"Why ?" "Because you are talking the greatest bosh I've heard for months!" "I don't think I am," said Ingleborough gravely.

"I know that the Boers are terribly inflated with vanity and belief in themselves, but they have wisdom in their heads as well." "I've never seen any of it!" said the previous speaker.

"Bah! Rubbish! They drive us out of South Africa! Why, that would mean taking Rhodesia too." "Of course," replied Ingleborough, "and that's what they believe they are going to do." "With popguns ?" "No," said Ingleborough gravely; "but with their rifles.

Do you know that they can at any time arm a hundred thousand men with the best magazine-rifles in the world ?" "No!" came in chorus.

"We don't." "And that they have a magnificent force of artillery, which includes such guns as would dwarf any that we could bring against them, thoroughly outrange ours, and that in addition they have a great number of repeating-cannon--Maxims and Nordenfelts?
Above all, they have a vast supply of ammunition." "Where did they get it from ?" cried one.
"The moon," shouted another, and there was a roar.
"The fellow's a regular Boer himself," shouted a man behind; and there was a hiss raised, followed by a menacing groan, which made West's blood tingle as he closed up to his friend's side.
"The old story," said Ingleborough contemptuously, "You can't bear the honest truth." "Yes, we can," cried one of the men; "but we can't bear lies.