, "the end is at hand. The Child has saved the
others, or most of them, but us it has abandoned. Now what will you do?
Kill yourself, or if that does not please you, suffer me to kill you? Or
shoot on until you must surrender?"

"I have nothing to shoot with any more," I answered. "But if we
surrender, what will happen to us?"

"We shall be taken to Simba's town and there sacrificed to the devil
Jana--I have not time to tell you how. Therefore I propose to kill
myself."

"Then I think you are foolish, Marut, since once we are dead, we are
dead; but while we are alive it is always possible that we may escape
from Jana. If the worst comes to the worst I have a pistol with two
bullets in it, one for you and one for me."

"The wisdom of the Child is in you," he replied. "I shall surrender with
you, Macumazana, and take my chance."

Then he turned and explained things to his followers, who spoke together
for a moment. In the end these took a strange and, to my mind, a very
heroic decision. Waiting till the attacking Kendah were quite close
to us, with the exception of three men, who either because they lacked
courage or for some other reason, stayed with us, they advanced humbly
as though to make submission. A number of the Black Kendah dismounted
and ran up, I suppose to take them prisoners. The men waited till
these were all round them. Then with a yell of "The Child!" they sprang
forward, taking the enemy unawares and fighting like demons, inflicted
great loss upon them before they fell themselves covered with wounds.

"Brave men indeed!" said Marut approvingly. "Well, now they are all at
peace with the Child, where doubtless we shall find them ere long."

I nodded but answered nothing. To tell the truth, I was too much engaged
in nursing the remains of my own courage to enter into conversation
about that of other people.

This fierce and cunning stratagem of desperate men which had cost their
enemies so dear, seemed to infuriate the Black Kendah.

At us came the whole mob of them--we were but six now--roaring "Jana!
Jana!" and led by a grey-beard who, to judge from the number of silver
chains upon his breast and his other trappings, seemed to be a great man
among them. When they were about fifty yards away and I was preparing
for the worst, a shot rang out from above and behind me. At the same
instant Greybeard threw his arms wide and letting fall the spear he
held, pitched from his horse, evidently stone dead.