CHAPTER XXXIII
RALPH FINDS THE DREAM MOUNTAIN
Now I must go back to that evening when we learned the great tidingsfrom the lips of the lad Gaasha, whose life Ralph had saved after theattack by the Kaffirs upon the laager. There sat Gaasha on the groundstaring, and there, not far away, Ralph was lying in his swoon, whileJan and I looked at each other like people who have suddenly beheld asign from heaven.
"What evil magic is there in my words," said Gaasha presently, "thatthey should strike the Baas yonder dead like a spear?"
"He is not dead," I answered, "but for long he has sought that mountainUmpondwana of which you speak. Tell us now, did you hear of any whitewoman dwelling with the chieftainess Sihamba?"
"No, lady, I heard of none."
This answer of Gaasha's saddened me, for I made sure that if so strangea thing had happened as that a white woman had come to live among histribe, the man who told him of the return of Sihamba would have told himof this also. Therefore, so I argued, either Suzanne was dead or shewas in the power of Piet Van Vooren, or Sihamba had deserted her, thoughthis last I did not believe. As it turned out afterwards, had not Gaashabeen the stupidest of Kaffirs, we should have been saved those longdays of doubt and trouble, for though he had not heard that Sihamba wasaccompanied by a white woman, he had heard that she brought with hera white _bird_ to the mountain Umpondwana. Of course if he had told usthis we should have guessed that the white bird could be none other thanSuzanne, whose native name was Swallow.
Well, we set about reviving Ralph, which was done by throwing wateron to his face. When he had found his senses again I prayed him not tosuffer himself to be carried away with hope, since although Gaasha hadheard of Sihamba, he had heard nothing of Suzanne.
To this he answered that now when God had pointed out to him themountain of his vision and in so strange a manner, he had no fear butthat he would find his wife upon it, since God was merciful and did notdesire to mock or torment His servants.
I replied that I trusted it might be so, but the ways of the Almightywere beyond our understanding, nor did it become us to pass judgmentupon them. Ralph scarcely heeded my words, but, springing to his feet,said:
"Come, let us be going to the mountain Umpondwana."
"First we must consult with the commandant and get aid from him," saidJan, "for it would not be safe that we should wander into these wildplaces alone, where there are many Kaffirs who doubtless would murderus."
In his eagerness Ralph would not listen to this, for he desired to startat once. But I pointed out to him that we had no horses, all ours beingdead of the sickness; moreover, that the night was dark, and we couldnot trek till the moon rose, so at length he consented. Then we wentinto the laager, and Jan called the older men together in a quiet place.
"What is it, Heer Botmar?" asked the commandant when they wereassembled.
"It is this, cousin," said Jan. "I desire to ask you to go a three days'trek out of your march to a mountain called Umpondwana, whither thisservant of mine, Gaasha, can guide you."
"For what reason?" asked the commandant astonished.
"Friend," said Jan, "you have all of you heard the story of how thatoutcast devil Piet Van Vooren, stole away my only child, Suzanne, thewife of Ralph Kenzie the Englishman here."
"That is an old tale," said the commandant, "and, doubtless, the poorgirl is dead long ago; why then do you speak of it now, and what has itto do with your request that we should trek to the mountain Umpondwana?"
"Only this, cousin; we think that my daughter Suzanne is living thereamong the Kaffirs, and we seek to rescue her. At least this is certain,for only now we have learnt it from the lips of Gaasha that Sihamba, herfriend and servant whom we believe was with her, rules over this tribeas chieftainess."
"That may be so," said the commandant, "but did Gaasha tell you thatyour daughter was there also?"
"No," answered Jan.
"Then how do you know it?"
Now Jan hesitated and turned red as he replied:
"We know it because Ralph Kenzie here saw this very mountain in a visionmore than two years ago, and in that vision was told that there he wouldfind the wife who was taken from him on his marriage day."
