Charles Rawden Maclean: The Natal Papers of "John Ross", No.7. Killie Campbell Africana Library Publications, University of Natal Press, 1992. 210 pp. R55-55. ISBN 0869808516
die skryfster se herinneringe vervaag "into the dust of early Johannesburg", maar daar is tog genoeg om 'n warm, menslike inhoud aan 'n belangrike deel van die geskiedenis van Johannesburg te gee.
Stephen Gray is to be congratulated in that he has col-lected the Maclean entries in The Nautical Magazine and got them published. Instead of having to go per-sonally to the Killie Campbell Africana Library, read-ers in this field now have access to a handsome volume that complements the work of Fyna (this includes the Fynn Papers in the Natal Archives), Isaacs and Basil Leverton's Records of Natal which, besides the news-papers, are basic resources for Natal during the 1802's. A problem with this production is that while the author is high.lY critical of writers who have contributed to this particular field, he has added little t<? entrench the discipline of historical method which is sorely required. There is a real need for the author to temper his observations by carefully noting his sources which would help the reader verify his information ego 21 million slaves: p.181. One is grateful that the personal claims made in this volume were mercifully more
modest than those in John Ross: The true story. Very few historians have written on this period and agreed -p.30 -still less have used Maclean as a source.
Gray's thought on page 156 is worth pursuing in the light of Isaacs Vol., pp. 154-155, which suggests that King did have interesting thoughts "to the eastwards". A questions that is left unsatisfactorily answered is when did Maclean actually write this text? When the first number was published in January 1853 he talks of "the present Chief Dingane" on p.39 which suggests to me that he might have written this text during the ter-minal dates of Dingane's reign i.e. 1838-1840.
While the illustrations are excellent, it would have been good to have a picture of a brig to enable us to visualize the Mary instead of the pictures of the West India docks on p.22. The valuable Hawes and Hadden maps are most disappointing because even a magnify-ing glass hardly helps. It would be appreciated if we knew who verified the Zulu orthography -this needs to be acknowledged. Gray perpetuates the confusion sur-rounding Shaka's umuzis of Bulawayo 2 and Dukuza and their relative distance from Port Natal. The former was built by Shaka in 1820 on the southern slopes of the Mhlatuze and is overlooked by the stately Ngoye mountains and was the umuzi in which Shaka first received the white traders; the latter umuzi was built by Shaka towards the end of 1826 on a ridge above the Mvoti river where Stanger is situated. Although Macrean tells us on page 50 that the indigenous people living on the Bluff (Natal Head) were the amaThuli under their nkosi Mathubane, Gray confuses the reader by his reference to "a Mathubane father", p.179, also p.152, which indicates that the Mathubane's were the clan.
ODS maak in die hoek kennis met die Rosentalgesin: Vatie (Richard Rosental), Mutti (nee Hedwig de Beer) en die twee kiDders, :pric Rosental en sussie Juliet wat in 1910 gebore is. ODS beleef saam met die gesin onder andere die trauma van die Eerste Wereldoorlog, toe dinge vir 'n Duitse gesin Die altyd maklik verloop bet Die.
Weens hulle verblyf in verskillende gebiede van die stad (o.a. die huidige Hillbrow, Yeoville, Bellevue en Parkview) maak ODS kennis met die mense en die leefwyse in die betrokke voorstede. ODS beleef saarn met Juliet 'n ou grot in Berea, met oorblyfsels uit die Steentydperk, wat helaas lankal reeds onder geboue verdwyn bet; die ou Parkstasie met sy imposante struktuur van gegote yster; die ou mark in Newtown; die Standardteater; die sterrewag in Observatory; die Lemoenplaas wat later Orange Grove sou beet; die Louw Geldenhuysplaas waarop later die voorstad Emmarentia sou ontstaan; Sacksenwald, wat later Saxonwold genoem sou word; ritte per trein en bus, en ODS stap saarn met haar deur piekniekveld wat later in woongebiede omskep sou word. Saam met die Rosentalgesin maak ODS oak kennis met interessante mense, wat in enkele gevalle wereldbekendheid verw-err bet: Mahatma Gandhi, wat as prokureur in die stad gepraktiseer bet en op 'n goeie dag in 1917 deur 'n Cockney-hysbakoperateur uit sy hysbak geskel is (let wel -in 1917 en Die in 1948 Die!); Walter Madeley, Arbeider L. V.; Dr. C. Louis Leipoldt, Mediese Inspekteur van Skole; Dr. Hans Merensky, ver-moende ontdekker van platina in Oos- Transvaal en latere ondersteuner van talle verdienstelike projekte; Sir Arnold Theiler van Onderstepoort, as kenner van bilharzia; Sir en Lady George Albu, wat die statige herehuis, Northwards, op Parktownrif besit bet; Dr. R.T.A. Innes, sterrekundige van die Unie van Suid-Afrika; Sydney Carter, skilder; Herman Eckstein, wat die terrein vir die Johannesburgse Dieretuin aan die stad geskenk bet: kol Deneys Reitz, skrywer van "Commando"; die wereldbekende aktrise, Sybil Thorndike, wat vir Isidore Schlesinger se African Theatres in 'n aantal teaterproduksies in Johannesburg opgetree bet. Bogenoemde is maar 'n paar van die kleurryke persoonlikhede met wie ODS saarn met die Rosentals ("Rosentalkers", omdat bulle glo so graag gesels bet) kennis maak.
Juliet Marais Louw bet in "When Johannesburg and I were young" talle mooi momente uit die boeiende word-ingsgeskiedenis van ons grootste stad vir die nageslag toeganklik gemaak. Enige plaaslike en streekhistorikus sat genot kan put uit die deurlees van die gei1lustreerde "child's-eye view of people and events".
