D1.8.17: Retrospect upon the year 1864 II

D1.8.17: Retrospect upon the year 1864 II

Newspaper Clippings

Bleek revisits the controversial parliamentary session held at Graham's Town and how it impaired the functioning of the government for several months. Increased taxation and duties on trade, aggravated by customs-related legislation passed in 1864, and the state of relations between local legislators and merchants will worsen 'traffic' (commerce?) in the Eastern Districts, weakening Port Elizabeth to Natal's advantage. He then comments on promotions, appointments, and vacancies within the colonial government before dwelling on the deaths of Fairbairn and Watermeyer and remarking on Cape Town's changing skyline. Bleek mentions several 'objects of interest' to entice port visitors, whether ordinary or illustrious, like Prince 'Frederick' (Friedrich Christian Carl August, Count of Noer [1830-1881]), before mentioning notable publications of the last year. He digresses to ecclesiastical affairs, praising Bishop Colenso and JJ Kotzé as champions of religious liberty when referring to their contentious writing. Bishop Grey's writing also addresses complex socio-political questions in his unique manner.

Printed newsprint glued on paper

05 January 1865

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

Graham's Town Parliament, customs duties (the passing of Act No. 1), separation (Graham's Town wants its own court), Mr Rawson (outgoing Colonial Secretary), Mr Southey, Mr Davidson (the new Treasurer-General), Executive Council (vacancies left by Watermeyer and Fairbairn), Mutual Assurance Company (now Old Mutual), landmarks (of Cape Town), Prince Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein (visited the Cape)

Pressed clippings of Victorian current affairs opinion pieces by Wilhelm Bleek. Published in Het Volksblad on Thursday, January 5th, 1865. '[V]erte' is pencilled below the second column, which more likely refers to the Dutch word for 'distance' than the French feminine form for 'green'. 'Mr Rawson' refers to Rawson William Rawson (Colonial Secretary [1854 to 1864]), and 'Mr Southey' refers to Richard Southey (Colonial Secretary [1864 to 1872]). Interestingly, Bleek preferred Victorian new builds to 'slip-slop' Cape Dutch vernacular architecture. Of Cape Town's landmarks, Bleek only considers Rutherfoord Fountain, Grey's Library, and the statue of Sir George Grey to be worthwhile sites for port visitors. John Fairbairn founded The Mutual Assurance Company/Mutual Life Assurance Society (a precursor to today's Old Mutual) in 1864. Bleek remarks that Thomas Baines' Book of Travels ('Explorations in South-West Africa'?) is among the most important publications of 1864. 'Prince Frederick of Schleswig-Holstein' is likely the orientalist and Cantabrigian, Prince Friedrich Christian Carl August Graf von Noer, who spent 6 days at 'Cap de la bonne Ventura' (*Cap de Bonne-Espérance [Cape of Good Hope]?) between stops in St. Helena and Mauritius (Gräfin von Noer, 1886: 113-115, 126; Graf von Noer, 1890: xiv). The Count of Noer arrived in Ceylon in December 1864 (Gräfin von Noer, 1886: 114; Graf von Noer, 1890: xiv).

Van de Sandt de Villiers & Co.