Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-06-26
The Daily Short Story:
A PAIR OF NOSES.

Jack Manton. a soldier in South Afri.
ca. rode to the sIatoppo hills and did
not pull rein till he entered 4 narrow
nesses. Skirting To the right. he cross
ed some open ground, traversed anoth-
err pass and halted at the foot of n
small circular kopje. Having knee
battered his pony. lie began to ascend
by narrow zigzag path thickly firing.
ed with sagebushes. He was only half
way up when there was a faint rustic
In the bush, a pair of soft, bare arms
were thrown around his neck. and a
rich. musical voice cried gayly, "Saku
Ibona, um koos pambo mi intombi' c'Wel-
I come. my lord, thy slave salutes thee').
by Jove. Manu-" cried Jack I'm Ma
tabele, you quite startled me. Well,
how goes it. little girl?" he added as he
led the way to the neat. straw plated
hut perched on a natural ledge of the
kopje and which had been their labor
of love to construct. Manzi-or MananZi
| Qit., "rippling water'')-was very beau
| tiful. In her veins flowed the blood of
the old Portuguese explorers who once
swept across Africa, and from them
| she had inherited the perfect aquiline
features and oval contour of the sunny
south. while the savage blood which in
/ termingled in her body showed itself
/ in her graceful. undulating carriage
| and the warm, sun kissed. brown tintS
of her skin. She was barely 10, and,
| being unmarried, her long black hair
| fioated about her rounded shoulders in
| stead of being piled up in the hideous.
clay smeared sugar loaf which distin-
| cuisines the Matabele matron.
Dear lord" said Manzi. kissing the
| strong, freckIed hand she held In hers,
| thy slave is troubled. Three times
within the last moon hath she dream
ed that the Great Spirit came and call
ed her"
Nonsense, little one" replied Jack.
''The Great Spirit viii not take thee
away from me-" And he drew her clos
er TO him.
by Tam Tamson's 500, cornell, I
Gamma hand these yellow blackguairds
o. mine much longerT' So spake Com
| mandant Robertson, the chief of the
Cape boy corps. n grizzled. steel eyed,
| hard bitten. soft hearted old Scotch
| man, to whom the scent of battle was
as the perfumes of Already. Colonel
| Plumer smiled at the speaker and
rapidly reviewed the situation in his
mind. Since dawn lie had been ham,
| merlng away ut the huge bcetling
mass of stone and granite i'm front of
him. Tie seven Founders had vomited
shrapnel and common shell until the
muzzles Glowed and the gunners were
ready 10 drop.
Robertson" said Colonel Plumer.
you can have 4 try Wen be ready
| to support you IL necessary"
faye, aye, cornell. there1l be nae
need for that. Sergeant majorP' he
shouted. cheerily moving off to his yell
low blackguards. whom lie knew so
well how TO manage.
"Oh. sir. may go with himY begged
Jack Manton, springing forward. Its
the first time I've been able to get
away from the transport office"
Colonel Plumer smiled good natured-
~ ut the eager, boyish face and called
after the retreating commandant:
Here, Robertson. here's a young fire
eater for you. Can you make use of
him:"
900. aye, cornell. Come along, laddie.
1 doot yen hae your wame full o.
fechtin afore this NIGHTS dune. Ser-r-
geant majorI'
AS Jack and two or three Cape boys
scaled n huge obstructing bowlder they
found themselves on a broad, natural
ledge. from the farther side of which
doomed the dark mouth of a cave.
Come on. ladsl Rout the beggars
outF' cried Jack, and he charged into
the cavern.
\ dark form rose up to meet him.
His sword flashed on high, but remain
ed as If transfxed as a well remem-
bered voice murmured:
''Saku bona, UNI koos pambo mi in
tombi"
"Stop, stop, you deviIsw yelled Jack.
but he was too late. The Cape boys,
maddened with the blood lust and per-
haps deceived by the dim light of the
cave, swept past him. and their bayO-
nets met in AIanzi's breast. With a
choking cry she sank to the ground.
"Um koos, um bania koos" C'My
lord, my dear Iord'D, she murmured
family and fell back lifeless.
With snarl like n wounded beast,
Jack Manton hurled himself on the
slayers. For a few brief minutes the
quiet cavern was n raging inferno of
whirling bayonets. whistling bullets
and the short, deep sobs of men fight
ing for their Hves-and then all was
still.
The commandment. attracted by the
firing and having successfully swept
the kopje, proceeded. to the. cave and