DOWN COUNTRY
"This is Mr. Harberton, to whom we all owe our lives," Mr. Chambers
said as his wife, followed by her two daughters, girls of sixteen and
eighteen, entered the room.
"I do not know how to thank you, sir," Mrs. Chambers said as she shook
hands with Yorke, "for assuredly we should all have been murdered had
it not been for your warning and assistance."
"It is rather to my man than to myself you are indebted, Mrs. Chambers,
for it is he who overheard the conversation this afternoon at which the
affair was finally arranged. He showed greater sharpness than I should
have given him credit for. As an ordinary thing he would merely have
taken a glass of liquor and left the place; but the fact that the men
in the saloon stopped speaking when he went in, and asked him whether
he spoke English, and were not satisfied that he could not, but went
into another room to talk, excited his curiosity, and, sitting with
his ear against the partition, he was able to make out what they were
saying."
"That was very sharp of him," Mrs. Chambers said; "but it is pretty
certain he would have taken no steps in the matter had it not been for
your leading, especially as he was himself, as I understand from my
husband, instrumental in aiding your escape from prison, and so dared
not attract attention.
"Do not, I beg of you, try to minimize the service you have rendered
us, for you certainly will not lessen the obligation that we are under
to you. I shudder to think of the great danger we have escaped. I know
it is not likely that another attack will be made yet, but I shall
never feel comfortable here after this, and my husband has promised to
take us into our town house to-morrow morning, to stop till the war is
over. We hope you will go with us."
"Mr. Harberton says that he must be off at once, my dear. He wants to
get back to the fighting again."
"I am sorry indeed for that. It seems unnatural, after what he has
done for us, that we should let him go away so soon. Now, do tell us
something about yourself--but first, where have you put those men,
John?"
"One is locked up in the cellar, another in the stables, and the third
in the wood-house, so that they cannot aid each other to get away."
"At any rate," she went on, "none of us will feel inclined for much
sleep to-night; and we want to know all about Mr. Harberton and how his
Dutch servant came to be at Pretoria, and all about what he has been
doing since he landed, and the truth about the battles that have been
fought. But before he begins, will you go into the kitchen, girls, and
help Jane get some tea in the dining-room, with whatever there is in
the house. It will do us all good, and we won't ask Mr. Harberton to
tell his story till we have had what we may call supper."
"While they are away," Mr. Chambers said, "I may as well ask you as to
whether you have any plans for getting down to the Modder?"
"No, I have no distinct plans, except that, as you see, I am dressed as
a young Boer farmer, and as I talk the language sufficiently to pass
muster, I can support the character well enough."
"But how is it that you talk Dutch, or rather I suppose I should say
Taal, Mr. Harberton?"
"That I will tell you presently," Yorke laughed, "or I shall have to go
over the same thing twice. My man Hans is my regimental servant, and
has learnt to speak English very fairly, and of course knows Dutch.
My Kaffir speaks Dutch and a little English, and as I speak a little
Kaffir we get on very well together. He has just put up my horse in
your stable. I had no time to lose when I first came here, and fastened
him up behind the house, where he was not likely to be observed if any
of those fellows went round there. As for getting to the Modder, it
appeared to me that as a Dutch farmer, with one of his farm hands and a
Kaffir labourer, I might get through without exciting much suspicion."
"You might, and you might not," Mr. Chambers said. "You see, almost
all the able-bodied men are away with the commandos, and you would be
likely to be closely questioned as to why you were not in the field.
If you were going the other way it would be more easy, for you might
then say that you were coming from Cape Colony, as thousands of others
have done, to join the Boers. But even in that case it would seem
strange that you were going away from the fighting instead of joining
a commando at once; but it would be still more strange that you should
have come up to Johannesburg. What did you say at the inn? what excuse
did you make for enquiring where I lived?"
"I pretended that my people had all gone on commando, leaving me to
look after the farm, and that I was going over to see you about some
cattle that you wanted for the men still working on the mine. The man
was a German, and did not, I think, see anything unlikely in my story."
