ing upon it. At length he arose.

The King made a sign to the slayers. Not this time was any hesitation
to be found among them. Leaping eagerly to their feet, they sprang
forward and laid hands upon the white priest.

"A moment!" said this one, signing them back. "Bid me now farewell, son
of Matyobane! for I wish thee no harm on account of my death, and for it
I forgive thee freely. Nay, more, I thank thee for it! since, through
it, thou sparest the lives of these, who number more than half a score."

He stretched forth his open hand. Umzilikazi grasped it, yet let it not
go; and thus for a moment they stood, gazing into each other's faces.
And that of the white man expressed the truth of his words; for in it
was no evil look, no sign of fear, or of a desire for revenge. Still
they stood thus, uttering no sound. The strain was becoming terrible.
In crushed, breathless silence the multitude hung upon what was to
follow. Was the King bewitched? Could he not relax his grasp? A dull
splash was heard beneath, as one of the alligators turned on the water.
And now the sun rested on the western heights, like a wheel of red
flame. Then Umzilikazi spoke:

"The alligators may go hungry this night, for thou art a brave man, my
father; too brave a man that thy life should pay for the miserable lives
of such as these. Yet for thy sake I will spare them too, though I know
not whether after doing so I am a King or as one of their dogs!--_Hau_!"

"A greater King than ever, son of Matyobane," was the reply, uttered
solemnly. "The Great One above will bless thee, my friend."

Now the shouts of _bonga_ which rent the air were deafening, and from
one end to the other of that vast multitude rolled the praises of the
mercy of the King. And, indeed, it was wonderful, for this was the only
occasion upon which I ever knew Umzilikazi spare any man when his "word"
had once gone forth that that man should die. And this time he had
spared upwards of half a score, owing to the strange madness of a white
priest who had offered to give his own life for theirs.

But some there were who murmured darkly that the King was bewitched, and
among these were our own _izanusi_. Yet they dared not so whisper
otherwise than darkly--ah, yes, very darkly indeed.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.

THE RETURN OF THE "SHE-EAGLE."

Now, _Nkose_, I am about to tell of the strange and momentous events
that next befell; for upon reaching my home that night