este, "betrayed the land; we have heard
that before. Those who betray the land must manure it; that is a good
rule!" and he laughed and passed on.

Frank Muller watched his retreating form with a smile of peculiar
malignity on his handsome face. "Ah, my friend," he said to himself in
Dutch, "you and that warrant will part company before you are many hours
older. Why, it would be enough to hang me, even in this happy land of
patriots. Old ---- would never forgive even me for taking that little
liberty with his name. Dear me, what a lot of trouble it is to be rid
of a single enemy! Well, it must be done, and Bessie is well worth the
pains; but if it had not been for this war I could never have managed
it. Yes! I did well to give my voice for war. I am sorry for the girl
Jess, but it is necessary; there must be no living witnesses left. Ah!
we are going to have a storm. So much the better. Such deeds are best
done in a storm."

Muller was right; the storm was coming up fast, throwing a veil of inky
cloud across the star-spangled sky. In South Africa there is but little
twilight, and the darkness follows hard upon the heels of the day. No
sooner had the angry ball of the setting sun disappeared than the night
swept with all her stars across the sky. And now after her came the
great storm, covering up her beauty with his blackness. The air was
stiflingly hot. Above was a starry space, to the east the black bosom
of the storm, in which the lightnings were already playing with
an incessant flickering movement, and to the west a deep red glow,
reflected from the sunken sun, yet lingered on the horizon.

On toiled the horses through the gathering gloom. Fortunately, the road
was almost level and free from mud-holes, and Frank Muller rode just
ahead to show the way, his strong athletic form standing out clearly
against the departing western glow. Silent was the earth, silent as
death. No bird or beast, no blade of grass or breath of air stirred upon
its surface. The only sign of life was the continual flickering of those
awful tongues of light as they licked the lips of the storm. On for mile
after mile, on through the desolation! They were not far from the river
now, and could hear the distant growling of the thunder, echoing down it
solemnly.

It was an awful night. Great pillars of mud-coloured cloud came creeping
across the surface of the veldt towards them, seemingly blown along
without a wind. Now, too, a ghastly-lookin