May 31, 1896 Sunday

May 31 Sunday – Sam spent the day sightseeing in Bloemfontein. In FE:

The voices, too, of the African women, were familiar to me — sweet and musical, just like those of the slave women of my early days. I followed a couple of them all over the Orange Free State — no, over its capital — Bloemefontain, to hear their liquid voices and the happy ripple of their laughter. There language was a large improvement upon American. Also upon the Zulu. It had no Zulu clicks in it; and it seemed to have no angles or corners, no roughness, no vile s’s or other hissing sounds, but was very, very mellow and rounded and flowing [ch LXVIII 693-4].