ceremony. The bridegroom must show his valor during the pow-wow. He steps into the arena with two sticks in his hand — stout walking-sticks. A series of thrusts, feints, dodges, ducking, then a terrible thrust; more fencing, another awful jab; snort- ing, sweating, uttering deep grunts of satisfaction; stamping his feet heavily on the ground to make a noise, imitating thun- der, which denotes powerfulness — he is fighting an imaginary foe, and when the bride's father and wedding party signify by applause that he has been victorious — that he has killed his adversary in mortal combat — he retires, carrying in his bosom the assurance that he is a Zulu warrior " to the manner born." From 300 to 400 Zulus attend a wedding, which lasts some- times several days. Native beer, made from corn, is brought SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 8i in large quantities in hollow calabashes by the guests. Faction fights, often brought about through uninvited onlookers, but generally from drinking too much beer, frequently prove an exciting feature of a Zulu wedding. Under no circumstances can a wife leave her husband. A bargain is a bargain with the Zulu. On the other hand, if the bride's merits have been misrepresented, her husband will take her to her father's kraal and demand the return of the cattle he paid for her. Though the girl gets the cattle in name, the father really has the cows. When a husband dies, his wives are not left alone in the world. It is a Zulu custom that a brother of the deceased look after the widows. It may seem an imposition on a brother to be saddled with two large families — his own and his dead brother's — yet, bearing in mind that the widows, collectively, are mothers of half a dozen to fifteen daughters, it means that the guardian would fall heir to a nice herd of cows when the girls reach womanhood. Zulu families, however, are not large, averaging about five children. A Zulu's standing with his people is based on the number of wives he has. One with six to nine helpmates is considered in good circumstances. In a general sense, the wives get along agreeably when they number from two to six. The first wife is mistress of those who come after her. Under the king's ruling, putting to death a favorite wife by the others occurred from time to time; but in such instances the wives numbered eight to twelve. Murders of this character have become of rare occurrence, however, since Zululand has been governed by the white man. Wives and children are of little or no expense to a husband. He does not work after he has become the possessor of several wives, and the corn is planted, hoed, husked and ground into mealy meal by the wives. None of them wear shoes, nor hats, nor coats. Cotton blankets, which cost from 25 to 35 cents, are their chief covering. No money is required for baby carriages, as, when they are not snugly dished in a blanket on the mother's back, with the ends tied in front across her 82 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS chest, they are seen creeping about the kraalyard. A visit to the country districts will find native women hoeing or working at something else with their babes tied to their back. Their husbands are in their huts, smoking pipes or sleeping. Zulu women look as strong as the men. Save for their babes, all burdens are borne on their heads. This mode of bearing weight is often carried to the ridiculous. A spool of thread, a tomato, a tincup or similar light article may be seen balanced on a woman's head. But she will carry in the same way, with as apparent ease, though, a loo-pound bag of cornmeal, a five gallon tin of water, a big three-legged iron kettle, and other weights that would tax the strength of a strong man. The Zulu woman's superior physique is accounted for, to a large degree, by the bearing of burdens on her head from early child- hood. A Zulu woman " dressed up " is a striking figure. An ocher- colored cone of hair rises from her head sometimes as high as lo inches. One unfamiliar with the native's hair, as seen rest- ing flat on the head, would never imagine the kinky mop, when straightened, would measure from 12 to 18 inches, but it will. The natural color of the hair, of course, is black, and its un- natural color is brought about by the application of a thin, red- mud solution. Grass stalks, placed inside, form a frame, which keeps the cone from settling. At the bottom, a band, generally a strip of hide, keeps the " ornament " firm. A long hat pin, whittled thin from a large bone of a beast, also plays a part in keeping the " stove-pipe " properly poised. Her face is broad and rather masculine, the expression stoical. No head covering is worn, and weights are borne on women's heads, cone or no cone. Her broad, strong shoulders are generally bare, and she always stands straight. Strings are fastened around her neck — sometimes these are hairs from an elephant's tail — to which are attached square pieces of cloth, with col- ored beads fastened on them, resembling dominos. Generally wire bangles are worn on one arm, these in some instances being so numerous that they cover the arm from wrist to elbow. Often the skin of a calf or a sheep or that of a wild beast is SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 83 wrapped around her chest, passing under her arms, and fast- ened at the back. This " waist " extends in front to about the knees, and sometimes it is ornamented with beads, pebbles or small seashells, A short skirt of rough cloth extends to just below the knees, so that her legs from that point are bare, as precious few native women wear shoes. They have none. Only married women, or women engaged to be married, ap- pear in the cone-shaped hair fashion. Polygamy is conducive to thrift as well as to laziness. Now- adays few cattle are left to sons by fathers, as tick fever has almost bared the country of this means of food and barter. So, in order to get a wife, a Zulu must earn money with which to buy cows. The umfaan will save half of his wages of $2.50 or $3 a month that he receives as houseboy. When he has saved enough to buy a cow — they can be had for $15 — it is put to graze close to his father's kraal, and he will save enough money to buy another cow or two. In the meantime calves are grazing, and by the time he has reached 21 years of age he generally has enough cows to buy one wife. Numbers of young men go to the Kimberley and Transvaal mines, where the wages run from $15 to $30 a month, with board. Unlike the American negro, the Zulu saves his money. But he will not work more than six months in the year at most. It is said a great deal of the Zulu's cash savings is hid in the ground. They are suspicious of the stability of banks, so keep the money where they can see it when they wish to. The native of South Africa is as independent of the white man's aid to-day as he was a thousand years ago. His wants being so few, and his food easily obtained, he is not compelled to work for the white man. He is not ambitious for riches. When a Zulu's hut is built on government ground the tax per year is $3.50, which includes all the land he feels disposed to work. He does not plant all his corn in one field, but has two or three patches growing not far from the kraal. If his hut is built on private land, the landowner charges the native from $5 to $10 a year rent. Land for cultivation, however, is included in the rent of the private landowner. Some of the 84 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS public men of South Africa entertain the belief that if a heavier government tax w^ere imposed on the native it would force him to w^ork more — -smoke him out, as it w^ere. Just think of the snug income some Europeans who have from lOO to 300 huts on their undeveloped land are receiving from na- tives, as they collect from $5 to $10 for each hut. The native still pays the $3.50 government tax also. "While Zulus as a race are honest, few Europeans will do business with them on a credit basis ; they must pay cash for what they buy. Honesty among Zulu house servants is an admirable trait. One might place a bushel of $20 gold pieces in the center of a room, be away from home for months, and on return find the money where it had been left. This applies more to what is termed a " raw kafir." When they have been among white people for a year or two their traits of honesty often slacken. The black man, as a rule, will pick up all the white man's vices, but few of his virtues. A violation of the Zulu code of honesty was formerly pun- ishable by death, and in some cases is still adhered to. The theft of a horse, cow, sheep, goat, pig or dog brought the death penalty. The moral code is inflexible. If a girl leaves a kraal to go into service in the towns and returns not as good as she was when she left the hut, she is likely to disappear mysteriously. A native guilty of committing a crime with a Zulu woman may be put to death. Few deformed or crippled members of this tribe are seen. Under the kings' ruling an imperfect child at birth was not permitted to live. Respect for old age is another excellent trait of the Zulu tribe. Were a mother or father to be living with a son and his wives, the father is "boss" of the kraal; and were the father to die the mother is the head of the kraal. The elder of two persons is respected by the younger. The oldest son has absolute rule over the other children; but, if the father be a chief, the youngest son succeeds him. Indian-like, Zulus walk in single file, and the younger always walks behind the elder. The woman always walks behind the man and carries SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 85 his belongings. A Zulu woman is never seen alone — always with a child, woman, or girl. Zulus have their own name for Europeans. A man who wore spectacles would be " four-eyed " in their language ; a person with a scar on his face or hands, would be " scar " in the native language; one having a deep voice or light voice — that would be his name with the native. Long hair, short hair, mustache, a smooth face — any mark or peculiarity — Zulus would know him by words pertaining to these. Natives are not allowed to own or carry firearms or any weapons used by Europeans. The same restriction applies to native police. A knobkerry, a pair of handcuffs and a sjambok (a strip of rhinoceros hide like a short whip) are the only weapons a native policeman is supplied with. The policy is a wise one, for, if the blacks knew how to use firearms, it would mean a constant menace to the whites. Zulus often carry their assegais with them in their country, and are allowed to carry sticks at all times, as a dog will attack a black, and the same dog would not even growl at a white man; besides, deadly snakes are numerous. The Zulu system of " telegraphing " news from one part of the country to another is an interesting accomplishment. Re- sults of battles and approaching danger are shouted from hill- top to hilltop for hundreds of miles with surprising speed and accuracy. In crises Zulus seem to rise out of the ground. Sugar, salt, kerosene, cotton blankets, tobacco, snuff, lan- terns, Jew's-harps, concertinas, mouth organs, beads, clieap spangles, bright calicoes, whistles, and numerous other things of a tawdry character are what Zulus spend their money on. Six cents is the cheapest purchase he can make, as the three- penny piece is the smallest coin in circulation. They will haggle and haggle with a trader sometimes for half an hour over a six-cent purchase, if the trader will listen to them. " Bonsella " is a word one will often hear if he has dealings with the Zulu. " Bonsella " means he wants something that does not belong to him. With a six-cent purchase he will in- sist on a " bonsella." A thin slice of a small bar of soap, a few 86 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS grains of sugar, a little pinch of salt, a piece of string will do, if he cannot do better ; and should he fail in getting something from the trader he will ask for a drink of water. With similar weapons, and each equally skilled in their use, and even numbers, one is pretty safe in making the statement that no man can fight better nor for a longer period than the Zulu. Their military uniform used to be cow-tails secured to a ring around the neck. The tails were so thick they pre- sented the appearance of a complete robe or skin. The Zulu can store enough food away at one meal to last him for 24 to 36 hours without becoming fatigued. He can run from 50 to 70 miles without stopping. Coupled with these staying qualities, it was the custom with some of the Zulu kings to kill all soldiers who returned defeated in battle. That left but two courses open to him — death or victory. The Zulu has but a poor and varied quality of religion. Some select the sun as their guiding light, others a white bird, again hawks will appeal to him as being worthy to look up to. Unlike the Mohammedan, his knees are not calloused from kneeling to gods of any sort. Missionaries claim to have 200,000 followers of the Chris- tian religion, which is nearly one-quarter of the Zulu popula- tion — one million. People who live in black countries place little credit to the native for having adopted the European faith. In fact, there is a prejudice against the mission native. If a man in South Africa were in need of two '* boys," and two mis- sion " boys " and two kraal " boys " had appeared for work at the same time, he would at once select the kraal " boys." When a native begins to wear shoes and a European hat, his useful- ness as an employee generally proves of doubtful quantity. When he embraces the Christian religion he is limited to but one wife. That does not absolve him, however, from coming forward with the cows for his bride. Zululand, and South Africa generally, is well looked after by European mounted police. The duty of the mounted police is to see that firearms do not find their way to the native; that SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 87 whisky is not smuggled over the border; to learn if discon- tent exists that might turn into a revolution. The native police, unmounted, arrests natives for minor offenses, and tries to find out from his brother violations of the law that the white man could not know other than through his minion. " Ba, ba " (father) , is a native salute to a European. A bow always accompanies the words. It is customary to return the native's recognition, although some Europeans will not go to the trifling trouble to do so, which is discourteous, to say the least. Should one be benighted, a European does not think twice as to whether he will go to a native's hut and sleep on the floor with the family. In so doing he will be offered every hospitality. Deadly, poisonous snakes are so numerous in this section that settlers carry with them a snakebite outfit. This consists of a strong cord, a syringe containing a poison antidote, and a small lance attached. In Zululand and Natal a rattle-snake is con- sidered almost harmless. The puff adder, that coils itself in a pathway and is very sluggish, bites one by a backward spring. His fangs grow that way. He cannot bite after one has passed him. Death shortly ensues from the bite of this reptile if not attended to at once. A person will die in 20 to 30 minutes after being bitten by a mamba. There are two kinds of this deadly snake — the green and black — but no difference in the quality of poison they inject into their victim. Death from a mamba's bite is said to be an awful one. Sometimes the bitten person's head will burst and appear as a pumpkin would look when thrown with force on a stone. This will account for the settlers carrying the snakebite outfit. The cord is used to wrap around the member bitten above where the fangs entered, to keep the poison from getting further into the system; the lance is used to cut out a piece of flesh where bitten, and the syringe is used to inject the antidote accurately at the raw part of the member where the fangs stopped. This precautionary measure must 88 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS be gone through within a couple of minutes or one will fall a victim to the mamba's fangs. The snakes grow in length from three to four feet. " Wood and iron " houses — corrugated iron mostly — is the style of European homes seen in Zululand. This also will apply quite generally to the country districts of South Africa. A half dozen of these, one story high — a postoffice, three gen- eral stores, a court house and a hotel — are the buildings about which the commercial life of Melmoth centers. A church building is generally numbered among these groups, and always a graveyard out of proportion. Many of the hotels of Zulu- land are built somewhat on the kraal plan. The dining and sitting rooms — sometimes one room answers both purposes — are in a one-story " wood and iron " building. Many of the bedrooms — small houses resting on posts a foot to eighteen inches from the ground — are located a short distance from the main building, which they sometimes half-encircle. Each house, by partitioning, contains several small bedrooms. The beds with which these rooms are furnished are generally half-size iron ones, and the light provided is often a candle. " Keep to the native trail until you come to that clump of wattle trees," directed the driver of the post cart when ten. miles from Melmoth on my return to Ginginhlovu. A printer who had got tired of the smell of printers' ink moved to Zululand to make his living in the dual capacity of farmer and trader. So, with a grip in my hand, I started over the Zulu trail to the clump of trees in the distance. I had not gone far when I heard a shout, but could not tell whence it came. It may be the natives telegraphing the start of an uprising, I mused. " Halloa! " was again heard, and, looking in another direction, a wide-brimmed hat was looming over the arch of a grassy hill. It was the printer. The post cart driver had " set me down," as a Britisher would say, at the wrong trail. " The natives wouldn't sell me any chickens when I first came here, so I wouldn't sell them any goods unless they paid for them with chickens," was one of the difficulties the printer- trader recounted in his effort to hew his way in Zululand. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 89 " Sarah," addressing his wife, " come with us this afternoon while we visit the natives' huts, as you can speak the language better than I," obligingly suggested the sturdy trader, who had beaten freight trains over the United States, sailed before the mast, and had tramped the desert of West Australia to the gold mines at Coolgardie. Through the trader's wife we chatted with the Zulu women hoeing corn, with their pickaninnies on their backs. Later we squeezed through the small entrances into hut after hut. The lady of the Zulu home explained how the natives winnowed the mealy meal by blowing the dust or bran from it with their breath when passing from the hands, to lodge in a wooden bowl under; how they stirred the meal; explained their scanty washing outfit, how the wives got along together, and other interesting features of Zulu life. After spending several in- teresting days at the printer-trader's home, it was time to say good-by; and I left with a keen feeling of indebtedness for the unstinted hospitality and kindness shown me. "I've kept my word — I've got the eggs!" remarked Graham when we had pulled up at his place for luncheon on the return trip. With pages left unwritten of the Zulu, the strongest, most intelligent and best built tribe of the Bantu race, we will leave the sailor's place for Eshowe, take the post cart to Ginginhlovu, and return by rail to Durban. CHAPTER IV My first introduction to South Africa railway travel took place on my initial trip to Johannesburg. The compartment type of corridor carriage, as passenger coaches are termed, with an aisle at the side, similar to that of Great Britain, is in use. Meter gauge — 3 feet 6 inches — is the standard of that coun- try, 14 inches narrower than what is known as " standard gauge " — 4 feet 8 inches — in the United States and in some of the European countries. The narrow spaces of the com- partment (6 by 6% feet) inclined one to wish for a two person seat. Two out of a filled compartment have direct access to a window — the two passengers whose seats are the outside end ones. Most travelers have seats reserved, in some instances a week in advance, their names being written on a card on the outside of the car at the compartment assigned. Compartments in the railway coaches are heated with what is called foot-warmers — that is, sometimes the compartment will be provided with this device. The foot-warmer is an iron pipe, two feet long, eight inches wide, three inches thick, and filled with hot water. The foot-warmer is all right when there are but two persons in a compartment, or when two foot- warmers are supplied and four persons occupy a compartment, but when six or eight passengers occupy a compartment — well, 16 passengers' feet cannot get on four feet of piping. That is the only means of heating passenger coaches in South Africa. In some respects accommodation is better on South African trains than in the United States and Europe — every passenger having a place to sleep, for instance. Six persons can sleep in a compartment, but five is generally the maximum number as- signed, the extra berth being reserved for hand baggage. Fre- quently, when travel is light, one has a compartment to him- 90 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 91 self. The back of the compartment against which one leans while riding is portable, and when pulled out straight is fas- tened at each end. Above that shelf, or berth, is another. The same applies to the opposite side of the compartment, which, with seats on each side, termed the lower berths, make six in all — three on each side. These berths, or sleeping shelves, are two feet wide and upholstered. Travelers generally carry with them a cushion and blanket, or rug, as it is termed, which is used for sleeping purposes. The bedding furnished by the railway cost 60 cents. If one is traveling two nights in suc- cession the bedding is rolled up by a steward in the morning and put on the top shelf of the compartment, where it remains during the day, and is taken down the second night for use. Sixty cents for two nights — 30 cents a night. Meals on the train are very reasonable. Breakfast and luncheon costs 50 cents and dinner 60 cents. So, paying but 60 cents for a bed, as it were, and not more than 60 cents for a meal, one finds a great reduction in traveling expenses in South Africa compared to what is charged for the same service in the United States. Railroad fare is higher, however, than in America, the sec- ond class rate being three and four cents a mile, and first- class six cents a mile. A hundred pounds of baggage is allowed a passenger. The schedule is slow compared with that in England and on some roads in America, twenty-five miles an hour being as fast as trains run. Long delays take place at stations, for when a passenger train stops it often seems as if it had been abandoned. From Durban to Pietermaritzburg, a distance of 70 miles, an elevation of 3,000 feet is ascended. Some cultivated land is seen from the train, but grassy, timberless hills, with smoke and flames from prairie fires showing here and there off the railway, is what a stranger notices continuously. Pietermaritzburg, the capital of Natal, was first settled by the Dutch. The town hall, postoffice, and government build- ings are imposing structures. In addition, one finds a small museum, botanical garden and good city parks, an electric railway system and a good railway station. One is surprised 92 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS when visiting small cities located so far out of the world, as it seems, to find them so up to date. Locally, the place is called, for short, Maritzburg. The Voortrekkers' Church is a historical monument to, and a solemn reminder of, the terrible sufferings of the Voortrek- kers during the dark days between the massacres by the hordes of Dingaan, the Zulu king, of over 600 men, women and chil- dren, in February, 1838, and the eventful overthrowing of Zulu power, at Blood River, in December t)f the same year. The massacre of Piet Retief, leader of a colony of Boer emigrants, and some of his band by the native despot at the head kraal, and the slaughter of his followers at Weenen, which imme- diately followed, is closely identified with the erection of the church. Retief and some of his followers had been led to be- lieve that Dingaan wished to make friends of them. While in the king's kraal, they were seized and massacred. Andries Pre- torius, with 450 men, some months later, started on an ex- pedition to avenge the massacre. Religious services were held every day during the march of the expedition, and a vow was made by Pretorius' party that, if they came out victorious in battle with the bloodthirsty and perfidious Zulu king, a church to the honor of God would be erected. Pretorius and his burghers met the Zulu forces at a river then unnamed. Fifteen thousand natives were arrayed against 450 Boers. After sev- eral hours' fighting the Zulus fled, leaving behind 5,000 dead and wounded. The river was said to be red with the blood that flowed from wounded natives, and that stream has since been known as Blood River. Dingaan's Day, December 16, one of the national holidays in South Africa, is observed in honor of the bravery of Pretorius and his followers and the avenging of the foul massacre of Piet Retief and his band of emigrants. The church promised by Pretorius was built in 1 84 1, three years later. Maritzburg natives are mostly Basutos, the only tribe in South Africa that white troops have never conquered. Most of Basutoland is situated in the Drakensburg Mountains, some parts of which contain rich land. They have a king, and are SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 93 said to be wealthy. Europeans cannot travel in Basutoland without permission from the ruler or some high native officer. A large amount of firearms and munitions of war is said to have been smuggled into their country. The Basuto is feared by all in South Africa, and that will explain why Basutoland is for Basutos only. Now we travel northward to Ladysmith, passing Spion Kop south of the Siege City. Ragged turrets and spires are still to be seen, bearing gaping evidence of the days of suffering, hunger and fear that the brave besieged underwent in the Boer war. Historical Majuba Hill next comes in view, with Mount Pros- pect opposite. A tunnel has been bored through the land lying between Majuba and Mount Prospect, known as Laing's Nek. We travel over rough territory for a while, then find ourselves on the high veld, having left the Drakensburg mountain range behind. Continuing to Charlestown, on the south bank of the Vaal River, and crossing the river to Voxburg, we passed out of Natal and were in the Transvaal. " When do we scoff? " asked a passenger, at one stage of the journey. The term being a strange one, " I don't know " was what a stranger would reply, " Luncheon is ready " an- nounced a train steward just then as he passed the compart- ment. " Let's go and scoff. I'm hungry," said the South Af- rican. " Scoff," in South Africa, has the same meaning here as " grub " in the United States. The River Vaal is the boundary line between the Transvaal Province, Natal Province and the Orange Free State. The meaning of " Transvaal " is, across the Vaal — trans- Vaal. On we go over the grassy veld, or prairie, seeing very little cultivated ground, but cattle are grazing here and there. They are a brand peculiar to South Africa; their horns grow from two to three feet, their legs in keeping with the long horns, but their bodies are narrow and of light weight. The most pro- ductive feature of the veld were ant-hills, ranging in size from a water bucket to a hogshead. Thousands of these, as far as the eye could reach, mar the green landscape as freckles or small-pox mark an unblemished skin. 94 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS The railroad from Durban to Johannesburg is the crook- edest one might ride over. To save building a small bridge, the track turns for miles before it gets back to a straight line. When the railway was built the contractors were paid by the mile. Were the road constructed on ordinary scientific lines, the distance between the two cities could be reduced fifty miles. Yet, neat, well-built, attractive stations, surrounded with flower beds, were passed all the way. Over the freckled veld we rolled, with Johannesburg in the distance. The sky was clear, as most always, on the highlands of the Transvaal. We had traveled to over 6,O0O feet above sea level. Objects in the distance became less distinct — a haze seemed to gather. It was the smoke from the gold mines on the great Gold Reef — "Johannesburg!" — "Johannesburg!" a train guard an- nounced. A well built business city is the impression made by this great gold center of the world. A long street, with all the business of the city centered in it, one would expect to find on reaching Johannesburg. That is the style of some of our western mining towns. Instead, here are buildings, five to eight stories in height, of stone, brick, and steel, some of them a city block square in dimension, with arcades leading from one street to another; large plate glass windows where goods are attractively displayed; elevators and steam heat appliances — all centralized in a space five squares in extent. This is the retail section of Johannesburg. The great banking and min- ing companies' buildings — splendid structures, all of modern architecture — are situated half a dozen squares from this center. The financial district is a busy place. " Come, buyers ! Come, buyers ! Come, buyers ! " the auctioneer cries when he has an assignment to sell something in the marketplace. Every one is used to the call, and soon a group gathers around. " How much — how much — how much ? " the auctioneer starts with his glib sale talk. The arti- cles to be sold may be crates of oranges, bunches of bananas, a crate of chickens, geese, hares, wild fowl, pumpkins, tomatoes, SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 95 turnips, cornmeal, oats, hay, a pig, cattle, buck (deer) wilde- beeste (gnu) — anything edible for man and beast. Dozens of auctioneers are selling goods in the Johannesburg market at the same time. " That fellow is one of the lost tribe of Israel we read about in the Bible," spoke a Britisher who had been a produce dealer on the Johannesburg market for twenty years. " When the Rand was opened to the world," he continued, " the lost tribe cropped up in the Transvaal and that fellow is one of them." The buyer was engaged in a controversy with the old dealer, the point at issue hinging on one chicken, the Israelite con- tending he had bought thirteen hens, and the dealer maintain- ing there were only twelve to be sold. Arguments are taking place all the time between buyer, seller and auctioneer. Fifteen wildebeeste (gnu), with bent horns, and whiskers six inches long growing straight from their noses; blesbuck, bush- buck, springbuck by the dozens, lay on the ground in the mar- ket. Meat from these animals is sold as venison. Seeing these beasts of the plains stretched out in plain view, about which most people read but do not see, creates a far-off feeling — a feeling that, were the eyes shut to the brick and mortar walls close by, one would be in a wild, unblazed section of the world. Hundreds of ox teams in the market ground worm their way through piles of bags, hay and transports, led by the natives with bare feet and bare head. A South African ox team num- bers nine yoke — 18 oxen. The transport, or wagon, is 18 feet long and strongly built. Seven feet of the rear is gen- erally covered with canvas, and under the " tent " is the home of the Boer, and often his wife, as weeks must elapse from the time a start has been made for market until their return, as the farms, in a great many instances, are located long distances from large towns. Time saving is not a factor in a great many sections of the sub-continent. The oxen plod slowly along an unkept road, always preceded by a kafir, who guides the caravan by rhinoceros-hide strips attached to the horns of the leading team. After traveling about three hours, a stop ("outspan") is made for the cattle to feed, as grass grows 96 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS bountifully on the veld. So, allowing time for " outspanning " and " inspanning," lO to 15 miles a day is generally the dis- tance covered by a transport. " Salted " cattle are the only ones in demand for working purposes. " Salted," when used in speaking of oxen, signifies