THE ADVENTURES OF SAMBO AND POMPEY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2093, 5 April 1894, Page 45

THE ADVENTURES OF SAMBO AND POMPEY.

A BTORY OF AFRICAN ADVENTURE. By Mubbay Aston. Ohaptke XII. Their first night at the river passed away unmarked by any incident except that Jamrach appeared restless, and several times daring the watches kept by the Zulus, he tone and joined those on guard, and on each occasion he inquired it they had seen or heard anything unusual, and impressed on them the necessity or extraordinary caie. He evidently suspected the proximity of dangerous foes, and his fears were communicated to the lads, who kept particularly wide-awake. The dogs, too, seemed to scent danger, and the ape, who appeared particularly fond of Sambo, would not leave him daring the whole long night watch, bat sat by his side in an attitude of what looked like earnest expectation. Altogether it was an uncanny night, and everyone was glad when the day broke and a good breakfast had served to nearly obliterate the unpleasant impression of the preceding hoars of darkness. ' The meal over, Dr Goodwood and the Boer were observed for some time to be in earnest consultation, and presently Sambo and Pompey were called up and told by the doctor that Jamrach was of opinion that they had better seek a safer camping ground, and therefore orders were given for Bhopa and Dingan to inspan the oxen forWitb. The party soon began to move, and under the guidance of Jamraoh reached higher ground, and an murmur of delight broke from the lips of the professor, who had previously borne an unusually serious expression when he found that they were about to occupy an almost impregnable position from attack. They bad occupied a plateau well covered with herbage. An almost perpendicular fall of fully 100 ft lay beneath them ; above, towered cliffs fully 500 ft in height'; the road by which they came was narrow, being barely of sufficient width to allow the passage of their huge waggon, and a few rocks would efficiently block this. But a most important consideration was the fact of the existence of a deep tissue in the side of the mountain, of a capacity sufficient to afford a secure resting place for oxen, horses, men, and belongings, so that wth their waggons drawn across the entrance to this cave they could bid defiance for. a considerable time, at all events, to an attack frpm, say, ten times their number. They were delighted, moreover, to discover within the recesses of their new " house " a delicious spring of icy cold water, which continually' bubbled forth, and which, it is * hardly necessary to say, was an invaluable source of strength, and was duly appreciated as such by all. It was a bright summer's day, -and the Sabbath. No work therefore beyond that of absolute necessity was done; but Jamrach and the professor passed an hoar in serious talk and in returning thanks to the Giver of all good gifts for his many blessings ; and Sambo and Pompey took part in the ceremony with due reverence. Prayers over, addressing Jamrach the doctor inquired as to the coase of his uneasiness. " I hey zeen der natives. Der vas only dree of dem, und dey did nod zee me. Bod I dink dey come back again mid more. Dey vos nasdy ogly looging yellows," said Jamrach. " Won't they be open to a~ present ? " asked the doctor. " I dink nod. Dey are vera eavige. I hay zeen dem and fought dem before I dink," was the reply. 11 Shall we be able to go on with our work at the river, do you think, Jamrach 1 " "Yes. Onle&s dey com mid-grade nombers dey nod takkle os in der day-dime. Dey generally gom in der airly morning — jost before zonrise." ■ " Well, all we can do is to keep a sharp look-out and keep our powder dry," said the doctor. "Der gamp most nod be left midout' Bhopa and Dingan, wao are both goot yellows." " And we must not go too far away from home in case of a visit from our ' friends,' " added the doctor. " Dot vos so," replied Jamrach. And then, assisted by Sambo and Pompey, they set to work to erect a substantial barricade of rocks across the track, and placing a sentinel at the spat and loosing the hounds, they retired to the camp fire with a greater feeling of security than they had felt for I many hours. Another night passed without any worse alarm than a frequent roar from the throat of a huge lion which was prowling about their camp for the greater part of the night, and early on the following day Sambo and Pompey started off for the river bed, which was only distant about half a mile in a direct line, although it was fully 20 minutes' walk by the cirouitous route they were compelled to follow. The lads carried their Sniders and a good supply of ammunition. They were also accompanied by the faithful ape. They found that the river was beginning to rise, and the rush of the waters drowned any sounds which would otherwise have reached their quick ears. Their quest for diamonds was not at first rewarded on this occasion with any phenomenal success, but a number of small stones fell to their lot, and they were beginning to think it might bo advisable to shift the scene of their labours, when some- | thing extraordinary t^ok place which altered their plans. | Their babcoo, which had been away on ! one of his foraging expeditions, suddenly rejoined them. His every action betokened fear, and he rushed at Sambo, chattering all the time, and looking backward in the direc- j tion whence he had come in such evident j trepidation that he communicated some of his dread to the boys, and Sambo, signalling to Pompey to follow hia example, took refuge behind a huge boulder, and thence they

