The blazing midsummer sun of South Africa had sunk to within a hand's
breadth of the ridge of the southern spur of the Tandjes Berg, softly
outlined in blue some forty miles distant on the western horizon, when
I, Edward Laurence, having taken a long afternoon ride round the farm to
assure myself that the sheep were being properly looked after, arrived
within a mile of my home--the long, white, one-storey thatched house
picturesquely perched yonder on a mound which formed one of the southern
spurs of the Great Winter Berg.
The house--which, together with the farm of two thousand five hundred
and sixty acres, was known as Bella Vista--was the property of my
father, Henry Laurence, ex-colonel of the --th King's Own Regiment of
Dragoon Guards; and he had purchased it some fifteen years prior to the
date upon which this story opens, having been so severely wounded during
the battle of Waterloo as to necessitate his retirement from the army.
His retirement, of course, left him without an occupation; and as he was
then still quite a young man, being only thirty-three years of age, as
soon as he had recovered from his wounds--so far as recovery then seemed
possible--he began to cast about for something to do. It was at this
juncture that he made the acquaintance of a Miss Violet McKinnon, the
lovely daughter of an impecunious Scottish laird, and fell desperately
in love with her; and as my father happened to be a strikingly handsome
and attractive man his affection was speedily returned, and marriage
quickly followed. To marry under such circumstances was perhaps
something of an imprudence, for my father had nothing but his pension,
while his bride--sixteen years his junior--had nothing but her
trousseau; but the pair turned a deaf ear to all advice and
remonstrance, with the result just mentioned, when of course it became
more imperatively necessary than ever for the ex-colonel to discover
some means of earning a living, especially as I was born within a year
of the date of the marriage. The state of his health demanded that the
occupation chosen should enable him to live an outdoor life: and farming
at once naturally suggested itself.
Then, in the nick of time, he made the acquaintance of a Mr William
Arbuckle, a friend of his father-in-law, and a South African sheep
farmer, home for a holiday; and this man strongly urged him to emigrate
to South Africa and take up sheep farming. The idea powerfully appealed
to my father from the very first, and the upshot was that, after due
enquiry into details, my parents took the decisive step and--my father
having commuted his pension--sailed for South Africa, of course taking
me with them. This event occurred early in the year 1818. Arbuckle
returned to South Africa in the ship which took us out; and at his
urgent invitation we became his guests for a short time upon our arrival
at the Cape. But the warm-hearted Scotchman's kindness did not end
there; he instituted enquiries, and eventually learned that a certain
small farm, known as Rooikop, in the Albany district, was for sale, the
Dutchman who owned it being averse to the British rule and intending to
move up-country beyond the borders of the colony. This farm Arbuckle
and my father visited together, with the result that, upon the urgent
advice of his friend, the ex-colonel purchased it, just as it stood,
house, stock, and implements, all complete. But he did not buy the
furniture, having brought out from England all that he required; also
the Dutchman needed it to take up-country with him to the spot where he
might ultimately establish his new home: thus both parties were equally
satisfied.
The first thing that my father did after entering into possession was to
change the name of the farm from Rooikop to Bella Vista, on account of
the magnificent prospect obtainable from the stoep of the house, which
faced due south, and consequently was in grateful shadow all day. The
building stood on a kopje or hill rising out of one of the lower spurs
of the Great Winter Berg range of mountains, the bald summits of which
towered into the rich blue of the South African sky some seven miles in
the rear of the house, their rugged slopes bush-clad for two-thirds of
their height. On the left, or toward the east, other spurs of the range
gradually lost themselves in a wide expanse of gently rolling, bush-clad
plateau extending beyond the blue distance to the sea, one hundred and
eighty miles away, where the Great Kei River discharges itself into the
Indian Ocean. A similar prospect stretched in front of the house, the
ground growing more rugged toward the right as the spectator's gaze
swept westward, until, looking due west from the house, one perceived,
in the immediate foreground, a moderately steep declivity running down
to a spruit or small stream, having its rise high up toward the summit
of the mountains and discharging into the Great Fish River, some seven
miles distant. On the far side of the spruit the country was flat
enough to enable one to catch a glimpse, here and there, of the Great
Fish River itself winding southward through the plain, and, in the
extreme distance, the soft blue masses of the Tandjes Berg spurs, on the
hither side of which the white houses of Somerset East, some
twenty-eight miles away, might sometimes be seen on a clear morning when
the sun shone strongly upon them.
