THE RETURN.
The delight of the Hottentots at the announcement of the return of the
expedition was not to be concealed; and now that they knew that they
were retreating from the danger, as they were further removed they
became proportionately brave. We must not include all the Hottentots in
this observation, as Bremen, Swanevelt, and one or two more, were really
brave men; but we do refer to the principal portion of them, with Big
Adam at their head, who now flourished and vapored about, as if he could
by himself kill and eat the whole army of the dreaded Quetoo.
As it was the intention of our travelers to pass over the Mambookei
chain of mountains, into the Bushman and Koranna territory, they did not
return the same route by which they came, but more to the westward
through the territory of the Tambookie Caffres, not any one time
entering upon the territory of the Amakosas, the tribe of Caffres
governed by Hinza, who had lent them his warriors.
Voosani, the chief of the Tambookies, was very friendly, and had offered
no opposition to their passage through a portion of his domains on their
advance. They now lost no time, but continued their journey as fast as
they could, although during the day they saw a great quantity of game,
and were almost every night saluted with the roaring of the lions.
In a week they found themselves on the banks of the White Kae River, and
not far from the foot of the mountains which they intended to pass. Here
they halted, with the intention of remaining some few days, that they
might unload and re-arrange the packing of their wagons, repair what was
necessary, and provide themselves with more oxen and sheep for their
journey in the sterile territory of the Bushmen.
During their route, the rumors relative to the army of Quetoo were
incessant. He had attacked and murdered Lieut. Farewell and his people,
who were on a trading expedition in the interior, and taken possession
of and plundered their wagons. Flushed with success over white people
armed with muskets, Quetoo had now resolved to turn his army to the
southward, and attack the tribes of the Amaponda Caffres, governed by
Fakoo, and the missionary station of Morley, lately established near the
coast, between the St. John and the Umtata rivers.
To effect this, Quetoo commenced his ravages upon all the lesser tribes
tributary to Fakoo, and having put them to indiscriminate slaughter,
driven away their cattle, and burned their kraals, his army advanced to
the missionary station, which the missionaries were compelled to desert,
and fall back upon the St. John River.
One of the men belonging to the tribe near Morley came to the caravan
where our travelers had halted, and, on being questioned as to the loss
they had experienced, cried out, "Ask not how many are killed, but how
many are saved: our wives, where are they? and our children, do you see
any of them?"
But Fakoo, the chief of the Amapondas, had roused himself and collected
his army. He resolved upon giving battle to the enemy. He found the
Amaquibi encamped in a forest, and he surrounded them with a superior
army; he then contrived, by attacking and retreating, to lead them into
a position from which there was no escape but by the pass by which they
had entered, and which he completely blocked up with his own forces.
The Amaquibi could not retreat, and a furious conflict took place, which
ended in the destruction of the whole of Quetoo's army. Quetoo himself
was not present, as he still remained confined with the wound he had
received in the prior engagement, in which he had been victorious. A
portion of Fakoo's army was sent against him, and he fled with the loss
of all the cattle and treasures he had collected; and thus was the
invading force at last totally dispersed and not heard of any more.
This news was very satisfactory to our travelers, as they did not know
whether they would have had time to make their arrangements, if Quetoo's
army had been victorious; and it was still more pleasing to the
Hottentots, who were now even braver than before, all lamenting that
they had not remained on the banks of the Umtata River, where the combat
took place, that they might have assisted at the destruction of the
invaders.
It was toward the end of August before our travelers had made their
preparations and were ready for a start. They had decided to try the
pass through the Mambookei chain of mountains, to the eastward of the
one named Stormbergen, and as they expected to meet with some
difficulties, it was decided that the Caffre warriors should not be
dismissed till they had arrived at the Bushman territory; they proposed
then to turn to the N.W., so as to fall in with that portion of the
Orange River which was known by the name of the Vaal or Yellow River,
crossing the Black or Cradock River, which is also another branch of the
Orange River.
This arrangement was made, that they might get into the country more
abounding with game, and better furnished with water than any other
portion of the sterile deserts which they had to pass through.
Having, as usual, kept holy the Lord's day, on the Monday morning they
started in high spirits, and with their cattle in excellent order. The
passage through the ravine was very difficult; they had to fill up
holes, roll away stones, and very often put double teams to drag the
wagons.
They made but ten miles on the first day, and found the night cold,
after the heat to which they had been subjected. The second day was also
one of toil and danger, but on the third they found that they had
commenced the descent, and the whole Bushman country was spread before
them. But the descent was even more perilous than the ascent, and it was
not without great exertion that they saved their wagons from falling
over the precipices.
On the fourth evening they had crossed the mountains, and were now at
the foot of them on the western side. It was with difficulty that they
collected wood enough to make their fires for the night, and the
continual roaring told them that they were now in the domain of the
lion and his satellites.
