OUR LITTLE FOLKS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2094, 12 April 1894, Page 45

OUR LITTLE FOLKS.

By Dot; Dot will be pletied to recclTe ihort letters from juvenile eorrejpouilenu on any uiatlcn of Interest to themielVM— ihort itorlti of pel aulmiti, description! of their favour!' : toji, their ntrtlel, amu'einenti, io. The letters to be written bj the children thenv telrej and addreiied " Dot, care or the Kdltor," and te b« P»blUlied iv the page derotcd to " Oar Little Folk*." THE ADVENTURES OF SAMBO AND POMPEY. A STORY OF AFRICAN ADVENTURE. By Murray Aston. Chapter XIII. A Desperate Fight.— Rescue. The trap which Dr Goodwood had prepared for the hostile natives, should they venture an attack, consisted of three kegs of gunpowder buried at equal distances in front of tbeir barricade, and connected with the defenders by trains of gunpowder! which could be fired separately or simultaneously. There was one at 30yds distance, another at 20yds, and a third at 10yds ; so that when the enemy reached tho first mine, should its explosion fail to check . their rush, the Eecond and third might be expsoted to stop them. They, however, felt no certainty about the matter, since the Zulus are known to rely upon overwhelming numbers, and their bravery is beyond question. All the rifles, therefore, including' those intended for barter, were loaded ready for the fray, and the little party saw the last shades of daylight fade away, and were half-disposed to doubt if ever they should live to sec another sunrise. Jamrach persuaded them to try and get a little rest early in the night, and while the others slept he kept careful watch. The night was unusually dark and Bilent. It was tbe calm before the storm. About 2 a.m. those who were a«leep were quietly awakened by the brave Boer, and each man took his place at the barricade. In another hour ib would be daylight, and in 30 minutes or bo they might look for their unwished-for visitors—that is, if they intended to come that day. They had not long to wait. Jamrach said suddenly : •• Here.dey are I Fire low 1 " And in an instant their six rifles were discharged with what seenied like deadly effect, judgiDg from the terrific howls of pain and rage which greeted their ears. " There must be hundreds of them," exclaimed the professor, who, at the same time, applied a match to the fuse conneoted with the mine at 30yde. A tremendous explosion followed, and the havoc made must have been terrible, but still they came on, hurlirg their assegais and yelling like demons. Tbe professor fired the second mme — again with deadly effect — and for a moment the savages wavered, and, turning to the right-about, retired. So far not one of the party of adventurers had received a scratch. 11 Do you think they'll go now, Jamrach 1" asked the doctor. " No, I dink not," said the other. " Well, shall I fire the rockets if they come again 7 " asked the doctor. " Cerdainly. Dot mid friden dem," was the reply. And forthwith two huge rockets were placed in tbeir tubes. They had been forgotten before, and the next assault was anxiously awaited. A few minutes passed, and then the clamour recommenced. Tbe savages had received their orders to do or die, and oame on in magnificent style. Their losses were terrible. Every time Jamrach fired a warrior fell, and tho professor, Sambo, and Fompey alj made excellent practice. Dingan and Bbopa made themselves useful in reloading the rifles as quickly as they were able ; so that a continual fusillade was kept up. The attackers, notwithstanding their losses, wererapidly nearing the barricade, and there seemed but a faint chance of successful resistance on the part of the defenders, when the doctor fired the nearest mine, and at the same moment discharged the two rockets, which went hissing and fizzing into the very midst of the Zulus. The effect was indescribable. In a minute tbe survivors had again turned and disappeared. But even then bad fortune pur-^ sued them, for — it was now broad daylight — a British cheer, 'followed by the sharp reports of rifle firing, proclaimed that the English shooting party were on the way to their rescue, and had already fallen foul of the now rapidly retreating foe. " Come on," cried the Doctor, " let's away after them." But there was no response from Dingan and Bhopa, who had received severe asßegai wounds just at the last moment, and whose condition called for instant attention from the doctor. Sambo and Pompey, however, accompanied the Beer, but the fighting was now all over, the Zulus having di-peraed. The meeting of the two bands of friends was most cordial, and a sumptuous breakfast in honour of the occasion was prepared by Jamracb, with the assistance of S*mbo and Pompey. Of course tbe injuries sustained by ijingan and Bhopa cast a gloom over the party, but the announcement by the doctor that the wounds although serious were not daDgerous was a great relief. The noise of the explosion of the mines had alarmed tbe white hunters, and mounting their horses, they had hastened to the assistance of tbeir friends, and their congratulations on the heroic defence made and the admirable position for repelling attack which had been taken up were particularly gratifying to all concerned. The hunting party had experienced magnificent sport, and their waggons were laden with great tusks of ivory to such an extent that they seated their intention to return immediately to Capetown, and upon hearing this the professor and Jamrach resolved to join forces, it being the doctor's intention to hasten to London with bis natural history specimens, and be advised Sambo and Pompey to go with him, as a trip to the great metropolis under their altered circumstances could not fail to be highly beneficial. They were now rich men, and the doctor advised them tojsea the world, if only for educational purposes. In this course their old friend Jamrach concurred, although he had no intention himself of leaving the land of his birth. He, however, was delighted to know that tbe doctor would undertake another trip to tbe interior of A,fr|oa at po very distant date, ftng