peeped oat with guns on the present, feeling certain that something fearful was approaching. Nor were they mistaken, for in the distance they could shortly ai ter make out the plumes of an approaching body of natives, who were rapidly shortening the distance between them.

No time was to be lost. They felt that their safety lay in a successful retreat, which they proceeded to effect without delay. So as to avoid being seen by their enemy, the boys proceeded on all fours until they could reach the banks of the river and secure the friendly cover of the scrub, And now a remarkable thing happened, for Sambo, who was leading, was suddenly attracted by a large pebble which bore the appearance of a diamond, and which he paused for an instant to remove from the crevioe of a bit of rock in which it lay securely embedded, and transferred quickly to his month for security. He had hardly finished this operation when a ehout from ( the enemy warned them that they were seen. So, rising to their feet, they took refuge in the fastest flight of which they were capable. On reaching the bash they paused for an instant, and found that several of the fleetest of their pursuers were now unpleasantly near — not more than I 200 yds off — so, to give notice to their friends in oamp of the approach of danger, they fired their rifles in the direction of the foe, which, although doing no actual execution, caused them to stop, and when Jamrach fired his gun off in reply, which he immediately did, the report had the doable effect of inspiriting Sambo and Pompey and causing the hostile natives to return to their chief for farther orders. Oar heroes, therefore, with the faithful ape, were allowed to regain the camp in safety, and everything was made ready to repel attack. This, however, Jamraoh assured them they need not expect before early on the following morning, just before dawn. They therefore proceeded to fortify the inner man, and Sambo and Pompey the diamonds displayed to their admiring friends they had found. All, the professor said, the diamonds were of value, bat the last one, which even Sambo's mouth could hardly contain, was declared to be the largest and apparently the finest in colour that the doctor had ever seen, and worth a fortune by itself. Their belongings were indeed well worth fighting for, and Doctor Goodwood proceeded to put a scheme for their defence into execution which they all thought would •• astonish the natives " should they venture on an attack.

{To be continued.)

— The man " whose words can always be relied upon " never went fishiDg.

LETTERS FROM LITTLE FOLKS. Dear Dot, — I am a little Black Ferret, and my name is Tib. I live in Gore. My master is about 10 years old. Nearly every fine night j he takes me out for a run. He puts me in a rabbit hole. I bite at the rabbits till they run out of their holes, and my master catches them in a net. He is very pleased when I chase out a lot of rabbits. When it is cold I sometimes kill a rabbit in the hole and will not come out for some time. If I stayed too long, however, I should be dug out. I had a very large family, but they are grown up, and sisi of thorn were taken away, and I was very sad at their I loss. I have still two left ; will you please ! give me names for them. I get a saucer of 1 new milk twice a day, and sometimes a piece of rabbit. I sleep in a neat little bos at the back of my master's house. This is my first letter. Please may I write again ? I will have to stop now as my foot is getting sore. — Yours truly, Tib. Gore, March 27. [Of course you may write again. Call the little ones Tab and Tat.— Dot.] Dear Dot, — I live in Waipahi. It is not a very large place. I notice that not many of of the young folks write to you from here, so I thought I would write to you. We have had harvest holidays for the last four weeks, and the school takes up on Tuesday first. I have a small black pup ; would you please give me a name for it. Two gentlemen from Gore started a Band of Hope in Waipahi, and we have had two meetings since. I joined at the first meeting and recited at the last one. — Yours truly, Margaeet Barnett. Waipahi, March 26. [Call the pup Turk. — Dot.] Dear Dot, — The settlers h<?re are all busy with their harvest. Our place is called Windy Slap, because father says we get all the wind that blowf. Yet we have a fine view from here. From the window that I am sitting at I can see Tapanui, 13 miles away, Hokonui Mountains, Blue Mountains, Brooksdale estate, Crooketon Flat, and nearer home, our church and school and Moa Flat homestead. We are four miles from school. I do not go myself, but I have three brothers and 10 cousins going. I was at church last Saturday .night hearing Mr Knott and seeing his magic lantern. All his views were very pretty, but the tragic scene of "Ten Nights in a Bar Room" I did not like. Mr Knott is a good speaker, and he must visit some strange places. He says he always tries to go to any place where there is a school of about 40 children, and one placa between here and Queenstown he visited he declared religion and temperance were unknown. I wonder if the children had mothers. Dear Dot, would Dr Barnardo think if he heard of such a thing in sach a country as New Zealand. Would he not be afraid to come out here in case we should want to eat him P He might think we were all cannibals. Dear Dot, we are getting the mill tomorrow. I hope it will keep fine while she is here for we have 26 to cook for— -