"Yes, but though that might do very well here, it would hardly do
elsewhere. Besides, these Boers are all related or connected with each
other, and, ignorant as they are on other matters, can give the name
of almost every family within fifty or sixty miles of where they live,
and know more or less the name of every farmer in the Transvaal. The
landdrosts of all the towns will have been warned to look out for
a young English officer and a young Dutchman, who will no doubt be
making for the frontier, and two of you at least answer to the personal
description; your dress would not go for much, as they would be sure
that the man who aided your escape would also procure a disguise for
you. However, we must put our heads together to-morrow and see if we
can hit on some plan."
After the meal was finished, Mr. Chambers asked Yorke to tell them
something about himself and what he had seen of the war.
"It is of yourself that we principally want to know," he said. "After
the services you have rendered us, we should like to know as much as
possible about you and your people at home, and in fact anything that
you may choose to tell us, especially, as to your prospects in the
future. The longer you make your story, the better we shall be pleased.
Certainly I shall not go to bed to-night, and I don't think either my
wife or daughters will be anxious to do so for some time."
There was a general murmur of agreement.
Yorke accordingly told of his life at home, the reason why he had come
out, how he had learnt Dutch and a little Kaffir on his cousin's farm,
how his resolve to enlist in the war had been quickened by the quarrel
with Dirck Jansen, and how, after scouting for a short time with twenty
Kaffirs under his command, he had witnessed the four battles, and had
gained a commission in the Lancers by carrying a message into Kimberley
and back to the Modder. Then he told of his capture, how Hans had, with
the Kaffir, journeyed up to Pretoria to rescue him, and how they had
finally succeeded.
"Well, you have certainly managed to crowd a great deal of adventure
into little more than a year, Mr. Harberton, and have done well all
through, and deserved the commission you have won. So you say you saw
Rhodes in Kimberley? Did you have much talk with him?"
"Yes, sir, he asked me a great many questions, and I told him, though
not so fully, what I have told you. He asked if I intended to stop in
the army after the war was over. I said that I had no idea of doing
so, as I had come out with the intention of making money. He was good
enough to speak flatteringly of my having learned to speak Dutch so
soon, and said that if, when things were settled, I would go to him, he
would have a berth for me and push me forward."
"You could not have a better patron. He is the biggest man out here by
far, and is virtually king of Rhodesia. But you will please remember
that I must have some say in the matter, and a very considerable one.
None of us four would be alive now had it not been for you. And though
I don't think those scoundrels would have got at the gold, they might
have done so, for they would have had plenty of time; as, if any of the
engineers had wanted to know anything, one of my servants would only
have had to say that I was ill, or away for a few days, and before a
week they might very well have found out how the strong-room was filled
with water, cut off the supply, and then emptied it out far enough
to allow them to work at the safe. I cannot assert that the gold is
absolutely safe yet; there is no saying what may happen before the
troops arrive here. The greed of Kruger and his gang is insatiable, and
they may search every house belonging to the bank managers from top to
bottom, and demand to inspect the safes."
"Why not bury some of it, sir, in one of the mine tips, just as they
have hidden the bodies?"
"Because, although I have every reason to believe that the twelve white
men who are still at work are all honest fellows, there is a point at
which temptation may be too great, and I might find, when I came to
examine the horde, that it was all gone. They are not aware of the
existence of my store here, and it is well they should not be. One has
heard before now of ships laden with treasure being seized by their
crews, who, until the temptation came in their way, may have been all
honest fellows. No, I will take the chances. I shall tell the two head
engineers to come down and take up their quarters here, and bring two
good men out of each shift with them. In that way there will always be
three men in the house. As for the police here, they are, as a whole,
the biggest rogues in the place. I would rather shut up the house and
leave it empty than have any of them here. Now, it is two o'clock, and,
if we cannot sleep, I have no doubt you can. I will show you up to a
bedroom. I had a mattress taken down to the kitchen, where you told me
your men would keep watch by turns. The girls both look half-asleep,
and you and I will wheel the two sofas up near the fire, and bring the
one in the dining-room here for my wife. I dare say I shall get a nap
in the arm-chair presently. We will say nine o'clock breakfast."
