52 THE MONKEYFOLK OF SOUTH AFRICA 



over with his three sons after dark to-morrow night — 

 mind you don't let him come till after dark. You can 

 accompany him. You won't mind, I know, for you are 

 always sneaking off, anyhow, on all kinds of excuses, to see 

 his strapping lass, Sannie." 



" Early to-morrow morning tell Jan to saddle up the 

 three horses, and bring them round to the stoep at the 

 usual time. 



"Tell Betta, Marie, and Esther I want them to dress 

 in suits of our clothes to-morrow morning, and mount the 

 horses and ride away, just as we always do. Dig a pit 

 to-night and cover it with branches and grass. Two of 

 us will hide in it to-morrow morning. The rest of us will 

 dress up in the women's clothes and go out at the usual 

 time and pretend to busy ourselves picking fruit and 

 preparing it. Get out all our guns, load them each with 

 a double charge of powder, and put in plenty of loopers 

 and slugs, and lay them down in the orchard, close to 

 where we shall be picking fruit, so as to be handy to pick 

 up when those artful Baviaans come along." Then the 

 old man gave a huge chuckle, drank his coffee, knocked the 

 ashes out of his mealie-cob pipe, and went to bed. 



You all know how that villainous plot worked. 



ADAM AND EVE 



My home used to be a huge krantz overlooking the 

 Valley of Desolation, near Graaff Reinet, in Cape Colony. 



You see, the farmer people of those parts grow delicious 

 fruit, and especially grapes. These grapes tasted nicer 

 than what you call nectar. Then there were mealies, 

 melons, pumpkins, and lots of other things which the 

 farmerfolk grow on their farms. We baboonfolk are a great 

 trouble to those farmers. We have the same weakness 

 which you humanfolk are cursed with. That is, we hanker 



