telling him to keep a good watch
and to be sure that every man had his gun ready, as I thought that these
people were slave-traders and might attack us in the night.

In that event, I said, they were to fall back upon the stoep, but not to
fire until I gave the word.

"Good, my father," he answered. "This is a lucky journey; I never
thought there would be hope of war so soon. My Snake forgot to mention
it the other night. Sleep safe, Macumazana. Nothing that walks shall
reach you while we live."

"Don't be so sure," I answered, and we lay down in the bedroom with our
clothes on and our rifles by our sides.

The next thing I remember was someone shaking me by the shoulder. I
thought it was Stephen, who had agreed to keep awake for the first part
of the night and to call me at one in the morning. Indeed, he was awake,
for I could see the glow from the pipe he smoked.

"Baas," whispered the voice of Hans, "I have found out everything. They
are loading the _Maria_ with slaves, taking them in big boats from the
island."

"So," I answered. "But how did you get here? Are the hunters asleep
without?"

He chuckled. "No, they are not asleep; they look with all their eyes and
listen with all their ears, yet old Hans passed through them; even the
Baas Somers did not hear him."

"That I didn't," said Stephen; "thought a rat was moving, no more."

I stepped through the place where the door had been on to the stoep.
By the light of the fire which the hunters had lit without I could see
Mavovo sitting wide awake, his gun upon his knees, and beyond him two
sentries. I called him and pointed to Hans.

"See," I said, "what good watchmen you are when one can step over your
heads and enter my room without your knowing it!"

Mavovo looked at the Hottentot and felt his clothes and boots to see
whether they were wet with the night dew.

"_Ow!_" he exclaimed in a surly voice, "I said that nothing which walks
could reach you, Macumazana, but this yellow snake has crawled between
us on his belly. Look at the new mud that stains his waistcoat."

"Yet snakes can bite and kill," answered Hans with a snigger. "Oh! you
Zulus think that you are very brave, and shout and flourish spears and
battleaxes. One poor Hottentot dog is worth a whole impi of you after
all. No, don't try to strike me, Mavovo the warrior, since we both serve
the same master in our separate ways. When it comes to fighting I will
leave the matter to you, but when it