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Notwithstanding, however, the noise it has made in the world, and will, I suspect, should we ever be driven into a war with our vivacious continental neighbour, again make, it is but a rock some twenty miles long, and twelve broad, in the middle of the Mediterranean, with a smaller rock, Gozo, to the north of it, and was, probably, at one time of this planet's existence, merely a continuation of Sicily or Italy's toe, or a lump, as it were, kicked off into the middle of the sea.
This was more than the lion could stand, and, coward as he was at heart, finding himself thus defeated in his object, he took to flight, pursued by the buffalo, who went dashing away after him through the bush. Gozo immediately dismounted, and stealing forward, dragged the calf into the bush.
"Don't be saying that, Gozo; you'll get up after a little rest, and we'll find water before long; if not, we may fall in with some juicy roots: I have heard that such grow in some parts of the country where the soil is sandy, and so we are likely to discover them here." "It won't do to stop here long," said Denis. "We must up and away; the sooner we set off, the sooner we shall find water.
Angelo and La Sangle was the harbour where all the ships of war were shut up at night by an immense chain; and behind was il Borgo, the chief fortification in the island. Citta Notabile and Gozo were inland, and their fate would depend upon that of the defenses of the harbor. To defend all this, the Grand Master could only number 700 knights and 8,500 soldiers.
The abuse of the Knights fell upon sympathetic ears; in his early days Soliman the Magnificent had expelled the Knights from Rhodes; since then Charles V. had given them the islands of Malta and Gozo, and the town of Tripoli in Barbary as their abiding place; from Malta they had never ceased their warfare against the corsairs, and incidentally against the Sultan and his subjects.
"Hendricks sent in all directions to look for you; and when the body of poor Gozo was found, it was feared that you had met with the same fate. He was so dreadfully cut up, that I thought he would have abandoned his expedition and gone back to Maritzburg." "I am sorry to have caused the fine old boy so much trouble," answered Denis.
It was satisfactory to know that the Zulus had no horses, for none had been observed in or about the camp, so that when once they had got well ahead there was no risk of being overtaken. What all this time had become of Gozo? Denis and Percy had not seen him during the morning, nor had he made his appearance after Hendricks' arrival at the camp.
Gozo says that about five miles farther on there's a broad stream, running through a wide valley or rather a plain, and that at the ford to which he will conduct us we shall be certain to meet with large animals, elephant and rhinoceroses, quaggas and pallahs, and other deer." Percy, thus encouraged, pulled himself together, and tried to forget the heat.
Denis was about to dash forward, when Gozo called to him and advised him to make a circuit so as to come upon the herd on the lee side. Turning their horses' heads, therefore, they descended the hill they had just mounted, and keeping under its shelter, made their way northward.
The dogs on this ran forward; but as they got near to the spot, stopped and gazed towards it, and then came back. "What can have happened?" asked Percy. "Surely Gozo cannot have died during the short time we have been absent, yet otherwise the dogs would have remained." They hurried on to find Gozo lying at full length where they had left him. His eyes were open, but staring meaninglessly.
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