Cape of Good Hope
or Cape Colony, an important British colony at the southern point of Africa. Settlements were begun by the Dutch in 1652. The British took possession in 1795 and forced a sale to themselves at $30,000. The colony has been enlarged by successive additions, until it comprises not only the territory lying south of the Orange River, but a considerable interior tract north of that river, in all an area of 276,995 square miles. It is now larger than Texas. The former and seemingly more appropriate name of Cape colony has been changed to Cape of Good Hope Colony. The population in 1904 was returned at 2,409,804, an average of 8.7 per square mile. Three-fourths of the inhabitants are colored. Half of the white people are Dutch.
The government consists of a governor and an elective parliament of two houses. English is the official language, but members may address the house in Dutch if they so prefer. Elections are by ballot. Electors must be householders, occupying a house worth $350, or be earners of a salary of not less than $250 a year. In addition, a voter must be able to write his own name. These precautions are taken to shut out the ignorant natives; but the line, as enforced, is an educational and property line, not a color line. Attendance at school is not compulsory. White children are provided with public and private schools. About one-sixth of the negro children are in school.
The principal towns are Cape Town and Kimberley. The surface is rugged and elevated; large portions of the country are still in a state of nature. The forest still shelters the African elephant. The baboon still haunts the rocks. The leopard, jackal, and antelope are found in the plains. The lion and giraffe are extinct. The ostrich is now bred in captivity for the sake of its feathers. Over $9,000,000 worth were exported in 1907. Diamonds, gold, copper, valuable woods, grain, fruits, wool, sheep, feathers, and hides are the chief exports. In 1907 colonial products to the amount of $220,000,000 were exported, chiefly to London.
The mean temperature at Cape Town is sixty-two degrees. Generally speaking, the colony is lacking in rainfall. Irrigation is carried on extensively. One reservoir covers nineteen square miles and holds 35,000,000,000,000 gallons of water. Wheat, oats, barley, rye, oat-hay, and wine are produced. There were in 1904 1,954,000 cattle, 420,000 horses, 12,000,000 sheep, 7,000,000 goats, 385,000 pigs, and 357,970 ostriches.
The colony maintains a university of seven colleges. There are 131 public libraries, 1,800 churches, over 2,000 schools, and 100 newspapers.
See Boers; Hottentots; Bushmen; Ostrich; Cape Town; Kimberley; Cape To Cairo Railway