CHAPTER XXVIII.
As the cattle required some repose, after the sufferings they had gonethrough, our travelers resolved to remain a few days on the banks of theModder River. The pasturage was fine and the game abundant. Gnoos andspringboks were to be seen in every direction, and quaggas, bonteboks,and several other varieties of antelopes, were in profusion over the nowundulating country. Neither were our travelers sorry to have some reposefor themselves, although every mile that they drew nearer to the Capemade them more anxious to return.
As usual, the caravan was halted on a rising ground, at some distancefrom the river, to avoid the wild beasts, which during the day wereconcealed, and during the night prowled on its banks, to spring upon theanimals which came down for water. As there was now plenty of wood, thefires were again lighted at night, and the oxen driven in and tied up.During the day, the animals reveled on the luxurious pasture, and in aweek had become quite sleek and in good condition.
Every day our travelers went out to hunt for a supply of provisions, andnever returned without more than was sufficient. Swinton was anxious topossess one or two more specimens of the oryx, or gemsbok. Thisantelope, we have before observed, from having very straight horns,which at a distance appear as one, has given rise to the fabulous animalthe unicorn, which is now one of the supporters of the royal arms. It isa very formidable animal; being the one that our travelers found withits horns pierced through the lion which had attacked it. The horsesbeing now fresh and in good heart, Alexander and the Major went inpursuit of this animal very often, but without success, as the chase wascontinually interrupted by the herds of ostriches and other game whichfell in their way.
One morning, having discovered with the telescope that three of thesegemsbok were some miles distant on a rising ground, they set off,accompanied by a portion of the Hottentots on foot, who were desired togo round, so as to drive the animals toward the camp. Bremen and BigAdam were of the party, and they had made a circuit of three or fourmiles, so as to get on the other side of the game, which now darted downfrom the high ground, and, descending on the plain, stopped for a whilelooking at their pursuers, while the horsemen advanced toward them inthe opposite direction. A shot from Alexander at last brought one ofthese splendid animals to the ground, while the others fled off to adistance, so as to give no hopes of again coming up with them; and theparty on foot, as well as the horsemen, now proceeded to the spot wherethe gemsbok lay dead.
As Swinton wanted the animal for a specimen, it was placed on the backof the horse which Omrah rode as usual, and one of the Hottentots wentoff with it to the camp, which was not more than three miles distant.They were debating whether they should make an attempt to get near tothe other gemsbok, which were still in sight at a distance, or try forsome other game, when they perceived three lions not far from them on arising ground; and suddenly the horses, from which they had dismountedto give them time to recover their wind, broke loose from the Hottentotswho held the bridles, and galloped away toward the camp. The cause ofthe panic was now evident, for a very large male lion had detachedhimself from the other two, and was advancing slowly toward the party.
As soon as they perceived the approach of the lion, which they had notat first, they all seized their guns; but being wholly unprepared forsuch a sudden attack, there was a great deal of confusion; the Majorcrying out, "Let no one fire till I tell him," only produced more alarmamong the Hottentots, all of whom, except Bremen, appeared to be attheir wits' ends. When within fifty yards, the lion made one or twobounds, and in a moment was among them all, before they could bringtheir guns to their shoulders; the retreat was general in everydirection, and not a shot was fired.
All, however, did not escape; Big Adam had started back, and coming withall his force against Omrah, who was standing behind him, had fallenover the boy, and they were both flat on their backs, when the lionmade his spring. The lion was standing up, looking proudly at his flyingenemies, when Big Adam, who was close to him, attempted to rise and gainhis feet; but perceiving this, the animal, with a blow of its fore-paw,laid him prostrate again, set its foot upon his breast, and in thisattitude again looked proudly round him, as if confident of hissuperiority.
