the world of fueh a monfter. The fellow ihrunk from the:
enquiries of the indignant general ; he had nothing to allege
againffi him but that he had always been a worthlefs boy; he had:
loft him fo'many fheep ; he had flept when he ought to watch
the cattle, and fuch like frivolous charges of a negative kind,,
thé amount of which, if true, only proved that his own intereft.
had fometimes been negleited by this child;
Determined to make an example of the author o f fuch un»,
paralleled brutality, the General ordered him rnftantly to yoke-
his oxen to his waggon, and, placing the boy by his fide, to»
drive direcftly to head-quarters. Here he gave orders to the
farrier of the 8th regiment of Light Dragoons to ftrike off the
irons from the boy, an operation that required great nicety and:
attention, and ta clench them as tight as he could oa the legs-
of his mafter, who roared and bellowed in a moft violent man»
ner, to the inexpreffible fatisfailion of the by-ftanders, and,
above all, to that of. the little fufferer juft relieved1 from torment.
For the whole of the firft night his larhentâtions-were inceflant;
with a Stentorian voice a thoiifafifd tittles, he vociferated, * Mmr
« God! is dat een manière olrt Chriftian menfcb f e bandèknN'
“ My God ! is this a way to treat Chriftians !” His, however,
Were not the agonies of bodily pain, but the burfts of rage and
refentment on being put on a level with one, as they call them,
of the Zwarte Natte, between whom and the Chriftian Menfcb-
they conceive the difference to be fully as great as between
themfelves and their cattle, and whom, indeed, they moft
commonly honour with the appellation of Zwarte Fee, black
cattle. Having roared for three days and as many nights, at
firft
firft to the great amufement, but afterwards, to the no kfs annoyance,
of the whole camp, he w^s fuffered to go about his
bufinefs on paying a heavy penalty in money for the ufe of the
boy, whom he had abufed in fo ihameful a manner;
, Another inftance occurred, fince cur departure from Algoa
Bay, wlftch-ftrongly marked the little relu&ance tliat is felt by
the African boors in the ftvedding of human blood, even qf
Chriftian Menfcb, for whom they affedt fo great a veneration.
On leaving the bay it was difcovered that three fine young lads
o f the ,81 ft regiment had deferted with their arms ; and as thefe
deferters knew that the reft of the people were to march that
morning towards the upper part of the country, Van Roj, from
whole houfe we departed, concluding tfiey might return, enquired
of the General what he ftiould- do in cafe of fuch -an
event? The anfwer was, “ Secure them, to be fure.’r— “ But i f
“ they ihould refill ?”— “ You mult take them, at any rate: you
“ and your fons and people about the hoqfe are more than fuf-
“ ficient to do that.” Tfie followjpg .day th.e map came gal-
lopping after us, palp and frightened, and ready to fink into
the ground. He had Ihot the tfiree defertjrs r he hafi been
obliged to do it, as he faid, in his own defence, and for the pro-
tedion of his family, whom they intended tq njnrder. “ If
“ you can make that appear to have been the cafe;” the General
told him, “ you are juftified in what you have done; but the
“ fad is fo extraordinary, that a very rigid inquiry will be
“ made into it.” It is wonderful how rapidly the fellow’s
countenance brightened up, on hearing there was feme palliation
in favour of what he had done. - It was evident he felt
0 2 neither