Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1890-01-25

you hear how Bh9 talks. Also, she Is
very savage, and when she Is angry or
Jealous she seems 70 go mad, though abe
Is rs clever as anybody. Think that she
must have been stolen by the balloons
when she was quite tiny and nurturcd
by them. and that is why she IL 80 like
them. ~
"But to go on. MY father said that 1t
was our duty to keep Hendrika at any
cost. The worst Of It was that for three
days she would eat nothing, and
thought that she would die, for all the
while she sat and walled. On the third
day. however, ! went to the bars Of the
window place and held out cup os milk
and some fruit to her. She looked at 10
Tor long while, then crept up moan
ing, took the milk Ffrom my hand and
drank Il grsedily. and afterwards ate the
tuit. From that time forward she took
.ood readily enough, but only II I would
ICED her. Bus I must tell you OF the
dreadful end Of Hendrix. From the
day that we captured Hendrika the
whole place began tolswarm with ba-
boons which were evidently employed In
watching the kraals. One day Hendrix
went out towards the hills alone to
gather some medicine. He did not come
back again, 80 next day search was
made. BY big rock which I can show
you they found his scattered and broken
bones, the fragments Of his assegai and
four dead balloons. They had set upon
him and torn him to pieces.
my father was very much frightened
at this, but still he would not let Hem
drika go, because he said that she was
human, and that 1t was our duty to re-
claim her. And so we did-to a certain
extent, at least. After the murder Of
Hendrix the balloons vanished from the
neighborhood, and have only returned
quite recently, 80 at length we ventured
to let Hendrika out. By this time she
had grown very fond of me; still on the
first opportunity she ran away. But in
the evening she returned again. She
had been seeking the balloons, and could
not find them. Shortly afterwards she
began to speak, taught her-and from
that time she has loved me SO that she
will not leave me. think it would kill
her IL I went away from her. She
watches me all day, and at night sleeps
on the floor of my hut. Once, too, she
saved my life when ] was swept down
the river in flood; but she is jealous, and
hates everybody else. Look how she lie
glaring at you now because am talking
to you'll"
/ looked. Hendrika was tramping
along with the child in her arms and
staring at me in most sinister fashion
out of the corners of her eyes.
While was rejecting ON the baboon
woman's strange story, and thinking
that she was an exceedingly awkward
customer, the path took sudden turn.
"Lookl" said Stella, ''there Is our
house. Is it not beautiful"
1t was beautiful indeed. Here ON the
western side of the great peak o bay had
been formed in the mountain, which
might have measured eight hundred or q
thousand yards across by three-Q quarters
OF a mile in depth. At the back of the
indentation the sheer cliff rose to the
height of several hundred feet, and be
hind it and above it the great Babyan
peak lowered up towards the heavens.
The space of ground, embraced thus In
the arms Of the mountain, as 1t were,
was laid out, as though by the cunning
hand Of man, in three terraces that rose
one above the other. To the right and
left of the topmost terrace were chasms
In the cliff, and from each chasm fell O
waterfall, from no great height, indeed.
but Of considerable volume. These two
streams flowed away on either side OF
the inclosed space, one toward the north,
and the other, the course Of which we
had been following, round the base Of the
mountain. At each terrace they made q
cascade. so that the traveller approaching
had a view of eight waterfalls at once.
Along the edge Of the stream to our left
were placed Kaffir kraals, built In order.
ly groups with verandas, after the Ba-
sutu fashion, and a very large part of the
entire space OF land was under cultiva-
ton. All of this noted at once, as well
as the extraordinary richness and depth
Of the soil, which for many ages past had
been washed down from the mountain
heights. Then following the line Of ar
excellent wagon road, on which we now
rro M coyTIytTED.1