return for iron and copper goods. In 1620, the English government ignored
a suggestion of an English ship's captain that it should annex 'the Cape. In
1649, however, Dutchmen who had wintered in Table Bay after losing their
ship proposed
that the Dutch East India Company
should occupy the
place. Three years later, Jan van Riebeeck arrived there as the commander
of an expedition
of eighty company
employees. The directors
had in-
structed him to build a fort and supply the Dutch fleets with fruit, vegeta-
bles, and meat.
32