that cattle can run the gauntlet of many diseases that so often bare the veld of grazing stock. These are cattle that have been sick but survived the attack. " Unsalted " stock are in little demand, as they often get sick after starting from the farmer's home and die by the roadside. One automobile to 15 persons is a high percentage in a city with about 100,000 white population, yet that indicates the wealth of the gold city on the high veld. There are over 800 automobiles and the same number of motorcycles in Johannes- burg, and among these are the largest, most expensive and swiftest manufactured. The term " The Rand " embraces the mining districts of the Reef, and " Witwatersrand " is used when speaking of the dis- tricts located close to Johannesburg. Sixty miles of smokestacks — from Krugersdorp to Springs — will suggest at once the magnitude of the great Gold Reef. Dynamite is blasting the gold-bearing ore for that distance 24 hours a day; black smoke is rolling out of high smokestacks from strong fires, under boilers in which steam is generated to furnish power to hoist the ore from thousands of feet under- ground to the stamp mills at the top; great dirt heaps — cyanide banks, as they are termed — circle about and wall in thrifty mining towns, that are not seen until a train stops at a railway station ; monster stamp mills, whose crushing machinery resembles the roar of a sea beating on a rocky shore, are grind- ing the quartz into powdered dust — for nearly thirty years the Reef has been exploited, and is still giving up its precious ore. Hundreds of thousands of people are engaged in this gold min- ing industry; the eyes of the money people of the world are constantly watching the gold yield of the Rand. In 1884 the output of the Transvaal gold mines was $55,000, and, save for a few years, during which the Boer war was being fought, the output Increased until it has reached the H bS O a. < H Is < 2 = < Q < > H < z; SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 97 enormous sum of $150,000,000 a year. The monthly output IS from $12,000,000 to $15,000,000. The stamps that crush the ore into powdered dust weigh from 1,800 to 2,000 pounds. Under the stamps are zinc-Hned in- ch'ning tables, 10 feet long and 4 feet wide, covered with quick- silver. Water washes the thin dust over the tables, when the gold adheres to the quicksilver. The dust from five stamps passes over one table. When about an eighth of an inch of gold sediment has accumulated, the stamps cease working, and the residue is scraped ofE the zinc. The scrapings look like thick black mud. The sediment then goes through a drying process. The dried chunks of gold " mud " is next put in' a kettle, or retort, and melted. Borax is tossed into the hot metal, which separates impurities from the gold, the precious metal remaining at the bottom of the kettle, the dross keeping to the top. More gold " mud " is put in the kettle, until there is enough to make a brick, or ingot. The gold metal is poured into a mold. Cool- ing in a few minutes, the red hot brick is dumped on the floor. The shape of an ingot is similar to a sponge cake, narrovi^er at the bottom than at the top. The weight of an ingot is 1,000 ounces, its value about $20,000. In early years the dirt that passed over the quicksilver was considered of little value, and was washed away. The dirt is now treated by what is termed the cyanide process. Remain- ing in large cyanide tanks, any gold contained in the dirt is re- duced to a liquid. The liquid next goes to the extracting room, where it passes through inclining tanks, 12 feet long by 6 feet wide, composed of five compartments. The floors of these tanks are covered with 8 inches of zinc shavings. The liquid slowly passes from one compartment to another. Any gold contained in the chemical solution adheres to the zinc shavings. The shavings are then taken from the tank and put in a retort. At the same time sulphuric acid is placed in the retort, which causes the zinc to dissolve. The sediment in this instance is also like black mud. This is next put through a drying process, put in another retort, when the gold can be seen, poured into a mold, and dumped on a floor in ingot form. 98 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Some of the mine owners are very obliging to visitors who wish to look about the works. The mines range in depth from 2,000 to 4,000 feet. Twenty thousand Europeans and 200,000 natives are em- ployed in the Rand mines. Paul Kruger, nearly 30 years ago, fixed the wages of the white miner at $5 a day. Contract miners, however, earn as much as from $200 to $300 a month ; but the average wage of the Rand miner is $160 a month. The natives' wage runs from 50 cents to a dollar a day and board. The hours worked are eight, three shifts comprising a day's force. Compound is the term used for an enclosure in which native employes are kept. As many as 3,000 to 4,000 kafirs work in some of the mines. From the mine they go to the compound, where a bunk is provided, a place to make a fire, and food is furnished. They are not allowed outside the enclosure at night, but on Sundays and holidays most of them are free. Tact has to be exercised when assigning kafirs to their quarters and to working mates, as a hostile feeling exists between certain tribes. If members of unfriendly clans be not kept apart, fights and murders often occur. Weasel-eyed, idle, easy living Europeans are found in con- siderable numbers in mining districts. Were the natives al- lowed their liberty in the evening, it would result in their com- plete demoralization, for the crafty gentry would succeed in getting bad whisky or vicious rum into the compounds, receiv- ing a big price for the poison, in addition to offering induce- ments to the " boys " to pilfer nuggets or heavy-bearing gold quartz. " Scarcity of help, scarcity of help," is the cry of mine owners in South Africa. Sharp competition prevails between mining companies for " boys," and it is a scarcity of this class of labor to which they allude. A European trader may have the con- fidence of natives in the district in which his store is located, and when help is wanted labor agents call on the merchant. When a trader induces natives to go to the mines, the firm to which they have been sent will pay him $15 for each " boy " SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 99 as a bonus. If the company failed to pay the bonus, it would thereafter get very few " boys " from that trader's district. In thickly populated centers like Kaffraria a dealer may con- trol as many as 1,000 natives. In such instances companies pay him an income of from $100 to $125 a month, in addition to the $15 a head, in order to keep in his good graces. If a " boy " should engage to work for the shorter term — six months — and rehire at the end of the term, the trader from whose dis- trict the kafir originally came would be sent an additional sum of $15. Where labor agents deal with native chiefs for mine " boys," the chief expects a " bonsella " of $2,50 for every " boy " leaving his district to work in the mines. With bonuses, clothes, car fare and other incidentals, it costs the mine company from $25 to $30 to get a " boy " from the kraal to the works. Mine owners claim they pay out a quarter of a million dollars a year in bonuses for native help. It is also claimed that the mining industry could not be conducted at a profit with all white labor. Twenty-one thousand graves in Braamfontein Cemetery, a great many of these containing two corpses, strongly empha- sizes the terrible toll of human life paid to King Gold in the Transvaal mines. This is but one European graveyard, as there are several smaller burying places in the Johannesburg district. Besides those in which only Dutch and English are buried, there are Jewish, Malay and Mohammedan graveyards scattered about the city. Braamfontein Cemetery is filled, and a new one is filling fast. This appalling mortality has taken place during the past 30 years. Eighty-nine open graves — mound after mound in as regu- lar order as are boards in a floor — is a gruesome setting that forces one to cast a sad glance at the clouds of black smoke pour- ing out of the hundreds of smokestacks on the great Gold Reef, and at the gray-colored cyanide banks that half encircle the city of Johannesburg. These unbroken rows of freshly dug graves were in the European section of Brixton graveyard, and at the other end of the large burying ground — the native sec- tion — eighty freshly dug graves presented a grim foreground. lOo SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS " Bubonic plague ? " the reader may ask. No, phthisis. Eighty in a thousand of ordinary miners, and 140 in a thou- sand of workers using underground drilling machines, are af- fected with phthisis. As gold-bearing rock is being blasted all the time, miners inhale the fine dust during working hours. Respirators, a device covering the nose and mouth, having a sponge at the mouth, and two openings at the side covered with a fine wire screen to admit of air, are worn by some of the workers, but, as it proves cumbersome, a great many miners discard that life-extending invention. Phthisis here signifies the drying up of the lungs. The dust inhaled settles in the ceils of the lungs, with the appalling result mentioned. Seven years is the average lifetime of the Rand miner. On the headstones in Braamfontein Cemetery, carved in granite, most of the ages are found to be in the twenties and thirties. Few stones observed bore ages of 40 years and over. The average number of burials in Johannesburg is ten a day; Europeans average four and natives six. People not engaged in underground work, and not connected with the mines in any capacity, also become affected with phthisis. As on American prairies, the wind blows on the veld nearly all the time, and generally with considerable force; hence the air is full of dust from the powder-crushed cyanide banks. Priest, preacher and missionary may be seen at cemetery gates all the time, more particularly in the afternoons. "Will there be any more funerals today?" was asked of a native who had just filled in a grave. " Yes, baas. Two wagons coming now," he answered, pointing to the road. The natives are buried in a burlap sack, drawn tight and sewed, reducing the natural size of the body considerably. Two corpses rest on the bottom of a grave. Six inches of dirt cover these, when tv^^o more of the sacked bodies are lowered, making four in one grave. The city of Johannesburg receive $7 for every kafir buried in Brixton graveyard — $28 for a grave containing the bodies of four natives. The owners of the mines at which the natives SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS loi had worked must pay this burial charge. Deaths of natives are caused more by accidents in mines than from phthisis, as kafirs will not, as a rule, work more than six months in the year. At the end of Brixton graveyard, where Europeans are buried, could be seen, from a distance, undertakers in long coats and high Jiats; hearses, ornamented with white or black cockades, drawn by horses of the same color; clergymen, their heads bowed and reading from books, with groups of veiled people huddled in small areas — putting people underground and the circumstances attending these ceremonies are of very frequent occurrence in Johannesburg. The grave-diggers have no slack seasons; they are busy the year round, which accounted for so many open graves. As they were sure to be needed, it was better to be ahead of the demand than crowded with orders. " Don't Expectorate ! " is the cautionary sign confronting one at almost every turn in the Gold City. Where the " Don't Spit!" sign appears frequently one knows he has reached a place where lung trouble is prevalent. Paved streets in some of the South African cities has not been considered so much of a municipal duty as in other parts of the world. The soil being hard, the rain, coming in show- ers, flows off as it does on paved streets. As the sun shines 365 days in the year on the high veld, the ground is dry in a short time after a shower has passed. Walking in the streets instead of on the walks is a local custom one quickly notices. In Johannesburg good, wide walks may be practically free of people though the street space is oc- cupied by pedestrians from curb to curb. " Joburg " is the local term used almost exclusively by South Africans when speaking of Johannesburg. When one hears another say " Johannesburg " it is a pretty sure sign that he is a stranger in " Darkest Africa." Living expenses are much higher in Johannesburg and other up-country cities than on the coast. House rent runs from $25 to $40 a month; meat was 18 cents to 30 cents a pound; I02 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS street car fare is very high; in a general sense, expenses are 20 per cent, higher than in the coast cities. Boarding houses charge from $35 to $40 a month; hotel accommodation is ex- pensive, too, the cheapest costing $3 a day; rooms cost $1.25 a day in all the hotels. Six cents is the least sum for any small article. A newspaper costs six cents (threepence), the boot- blacks charge 12 cents for a shine, barbers 18 cents for shaving; it seemed as if one was handing out six cents at every few squares to a street-car conductor, so short are the " stages " — in fact, few things can be had for less than six cents. Dutch, British and Jews comprise the majority of the popula- tion, Jews numbering one-third. Germans are also quite nu- merous. Americans, up to the time of the Boer War, held high positions with mining companies, but they have been thinned out since the country changed hands. Every country of the globe is represented in that cosmopolitan center. On pay days " Joburg " is a lively place. The saloons seem to get the biggest part of miners' wages. They spend their money like lords. In no place are bars better patronized. A glass of beer costs 12 cents, and stronger drinks 24 cents. The barmaid, a woman engaged tending bars in public drink- ing places in British territories, is not seen behind the bar of saloons in cities and towns of the Transvaal, men being en- gaged at that work. Years ago, when the game of baseball was played, which took place weekly and on holidays, crowds of people used to attend. Games are still played at weekly intervals, but only a few at- tend — sometimes not more than 100 persons. On the other hand, big crowds attend the English games — cricket and foot- ball. " Closed on account of dust." " Open — Closed on account of dust." Such signs will be found secured to doors of most business houses. The wind blows so generally, and nearly always so strongly, that all doors must be kept closed, whether of business or dwelling. With unpaved streets, and the half- circle of great cyanide banks about the city, Johannesburg, as appearing to some visitors, is not a choice place of residence. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 103 The climate of the Rand possesses one virtue — there is no malarial fever. On the other hand, the lips swell, chafe and crack from the effects of both the wind and high altitude, this causing an irritating feeling. Laundries do a good business here. Collars are changed twice a day, as the soil, being red, and the almost constant high winds, with the dry nature of the country, keeps the dust flying about most of the time. One will not have lived in this city long before he will have eaten his allotted " peck of dirt." In Ludlow Street Jail, New York, prisoners are kept who are not considered criminals — that class of men who cannot pay their debts and who have not been adjudged insolvent. The city pays for their food. In Johannesburg, if a man is sent to jail for a debt, the creditor must pay the city 50 cents a day for the debtor's board. Precious few prisoners of this class are found in the Johannesburg jail. Newspapers of the Rand are fully up to the requirements of the city, four dailies being published, two morning and two evening. The morning papers issue Sunday editions, one of these including a colored magazine section. It has required constant fighting by the owners to maintain the Sunday edi- tions, as it is an innovation in British territory. Opponents had injunctions issued against these publications, and in other ways the publishers were put to much inconvenience. This edi- tion still appears on the street, however, but, by a court decree, dealers and newsboys are prohibited from soliciting sales. Printers earn good wages on the Rand, running from $30 to $55 weekly, with the working hours seven and eight. One finds here linotype machines, web presses, color presses, stereo- typing — all the modern machinery in use in the North. South Africa is the one country where printers can do as well, and sometimes better, than in the United States. Mechanics and miners are so well organized that they have a building of their own. They pull together on election day, and, as a result, a number of union labor men are sprinkled about the upper and lower Houses of Parliament. Eight hours is the maximum working day in South Africa among skilled I04 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS mechanics and miners. Wages run from $4.50 to $6 a day. In years gone by the Dutch suffered so much from the natives during their treks that they have a pretty good idea of how to manage them. No blacks crowd Europeans off the walks in Johannesburg, for the black man is not allowed on them; he must walk in the street. This policy saves trouble for both black and white, for it prevents arguments and fights. He is not allowed to ride on street cars. In railroad compartments colored and half-castes are prohibited from intermingling with Europeans. " Reserved " is posted on the doors of certain com- partments, in which one generally would find well-to-do col- ored passengers. The native is not allowed to live in towns and cities here. What are termed " locations " are built by the municipality, and in these places the natives are kept to themselves. The Boer plan is much better than the English, as, if the black man be given too much liberty, it generally proves injurious to him. Dutch authorities are very severe on men smuggling liquor to natives. Five hundred dollars is the fine, and in default of payment the smuggler must serve five years in jail. Indians leaving Natal for the Transvaal generally come to grief. On arrival they are promptly taken into custody, and when 50 to lOO have been collected are put into box cars of a train headed for Portuguese territory, and soon find themselves in the hold of a ship sailing from Lourenzo Marques for India. Indians have spoiled the Province of Natal, so the Dutch are taking care that that race do not get the money that belongs to the white man in the Transvaal. Though Indians are Brit- ish subjects, it makes no difference to the Dutch. Australia has barred them from that country, too. An art gallery, a museum, a large public library, a good zoo, sports grounds, parks where music is furnished, theaters, schools, churches, hospitals — all the public accessories that make a city are found in Johannesburg; also most modern city fire-fighting appliances, an electric street car system, electric and gas plants, fully in keeping with those in cities of the same size located in the countries of the North. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 105 " Necessity is the mother of invention," so, as there is prac- tically no timber in South Africa, and brick buildings cost quite a sum of money to erect, homes had to be made of something else. Corrugated iron was the material that answered the pur- pose of brick, wood and stone. About all the timber required to erect one of these houses is for joists, scantlings, and doors. The sheets of corrugated iron are nailed to the joists and to the scantling at the roof. Sometimes there are plastered interiors, but a great many have no more protection than the sheet of iron. They are very hot in summer and very cold in winter. They pop and crack all the time from expansion and contraction. These houses are seldom more than one story high. " Wood and iron " buildings is what they are called. " Pipe Hospital " may be seen over the door of a tobacco store. It means that pipes are repaired there. A broad-brimmed hat, with a thick outside band, the latter often brown, with a white speck here and there, is the head- covering worn in the interior of South Africa. It is the only hat a Dutchman wears. Derby hats are in little demand in that part of the world. One occasionally sees a man wearing that style, but soft hats hold the day. Snow fell in Johannesburg a few years since, the first in 20 years, and it proved an epoch in the history of the country. Important events that took place before or since are referred to as having occurred before or after the storm. Still, the weather gets cold enough to freeze water, but the sun warms up everything in the daytime. By reason of the high altitude — over 6,000 feet — the weather is never too hot in summer. To General Louis Botha the people of not only South Africa, but of the world, owe a great debt for saving the Rand mines. The time Botha rendered this service was when Lord Roberts, with his invincible forces, was outside the gates of Johannesburg prepared to enter the city. Most of the gold mines on the Rand had been wired and powerful explosives placed at sec- tions where the greatest damage would take place from an explosion. It was planned that as soon as Lord Roberts en- tered the city an electric button would be pressed to set ofE io6 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the bombs, which would ruin the mines. Botha, of course, was well aware of what was to occur. A messenger was dispatched by him to Lord Roberts, bearing a request from the Boer com- mander to delay entering the city for 24 hours. Lord Roberts acceded to the request. During the interval General Botha pleaded with his Boer sympathizers not to blow up the mines. It required his utmost persuasive ability to dissuade the men from carrying out their purpose. He eventually got their prom- ise that the mines would not be molested. Had Botha been narrow-minded or vindictive, instead of a broad-minded man, in dealing with Lord Roberts, the world's output of gold since that time would probably have been from $100,000,000 to $120,000,000 less annually. Johannesburg is named after a Boer — Johannes — whose farm was located on a portion of the Gold Reef. It was about 1885 when gold was discovered. The Great Trek by the Dutch from Cape Colony to the Transvaal took place in 1835—38. Being dissatisfied with English administration in Cape Colony, they, like the Mormons in America, kept going into uninhabited parts, stopping only when they believed they had gone beyond reach of everybody, where ^hey could live their own lives in their own way. There were thousands in the Great Trek. In 1852 a government was formed, and M. W. Pretorious became the first President of the South African Republic. In the early seventies there were about 25,000 Boers in the Transvaal. In 1876 the re- public practically collapsed, when England assumed responsibil- ity. In 1877 the British flag was raised in Pretoria, but the Dutch did not relish that innovation. During 1881 the Boers attacked the English garrisons, and in January, 1882, the Brit- ish suffered successive defeats at Majuba Hill, under command of General Colley, the latter being killed at Ingogo Heights. Eight hundred English officers and men were killed in the en- gagements, and on the Boer side 18 were killed and 33 wounded. A few lean years for the Dutch followed. Later, the gold fields of Barberton sprang into existence, then the Rand, and undreamed of wealth poured into the Transvaal, towns spring- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 107 ing up as if by magic. It was during this early heyday period of the Rand that adventurous spirits such as Barnato, Ham- mond, Beit, Rhodes and others figured prominently in the life of Boerland — some there by reason of the opportunity to vent their inborn desire for adventure, others as agents of Great Britain, but all playing for high stakes round the green table of the great Gold Reef. With the exception of the Jameson Raid, in 1895, the Boers enjoyed peace and prosperity up to the opening of the Anglo-Boer war in 1899, when, three years later, the Transvaal and Orange Free State became British possessions. On May 31, 1910, the four provinces — Cape of Good Hope, Natal, Orange Free State and Transvaal — became the Union of South Africa, with General Louis Botha, Premier, his Cabi- net, save one, being composed of Dutch members. Each prov- ince has its legislature, like our State legislature. A governor- general, appointed by the King of England, is the representative of the Imperial Government in South Africa and Rhodesia. With the exception of eight Senators, appointed by the Gov- ernor-General, the members of the National and Provincial Parliaments are elected by popular vote. One is safe, com- mercially speaking, in saying Johannesburg is more than half of Boerland. Law and order in the Gold City conform to the British standard. Noted crooks and adventurers are found about places where gold and diamonds are mined, yet few big bur- glaries take place. In stature, the policemen of Johannesburg are second to none. They are of splendid physique. Native policemen are used in that city also. The ravages of cattle diseases in South Africa is strongly suggested on seeing refrigerator cars being emptied of frozen meat. The poorer portions of beeves and sheep find their way to the compounds, the meat being eaten by the mine " boys." The frozen meat comes from Australia and New Zealand, ar- riving every week, and is shipped to what is called an agricul- tural country. What seems an inexcusable lack of enterprise, combined with io8 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS mismanagement, is seen at every turn. Cattle hides are shipped to Europe, while boots and shoes worn in South Africa are made in England, Germany, Holland or the United States. Wool is shipped to centers North, and hence all the woolen goods come from Europe. One may ride through sections that should make splendid farming districts, but these are held by landowners in tracts of from 2,000 to 30,000 acres, and only a small area is under cultivation. Lack of water is the reason given. One sees no windmills, however. Rain water is often stored in a crude pond, which is generally muddy from sheep and cattle walking in it. This dirty drinking water alone is enough to kill the stock. Every animal of field and farm seems to have a mortal enemy. With the cattle, one of three diseases — East Coast or tick fever, rinderpest and red water — is apt to decimate them at any time; two or three diseases wipe out sheep; there is what is termed " horse sickness," horses also dying from eating grass when dew is on the ground, and meningitis menaces mules. At least four drawbacks figure in raising grain — drought, hailstones, locusts and poor farming — the worst being the presence of the black man, meaning poor farming; though his hut rent keeps the white man's coffee-pot boiling, at the same time it unhands him industrially. When one sees a piece of plowed land it is generally but half plowed, a grassy strip of sod often appearing between furrows at some part of the field. It would be a rare thing to see unplowed strips be- tween furrows in England, on the Continent, or in most of the farming States of America. CHAPTER V The Dutch being averse to having the capital near the sea coast, as soon as they gained full control of United South Africa, on May 31, 19 10, they decided on Pretoria as the cap- ital, although Capetown w^as v^^ell provided with good legisla- tive buildings. Money was then appropriated to erect govern- ment buildings in Pretoria, and a hill east of the city was selected as a site for the Parliament buildings. Following this, a large force of government employes were compelled to leave Cape- town for Pretoria, as government business was in future to be transacted in the Transvaal instead of the Cape of Good Hope. At present Pretoria, 45 miles from Johannesburg, is the capital of United South Africa. Before the war the Boers exercised control over only the Transvaal and Orange Free State, but 1 1 years later they also exercised authority over the Provinces of the Cape of Good Hope and Natal. One who had imagined he would not find modern utilities and attractiveness of a general nature in a place located 'way up on the veld would be much taken aback upon entering Pre- toria. Encircled by a range of hills is this, the best-looking large town in the interior of South Africa. The city being so far away from the busy centers of the world, and over a thou- sand miles inland from Capetown, one would not expect to find fine, clean streets, a good electric street railway system, good parks, in some of which music is furnished ; shade trees, water fountains, and splendid buildings — residential, business, municipal and governmental. The Dutch Reformed Church, built in the center of the old market square, around which long ox teams used to slowly worm their way and seek shelter behind its stone walls from winds and shade from the sun; where auctioneers, chattering 109 no SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS like monkeys, sold produce of burghers, brought from points a hundred miles in some instances, to the highest bidder; where Boer met Boer and sympathized with each other during lean years, discussed native wars, their troubles with England, and the ravages of locusts and rinderpest; where the last President of the Transvaal intermingled with his people, walking among the piles of pumpkins, calabashes, tomatoes, guinea fowl, chick- ens, hares, and buck; where, on holy days. Psalms were sung by these rough-looking plainsmen — this historical assembling place of burghers, with its old-time and latter-day memories, has been removed, and the market-place converted into a public garden, surrounded at ends and one side by imposing govern- ment buildings. On visiting the square where the old church stood, the men of full beards and broad-brimmed soft hats now look instead on beds of flowers in bloom and fountains casting rainbow spray round a circular space. One feels more comfortable in Pretoria after having spent some time in the Gold City, for he has left the red dust be- hind, the unattractive cyanide banks, the clouds of black smoke and the sooty buildings. The air is free from smoke, from the dirt banks, and a healthier atmosphere prevails. Pretoria is Dutch; Johannesburg cosmopolitan. Some 40,000 people were living in this attractive place, and the population is increasing. The government departments were removed from Capetown, one after another, and with the reestablishment of each Pretoria's population naturally in- creased as the government employes followed. " Civil serv- ants " is the term used to denote government employes. An increase in salaries was granted to employes when brought from Capetown or Durban, as the salaries paid in the coast cities, on which a frugal person could save money, provided little more than food and clothing in the new capital. As in Johannesburg, house rent is high, and board cannot be had at less than from $35 to $40 a month. The cost of living here, as in Johannes- burg, is from 15 to 20 per cent, higher than the coast towns. Away from mining towns smokestacks are few and far be- tween. Pretoria makes a better showing in this respect, as SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS in there are flour mills, an ice plant, an electric power house, and small manufactures that give the place a business appearance. Walking a few blocks along West Kerk street, on the right hand side, may be seen a one-story stone and cement house, roofed with corrugated iron. This building is surrounded with an iron fence, built on a cement foundation. On each side of the walk leading to the house are two stone lions. In front is a veranda. In that modest house Paul Kruger lived. Walking in the same direction a few squares a park is reached. Entering by a gate, a short distance ahead is seen a large cement foundation with steps leading up, and resting on the foundation is a square granite base. The monu- ment finishes there. Postcards bear a picture of the completed monument to Paul Kruger, but it lacks the bronze figure of the Boer President. " The monument that was to have been erected to the memory of the late President Kruger " is the wording under the picture of the " completed " monument. The bronze figure of Paul Kruger reached Lourenzo Marques, Portuguese East Africa, at the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War, in 1899. Several lean years followed the Boers' defeat, and