Omrah, who had sense enough to lie still, had yet his eyes sufficientlyopened to see what was going on; and as the lion appeared to be lookingat the scattered party, in a direction away from him, Omrah made one ortwo turns over, so as to get further off, hoping that he might escapeunperceived. The lion, however, heard the rustling, and turning roundgrowled at him, and Omrah remained still again. As Big Adam's feet wereturned toward Omrah, the lion now took up his position, deliberatelylying down at full length upon Big Adam's body, with his hind-quartersupon the Hottentot's face, so that he not only secured his prisoner, butwatched Omrah, who lay about three yards from him.
In the mean time the anxiety of the other party may be imagined; theyconsidered that Big Adam and Omrah must be sacrificed. It was proposedto fire with good aim, so as, if possible, to bring the animal'sattention and indignation upon themselves; but Swinton cried out not tofire on any account. "The animal is not hungry or even angry," saidSwinton. "If let alone, he will probably walk away without doing theminjury. At all events, our firing will be the signal for theirdestruction."
The advice of Swinton was considered good, especially as it was backedby that of Bremen, who also said that the lion was not hungry, and that,by the way in which he, moved his tail, he was evidently more inclinedto play than any thing else.
But in the mean time the pressure of the lion, whose weight wasenormous, was not only more than Big Adam could bear, but thehind-quarters of the animal being over his face prevented him frombreathing; and at last he was compelled to struggle to get his headclear. The consequence of his struggling was a severe bite on the leg,inflicted on poor Adam; not, however, in a furious manner; for the lionmerely caught at him as a cat would at a mouse, to prevent its escape,or because it was not quite dead. However, Big Adam had so fardisengaged his head that he could now breathe; and as the party keptcrying out to him to lie still, he continued so to do, although nearlysuffocated with the enormous weight of the animal.
Omrah, who had remained still during all this time, perceiving that thelion was licking the blood which flowed from the wound in Big Adam'sleg, thought that he might as well try another roll over, and being onhis back, he turned over on his face away from the lion. Thereupon thelion rose from off Big Adam, walked up to Omrah, and, to the horror ofour travelers, took up the boy by his waistcloth, and, carrying him likea small bundle in his mouth, went back to Big Adam, and laying Omrahclose down to the Hottentot's head, again took up his position on hisbody; now, however, with his paws upon the Hottentot's breast, so thathe might keep Omrah in view before him. Little Omrah had sense enoughnot to move during the time that the lion carried him, or after he waslaid down.
The change in the position of the lion occasioned our travelers and theparty to walk round, so as to be able to watch the countenance of theanimal, as every thing depended upon the temper he might be in. TheMajor and Alexander became very impatient, and were for advancing to theattack, but Swinton persuaded them not to do so until the last moment.
The lion now put its fore-paw upon the Hottentot's mouth, and againstopped his breath; this occasioned another struggle on the part of BigAdam, which was followed by the animal seizing him by the arm and bitinghim severely; but in so doing the lion removed its paw, and the mancould breathe again. The taste of blood appeared pleasant to the lion,for it continued biting the arm, descending from the shoulder to thehand, and as the blood flowed from the wounds on its paws, the lionlicked it off. Again and again it licked its paw clean, and then, withits glaring eyes fixed intently upon the Hottentot's face, it smelt himfirst on one side and then on the other, and appeared only to be waitingfor a return of appetite to commence a deliberate meal upon the poorfellow's body.
In the mean time our travelers were standing about seventy yardsdistant, waiting for the signal to att
ack, when Bremen observed toSwinton--
"He won't wait much longer, sir; the blood has given him an appetite. Wemust now drive him away, or they will both be killed."
"I think so too," replied Swinton; "let us first try if we can disturbhim without making him angry; that will be the best way. We must go backout of springing distance, and then all shout together, and keephallooing at him."
This advice was followed; they retreated a hundred yards, and then allshouted at once, and after that the Hottentots hallooed and bawled tothe lion. This had the effect intended: the lion rose from the bodiesand advanced toward the party, who stood still hallooing at him, but notattempting to irritate him by presenting their guns. The lion lookedsteadfastly at them for some time, and then turned away. Afterretreating a few steps, it turned back to face them; the whole partycontinued on the same spot, neither advancing so as to irritate him, norretreating so as to let the animal suppose that they were afraid of him.When the lion had continued for a few minutes this course of retreatingand advancing, he turned right round, and went away at a hand canter,and our travelers immediately hastened to the spot where Big Adam andOmrah were still lying.
