orpions in one's bed and boots, and the howling of wild
beasts all night? I declare, one might as well live in a menagerie."

"But you must remember that things are in a transition state just now,"
rejoined Mrs Brook. "As we spread and multiply over the land, things
will fall more into shape. We shall have tailors and dressmakers to
take the heavy part of our work in this way, and the wild beasts will
retire before the rifle and the plough of civilised man; no doubt, also,
shops will come in due course."

"And what of the Kafirs?" cried Mrs Merton sternly. "Do you flatter
yourself that either the plough or the rifle will stop their thievish
propensities? Have we not learned, when too late--for here we are, and
here we must bide,--that the black wretches have been at loggerheads
with the white men ever since this was a colony, and is it not clear
that gentle treatment and harsh have alike failed to improve them?"

"Wise treatment has yet to be tried," said Mrs Brook.

"Fiddlesticks!" returned Mrs Merton impatiently. "What do you call
wise treatment?"

"Gospel treatment," replied Mrs Brook.

"Oh! come now, you know that _that_ has also been tried, and has
signally failed. Have we not heard how many hundreds of so-called black
converts in this and in other colonies are arrant hypocrites, or at all
events give way before the simplest temptations?"

"I have also heard," returned Mrs Brook, "of many hundreds of so-called
white Christians, whose lives prove them to be the enemies of our
Saviour, and who do not even condescend to hypocrisy, for they will
plainly tell you that they `make no pretence to be religious,' though
they call themselves Christians. But that does not prove gospel
treatment among the English to have been a failure. You have heard, I
daresay, of the Hottentot robber Africaner, who was long the terror and
scourge of the district where he lived, but who, under the teaching of
our missionary Mr Moffat, or rather, I should say, under the influence
of God's Holy Spirit, has led a righteous, peaceful, Christian life for
many years. He is alive still to prove the truth of what I say."

"I'll believe it when I see it," returned Mrs Merton, with a decisive
compression of her lips.

"Well, many people have testified to the truth of this, and some of
these people have seen Africaner and have believed."

"Humph!" returned Mrs Merton.

This being an unanswerable argument, Mrs Brook smiled by way of