The Adventures of Dick Maitland Part 4

"Ah!" remarked Mitch.e.l.l cryptically; "I wonder just how much you have heard respecting his travels?"

"Well, not very much, I must confess," acknowledged Grosvenor. "So far as I can remember, it amounted simply to the statement that after one of his long absences from civilisation he returned with the story that he had actually discovered the site of ancient Ophir; and that he had gathered reliable information concerning the existence of the mysterious white race, which is to be one of the objects of my quest."

"Just so," commented Mitch.e.l.l, relapsing into a pregnant silence. It was evident that he was intently considering some difficult question.

Presently he looked up and said:

"I knew Menzies very well in my younger days. As a matter of fact I saved his life; for had I not happened to have fallen in with him and picked him up he must have inevitably perished; and in that case the public would never have heard any of the extraordinary rumours respecting his discoveries that afterwards leaked out. I was away up- country elephant hunting at the time, and I found him, some seventy miles this side of the Zambezi, in the last stages of exhaustion from starvation. He was then returning from the journey that made him famous, and had lost everything he possessed, even to his rifle; it is therefore nothing short of marvellous that he had contrived to make his way as far back as he did when I found him. He was too ill to talk much when I first picked him up, but afterwards, when he grew stronger, he told me the whole astounding story of his journey and his adventures.

He talked of publis.h.i.+ng the narrative, but I very strongly dissuaded him from doing so; for, as I pointed out to him, there were portions of that narrative which were of so absolutely incredible a character that n.o.body would believe them, and the story would lose all value from the fact that it would be regarded as merely a fantastic fabrication, and he would gain the reputation of an unblus.h.i.+ng romancer. To tell you the truth, I was firmly persuaded at the time that what he had gone through had affected his brain, and that he was the victim of a series of the most weird and horrible illusions. But I had reason to modify my opinion in that respect a few years afterward, although I am still unable to make up my mind definitely as to just how much of his story was true and how much was due to an imagination that had become warped and distorted by peril and suffering."

"By Jove!" exclaimed Grosvenor, with a sort of thrill in his voice. "I say, you know, all this is intensely interesting. Eh, what? I wonder if you would mind repeating to us a few of those statements that you found it so difficult to believe at the time, and with regard to which you were afterwards inclined to modify your opinion?"

"Well," answered Mitch.e.l.l, "I am afraid I must ask you to excuse me from doing that. You see, Menzies was my friend, and one of the finest fellows that ever lived. He is dead now, poor chap, and I would not willingly say a single word that might cause you or anyone else to think lightly of him, or picture him in your mind as other than the very soul of truth and honour. Yet if I were to repeat to you some of the statements that I have in my mind, I know that you two hard-headed, matter-of-fact Englishmen would at once set them down as the veriest fairy tales, their author a second Munchausen, and myself a credulous old fool for attaching the slightest weight to them. And yet, let me tell you, Africa is a very queer country--as you will discover if you persist in attempting to carry out your plan--and queer things happen in it, things that strain a man's credulity to the breaking-point, until he has had personal experience of them. That remark of Shakespeare's, that 'there are more things in heaven and earth than are reckoned in our philosophy' is nowhere more forcefully confirmed than in this continent of Africa, and especially in those parts of it which are practically unknown to the white man. Why, even here, close at hand, among our neighbours the Zulus, there have been happenings--well authenticated, mind you--that are absolutely unexplainable by any knowledge that we whites possess. But I think I have prosed enough for one sitting, and it is growing late--one o'clock, as I am a living sinner!--and you must be growing tired. Do you wonder why I have told you all these things?

Well, it is because I should like to dissuade you from this mad scheme of yours, which my experience tells me can only end in disaster, and induce you to content yourselves with a two-months' hunting trip in the company of some good man who knows the country, and can be trusted to see that you come to no harm. Now, good night, both of you! think over what I have said; sleep well, and don't dream of fantastic horrors such as my talk may have suggested."

If Mr Joseph Mitch.e.l.l, sugar planter, and thoroughly honest, well- meaning man, flattered himself that the foregoing conversation would have any other effect than to stimulate the curiosity of his guests and confirm them in their determination to carry out their plans in their entirety, he very greatly over-estimated his persuasive powers, and completely misread the characters of those to whom he had been talking.