Omrah, who was not at all hurt, instantly jumped on his legs, and, if hehad been afraid, appeared to have quite recovered his courage, as he cutall manner of capers, and laughed immoderately; but Big Adam was greatlyexhausted and could not move, as much from the immense pressure of thelion's enormous body, as from the blood that he had lost by the woundswhich he had received. On examination, the bite in his leg was found tobe much the most serious, as the bone was injured; the wounds on his armwere all flesh-wounds, and although very painful, were not dangerous.He was at present unable to speak, and was carried by his comrades tothe camp. Our travelers followed the Hottentots, as they all had enoughof hunting for that day. As soon as they arrived, Big Adam's wounds weredressed by Swinton, and the poor fellow was accommodated with a bed,made up for him in the baggage-wagon. They remained two days more on thebanks of the Modder River, and then they forded it and continued theirjourney.
On the second day they perceived some small human figures on the summitof a hill at some distance, which the Hottentots declared to be Bushmen,of which people there were numerous hordes in this part of the country.An attempt was made to open a communication with them, but in vain, aswhen any of the party advanced on horseback toward them, the Bushmenmade a precipitate retreat. As they were now in the neighborhood ofthese plunderers, every care was taken of the cattle, which were tied upbefore dark to prevent their being stolen.
On the following day they very unexpectedly fell in with a party of nineof the Bushmen, who were very busy devouring a quagga, which they hadkilled. They replied to questions put to them with much fear andtrembling, and, having been presented with some tobacco, they made aprecipitate retreat. On that night the fires of the Bushmen were to beseen on several of the surrounding hills. They continued their course onthe following day, when they fell in with about twenty women of the racewe have just mentioned, who approached the caravan without fear,requesting tobacco and food; the former was given to them in smallquantities, and a shot from the Major's rifle soon procured them thelatter. They were now without water again, and had no chance ofprocuring any, except from the pools, until they arrived at the NuGariep, or Black River, which they had crossed when they came out fromthe Caffre Land.
Having traveled till dark, they halted under a hill, and were soonafterward joined by a party of Bushwomen, who continued with them inspite of all their attempts to get rid of them. They were very small inperson, well made, and the young were rather pretty in their features,but their ornaments were enough to disgust any one but a Hottentot; forthey were smeared with grease and red ocher, and were adorned with theentrails of animals as necklaces. The Hottentots, however, appeared tothink this very delightful, and were pleased with their company, and asthe women showed them a pool of water, where the oxen could drink, itwas not considered advisable to drive them away. But Swinton observed,that it would be necessary to keep a very sharp lookout, as the womenwere invariably sent by the Bushmen as spies, that they might watch theopportunity for stealing cattle.
They now resumed their former plan; starting at a very early hour, andtraveling till afternoon, when the cattle were allowed several hours tofeed, and were then tied up for the night to the wagons. Indeed thelions were now not so numerous as they had been, and they had more tofear from the Bushmen and the hyenas, which were very plentiful.
The next day fully proved the truth of this, for the oxen, having beenunyoked as usual to feed, about two o'clock in the afternoon, had beenled to a hollow of luxuriant pasture by the cattle-keepers, where theycould not be seen from the caravan, although they were not half a mileoff. Toward dusk, when it was time to drive them in and tie them up tothe wagons, it was found that the cattle-keepers, who had been incompany with the Bushwomen, had neglected their charge, and they werenot to be found.
The keepers came running in, stating that a lion had scared the cattle,and that the animals had galloped off to a great distance. But Omrah,who had gone to where the cattle had been feeding, returned to the campand told Swinton that it was not lions but Bushmen who had stolen them;and, bringing the horses ready saddled to the Major and Alexander, said,that if they did not follow them immediately, the cattle would be allkilled. It was also observed that the Bushwomen had all disappeared.
