MY NEW DRIVER MAKES HIMSELF FELT. 221 



of hair; a nose that looks as if the bridge had been 

 broken in during his childhood; legs that are so bowed 

 that any of my pack might pass between them without 

 destroying his equilibrium; while feet and hands that 

 looked as if they had been made for a giant orna- 

 mented his extremities. In spite of all these pecu- 

 liarities, he was inordinately vain, wore a bunch of 

 dazzling-coloured ribbons in his hat, a neck-tie of 

 gigantic size, pattern, and brilliancy, and walked as if 

 he were "the glass of fashion, the mould of form, the 

 observed of all observers," spoke as if his word were 

 law, and treated all the community with an air of hauteur 

 that was truly grand. 



I came in for some of this a good deal of it, in 

 fact, and more than I liked. It was evident he argued 

 with himself thus : " This man knows nothing : it is 

 extremely doubtful whether he could tell with certainty 

 an ox from a horse ; and as to driving cattle and 

 managing a wagon, he is as ignorant as the child un- 

 born." Now, I just knew sufficient of these matters to 

 think I knew a great deal, and by no means liked the 

 estimate placed on my knowledge. I am not guiltless 

 of the frailties of the human family very, very far from 

 it; and among my numerous weaknesses is, possibly, 

 the overrating of my abilities, certainly not the under- 

 valuing of them. 



My new driver found fault with everything : nothing 

 was right ; the leading cattle should be the after ones, 

 the after ones the leaders ; Poonah was no use, and 

 good old Swartland was a bad ox ; Umganey was a 

 duffer, and the monkey which had bitten him because 

 he had teased it was to be knocked on the head. 

 Well, we will see, thought I, when you get a few 



