our fathers be with us! At the least we can swim." And I led her to
the head of the pool. We threw away our blankets--everything except an

assegai, which I held in my teeth--and we plunged in, wading as far as
we could. Now we were up to our breasts; now we had lost the earth and

were swimming towards the middle of the river, the dog Koos leading
the way.

Then it was that the soldiers appeared upon the bank. "Ah! little
people," one cried, "you swim, do you? Well, you will drown; and if

you do not drown we know a ford, and we will catch you and kill you--
yes! if we must run over the edge of the world after you we will catch

you." And he hurled an assegai after us, which fell between us like a
flash of light.

While he spoke we swam hard, and now we were in the current. It swept
us downwards, but still we made way, for we could swim well. It was

just this: if we could reach the bank before we were swept into the
rapids we were safe; if not, then--good-night! Now we were near the

other side, but, alas! we were also near the lip of the foaming water.
We strained, we struggled. Baleka was a brave girl, and she swam

bravely; but the water pushed her down below me, and I could do
nothing to help her. I got my foot upon the rock and looked round.

There she was, and eight paces from her the broken water boiled. I
could not go back. I was too weak, and it seemed that she must perish.

But the dog Koos saw. He swam towards her, barking, then turned round,
heading for the shore. She grasped him by the tail with her right

hand. Then he put out his strength--he was very strong. She took
struck out with her feet and left hand, and slowly--very slowly--drew

near. Then I stretched out the handle of my assegai towards her. She
caught it with her left hand. Already her feet were over the brink of

the rapids, but I pulled and Koos pulled, and we brought her safe into
the shadows, and from the shallows to the bank, and there she fell

gasping.
Now when the soldiers on the other bank saw that we had crossed, they

shouted threats at us, then ran away down the bank.
"Arise, Baleka!" I said: "they have gone to see a ford."

"Ah, let me die!" she answered.
But I forced her to rise, and after awhile she got her breath again,

and we walked on as fast as we could up the long rise. For two hours
we walked, or more, till at last we came to the crest of the rise, and

there, far away, we saw a large kraal.
"Keep heart," I said. "See, there is the kraal of Chaka."

"Yes, brother," she answered, "but what waits us there? Death is
behind us and before us--we are in the middle of death."

Presently we came to a path that ran to the kraal from the ford of the
Umfolozi. It was by it that the Impi had travelled. We followed the

path till at last we were but half an hour's journey from the kraal.
Then we looked back, and lo! there behind us were the pursuers--five

of them--one had drowned in crossing the river.
Again we ran, but now we were weak, and they gained upon us. Then once

more I thought of the dog. He was fierce and would tear any one on
whom I set him. I called him and told him what to do, though I knew

that it would be his death. He understood, and flew towards the
soldiers growling, his hair standing up on his spine. They tried to

kill him with spears and kerries, but he jumped round them, biting at
them, and kept them back. At last a man hit him, and he sprang up and

seized the man by the throat. There he clung, man and dog rolling over
and over together, till the end of it was that they both died. Ah! he

was a dog! We do not see such dogs nowadays. His father was a Boer
hound, the first that came into the country. That dog once killed a

leopard all by himself. Well, this was the end of Koos!
Meanwhile, we had been running. Now we were but three hundred paces

from the gate of the kraal, and there was something going on inside
it; that we could see from the noise and the dust. The four soldiers,

leaving the dead dog and the dying man, came after us swiftly. I saw
that they must catch us before we reached the gate, for now Baleka

could go but slowly. Then a thought came into my head. I had brought
her here, I would save her life if I could. Should she reach the kraal

without me, Chaka would not kill a girl who was so young and fair.
"Run on, Baleka! run on!" I said, dropping behind. Now she was almost

blind with weariness and terror, and, not seeing my purpose, staggered
towards the gate of the kraal. But I sat down on the veldt to get my

breath again, for I was about to fight four men till I was killed. My
heart beat and the blood drummed in my ears, but when they drew near

and I rose--the assegai in my hand--once more the red cloth seemed to
go up and down before my eyes, and all fear left me.

The men were running, two and two, with the length of a spear throw
between them. But of the first pair one was five or six paces in front

of the other. This man shouted out loud and charged me, shield and
spear up. Now I had no shield--nothing but the assegai; but I was

crafty and he was overbold. On he came. I stood waiting for him till
he drew back the spear to stab me. Then suddenly I dropped to my knees

and thrustupward with all my strength, beneath the rim of his shield,
and he also thrust, but over me, his spear only cutting the flesh of

my shoulder--see! here is its scar; yes, to this day. And my assegai?
Ah! it went home; it ran through and through his middle. He rolled

over and over on the plain. The dust hid him; only I was now
weaponless, for the haft of my spear--it was but a light throwing

assegai--broke in two, leaving nothing but a little bit of stick in my
hand. And the other one was upon me. Then in the darkness I saw a

light. I fell on to my hands and knees and flung myself over sideways.
My body struck the legs of the man who was about to stab me, lifting

his feet from beneath him. Down he came heavily. Before he had touched
the ground I was off it. His spear had fallen from his hand. I

stooped, seized it, and as he rose I stabbed him through the back. It
was all done in the shake of a leaf, my father; in the shake of a leaf

he also was dead. Then I ran, for I had no stomach for the other two;
my valour was gone.

