Justice to a Black Man. 275 



him for want of alacrity in obeying the order to clear out of 

 the road. He said, however, that he intended to get October 

 severely punished for having dared to strike him. I pointed 

 out that as he was the aggressor, he could not blame the 

 Kafir for retaliating. To this he replied that it is an un- 

 pardonable offence for a ' nigger ' to return the blow of a 

 white man. I urged that Couper had fought ' The Ladies' 

 Pet,' and that Couper was as good a gentleman as he was. 

 He answered that * The Ladies' Pet ' was a West Indian 

 * nigger ' and not a Kafir, who could be admitted to no terms 

 of equality with white men in South Africa. The fat little 

 Jew, being an arrant coward, was loud in the threats of 

 vengeance which he uttered against any * nigger ' who dared 

 to turn on him whenever he choose to beat the black man 

 no matter whose servant he was. Such, my readers, is the 

 style of cad, who, assuming the garb of an Englishman, does 

 much to bring that honoured name into contempt among so- 

 called savages. I of course engaged the best lawyer I could 

 find to defend our servant, with whom we went to the police 

 court. The landrost (magistrate) heard the evidence of the 

 plaintiffs and the policeman, who, to our astonishment, swore 

 in the most unblushing manner that October, at the time of 

 the fray, was outrageously drunk, and had assaulted every- 

 one within reach. My wife, appearing for the defence, swore 

 that October was absolutely sober at the time in question, 

 and I corroborated her statement as regards his condition 

 half an hour after that ; and informed the magistrate that I 

 was ready to bring scores of witnesses who would give evi- 

 dence as to October being a remarkably civil and obliging 

 4 boy.' An Africander who had seen the scrimmage, and who 

 looked something like a half-caste cab-driver, now got into 

 the box. On being asked if he knew the complaining Eng- 

 lishman, he replied that he did, and very good reason he had 

 to do so ; for the gentleman was always damning, cursing 

 and threatening to strike every servant whom he met. And 

 then, after very drolly imitating the swagger and offensive 