For both Grosvenor and Maitland were of a highly adventurous disposition, and what Mitch.e.l.l had told them had simply whetted their curiosity to a keen edge, and had strongly suggested to them that the adventure promised to be of an even more alluring and thrilling character than they had ever ventured to hope, even in their most sanguine moments. So much, indeed, they made clear to their host when they met him the next morning at the breakfast table; and, when he would have made a further attempt at dissuasion, laughingly a.s.sured him that their minds were finally made up, and that the kindest thing he could now do for them would be to give them as much information and as many hints and wrinkles as he could think of to help them to a satisfactory conclusion of the adventure. This Mitch.e.l.l proceeded to do, when at length the conviction had been borne in upon him that all his efforts at dissuasion were worse than useless; and when, two days later, they took leave of the genial planter, d.i.c.k carried away with him a notebook crowded from cover to cover with information that was destined to prove of incalculable value to him and his companion, as well as a sketch map showing the best route to follow, and certain localities that were to be most carefully avoided if they desired to return sane and sound to civilisation.

Arrived in Durban once more, after a most delightful jaunt, they at once set about making their preparations in earnest, one of the first things which Grosvenor insisted upon doing being the payment to d.i.c.k of six months' salary in advance, from the date of their landing upon South African soil. Practically the whole of this d.i.c.k was able to remit home to his mother, since Grosvenor would not hear of his contributing so much as a single penny toward the expenses of the expedition, therefore the junior member of the partners.h.i.+p had no need to spend anything, except for a few curios which he thought his mother might like to display to her friends; but he laid in a few additional drugs, and also added a spare instrument or two to his surgical case, to cover the possibility of loss or accident.

Three days later they started for Johannesburg, by way of Delagoa Bay and Pretoria, Grosvenor being very anxious to get a glimpse of life on the Rand and to gain some knowledge of diamonds and diamond mining before he finally bade farewell to civilisation. Since Johannesburg lay on the direct line of their route, and the knowledge sought might possibly prove useful in the future, d.i.c.k raised no objection to the proposal, especially as they went armed with letters of introduction from Mitch.e.l.l to some of the most influential of the Rand magnates and others whose advice and a.s.sistance would be exceedingly helpful. A busy three weeks spent in the city and at Wit.w.a.tersrand enriched them with much very valuable information, both particular and general, and also enabled them to acquire four excellent horses and an Indian coolie groom named Ramoo Samee, who not only bore a most admirable character, but also raised no objection when informed of the nature and scope of the adventure upon which his employers were bound. Here, too, and also at Pretoria, the partners endeavoured to secure the services of a hunter as guide and general superintendent, but were unable to meet with one who conformed in all respects to their requirements; they therefore ultimately decided to defer their further quest until their arrival in Bulawayo, which was to be the point from which they would finally bid farewell to civilisation.

But upon their arrival at Bulawayo, although they met with no difficulty in providing themselves with a brand-new wagon and a team of twenty "salted" oxen, together with a Hottentot driver named Jantje, and a Kafir boy named 'Nkuku as voorlouper, no suitable candidate for the post of guide offered himself or could be found; and finally, after devoting a full week to fruitless search and enquiry, d.i.c.k and Grosvenor agreed to start without one, and trust to luck and their own good sense.

Everybody, with one solitary exception, declared that it was a most risky thing to do; but the solitary exception, in the shape of an old Boer farmer named Van Zyl, applauded their pluck, and declared that they were far more likely to succeed by learning the lesson of the wild for themselves, and depending upon their own courage and adaptiveness, than if they set out under the guidance of another, and remained more or less in leading strings throughout the journey.

"What I would advise," he said, "is that you should look out for a good 'n.i.g.g.e.r'; he will be far more helpful to you than any white man, and will be content to be a good servant to you--if you are careful to keep him in his proper place--instead of trying to be your master."

This sounded like good, sensible advice, coming as it did from a man who had been born, brought up, and had spent a long life on the borderline separating civilisation from savagedom, and it finally confirmed them in the determination, to which they had already practically come, to do without a white guide.

