SECHEI^E'S BETTER. 1 07 



over which a number of Boers were firing. Her infant 

 began to cry, and, terrified lest this should attract the 

 attention of the men, the muzzles of whose guns appeared 

 at every discharge over her head, she took off her armlets, 

 as playthings to quiet the child. She brought Mr. Moffat 

 a letter, which tells its own tale ; nearly literally trans- 

 lated it was as follows : — 



" Friend of my heart's love, and of all the confidence 

 of my heart, I am Sechele ; I am undone by the Boers, 

 who attacked me, though I had no guilt with them. They 

 demanded that I should be in their kingdom, and I re- 

 fused ; they demanded that I should prevent the English 

 and Griquas from passing (northwards). I replied, These 

 are my friends, and I can prevent no one (of them). They 

 came on Saturday, and I besought them not to fight on 

 Sunday, and they assented. They began on Monday 

 morning at twilight, and fired with all their might, and 

 burned'the town with fire, and scattered us. They killed 

 sixty of my people, and captured women, and children, 

 and men. And the mother of Baleriling (a former wife 

 of Sechele) they also took prisoner. They took all the 

 cattle and all the goods of the Bakwains ; and the house 

 of Livingstone they plundered, taking away all his goods. 

 The number of waggons they had was eighty-five, and 

 a cannon ; and after they had stolen my own waggon 

 and that of Macabe, then the number of their waggons 

 (counting the cannon as one) was eighty-eight. All the 

 goods of the hunters (certain English gentlemen hunting 

 and exploring in the north) were burned in the town ; 

 and of the Boers were killed twenty-eight. Yes, my 

 beloved friend, now my wife goes to see the children, 

 and Kobus Hae will convey her to you. 



" I am, SECHEEE, 



" The Son of Mochoasele." 



_ This statement is in exact accordance with the account 

 given by the native teacher Mebalwe, and also that sent 

 by some of the Boers themselves to the public colonial 

 papers. The crime of cattle-stealing, of which we hear so 

 much near Caffr eland, was never alleged against these 

 people, and, if a single case had occurred when I was in 

 the country, I must have heard of it, and would at once 

 say so. But the only crime imputed in the papers 

 was that " Sechele was getting too saucy." The demand 



