They were entrusted2 with very important despatches indeed; to the effect that, owing to the accidental explosion of an ammunition3 waggon4, the large force of Frontier Armed and Mounted Police in camp at the Kangala might, at any moment, find itself alarmingly short of that essential article; and containing urgent injunctions to the authorities in charge of the border post—where an ample supply was stored—to send on a sufficiency of the same, under escort, without a moment’s delay.
The two men had been specially5 selected for this duty. Sandgate was a young Englishman of good family, who, like many a superfluous6 or younger son at that time, had emigrated as a recruit for the frontier corps7, beginning at the bottom. He was a fine, sportsmanlike, athletic8 fellow, who could ride anything and anywhere, and had soon got his first hoist9 on the steps of the ladder of promotion10. The other man, Stokes, was a wiry, hard-bitten Colonial, no longer quite young, who had been some years in the Police, but had twice lost his step as corporal owing to an inconvenient11 hankering after the bottle. When away from its temptations, as in the present case, he was one of the most useful men in the Force. Each, we have said, had been specially picked for this duty; Sandgate for his pluck and dash, and a reputation for readiness of resource which he had managed to set up, Stokes for his knowledge of veldt-craft.
The two express-riders started from the Kangala Camp at moon-rise, which took place early in the evening. It was calculated that, by riding all night, they should reach their objective, Fort Isiwa, not much later than the following midday. They could, by no means, cover the distance in anything like a straight line, nor was there, in many places, anything that could be called a track, which was where Stokes’s veldt-craft was to come in: even then their route skirted the turbulent Gudhluka Reserve, whose swarming12 inhabitants were just then in a particularly dangerous state of simmering unrest, and would as likely as not make short work of a couple of members of a body whom they loved not at all, given an opportunity. Once beyond this danger belt, however, there would be little or no risk, for, after that, the country was sparsely13 populated, and its inhabitants less disaffected14. So the programme before these two was to push on for all they knew how, so as to get over the more risky15 portion of their ride under cover of night.
This being the case, it might have seemed a little strange that, having arrived at a point about five miles from camp, where the far from distinct waggon track forked into two, they should have reined17 in their horses, and sat listening.
“Tell you what, Sandgate,” muttered Stokes, cramming18 a quid of tobacco into his mouth—under the circumstances, for obvious reasons, the pipe must be foregone with stern self-denial. “Tell you what. It’s no good our waiting. He won’t come. He’s thought better of it. Greenoak’s likely turned up again and stopped it.”
Both men sat for a couple of minutes longer, their feet kicked loose from their stirrups. Then, as they were on the point of resuming their way, a sound caught their ears—the tread of a horse, on the way they had just come over.
“Hallo, you fellows! About given me up, I suppose?” said Dick Selmes in a low, excited tone, as he rode up.
“We were just going to,” answered Stokes, who was inclined to be short of speech and a bit sour towards so obvious a specimen19 of the gilded20 youth as this one. “And, I say, if you could keep that confounded brute21 of yours from jingling22 that swagger bit so as to be heard all over the Gudhluka Reserve, why, it’d be just as well.”
“He’ll be all right directly, soon as he’s let off a little more steam,” said Sandgate, good-humouredly, with a glance of approval at Dick’s spirited and well-groomed mount, which, in sheer enjoyment23 of the fresh freedom of the veldt, was tossing his head and blowing off clouds of vapour upon the cool night air.
That Dick Selmes had been able to join the two express-riders had involved some plotting; for, from the moment he had heard of their errand, incidentally through Inspector24 Chambers25, to whose troop they belonged, he had firmly made up his mind that join them he would. But, on putting this to the Inspector, that worthy26 had promptly27 vetoed the whole business—subsequently compromising, however, by suggesting that the matter be submitted to the Commandant.
The latter, however, a fine old frontiersman born and bred, took a different view. He was a reserved, undemonstrative man, but had taken a liking28 to this dare-devil youngster by reason of his pluck and adaptability29.
“I don’t really see why he shouldn’t go if he’s keen on it, Chambers,” he said. “The experience will do the young dog no harm, and he seems able to take care of himself. Greenoak keeps him too much in leading-strings. Oh, that,” as the Inspector, with a dry laugh, recalled a certain adventure in Vunisa’s location which would have cost our friend his life but for the shrewdness and promptitude of Harley Greenoak. “Well, yes. But, on the whole, Sandgate and Stokes are thoroughly30 reliable men, and will keep him in order. Of course, I need know nothing about it officially, nor need you; but if he should find his chance of slipping away after them, why, after all, he’s only our guest here, and can come and go as he chooses,” concluded the Commandant, with a twinkle in his eyes.
Harley Greenoak was away upon a critical and delicate mission which he had undertaken as a personal favour to the Commandant. As things were at present, he argued, his charge could come to no harm, at any rate for a day or two, by which time he himself would be back. All of which accounted for the comparative facility wherewith Dick had slipped away—a facility which struck our two express-riders as strange.
