General Chat

GROOTE SCHUUR DESTROYED AN IRREPARABLE LOSS TO SOUTH AFRICA MR RHODES' FAMOUS RESIDENCE AT RONDEBOSCH GUTTED, AND ITS PRICELESS CONTENTS CONSUMED BY FIRE. Readers of evening papers on Tuesday-the Anglo-African world particularly so-were startled and pained to learn the news of the utter destruction by fire of "Groote Schuur," Mr. Rhodes' well-known country seat at Rondebosch-the "Bleak House," so to speak, of Southern Africa. The fire apparently broke out at about three o'clock in the morning, and the appliances at hand being insufficient to cope with it-the nearest fire-station being at Cape Town, some six or seven miles off-the quaintly beautiful old "barn," for such it originally was, was utterly destroyed, together with its unique and priceless collection of treasures, including the famous finds from the Zimbabwe ruins in Rhodesia. Only a few books and papers and one or two curios were saved, the rapidity with which the fire spread preventing the salvage of articles of any consequence or value. As will be seen from the illustration of the exterior of the house, which we present herewith, the building was an old and typical Dutch structure, and certainly one of the finest of the kind in the Cape Colony, if not, indeed, in South Africa. It was the sort of house that, once destroyed, can never be replaced. The quaintness of its exterior was only equaled by the equally old-world air of its rooms and corridors. Its stoep was one of its most characteristic features; its thatched roof added not a little to its picturesqueness; and its library was without an equal. Mr. Rhodes purchased the property some years ago, and at once set about restoring to it something of its original old-Dutch style. With him the work was a labour of love, and he spared neither time nor money in making the Great Barn at once a model of comfort, as we understand it today, and a monument of the Dutch architecture of 200 years ago. Mr. Rhodes went to work with the greatest care. Whilst he added, we ! believe, the Dutch gables to the outside of the building, he did as little as possible to disturb the original design. This done-and it was accomplished so carefully that it took some time in the doing-Mr. Rhodes next turned his attention to the inside of the house, and exhausted his own ingenuity, as well as that of those competent to advise him on such matters, in imparting to it a thoroughly Dutch character. The height of the building was increased, a new wing-used as a billiard-room-was built, the architect being Mr. Herbert Baker, of Cape Town, and many of the rooms were paneled in plain teak. Simplicity was the "note" throughout, but it was a simplicity that cost the owner of the house a very large sum indeed. Then came the furnishing. In this, as in other matters pertaining to this wonderful old house, there was absolutely no stint. Trustworthy agents scoured the country on Mr. Rhodes' behalf, in order to purchase old-fashioned chairs and clocks, and wardrobes and tables, all of the old-Dutch pattern; and many and wonderful were the articles of furniture that the agents managed to unearth-for your South African Dutchman is a great hoarder. Old tapestries-possibly of Huguenot make-were purchased, and so, too, were quaint prints and old paintings including a Sir Joshua Reynolds, and an early view of Cape Town and Table Mountain, attributed to Richard Wilson, R.A. The library itself was, perhaps, the chief apartment, and our illustration shows one corner of that famous room-famous as being the scene of that historical interview which Mr. Rhodes had at the beginning of the year with the Hon. W. P. Schreiner, in connection, it will be remembered, with the Jameson raid. Herein the Zimb! abwe relics reposed. Here, too, were located the rifle formerly owned by Lo Bengula, that chief's drinking cup-a cup whose capacity would have comforted Falstaff, seeing that it held two quarts-also the silver elephant belonging to Lo Bengula, which was found among the ashes of Gubulawayo, as the place was then called. The Zimbabwe collection included a wooden bowl with carvings representing the signs of the Zodiac and the sacred crocodile, Roman coins, and other relics of the race that once dominated the "Land of Ophir." The bookshelves contained upwards of 2000 volumes, mostly historical works and translations from the classics, and was a library of which anyone-and more particularly one who cannot be said to be a bookworm-might well be proud to possess. When we last saw Groote Schuur, we spent the most of the time of our visit in this library. It would be impossible within a brief space to give anything like an idea of the contents, which cannot all be replaced, unfortunately. Some of the objects we have mentioned will be seen as being above the bookshelves in the picture. A conspicuous ornament of the chamber was a fine bronze statuette of the poet Burns, as a working man, by Tweed, the well-known sculptor. The flags taken at Umtassi's were also there. Among the books was a complete set of Bohn's library, and conspicuous among the biographies were the lives of Peter the Great and Machiavelli, whilst there were many works on Africa, ancient and modern. Among the former were some remarkable books on Egypt, while Syria and Nineveh came in for a share of Mr. Rhodes' attention. It will interest our readers to know that there was in the library a very large collection of the best novels. In the dining-room was a fine model of th! e monument to Wilson's men at Zimbabwe, a fine old grandfather's clock, and any number of old Dutch cabinets; but each room had the same rich old flavour about it. There was, as far as we know, only one comparatively poorly-furnished room in the whole house, and that was Mr. Rhodes' bedroom. It was a model of Spartan simplicity. Not so the bedrooms reserved for guests. Groote Schuur stood in its own grounds-and very extensive and beautiful those grounds are. Altogether the estate totals about one thousand acres, and it is bounded on one side by the group of rocks of which Table Mountain is the chief. It was not so large a property when Mr. Rhodes first bought it. Nearly every kind of tree that will flourish in Cape Colony is to be found there. One part of the grounds, as our readers are aware, is laid out as a menagerie, which has proved to be at once the wonder and delight of those living in the vicinity. Capetonians, indeed, have more than an ordinary interest in Groote Schuur, seeing that Mr. Rhodes, in his generosity, even went so far as to have made and sent to the then Mayor of Cape Town, some 2000 park keys for distribution amongst such of the ratepayers as His Worship considered might safely be entrusted with the privilege. As to the origin of the fire, nothing is known with any definiteness. So far as is known, the conflagration appears to have arisen outside the house, but whether it was due to the carelessness of a servant, or was the work of an incendiary, is uncertain. If the latter surmise be the correct one, then all we can say is that hanging would be too noble a punishment for such a man. The fire, we are told, spread with great rapidity owing to the thatched roof; and at that hour of the morning probably the occupants, Colonel Frank Rhodes, his sister, Miss Rhodes, and Mr. Fane, a relative, narrowly escaped with their lives. We are advised of the intense public regret of the occurrence which has been expressed in Cape Town; and we can well understand it, for Mr. Rhodes' princely liberality had made the house and estate almost the common property of the public. Mr. Rhodes' grief, when on Wednesday, on his arrival at Beira, he was informed of his loss, can be imagined. He delighted in G! roote Schuur and its lovely surroundings, and was never so happy as when playing the part of host there-a

was he the Rhodes that Rhodesia was named after?

She, That's right! Did you see all of his historical treasures that went up in smoke. It's so sad. Lindy:-)

I have always been fascinated byt the place - cos when my nephew was born she met a lady from Rhodesia in the hospital - gosh is that REALLY 39 yrs ago! she was the first foreign person i was aware of ever meeting and she told us stories of her life there - made it sound so amazing. oooooooooh I know - its so sad when treasure like that are lost :-(