Basuto people

“ Such strength as remained in the people, who were, after all, but a dwindling handful marooned in a distant spot, was to be found among those of the old Zulu stock. They were descendants of the men sent by the Kings Chaka and Dingaan to keep an eye upon the humble Basuto slaves, whose duty it was to herd the royal cattle, the men, too, to whom was entrusted the proud but hateful business of carrying out the execution of persons that, for one reason or another, it was not desirable to kill at home. ”

“ In some of the tribes, notably the Bechuana-Basuto, we find rudiments of popular government, where the chief has to take the advice of the assembled people, as in the Basuto pitso, or, in a few cases, of a council of the chief indunas. ”

“ The females outnumber the males by about 20,000, which is, however, about the number of adult males away from the country at any given period. The majority live in the district between the Maluti mountains and the Caledon river. The great bulk of the people are Basuto, but there are some thousands of Barolong and other Kaffirs. The Basuto proper are a branch of the Bechuana family of Bantu-Negroids. The white inhabitants in 1904 numbered 895, and there were 222 coloured persons other than natives. ”

“ It was then assumed that the coloured races would without any coercion readily assimilate the customs and the ideas of their white neighbours, and might therefore be placed under the same laws. Now it is becoming understood that, just as we have to discover new methods of securing the advance in learning of boys who are no longer subjected to the constant, and even cruel, use of the rod, so in the place of slavery fresh incentives are needed to induce negroes and other coloured people of Basuto origin to adopt our industrial standards of life. ”

“ I will try all I can to keep my people in order in the future.” General Cathcart accepted the offer of Moshesh and peace was proclaimed, the Basuto power being unbroken. Fourteen months later (February 1854) Great Britain renounced sovereignty over the farmers settled beyond the Orange, and Moshesh found himself face to face with the newly constituted Free State. Boundary disputes at once arose but were settled (1858) by the mediation of Sir George Grey, governor of Cape Colony. In 1865 a fresh feud occurred between the Orange Free State Boers and the Basuto. ”

“ The Basuto are a fine, well-proportioned race, though as a rule the men are not so tall nor so well-built as the Zulus.
They are of a soft brown colour, with less protruding lips, and more regular features than the Colonial Kaffir, and with far pleasanter expressions; graceful and upright, with considerable intelligence, and remarkably amiable. As a nation they are wonderfully honest and trustworthy. They are far more "tillers of the soil" than men of battle, preferring to live at peace with their neighbours to treading the war path. ”

“ 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 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. ”

“ It is, I admit, a little irritating to come across a self-opinionated, intensely consequential young Mosuto, who evidently thinks his fellow-creatures the coarsest pottery as compared with his own superfine eggshell china self, but another generation of civilisation will show them more clearly where they stand.
The Basuto method of carrying news is as follows. In certain villages, at considerable distances apart, there are men whose business it is to act as "criers," because they possess the art of throwing their powerful voices through long distances. ”

“ Interest in the Basuto tribe could not but be deepened from the touching incident that in February of this year a feast for the little matchbox-makers was provided from the contributions of Basuto children,—those who had been blessed through the Lord's long-tried labourers, Mr. and Mrs. Dyke. How little could any one then anticipate the deep waters through which those servants of the Lord have since been called to pass.
The workers' meetings at the Home of Industry are often a time of mingled joy and sorrow. ”

“ The missionaries, undoubtedly, do an enormous amount of good, but many of them are as unwise in their treatment of the Basuto as the Boers, though they err on the side of kindness. They fail to realize that civilisation must come gradually to be effective; that to try to run and jump before you can walk is foolish, and may often be harmful, and by treating a raw native as an equal, they are very possibly laying the foundation stone for native disturbances in the future. ”

“ Their commandos entered the Lesuto, which they conquered bit by bit, until the whole country of the northern part, from what is now called Winburg to Thaba Bosigo, was in their hands. This strong fortress had resisted all attempts to conquer it; but the Basuto were thoroughly frightened, and Mosheshue, dreading to fall into the hands of the Dutch, earnestly entreated the Governor of Cape Colony (Sir Philip Wodehouse) to protect them. Accordingly, the Lesuto was proclaimed British territory under the Colonial Government, and the Dutch were requested to return to the Free State. ”

“ When peace was restored Basutoland was separated from Cape Colony (1884) , and is now governed by a Resident Commissioner under the High Commissioner for South Africa. Basutoland has an area of about 11,716 sq. miles, much of it covered with grass, and there is but little wood. The climate is pleasant. The natives keep cattle, sheep, and horses, cultivate the ground, and export grain. The Basuto ponies, which originally were brought from Batavia by the Dutch in the eighteenth century, are famous. It is divided into eight districts, each under a magistrate. Capital, Maseru. ”

“ Early in 1880 a commission was appointed for [Pg 58] each district, consisting of the magistrate, the principal chief of the district and the most influential trader. A fair and just value was to be given to each man upon delivering up his weapon or weapons. The Colonial Government completely ignored the fact that it was to blame in the first instance for the number of guns in the country, and that it had employed the Basuto to fight for it; in fact, was actually doing so at the time when the Act was passed, when it employed Basuto to aid in the siege of Morosi's Mountain. ”

“ For instance, numbers of Basuto leave the country every year to find work in the mines and on the railways. Many of them are married men with young children. Suppose one man left a wife and baby of a few months old behind him, his wife must on no account wean the child until her husband returns. ”