the Boer readily gave bis word that he would be one of the party. He was the more willing when he beard that apart from the value to be received for the diamonds and the other precious proceeds of their trip — viz, the bullion (both gold and silver), the ostrich feathers, and ivory — they might expect to sell their knowledge of the dia-mond-bearing river bed for an immense sum in the European money markets when they displayed the results of their visit, as Doctor Goodwood was too well known in scientific circles for his word to be doubted ; and, even should there be any scepticism, a Eight of the magnificent stones themselves wonld speedily remove any suspicion. {To be continued.) LETTERS FROM LITTLE FOLKS. Dear Dot, — We are going to write you a few lines to let you know wko and what we are. We are two little boys and, we breed ferrets. We have two that will go in tke holes and come out when we call them. A man in our neighbourhood has some ferrets, and he imagines they are the best in the district ; but ours are the best. We have a nice dog, and a friend is training it for us. — Yours truly, Wyn and Mat. Wyndham, March 13. Dsar Dot,— -We are having fine weather again, and !on Saturdays I sometimes go out rabbiting, but it is difficult to catch rabbits here. We are milking one cow. Dear Dot, we have a mare that has a filly ioal which was born on the Prince of Wales's birthday ; please will you give me a race horse's name for it. We have also a heifer calf; please will you give me a name for it. Dear Dot, I hear that the frost fieh are coming in early this year, as a few people up here have caught some lately. I think thit piece of poetry is very pretty, and I would like you to print it for the little folks:— Falling Snow. See the pretty snowflalres Falling from the sky ; On the wall and housetops Soft and thick they lie. On the window ledges, On the branches bare ; Now how fast they gather, Filling all the air. Look into the garden Where the grass was green, Covered by the gnowflakes, Not a blade is seen. Now the bare, black bushes All look sof t and white ; Every twig is laden — What a pretty sight. Good-bye, Dot. — Yours truly, John E. Walsh (aged 10 years). Hampden, April 7. I&a the foal was born on the Prince of Wales's birthday Cambria would be an appropriate name. Call the calf Princess. — Dot.]

Dear Dot, — The school I go to at Wairikiki is only a half-time school. The days are Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Mr Howorth is the teacher. 1 have two sisters, and their nameß are Jennie and Maggie. They go to school with me. We have four cats, named Tabbie, Tom, Dick, and Harry. Tom is 11 years old, and he is such a big yellow cat. Nearly every night he brings home a rabbit to the other cats. We have a little pup, and its name is Tweed. We have two foals, and their names are Evelyn and Alice. — Yours truly, Jessie Smith (aged 8| years). Mimihau Valley, April 2.