, once more
fleeing to the hills.

All day they sat upon the hillside, homeless, many of them hatless,
until towards afternoon, when, the fury of the bees abating, they
ventured a return to their tents.

The next day, when the dead mare had been removed for burial, a letter
was brought to Mrs. van Warmelo from the Provost-Marshal, commanding
the immediate removal of the beehives to some safer spot in the lower
portion of Harmony.

This was done by degrees, little by little every night, in order to
accustom the bees to the change gradually, and there was never any
repetition of the attack.

Hansie, writing to her brother in his prison-fort at Ahmednagar, that
his bees had put a valuable English horse out of action for ever,
received in reply a postcard, with the single comment, "My brave
bees!"

CHAPTER XXXIII

THE FIRST SPIES AT HARMONY

As we have said, the Committee of women had decided on Harmony as the
only safe spot for harbouring Captain Naude on his next visit. It was
still hemmed in by troops on every side, and, as the weeks went by,
and the van Warmelos became _more_ convinced that their name had not
been betrayed with those of the Secret Committee, they settled down
with a sense of peaceful security and prepared themselves once more
for the reception of their friends.

Their wonderful "escape" was a topic of daily conversation, and they
congratulated themselves over and over again with not even having been
approached by the military and put on their best behaviour.

No promises had been given by them, and they felt free as the birds of
the air to continue their work of outwitting the enemy, whenever
occasion presented itself. But occasions were rare now.

As far as was known, there was no longer a spot in the fencework
around Pretoria through which a spy could enter unobserved, and no
word or sign had been received from the brave Captain for more than
three months. By this they knew that he had been informed of the
calamities which had befallen his friends in town.

Still they doubted not that he would at least make an attempt to come
in again. His friends remembered his once having said that his keen
enjoyment of the perils he underwent was only enhanced by the
obstacles which lay in his way, and when the English thought they had
made it quite impossible for any man to cross their lines, it would be
his greatest pleasure to prove how much mistaken they were.

There was no vain boastin