r
hands to digging and delving, or road making, though a few occasionally
get to the surface. Now if they, as I was saying, had kept their money,
and begun by working on a farm, either for wages or even for nothing,
they would have been able in time to set up for themselves."

"As to that, I must not boast too much of my wisdom," answered Crawford.
"My capital hasn't yet been sent out to the colony, so that I could not
invest it even if I wished to do so. Percy assures me that I shall
receive a warm welcome from his family, and that I may besides have an
opportunity of seeing how farming operations are carried on. He tells
me also that I shall obtain an easy introduction to every description of
wild beast: elephants, rhinoceroses, lions, gnus, black and brindled,
blessbocs, hartebeests, reitbocs, not to speak of others of smaller
size, and birds innumerable."

"Faith! you'll not find any want of them, but you'll remember it's not
always pleasant to meet a lion or a black rhinoceros in a morning's
ramble, and you will have reason to be thankful if you don't, for I can
assure you that they're rather troublesome acquaintances. I came to
that opinion not many years ago, when I had to spend some hours up a
tree, waiting for my breakfast, while a couple of lions and their cubs
were watching below, eager to breakfast off me;" and Denis told, with
much _naivete_, his adventure on his first journey with his father.

Besides the white persons who have been mentioned, the waggon party
consisted of three Hottentots, whose duty was to drive and attend
especially to the cattle; and six Kaffir hunters, among whom Umgolo was
the chief. Hendricks intended to obtain others who had before served
under him on the way. There were three spare horses, which followed the
waggon, fastened by riems or thongs of hide, the general substitute for
rope in the colony. Five dogs may also be counted as forming part of
the expedition, rejoicing in the names of Spout, Growl, Pincher, Fangs,
and Raff. The latter belonged to Denis, who so called the animal after
the name of a countryman, Paddy Rafferty, who had given it to him. The
"baste," he boasted, did credit to the "ould counthry:" for although no
beauty, he was the cleverest and bravest of all the dogs, and much
attached to him.

Each of the fourteen oxen had a Dutch name, to which it answered, well
knowing when the driver shouted out, that if it did not exert itself, it
would presently