Such, very feebly and sketchily described, was the splendid prospect
visible from the stoep of our house as I first knew it; and the passage
of the years effected little or no change save the gradual disappearance
of the nearer clumps of bush, as my father caused them to be cleared
away in order to furnish additional grazing ground for our steadily
increasing flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, and the occasional
appearance of a new house somewhere in the distance, as neighbours
gradually began to gather in our vicinity. The greatest change of all,
however, was that occasioned by the erection of our own new house; for,
as time went on, my father's health improved so greatly that he became
as strong and robust as ever, with the promise of a ripe old age before
him. Moreover, he began to make money rapidly as his flocks and herds
increased; and, as the money came in, so his views with regard to the
comforts of home life expanded. The house standing on the property when
my father purchased it consisted of a sitkammer, or general sitting-room
used for all day purposes, and three bedrooms; and this amount of
accommodation served our purpose well enough for the first five years of
our residence upon the farm. But by that time my father had made a very
considerable sum of money by his annual sales of wool and hides; and one
of his theories was that money was useful merely as a means by which
life might be made more comfortable and enjoyable. He therefore planned
a new and much more commodious house, built it of stone quarried from
the mountain side within a quarter of a mile of the chosen site, filled
it with new and handsome furniture, pictures, and a piano for my mother,
all imported from England at great expense, and laid out a beautiful
garden of about five acres in extent all round the house, converting the
place into a perfect miniature Paradise. Also, the time had arrived
when my education must be thought of; and, as at that period there were
no schools of any importance nearer than Cape Town, and my mother
objected to my being sent so far away--I being an only child--my father
decided to secure the services of a private tutor, and in due time Mr
John Nesbitt, a Cambridge man, and a very fine fellow in every respect,
became a member of our household. To him I hold myself indebted for a
most excellent education, and for many other things beside. He
continued my education until I attained the age of fifteen years, after
which he remained on as a sort of general factotum to my father, while I
devoted myself to the management of the farm, relieving my father of all
the hard work and so leaving him free to enjoy himself in his own way.
Such, briefly stated, was the general condition of affairs at Bella
Vista on the afternoon referred to at the beginning of this chapter--on
which day, by the way, I attained to the age of seventeen years; except
that, after building and furnishing his new house, my father regularly
employed all his surplus cash in extending the area of his property, and
improving his flocks and herds by the frequent purchase of valuable
animals for breeding purposes.
As I have said, on the afternoon that marks the opening of my remarkable
story I had arrived within a mile of the gate in the stout picket fence
which surrounded our garden as a protection against the invasion of
predatory animals, when my horse, Prince, suddenly pricked up his ears,
and, looking away to the eastward, whinnied, while at the same moment
the rhythmical beat of cantering hoofs came softly to my ear from a
considerable distance, floating on the gentle, almost imperceptible,
easterly zephyr that happened to be breathing at the moment. Aroused
thus from some day-dream into which I had fallen, I glanced up, and,
looking in the direction of the sound, became aware of a small cloud of
dust gleaming yellow in the afternoon sun, about a mile away to the
eastward; and in the midst of it appeared two mounted figures which,
even at that distance, I identified without difficulty as Mr Lestrange,
our next-door neighbour at Triannon, some fourteen miles away, and his
eleven-year-old daughter Nell. They must have seen and recognised me at
the same moment, for a few seconds later a shout from Mr Lestrange
reached me; and, turning Prince's head in their direction and pressing
my unarmed heels gently to his sides, I cantered off to meet them. Some
three or four minutes later we came together, and, all reining up as I
wheeled my horse alongside them, we proceeded toward Bella Vista at a
walking pace, as their horses were sweating and it was desirable that
they should be allowed to cool off a little before being stabled.
"Many happy returns of the day, Ned!" exclaimed Nell, with a bright
smile, as I shook hands with her. "You see I have not forgotten that
to-day is your birthday; and--here is my birthday present to you,"
handing me a small parcel neatly tied up in paper.
"I also wish you many happy returns, Ned," remarked Mr Lestrange,
reaching across in front of his daughter to shake hands with me. "I
haven't brought you any present, however, so you must take the will for
the deed and accept Nell's present as coming from us jointly. The young
minx has been working at them like a Trojan for the last fortnight; so,
as a reward for her extraordinary industry, I have allowed her to ride
over and present them herself. They are a pair of Berlin-wool slippers,
made after the pattern of an old one that Nell surreptitiously begged
from your mother when we were last at Bella Vista. And that reminds me
to enquire how they all are at the house. Quite well, I hope?"
