The Young Colonists: A Story of the Zulu and Boer Wars Read online

chargingdown upon you, and your rifle is already discharged, but presence ofmind may point out some means of escape from the danger. And now, ifyou have finished breakfast, you had better ride over with me toNewcastle--I have a very large number of goods to buy. Mr Harvey, whowent on the first thing, will meet me there and show me the kind ofgoods most likely to take with the natives; it will be well that youshould not only know the price of each article, but that you should seeeverything packed, so as to know the contents of each bale by its shapeand markings--a matter which may save you much trouble when you begin totrade."

  The shopping did not take up so long a time as Mr Humphreys hadanticipated; the large storekeepers all kept precisely the kind of goodsrequired, as they were in the habit of selling to the Boers for barterwith the natives.

  In the afternoon the waggon was sent away, and an hour before daybreaknext morning Dick, having bade farewell to his mother, started with MrHumphreys.

  Tom and Mr Jackson arrived there a few minutes later, and the work ofloading the waggons at once commenced, and was concluded by nineo'clock; then they joined the waggons of Mr Harvey, which were alreadywaiting outside the town.

  Their fathers rode with them to the ford across the river, and thenafter a hearty farewell returned to their farms, while the caravan offive waggons crossed into the Transvaal.

  Each waggon was drawn by sixteen oxen, with a native driver and leaderto each. There were three Swazis who had accompanied Mr Harvey onprevious expeditions, all good hunters and men who could be relied uponin every emergency. The eldest of these natives was a very tall andmuscular man, of some five and forty years of age; the left side of hisface, his shoulder, and side were deeply seamed with scars, the relicsof a fight with a wounded lioness. He had a very long and difficultname, which had been Anglicised and shortened by Mr Harvey into "Jack."

  The second of the trio was a man so short as to be almost deformed, avery unusual circumstance among the natives. His head was set lowbetween his shoulders, and his long sinewy arms reached almost to hisankles. Mr Harvey told the lads he was immensely strong, and theexpression of his face was quick and intelligent. He was abouttwenty-four years of age; he had been found by Mr Harvey's father, whohad also been a trader, deserted and apparently dying, a baby of only afew months old. Among savage people infants who are in any way deformedare generally deserted and left to perish, and this was the fateevidently intended for the child when the mother became convinced hewould not grow up tall and straight, like other men. Mr Harvey hadpicked it up, fed and cared for it, and it grew up full of a passionateattachment for him, following him everywhere, and ready at any moment togive his life for him. He was called Tony, and spoke English asfluently as the native language.

  The third of the hunters was a tall, slight figure, a man of about fiveand thirty, with muscles like whipcord, who could, if it were needed, gofor 100 miles without a halt, and tire out the swiftest horse. Inaddition to these were ten natives, who assisted with the cattle,pitched the tent, cooked and skinned the game, and did other odd jobs.

  The road was fairly good, and two days after leaving Newcastle theyarrived at Standerton, a rising place, inhabited principally by Englishtraders and shopkeepers. Here three roads branched: the one led toUtrecht on the east; another to Pretoria, the capital, to thenorth-west; while the third, a track much less used than the others, leddue north. This was the one followed by the caravan.

  As they proceeded, the Dutch farmhouses became more sparsely sprinkledover the country, and several large native kraals were passed. Over thewide plains large herds of deer roamed almost, unmolested, and the ladshad no difficulty in keeping the caravan well supplied with provisions.One or two of the Kaffirs generally accompanied them, to carry in thegame; but Mr Harvey and the three hunters, accustomed to more excitingsport, kept along with the caravan, the former well content that thelads should amuse themselves with furnishing food for the party.

  At Newcastle Mr Humphreys had purchased a couple of smallpocket-compasses, one for each of the boys, and the possession of thesegave them great confidence, as, with their guidance, they were alwaysenabled to strike the trail of the caravan.

  The road had now altogether ceased, and they were travelling across abare, undulating country, dotted occasionally by herds and flocks ofDutch settlers, and by the herds of wandering deer, but unbroken by atree of any size, and for the most part covered with tall grass. Thedeer met with were for the most part antelopes of one or other of threekinds, all of which abound on the higher plains. These are known as the"wilde-beest," the "bless-buck," and the "spring-buck."

