368 KLOOF AND KARROO. 



could plainly notice. Stephen shouted, and with the 

 Kaffirs gave chase, but after a few minutes' running 

 the man suddenly vanished into the bushy scrub 

 that grew on the mountain-side, and no further 

 trace could be found, although the Kaffirs hunted 

 everywhere around. 



Meanwhile, Stephen turned for his dog, surprised 

 that the animal, usually so fierce and impetuous, 

 had not led the chase. To his utter astonishment, 

 " Tao " was close at his heels, his tail between his 

 legs, his hackles up, and with every symptom of 

 terror upon him. The thing was incomprehensible ; 

 the dog had never feared man or beast in his life 

 before ; and many a time and oft had faced, as they 

 turned at bay, the fierce and snarling lion, the 

 dangerous sable antelope with his scimitar-like horns, 

 and the wounded and screaming elephant. At 

 length, turning back, they entered the stable ; to 

 their surprise the door was locked, and on being 

 opened the horses as usual were loose, and in the 

 last extremity of fright. Nothing more could be 

 done that night. In the morning the Kaffirs and 

 Hottentots searched everywhere for spoor, but could 

 find no trace of the midnight marauder. Cupido, 

 indeed, shook his head, rolled his bloodshot-looking 

 eyes, and appeared to take the ocurrence as a 

 matter of course. 



Three mornings afterwards the two Kaffirs came 

 to Stephen, declared that they had seen on the 

 previous night the same dark figure just outside their 

 sleeping shed ; that the terrible appearance of the face 

 of this apparition, which they saw distinctly in the 

 moonlight, had made them utterly sick and terror 

 stricken ; that the thing was a thing of witchcraft. 



