LOOKING BACK ON 15 YEARS

January 2009, sees Rose’s Round-up moving into its sixteenth year of publication. It started in January 1993, when few people had any real faith in the tourism potential of the Karoo, nevertheless it survived, and this is the 180th issue. Initially it was designed as a cost-effective little newsletter to keep six town clerks abreast of what was happening in the newly-created Central Karoo Tourism Office and because, Rose Willis’s life partner, Wally Kriek, felt it might become a “knight in shining armour for the Karoo,” he sketched a knight using a pen for a lance – to symbolise “the pen is mightier than the sword.” It was a joke, but I liked it and used it as a little icon for Round-up, however, in the final analysis, Wally was right, over the years Round-up became a champion of the Karoo. It survived Professional Write and a dot-matrix printer for 43 issues before graduating to Word and a laser printer. The A5 format of the postal version never changed, (e.mail readers, of course, receive an A4 version.) The first copy went to Beaufort West town clerk, Jan van der Merwe, who was so impressed he instantly asked for extra copies for the town councillors. That set Round-up on a path which led in time it to receiving several top awards as it carried news of the Karoo far beyond the country’s borders. To begin with Round-up focussed only on the central area but, since moving to Bloemfontein six years ago, that changed and it now includes amusing, unusual and educational snippets of Karoo news and cultural history, as well as interesting items of South African history. The newsletter has a loyal following, and many act as reporters keeping their eyes open for interesting stories to share with fellow readers. These are always welcome.

MAJOR ART PROJECT DISPLAYS WORK IN HANOVER

An exciting exhibition of work from The Keiskamma Art Project opened at the Hanover Gallery on December 21. In addition to displays of traditional and new products, visitors were also treated to daily demonstrations of work in progress. The Keiskamma Art Project started in 2000 to provide artistic training and employment for 86 Xhosa women of various ages in the Hamburg region of the Eastern Cape. The project focuses primarily on collective production of large embroidery works. One of the biggest yet made, the Keiskamma Altarpiece, is presently on tour in the United States of America. Another of their works, The Keiskamma Tapestry, tells the history of the Xhosa people in the Eastern Cape, and is on permanent exhibition in the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town. The women work under the guidance of several well-known artists such as Carol Hofmeyr, Jackie Downs, Noseti Makubalo and others. They are encouraged to make suggestions regarding subject matter and the development of designs. They are taught art history by lecturer Florence Danais, and this helps them include a strong thread of cultural history in their works many of which depict the stories and happenings in the world of the Xhosa people through to the modern day. The Keiskamma Art Project is part of the Keiskamma Trust which also runs an AIDS Treatment Centre and is the hub of several other community development initiatives including education, music, and organic gardening.

IN SEARCH OF GLITTER AND A YELLOW BRICK ROAD

Many people believe that almost all early pioneers of Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand goldfields were get-rich-quick fortune hunters from Europe. But, that’s not so. Many men from the old Karoo made names for themselves on the diamond and goldfields. Among them were men from Beaufort West and Oudtshoorn as well as John Hunter McLea and Dr George Murray from Graaff-Reinet, and Abe Bailey and W Kidger Tucker, from Cradock. Diamonds first lured some of these men out of the Karoo. Kidger Tucker, a skilled survey draughtsman, for instance was a well-liked bank manager and farmer in Cradock before he left for Kimberley and was later lured north by gold.