"Very well, sir, I will be here by that time. I shall ride over to
the town early, pay my visit to the hotel, and then be back again to
breakfast."
The events of the evening did not keep Yorke awake long. "I do think
I am the luckiest fellow going," he said to himself as he turned into
bed. "In the first place, I get a commission in the army; in the
second, I obtain Mr. Rhodes's good-will; and now Mr. Chambers, one of
the richest men in Johannesburg, is going to take me up, and all from a
series of accidents. It began, certainly, by my learning Dutch, which
enabled me to get through to Kimberley and get a commission, thanks
to the accident of Peter getting away and sticking to me. Then there
was my being captured. That did not seem a piece of good fortune, but,
thanks to Hans's sharpness, it has turned out the best piece of luck of
all, if I can but get safely back to the Modder. There is an old saying
that luck is better than riches. I did not believe this formerly, but
it has turned out so in my case. Had not my father lost his money I
should be grinding away at Rugby, and should have thought myself lucky
four or five years hence to get a curacy of one hundred and twenty
pounds a year."
Yorke was up at seven, and started at once on horseback for the town,
taking Peter with him, but leaving Hans behind in charge of the
prisoners.
"Where have you been all night?" the innkeeper asked. "I could not get
to see Mr. Chambers till late, and after we had made our bargain, he
gave me some supper, and then said I might as well stop there for the
night. He put a mattress down by the kitchen fire, and I slept as well
as I should have done here. I am off now, so if you will give me my
bill I will pay it."
"Will you want breakfast?"
"No, I shall be off at once; last night's supper will do till I get
back."
"Then, here is your bill," the German said, taking a piece of paper
from his pocket. "I made it out last night, thinking you might be
starting early. There it is; I added it up, you see, and should have
put on the cost of breakfast had you taken it."
Yorke paid the bill without question, though it was as large as it
would have been had he stopped at a first-class hotel in London. Then
he rode back again to the mine.
"I have been thinking over matters," Mr. Chambers said, as they were
sitting down to breakfast, "and it seems to me that to begin with,
you would travel more satisfactorily and more safely in a Cape cart
than you would on horseback. I have got one that is used for sending
messages into the town and fetching things out. It has been a good
cart in its time, and is so still, except that it wants repainting
and so on. I can let you have a horse to go with yours; it is a good
serviceable animal. I should be delighted to give you a pair of my own,
but they would be sure to attract attention, for I rather pride myself
on my stud. I have got double harness for the cart, though when I go
longer journeys I follow the Boer fashion and drive four horses."
"My own horse is used to being driven; my cousin generally had it out
when he went in to Richmond. I am very much obliged to you for your
offer. We should certainly attract less attention in a cart than if we
all rode. I shall myself drive, as I enjoy it. I know that as a rule
the Boers generally let the Kaffirs drive, and I should be content to
do so myself; but a good many Boers do drive."
"There will be nothing unusual in that; indeed, about here most of
the Boers drive, as they see the Uitlanders do it. I will put another
saddle in the cart, for when you get near the frontier you will
certainly find it easier to get through on horseback.
"I should advise you to take the direct road south to Bloemfontein.
I have a friend there; he is a Dutchman, but a thorough believer in
English rule, though, of course, at present he has to keep his opinions
to himself. He broke his leg some years ago and has been lame ever
since, and so has escaped being obliged to go on commando. I will write
a letter to him after breakfast strongly recommending you to him. I
shall not say who you are, or that you are an Englishman, because it is
just possible that you may be searched. Anyway, it will be as well for
you to conceal the letter in your clothes. I will write a second letter
to him, saying that you have been employed at this mine, which is
correct enough, and that, as I have no further occasion for your work,
you are now going down to take your share in the fighting. I will also
get you a pass from the head of the police, whom, as you know, I am
going over to interview directly after breakfast with reference to our
prisoners. I will get it made out in the name of Gert Meyring, of the
Orange Free State. It is natural enough that you should be taking down
with you a young Dutchman who has also been employed at the mine, and
who is going with you to the front, and that you should have a Kaffir
with you also. The only fear is that your description might tally so
closely with the warning that has been sent, that you may be suspected."
