TRECKINO BY NIGHT. 385 



judge him harshly ; he knows but a few words of 

 English, and might possibly have misunderstood some- 

 thing I have said or done ; even with that excuse I 

 never thought to see him stand by inert and indisposed 

 to interfere when my life was threatened. I would not 

 have served him so though the odds had beenatribeto one. 



That night all the Massara bushmen came up and 

 camped beside my people ; there was meat and to spare 

 for all, so they made a night of it, and lullaloed to their 

 hearts' content. As no wild animal would approach 

 while such a turmoil was taking place, I turned in early, 

 took a heavy dose of quinine and chloral, and slept all 

 night. In the morning I awoke refreshed, and felt 

 almost myself again. 



Again at the time appointed no cattle were forth- 

 coming ; I jumped on the mare and went to seek them, 

 and the sun was only an hour high when I discovered 

 them feeding in a ravine. Without more ado I drove 

 them up. Yet they must be watered before going into 

 the yoke, and that was a matter of time, when each 

 animal had to be served separately, and from a pit 

 thirty feet deep. The sun had gone down, it was what 

 we call in Scotland " daylight gone/' when the beasts 

 were brought to the wagon. There was nothing for it 

 but to yoke. I saw each ox put in his place, gave the 

 order to treck, handed the mare to Umganey, and 

 taking a lantern in my hand, led the way through 

 ivory needle thorn and mapaney brush directly towards 

 the southern cross. 



Slowly, certainly, and, I may add, sadly, I struggled 

 forward for five long hours till the brush gave place to 

 open velt. From the stars I judged it to be midnight 

 when we outspanned. 



