the English. It was with the greatest difficultyhe was kept from joining the rebels. But his father sent for him, andthreatened him with his curse if he did, and the Dutch mind what theirfathers say, more than any people I know. In 1834, however, when theEnglish Government made a proclamation absolutely forbidding slavery, hecould bear it no longer."
"1834," repeated George. "That was the year, was not it, when they putdown slavery in the West Indies?"
"Yes, and it lowered the value of the property there as well as here. Idon't say the English Government oughtn't to have done it. Slavery iswrong, beginning, middle, and end, in my eyes. But it might have beendone gradually, instead of all at once. Any way, the Dutch wouldn'thave it, and they resolved to leave the country rather than submit.Great numbers emigrated: some northwards, into what is now the OrangeFree State, and the Transvaal, but more into Natal. Cornelius was oneof those who removed to Natal, and my father went there too. He didn'twant to go, but my mother had been always so attached to Cornelius, thathe saw it would break her heart if they were parted. So, like a goodhusband, he went too."
"Wasn't it rather rash, sir?" suggested George. "Why, to say nothing ofthe loss of money, Natal must be a good seven hundred miles fromStellenbosch, and it was at that time quite a new country."
"It is more than eight hundred, I believe, for the matter of that, andthere were very few whites in it; but the state of things wasn't so badas you suppose. In the first place, my father took his time in sellinghis land. As he wasn't a Dutchman, people knew that he wasn't one ofthose who were mad to go, and would take anything that was offered forit. He got a very good price for it. Then, again, he knew a great dealabout Natal. Lieutenant Farewell, who had obtained a large grant ofland from King Chaka, came to Stellenbosch, and made large offers to thefarmers there. My father closed with him, and got a large farm, andvery good land, where my son is now living, for very little money."
"Who was Lieutenant Farewell?" asked Margetts.
"I believe he was an English officer, who had been sent to survey thecountry, and had a fancy for founding a colony at Natal. He had beenmurdered by the natives before we went there; but my father had got allhis information from him the previous year. Then, again, his move toNatal was well managed. His farm lay on the south side of Stellenbosch,only a short distance from Simon's Bay. A large vessel was lent him byone of his friends, which took him and his family, his waggons, hishousehold furniture, and such of his stock as he wished to take withhim, to Natal, at a small cost, and in a few days."
"Your father knew what he was about, Mr Baylen."
"I think he did, sir. I remember well our arrival at Hakkluyt's Kloof.We lived in the waggons till he and his men had run up the house andfarm buildings. We soon found we had made a very good bargain."
"That was in King Chaka's time, wasn't it, father?" asked Walter Baylen.
"No, Walter. It was Chaka who granted the land, or rather, leave tosettle on the land, to Lieutenant Farewell. But he had been dead a yearor two, and his brother Dingaan was king when we arrived there."
"I have heard a good deal about Chaka," observed Margetts, "and I shouldlike to hear more. I suppose you know all about him, Mr Baylen?"
"More than I can tell you to-night, sir," answered the farmer with asmile. "You shall hear all about it another time if you like it. Butit's getting late. We must go to sleep now, as we shall be stirringearly to-morrow."
At daybreak the journey was resumed. The ground was still soft from theheavy rain in some places, but a few hours' hot sun dried it. The airwas fresh and balmy. It was with a sense of exhilaration that Georgeand Redgy mounted their horses, and scented the fresh morning air.Nothing could be more delicious than their journey in the early hours ofthe day. Aromatic shrubs, graceful sugar bushes, delicate heaths,wild-flowers of every imaginable colour, such as in England would beaccounted the rare beauties of the conservatory, grew in profusion oneither side of the track they followed. The air was rich with athousand fragrant scents. In the middle distance, Kaffir hovels orwhite-gabled farmhouses occasionally presented themselves, eachsurrounded by orange or palm groves; and the white-peaked mountains, setin their frame of the richest blue, formed a perfect background to thelovely picture.