"Yes, thank you, all quite well," I replied. "I don't need to ask how
you and Nell are; I can see for myself that there is nothing the matter
with either of you. They will be tremendously glad at home to see you
both; we have not had a single visitor since you last came--how long ago
was it? It must be quite six weeks."
"More than that," answered Mr Lestrange; "it is two months ago to-day
by the almanac. And I believe you've grown since then," he continued,
eyeing me over. "How tall are you? Did you think of measuring yourself
this morning to see how tall you are at seventeen years of age?"
"No," I laughed, "but the pater did; and according to him I stand just
six feet and a quarter of an inch in my stockings."
"Ay, I dare say you do," he said, "although you scarcely look it, you
are so broad across the shoulders. What will you be when you are
twenty-one?"
"I am almost afraid to think of it," I replied, rather ruefully. "I
ride within four pounds of thirteen stone now. If I go on at this rate
until I am twenty-one I shall not be able to find a horse fit to carry
me!"
"You will have to get the colonel to breed one specially for you,"
remarked Lestrange, with a loud laugh. "By the way," he continued,
"talking of horses, I wonder if you happen to have anything that would
do for Nell. Punch there is getting old and a little groggy in the fore
legs. He came down with her the other day, and the child had rather a
nasty spill. I shall not let her ride him any longer than I can help.
But I have nothing on my place suitable for her; I don't go in much for
breeding horses, you know."
"No," I concurred, "I know you don't. But we have the very thing for
her, a two-year-old filly, unbroken, all but thoroughbred, with the
makings of a splendid horse in her. If you care to ride down to the
vley I will show her to you; it won't take us much more than a mile out
of our way, and I should like Nell to have her."
Mr Lestrange agreeing, we forthwith made off toward the flat where the
horses were turned out to graze, and presently I had caught the filly,
which was a very gentle creature and quite a pet of mine, and led her up
by her long forelock for inspection. She was a bright bay, with very
long dark mane and tail, and of course very ragged-looking as to her
coat, never having been groomed in her life; but that did not matter,
her points were quite unmistakable, and Mr Lestrange, to say nothing of
Nell, fell in love with her on the spot. Then, when the visitors had
done admiring the animal, we turned our horses' heads and rode toward
the house, on the broad veranda-covered stoep of which we could see my
father and mother, the latter waving her handkerchief by way of welcome
to Mr Lestrange and Nell. A quarter of an hour later we had dismounted
at the foot of the broad flight of steps leading up to the stoep, which
my father and mother had descended in order to extend greeting to the
visitors, and the "boys" were leading the horses away to the stable at
the back.
The usual interchange of greetings having passed, we learned that Mr
Lestrange and his daughter had come prepared to pass the night with us;
and when our guests had been taken to their rooms and had refreshed
themselves after their journey we all gathered on the spacious front
stoep and chatted until dinner was served. Our subjects of conversation
were naturally rather limited, isolated as we were in what was then
practically a wilderness, where it sometimes happened that several weeks
elapsed between the departure of one visitor and the arrival of another.
Like my father, Mr Lestrange had devoted himself to sheep farming, and
the conversation therefore turned chiefly upon the most approved methods
of dealing with the several diseases to which the sheep were subject,
the best dip to use, how to determine the precise moment for shearing,
to secure the best quality of wool, and so on.
Yet it seemed to me that through it all Mr Lestrange's mind was
dwelling upon something else, something that he was anxious to speak
about as soon as a favourable opportunity should arrive. That
opportunity, however, did not occur until after my mother and Nell had
retired for the night, for we Laurences happened to be enthusiasts in
the matter of music. My mother was not only a brilliant pianiste, but
she also sang exceedingly well. My father possessed a chamber organ,
Nesbitt owned a very sweet-toned violin from which he could extract the
most wonderful music, and, lastly, I had learned to tootle fairly well
upon the flute; therefore whenever we had visitors we were generally
required to organise an impromptu concert for their benefit, as was the
case on the evening in question. But at length the instruments fell
silent, my mother and Nell bade us good night and retired to their
rooms, and, a table under the veranda having been set out with
decanters, glasses, cigars, and tobacco, we males adjourned to the front
stoep for a final gossip before separating. And then it was that Mr
Lestrange found opportunity to broach the matter which, as I
conjectured, had been occupying his thoughts all the evening.