According to Mitch.e.l.l, their route from Bulawayo lay generally in a north-easterly direction, and accordingly, after transacting all their business, making every possible preparation for the long journey before them, and writing their final letters home, announcing the fact that they were about to plunge into the wilderness, and that, therefore, no further news must be expected of them for an indefinite period, they set out about ten o'clock on a certain glorious morning, boldly striking straight out across the veldt, and directing their course by compa.s.s.

Their wagon was already fully loaded, the load consisting of several air-tight cases of ammunition, six barrels of flour, a cask of sugar, a bag of coffee, a chest of tea, a small keg of brandy--to be used only in cases of the utmost emergency--a case containing pickles, condiments, preserves, salt, and other articles of a similar character, to be regarded as luxuries and used accordingly; their own personal belongings including clothes and firearms, a small tent made of waterproof material for sleeping in, two net hammocks with portable supports, a full set of cooking utensils, four sacks of mealie meal, and, finally, two large boxes of beads of various kinds, a quant.i.ty of bra.s.s wire, and a case of cheap mechanical and other toys, small mirrors, etcetera which Grosvenor had had the foresight to bring out from England with him, the last three items being destined to be employed in bartering with the natives. All this const.i.tuted quite as heavy a load as it was at all desirable to put upon the wagon, although the full team of twenty oxen made light of it, especially as it was now the dry season, and the ground was firm and hard for travelling. As for d.i.c.k and Grosvenor, they travelled on horseback, changing their steeds at every outspan, in order to accustom the animals to them, and gradually to get them into good, hard condition by working them to a certain extent every day. They rode armed each with a good, serviceable sporting rifle, capable of dealing with practically any game except elephant, a formidable hunting knife, and a revolver; and, in addition, each of them carried a pair of the finest and most powerful binocular gla.s.ses that Grosvenor had been able to procure in London. He had had the foresight to provide two pairs in case of accident, which was fortunate, for now each rider was independent of the other. Acting upon the advice of their friend Van Zyl, they confined themselves strictly to short treks, averaging about five miles each, and three treks per day, for the first four days, in order to keep the oxen in good condition as long as possible.

Those first four days of their march were quite uneventful, the going was good, the gra.s.s still rich and abundant, water plentiful, and there was just enough game to keep the party well supplied with meat, while the animals worked well and improved in condition rather than otherwise, especially the horses, which proved to be even more promising than their owners had hoped for when they purchased them.

It was on the morning of the fifth day that the party encountered what might be spoken of as their first exciting incident, and it occurred, or rather began, as they were nearing the end of their first trek, about nine o'clock in the morning. d.i.c.k and Grosvenor, mounted as usual, with the half-dozen dogs that const.i.tuted their pack quartering the ground ahead of them, were nearly a mile ahead of the wagon, looking out for a suitable spot for the first outspan, when a sudden clamour on the part of the dogs, who had just disappeared over a low rise in the ground, caused the two riders to put spurs to their horses, in order to see what was the cause of the outcry. A short gallop sufficed to carry them to the crest of the ridge, when they beheld the dogs baying and snarling round a fine, well-set-up native "boy", who, armed with a.s.sagais and k.n.o.bkerrie, const.i.tuted one of a party of some thirty in number who appeared to be guarding a herd of about three hundred grazing cattle, while about half a mile farther on was a native village of some fifty Kafir huts of the usual beehived shape, built in the midst of a number of mealie fields occupying an area of, roughly, about half a square mile, situated near the banks of a small stream.

