egisters "warm, and likely to be warmer," you
may consider yourself lucky if you get a morning meal at all. But when it
indicates "hot," and the mercury still rising, you know that the time has
arrived for you to climb out of your coat and commence cooking for
yourself, unless you feel equal to the task of spreading a saucy nigger in
sections around the adjacent allotments. It is not always healthy to adopt
the latter plan, especially if your "boy" happens to be a Basuto or a Zulu.
Should he belong to either of those tribes, threaten him as much as you
like, but don't hurry to put your threats into practice; or the nigger may
do the scattering, and you may do the penitent part of the business. You
may bully him as much as you like when the barometer is falling, for then
the life is all out of him, and he has not sufficient spirit left in him to
resent any sort of insult.

Even "Tommy" knows this, and on a cold day will call a big Zulu servant by
a name which implies that the Zulu's father and mother were never legally
married. The Zulu will only smile dismally, and tell "Tommy" that he will
pray for the salvation of his soul. Three days later, when the air is
dancing in the heat-rays, if Mr. Atkins, emboldened by former success,
repeats the speech, the Zulu will rise and confront him with blazing eyes,
showing at the same time a wide range of beautiful white teeth, set in a
savage snarl, and give Mr. Atkins a choice of titles which it would be hard
to improve upon even in a Dublin dockyard, and he will not be slow to back
his mouth with his hands should the argument become pressing, as more than
one of her Majesty's lieges have found out to their deep and lasting
humiliation.

When a combination of rain and religion has depressed him the nigger
servant is one of the most abject-looking mortals that ever wore clothes,
and makes as sad a spectacle as a farmyard fowl on a front fence in a
thunderstorm. But he must not be judged altogether by his appearance on
such occasions. He can be loyal to his "boss," and when fit and well he
will fight when roused as a devil might fight for the soul of a deacon. He
loves to ride or drive a horse, but he is not fond of horses, as I
understand the term. He has no idea of making a pet of his charge. A horse
is to him merely something to get about upon, and he cannot understand our
fondness for our equine friends. I have noticed the same trait in the Boer
character. To a Boer a horse is u