Episode 108 - The Commando laid low by "Hottentots Bread" within striking distance of Port Elizabeth

This is an important week - it is the 120 anniversary of the start of the Boer War - which formally began on 12th October 1899. This week saw the Anglo-Boer War Museum in Bloemfontein host a conference as part of the commemorations. Amongst the topics discussed were how all communities were affected by this war, and those attending included both professional and amateur historians. On Saturday 12th, a monument to Australian forces was unveiled at the battle site of Driefontein. If you want more details about this museum and the conference, head off to the website wmbr.org.za . But back to October 1901. It has been an extremely busy past few weeks for both Boer and Briton in South Africa - and in England as we heard last week where Churchill and conservative party backbenchers had begun to criticise the British Army tactics. General Jan Smuts was beginning to cause serious consternation in the Cape - while Louis Botha had found it impossible to continue his attack on Natal. However, Botha’s actions were proving to be a thorn in the side of Kitchener’s army. He was forced to send forty thousand men in various units to try and surround and capture the Transvaal Boer commander. This weakened other areas and the number of guerrilla attacks on railway lines and other infrastructure began to increase. Smuts, meanwhile, was trying to stimulate the Cape Afrikaners into rebellion in the Cape by showing them how weak the English were. This did not turn out as planned - although he was still determined to create a gap into which General De La Rey was supposed to pour with a much larger commando in a month or so. The timing was unclear - because Smuts still had not succeeded in his mission. But first, there was a food poisoning incident involving what is called Hottentots Bread and it almost proved the undoing of all who ate this remarkable plant. ITs scientific name is Dioscorea Elaphantipes - or Elephants foot. IT is one of the most beautiful, weird and wonderful caudiciform plant in the world and has a deeply fissured surface resembling an elephants foot - thus its name. It is one of those plants you cannot ignore, and indeed, Jan Smuts and his men made the almost fatal mistake of regarding it as a source of nourishment. With correct preparation, this is a useful plant to eat. Prepare it incorrectly and its almost as dangerous as the Japanese puffer fish.