I am afraid
there is no use thinking of getting them back."
"It depends upon how far they have gone," Chris said. "The rains have
brought the grass up, and as likely as not they may halt when they get
to some good pastures and wait till the others join them. It is not
likely that all that gang came from one place."
"I expect that they have been gathered up from lonely farmhouses where
they have escaped the commandos, and they will want to divide their
plunder between them; they don't trust each other a bit, and each would
cheat his fellows of his share if he could. So I should think that what
you suggest is likely enough, and that it has been arranged to wait when
they come to a good place till the others arrive. But you are not
thinking of rescuing them, are you?"
"If we thrash the Boers at the farm I shall certainly have a try. We did
carry off two or three thousand head about two months ago from the hands
of at least as large a party as this, and I don't see why we should not
do it again. It was near Mount Umhlumba."
"Was it your party that did that?" the farmer exclaimed. "Why, it was
the talk of the whole district, and some of the cattle belonged to a
friend of mine. He told me how he had been saved from ruin.
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