Perils in the Transvaal and Zululand Part 35

"Well, so they might, Margetts," remarked Mr Rogers, "if they had thought that the English had been anxious to find out pleasant quarters for them. But I am afraid the English thought of one thing only, and that was clearing them out of their old abodes.

"Yes," he resumed; "the Dutchman has made himself comfortable enough here, if John Bull will only leave him alone. But that John Bull is too philanthropic to do--ha, Mansen?"

"There is no talk of annexing the Free State, is there?" asked old Ludwig with a smile.

"Why, no, Ludwig. The annexation of the other hasn't proved an encouraging experiment, or I think it likely that it would have been proposed."

"Well, sir," observed George, "that annexation took place with the free consent of the Boers, and it was designed in kindness to them."

"Was it?" returned Mr Rogers; "I have my doubts about that latter. No doubt the Boers agreed to it, or rather didn't object to it, at the time. But it was very much like pulling a drowning man out of the water, on condition of his being your bond-servant for evermore. He would agree rather than be drowned, but I doubt whether you could call that his free consent. It was rather his forced consent, to my mind."

"What would you have had England do, sir?" asked Redgy.

"Help the Transvaal out of its difficulties, without insisting on annexation," answered Mr Rogers. "The policy would have been as wise as it would have been kind."

"And you would have given them their independence back when they asked for it after the Zulu war, I suppose?" said Margetts. "Would you give it them now?"

"I should certainly have given it on the occasion you name, when they asked for it. It had then become clear that they did not really desire the annexation; and the only reasonable ground there could have been for it was shown by that request not to exist. I think compliance would have been as wise as it would have been just, and would have gone far to smooth away all difficulties. It is, of course, a very different thing now. England cannot give to armed menace what she has refused to peaceful entreaty. Compliance would be even worse than the previous refusal."

"Well, sir," urged Margetts, "no one, to be sure, could think that the Boers would ever really get the upper hand in a regular war with England. I speak with all possible respect to Mr Mansen, but that is surely impossible."

"No one who understands the strength and resources of the two countries could think it possible," returned Mr Rogers. "But the Boers possess very little information on the subject, and the coloured races still less. They would all think that England yielded now, because her weakness, not her magnanimity, obliged her. But I still trust there will be no war. Enough of this. What is it you have been looking at so intently, Thyrza, for the last ten minutes?"

"I think it is a man on horseback," said Miss Rivers; "but the object is so far off that I cannot distinguish what it is."

She pointed as she spoke to a black speck, on the road that led from Winberg to Newcastle, which was moving towards them.

They all watched it for several minutes, and then Mr Mansen said, "You have a long sight, Thyrza. It _is_ a horseman, and he is riding fast.

He will pa.s.s almost close to us."

"It is an English soldier, or a man who has been one," exclaimed Rivers presently; "there is no mistaking his seat on horseback."

The rider continued to approach until he had arrived almost immediately under the spot where they were sitting. Then George and Redgy started up, simultaneously exclaiming, "It is Hardy, I declare! let us go down and speak to him."

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE.

Rivers and Margetts hurried down the steep descent without pausing to pick their way, and reached the bottom just as the traveller, whose horse was evidently tired out, pa.s.sed them at a broken-winded canter, which was the utmost speed, apparently, to which the unlucky animal could be urged.

"Hallo!" shouted George,--"hallo, Hardy, if it really is you! Here are two old friends of yours, who would like to have some talk with you, if you can spare them the time."

The horseman drew his rein in evident surprise.

"What! Rivers, Margetts!" he exclaimed. "Well, this is a piece of good luck. I was just thinking that the best thing I could do would be to ride round by d.y.k.eman's Hollow and ask you to help me. What brings you here?"

"Oh, we have been confined within the bounds of Rogers' property for several weeks, and we made up a party to-day to come here, more for something to do than anything else."

"And why are you confined within the bounds of d.y.k.eman's Hollow?" asked Hardy; "and who has confined you?"

"Well, it is more prudence than necessity," said George. "We don't want to provoke the Dutchmen to attack us."

