ntentedly, he retired to his room, evidently reassured
by the dead silence which pervaded the house.

For some time the four people inside stood close together without a
word. No lights were lit, no sound whatever made until Carlo's
restless growlings ceased and he had settled himself to sleep again.

Then only were a few whispered words of welcome and greeting exchanged
and a breathless account given of the dangers with which Harmony was
surrounded.

"How did you come in?" Mrs. van Warmelo asked.

"Through the drift," Naude replied. "There were no guards--in fact, we
did not see a soul from first to last, and the dog was the only one to
object to our midnight wanderings. We were nearly on top of him before
he woke."

Nearly on top of the sensitive and alert watchdog before he became
aware of their proximity! No wonder, then, that the Boer spies
frequently glided up so close to the English outposts that they were
able to knock them down with a wooden stick or the butt end of a gun
before they could give the alarm or utter a sound!

The men were tired and exhausted, and gladly stretched themselves on
the beds to get what sleep they could before morning, having first
divested themselves of their outward trappings, helmets, etc., which
they buried under the floor. As before, the Captain came in a khaki
uniform, while his orderly, Venter, was dressed like a soldier.

As it was necessary for them to remain in Mrs. van Warmelo's bedroom
in order to be near their place of refuge under the floor, mother and
daughter retired to the dining-room, there to watch and wait for the
dawn of day.

Would the long night _never_ end?

Every time Carlo barked the two women started up from their couches
and listened with straining ears for sounds of commotion outside--but
in vain. Nothing disturbed the serenity of the night, and when the
rosy glow of dawn broke in the eastern sky and gradually spread its
glory over the hushed and expectant earth, Hansie fell into a fitful
slumber.

Not so her mother. Mrs. van Warmelo had been quietly pondering over
"Gentleman Jim's" unexpected appearance at the first sign of commotion
in the night and had come to the conclusion that something should be
done to disarm his suspicions.

That the guard of Military Police had been withdrawn from Harmony was
very evident, but it was quite possible that the task of maintaining
a vigilant watch had been transferred to Jim, with promises of a
liberal p