“ The conversion of Basutoland into a crown colony contributed alike to the prosperity of the Basuto, the security of the property of neighbouring colonists and a peaceful condition among the natives of South Africa generally. In pursuance of the policy of encouraging the self-governing powers of the Basuto, a national council was instituted and held its first sitting in July 1903. In August 1905 the paramount chief Lerothodi died. In early life he had distinguished himself in the wars with the Boers, and in 1880 he took an active part in the revolt against the Cape government. ”

“ There is also a great demand for sugar, salt, tea and coffee, and of course the [Pg 40] wealthier Basuto indulge in such luxuries as sardines, jam, sweets, &c.
Every Mosuto rides, even if he has only a very short distance to go. To walk must either show great poverty (a terrible disgrace in a country where no one need be really poor) , or a great lack of self-respect. The ponies they ride are hardy, sure-footed little animals, wonderfully easily broken in, and showing quite remarkable intelligence. As a rule they are very good-tempered. ”

“ Morosi was a Baputi Chief under the rule of the Paramount Chief. At this time he was an old man, almost completely under the influence of his son Dodo, a crafty, rebellious, and cruel man, who had been imprisoned and heavily fined by Mr. Austin, magistrate of Quthing, but had, as I have already stated, made his escape. Morosi now openly rebelled, whereupon the Colonial Government, through Colonel Griffeth, ordered the Basuto to enforce obedience. Thus, in April, the attack began, but many of the Basuto, though not themselves in open rebellion, refused to take up arms against their "brother." ”

“ Some sort of belief in the transmigration of souls is evidently indulged in by the Basuto, for they will tell you quite solemnly that such and such a snake is the spirit of So-and-so's grandfather, and that the spirit of another ancestor has revisited the earth in the form of a dog or baboon. They firmly believe in the efficacy of charms, or certain portions of an animal or human being to ward off the evil spirits, or to give courage or special strength, or again to endow with "second sight." The charms are worn on the body ”

“ We are disgusted with you.’ ”461 Thus the sweet savour of beef and beer does not suffice to content Caffre ghosts; they share the love of praise and flattery with many gods of higher rank.
Worship of the dead among the Basutos. Among the Basutos, an important Bantu people of South Africa, “each family is supposed to be under the direct influence and protection of its ancestors; but the tribe, taken as a whole, acknowledges for its national gods the ancestors of the reigning sovereign. Thus, the Basutos address their prayers to Monaheng and Motlumi, from whom their chiefs are descended. ”

“ The clans representing the southern Bakuena were in comparatively recent times welded together to form the Basuto nation, of which the founder was the chief Moshesh (see Basutoland) . The Basuto have been not only influenced in certain cultural details (e.g. the form of their huts) by the neighbouring Zulu-Xosa [Kaffir] peoples, but have moreover received an infusion of their blood which has improved their physique. They are good riders and make considerable use of their horses in war and the chase.
The Bechuana, though not so tall as Kaffirs, average 5 ft. ”

“ With a few unimportant exceptions, the structure of the Basuto huts, and the general character of their work, correspond with those of the Bechuanas, and in their handicraft they are about up to the average of the Bantu tribes. In one respect they differ from the rest of their kin: they manufacture carved wooden fetishes, painting them red and black. ”

“ When it was discovered the European population of Leribe (in which district it was found) were naturally much interested, and went in small parties on several occasions to visit the spot, carrying away small pieces of the tree as souvenirs. The Basuto could not understand these visits—their suspicions were aroused—"Could this stone contain some form of witchcraft, or was there unknown wealth hidden within it?" Not being able to solve the mystery, they destroyed the tree. ”

“ In addition to the troubles in the Transvaal, the Cape Colony was also embroiled in a war with the Basutos, a warlike tribe occupying a large tract of country east of the Free State. What with war with the Basutos on the one side of us, and the Boers on the other, South Africa was not precisely a country to which one felt the Millennium would soon come.
Fighting against the natives, either Zulu or Basuto, is an entirely different kind of warfare from meeting the deadly aim of the Boer on his own soil. ”

“ Women and children were sought in their hiding-places and killed with the spear, whilst the old and sick were burned quick in the huts. My father was slain early in the day, and my mother and I fled with some others back towards the Quathlamba Mountains, meaning to reach, if possible, the country of the Lesuto, and place ourselves under Moshesh, the chief of the Basuto.
“We fled up the valley of the Inxu river, driving a few cattle before us. It was in the middle of winter, and at night the cold seemed to burn like fierce fire. ”

“ Now the custom of the Basuto, when any one falls into the water and is not found, is to drive cattle into the place where the person is supposed to have fallen, as they will bring him out. Many cattle had been driven into the different pools of water near Morongoe's village, but as they had failed to bring his father, Tsietse knew it was not much use looking near home. Accordingly, one day he went to a large pond a long distance off, and there he asked the frogs to help him in his search. ”

“ When a chief dies he is succeeded by the eldest son of his principal wife. Should she have no sons, then the eldest son of the second wife succeeds, unless for some exceptional reason a special son is chosen in his father's lifetime and presented to the people as their future chief. A woman rarely succeeds to the chieftainship.
Most of the European houses in Basutoland are built of brick, and are by no means substantial; but there are some very good stone buildings, and the country is certainly not lacking in suitable rock from which to build. ”

“ With respect to Basutoland, it is understood that no revenue from that country is to go to the Colony, therefore it can be no object to Colony to insist on the installation of magistrates in that country. If the magistrates of Transkei are the cause of discontent among the natives, then what object is there in insisting on their installation in Basutoland? The Pondos, a far inferior people, are happy under their own chiefs—far happier than the natives of Transkei. Why should the Colony insist on sending men who are more likely to goad the Basutos into rebellion than anything else? ”