Have you found a marriage record? it might list names of his parents or some other useful detail.
Yes, I have Thomas Capper's marriage record, but there is nothing about his past history. Date was 20 Nov 1853, Thomas Capper (28), Bachelor, Tailor, married Ellen Corns (15) spinster, Fort Beaufort, South Africa. After Bahns, St Johns Presbyterian Church, in the presence of Thomas Corns and Sarah Graham.