88 THE DIAMOND MINES OF SOUTH AFRICA
the compound, are sold or given away to customers or friends before their owners leave.
It may be that De Beers Compound is a " Monastery of Labour," as was wittily said by a lady visiting the fields as a
correspondent of the London Times; but
the testimony of all careful observers on the ground affirms the
beneficial effect of the restrictions from dissipation, and the general
good cheer of the workers. Mr. Thomas H. Leggett, an entirely
independent and competent American witness, wrote of his inspection of
the men in the compounds, in Cassiers Magazine, September, 1898
: " These chaps are well cared for, contented, and happy, as proven by
the fact that many have been there for years; and the secret of it lies
in their not being able to get drink."
Occasionally
a visitor at the fields is less observant and candid. One such was a
member of the Legislative Assembly of Cape Colony, who came to
Kimberley to investigate the conditions of life and treatment of the
natives in the compound. On arriving at De Beers Compound, in company
with his wife, he first impressed upon the natives whom he met that he
was a member of the Cape Colony Legislative Council. He had come to the
fields in their behalf, and he wanted them to tell him freely
everything of which they had to complain. With the aid of an
interpreter he interviewed a number of natives in the compound, asking
searching questions about their treatment. One native told him that he
had been working for eight years in the mines and had been outside the
compound only three or four times in all that period. When asked if he
was well treated in the compound his answer was, " If I didn't like it,
Baas, I wouldn't be here." The visitor's wife meanwhile kept tugging
