mpany's Chairman. But he was
persuaded to permit the test of a few samples made in the workshops, and
lo!--to his infinite astonishment the results were all that could be
desired. The missiles conducted themselves properly, and--contrary to
"expert" opinion--burst at the right moments. There being plenty of the
requisite raw material, a hundred shells were made in a day. This was a
great advantage and was appreciated to the full. Mr. Rhodes knew the
Boers loved him, and, by way of reciprocity, he had engraved on the base
of each shell: "With compliments from C.J.R." His initials sufficed;
the Boers knew him well. The conceit excited much mirth in town, as it
doubtless did among the enemy.

Another letter in the afternoon; from the Boer General to Colonel
Kekewich. It concerned the Dutch again. The Colonel--patient
man--intimated in reply that the families in question had already twice
refused to leave him, and that he could not force nor drive them. The
Boers, we gathered from their envoy, were sick with typhoid fever, sick
with dysentry, sick of the war altogether--so sick, indeed, that part of
our visitor's mission was to borrow medicines and a doctor. That we
should have proven so obstinate in our resistance had not been
anticipated. Well, the Colonel could not refuse the medicines; he
sympathised with the sufferers; but in view of the fact that the
borrowers had already commandeered a doctor, he could not see his way to
lend another.

We had set the ball rolling with such success in the morning that it was
determined to give it the last kick in the evening as well. To make
certain of this, a gun was charged and "sighted" while there was yet
light; and at nine o'clock a shell was sent hurtling through the shades
of night. Its effect, of course, was not observable; but if it were to
startle the enemy as much as the gun's boom did the whole of us, C. J.
R. and his unseasonable "compliments" must have fallen foul of some
"remarks."

Next morning the gift was not at all gracefully acknowledged. The
unfortunate brickfields were pelted again; it was enigmatical; that Mr.
Rhodes should be reckoned "a brick," by Boers, was improbable; rumour
had it that his blood was hungered for. Some shells were hurled also at
the grand stand of the race-course. Finally, the enemy appeared to
suspect that the cattle might have had a hand in the despatch of the
nine o'clock missile, and he bombarded Kenilworth with great gusto.

The ho