Something of a friendship had grown up between Dick Selmes and Corporal Sandgate. They were of the same age, had the same tastes, and, hailing from adjacent neighbourhoods in the Old Country, had acquaintance in common. On such they chatted in subdued31 tones, as they held on their way rapidly through the calm beauty of the African night. So far the said way was easy, as under the unerring guidance of Trooper Stokes they crossed each rolling upland, mimosa-dotted and grassy32. Here and there, far-away, the mysterious dimness was relieved by the red glow of a grass fire, or might it be the weird33 signal of plotting savages34? Soon, however, the ground became more rugged35. They forded a small river, rippling36 deep down in a thickly bushed37 valley, and the steeds drank gratefully of its cool, if slightly brackish38, water. Then on again.
“We must swing back again here,” said Stokes, as they drew rein16 on top of a ridge39 to loosen the girths and give the horses a quarter of an hour’s rest and feed. “There are kraals in front of us. I can smell ’em.”
“The deuce you can?” said Dick, vividly40 interested. “I can’t. You’re not getting at us, old chap, are you?”
To this Stokes vouchsafed41 no reply. He stroked his thick, wiry beard, looking unutterable contempt.
They resumed their way, sometimes making a considerable détour to avoid suspicious neighbourhood. Once the barking of dogs, alarmingly near, caused a thrill of anxious excitement. Had the tramp of their horse-hoofs been heard? they wondered, as they swerved42 off as noiselessly as possible. At last, what looked like a building loomed43 in front of them. Just behind it were three or four native huts.
“I thought so,” exclaimed Stokes. “Blamed if this isn’t old Shelbury’s store. We’ve come a leetle more out of our road than we need have done, Sandgate.”
“We’ll make it up. I say, hadn’t we better off-saddle and have some grub?” suggested Dick Selmes, cheerfully.
Stokes looked at him sourly.
“Grub!” he echoed. “You’ll get none o’ that here. Any fool could see that Shelbury’s cleared. Why, the place is all stove in and the whole show looted.”
Closer investigation44 proved such to be the case. The door hung on one hinge, and seemed very much battered45.
“We’ll push on,” said Sandgate, with an anxious glance at the moon, now getting low. “The further we do that under cover of night the better.”
But Stokes, rapping out something about just taking half a squint46 inside, and catching47 them up again in a jiffy, was already off his horse. The other two, resuming their conversation about old times and scenes at home, held on the way he had pointed48 out to them. So taken up were they that it was quite a little while before it occurred to them that it might be advisable to pull up and wait for Stokes. Nor had they long to wait.
“Just as I thought,” he said, coming up. “The whole shoot has been cleared from top to bottom. You never saw such a mess in your life. But there’s no one dead inside.”
As they rode on, neither Sandgate nor Dick noticed that Stokes kept rather behind. The moon, too, had almost sunk, wherefore, perhaps, they further failed to notice that his tan-cord uniform jacket bulged49.
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1
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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entrusted
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| v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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waggon
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| n.运货马车，运货车；敞篷车箱 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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superfluous
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| adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的 | |
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corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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athletic
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| adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的 | |
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hoist
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| n.升高，起重机，推动；v.升起，升高，举起 | |
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promotion
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| n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传 | |
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inconvenient
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| adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的 | |
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swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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sparsely
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| adv.稀疏地；稀少地；不足地；贫乏地 | |
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disaffected
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| adj.（政治上）不满的，叛离的 | |
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risky
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| adj.有风险的，冒险的 | |
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rein
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| n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治 | |
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reined
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| 勒缰绳使（马）停步( rein的过去式和过去分词 )； 驾驭； 严格控制； 加强管理 | |
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cramming
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| n.塞满，填鸭式的用功v.塞入( cram的现在分词 )；填塞；塞满；（为考试而）死记硬背功课 | |
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specimen
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| n.样本，标本 | |
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gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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brute
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| n.野兽，兽性 | |
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jingling
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| 叮当声 | |
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enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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inspector
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| n.检查员，监察员，视察员 | |
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chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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adaptability
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| n.适应性 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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rippling
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| 起涟漪的，潺潺流水般声音的 | |
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bushed
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| adj.疲倦的 | |
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brackish
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| adj.混有盐的；咸的 | |
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ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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vividly
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| adv.清楚地，鲜明地，生动地 | |
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41
vouchsafed
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| v.给予，赐予( vouchsafe的过去式和过去分词 )；允诺 | |
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swerved
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| v.（使）改变方向，改变目的( swerve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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43
loomed
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| v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 | |
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45
battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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46
squint
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| v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的 | |
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47
catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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48
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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49
bulged
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| 凸出( bulge的过去式和过去分词 )； 充满； 塞满（某物） | |
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