1897
to get along with. I received my blasting certificate 18th May and worked here six weeks when my father sent for me to go to at Champ D’Or to work.
Whilst at the West Rand I lived in the rooms belonging to the Swan Hotel for a while. And well remember how I enjoyed the walk across the veld to the mine, of course the novelty of the place made me enjoy it. At this time Krugersdorp was a very small place. Varley hotel was a tin shanty, also the Swan Hotel, and several others were non-existent at that date. And there were no large shops except Thompson’s Chemist shop. The Grand Hotel was just newly finished. There was no railway to Randfontein. I moved to Champ d’Or into a room with my father opposite the Goldsmiths bar, then a tin shanty, and started stoping with boys.
[Ed. Note: On Page 59 of the Journal William provides further details of the mines he worked at during this period which are not included here. For a few days in December 1897 he was leasing machines at the Violet G[old]. M[ine]. with Tom Anderson and sinking for a week in small shaft [illegible]]
1898
I wasn’t long there before I had an attack of enteric but was caught just in time and quickly got over it. After Xmas in the beginning of 1898 I had another attack of enteric, and there being no hospitals on the mines I had to go to Johannesburg, where I stayed about a fortnight, the worst part of the fever being over before I went there.
Soon after this I bought my first racing bicycle a James, weighing about 19lbs and geared 84 inches with Palmer single tube tyres.
Before this whilst at Champ d’Or, my father had bought a second hand Humber roadster, on which I used to train, and on which I did some very good times.
I entered my name for the sports on the Wanderers Grounds Johannesburg. They were the Caledonian sports and four days before the Sports, which were held on a Tuesday, we went into Johannesburg to buy
[Ed. Note: On Page 59 of the Journal William provides further details of the mines he worked at during 1898 which are not included in the Journal – About 15th January, he came out of hospital and started driving with machines at Aurora Gold Mine, on 1st February he started work at Champ de Or Gold Mine stoping with boys and on 1st June through to January 1899 he worked at Luipaards Vlei driving and rising with machines]
