r escort,
"there lies your country."

"At last!--thank God," said the leader of the band, looking round on
their beautiful though savage home with feelings of deep gratitude for
the happy termination of their long and weary travels.

The toil of journeying was now succeeded by the bustle and excitement of
settling down.

Their new home was a lovely vale of about six or seven miles in length,
and varying from one to two in breadth, like a vast basin surrounded on
all sides by steep and sterile mountains, which rose in sharp wedge-like
ridges, with snow-clad summits that towered to an estimated height of
five thousand feet above the level of the sea. The contrast between the
warm peaceful valley and the rugged amphitheatre of mountains was very
great. The latter, dark and forbidding--yet home-like and gladdening to
the eyes of Scotsmen--suggested toil and trouble, while the former, with
its meandering river, verdant meadows, groves of sweet-scented
mimosa-trees, and herds of antelopes, quaggas, and other animals
pasturing in undisturbed quietude, filled the mind with visions of peace
and plenty. Perchance God spoke to them in suggestive prophecy, for the
contrast was typical of their future chequered career in these almost
unknown wilds of South Africa.

Left by their escort on the following day--as their English brethren had
been left in the Zuurveld of Lower Albany--to take root and grow there
or perish, the heads of families assembled, and their leader addressed
them.

"Here, at last," said he, "our weary travels by sea and land have come
to an end. Exactly six months ago, to a day, we left the shores of
bonny Scotland. Since then we have been wanderers, without any other
home than the crowded cabin at sea and the narrow tent on shore. Now we
have, through God's great goodness and mercy, reached the `Promised
Land' which is to be our future home, our place of rest. We have
pitched our tents among the mimosa-trees on the river's margin, and our
kind Dutch friends with the armed escort have left us. We are finally
left to our own resources; it behoves us therefore, kindred and
comrades, to proceed systematically to examine our domain, and fix our
several locations. For this purpose I propose that an armed party
should sally forth to explore, while the rest shall remain to take care
of the women and children, and guard the camp."

Acting on this advice, an exploration party was at once organised, and
set