fficial's inquiries after his family and concerns wherewith the Boer is
wont to preface any and every interview if on anything like friendly
terms with his interlocutor. Then he came to the point. He wished to
resign his field-cornetcy.

Jelf looked annoyed, and felt it too. What was the reason, he asked. A
reliable, influential man like Stephanus was just the man for the
office. He would be hard to replace. Would he not reconsider his
decision?

But Stephanus was firm; the fact being that since he had become
converted to the "patriot" cause he was too honest to continue holding a
post under the British Government, honorary as such might be. He did
not, however, desire to say as much to the Government representative
before him.

But the latter saw through his constraint, and went straight to the root
of the thing. He was irritated at the obstinacy, as he called it, of
this Boer, and the latter, to his amazement and indignation, found
himself being roundly lectured. The Civil Commissioner had heard
reports of disaffection among some of the farmers--notably those in the
Wildschutsberg district, but he had never expected to find among the
disloyal a man so universally respected as the one before him, and much
more to the same effect Stephanus, however, kept both his temper and his
dignity.

If that was the way the representative of the Government regarded him,
he replied, all the more reason why he should adhere to his original
resolve, and resign the field-cornetcy in favour of somebody who would
be more acceptable. Would Mynheer kindly receive his formal
resignation?

Yes, Mynheer would, in that case. But the farewell greeting between the
two was stiff and unfriendly.

Left alone, Jelf felt rather small. He had failed in judiciousness, in
tact, and he knew it. He had rubbed his interviewer the wrong way, just
at a time when it was essential to keep such a man well disposed and
friendly. At any rate, here was one item for his report. If Stephanus
De la Rey was disaffected, why, then, the whole of the Wildschutsberg
district must be a hotbed of seething sedition.

Thus he expressed matters to his subordinate, as, Stephanus having
departed, he called Morkel in to talk over their plan.

"He has all but come round, sir," said the latter. "I talked him over a
good deal, and his is one of the places I'm to go to. He won't give way
about the field-cornetcy, though."

"Oh, well, we must find somebody