A NOBODY IN MASHONALAND

First edition: xv, 330 pages, red cloth with gilt vignette on the upper cover, titled gilt on the spine which has been simply repaired, bottom corner on the back cover is chipped, new endpapers, a fair copy.

Mendelssohn (Sidney) South African Bibliography volume 1 page 546: "A Nobody in Mashonaland" was a very well-known journalist and amateur cricketer in Kimberley, where he was on the staff of the now long defunct Daily Independent. The volume is written in a humorous and entertaining manner, and the hardships, dangers, and privations encountered in the early days of the settlement are depicted in a most graphic style. The chapter on Lord Randolph Churchill shows that somewhat eccentric nobleman in a not altogether attractive light, and the transient glimpse of Mr. Rhodes is as distinct as a silhouette.

The lion stories are very thrilling, and the escape from the crocodile must have been a very near thing for the adventurous tenderfoot. An extremely good picture is drawn of the position of the settlers in Mashonaland at this period, and while the beauties of the scenery of the country are occasionally dwelt on with some admiration, no glamour is spread over the hard, coarse, and often monotonous life of the pioneers. Nor was there any illusion about the characters of many of the men encountered, and it is observed that "The selfishness of the lower class of men living under primitive conditions has often been commented on. There are exceptions, of course, but as a rule gentlemen under similar circumstances show a certain amount of consideration to one another. ..." The walk from Umtali to Beira must have been a most terrible experience, and the sufferings of the party, though good-humouredly related, appear to have been almost unrelieved by any redeeming point, while the ghastly narrative of Bowden (once a very celebrated English cricketer), which is related in the addenda, is as grim and horrible as anything written by Edgar Allen Poe.