d.i.c.k Maitland, who had early developed a rather remarkable apt.i.tude for picking up the language of the natives, at once cantered forward, and, calling off the dogs, demanded to know the name of the village, and where would be the best place at which to outspan. But the native whom he addressed, and who seemed to be labouring under considerable excitement, replied with such a rapid flow of words that his speech was utterly unintelligible, save that his communication had something to do with lions, the boy pointing first to a big clump of bush about a mile distant, and then to the village itself. d.i.c.k made several attempts to arrive at a better understanding of the nature of the communication, but without any very marked success, and at length suggested that Grosvenor should ride back to the wagon and hurry it forward, in order that Jantje, the Hottentot driver, might act as interpreter. This was done, and about twenty minutes later the wagon arrived, and the situation was explained to Jantje, who forthwith poured out a flood of eloquence upon the little band of natives, who by this time had gathered round d.i.c.k and were earnestly endeavouring to make him understand something that they evidently regarded as of very great importance. A brief but animated conversation at once ensued, at the end of which Jantje turned to his employers and explained:

"Dhese people say, sars, dat dhere is four, five lion in de bush yander and dhey won' go 'way, and dhey wan' to know if white gent'men be so kind as to kill dhem lion; because if dhey not be killed dhey kill de poor Kafirs' cattle. Two day ago dhem lion kill two oxen and mos'

horrible maul de boy dat was herding dhem."

"Phew! lions, eh?" exclaimed Grosvenor. "I say, Maitland, this is good news, eh, what? I am longing for the chance to have a pot at a lion.

All right, Jantje; you tell them that we will kill the lions for them with the greatest of pleasure. We'll outspan at once and set about the business forthwith. That will be the right thing to do, I suppose, d.i.c.k, won't it?"

"Yes, certainly," answered d.i.c.k, "by all means. But before we think of tackling those lions I must see that poor beggar who was mauled. Two days ago! By Jove, I dread to think of what the state of his wounds must be in this hot weather, that is, if he is still alive. Just ask them, Jantje, whether the boy who was mauled is still living, or whether the lions killed him?"

The question was put, and Jantje duly interpreted the reply.

"Yes, sar, de boy he still alive, but most drefful sick, dhese people say."

"Good!" exclaimed d.i.c.k, dismounting from his horse. "Then say to them that I am a great doctor, and that I intend to save the poor fellow's life if I can. I want one of them to carry my medicine chest for me, and to take me to the injured man's hut. Then you had better take the wagon down and outspan near the river, where the gra.s.s is good, but where our oxen are not likely to get among the mealies, and then come to me, for I shall probably need you to interpret for me."

The first part of this speech being interpreted to the little crowd of natives, one of them at once stepped forward, expressing himself as willing to carry the medicine chest and act as guide, while another volunteered to point out a suitable and convenient spot upon which to outspan, the others forthwith breaking into a song of thanksgiving in which they announced to all and sundry that this was their lucky day, inasmuch as that the white _'mlungus_ were not only going to make well again their brother who was nigh unto death, but were also going to utterly root out and destroy those cunning beasts who refused to come out into the open and face their a.s.sagais. Grosvenor announced his intention of accompanying d.i.c.k, and five minutes later the pair, with their sable guide leading the way and carrying the medicine chest, were _en route_ for the village, d.i.c.k carrying his case of surgical instruments under his arm. Their rifles they left with the wagon, deeming it unnecessary to c.u.mber themselves with superfluous weapons in face of the fact that the villagers were obviously quite friendly disposed to white men, indeed they were still too close to civilisation to antic.i.p.ate anything else.

As they neared the village the "boy" who preceded them began to shout the great news that the white men were coming to make whole the injured man, and the occupants of the huts, to the number of about two hundred men, women, and children, swarmed out to gaze upon the strangers. The guide, who was inclined to put on airs, upon the strength of being the bearer of the white men's _muti_, would fain have made the most of the occasion by pausing in the centre of the village and haranguing his fellows, but d.i.c.k nipped the intention ruthlessly in the bud by repeating several times, in an imperative tone of voice, the word _hamba_ (go), and presently the procession--for every occupant of the village formed up and followed the trio--came to a halt in front of one of the huts.

As the bearer of the medicine chest pushed his burden in through the low, narrow entrance of the hut, and dropped on hands and knees in order to follow it, d.i.c.k turned and, perceiving a disposition on the part of the crowd to gather close about the entrance, and so exclude what little light and air might otherwise make its way in, took an a.s.sagai from the hand of an astonished native, and, holding it by the blade, waved the press back with the b.u.t.t end of the weapon. Then, still waving the b.u.t.t end, he described on the ground the arc of a circle of some twelve feet radius from the hut entrance, and, returning the weapon to its owner, pointed to the mark on the ground, and, addressing the curiosity-ridden mob, said impressively in English:

"Now, good people, please have the goodness to keep carefully outside that line, and oblige yours truly!"

