eet upon its
southern slope. Now, Zinti, loose the mule, for we have our lives to
save, and ride on, remembering that Death is behind you."

CHAPTER XIX

HOW THE SCHIMMEL CROSSED THE RED WATER

When they turned their horses' heads, Swart Piet and his men were not
much more than a hundred paces from them, but in the wood they gained
much ground, for he did not think that they would dare to leave it, and
hunted for them there while they were racing over the open plain more
than a mile away. At last he caught sight of them crossing a distant
ridge, and the long chase began. For hour after hour they galloped on
through the moonlight across the wide and rolling veldt until the moon
sank, and they must pick their way as best they could in the darkness.
Then came the dawn, and still they rode forward, though now the horses
were beginning to grow weary, except the _schimmel_, who pulled upon
his bit as though he were fresh from the stable. In front of them, some
twenty miles away, rose the lofty peak for which they were heading, and
behind lay the great expanse of plain which they had passed. Suzanne
looked back over her shoulder, but there was no one in sight.

"Let us halt," she said, "and rest ourselves and the horses." So they
pulled up by a stream and suffered the beasts to drink some water,
though not much, while they themselves devoured biltong, of which they
had a little in the saddle-bags.

"Why do we ride for the peak?" asked Suzanne.

"Because there are places where we may lie hid," Sihamba answered, "and
thence we can make our way down to the seashore and so back homewards,
whereas here upon the plain we can be seen from miles away."

"Do any people live on the peak?"

"Yes, Swallow; it is the home of the great chief Sigwe, the
chief-paramount of the Red Kaffirs, who counts his spears by thousands,
but I have heard that he is away to the north upon a war which he makes
against some of the Swazi tribes with whom he has a quarrel."

"Will the people of Sigwe protect us, Sihamba?"

"Perhaps. We shall see. At least, you are safer with them than in the
hands of Swart Piet."

At this moment, Zinti, who was watching the plain over which they had
travelled, uttered a cry of warning. Looking back, they saw the reason
of it, for there, crossing the crest of a wave of ground, not more than
a mile away, were five horsemen riding hard upon their spoor.

"Swart Piet and four of his men," said Sihamba, "and by my