Swinton, who was well aware of the customs of the Bushmen, immediatelyproposed that they should mount as many as they could, and go in chase,as there was not an hour to be lost. In half an hour a party, consistingof our three travelers, Bremen, Omrah, and three of the most trusty ofthe Hottentots, who were all that they could mount, set off in thedirection which they knew must have been taken, so as to conceal thecattle from the sight of those in the caravan; and it being a finemoonlight night, the keen eyes of Omrah tracked them for more than fivemiles, where they were at fault, as the traces of their hoofs were nolonger to be seen.
"What shall we do now?" said the Major.
"We must trust to Omrah," replied Swinton, "he knows the habits of hispeople well, and they will not deceive him."
Omrah, who had been very busy kneeling on the ground, and striking alight every now and then with a flint and steel, to ascertain the trackmore distinctly, now came up and made them comprehend that the Bushmenhad turned back upon the very track they had gone upon, and that theymust return and find where they diverged from it again.
This created considerable delay, as they had to walk the horses back formore than a mile, when they again found the footing of the cattlediverging from the track to the southward and eastward, in the directionof some hills.
They now made all the haste that they could, and proceeded so rapidly onthe track, that in about an hour they perceived the whole herd of oxendriven up the side of a hill by a party of Bushmen. They put spurs totheir horses and galloped as fast as they could in pursuit, and sooncame up with them; when a discharge of rifles left three Bushmen on theground and put all the rest to flight. The cattle, which were muchfrightened, were with some difficulty turned and driven back toward theencampment. In the mean time the disappointed Bushmen had turned uponthose near, and were letting fly their arrows from the bushes where theywere concealed and continued thus to assail them until the party arrivedat the open plain. One of the Hottentots was wounded by an arrow in theneck; but that was the only accident which occurred to any of the party,and this was not known to our travelers until after their arrival atthe encampment, when it was almost daybreak; and then, tired with thefatigues of the night, all were glad to obtain a few hours' rest.
When they rose the next morning, Swanevelt informed them that nine ofthe oxen were so wounded with the poisoned arrows of the Bushmen, thatthey could not live; and also, that Piets the Hottentot had been badlywounded in the neck with one of the arrows. Swinton immediately orderedthe man to be brought to him, as he was well aware of the fatal effectsof a wound from a Bushman's arrow.
r /> It appeared that Piets had pulled the arrow out of his neck, but thatsome pieces of the barb had remained in the wound, and that these hiscompanions had been extracting with their knives, and the wound was verymuch inflamed in consequence. Swinton immediately cut out as much of theaffected part as he could, applied ammonia to the wound, and gave himlaudanum to mitigate the pain, which was very acute; but the poor fellowlay groaning during the whole of the day.
They now examined the wounded oxen, which were already so swollen withthe poison that there were no hopes of saving them, and they wereimmediately put out of their pain. Several others were found slightlyhurt, but not so as to lose all hopes of their recovery; but thisunfortunate circumstance prevented them from continuing their journeyfor two days; as the whole of the oxen had been much harassed and cut bythe Bushmen, although not wounded by poisoned arrows. During this delay,the poor Hottentot became hourly worse; his head and throat were muchswollen, and he said that he felt the poison working within him.
After many hours of suffering, during which swellings appeared invarious parts of his body, the poor fellow breathed his last; and thenext day being Sunday, they remained as usual, and the body of theunfortunate man was consigned to a grave. This event threw a cloud overthe whole caravan, and whenever any of the Bushwomen made theirappearance at a distance, and made signs that they wished to come intothe camp, an angry bullet was sent instantly over their heads, whichmade them take to their heels.
On the Monday morning they again started with their reduced trains, fornow they had barely sufficient cattle to drag the wagons. Fortunatelythey were but a few miles from the Nu Gariep, and they arrived at itsbanks before evening. The next day they crossed it with difficulty,putting all the oxen to two of the wagons and then returning for theothers.