the Transvaal was theirs no longer. What stands of " the monument that was to have been " is well looked after. Some day, however, the printing on a postcard of the completed monu- ment will read: " Paul Kruger's Monument." " Dick " Seddon, of New Zealand, was a great man; Brazil, Argentine, Chile and Australia have produced men they con- sider great, but their fame is only local. Many in other coun- tries tell one that the United States has produced but two great men — Washington and Lincoln. Looking at things from a world viewpoint, one cannot find a man born south of the equator who measures up to Paul Kruger's fame. So, in fair- ness to rugged genius, it would seem no overt act would be com- mitted if the completed monument did stand in that park in Pretoria — to the memory of the greatest man born south of the equator. " Have you been out to Wonderboom? " is a question visitors to Pretoria will be asked. Six or seven miles from the capital 112 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS is seen from a distance what looks like a very large tree, located a mile from the railroad station. Big trees with dark green leaves are rare on the veld, which accounts for Wonderboom being such an attraction. In a radius of 150 feet seven groups of trees are growing, and from each grows half a dozen trees. The space taken up by some of these groups measures from 20 to 30 feet, and the clumps grow from roots of what appeared to have been large trees at one time. When vegetation of all sorts is white from drought the Wonderboom is as green as if it had been watered at frequent intervals. The trees grow 20 feet high, and cover an area of half an acre. No one seemed to know the name of the wood. " Vonderboom " seemed to be sufficient to cover all questions asked about its specie. English newspapers published in Pretoria could not be favor- ably compared to the Johannesburg productions. This may be accounted for by the existence of Dutch publications, which naturally have a larger patronage than English newspapers, the population being in the main Dutch. As a considerable amount of the government printing is now done in Pretoria, this in- dustry has improved. The pay is from $30 to $45 a week, eight hours' work. Mechanics of all kinds receive $5 a day. All government documents, bills, blanks, etc., are printed in two languages — Dutch and English. As the government owns the railway, telegraph, postoffice and telephone systems, any one can understand what a big item the government's printing bill is. This was agreed to by the British representa- tives who attended the convention at which the consolidation of the four provinces was ratified. The Dutch adhere strictly to this agreement affecting their language. The Dutch are not a vindictive race. No tales of brutality are heard of in connection with the Boer War. Men who fought on the British side tell of having been taken prisoner and of being sent back to their command. Sometimes the Boers would take the clothes off a captive, and then direct him to where his fellow soldiers were camped. Paul Kruger would have been justified in shooting the men who instigated and took part in the Jameson Raid, on the grounds of treason, but he SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 113 spared their lives. They paid big sums of money in fines, though, for their unsuccessful, treasonable offense. The Dutch have their faults, like other races, but they seem the better able to guide the destiny of their land of plagues. The Boer War, in a sense, proved a blessing in disguise to the Dutch. Previous to that time proper attention had not been given to educating the young; precious few lawyers, doc- tors, educators and mining engineers bore Dutch names. Look through the directories of South Africa now and contrast the number of Dutch names that figure among those of the profes- sional class. The war woke up the Boers to a sense of assum- ing a greater responsibility in the advancement of their country. A great many Dutch young men are students in the leading universities of the world. Nothing feminine in sound is noticeable about the names of places in Boerland. But one often feels at a loss to account for the general use of the affix " fontein." Save for a narrow strip along the coast the country is dry. The Orange and the Vaal rivers seem to be the only two of consequence in the in- terior. The country is full of " spruits," " fonteins " and rivers which, when one reaches them, are dry as a bone. The only things that seem to " spruit " in them are cobble-stones and rattle-snakes. "Assegaiboschfontein," "Jakhalskraalfontein," " Wildebeeste- spruitbult " are a few names of towns that occur to one as being decidedly masculine. Boers, physically, are large men. Many of the older men wear full beards, and invariably wear a broad-brimmed hat with cloth band of several plies thick. They smoke calabash pipes, the weed being known as Boer tobacco, which costs 50 cents a pound. They generally carry a sjambok, a strip of rhinoceros hide about three feet long and an inch thick. Meeting one alone, the questions he asks in quick succession — " What's your name? " " Where do you come from? " " What's your busi- ness?" "Have you been in South Africa long?" "How long are you going to stay in the country?" — bring to mind this distinguishing trait of a noted Chinese who made a visit to 114 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS ' America some years ago. Rum is the Boer's strong drink, but he is seldom seen under the influence of liquor. In a sense, he is of a roaming disposition, for some Boers are on the trek all the time. They seem to be better suited when they have got beyond the outposts of civilization. Were it not for the Boer's inclination to trek, hovi^ever, it is possible there would be no gold mines on the Rand or diamond fields in Kimberley. His bat- tles with the native tribes and his sufferings and hardships will never be lost sight, of as the factors through which the white man was enabled to live in that section of ** Darkest Africa." CHAPTER VI We take our departure from the Transvaal and make a start for Victoria Falls, in Rhodesia, also British territory. Travel- ing some 300 miles out of a direct line, through Fourteen Streams, to Vryburg, on to Mafeking, finds us nearly opposite the place started from, but headed in the right direction. A gap of 40 miles from Zeerust to the main line has since been closed, which makes the trip from Johannesburg to Bulawayo much shorter. Two trains a week care for all the business over that stretch of native territory. From Fourteen Streams, which is only a railway junction, we start northward over the treeless veld on our way to Rho- desia, 700 miles beyond. Vryburg is the next place reached where white people live, and most of the 3,000 inhabitants are engaged in business connected with farming. Nearly a hundred miles further Mafeking was reached, which has been made his- torical in virtue of the seven-months' siege of Britishers during the Boer War. It is located near the Transvaal border, and is a trading center for the western Transvaal. Railway car shops are located at Mafeking, and these and the trading industries give employment to its 3,000 inhabitants. An hour's ride further, and we have crossed the Cape Colony- Bechuanaland Protectorate border line. Northward from that point we pass through what seems an uninhabited country, so far as white people are concerned. A railway station is built here and there along the line, where a few Europeans may be seen ; but the country is wild and populated with natives. Were one to go to sleep for six or eight hours, upon waking up he would not know that he had moved a mile, so far as any change in the appearance of the landscape would indicate. At a few stations signs of industry were in evidence, bags of corn being piled along the track. "5 ii6 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Natives with karosses (skins of wild beasts) and native-made souvenirs surrounded the train when stops were made, spread- ing their wares on the ground and holding the objects of native handicraft to the gaze of the passengers. The natives' souvenirs were the images of giraffes, elephants, lions, tigers, storks and other animals cut out of wood and painted or dyed black, but many of the imitations were far from good. Splendid karosses are bought cheap along the line. One can have his choice of a lion, tiger, hyena, jackal, wildcat, monkey and baboon, and sometimes a giraffe. Many are as large as a bufFalo robe. " How much! " shouted a splendid specimen of a Bechuana woman, in the native language, as she held her naked pickaninny over her head — laughing heartily at the same time — at a place where the train had stopped and where natives and ka- rosses were numerous. Passengers were bartering and haggling with the natives over the price of karosses, and others were ambitious to sell their souvenirs. The black mother had im- bibed the " shopping " spirit, when she jocularly offered her babe for sale. "Half a crown!" (60 cents) shouted a pas- senger. With that offer the semi-barbarous mother quickly brought her pickaninny to her bosom, threw her arms about the little one and gave it such a hug that the baby's eyes bulged, she laughing so heartily the while as if to split her sides. Still traveling toward the heart of Africa, we reach Mochudi and the Kalahari Desert, the eastern fringe of which we trav- erse, a distance of 200 miles. The dust had become so thick in this stretch of the journey that the color of the passengers' clothes could not be detected. All the way along from Mafe- king I could not keep from my mind the Americanism, " It's a great country, where nobody lives and dogs bark at stran- gers." When the train stopped at Mahalapye we entered what is known as Khama's country. The course of the railroad is nearly on the line taken by David Livingstone, the explorer. When Livingstone and his band passed through that section of Africa, the grandfather of the reigning chief offered every hospitality to the explorer, and espoused the Christian religion. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 117 Chief Khama, the grandson, Is the most important ruler of Bechuanaland, and has spent some time in Europe; he con- forms largely to European customs. Besides being a strict disciplinarian, he forbids the sale of liquor to his people. He receives a pension from the English Government. Serowe, Khama's capital, located 30 miles inland from Palapye Road station, is the largest town in Bechuanaland, having a popula- tion of 40,000. His subjects pay the smallest head tax of any of the tribes in South Africa. We were passing through a country about which the wilde- beeste, gemsbuck, eland, tiger, lion, and even the giraffe, still roam. Along the railway may be seen the secretary bird, guinea fowl and also handsome cranes. The secretary bird, so named from feathers growing at the back of the head, which look like quill pens, is what is known as " royal game." " Royal game " are beasts or fowl that must not be killed. The reason the secretary bird is protected is because it is a bitter foe to snakes. Snatching a snake in the middle with his bill, he at once begins to fly upward with the reptile, and when at a certain height will let go his prey. The snake, when he strikes the earth, is killed. White traders are located through these desolate tracts of country, sometimes a hundred miles from a railway. Little cash changes hands between natives and traders in out-of-the- way districts. For his skins and corn, or whatever the native may have to sell, he receives as pay bright-colored calico, Jew's- harps, concertinas, mouth organs, tinware and such things. Passing out of Khama's country we enter a territory known as the Tati Concessions. Traversing this tract, we crossed the northern boundary of Bechuanaland a few miles south of Plum- tree, when we were in Matabeleland, Rhodesia. In this sec- tion Lobengula, the Matabele king, held undisputed sway until Cecil Rhodes decided to annex this part of Africa to England's possessions. What Andries Pretorius did to Dingaan at Blood River — broke forever the power of the Zulus — Cecil Rhodes did with the powerful Lobengula in Matabeleland. We passed vnthin ten miles of the Matopo Hills, on the top ii8 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS of which is buried Cecil John Rhodes, " the Colossus of South Africa," as he was termed. Whatever shortcomings Rhodes may have possessed, or the means he resorted to to attain his ambition, one of his virtues will always remain unques- tioned — bravery. He wished his remains to rest where his greatest feat of daring took place. It was during the rebellion of the Matabeles in 1896-97 that Rhodes, un- armed, with a friend accompanying him, walked up the Ma- topos through the files of the warring hordes of blacks to where their chiefs were stationed. His cool bravery and personal magnetism so impressed the chiefs that the rebellion ceased. " Here lie the remains of Cecil John Rhodes " is the brief in- scription carved on a granite slab that covers his grave, which was chiseled out of a solid rock on the highest of the Matopo Hills. " World's View " is the name Rhodes gave the place where he is buried. It is located 30 miles southeast of Bula- wayo. Bulawayo, meaning in English " the place of killing," is lo- cated in the heart of wildest Africa. We find here splendid streets, as wide as those of Salt Lake City, fringed with trees, with monuments erected at convenient places in the center; a good public library, containing 5,000 volumes; hospitals, parks, a botanical garden, zoological park, museum and art gallery, schools, churches, business buildings, daily newspapers — all of a high order. Bulawayo, nearly 1,400 miles from Capetown, has a poulation of 5,000 whites. It is the largest town of Matabeleland, the center of the gold mining industry, and has had railway connection with the Transvaal since 1897. Only four years earlier Lobengula's Kraal occupied the land that Bulawayo is built on. It required the sacrifice of many lives of hardy frontiersman to conquer the Matabeles, and to pave the way for the accession of Matabeleland, Mashonaland, Barotseland and the other sections that comprise Rhodesia. Industries in Bulawayo are few and small. In this respect, however, it is no different than most African towns. But lo- cated in the country away from the metropolis are numerous gold mines, and Bulawayo is headquarters for that industry. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 119 The annual output from these mines run from $12,000,000 to $15,000,0000. We find in this place the typical frontiersmen. This feature of the country is reflected from its founder, as Rhodes was not a " toff." Every one goes in his shirtsleeves, and derby hats are not sold in Bulawayo. Soft, wide-brimmed hats, like those worn by the Boers, rule the day. One occasionally sees the butt of a revolver sticking out of a hip pocket or at the side of a belt, and hunting knives, incased in a sheath, are carried by almost every one, particularly on leaving town. A rifle strapped over the shoulder of men coming in from country districts is a common thing to see. Lions and tigers are so numerous in Rhodesia that weapons are carried to protect one's-self from any attack that might be made by the wild beasts. Still, under these " trouble-making " conditions, we find maintained that same respect for law and order that was so noticeable in other parts. A native word — " indaba " — much in use in Rhodesia, is often used in South Africa. When the chiefs met to talk over matters pertaining to their tribe — a native cabinet meeting — the meeting would be termed an " indaba." When Cecil Rhodes was engaged in dissuading the Matabele chiefs on the Matopo hill to discontinue the rebellion, the meeting of the "great white chief" with the native chiefs was termed an " indaba." In the grounds of Governrtient House stands what is known as the " Indaba Tree." The residence of the Governor-Gen- eral is built on the site of Lobengula's home, and it was under this tree that the rulers of the Matabele tribe assembled and dispensed native justice. Though the altitude of Matabeleland is about 5,000 feet, the weather is warmer in winter than it is in the Transvaal. Mention has been made of " salted " cattle in South Africa. The only people who can live in most parts of Rhodesia are " salted " men. If the inhabitants are so fortunate as to take on a few pounds of flesh at certain seasons, they lose that much, and generally more, from fever and ague at another season. Among the creditable buildings mentioned of Bulawayo was I20 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS included " good hospitals." Wherever hospitals are seen fre- quently, particularly in small settlements, one is using sound judgment if he makes his escape from that place early, as other- wise he will soon be personally familiar with the interior of these institutions. Wherever hospital facilities of a small com- munity are of the first order, one finds a graveyard out of all proportion to the number of people who live in the place. A hen with a brood of chicks was crossing a sidewalk in Bula- wayo, and each chick had its head drawn back between its wings. They were so slow getting across the walk that one had to step over them — stepping over chunks of fever, as it were. Rhodesia is a trap in which many poor men get caught. The riches of the country are much advertised in England, and those who come out and buy land soon find that their limited means are gone, and they are practically stranded. Both Rhodesia and South Africa are countries only for men with capital. The railway branches in two directions from Bulawayo — one easterly to Salisbury and out to Beira, Portuguese East Africa, the latter place being the port for Rhodesia ; and north- westerly to Victoria Falls, and from that point 300 miles north- ward toward the southern border of the Congo Free State. This branch is what is known as the Cape-to-Cairo route. We will start for the Falls. Fifty miles from Bulawayo we left the plains and passed through a forest of teak trees. Further on, growing palms indicated a warmer climate. " Thirteen years ago," said a traveling companion, who was a trader in these parts, " fourteen of us came up to Rhodesia. None was over 25 years of age. I'm the only one left out of the fourteen," he concluded. Asked what had taken off his companions, he answered : " One was killed by a lion, and the others died of fever." Ho! a smokestack is in view. We have reached Wankie, a coal mining district, and a rich one, too, for the mineral may be seen cropping out of the ground on each side of the track. A big hospital is observed, situated on a hill, which bears the usual significance in Rhodesia. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 121 " Do you see that low, white cloud to the right ? " asked a passenger. " That's the spray from Victoria Falls. We have several miles yet to go before we reach the bridge," he added. We had traveled 1,200 miles from Johannesburg to this place, the journey taking three days. Recklessness, rather than good judgment, marked my course, for railroad fare from and back to Johannesburg tapped my purse for $100. Expenses on the train had increased also, as the cheapest meal from Mafe- king north was 60 cents, and the next cheapest 75 cents. But to one whose mind inclines to seeing the acme of nature's hand- icraft, promptings of this character outvi^igh financial con- siderations. Hotel accommodation at Victoria Falls was cor- respondingly high — $5 a day. One has no choice, as there is but a single hotel there, which is the property of the rail- road company. Aside from the hotel, a photographer's studio and a few houses comprise all there is in the way of buildings in Victoria Falls. Some of the Boers who took part in the Great Trek from Capetown north in 1835-38 did not stop long in what later became the Transvaal, but kept trekking, until they reached the Zambezi River. Most of these voortrekkers, however, were massacred by Matabeles. This occurred from ten to fifteen years earlier than Livingstone's visit. But it fell to David Livingstone to make known to the world the greatest of water- falls, on which he first set eyes in November, 1855. For a distance of seven miles above the falls the river is dotted with evergreen islands. Through this archipelago the waters of the Zambezi slowly run, giving no intimation of what is taking place several miles below. On these islands hip- popotami feed when inclination prompts, and crocodiles sun themselves and sleep when they choose land to water rest. Two islands — Livingstone and Cataract — are located at the edge of the precipice, which accounts for Victoria Falls being of three parts, namely: Rainbow, Main and Cataract Falls. The distance from one side of the river to the other here is over a mile — 5,808 feet, to be correct. The water, un- 122 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS like that of Niagara, is of a dark, sallow color, but not muddy, and the falls are straight, instead of horseshoe shape. Stealthily the water moves over the wide ledge of rock, when its dull, lifeless color in the archipelago now assumes a much brighter shade. Save for two dark panels of unwatered space, made by two green islands just above, there unfolds be- fore the visitor's eye what seems a mile-wide mantle of amber- colored, gauze-like lace. Myriads of water crystals dart from the broad flow's filmy web and, jewel-like, embellish the ab- sorbing water spread for a depth of 380 feet. Also rainbows revel in still further enhancing this crowning masterpiece of art — these, in beautifying, sharing a radiant part — the bars of iris, of lustrous, engrossing hues, burnishing the peerless tri- falls' breast, as the veil-like flow descends in brilliant, multi- colored, wavy folds from its smooth, extended crest to the roaring, misty maw below. Clouds of spray, which may be seen 15 miles away, rise to a height of 2,000 feet from the boiling abyss, and the thunderous roar made by the impact of the waters is heard 12 miles beyond. A parallel wall rises in front of the precipice over which the water flows. A space varying from 80 to 240 feet separates the two. Into this narrow chasm 5,000,000 gallons of water a minute dash from a height of 380 feet, and one may imagine what pandemonium is taking place all the time in the great vault. For three-quarters of a mile the second, or parallel, wall, runs westward, unbroken. Then there is a break of something like 200 feet in width, that looks as if it had been gnarled out not only by water, but that even some other powerful agency had taken part in making this cleavage. The wall rises again to its full height and maintains a solid, un- broken front for a quarter of a mile further to Cataract Falls, at the west bank of the river. The water from Rainbow Falls, at the east bank, and from Main Falls, in the center of the river, runs westward to the 200-foot gap in the parallel wall, and the water from Cataract Falls runs eastward and, boiling and foaming, intermixes with the other waters and flows Victoria Falls. Zambezi Bridge and Gorge Below Falls. Note.— The parallel wall against which the flow dashes is equal in height to the precipice over which the water passes, the picture being drawn with a view of affording a clearer conception of Vic- toria's wide descent. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 123 through the same opening. One may form an idea of the great depth of water at the narrow outlet when it is borne in mind that this vast quantity, falling over a ledge of rock a mile wide, finds its way out of the huge rock tank through that narrow channel. After the water storms through the 200-foot wide channel the torrent travels several hundred feet, when it flows under the Zambezi railway bridge, 450 feet above. On it turbu- lently runs, the water befoamed, through high, perpendicular walls of basaltic rock for over a mile. The rocky banks then decrease, but the course of the river remains rugged and tortu- ous for a distance of 40 miles. Vegetation growing about the falls, particularly palm trees, adds much attractiveness to the environment. The absence of improvements — save for the bridge, together with grass- thatched native huts showing dimly through the vegetation on the banks; the evergreen islands; the stillness of the water be- fore making its plunge, contrasted with the wild-appearing, rugged, high, rocky walls below and the foaming and billowy torrent as it dashes madly through the narrow gorge — make Victoria, like other great works of nature, distinctive in forma- tion from other notable waterfalls. Summing up the comparative grandeur and greatness of Niagara and Victoria Falls, most persons who have seen both would decide, I believe, that Niagara Falls is the more beauti- ful and Victoria the greater. In this connection one has only to compare the grand crescent of sky-blue water of Niagara with the dull color of Victoria Falls, the water of Niagara, after plunging over an unbroken stretch of rock ledge into a roomy, circular-shaped basin, assuming its true blue color, with the gradual narrowing of the banks to the Gorge; contrast Ni- agara's broad, sweeping, unconfined character with the water of the Zambezi, hemmed in from view in tank-like walls after passing over the falls, and then prevented from making a good showing, as it were, by a continuation of similar walls for a distance of 40 miles. 1^4 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS The bridge across the Zambezi River is a pretty one, with a single span of 6io feet, and was constructed by an American firm. Cecil Rhodes instructed the builders to erect it where it now stands, " so that it would always be wet by spray from the falls." Nature's fickleness, a trait disclosed in choosing remote re- gions for some of her noted wonders, entailing, as it does, long journeys, fatigue and much expense to reach, is conspicuous by her placing Victoria in a country hemmed in on the west by Angola and German West Africa, north by the Belgian Congo, northeast by German East Africa, east by Portuguese East Africa, and south by Bechuanaland and the Transvaal. The shortest time in which a journey could be made from an Ameri- can port to these falls is about five weeks. Landing at Cape- town, four days' travel, on a slow train, mostly over a dry and dusty country, must be undergone to reach that point, when Victoria Falls is viewed in all its sublimity, located in a wild, interesting, but fever-ridden, section of Rhodesia, where only a handful of languid white persons live, and on a continent where the superior race number less than a million and a half. It is dangerous to cross the Zambezi River in a rowboat, the river being infested with crocodiles, which grow from 12 to 16 feet long. The hippopotamus, though, starts the trouble. He hides just under the water, and nothing can be seen of the beast until a boat is on top of him. Then he rises, overturning the boat. "Hippo" will not harm a person in the water; but crocodiles are generally found close to a hippopotamus, and the former are always hungry. As soon as the unfortunate occu- pants of a boat have been dumped overboard there is a swirl of water close by, another farther off, yet more disturbed water, when long, dull colored shapes come lashing swiftly up. The poor swimmers disappear, the muddy water reddens for a short time, and then becomes sallow colored again. To the Barotse native the crocodile is a sacred animal, and, as he will not harm the voracious beasts, deaths of both natives and Europeans by crocodiles occur frequently in this part of Rhodesia. The Zambezi River rises in West Portuguese Africa and SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 125 empties into the Indian Ocean at Chinde, Portuguese East Af- rica, about a thousand miles from its source. Beer and whiskey are drunk a great deal in that part of Rhodesia, and almost every one takes quinine to allay fever. No one would dare take a drink of water were it not boiled. " Knocking around " is a term much in use in Rhodesia. "Have you seen John Smith knocking around?" "Is there a boat knocking around? " " Are there lions knocking around here ? " are common instances in which the term is used. Tigers are so numerous about Victoria Falls that they rob hen roosts, and even climb through pantry windows and take away what eatables are handy. Vegetation in these parts is interesting to visitors, as all the bushes and trees are strange to those coming from foreign places. Nearly every tree or shrub produces its seed in the form of a pod, like beans. Thorn prongs, as sharp as needles and two and three inches in length, grow on some trees. The cream-of-tartar tree, however, will interest a visitor more. This one grows very large, and the bark is the color of a hippopotamus' skin. In fact, the bark of all trees has a dark color. The pod of the cream-of-tartar is the shape of a cucum- ber and 10 to 12 inches long. The shell is very hard, but, when broken open, if ripe, the substance in the pod is white, and separates from the fibers in the form of sugar cubes. The natives eat it. One cream-of-tartar tree seen close to the falls measured 22 feet in diameter. A very good tribe of natives is found in that part of Rhodesia — the Barotse. At a kraal visited, several of the sightseers asked a native for a drink of native beer. The liquid was brought in a large calabash, and the drinking cup was the bowled-out end of a small calabash. Before the native served the beer he poured out some of the brew in the hollow of his hand and drank it. Then he tilted the vegetable demijohn, when the beer was poured into the cup for the Europeans. The reason of the Barotse sampling the beer first was to allay any suspicion his white visitors might entertain concerning its gea- uineness. 126 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Natives* musical instruments are a one-string fiddle, a skin drum, and a little wooden frame containing three and four pieces of steel a quarter of an inch in width and four inches in length. This last is called a " piano." The small strips of steel are fastened at one end of the frame. By touching these with the fingers a faint musical sound is produced. For hours at a time a husky native keeps playing the " piano," happy in the thought that he is an accomplished pianist. Lewanika is the head chief of the Barotse tribe. Native wives are much cheaper in Barotseland than in Zulu- land, prices ranging from two sheep to ten cows. Should the wife leave her husband — elope, for instance — the girl's father must return the sheep or cows to the deserted husband. North of the Zambezi River the territory is known as North- western Rhodesia, and also Barotseland. Seven miles from Victoria Falls is located Livingstone, the capital of North- western Rhodesia. Here, right in the heart of one of the fever regions of Africa, one finds small but substantial provin- cial buildings, a good, roomy hotel, an up-to-date printing of- fice, and a small but interesting botanical garden. Malarial, or African, fever is very bad at Livingstone. Horses and cattle cannot live in this part of Rhodesia unless they are well " salted." Everything must be " salted," both man and beast. Transport riders, when taking a load of pro- visions to traders or to mining camps located far from the railway, are provided with extra oxen. Lions are so numerous it frequently occurs that an ox is found in the morning dead and partly eaten, the work of Leo during the night while the cattle were resting or grazing. It is said the vital part of the cattle where the lion makes his attack is the nose. In a second the beast is thrown, and it is but a matter of a few minutes when the lion will have his prey dead and badly torn. The tsetse fly is in his own bailiwick in these parts. This fly is one of the worst plagues of Central Africa. In size, this insect is as large as a bumblebee, and when he bites he draws blood, whether it be man or beast. It is said the deadly virus he injects is extracted from the bodies of big wild game. