Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-09

walled and wept and impored her husband
TO be less hasty. to be more merciful
That was asking the impossible. There
IRE three things which the od-time Boer
loves, and these three are placed in mex
changeable Order-hiS God, his country and
his home-that is, his family. AS his coun-
try would yield preference to his religion
if such case might occur. must his
child give place to his country To ask
him TO shelter Martha who had hurt the
TransVaalS cause. was to ask too much
from Dom Jan Therefore poor Tante lie
Kalb walled in vain. The broad-shouldar-
ed. bearded. steel-hearted. old Boer only
turned the torrents of his rage upon his
wife.
NO fault but yours. vrouwr' he shouted
and in the orange-scented silence Of the
village in the valley his voice sounded
distinctly in TIE ears Of the listening neigh
bors. and passed up the hillsidrs. to trem-
he far into the heart of the woods NO
Che brought his fist down on the cottage
Instrument bought for his daughter SO
that he split the top In halves, ito jabber
poetry to be educated. to be like any ours
ed Englishman's daughter-that's what you
insisted upon and coaxed and cried for
Dom Jan; Dom JAM" his wife walled.
why not? Are the English to enjoy
everything and our children nothing?"
we enjoy what our fathers enjoyed:
our children can enjoy the same They
were AT peace and happy and blessed in
the Lord. without pianos and education
without the English. The English, They
have invaded my country; and now-they
nave utSlTONtl my nome
The old woman sobbed-
Don't send the daughter away" she
cried, After all. do not all the maidens
love at some tine?''
Love roared the old patriot Love.
Love an Fnglishman, What kind of love
has she who will betray her fatherlan1 for
her love? Listen again, then. you old
foolish woman. 10 the letter"
In the same loud voice he began to read
the missive which the unhappy mother had
found among her daughters things, and
inno"cntly handed to him.
Dear girl love you all the more for
the sOlictude with which you write me
of what You call my danger But how
could l. my dear, even if desired 10. leave
my post at this late day? All that you say
Of the Transvaal's preparations may be
true. Still-what can unskiled farmers do
against the trained troops We have? 1t
VIII he one brush and they vii lsee their
folly Then there will be quick peace. and
You and ] will meet again, as in the happy
Gays when ] first met you in Capetown
NED vENABLE
"P. S-My dear. your news is very inter-
estinC, but is il not dangerous. dangerous
for You. to write such things? This goes
by Your own Kaffir messenger
"And that Kaffir is pretty well thrashed
~ death cried the Boer. ripping the let
ter furicusly and stamping on the scraps.
so. by my fathers. would you he, girl. if
you were not a girl and my vrow's child"
Father, father. / meant no wrong"
cried his daughter and clasped her hands
and wrung them. sObbing.
She had come IN from her chamber
dressed for her enforced journey She did
not look like the tratress they denounced
her as, although undoubtedly she had
given information TO an officer of the
Cnemy'S army. She of the best Boer
type-almost Of the old Dutch save that
her cheeks were more flushed with the kiss
Of the sun and her blue eyes were usually
though not now--Clear with the light of
freedom Her yellow har was neatly
coned on her white neck. Even now in
Ter grief and humiliation, there was in her
walk and her carriage the grace of a wo-
man accustomed from childhood to run on
the veldt, to gallop across il bareback TO
take part in many of the exercises which
had helped TO make of her father Dom
Jan. the physically grand man who now
stood glazing upon her.
Father. father. l meant no wrong" she
cried.
NO wrong he repeated and pointed
almost pathetically to the torn paper at his
feet. Has all your education in Cane
Town not taught you what 'treachery'
means? Is il wrong to send secret mes
sa@es of the "Transvaafs preparations to
send news which might be dangerous 10
an officer in the army of invaders? Is 1t
no wrong to love man, and he an Eng
Eshman, and never tell your mother as a
good Boer girl would?'
His voice was now more rerroachful than
TO look up at him with pleading. Her eyes
were guleless as a child's.
Il cannot see yet where It was wrong,