When Jack came to his senses again he was astonished to find himself
tucked up in a cosy bed, with clean white sheets and a red counterpane.
It was placed in the centre of a row of beds which were precisely
similar, and which ran down one side of a large and comfortable-looking
ward, on the opposite side of which there was a fire burning brightly,
and a table round which sat three neatly-dressed nurses.
Jack slowly ran his eyes round the ward, noted that most of the other
beds had occupants, and that the three nurses looked decidedly pretty in
their white caps and aprons. And all the while he wondered mildly what
it all meant, why he was there, and what sort of a place it was. Then,
like others who have been seriously ill for a considerable time and are
almost too weak to move a hand, he closed his eyes again and fell into a
deep sleep.
When he awoke he lay quite still, with closed eyelids, listening to
voices near his bedside.
"He'll do well now, Nurse," he heard someone say, "and I am glad to be
able to tell you that the worst is over. It was a difficult job to get
the thigh in satisfactory position, and nicely put upon the splint. But
it's done, and done well, I think I may say. Your young friend will
make steady progress now, sir," the voice continued, "and from what I
have learnt I am sure you will be very pleased to hear it. Good-day! I
must be going now, as I have several other patients to look to."
"Good-day!" was repeated heartily by someone else, and then the owner of
the first voice moved away.
"I am delighted to hear the doctor's report," somebody else exclaimed,
in tones which were unmistakably those of Dr Hanly. "He has met with a
very nasty accident, and it takes quite a load from my mind to hear he
is doing well. By all accounts he must have increased the severity of
the injury by sticking to that fellow as he did. He's a plucky lad."
"Plucky, my dear sir! I should think so indeed!" answered a third
voice. "Why, I owe a lot to your young ward. There was really no call
for him to come to our help; but he did so without hesitation, with the
result that he got badly smashed, while Wilfred and I were merely a
little bruised and knocked about."
"I'm glad to hear you say so, Mr Hunter," was the doctor's reply. "It
is just like the lad to get into a mess in an attempt to help others who
were in a tight corner. But we had better be moving away, I think, or
we may disturb him."
"Don't go, Doctor," Jack feebly murmured at this moment, opening his
eyes and looking up at his friend. "Tell me how I came to be here, and
all about it. It's awfully rummy! I cannot understand why I should be
lying in bed, when only a minute ago I was well and strong and walking
along the Embankment."
"Why, good gracious me! that was a week ago, Jack! This is a hospital
in London, and you are in bed because your thigh is broken. But you
must get to sleep. Mr Hunter and I will come again to-morrow."
Jack obediently closed his eyes, wondered in a dreamy kind of way who
Mr Hunter might be, and who was the plucky lad he had been talking
about, and promptly fell asleep.
When he became conscious again a nurse was bending over him, and,
feeling stronger and more lively, he was propped up in bed as far as his
splint would allow, and given a cup of tea. From that day he rapidly
improved. The pain, which had been severe at first after he had
recovered consciousness, had now entirely gone, and about three weeks
after his accident his bed was lifted on to a long wheeled chair, and he
was able to get about the ward and chat with the other patients.
Almost daily Mr Hunter and his son Wilfred came to see Jack, and very
soon the two lads, who were within a few days of the same age, had
become fast friends.
"By Jove!" Wilfred exclaimed one day as he was sitting by Jack's side,
"it was touch and go for us when those four blackguards attacked us, and
you were a perfect brick to come up in time to lend us a helping hand."
"Oh, humbug! What else could I have done?" answered Jack. "I heard
your whistle and shouts, and guessed there was a row on. I couldn't
stand still, could I? so of course I came along to see what was up.
Then, when I found it was an uneven fight, I tacked myself on to the
side which wanted me most."
"It's all very well your talking like that, Jack, but you know as well
as I do that you might just as well have run in the opposite direction,
especially when you saw what brutes the men were who were attacking us.
But we'll say no more about it just now. I'll get even with you though,
old chap, if I can manage it, one of these fine days."
"Then that's agreed," answered Jack; "but before you drop the subject,
tell me what the row was really about. I suppose those fellows were
after your money!"