Having mixed himself a glass of grog and lighted his pipe, he drew his
chair close up to the one occupied by my father, and, lowering his voice
to a confidential tone, said:
"Look here, Laurence! The real reason why I rode over here this
afternoon was not personally to congratulate Ned upon the occurrence of
his birthday, but to ask you how you happen to be off for ammunition. I
have been wondering whether you could spare me a little."
"Well," said my father, "I think we can let you have a little, though
not very much, for our own stock is growing rather low. How much do you
want?"
"Could you let me have, say, twenty pounds of powder and--?" began
Lestrange.
"Twenty pounds!" ejaculated my father in surprise. "No, that I
certainly cannot; for I do not think we have more than half that
quantity altogether. But I dare say we can let you have four or five
pounds to tide you over until you can replenish your stock, if that will
be of any use to you."
"Thanks very much," answered Lestrange; "but it would not be enough, and
moreover it would be depriving you. No; I must see if I cannot somehow
arrange to send in to Port Elizabeth for a supply. The nuisance of it
is that I have nobody about my place whom I can trust upon such an
errand--"
"Oh, as to that," interrupted my father, "if you are so hard up as that,
Ned shall go in and get it for you! We are not very busy here just now,
and a trip to Port Elizabeth will do him no harm. But why do you
require such a large quantity? Are you contemplating an up-country
jaunt; or what is in the wind?"
"No," answered Lestrange; "I am certainly not contemplating an
up-country expedition of any sort. And as to what is in the wind, I
don't know; I very much wish I did. But during the last month I have
heard a thing or two with regard to the natives that make me feel just a
trifle uneasy, and I thought I ought to mention the matter to you--if it
has not already reached your ears."
"No," said my father, "we have heard nothing here. What is it?"
"Well," said Lestrange, "I have heard nothing very definite, thus far--
only enough, in fact, to render me somewhat uneasy. Just vague hints,
more than anything else, you know. But I have been putting two and two
together, and therefrom I deduce the fact that the natives are growing a
bit restive at the steadily increasing number of whites who are coming
into the country--"
My father interrupted with a loud laugh. "Is that all, my dear chap?"
he exclaimed. "Why, it has been like that ever since I came here,
sixteen years ago. There were rumours then that the natives intended to
rise and drive us all into the sea; but nothing has ever come of it,
excepting an occasional small raid upon some outlying farm, and the
driving off of a few sheep or cattle. Surely you have been here long
enough to know that these mysterious hints and rumours should not be
taken seriously!"
"Yes, I have," returned Lestrange. "But, to my mind, things look a bit
different just now. From what I have heard I gather that there is
somebody--whether a white man or a native I cannot make out, but it
looks rather like a white man--who is going round among the natives,
urging the various tribes to combine together for the purpose of
attacking and exterminating the whites forthwith; pointing out that,
unless this is very speedily done, the whites will get such a footing in
the country that it will be impossible to drive them out, with the
result that the natives will be robbed of their land and driven into the
interior, to perish on the points of the spears of the powerful and
ferocious Zulus. Now, that is an exceedingly dangerous doctrine to
preach to such ignorant, credulous folk as are the Tembu, the Pondos,
and the Griquas; the more so since there is a _soupcon_ of truth in it,
as is evidenced by the increasing numbers of the Dutch who are pressing
over the border in order to escape from British rule: and this time I am
really inclined to believe that the agitation may lead to more or less
unpleasant consequences. Not, mind you, that I think the disturbance is
at all likely to reach as far as here; still, one never knows, and it is
wise to be prepared for the worst--which is the reason why I am anxious
to replenish my stock of ammunition as quickly as possible."
"Yes; quite so," agreed my father. "But," he continued, "who or what is
your authority for the statement that somebody--possibly a white man--is
endeavouring to stir up the natives against us? For my own part I can
scarcely credit such a thing as possible. Why, assuming for a moment
such a thing to be true, the fellow himself would be in the direst
peril, for the natives could hardly be expected to discriminate in his
favour; he would be just as likely to be wiped out in the convulsion as
any of us."
"I think not," said Lestrange, "for I take it that, if such a man
exists, he is some schelm devoid of all kith or kin, and fully prepared
to throw in his lot with the Kafirs, in the hope of living a safe and
easy life with them; or, possibly, he may have some notion that he can
persuade them to make him a chief if he should succeed in bringing off a
successful rising against the whites. As to my authority--well, one of
my Totties, a man named Klaas, who is a rather intelligent fellow, has
overheard a good deal of mysterious talk among my `boys' of late, which
he has repeated to me; and although nothing has been said of an
absolutely definite character, the remarks which he has repeated
certainly seem to point pretty conclusively to the fact that something
is really brewing. Moreover--and this, in my opinion, is the most
sinister indication of all--my native `boys' are all going back home,
upon one pretext or another."
"A-h!" ejaculated my father, "now you are coming to something definite.
How long has this been going on?"
"Oh, not very long! Only within these last few days," answered
Lestrange. "But within that time more than half of them have gone. And
they are mostly Pondos or Griquas."
"By Jove, Pater, there may be something in it, after all!" I exclaimed.
"Our `boys' are mostly Totties, as you know, but we have had a few
Griquas--about half a dozen--until within the last few days; now they
are all gone, two or three of them without waiting to get their pay. I
did not think very much of that, however, for they have done the same
thing before; but in the light of what Mr Lestrange has just told us it
certainly looks a bit suspicious."
"Yes, it certainly does," agreed my father, "although, after all, there
may really be nothing in it. At the same time it will be well to be
prepared; therefore to-morrow you shall take the wagon and make an
errand to Port Elizabeth. I believe some of our stores are running
rather low, so there ought to be no difficulty in arranging for the trip
without unnecessarily alarming your mother. And you can complete your
back load by bringing as much powder and lead as the wagon will
conveniently carry. I have no doubt that our friend Lestrange here will
willingly take half of what you bring."
"Ay, that I will, and be glad to get it," answered Lestrange. "And if
you will take my advice, Ned, you will not loiter unduly on the way. If
a rising is really meditated it may occur at any moment, although I do
not believe it is exactly what you may call imminent; were it so, I
think we should have heard a little more about it. Still, there is
nothing like being prepared in good time; in a case like this it is
better to be a couple of months too early than a day too late."
So it was arranged, and for the next half-hour we were all busy
discussing the question of what precisely I should bring out with me,
and preparing a detailed list of our various requirements; for a wagon
journey to Port Elizabeth was no trifling matter, the distance across
the veld and by road being about one hundred and seventy miles, and
occupying the best part of nine days each way. By the time that we had
finished it was past midnight, and I went to bed and slept soundly, for,
to be quite truthful, I had no very profound belief in the threatened
rising, despite the ominous departure of the Griquas; such things had
happened before--were constantly happening, in fact--and nothing ever
came of it, although more or less alarming rumours were continually
arising, nobody quite knew how. As a matter of fact I felt quite easy
in my mind about it, for I was confident that, even should a rising take
place, it would be suppressed very promptly; and in any case I did not
believe for a moment that the savages would dare to penetrate so far
into the colony as Bella Vista, or even as far as Triannon: while the
"scare", trifling and unfounded as I believed it to be, afforded me an
excellent excuse for a trip to Port Elizabeth, which town I had not
visited for more than six months, my father having accompanied the wagon
on the previous journey; also it justified me in my determination to
purchase a new rifle--one of the very newest and most up-to-date weapons
that I could possibly procure, the rifle which I had been using for the
previous six years being a flintlock affair, and worn out at that. On
the following morning we were astir at an even earlier hour than usual,
for, the trek oxen not having been worked for some time, I was anxious
to make a good start and get well on my way before the heat of the day
set in. My mother expressed some surprise at the apparently hurried
character of the expedition; but when it was explained that Mr
Lestrange had run out of ammunition, while our own stock was running
low, she was at once satisfied, for at that time hunting was practically
the only amusement open to the farmer, and it was also imperatively
necessary that he should be amply provided with means to check the
increase of the more predatory animals in the neighbourhood of his farm.
Also my mother, being a good housewife, was far more inclined to avail
herself of the opportunity afforded by the trip to provide herself with
an ample stock of such things as could only be procured at Port
Elizabeth than she was to search curiously for another and deeper motive
for the trip than the one which my father had given her.
The wagon, with a light load of skins and horns, got away early, in
charge of Jan, the Hottentot driver, and then we all sat down to
breakfast, as merry and jovial a party, probably, as any in South Africa
that day, much of our amusement arising from the fact that my mother and
Nell were continually thinking of some fresh commission which I was to
be sure to execute for them before leaving Port Elizabeth, the pair of
them keeping me so busy jotting down their instructions in my notebook
that I could scarcely find time to eat or drink. But at length the
merry meal came to an end: we all rose from the table and adjourned to
the stoep, before which Piet, my after-rider, was walking the horses to
and fro, with Thunder and Juno, the two big hounds that always
accompanied me everywhere, trailing at their heels and whining with
impatience to be off. Arrived there, another commission or two were
remembered and had to be jotted down, upon which my father laughingly
exclaimed, as I finally closed my notebook and slipped it into my
pocket:
"There, that will do, Ned; now you had better mount and ride, or you
will not get away at all to-day. Goodbye, boy; remember me very kindly
to Mr Henderson and such other friends as you may see at the Bay, and--
don't forget the new rifle!"
