Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1890-03-06
expeIlent wagon road.

an excellent wagon road, on
which we now found ourselves,
that wound up from terrace
to terrace, my eye lit upon the crowning
wonder Of the scene. For in the center
Of the topmost platform or terrace.
which may have inolosed eight or ten
acres Of ground, and almost surrounded
by groves Of orange trees, CLEANED
buildings of which had never seen the
like. There were three groups Of them,
one In the middle and one on either
side, and a little to the rear, but, as
afterwards discovered the plan of all
was the same. In the center was an edi-
fee constructed like an ordinary Zulu
hut-that is to say, in the shape OF a
beehive, only 1t was five times the size
of any hut 1 ever saw, and built of blocks
of hewn white marble, fitted together
with extraordinary knowledge Of the
principles and properties Of arch build
ing, and with SO much accuracy and fin
ish that 1t was often difficult TO find the
fronts Of the massive blocks. From this
center hut ran three covered passages
leading to other buildings Of an exactly
similar character, only smaller, and each
whole block was inclosed by marble
wall about four feet in height.
OF course we were as yet too far of to
see all these details, but the general
outline I saw at once, and it astonished
me considerably. Even old Indsba-zim-
| bi, whom the baboon-woman had been
unable to move, deigned to show won
der.
"Ohi" he said; ''this Is place Of mar
wells. Who ever saw kraals built Of
white stone2"
Stella watched our faces with An ex-
preston of intense amusement, but
said nothing.
''Did your father build those kraals7"
gasped at length.
"My fatherl no, of course not" she
answered. "How would it have been
possible for one white man to do so, or
to have made this road2 He found them
as you see."
''Who built them, then2" said again.
81 do not know. Ny father thinks
that they are very ancient for the
people who live here now do not know
how to lay one stone upon another, and
these huts are so wonderfully con-
structed that though they must have
stood for ages, not stone Of them has
fallen. But 1 can show you the quarry
where the marble was cut; it is close
by, and behind it is the entrance to an
ancient mine, which my father thinks
was a silver mine. Perhaps the people
who worked the mine built the marble
huts. The world is old, and no doubt
plenty of people have lived in it and
been forgotten"
Then we rode on in silence. l have
seen many beautiful sights in Africa,
and in such matters, as in others, COM
parsons are odious and worthless, but
1 do not think that 1 ever saw love-
lier scene. 1t was no one thing-it was
the combination of the mighty peak
looking forth on the everlasting plains,
the great cliffs, the waterfalls that
sparkled in rainbow hues, the rivers
girdling the rich, cultivated lands, the
gold-specked green of the orange trees,
the flashing domes of the marble huts
and a thousand other things. Then
over all brooded the peace OF evening,
and the infinite glory Of the sunset that
filed heaven with changing hues OF
splendor, that wrapped the mountain
and cliffs in cloaks of purple and of gold
and lay upon the quiet face of the water
like the smile of god.
Perhaps also the contrast and the
memory of those three awful days and
nights in the hopeless desert enhanced
the charm, and perhaps the beauty OF
the girl who walked beside me COM
pleted it. For of this 1 am sure, that
Of all sweet and lovely things that /
looked on then, she was the sweetest
and the loveliest All, it did not take
no long to find my fate. How long will
it be before l find her once again2