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 127 Nagana is the name of the disease caused by the tsetse-fly bite. The scientific name for this fly is rather prosy — Glossina morsitans; also for a first cousin, whose bite likewise caused nagana disease, Glossina allidipes. Mail must be carried to the interior by immune native runners, as a bite from these flies means a very short life for a horse. Deaths from sleeping sickness have occurred in this section of Africa. Machillas are the means of transportation by which people are carried from place to place. The machilla is a long pole, with the ends of a piece of canvas made fast, over which a cover is stretched. The ends of the pole rest on the shoulders of four natives — eight in all — who run along at a good gait, with their passengers in the hammock-like device, until they reach a relay station — at intervals of about five miles — when a fresh " team " of natives take up the machilla and are off again at a good trot. The European population of this large tract of land is said to be only 30,000, blacks numbering 150 to one white person — and it is doubtful if that number will ever be greater, for the large graveyards with numerous fresh " mounds of dirt are becoming better known through the receipt of mail by friends living in countries of the North sent by cadaverous, shaking relatives dying in the fever glades of Rhodesia. From Livingstone, 1,650 miles north of Capetown, the pro- jected Cape-to-Cairo line extends 300 miles further, to Broken Hill, where it stops. The route from here is to the southern borderline of the Belgian Congo, thence through that country, crossing the equator, until Uganda is reached. From Uganda it will traverse the Soudan, running thence into southern Egj'pt. At a point in this country the line will connect with a tongue extending southward from Cairo, the northern terminus. When the center has been linked, the length of the line from Capetown, the southern terminus, to Cairo, will be about 5,000 miles. Returning to Johannesburg, we passed through Bulawayo, then over the Matabeleland borderline into Bechuanaland, 128 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS through the Kalahari Desert, next into Cape Colony, and thus into Boerland. Perhaps the prettiest and most shapely mountains in the world are those in South Africa. Though not so high as those in other countries, their shapeliness attracts, most of them bearded with brush at bases and sides, the tops being round and grassy. With the deep blue sky above — the sun nearly always shining on the high veld, except during a shower of rain — and the same colored horizon all round, together with the rays from a bright sun lavishly diffusing the summits, there is a tone and finish to Boerland mountains which, in other countries, rocks, snow and timber do not bestow. The highest mountain is Mount Aux Sources, rising io,0(X) feet, located in the Drakensburg range. CHAPTER VII From the Gold City we traveled southward to the Diamond City. " You haven't been in town long? " a Kimberley policeman addressing me, remarked, as he stepped in front. As a matter of fact, I had only got about a hundred yards from the rail- way station. I surmised that I had been taken for an " I. D. B." (illicit diamond buyer), having been told a bird can scarcely alight in Kimberley without coming under police surveillance. " We're from the same country, I believe," the officer continued, when I felt easier. " My native town is St. Louis," he added. " Come to my home this afternoon and have dinner with us, after which we'll call on an American living in a house a few doors below," he went on kindly. This courtesy allayed all suspicion that I would be asked to establish my identity before staying longer in the diamond fields. The invitation was ac- cepted, his hospitality being generous. The second American had been on the diamond fields for more than 30 years, but local interest was a secondary consideration to meeting some one just come from the United States. He had been in British territory so long that he had acquired the British accent, but that was the only thing foreign about him, as one would not know where to find a more patriotic son of America. On a second visit to the " Diamond City " every kindness was shown me by these two " exiles." Kimberley, with a population of about 35,000, one-third of this number being white, is the capital of Griqualand West, a section of Cape Colony. Before diamonds were discovered, the territory embraced in the Kimberley district was understood to be a part of the Orange Free State. When the diamond fields promised rich returns, Cape Colony officials claimed this tract 129 130 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS as being part of that province. The matter was finally ad- justed by the Free State surrendering its claim to the Cape au- thorities upon payment by the latter to the Boer republic of several million dollars. The Diamond City has evidently stood still while other places in the sub-continent have kept pace with the progress of the times. Its newspapers are inferior; only one building reaches three stories; there is very little street paving, practically no sidewalks, and public buildings are quite ordinary; the shacks standing not far from the business center, built by colored people out of American oil cans, are a disgrace; church bells even are suspended from a crosspiece resting on the top of two posts, lo feet high, in the churchyard ; the parks do not amount to much, most of the shade trees in these being fine- bearded pine, through which the sun beats down on one. If there was anything of a creditable character here, save for a modern street car system, we did not observe it. To Alex- andriafontein, a fenced-in private pleasure resort, an electric line runs, but it costs 25 cents to reach this park. Were one in need of an object lesson to understand thor- oughly what a trust means to a municipality, he would learn that lesson in Kimberley. A number of diamond mines are in operation in the Kimberley district, but there is but one diamond mining company — the De Beers. Diamond mining is the only industry in Kimberley. Mine officials are very kind to visitors who wish to look about the works. "Hoi that's Kimberley rain," shouted a friend. Looking from a window, the width of the street appeared a solid mass of dust, if the term may be allowed, extending far above the roofs of the houses. " That's the sort of ' rain ' we get in Kimberley," he explained. No rain had fallen for six months. The depth of the diamond mines runs from 1,000 to 2,600 feet. The color of the soil in which the diamonds are found is blue — blue dirt, it is called — which is removed by explosives. Dirt, pebbles and stones are moved in iron trucks with iron covers, and locked. On coming to the surface it is started on gravity railways which extend from two to four miles from the mine. The truck of dirt, weighing about a ton and contain- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 131 ing an average of one-third of a karat of diamond, is here dumped on the ground. The " dirt field " contains i,4CX) acres of space. Three high barbed wire fences form the inclosure, and police — mounted, on bicycles, and on foot — see that no stranger gets inside the tripple barbed-wire fence. The blue dirt remains in the field from three to six months until, by exposure to the air, it crumbles. A harrow, with teeth 10 inches long, is drawn over the section of field ready for use, when any remaining lumps are broken into fine dirt. The diamond soil is next loaded into trucks and started back to the head of the mine. The dirt is here dumped into a revolving screen, which contains holes for pebbles of certain sizes to drop through. These drop into a revolving round tank, or vat, 14 feet in diameter and about a foot deep, into which water runs. Inside the vat are two large stationary rakes, around which the tank revolves. This is called the washery. The dirt runs out as muddy water, and the rakes serve to move the pebbles to a point in the circular vat where there is an opening. Connect- ing with this opening is a pipe, down which the stones pass into a steel truck below. When the truck is filled with pebbles, the door is closed and locked. The truck is now started on a gravity railway to what is called the pulsator, where the nuggets and diamond-bearing stones are separated from those of no value. Here the con- tents of the truck also are emptied into a revolving screen with graduated holes to allow the pebbles to drop out. The stones of the various sizes now drop into compartments 4 feet long and 18 inches wide — called jigs — which move back and forth. Water runs over the pebbles in the jigs, the light-weight ones washing out and the heavier remaining at the bottom. The pebbles that remain in the jigs are taken out later and put into still another revolving screen. Under the grade sizes of this screen are inclined tables, over which water runs, these having a thickly greased floor, or bottom, on to which the stones drop. The nuggets and diamond-bearing stones stick in the grease, but the non-diamondiferous pebbles pass over. To emphasize how strongly grease acts as a magnet to the precious stones, of 132 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the millions and millions of pebbles that are washed over the greased bottoms, which are carefully inspected by experts, rarely is a diamond detected among the culls. The little lumps on the greased tables — the diamonds cov- ered with grease — might resemble a hand with big warts. The table is cleaned, when the scrapings are treated by a liquid, which renders the diamonds free of grease. They then pass to a sorting room. The sorters are native prisoners, but a white man is over them. Then one negro, very expert in detecting diamonds, examines the stones sorted by the prisoners. From him they pass to a room where two white men again examine them. They are then put into steel cups little larger than a teacup. The cup has a lid to it and a lock. The lid is closed, locked, and the cup labeled. The locked cups next go to the Kimberley office. Every Monday the output of the diamond mines is taken to a train headed for Capetown. That train makes connection with a steamship leaving for Europe on Wednesdays. From England most of the diamonds are sent to Amsterdam, Holland, to be refined. The reducing character of the diamond mining industry is apt to astonish one. Over 200,000 trucks of dirt are treated daily, and the product from this great quantity of soil is less than a cubic foot. Twenty-three thousand men are engaged in digging, and the diamonds mined by that large force are examined by but four eyes and handled by only four hands in the examining room at the pulsator. The yearly output of the Kimberley diamond mines is from $35,000,000 to $40,000,000. Credit for bringing to light the first stone found in the Kimberley district, in 1870, is given to an Irishman named O'Reilly. A Dutch boy, whose father's name was Van Nie- kerk, was playing jackstones. O'Reilly's eye being attracted by a bright stone among those with which the boy was playing, he told the boy's father he thought that particular one was a diamond. O'Reilly's judgment proved to be good, as, when weighed, it was found to be of 2 2 5^ karat. The stone was sold for $2,500, O'Reilly and Van Niekerk dividing the money. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 133 On the wagon containing the weekly output of diamonds of the Kimberley mines, and which meets the train that goes to Capetown every Monday afternoon, is seated a white man and a native driver. No attempt has yet been made to rob the wagon while going from the head office of the diamond com- pany to the railway station. This alone may serve to em- phasize the grip which law and order has on that community. A week before a native quits the diamond mines he is kept under strict surveillance. The natives live in compounds, as the kafirs do in the Rand mine compounds, but, unlike the " boys " working in the gold mines, mine " boys " of Kimberley are not allowed outside of the compound except when going to and coming from work, and then only under guard. They are hired for from three months to a year, and are paid from $15 to $30 a month and board. There are seven mines in the Kimberley district, which give employment to 2O,0OO natives and 3,000 Europeans. Three eight-hour shifts are worked. Those engaged in the diamond diggings along the banks of the River Vaal carry with them during life a characteristic by which they may be picked out from among men following dif- ferent pursuits. A fortune — which they all hope for — may escape them if their eyes are raised from the ground for even so brief a time as that required for the wink of an eyelash, as they might thus have missed the fleeting flash of a precious stone just peeping through the soil. For this reason, when engaged in the diamond diggings their eyes are constantly looking down- ward. After they leave the diggings — when they have spent their savings and become practically starved out — they walk about with bent head, looking at the sidewalk or ground as they did when hand-screening soil and digging alluvial dirt. Some have made fortunes in the diggings, but these are few and far between. Bloemfontein, next visited, is known as the Convention City. Because of its location, being the most important city in the center of South Africa and well provided with hotels and rail- way connections, together with its good public buildings, it has become the favored place for national gatherings. 134 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS After the Boer War the name of this province was changed to Orange River Colony, against the burghers' wishes. In May, 1 910, when the Dutch again assumed power, its former name, and its present one — Orange Free State — again came into use. Located between hills on two sides, having good streets, shady walks, electric light, good buildings, and a broad, treeless veld to the east, with poverty seemingly absent, an inviting air per- vades Bloemfontein. The homes of that city, a great many of them built of red brick, with their vari-colored painted roofs and tidy yards filled with flowers, all nestling under and some built on the side of the kopjes, or hills, put one in mind of that other Dutch capital — Pretoria. Unlike Kimberley, no tin shanties were to be seen here, neither were the streets swarm- ing with half-castes and Hindus. As in other places in South Africa where there are no mines, smokestacks are few here. The Orange Free State is said to be a good farming section, and from that source, and the general commercial and official business linked with a metropolis and State capital, spring the main assets of the city. Newspapers, a good gauge by which to measure a center, are in advance of the Free State capital. The marketplace in Bloemfontein is typical of the Dutch, being located in the center of the town, business houses and hotels standing on the four sides. The long ox teams, led by natives with rawhide strips tied to the horns of the leading yoke ; the big transport, with its tent at the rear, a Boer sitting in the doorway or opening, smoking his calabash pipe filled with Boer tobacco, and his f rau, behind him, knitting ; the auctioneers jabbering above a pile of farm produce; the group of farmers, with their wide-brimmed hats and full beards, arguing in the Dutch language, are all in evidence. It was interesting to walk about observing the product of the soil and the people who cul- tivate it, and the means in use to bring it where it might be profit- ably sold. With the tent at the rear end of the transport, and " scoflF," coffee and cooking utensils, hotel expenses are elimi- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 135 nated, and one may stay as long as one wishes. A great num- ber of Boers pay a couple of days' visit to old acquaintances when they come to this marketplace. Bi-lingualism, a nightmare to some of the British in South Africa, has its fountainhead in Bloemfontein. Bi-lingualism here means the teaching of the Dutch and English languages in the public schools. When the conditions of consolidation were drafted, dual languages — Dutch and English — to be taught in schools was one of the provisions, and this clause was agreed to by the British representatives at the convention at which the act of federation was ratified. The Minister of Education is from the Orange Free State, and is Dutch through and through. He insists on the dual language clause being carried out to the letter. The Dutch, as spoken in South Africa — it is called the Taal — is not so pure as the Holland Dutch. While one might not agree with the Minister of Education in forcing English scholars to study Dutch, when either French, Spanish or German would be better, his fighting for the per- petuation of his mother tongue must command admiration. Cabinet Ministers of South Africa, by the way, are not cheap salaried men. The Premier receives $70,000 a year, the other members $48,000 a year. Hotel expenses are from $3 to $5 a day. House rent is rather high, too; but the wages paid mechanics are fair, run- ning from $4 to $5 a day. In the evening one sees very few black people about the streets. Bloemfontein has a municipal " location " — a place where natives must live — about three miles from town. Ex- cept as a servant, the Indian coolie, although a British subject, is not allowed to cross the Free State border. No adverse feel- ing is entertained for the native, but the line is drawn on Asiatics. The veld is so bare of any vegetation, save grass, in that part of South Africa that there is not a native tree growing in a radius of a hundred miles from Bloemfontein. While traveling through farming districts in South Africa 136 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS one misses the grain elevators seen at every station, and even sidings, when passing through agricultural sections in the United States and Canada. Southward we headed for Capetown, passing through Mod- der River and then Naauwpoort. Later we entered a stretch of country known as the Karoo. Rain does not fall in this district for a period of nine or ten months. For hun- dreds of miles there is not a blade of grass to be seen, yet goats, sheep, and ostriches abound, and grain is a product of that strange stretch of land. Cradock, the metropolis of the Karoo, is an oasis, because good shade trees are numerous. A small bush grows, called karoo, on which goats and sheep feed, and do well, if they do not die from thirst. The climate of the Karoo is very favorable to persons suffering from lung trouble. One of the best churches of Dutch design in South Africa is found in Cradock. We had now reached the Cape of Good Hope Province. Southeast of Cradock is Kaffraria, at one time a separate colony. Natives are numerous through that section. One of the tribes of Kaffraria is the Fingo, a good native for the mines. Hence, mine labor agents are to be found at every turn seeking help. It is in that district where the traders do so well in furnishing " boys " to the mines. Natives owning land, and wishing to sell it, are not allowed to sell to a white person, but may sell the land to a native. Unlike Zulus, the natives throughout Kaffraria live in col- onies. The huts are principally made of mud and roofed with straw. Different tribes are known to strangers by the blankets they wear. One tribe wears a brown blanket and goes bare- headed, while another wears a dark-colored cotton blanket, with black cloth over their heads. This mode of dress pertains to the native women. Order is maintained in these settlements by a native appointed by the government. When violations of law occur, the police authorities go direct to this native, as head of the settlement, who is held strictly accountable for any infraction. Cornmeal, or mealy meal, the staff of life to natives of South Africa, costs SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 137 $7 a bag, and 200 pounds provide " scoff " for four natives for a month. Africa, as generally knovv^n, is the home of the ostrich. In South Africa alone they exceed 700,000, and this southwest corner comprises merely one-twenty-fourth of the area of the " Dark Continent." The territory lying between Kaffraria and Capetown, however, is the section in which the ostrich in- dustry has reached its highest state of development. The feathers are picked at periods of 18 months, the average yield being three pounds, although some ostriches grow six pounds of feathers in a season. These are mostly disposed of by auction at Oudtshoorn, the clearing house for this product of the sub- continent. Buyers representing leading feather merchants of the world attend these sales. The price of feathers varies a great deal, a common quality bringing only $25, while a good grade sells for $100 a pound. The annual exports from this industry amount to $15,000,000. A pair of ostriches sell for $500 to $800. Fifteen eggs is the average composing a sitting, and six weeks' hatching is required to bring forth the young. Hatching devolves mainly on the male bird, he sitting at least four weeks out of the six. The two weeks the female devotes to sitting are objectionable ones to her, being whipped to her task by the male bird from time to time to take even this unequal part in bringing their brood into existence. The law prohibits both shipping from, or taking out of South Africa, eggs of this, the premier bird. "Will you have some shiverin' jimmy?" asked a compart- ment companion as he began unwinding a cloth from a bundle. " I'm from Grahamstown," he continued, " where there is nothing but * pubs ' (saloons) and churches. Have some shiverin' jimmy," he concluded. By that time the cloth was off the " parcel." What he called " shiverin' jimmy " proved to be animated headcheese. The train crept slowly down a steep grade, as we had left the high veld behind. Mount Matroosburg, a thin sheet of snow on its summit, was on our right, and on reaching Hex River iValley we were in the sea zone, and not far from Capetown. 138 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS The interest associated with Table Bay, by reason of its early explorers, massacre of early settlers, and the fighting with the Hottentots of those who finally got a footing, comes to mind when in this section. It was about 1653 that Johan van Rie- beek, a Hollander, started a settlement. Several attempts to establish a white colony had been made earlier, but attacks by the natives drove those daring men back to their ships. Van Riebeek, however, succeeded. Cape Colony remained Dutch for some years, afterward coming under British control, re- verted to the Hollanders again, then to England once more, and has remained an English possession ever since. To find a city to compare with Capetown, from a point of unusual attractiveness, would be difficult. In front, Table Bay, a charming sheet of blue water, spreads out to a good width, and beyond rises the Drakenstein and Hottentots Holland ranges of mountains, their castle-like peaks lending solemn charm when viewed from a distance ; above the city rises Table Moun- tain, the feature of Capetown, with its two flanking towers — Devil's Peak (3,300 feet) and Lion's Head (2,100 feet) — forming the semi-circular valley in which the city rests so pic- turesquely. The commanding, frowning and scarred front of this unique mountain proves an object of admiration. Table Mountain is three miles long and three-quarters of a mile wide. The top is as level as a table, and, like other mountains in South Africa, is barren of timber. Rising to a height of nearly 4,000 feet, a view from its broad, flat top is of unusual interest. Antonio de Saldanha, in 1503, is said to have been the first white man to scale its sides. The Town Hall, Parliament buildings, a splendid public garden, good museum, art gallery, colleges and other commend- able public institutions are fully in keeping with the natural at- tractiveness of the Cape Peninsular. Creditable business build- ings and good docks are also prominent. Durban's wide-awake business men, together with Capetown's high charges to shippers, have taken from Table Bay the mari- time prestige she once enjoyed. The majority of ships going to SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 139 India and Australia do not come into Table Bay for coal, but keep steaming until they have reached Port Natal. Smokestacks about the shore of the bay are not numerous enough to class the place as a manufacturing center. One often wonders what people do to earn a living in some of the cities of South Africa, in view of blacks doing so much of the work. Wages in Capetown, the lowest paid in South Africa, are not enough for comfortable living. Clerks, bookkeepers and clerical help generally are offered $y to $10 a week. House rent is very cheap, however. The blacks and colored of the Cape Province participate in the franchise, and a native of Tembuland was a member of the provincial Parliament. Strict laws in the old Boer provinces prohibit selling liquor to natives. While all natives here can- not vote, all voters have a right to drink liquor. So, if a native has money to buy whisky, he need merely say he is a voter and the saloonkeeper will take his word for it. When a black man can drink all the whisky he can pay for, and has a vote, that means insults and danger to life for the white of both sexes. This is the deplorable stage reached, to a notice- able degree, in Capetown. The white population is decreas- ing and blacks are becoming more insolent. The native of Capetown is not like the Zulu, nor the Barotse. He is copper colored, lower intellectually, of uninviting features and meanly inclined. Instances are frequent when the black of Capetown will not share the sidewalk — the white man must step off or get into a fight with half a dozen of these drunken natives. To be allowed to land in Capetown one must have a hundred dollars. Englishmen, Irishmen, Scotchmen, foreigners — no one can land if he has not that sum. The tariff charged on foreign goods is from 50 to 125 per cent. The latter figure ap- plies to tobacco. On a pound of American tobacco, which sells in the United States for 40 cents, there is a tax of $1.20. Sixteen days is the shortest time in which mail can be trans- ported from Capetown to England. The distance separating these two points is 6,000 miles. I40 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Groote Schuur, the home of the late Cecil Rhodes, of very striking design and richly furnished, is located here in one of the finest estates in the world. Having a splendidly wooded park, with good paths built at convenient sections, it is shaded by the towering clefts of Table Mountain. The entrances to the Rhodes estate were never locked, and one had only to push open a gate to come in touch with nature in a superior form. Passing away in 1902, eight years before the consolidation, but far-seeing enough to know what the future policy of the country would be, Rhodes bequeathed Groote Schuur to the first Premier of a United South Africa. Louis Botha, elected to that high office, thereby came into possession of this attractive home. " Your Hinterland Is There " is one of the inscriptions carved on the granite base on which the bronze figure of Cecil Rhodes rests in the Public Gardens of Capetown. The front of the figure is facing north, and a hand is pointed in the same direction — to Rhodesia. " So little done and so much to do " were the plaintive words of a man who had added 750,- 000 square miles to his country's already large possessions. The wine industry is prominent in this province. Some years ago the grapevines were ravaged by a disease. Grape stocks were imported from the United States, and the native vine en- grafted to the American plant, when the industry again thrived. Snook, a fish three feet in length, numerous about the Cape Peninsula, seemed the principal food of a great number of poor colored people of Capetown. In a place that has been an English possession so long one would expect to find a general use of the English language, but, on the contrary, natives and a majority of Europeans speak Dutch. Newspapers and printing in general are ahead of the town. The wages, however, are low compared to other large places in South Africa. " Hi'm the merry widow ! " he shouted. " Hi'm the merry widow ! " A Cockney Jew, with a grooved face, was among the merchants who sold goods — underwear, shirts, socks, hair- combs, handkerchiefs, etc. — on what is known as the Parade SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 141 Ground on certain days of the week. He wore on his head a woman's white straw hat with a soft, broad brim, which flopped against the sides of his face while he vigorously cried his wares. Around the crown of the hat was a garland of artificial flowers — daisies, roses, forget-me-nots, etc. He stood on a box, and told his auditors he was almost giving everything away. He talked at the rate of a thousand words a minute, more or less, working so hard that the perspiration on his face resembled a large water-soaked sponge when pressed. While streamlets of sweat ran down the flutes in his cheeks, he frequently inter- larded his cheap-bargain harangue with, " Hi'm the merry widow! " " Hi'm the merry widow! " Nearly 200,000 people live in and about Capetown, and the mixture is the worst in South Africa. Malays came to the Cape Peninsula years ago, and the mongrel ofE-shoots of these, with Arabs and natives of St. Helena and other places, em- phasize the word " colored." Being situated at almost the junction of two seas, the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans, the climate is the best in South Africa. The weather is never very hot, and frost is unknown. We shall travel northward over the Karoo again to Bloem- fontein, then easterly across the Orange Free State to Lady- smith, board a train going south, and return to Durban. As stated in the early part of this volume, I had $1,350 when I left New York. On returning to Durban I had $637. With that sum I was about to start for India. The second day after reaching Durban, however, I obtained work on the lead- ing newspaper, which furnished me with employment for six months. My wages averaged $40 a week. Modest comforts were good enough for me, and, living expenses being reasonable, I was enabled to put away a snug sum. Work was there for me if I wished to " drop in " the next year, so I promised to be on hand. This opened an opportunity to visit another con- tinent — Australia — which I had not taken into calculation before leaving New York, as at that time I had not money enough to do so. So, early in January, I was on my way to the Antipodes. 