of the river as it now rolled, angry and red, bearing away stumps
and trees on its muddy water. She listened and smiled, and pressed
closer to the rock that took care of her. She pressed the palm of her
hand against it. When you have no one to love you, you love the dumb
things very much. When the sun set, it cleared up. Then the little girl
ate some kippersol, and lay down again to sleep. She thought there was
nothing so nice as to sleep. When one has had no food but kippersol
juice for two days, one doesn't feel strong.

"It is so nice here," she thought as she went to sleep, "I will stay
here always."

Afterwards the moon rose. The sky was very clear now, there was not a
cloud anywhere; and the moon shone in through the bushes in the door,
and made a lattice-work of light on her face. She was dreaming a
beautiful dream. The loveliest dreams of all are dreamed when you are
hungry. She thought she was walking in a beautiful place, holding her
father's hand, and they both had crowns on their heads, crowns of wild
asparagus. The people whom they passed smiled and kissed her; some gave
her flowers, and some gave her food, and the sunlight was everywhere.
She dreamed the same dream over and over, and it grew more and more
beautiful; till, suddenly, it seemed as though she were standing quite
alone. She looked up: on one side of her was the high precipice, on the
other was the river, with the willow trees, drooping their branches into
the water; and the moonlight was over all. Up, against the night sky the
pointed leaves of the kippersol trees were clearly marked, and the rocks
and the willow trees cast dark shadows.

In her sleep she shivered, and half awoke.

"Ah, I am not there, I am here," she said; and she crept closer to the
rock, and kissed it, and went to sleep again.

It must have been about three o'clock, for the moon had begun to sink
towards the western sky, when she woke, with a violent start. She sat
up, and pressed her hand against her heart.

"What can it be? A cony must surely have run across my feet and
frightened me!" she said, and she turned to lie down again; but soon she
sat up. Outside, there was the distinct sound of thorns crackling in a
fire.

She crept to the door and made an opening in the branches with her
fingers.

A large fire was blazing in the shadow, at the foot of the rocks. A
little Bushman sat over some burning coals that had been raked from it,
cooking meat. Stretched on the g