Mercifully, as it turned out, they were not
ready for active service when Dr. Jameson was reported at Krugersdorp.
We made an excursion to the so-called battle-field before leaving for the
South. We started in a covered waggonette with no springs to speak of,
drawn by six mules, and a pair of horses as leaders. Two Kaffirs acted
as charioteers, and kept up an incessant jabber in Dutch. The one who
held the reins looked good-natured enough, but the other, whose duty it
was to wield the enormously long whip, had a most diabolical cast of
countenance, in which cruelty and doggedness were both clearly depicted.
We found his face a true indication of his character before the end of
the day. Bumping gaily along, we soon left the well-built houses behind,
and after passing the Malay quarter of the town, remarkable by reason of
the quaint houses these blacks make out of paraffin tins, flattened out
and nailed together with wonderful neatness, we emerged on the open
veldt. Of course the road was of the roughest description, and sometimes
we had to hold on with all our might to avoid the concussion of our
heads with the wooden roof. In spite of this, as soon as the Kaffirs
saw an open space before them, the huge whip was cracked, and away went
our team at full gallop, seemingly quite out of control, the driver
leaning back in his seat with a contented grin, while his colleague
manipulated the unwieldy whip.
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