The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1890-04-12

At last the sunset came, and we off
saddled in dell by the river. There
was not much to eat, but soaked some
biscuit in water for Tota, and Indaba-
zimbi and made scanty meal off bill
tong. When we had done took off
Tota's frock, wrapped her up in the
blanket near the fire we had made and
Lit pipe. sat there by the side of the
orphaned child. and from my heart
thanked Providence for saving her life
and mine from tho slaughter of that
day. What horrible experience it had
been! 1t seemed like nightmare to
look back upon. And yet it was sober
fact, one among those many tragedies
which dotted the paths of the emigrant
Beers with the bones Of men, women
and children. These horrors are almost
forgotten now; people living in Natal,
for instance, can scarcely realize that
some forty years ago 600 white people.
many of them women and children,
were thus massacred by the impis at
Dingaan. But it was so, and the name
of the district. Weenen, or the Place of
Weeping, will commemorate them for
ever.
Then fell to rejecting on the ex-
traordinary adroitness old Indaba-zimbi
had shown in saving my life. 1t ap-
peared that he himself had lived among
the Umtetwa Zulus in his earlier man.
hood, and was noted rain doctor and
witch finder. But when 1rChaka, Din
gaan's brother, ordered general massa-
ere of the witch finders he had fled south
and so saved his life. When he heard
therefore, that the regiment was an Um-
tetwa regiment, which, leaving their
wives and children, had broken away
from Zululand to escape the cruelties of
Dingaan, he, under pretense of spying
on them, took the bold course of going
straight up to the chief, Sususa, and ad-
dressing him as his brother, which he
was. The chief knew him at once, md
SO did thesoldiers, for his fame was still
great among them. Then he told him
his cock and bull story about my being
a white spirit, whose presence in the
lager would render it invincible, and
with the object of saving my life in the
slaughter which he knew must ensue,
agreed to charm me out of the laager
and deliver me into their keeping How
the plan worked has already been told;
it was risky one; still, but for it my
troubles would have been done with
these many days.
So 1 lay and thought with heart full
of gratitude, and as did so saw old In
daba-zimbi sitting by the fire and going
through some mysterious performances
with bones, which he produced from his
bag, and ashes mixed with water.
spoke to him and asked what he was
about. He replied that he was tracing
out the route that we should follow
felt inclined to answer "bosh, but re-.
membering the very remarkable in
stances which he had given Of his
prowess in occult matters, l held my
tongue. and taking little Tota into my
arms, worn out with toll and danger and
emotion, went to Sleep
lwoke just as the dawn was beginning
to flame across the sky in sheets Of prim.
rose and of gold, or rather it was little
Tota who woke me by kissing me as she
lay between sleep and waking, and call
ing mo "Papa." It wrung my heart to
hear her Igot up, washed and dressed
the child as best I could, and then we
breakfasted as we had supped, on biltong
and biscuit. Tota asked for milk, but !
had none to give her. Then we caught
the horses, and saddled mine.
"Well, Indaba-zimbi," l said, "now
what path do your bones point tor
straight north," he said. "The jour
ney will be hard, but in four days we
shall come to the kraal of a white man,
an Englishman, not Boer. His kraal
is in beautiful place, and there is a
great peak behind it where there are
many balloons"
looked at him. This is all nonsense,
[ndaba-zimbi," said. "Whoever heard
of an Englishman building house in
these wilds, and how do you know any
thing about it2 think that we had
better strike east towards Port Natal"
"As you like, Macumazahn, he an
swered, "but it will take us three months
journey to get to Port Natal, if we ever
get there, and the child will die on the
road. Say, Macumazahn, have my words
come true heretofore, or have they not?
Did not tell you not to hunt the ele-
plants on horseback? Did not tell you
to take one wagon with you instead of
two, as it is better to lose one than two?"
You told me all these things" Ian.
swered.
"And so tell you now to ride north,
Macumazahn, for there you will find
great happiness-yes, and great sorrow.
But no man should run awav from hap-
piness because Of sorrow AS you will,
as you willl'
Again looked at him. In his divina-
tions did not believe, but yet came to
the conclusion that he was speaking what
he knew to be the truth. 1t struck me
as possible that he might have heard of
some white man living like hermit
in the wilds, but preferring to keep up
his prophetic character would not say SO.
every well, Indaba-zimbi," l said;
"let us ride north"
Shortly after we started, the river we
had followed hitherto turned off in a
westerly direction. so we left it. All
that day we rode across rolling uplands,
and about an hour before sunset halted
at little stream which ran down from a
range of hills in front of us. By this
time was heartily tired of the biltong,
SO taking my elephant rife-for l had
nothing else-I left Tota with Indaba-
zimbi, and started to see if l could shoot
something. Oddly enough we had seen
no game all the day, nor did we see any
on the subsequent days. For some
mysterious reason they had tempo
rarily left the district. I crossed the
little streamlet in order to enter
the belt Of thorns which grew
upon the hillside beyond, for there l
hoped to find buck. As did so was
rather disturbed to see the spoor of two
lions in the soft, sandy edge of pool.
Breathing hope that they might not
still be in the neighborhood, went on
into the belt of scattered thorns. For a
long while hunted about without seeing
anything, except one dinker buck, which