"I can get over that, sir; I had a wig made for me to wear as a
disguise, if necessary. It is sewn up in the lining of this coat,
and being so soft it altogether escaped attention when I was first
searched. I am sure to have been described as having closely-cropped
hair, whereas the wig comes down to my shoulders and entirely alters
my appearance. I have never worn it yet, as I went into Kimberley, as
I told you, in uniform, and in fact up till now have never given the
thing a thought from the day when I sewed it up. That, and darkening
my eyebrows to match, would so alter my appearance that I do not think
that even those who know me well would recognize me."
"That is capital; I have been worrying over the point all morning. I
wish we had one for your man too, for I know he also was described in
the telegram yesterday as having closely-cropped hair."
"I extemporized a wig for myself once before, sir, and can do one for
Hans, if you will allow me to cut some hair from two of your horses'
tails."
"Certainly you can do that. Is there anything else you will want?"
"A needle and thread, sir, and if you have such a thing as a glue-pot
in the house it will be all the better."
"Yes, I think I have one somewhere, I daresay the girl can tell you
where it is."
"We will do any sewing that is necessary, Mr. Harberton," the elder of
the two girls said. "I am afraid that we are useless in most respects,
but at least we can both sew."
Mr. Chambers went out with Yorke to the stables and showed him the
horses that he was willing to have despoiled of a portion of their
tails, and this, with a pair of scissors that the girls had lent him,
Yorke speedily accomplished. They then saddled Mr. Chambers's favourite
horse, and he at once started. He was away an hour and a half, by
which time, amid a good deal of laughter and merriment, the hair had
been sewn and glued into Hans's straw-hat. Yorke had also got out his
wig and put it on, and even Mrs. Chambers, shaken as she still was by
the incidents of the night before, joined in her daughters' hearty
laughter at the changed appearance of her two guests.
"The police will be here at twelve, Mr. Harberton, therefore, if you
have now made up your mind to start to-day, it would be as well that
you should be away before they arrive. You know I should be delighted
if you would stop a few days, but as you said that you would very much
rather be off this morning, I shall not try to persuade you to do so."
Half an hour later all was ready for the start. Mr. Chambers had taken
Hans aside. "You have done me a great service," he said. "The present
is not a time when it is safe to be travelling about with much money
in your possession, especially when you are wanted by the authorities,
and if you were searched, and found to have a sum of money that did not
accord with your apparent position, you would not only lose the money,
but your liberty as well. Therefore, I do not propose to make you a
gift at the present time, but I engage myself to pay to you the sum of
five hundred pounds whenever you may wish to buy a farm or otherwise
settle down after the conclusion of the war."
Hans's eyes opened with surprise. "I only did what my master told me,
sir."
"You did more. Your astuteness in listening to the conversation of the
rascals who were talking in that drinking-shop was no doubt at first
a mere matter of curiosity, but the fact that you communicated it at
once to Mr. Harberton enabled him to take the steps which defeated the
plot; and you bore your share in the fight itself. My name is well
known, I think, throughout South Africa, and, as I may be away from the
country when you wish to draw the money, here is a promissory note,
undated, undertaking to pay three months after presentation the sum of
five hundred pounds on the duly certified signature of Hans Bernard;
and with it is this letter, saying that I have handed you this bill
in consideration of the very great service that you rendered me in
discovering and thwarting an attempt on my life. That letter can do you
no harm if found upon you. When the war is over you can, at any time,
hand that note to the bank here, or to any of its branches in Natal,
or to its agents. They will require the signature of Mr. Harberton, or
some other person known to them, and will then place the money at your
disposal as soon as they have communicated with the bank here."