  The venison which these creatures afforded was occasionally varied bythe flesh of the "stump-pig," which abounded in considerable numbers,and, as they ran at a great speed, afforded the boys many a good chase.

  Generally the caravan halted for the night--while they were still in acountry occupied here and there by Boers--near one of the farmhouses.It was not that these habitations added to the pleasure of thehalting-place, for the Boers were generally gruff and surly, and theirdogs annoyed them by their constant barking and growling, but for themost part it was only at these farmhouses that water could be obtained.A small sum was generally charged by the Boers for the privilege ofwatering the oxen of each waggon.

  It would seem a churlish action to charge for water, but this fluid isvery scarce upon the veldt. There are long periods of drought, ofwhich, in a dry season, thousands of cattle perish; it is therefore onlynatural that each farmer should hoard his supply jealously, for hecannot tell how great his own need of it may shortly be. The water isfor the most part stored in artificial ponds, made by damming up hollowsthrough which the water runs in the wet season.

  Sometimes, as the caravan made its slow way along, a young Boer woulddash up upon his horse, and, reining in, ask a few questions as to theirroute, and then ride off again. Already the boys had admired thefigures and riding of the Boers whom they had seen in action inZululand, but they were much more struck by their appearance as they sawthem now. There are no finer men in the world than the young Boers ofthe Transvaal; in after-life they often become heavy, but as young mentheir figures are perfect. Very tall and powerfully built, they sittheir horses as if man and animal were one, and are such splendidmarksmen that, while riding at full speed, they can, with almostabsolute certainty, bring down an antelope at a distance of 150 yards.

  But the abodes of the Boers, and their manner of living, impressed theboys far less favourably. However extensive the possessions andnumerous the herds of a Boer, he lives in the same primitive style ashis poorest neighbour. The houses seldom contain more than two, or atmost three, rooms. The dress of the farmer, wife, and family is nobetter than that of labourers; whole families sleep in one room; booksare almost unknown in their houses, and they are ignorant and prejudicedto an extreme degree. Upon his horse and his gun the Boer will spendmoney freely, but for all other purposes he is thrifty and close-fistedin the extreme. Water is regarded as useful for drinking purposes, butits utility for matters of personal cleanliness is generally altogetherignored. Almost all sleep in their clothes, and a shake and a stretchsuffice for the morning toilet.

  The power of a Boer over his sons and daughters is most unlimited, andhe is the hardest and cruellest of masters to the unfortunate nativeswhom he keeps in slavery under the title of indentured apprentices, andwhose lives he regards as of no more importance than those of his sheep,and as of infinitely less consequence than those of his horses or evenof his dogs. To the unhappy natives the taking over of the Transvaal byEngland had been a blessing of the highest kind. For the first time theshooting of them in cold blood had come to be considered a crime, andordinances had been issued against slavery, which, although generallyevaded by the Boers, still promised a happy state of things in thefuture.

  At the native kraals the travellers were always welcomed when it wasknown that they were English. The natives looked to Queen Victoria as asort of guardian angel, and not a thought ent
ered their heads that theywould ere long be cruelly and basely abandoned to the mercies of theDutch by the government of England.

  Slowly and without incident the caravan made its way north, and at lastencamped upon the banks of the great river Limpopo, the northernboundary of the Transvaal. This river was too wide and deep to beforded, but at the spot where they had struck it, there was a largenative kraal. Here Mr Harvey, who had many times before followed thesame route to this spot, was warmly welcomed, and preparations were madefor effecting a crossing. The oxen were first taken across; these weresteered by ropes attached to their horns and fastened to a canoe, whichpaddled ahead of them. The beasts were delighted to enter the waterafter their long dusty journey, and most of them, after reaching theopposite bank, lay down for a long time in the shallow water at theedge. Most of the stores were carried across in canoes. Inflated skinswere then fastened to the waggons, and these also were towed across