g, and the straight fearless glance of
the clear eyes seemed to shadow forth the character of the man. He had
a grand head, whose broad and lofty forehead was tilted slightly back,
as though the shiny black ring which surmounted it were a crown, instead
of merely a badge of marriage and manhood; for the Zulu wears his
wedding-ring on his head, instead of on his finger, and moreover is not
accounted to have attained to manhood until he has the right to wear it.
His age might have been anything between thirty and fifty. His only
clothing was a _mutya_, which is a sort of apron of hide or cats' tails
hung round the loins by a string.

If Gerard expected him to brim over with gratitude, and to vow a life's
service or anything of the sort, he was disappointed. The man made a
few laughing remarks in his own language as he pointed to the terrible
fall, whose thunderous roar almost drowned their voices where they
stood. The two might have been taking a friendly swim together, instead
of narrowly escaping a most frightful death.

"Who is he?" said Gerard. "Where does he live?"

As one of the other men put this question, the native, with a word or
two, pointed with his hand to the northward.

"But--what's his name?"

The question struck the onlookers as an unpalatable one.

"Name?" repeated the native, after the manner of his race when seeking
to gain time. "Name? They call me Sobuza. I am of the Aba Qulusi, of
the people of Zulu. Who is he who helped me out of the water?"

Gerard told who he was. The two white men exchanged looks of surprise.

"Anstey's relative! So?" they said. "Looking him up, maybe?"

Gerard explained his exact position with regard to Anstey. He noticed
that the significance of the look exchanged between the pair did not
decrease. The Zulu, however, seemed to receive the answer with but
little interest. He made one or two ineffectual attempts at Gerard's
name, but the recurring "r"--a letter which none of the Bantu races can
pronounce, always in fact making it a sort of guttural aspirate--baffled
him, and he gave it up. Then, with a sonorous farewell, he took his
departure.

"If all Zulus are like him, they must be a splendid race," said Gerard,
gazing after the retreating figure. "That's the first real one I've
seen, to my knowledge."

"Ungrateful beggar!" commented one of the men, angrily. "Why, he hardly
took the trouble to say `Thankee.' He deserved to have been let go over