se,
with whom he had no quarrel. Therefore if we would give up the fat white
man that he might make him "die slowly," Quabie would be content with
his life and with the cattle that he had already taken by way of a fine,
and leave us and the house unmolested.

Now, when Leblanc understood the nature of this offer he went perfectly
mad with mingled fear and rage, and began to shout and swear in French.

"Be silent," I said; "we do not mean to surrender you, although you have
brought all this trouble on us. Your chance of life is as good as ours.
Are you not ashamed to act so before these black people?"

When at last he grew more or less quiet I called to the messenger that
we white folk were not in the habit of abandoning each other, and that
we would live or die together. Still, I bade him tell Quabie that if we
did die, the vengeance taken on him and all his people would be to wipe
them out till not one of them was left, and therefore that he would do
well not to cause any of our blood to flow. Also, I added, that we had
thirty men in the house (which, of course, was a lie) and plenty of
ammunition and food, so that if he chose to continue the attack it would
be the worse for him and his tribe.

On hearing this the herald shouted back that we should every one of us
be dead before noon if he had his way. Still, he would report my words
faithfully to Quabie and bring his answer.

Then he turned and began to walk off. Just as he did so a shot was fired
from the house, and the man pitched forward to the ground, then rose
again and staggered back towards his people, with his right shoulder
shattered and his arm swinging.

"Who did that?" I asked through the smoke, which prevented me from
seeing.

"I, parbleu!" shouted Leblanc. "Sapristi! that black devil wanted to
torture me, Leblanc, the friend of the great Napoleon. Well, at least I
have tortured him whom I meant to kill."

"Yes, you fool," I answered; "and we, too, shall be tortured because of
your wickedness. You have shot a messenger carrying a flag of truce, and
that the Quabies will never forgive. Oh! I tell you that you have hit us
as well as him, who had it not been for you might have been spared."

These words I said quite quietly and in Dutch, so that our Kaffirs might
understand them, though really I was boiling with wrath.

But Leblanc did not answer quietly.

"Who are you," he shouted, "you wretched little Englishman, who dare to
lecture me, Leblan