Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-12-07
"OOm Piet'S Fort"
AN INCIDENT or BOER LIFE IN THE 7RANSYAAL
BY p. Y. BLACK.

y
man bet ween Is and 80 in the district
was calle to take his horse, his ''bil-
tong" or dried beef ration, his rife
and ammunition and proceed at once
to the rendezvous, thence to proceed
against the fierce aud warlike Zulus,
who had again raided the Transvaal
Farme. Putter sa ldled up and hurried
of, as his first duty was, but first he
called to him Piet, his son, and SOL
emnly spoke to him.
Son of mine" said the fsrmer-sol-
dier, ''you are not yet man tall enough
to face the Zulu impis in open field,
but to your care / give mein vroaw
and your little sister Greta and Pre-
torius. your brother. You must, if
need be, play mans part, for, since
the two gold prospectors left the farm
at the sign OF war, there is none to
take command of the Kasfir servants
but you.'
Then Piet said without bravado:
"You may trust, my father, for,
though I be not man, still I am
Boer"
So the farmer rode away, and Plet,
thus promoted to command, withdrew
into the sitting room, aud almost at
once his troubles began. His first care
was to clean and load all firearms.
These hung on the walls, and some
were old-fashioned and without am
muniton to fit them. But Piet's eye,
seeking his own pet light rife, which
he had won in a shooting match against
all boys of his age for many miles
round, missed it. He was startled,
for it is almost criminal to meddle
with another mans glory-his rifle,
and he sought Pretorius to see if that
ambitious youth had taken it down.
Pretorius had it not, and Piet ran out
to call Malula, native servant, with
sudden fear in his soul. Malula did
not come at the call, and Piet, with
pale face, thought for a momen', and
then, taking his old gun and belt,
leaped bareback on horse, without
word to alarm the family, and rode
off unseen at gsllop. He rode to
the cornfield, where the native labor
ers should have been working. The
green corn waved in the wind deserted.
Not man was in sight. He dashed
to the meadows down the valley,
where the herders should have been
with the cattle. Here, in spite Of him
self, tears sprang to his eyes, for the
cattle were gone, and the herders
were absent. The great grassy fields
we're silent as were those of corn.
''They have deserted US, as soon as
my fathers back was turned" cried
Piet in dismay. ''And they were not
Zulus! Can it be general rising
among the KaAir tribes"
At that thought he trembled, but he
had still vigor enough to ride to the
top of kopje near by. From the
peak he had view of much country,
and saw cloud of dust far away, W hich
he guessed wa, ma lie by the olen
cattle.
"Never mind" said Pies, eff we
beat the Zulus we shall get them back
with interest"
Then he dug his heels into his
horses ribs and dashed down the
hillside. He had seen, half mile
away, black figure moving swiftly
across the veldt, and the sun glanced
from something borne on his shoulder
"a gun, Malula. Before the traitor
servant was aware of pursuit, Piet
was within 400 yards of him. Then
the Kaffir heard the horses hoofs and
turned. For moment the black
seemed inclined to run, but changed
his mind as the boy shouted to him
angrily. Malula deliberately raised
the stolen rife to his shoulder. Piet
threw himself from tho horse, as bull
let whistled over the vacant saddle.
The boy, already hunter, replied,
with but hasty glance through his
sights, and Malula uttered howl and
staggered and fell to the ground struck
in the chest. Piet felt spasm Of
horror. Deer a-plenty had he shot,
but never till now man, so that his
heart for fash stood still, and his
own face was deathlike. He TO lie
slowly up to Malula, and found the
Kaffir writhing in death agony. Piet
again dismounted and attempted to
offer aid, but the savage repulsed him.
With look of hate he glared at the
boy, and cried in his own tongue:
81 am one, but tonight cone the
Zulu, and no white thing on the farm
shall live For mine there shall be ten
Deaths"
So he died, glorying in the hope of
aspeedy revenge, and the Boer boy,
leaving him, recovered his new rifle
and rode slowly and mournfully home
ward. Here his troubled mother met
him.
''Piet," she sail, 'the Kafirs have
left us.
II know" said he. and looked into
her brave face, and told her what had
happened and what Malula had said
of the nearness of the Zu.us.
''If my father had known it," said
her son, ''he would not have left us"
He was commandeered, said the
Boer wife. 1T was his duty. Country
frst-always, my son."
But" said Piet, in much pertur-
baton, my father did not think the
blacks would fly. He thought that