"Cursing's a very bad habit, and only belongs to times when wicked old men lived in old-fashioned plays and indulged in it upon all kinds of occasions, especially when they had sons and daughters who wanted to marry somebody else." "Oh, Ingle! Oh, Ingle! The sky doesn't look so covered with black clouds now." "By no means, my lad! I can see enough blue sky to make a Dutchman a pair of breeches--for Dutchman let's say Boer.

I say, what do you say to going out on patrol to-night ?" "Yes, yes, of course! But we have no guns!" "Nor bandoliers, and that's a fact! Well, it's of no use to think of getting our own back again, even if we said we repented and meant to join the Boers at once." "They wouldn't trust us!" "Too slim! Fools if they did!" "Then it is hopeless!" said West.

"Someone would notice it at once!" "Yes," said Ingleborough, "and those were beautiful rifles too.

But look here: I could see a way out of the difficulty, only you are so scrupulous.

One mustn't tell a diplomatic fib." "I can't stand telling an outrageous lie, even under stern necessity!" said West, pulling down his jacket after putting it on.
"And you are so horribly honest!" "Yes," said West bitterly.