Without waiting for any thanks from Hans, who was too overwhelmed to
find words for the purpose, he went across to the stables, where Peter
was harnessing the horses. "Peter," he said, "your master tells me
that you have been very faithful to him, and you have now rendered me
a service by helping him to defeat the men who attacked this place
last night. It would not be safe to give you money now, as you may be
searched going down country, but I shall give him authority to pay
you two hundred pounds for me at the end of the war. Don't spend it
in folly at the Cape; go back to your own people, build a kraal, buy
cattle, and settle down there."
Then he walked away, and in a few words told Yorke what he had done.
"They have both proved themselves good men by their devotion to you,"
he said, "it will give them both a good start in life."
"Thank you most heartily, Mr. Chambers, I am certain that both of them
will do justice to your kindness. I am sure of Hans being steady; and,
as I have already persuaded the Kaffir to swear off liquor, he will,
I feel certain, take your advice, which is indeed almost the same as
I gave him when getting him to promise not to spend his earnings in
drink. These native labourers with the army are all paid very high,
indeed ridiculously high wages. He has promised to hand over his pay,
when he gets it, to me, and I have undertaken if he does so to keep him
in tobacco, so he will, if the war lasts for a year, have over fifty
pounds laid by, which will add to his sense of responsibility. I will
not draw upon you for the money until he is ready to go straight away
directly he gets it. Of course, I do not know what I shall be doing
myself; if I can, I shall certainly accompany him and see him settled.
As to Hans, I have no fear as to his doing well; he certainly was not
a hard worker until I went to my cousin's farm, but since then he has
quite woke up. He saw the advantage of irrigation there, and I shall
strongly advise him not to go in for keeping cattle, but to take a
small piece of good land near this town, or Kimberley, where water can
be obtained at no great depth, and to go in for growing vegetables for
sale in the town. I am convinced that it would pay splendidly."
"He certainly could not do better. The prices of vegetables are
extravagantly high, and he can dispose of any quantity at rates that
would pay him well. Well, there is the Kaffir with the cart. You had
better come in and say good-bye to my wife and daughters."
Five minutes later they started, with strongly-expressed hopes that in
two or three months they might meet again when the British army came up.
"You are sure to find me here," Mr. Chambers said, "unless, when it is
found you are approaching, the Boers get mad and order all Uitlanders
away. However, even then I fancy that the usual bribe will avail to
purchase me an exemption, but if I do have to go I shall come back
again directly you capture the place."
A basket containing wine, a ham, and a variety of eatables had been
placed under the seat.
"What shall I do with the trap and horse, sir?"
"You can either sell the trap for what it will fetch and keep the
horse, or, in fact, do as you like with it! Good-bye! and take care of
yourself. Which he won't do," Mr. Chambers added as, with a wave of
the hand, Yorke drove off.
With two good horses and a light load, they drove rapidly along. Mr.
Chambers had before he started asked Yorke whether he had ample funds
for the journey, and the latter was glad to be able to say that Hans
had, before leaving the camp, drawn sufficient from the paymaster for
anything that could be required.
"Whatever you do, Hans, keep your hat on. There is no fear of anyone
who saw you in the prison recognizing you as you are; but if your hat
should blow off, and anyone happened to be looking on at the time, the
game would be up."
"I don't think it could blow off, master. The hair and the glue under
the lining have made it so much smaller that I had to press it quite
hard to get it on my head."
"Well, when we are once clear away from the town, you can lift it a
bit, for if it blows off then it will not matter.
"It is two hundred and fifty miles to Bloemfontein. I suppose it will
take us about a week. We shall see how the horses stand it, they both
start fresh. I was looking at the map this morning, and it is evident
that there is no good road by the direct line, I mean the route
followed by the railway. So I am taking the main road that goes down
through Potchefstroom. There is no place of any size before that. It is
about sixty miles. We will camp out to-night ten miles before we get
there. Then we can drive through the town without stopping, and get on
as far as Reitzburg. We can settle to-morrow whether we will put up at
the town, or camp just across the Vaal, about a mile this side of the
place. From there it is a little over forty miles to Kroonstad.
