Part 39 (1/2)
”As usual, your cousin Hernan brings evil gifts,” I said to Marie bitterly ”Well, let us also eat our dinner, which perhaps the Heeren Carolus and Johannes will do us the honour to share--bringing their loaded guns with them”
Carolus and Johannes accepted the invitation, and froh to learn, especially the details of the massacre in that district, which, because of this fearful event is now and alill be known as Weenen, or The Place of Weeping Suffice it to say that they were quite enough to take away all our appetite, although Carolus and Johannes, who by this tiht of blood and terror, ate in a fashi+on which ht have filled Hans himself with envy
Shortly after we had finished our meal, Hans, who, by the way, seeues, came to re a great ”talk,” and that they were about to send for h, a few minutes later two armed men arrived and ordered me to follow them I turned to say soo where you do, husband,” and, as no objection was uard, she ca under the shade of one of the wagons, we found the Boers Six of them were seated in a semicircle upon stools or whatever they could find, the black-browed coh table on which riting materials
To the left of these six were the Prinsloos and Meyers, being those folk whoht the other Boers who had ridden into the calance that a court-ed and that the six elders were the judges, the coive their names purposely, since I have no wish that the actual perpetrators of the terrible blunder that I am about to describe should be known to posterity After all, they acted honestly according to their lights, and were but tools in the hand of that villain Hernan Pereira
”Allan Quaterht here to be tried by a court- to the law published in the cae that law?”
”I know that there is such a law, coe the authority of your court-martial to try a man who is no Boer, but a subject of the Queen of Great Britain”
”We have considered that point, Allan Quatermain,” said the commandant, ”and we disallow it You will remember that in the camp at Bushman's River, before you rode with the late Pieter Retief to the chief Sikonyela, when you were given command of the Zulus ith him, you took an oath to interpret truly and to be faithful in all things to the General Retief, to his coives this court jurisdiction over you”
”I deny your jurisdiction,” I answered, ”although it is true that I took an oath to interpret faithfully, and I request that a note of ”
”It shall be done,” said the commandant, and laboriously he made the note on the paper before him
When he had finished he looked up and said: ”The charge against you, Allan Quater one of the coaan, under command of the late Governor and General Pieter Retief, you did falsely and wickedly urge the said Dingaan to murder the said Pieter Retief and his companions, and especially Henri Marais, your father-in-law, and Hernando Pereira, his nepheith both of whoht about the saidof the Zulus that you should be removed to a place of safety while it was done Do you plead Guilty or Not guilty?”
Nohen I heard this false and aboh aloud
”Are you s? On what evidence is this wicked lie advanced against me?”
”No, Allan Quaterh it is true that through your evil doings I, who have lost my wife and three children by the Zulu spears, have suffered enough to ainst you, you shall hear it But first I rite down that you plead Not guilty”
He did so, then said:
”If you will acknowledge certain things it will save us all much tis are that knoas going to happen to the co it Is that true?”
”No,” I answered ”I knew nothing of as going to happen to the co but just saved my friends there”--and I pointed to the Prinsloos--”froaan I did not wish to accompany it for another reason: that I had beento Marie Marais Still, I went after all because the General Retief, as my friend, asked me to come, to interpret for him”
Now some of the Boers present said:
”That is true We re no heed of e that you were on bad terms with Henri Marais and with Hernan Pereira?”
”Yes,” I answered; ”because Henri Marais did all in his power to preventvery ill to me who had saved his life and that of his people who reundhlovu Because, too, Hernan Pereira strove to rob h I had saved him when he lay sick to death, he afterwards tried tome down in a lonely place Here is the mark of it,” and I touched the little scar upon the side of my forehead
”That is true; he did so, the stinkcat,” shouted the Vrouw Prinsloo, and was ordered to be silent
”Do you acknowledge,” went on the commandant, ”that you sent to warn your wife and those with her to depart fro to be attacked, charging them to keep the matter secret, and that afterwards both you and your Hottentot servant alone returned safely from Zululand, where all those ith you lie dead?”
”I acknowledge,” I answered, ”that I wrote to tellhouses, as you see, and to bring with her any of our coo alone This I did because Dingaan had told me, whether in jest or in earnest I did not know, that he had given orders that my said wife should be kidnapped, as he desired to ht her beautiful when he saw her Also what I did was done with the knowledge and by the wish of the late Governor Retief, as can be shown by his writing on e also that I escaped when all my brothers were killed, as did the Hottentot Hans, and if you wish to knoill tell you hoe escaped and why”
The commandant made a further note, then he said: