Racheltjie de Beer is one of the stories we were told as
young children. I would like to share
this story with you today.
During the month of June 1843 we were on our way from the
Orange Free State to the Transvaal. As
the Ox Wagons move through the long grass which has turned yellow as the winter
started you can see for miles around you.
The sky is blue with streaks of white clouds here and there,
the wind is blowing today, it’s cold and the folk are all quiet. The oxen’s move forward and the dogs run
alongside the wagons. We have packed up
all our belongings and are looking forward to living in the Transvaal.
Rumor has it that there is gold to be found and that the
province is beautiful, mountain country and that we can make our fortunes
there. On the horizon I can see a
mountain range and the trees are starting to come into sight. The people in our company are all getting excited;
we are entering into the Transvaal.
The surrounding area is very different to the Orange Free
State, there are trees all over the place with loads of rocks and we are
experiencing some problems with our wagons.
Every now and then someone has to stop for a wheel has come off or is
broken. But the people are in good
spirits. We don’t know what kind of wild
animals are roaming around but we have seen some beautiful ‘Spring bucks’ and ‘Wilde
Bees.’ As we pull our Ox Wagons into a
ring and make fire for the evening super the people are all busy with
collecting wood and getting their pots out for super. The fires are warm and as we sit around the
fire enjoyed the stews and black coffee.
It’s still cold there isn’t any snow but the wind is ice
cold and the temperatures drop rapidly. Early
morning everybody is preparing for the long trek, we don’t want to stay in one
place too long. The kids are enjoying
the new surrounding but we don’t allow them to move away from the company it is
really dangerous.
It was around late afternoon when Rachel and her brother
both came running up to me from the back of the wagon. As I sat on my horse I stopped and spoke to
them ‘what is it?’ I asked as I leaned down to them.
‘Pa, pa Frikkie is missing.’
Rachel said with her brother standing next to her.
‘When did you realize his missing?’ I asked as I got off my
horse.
‘We don’t know, his missing.’ Rachel said as she looked
around to see if she could spot him.
‘Go back to your mom and sit in the wagon, I will speak to
Oom Ben and see what we can do about his.’
I said as I got back onto my horse and road off to the front of the
company.
‘Ben’ I called out as I was riding toward his ox wagon.
Ben was sitting in front of the wagon with a felt hat on and
warm jacked directing the oxen.
‘Woa Woa’ he called out as the oxen came to a halt.
‘Ja, de Beer. What is
the problem?’ Ben asked as he took the
pipe from his mouth.
‘Our little calf Frikkie is missing.’ I said as I sat on my horse looking at the
old man.
‘that’s no good, we will have to speak to the rest of the
company and see if we can find the calf.’
Ben said as he jumped off the wagon.
The company came to a halt and all the men came up to see what was
wrong. They discussed the situation and
the ox wagons where arranged into a circle as was the custom. The woman and children would wait and prepare
meals.
‘Pa, pa … please let us come with you. We also want to help in finding Frikkie.’ Rachel pleaded as we stood waiting for the
men to gather. ‘No, Rachel it’s not safe
and you can stay helping your mom.’ I
said not wanting to endanger my children.
‘Oh please Pa, please’ Rachel kept at me.
‘On one condition, you and your brother stay near us; on
wondering off on your own.’ I said as I
pulled both my children towards me hugging them and then I stood up and walked over
to the men.
We were all calling out ‘Frikkie’ and walking into the wilderness. The children on toe, it the day was changing
and dusk was upon us. We stopped and
regrouped, I called out ‘Rachel and de Beertjie’. There was no answer it was too late to walk
about and it was decided we will resume our search early in the morning. I was angry but there wasn’t anything I could
do.
‘We are lost and all alone.’ He walked moaning while Rachel
looked for a place they could find shelter.
The wind wasn’t blowing but the night air was cold and she knew it was imperative
to find somewhere they could shelter.
While they were walking in the dark Rachel noticed an
anthill, it was hallway open, and an aardvark had already dug it out. ‘Come let’s get into the whole and see it we
can stay warm’ Rachel pulled on her brothers arms half dragging him to the
anthill. Standing looking at the anthill
she realised it was too small. Bending
down she started to dig a little more so that she could fit her brother in the
whole.
‘I want my mommy, I am cold.’ He was complaining as she
moved him into the whole. He sat down
and she sat in front of him but he kept on moaning. Standing up Rachel took off her warm jacket
and jersey and put it over her brother. Sitting
down she was shivering, Brr it was cold tonight. Still he was moaning. Rachel took off her little dress and placed
over her brother and sat down in front of the whole, her little slip was so
thin but she crossed her arms and place her head on them. It was very cold. She fell asleep and died.
Early the next morning I rose and all the men were ready to
help me look for my two children. The
funny thing is the children weren’t that far away from the wagons. They must have been a half a kilometre away. We found my beautiful girl sitting in front
of an anthill with only her slip on. Her
brother nestled in the back of the anthill covered with all her clothing. On finding them my heart broke. I couldn’t stop the tears from running down
my cheeks. My daughter gave her life to
protect and keep her brother safe.
We buried my little girl in the veld and placed a couple of
rocks on her grave. I love my children
and will never forget her bravery.
Racheltjie de Beer gave her life to protect her brother from
the freezing cold. My darling child.
