Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 4.djvu/267

 TRANSVAAI.. 207 family, and uro occasionally dcsitrnatid by the offensive name of Vaalpons. These natives are separated by the Drakenborg border range from the Bu-Uokus of the advanced hills and plains, who appear to be a people of the same origin as the Zulus and Matebcles. In general the trilK>s of the Transvaal consist of clans or heterogeneous groups unconnected by the ties of kindred. They form communities whose menil)er8 are of diverse origin brought under the same rule by some conquering chief. Accord- ing to the vicissitudes of war they increase or diminish, get scattered and again grouped together, endlessly modifying the original ethnical elements. Nor have anv of these peoples been settled for more than a few years in any particular territorv. The waves of Boer migration produced corresponding movements in the opposite direction among the aborigines, and these movements themselves have occasionally brought about hostile reactions. Thus the populations become incessantly displaced, like running waters drawn into a whirlpool. Not all the tribes occupying the river valleys draining to the Limpopo have yet been reduced, some even exacting tribute from the Boers settled in the vicinity. The tribe longest established in this regicm appears to be the Ma-Gwamba, or " People of the Devil," so named by their neighbours because they arc somewhat given to hard swearing, and all their imi)reeations contain an appeal to the devil. To judge from their language they would seem to be more closely related to the Zulus than to the Bechuanas. The early Dutch colonists designated these natives by the name of Knob-nuizen, or " Knob-noses," because they artificially raised a line of fleshy excrescences (knobs) from the forehead to the tip of the nose ; but this eccentric fashion has almost disappeared, ard few now are met, except some aged persons, who have any claim to the title of Knob-noses. North of the Limpopo the Gwamba people are known by the name of Ba-IIlengwc or Ba-Hlukwa, and persons speaking their language arc met as far north as Lake Nyassa. Natural Resources of Transvaal. f)f all South African lands the Transvaal Republic appears to be the most abundantly supplied with all kinds of natural wealth, and it cannot fail sooner or later to become a highly productive region. The fertile soil is suitable for the cultivation of cereals wherever the plough can drive a furrow, and the crops are always of excellent quality. Although only a very small portion of the territory is under tillage, the harvests already yield sufficient for the local eonsunjption, with a surplus exported to Natal. The tobacco grown here is of superior quality, and is highly esteemed throughout South Africa. All the European cultivated plants thrive well beyond the Vaal, and although the semi-tropic il climate is more suitable for oranges and lemons than for the northern fruits, nevertheless the apples and pears of the Pretoria district have a very fine flavour. But as a grazing countrj' Transvaal is less favourably situated than the neigh- bouring Orange Free State ; in the northern parts of the territory there are even many tracts where the farmers are unable to raise any live stock, for this region is