2. Life in the Transvaal
I had, of course, begun looking for work. I had walked the full sixty miles of the G.B. Band and had not been successful. In a second edition of the tramp I remember sitting down on the Veldt, all by myself, and having a little cry, and I know I was not the only man by hundreds who gave vent to his feelings in this way. However, by the time I had been in the country a fortnight I got work. Once I had broken the ice I never looked behind me.
I recall one night I was sinking an enderlay, or incline, shaft and, of course, I could not speak Kaffir. I can tell you it is a job to be in charge of fourteen or sixteen black men, or boys as they are called,¹Terms like "kaffir" and "boy" now rightly considered offensive, but he would have lacked our modern awareness of this. and not be able to tell them anything. Like most human beings if they are getting it easy by not knowing, or pretending they don't know what you mean, they do so. Well, I had been with them for about a week and had learned a few words but the worst of it was I did not know where to put the words when using them. The result might have been that I was telling them to do something with the first part of a sentence and countermanding it with the second. On this particular night I had told some of them to go to the smithy for some sharp picks, told them until I was tired. I was just about to go for them myself when I saw one, whose name was Daniel, stand up and say to them in better English than ever I could use "Can't you go for the picks you b______ fools when the man tells you." I can honestly say I never felt so pleased at hearing my mother tongue spoken in my life time.
I instantly jumped the space between Daniel and myself and asked him if it was he who had spoken English. He said, "Yes, Boss." I asked him where he had learned it. He told me he had been with some big game hunters for three years.
I said, "Oh, well then Daniel, from now on you are my Boss Boy." The promotion only meant 1/-d. a month to Daniel but it was a God-send to me as long as I was there. I used to give Daniel my orders in English. He in turn issued them in Kaffir. The result was I learned to speak Kaffir very quickly and even now, after thirty years, I could converse with a Kaffir man. The following is how to count in Kaffir:-
1 - Moonyah
2 - Mabeelya
3 - Matatyow
4 - Manya
5 - Suslanya
6 - Suslanya Moonya
7 - Suslanya Mabeelya
8 - Suslanya Matatyow
9 - Suslanya Manya
10 - Schoomy
11 - Schoomy Moonyah
12 - Schoomy Mabeelya
13 - Schoomy Matatyow
14 - Schoomy Manya
15 - Schoomy Suslanya ²I'm currently trying to find out what language this is. The miners would have spoken "Fanagalo", a pidgin based on Zulu though its numbers are based on English. However these numbers come from some other language.
It can be seen from the above what a difficult position one was in with fourteen or fifteen boys and, in some cases, twenty.
Apart from the first difficulty I found them faithful, obedient, willing workers and very sympathetic if a white man was hurt. Their heart is quite as humane as ours. They are very clean in their habits, especially in regard to having a really good, cold bath first thing every morning.
However, I was not destined to work long at this place, only six weeks. There was a new Manager, a Cornish man, and although there were only six white men there he cleared the whole lot out, such was the partiality shown by Cornish-men and it made them very badly liked by all other men on the Rand.
One incident occurred while I remained there that I feel I must record. I have stated I was working in the new enderlay shaft, having been taken from the other little mine for this purpose. There was a bit of envy about me being put in there by the other men as I had not asked for it. At first it was only an argument and I insisted that I had not asked to be put there. They could not understand me being put there without having asked as some of them had asked and had been turned down. It all blew over by the end of a week and we all seemed to be just as friendly as ever.
However, at the end of the month, on the Saturday, two of them that had asked to be put into this shaft, and had been turned down, proposed a walk to Krugersdorf in the evening. Krugersdorf was only a very small place but had the appearance of age about it, as though it had been one of the places where the earliest Dutchmen had settled. There was very little to see and before we came back we went into Varley's Hotel and had a drink or two. I was just about a teetotaller and drank a drop of port or a shandy gaf. Eventually we started back to our rooms. Of course it was very dark and as soon as we passed the station they sprung the conversation about the shaft and before I knew where I was one of them laid hands on me. At this time I was very impulsive and I promptly knocked him down. The bigger of the two then laid hold of me and threw me to the ground and I had several very nasty kicks from them before I regained my feet. I then made off with them after me but I could run too fast for them.
