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ROAMIN' IN THE GLOAMIN' 263
was paid me in Johannesburg. The Kaffirs were tremendously anxious to hear me and would have paid any prices to be admitted to the theatre. But in South Africa the colour line is drawn very strictly. So the natives drew up a petition, or, at all events appointed a deputation to see my manager and ask that I should give performances at which natives only would be present. The idea was to take a hall somewhere and give one or two special matinees. This request so touched me that I expressed my willingness to entertain "Kaffirs only" if a sufficiently large hall could be secured for the purpose. But certain difficulties presented themselves and the scheme fell through. Later I visited one or two of the principal compounds and encampments and spent a few very pleasant and amusing hours with the Kaffirs and their chiefs. They are fine upstanding fellows — splendid physical specimens every man of them. Writing about the natives of South Africa reminds me that at Durban I met a Basuto doctor whose command of English was considerably better than my own. In fact he amazed me by his polished and fluent talk. He knew all about me and my career. I asked him in considerable astonishment how this came about. "Oh," he replied, "I was educated at Edinburgh and often heard you sing in the good old Empire in Nicholson Street !" He added that he had a full collection of my records in his home and that occasionally he took his gramaphone to the hospital with which he was connected and played my tunes to the patients. There must, I think be something "international" in my voice or my manner of singing that makes a strange appeal to the peoples of all races for I have met Chinese, Japanese, Maories, Philippinos, Red Indians, and even Esquimaux who are familiar with my records and enjoy my tunes though they don't all understand the words. It is extraordinary and I have long given up trying to explain it even to myself.