246 APPENDIX. 
villain Barends, who had just effected his escape from the 
country of Masilikatsie. The lad looked dreadfully emaci- 
ated, and had suffered incredibly from hunger and thirst. 
His horse was also completely knocked up. He told us 
that he had been separated from his father, and the rest of © 
the gang, the same night that they attacked Masilikatsie’s 
eattle-kraal, and he had never seen or heard any thing of 
them since. How he escaped appears to be a miracle, as 
he informed us that a large commando, in addition te the 
one that attacked us, had been sent out after them, and they 
_ were now following up the traces of our waggons, as we had 
entered the country, doubtless, with the intention of dis- 
covering the place whence we came, which in all probabi- 
lity would lead them to attack some of the kraals about 
Poccana or Towné. 
The sun was now set, and it was time for us to march. 
We wished the Griquas a prosperous journey, and Saver, 
myself and the three Hottentots commenced our dreary task. 
We had but just emerged from a bushy height which bounds 
the Great Chue on the west, when we were overtaken by 
one of the most terrible thunder-storms that ever poor sin- 
ners were out in. Wewere on an immense naked plain, 
the complete counterpart to that we had suffered so much 
on in the former part of the day from heat and thirst, but 
we pushed on in hopes of soon finding a bush to shelter 
ourselves under. ‘The vivid flashes of lightning, which fol- 
lowed one another in quick succession, showed us something 
on the verge of the horizon, that appeared to be a thick 
bush, and to it we hurried with all speed, but found that, 
like the mirage in the morning, it had vanished at our 
approach, for it was nothing more than some low scrubby 
thorns not above six inches in height; which, on account of 
the darkness of the colour compared to the grassy plains, 