There was not one of those odoriferous, dark-skinned Kafirs who comprehended a word of English, but d.i.c.k's actions and the tones of his voice were so expressive that his meaning was almost as distinctly understood as though he had spoken in the language of the tribe. He saw at once that this was so, and that his wishes would be obeyed, and signing to Grosvenor to precede him, forthwith pa.s.sed into the hut.

Entering the windowless structure straight from the dazzling suns.h.i.+ne that flooded the outside world, the two Englishmen found themselves plunged for the moment in a darkness so profound that they could see nothing, and were fain to stand just where they rose to their feet after creeping through the low doorway, lest, moving, they should stumble over something--possibly the patient. But in addition to the hot, close odour of the interior of the hut there was another taint that a.s.sailed their nostrils, the taint of festering wounds, with which d.i.c.k was already familiar, and he shook his head doubtfully as he turned to the figure of Grosvenor, just beginning to reveal itself in the midst of the enveloping obscurity, and said:

"I don't like this at all. I can't see my patient as yet, but there is a certain something in the atmosphere of this hut which tells me that if the poor beggar's life is to be saved we have no time to waste. Where is he, I wonder? Oh, I think I see him, there on the ground at the far side from the doorway! Yes, there he is. Another minute and I shall be able to see him clearly. Meanwhile, perhaps his pulse will tell us something."

And, crossing to the far side of the hut, he knelt down by the side of the indistinctly seen man, felt for his hand, and, having found it, laid his fingers upon the wrist.

CHAPTER SIX.

AN ENCOUNTER WITH LIONS.

"Um!" murmured d.i.c.k, as the feeble throbbing of the man's pulse met his finger tips; "quite as I expected. Very low and weak. Evidently sinking from exhaustion. I must have him out of this into a better light, although I am almost afraid to run the risk of moving him.

Still, it must be done. I can see nothing here."

He went to the door of the hut and looked out, the crowd still grouped on the outside of the curve he had described on the ground respectfully making way before him. There was a small but densely foliaged tree growing at no great distance from the hut, and casting a strong shadow upon the ground; that, d.i.c.k decided, would be as good a place as any for his purpose. As he was about to re-enter the hut there arose a slight commotion upon the outskirts of the crowd, and presently Jantje, the Hottentot driver, appeared, endeavouring to force his way through to his master. The sight was a welcome one, for d.i.c.k felt very much at a loss with no one to interpret for him, and in tones of unmistakable relief he lifted up his voice and shouted:

"Come along, Jantje; you are just the man I wanted." Then, as the Hottentot joined him, he continued: "See here, Jantje, I want the wounded man very carefully removed from the hut, and carried over yonder into the shadow of that tree. Just explain to these fellows, will you, and ask them to help me."

No sooner said than done; with the pa.s.sing of the last word through Jantje's lips half a dozen stalwart Kafirs dived into the hut and in another moment reappeared, bearing between them the unhappy patient, stretched upon an eland's skin. It was an exceedingly awkward job to get the poor fellow out through the low, narrow doorway of the hut, but they managed it somehow, and in another minute had him satisfactorily disposed beneath the shadow of the tree. Then d.i.c.k approached and proceeded to examine his hurts.

They had been severe enough to start with; but now, after nearly forty- eight hours of neglect, their condition was so indescribably loathsome that even d.i.c.k, seasoned hand though he was, nearly vomited at the sight of them, while as for Grosvenor, he was compelled to beat a precipitate retreat, but returned gamely, some five minutes later, to see if he could be of any a.s.sistance. d.i.c.k, however, although he had never in his life before beheld anything approaching such a dreadful sight, quickly pulled himself together and, his professional instinct promptly a.s.serting itself, ordered some hot water to be brought to him, and, while it was being prepared, opened his medicine chest and his case of surgical instruments, the rest of the inhabitants of the village gathering round in a wide, silent, awestruck circle. They had often before seen similar sights, and were therefore in a measure accustomed to them; they knew what the patient's condition meant, and there was not one among them who did not regard the injured man as already as good as dead. Nevertheless their curiosity was powerfully aroused; for they had heard many wonderful stories of the white men who had lately come into the country toward the south, and were eager to see whether or not it was true that they could perform miracles, as had been a.s.serted.

