The farm is well irrigated, there being an abundance of water on it, as I myself saw.  After breakfast we walked round the cattle lair, where a large portion of his 200 head of cattle were collected.  I was much impressed with the fine appearance of the stock.  Large-framed, stalwart oxen, and fat milch cows were round me on every side during my inspection.  I did not notice a single animal that was not in capital condition, and fit for the market—­if market there could only be.  I next went through a large enclosure, in which there were about forty horses, part of the eighty belonging to Mr. M——.  Here I saw several three-year-olds, and brood mares, and colts, all looking well and healthy, and containing several good, well-shaped, and promising specimens of young horseflesh.  Mr. M——­ has also a flock of one thousand sheep on his farm, but these I did not see, as they were out grazing on the veldt.  We then walked to another portion of the farm, lying close to the capital house, built of stone by Mr. M——­, to a large “pan,” or lake, in which there were fish caught with a net.  These are a sort of carp, and a black-coloured fish of seven pounds or eight pounds weight, said to be very good eating.  I saw in an outhouse a small collapsible boat, which is sometimes used on the lake.  In summer, I am told, the farm looks very pretty, with its long stretches of bright green herbage, and wild flowers, and sunny aspect.

Mr. M——­ was born at Cape Town.  He is of Dutch origin, and is a fine, stalwart-looking man with great energy of character and keen intelligence.  He seems well fitted to be a pioneer farmer, to develop the too-long neglected resources of this fertile land.  He is about forty-five years of age, and a bachelor.  He first arrived on his farm on a Saturday night three years ago, and the next day commenced tree planting.  His first trees were thus planted on a Sunday Morning.  This was a good omen of the success he deserves, as I remarked to him.

While I was at Vryburg I was also taken by the proprietor of the Vryburg Hotel to see a farm about five miles off, where they were prospecting for gold.  Mr. H——­ informed me that the reef I saw, was the same description of rock, I should see at Johannesburg.  The people in this neighbourhood are very sanguine; I was told that this may prove a great discovery for Bechuanaland.

[Illustration:  Decorative]

[Illustration:  Decorative]

Klerksdorp.

Having received the same hospitable attention, as elsewhere, at Vryburg, our wagon party once more resumed its journey.  Thirty miles brought us to the south-western frontier of the Transvaal, from whence we travelled on, through the most dreary, flat, uninteresting, barren, treeless plain, for two or three days more, sleeping every night on the veldt, until we reached Klerksdorp, about 120 miles from Vryburg.  The south-western part of the Transvaal is certainly exceedingly inferior in appearance to what I saw in Bechuanaland.  We remained at Klerksdorp three days.  While there I visited one or two of the gold mines of this promising district.