David Keay, a young man who grew up on his family’s farm outside of Unity, moved to South Africa to work in the gold mines with his uncle. He wrote home to his parents and siblings often, outlining some of the interesting things he was doing. This is a continuation of David’s story.
Early on in July 1938, David went to Johannesburg for a semi-annual examination at the Phthisis Bureau. He was set to start working in the Survey department on July 11 after he completed three months in ventilation. His letter makes light of Brodi, one of the supervisors, needing a haircut before a schoolteacher lady friend arrives from Glasgow or he would be able to tie it up in a bun. Although he has not been home for more than two years, David is still concerned about the family farm, asking about how bad the grasshoppers are so far.
With his new position in the Survey department, the office is home to a huge map where the employees plot their work. All areas of the reef are surveyed in square fathoms and each surveyor has three assistants. New haulages, or tunnels, measuring seven feel high and 11 feet wide with two tracks for trucks are being put in. David writes “No compasses are used; it is all a case of accurate measurements of angles and a Theodolite is used for leveling. We don’t use these in most cases but rather tapes. Five tapes of 200’, 100’, 75’, 50’ and 25’.”
David mentions that driving in Johannesburg is worse than London. Finding a parking space is difficult to start with and once the driver parks, they only are allowed one hour. Most of Johannesburg’s electrical wiring system is underground, so the only wires seen above ground are for the trams and buses.
As the year slips into August, Uncle Sandy becomes ill with the flu. When an employee of the mine becomes ill, all medication and doctor visits does not cost the employee anything as it is covered by the mine.
In mid August, David wrote about a fellow employee who had his car stolen. As much as David enjoys driving around, he admits he cannot poke along at 15-20 miles per hour. He mentions how common it is to see accidents with the number of cars, trucks, motorbikes, push cycles and ox wagons. “One must use hand signals for slowing down, stopping or turning to the right,” he added.
David was temporarily transferred from survey to the Bedeaux department to “replace a bloke.” He is in the measuring section of the department, which involves measuring the underground supports in the various stopes. As stone walls are built, David needs to measure the cubical content, which is then plotted in the office. Even with the move, David has to go back to the surveying position as he only got in one month of his six-month session.
Larry Adler, a harmonica champion from Hollywood, was performing at the Empire Theatre in Johannesburg near the end of August 1938. While touring the area, Adler got a special tour at the Daggafontein mines in shaft No. 2, but our writer was working in the nearby No. 3 shaft.
In September, Uncle Sandy and David take a drive to the Premier diamond mine, only 30 miles from Pretoria. As stated in David’s letter, this mine was the largest excavation in the world at the time. He writes:
“For many years it prospered and so did all the employees. In 1931, the mine fell into the hands of Sir Abe Bailey and a few others. The government began demanding 65 per cent of the profits so the mine was immediately closed. 1,100 Europeans and 19,000 locals were jobless. The mine is now a great huge hole in the surface. Not like gold mines where you go underground by a shaft about 5,000 feet vertically before beginning mining. We saw trucks that were sitting loaded the same as the day the mine was closed down. Guards are staffed to ensure no one tries pinching the valuable stones. The Cullinan Diamond, the largest flawless diamond ever found was from this mine, even before it was an official mine by Thomas Cullinan, later referred to as Sir Thomas Cullinan. Story goes that Cullinan came through this area with an ox wagon. He killed one of the oxen, claiming it had died of anthrax. This allowed him to legally dig and bury the animal, hence finding the famous diamond. He quickly bought up an enormous territory for 50,000 pounds. We know a farmer only five miles from this mine and may revisit.”
This rare diamond was purchased in 1907 by the Transvaal Colony government, where Prime Minister Louis Botha presented it to Edward VII, the British king who reigned over the territory. The Cullinan produced many stones of various cuts and sizes, of which the largest two stones sit upon the Sovereign’s Scepter with Cross and the Imperial State Crown.
By the end of September 1938, David is once again attending classes. He writes home saying his is pleased he completed his high school education, otherwise he would have never got on as an official learner at the mine. He found trigonometry and physics are beneficial to the mining industry, however, has yet to find a use for Latin or the Shakespearean plays he has been studying.
From Sept. 23 to Dec. 14, 1938, there is a major gap in the letters. Family is unsure of what happened to the originals from this timeframe but do suspect that letters were still sent on a regular basis.
A letter dated Dec. 14, 1938 was signed by Uncle Sandy, talking about how happy David is that his classes and exams are finished and that he is looking forward to taking a trip south to the sea, learning how to swim with some of his work mates at the Springs Municipal Baths.
David’s letter, dated the same as Sandy’s, shares a different view of the news. Riots in Johannesburg had broken out when Nazi supporters and anti-Nazis started fighting at town hall. The Johannesburg Star also had an article about Canada requesting an increase in its population, inviting immigrants to the country. Canadian officials were wanting people to help increase the agricultural industry on the “fertile prosperous prairies.”
To end out the year, David and Sandy join some friends on a camping trip. There are three vehicles, where Guy is pulling a trailer with his DeSoto. Iva and Peg sleep in the trailer, Guy and his wife convert their vehicle interior into a bed, leaving the uncle and nephew duo to sleep on stretchers in their tent. The beach by Hood Point Lighthouse still had remains from the Stuart Star, a wrecked boat that ran aground and smashed up on the rocks only a year prior.
The group of friends were able to watch the South Africa Grand Prix near Shelly Beach, East London. David said in his last letter of 1938 that the race is not a smooth wide road but rather around hills, edge of ravines, hairpin bends and a real test for the driver. David also details watching the sharks on a daily basis down at the wharfs, out at the end of the piers.
Please stay tuned for the next installment of Letters to Home in an upcoming issue of the Unity-Wilkie Press Herald or on SaskToday.ca.