I gained the room and ran right into it, wondering how I could defend myself against two, as I expected there to be no-one there but the three of us. But to my surprise when I got into the room there was a strange man sitting reading a letter. I rather startled him. He asked me what was to do and I told him. He was a German but could speak some English. He proved to be an engine driver the Boss had started during the afternoon, - the other driver having gone on the spree. After I had told him my story he got up and went to his trunk and took something out of it. Coming back and sitting down on the bed on a box at the bedside he laid what was a six chamber revolver, at the same time saying "Let them come." But they never showed their faces on the mine any more, although they came the next day and got their belongings while we were all at work. However, as I said before, the advent of the new Manager cleared the remainder of the white men out.
I went from here to Glen Deep General Mining Company, where I remained as long as I was in the country, and one of the first men I set eyes on was the bigger of the two that had given me the kicking. Of course I immediately marked him down for the first opportunity I got.
Everything went all right with me there. I met some fine men, men who would do anything to help you, mostly Scotsmen, and I say without hesitation the finest men I have been privileged to meet. Life was now much more happy but not as happy as I would have liked it to be.
We used to meet in the rooms at night and have a sort of community singing. A chap from Cleator Moor used to sing some good songs. In fact anyone who could chirp at all used to do so and this was how we passed the long nights. I may here point out that the nights are mostly long, or perhaps it would be better to say that the day and night are about equal always and while it is very warm through the day it is always very chilly at night. As soon as the sun sinks below the horizon it is dark in half an hour.
Then the frogs in any swamp that may be near start singing. They make a noise like a pulley-wheel that needs oiling. They are about the size of a man's cap and their bite is supposed to be very deadly. They are exactly shaped and coloured like our frogs are here only, of course, six times larger.
The centipede is a very interesting member of, I think, the caterpillar family, only varying in size and its mode of propulsion. I don't know how many legs it has but it must be hundreds. Our caterpillar moves forward by placing its body, placing its legs, or feelers, forward and then dragging the after port forward. The centipede in size is about the size of the index finger of a man's hand. It is black in colour with a covering, or skin, like our own beetle. Its legs are nearly as fine as hair and they move very quickly. To give an illustration of how the legs move it is just the same as if you took a fine toothcombe and pressed the teeth with your thumb-nail. It is quite harmless which is, of course, very much in its favour.
The scorpion is a huge member of the spider family, only he does not weave a web. At the same time he is a craftsman of no mean order. He lives in a cell in the ground, the lid of which works on a hinge and is made of the soil or sand in which the hole is made. Often it stands at a right-angle to the hole and when shut the joint is so fine that it is quite impossible to see it. It is about the size of a big thread bobbin and has a hole in the centre about the same size. It is quite impossible for him to get out except by opening the door. His bite is nearly sure death. If the boys, or natives, see one they clear out of the way quickly. They call him Maninke Scillom. Maninke means big and Scillom means Bad One. He is in size about 1½" across his body and his legs are about 2" long. He can move very quickly.
The locusts are a bad pest in these regions of Africa. There are two kinds, - the Colonial and the Egyptian. The former is the smaller of the two. It is brown in colour. The latter is of a bright green colour, only the under wing is red. When there is what is called out there a "shower of locusts" they are so thick you can just tell the sun glistening through them, and in a week's time every vestage of green has disappeared. The trees have the appearance of dead trees. Of course, they revive again the following year. I have often thought if ever they got over to England, in summer, it would be the most devastating visitation England had ever had. There would be no hay or corn harvest that year, nor would there be any turnips, mangold, potatoes or in fact anything left for either man or beast to live on. It would just about ruin the country. I don't think the greatest army that ever invaded a country could do in six months what the locusts could do in a week. In fact I am sure they could not.
