the case. The old savage was, in fact, following
out a thoroughly virtuous line of conduct according to his lights. All
this while, in order to benefit the man he liked, he had coolly and
deliberately been sacrificing the man he--well, did not like.

"Where is `The Home of the Serpents,' Josane? Do you know?"

"Yes. I know?"

Eustace started.

"Can you guide me to it?" he said, speaking quickly.

"I can. But it is a frightful place. The bravest white man would take
to his heels and run like a hunted buck before he had gone far inside.
You have extraordinary nerve, Ixeshane--but--You will see."

This sounded promising. But the old man's tone was quiet and confident.
He was not given to vapouring.

"How do you know where to find this place, Josane?" said Eustace, half
incredulously in spite of himself. "Xalasa told us it was unknown to
everybody--everybody but the witch-doctress?"

"Xalasa was right. I know where it is, because I have seen it. _I was
condemned to it_."

"By Ngcenika?"

"By Ngcenika. But my revenge is coming--my sure revenge is coming,"
muttered the old Gcaleka, crooning the words in a kind of ferocious
refrain--like that of a war-song.

As this juncture they were rejoined by Hoste.

"Well, Milne," he said. "Had enough _indaba_? Because, if so, we may
as well trek home again. Seems to me we've had a lot of trouble for
nothing and been made mortal fools of down to the ground by that
_schelm_, Xalasa's, cock-and-bull yarns."

"You're wrong this time," replied Eustace. "Just listen here a while
and you'll see that we're thoroughly on the right scent."

At the end of half an hour the Kafir and the two white men arose. Their
plans were laid. The following evening--at sundown--was the time fixed
on as that for starting upon their perilous and somewhat dimly
mysterious mission.

"You are sure three of us will be enough, Josane?" said Hoste.

"Quite enough. There are still bands of the Gcaleka fighting men in the
forest country. If we go in a strong party they will discover us and we
shall have to fight--_Au_! `A fight is as the air we breathe,' you will
say, _Amakosi_," parenthesised the old Kafir, whimsically--"But it will
not help us to find `The Home of the Serpents.' Still, there would be
no harm in having one more in the party."

"Who can we get?" mused Hoste. "There's George Payne; but he's away
down in the Colony--Grahamstown, I believe. It would take him days to