At break of day they all rose, that they might view the country which
they were about to traverse. It was one wild desert of sand and stones,
interspersed with small shrubs, and here and there a patch of bushes;
apparently one vast, dry, arid plain, with a haze over it, arising from
the heat. Our travelers, however, did not at first notice this change;
their eyes were fixed upon the groups of quaggas and various antelopes
which were strewed over the whole face of the country; and, as soon as
they had taken their breakfast, they mounted their horses in pursuit. It
had been their intention to have dismissed the Caffres on that morning,
but the chief of the band pointed out that it would be as well that they
should kill some game, to provide them with food for their journey back;
and our travelers approved of the suggestion, as it would save their
sheep.
Alexander and the Major set off with Bremen, Swanevelt, and Omrah on
horseback, while the Caffres on foot kept well up with them. The other
Hottentots were ordered to remain with Swinton at the encampment, as
they had to repair the damages done to the wagons in crossing the
mountains.
Omrah had shown himself so useful, that he had been permitted to
practice with a fowling-piece carrying ball, and had proved himself very
expert. He now was mounted on the Major's spare horse; that in case the
Major's was knocked up, he might change it, for Omrah's weight was a
mere nothing.
The plan of the chase was, that the Caffres should spread in a
half-circle, and conceal themselves as much as possible, while those on
horseback should turn the animals and drive them in their direction. As
they advanced on the plain, they discovered what the haze had prevented
their seeing at early dawn, that the plain was covered with a variety of
beautiful flowers, of the amaryllis and other tribes, and with the hills
of ants and ant-eaters' holes, which latter were very dangerous to the
horses.
The sun was now up in the heavens, and blazed fiercely; the heat was
intense, although still early in the day. When they turned their heads
toward the mountains which they had passed, they were struck with
astonishment at the grandeur of the scene: rocks and cliffs in wild
chaos, barren ridges and towering peaks, worn by time into castellated
fortresses and other strange shapes, calling to their fancy the ruins of
a former world. With the exception of a pool of water, near to which the
caravan had halted, not a vestige of that element was to be seen in any
direction; all was one plain, ending only in the horizon, without a
tree, the line only broken by the groups of animals and the long necks
of the packs of ostriches in the distance.
If, however, the vegetable kingdom was deficient, the animal was
proportionably abundant, and Alexander and the Major were soon at their
speed after a troop of quaggas and zebras, which they succeeded in
turning toward the Caffres. As soon as the animals had entered the
radius of the half-circle, and were within distance, they checked their
horses and opened their fire upon them; at the same time the Caffres
showed themselves, and the animals were for a time confounded by finding
themselves so nearly surrounded.
During their hesitation, and while they attempted to break through here
and there, and then turned again, several were brought to the ground by
the guns of the mounted party, till at last, as if they had summoned up
their resolution, the whole herd, led by a splendid male, burst away in
a direction close to the horsemen, and made their escape from the circle
in a cloud of dust, scattering the stones behind them as they fled.
The Caffres ran up to the animals which lay wounded, and put them out of
their misery by inserting the point of their assaguays into the spine,
which caused immediate death. Seven animals were killed, three zebras
and four quaggas; and as Swinton had requested that they might not be
cut up till he had ascertained if he required their skins, Omrah was
sent back to bring him to where they were lying.
Swinton soon came, and Alexander said to him, "Now, Swinton, let us know
if you want any of the skins of these animals to preserve."
"No," replied Swinton, "I have them already; I just thought it possible
that you might have killed a zebra."
"Well, have we not? there are three of them."
"No, my good fellow, they are not of the real zebra species; they belong
to a class described by Burchell, the traveler, which is termed the
striped quagga. The quagga and striped quagga, as you may see, have the
ears of a horse, while the zebra has those of the ass. The true zebra
hardly ever descends upon the plains, but lives altogether upon the
mountainous regions; occasionally it may be found, it is true, and that
is the reason why I came to see."
"Are they good eating, these animals?"
"The quagga is very indifferent food, but the striped quagga is very
passable; so if you intend to save any for our dinner, pray let it be
some of the latter. Have you done hunting to-day?"
"Yes," replied the Major, "if Wilmot is of my opinion, I think we had
better not work our horses any more just now; the plain is so full of
large holes,--ant-eaters' holes, Bremen says they are."
"Yes, they are ant-eaters' holes, and very dangerous; I have seen them
several feet deep. If we do not start to-day, I will ask the Hottentots
to try and procure one for me to-night, as I wish to have a stuffed
specimen."
"We do not intend to start till to-morrow morning," replied Alexander;
"we must dismiss the Caffres to-night, that they may be also ready to go
home to-morrow. They will now have provisions enough."
