Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 4.djvu/153

 or their sojourn in various parts of the eastern provinces, which are at present occupied by Bantu immigrants from the north.

Each Hottentot tribe has its chief, at least beyond the limits of the British possessions and Dutch republics. At the same time these chiefs enjoy very little power, and all weighty matters are debated in a general council of the whole community. In these discussions even the young men take part, and their voice often decides the point at issue. But in the European settlement all political

organisation of the Hottentots has been completely abolished, and in the territory of Cape Colony the last native chief was deposed in 1810 by the-British administration and replaced by a European magistrate. But even before that event all the aborigines subject to the direct action of the whites were no better than slaves. They were subject to compulsory registration and forcibly employed either in the wars waged against their own kindred, or in constructing roads, bridges, and other public works. Respect for their rights as freemen was not officially