MAGIC SHEEP OR SHEEP MAGIC

The Karoo is widely hailed as excellent sheep country. Its mutton is world famous and most know nothing beats sheep skin for preventing bed sores. Few, however, realise that sheep are surrounded by a great deal of folklore. Way back the great Roman orator Pliny observed: “while oxen help us cultivate our fields, it is to sheep that we are indebted for the defence of our bodies.” Karoo air has long been considered an excellent cure for chest complaints, however, in ancient times those suffering from consumption and respiratory diseases were told to “walk among sheep breathing deeply all the time.” Some recommended standing at the door of a shed in which sheep had been penned overnight and breathe deeply as they ran out in the morning. Old timers believed a child could be cured of whooping cough if it was taken out to a sheep meadow to breathe the air before the dew had vanished. Some said a sick child should be taken out before dawn, laid in the warm place, left by a sheep which had been driven from the centre of the flock, until sunrise, for its health to rapidly improve, says The History of the Sheep and Wool. And, there were those who believed that a flock of sheep should be driven through a house where for three nights in a row eradicate all germs after a serious infection. Early South African pioneers recommended sheep’s blood as a cure for ringworm and melted sheep’s fat for croup. If a child was slow in walking, they said, it should be left standing for a while in water in which a sheep’s head and trotters had been washed.

UNUSUAL TRAVEL CHARMS

Lesotho witchdoctors used the fat of a black sheep to exorcise evil spirits. The Welsh believed a piece of wool wound around the left wrist would cure a cold, while others said freshly cut wool had the power to cure rashes, sores, and warts, states The History of the Sheep and Wool Industry. Gypsies sold knotted wool charms to sailors for good luck. Some old sea-farers would not put to sea without a “gypsey-knot” because they believed untying the knot if they were becalmed would summon favourable winds to get them going again. Many an early traveller would not set off on a journey with out a “sheep’s lucky bone,” or Thor’s hammer. This is was said would prevent a traveller from getting lost. If he somehow managed to stray from his path, despite having one of these strangely shaped little lucky bones in his pocket, all he had to do was toss it on the ground. The hammer end pointed to the right road to take!

THIS MAN NEEDED A LUCKY BONE

In an area as vast as the Karoo it is was often quite easy to get lost, particularly in the early days of unmarked roads and no road signs. In a report of his journey from Colesberg to Namaqualand, Robert Moffat junior wrote: “Near the Great Trek Road from the Beaufort District to the Olifant Vley pastures is a large hill called Dwaalberg Kolk. It got its name because some unfortunate once lost himself there for two or three days and travelled round and round its recesses in search of the right route.” Perhaps he would have fared better if he had a lucky sheep bone in his pocket, but in any event, he left his mark on the map!

MORE THAN GOOD CLEAN AIR NEEDED FOR A CURE

In the late 1800s European newspapers and magazines advertised the benefits of the crisp dry air of the South African interior many flocked to this country in search of better health. However, once they got here they discovered a few serious problems the Press had neglected to mention. The most serious was the lack of civilised social life, says John Noble in The Official Hand book of the Cape of Good Hope. He cautioned anyone intending to come to South Africa to choose their spot carefully. “Of what avail to the unhappy consumptive, with body and mind out of gear, is a healthy climate if they are shut out from the world, society and all forms of mental and physical enjoyment? Pleasurable occupation and amusement suited to every taste with sufficient inducement for outdoor exercise is as essential as medical treatment and pure air in the treatment of disease,” he said. In his opinion winter was the best season for pulmonary invalids to come to the Karoo. But “unfortunately that is the time when few arrive as it coincides with the European summer.” He warned of “great summer heat, dust-bearing winds and poor ventilation in most Karoo homes.” This made indoor life unpleasant, he said, led to lassitude and loss of appetite. Noble said nothing astonished him more than the haphazard way in which consumptive patients were bundled off to South Africa. No one paid any attention to the phase of their disease, their temperament, climatic conditions in which they would arrive, nor their ability to fit in to small communities in a foreign land. “The situation would be laughable if it were not so sad.”

GET WELL IN A COMFORTABLE SCOTTISH HOME

Dr Davey of Beaufort West in The Lancet mentioned a “comfortable home of a Scottish family on the Nuweveld Mountains” as being an excellent spot for restorative care, while Prince Albert’s Dr Mearns advised a drive across the summit of the new Swartberg Pass. “It runs across the across the top of over the range and visitors may breathe in the health-giving properties of ozone laden air coming straight up from the coast,” he said He also advised those who were ailing to drink the pure waters straight from the mountain streams. John Noble felt that properly constructed institutions, run under medical supervision, in the Karoo would be able to compete with the best sanatoriums in the world.

