being of the Tswana. Although Roger Price is reported to have built a dam at Molepolole, the venture must have been of little consequence, as successive reports from that station
show drought and hunger to have been perennial. Charles Williams' annual report for 1873 is typical: "The people have been widely scattered searching for f o o d . " 1 1 ^ Hunting remained a reliable source of food and wealth, although game resources were con tinually diminishing. Edward Mohr, who passed through Ngwato- land in 1869 noted that "elephants have now entirely disappeared from this neighbourhood, driven away by ceaseless persecution.
117* Captain Patterson's Report of July 1878, enclosed in Number 78, Governor H.B.E. Frere to Sir Michael Beach, ibth Septem ber, 1878, in Pari. Papers, op. cit., p. 237: "Justice is administered in Shoshong by the chief sitting in the Khotla, surrounded by the elders, his advisers. The law is one of custom, well defined and understood...." See also Coillard, On the Threshold of Central Africa, p.
118. E. Price, op. cit., p. 209.
119* Charles Williams to J.O. Whitehead, l6th December, 1873, Molepolole Annual Report for l873> Box One (L.M.S.).
It is quite a mistake to imagine them to have been all killed; indeed, I was assured that they emigrated in small troops, most of them following a north easterly direction. "120 To ensure adequate revenue for their chiefdoms, Tswana rulers issued decrees making the trade in feathers and ivory a monopoly of the chiefs. But the monopoly was difficult to
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enforce. Enterprising Tswana hunters sometimes sought the assistance of professional white hunters. Thus, when in l875> Frederick Hugh Barber combined with Ngwato hunters in Ngamiland the group shot adequate game, so that "... trees all round the wagons were red with meat, hanging up to dry, and their wagons were filled with biltong. "122
Not that this assistance acquired white hunters any lasting favours or privileges, for Tswana rulers were keenly aware of the declining game resources in their chiefdoms. When Barber asked for Kgama’s permission to collect young
ostriches and to hunt elephants in l877> he refused "saying that, as there were so few elephants left in his country, feathers were the only source of revenue left him; and if he allowed young birds to be caught, there would very soon
120. Mohr, op. cit., p. 12k, For diminishing game resources see also H. Hall, "Notes on animal life in South Africa, C.M.M. Vol. I (January, 1857)> P» 6 *
121. Mohr, op. cit., p. 157; Mackenzie, Ten Years North, p. 179- 122. Edward C. Tabler, editor, Zambezi and Matabeleland in the
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be none to grow up into big ones to grow feathers for his hunters to shoot."^3 By 1878 Kgama had banned all pro-
1 p[i
fessional hunters, preferring those who hunted for sport. ^ By the late 1870's Shoshong had the biggest concentra tion of white traders; twenty three adult males, six women, and thirteen children. They operated nine retail stores but complained that their annual turnover was declining sharply. And due to the civil disturbances at Shoshong, Ngwato popu
lation had fallen from in the l86o's to about 10,000 in 1878; of these 2 ,5 0 0 were soldiers divided into five regi ments, each headed by one of Kgama’s brothers. Patterson estimated the Ngwato to have possessed between 7>000 and 8,000 oxen and a considerable number of sheep and goats; he confirmed earlier accounts on the amd barrenness of farming land
and the scarcity of water. Because of these disabilities Patterson concluded that Shoshong was not a safe place to live. ^ 5
The Kwena and the Ngwaketse had some six resident traders between them by the late 1 870's. Although both groups bartered
123. Ibid., pp. 70-71; Hdlub (op. cit., Vol. One, p. 389) who estimated the Ngwato chief to have had an annual revenue of £3,000.
12k. Patterson’s Report, op. cit., p. 237; Gillmore, op. cit., p. 21 2 .
125. Patterson, op. cit., p. 237* Yet Shoshong hills were sanc tuaries in times of war, as was demonstrated during the civil war of 1866 dealt with above. See also, Pinto, How I Grossed Africa, II, p. 220.
with itinerant traders, they tended to purchase more goods from resident traders. In 1876 James Good reported that resident traders were happy to notice the new Ngwaketse purchasing habits, and that beads, clothing, and trinkets had become popular with Kanye residents. The introduction of ploughs was gradually affecting some aspects of Tswana life. Previously agricultural f a m i n g was performed by women, but since ploughs were drawn by cattle, which women were not allowed to handle, men now had to do the ploughing. This taboo was bound to become obsolete because, during the last quarter of the nineteenth century the mining industry of South Africa was expanding and required more men from neighbouring countries, making it even more imperative for the women to attend to agricultural pursuits.
Resident traders seemed to be associating with Tswana communities in a way that disturbed the chiefs. In 1865 Sechele complained about their relations with Tswana women: "Hark! X know what they are doing now. They are giving beads to the young girls, for it is dark. They are corrupting the women of my people, they are teaching my people abominations of which
126. James Good to Mullens, 28th April, 1876, Box 38 - Jacket A - Folder 3 (L.M.S.); Holub, op. cit., Volume One, pp.
even they were once ignorant, heathens as they may b e . " ^ ^ Attempts made by L.M.S. agents to dissuade traders from having
illicit sexual relations with Tswana women dnd conform to Christian standards of living were sometimes resisted. Hep burn's experience with a Shoshong trader typified the problem:
"He told me on Sunday evening .... that he regarded that sub ject as too sacred and too private for the interference of a second party and he for his part resented my inter-meddling
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