ious climate--were settling upon me; why should I not embark in it?
I had the means, if I started carefully and modestly. I did not imagine
for a moment there was a fortune in it, but neither was there in the
branch of business in which my lines had hitherto been cast. And
somehow, woven in with such meditations was already the image of Beryl
Matterson; which was quite too absurd, remembering that twenty-four
hours ago I had never seen her.

"Don't you ever carry a six-shooter, Matterson?" I said, my mind
reverting to the little difference of opinion I had just seen so
effectually settled.

"Very seldom. You see, we are not outside the law here, and if I shot a
fellow I should almost certainly find myself in a nasty awkward mess."

"What--even in self-defence?"

"Even then. The English law is curiously wooden-headed on some points.
The `sacredness of human life' is one of them, especially with a judge
or two we have here who will always go against a white man in favour of
a Kafir; and if you were known to habitually carry arms it would go
further against you still."

"But what about your sister?"

"That's different. There isn't a jury on the frontier would convict a
woman for shooting a Kafir, because they know perfectly well that such a
thing couldn't happen except in a case of the direst necessity. In
fact, there are far too few women and girls who are able to take care of
themselves, and they all ought to be."

"I should very much think so," I said, and the time was to come when
these remarks were destined to recur to my mind with vivid clearness and
weighty force.

"Hallo!" said Brian, "here's the governor coming back." And following
his glance, I saw the white tent of a trap coming down the road from the
opposite direction to that of our way the evening before. A minute or
so more and it drew up opposite the kraals.

"Don't say anything about what you've just seen, Holt," he went on, as
we made our way to the gate. "He doesn't like that sort of thing, but
for all that it's sometimes inevitable."

Of course I gave him the required assurance, and as we reached the gate
the buggy pulled up, and there got out a strongly-built man of about
fifty-five. He had a quiet-looking but determined face, which reminded
me more of Beryl than of Brian, and a thick, full, brown beard, somewhat
streaked with grey, and as Brian speedily introduced us his welcome of
me was all that could be desired in the way of