The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-09-19

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HIS SHIELD TOUCHED THE ,IUZZLE OF ny
Impi upon your spoor and within two
miles Of the wagon. That know, for /
have just shot two of their sentries," and
I showed him my empty gun.
For a moment there was 3 silence of
establishment, and / saw the bronzed
faces of the men turn pale beneath their
tan, while one or two of the women gave
a little scream, and the children crept
to their sides.
Almighty" cried Hans, shat must
be the Umtetwa regiment that DingaRn
sent against the Basutus, but who could
not come at them because of the
marshes, and so were afraid to return to
Zululand and struck north to join
Mosilikasye."
''Laager up, Carries! Larger up for
your lives, and one of you jump on a
horse and drive in the cattle"
At that moment my own wagons came
up. Indaba-zimbi was sitting on the
box of the first wrapped in blanket.
I called him and told him the news.
"Ill tidings, Macumazahn," he said;
"there will be dead Beers about to-
morrow morning, but they will not at
tack till dawn, then they will wipe out
the lager so, and he passed his hand
before his mouth.
''Stop that croaking, you white-headed
crow" said, though knew that his
words were true. What chance had a
lager of ten wagons all told against at
least two thousand of the bravest saw
ages in the world?
'Macumazahn, will YOU take my
advice this timer" Indaba-zimbi said,
presently.
what is ito" I asked.
This. Leave your wagons here,
jump on that horse, and let US two run
for it as hard as We can go. The Zulus
won't follow us, they viii be looking
after the Beers"
81 won't leave the other white men,"
said; lit would be the act of coward.
If die, l die"
Very well, Macumazahn, then stay
and be killed" he answered, taking a
pinch of snuff.
Come, let US see about the wagons"
and we walked towards the lager.
Here every thing was in confusion.
However, i got hold of Hans Botha and
put it to him If it would not be best to
desert the wagons and make q run for
life.
slow can we do it?' he answered;
''two of the women are too fat to go a
mile, one is sick in childbed, and we
have only six horses among US. Be-
sides, if we did we should starye in the
desert. No, Heer Allen, we must fight
it out with the savages, aad God help
u.s.
''God help US, indeed. Think of the
children, Hans,"
81 can't bear to think he answered,
in a broken voice, looking at his own
little girl, sweet, curly-haired, blue
eyed child of six, named Tota, whom I
had often nursed as baby. ''Oh. Heer
Allan, your father, the Predicant, always
warned me against trekking north, and
[ never would listen to him because /
thought him a cursed Englishman; now
see ny folly. Heer Allan, If you can,
-ry to save my child from those black |
lewis il you live longer than do: or If
you can't save her, kill her. and he
,lasped my hand.
st hasn't come to that yet, Hans"
aid.
Then we set to work on the lager.
The wagons, of which, including my
:wo, there were ten, were drawn into |
he form OF a square and the disselboom !
If each securely dashed with reins to the |
of that in front of 1t. The |
wheels also were locked and the space |
'etween the ground and the bed-planks
# The ''wait-a-bit" thorn, that fortu-
lately grew near in considerable guam
tiles. In this way barrier was formed |
# no mean strength as against foe un-
'royided by firearms, places being left /
or the men to fire from. In little 1
yer an hour every thing was done that
ould be done and discussion arose as
" tuC uAopoSaA u TIC CdstIc, NulCus udQ
zen driven mp close to the camp. Some /
4 the Beers were anxious to get them
INTO the lager, small as it was, or at
east as many of them as it would hold.
argued strongly against this, pointing
ut that the brutes would probably be
eized with q panic as soon as the firing
cyan and trample the defenders of the
aager under foot. As an alternative
Ian suggested that some of the native
ervants should drive the herd along the
alley of the river till they reached a
r;endly tribe or some other place of
afety. Of course, If the Zulus saw
hem they would be taken, but the nat
re of the ground was favorable and it
as possible that they might escape IL
hey started at once. The proposition
as at once agreed to. and, what is more,
, was settled that one Dutchman and
lch of the women and children as could
,ayel should go with them. In half an
ours time twelve of them started with
ne natives, the Boer in charge and the
attle- Three OF my own men went with
he latter; the three others and Indsba-
Imbi stopped with me in the lager.
To BE coSrIxURD.l