Table Bay—Breakwater to be Built—Harbour of Refuge—Policy of Sir George Grey—Proposal for Carrying the Mail to the Cape by way of Aden—Discovery of Coal on the Zambesi—Its Effects on the Future of South and East Africa—Absence of Trees at Cape Town—Climate of the Cape.
Since the Portuguese voyagers, Bartholomew Diaz and Vasco de Gama, rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and opened to the commerce of Europe, by way of the Southern Ocean, the rich and still undeveloped countries of the East, what magnificent ships of war, and fleets of merchantmen—chartered with the good, the fair, and the brave—have sailed past that Cape of Tempests, finding, in the midst of that stormy sea, no haven of rest from the gale, no harbour of refuge from the hurricane!
During the four hundred years which have passed since the gorgeous panorama of the East was made known to Europe by the immortal actors in the Portuguese Era of Conquest, what numbers of human beings have perished, what untold riches have been engulphed around that stormy headland!
On the great ocean route from Europe to India, if we except Port Louis, in the Island of Mauritius, there is not one harbour containing dry docks, and the necessary accommodation for repairing in security the hulls of the immense merchant fleets, of sailing and steam-ships, which are for ever ploughing the watery waste which lies between the East and the West. That such a great necessity should so long have existed, at such an important turning point of navigation as that of the Cape of Good Hope, can only be accounted for by the great natural difficulties to be overcome in the formation of a harbour of refuge having the necessary capabilities to supply the wants of the large amount of shipping passing the Cape.
Lying in a great line of commerce and navigation, and, from the recent rapid development of internal communication by the construction of roads, which will be immediately followed by railroads, already commenced, it requires only a judicious expenditure of money, rendering Table Bay a safe, accessible, and quiet harbour, to make Cape Town a port of great wealth, an emporium for the East and the West, and the outlet for the rich and varied productions of Southern Africa. From time to time projects have been set on foot for this purpose, but it has been reserved for the era of Colonial Self-Government to introduce a plan, magnificent in conception, practicable in details, and incalculable in results, for the purpose of rendering Table Bay a safe harbour at all times and seasons.
The principal wants which will be supplied by this great undertaking are:—
1st. A harbour easy of access, and safe at all times and seasons for the commerce between the East and the West.
2nd. A refuge for vessels repairing and refitting; and—
3rd. A naval station for the purpose of protecting the navigation to India, China, and Australia in time of war.