Our travelers now rode back to the caravan, leaving the Caffres to bring
home the flesh. As soon as they had dined, the chief of the warriors was
desired to come with all his men, and Alexander then made every man a
handsome present, consisting of tobacco, snuff, cloth, knives and beads.
To the chief of the band he gave three times as much as the others, and
then, having delivered to him a very liberal collection of articles for
their king Hinza, Alexander told the chief to acquaint the king that he
had been very much pleased with the conduct of the men, and thanked his
majesty for the loan of them, and requested that his majesty would
accept of the packet of articles which he had selected for him.
He then thanked the men for their good conduct, told them to take all
the flesh that they wished for the journey, and stated that they were at
liberty to depart that evening or the next morning, as they thought
proper. The Caffres were perfectly satisfied with Alexander's
liberality, and the chief of the warriors, making a short speech in
reply, retired with his men.
"Well, I'm very sorry that these fine fellows are leaving," said the
Major.
"And so am I; but I could not well detain them, and they said that they
could not go further with us without the king's permission," replied
Alexander.
"Of course not," replied the Major; "but that does not lessen my regret
at their departure; they have been both steady and brave, as well as
active and willing, and I do not expect that our Hottentots will serve
us so well."
"You are right not to expect it, Major," replied Swinton; "if you did,
you would be miserably disappointed. If they knew now where we were
going, they would desert us. The only hold that we have upon the greater
number of them is their fear; they go forward because they are afraid to
go back; but if they could get hold of our horses, with their guns and
ammunition, they would leave us as soon as we advanced in the desert."
"Very true, I fear; but we have a few stanch fellows among them, and two
at least whom we can depend upon--Bremen and Swanevelt."
"How far is it from here to the Black River, Swinton?"
"About forty miles; not so much perhaps to the river's bed, but at least
that, if not more, before we shall fall in with any water at this season
of the year."
"We must not fail to fill our water-kegs before we leave this."
"No, for we shall have no water to-night, that is certain. We can not
travel more than twenty miles over such a country as this; for turning
here and there to avoid the holes and ant-hills, the twenty miles will
be at least thirty," said Swinton; "but now I must go and tell the
Hottentots to find me what I want: a pound of tobacco will procure it, I
have no doubt."
"But I have mine," observed the Major, after Swinton was gone; "we are
too near the pool, and we shall be surrounded with lions to-night; the
Hottentots may pretend that they will go, but they will not."
"One can not well blame them; I'm sure a pound of tobacco would not
persuade me to put my head into a lion's mouth; but I agree with you, we
are too near the pool, and as we must collect the cattle to secure them
during the night, I think we had better fill our water-kegs, and then
yoke and take up a position for the night about half a mile further off.
But here comes Swinton, who can give us his advice."
As Swinton agreed with them, they yoked the oxen, and drove forward
about a mile from the pool; they then secured them to the wagons and
lighted large fires round the caravan.
The Major was correct as regarded the Hottentots' procuring an ant-eater
for Swinton; they would not leave the fires, and the continual approach
of the lions during the night proved that they were wise in so doing.
There was no occasion for the lions to roar; the moaning of Begum, and
her clinging to the Major, the trembling of the dogs, and the uneasiness
of the cattle, invariably gave notice of lions being at hand. Shots were
fired off during the night, to keep them at a distance, but otherwise
the night passed away undisturbed.
They started the following morning about daybreak, and, at the same
time, the Caffres took their departure to their own country. The ground
over which the caravan traveled was stony and sandy at intervals, and
they had not proceeded far before they again discovered a great variety
of game dispersed over the level plain. They did not, however, attempt
to pursue them, as they were anxious to go on as far as possible, so as
to give the oxen an opportunity of picking up what little food they
could during the middle of the day, at which time the Major and
Alexander proposed that they should go in pursuit of game. But before
they had traveled three hours, they were surprised at a cloud of dust,
which obscured the horizon, in the direction they were proceeding.
"What can that be?" said Alexander.
"I think it is springbok," said Bremen the Hottentot.
"Springbok! why, there must be thousands and thousands of them."
"I believe that Bremen is right," said Swinton; "it must be one of the
migratory herds of springboks; I have never seen them, but I have often
been told of them."
The body of antelopes now advanced toward them, keeping on a straight
path; and to state their numbers would have been impossible: there might
have been fifty or a hundred thousand, or more. As far as the eye could
see in any direction, it was one moving mass covering the whole plain.
As they approached the caravan, those nearest huddled on one side and
occasionally bounded away with the remarkable springs made by this
animal, and from which it has its name, alighting not upon the earth,
but, for want of room, upon the backs of its companions, and then
dropping in between the ranks.
A hazy vapor arose from these countless herds as they moved on, and more
than once the Hottentots, who were standing on the wagons, which had
been stopped as the herd came up to them, pointed out a lion which was
journeying with the crowds to feast at his leisure. The animals appeared
very tame, and several were killed close to the wheels of the wagons,
for the evening's supper. Notwithstanding that the herd moved at a rapid
pace, it was more than two hours before the whole had passed by.
