Have you anything to eat about you, baas ?" As it chanced, in my saddle-bags I had some biltong that I had saved against emergencies.

I gave it to him, and he devoured it as a famished hyena might do, tearing off the tough meat in lumps and bolting them whole.

When it was all gone he licked his fingers and his lips and stood still staring at me.
"Tell me your story," I repeated.
"Baas, I went to fetch the horses with the others, and ours had strayed.
I got up a tree to look for them.

Then I heard a noise, and saw that the Zulus were killing the Boers; so knowing that presently they would kill us, too, I stopped in that tree, hiding myself as well as I could in a stork's nest.

Well, they came and assegaied all the other Totties, and stood under my tree cleaning their spears and getting their breath, for one of my brothers had given them a good run.