142 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS On my return from Australia I took another trip to Johan- nesburg and back. I went to work the first of August and continued to the middle of December. Then I made a trip to Zululand, and upon my return was again offered work. As I had not enough money for the remainder of the journey, I decided to stay. Taking another trip to East London, King- williamstown, up through Kaffraria, to Cradock, Bloemfontein, Kimberley, Johannesburg, Pretoria, and back to Pietermaritz- burg and Durban, in the middle of March, 1912, I went to work for the third time, and finally bid good-by to Durban in July following. ■# LEG THREE CHAPTER I Thirteen first-class passengers — four women, three men and six children — boarded a steamship at Durban for Aus- tralia. The vessel was a cargo ship, but had accommodation for a small number of passengers. She had started from a Swedish port in the Baltic Sea with a full cargo of pine lumber. The distance from the Baltic port to Durban is 8,000 miles, and the ship's final destination was to be Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, over 7,000 miles further east. Speaking about long voyages, this one should satisfy the most ambitious. A Swedish woman, with two children, boarded the ship at her home port, with Sydney as first landing. From Sydney she intended to sail to the South Sea Islands, until she reached Vavau, Tonga (Friendly Islands), still 2,000 miles further east from Sydney, where she and the children were to join her husband. The time required to travel from the Baltic seaport to Vavau was over three months, counting stops. From Durban to Melbourne, 6,000 miles, the fare was only $100 first class. Food was good, the ship steady, and weather fair. Our captain was a jovial soul, and the passengers proved a congenial group. The vessel was well manned by a white crew. The second day out again found the albatross and Cape pigeon as our companions. Later we sailed down to latitude 39, south of which sailors term the " roarin' forties," where the weather became chilly. Two islands — St. Paul and Amster- dam — were the only land seen during the voyage, and not a single ship. One cultivates a genuine respect for seafaring men when traveling on ships that bring one in intimate touch with them. They are so thoroughly versed in the science of naviga- tion that they know to a foot's space almost what part of the sea they are sailing over. 145 146 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS One of our lady passengers, returning to Australia, her na- tive country, had her three children with her. Years before she and her husband left for South Africa, where fortune smiled on them; she was returning a wealthy woman. A New Zea- lander and his wife, an Australian, also were returning from South Africa. A baby had come to their home in Boerland and they were returning to Kangarooland to show the hopeful to their friends. A feature of the sea at night in that stretch of the Indian Ocean represents what might be termed a starry marine firma- ment. The water contains phosphorous in sections, and, when opposing forces clash, bright, blue-white lights come thickly to view and twinkle and scintillate on crests of waves made by the wash of a vessel. These sparkling beams have their season during periods of contact, when, like embers, they gradually flitter away as the waves assume their normal level. From bow to stern the water line of a ship will be aglow with star- like streaks, the wake of a vessel appearing as a " milky way," this marine illumination taking place where the sea is " plowed " by merchantmen, as it were. " Is that Rottnest Light ahead, captain ? " asked the New Zealander. " Aye," answered the skipper. " We'll anchor outside the breakwater about 3 o'clock in the morning." We had been sixteen days out from Durban, and every one had a good voyage. In the forenoon, after the port doctor had com- pleted his examination of the passengers and crew, we passed through the channel and into the harbor, and soon were along- side a dock at Fremantle, West Australia. We had reached Leg Three. " What Ho ! " is the national salute of Australia when coun- trymen meet, and if the reader will allow me to step slightly in advance of my notes, I shall take the liberty to offer, " What ho ! " to " the Down-unders." The use of the term " Down- unders " is explained by Australia being situated almost in a direct line under that section of the globe constituting Europe. " A White Australia " is the slogan of the people of the Antipodes, and the first thing one notices on coming from any SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 147 of the black countries is the absence of black men about the docks. Twelve miles up the Swan River from Fremantle, Perth, the capital and metropolis of the State of West Australia, is located. It was in 1827 that Captain Stirling sailed to the mouth of the Swan River, where Fremantle is located. He decided the location would make a good settlement site. Perth later sprang into existence, however, and grew so fast that Fremantle, with a population of 18,000 people, is but a port for the State Capital. Big things are met with in Australia, and the State of which Perth is the official center is about four times larger than the State of Texas. One inwardly joins with the people of the Commonwealth in their national slogan when the industrial activity is so strik- ingly contrasted between " Darkest Africa " and " White Aus- tralia." Australia is seen at her best when coming from any of the black belts. The European style of passenger coach is in use, and the freight cars are also European, some of these not one-third as large as the American box car. Small locomotives are also in use. The country from Fremantle to Perth is sandy, the only verdure growing being the eucalyptus, or gum tree, as it is called. Homes seen along the railway track were of red brick. When Perth — with a population of 60,000 — was reached — well, it looked like one of the busy cities of the North. Smokestacks, streets crowded with people, splendid buildings, all work being done by Europeans, all vehicles drawn by good horses — no oxen in sight ; streets asphalted — in that far-off land one will find as busy and as up-to-date a city as exists any- where. Credit for this substantial condition of things is more strongly emphasized when it is remembered that West Aus- tralia is very hot, more suited to black races than white. Clean streets, with bright-colored red-brick residences, one story in height, are prominent in this section of the country. A large number of working people are their own landlords, 148 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS and those who do not own their own homes pay $3.50 weekly rent. The weekly system of paying bills — house rent and store bills — is the custom in Australia. As the government owns the railroads, postoffice and other public utilities, the em- ployes in these departments, as those of municipal and private employers, are also paid weekly. This has proved a good sys- tem. The street car system is good, cars being of the double-deck type. This was the first place the American system of street- car transfers was noticed. One finds here a splendid park square with plenty of free seats and space, flowers and grass. In a larger park, a short distance away, is a zoo. There is also a museum, art gallery, a good library, hospitals and schools. Many people were gathered in the larger park on a holiday, and had brought lunch with them. The thermometer regis- tered 107 in the shade. At one place in the park a big kettle, three feet high, hung over a wood fire, was boiling. The holi- day-makers came to the kettle for hot water to make tea. It looked out of place to see hot tea drunk in such weather, yet tea is the non-alcoholic drink of that country, and is said to be the best for that climate. The city employed the man who boiled water for the tea. Swan River is said to be the home of the black swan, the graceful bird that makes ponds and lakes so attractive in many parks in the world. Good meals could be had for twenty-five cents. Grapes were selling for four cents a pound, and peaches, melons, and other fruit sold at a proportionately low price. Mutton sold at four to six cents a pound ; beef, from ten to twelve cents, and pork at twelve cents. Educating the young is a pronounced characteristic in West Australia. The schools are maintained by the State, are free, and attendance is compulsory from the age of six to fourteen years. Twenty-one dollars is the sum the State fixes for the schooling of a scholar. Scholarships of the value of $250 a year are offered annually for competition among pupils between SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 149 the ages of 11 and 13 years. Other inducements are made to bring out the best that is in the growing generation. In sparsely settled farming districts, where ten or more children are to be found, the State reaches out a beneficent hand to qualify the child for the battle of life. In addition to appro- priations for their schooling, and where the children must ride to school, 12 cents a day is paid to the person in whose vehicle the children are carried to and from the schoolhouse. Where a railroad runs through these sections, and the children ride on trains to and from school, no fare is charged. Very liberal inducements are held out to persons taking up government land. Twenty years' time is allowed the settler in which to pay for his farm, and the interest charged is four to five per cent. Residential growth and improved conditions, of course, result from the transaction. To prevent destruction of crops by rabbits, which do a great amount of damage to growing grain in some parts, the govern- ment has gone to the expense of building rabbit-proof fences about tracts of land it has for disposal. The quality of wheat, oats and other cereals is of the best, meriting the awarding of first prizes at world expositions where they have been on ex- hibition. Sheep-raising is another great asset of Western Aus- tralia. The rich gold fields of this State are located from 300 to 350 miles east of Perth, in the heart of a desert, of which a large area of West Australia is composed. In 1884 gold was discovered in this section of the Commonwealth, but a greater rush to the mines occurred in 1890-92, when the Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie finds became known. In this industry a hun- dred thousand persons are engaged. Before a railway was built over this barren stretch of country from the coast to the mines, many an adventurous soul perished during his journey in quest of the precious metal. No water is found in this dis- trict, that needed in homes and for treatment of the ores being " imported," pumped from a dam near Perth through pipes of 30 inch diameter for this great distance. Besides gold, copper, tin and coal are mined. Black workers are excluded. I50 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Wages paid are more equalized than in other countries. Laborers receive a minimum of $2 a day, and mechanics from $2.50 to $3 a day. Eight hours is a day's working time. Newspapers are fully abreast of this hustling city. Printers receive $21 to $25 a week, the hours of work on newspapers seldom exceeding six. I had been offered work in Perth, but, my destination being Melbourne, I continued eastward. We had traveled 4,300 miles from Durban to Fremantle, and 1,700 miles separate Perth from Melbourne. Twelve hundred miles of that distance was to be across the Great Aus- tralian Bight. Fourteen hours' sail east from Fremantle, Cape Leeuwin was reached, the most westerly point of land of the Australia continent, and one of the most dangerous points for ships in the world. The distance traversed to clear the Leeuwin is 25 miles. Dutchmen were early explorers in Australia, and parts touched bore the names of the head of the exploring parties, and sometimes the captains of the ships. Some of the names were Eendracht Land, Nuyts Land, De Witt Land; but of all the places given names by the Dutch, Leeuwin Cape is the only one well known. That part of Australia was early known as New Holland. The Dutch set foot on West Australia 200 years before Fremantle became a settlement. Across King George's Sound, on which Albany is located, we sailed, when the Bight was entered. The Bight is famous for its rough sea; accounts of the vengeance it has wreaked on mariners, travelers and ships would fill many pages. ** Do you think we'll have a good voyage through the Bight, captain ? " asked a passenger. " The barometer indicates fair weather," he replied. Continuing, he said : " The last time we came through we had very * dirty ' weather. Slowly the heavy sea was forcing us to shore. I saw we could not keep our course with safety, so I pointed the nose of the ship to the storm, but for 24 hours we gained only half a mile against the force of the sea." " Did you fear for the ship? " " I wasn't afraid," he answered, "so long as the engines stood the strain; SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 151 but they were taxed for every ounce of power. Look at the black mark on the chart. That is where a vessel went down," he added. When a sailor uses the term " dirty " weather, as stormy and rough seas are called by seafaring men, a land- lubber will be at a loss to find a word in any dictionary to describe what he thinks of such weather. We fortunately had good weather through the Bight. Cape Otway, about a hundred miles west of Melbourne, marks the eastern end of the line that divides the Southern Indian Ocean from the Southern Pacific Ocean, and the Cape of Good Hope, in South Africa, marks the western end of the line dividing the Southern Indian Ocean from the Southern Atlantic Ocean. The distance separating these two points is 6,000 miles. The meeting of the currents of the two seas, confined by the western coast of Australia, makes the water very rough in the great bay, or Bight. From Cape Otway eastward we were in the Southern Pacific Ocean. Twenty-seven days after leaving Durban we sailed into Port Phillip and up the Yarra River to Melbourne, where the Swedish vessel was made fast to a wharf. " I trust we suc- ceeded in treating you right," said the captain on going down the ship's ladder to the wharf. " Fair weather through life," were his parting words. It is said an American laid out the city of Melbourne; if that be so, this one service reflects much credit on the land of his birth. In a world contest for the Commonwealth's capital site design an American of Chicago was awarded first prize. Australia aims at having the most attractive capital in the world, to be located at Camberra, in the State of New South Wales. American civil engineers also have taken a prominent part in the construction of the large weirs or reservoirs that the Commonwealth has erected for land irrigation purposes. Mel- bourne's streets, 99 feet in width, run at right angles, are kept clean and well paved. Built on each side of these grand thoroughfares are splendid buildings, utilized for banking, trade and general business purposes. What are called alleys in Mel- bourne are wider than most of the business streets in Buenos 152 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Aires. All goods brought to and from business houses go by the back entrance. The sidewalks are free of all incumbrances, such as iron doors and gratings. No abrupt steps from the sidewalks are met with here, the walk, at an incline, sloping gradually into the roadway. One feature, though, mars that well-laid out, well-built &nd well-managed city. It is a privately owned and privately man- aged street railway system, which is of the antiquated cable type. Some fifteen years ago a franchise was granted by the city to a company to install street railways, of cable type, ior a term of 20 years. The fare is six cents, and the light in the cars is from murky, coal oil lamps. The street railway company is getting all it can out of the system, for it is well aware that at the expiration of the franchise the city will not renew the agreement, but will at once tear up the present line and construct a modern one, more in keeping with Mel- bourne. Melbourne is the capital of the State of Victoria and tem- porary capital also of the Commonwealth. Victoria is termed *' The Garden State," and the prosperity of the country is re- flected in every part of the city by the splendid homes of its citizens. They are healthy looking, well fed and well dressed. This State, being visited by a regular rainfall, suffers less from drought than West Australia, South Australia or New South Wales. The arrangement and scope of parks is admirable, and seats are free. Streets, boulevards and roads here could not be bet- tered. Within the city limits are over 5,000 acres of parks and public gardens. An imposing Parliament House, a splen- did museum, art gallery and a zoo are other notable features. Americans are not the only people who speak with a " twang," for one meets persons in the capital city whose " twang " would make a down-east Yankee green with envy. Still all have the British accent. By nature, the Australian is unreserved, and seems more American than British. Melbourne is termed the " American City," and in the na- ture of wearing apparel there is no difference in the cut of the SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 153 clothes. In South Africa, among the English-speaking people, the brand of England is stamped on most customs, but in Aus- tralia there is a difference. Splendid college buildings, with nice grounds; training schools, technical schools — at every turn the air is punctured with turrets and spires on buildings in which the citizens of Victoria are taught the sciences that enable them to take a leading part in the advancement of the world. The weather being so moderate in Australia, parks so attrac- tive, and bathing beaches so convenient to the coast cities, in- door life loses its charm. In Melbourne the weather seldom gets cold enough to freeze, and, if so, it would occur not more than one or two nights during the winter season. The mean temperature of that section of Australia is 55 degrees. Athletic sports are very popular, as the weather permits of such recreation the year round. Horse racing, as an amuse- ment, has a strong hold on Australians, and the same horde of nondescripts and non-producers found in other countries, who live by their wits on " the sport of kings," thrive and flourish here on the money of those who earn an honest living. " Mate " is the way Australians address each other, and for an off-hand salute, sounds better than " Bill " or " Stranger." ** Right, ho," with scarcely a sound of the " h," is used entirely in place of our " All right." A man with a small business — say, a news store, green grocery, or printing office — is termed a " cockatoo " news dealer, a " cockatoo " grocer and a " cocka- too " printer. The term " cow " is used to express displeasure or disgust with fowl, animals and even inanimate things. " On the wallaby trail," or " on the wallaby," is applied to a fellow " on his uppers." " No chop " means there is nothing in a proposition made to the fellow who says " No chop." " He * bally ' well knew he was wrong " is an instance of how the word " bally " is used here, as in England. " Tucker," in Australia, is the term used when speaking of food, in the same sense as " grub " in America. The educational system of Victoria is of the same high char- acter as that of West Australia. The sum required to educate 154 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS a scholar a year is $19, $2 less in Victoria than in West Aus- tralia. It is the boast of State and government officials that a child whose parents live in isolated parts receives as good teaching as children in city schools. With such a splendid school system, it is needless to touch on the advanced intellectual position of Australians. Government pensions for both husband and wife are paid when they have reached the age of 60 years, and when their in- come does not exceed $250 a year. The pension paid is $2.40 a week each, $4.80 for the old couple. Citizens who are in- capacitated, and have not reached the age of 60 years, are also paid the $2.40 a week. Young persons deformed or mentally incompetent also receive the pension, or, rather, their guardians do. In cases where a man dies and leaves a widow and children without means of support the government looks after them. Any representative citizen living in the community in which the fatherless family resides will accompany a family to court. He tells the judge the circumstances attending the bereavement of the family, and declares the widow is unable to support her- self and children. The mother then surrenders her children, and they become wards of the State. When that phase of law has been gone through, the judge next appoints the mother guardian of the children. Each child thereafter receives $i.20 a week from the State. The children must attend school, though, from the age of 6 to 14 years. This is the minimum sum given by the State, but there also are municipal and other funds to help needy citizens. Should a boy of such a family become apprenticed to a trade after leaving school, the em- ployer pays the wages of the boy not to the mother, but to a State official, in charge of that department. The boy's earn- ings are put in a savings bank until he has reached his majority. Reports are made as to his habits from time to time, and, should he be of an industrious nature, the money that he has earned while an apprentice is returned to him when he has become a journeyman. How many poor, fatherless boys in other coun- tries have several hundred dollars handed them at 21 years of age? SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 155 No State or municipal poorhouses are found in Australia. Homes, however, are provided for infirm persons, but these are maintained by religious and charities bodies. The State, of course, would lend a helping hand were these organizations crippled for funds to carry on their laudable work. To help settlers cultivate government land, from $250 to $10,000 is advanced to an immigrant who means well. Certain conditions in the nature of improvements and residence must be complied with. The time given the settler in which to pay back money advanced is 20 to 33 years. The interest charged is four to five per cent. If drought or other agencies renders the settler's crop a failure and he has no money to meet his pay- ments, the government does not swoop down and take his farm, but advances more if circumstances threaten to drive him from the land. He will be looked after until he has good crops. The government has yet to lose a copper from advancing money to settlers. Agricultural Department officials visit farmers to teach them how to get best results from the soil. The land does not become freehold property, however, but is leased for a long term. Two persons out of every five of the citizens of Victoria have savings bank accounts. The average wealth in this State per head of population is $1,253. An income tax is collected on all salaries of $1,500 and over. The tax becomes greater in proportion to the larger salaries or incomes received. Previous to 1901 each State was a separate division, fixing its own customs dues, legislating only for itself, and at each State boundary line were custom houses and State officers. The federation of States into the Commonwealth took effect Jan- uary I, 1901. There is an average of three beeves to each person, and 20 sheep to each inhabitant. Mutton, beef, cheese, wine, fruit grain, flour, wool, hides, tin, silver, copper and iron ores are exported from that far-off country to centers north of the equator. Melba, the opera singer, is from this State. In Paul Kruger, South Africa produced probably the greatest man born south 156 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS of the equator, and the fair State of Victoria has reason to be proud of the diva, the most widely known woman born south of the equatorial line. These two seem to be the total of the Southland's contribution in recent times to the world's great personages. Some Chinamen live in Melbourne, but a majority of them came to Australia years ago. These are mostly engaged in furniture manufacturing, and Mongols practically control the industry. The slogan, " A White Australia," is as pronounced in Victoria as in other States. To gain entrance to Australia an Asiatic must pay an immigration tax of $500. Good newspapers are published in that city, but none issues Sunday editions. Printers on these earn from $25 to $30 a week. Other mechanics receive $18 to $21 a week. Meat sells from 6 to 12 cents a pound; eggs from 20 to 36 cents a dozen. House rent, which is paid by the week, runs from $3.50 to $4.50. Class distinction is usually foreign to any new country, but the lines are tightly drawn between labor and capital In Aus- tralia. Skilled mechanics and laborers generally stand together in political matters on election day, and the employer, capitalist and that class of citizen oppose the labor party. CHAPTER II Traveling from Melbourne to Adelaide, 483 miles, gave opportunity to study Australian railways. The railroads are State or government owned, and the fare is two to three cents a mile. The coaches are of European type, the schedule 30 miles an hour. Compartments are generally fitted for eight persons. One difference was observed in these coaches from the South African — no free sleeping accommodation was pro- vided. Sleeping cars are run on Australian lines, however, but a berth costs $2.40 a night. The system of heating the com- partments in chilly weather is by iron pipes, like those used in the South African trains — foot warmers. But there is one commendable feature about the Australian railway system, namely, no steps to the cars, the platforms of all stations being built on a level with the platform of the passenger coach. " Mate, you may share part of my rug," spoke the man sitting opposite in the compartment. " There'll be no chance to get our feet on the foot-warmer, and the atmosphere will grow chilly before morning. It is large enough for us both," he kindly added. As in South Africa, almost every one in Aus- tralia carries a rug, or blanket, as we call them. His kindness was much appreciated, for, as it turned out, the foot-warmer did not move in our direction for the night. This is another instance of how obliging I found Australians. A city looking more like a large park than a business center is how Adelaide appeared. When laid out, in 1837, it com- prised a tract of land a mile square, and around this area is a park strip of land half a mile wide. The mile square area was originally the business and home section of Adelaide, but resi- dential requirements have far outgrown the original space. Over two thousand acres of land in and about the city are set 157 158 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS apart for public and botanical gardens, park squares and for sports grounds. The city is located in a fertile plain, encircled by a range of green hills on two sides, and has as a foreground the blue water of St. Vincent's Gulf. A pathetic incident accompanied the laying-out of this beau- tiful city. After the surveyor. Colonel William Light, had selected the site and surveyed the streets his plan was ridiculed by his fellow colonists. Being of a sensitive nature, their crit- icisms and jibes so worried him that he found relief from taunts in an early grave. In Victoria Square stands a splendid bronze monument to the designer of Adelaide, with this brief inscrip- tion chiseled out of the granite base: "Light." Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, has a population of 200,000. Its wide streets and great park space make the area as large as that usually required for a city of half a million. An agricultural college, mining college, and other means of popular education insures a high percentage of intellectual at- tainment. The same splendid public school system that has been touched on as existing in West Australia and Victoria is maintained by both the municipal and State educational depart- ments here. Money for educational purposes is voted to an almost reckless degree by the States of the Commonwealth. The homes of the people of Adelaide are fine. Where they are not entirely built of stone, there is at least a stone front and brick side walls. The houses are mostly one story, containing from five to seven rooms, with a veranda on each and flowers in every yard. Most of these homes are owned by the families who occupy them, but some rent at from $3.50 to $4.50 weekly. " Poor," " slum " and " wealthy " residential distinctions are pleasantly absent in Australian cities. The botanical garden, zoo, museum. State and municipal buildings, business blocks, the lighting and street railway sys- tems are all very good. The ambition of the Australian seems to aspire to the best, as little of a shoddy character is in evi- dence. The statues about the cities also are as good as one will see the world over. The stores and shops compare with any for quality and attractiveness. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 159 Ordinary meals could be had for 25 cents, and comfortable accommodation, with good food, was obtainable in any of the cities for $1.50 a day. The bird life of the country adds to its attractiveness. The emu, next in size to the ostrich, is on his native heath, and the lyre bird is a native of Australia, too. In the " bush," as the woods of Australia are termed, revel the cockatoo, macaw, par- rots of diiferent species; the kookooburra, or laughing jackass, and the smart magpie are quite numerous. Australians are very proud of the native birds. Chasing the emu on horseback is a sport indulged in in some sections. The English sparrow was taken to Australia by settlers from the British Isles, and he has proved a source of annoyance to the people of that country, as well as that of others. Another bird imported from England, the starling, a very dirty and destructive one to berries, is also an eyesore to the people. This bird is numerous in Adelaide. Rabbits were unknown in Aus- tralia before settlers from the North made that country their home. Being very destructive to crops, large sums of money are expended to build rabbit-proof fences about tracts of farm- ing land owing to the millions of these creatures that infest the country. The moderate climate admits of perpetual breeding. Australians do not eat rabbit meat. The rabbit trapper of Australia is an independent sort of a citizen. His disposition is akin to that of the fellow who will sit on a log all day to catch a six-inch fish, and considers his time well spent when he walks into his home, carrying his quarry by a spear of long grass pulled through the vent in the gills. Ships loaded with frozen rabbits leave Australian ports for England at frequent sailings. The kangaroo is termed in Australia " the native," and is harmless when met with under any circumstances. The smaller specie is known as the wallaby. Kangaroo is the biggest game on the Australian continent. Its tail is the only part used as food, and then only for soup. A story is told of an English woman who became engaged to a native Australian. She started from England to meet her i6q seven legs across THE SEAS fiance at Adelaide. She had told her friends she was to be married to an Australian native. When she reached the end of her long journey and came ashore friends in Australia who met her, pointing to a kangaroo close by, remarked that the animal was the native Australian. "What!" shouted the bride-to-be. " Am I engaged to marry a kangaroo? " The national flower is that of the wattle tree. This tree grows large, its leaves are small and of a very dark green color, and the limbs are dense. Blossoms come out very thick, and leaves, limbs and body of the tree are hidden from view under a profusion of rich, gold-colored flowers. Tracts of wattle- tree groves extend for miles, and when all the trees are in bloom it is a treat for the eyes seeking floral beauty. Mutton and lamb are the meats chiefly eaten. One seldom gets a good cup of coffee in British territory, for the reason that the British are a tea-drinking race, and the same applies to Australia. As evidence of the hospitality met with in homes of British colonists, food dainties are always served with tea to callers. After having said good-by to Adelaide, we boarded a train going to Melbourne. Upon reaching Ballarat, having heard of the Eureka Stockade, behind which gold miners defied militia in 1854, induced a longing to see this historical spot on the Australian continent where men faced each other with firearms. The skirmish between miners and troops came about through the authorities charging miners exorbitant sums for gold mining licenses. A stockade was thrown up — it is there to-day — and from that shelter bullets whizzed at the troops, and soldiers' bullets whizzed at the miners. The battle lasted ten minutes, after two dozen miners had been killed. With this exception, Australia is as barren of warfare lore as a large part of the country is of vegetation. Gold mining is still in active opera- tion, and profitable. While gold is mined in all the States of the Commonwealth, the output of the West Australia mines is greater than the combined production of the other five. When gold was discovered in Ballarat, in 1850, 65,000 people landed in Melbourne the next year, and in five years SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS i6i 337,0(X) had found their way to the diggings, although in those days vessels were small and slow, and the distance from Europe to Melbourne is 13,000 miles. Ballarat has a population of 50,000, is in the State of Victoria, and 75 miles west of Melbourne. One of the principal streets is 168 feet wide. How many cities are there in the United States, the size of Ballarat, having an art gallery, a museum and creditable botanical garden? Ballarat has these. A nice lake also is within the city limits. The attractiveness of this place is unusual for a gold mining center. With an acquaintance, a football game between two crack elevens was attended, and the price of admission to the grounds was 12 cents. Ballarat holds her own in the matter of buildings, good light- ing and street car systems. CHAPTER III Passing from the ocean through The Heads to Sydney Har- bor, there unfolds to the eye perhaps the grandest foreground of a city, landscape and soft-water scene to be found in any part of the world. From the harbor — scalloped with pretty bays — to the left rise, on a gentle slope, bright-colored brick and red-sandstone homes with red-tiled roofs, the openings car- peted with ever-green lawns, animated by flowering gardens, a soft brush-grown space here and there, or a blushing cove, walled by friendly rock — a willing partner to molding the frame incasing this splendid picture. Traveling toward the city, the vessel circuits evergreen islands, passing smart sailing craft and swift-moving launches, when a point of land, part of an attractive park, invitingly juts its grassy space into the noted harbor. The Botanical Garden next comes to view, when the Norfolk Island pine tree — none more shapely in the world — seems to suggest to the visitor that there is something good even beyond. To the right of the harbor — also fringed with cozy bays and rippling coves — on another slope, there spreads out a grand landscape that can come only from gum bush and tropical foliage, the former in this instance. The harbor be- comes dotted with hurrying ferry boats, carrying people from one side to the other. The city of Sydney then becomes out- lined, and, from the striking panorama of red-sandstone struc- tures, there is revealed a galaxy of towers, turrets, spires and domes that unerringly suggest the highest industrial ideal of a people living in a center of civilization and modern achieve- ment. As Capetown is the cradle of South Africa, so is Sydney the cradle of Australia. Nine miles from Sydney, in Botany Bay, James Cook, an Englishman, anchored his ship Endeavor. 