"Money! Yes, but in a different form from that in which you usually see
it. You know, Father runs a big store out in Johannesburg, and deals in
everything. You can get anything, from a bag of peas or a tin tack to
Kimberley diamonds of the first water, from his shop, and it's the last
that those ruffians were after. But here is Father. Ask him, and he
will tell you all about it."
"Well, Jack, getting along nicely, are you?" exclaimed the latter
heartily. "And you want to know how it was we were attacked by those
ruffians? It's very simple. I have come over from South Africa for a
holiday, and to see the old home. My wife and Wilfred came too, and
during our stay here I have managed to combine business and pleasure. I
brought over some diamonds, and on the day you came so opportunely to
our aid I had been to a stone merchant in the city, and was returning
with all those he had not bought from me; I should say some fifteen
thousand pounds' worth. It would have been a good haul if they had
managed to get away with the bag. No doubt they knew all about me, and
had tracked me all the way from the hotel. But they made a little
mistake. You see in my younger days I had to rough it pretty well, and
of recent years, while living in the Transvaal, life has not been
altogether smooth. Every Boer's hand there is against the Englishman,
Uitlanders as they call us, and so one has to be particularly wary.
"Immediately I caught sight of those rascals I guessed their game, but I
can tell you, my lad, it would have been all U P if it hadn't been for
you and the whistle. Well, we came out of it pretty comfortably, save
for your fractured thigh, and as soon as you are fit to go out those
fellows will be tried and, I trust, will get heavily sentenced.
"By the way, my boy, have you thought about the future? You know it
will be at least three months before that leg of yours is really strong
again; at least that is what the surgeon says."
"No, I haven't given it a thought, Mr Hunter. I suppose I shall go
home to the Grange for a month or so, and then return to the crammer's.
Not that that would be much good, for I cannot possibly go up for the
next exam. I haven't done nearly enough reading, and should certainly
get ploughed if I attempted it."
"Why not come out to Africa with us?" said Mr Hunter earnestly. "We go
as soon as those ruffians are tried, and we should be good companions on
the way. Besides, it would be a splendid `pick-me-up' for you; you
would get the air on the voyage, and still be able to keep your leg in
splints, or whatever is found necessary."
"Mr Hunter, it's awfully kind of you, and I should enjoy it immensely!"
Jack suddenly blurted out, and then stopped abruptly as the thought of
the expense entailed flashed across his mind.
"Then it's settled," exclaimed Mr Hunter. "I thought you'd jump at the
idea. I've spoken to Dr Hanly about it, and he and your mother are
quite willing for you to go. It will be the best thing you could
possibly do under the circumstances, and besides, you may find that the
experience will be of real service to you later on; for if you join the
army it is more than probable that you will find yourself out in Africa
with your regiment before many years are gone. I expect we shall sail
in about a month's time. It will be another four weeks before we reach
Johnny's Burg, as we call it, and then you can stay with us just as long
as you please."
Jack was delighted at the prospect before him, and made up his mind to
get his leg sound again as quickly as possible. Save for a trip on the
Continent with his father he had never left the shores of old England,
and now the knowledge that in a short time he would be on board a huge
ocean-going vessel bound for Africa, the land of gold and diamonds,
Zulus, ostriches, and lions, filled him with the highest spirits, and
served, to no small extent, to relieve the tedium of his long stay in
hospital.
A month afterwards he was staying with the Hunters at a fine hotel near
Piccadilly, and a week later had been able to give evidence at the Old
Bailey--where he was complimented for his pluck by the judge,--and had
seen the four ruffians who had attempted to obtain possession of the bag
of diamonds condemned to heavy sentences.
In a fortnight they had set sail from Southampton, and were well in the
Channel. It was a lovely summer's day, and Jack enjoyed the change
immensely. Reclining in a long cane chair, propped up with cushions and
wrapped in a rug, he was a subject of interest to the passengers, and
before many days had passed was on the best of terms with all. Indeed,
had he but known it, he was thought a deal of by them, for Mr Hunter
and Wilfred had not failed, when they joined the gentlemen in the
smoking-room, to tell how his leg became damaged; while Mrs Hunter
confided it to the ladies after dinner in the drawing-room.
