Without hesitation now they put their mounts to a canter, rode up to the pleasant refreshing-looking place, and after leaving the ponies with the Kaffir and climbing to one of the highest points, took a good look round. This proved that there was not a mounted man in sight, and they descended to select a spot where there was plenty of herbage and water for their steeds, when they sat down and began to breakfast.
“Nothing like a fine appetite,” said West, after they had been eating for some little time; “but this biltong is rather like eating a leg of mahogany dining-table into which a good deal of salt gravy and furniture oil has been allowed to soak.”
“Yes, it is rather wooden,” said Ingleborough coolly. “Must wear out a man’s teeth a good deal.”
“Eland,” said the Kaffir, tapping his stick of the dried meat on seeing his companions examining and smelling the food. “Old baas shoot eland, Olebo cut him up and dry him in the sun. Good.”
“Well, it isn’t bad, O child of nature! But I say, how far do you mean to come with us?”
“No go any more,” replied the man. “Go Olebo kraal, see wife. Give her big shilling and little yellow shilling.—Good?”
He brought out the sovereign from where it had been placed, and held it up.
“Good? Yes,” said West, and he set to work to try and explain by making the black bring out a florin and then holding up his outspread ten fingers, when the man seemed to have some idea of his meaning.
“Look here, I’ll get it into his benighted intellect; but I should have thought that he would have known what a sovereign was worth.”
Just then the Kaffir nodded sharply, after examining the coin.