The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-04-15


ter the horsemen. and did not hear nor
answer
Come in and attend to your work."
her aunt cried What are you about?
Do you think the cornet will kiss his
hand to you?"
The sisters laughed shrilly, but Marie
hung her head.
NO" she thought, ''he will never wave
his hand 90 me, am ugly, and too poor,
butt should like TO take rife and be
beside him and fight the Englishmen, and
an watch over him"
II.
The fight had begun in a series of Skin
mishes, but, when morning came, the
Beers and British were in pitched battle.
The Speaking Of the great guns could be
heard at the farm. Sometimes even the
rattle Of the rifle fire reached across the
plain TIE 'wCmenfok were terribly eXcit-
ed. War was now very close to their
doors, and it was not so easy a thing to
sneer at the courage of the rooineks Aunt
Anne rocked in her great chair; The girls
we're white and unnerved; Marie was
restless with great bright eyes. All night
long spider carts and wagons and litters
had heen jolting acr SIS the veldt with bur
dens Of dead and crippled men who were
being carried by native servants and
friends to nearby homes for burial or for
nursing.
suddenly, DelOfe the slarlnS sun nau
vet reached its noonGde hight. a ragged
Kafflr came running and eaping from the
distant kopjas, where the battle ragged,
and roared His eyes were prOtruding
with fright and his dark face was now
gray.
1T is MPangwe!' Marie cried, as he
came. and they all went out to meet Dom
Kris servant who had followed his mas
ter to the war. as, Old times, the bench
men followed the knights and squires. The
Kaffir ran up weary and exhausted. a
dirty rag bound his arm where bullet
had pierced the flesh.
"Why have you left your baas?" the
women red and Tante Anne shock her
fist at the trembling boy You coward
d g, if you run away, will use the siam
tok on you myself"
NH cried the servant. mo run. Baas
Hendrick. him dead in trench Big baas
him fight and shoot shoot, shoot, Big
baas-him say to M'Pangwe-get cart
take baas Hendrick to Tant Anne. Me
come run all way"
There was a wailing then in the farm
house and terrible cries for vengeance,
but the Van Pelts were too sorrowstrick-
en- to obey the poor stern fathers Will.
On Marie fell the task, as on Marie usu-
ally fell the harder tasks. She had loved
Henorick, but she was dry-eyed. Her face
was still and stern
rs Dom Kris hurt?' she asked the boy,
and he told her the old man was safe as
yet, as they harnessed the horse.
Her back was turned to him.
Ibid you see the Veldt Cornet Haus-
MANN" she asked.
He shoot, shoot, shoot with big baas,"
said the boy.
When the cart was ready Marie went
inside and filed great canteen with cof-
fee. She took some biltong and bread
also Then she got Hendricks old rife,
which she had often used and went into
the house for a belt of ammunition.
''Tant Anne" she said, IT am going to
the trenches with M'Pangwe. He says the
battle is hard. The commandment must
need every good shot he can find and
am a good shot. Besides, they have killed
Hendrck-and I loved him.
Tant Anne screeched again.
Il need you herer she screamed.
"What can my girl and I do, broken
down as we are? Who will help in the
house?"
"Greta and Anna must do that until
they will come with me"
At that the girls cried out
'NThe trenches are no place for girls"
they said.
OH said Marie Dutoit holly There
are women there already helping the men.
woman also has a right to defend the
fatherland. My mother fought the Zulus
with my father in laager, and Tant Anne
herself, when she was younger, could hit
a deer"
She drove off with the Kaffir, sorroTing
much for Hendrick, her childhood's
friend but hot with bitter anger and
vengeful wrath against the English. Also
there was a dread in her heart that. ar
irving, she should find yet another lying
dead in the trenches on the hillside.
No doubt this would seem unmaidenly
conduct in the eyes of seminary girls, but,
YOU see Marie had never been to school.
She could only with difficulty spell out her
Bible was quite uncultured and a very
simple and natural product of the veldt,
possessed with all the primitive passions
of love and hate and jealousy and re-
venge.
The trenches were reached from the rear
of the army, with only the rocky difficult
ties of the kopje to overcome. When,
however, they came near to them, the
Kaffir shook with fear as the great shells
came shreking from the British guns to
plunge into the earthen breastworks or
burst nearby scattering horror. He cow
cred in the cart, but Marie sal erect, al
thought her face was white, and her lips
indrawn. They halted some distance
away in the shelter Of great rock, and
Dom Kris himself carried his dead boy
to the cart. Poor old patriot-he was
weeping, but he could not leave his place
to accompany Hendricks remains, anX-
ious though he was, that they should be
buried at home near the old farm and
not in the dreadful trenches, perhaps by
British hands. He dispa tched the Kafiir's
cart, and expressed no surprise when Ma
RE followed him, on hands and knees.
creeping to Hendricks place. The Old
man, like every old Boer, had been used
in other days to see his women folk by
his side defending the wagons of the
trek against savage foes.
1T is right, little Marie" he said sim
ply. He loved you my Hendrick. Say
q prayer and aim carefully"
On the Boer girls other side lay the
field cornet He nodded to Marie and
smiled approval.
"Who shall conquer ?" he said when
our girls are ready to die to defend the
land? Why did not Greta and Anna
come? They are fair shots, and Hendrick
was their brother?"
Marie said nothing, but color came back
40 her cheek, for It was the first time the
prince of the veldt had spoken to her so
cordially. Then she listened to him as he
pointed out to her peeping over the breast
works, the position of the English and
directed her fire. She grew warm with