Day by day Jack's leg grew stronger and more firmly knit, and very soon,
when the sea was quite smooth, he was able to hobble about the deck with
the help of a crutch. Before the voyage was over he had discarded the
plaster splint with which his thigh had been encased, and by the time
the big ship steamed into Table Bay and whistled for the authorities to
come off and give instructions as to where it was to berth, he had
become quite an ordinary individual once more, and there was nothing
noticeable about this strong, broad-shouldered young Englishman save the
fact that he walked with a slight limp. It was a glorious morning when
Mr and Mrs Hunter and the two boys landed, and as they were not to
take the train for Johannesburg till the following day, Wilfred was able
to escort Jack round the town and out into the country.
Jack enjoyed it all immensely. The streets were much the same as in
London, and in many respects it reminded him of home. But the people
walking about were different; Englishmen were certainly in evidence, but
there was a good sprinkling of other nationalities, French, German,
Kafir, and especially Dutch.
The country outside, however, was very different. The vegetation, of a
semi-tropical nature, was more luxuriant and green, while the scorching
sun overhead, and the dusty roads underfoot, which reflected the
dazzling rays, were a complete change from what he had known in this
country.
Still, in spite of the glaring sun there was no doubt of the
picturesqueness of Cape Town, backed as it was by its green slopes and
fields, and frowned over by the sharply-cut summit of Table Mountain.
Two days later the party arrived in Johannesburg, tired and weary after
their long railway journey.
"Now, Jack, you must do just as you like while you are here," said Mr
Hunter a few days after they had reached this modern city in which the
Uitlander population of the Transvaal had, for the most part, taken up
its residence. "Of course you will want to see Pretoria, and get a peep
at his honour, dear old Kruger, whom we Englishmen love so much. Then,
perhaps, you would like to accompany me to Kimberley. I go there about
twice a month, and though it is a dusty, uninteresting sort of place at
first sight, yet I think I can promise to open your eyes when I show you
the mines. You have heard of them, of course, and are aware that they
are valued at millions of pounds. On our way there, or on our return,
we could take a peep at Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange Free
State, where President Steyn has his residence. It will be all new to
you, and, I dare say, sufficiently interesting."
"Thank you very much, Mr Hunter!" Jack replied. "I am already awfully
interested, and should certainly like to see all there is in the
country. I wonder whether you would object to my helping sometimes in
the store. I am quite strong enough for that now, and I should very
much like to learn how you manage matters, and particularly how your
books are kept. I am sorry to say I am a terribly poor hand at
accounts. Mine never came out right at the end of the month in London."
"Mind! Of course not, Jack! I am glad to think you would care to do
it. Place yourself in Wilfred's hands. He knows all about it, and will
show you how the business is carried on. Who knows? One of these days
you may find shopkeeping more congenial than army life. Out here there
are lots of young fellows who come from the best of houses in the old
country, and yet are not ashamed to pull off their coats and put their
shoulders to the wheel. Why, one man of my acquaintance, who is in a
very prosperous way of business just now, in spite of the exorbitant
taxation with which we have to put up, owns to a title in England, and
when he was there would have no more thought of turning out in the
streets of London without the time-honoured tail-coat and topper than he
would have thought of flying. And here he is now, not too proud to make
his living by honest means, simply because he happened to be born a
lord. And there are lots more like him too. Dear me, what a shock
their parents would have if they could see them now, working behind
their counters with sleeves rolled up, and selling groceries or ironware
as if they had been at it all their lives!"
On the following day Jack took the train for Pretoria, and had the good
fortune to catch a glimpse of Paul Kruger, President of the Transvaal
Republic, as he drove by in his carriage.
"Father says he's the deepest and cleverest schemer that ever was!"
exclaimed Wilfred, nodding after the carriage, "and from all one hears
there can be little doubt about it. They say, too, that he is a
religious man, and is something like the Puritans of old. Whatever he
is, however, he is certainly one of our bitterest enemies. He simply
loathes the sight of an Englishman, and won't speak our language. He
forgets all we have done for him, for I can tell you, there would have
been no Kruger and no Boers in the Transvaal if it hadn't been for our
country."
