THE HORSE THIEF.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 4892, 18 September 1901, Page 4

THE HORSE THIEF.

Mr Donald Mac Donald, in his notes on the doings of Colonial Bushmen in South Africa, tells of one who helped himself to a good horse wherever he could find one. He was a horse-thief, said the jealous men of Pagets— and L.e^was. r But there was this merit in bis roguery, that when he cast bis own lame horse and took one of Paget's best in its place he invariably made better use of it than the original owner. And with the possession of a pair of horse-clippers be coupled a talent for disguise that the detective of fiction might have envied. The men of Pagets have strolled into the Bushmen's horse lines on the look-out for strayed charges, have stojd in froot of them and described them elaborately, and° not recognised them. On one occasion a man from the Upper Murray —they bad a hereditary talent for ft up there— said to the mate who shared his patrol tent ; — ' He was atandiu' right in frout of Imb own 'orse. If it could ha' spoke it would ha' said, *' Don't you know me Percy? " If k 'ad bin a dog it would ha' licked his 'and and barked. But he just stood lookin' at it as if it was somethin' that wakened old memories, and said he didn'fctbink he had much chance of findin' his '.orse again. And he hasn't Btow— not The other simply said, • They're holy ttrrors.ain't they ?' After ali, it wasn't so much horse stealing as horse swapping.