The weather at all times is beautiful and sunny. I was there about two years and it only rained once, and then only for half an hour. But, mind you, it did rain. There were streams we could not jump over, where there had been no water at all before it rained. The ground is baked so hard it cannot soak in like it does in England. On one occasion I saw hail stones, although the storm did not last more than a few minutes. The hail stones were about the size of a megnut. And on another occasion I saw a Simmoy, or storm of sand. The sand was lifted from the ground in such quantities that in a few minutes it was nearly as dark as night. You have to get into your room quickly. You dare not open your eyes and into the room, through the key-hole, under the door, or by the tiniest crack, comes the sand until in no time there is quite an inch of it covering the floor.
Of snakes I saw only one, about 4 ft. Long. A Dutch bullock driver happened to be passing with his team of bullocks. The snake had its head raised about a foot from the ground. He swung his double-handed whip around and severed its head from its body. I may say the bullock driver's whip is more like a fishing rod. The shaft is of bamboo. Of course it is long enough to hit the first pair of bullocks in a team of fourteen or sixteen. It is a fine sight, the market square at Jo'burg, the teams of bullocks lying chewing their cud. Inspanned, or yoked, they have been trekking anywhere from 30 to 100 miles with farm produce of various kinds. One has to thread one's way amongst them and they take not the slightest notice. Of course they are tired. All the produce is sold by auctioneers, who shout the price in nearly every language. It is very interesting to listen to them.
The hare in the Transvaal is in appearance exactly the same as our hare here, only twice as big. I think stretched out he must measure from 3 ft. 6 ins. to 4 ft. from the tip of his fore-legs to the tip of his hind ones. He is so fast that no greyhound can get near him. He can leave them on the straight.
The rabbit is about the size of our hares and burrows in the ground. The boys have no ferret but carry water and teem it into the hole. Presently the rabbit comes to where the boy can reach him and then he is, of course, dispatched and eaten. I must say that all the meat the boys get to eat they only boil or hang in front of the fire. They seem to know of no other way of cooking it.
Of the larger quadrupeds there are none in the Transvaal. They get out of it as civilization advances. There is not such a great variety of bird life as we have in England but undoubtedly the swallow we get here is the same as I saw in the Transvaal, only he builds his nest by hanging it from the branch of a tree, the entrance to which is on the size. Then there is a bird of the magpie variety. It has a very long tail and resembles the magpie in flight.
This brings me up to about Christmas 1895. I remember I was on afternoon shift sinking. The noise of the Ingersol Sergent Machine is terrifying at first and when I say that there. were four in a shaft 22 ft. x 10 ft. it can be imagined what a terrible noise it was. I have known men have to leave because the noise was going to deprive them of their reason, at least this was the doctor's advice. However, as I said, I was on after noon shift on Christmas Eve and had to go to work first shift on Christmas morning. Of course there was the usual drinking on Christmas Eve and some of them got over the border-line. I was at work until 10 p.m. and had not gone out. My room mate's name was T. Barrow and, strangely enough, he came from Barrow-in-Furness. As we both had to go to work first shift we retired to bed but about 12 o'clock or l o'clock in the morning someone came kicking at the door and before I could say anything Barrow had got out of bed and opened the door and in came my Krugersdorf friend, T. Dodgson.
Anyway, to make a long story short, before he would go out he had to be put out and, of course, the usual dispute began about whether anyone could put him out or not. By this time it was about 1 a.m. Presently I jumped out of bed and put one hand behind his neck and pushed him towards the door, which was wide open. When I got him to the door I put a foot in front of him and the result was that he fell on the wooden footway with a resounding noise. I banged the door to, locked it and got back into bed. He came back in a few minutes and kicked the panels of the door into the room and then went away.