About a hundred paces from me Baleka was staggering along with her
arms out like one who has drunk too much beer. By the time I caught

her she was some forty paces from the gate of the kraal. But then her
strength left her altogether. Yes! there she fell senseless, and I

stood by her. And there, too, I should have been killed, had not this
chanced, since the other two men, having stayed one instant by their

dead fellows, came on against me mad with rage. For at that moment the
gate of the kraal opened, and through it ran a party of soldiers

dragging a prisoner by the arms. After them walked a great man, who
wore a leopard skin on his shoulders, and was laughing, and with him

were five or six ringed councillors, and after them again came a
company of warriors.

The soldiers saw that killing was going on, and ran up just as the
slayers reached us.

"Who are you?" they cried, "who day to kill at the gate of the
Elephant's kraal? Here the Elephant kills alone."

"We are of the children of Makedama," they answered, "and we follow
these evildoers who have done wickedness and murder in our kraal. See!

but now two of us are dead at their hands, and others lie dead along
the road. Suffer that we slay them."

"Ask that of the Elephant," said the soldiers; "ask too that he suffer
you should not be slain."

Just then the tall chief saw blood and heard words. He stalked up; and
he was a great man to look at, though still quite young in years. For

he was taller by a head than any round him, and his chest was big as
the chests of two; his face was fierce and beautiful, and when he grew

angry his eye flashed like a smitten brand.
"Who are these that dare to stir up dust at the gates of my kraal?" he

asked, frowning.
"O Chaka, O Elephant!" answered the captain of the soldiers, bending

himself double before him, "the men say that these are evildoers and
that they pursue them to kill them."

"Good!" he answered. "Let them slay the evildoers."
"O great chief! thanks be to thee, great chief!" said those men of my

people who sought to kill us.
"I hear you," he answered, then spoke once more to the captain. "And

when they have slain the evildoers, let themselves be blinded and
turned loose to seek their way home, because they have dared to lift a

spear within the Zulu gates. Now praise on, my children!" And he
laughed, while the soldiers murmured, "Ou! he is wise, he is great,

his justice is bright and terrible like the sun!"
But the two men of my people cried out in fear, for they did not seek

such justice as this.
"Cut out their tongues also," said Chaka. "What? shall the land of the

Zulus suffer such a noise? Never! lest the cattle miscarry. To it, ye
black ones! There lies the girl. She is asleep and helpless. Kill her!

What? you hesitate? Nay, then, if you will have time for thought, I
give it. Take these men, smear them with honey, and pin them over ant-

heaps; by to-morrow's sun they will know their own minds. But first
kill these two hunted jackals," and he pointed to Baleka and myself.

"They seem tired and doubtless they long for sleep."
Then for the first time I spoke, for the soldiers drew near to slay

us.
"O Chaka," I cried, "I am Mopo, and this is my sister Baleka."

I stopped, and a great shout of laughter went up from all who stood
round.

"Very well, Mopo and thy sister Baleka," said Chaka, grimly. "Good-
morning to you, Mopo and Baleka--also, good-night!"

"O Chaka," I broke in, "I am Mopo, son of Makedama of the Langeni
tribe. It was I who gave thee a gourd of water many years ago, when we

were both little. Then thou badest me come to thee when thou hadst
grown great, vowing that thou wouldst protect me and never do me harm.

So I have come, bringing my sister with me; and now, I pray thee, do
not eat up the words of long ago."

As I spoke, Chaka's face changed, and he listened earnestly, as a man
who holds his hand behind his ear. "Those are no liars," he said.

"Welcome, Mopo! Thou shalt be a dog in my hut, and feed from my hand.
But of thy sister I said nothing. Why, then, should she not be slain

when I swore vengeance against all thy tribe, save thee alone?"
"Because she is too fair to slay, O Chief!" I answered, boldly; "also

because I love her, and ask her life as a boon!"
"Turn the girl over," said Chaka. And they did so, showing her face.

"Again thou speakest no lie, son of Makedama," said the chief. "I
grant thee the boon. She also shall lie in my hut, and be of the

number of my 'sisters.' Now tell me thy tale, speaking only the
truth."

