may be clad in them. They are magic coats through which no spear
can pass, and those who wear them are well-nigh safe in the battle. The
king is well pleased or much afraid, or he would not have sent these
garments of steel. Clothe yourselves in them to-night, my lords."

The remainder of that day we spent quietly, resting and talking over
the situation, which was sufficiently exciting. At last the sun went
down, the thousand watch fires glowed out, and through the darkness we
heard the tramp of many feet and the clashing of hundreds of spears, as
the regiments passed to their appointed places to be ready for the
great dance. Then the full moon shone out in splendour, and as we stood
watching her rays, Infadoos arrived, clad in his war dress, and
accompanied by a guard of twenty men to escort us to the dance. As he
recommended, we had already donned the shirts of chain armour which the
king had sent us, putting them on under our ordinary clothing, and
finding to our surprise that they were neither very heavy nor
uncomfortable. These steel shirts, which evidently had been made for
men of a very large stature, hung somewhat loosely upon Good and
myself, but Sir Henry's fitted his magnificent frame like a glove. Then
strapping our revolvers round our waists, and taking in our hands the
battle-axes which the king had sent with the armour, we started.

On arriving at the great kraal, where we had that morning been received
by the king, we found that it was closely packed with some twenty
thousand men arranged round it in regiments. These regiments were in
turn divided into companies, and between each company ran a little path
to allow space for the witch-finders to pass up and down. Anything more
imposing than the sight that was presented by this vast and orderly
concourse of armed men it is impossible to conceive. There they stood
perfectly silent, and the moon poured her light upon the forest of
their raised spears, upon their majestic forms, waving plumes, and the
harmonious shading of their various-coloured shields. Wherever we
looked were line upon line of dim faces surmounted by range upon range
of shimmering spears.

"Surely," I said to Infadoos, "the whole army is here?"

"Nay, Macumazahn," he answered, "but a third of it. One third is
present at this dance each year, another third is mustered outside in
case there should be trouble when the killing begins, ten thousand more
garrison the outposts round Loo, and t