"He's a funny-looking fellow at any rate," answered Jack; "and why in
the name of all that's rummy he should want to wear a topper in this
outlandish place is more than I can guess. If I met him at home I
should take him for some dissenting minister, a trifle hard-up and
out-at-elbow."
"Hard-up!" exclaimed Wilfred in disgust. "Don't make that mistake,
Jack. Paul Kruger is no pauper. He is certainly one of the wealthiest
of the Boers."
And this was exactly the case. President Kruger was a man who had for
many years not only managed the affairs of this particular country, but
had also contrived to look well after his own. It was only a glimpse
that Jack caught of him, but it was quite sufficient to impress the
features on his mind.
Paul Kruger was a heavily-built man, arrayed in black from head to foot,
which shone as all threadbare and worn-out clothing does. On his head
was a fairly presentable top hat, and in his fat, ungainly hands he held
a pair of black kid gloves.
But his face was the part which riveted one's attention.
In anyone else's case but the president's it would have passed without
comment, especially amongst a gathering of typical Boers. But, holding
the position he did, one looked a second time, and noticed the wrinkled,
jowly cheeks, fringed with a belt of straggly hair; the heavy,
sleepy-looking eyes, overhung by bushy brows, and the general appearance
of obtuseness.
And yet it was this man who, for the sake of a boundless ambition, was
destined to defy the might of England, ay, and stagger it with his
blows; and he it was, this sheepish-looking Boer, who for years and
years had been secretly dreaming and planning--planning to oust the
Britishers from their fair colonies, and claim for himself the proud
position and title of President--perhaps King--of the United States of
Africa.
Shortly after his return from Pretoria, Jack settled down to life in
Johannesburg, and soon found himself quite one of the Uitlanders. His
leg was now practically strong again, though he had not yet got rid of
the limp. Still, for all that, he was able to get about, and even enjoy
a game of cricket.
Soon, too, he became accustomed to life in the store conducted by Mr
Hunter, and made it a regular custom to help wherever he could during
the morning hours. It was really a large shop, with several
departments, and with a big storehouse behind. The main entrance was
quite an imposing one, and a common place for friends to meet, while
just inside was a large office in which the books were kept.
Jack was often here, and did not take long to master the intricacies of
book-keeping, so much so that he soon became of real help to Mr Hunter.
In the afternoon he played cricket or drove out with Wilfred, and in the
evening he and his friend frequently sauntered into the town, and played
billiards at a large restaurant which was a popular rendezvous. Here he
met numbers of Englishmen, and in addition several Boers, some of whom
he learnt to like. But the younger men were for the most part odious,
and gave themselves such airs that the Uitlanders held aloof from them.
Now it happened that Jack and Wilfred frequently played with two other
young fellows, one of whom was a delicate lad about Jack's age, who had
come to Africa for the sake of his health. His name was Mathews, and
Jack took a great fancy to him. He was quiet and dignified, seldom
spoke unless asked a question, and was as inoffensive and harmless a
being as anyone could have wished to meet.
But this very mildness was to be the cause of trouble, as Jack was soon
to learn.
Amongst the young Boers who visited the restaurant was one tall young
man of about twenty-five, who made himself more objectionable than any
of the others. He was bumptious to a degree, and openly expressed his
hatred of all Englishmen. Even in the billiard saloon his sneers were
loudly uttered, so that Jack itched to thrash him on several occasions.
But Wilfred dissuaded him.
"Be careful, Jack," he exclaimed earnestly, one evening, when the Boer
had been more than usually hostile. "Don't take any notice of the
brute, or it will lead you into trouble. I know him well, and so does
Father, and I can tell you that Piet Maartens, as he calls himself, is a
scoundrel, and a most dangerous man to have anything to do with. He is
thickly in with the Kruger gang, and if all is true that has been said
of him, he has a reputation that would hang a man in England. I have no
wish to blacken his character. I merely tell the truth when I say that
he has treated more than one of the Kaffirs on his father's farm so
brutally as to cause death. Keep clear of him, Jack!"
