Wolff uphill after him. Wolff began to breathe
hard and to perspire; I felt that the barrow might not be wanted after
all.

Suddenly Simpson's tactics changed; he got in over Wolff's guard and,
in as many seconds, planted six terrible blows on the latter's face.
With both eyes closed, his nose streaming blood, and his lips badly
tattered, Wolff collapsed a melancholy object-lesson of the truth of
the preacher's text: "The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to
the strong."

About four weeks brought my commercial career to a close. The manager
and I parted good friends, but he made no secret of his satisfaction at
getting rid of me. I was as unskillful in the matter of tying up
parcels at the end of my term of service as I was at the beginning. But
I had been of some use in the matter of clearing the store of rats. The
cat and I had become very good friends; it was quite a wrench parting
with that devoted animal. If the progeny, which were expected to arrive
soon after I left, only inherited the keenness and skill of their
mother, there ought not to have been a rat left, a year afterwards, in
the Northern Transvaal.

279

Reminiscences of a

Tom Simpson and his David-like victory over Goliath-Wolff reminds me of
another man who was very skilful in the use of his hands. He went by
the name of Saulez. I know his real name, but will not mention it,
although I am absolutely convinced that its concealment was not due to
any unworthy cause. Saulez was young, very slightly built, fair-haired,
and almost effeminate in appearance. But he was the wickedest and most
wonderful fighter I have ever seen floor a bully. Although he
thoroughly enjoyed using his fists, he never sought a quarrel. There
were four men in the creek who were always spoiling for a fight. They
were rather dreaded, for on Saturday afternoons they used to go from
bar to bar, looking for an excuse to thrash somebody. In the natural
course of events Saulez met them, and a fight or rather a series of
fights was the result. He thrashed them soundly in detail without
getting so much as a scratch.

A couple of weeks afterwards, three of the four laid in wait for Saulez
and tackled him collectively. He again thrashed them, and with the
greatest ease.

On another occasion Saulez struck a man by mistake. He immediately
apologized, but the man refused to be placated. Saulez then offered to
allow the aggrieved party to strike him, promising not to return t