ether; and, having fastened a strong
cord round the horns of the latter, he set off dragging the two
antelopes behind him.

As these lay upon the ground, heads foremost, they were drawn _with the
grain of the hair_, which made it much easier; and as there was nothing
but grass sward to be passed over, the young hunter succeeded in taking
the whole of his game to camp without any great difficulty.

The joy of all was great, at seeing such a fine lot of venison, but
Jan's rejoicing was greater than all; and he no longer envied Truey the
possession of her little gazelle.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR.

LITTLE JAN'S ADVENTURE.

It would have been better that Jan had never seen the little "ourebi,"--
better both for Jan and the antelope, for that night the innocent
creature was the cause of a terrible panic in the camp.

They had all gone to sleep as on the previous night,--Von Bloom and the
four children in the wagon, while the Bushman and Totty slept upon the
grass. The latter lay under the wagon; but Swartboy had kindled a large
fire at a little distance from it, and beside this had stretched
himself, rolled up in his sheep-skin kaross.

They had all gone to sleep without being disturbed by the hyenas. This
was easily accounted for. The three horses that had been shot that day
occupied the attention of these gentry, for their hideous voices could
be heard off in the direction where the carcasses lay. Having enough to
give them a supper, they found no occasion to risk themselves in the
neighbourhood of the camp, where they had experienced such a hostile
reception on the previous night. So reasoned Von Bloom, as he turned
over and fell asleep.

He did not reason correctly, however. It was true that the hyenas were
just then making a meal upon the horses; but it was a mistake to suppose
that that would satisfy these ravenous brutes, who never seem to have
enough. Long before morning, had Von Bloom been awake he would have
heard the maniac laugh closer to the camp, and might have seen the green
eyes of the hyena glancing under the expiring blaze of Swartboy's
camp-fire.

Indeed, he had heard the beasts once that he awoke; but, knowing that
the biltongue had been this night placed out of their reach, and
thinking that there was nothing to which they could do any harm, he gave
no heed to their noisy demonstrations, and went to sleep again.

He was awakened, however, by a shrill squeak, as of some animal in the
ag