WHEELS OF LIFE KEPT ROLLING ….

At 82 Queenstown-born Frank Connock, claimed his life had run on wheels, tubed and tyred, from pram to trike, wagon, Cape cart, bicycle and cars. He was a bicycle salesman until he saw the first motor car to be brought to South Africa. After that things were never the same again. Frank paid two shillings to joined thousands thronging to see John Percy Hess’s 1 ½ hp Benz being put through its paces at Wanderers Grounds in Johannesburg. The car had been railed from Port Elizabeth to Pretoria where it was shown at Berea Park, because the open roads were to rugged to drive it up to the Transvaal. At its first showing President Paul Kruger was offered a ride. He declined saying dogs might bark at it and cause the vehicle to bolt. He nevertheless presented Hess with a medal to commemorate the occasion. As Frank watched the car attain its “maximum speed of 14 miles an hour,” he knew he was smitten. He shared his enthusiasm with his father, who said: “Go ahead, get one. You’ll soon want to be selling these things!” Prophetic words indeed.

HAZARDS OF THE EARLY ROADS

In 1902 Frank Connock bought a two-cylinder Gladiator from Albert Atkey, learned to drive within hours and set off for Mafeking. He completed the 320 trips in a single day – an unprecedented in those days because few were willing to risk their expensive cars on South Africa’s appalling roads. In 1907 Frank shot into the record books by completing the first coast to coast car trip ever undertaken in South Africa with world traveller Robert L Jefferson. They drove from Durban to Cape Town via Johannesburg. This trip took 16 days and, at that time, was the longest car trip yet made. The previous year Frank Dumat and Frank Whittaker drove from Johannesburg to Durban in a much bigger car, but refused to return because the roads were so bad. During the same year Count de Rivetera had attempted a trip from Johannesburg to Cape Town trip, in a 6 hp De Dion Bouton. He got no further than the Karoo. There he became stuck in dreadful sand drifts and had to complete the journey by rail. Aware of the terrors of the Karoo Frank armed himself with picks, shovels and stakes, as well as block and tackle and huge cans of petrol.

NOTHING MORE EXCITING THAN THE KAROO

The drive through the Karoo, claimed Frank Connock, was the most exciting adventure he had ever experienced. . “At times we slithered and slipped down embankments, at others we had to engage first gear to plough through seemingly unending ‘seas’ of fine sand. We were reduced to our last gallon of petrol by the time we at last reached Beaufort West.” From there on we were sure that things were going to improve. We ‘jogged’ steadily along at the record-breaking speed of 16 km an hour despite the fact that it was necessary to change gears every 50 yards or so because of the deep “sluits and wash-outs across the road,” he told Margaret Kavanagh who wrote Wheels, The Frank Connock Story. “On a smooth piece of road just south of Beaufort West I decided to ‘open up’ for a little ‘flutter’ of speed’ and this almost proved my undoing. The car suddenly hurtled off the road and into a wash-a-way breaking four blades of a back spring. We had to limp to Laingsburg at 5km an hour and find a friendly blacksmith to assist us.” The worst thing about the trip, said Frank was gates. “We seemed to have opened and closed thousands on this trip!” Just outside Cape Town Frank and Robert heard a horrifying screech coming from the gear box. “We dared not stop. We shot out, dosed it with oil and grease and sped on.” All went well, we arrived safely, but never discovered what caused the noise. To Frank wheels represented much more than a means of simply getting from one place to another. He went on to become one of the country’s major motor dealers and he used wheels to campaign for better roads through the country. He also used his long association with wheels to make a meaningful contribution towards improving South Africa’s transport systems.

