WHOLESALE SLAUGHTER. 247 



in the delicate, half-supercilious way in which he re- 

 tained between his lips the most trifling hold of his 

 cigarette. 



His talking proclivities were not great, but when 

 the sound of the crack of a distant whip struck upon 

 both our ears he ejaculated : " One would almost 

 have supposed us far enough from civilisation not 

 to have our ears defiled by such a mark of it," 

 and so agreed I. 



On looking round, two wagons were observed in 

 sight, heavy-loaded, travel-stained, and much the worse 

 for wear and tear. Soon they drew up alongside of 

 ours, and a stalwart Boer descended from the fore- 

 chest of one to make our acquaintance. He was not 

 clean to look at, and he smelt offensively neither 

 objectionable state being uncommon among this 

 erratic race. But this was scarcely to be wondered at 

 in this instance, for his conveyances were loaded with 

 green hides skins of every kind of game known in 

 the neighbourhood. When will this wholesale slaugh- 

 ter of the ornaments of creation terminate ? Never, 

 till grasping, covetous man has destroyed all, for the 

 sake of the filthy lucre they get in return for their 

 skins. If the receiver of stolen property is as bad 



