Long afterwards, however, he admitted to me that he acted on a presentiment.
"It seemed to me, Baas," he said, "that your reverend father was telling me that I should do best to let you two go on and not show myself, since if I did so we should all three be killed, as one of us must walk whom the other two could not desert.

Whereas if I left you as you were, one of you would be killed and the other escape, and that the one to be killed would not be _you_, Baas.

All of which came about as the Spirit spoke in my head, for Marut was killed, who did not matter, and--you know the rest, Baas." To return to Hans' story.

He saw us march down to the borders of the lake, and, keeping to our right, took cover behind the knoll of rock, whence he watched also all that followed.

When Jana advanced to attack us Hans crept forward in the hope, a very wild one, of crippling him with the little Purdey rifle.