The remark made by Dick as he rode home with his father was much nearer
fulfilment than he expected.
The morning broke dark and lowering, with great thunder clouds in the
north; and as it was evident that it was raining hard, as it can rain
sometimes in South Africa, and they might get caught, it was decided to
spend the morning at home, and devote that day to a general clean up of
arms, and a repacking of the waggon, which needed doing sadly. Besides
which there were cases of stores that they had not yet been able to get
at; and these it was advisable to have, especially a whole barrel of
fine flour, which was right at the bottom.
Arms were cleaned, then, till Dinny announced breakfast, with three hot
roast quails, that had been knocked down by Chicory that morning.
These were a delicious treat, being about three times the size of the
little English quail; and the hearty breakfast having come to an end,
Mr Rogers climbed into the waggon, followed by the boys, the General
and his sons went off to collect wood for firing, while Peter and Dirk,
with a yoke of bullocks, brought it to the camp and made a stack, upon
which Dinny soon began to make inroads for culinary purposes, as he had
cakes to bake, and a large joint of eland to cook for an early dinner--
for if it seemed likely to hold up, an expedition was determined on in
search of giraffes for the afternoon.
It was very busy and very warm work under the tilt of the waggon, but
the two boys toiled away with a will, and package after package of
forgotten luxuries was unearthed, and placed where it could be used.
"Hurray, father!" cried Jack, "here's a box of cornflour."
"And here's another bag of rice," cried Dick.
"Better still," said Mr Rogers, laughing. "Here's something that will
suit you, Dick."
"What? More sugar, father?"
"No. You were grumbling about always drinking your coffee without milk;
here's a case of Swiss condensed."
"If the sugar ran out," said Jack, "we could get honey."
"Yes," said his father. "You boys must be on the look out for the
honey-guide."
"Why, we saw one, father," cried Jack.
"Yes, and the rhinoceros drove it out of our head," said Dick, "and--"
"Why, what's the matter?" cried Mr Rogers. "Rifles, boys!"
They were just engaged in moving a big chest, and had the greater part
of the waggon's contents piled up on one side, that nearest the kraal of
growing and piled up thorns, when there was a loud yelping of the dogs,
a peculiar grunting snort, a tremendous crash, and the dissel-boom was
driven on one side, and the fore part of the waggon itself actually
lifted and nearly overturned.
There was a tremendous crash, and splinters flew as it was struck; and
another crash as it came down upon the earth again, one wheel having
been lifted quite a couple of feet.
Then, as Jack held on by the great laths of the waggon cover, and looked
over the chests, he saw the shoulders of a great rhinoceros, as it
wrenched its horn out of the woodwork that it had driven it through;
then it whisked round, and charged straight at the fire, rushing through
it, trampling the embers, and tossing the burning sticks in all
directions.
"Murther! master, help! Here's a big thief of a--Murth--"
Dinny did not finish his sentence, for, seeing him standing there
shouting as his cooking-place was "torn all to smithereens," as he
afterwards expressed it, the rhinoceros dashed at him, and with one lift
of his horn sent poor Dinny flying into the thorny hedge of the
cattle-kraal.
The rhinoceros now stood snorting and squeaking, in search of some other
object upon which to vent its rage; and seeing this in some newly-washed
clothes laid out to dry upon a bush, it charged at them, dashing through
the bush, and carrying off a white garment upon its horn, with which it
tore right away, never stopping once while it was in sight.
"Well, when you have done laughing, young gentlemen," said Mr Rogers,
"perhaps you will let me pass and see what damages we have suffered."
"Laugh!" cried Jack. "Oh, father, I ache with laughing. Did you ever
see such a comical beast?"
"It certainly has its comical side," said Mr Rogers; "but it is
terribly mischievous and dangerous."
"But you should have seen it toss Dinny, father," said Dick, wiping his
eyes. "I hope he wasn't hurt."
They leaped out of the waggon rifle in hand, just as a piteous groan
came from the top of the kraal fence.