The result was that Barrow and I overslept and lost £1 a piece over him, which naturally upset us a bit. However, I eventually got up and went for breakfast and when I was returning to my room for my pipe whom should I meet but Mr. Dodgson. He stopped and said to me it was a good job for me that "Our Marshall," a cousin of his, "did not see you throw me out of your room last night."
I said to him "Go and tell Marshall I care as much for him as I do for you."
He could not get his coat and vest off quickly enough. However, in a few minutes I had exacted a full reparation for what he had done to me. He was a man about 32 and I about 20. He must have weighed 14 stone, my weight at this time being about 11 stone. There were a couple of dozen men near at hand, Cumbrian and Scotsmen. Presently one, J. Gold, a Scotsman, came and got hold of me saying at the same time "Can ye no see he's no match for you?"
I said "When he and another chap had me down on the Veldt kicking me they gave me no consideration."
He said "Did he do that?"
I said "He did!"
"Then" he says "Gi'e him another one," which I did and left him at that. I got satisfaction from this one, the other one I never set eyes on again. He was a Northumberland man named J. Pratt.
However, life went all right here. There was quite a good muster of Cumbrian and Scotsmen, with a few Australians and Swedes thrown in, all real nice fellows, the Australians in particular, - the best speakers of English ever I heard. I used to glory in listening to them. One, Macdonald, and I got to be rare chums and spent most of our time together.
The work in the shaft was hard and dangerous. There was often someone hurt by blocking falling from the wood. The shots used to hit the wood and shake it loose then, after we had got down the pit again, and were busy "Mucking", we called it, the movement of the seip used to shake it down. Invariably it hit someone. Of course, we always examined the wood after blasting but it was difficult to see amongst the dynamite smoke, etc. Then of course, there was the usual rush that always exists about shaft sinking. There is only one thing that counts and that is to keep the wheels running, dragging the stuff up the pit, then everything is all right.
My room mate then was a Northumberland man named Charlie Lee and we were boarding with some Hungarians. All the waiters and the cook, etc., were black. My friend Lee could not enjoy his food. Every time he looked at the black waiter it upset him. For myself I could eat under any condition, but he often sat ten minutes or so waiting on me finishing. One night we had been up for our tea and, as usual, Lee was grousing about the "black sons of bitches" (he always styled them that), when two other fellows heard him.
They said "Why don't you come to where we are? We have white waiters, cook and a white Mistress."
"Oh," he said, "Where's that?"
"Up at the May Boarding House."
Lee says to me "What do you say?"
I said "Any way you like." So we instructed the young fellows to see if they could take two more on, which they did, and told us the next day at dinner time. We went and paid up the Hungarians and went to the new place for tea that day.
I recall the impression this made on me. It was a beautiful little boarding house with about twelve tables that seated about eight at each. The waiter was a white man, there was a young white Mistress, and a little girl of about four years of age running about. I noticed a marked difference in Lee's appetite - it was me who had to do the waiting then. Everything was well cooked and spotlessly clean, which always seems to assist people's appetites. Of course, we all thought the woman was the wife of Mr. Howard, the owner of this boarding house. Also he ran Witwaterstrand and the Knight's Central boarding houses. However, one evening after I had been there about a month I had to take my machine over to the fitting shop and I was thrown a bit late. By the time I got over the boarders had all finished and gone and the waiter was sitting having his tea, but the young lady came to wait on me. I apologised for being late and then she explained that everything would be cold. However, she said, "I'll find you something." Presently she arrived with a tray and instead of one cup and saucer she had put two and also, of course, the eatables. She placed her cup opposite mine. I wondered to myself "What does this mean?" Of course we drifted into conversation about the country, its loneliness and one thing and another.
She, I may say, was about 22 years of age and fair looking. She had a wealth of fair hair and was altogether what a young fellow might been excused for falling in love with. Of course, as I said, we believed her to be a married woman and so, of course, none of us took much notice of her. But in our conversation she was not long in removing this impression. I enjoyed my tea and went off to get washed. I was then in my pit clothes.
