a little thieving Fingo dog! I didn't
outspan in sight of his old hut, and he must have come sneaking around
and seen us, and never said he would have money till it was too late."

"Well, Jan, and why should our oxen eat up the grass and drink out of
the dam without our paying?" asked Constance; but Jan only muttered,
"Thief! Dog!" and got away from the scene of his defeat with speed.

"That was why we were obliged to start in the middle of the night: Jan
wanted to slip by here before the wagon could be recognised," said
Constance. Jan had made a stand for his principles, though his
mistress's perverted sense of justice had prevented his being able to
carry them out. By the time we stopped for breakfast he had quite
recovered his spirits; and when he found he had got his party well away
from the place without another hateful demand, he seemed to have
forgotten his hard fate in the early morning. When we reached the town
we lost sight of Jan and his wagon for a couple of days, and took up our
abode at an hotel.

* * * * *

A change had taken place in our party when we collected for the second
and longer part of our journey. Mr. Gilbert had gone home with some of
the younger ones the day before, while his wife had stayed in town to
take the rest of us to a ball.

We were all tired as we reached the wagon, with our minds running on the
purchases we had made, and lingering regretfully on some we had not.

Lang-Jan and April hurried off to fetch the oxen as soon as we appeared;
and Mrs. Gilbert began to go through the stores.

"Those two Kafirs have eaten up our butter!" she exclaimed indignantly.
"I saw what was left when you came, and thought it might not be quite
enough. It is lucky I did, and have bought some more, or we should have
had none at all. I cannot let such a thing as their taking our
provisions pass without notice.--Jan," she said, when he returned, "you
have taken my butter."

"Oh, Meeses!" exclaimed Jan, as if such a thing was quite out of the
question, "not me. It must ha' bin April."

"No, Meeses--not me, Jan," said April.

"It was both of you, I have no doubt," said Mrs. Gilbert severely.

"Oh, Meeses, April, April!" cried Jan, shaking his head.

"No, it was Jan," protested the leader, again.

Jan burst into a roar of laughter, like a naughty child owning up. "Oh!
ja, Meeses! It was me. I looked at that tin of butter and then I said to
April, 'I must have som