The universal geography : earth and its inhabitants

160 SOUTH AND EAST AFRICA.and which began with pillage and murder, the weaker race has gradualh' adapteditself (o the forms of civilisation introduced by the invaders of their domain.The liochuauas arc a very courteous people, and invariably address each otherin polite language. Although they are by nature on the whole of a peacefultemperament, wars were formerly very frequent, cau.scdnearly always by cattlelifting." Our fathers lost their lives in capturing you, and we also shall perishin guarding you." So sang till lately the young Ba-Maugwato warriors to theirherds ; but of late years most of the Bechuana tribes have discontinued theirwarlike expeditions.Formerly nomad pastors and hunters, the}' are now rapidlybecoming peaceful tillers of the land. Every man, every youth, even every girl,has his or her separate plot of gi-ound, and the child thus learns from itstenderest years to cultivate the soil.Down to the beginning of the pi'csent century the Bechuanas were stilladdicted to certain cannibal practices, apparently of a religious character. Thebraves who had slain an enemy brought back a portion of the body, and thengathered together to celebrate their victory under the presidency of a magician.Crouching round a blazing fire, they broiled the flesh under the embers anddevoiu-ed it in common, in order thus to superadd to their own the courage of thefoe. Then, in order to show their contempt of pain, each in turn presented theirbare leg to the priest, who with a stroke of the assegai made a long slit from thehip to the knee. Although the wound was deep enough to leave a permanentscar, the warriors had nevertheless to join in the tribal dance, Avhich was kept uptill the " small hoiu"s."Southernmost of all the Bechuana tribes are the Ba-Tlaro, settled on thenorth-west frontier of Griqualand West, where, however, the}' have to a largeextent become merged with the better-known Ba-Tlapi,* or " Fish People."These Ba-Tlapi, whose national token is a fish, and who carefully abstain fromtouching this sacred animal, occupy a hilly district north of Griqualand West,bordering on the Vaal, and were also amongst the rival claimants for the coveteddiamantiferous region now annexed to Cape Colony. They are one of the mostnimierous branches of the Bechuana race, numbering with the Ba-Tlaro aboutthirty thousand soids. Thanks to their frequent relations with the English andDutch settlers, they are also the most civilised of all the tribes, and the lightcomplexion of the children in many of their villages betrays an increasing- intimacywith their European neighbours. They are generally of a very cheerfuldisposition, and formerly possessed a large treasui-e of national songs, which hasnow mostly perished, being replaced by religious hymns.Topography of Bechuanaland.The Ba-Tlapi gardens, wherever sufficient water is available, yield in abundanceall the Eui'opeau fruits and vegetables, and the plough has already beenintroduced very generally. Some of the native towns and villages are well• The Ba-Hlapi, Batlaping, Bachapiu, Matcliapoes, Maatjaplug of various writers.