They were now once more in the colony, and their dangers anddifficulties were now to be considered over. It was not, however, till aweek afterward that they succeeded in crossing the Sweenberg andarriving at Graff Reynet. At this beautiful spot they remained for a fewdays, to make arrangements and to procure horses, that they mightproceed to Cape Town as fast as possible, leaving Bremen in charge ofthe wagons, which he was to bring down to them as soon as he could. Weshall pass over the remainder of their journey on horseback, as therewas nothing remarkable to be related. Suffice it to say, that on the11th of January, 1830, they arrived safe and sound at Cape Town, andwere warmly congratulated by Mr. Fairburn and their many friends, afterall the dangers and difficulties which they had encountered.
CHAPTER XXIX.
Alexander Wilmot again took possession of the apartments in Mr.Fairburn's house, and was not sorry once more to find himself surroundedby all the comforts and luxuries of civilization. He could scarcelybelieve where he was when he woke up the first morning, and found thathe had slept the whole night without being disturbed by the roar of alion or the cries of the hyena and jackal: and after the habit to whichhe had been so long accustomed, of eating his meals in the open air withhis plate on his knees, he could hardly reconcile himself for a few daysto a well laid-out table. The evenings were passed in narrating theiradventures to Mr. Fairburn, who was truly glad of the result of themission to Port Natal, as it would be so satisfactory to old SirCharles.
Alexander was now most anxious to return to England, and resolved totake his passage in the first ship which sailed after the arrival of thewagon with his effects. In the mean time his mornings were chieflypassed with Swinton and the Major, the latter of whom intended to go toEngland by the same vessel as Alexander. In three weeks after theirreturn to the Cape, the four wagons arrived, and excited much curiosity,as they were filled with every variety of the animal kingdom which wasindigenous to the country. Swinton's treasures were soon unloaded andconveyed to his house, and our naturalist was as happy as anenthusiastic person could be in the occupation that they gave him.Alexander only selected a few things, among which were the skins of thelion and lioness. As for the Major, he had had all his pleasure in thedestruction of the animals.
Bremen reported that all the Hottentots had behaved very well, and thatBig Adam had nearly recovered, and was able to limp about a little,although it would be a long while before he would regain the perfect useof his leg. Alexander now sent for them all, and paid them their wages,with an extra sum as a gratuity for their good conduct. To Bremen andSwanevelt, who had invariably conducted themselves faithfully, and whohad been the leading and most trustworthy men, he gave to each a wagonand span of ten oxen as a present by which they might in future obtaintheir livelihood, and the poor fellows considered themselves as rich asthe king of England. The other wagons and cattle of every descriptionwere left with Swinton to be disposed of.
The Major pressed Swinton very hard to part with little Omrah, butSwinton would not consent. The Major therefore presented Omrah with oneof his best rifles, and accouterments to correspond, as a mark of hisattachment; and Alexander desired that all the money which was realizedby the sale of the remaining wagons and other articles, as well as thecattle and horses, should be put by for Omrah's benefit. As a keepsake,Alexander gave the lad his telescope, with which he knew that would behighly pleased.
We may here as well observe, that, a few months after Alexander and theMajor left the Cape, Omrah, who had been placed at a school by Swinton,was admitted into the church, and baptized by the name of AlexanderHenderson Omrah; Alexander and the Major being his sponsors by proxies.He turned out a very clever scholar, and remains with Swinton at thismoment. He has more than once accompanied him into the interior, and hasdone much in reclaiming his countrymen, the bushmen, from their savageway of life, and has been of great service to the missionaries asinterpreter of the Word to his heathen brethren.
