fighting men into the
field, and always had from three to four thousand collected about his
kraal, which was supposed to be impregnable. Nala, on the contrary, at
such short notice could not collect more than from twelve to thirteen
hundred men, though, being of the Zulu stock, they were of much better
stuff for fighting purposes than Wambe's Matukus.

"These odds, though large, under the circumstances were not
overwhelming. The real obstacle to our chance of success was the
difficulty of delivering a crushing assault against Wambe's strong
place. This was, it appeared, fortified all round with schanses or stone
walls, and contained numerous caves and koppies in the hill-side and at
the foot of the mountain which no force had ever been able to capture.
It is said that in the time of the Zulu monarch Dingaan, a great impi of
that king's having penetrated to this district, had delivered an assault
upon the kraal then owned by a forefather of Wambe's, and been beaten
back with the loss of more than a thousand men.

"Having thought the question over, I interrogated Maiwa closely as to
the fortifications and the topographical peculiarities of the spot, and
not without results. I discovered that the kraal was indeed impregnable
to a front attack, but that it was very slightly defended to the rear,
which ran up a slope of the mountain, indeed only by two lines of stone
walls. The reason of this was that the mountain is quite impassable
except by one secret path supposed to be known only to the chief and his
councillors, and this being so, it had not been considered necessary to
fortify it.

"'Well,' I said, when she had done, 'and now as to this secret path of
thine--knowest thou aught of it?'

"'Ay,' she answered, 'I am no fool, Macumazahn. Knowledge learned is
power earned. I won the secret of that path.'

"'And canst thou guide an impi thereon so that it shall fall upon the
town from behind?'

"'Yes, I can do this, if only Wambe's people know not that the impi
comes, for if they know, then they can block the way.'

"'So then here is my plan. Listen, Nala, and say if it be good, or if
thou hast a better, show it forth. Let messengers go out and summon all
thy impi, that it be gathered here on the third day from now. This being
done, let the impi, led by Maiwa, march on the morrow of the fourth day,
and crossing the mountains let it travel along on the other side of the
mountains till it come to the place on the furt