The Iola register., 1890-10-31
THE STRANGE STORY
Allan guatermain'SW Wife
BY IA. RIDER HAGGARD.
AUTHOR OF "SHE," "KISa SoLoNoN's
MINES" JESS" "CLEo-
PATRA," ETC.
By IA. RIDER HAGGARD,
AN AFRICAN ROMANCE.
CHAPTER vIn-coNr1NUED.

CHAPTER VIII-CoNTINUED.
She was very simply dressed in loose
blue dress, with wide collar, and CIR
died in at the waist by little leather
belt. In the bosom of her robe was
bunch of orange blooms, and her rip
pling hair was tied in single knot be-
hind her shapely head. She greeted me
with smile, asking me how had slept,
and then held Tota up for me to kiss
Under her loving care the child had
been quite transformed. She was neatly
dressed in garment of tho same blue
stuff that stella wore, her fair hair was
brushed; indeed, had it not been for the
sunblisters on her face and hands one
would scarcely have believed that this
was the same child whom Indaba-zimbi
and / had dragged for hour after hour
through the burning, wateriess desert.
'Wemust breakfast alone, Mr.. Allan, ="
she said; ''my father is so upset by your
arrival that he will not get up yet Oh,
you can not tell how thankful / am that
YOU have come. / have been so anxious
about him of late. He grows weaker
and weaker; it seems to me as though
the strength were ebbing away from
him. Now he scarcely leaves the kraal;
1 have TO manage every thing about the
farm, and he does nothing but read and
think. .-a...-s----.
Just then Hendrika entered, bearing a
Jug of coffee in one hand and of milk
in the other, which she sat down under
the table, casting look of little love at
me as she did 50. 90,
BE careful, Hendrika; you are spill
ing the coffee, said Stella. Don't you
wonder how we come to have coffee
here, Mr.. Allan? 1 will tell you've
grow it. That was my idea. Oh, have
lots of things to show you. You don't
know what we have managed to do in the
time that We have been here. You see
we have plenty of labor, for the people
about look upon my father as their chief. y
"Yes," 1 said, ''but how do you get all
of these Iuxuries of civilization" and
pointed to the books, the crockery and
the knives and forks.
''Very simply. Most of the books my
father brought with him when we first
trekked into the wilds; there was nearly
wagon-lead of them. But every three
years we have sent an expedition of
these wagons right down to Port Natal.
The wagons are loaded with ivory and
other goods, and come back with all
kinds Of shings that have been sent out
from England for US. You see, although
we live in this wild place. we are not
altogether cut off. We can send runners
to Natal and back in three months, and
the wagons get there and back in year.
The last lot arrived quite safe about
three months ago. Our servants are
very faithful and some of them speak
Dutch we'll"
"Have you ever been with the wagons?'
] asked. .. .-a.
''Since I was a child have never been
more than thirty miles from Babyan's
Peak" she answered. "Do you know,
Mr.. Allan, that you are, with one excep-
ton, the first Englishman that have
known out of a book. Isuppose that must
seem very wild and savage to you, but i
have had one advantage, good educa.
ton. Ny father has Taught me every
thing, and perhaps l know some things
that you don't. l can read French and
German, for instance. think that my
fathers first idea was to let me run wild
altogether, but he gave it up"
''And don't you wish to go into the
world?'' / asked. '....
sometimes" she said, when I get
lonely. But perhaps my father is right
der me. At any rate he would never re-
turn to civilization. 1t is his idea, you
know, though am sure l do not know
where he got it from, nor why he can
not bear that our name should be spoken.
In short, Mr.. Quatermain, we do not
mako our lives, we must take them as
we find them. Have you done your
breakfast? Let us go out and I will
show you our domain
II rose and went to my sieeping-place
to fetch my hat. When [ returned Mr..
Carson-for after all that was his na,ae,
though he would never allow it to be
spoken-had come into the hut He felt
better now, be said, and would accom-
pany us on our walk if Stella would give
him an arm. i
So we started, and after US came Hen
drika with Tota and old Indaba-zimbi,
whom found sitting outside as fresh as
paint, Nothing could tire that old man.
The view from the platform was al
most as beautiful as that from the lower
ground looking up to the peak. The
marble kraals, as l have said, faced
west, consequently all the upper terrace
lay in the shadow of the great peak till
nearly eleven o'clock in the morning,
which was a great advantage in that
warm latitude. First We walked through
the garden, which was beautifully culti-
waited, and one of the most productive
that ever saw. There were three or
four natives working in it, and they all
salured my host as "Baba," or father.
Then we visited the other two groups
of marble huts. One of these was used
for stables and outbuildings, the other
as storehouses, the center hut having
been, however, turned into a chapel
Mr.. Carson was not ordained, but he
earnestly tried to convert the natives,
most of whom were refugees who had
come TO him for shelter, and he prac-
ced the more elementary rites of the
church for so long that think he began
to believe that he really WAS clergy
man. For instance, he always married
those of his people who would consent
to homogeneous existence and bap-
tized their children When we had ex-
amined these wonderful remains of an
tiquity, the marble huts, and admired
the orange trees, the vines and fruits
which thrive like weeds in this marvel
Gus soil and climate, we descended to
the next platform and saw the farming
operations in full swing. think that
1t was the best farm have ever seen in