THE STORY OF VAN ZYL 
345 
regular wagon route until well beyond a possibility of being 
overtaken by the Baros, he mounted his best horse and, leading 
another, rode quietly into the ambush that had been prepared 
for him. With natural ’cuteness the chief in charge kept his 
intentions to himself, waiting to take action when the expected 
wagons arrived. He therefore entertained the wily Yan Zyl, 
who casually mentioned that he had ridden ahead of the 
caravan, as he was tired of the incessant whip-cracking neces¬ 
sary to drive the oxen along through the heavy sand, but that 
he expected the wagons to be there in a day or two. When 
two days were past, he expressed no anxiety at the non-appear¬ 
ance of the wagons, simply saying that they were very heavily 
laden, and must have stuck a bit in the sand, and by his uncon¬ 
cerned behaviour allayed any suspicions the natives might have 
had. When the natives became restless on the third day, he 
said that he could not understand where the wagons were, and 
if they did not arrive by noon the following day he must go 
and see what was the matter. Next day he dragged affairs out 
as long as possible, and then, pretending to be annoyed at the 
delay of his wagons, rode off, with the cheery assurance that 
in the morning he would be back with his ivory, and that he 
would give his drivers a something hot to remind them of their 
indolence, probably brought about by overfeeding on too much 
elephant meat. Then he rode off, with a clear four days’ start, 
for his wagons, and following on the tracks overtook them at a 
place far beyond the reach of pursuit, where they were resting 
to recruit the exhausted cattle. His personal prowess and 
dreaded nationality—Boer—secured him a free pass through 
the Namakwa country, and he proceeded to Walfish Bay, where 
he sold the ivory to great advantage, and then returned to the 
lake, where he took up his old quarters near the Queebe hills, 
as if nothing had happened. 
The natives looked on at this with queer sensations, not 
quite understanding the coolness of Van Zyl’s move. But as 
no one took the initiative against him, and nothing was said, 
the affair blew over. 
