Jan Grootboom was a Zulu by birth, but having lived much with white
men, as a hunter and guide, he had taken to wearing ordinary clothes
and spoke English perfectly well: but within him he had all the pluck
and cunning of his race.
For scouting against the Matabele it was never wise to take a large
party, since it would be sure to attract attention, whereas by going
alone with one man, such as Grootboom, one was able to penetrate their
lines and to lie hid almost among them, watching their disposition and
gaining information as to their numbers, supplies, and whereabouts of
their women and cattle, etc.
Now, every night was spent at this work--that is to say, the night was
utilised for creeping to their positions, and one watched them during
the day. But it was impossible to do this without leaving footmarks
and tracks, which the sharp eyes of their scouts were not slow to
discover, and it very soon dawned upon them that they were being
watched, and consequently they were continually on the look-out to
waylay and capture us.
One night Grootboom and I had ridden to the neighbourhood of one of
the enemy's camps, and were lying waiting for the early dawn before we
could discover exactly where they were located.
It was during the hour before sunrise that, as a rule, the enemy used
to light their fires for cooking their early morning food. One could
thus see exactly their position, and could rectify one's own, so as
to find a place where one could lie by during the day and watch their
movements.
On this occasion the first fire was lit and then another sparkled up,
and yet another, but before half a dozen had been lighted Grootboom
suddenly growled under his breath:--
"The swine--they are laying a trap for us."