THEAFRICANS
it occupied "the greater part of a plain of about two miles in diameter," and
he estimated its population at five thousand. 5 6
The mixed farmers had a keen sense of kinship solidarity and obliga-
tions, extending far beyond the nuclear family. In 1689, the shipwrecked
Dutchmen who had spent nearly three years in Natal reported, "It would
be impossible to buy any slaves there, for they would not part with their
children, or any of their connections for anything in the world, loving one
another with a most remarkable strength of affection.">? A century and
more later, Alberti commented on "the bonds of love and friendship"
among the Xhosa "and particularly in the case of blood-relations" and
observed that they catered to sick relatives and respected the aged.>8
Married men dominated farming society.The senior married man con-
trolled his homestead. He was the owner of both the agricultural produce
and the cattle. He was responsible for clearing the land for agriculture, for
cattle-keeping, for building the huts, and for many crafts, including mak-
ing clothes of cowhides and the pelts of wild animals. He was assisted by his
unmarried sons and his clients. Boysdid much of the routine work with the