About a fortnight after the return of the wagons to Cape Town, a freetrader cast anchor in Table Bay to take in water, and Alexander and theMajor secured a passage in her to England. Alexander parted with greatregret from Mr. Fairburn and Swinton, with whom he promised tocorrespond, and they sailed with a fair wind for St. Helena, where theyremained for a few days, and took that opportunity of visiting the tombof Napoleon, the former emperor of the French. A seven weeks' passagebrought them into the Channel-and they once more beheld the white cliffsof England.
Alexander's impatience to see his uncle, from whom he had found a letterwaiting for him on his return to the Cape, stating that he was intolerable health, induced him to leave the ship in a pilot-boat, andland at Falmouth. Taking leave for a time of the Major, who preferredgoing on to Portsmouth, Alexander traveled with all possible speed, andon the second day arrived at his uncle's.
"Is my uncle quite well!" said Alexander, as he leaped out of thechaise, to the old butler who was at the door.
"No sir, not quite well: he has been in bed for this last week, butthere is nothing serious the matter, I believe."
Alexander hastened up stairs and was once more in the arms of SirCharles Wilmot, who embraced him warmly, and then, exhausted with theemotion, sank back on his pillow.
"Leave me for a little while, my dear boy, till I recover myself alittle," said Sir Charles. "I have no complaint, but I am very weak andfeeble. I will send for you very soon."
Alexander, who was himself much affected, was not sorry to withdraw fora while, and sent the housekeeper, who attended his aged relative, intothe room. In about an hour a message arrived requesting that he wouldreturn to his uncle.
"And now, my dear, kind boy, tell me every thing. I am indeed overjoyedto see you back again; I have not had one line from you since you leftthe Cape, and I really think that the worry and anxiety that I have felthave been the cause of my taking to my bed. Now you are back I shall bequite well again. Now tell me all, and I will not interrupt you."
Alexander sat down on the bed, and entered into a full detail of theresults of his expedition to Port Natal; reading over all the memorandawhich they had collected, and satisfactorily proving that thedescendants of the Europeans then existing could not by any possibilitybe from those who had
been lost in the _Grosvenor_ East Indiaman.
Sir Charles Wilmot listened in silence to all Alexander had to say, andthen, joining his hands above the bed-clothes, exclaimed, "GraciousLord, I thank Thee that this weight has been removed from my mind." Hethen for some minutes prayed in silence, and when he had finished, herequested Alexander to leave him till the evening.
The physician having called shortly after Alexander left his uncle,Alexander requested his opinion as to Sir Charles's state of health. Theformer replied--"He has but one complaint, my dear sir, which all theremedies in the world are not very likely to remove: it is the naturaldecay of nature, arising from old age, I do not consider that he is inany immediate danger of dissolution. I think it very likely that he maynever rise from his bed again; but, at the same time, he may remainbedridden for months. He sinks very gradually, for he has had naturallya very strong constitution, I believe the anxiety of his mind, arisingfrom your absence, and the blame he laid on himself for having allowedyou to undertake your expedition, have worn him more than any thingelse; but now that you have returned, I have no doubt, after the firstexcitement is over, that he will rally. Still man is born to die, Mr.Wilmot, and your uncle has already lived beyond the three-score yearsand ten allotted to the average age of man. Depend upon it, every thingshall be done which can protract a life so dear to you."
Alexander thanked the physician, and the latter then went up stairs toSir Charles. On his return, he informed Alexander that Sir Charles'spulse was stronger, but something must be allowed for the excitementwhich he had undergone.
When Alexander saw his uncle in the evening, the latter again thankedhim for having undertaken the expedition, and having brought back suchsatisfactory accounts.
"I am much your debtor, my dear boy," said he; "and if it is anysatisfaction to you (which I am sure it must be from your kind heart) toknow that you have smoothed the death-bed of one who loves you, you haveyour reward. I feel quite strong now; and if it will not be too muchtrouble, I should like you to give me a narrative of the wholeexpedition; not all at once, but a little now and then. You shall beginnow, and mind you enter into every little detail,--every thing willinterest me."
