His friends
can do as they like. Naturally we shall be glad to have them with us,
but that is as they choose."
"Of course we will go with you," one of the colonists said.
"Thank you! At any rate two of you had better stop with Mr. Searle.
There are the wounded Boers to look after. I see there is a waggon in
the yard; I should think they had better be put in that and carried to
Greytown. If we recover the cattle, we will drive them down there."
None of the farmers was willing to stay, and at last they had to decide
the question by lot.
"Now," Chris said, "you gentlemen know the country a great deal better
than we do, and can tell us which way they are most likely to take their
cattle."
"They are sure to go north, there is no other way for them to go. If the
whole party were together and mounted, they might go up through
Zululand; as it is, they would not venture to do that. They will cross
the Tugela, I should say, between the point where the Mooi runs into it
and its junction with the Buffalo, and go up through Colsie, and then
either through Helpmakaar or Lazarath."
"Well, I hope we shall catch them long before they get to the Tugela."
"I expect the cattle will be somewhere near Inadi; there is some good
grazing along there, and as all the loyalists have cleared off long ago
they will have no fear of being disturbed.
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