"WATER! WATER!" On moved the little caravan, but not in silence.

Swartboy's voice and whip made an almost continual noise.

The latter could be plainly heard more than a mile over the plain, like repeated discharges of a musket.
Hendrik, too, did a good deal in the way of shouting; and even the usually quiet Hans was under the necessity of using his voice to urge the flock forward in the right direction.
Occasionally both the boys were called upon to give Swartboy a help with the leading oxen when these became obstinate or restive, and would turn out of the track.

At such times either Hans or Hendrik would gallop up, set the heads of the animals right again, and ply the "jamboks" upon their sides.
This "jambok" is a severe chastener to an obstinate ox.

It is an elastic whip made of rhinoceros or hippopotamus skin,--hippopotamus is the best,--near six feet long, and tapering regularly from butt to tip.
Whenever the led oxen misbehaved, and Swartboy could not reach them with his long "voorslag," Hendrik was ever ready to tickle them with his tough jambok; and, by this means, frighten them into good behaviour.
Indeed, one of the boys was obliged to be at their head nearly all the time.
A "leader" is used to accompany most teams of oxen in South Africa.