162 '^ X^ ;-^^ Parliament House, Melbourne (top), and Victoria Markets, Sydney (bottom). Australia. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 163 That was in 1770, six years before the Declaration of Inde- pendence was signed by the American colonists. For two hun- dred years previous to Captain Cook's raising the British flag on the shores of Botany Bay, Dutch, French, Portuguese and Spanish navigators had gotten glimpses of that great continent, but failed to implant the ensigns of their respective countries on it as Cook did. It was anybody's country up to the year 1770. Section after section had been annexed by the English from time to time, until all the continent and islands close by had become British territory. Not a shot was fired to acquire these different sections. Eight years after Captain Cook reached Botany Bay, Arthur Phillips landed and formed a convict settlement on the site from which Sydney had grown. In 1788 there were but six head of cattle in Australia; to- day there are over 15,000,000. In the same year there were but 29 sheep; to-day nearly 100,000,000. Heated arguments take place frequently anent the merits of Sydney harbor and that of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, said to be the two best harbors in the world. The distinction between these two grand havens is similar to that existing between Vic- toria and Niagara Falls. Where the land about Sydney harbor gracefully slopes and admits of the striking panorama from The Heads, or entrance to the Harbor, to Circular Quay, hills shut from view the attractive city of Rio de Janeiro. The Brazilian capital cannot be seen at a point where Sydney har- bor's beauty reaches its climax. On the other hand, Rio de Janeiro's harbor is twice larger, dotted with over a hundred tropical islands, and of good depth. The length of Sydney harbor is eight miles, with comparatively few green islands, and at places the water is none too deep for ships of great draught. Also The Heads of Sydney harbor are squatty compared to the high, bold stone pillars bet^veen which vessels sail through a narrow but deep channel into Rio de Janeiro's haven. It would seem that Sydney's harbor is the prettier, Rio de Janeiro's the greater and better. Three-quarters of a million busy and industrious people are engaged in factory, mill, shop, office and store in modern Sydney. i64 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Every one of these will do any task with pleasure that tends to enhance the commercial prestige and attractive appearance not only of their city but of the Commonwealth. In no other country will one find a more patriotic race of people; but, though British subjects, their patriotism seemed to be for Aus- tralia. They have a national flag, national emblems on their money coins — in fact, Australia is deeply stamped on any and every thing Australian. Travelers are often disappointed when visiting points of in- terest based on local reputation; but Sydney is the exception to the rule. One can spend at least two weeks in the State capital, going to different attractions from day to day, and will find everything reputed to be of interest worth one's time going to see. For this reason it has become known as the " holiday city." Sydney is one of the most difficult cities in the world to describe, because everything is so good. One would be justi- fied to begin and finish an account of Sydney with the word •' Splendid." Not until I reached the capital of the State of New South Wales did I find government or municipal ownership of public utilities meant anything in the way of cheaper or better service. The street-car service of Sydney is, I believe, the cheapest in the world. The charge is two cents for each " stage," but the " stages " in Sydney are far apart. The clumsy, slow, double- decked car is not to be seen. An express train leaves Sydney for Melbourne at 8 o'clock every evening, and had one decided to start that journey on a Sunday and depended on street car travel to the railway sta- tion, he would surely miss his train. The cars come to a stand- Still from 7 to 8 o'clock, while church services are being held. A loaf of bread in Sydney must be a loaf of bread. The legal weight is two pounds, and employes of the city bureau who look after the staff of life keep a close watch on bakers to see that customers are not cheated. An inspector is apt to halt a driver of a baker's wagon at any point, jump into the vehicle, pick up a loaf of bread, take from his pocket a collaps- ible scale, put the loaf in the tray and particularly note its SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 165 weight. If the bread should be an ounce under weight the baker will be fined $5, and should the loaf be two ounces short of weight he would be fined $10 — $5 for every ounce under two pounds. The quality of the bread, by the way, is, like everything that goes to make up Sydney, excellent. Vulgarity or profanity is not heard about the streets. Any unsavory remark that reaches the ears of a policeman will cost the careless one at least $2.50. Stopping at a small and tidy hotel, located three squares from the postoffice, the rate was but $1.50 a day. Good meals were served at restaurants about the city at 25 cents. Serviette is the word always used in British territory for table napkin. House rent for working classes ranged in price from $15 to $20 a month, payable weekly. Meat sold at 6 to 12 cents a pound. Clothes are cheaper in Australia than in South Africa, because Australia uses its own wool. " When you will have brains enough to owe your butcher $15, you'll get a better grade of meat." Two women were seated on a bench in a park, talking about dresses, hats, en- gagements, marriages and babies, when they touched on house- hold matters. One told the other her troubles with her butcher — could not understand why she got inferior meat. Her com- panion asked if she paid cash for her goods, and the complaining one answered, " Yes." It was then that the suggestion con- tained in the first sentence was made. Concerning freedom of speech and liberty in a general sense, one sees no difference from what he has been used to in his own country while traveling about, but does admire the quality of law that is dispensed and maintained in British territory. While looking about the exhibits at a State agricultural fair one can reach a fair conclusion as to the nature of a country by the products shown, more particularly if one has been raised on a farm. At a fair visited there were cattle with backs al- most as broad as a full-sized bed. The weight of some of these animals was 2,500 pounds down to 2,000. It seemed as if an exhibitor would be laughed at were he to enter a steer that weighed under a ton. Horses on exhibit were of the same high i66 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS class. The reputation of the Australian horse extends beyond local bounds, and he is known as the Australian " whaler." Sheep, chickens, pigs — from the top of the list to the last only the best of each kind were exhibited. Australian cattle and horses are aristocrats compared to South African breeds. Education for children living in the " back blocks," as dis- tant parts of Australia are termed, is hauled on wagons. A gov- ernment teacher travels about in a wagon covered with a tent and stops at the home of every settler who has children. The tent is lifted from the wagon to the ground, and school ex- ercises are gone through. Would not the trouble and expense that the Commonwealth of Australia goes to for fitting its peo- ple to meet the struggles of life " warm the cockles of your heart" to such a government! This is called the "traveling school," and it would be a waste of time to dwell in detail on universities, colleges, technical and the lower-grade schools of the educational department of New South Wales. The conditions of giving land to settlers by the State of New South Wales are liberal. If one is a white man, is willing to work, and wants a farm, he will get the land, and money to make a start with, too. The English system of money is in use. That system is not on a decimal basis, which deficiency seems out of place in an advanced country like that of the Commonwealth. For this reason efforts are being put forth to change the system to a decimal basis. The kangaroo and enu are stamped on the face of some of the money coins in use, but these will not be ac- cepted as legal tender in other British countries. " Smoke, ho," is the term one might hear were he to pass a gang of men working on a railroad or at any work where a group of men are employed. The weather gets very hot in summer, and rests are taken at intervals. When the foreman of the gang says " Smoke, ho," that means a breathing spell, or quitting time. The State of New South Wales, of which Sydney is the capital, is the richest in the Commonwealth. The sheep in- dustry is the greatest. Smokestacks from factory and mill are SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 167 thickly dotted not only about the city but far into the suburbs. Great quantities of butter, beef, mutton and wool, wheat and flour are exported from that State, besides ores and coal. The exports from Australia now are very large, but what will they be when the country becomes even one quarter settled ? Wages have increased from time to time in Sydney, until now bricklayers receive $5 a day. That figure is good wages in Australia, for the climate permits of outside work the year round. The city is growing ■ all the time, the demand for mechanics naturally increasing. Few mechanics receive less than $3. The lowest wages laborers receive are $2, but that figure is often exceeded. Printers on newspapers earn $27 to $30 a week, the working time not exceeding 36 hours. Good board can be had at $4 to $6 a week. No one works Saturday afternoons in the British colonies visited. Excellent newspapers are published in Sydney — fully in keeping with the city. On looking over their pages, one must give much credit to the publishers for the cable dispatches printed, as the news rate must be high when sent from centers 6,000 to 13,000 miles away. A thousand acres of splendid park area are located in and close to Sydney, divided into 37 parks. Within a radius of 25 miles are 70,000 acres of park land. Besides, there are half a dozen good bathing beaches within easy reach. Over a hundred miles from Sydney, in the Blue Mountain range, is located a tract of stalactite and stalagmite caves. These are the property of the government, and known as Jeno- lan Caves. The caves cover a large area of land, and explora- tion is going on all the time. Over a dozen of these are now open to visitors, and the trip is well worth while taking. But while Jenolan Caves are much greater than those of Luray Caverns, Virginia, one will find in Luray better formations and a prettier grade of that mineral than can be seen in Jenolan. It is another case of Victoria Falls and Niagara. Jenolan Caves are much the greater, but Luray Caverns are the prettier. In caves of this character columns of stalactite and stalagmite a foot in diameter may be seen, and when it is remembered that, i68 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS in one instance at Jenolan, a stem of stalactite has grown but one-thirty-second part of an inch in 30 years, what a tremendous age the larger columns must have attained! The atmosphere in this section of the Blue Mountains is of a deep blue color. Mount Kosciusko is the highest peak of Australia, rising 7,308 feet. In that section of country kangaroo may be seen hopping about the hills, feeding on grass and sprouts, or standing up on their hind legs to watch if any one is coming their way. Timidity starts them, at the slightest alarm, to holes in the mountain, and where rocks are located at the place of conceal- ment these are as polished granite from their heavy tails passing over them on coming out and going in. The difference in railroad gauges is proving a source of much inconvenience to transportation. In New South Wales the gauge is standard, 4 feet 8^ inches, and in Queensland the rail- road is narrow-gauge, 3 feet 6 inches. So, going from Sydney to Brisbane, passengers, cars and freight must be changed ; also in going from Sydney to Melbourne, when the Victoria border has been reached, a complete change has to be made, as the Vic- toria gauge is broad, 5 feet 3 inches. The width of South Australia railroads is 5 feet 3 inches and also 4 feet 8^ inches, but those of West Australia are again narrow-gauge. One not familiar with the population of American cities would come to the conclusion that San Francisco, Cal., was the greatest in the United States, judged from the number of times it is mentioned by Australians. As a matter of fact, both Melbourne and Sydney have a greater population than the Californian metropolis. Seldom are New York, Philadelphia and Chicago mentioned. This is accounted for by San Fran- cisco being nearer to Australia than any other American city. " Two years before the fleet came," and " About a year after the fleet was here," are instances of how recent great events are referred to. Evidently the visit of the American battle- ships to Australia, when the fleet made its trip around the world, proved an epoch in this country. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 169 Before leaving the " mainland," I want to acknowledge ray gratitude to Australians for the many courtesies extended and kindnesses bestowed. I had been offered work in most of the places visited. CHAPTER IV From Melbourne we sailed across Bass Straits up the Tamar River to Launceston, Tasmania, located at the northern part of the island. Abel J. Tasman, a Dutch navigator, discovered what is now Tasmania, in 1642, after whom the island is named. Van Diemen's Land, however, was the name given to Tasmania by its discoverer, but was changed later. The Dutch seemed to have been good navigators in early years in the Pacific and Indian oceans, but they proved poor land-grabbers. With Tasmania as a key to the mainland, it would seem the spirit of daring did not extend further than the decks of ships, for Tasman finally left Tasmania, and later on it fell into the hands of British navigators. Tasmania is the smallest of the six States of which the Com- monwealth is composed. It has its upper and lower legislative bodies, a governor from England — in all respects a self -con- stituted State. The length of the island from north to south is 150 miles. Tasmania is known as " the sanatorium " of Australia on ac- count of its good climate. At Launceston this was plainly borne out by the rosy cheeks of the people. The city itself, of 25,000 population, is attractive from its parks, its iron-latticed porches and verandas, a splendid stretch of natural scenery known as the Gorge, and the unassuming nature, plain but tidy appearance, and contentment of the people. Few smoke- stacks were in sight, and as a business center it does not hold kinship to the bustling cities of the mainland. " This is the way it is all the time ! " said a second-hand clothing dealer who had invited me to call at his store, he hav- ing gone from America to the Southland to make his fortune. The store was as empty of customers as a church is of worship- ers at midnight. 170 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 171 The commendable custom of Sunday evening concerts in the colonies was in vogue in Launceston, only the one attended here was held in a beautiful park instead of in a town hall. As in other places, the concert did not begin until after church services. In the same park is a small zoo, very good for the size of this city. The wages of workers are low, mechanics receiving from $2 to $2.50 a day. Calling on one of the daily newspapers to see how things looked, when it became known that I was from the United States most of the composing room force stopped work, gathered about me, questions coming eagerly concerning con- ditions in America from every angle. I was to leave the city a few hours later, when two of the force left their work and saw me on the train. Hobart, 135 miles south of Launceston, was the next stop. This is the capital of Tasmania, and has double the population of Launceston. Hobart is situated at the delta of the Derwent River, and has a splendid harbor, with Mount Wellington be- hind the city, water in front, and a large domain or park at one side. While showing little life commercially, there is a charm about the Tasmania capital that sticks to one. Three women to one man is Hobart's unequal population. The wages are so small that any young fellow with an ounce of pluck will cross Bass Straits to the mainland cities, where his labor sells for more than a bare living wage, with opportunities for amounting to something later that Tasmania does not offer. A preserve or jam factory in Hobart furnishes girls and women with employment. Food and house rent are cheap, and for these reasons, to- gether with the splendid climate all the year round, a considera- ble number of ex-British army officers, who have a pension, go there to spend their last days. No stale fish is eaten in Hobart. At the wharfs many fish dealers are found, and their stock is kept in barges or scows containing enough water for the fish to swim In. A customer points out the fish he wants to buy, when it is speared and handed to the purchaser alive. One fish found in that locality 172 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS — the " trumpeter " — is as sweet as American shad, and it has fewer bones. Oysters do well also in Hobart waters, as that city is nearly as far south of the equator as New York is north of that line. Fish caught in a warm climate have not the same flavor as fish that inhabit the waters of a colder one. An angler is at home when lolling about the brooks and rivers that abound a short distance from the city. A dollar a day was all I paid for accommodation at a tidy hotel. That sum included three meals and a room. One will find here a good museum, creditable art gallery and splendid park system, also a good street car system, electric lights, gas and other utilities. " Appleland " would be a suitable name for Tasmania, as upward of 3,000,000 bushels of apples are shipped from that island each year, and the shipments are increasing. The Huon district, some 20 miles from Hobart, is the great apple growing section of southern Tasmania. Apple trees grow in these parts where nothing else would thrive, and large tracts of orchards are seen on the sides of rocky hills. Trees are not allowed to grow over six feet high, which adds much to the convenience and cheapness of picking. They are trimmed each season, and the stumps are eight inches in diameter in some instances, but only the stump, which will not rise over six inches above the ground, is left. The sprouts grow from the stump, and these do not, as stated, exceed six feet tall. These apples do not hang only from the ends of the limbs, as they do from most apple trees in America. Blossoms bloom from the body of the limb, and the limb and trunks of the sprouts are entirely covered with apples. Apples grow from the limbs as freckles on an arm. Ten acres of apple land in southern Tasmania bring in a nice yearly income. The trees grow bushy, and as many as 20 bushels are often picked from one. Most of the apples shipped from Hobart go to England, the time of shipment being from February to June. Fifty miles from Hobart stands the walls of the old Port Arthur Prison, as well as the walls of the church, cracked and ready to fall, covered with ivy vines, where the prison officers SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS I73 worshiped ; the nice avenues of trees where the freemen enjoyed the shade on a hot day are very pretty, and the cozy bay, with Point Peur jutting into still and attractive waters, suggest nothing, so far as nature is concerned, as to the place having been one of the most inaccessible, impenetrable prisons of the world. What was known as the hospital building is in good condition, and serves the small community of Carnarvon as a town hall and public school. Port Arthur has been changed in name — to Carnarvon — as most of the places that have had anything to do with the early prison days of Van Diemen's Land. The prison was lo- cated on a strip of land, 12 miles in length, called Tasman Peninsula. Water naturally borders both sides of the peninsula, and the narrow neck of land at the head — Eagle Hawk Neck — of the peninsula is less than a quarter of a mile wide. Just across the small bay from Port Arthur is Point Puer, on which for years there had been a boys' prison. Both men and boys sent to these prisons, located 13,000 miles from Eng- land, had committed alleged offenses in Great Britain. In ad- dition to these two male prisons there was also one for women, but the latter was not located at Port Arthur. The ages of boys sent to the Point Puer ranged from 12 to 15 years. A number committed suicide, induced by homesickness ajtid other causes. This inhuman state of affairs being brought to the late Queen Victoria's attention, she ordered the boys' prison razed to the ground. The narrow neck of land referred to separates Norfolk Bay from the Pacific Ocean. To-day there are, or were recently, a row of posts standing across Eagle Hawk Neck — from Nor- folk Bay to the ocean. To these posts dogs had been chained, the chains just long enough to allow a dog fastened to one post to meet the other. Some of these posts were driven in the bot- tom of Norfolk Bay, and on them was built a rest for the dogs to jump on when the tide was in. On each side of the narrow strip of land soldiers were stationed, the string of dogs be- tween. Were a prisoner, in trying to escape the hardships of Port Arthur, to get beyond the sentries, and attempt to get by 174 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the dogs, an uproar would be made by the canines, and the sen,tries on the other side would be on the alert if a prisoner chanced to get by the vicious dogs; so that any effort to escape by that route would be futile. Norfolk Bay at that point is also narrow — not over a quar- ter of a mile wide — several prisoners making their escape by swimming across. To forestall further escapes by that means, sharks, which had been imported, were placed in the bay and fed. So, between the soldiers and the dogs on guard at Eagle Hawk Neck and Norfolk Bay full of sharks, once brought to Tasman Peninsula escape was impossible. Masks were worn by prisoners when they attended church services, so that no recognition could take place. In addition to that precaution, the seats in the church had a board at the back as high as a man's head, and the prisoner was closed in by boards on each side. The preacher was the only man that could be seen when sitting in the box seat. From 1842-46 19,000 convicts were sent to Tasmania. Sometimes many died during the voyage. The only humane feature connected with the convict traffic was that the ship doctor received $2.40 for every prisoner who landed in Tasmania. Naturally, the doctor would do his best to collect the fee. The last shipment of con- victs took place in 1877. It is said some prisoners sent to Tas- mania had committed minor offenses, such as shooting a rabbit on another's property, stealing chickens, inability to pay debts, and similar charges. Eucalyptus trees are said to grow to a height of 350 feet in certain parts of Tasmania, and also in some other States. Reading accounts of the products of the Commonwealth, its exports of wool, meat and ores, and being unfamiliar with the obverse side of the picture — droughts, deserts and the rab- bit pest — one would little expect to hear the question asked, " Will the 5,000,000 industrious populace of Australia, a name that fascinates as does California, and having an area one- quarter that of the British Empire, ever increase to 25,000,- 000? " Only a fringe of this continent is habitable, behind these fer- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 175 tile tracts being expansive wastes, on portions of which rain does not fall, at times, for several years. No such river as the Nile or Mississippi flows through these salt deserts. Near the coast, visited by moderate rainfalls, are sections in which drought is ever feared, where wells have been bored to depths of thousands of feet, only to find, when a water vein has been pierced, that, in many instances, the flow proves to be salt water, unfit for drink or irrigation purposes. The two chief rivers of Australia — the Darling and the Murray — are small compared to waterways that course other countries. In dry seasons the water becomes low, and in drought periods the bot- toms of these rivers offer little more moisture than is found on the plains. Not more than one per cent, of the land of this great con- tinent is under cultivation. In order to insure the harvesting of crops in favorable seasons, millions and millions of dollars have been expended by the government in building rabbit-proof fences; the quantity used would encircle the globe nearly half a dozen times. Added to this outlay, large sums have been ex- pended in boring wells, building reservoirs and establishing water stations on cattle and sheep ranges. Buying land from landowners controlling large tracts, obtained by devious means in the early stages of the country's development, is still another heavy national expense. This land, when allotted to small farm settlers, is leased. Leasing the land, instead of granting the freehold, does not augur for a rapid increase in the rural popula- tion. Quality, not quantity, seems to be the aim of the Common- wealth in regard to the immigrant entering its shores. " As- sisted passages " apply chiefly to domestic help and agricultural workers of British birth or of British descent, and these must be in good health and of sound body. A strong sentiment seems to be prevalent for immigration, but those engaged at the va- rious trades, and even the professions, do not encourage the coming of additional artisans to the respective vocations or an increase of names to the professional roster. Hence, the small volume of immigration to the Antipodes. 176 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS With a desert comprising a major portion of the continent, a temperature of lOO to 120 degrees prevailing over a large area, with but few rivers, pure water lakes or refreshing streams, and the bowels of the earth giving up brackish and salt water, thereby dispelling hope of the sandy wastes being reclaimed and the ravages of drought counteracted — meeting with failures in battling to overcome these natural barriers to development, we can picture running through the Australian's mind the para- phrased biblical quotation: "Paul may plant, Apollo may water, but God must give the increase." LEG FOUR CHAPTER I Our first stop in New Zealand was at Bluff, a small port nearly a thousand miles eastward across the Tasman Sea from Hobart. Though composed of only a few hundred people, this place, nevertheless, commands the attention of a traveler, as it is one of the most southerly outposts of civilization, there being no white habitation between Bluff and the South Pole. Tons of cheese and butter were here loaded into the ship, brought by rail from Invercargill, eighteen miles inland, the commercial center of a thrifty farming district. Abel J. Tasman, in 1642, was the first white man to discover New Zealand. He was frightened away by a warlike and fear- less race of natives, but mapped out the coast line roughly, and named the country Staaten Island, which Dutch officials altered later to New Zealand. Captain James Cook, in 1769, was the first to land on New Zealand soil, which he did after much dickering with the Maoris; it then became a British possession. While traveling through Devereux Straits from Bluff to Dunedin, one of the three islands comprising New Zealand — Stewart Island — was to the south. It has an area of 665 square miles, a mild and pleasant climate, and was a favorite assembling place for American whaling ships twenty-five to thirty years ago. A Maori settlement, most of the natives being fishermen and oysterers, form the chief inhabitants. Oban, twenty miles from Bluff, is the principal town. The straits between South and Stewart Islands was red with prawns, and thousands of fowl were feeding off these crustaceans; the birds make their home on the latter island. Later we reached the Heads of Otaga harbor, passed Port Chalmers, and seven miles further the vessel docked at Dunedin, a stronghold of the Scotch. 