96 MELTON AND HOMESPUN 



Notwithstanding his haggard, unkempt, and scarecrow- 

 like appearance, this strange man spoke like a cultured 

 and educated person, and the sad, far-away expression 

 of his world-weary face touched poor old Jack, who, as 

 you fellows know, was as soft-hearted as a woman. 



" Having briefly explained the object of his mission, 

 Mortimore handed his saddle-flask to the stranger who, 

 after taking a long pull at the dop, remarked that he 

 believed he could obtain the required mules from a 

 neighbouring Dutchman if Jack would spend the night 

 at his hut and accept what poor hospitality he was able 

 to offer him. Delighted at the prospect of getting our 

 crippled wagons once more under way, and if the truth 

 were known, not a little curious regarding the history 

 of the ' dead beat ' Samaritan, Jack willingly accepted 

 the proffered hospitality. 



' You will find my cabin at the foot of the kopje/ 

 said the stranger, as he pointed towards a rugged thorn- 

 clothed hill that towered high and gaunt amidst the vast, 

 verdureless waste. ' Go in and rest, and tell Boo win, 

 my Kafir servant, to make you some coffee ' ; adding with 

 a soulless smile : * That is the best fare I can offer you 

 until my return, when I hope to bring in a brace of koorhaan 

 or pink-bill teal for supper/ 



" A twenty minutes' canter took Jack to the kopje, 

 where he off-saddled, knee-haltered, and turned loose 

 his pony to pick up what scanty herbage it might be able 

 to find on the sun-scorched veld. For some little time 

 not a sign of a habitation could he see among the huge 

 boulders and outcrops of quartz which lay scattered round 

 the base of the hill. At length a thin spiral of blue smoke, 

 ascending, apparently, from the midst of a clump of those 



