at school, and I will not
have you say such things. How could the Burghers work the
farms if they had not the Kafirs? Well, be silent, then.

"Oh, I know the Kafirs. I have seen hundreds of them--yes,
and for the matter of that, thousands. Just beasts, they
are,--nothing--else. Did you hear how the Vrouw Coetzee came
to die? Well, I will tell you, and you will see that we
must hold the Kafirs with a hand of iron or they will
destroy us.

"It was a time when Piet Coetzee was away making laws in
Pretoria, and the Vrouw Coetzee, who was only married one
year, was alone on the farm with her little baby. There
were plenty of Kafirs to do the work; but, you see, there
was no man to have an eye to them, and take a sjambok to
them when they needed it. So one day the Kafirs came in
from the lands and would not work any more.

"Why wouldn't they work? How should I know? Who can tell
why a Kafir does anything? Perhaps a witch-doctor had come
among them. Perhaps the German missionaries had been
talking foolishness to them. Perhaps it began at a beer-
drink with some boasting by the young men before the girls.
Who can say? But however it was, they came in and sat down
before the house, and just waited there.

"Vrouw Coetzee came out with her baby on her arm and spoke
to them; but not one moved a finger or answered a word.
They sat still where they were and watched her, and others
came from the huts and sat down too, until there were close
on a hundred Kafirs before the house. Vrouw Coetzee watched
them come, and as she stood in the door the two Kafir girls
who worked about the house pushed her aside and went and
sat down too.

"Then Vrouw Coetzee, looking at the dumb black faces and
white eyes, got frightened and went backwards into the
house and closed the door. She put down the baby and drew
the iron bar across the door inside. From there she went to
the door at the back, and to all the windows, and closed
and secured them as far as possible. Then she took down the
old elephant-gun from the wall, and finding Piet's pouch
and the bullets, she loaded it and laid it on the table.
All the time the Kafirs made no sign, and from the keyhole
she saw them still sitting in silence, watching the house.

"When midday came she made some food ready to eat, and then
came a bang at the door.

"'What is it you want?' she cried, without opening.

"'Liquor!' cried one of the Kafirs. 'You have some brandy
in the house. Give it to us,