D1.8.16: Retrospect upon the year 1864 I

D1.8.16: Retrospect upon the year 1864 I

Newspaper Clippings

Bleek describes the arrival of a new era for the Cape, marked by agricultural experimentation, more leisurely international travel, and faster lines of intercontinental communication in a globalising world. He then discusses the costly and unsuccessful attempts to acclimate European immigrants and resettled British German Legionnaires to colonial life in the Cape Colony (and British Kaffraria), New Zealand, and, by some legionnaires' insistence, North America through a series of largely unsuccessful emigration schemes. Former members of the British German Legion, recruited during the Crimean War, subsequently requested emigration to North America to offer their services to the federal government after finding unsatisfactory employment at the Cape. Neviadomski (Captain Rudolph von Neviadomski [b. 1821 - d. 1876]?), among other 'disgraced' legionnaires residing at the Cape, attempted to arrange passage to North America via an enigmatic Mr Wehrhan, who absconded with money they advanced him. It is unclear whether the Wynberg Police Court is adjudicating on the former soldiers' attempted desertion or helping them pursue remedies against this Wehrhan, who allegedly left with their deposits.

Printed newsprint glued on paper

29 December 1864

Two cut-out columns of printed newsprint mounted on foolscap folio (warped). 'Retrospect upon the year 1864 I' is the title Bleek wrote on the mount.

Steamers (Diamond line), Wynberg Railway, Banda Oriental (now Uruguay), alpacas (their introduction at the Cape), llamas (their introduction at the Cape), army (North America's Federal), German Legion (the British German Legion), soldiers, emigration, Mr Neviadomski (ejected from the Legion pre-disbandment)

Pressed clippings of Victorian current affairs opinion pieces by Wilhelm Bleek. Published in Het Volksblad on Thursday, December 29th, 1864.

Van de Sandt de Villiers & Co.