This last sally produced quite an explosion of laughter at my expense,
for I had announced my determination to treat myself to the best weapon
I could find, and the enthusiasm with which I had dwelt upon the
achievements that would be in my power when it came into my possession
rendered it the most unlikely thing in the world that I should forget to
purchase it. Joining in the laugh, I shook hands with Mr Lestrange,
Nesbitt, and my father, kissed Nell and my mother, and ran
light-heartedly down the steps, swung myself into the saddle, and, with
a final farewell wave of the hand, cantered off down the broad path
leading to the gate, with the dogs bounding along ahead and Piet,
mounted upon a sturdy grey gelding, bringing up the rear.
It was a glorious morning, such as I think one never finds anywhere but
in South Africa; the sky overhead a deep, rich, cloudless blue, shading
away on all sides to a soft, warm, delicate, almost colourless grey at
the horizon, the air, already warming beneath the ardent rays of the
sun, clear and pellucid as crystal and as invigorating as champagne with
the fresh, clean smell of the dew-saturated vegetation. Around on every
hand stretched a brilliant, sun-kissed picture of rugged mountain
slopes, scored deeply by the storms of ages; deep kloofs, precipitous of
side, shaggy with their vesture of dense bush, and mysterious with their
broad masses of dark shadow; rolling uplands, dotted here and there with
clumps of timber and bush or with our grazing flocks of sheep and herds
of cattle and horses, sweeping gently down toward the wide-stretching,
bush-clad plains, through which wound tiny spruits, like threads of
silver, hurrying to lose themselves in the broader waters of the Great
Fish River.
Riding at an easy canter, the track across the veld being a very gentle
downward slope all the way, I overtook the wagon at a distance of about
six miles from the house; when, dismounting, I took my rifle from its
slings under the wagon tent, loaded it, slung my powder horn over my
shoulder, slipped a few wads and bullets into my pocket, and then,
accompanied by the two dogs, walked on ahead of the wagon toward our
first outspanning place, my horse Prince following me, as he had been
trained to do, with the bridle hanging loose upon his neck. I had of
course an ample supply of provisions in the wagon, including the
shoulder of a sheep that had been slaughtered that morning; but mutton
naturally formed the staple of our fare at Bella Vista when there was no
buck meat in the house, and I was very heartily tired of both. I was
therefore on the lookout for a pauw or a koraan--the great and small
bustards of South Africa--and hoped to get one in time to have it cooked
for my luncheon instead of the shoulder of mutton. And presently, when
I had got about half a mile ahead of the wagon, I suddenly caught sight
of a fine koraan on the ground about three hundred yards to my right
front, as it emerged from behind a big clump of melkboem, feeding
busily. The bird instantly sighted me and, pausing but the fraction of
a second to look straight at me, took to flight, making the air throb
with its harsh, discordant cry of alarm as it did so.
It was a long shot for my old rifle, which was only sighted up to one
hundred yards; but I had used the piece for six years and knew to a
nicety what it would do. Moreover--I am now an old man and may
therefore perhaps venture to speak the simple truth without being
suspected of boasting--I seem to have been endowed, from my earliest
years, with the gift of straight shooting; it was just a knack, I
suppose, but I seemed to be able to judge distances accurately by
intuition, and to allow the correct elevation and windage under the most
diversified conditions, so that I very rarely made use of the sights on
my rifle. Nor did I ever need to aim consciously; I just flung the
weapon to my shoulder, keeping my eye meanwhile upon my mark, pressed
the trigger at precisely the right instant, and--down dropped the
quarry: I had in fact by long practice become a dead shot, and could
scarcely remember when I had last failed to bring down what I aimed at.
Nor did I fail now; as the bird rose it flew straight away from me, and
it was still uttering its alarm cry when I pressed the trigger and down
it fell, stone-dead, shot clean through the body. At the whip-like
crack of the rifle the two dogs dashed forward into the thick clumps of
low milk-bush into which the bird had fallen, and presently reappeared,
Thunder dragging the bird along the ground by one of its legs, while
Juno romped round him uttering low, sharp yells of delight, varied by
sudden dashes of pretended threat to snatch the koraan away from him.