by Mayne Reid
CHAPTER VI.
"INSPANN AND TREK!"
With all his confidence in the protection of a Supreme Being, Von Bloomknew that he was not to leave everything to the Divine hand. That wasnot the religion he had been taught; and he at once set about takingmeasures to extricate himself from the unpleasant position in which hewas placed.
Unpleasant position! Ha! It was more than unpleasant, as thefield-cornet began to perceive. It was a position of peril!
The more Von Bloom reflected, the more was he convinced of this. Therethey were, in the middle of a black naked plain, that without a greenspot extended beyond the limits of vision. How much farther he could notguess; but he knew that the devastations of the migratory locustsometimes cover an area of thousands of miles! It was certain that theone that had just swept past was on a very extensive scale.
It was evident he could no longer remain by his kraal. His horses, andcattle, and sheep, could not live without food; and should these perish,upon what were he and his family to subsist? He must leave the kraal. Hemust go in search of pasture, without loss of time,--at once. Alreadythe animals, shut up beyond their usual hour, were uttering their variedcries, impatient to be let out. They would soon hunger; and it was hardto say when food could be procured for them.
There was no time to be lost. Every hour was of great importance,--evenminutes must not be wasted in dubious hesitation.
The field-cornet spent but a few minutes in consideration. Whethershould he mount one of his best horses, and ride off alone in search ofpasture? or whether would it not be better to "inspann" his wagon, andtake everything along with him at once?
He soon decided in favour of the latter course. In any case he wouldhave been compelled to move from his present location,--to leave thekraal altogether.
He might as well take everything at once. Should he go out alone, itmight cost him a long time to find grass and water--for both would benecessary--and, meantime, his stock would be suffering.
These and other considerations decided him at once to "inspann" and"trek" away, with his wagon, his horses, his cattle, his sheep, his"household goods," and his whole family circle.
"Inspann and trek!" was the command: and Swartboy, who was proud of thereputation he had earned as a wagon-driver, was now seen waving hisbamboo whip like a great fishing-rod.
"Inspann and trek!" echoed Swartboy, tying upon his twenty-feet lash anew cracker, which he had twisted out of the skin of the hartebeestantelope.
"Inspann and trek!" he repeated, making his vast whip crack like apistol; "yes, baas, I'll inspann;" and, having satisfied himself thathis "voor-slag" was properly adjusted, Swartboy rested the bamboo handleagainst the side of the house, and proceeded to the kraal to collect theyoke-oxen.
A large wagon, of a sort that is the pride and property of every Capefarmer, stood to one side of the house. It was a vehicle of the firstclass,--a regular "cap-tent" wagon,--that had been made for thefield-cornet in his better days, and in which he had been used to drivehis wife and children to the "nacht-maal," and upon _vrolykheids_(parties of pleasure). In those days a team of eight fine horses used todraw it along at a rattling rate. Alas! oxen had now to take theirplace; for Von Bloom had but five horses in his whole stud, and thesewere required for the saddle.
But the wagon was almost as good as ever it had been,--almost as good aswhen it used to be the envy of the field-cornet's neighbours, the boersof Graaf Reinet. Nothing was broken. Everything was in itsplace,--"voor-kist," and "achter-kist," and side-chests. There was thesnow-white cap, with its "fore-clap" and "after-clap," and its insidepockets, all complete; and the wheels neatly carved, and the well-planedboxing and "disselboom," and the strong "trektow" of buffalo-hide.Nothing was wanting that ought to be found about a wagon. It was, infact, the best part of the field-cornet's property that remained tohim,--for it was equal in value to all the oxen, cattle, and sheep, uponhis establishment.
While Swartboy, assisted by Hendrik, was catching up the twelveyoke-oxen, and attaching them to the disselboom and trektow of thewagon, the "baas" himself, aided by Hans, Totty, and also by Trueey andlittle Jan, was loading up the furniture and implements. This was not adifficult task. The _Penates_ of the little kraal were not numerous, andwere all soon packed either inside or around the roomy vehicle.
In about an hour's time the wagon was loaded up, the oxen wereinspanned, the horses saddled, and everything was ready for "trekking."
And now arose the question, _whither_?
Up to this time Von Bloom had only thought of getting away from thespot--of escaping beyond the naked waste that surrounded him.
It now became necessary to determine the direction in which they were totravel--a most important consideration.
Important, indeed, as a little reflection showed. They might go in thedirection in which the locusts had gone, or that in which they had come?On either route they might travel for scores of miles without meetingwith a mouthful of grass for the hungry animals; and in such a casethese would break down and perish.
Or the travellers might move in some other direction, and find grass,but not water. Without water, not only would they have to fear for thecattle, but for themselves--for their own lives. How important then itwas, which way they turned their faces!
At first the field-cornet bethought him of heading towards thesettlements. The nearest water in that direction was almost fifty milesoff. It lay to the eastward of the kraal. The locusts had just gone thatway. They would by this time have laid waste the whole country--perhapsto the water or beyond it!
It would be a great risk going in that direction.
Northward lay the Kalihari desert. It would be hopeless to steer north.Von Bloom knew of no oaesis in the desert. Besides the locusts had comefrom the north. They were drifting southward when first seen; and fromthe time they had been observed passing in this last direction, they hadno doubt ere this wasted the plains far to the south.
The thoughts of the field-cornet were now turned to the west. It is truethe swarm had last approached from the west; but Von Bloom fancied thatthey had first come down from the north, and that the sudden veeringround of the wind had caused them to change direction. He thought thatby trekking westward he would soon get beyond the ground they had laidbare.
He knew something of the plains to the west--not much indeed, but heknew that at about forty miles distance there was a spring with goodpasturage around it, upon whose water he could depend. He had oncevisited it, while on a search for some of his cattle, that had wanderedthus far. Indeed, it then appeared to him a better situation for cattlethan the one he held, and he had often thought of moving to it. Itsgreat distance from any civilized settlement was the reason why he hadnot done so. Although he was already far beyond the frontier, he stillkept up a sort of communication with the settlements, whereas at themore distant point such a communication would be extremely difficult.
Now that other considerations weighed with him, his thoughts once morereturned to this spring; and after spending a few minutes more inearnest deliberation, he decided upon "trekking" westward.
Swartboy was ordered to head round, and strike to the west. The Bushmanpromptly leaped to his seat upon the voor-kist, cracked his mighty whip,straightened out his long team, and moved off over the plain.
Hans and Hendrik were already in their saddles; and having cleared thekraals of all their live stock, with the assistance of the dogs, drovethe lowing and bleating animals before them.
Trueey and little Jan sat beside Swartboy on the fore-chest of the wagon;and the round full eyes of the pretty springbok could be seen peepingcuriously out from under the cap-tent.
Casting a last look upon his desolate kraal, the field-cornet turned hishorse's head, and rode after the wagon.