ossibly have survived in that furnace of flame, and with
the whites all slain and the house ablaze, there was no reason why they
should desire to enter it, for the fire would effectually destroy
everything in the shape of plunder. But they had driven off the whole
of the live stock, and that alone should have satisfied them.

I do not know how long I remained on my knees beside the corpse of my
mother in that fire-seared, bloodstained dining-room, plunged into a
very stupor of grief; but I remember that I was at length aroused by the
distant sounds of a cracking whip and the screams of Jan, the Hottentot
driver, to his oxen, announcing the approach of the wagon; and, looking
about me, I discovered that the sun had already set, and that darkness
was fast closing down upon the scene. Then I rose to my feet, and,
leaving the ruined house, made my way down the path to where Prince
still stood patiently awaiting my return, with the dogs Thunder and Juno
crouching upon the ground before him; and, flinging the bridle over his
head, I climbed into the saddle and rode slowly forth to meet the wagon.
I came to it at a distance of about half a mile from the broken-down
gate at the garden entrance, and ordered the others to outspan where
they were, water the oxen, and turn them loose to graze. Then I briefly
acquainted Jan, the driver, and Piet, my after-rider, with what had
happened, strictly forbade the former to go up to the house--though
there was little need for that, for I doubt whether anything would have
induced the fellow to go near the place after nightfall--and ordered
Piet to accompany me, as it was my intention to ride on to Mr
Lestrange's place, to see whether he and his had escaped a similar
visitation, and, if so, to beg shelter for the night and his presence
and help on the following day while I performed the last sad offices for
my beloved dead.

I am now an old man, for my age already exceeds the limit allotted by
the Psalmist as the length of man's life, but the memory of that night
ride, and my heart-breaking burden of grief as I stared out unseeingly
upon the fast-darkening landscape, allowing Prince to find his own way
and travel his own pace while I dwelt upon the harrowing scenes which I
had so recently beheld, and began to realise the full extent of my
irreparable loss, will never leave me; it is as fresh to-day as it was
at that moment, and so I know it will continue to be until I die. Yet,
keenly as