"I think when we get as far as that, we shall be beyond the farthest
points where there will be danger. They will be looking for us chiefly
on the road to Mafeking, which is, of course, the nearest point to the
border; or else on that leading through Komati Poort, down to Delagoa
Bay; and they will also, no doubt, search every train going south. In
any case, they can have no idea that we are travelling by road at this
pace, and if we were on foot we could not arrive at Kroonstad within
two or three days of the time we shall get there. Besides, we have got
the police pass; and certainly the description telegraphed on will in
no way tally with our present appearance. So I do not think we shall be
troubled, though it is as well to take every precaution."
They experienced, indeed, no difficulties whatever, and camped
that night by a dam half a mile off the road, five miles out of
Potchefstroom. As they had several water-bottles hung under the cart,
and a bag of mealies, the horses fared as well as their masters. One of
the first questions that Hans had asked after they started was, whether
Mr. Chambers had actually promised him five hundred pounds.
"It seems impossible," he said, "but that is what I understood him to
say."
"That is what he intends to give you, Hans."
"But it is too much; only for sitting and listening for half an hour,
and firing five shots with a rifle."
"That is all that it was to you, Hans, but to him it meant saving
his life, and the lives of the ladies of his family. As to the gold,
he told me how it was concealed, and that the robbers could never
have got at it. Still, he values his life and those of the ladies at
a large sum; and as he is a very rich man, he does not think it out
of the way to make you a handsome present. I told him that I should
advise you to carry out what we were saying the other day would be the
best-paying thing for a man of small capital--to buy a piece of land
near Johannesburg or Kimberley, to sink a deep well, and to put up
horse-gear and irrigate the land; and to employ half a dozen Kaffirs
to grow vegetables and plant fruit-trees, just as my cousin did. Only,
you would do a great deal better than Mr. Allnutt, because the Boer
farmers would not pay much for their vegetables or fruit, while you
would get splendid prices in either of these towns. The vegetables
would begin to pay three months after you started, but of course you
would have to wait a couple of years before you got any return for the
fruit-trees."
Hans was silent for three or four minutes, lost in the contemplation of
himself as the owner of such a place.
"We shall have plenty of time to talk it over before then, Hans," Yorke
went on, after a long pause, "but I should advise you not to spend any
money on building a house for yourself at first--any sort of a hut
will do; and though five hundred pounds seems a very large sum to you,
you will want it all for your work; the well and horse-gear will cost
a good bit. Then you will have your water-courses to make, and your
ground to irrigate, say five acres to begin with; and it is always a
good plan to keep some money in hand in case of accidents, such as your
well failing and your having to go deeper, or of your Kaffirs running
away. Besides, you must have a horse and cart to take your goods to
market. At any rate, Hans, if you want to get on you will have to
bestir yourself. You know that young English gentlemen who come out
don't think themselves above taking off their coats and working, and
at first you will have to do the same. After a bit you will, as you
extend your cultivated ground and carry the work further, take on more
Kaffirs, and you will have to see that they do their work. That was how
Mr. Allnutt did, and it is only in that way that you will get work out
of them."
"It will be grand," Hans murmured; "but," he broke off suddenly, "you
will not be with me, Master Yorke, and I had hoped that, whatever you
were doing, you would always keep me with you."
"So I should like to do, Hans, but it would not be good for you; it
is always better that a man should depend upon himself, and not upon
another. Some day you will want to marry, and then you will see how
much better it is to have a nice home and a business than to be merely
working for wages. It was just the same way with myself. I did not like
leaving my father and mother, and going to start in a strange country.
But I hoped that I might some day make a home for myself here, and do
well; whereas, I had no chance of earning much in England."
"Well, Master Yorke, it was a lucky day for me when you came to Mr.
Allnutt's, and took me to go out riding and shooting with you."
"It has turned out quite as fortunate for me, Hans."
Peter, who was not given to speaking unless addressed, said but little.