As for d.i.c.k, he found himself confronted at the outset by a very serious difficulty. His patient's condition was such that he could not possibly do what was necessary without inflicting upon the unfortunate man an amount of suffering that in his low and exhausted condition threatened to result in collapse and death. The man was too far gone, indeed, to justify the use of anaesthetics, yet without them d.i.c.k feared to proceed. What was he to do? Suddenly he bethought himself of hypnotism. Yet, how hypnotise a man whose language he could not speak?

Then he remembered a very remarkable statement which Humphreys had made when discussing this same subject of hypnotism. "It is not the actual words which you address to a patient," Humphreys had a.s.serted, "but the commands which your will imposes on him that produce the desired effect, which can be obtained without the employment of words at all, if your will be strong enough. And remember, also, that no abnormal strength of will is needed if your patient be pa.s.sive, unresisting." "Surely,"

thought d.i.c.k, "that ought to meet the present case, and at all events it is well worth trying; so here goes." Therewith he bent over his patient and, fixing the man's gaze in the peculiar manner which Humphreys had taught him, silently willed him to sink into so deep a sleep that he should feel nothing of what was about to be done to him. Almost immediately the man's eyelids fluttered, closed, and he sank into a profound sleep, breathing slowly and deeply, as could be seen by the regular rise and fall of his bare, brawny chest.

"_Wao! 'mtagati_--_'mkulu 'mtagati_ (a wizard--a great wizard)!"

murmured the astonished crowd of onlookers behind their hands, gazing wonderingly in each other's eyes.

Again d.i.c.k laid his fingers on his patient's pulse; already it was stronger and more steady. Very gently he raised one of the man's eyelids and lightly laid his finger upon the eyeball; the patient might have been dead for all the effect that the touch had upon him. Then, the warm water opportunely arriving, the young doctor got to work without further delay. Strongly impregnating the water with an antiseptic, he proceeded rapidly to cleanse the wounds, taking a pair of scissors or a knife from time to time and removing the already putrefying flesh; then he proceeded to dress the wounds, one after the other, with healing ointments, drawing the edges together, where necessary, with a few st.i.tches; and when at length, after more than an hour's diligent, careful work, his labours came to an end, he ordered the wagon cartel to be brought to the village, the door of the man's hut to be enlarged, and a window opening to be made; and finally, when all these things had been done to his satisfaction, he caused a comfortable bed to be arranged upon the cartel, with skins borrowed from other huts, and the man to be laid thereon and taken back to his hut. And all this time the patient had been sleeping as calmly as an infant! The time had now, however, arrived when he must be aroused, in order that an anti- febrifuge might be administered; d.i.c.k therefore once more bent over the man, strongly willing him to awake, which he instantly did, when, through Jantje as interpreter, the question was put to him how he felt.

He immediately replied, in a wonderfully strong voice, considering his condition, that he felt much better, and that his wounds were no longer so painful as they had been; whereupon d.i.c.k administered the draught, telling him, still through Jantje, that immediately after taking it he would again fall asleep and so remain until the evening, when he would awake much refreshed and stronger. And while the words were being spoken d.i.c.k strongly willed that they should be fulfilled. The man obediently gulped down the draught, d.i.c.k gently lowered the patient's head to the pillow, and again deep sleep fell upon the poor fellow.

"Now," ordered d.i.c.k, "I want two women to come and watch by this man.

They must constantly fan him with leaves, to keep him cool and prevent the flies from troubling him; and when he wakes someone must immediately fetch me. I shall be in my tent by the wagon, yonder." Then, turning to Grosvenor, who had remained at his elbow all the time, he said:

"No more trekking for us to-day, Phil, or for the next week, I expect.