"I'll do my best, Wilfred," Jack answered slowly, "but he'd better look
out. I'm not going to stand quietly by much longer and listen to his
sneers. One would think we Englishmen were dirt beneath his feet. Up
to the present his remarks have been general, but I'll tell you this, if
he shouts any of his names at me, I'll show him that an Englishman is as
good as, and perhaps better than, a Boer. I've got a game leg, but that
won't prevent me from tackling him if it's necessary."
"Take my advice; keep clear of him," repeated Wilfred. "After all, if
you had lived all your life here you would have become accustomed to the
doings of these young Boers. Ever since Majuba they have been brought
up to think of us and our soldiers as cowards, and their absolute
ignorance prevents them from seeing their mistake. I never take any
notice of them."
"Yes, I dare say that is the best plan," Jack answered stubbornly; "but
when I was at school a fellow had to take the consequences of what he
said. If he called another chap names there was safe to be a row, and
someone got a licking. That's what happens in ordinary life, and it's
going to be the same here if that Piet Maartens doesn't look out.
Perhaps he could lick me if we had a fight, but I'd rather get knocked
about and teach the fellow manners than sit down quietly and be
insulted."
Jack meant every word he said. Himself a kind-hearted and polite young
fellow, to hurt the feelings of a comrade, or of a foreigner who
happened to be anywhere within hearing of him, was the last thing he
would have thought of doing. And to be forced to listen to sneers which
were meant for any Englishman who might happen to hear them was so
galling that it set his blood on fire. Just as his stepbrother's
attempts to control his actions had raised his ire, so did the behaviour
of this young Boer irritate him and stir him to anger. Jack was not
pugnacious, but the mere suspicion that he was in the presence of a
bully ruffled him, and his meetings with Piet Maartens had so convinced
him that this was what he was at heart, that Jack, in his own quiet
dogged way, determined to discomfit him at the very first opportunity.
"He's a bully," he muttered to himself after Wilfred's warning, "and I'm
not going to put up with his sneers any longer."
A few nights later the four lads were playing billiards in the
restaurant, and the opposite table was occupied by Piet Maartens and a
friend, while a number of Uitlanders and Boers were looking on. Jack
had completely forgotten his determination, and, wrapped up in the game,
had scarcely noticed the other players. Mathews was his partner, and,
suddenly getting the balls into a favourable position, was adding
rapidly to the score. The onlookers became interested, and all stood up
to watch the game. Even Piet Maartens stepped over, and, rudely pushing
Jack aside, craned his head and watched as Mathews played a stroke.
"Come here, Fritz," he cried loudly. "Come and see this Uitlander.
See, after all one of these Britishers is some good. Well, there is
room for improvement, but whatever happens they will never make brave
men."
Instantly the whole of the occupants of the room became silent, while
Mathews turned round and faced the Boer.
"You look after your own game, Maartens," he said nervously.
"Thank you, little man, but perhaps I prefer to look on at you," Piet
Maartens answered, while his companion gave vent to a sniggering laugh
which set Jack's pulses thumping.
"Then you'll have to wait a little," cried Mathews angrily. "I'm going
to stay here till you are out of the way."
"Don't get angry, my friend," the Boer answered tauntingly. "Here, this
will cool you." And snatching up a tumbler of iced water which stood on
a table near at hand, he deliberately poured it over Mathews, drenching
him to the skin.
It was a foolish act and a cowardly one, for Mathews was a head and
shoulders shorter than his opponent, and quite incapable of retaliating;
and no doubt Piet Maartens had taken this into consideration. But for
months and months he had indulged in sneering taunts, and no Englishman
had had the temerity to make him answer for them. Not that they always
lacked the courage, but it was not policy to fight with a Boer in the
Transvaal, and thereby have one's business prospects ruined. Piet
Maartens had traded on this, and also on his height and strength.
Having poured the contents of the tumbler over poor Mathews, he and his
companions burst into loud laughter as their victim held his head down
and attempted to shake the water off. But a second later they changed
their tune.
The sight of such an act of bullying had maddened Jack, and noticing a
large glass jug of iced water on another table, he coolly walked over to
it, lifted it by the handle, and having reached Piet Maartens' side,
brought it down with a bang on the top of his head, shivering the glass,
and drenching him thoroughly. It was tit for tat, and at once a roar of
laughter and applause burst from the Englishmen present.
