United States or Thailand ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !


He had hardly finished his preparations when Tom reappeared with the waggon-pole, which he had found fortunately unbroken. "Will this do, sir?" asked Tom. "The very thing," was George's delighted reply. "Now, Walford," he continued, "lie down on that canvas, old fellow, and we'll soon have you slung comfortably in your hammock between us, where you will travel without much pain to your poor chest.

But before it was yet day the waggon began to move again, and it was to the north-east that the waggon-pole pointed thenceforwards, and the letter Bough had given Smoots Beste for the Chief Resident Magistrate at Gueldersdorp was saved from the kindling of the camp-fire by a mere accident.

Then the warm salt taste of blood was in his mouth, and he gasped and panted, but he never rested until the grave was filled in. Then he built up over it an oblong cairn of the ironstone boulders, made a rude temporary cross out of a spare waggon-pole, working quite methodically with saw and hammer and nails, and set it up, under the curious eyes he hated so, and wedged it fast and sure.

The smith brought him an iron rod as thick as an ordinary staff, but Hans took it and twisted it round his finger, so that wouldn't do. Then the smith came dragging one as thick as a waggon-pole, but Hans bent it over his knee and broke it like a straw. The smith then had to collect all the iron he had, and Hans held it while his father forged for him a staff, which was heavier than the anvil.

Such a dupe now trudged at the head of the meagre three-span ox-team. When, after a hard day's toil, he at length outspanned, the waggon-pole still faithfully pointed to the north-west.

The wheel-drivers were in no better case and in addition they had the waggon-pole to look after, and the centre-drivers were betwixt the devil and the deep sea. Besides the rough country there were deep, narrow nullahs to be crossed, some of them with sides as steep as the roof of a house.