Alexander commenced his narrative, as his uncle requested, stating tohim how they were fitted out; the names of all the people; describingSwinton and the Major, and giving a much closer narrative of what passedthan we have done in these pages. After an hour or so, during whichAlexander had not got so far in his narrative as to have quitted theCape for Algoa Bay, he left off, that he might not weary his uncle, andwished him good-night.
For many weeks did the narrative, and the conversation produced by it,serve to amuse and interest the old gentleman, who still remained in hisbed. But long before it was finished, Major Henderson had arrived atthe hall, and had been introduced to Sir Charles, who was much pleasedwith him, and requested him to remain as long as he found it agreeable.The Major, at Alexander's request, had the lion and lioness set up inLeadbeater's best style, and the case had now arrived at the hall, andwas brought up into Sir Charles's room, that he might have some idea ofthe animals with which they had had to contend; and there it remained,for the old gentleman would not allow it to be taken away.
"I must send out a present to that little Omrah," said Sir Charles, onemorning, as he was conversing with the Major; "what shall it be?"
"Well, sir, I hardly know; but I think the best present for him would bea watch."
"Then, Major, order one of the best gold watches that can be made, whenyou go to town, and send it out to him; and, Major,--I am sorry to giveyou that trouble, but I am an old bedridden man, and that must be myexcuse,--take the keys from the dressing-table, and open the smalldrawer of that cabinet, and you will find two morocco cases in it, whichI will thank you to bring to me."
The Major did so, and Sir Charles, raising himself on his pillow, openedthe cases, which contained each a massive ring, in which was set adiamond of great value.
"These two rings were presented me by Eastern princes, Major, at thetime that I was resident in their country. There is little difference intheir value, but you would find it difficult to match the stones, evenin England. I will shut the cases up again, and now that I have shutthem up in my hands, take one out for me. Thank you, Major; that one isa present from me to our friend Swinton, and you must send it out to himwith the watch for the Bush-boy. The other, Major, I hope you will notrefuse to accept as a testimony of my gratitude to you, for havingaccompanied my dear boy on his expedition."
Sir Charles put the other case into the Major's hands.
"I certainly will not refuse any thing as a remembrance from you, SirCharles," replied the Major; "I accept your splendid present with manythanks, and so will Swinton, I am certain; but he will be more pleasedwith the kind attention than he will be with its great value; and Itrust you will believe me when I add that such is also my own feeling."
"I only hope you may have both as much pleasure in receiving as I havein giving them," replied Sir Charles; "so put them in your pocket andsay no more about them. There is Alexander coming up, I know his tread;I hope you do not mean to desert him now that the shooting season iscoming on; he will be very lonely, poor fellow, without you."
"I have good news, my dear uncle," said Alexander, as he entered;"Swinton is coming home; I have a letter from him, and he will be here,he trusts, a fortnight after his letter."
"I shall be most happy to shake hands with him," said Sir Charles. "Praywrite for him to come down immediately he arrives."
Three weeks after this announcement Swinton made his appearance, and wehardly need say was most warmly welcomed. Omrah he would not bring withhim, as he wished him to continue his education; but the Major declaredthat he had left the boy because he was afraid of his being taken fromhim. Our travelers were thus all reunited, and they agreed amongthemselves that it was quite as comfortable at the hall as it was at theBechuana country; and that if the sporting was not quite so exciting, atall events it was not quite so dangerous.
Swinton and the Major remained with Alexander till the opening of thenext year, and then they both left at the same time, and sailed in thesame ship; the Major to rejoin his regiment in India, Swinton to hisfavorite locality in Africa, to obtain some more specimens in naturalhistory.
As the physician had declared, Sir Charles never rose from his bedagain; but he sunk so gradually that it was almost imperceptible, and itwas not until the summer of that year that he slept with his fathers,dying without pain, and in perfect possession of his senses.
Alexander now came into possession of the estates and title, andcertainly he entered upon them without any reproach as to his conducttoward his uncle, who died blessing him. And now my tale is ended, and Iwish my young readers farewell.
THE END
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