Here they found a company of militia, whose officer at first regarded them with some suspicion. Yorke had, however, that morning stowed away his wig as before, and Hans had cut off the long fringe of hair under his straw-hat, and on stripping off his coat and flannel shirt, Yorke showed the khaki uniform underneath, with shoulder-strap with the badges showing the number of his corps. The story, too, that he had escaped from Pretoria was recognized to be true.
"You will have to ride up to the Modder, there is no getting into a train here. Troops are passing up every day. I suppose you know that Lord Roberts has now arrived to take the command. He reached Cape Town on the 10th of January. Lord Kitchener came with him as chief of his staff. We expect them to come through in a few days. Our troops have been pouring up fast. No doubt there will be a forward movement directly he arrives. It is a frightful nuisance being stuck down here guarding the line. So you have come down from Pretoria? How did you manage to get away?"
"It is a long story," Yorke replied. "I shall have time to give it to you at full length presently. As Lord Roberts has not yet come up, I shall give my horses a couple of days' rest. They have made a tremendous journey. We drove from Pretoria to Bloemfontein, averaging nearly fifty miles a day, got a lift in the train down to Colesberg, and have come from there in two days."
"They certainly deserve a rest then before going ninety miles from here to the Modder."
"I wish I could get a lift in a train. Our horses have done very heavy work lately. We should have three days' ride of thirty miles each to the Modder; it would be much pleasanter for us to be able to go by train than have to ride all the way."
"I am afraid I cannot manage that," the officer said. "Quantities of stores are going up, and lots of Kaffirs accompany them to help handle them and do heavy work. If you had been on foot, of course you could have gone, but we have no empty trucks we could put on for the horses. And now I suppose you are hungry. We have nothing but bully beef to offer you. There is no getting up stores at present, and we have none but our rations."
"Thank you. I breakfasted before starting. I have some five or six pounds of excellent cold beef, which I hope you will join me in eating. I have also a couple of bottles of wine and a tin of biscuits."
"That is reversing the usual order of things," the officer laughed. "However, we are not men to stand on ceremony. At any rate, we will add your fare to ours."
An hour later Yorke sat down to a meal with the three officers of the detachment; and he then related the story of his escape from Pretoria, and, without alluding to the treasure, told how Hans had overheard the plot to attack the house of the English president of one of the mines, and how they had defeated it.
"You may well say that your man is a good fellow, and that native of yours also. Your servant is eating his supper now with the non-commissioned officers, and by the laughter, I have no doubt he is giving them his account of his adventures."