"Ah, masther, and that was the only dacent shirt I had left. Oh,
masther, dear, help me down. I'm kilt and murthered here wid the great
thorns in my back."
The boys could hardly help for laughing, poor Dinny's aspect was so
ludicrous; but by dint of placing the broken dissel-boom up to where he
was sitting, and crawling up to him, Dinny was aided to drag himself
out.
"Aisy then, Masther Jack, aisy," he cried; "don't ye see the nasty
crukked thorns have got howlt of me? Ye'd be pulling me out of my
clothes, instead of my clothes out of the thorns. Arrah, sor, d'ye
think that great pig baste wid a horn on his nose will ever bring me
clane shirt back?"
"Very doubtful, Dinny; but are you much hurt?" said Mr Rogers.
"An' am I much hurt?" cried Dinny, "whin there isn't a bit of me as big
as saxpence that hasn't got a thorn shtuck in it?"
"Oh, never mind the thorns," said Mr Rogers, laughing.
"Shure, I don't, sor; they moight all be burnt for the bit I'd care.
But shure, sor, it isn't at all funny when you've got the thorns in ye."
"No, no, of course not, Dinny," said his master, "and it is unfeeling to
laugh. But are you hurt anywhere?"
"Shure, sor, I'm telling ye that I'm hurt all over me, ivery-where."
"But the rhinoceros--"
"The which, sor? Sure, I didn't know that any part of me was called a
rhinoceros."
"No, no, I mean the animal that charged you."
"An' that's a rhinoceros is it, sor? Shure, I thought it was a big
African pig wid a horn in his nose."
"Yes, that's a rhinoceros, Dinny. Come, did it hurt you when it charged
you?"
"Shure, I'd like to charge it the price of me best shirt, I would,"
grumbled Dinny, rubbing himself softly. "No, he didn't hurt me much; he
lifted me up too tinderly wid his shnout; but that was his artfulness,
the baste; he knew what the crukked thorns would do."
"Then you have no bones broken, Dinny?" said Dick.
"An is it a pig I'd let break me bones?" cried Dinny, indignantly. "A
great ugly baste! I'd like to have the killing of him any day in the
week. Just look at me fire flying all over the place. Shure, I'll be
very glad when we get home again;" and he went grumbling away.
The damage to the waggon was not serious. The horn of the great beast
had gone right through the plank of the forepart, where the chest
generally stood on which the driver sat, and that could easily be
repaired; while they were carpenters enough to splice the broken
dissel-boom, or if needs be, cut down a suitable tree and make another;
so that altogether there was nothing much to bemoan. A good deal of
laughter followed, Dick and Jack being unable to contain their mirth, as
they thought of Dinny's discomfiture.
"Oh, yis; it's all very foine, Masther Jack; but if you'd been sent
flying like I was then, it isn't much ye'd have laughed."
"No, I suppose not, Dinny," said the lad frankly; "but never mind about
the thorns."
"Shure, it isn't the holes in me shkin," said Dinny; "they'll grow
again. I was thinking about me shirt."
"I'll ask father to give you one of his, Dinny," said Dick.
"One o' thim flannel ones wid blue sthripes?" said Dinny eagerly.
"Yes, one of those if you like, Dinny."
"Whoop! good luck to the big pig and his horn on his nose," cried Dinny.
"He's welkim to me owld shirt; for it was that tindher that I had to
put on me kid gloves to wash it, for fear it should come to pieces,
Masther Dick. But, Masther Dick, asthore, d'ye think the big baste will
come back and thread on me fire again?"
"I think we shall have to be on the look out for him to stop him," said
Dick. "But his skin's so thick there's no getting a bullet through."
"An' is it a pig wid a shkin as thick as that!" said Dinny,
contemptuously. "Arrah, I'll be after shooting the baste meself. I
wouldn't go afther the lines, but a big pig! Shure, if the masther will
let me have a gun and powther, I'll go and shute the baste before he
knows where he is."