179 i8o SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS In 1848, after a voyage of several months in sailing vessels, two ship loads of Scotch Presbyterians from Scotland sailed up Otaga harbor and disembarked at what is now known as Dune- din, where they formed a settlement. Scotch energy was at once put into action — some of the colonists building homes, others turning over the soil of this virgin country, then seed- ing the land, later harvesting their meager crops — all initial undertakings requiring more patience and persistence than after- ward, when better supplied with tools and implements, and more familiar with natural requirements. From this small begin- ning — followed by periods of anxiety, disappointment and hardship, as settlers, with more courage than money, in most all new countries have endured in battling with the uncertain phases which confronted them — the pluck of these hardy pio- neers is represented in Dunedin being the metropolis of southern New Zealand. Losing time hunting for level land or gently sloping hills on which to establish a city was not the Scotch way of doing things. The hills are so high, steep and rugged where the citizens of this center live that electric power would fail to draw street cars up some of the inclines; hence steps are cut into the rocks, and walks, made of boards, lead up to many of the homes. Like the rocky hills within the municipality, Dune- din is solidly built. Dark graystone figures largely in building, and streets are good and well looked after. An electric street car system is another asset, and the railway station is one of the best government buildings in New Zealand. Numerous church steeples rising about the metropolis attest the well-known re- ligious tendency of this race; an art gallery, museum, libraries, schools, colleges and other factors indicating intellectual ad- vancement, are found here — 14,000 miles from Scotland and the gateway to the Antarctic region — a credit to Scotland grit. Among the manufactures are woolen goods and farm machinery. Frozen meat exports from the Island Dominion, as this country is often termed, are large. This great industry had its incep- tion here, the first cargo being shipped in a sailing vessel from this port in 1881. Burns' clubs, bagpipe bands — which thrill SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS i8i a Scot wherever found — and Caledonian societies have flour- ished here since its settlement. The bands keep things lively, appearing frequently in complete regalia, the pipers holding their own with any in Scotland. Sixty thousand people live in Dunedin, these being mainly Scotch. Some of the early colonists came from Dundee and others from Edinburgh, Scotland. While settlers from the former were bent on naming their new home Dundee, those from the latter wanted the place called Edinburgh. A compro- mise was finally reached by their taking the first syllable of Dundee (Dun) and the first and second syllables of Edin- burgh (Edin), calling the place Dun-edin. Ho ! An American flag was flying from the mast of an old three-masted schooner in Otaga harbor. Though I had trav- eled nearly 22,000 miles since leaving New York and had been at the main ports of three continents, this was the only occasion the Stars and Stripes was observed flying from a vessel. Little difference was observed here in the clothes worn or the general customs in vogue in America; but British names for certain business callings are the rule, such as ironmonger, fish- monger, mercer, draper, etc. Everybody cuts their own bread in Dunedin. Sometimes resting on a wooden dish, and in other instances on an ordinary piece of board, the loaf is placed on the table, with a big knife alongside. Meat is served carved, however. Splendid horses are noticeable — the big, heavy-bodied, hairy- legged Clydesdale breed. Street cars do not run earlier than i o'clock on Sunday after- noons, when church services are over. Liquor licenses are issued only to hotel-keepers; none to places where travelers are not accommodated. Hotel expenses were only $1.50 a day. South Pole expeditions sailing from Europe generally call and remain some time at Port Chalmers to refurnish their stores before piercing the icy reaches of the Antarctic division of the world, and this is the first port explorers reach upon emerg- ing from that but partially known region. Dual names to i82 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS many seaports throughout the British Empire prove confusing to the ordinary person. A news cablegram may tell of a South Pole exploring vessel having reached " Port Chalmers, N. Z." Seafaring men would know at once by the name the message bore that the explorers were in Dunedin ; but very few persons in America or Europe would know that Port Chalmers and Dunedin denote the same place. Durban, South Africa, is an- other instance of a place known by two names. A seafaring man would call Durban " Port Natal " instead of the name by which it is better known ; and cables also give it as Port Natal. Instances could be cited of a captain saying he was sailing to a certain " port " which a passenger never heard of, but who would readily recognize the place if the name was mentioned as it is designated in books. The apteryx — or kiwi, as this bird is generally called — is a native of New Zealand, and one of the strangest fowl in the world. Man, beast, animal and fowl have been provided with two arms and two legs, four legs, or two legs and two wings, respectively. The kiwi, as large as a hen and brown of color, however, has been furnished with two legs, but has no wings. Its feet are similar to those of other fowl ; it has a long bill, and thin, scattering feathers grow straight from its head. The sides of the kiwi appear as free of wings as those of a cat. The habits of that strange bird are similar to the pheasants. Its call note, " ki-i-wi ! " uttered during the early hours of the night, has great penetrating power, and ceases after midnight. " Not far from here is a waterfall with a drop of 2,000 feet — the highest in the world," remarked a patriotic New Zea- lander. "Is it an uninterrupted waterfall?" was asked. " No, there are several breaks," was the answer. When re- minded that Yosemite Falls, in California, has a sheer drop of 1,600 feet and a total descent of 2,400 feet, it occurred to him he may have used the word " world " inadvisedly. Not far from Dunedin is the natural scenic section of that country, with a splendid chain of lakes, glaciers, high mountains and attractive gorges. The highest mountain in Australia is 7,000 feet, and Mount Cook, not far from Dunedin, rises to 12,000 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 183 feet. Cold weather prevails in this section in winter, accom- panied by ice, snow and blizzards. No snakes or poisonous insects are said to be found in that country. One may lie down on the earth in any place and have no fear of being bitten or stung by anything that lives under or on the surface. From Dunedin to Christchurch I had my first experience riding on New Zealand trains, owned by the government. Some of the passenger coaches are patterned after the American cars. The track is more than a foot narrower — 3 feet 6 inches — which does not allow room for two persons on a seat on each side of the car aisles. One row of seats will seat two persons, but those on the other side accommodate but one per- son. Seats are upholstered, and the train schedule is 30 miles an hour. This was a first-class car, and the fare three cents a mile. Some of the second-class coaches are not as well equipped. Boards, secured to the sides, with only a thin cushion over them, run the length of the vehicle. It is merely a bench, no partition separating passengers, the side of the coach serving as a back rest. The corner seats are coveted ones, as a passenger can put his back to the end and stretch his legs. It is the worst accom- modation I have seen in railroad coaches. The government charges its patrons two cents a mile; no reduction in fare is allowed for return tickets. A hundred miles south of Christchurch the road passes through a rich farming countr)'^ known as Canterbury Plains. Farm land in that district sells at $200 to $300 an acre. Great quantities of frozen mutton, wool and grain are shipped from Timaru, a seaport town in that section. As many as 6,000,- 000 carcasses of mutton and lamb are shipped from New Zea- land each year. There are over 25,000,000 head of sheep in the Island Dominion. One would never think It was possible to conduct a farm on an eight-hour basis, yet those are the hours worked by farm hands in New Zealand, with extra pay for overtime. Wages are good, also, as they run from $30 to $40 a month with board. One would feel safer with hobnails in the soles of his shoes i84 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS while walking about some of the residential sections of Duncdin, so steep are the hills; but Christchurch is built on a level sur- face — on Canterbury Plains. Dunedin, as stated, was settled by the Scotch, but Christchurch was settled by the English in 1850, two years after the foundation of Dunedin was laid. Instead of States, the Dominion of New Zealand is divided into provinces, and Christchurch is the metropolis of the Can- terbury Provincial District. It has a population of 70,000 thrifty people, and the city is rich in beautiful flower gardens, fruit trees, and grassy lawns, while the River Avon, its water of a glassy clearness, and its grassy and tree-covered banks, unit- ing in forming a picture, winds attractively through the city. Here may be seen splendid churches, colleges and schools. Seldom is a church the center or hub of a city, yet street cars stop and start from the Cathedral of Christchurch, and it is the point from which distances are measured. No skyscrapers, nor such grand buildings as Melbourne and Sydney can boast of are seen here, yet everything has a solid, attractive and com- plete appearance. The homes of the people attract attention by the large space in front of them and at the sides. Each lot contains one- quarter of an acre — 66 feet in front and 136 feet in depth. Houses are mostly one story, and flowers, shrubs and grass in front and at the sides add much to their comfortable appear- ance. Most of these are owned by their occupants, and where rent is paid, which, as in Australia, is on a weekly basis, the rate is from $3 to $5. Every home has its own reservoir or water supply. Some thirty feet under the surface there is said to be a lake, and each householder bores in his yard until the water gushes up. The waste water running from these thousands of wells serves as a flushing system. Christchurch streets are of good width — 66 feet. One could not expect to visit a prettier place than Hagley Park, through which the beautiful Avon River runs. Weep- ing willow trees grow on the banks, and the ends of their drooping limbs are constantly refreshed by the water in which they rest. Besides the general attractiveness of the park, there SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 185 is a splendid museum containing much of interest, built within the grounds. " Wait Until Car Stops, Fine $25," is a caution to pas- sengers posted in street cars of that city. Were street car com- panies in some American cities fined $25 every time a conductor forgot to signal a stop at places where he was requested to do so there would be more appointments kept, money saved pas- sengers, and less wrangling. Every one is his own bread carver here, as in Dunedin. The New Zealander, like his Australian brother, is a meat eater. Beef sold at 10 to 12 cents, mutton at 6 to 8 cents, and pork at 12 cents a pound. Good newspapers are printed in this city. Wages are $15 to $16 a week. Laborers receive $2 a day. An eight-hour day is universal in New Zealand. The system of measurement in both New Zealand and Aus- tralia is that of the chain — 66 feet. A chain wide, two chains, two-and-a-half chains long, are the terms used. Prohibition has a considerable hold on the people, as most of the smaller cities are " dry." Double fare may be charged by cab drivers on holidays only, but in other countries cabbies collect excess fares any time pa- trons will pay them. Theaters, bioscopes, amusements and sports of all sorts are found in the city, being freely patronized. The kea bird of New Zealand is destructive to sheep, and for that reason the government pays a bounty of $5 for every dead kea. This bird is of the parrot species, dark green in color, with a bill an inch and a half in length, curved like a parrot's beak. It will alight on a sheep's back, and at once attack the animal in the section of the kidneys with its sharp bill, as the only part the kea cares for is the fat growing about the kidneys. The animal naturally bleeds to death in a short time, when the bird gratifies its appetite at leisure. The desire for this food is an acquired one, as the kea first got its taste for sheep fat from skins hung on fences and other places to dry. The islands of New Zealand are divided by Cook's Straits, i86 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS which are 40 miles wide. One section, lying south of Cook's Straits, is known as South Island, and the land north of the straits is termed North Island. We have been traveling in South Island, which is far richer. Port Lyttleton, the port for Christchurch, is located nine miles from the metropolis. Boats run to Wellington daily, the sailing time being ten hours. One man one vote, and one woman one vote, is the scope of franchise New Zealand offers. Parliament is composed of 70 members, elected for three years. Several political parties exist in the Dominion, and the one in power chooses from among the Assembly a successor for the Premiership. Although the Pre- mier is the responsible head of the government, over him is an imperial official, a governor-general, from the British Isles, who is appointed by the King of England. New Zealand, in com- mon with other colonies of the British Empire, pays the gov- ernor-general's salary. The Cook group of islands, located 1,800 miles northeast of Wellington in the Southern Pacific Ocean, is a dependency of New Zealand, and its affairs are ad- ministered by the Dominion Parliament. Previous mention has been made of a good railway station in Dunedin, and that nearly completed the substantial government buildings seen when that country was visited. We also com- mented on the poor accommodation furnished second-class pas- sengers on railway trains, though paying two cents a mile. A wooden building — if it has not since been replaced — " the largest wooden office building in the world," is pointed out to visitors to Wellington. A government office building in the capital of a country — built of wood ! The worst public build- ing in the splendid city of Christchurch was the government railway station; the station at Wellington would not make a decent sheep shed. With passenger and freight rates sufficient, and a heavy import duty collected on most commodities enter- ing the country, together with an annual tax on incomes of $1,500 and over, the dearth of creditable public buildings, and the inferior railway accommodation afforded second-class pas- sengers, would seem to suggest that government management SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 187 did not bear the mark of striking efficiency. On the other hand, the people are thrifty, courteous, kind, congenial and mostly in good circumstances. The business portion of Wellington is built at the bottom of a chain of high hills, with a splendid harbor front. These hills are so steep that stairways and cable lines figure largely as utili- ties by which residents reach their homes. One misses the con- venient squares and parks found in other centers in that part of the world, but the absence of these here is accounted for by lack of room, as the space between the butts of the hills and the docks is limited even for business purposes. Some distance from the business center, however, is a good botanical garden, and in another direction are creditable parks, with sports grounds included, which enable the capital to make a fair show- ing in this particular. Most of the dwellings are of wood, and rents are, like the hills surrounding the city, high. The weekly system of paying bills is customary here. Some of these homes, for which $25 and $35 a month rent is paid, are difficult to reach, even after one has alighted from a cable car. Rents are higher in Welling- ton than in any city of Australasia. Wages, too, are compar- atively low. Laborers receive no more than in cities where rent is much cheaper. Mechanics receive about $3 a day. One cannot but observe the trend of industrial advancement in almost every quarter of the globe visited. It is a very dull place, indeed, where houses or buildings of some sort are not under course of construction. In Wellington the sound of hammer and saw is heard in valleys and on hillsides miles away from the city. Landlords squeezed their tenants so hard that the government was finally induced to help the citizens by ad- vancing money with which to build homes on sites some dis- tance from the capital. Arbitration courts fix wages, but that system of settling dis- putes between employer and employe works out better in theory than in practice, judging from the number of strikes that so frequently take place. Anyway, one clause of this law is very effective — if a man works for an employer for a less wage than 1^8 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS had been fixed by the court, both employer and employe are fined. Double-decked street cars are in use in Wellington, as in cities of the South Island. A few cars run on Sunday up to 2 o'clock in the afternoon. The fare up to that hour being 12 cents, persons going to and from church might have reason to pinch on the contribution to make up for excessive street-car charges. The custom is hard to explain. Certainly, it is too far to walk from some of the valleys to the city, but, as a limited number of cars are run for the convenience of churchgoers, why this overcharge ? It is possible church-going people have a Sun- day commutation ticket; if so, non-churchgoers who patronize the cars would pay the freight. Gas costs $1.80 a thousand feet here. A private company controls this commodity. Wellington, with a population of 75,000, is the chief sea- port of New Zealand. In addition to being located in the center of the two islands, its good, land-locked harbor, deep enough to admit vessels of great draught, adds greatly to its commercial prestige. Big vessels plying between England and New Zealand dock and start from here. Meat is no dearer than in other New Zealand cities — 6 to I2 cents a pound. Telegraph messages cost but 12 cents for 12 words. The government pays pensions to citizens who have reached the age of 65 years and whose incomes do not exceed $240 a year. This rate is the same as is paid in Australia — $2,40 a week each to husband and wife. The Town Hall, with other' municipal and business build- ings, is a creditable one, and its auditorium and balconies are packed with people who attend the Sunday evening concerts, furnished by the city, which do not begin until church services are over. A good museum is another attraction. Little in favor of the streets can be said, however, for they are poorly laid out and are not kept as tidy as those in other cities. Newspapers are well up to the mark for the size of the city, SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 189 and had I been short of funds, I could have kept my head above vi^ater, as I was offered work here. The standard of law and order maintained in the Island Dominion may be inferred when it is mentioned that there are no keys to doors in some hotels. When shown to a room at one place the absence of a key was brought to the attention of the clerk. " There are no keys to any of the rooms," he ex- plained, in a matter-of-fact manner. Notwithstanding high rents and the high price of gas, hotel expenses were only $1.20 a day, Pelorus Jack, the pilot f:sh, lives on the other side of Cook's Straits from Wellington. Like the kea bird and the kiwi, he is in a class by himself — the most remarkable fish in the world. He is perhaps the only pilot that ever lived who knows nothing about the science of navigation. Pelorus Jack belongs to the dolphin family. His length is about 14 feet, and he is bluish- white in color. His home is in Pelorus Sound, and the channel from that body of water to Nelson is very tortuous. Where the channel becomes dangerous for ships. Jack will be found, waiting. When a vessel reaches the mouth of the channel, the dolphin sallies forth, faithfully following the curves of the route, and the ship is steered in accordance with his trail. Out- going vessels are also met by this remarkable fish, who precedes the ship until it has reached safe water. The Maoris aver that Jack has lived in these parts for generations, and in their eyes he is an ocean god. An act of Parliament was passed in 1904 protecting all fish of that species in New Zealand waters. As Jack is probably the only fish of his sort living in Cook's Straits, he enjoys the exclusive protection of the legislative decree. CHAPTER II Traveling up a steep grade from Wellington, and then down the mountain on the other side of the range, the train pulled away from the coast and headed northward, speeding over the trunk line between the capital and Auckland. Passing through tidy towns, then over trestles spanning rippling streams, through bushy glens, ornamented with attractive fern trees — queen of flora here — which have no superior as a natural adornment, we entered stretches of lava wakes, covered with a bracken growth. To the right, Mount Ruapehu, 9,000 feet high, with its snow-capped summit, came to view ; then Mounts Ngauruhoe and Tongariro, lower mountains than Ruapehu, appear. We next came to the King country — Maoriland; later a stop was made at Francton Junction, where a change of cars was made, and then headed for Rotorua, the main attrac- tion of the thermal district of New Zealand. Rotorua is a place where people come on crutches and lean- ing on walking sticks, and a great number of these, on taking their departure from the sulphur laden air of that district, leave their crutches and walking-sticks behind. The New Zealand government owns this part of Geyserland, and too much credit cannot be given for the splendid place that has been made out of what was formerly a lava-bestrewn stretch of land on the shore of the blue waters of Lake Rotorua. Broad streets, shaded with beautiful avenues of trees; electric lights, gardens and parks, handsome bath buildings, grounds for light sports and free music every day, are some good things the government furnishes. Board can be had for from $5 to $7 a week, and sulphur baths — the water boiling out of the ground — cost only 12 cents, including a towel. The Rotorua wells have proved heaven-sent blessings to many an afflicted 190 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 191 soul. After taking a few baths the flesh assumes a velvety softness. It was a pleasure to note the improvement in the condition of a crippled person who had reached Rotorua on crutches. In a few days one crutch sufficed ; in a similar time that crutch had been discarded; a walking stick next answered the purpose of support, and, finally, with a beaming face and a buoyant heart, that same person, whose legs had been distorted for years from rheumatism or some other cause, could be seen walking about the pretty lawns or shaded streets, unsupported by either stick or crutch, with bright eyes and a radiant countenance, at peace with all mankind, and prepared to face the battle of life again with limber limbs and a grateful heart. The geysers of Rotorua — real high spouters — cannot com- pare with those of Yellowstone Park. From the shore of the lake, for half a mile back, the ground was marked at close spaces with gurgling, bubbling and steaming wells, and a strong sulphurous smell is nearly always present. One feature of that section of Geyserland, however, surpasses any of Yellowstone — a large mud pool, called Tikitere. It is really a volcano, and the furious, boiling, bursting, smoking pond of sulphuric mud commands unusual attention. Half a dozen lakes are linked together, each from five to twelve miles in length, the sides heavily verdured with an ever- green growth, and high hills rising in every direction, making the trip through the lakes very interesting. One of these, Rotoma- hana, is a boiling body of water. Launches travel through this steam-laden lake with as apparent safety and comfort as through normal waters. The shores contain numerous and deep fissures, steam coming from these openings in great clouds Both lake and shores present a scene like that after a big fire, when nothing but smoke remains. A small Pompeii is among the attractions of this thermal dis- trict. The place is known as Te Wairoa, and was over- whelmed in 1886 by heavy showers of mud and volcanic ash ejected from the volcano Tarawera. Over a hundred natives and four Europeans were buried under the mud and lava. The 192 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS ruins of the settlement — buildings, wagons and other evidences of habitation — are yet to be seen. Ashes and cinders ejected from the volcano at that time were carried for a distance of 60 miles. At Whakarewarewa, a short distance from Rotorua, is where the greatest subterranean disturbance takes place. Quite a number of geysers are located at that center, but none of the high-spouters were " working." The " crack " or " show " geyser of that basin is Wairo. It seems to have imbibed the easy-going spirit of the Maoris, for it will " work " only on State occasions. For instance, if the governor-general of New Zealand were to visit Rotorua, and later " Whaka," as that long name is called for short, Wairo would be set to " working." The geyser is coaxed into action by throwing quantities of soap into the well. Visitors would willingly con- tribute money to buy soap to set Wairo working, but as the geyser is covered with heavy planks, a prison cell would be the reward of a person tampering with the pet " spouter." It is said that water is forced to a height of 100 feet when Wairo gets into harness. Vegetation suffers when coming in contact with the out- pourings of the Yellowstone geysers, while about Rotorua the steam and sulphuric atmosphere from the steaming wells does not seem to interfere with the growth of flora. Jewelry and silver and gold coins become black while visiting that district, the sulphur in the air having this effect on metal. Guides showing visitors about that district are Maori women, the price for their services being fixed by the government, to- gether with launch charges for sails on the lakes. It is a good system, for one then knows beforehand how much money a trip will cost. New Zealand, unlike Australia, is rife with battle cries, war songs and narratives of native bravery. Most of the trouble had its inception from land-grabbing by white men, and they have succeeded well, although the natives' domain is still large. Like most natives, the Maori is not blessed with a great amount of ambition, and his needs are common and small, being favored SEVEN LEG? ACROSS THE SEAS 193 with a good climate, as the weather in the North Island is moderate the year round. The Maori is not a native of New Zealand, but what race of people inhabited that country previous to his settlement history does not record. It is safe to presume he killed o£E the aborig- ines, as he would not brook much interference from an inferior race. The Maori is the Polynesian, and in 1350 he paddled and rowed in canoes across a stretch of sea for a distance of 1,700 miles — from the island of Raratonga, one of the Cook group, to New Zealand. From that time until New Zealand's gradual settlement he held undisputed sway. In color he is similar to an American Indian, and is inclined to fleshiness. New Zealanders are very proud of the Maori. While of a warring race, he is not a criminal. He can be made a friend — can be trusted. Intermarriages take place frequently, and it is said the white party to the transaction meets with no social discrimination. Civilization has proved detrimental to them, as with most natives, however, and is diminishing their numbers from time to time. Consumption is decimating them fast. It was interesting to watch Maori women, with their babes on their backs, cooking food and baking bread by the heat from boiling springs, so numerous about the shores of Lake Rotorua. A board box, large enough to admit a kettle, is placed in a well, and an iron grating put at the bottom to rest it on. Meat, fish, vegetables or anything to be cooked is put in the kettle. A blanket is placed over this to keep the steam from escaping. When the food is cooked, the kettle is taken out and the meal served. Dough is placed in them also, and the bread is well baked. Dried shark meat is much eaten by Maoris. Like all South Sea Islanders, he is fond of the water, in- dulging in bathing, swimming and aquatic sports. The Maori still maintains the skill with large canoes that enabled his fore- fathers to paddle 1,700 miles over the Pacific, from Raratonga to New Zealand. Tattooing is a very noticeable custom of these people. Women are tattooed more generally than men. It used to be the other way. When the custom began to die out with the men, 194 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the women took it up, and it is they who keep it alive. The marks are made by a dark blue liquid — the sap of a certain tree. The forehead and chin are the places where the marks are mostly made. Tattooing does not improve the women's looks, but they will not allow old fashions to die out. The woman is generally the man's master. Maoris are a proud and independent race, considering them- selves on an equal with the white man. In order that their " equality " may be maintained, they will not act as servants of the white race. One could not induce a Maori girl to do housework for a European for any wage, neither would a Maori boy black a white man's shoes. They have a vote on any measure affecting their interest, but Dominion suffrage ends there. Four Maoris represent their race in Parliament. The immigration laws of this country practically prohibiting, by a high tax, Asiatic and all other black and colored races from entering, the Maori is the only colored inhabitant in New Zea- land. Any land Maoris sell must be sold to the government and disposed of as it sees fit. The government forwards to the natives the interest on the principal from these sales when they are in need of funds. They prefer to work in the sheep-shearing period, which lasts a month to six weeks, during which they can earn from $8 to $io a day. As a rule, they do not want a steady job. Native women wear a charm, called tiki — a flat, green stone, one to three inches in width and from two to four inches in length. It is a weird image, carved in the stone, having a big, lop-sided head and unevenly shaped body. This ornament is worn on their chest. A small hole is bored in the top of the tiki, through which a string is passed, and, when the ends are tied, the loop is placed around the neck. Many Maori women smoke pipes. They are a religious race, and before entering a church they lift the pipes from their mouths and place them on a railing or a step outside. When the service is finished, each one, on leaving the building, stoops and picks up her pipe, lights it, and heads for her home. o a, CO o 1^ o Pi w H CO U -7 o a cQ 5i5 0^ 5 N SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 195 Homeless white babies and children need not be a charge on a municipality where there is a Maori settlement. Natives will take all the white foundlings that are offered them. As they are an honest race, white children are not only well looked after, but are taught good principles also. Rubbing noses and shaking hands is the mode of greeting when Maori meets Maori, and their offspring learn that cus- tom early. As a mother, carrying her child on her back, bends to " burnish " noses with a friend, the children seem to lean to one side and watch their mammas carry out this old Maori mode of greeting. Pakeha is the native word for white people, and when white persons speak of native and white, pakeha and native are the distinguishing terms used. Visitors to Rotorua are afforded much amusement by native dances and hakas. Women engage in the poi dance, which is a series of motions, gone through to the accompaniment of a concertina. In the hands of each woman is a ball of grass as large as a peach, with a grass string attached. Time is kept with these as they come in contact with the other hand, and when a dozen strike in unison a shuffling sound results. The grass or flax ball is termed the poi. Men only take part in the haka, which is a war dance, and a good one, too. An extended account of the Maori and his customs would make interesting reading. They number less than 50,000. Kaikai is the name they give to food in New Zealand. Grub, scoff, tucker, and kaikai is the collection of food names to this point. We now take leave of this pretty place, where crutches, walking-sticks, and invalid chairs are converted into kindling wood; where pain evaporates with the sulphurous odors, and men are made anew by bathing in that far-off pool of Siloam — where, as Langhorne so beautifully puts it, " Affliction flies, and hope returns," and start for Auckland. 