Occasionally, as he looked at Yorke and Hans, he shook with silent
laughter at their changed appearance, and indeed the transformation
effected by their long hair was striking to one accustomed to their
closely-cropped heads. By the way, however, he went about his
work--taking the horses out of the cart, supplying them with their
water and grain, and rubbing them down--it was evident that he already,
in imagination, considered himself to be a far more important person
than he was before, and that he was preparing himself for the change
from the humble position of a casual labourer in some small town to
that of a man of position and influence among his tribe. Occasionally
he would break into bursts of apparently unprovoked laughter, as if the
change appeared to himself ludicrous in the extreme.
They were on the move at the first sign of daylight, and Potchefstroom
was still asleep when they drove through. At eight o'clock they crossed
the Vaal and drove into Reitzburg. A couple of Boers came up and asked
them where they came from, but were quite satisfied with the answer,
"From Potchefstroom," as they considered that if they had been allowed
to pass through there, their journey must be a legitimate one.
[Illustration: ONE OF THE BOERS THEY HAD SPOKEN TO SAUNTERED IN.]
"We have a pass from the chief of the police at Johannesburg, if you
would like to see it."
"No," one of the men replied. "If it is good enough for them in the
Transvaal, it is good enough for us. I suppose you are going down to
the army?"
"Yes, we want to do our share of the fighting."
"Quite right. You must lose no time or you will be too late."
"So I suppose, by all they say," Yorke replied.
They thought it as well to wait for an hour to feed the horses and take
a meal. Leaving Peter to look after the horses, and see that nobody
touched the guns and other articles in the cart, they went into a small
inn. While they were eating their meal one of the Boers they had spoken
to sauntered in.
"Was there any news at Johannesburg?"
"No, not particular. Things are very quiet there."
"You did not hear, did you, of any escaped prisoners being caught?"
"We did hear that one of the English officers had got away from the
jail."
"Yes, that is what I mean. They telegraphed to us here from Pretoria;
but of course he would never come down this way. Still, we had to obey
orders and keep a sharp look-out. If he had come this way he would have
been caught. I expect, however, he went east; but he could not get far.
They say he was quite a young chap, with close-cropped hair."
"Well, their young officers cannot have learned to talk Dutch, so there
ought to be no difficulty in catching him," Yorke said.
"But he has got a Dutchman with him, and I suppose he himself won't
open his lips, but the Dutchman will do his talking for him."
"Hans, you had better say something," Yorke laughed, "or possibly you
may be taken for this British officer."
"I don't look much like a British officer with a cropped head," Hans
said, "and I talk my own language better than I do English by a long
way."
"Oh! I knew you could not be the man," the Boer said. "Still, I am
glad to see that you are Dutch as well as your master. There might be
questions asked, and now I can swear that you are both Africanders. It
will satisfy anyone questioning me as to who has been along. I don't
see myself what occasion there is for making a fuss about one officer
getting away when we shall soon have all their army prisoners. It gives
everyone a lot of trouble."
"Will you have a glass of spirits?" Yorke asked.
As it was with the hope of obtaining an invitation that the Boer had
come in, he assented willingly, and remained talking until Yorke said
it was time for them to be going on. They slept that night at Winkel
Drift, on the Rhenoster River, and drove next day to Kroonstad. Here
no questions were asked. They put up at an inn, and Yorke mentioned
casually that they were intending to stay with a friend for a day of
two at Bloemfontein, and then going to the front. They had avoided
entering the town until it was dusk; and as many Boers were constantly
passing down to join the commandos, no one thought of enquiring
minutely into their affairs. Three more days took them to Bloemfontein.
There Yorke noticed, as they drove in, that many stores with British
names over them were still open, for the wholesale expulsion of English
from the Transvaal had not extended to the Orange Free State, where,
till the outbreak of the war, a good feeling had existed between the
two peoples. At Bloemfontein especially a considerable portion of the
trading class had been British, and these, considering that if they
left, their stores would probably be looted, thought it better to
remain, and, although their position was not a pleasant one, they had
received fair treatment at the hands of the Boers.