The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1888-01-25

lation Of st. John, as now and again lifting
his fierce set face he gazed out along the road,
and pointed with his ak toward some distant
rise or house.
And so on, still on, without break or pause.
for hour after hour.
At last began TO feel that even the splen-
did animal that rode was beginning to give
out. looked at my watch; it was nearly
midnight, and we were considerably more
than half way. On the top Of a rise was
little spring, which remembered because I
had slept by 1t a few nights before, and here
/ motioned to Unslopogaas to pull up, having
determined TO give the horses and ourselves
ten minutes to breathe in. He did so, and we
dismounted-.that is to say, Umslopogaas did,
and then helped me of, for what with fatigue,
Stiffness and the pain of my wound I could
not do 50 for myself; and the gallant horses
stood painting there, resting first one leg and
then another, while the sweat fell drip, drip,
from them, ead the steam rose and hung in
pale clouds la the still night air.
Leaving Umsopogaas to hold the horses, I
hobbled to the spring and drank deep of its
sweet waters. had had nothing but "a single
mouthful Of wine since midday, when the
battle began, and was parched up, though
hungry. Then, having laved my fevered
head and hands, / returned and the Zulu
went and drank. Next we allowed the horses
to take "a couple Of mouthfuls each--no more
and oh, what "a struggle we had to get the
poor beasts away from the wateri There
were yet two minutes, and employed it in
hoboling up and down to try and relieve my
stiffness, and in inspecting the condition Of
hal Nu a,.s Al
she was, was evidently much distressed; she
hung her head and her eye looked sick and
dull; but Daylight, Nyleptha's glorious horse
who, If lie is served Alright, should like the
steeds who saved the great Rameses in his
need, feed for the rest Of his days out Of q
golden manger-was still, comparatively
speaking, perfectly fresh, notwithstanding
that he had had by far the heavier weight To
carry. He was tucked up" indeed, and his
legs were weary, but his eye was bright and
clear, and he held his shapely head up and
gazed out Into the darkness round him in
way that seemed to say that, whoever failed,
he was good for those Ave and forty miles
that yet lay between us and Milosis Thcu
Umslopogaas helped me into the saddle and
vigorous old savage that he wasi-vaulted
into his own without touching stirrup, and
",
horses got into their stride, and then more
swiftly. So we passed over another ten
miles, and then came a long, weary RTE of
some six or seven miles, and three times did
my poor black mare nearly come to the
ground with me- But on the top she seemed
TO gather herself together, and ratified down
the slope with long, convulsive strides,
breathing in gasps. We did that three OF
mil -,
had started on our wild ride, but felt il to
be last effort, and l was right. Suddenly
my poor horse took the bit between her teeth
and bolted curiously along a stretch of level
ground for some 800 or 400 yards, and then.
with two or three jerky strides, pulled her.
self up and fell with crash right ON to her
head, rolling myself freq IS she did So As
! struggled on to my feet the brave beast
raised her heal and looked at me with pitecus
blo~dshot eyes. and then her head dropped
with groan and she was dead. Her heart
was broken.
Umslopogaas pulled up beside the carcass,
and looked at him in dismay. There were
still more than twenty miles TO do by dawn,
and how were we TO do it with one horse! It
seemed hopeless, but had forgotten the old
Zulu's extraordinary running powers
saddle and began to hoist me into it.
what wilt thou dor l asked.
Rum he answered, seizing my stirrup
leather
Then of we went again, almost as fast as
before; and. oh. the relief it was to me to get
hat change Of horses! Anybody who has
sver ridden against time will know what it
meant.
Daylight sped along at a long stretching
hand gallop, giving the gaunt Zulu IA lit at
every stride. 1t was a wonderful thing TO
see old Umslopogaas run mile after mile, his
lips slightly parted and his nostrils agape like
the horses. Every five miles or SO we stopped
for a few minutes to let him get his breath,
ana then few on again.
@Canst thou go farther" said at the third
Of these stoppages, "or shall leave thee to
follow me,"
He pointed with his AK to a dim mass be-
fore u.s. 1t was the Temple of the Sun, now
not more than five miles away.
al reach it or die" he gasped.
Oh, that last five milesl The skin was
rubbed from the inside of my legs, and every
movement of my horse gave me anguish.
Nor was that all. was exhausted with toll,
want Of food and sleep, and also suffering
very much from the blow l had received
OH my left side; it seemed as though piece
Of bone or something was slowly piercing
into my lung. Poor Daylight, too, was pretty
nearly finished, and no wonder. But there
was a smell of dawn in the air, and we might
not stay; better that all three Of us should
die upon the road than that we should linger
while there was life in US. The air was thick
and heavy, as it sometimes is before the dawn
breaks, and-another infallible sign In GER
tain parts of Zu-Vendis that sunrise is at
hand-hundreds of little spiders pendent on
the end Of long tough webs were floating
about in IL. These early rising creatures, or
rather their webs, caught upon the horses
and our own forms by scores, and as we had
neither the time nor the energy to brush them
Off, we rushed along covered with hundreds
Of long gray threads that streamed out a yard
or more behind us-and very strange APP
pearance they must have given us.
And now before us are the huge brazen
gates of the outer wall of the Browning City.
and new and horrible doubt strikes me:
What If they will not let US inf
"Open openl" shout imIeriously, at the
same time giving theroyalpassword. "Open!
openl messenger, a messenger with tidings
of the warl"
"What newsi" cried the guard. "And who
art thou that ridest so madlyi and who Is
that whose tongue Tolls out"-and 1t actually
did-'and who runs by thee like dog by q
chariot"
at is the Lord Macumazahn, and with him
Is his dog, his black dog. Openl openl !
bring tidings."
The great gates ran back on their rollers,
and the drawbridge fell with rafting crash,
and we dashed on through the one and over
the other
"What news, my lordi what newsi" cried
the guard.
"Incubu rolls Sorais back, as the wind
cloud" answered, and was gone.
One more effort, gallant horse, and yet
more gallant man!
So, fall not now, Daylight; and hold thy
life in thee for fifteen short minutes more, old
Zulu war dog, and ye shall both live forever
In the annals Of the land.
On, Gathering through the sleeping streets.
We Gre passing the Flower Temple now--one
mile more, only one little mile-hold ON, keep
your life in we, see the houses run past Of