"Well," observed Alexander, "I can now say that I have seen no want of
game in Africa. Where will they go to?"
"They will go directly on to the southward," replied Swinton; "the
migration of these animals is one of the most remarkable proofs of the
fecundity of animal life. Like the ants, they devour every thing before
them; and if we journey in the direction they have come from, we shall
find no food for the cattle until after the rains. After the rains fall,
these animals will return to their former pastures. It is the want of
food which has brought them so far to the southward."
"Their track is evidently from the north and eastward," said the Major;
"had we not better change our course more to the northward?"
"No, I should think not; they have probably traveled on this side of the
Nu Gariep or Black River. We shall have neither water nor food for the
cattle to-night, and therefore I think we had better go on as we are
going, so as to make sure of water for them to-morrow, at all events.
It's useless now stopping to feed the cattle, we had better continue
right on till the evening; we shall sooner arrive at the river, and so
gain by it."
It was but half an hour before dark that they unyoked the tired oxen.
Water or grass there was none; and, what was another misfortune, they
could not find sufficient wood of any kind to keep up the necessary
fires during the night. All they could collect before dark was but
enough for one fire, and they considered it better, therefore, that only
one should be lighted.
The wagons were drawn up so as to form a square, inside of which were
tied the horses; the sheep were driven underneath, and the oxen were
tied up outside. They feasted well themselves upon the delicate meat of
the springboks, but the poor animals had neither food nor water after
their hard day's journey.
As soon as they had supped they retired to their wagons, and the
Hottentots remained by the side of the fire, which was but frugally
supplied, that it might last till morning; but that there were lions
prowling in the vicinity was evident from the restlessness of the oxen,
who tried to break the leathern thongs with which they were fastened.
The moon had just risen, and showed an imperfect light, when they
perceived the bodies of some animals between them and the horizon. They
appeared very large, as they always do in an imperfect light, and the
Hottentots soon made out that they were five or six lions not forty
yards distant. The truth of this supposition was confirmed by an angry
roar from one of them, which induced most of the Hottentots to seize
their guns, and some to creep under the wagons.
The oxen now struggled furiously to escape, for the, roar of the lions
had spread consternation.
Our travelers heard it in their wagons, and were out with their guns in
a minute. At last one of the oxen broke loose, and, as it was running
behind its companions, as if seeking a more secure shelter, being not
more than three or four yards from them, another roar was followed by a
spring of one of the lions, which bore the animal to the earth.
The Major and Wilmot were advancing before the fire to the attack, when
the animal for a moment let go his prey, and was about to spring upon
them. Bremen called out for them to retreat, which they did, as the
animal advanced step by step toward them.
Satisfied with their retiring, the lion then went to his prey, and
dragged it to a distance of about fifty yards, where it commenced its
meal; and they distinctly heard, although they could not plainly
distinguish, the tearing of the animal's flesh and the breaking of its
bones by the lion, while its bellowings were most pitiful.
They all now fired in the direction where they heard the noise; the lion
replied to the volley by a tremendous roar, and rushed up within twenty
yards of the wagons, so as to be distinctly visible. Bremen begged our
travelers not to molest the animal, as it was evidently very hungry and
very angry, and would certainly make a spring upon them, which must be
attended with disastrous effects.
The other lions were also now moving round and round the camp; they
therefore reloaded their guns, and remained still, looking at the lion
tearing and devouring his prey.
"We must be quiet here," said Bremen to Alexander; "there are many lions
round us, and our fire is not sufficient to scare them away, and they
may attack us."
"Would it not be better to fire our guns,--that would frighten them?"
"Yes, sir, it would frighten the other lions, perhaps, but it would
enrage this one so near to us, and he would certainly make a charge. We
had better throw a little gunpowder upon some ashes now and then, as we
have but a small fire: the flash will drive them away for the time."
In the mean time the lion was making his meal upon the poor ox, and
when any other of the hungry lions approached him, he would rush at
them, and pursue them for some paces with a horrible growl, which made
not only the poor oxen, but the men also, to shudder as they heard it.
In this manner was the night passed away, every one with his gun in his
hand, expecting an immediate attack; but the morning at last dawned, to
the great relief of them all. The lions had disappeared, and they walked
out to where the old lion had made his meal, and found that he had
devoured nearly the whole of the ox; and such was the enormous strength
of his jaws, that the rib-bones were all demolished, and the bones of
the legs, which are known as the marrow-bones, were broken as if by a
hammer.
"I really," observed the Major, "have more respect for a lion, the more
I become intimate with his feline majesty."
"Well, but he is off," observed Swinton, "and I think we had better be
off too."