DISMISSED ON THE SPOT. 53 



he was on the big chestnut, but no wagon was in sight. 

 Soon we met ; and what a series of misfortunes had 

 happened ! First, a bridge had broken through with the 

 wagon's weight ; next the dissel-boom had smashed, 

 then the treck-tow ; but, worse than all, the oxen had 

 ultimately turned rusty, and refused to pull. 



There and then I wished to go back, to see whether 

 I could prevent any further casualties, but he insisted 

 that we should both return to Howick, for the 

 wagon would be there to-morrow, as he had made 

 arrangements for a regular teamster to tow it up the 

 town hill. 



But on the morrow no wagon came, no message, 

 no nothing ; so I took the big horse a most footless, 

 dangerous brute and turned back once more to Maritz- 

 burg. How it poured till I reached my destination 

 I never shall forget, and Heed Spruit was flooded 

 almost to my horse's withers ; still I was determined 

 to get to the wagon if in human power to do so. 



At one o'clock I reached it : inside Holly was 

 drunk, incapably drunk, the cattle scattered all over 

 the place, the poor boys he had hired without food, the 

 dissel-boom unmended, and worst, though not least, the 

 Basuto pony left in his charge broken-kneed, the skin 

 off its hips, and cut in several places over the head. 



This was too much to stand : the cup of my misery 

 was too full ; so that we might henceforward be sub- 

 jected to no more misfortunes produced by his careless- 

 ness, the delinquent must feel my wrath. 



The last I saw of the cause of all this misery was a 

 crestfallen and very much in his own idea injured man, 

 on foot, tramping it to town, not whistling or singing 

 " the Eed, White, and Blue." 