Jack took no notice of it, but stood quietly waiting till Piet had
recovered himself. A second later both Boers rushed at him, and struck
at him with their cues. One he dodged, and at the same time lunged
forward, and struck out so strongly with his fist that Piet's companion
went rolling on the floor. But the other cue fell heavily upon his
shoulder, and caused him considerable pain. A moment later he had
snatched it out of Piet's hand, and, breaking it across his knee,
clutched the bully by his collar, and belaboured him till he howled for
mercy. Then Jack let go, and, standing in front of him, waited to see
what would happen, while the Englishmen approached nearer and looked on
silently.
"How dare you?" the Boer panted, scowling angrily at Jack. "If it were
not that you are only a boy I would break you into pieces. Who asked
you to interfere?"
Piet Maartens clenched his fist and, approaching close to Jack, shook it
in his face, while his comrade picked himself up from the floor, and
looked as if on the point of rushing in again. But Wilfred at once
stood by his friend's side, and the Boer retired to the other side of
the room. Meanwhile Jack never moved a step, but, leaning against the
table, laughed scornfully.
"Who asked you to ill-treat my friend?" he cried. "He had not injured
you, and you deliberately poured a glass of water on his head. For that
I gave you a ducking, and when you struck me with your cue I thrashed
you with it. Now you threaten to knock me to pieces. Don't let the
fact of my age prevent you. I am quite ready."
Jack faced Piet Maartens coolly, and proceeded to divest himself of his
coat.
"Now," he said sternly, stepping forward till he was within a foot of
Piet, "put up your fists, and I will endeavour to teach you to keep your
tongue to yourself, and to be careful in future when you speak of my
countrymen."
Jack squared his shoulders, and put himself into a position of defence,
while the onlookers cheered him loudly.
But Piet Maartens had had enough. His eyes dropped before Jack's
determined gaze, and, muttering a fierce oath, he turned on his heel and
left the saloon, followed by his companion.
Jack at once slipped on his coat, and, nodding to all, went out with
Wilfred and returned at once to the house.
"By Jove, Jack," exclaimed his friend enthusiastically, "you have done
what no one else has been able to accomplish, and I admire your pluck,
old chap! But take care of yourself. You have made an enemy of an
unscrupulous brute, who will never forget that you have defied him, and
made a fool of him. Well, I'm glad you did it; and there is one thing,
we shall see less of him at the store. He was always popping in to
speak to Father."
That evening Jack recounted the quarrel to Mr Hunter.
"Ah! I am sorry to hear it, Jack, for you have really made an enemy of
a dangerous fellow, as Wilfred says," remarked the latter. "But I am
glad in other respects, for it will keep him away. It would not be
policy for me to send him about his business, but as it is he is not
likely to trouble me again. For a long time he has spied upon me here,
but with what object I have never been able to discover, though I
suspect he is an agent of Kruger's and is suspicious that I have arms
concealed on the premises. He really is one of the most uppish of the
many bumptious Boers to be met with here and in Pretoria, and of course
in other towns in the Transvaal. Everywhere, all over the Transvaal,
Englishmen are belittled and sneered at, simply because, years ago, in a
fit of generosity we stayed our hands, and would not give them the
lesson they deserved. And now we have a very different matter to face.
We collectively outnumber them, I believe, but they are all armed,
whereas we are forbidden to carry, or even to possess, a weapon of
defence. Not only here, but in all the country parts, distrust of us is
the rule, and I very much fear things are getting to such a pass that
life will become intolerable to Englishmen who are worthy of that name.
Once the Boers are openly opposed to us, we shall find ourselves engaged
with an enemy nearly every one of whom is a sturdy, weather-hardened
fighter, full of pluck and determination, and with a cunning in warfare
which will try our troops, should they meet them, far more than is
believed. But some day I will tell you all about our troubles. For the
present I am glad you showed that fellow that you were by no means
afraid of him. He wanted a lesson, and has had it.
"I am going to Kimberley to-morrow, and suggest that you come with me.
Matters will have quieted down when you return."
Jack jumped at the offer, for he had heard much of the diamond city,
though when he got there he found that "city" was scarcely the term to
apply to it. The mines are situated on the western border of the Orange
Free State, which lies directly south of the Transvaal, and are about a
hundred miles from Bloemfontein.