Jan Cronje
Ondervoorsitter: lohannesburgse Eeufeesgenootskap,
1986 Readers need to be cautioned about the authenticity of
CONTREE 32 / 1992
purported dialogue between John Ross and Shaka ego p.124, p.192. Unhelpful verbosity often hinders understanding; a few examples of this: the bizarre description of Nandi on page 1?6; "meretricious" p.l?l describing trading goods like beads which were increasingly such a significant part of the Zulu culture, md linguistic "glitches" -p.194, I do not find in my Concise Oxford Dictionary. I am extremely curious to ascertain why Stephen Gray describes John Ross, who at 14 years of age successfully completed the return trip to Delagoa Bay from Townshend (not Townsend) for medicine and other supplies, thus: "spindly", p.23; "milk-sated child", p.201. The source of the legend must have had some worthwhile physical attributes.
Geskiedenis as 'n skoolvak gegee. Daar word begin met hoofstukke oar die aard en nut van Geskiedenis. Daarna word vaardighede, bronne en talle onderrigme-lodes soos die neem van notas, werkkaarte,
vraag-stelling en projekwerk behandel. Daar word oak aandag gegee aan evaluering, die Skryf van opstelle en die mediasentrum. 'n Interessante byvoeging is die hoofstuk oar die rekenaar en Geskiedenis.
Vir die plaaslike geskiedskrywer is die feit dat die hele publikasie fokus op historiese vaardighede ter sake en die hoofstuk oar lokale geskiedenis is 'n verdere bonus omdat dit die belangstelling in plaaslike Geskiedenis kan stimuleer.
Stephen Gray confirms that Charles Maclean was John Ross on p.200. The hunting anecdotes are valuable: pp. 82-84 and p.99. Some of the statements made by the author seem to be over-reaction ego "staggering number of half-caste children", p.165; comparing Norton's mutiny with the "Bounty" when it was "mutually agreed", p.58; slavery was the issue, p.I64, and "three great leaders", p.155. Dommana's story on page 93 was very moving, but I don't go along with Gray's comments.
The volume proves convincingly ~hat John Ross and Francis Farewell were significant pioneers in this early period of Natal's history. The book would have been a lot more valuable had the author been more objective and conscious of historical method in his text. But then possibly it would have been less interesting and controversial.
Kyk 'n mens meeT krities na die publikasie, daD moet 'n mens toe gee dat dit 'n nuttige pubijkasie vir die onderwyser is, maar dat dit Die die klassieke publikasie van Boyce vir die onderrig van Geskiedenis op skool as standaardwerk op vakdidaktici se boekrakke sal ver-yang Die. Daar is byvoorbeeld te mill bronne wat in die aanbieding gelntegreer word. ('nMens dink bier aan 'n relevante leeslys aan die einde van elke hoofs-tuk). Daarby is dit myns insiens Die sonder 'n deeglike beredenering aanvaarbaar dat skoliere as klein historici opgelei moet word Die. Uit'n vonningsoogpunt is so 'n standpunt minstens aanvegbaar.
Aan die positiewe kant moet daar, naas dit wat reeds gese is, beklemtoon word dat bier kreatief en ver-nuwend oor Geskiedenis op skool gedink word. Daar is daD ook heelwat prikkelende voorbeelde van die integrasie van dokumente in die onderrig van Geskiedenis ('n mooi eksemplaar is die Retief-Dingaan oefening -p.31 e.v.). Die fokus wat op empatie geplaas word is ook te verwelkom. Laastens-w-ord daar ook vernuwend gedink oor die verwerwing van 'n tyd-belewing in Geskiedenis.
Dr.
A.E. Cubbin University of Zululand
J. Mathews, K. Moodley, W. Rheeder en M. Wilkinson: Discover History. A pupil-centered approach to history method. Maskew Miller Longman, Cape Town, 1992. 167 pp. R27,44. ISBN 0636012549.
Die boek word baie sterk aanbeveel vir aIle voorne-mende Geskiedenisonderwysers wat op , n sistematiese, dog eenvoudige, wyse 'n vaardigheidsbenadering in bulle yak wil vestig.
Prof. Martin Triimpelmann R.A.U.
Hierdie is 'n nuttige toevoeging tot 'n toenemende aan-tal publikasies wat handel oor die metodiek van Geskiedenisonderrig in primere en sekondere skole. Die skrywers maak in bulle voorwoord daarop aanspraak dat bulle vaardigheidsgerigte fokus "will ensure the relevance of the subject in a new South Africa" wat waarskynlik 'n ietwat ambisieuse oogmerk is. Nietemin is die publikasie 'n verfrissende bydrae tot 'n benadering waar vaardighede. houdings en kon-septe groter prominensie geniet. Insgelyks word empatie as 'n vaardigheid hoog aangeslaan. Kortom, die skrywers is kennelik op hoogte van die huidige ten-dense in die onderrig van Geskiedenis.
Glen Moss en Ingrid Obery (reds.): South African Review 6 From 'Red Friday' to Codesa. Ravan Press,
Johannesburg, 1992. 508 pp. Prys onbekend. ISBN 0 86975418 1
Die verskyning van volume 6 van die South Afrian Review is te verwelkom, aangesien die vorige vyf vol-umes in hierdie reeks dit reeds as 'n stewige naslaan-werk gevestig bet. En kyk mens net na die inhoudsop-gawe van hierdie nuutste volume, is dit al duidelik dat oak hierin 'n magdom inligting oar die mees resente geskiedenis van Suid-Afrika op 'n bree veld aangebied word. Daar is geeD aDder publikasie van hierdie In 21 hoofstukke word 'n logiese samehang van talle
didaktiese probleme en fokuspunte rakende
