idn't you promise me to
keep up?" he said but there was a suspicious quaver in his own voice
which rendered his tone gruff. "The more so that I've got some news for
you."

"News. Quick! What is it?" Edala sprang to her feet, while Evelyn's
face lightened.

"He is alive."

A gasp escaped both girls.

"Where? Where?"

"At Nteseni's `Great Place.' Don't interrupt and I'll tell you all
about it. Well then, you remember the fellow I questioned during the
fight, the prisoner I mean? He sent for me this morning, and said he
could tell me something I would like to hear; and after a little beating
around he told me that father and Elvesdon are still alive, and if I
promised not to turn him over to the police along with the other
prisoners he'd tell me where they were. Of course I promised, and he
said at Nteseni's. How did he know? Well he did know, and it didn't
matter how, but if we wanted to get them away we must lose no time.

"How did I know he was telling the truth, I asked. Easily, he answered.
If we were going to make an attempt to get them out, we could take him
with us. All he asked was that he should be allowed to escape when we
had found them. I talked this over with Prior and he agreed, so I went
around on the quiet beating up volunteers. I got about two dozen, and
we're going to slip off quietly as soon as it's dark. By pushing the
horses a bit we can do it, and be back here again to-morrow morning--
with them."

"Oh Hyland, for God's sake do," said Edala. "But what if this man is
only trying to lead you into some trap?"

"We shall take precious good care that in such an eventuality he'll be
the first man to go under--and he jolly well knows it. We're keeping
the jump-off on the strict Q.T. though, so don't you go giving it away."

"Of course not. It's a long time to wait, though, until dark."

"It's just as long to me--you may swear to that," answered Hyland. "But
it would simply wreck the whole biz if we moved a moment before."

A troop of Mounted Police had arrived at Kwabulazi later on the same day
as the repulse--perhaps an inkling of their approach on the part of the
rebels had had something to do with the abandonment of the attack.
Other refugees, too, had come in, and the place was now a large and
important laager. The prisoners were set to work to bury the slain, and
the wounded were attended to in the camp hospital under the direction of
our former acquaintance, Dr Vine,