fact, they gloried in their want of
knowledge, and were insulted if they received a letter in any tongue but
their own. He related one tale to illustrate their ignorance: An old
burgher and his _vrow_ were sitting at home one Sunday afternoon.
Seeing the "predicant"[28] coming, the old man hastily opened his Bible
and began to read at random. The clergyman came in, and, looking over
his shoulder, said: "Ah! I see you are reading in the Holy Book--the
death of Christ." "Alle machter!" said the old lady. "Is He dead indeed?
You see, Jan" (to her husband) "you never will buy a newspaper, so we
never know what goes on in the world." Mr. Leipner said this story loses
in being told in English instead of in the original Dutch. He reiterated
they did not wish for education for themselves or for their children. If
the young people can read and write, they are considered very good
scholars. This gentleman also expressed great satisfaction at Sir Alfred
Milner and Mr. Chamberlain being at the head of affairs, which he said
was the only thing that gave the colonials confidence. Even now, so many
feared England would give way again in the end. I assured him of this
there was no possibility, and then he said: "The Transvaal has been a
bad place for Englishmen to live these many years; but if Great Britain
fails us again, we must be off, for then it will be impossible." I was
given to understand that the Boers exhibited great curiosity as to who
Mr. Chamberlain was, and that they firmly believed he had made money in
Rand mining shares and gold companies; others fancied he was identical
with the maker of Chamberlain's Cough Syrup, which is advertised
everywhere in the colony.

Early in November we had a great surprise. Mr. Keeley himself turned up
from Mafeking, having been given leave from the town guard to look after
his wife and farm. He had to ride for his life to escape the Boers, who
were drawing much closer to the town, and the news he brought was not
altogether reassuring. True, he stated that the garrison were in
splendid spirits, and that they no longer troubled themselves about the
daily bombardments, as dug-out shelters had been constructed. The young
men, he said, vied with each other in begging for permission to join
scouting-parties at night, to pepper the Boers, often, as a result,
having a brush with the enemy and several casualties. All the same, they
would return at a gallop, laughing and joking. There had been, howe