33^ UONOLUSIOK. 



" At this time Lydia, old Lucas' wife, was floating on a mat about 30 

 yards from me, the only one that was left. She now commenced smgmg 

 the hvmn, ' Jezus neemt de zondaars aan /' Jesus recei-veth smners ; and when 

 she had sung it through, exclaiming " Great God ! " she laid her head 

 down upon the mat as upon a pillow— and sunk. After I had reached the 

 roof, I saw that Smit had just reached the thorns (about 600 yards), and 

 Hendrik and William, his brothers, were following about 200 yards behmd 

 him. Smit called out the names of his brothers, and urged them to come 

 on They replied that they were coming. I then lost sight of Smit m the 

 thorns, and Hendrik and William soon after. I never heard them call 

 throughout the day. I had heard the hammering in the mommg, and 1 

 felt that they were doing something for us, but saw nothing of the rafts. 

 We were very numb from cold ; and, being resolved to abide by the roof, 

 even though it should go out to sea, I set about pulling out the thatch and 

 erecting a shelter against the rain and cold, under which the children might 

 creep, while I covered myself with a calfskin. We found some oranges and 

 meal. We ate the oranges but kept the meal. Our roof had now drifted fast 

 against the thorn trees. I continued calling for help throughout the whole 

 day, and told the children to do so when I was tired. I felt it must be a 

 boat you were making, as it took so long a time to make, for I heard the 

 hammering. The time passed by very heavily, but in the evening I heard, 

 in answer to one of our cries — 'Yes, help is now on the way to you.' I 

 then fell asleep, and was awoke by the call of Philip Bonnan and Daniel 

 Lucas, coming to our help. They came alongside after a little while, and 

 I wept with excitement at my deliverance. I thought as I sat upon that 

 roof of Noah saved in the ark ; but felt it was not because I was a righteous 

 man like Noah that God had saved me. I wondere;! why I had been saved 

 and others better than myself allowed to perish. I felt that God was send- 

 ing me like a letter to announce the circumstances in which the rest had 

 died, and I wonder still that the strong swimmers should have been taken, 

 and us, who were no swimmers, left." 



The following account is given by Mr Philip of the next day's sequel to 

 these saddening events ; — 



" Oct. 3. When I rose this morning the first thing I observed was the 

 garden ground almost clear of water, and people walking in the valley which 

 had yesterday been one flood of water. In the distance the Gamtoos river 

 was still high ; but subsiding rapidly. The bodies of the three Smits had 

 been found not far from one another, just where the people fancied they had 

 seen them — quite dead. 



In the course of the morning nine other bodies were found. Five or six 

 were lying close together on the knoll, and bringing our boat down upon a 

 waggon, we fetched them through. In the afternoon they were carried to 

 a grave on the side of a hill behind our house, and, wrapped in shrouds, — 

 twelve corpses at one burial, to be laid side by side in one grave. A number 

 of people from the other side of the river took advantage of the boat and 

 came to the funeral, so that when the bell had tolled and we commenced the 

 service a good number were present. It was God that was speaking, and 

 man's words were to be few, that he might the rather hear. Two had been 

 members of our church. Beginning with prayer, I then read the 39th 

 Psalm, and attempted to impress upon the hearers the utter vanity of 

 all mortal things, and the repose of the soul upon God as the only 

 imperishable possession. There was much stifled sobbing and weeping ; 



