Di Selfsugtige Skoolmeester

Di Selfsugtige Skoolmeester ("the selfish schoolmaster") is a farce by J.H.H. de Waal (1871-1937) and P. de Waal (1975-1949).

The original text

P. de Waal, the brother of playwright J.H.H. de Waal, had written a one-act farce similar to his brother's piece called called 'n Les oor di Tier, for the CJV of Cape Town's Nieuwe Kerk. The brothers subsequently combined the two plays to create a longer play, which they initially called Di Selfsugtige Skoolmeester.

Written in the patois of young people in the Cape at the turn of the 19th/20th centuries, the play tells of a teacher is trying to teach a group of unruly children. He draws an image of a tiger on the blackboard and asks the boys to identify the animal. The answers received are meaningless and the boys keep playing pranks throughout the piece.

The longer play was published published as Di Selfsugtige Skoolmeester in 1903, then it appeared as Die Selfsugtige Onderwyser in the journal Ons Land on 10 January, 1903, and then, in an extensively altered version, in as Di selfsugtige onderwyser in De Goede Hoop (during in April 1904 ). The latter version was then published as Die selfsugtige meester ("the selfish master") in the collection Stompies: ’n bundel stories, rympies en toneelspelletjies in die Afrikaanse taal () compiled by J.H.H. de Waal and published by HAUM/De Bussy in 1909.