THE GHOST WAGON OF THE GREAT KAROO

Several old South African maps show the region between Ceres and Beaufort West as the “spokeveld.” It was said to be one of the most heavily haunted areas of South Africa. In 1887 Major Alfred Ellis of the West India Regiment documented a tale in South African Sketches which he said had been told to him by a man named Lutterodt. It seems that one year in November, Lutterodt and three companions – a man named Seururier, another called Anthony de Heer and a visitor from Cape Town – were travelling from Ceres to Beaufort West. Along the way one of the wagon wheels gave trouble. They had to stop to fix it, so their trip was considerably delayed. It took the driver most of the night to fix the wheel and they were only able to set off in earnest at about 03h00. They had not been underway for long when they noticed that their horses were becoming considerably agitated, yet there was no other vehicle in sight. Suddenly the horses froze and were only encouraged forward by a series of clicking and coaxing noises made by the driver. Then, quite unexpectedly suddenly everyone heard the sound of a wagon hurtling towards them, but they could not see it. Amid the noise of pounding hooves and rumbling wheels, they clearly heard the shouts of the driver, and his cracking whip. Then a wagon pulled by 14 wild-eyed mules hurtled into sight. It was headed straight for them. Their horses screamed. Lutterodt, Seururier and the Captonian threw themselves from the cart. De Heer grabbed the reins and managed to haul their vehicle out of the way of the on-coming cart. “Where do you think you are going? he shouted. “To hell,” cried the other driver, “To hell!” The on-coming wagon vanished into the night. What they did not know then, said Lutterodt, was that anyone who challenges the driver of the phantom wagon is doomed. De Heer paid the price. A week later his body was found beside the remains of his shattered wagon and dead horses at the bottom of Hottentot’s Kloof.

GOVERNOR PLAYED A VITAL ROLE

In the mid-1800s a governor of the Cape Colony was indirectly responsible for the establishment of a company destined to become one of South Africa’s most important pharmaceutical organisations. In 1850 Governor Sir George Grey persuaded his nephew Berry Grey Lennon, to leave his native Ireland and come to the Cape. Berry first went to Cape Town where he stayed for a short while, then he moved to Port Elizabeth to take over Dr Dunsterville’s apothecary. Soon he was joined by R A Fairclough who became his partner. This arrangement lasted for 18 years and during that time the business flourished and grew rapidly, mostly due to the discovery of diamonds. In 1881 a depot was opened in London and during that year the business was converted to a limited liability company. Branches sprang up in Cape Town, East London, Aliwal North, Johannesburg, Germiston, Beaufort West, Mossel Bay, Bulawayo and Salisbury and people of the interior had a whole new range of “cures” to choose from. By 1898 the business was floated as a public company and by 1930 Lennon Limited was the largest pharmaceutical employer in South Africa, writes Mike Ryan in The History of Pharmaceuticals and Chemistry in South Africa. Its number of employees increased from seven in 1884 to 800 by 1934. In 1930 the company’s Port Elizabeth laboratory was the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere. The company then had 19 sales representatives, a capital of £600 000, properties worth £350 000 and total assets exceeding £1 m. The company made a name for itself internationally, however, changes in customs and excise laws after the establishment of Union, led to the closure of the London office, laboratory, warehouse and packing rooms.

THE WINDS OF WAR

In a letter “home” from Somerset East, on December 23, 1900, Dr James MacDonald Troup told his brother that he did not expect to have a cheerful Christmas “There is more excitement and unrest than there has been since the beginning of the war. Agitation, of which you no doubt read in the home papers, has been gradually working up among the Dutch for two to three months. The editor of the Dutch paper is under arrest for libel of the British troops. He is a man we all know well and with whom I have often played cards and billiards at the club. Last week General Settle was here talking to the Dutch Reformed parson. The commandos have broken into the north of the Colony and as far south as Cradock the banks have all sent their bullion to Port Elizabeth. We are expecting Martial Law to be proclaimed and people who can be trusted have been informed that rifles will be served out.” He followed this letter up with a note saying: “Please pay my insurance £7/2/4 to the Life Association of Scotland. They won’t take cheques and I don’t care for postal orders.”

One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognise a problem before it becomes an emergency. – Arnold H. Glasgow