The following Sunday dinner time there were six of us went in for dinner together and after we had finished and were on our way out I was last of the six, and as I put my hand behind me to close the boarding house door I found it was held. On looking around I saw her. She stepped out on to the verandah. "Isn't it a lovely afternoon?" Of course I said it was, but that was as far as I went. However, our friendship continued. She often threw herself in my way although I had never given her the slightest encouragement.
On one occasion I was on night shift and on these days I did not get up until about 1.30 p.m. so that I could just be in the boarding house before 2 p.m., and when I looked at the letter rack there was a letter for me. Opening it I found it was from her telling me she was going to Johannesburg and would I accompany her. She had already gone and, as far as I was concerned, it was not good. I met her coming back and asked her what did she want.
The question seemed to give her quite a shock and she turned all colours. Of course, I was in possession of a fact that she was not and I had not thought it worth while to let her into the know. To-day I see plainly this was very wrong of me and not playing the game. I had no kind of intention towards the girl, only one of pure friendship. And so, for a few more weeks, this situation existed, although I began to think more seriously of what I was doing. I came to the conclusion that it was very wrong and I would put her in possession of a fact that would surely make a difference.
So I told her I had left someone behind in England. I know the poor girl felt this although I had had no hand in attracting her, at least not that I could help. I can only say I hope she was lucky enough to meet a young man in a good position and fancy free because I believe she was worth it. I remember one evening meeting her, quite by accident, close to the rooms where I lived and I stood talking to her a few minutes, and every room door had either one or two young men standing in it. I walked on with her as far as she was going and by return post from England... ³Here the original handwritten text (now lost) must have been illegible. ...my Father and Mother and also someone else whom I did not want to know. This caused a breach which was healed after a time but it shows how careful one should be and it might have had more disastrous effects for me.
Mr. Howard, mentioned above, was brother-in-law to her. His wife looked after the Knight's Central boarding house. The little girl was Howard's daughter and, of course, her niece.
In connection with this girl I have something else to mention. I spoke previously about an Australian by name of Macdonald. He and I were great friends and spent most of our time together when not at work. When I had decided this girl-friendship had gone far enough I told him when I was in his room, one Sunday morning, at the some time adding that I had never wanted her in any way but I seemed to be unable to keep clear.
He said, "No, I can see Jack, old boy, that the two sisters are playing a game," meaning the married sister, Mrs. Howard.
I said "What do you mean, Mac?"
He said "Well, they are playing a game and if you don't play the game you are a fool! You get every opportunity."
"Oh" I said, "I see what you mean Mac. Well I have not played the game nor have I ever attempted to, nor do I ever intend to. My friendship has gone no further than yours has for that matter. Besides, Mac, it would not be honourable." At the same time I pulled a cabinet photograph from my pocket and showed it to him.
He looked at it and then at me and said "Then you don't want this one at all?"
I said "No, I never did."
He said "Give me your hand on that" and I said "There it is." We shook hands and the next time she was about Mac took up the game and continued as long as I was in the country.
That Sunday afternoon after tea all the boarders had gone out. Mac, myself and Mr. and Mrs. Howard were sitting talking. Presently Mrs. Howard gave me a lead for which I was waiting. I pulled out the photograph, she looked at it and handed it towards her sister. But she did not look at it at all. So this ended just a little friendship that left quite on impression on my mind. I have often tried to find out whether Mac married her or not, but I have been quite unable to. I suppose they will have to take a place amongst the friends that used to be. She came from London, Macdonald from Melbourne, Australia.
