. He did
not look triumphant--on the contrary he saluted respectfully; but the
other Tommy at the side gate laughed when he saw the white ribbon on
her hat, and I am afraid that Hansie felt very much inclined to say,
"I've got my 'Vierkleur' on still!" But she wisely refrained, walking
on stiffly without so much as a glance at the man. That night she
slowly and sadly took off her 'bit of ribbon gay,' replacing it by a
black band in token of mourning and bereavement.

There was too much at stake, and she felt it would be better to keep
the ribbon in safety at home than to run the risk of being deprived of
it by force.

A sympathetic friend afterwards painted two crossed flags, the flags
of the Transvaal and the Free State, on her band of black, and this
she wore unmolested until the end of the war.

CHAPTER VI

PASSES AND PERMITS

At this time the procuring of passes and permits became the order of
the day, and it is inconceivable the amount of red-tape that had to be
gone through in the process.

For women living alone and having no menfolk to send to the offices,
this was especially annoying.

Hours were spent in waiting, and applicants were frequently sent from
one official to another, and from one department to another, on
unimportant matters.

This brought Hansie into touch with the very men whose society she had
resolved to avoid.

It took her three or four hours to get a permit for her bicycle and as
many days to get permission to retain her Colt's pocket-pistol, for
the officers in charge of the rifle department refused to let her keep
it and she eventually decided to go straight to head-quarters, viz.
the Military Governor, General Maxwell.

Orders had very rightly been issued that all firearms should be
delivered to the military authorities, but in this case Mrs. van
Warmelo thought an exception should be made, because two unprotected
women, living in an isolated homestead, could hardly be considered
safe in times of such great danger unless sufficiently armed and able
to defend themselves.

Other matters, of minor importance, could be overlooked, but it was to
this question of retaining weapons that she and her daughter owed
their acquaintance with the charming and affable Military Governor.

The two women were received with great courtesy, and when they had
explained that they had a Mauser rifle in their possession, a
revolver, and a pistol, begging to be allowed to keep them for
sel