196 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand, having a popu- lation of 85,000, and was the busiest we had visited. This is another leg-straining place, but not so hilly as Dunedin or Wellington. Ships from the South Sea Islands are arriving and departing continually, as Auckland has a big trade with these groups. Most of the shipping between Australia and New Zealand passes through Auckland ; many large steamships from Europe also head for this port. The rosy-cheeked women and children and the healthy ap- pearance of New Zealanders generally is a feature one cannot fail to observe. Besides, there are few poor people — none wearing ragged clothes, certainly — every one tidy in appear- ance and well dressed. Few foreign-speaking people live in Auckland — 90 per cent, are Britishers — and all have a fair education. Schooling advantages are good. The city is well supplied with parks ; also a splendid museum and an art gallery are among the assets of that busy, far-ofiE place. Auckland's street car system is the only one privately owned in New Zealand. Unlike Melbourne's, though, it is fast and modem. The winter climate of Auckland proves a magnet to those living in colder parts of the Dominion. It is semi-tropical and has an invigorating atmosphere. The dwellings are mostly frame-built, two stories high, and from $15 to $20 a month rent is charged. Wages do not ex- ceed $3 a day for mechanics and $2 a day for laborers. Meat, on the other hand, is reasonable, ranging in price from 6 to 12 cents a pound. Servant girls have a union in New Zealand, and their wages run from $4 to $5 a week. After quitting time, the lady of the house must finish any work that has not been completed. A smart New Zealand girl does the work of three African house servants. The degrading occupation of barmaid was noticeable in New Zealand, as in most British colonies. But that kind of work for women will gradually come to an end in the Island Dominion, as an act was passed forbidding saloonkeepers hiring SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 197 barmaids. Those that were engaged at that work when the act was passed were allowed to remain, but when a barmaid leaves the proprietor must fill the vacancy with a man. As temperance has gained a strong foothold, it is not likely that, in the near future, there will be work of that sort for either women or men. Punishment by lashes for certain offenses committed by men is a law of New Zealand, the number administered being from one to fifty. All the inhabitants of Australasia are tea drinkers — tea for breakfast, tea for luncheon, and tea for dinner. Mutton and lamb chops are the meat standbys. The government has sadly neglected Auckland in public buildings. For a lively business place, and the largest city in the Dominion, the railway station was a disgrace; it was little better than the one at Wellington, but this comparison adds nothing to the Auckland Station. When the American fleet visited New Zealand, the sailors took a fancy to blankets made in that country, and before they left the hospitable shores of the Dominion every blanket in stock had been bought. The visit of the United States battle- ships here some 3'ears ago proved an epoch-making event. New Zealanders are very patriotic, but often, when they have visited Australian cities and rested their ej^es on the splendid buildings and grand parks there, and quaffed a few draughts of metropolitan air that pervades some centers of that country, they are in no hurry to return. New Zealand is the best place in the world until the New Zealander visits Australia. Coastwise shipping, both in New Zealand and in Australia, is conducted on a similar basis to that of the United States. A steamer leaving New Zealand for Africa or Europe, or any foreign port, and stopping at an Australian port to take on over- sea cargo, is not allowed to carry either freight or passengers from New Zealand to Australia. The same rule applies to vessels coming from foreign ports that stop at Australian ports with their destination a New Zealand port. Sailors and fire- men employed on coastwise ships are paid double the wages of igS SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS sailors on oversea ships, the same as paid sailors employed on American ships — $40 and $45 a month. One steamship company has cornered almost all the shipping there is in that part of the world. It is a four days' sail from Auckland to Sydney, and the first-class fare is $37. If a passenger received first-class accommodation there vv^ould be less fault to find with the high charge. A cabin contains six berths, and these are nearly always occupied, as travel is heavy between the two centers. What would any one paying first- class fare on a steamship plying between the United States and Europe think if shown a cabin containing six berths, all of them taken? One has no choice in Australasia. Second-class ac- commodation on the ships of that line is not so good as third- class on the European liners. The duty on some American exports — grain binders, motor cars, manufactured and raw material for various uses — is 25 to 60 per cent. The duty on tobacco, most of it shipped from America, is 84 cents a pound. Auckland is very attractive by reason of her good harbor and the elevated character of land, on which the greater portion of the city is built. Gold is profitably mined in both the North and South Islands. The newspaper industry is well represented in Auckland, and fully measures up to the place. One will find more news from the United States printed in Auckland papers than in any other newspapers in Australasia. New Zealanders are to be commended for their fair treat- ment of strangers. Travelers, particularly those from foreign lands, pay no more for hotel accommodation and articles bought than is charged local tourists. Every one seems to be interested in a stranger's welfare, not for what money they can extort from him, but from a purely Christian spirit. No petty overcharges were imposed — no one seemed bent on getting more out of a visitor than was just. We wish them well. CHAPTER III After a four days' sail over the Tasman Sea we reached Sydney, Australia, where, after several weeks' stay, we counted our money. Five dollars a day was our basis of expenses, but, as hotel rates had not exceeded $1.50 a day in Australasia, we found ourselves with a surplus of over a hundred dollars, for our expenses had been only $4. a day instead of $5. A very enticing trip, taking several weeks, was advertised to Fiji, Samoa, and the Tonga Islands for $125. We could spare $100, but feared that the other $25 might result in our being held in Australia at a time when we had promised to be in South Africa. However, we bought a ticket for the South Sea Islands trip, and took the chance of a shortage. The ship was packed with passengers going to Fiji, as the sugar season had just begun. The first suggestion of the demoralization that accompanies living in the tropics was ob- served here. Whisky-and-soda, whisky-and-soda, all the day and a good part of the night, seemed to be the main " amuse- ment " indulged in by many of the Islanders. This pro- nounced phase of tropical life does not apply to any particular white race — people of every nation travel the same road. After six days' sail from Sydney the ship was angling about treacherous coral reefs, and before us were fields of bright green color — the sugar-cane ; several buildings with smokestacks rising above — the sugar mill ; one-story frame houses dotted here and there; the shores attractive with cocoanut palms, and just behind stretches of broad banana leaves, the tops of grass and leaf-built huts showing now and again through the foliage, were the unerring suggestions that the balmy tropics had been reached. How savage these strange people, standing on the wharf at 199 ?oo 'SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS Lautoka, looked! The stiff hair was pointing upward for six inches from their heads, some so bushy that the bottom of a washtub would be none too large to accommodate the mop- like, hairy spread. Tall, and of athletic build, their features flat and negroid, copper or black in color, with muscles stand- ing out from legs and arms, their flesh shining from the frequent use of cocoanut-oil, and with a cloth about their waist extend- ing to the knees, there stood the redeemed cannibals. Their hair is black and kinky, but among groups of Fijis may be seen hair of a dark, reddish color, and, again, others are completely plastered with white mud. The plaster is coral lime, used to change the color, which accounts for the reddish- colored mops. Dyeing the hair is only a fad with a native, however, for he later on becomes tired of his reddish locks, when he will apply a black dye, the hair again becoming its natural color. In a few days the coral lime will change the hair from black to brown, or reddish. He rubs himself with cocoanut- oil every day, which gives his body and limbs a polished ap- pearance. That daily massage largely accounts for his mus- cles standing out so prominently and also for his splendid build. Besides, he puts in a great deal of time bathing and swimming, which exercise will add strength to any one. In diving he excels perhaps any race in the world, for going to depths of from 35 to 40 feet is a common pastime with him. The Fijis' mode of dealing with each other is communistic. A sailing boat may be seen tied to the trunk of a cocoanut palm. All the natives in that district having contributed to the building of the craft, when one wished to use the boat there was no protest from other members of the community. The same principle applies to money; when a Fiji has earned, say, $5, he shares with others who may be in need. One day a week is about all he cares to work, but he will make a sacrifice of his scruples occasionally by working two days, when, for instance, a ship is being loaded or unloaded. He receives 50 cents a day, with board, for that labor. On the wharf are portions of food — sandwiches, biscuits, meat, and Other eatables — for each native employed by the ship's com- SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 201 pany. Sitting on their haunches, they devour their allotted portion at " Smoke, ho," time. Numbers of them gather at a wharf of an evening when a ship is in port. Soon the tunes of " Shall We Gather at the River?" "Jesus, Lover of My Soul," "Hold the Fort," and other well-known hymns fall harmoniously on the balmy air, the English words having been translated into their language. No missionary, however, can be sure of his black and brawny followers, for they think nothing of severing their connection with one denomination and affiliating with any other they think will better serve them. But all are affiliated with some re- ligious body. Cannibalism has not been practiced for forty years. Fijians are a docile and agreeable race. Unlike his Zulu brother, a Fiji has but one wife, and fam- ilies, as a rule, are small, not averaging more than three chil- dren. For some years the birth rate was on the decrease, but of recent years they have held their own. Some 90,000 natives, and 40,000 Indians, or Hindus, live in the Fiji group. Their huts are built of reeds, bamboo poles and cocoanut trees, the roofs being covered with grass; they have two doors, but no windows. Not a nail is used in the construction. Mats, made of cocoanut leaves, are spread about the floor, giv- ing the inside a neat appearance. Their food is turtle, fish, yams, taro, boiled green bananas, cocoanut and rice. A small yam looks like a beet ; but some of them grow very large, being a load for a man to carry. The taro is the root of a plant like a lily, which grows in swamps. With these growing all around, combined with the turtles and fish, he is as independent as he was a thousand years ago. Then there are papaws, bread- fruit and other tropical fruits that furnish all the delicacies he may desire. A large sugar mill is located at Lautoka, and the sugar ship- ment from the Fiji group is nearly 100,000 tons each season. The land is very rich, and some of the cane stalks are as large as a two-inch pipe. Working in the cane fields and mills being too hard for the Fijian, that work is done by Indian coolies. Narrow railways are built through the large cane fields, and 20% SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS the stalks are brought to the mills on trucks from the surround- ing plantations. Fiji is the richest of all South Pacific groups. Free railroad travel is a luxury seldom enjoyed anywhere, but this is to be found in Fiji. The distance from Lautoka to Ba is 28 miles, and a railway connects the two points. There are sugar mills at both places. A concession was granted to the sugar companies to build a railway from Lautoka to Ba, with the stipulation that all passengers traveling to and from these points be carried free of charge. The track is two feet wide, and the locomotive is as broad as it is high. A small car, with seats placed across, heads the train, and to this is coupled several freight trucks. The schedule for the 28 miles is four hours, but five and six hours is more often the time consumed in making the journey. Europeans carrying horse-hair fastened to a stick is the first odd thing one notices at Lautoka. Flies are very numerous and stick to one like mosquitoes. The fly-swish is used to keep " tormentors " from worrying one to death. Australia has the same breed of insect, but because of the absence of black servants and black help their hands are occupied with tools of industry instead of a hair swish with which to insure personal comfort. Only 150 Europeans live in Lautoka, and these were en- gaged at clerical or managerial employment. Few fat men were seen, and every one had a bleached appearance. Suva, capital of the Fiji Islands, is, with Lautoka, located on the island of Viti Levu, the largest of the group. Abel J. Tasman, the daring navigator who first set foot on Tasmania and first saw New Zealand, was also the first white man to come in touch with these islands, in 1643. They became Brit- ish territory in 1874. A governor, appointed by the King of England, directs the affairs of the group, aided by a legislative council composed of eighteen members, twelve of whom are appointed and six elected. Two native representatives are in- cluded in the legislative council. Great Britain recently ceded the government of these islands to Australia. The Fiji group are composed of 200 islands, 80 of which are inhabited. The SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 203 other islands are small, but cocoanut palms grow on most of them. One thousand Europeans live in Suva, and all of them dress in immaculate white. Business houses are located along the water-front, and the homes are built on rising hills. These dwellings rest on posts driven in the ground, are of wood and one story in height. Large verandas are built to the homes, and these are enclosed with reeds — this screen keeping out the hot sun and allowing the breeze to blow through at the same time. Flowers grow everywhere, nature being liberal to Fiji both in quantity and variety. Leaves on vegetation range from the size of an ironing-board down to the finest fern-leaf. The sleeping tree, seen in Suva, is of interest. When the sun has hid behind the tropical hills the leaves begin to curl, and by dark they all close. At daylight, the leaves begin to wake, as it were, and a short time after sunrise they have unfolded to their full size. One weed or small bush that grows here is a marvel of the vegetable world. It is called the sensitive plant. If one looks at it, it seems to shrink away, and the slightest touch will cause its leaves to shrivel up, as if dead. On leaving the plant, the leaves slowly expand again. This plant goes to sleep, too, when the chill of evening falls, but opens at the first flush of the morning sun. " The king of plants," the hibiscus, a flower from three to six inches across, of a bright red and sometimes red and white color, grows in profusion. Hedges are often made of the hibiscus, and when in bloom it offers a superior floral scene. There is no end to flowers in Fiji. "Oh, mamma! Look at the black bobbies!" (policemen) roared a young Britisher when he first saw the Fiji police. The guardians of peace in Fiji are termed constabularj^ and natives compose the force. They wear a bushy head of hair, as does the civilian native, have bare feet and polished legs. Their uniform is a blue jacket, or tunic, and white sulu (a kilt), the latter scalloped or vandyked round the edges. Natives prefer police duty or soldiering to all other work. Unlike the Zulu, 204 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS he scorns domestic service, and field labor does not appeal to him. A bright red hibiscus, or another flower of flaring hue, may be seen sticking in his hair at the side. Thus the Suva policeman looks neat, and is certainly noticeable. The best building in Suva is a library, donated by a Scotch philanthropist. It is built of cement. Little can be said of the government buildings; yet in this small place is a botanical garden large cities vi^ould be proud of. Copra (dried cocoanut) is shipped in considerable quantities from Suva. Brought from .adjacent islands in small sailing boats, it is loaded on vessels at the capital port. A cocoanut tree produces a dollar's worth of copra yearly. Forty trees is the number generally planted to the acre. Eight years' time is required from planting until bearing. The trees require very little care, and, if not blown down by storms, will yield for a hundred years. It is marvelous to what uses the cocoanut tree and its fruit can be put. Besides being a staple food of natives, the pulp, together with cocanut oil, is made into cakes for cattle, par- ticularly dairy cows. The pulp contains 40 per cent, nutriment, and both increased quantity and richness of milk result when a cow is fed with these cakes. There is a demand for this food in Australia. Soap is also made of the cocoanut, together with candies, and preparations for cooking purposes claim a large portion of the product. The coir, or fibers, and cocoanut leaves are used to make mats, baskets, scrub brushes, brooms, fans, pillows, for thatching houses, making rope and twine, and in many other ways the cocoanut tree and its product serve as articles of utility. The Fijian believes that the food that tickles his palate should also be relished by the white man. When one stops at a native's home it would be better to forget for the time being that he is a white. Fijians are very hospitable, and share with a v/hite visitor the best they have. It makes no difference how the native food may look, smell or taste, if a white man re- fuses to partake of the hospitality offered the native will be offended. SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 205 From 40,000 to 50,000 Indian coolies live in these rich is- lands, most of whom work in the sugar-cane fields. Then there are what is known as the Solomon Island " boys," in con- siderable numbers in Fiji, engaged at the same work. The Fijian will not do hard work if he has a chance to run away. Indians are brought to Fiji under the indenture system for a term of five years. At the end of the indentureship, though, they may remain in Fiji. Herein a similar blunder was made in Natal, South Africa. Indians will eventually own the sec- tions of Fiji worth having; then natives, white men, and all others will have no chance to make a living. Some 500 lepers are detained on one island ; but there was no leprosy in Fiji, nor other bad diseases affecting the group before Indians were imported to work in the sugar fields. From six to ten Indians are hanged here every month ; but there were very few hangings before Indians came. When sending out packs of indentured coolies the Indian government apportions one woman to three men ; this may explain the monthly hang- ings. " Everybody in town knows what's in the papers before they* come out," remarked a resident when speaking of the Suva newspapers. Two are printed in the Fiji capital, each appear- ing three times a week. As editions appear on alternate days, Suva enjoj^s the luxury of a daily. Business men seem to be well satisfied with the publishers' efforts, for, out of 28 columns contained in each of the tri-weeklies, 20 columns were advertise- ments. Considering population, high cable charges, etc., Suva's newspapers outstrip anything we can recall; they sell at six cents a copy. All natives go to church on Sunday morning. Each one has a Bible or hymn book carefully wrapped in a cloth or paper. Men and women are dressed in their best, the men mostly in white jackets and sulus (kilts), wearing vari-colored neckwear. Women wear cheap picture hats or go bareheaded. With the latter style go fronds of delicate ferns, artistically woven in the hair, or plaited together along with a pretty hibiscus or other flaring flower. The natives not only look attractive, but 2o6 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS their demeanor commands respect. Their singing is of fair quality, and they put their heart in their efforts. The English money system — shillings and pounds — is the one in use in the Fiji group. Hotel expenses were $2 to $3 a day. All barriers and shoals in the sea in that part of the world are termed coral reefs. Beautiful specimens are brought to the steamships by natives to sell to passengers. The natural color of the coral is brown, which becomes white when bleached in the sun. Then there are big shells that are beauties — some so large they could not go in a water pail. One variety of pearl shell — cici — found in the vicinity of Suva has developed into quite an industry. A ton weight of these sell from $125 to $150. They are as large as a goose egg. The Fijian dives for these among the reefs, a kind of work that suits him to a T. These shells are shipped to pearl merchants in China. On the island of Mbau, situated not far from Suva, is the ancient capital of Fiji, where all who may be termed aristo- cratic in Fiji live. It was here the last king, Cakobau the Terrible, lived, died and was buried. Kandavu Levu, the greatest of the Fijian lords and the grandson of Cakobau, now lives in the old cannibal king's stronghold. He receives a pension from the British government. The Fijian princess, Andi Cakobau, the grand-daughter of King Cakobau, is also among the high-bred Fijian residents at Mbau. Sixty miles further a stop was made at Levuka, on the island of Ovalau, as pretty a settlement as one could wish to see. Only 250 Europeans live in this place, but all seemed pros- perous. These are mostly traders, and it would surprise one to see the varied assortment of goods in the stores. Roofs of houses are painted red, and the residences are surrounded by cocoanut palms, papaw trees, and bananas. There are flowers everywhere — even the shrubbery bears flowers. A short distance from Levuka we came to a native village. Between the front rows of huts was a street, 150 feet wide, covered with grass. On visiting one of the huts, the husband pointed to a bed, which consisted of a dozen mats piled on the SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 207 floor, inviting me to sit down. A moment later he bethought himself of the baby sleeping in the part of the bed where he had invited me to sit. He pointed to a little mound under the mats, laughed, and indicated that I sit in another place. Scan- ning the tidy enclosure, to my surprise, a large picture of Jef- fries, the ex-prizefighter, hung from one side. It pleased the native to see the interest I took in the poster, for he laughed aloud, and, pointing to it, said something that sounded like "Ugh!" Visiting another hut, it was also found very neat, the floor being covered with cocoanut mats ; the mat bed was the visitor's seat here also. This Fijian could speak no English, and we had not been long enough in the islands to acquire a speaking knowledge of the native language. At our approach the wife came to the center of the hut, but a few moments later, much to our surprise, she sat on the floor and began turning a handle to an American-made hand sewing machine that rested on a soap box. It is possible for a Fijian to march 40 miles a day, heavily loaded, without food; but sometimes he takes twelve hours to travel only twelve miles, and eats half a dozen big meals during the journey. He is said to have a more pronounced weakness for yanggona, the native liquor, than have any other of the South Sea Islanders. This beverage is made from the root of a tree and, when drunk to excess, intoxicates. Each native must pay a yearly government tax of $5. So that the reader may gather some idea of the scope of the planet on which we live, it may be of interest to note, before leaving Levuka, that this small port is located 11 hours and 59 minutes east of Greenwich, England, from which point the time of the world is computed. CHAPTER IV Traveling through still, blue-water channels, resembling wide esplanades, if the term be allowed, formed by heavily verdured tropical islands on each side, with curly coral reefs peeping out of the sea from time to time, we sailed for 150 miles through what may be termed an ocean park, when the ship entered the Koro Sea, and two days later reached the Samoan Islands. Sixty miles east of Levuka we crossed the line of the i8oth meridian, where time changes 12 hours. A red stream of lava, running from the mouth of a volcano down a mountain course 15 miles in length, and emptying into the sea, is a strange phenomenon. This volcano is located on the island of Savaii, the largest of the Samoan group. The dis- tance from the shore to the mouth of the crater is seven miles, but the circuitous course of the stream is double the direct dis- tance. The volcano burst into activity in 1905, and a fore- shore of lava a quarter of a mile in extent bears evidence of the crater's outpourings since that time. In daytime the molten stream is white, and at night it resembles a great flaring serpent as it angles its Avay about rocky obstructions down the mountain- side to the sea. Not far from the shore the lava bored a tunnel through a hillock that interfered for a time with its flow, and day and night the stream is red when passing through that opening. The cloud of steam that rises as the lava enters the water resembles a great volume of spray from a large water- fall. It is said the sea is a mile deep where this lava stream empties into the Pacific Ocean. Ships stop opposite the crater to allow passengers to view this unusual spectacle. Passing through a coral reef channel, we arrived in the harbor of Apia, capital of the Samoan Islands. The little town stretches along the bay, cocoanut palms lining the shore at places, the trees and heavily verdured hills in the foreground 208 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 209 giving the Samoan capital a high position in the list of pretty places. The ship was soon surrounded by natives, who offered for sale fans, shells, corals, beads and flowers. The Samoan is the native aristocrat of all peoples. In bear- ing, looks, manners, tidiness, hospitality and pride he leads the world. He is the Polynesian, together with the Maori, the Tongan (Friendly Islander), the Kanaka (of Hawaii), and other tribes living on some of the South Pacific islands. The Samoans number 40,000, about 500 Europeans living in the group. If one should reach Apia on Sunday he would be apt to find the hair on the heads of a majority of men a yellow and reddish color; and were one to stop at the same port on a Tuesday or Wednesday the hair would be black, the natural color. Coral lime will change the color of hair in two or three days, when he puts on his best lava-lava (kilt; sulu in Fiji), the light-colored hair indicating he is dressed up. The hair is straight, and worn brushed back. The lava-lava is often a bath towel with red stripes. From his waist up he is bare, and he wears no shoes. From waist-line to the cap of the knee he is tattooed. His skin is a gold-bronze color, and he walks with a princely step, but not a swagger stride. Natives are of good size, but not so strongly built as the Zulus. Samoan women are noted for their beauty, and their comeli- ness measures up to this coveted distinction not only among the South Sea Islands races, but of native races of the world. They wear the lava-lava, as the men, together with a loose-fitting waist, with short, loose sleeves. Wrappers, however, are some- times worn. The clothing worn on the islands is made with the object of affording comfort. The hair generally presents a tidy appearance. Flowers, ferns or leaves are often seen deftly placed in the folds of the thick black hair of Samoan women, which usually shines from a liberal application of cocoa- nut oil. Garlands, worn about the neck, also play a part in their dress. These are sometimes composed of orange blossoms, buds of other flowers, berry-like seeds from trees, small sea- shells, pits from certain fruits, or of pieces of bone resembling 2IO SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS teeth of wild beasts. As a rule, their expressions are pleasing, and they have a healthy appearance. Some wear sandals, but most natives are in their bare feet. As with the wearing ap- parel of most races, the lava-lavas and waists are not all of the same color, but vary according to the fancy of the wearer; and the seed of fancy and caprice seems to be implanted in the hearts of women of all races, as manifested not only by the different colors of the lava-lava, but also by the patterns of silks, sealskins, feathers, and precious stones, as the case may be. These natives are too proud to unload ships, so Nieu " boys," natives from the Savage Islands, are carried from port to port to do the work. Each Samoan owns a small piece of land, and the copra, cocoa, bananas and other tropical products from this amply supply his needs. When eating in a Samoan's hut a mat is spread for the visitor to sit on. Another mat is placed before the visitor, which might be termed a tablecloth. A banana-leaf plate, placed on the second mat, may contain a baked fish or perhaps a pigeon. Still another dinner mat, with a banana-leaf plate, contains greens, the taro leaf, and cocoanut cream; then there may be a third course, with mat and " plate," containing a native delicacy. The native beverage, kava, is served in a cocoanut shell by one of the daughters. All the while chatting is going on and com- pliments paid the visitor by the family through an interpreter, if one cannot speak their language. Sipping liquid is not a custom in Samoa; but swallowing whatever is offered in the nature of drink at one gulp, and then sending the cup spinning back across the mat to the person who served it, is proper. One is supposed to sit cross-legged on a mat during the meal. Most of the natives seemed to own a horse and buggy, and no signs of poverty are apparent. People are in no hurry in Samoa, which may account for the term, " The land of delicious idleness." The weather is hot, never below 90 degrees in the shade, and hovers about the lOO mark. The temperature does not vary 10 degrees all the year round. For miles around Apia Is a great botanical garden. It is said the best cocoanut palms grow in Samoa; bananas grow as SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS 211 prolific as weeds; the broad-leafed cocoa tree, with its large, purple-covered pods, covers large areas; the papaw, or mummy apple, is seen at every turn; coffee bushes are a luxurious growth; pineapples, mango trees, breadfruit trees, with broad leaves and rough skin — any tree or plant that grows in the tropics may be found in Samoa. The exports from that port are chiefly copra and cocoa. Samoa is the only place in the South Sea Islands where cocoa trees will thrive. Nobody locks doors at night, and nothing is ever taken from huts. Calling on an acquaintance who kept a general store, we found the place filled with Samoans — not room enough to move. He had occasion to step to the rear for some article called for, leaving the goods, which were piled up on the counters, to the mercy of the natives, and much floor space was taken up with merchandise, too. After the customers had left the store, the storekeeper was asked if he did not fear that his goods would be taken while he was at the rear of the building. " If I had turned around while walking from the front to the rear of the store," he explained, " something would have been missing, for I would have offended their sense of honesty, but by giving no sign of suspicion — trusting them — had I remained away an hour everything in the place would be, on my return, as it was when I went away." Samoans are a religious race. On Sundays the streets are crowded with natives dressed in highly-colored lava-lavas, each carrying a Bible and hymn book. They are good singers. Only a few miles from Apia, Robert Louis Stevenson, the novelist, lived and died. On Mount Vaca, rising a thousand feet above Apia, his remains lie, and a portion of the tomb may be seen through the thick foliage when sailing into the harbor. His home, " Vailima," is now the residence of the Governor- General. " Talofa " is the passing salute in Samoa, which, translated, is " My love to you." " Tofa " is the parting word on leaving a Samoan home, meaning " good-b3^" Foreign labor is imported to work on plantations, as the natives cannot be depended upon; Chinamen are generally em- 212 SEVEN LEGS ACROSS THE SEAS ployed. And what an improvement the Chinaman is on the Indian coolie! The Samoan is a fatalist. If the idea comes into his head that he is going to die no power on earth will keep him alive. He gives right up, lies down on the ground, in a boat, or wherever he may be — just makes up his mind that his time has come. A Samoan chief dressed in war regalia is an object of in- terest. His well shaped head, covered with a heavy growth of black hair brushed back and glossy from applications of cocoa- nut oil, rests on a stocky neck. The face is round, complexion bronze, and he generally wears a mustache. In addition to a necklace, thickly studded with polished, round, sharp-pointed pieces of bone, several inches in length, which encircles the neck, a loop of stout cord, ornamented with larger and rougher pieces of bone, resting on the shoulders and extending to below the chest, is worn. Save for the necklace and loop, the warrior is bare to his waist. From waistline to between knee and ankle he is covered with a bulky kilt — often made of bark cloth — this being embellished with fringe, tassels and ribbon woven from tropical fibers. Plump, but not fat, he stands about 5 feet 6 inches. A rifle is a fighting feature of the chief's equip- ment, and, like most Samoans, is in bare feet. Elephantiasis makes its appearance in Samoa, and natives with legs swollen to the proportion of an elephant's may be seen walking any time at a slow, shuffling gait, about the islands. This disease occurs more often in tropical sea sections, and is believed to be caused by a blood parasite. The legs become enormously enlarged, due to inflammation of the skin and ob- structed circulation of the blood. America has adopted a good system of looking after natives' copra produced on the islands of Manua and Tutuila, United States territory. An officer in charge at Pago-Pago receives the goods, weighs it, gives a receipt for the product, and sells when the market offers the best price. In the meantime, if the na- tive needs money, he can, by applying to the proper officer^ have Q < O o U n Q tq 06