Now, on hearing this most of the Boers broke out laughing, for,though very religious, we are not a people who place faith in visions.Thereupon I grew angry, and spoke to them more strongly, perhaps, than Ishould have done, reducing them to silence, for they were all of them alittle afraid of my tongue. Also I told them the story of that dream ofRalph's and of what had just passed with Gaasha, showing them that therewas more in it than they imagined. After I had done Ralph spoke also,saying:
"Friends, doubtless this tale sounds foolish in your ears; but Iask what has been my nickname among you? Has it not been 'Man of theMountain,' because I have always spoken and inquired for a certainmountain which had ridges on it shaped like the fingers of a man's hand,and have you not thought me mad for this reason? Now I have heard ofsuch a mountain and I have heard also that Sihamba, who was with mywife, rules there as chieftainess. Is it strange, therefore, that I,believing now as ever in that vision, should wish to visit this mountainwhere, as I am sure, I shall find the wife that is lost to me?"
After this the Boers laughed no more but consulted apart till at lastthe elder, Heer Celliers, spoke.
"Heeren Botmar and Kenzie," he said, "of all this story of a vision wecan say little. For aught we know it may be true, but if true then itis the work of magic and we will have nothing to do with it. Should youwish to go to seek this mountain Umpondwana you must go alone, for wecannot alter our plans to trek there with you. But we counsel you not togo, since no good can come of visions and magic."
When I heard this I answered him back, but Jan and Ralph went away, andpresently I found them talking together outside the laager.
"Let me go alone," Ralph was saying.
"Nay," Jan answered, "I will accompany you, for two are better thanone; also I shall not sleep till I find out the truth and know whetherSuzanne lives or is dead."
"Indeed! and what is to become of me?" I asked.
"You, vrouw, can stop with the neighbours here, and we will join you inNatal."
"You will do no such thing, Jan Botmar," I answered, "for where you twogo there I can go. What! Am I not sick also with love for my daughterand anxious to learn her fate?"
"As you will, wife," answered Jan; "perhaps it is well that we threeshould not separate who have been together always," and he went to seeabout the waggon.
As soon as the moon rose, which was about eleven o'clock, the oxenwere inspanned. Before we started, however, several of our friendscame praying us not to venture on so perilous a journey; indeed, theythreatened even to use force to prevent us, and I think would have doneso had not Jan told them outright that we were our own masters and freeto go where we wished. So they departed, grieving over our obstinacy,and little guessing that their danger was far greater than our own,since as it chanced just as they had trekked through the Van Reenen'sPass a few days later a Zulu impi, returning from the Weenen massacres,fell upon them unawares and killed more than half their number beforethey were beaten off.
So we trekked with the moon, Gaasha guiding us, and did not outspantill dawn. As I have said, we had no horses, but never until I made thatjourney did it come home to me how slow are oxen, for never before thenwas I in a hurry, nor, indeed, have I been since that time. It is theEnglishmen who are always in a hurry, and that is one of the reasons whywe Boers are so superior to them, and when we choose can master them ineverything, except shopkeeping, and especially in fighting. Well, at thebest the cattle could not drag the waggon over the roadless veldt at agreater rate than two miles an hour, or cover more than twenty miles aday in all. It was pitiful to see Ralph's impatience; again and again hewalked on and returned; indeed, had we allowed it, I think that he wouldhave pressed forward on foot, leaving us to follow in the waggon.
At daylight on the third day we inspanned
as usual, and trekked throughthe morning mists until the sun sucked them up. Then Gaasha, who wassitting on the waggon-box beside Ralph, touched his shoulder, andpointed before him. Ralph looked, and far away upon the plain saw whatseemed to be a white cloud, above which towered the flat cliffs of amountain of red rock.
"See, Baas," he said, "yonder is Umpondwana, my home, and now bynightfall I shall know whether my parents are still alive, or, if theyare dead, whether they have left any cattle that I can claim by law,"and he began to whistle cheerfully.
"And I," said Ralph aloud, "shall know whether my life is to be a heavenor a hell," and all day long, neither eating nor drinking, he sat uponthe waggon-box and stared at the mountain, not lifting his eyes from it.