Work in the shaft was proceeding in a nice, regular way. Nothing occurred of any moment, except the usual trifling accidents that do keep happening in sinking pits. However, this calm had not long to last. About 10 a.m. one day we were made aware that something unusual had happened. I was sitting in my room, along with J. Gold, when the Boss came and told us to get our pit clothes on. There had been on accident at No. 2 shaft. I did not work in this shaft but when there is life in danger that does not count. When we got to the shaft we could not get the skip up. The engine was not capable of lifting it and as they were new engines of the very latest type and very powerful we knew there was a big weight resting on the skip. It was some time before we got another rope rigged up to lower us down. The engines being fast this had to be done by a hand winch and, being 1,000 ft. down, it needed a lot of core in rigging it up. When we did get down there were fourteen men down there but we could only hear the voices of two. One of these was fast; 160 ft. of shaft wood had fallen on the poor fellow and he was pinned by some of it. After about two hours of sawing and blocking we got him freed. At first it was thought his back was broken but he came round all right. The other chap ailed nothing. Twelve had fallen to the bottom and as there was 100 ft. of water of course the poor fellows were drowned. There were two Australians, a Cumbrian and a Shropshire man. The rest were black men.
The Cumbrian who lost his life was named Jonathan Spedding of Salter, Cumberland. He had had shocking luck, having suffered from blood poisoning, and had lost months of work through it. He had then been fortunate to get a few months worked without any loss of time and had saved sufficient money to go home with. That very day he had changed shifts with a man named J. Ashbridge of Cleator Moor - poor fellow, he was going to Jo'burg to book his passage to England. Then the accident occurred and he lost his life. I remember well when we recovered the bodies, - we could only recognise them by their dress. They had been in the water 12 days when we began to get them out. When we got Spedding, Ashbridge was on the shift. He was so overcome we had to take him up the pit first. He said "Poor l'al Jonathan, there in my spot."
The method we adopted to get the bodies out was a very slow one as we had no means of bailing the water out except by buckets into the skip, which was hauled up to the top to be emptied. As there was 100 ft. of water to take out it took us a good few days. In addition to the water there was the 160 ft. of heavy timber in the water. The wood held the bodies in suspense until they were liberated by us pulling up the piece of wood that was holding them down. The timbers were of Australian Gerry, a red wood, and very heavy, - 22 ft. x 10 ins. square.
The stage we worked on was suspended by ropes from the last set of wood. As we lowered the water we came up on to the set of wood and lengthened our ropes. When we were low enough for a set of wood we put it in and then slung our ropes from the new set of wood, and so on until, in time, we had got all the bodies out. Wood and water as well, of course.
The white men were all buried on one afternoon in the Primrose Cemetery. The black men were all buried in one grave, each one wrapped up in a disinfected blanket, and with all the Missionaries there were in South Africa there was not one word of prayer said over the black men. This seemed to me to be rather out of order. Of course, it may well be that I am wrong in thinking it should have been otherwise, but to my humble mind it seemed that if any good can be done by interceding for a white man why can't it be good for a black man? However, be this as it may this was the way that it was done.
This was a very trying ordeal, working to get those men out and the shaft re-timbered. We worked six hour shifts and had £2 per day for two months. However, this job seemed to get on my nerves a bit and I decided I would return home. I went over and saw the Manager, whose name was Gale. I can't say what part of England he came from but I am nearly sure he was an Englishman. I told him I had decided to go home at once and he told me that when I returned I had to come back to Glen Deep G.M.C, - that was the name of the mine.
So on Christmas Day 1896 I left Germiston, or to give it its Dutch name, Elandsfontein which, in English, means "Deer's Brook". I may mention here that I met my Australian friend on the station, accompanied by the girl I have previously spoken of, and the last good-bye was said to him here. His last act was to hand me a bottle of Johnny Dewar, accompanying it with the remark that "This will help to put the first night in." He also said "I will be seeing you back in about three months."
I said "No, Mac, it is good-bye for ever unless you come to England."
"Well," he said, "I intend to see England before I die." However, I have not seen him up to now and this is 1932 so he is going to have to get a move on or it will not happen.