"You talk riddles," said Hardy, "but I have no time to solve them. Can you tell me where Praetorius,--the great man among the Boers,--can you tell me where he is to be found?"

"I don't know with any certainty," said George; "I expect he has gone southward with the others."

"Southward! what do you mean?" exclaimed Hardy hastily. "What can he have gone south for?"

"Well, he didn't tell me," said Redgy, "but I think I can form a pretty good guess for what he has gone. It is to attack the English troops."

"English troops!" repeated Hardy in evident anxiety and alarm; "what English troops? I did not know that there were any in this neighbourhood."

"We hear that Sir George Colley is marching to the relief of Praetoria with, some say 1000, some 1500 men. Mr Rogers thinks he has got as far as Newcastle, if not still farther north," said Rivers.

"The relief of Praetoria!" again cried Hardy. "Is Pretoria besieged?

Do you mean that the rebellion has actually broken out?"

"No doubt of that," replied Margetts; "that is an old story now. The English have for two or three weeks past been besieged by the Boers in all the large towns,--Praetoria, Potchefstroom, Standerton,--and there has been sharp fighting in several places. About the end of December, 250 men belonging to the 94th Regiment were killed or taken prisoners at Bronker's Spruit, near Middelburgh."

"How did that come about?" asked Hardy.

"Well, I suppose Colonel Anstruther didn't know that there was any chance of his being attacked,--didn't know, in fact, that any outbreak was likely to take place,--or his neglect of precautions would seem to be of a piece with what we remember. He was marching, with a number of waggons and 250 men, as Redgy said, along the road, his train being half a mile long, when, at a place called Bronker's Spruit, two Dutchmen rode up to him and handed him a paper, which was found to be a letter from Joubert, who calls himself the Boer General. It stated that war had been declared between the Republic of the Transvaal and England, and called on him to surrender his men and waggons. I suppose Colonel Anstruther hardly thought that the summons was seriously meant; at all events, there was no superior force visible, to which he would be unable to offer resistance, and he only replied by forming his men in column and desiring them to move on, but--"

"But Joubert had planted his sharpshooters under cover everywhere round, and they opened their fire on the soldiers before they knew of their presence."

"That was it, certainly. In ten minutes half the men had been shot down. They were entangled in a marsh, and had not been able to get sight of any enemy to shoot at in return."

"Exactly; and then, I suppose, Colonel Anstruther surrendered?"

"Precisely; that is what he did, and he and his surviving men were taken prisoners."

"He could do nothing else. But I am afraid this will prevent any good being done by my mission. You say this occurred some weeks ago?"

"Yes," said Margetts; "the catastrophe near Middelburgh took place on the 28th of last month, and this is the 28th of January."

"Why, the 28th of last month was just about the time when I set out for Bloemfontein!" cried Hardy. "It is most extraordinary that I never heard this before!"

"What have you been to Bloemfontein for?" asked Rivers.

"I was sent there by the authorities at Natal," answered Hardy, "in consequence of a message from the Colonial Office in England. The Colonial Secretary wanted to come to terms with these Boers. I suppose he thought (as every one else thought) that the annexation had been a most foolish procedure, and that it would be better to come to some reasonable understanding with the Boers than keep up an irritating quarrel with them."

"Small blame to him for that," said George. "Well, go on."

"He thought that Brandt, the President of the Orange Free State, would be a good person to mediate between us and the Boers, and he sent me with a letter to him."

"Did you see him?" asked Margetts.

"Yes; I had two or three very satisfactory interviews with him. He seemed quite sincere in the desire he expressed of preventing bloodshed, and I am the bearer of a letter from him to Praetorius, which, as I was in hopes, would prevent any outbreak of hostilities. He certainly did not know, when I left Bloemfontein, that fighting was going on. I should be almost afraid it will be too late now."

"Is it not extraordinary that no message was sent either from Durban or London, to stop any proceedings until the result of the negotiations with Mr Brandt were known?" asked Rivers.