South African anecdotes: Collected from various sources, oral and written

SOUTH AFRICAN ANECDOTES.

COLLECTED FROM VARIOUS SOURCES, ORAL AND WRITTEN.

By A. ELLMAN.

Johannesburg: “Transvaal Leader,” corner of Harrison and Anderson Streets.

1914.

South African Anecdotes.

Collected from various sources, Oral and Written.

By A. ELLMAN.

Some forty years ago a schoolmaster was imported from Holland to teach in the Zoutpansberg District. To their horror, the elders of the district one day discovered that the children were taught that the world turns on its own axis. The elders met and consulted regarding these new doctrines, and finally agreed to refer the subject to the minister, who requested the schoolmaster to explain. The schoolmaster said: “I teach them about the heavenly bodies, and that the earth revolves round the sun.” The minister answered: “Well, this may be true, no doubt--and what the earth does in Holland, but it would be more convenient at present if in the Zoutpansberg district you would allow the sun still to go round the earth for a few years longer. We do not like sudden changes in such matters.”