Notwithstanding the heat, several casualties occurred, in consequence ofthe recent rains. Sometimes they descended into dongas, where the sun'srays had not penetrated, and there the wheels would sink several inchesinto the ground, and it needed all the strength of the party toextricate them. Levers had to be applied on both sides, and the unluckyoxen were lashed with rhinoceros whips, until they presented a pitiablespectacle. On one occasion, as they were passing along a gully betweentwo steep rocky banks, they came upon another ox-waggon journeying inthe opposite direction. There was not room to pass by two or threefeet. At first it seemed as if there was no mode of overcoming thedifficulty, except by taking one waggon to pieces. But at this juncturethey were met by a man, who came up riding a stout Cape horse, and whoseemed to be well known to the farmer and his sons.
"Ah, Hardy," exclaimed Baylen, "you have come just in time to help us!We've neglected to keep a bright look-out, and have got into this mess."
The newcomer dismounted, and, joining the rest of the party, made acareful examination of the banks on both sides of the pathway.Presently Hardy's voice was heard.
"Here you are!" he cried. "Here, Baylen, Matamo, here's a soft place inthe bank which we can dig out, and it will be deep enough to hold thewaggon. Bring the picks and spades here."
All the party, more than a dozen in number, went to work with a will,and presently a hollow place of three or four feet deep was dug out,into which Baylen's waggon was drawn, just sufficient room beingobtained in this manner to allow the other waggon to go by. This_contretemps_ caused a delay of several hours, and instead ofoutspanning on the bank of the Mooi river, as they had intended, theywere obliged to stop some miles short of it.
It was not a bad place, though, for a halt. The oxen were outspanned,and turned out to graze on the veldt, care being taken to prevent theirstraying. The fires were lighted and supper for nine got ready, Hardyhaving agreed to join the party.
As they sat down, George took a good view of the newcomer. He was astrong, weather-beaten fellow, not much short of fifty, but still in thefull vigour of life, with a face expressing sense and resolution. Hehad a good deal of the soldier in his appearance and demeanour; andGeorge learned from Ernest Baylen that he had served in India, and underLord Napier and Sir Garnet Wolseley. He had settled in South Africa asa land-surveyor and architect, though he combined some farming with it.He was a friend and frequent visitor of the Baylens, who were evidentlypleased at his arrival. As soon as the supper was finished, and thepipes lighted, Margetts asked the farmer to give him the promisedaccount of King Chaka.
"I want to learn all I can about him," he said; "I have heard somestrange stories of him."
"I don't know what the stories may have been, Mr Margetts," rejoinedBaylen, "but certainly enough might be told about him to startle anyone. He was the first person who brought the Zulus into notice. Idon't know whose son he was, or who was king before him; nobody doesseem to know. But it was about the year 1820 that he first began toattract attention. The Zulus had been an insignificant tribe beforethat. But soon after the beginning of his reign, he set about forming alarge army, which he developed and disciplined in a manner that had beenquite unknown to African chiefs before his time. There is a strangestory as to what put this fancy into his head. If I don't mistake,Hardy, it was you who told it to me."
"Very likely," said Hardy. "I know what I heard from some Frenchsoldiers in India. They had been in Africa, and had known Chaka."
"What was it, Mr Hardy, if I might ask?" inquired Margetts.
"Why, these men told me they had been the servants of some Frenchofficers, who, after the close of Napoleon's wars, travelled in SouthAfrica, and became King Chaka's guests. Chaka was fond of inquiringabout
what had happened in Europe. One of the officers told him a gooddeal about the Emperor Napoleon--his splendid army, the vast number ofmen he had collected under his standard, the perfect discipline to whichhe had reduced them, and their unbounded devotion to his service. Bytheir help, Napoleon had conquered nation after nation, until nearly thewhole of Europe had been subjected by him. `That was something like aking,' Chaka had remarked, and from that day he began forming his famousarmy."
"Well, I can believe that," observed Baylen, "because his actioncorresponded very accurately to it. He got together a force of nearly ahundred thousand men, of whom fifteen thousand were always at hisimmediate