It was a distinctly disappointing place at first, at least so Jack
thought, especially when compared with Johannesburg. But when he and
Mr Hunter had made a round of the mines, he was deeply impressed with
the work carried on, and with the prosperous condition of everyone in
the town. From Kimberley they returned to Bloemfontein, staying there
only a few hours, for, unlike Pretoria, it was of little interest, while
at the latter place the huge forts, which had recently been built on
most modern lines, were alone well worth a visit.
When they reached Johannesburg again, Jack had been exactly three months
in the country, and liked it so much that he determined to stay still
longer. His leg was now perfectly strong again, but the accident had
been a severe one, and the shock to his system so great that it had
brought to light some slight weakness of the lungs, which up to the
moment when his thigh had been broken had remained completely
unsuspected.
"If you take my advice, my boy," said Mr Hunter, patting him kindly on
the back, one day when Jack had suggested it was time to return home,
"you will stay on here for a complete year. We are some thousands of
feet above the sea-level, and Johannesburg, and indeed most of the
Transvaal, is notoriously healthy. You are not fit to go back to the
cold English climate. Of course there is not much the matter with you,
but I don't like that weakness you sometimes complain of. I have
written to Dr Hanly and your mother, and the former quite agrees with
me that a prolonged stay will do you good."
"There is nothing I should like better, Mr Hunter," Jack replied, "but
what am I to do with myself all day?"
"Oh, that is easily arranged! You seem to have taken quite kindly to
shop life, and I am going to propose that you become one of my regular
assistants. I shall only want you in the mornings, and as we always
open early you will be able to get plenty of exercise in the open air.
You have already made many friends here, and no doubt you will find
plenty ready to accompany you on horseback out into the veldt. There
are two good horses in the stable which you may use whenever you like."
Accordingly it was settled, much to Jack's and Wilfred's delight, that
the former should prolong his visit, and very soon he had quite settled
down to the life. Early morning found the two lads in their shirt
sleeves outside the store taking down the shutters. By breakfast time
everything was dusted and the goods uncovered. After the meal they
stood behind their counters, and before long Jack knew as well as anyone
in Johannesburg what was the current rate of butter and ham, and what
was the lowest figure at which sugar could be sold in order to leave a
good margin of profit for his employer.
But there was really no need for the cutting down of prices. A store in
such a populous town was a valuable property, and Mr Hunter's had a
reputation which ensured the various departments brisk business all day
long. All who patronised it seemed to be in a prosperous way, and
indeed only grumbled that all their energies and business prospects were
smothered by the continual opposition and stupid action of President
Kruger and the Boers.
To say that Jack enjoyed the life he was now leading was to describe his
feelings rightly. He took the deepest interest in his work, and after
his hours in the shop were done, generally went for a gallop with one or
more of the many young fellows he knew. Christmas came and went, and by
the early months of the New-Year, the eventful and never-to-be-forgotten
year of 1899, he was quite himself again, a rosy-cheeked and
manly-looking young fellow whom everyone but Piet Maartens and his Boer
sympathisers liked.
So well did Jack's life agree with him that he was within an ace of
deciding to forego his commission in the army and remain for good in
Africa. But Mr Hunter dissuaded him.
"You are too young to settle down as yet," he said. "And besides, it
was your father's wish that you should follow his footsteps and enter
the army. Of course we should prefer you to stay, but under the
circumstances I hope you will return and go up for that examination.
Later on, perhaps, when you have knocked about the world a little more,
you may wish to resign your commission, and then if you join us here all
the better! You will be older and more ready to settle down, and your
family ties in England are not likely to prevent your emigrating if you
wish to do so."
Jack recognised the wisdom of doing as Mr Hunter suggested, and
accordingly made all preparations to leave Africa in the following
August.
But the old proverb that "Man proposes and God disposes" was exemplified
in his case. Events proved too strong for him, and he remained in the
country, shoulder to shoulder with his English friends, to face the
storm of passion which was soon to burst over their heads, and to take
his part in the bitter struggle which was to be fought out between the
Boers and their allies, and the sons of our mighty empire.