South Africa has proved an Arcadia for a great number of poor girls. Mill and shop girls of Great Britain who had dreamed of being the wife of a man dressed in white clothes from feet to head, of living in a wide verandaed house, trellised all around, with flowering vines climbing all about the porch, with the picture varied by the hum of bees or humming birds; with palms, exotics and flowers growing about the house and yard; with bearing banana plants, mango trees and rows of luscious pineapples growing in the yard—all encompassed by a flowering hedge of big, bright hibiscus bush; with a foreground of a steepled city and a broad blue ocean, and a background of spreading fern-leafed trees emblazoned with scarlet and lavender-colored flowers; with an ayah (Indian maid) to be at her beck and call and a black boy to do the housework and bring her breakfast to her room; to be drawn from her home to the shopping center of the city and back by a big and swift Zulu ricksha puller, with long cow horns secured to each side of his head—that dream has come true to thousands of poor girls who have married in this section of South Africa.
Most wives from Great Britain, however, prove white elephants to men living in the colonies. They are eternally going "home," as the British Isles are termed, and the husband's nose is "kept on the grindstone" to meet the expense required. The home "holiday" is seldom less than six months, and is frequently eighteen months, during which period the husband is maintaining two homes—the one in the colony and sending money to Great Britain to meet the expense of his family in that country. On the other hand, the climate of Southern Natal and Zululand is hard on the white woman. The easy life they live, and their fascinating surroundings, are not reflected in face or in physique. It is unusual to see a buxom, rosy-cheeked woman or girl in Durban. The face is white and features lifeless. The climate in that part of South Africa seems to not only make them jaded, but crow's-feet and deeper wrinkles mark the faces of most women at a period in life when the features should be free of these ageing signs. The children suffer from the climate to the same degree as the women, most of them having thin bodies, thin arms, thin blood and spindled legs. Men also are affected by the climate, but not to the same degree as women and children. Illustrative of the size of men in Southern Natal, it may be noted that ready made suits of clothes of size 40 and over are not kept in stock by merchants, as there is no call for them; few men attain that girth. It is doubtful also if one could find a collar of size 17.
The horse of Natal is a hungry-looking beast. This is owing to the grass generally being of a wiry nature, which the animal cannot digest, and a better quality, if eaten when dew is on it, proves very injurious to the system. Smoldering fires are lit in stables in the evening so that the smoke will keep mosquitoes from the premises. These insects are said to inject disease germs into any horse they bite. Large, vicious flies prove another menace to horses. The bite of these flies often draws blood, and as a result white hairs grow from the bitten parts. So many of these white hair spots appear on the bodies of black and bay horses that they often give a beast the appearance of being an iron-gray color. In certain sections of the Province of Natal horses cannot live.
Favored with a delightful climate and a good bathing beach, Durban is a noted winter resort in that part of the world. The weather during the "season"—from May to October—is like the American Indian summer save for the absence of Jack Frost. At this time of year people from Johannesburg and other sections of the high veld come in large numbers to this point of the coast to spend their vacations. Circuses also pay their annual visits; hotel-keepers raise prices; rooming house proprietors double rates; fakirs are numerous; talented tramps—street singers—are heard in front of hotels, looking for any spare change that may come from verandas and windows; Zulu ricksha pullers become ambitious for an extra "holiday" fare—every one tries to get rich off the visitor, and the air is charged with music, merriment and life at every turn.
In the way of amusement, moving pictures predominate, although theatrical people of world reputation frequently tour South Africa. Concerts in the Town Hall Sunday evenings, held under municipal auspices, are a popular form of entertainment, these being in charge of the borough organist, a city official. Military bands in the gala season entertain the populace morning, afternoon and evening at the Beach and in parks. Besides these attractions, boating, fishing, horse racing, military sports tournaments, and the general athletic sports figure largely in the life of the place.
Dwellings are nearly always at a premium, these renting for from $15 to $35 a month; but few houses are available for the lesser sum. The standard of living may be gauged by these charges, as people receiving small salaries could not pay high rentals. The wages of clerks, salesmen and mechanics range from $65 to $100 a month. In many Durban homes will be found a piano, a phonograph, good furniture, often a good collection of horns and skins, pictures—the home of no workingman of any country could be better furnished than the Durban breadwinner's.
"Did you attend the funeral yesterday?" was asked of a lady whose relative had been buried the day before. "Oh, no!" she answered, much surprised at the question; "only men attend funerals." The absence of women at subsequent burials proved this to be the custom here. A body must be put under ground within 24 hours after death. Were a person to die at 7 o'clock in the morning, the burial would take place during the day. When information has been given that a person has died, it is understood that the funeral will take place in a few hours.
One making a visit to the black belts would use good judgment were he to leave behind the word "woman" when applied to white women. "Woman" in these countries is used only when speaking of black or colored persons. "Lady" is always used when referring to a white woman. One will find a similar distinction in vogue in the negro sections of the United States.
"Toff" is an English term used to denote a good dresser—a sort of dandy. As most of the clothes worn by men are tailor-made, a great many "toffs" may be seen in Durban. The cheapest suit one can have made costs $22, but from $25 to $40 is the general price.
Natal, unlike the other provinces of South Africa, has always been English, particularly the coast section, which accounts for few manufacturers being in evidence from other countries. But among American products are shoes, sewing machines and illuminating oil. Some powerful locomotives in use are of American manufacture and are imported chiefly to pull trains up heavy grades. The cooking stove in general use here is the kerosene oil sort, most of them of American make. In recent years, exports from the United States to the sub-continent (as South Africa is often termed) have increased to the creditable figures of 35 to 40 per cent.