Chapter Nine.
Ralfontein—Captain Jamieson and his family—Business before pleasure!—The last evening at the Farm—A startling proposal.
Captain Jamieson’s farm was situated in the midst of a fertile tract of country, bounded on the north and east by ranges of lofty mountains and hills; beyond which lay vast plains and dense forests, abounding with wild animals and members of the feathered tribes, of every size and description—from the huge elephant to the diminutive “zenik;” from the ostrich to the tiny “creeper.”
The house, stables, and farm buildings stood on the summit of an eminence, which rose somewhat abruptly at the junction of two narrow, but swift streams; they were built in the form of a quadrangle, and were admirably planned for defence.
The pasturage in the immediate neighbourhood of the farm was remarkably rich, wood and water were plentiful, the climate was all that could be desired; yet this lovely district was but thinly populated, and the “Squire of Ralfontein” was practically “monarch of all he surveyed,” there being no other settlement within five-and-thirty miles, and no town or village within double that distance.
Donald Jamieson was—what our Yankee cousins would call—a “very remarkable man.” He had just turned his sixtieth year, but was as hearty and active as a man of forty. The youngest son of a poor, but proud, Scotch laird, he had taken the “king’s shilling” when a lad of eighteen, and after seeing much active service in all parts of the world, was awarded an ensign’s commission in the “Cape Mounted Riflemen;” in which corps he remained until he obtained his troop, when he retired on half-pay, and took to farming. He was now considered one of the most successful farmers in South Africa, and was also noted for his knowledge of the country, his skill as a hunter, and the influence he had acquired over the natives.
(Although a mounted corps, the junior subs, of the C.M.R. held the rank of ensign, not cornet.)
When Matthew Flinders exchanged from the —th Foot to the Cape Mounted Riflemen he was attached to Jamieson’s troop, and from that time they had been on the closest terms of friendship. Captain Jamieson was a widower; his family consisted of three sons and two daughters. Frank, the eldest boy, had just turned eighteen; his brothers, James and David, were sixteen and fourteen respectively. The girls were—but no, we must not divulge the young ladies’ ages! suffice it to say that Miss Janet (who since Mrs Jamieson’s death had acted as her father’s housekeeper) was well out of her teens, whilst Miss Elsie had not long jumped into hers. A pair of bonnier lasses could not have been found in the whole of Cape Colony!
The young Jamiesons assisted their father in looking after the farm and the men employed upon it; of whom there were between twenty and thirty—mostly Hottentots, Korannas and Griquas, or “Bastaards;” these lived in decent cottages on the estate with their wives and families, and were all trained to the use of fire-arms; thus in the event of Ralfontein being attacked, it could be defended by a well-disciplined and well-armed garrison.