Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1884-03-06

l
passing train, crashed suddenly out of
the nearest thicket, and scampered away,
the delight of the little people knew no
bounds.
"Put on steam, Sam, and run her over
it at twenty miles an hour
Turning around to see what had oc-
casioned this order, found that we were
rapidly approaching a bridge. had
barely time to wonder whether this extra
speed was meant to please the passengers
or to lesson the chance of the bridge
breaking down under US, when found
myself hanging in mid-air over vast
black chasm, through whose jagged
rocks foaming waterfall (now dried up
to the last drop had gone rushing and
roaring only few months before.
But the bridge stood the test bravely,
and in another moment we were skim
ming over the dusty fiat beyond, in the
midst of which rose dozen great mounds
of red clay, very much like overgrown
ant-hills. Indeed, it would be hardly
fair to call them ''overgrown,n for in
Central Africa and South America one
often sees ant-hills as big as a small hay
stack.
Each of these mounds had hole in
one side close to the ground, and the
black bony creatures that came crawling
out might well have passed for monster
ants, had any such existed. But they
were not ants; they were Caffre children,
and these queer clay heaps were really
Caffre houses, or kraals, as they
are called here. At the sight of
the train the little savages raised shrill
shout, and tried to run alongside of it
to the great delight of the children in the
cars, who shouted back at them, and
threw them biscuits and fruit from the
windows.
On went the train through the dust
and glare, while as the bare plain fell
behind, and the clump of bush grew
thicker, swarrns of flies came buzzing
through every window, until all the cars
were filled with waving handkerchiefs
and slapping hands, trying in vain to
beat them off.
Little by little the surrounding coun-
try got higher and bolder, the barren
plain gave place to succession of steep
rocky ridges dotted with dark green
clumps of thorny undergrowth, and al
ready we could see plainly the great pur-
pie mass of the Zwartberg, from which
the town whittier we were bound took
its name. We were almost there now,
for the town itself lay just at the other
end of deep, gloomy gorge in the
mountain side, shut in on either hand by
vast masses Of crumbling rock. A few
moments more and our train was at the
entrance of the gulley, and went rattling
and screaming in.
As we entered, everything seemed to
grow dark around us, and the very air
felt chill as grave, after the hot, cloud
less glare of the unsheltered plain. All
was deadly still save the hoarse shrek
of some passing bird of prey up among
the huge gray precipices that overhung
us on either side Even the light
hearted excursionists seemed to feel the
dismal influence of the place, and their
merry talk died away by degrees into
dreary silence.
We had gone about mile up the
gorge, when all at once I saw the engi-
neer's bold brown face harden suddenly
like frozen clay. He sprang forward
and screamed rather than shouted to the
engine-driver.
Full steam, sam-it's our only
chancen
The words were hardly uttered when
a strange dull rumble was heard far away
up among the rocks. Awide cleft yawned
suddenly in the mountain side, broaden
ing every moment, and disgorging tor
rent of dust and gravel. Then came
deafening crash, through which
were plainly heard the shrieks of the
terrified women and children, and an
enormous mass of clay slate, many tons in
weight, came laundering down the slope,
just missing the train by few feet.
How we got through that valley none
Of US could ever have told. 1t was all
ike troubled dream-the train rushing
along at its utmost speed; the once merry
passengers screaming and crying in their
agony as rock after rock came thunder
ing down; the driver and his mates,
standing at their posts with clenched
teeth and set, stern faces, knowing that
at any moment tumbled rock might
break or block the line, and leave them
at the mercy Of this cannonade of falling
mountains.
Away we went, through whirlwind
of flying dust, and leaping powders, and
stunning uproar, running the gauntlet of
bombardment, one shot of which would
have sunk line of battle ship, for the
higher crags, loosened by the rain, were
giving way on every side. Blinded by
the dust, deafened with the din, we saw
nothing and felt nothing until our head
long train darted between two vast over
hanging cliffs, and right before US, in
the hollow of quiet little green valley,
lay the low white houses and single spire
of Zwartberg-
Thank Godl'' said the engineer, sol
ernnly; and his thanksgiving found an
echo in the heart of every one who heard