12 of ourselves and 14- mill men. lam getting a picture of Mrs Grimwood. She looks very pretty, and is kneeling over Mr Brackenbury, who is dying. You can see the large tears in her eyes. Would you please tell me who Mrs Grimwood was P I do not remember about her; and who was Mr Brackenbury? — Yours truly, Marion Florence Havqh (aged 14 years).

Dunrobin, March 23.

[Mrs Grimwood is the widow of the late British resident at Manipur, a native state in the north east of India. The rajah was deposed in 1891, and Mr J. W. Quint on, chief commissioner of Assam, who went with an escort of 400 to inquire into the matter, was overpowered and killed, together with the resident. Mrs Grimwood, who was with her husband, escaped, and during the trying time she experienced she acted with great bravery. — Dot]

Dear Dot, — I live at the Hunter. It is ten miles from Waimate. I go to the Waimate Convent School. We are having our Easter Holidays. I have two white rats ; please would you give me names for them. We have a lot of ducks, and we also have a wild duck which stays on the pond with the tame ones. We had a peahen and a peacock, but they died. — Yours truly, Nellie Dooley.

The Hunter, March 27.

[Call the rats Jack and Jenny. — Dot.]

Deab Dot, — I go to school and am in Second Standard. I have six brothers and two sisters. One of my sisters is married, and has two babies. I sometimes nurse them ; but Ido not like nursing. Dear Dot, my brother Robert and I go to school together. Trevor is not going to school just now, as he is waterman with my father's threshing mill. We have a dog named Lady. She has got 13 puppies, but one is dead. — Yours truly, Cabtline Tisdali, (aged 8 years). Strath-Taieri, March 24.

Deab Dot, — We get the Witness every week, and I always read the little folks' page. My brother wants to know how to get pimples off his face. Dear Dot, do you think it is a sin to dance. I have no pets except a grey kitten and a white cat. I spent my Easter holidays at Portobello, and enjoyed myself very much.— Yours truly, Schoolboy. Dunedin, March 31. [Let his mother give him a little cooling medicine such as Epsom salts and cream of tartar for a few mornings, use warm water to wash his face with, and allow him to take plenty of exercise. — Dot.]

Deab Dot, — We have had five weeks holidays, bat I am going back to school to-morrow. Dear Dot, I suppose you have never been to Balfour p Balfour is a township situated ou the Waimea Plains. It is 126 miles from Dunedin, 50 miles from Invercargill, and 25 miles from Gore. Balfour is a great farming district. We have no dairy factory here, and none nearer than Stony Greek, It is mostly

grain that is grown here. Dear Dot, I have a little black kitten ; will you please give me a name for it.— Yours truly, Margaret M. MuLQUEEf.

Greenlawn, Balfour, March 26.

[Call him Sambo, from one of the little Zulu boys whose doiDga Mr Aston is telliDg us of from week to week.— Dot.]