So I sat down and told him all. Nor did he grow weary of listening.
But, when I had done, he said but one thing--that he would that the

dog Koos had not been killed; since, if he had still been alive, he
would have set him on the hut of my father Makedama, and made him

chief over the Langeni.
Then he spoke to the captain of the soldiers. "I take back my words,"

he said. "Let not these men of the Langeni be mutilated. One shall die
and the other shall go free. Here," and he pointed to the man whom we

had seen led out of the kraal-gate, "here, Mopo, we have a man who has
proved himself a coward. Yesterday a kraal of wizards yonder was eaten

up by my order--perhaps you two saw it as you travelled. This man and
three others attacked a soldier of that kraal who defended his wife

and children. The man fought well--he slew three of my people. Then
this dog was afraid to meet him face to face. He killed him with a

throwing assegai, and afterwards he stabbed the woman. That is
nothing; but he should have fought the husband hand to hand. Now I

will do him honour. He shall fight to the death with one of these pigs
from thy sty," and he pointed with his spear to the men of my father's

kraal, "and the one who survives shall be run down as they tried to
run you down. I will send back the other pig to the sty with a

message. Choose, children of Makedama, which of you will live."
Now the two men of my tribe were brothers, and loved one another, and

each of them was willing to die that the other might go free.
Therefore, both of them stepped forward, saying that they would fight

the Zulu.
"What, is there honour among pigs?" said Chaka. "Then I will settle

it. See this assegai? I throw it into the air; if the blade falls
uppermost the tall man shall go free; if the shaft falls uppermost,

then life is to the short one, so!" And he sent the little spear

• awhile [ə´wail] ad.少顷；片刻 (初中英语单词)
• breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)
• fierce [fiəs] a.残忍的；强烈的 (初中英语单词)
• standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)
• sprang [spræŋ] spring 的过去式 (初中英语单词)
• throat [θrəut] n.咽喉；嗓子；出入口 (初中英语单词)
• running [´rʌniŋ] a.奔跑的；流动的 (初中英语单词)
• swiftly [´swiftli] ad.迅速地，敏捷地 (初中英语单词)
• terror [´terə] n.恐怖；惊骇 (初中英语单词)
• shield [ʃi:ld] n.盾牌；防御 v.保护 (初中英语单词)
• waiting [´weitiŋ] n.等候；伺候 (初中英语单词)
• thrust [θrʌst] v.&n.猛推；冲；刺；挤进 (初中英语单词)
• upward [´ʌpwəd] a.&ad.向上(的)；以上 (初中英语单词)
• stomach [´stʌmək] n.胃；胃口，食欲 (初中英语单词)
• altogether [,ɔ:ltə´geðə] ad.完全；总而言之 (初中英语单词)
• instant [´instənt] a.立即的 n.紧迫；瞬间 (初中英语单词)
• elephant [´elifənt] n.象 (初中英语单词)
• pursue [pə´sju:] v.追赶；追踪；从事 (初中英语单词)
• helpless [´helpləs] a.无助的，无依靠的 (初中英语单词)
• hesitate [´heziteit] vi.犹豫，踌躇 (初中英语单词)
• pointed [´pɔintid] a.尖(锐)的；中肯的 (初中英语单词)
• doubtless [´dautlis] ad.无疑地；大概，多半 (初中英语单词)
• laughter [´lɑ:ftə] n.笑，笑声 (初中英语单词)
• coward [´kauəd] n.胆怯者 a.胆小的 (初中英语单词)
• yesterday [´jestədi] n.&ad.昨天；前不久 (初中英语单词)
• willing [´wiliŋ] a.情愿的，乐意的 (初中英语单词)
• seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)
• grimly [´grimli] ad.严厉地；坚强地 (高中英语单词)
• earnestly [´ə:nistli] ad.认真地；急切地 (高中英语单词)
• vengeance [´vendʒəns] n.报复，复仇 (高中英语单词)
• boldly [´bəuldli] ad.大胆地；醒目地 (高中英语单词)
• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)
• downwards [´daunwədz] ad.向下，以下 (英语四级单词)
• weariness [wiərinis] n.疲倦；厌烦 (英语四级单词)
• valour [´vælə] n.英勇，勇猛 (英语四级单词)
• senseless [´sensləs] a.无知觉的；愚蠢的 (英语四级单词)
• leopard [´lepəd] n.豹 (英语四级单词)
• biting [´baitiŋ] a.刺痛的；尖利的 (英语六级单词)
• ringed [riŋd] a.带环的；戴戒指的 (英语六级单词)
• smitten [´smitn] smite的过去分词 (英语六级单词)
• speaking [´spi:kiŋ] n.说话 a.发言的 (英语六级单词)