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The men in the meantime were searching for the family – firing off guns, etc. I looked about for the little grave but could not find it. Poor father was nearly distracted. I ran up to the top of the hill behind the house and at last I saw a dust coming round the point of the rocks some distance down the river, and called to father that they were coming. The old driver was also on their tracks going down the river. At last they came within sight. There were the cattle and with Becky with a gun on her shoulder, mother with her sewing and the two children with their lesson books. They had heard the guns and were coming home. They had fired a shot in answer to ours but we had not heard it. Mother’s account was, that directly after we left she had noticed a swelling under baby’s ear and next day it was under the other ear. He was very ill and would not leave her arms but kept her walking about the room night and day till she was ready to drop. On the third day, at sunset the little pet died. He was laid out on the sofa and as all were tired out they went to bed. Mother lying on some chairs near the sofa. The lion had not returned since we left, but just as they were going to sleep the cattle made a rush, a sure sign the lion was near. There happened to be a strange young ox in the kraal, he jumped through a broken place in the rails, and of course all the others followed and madly rushed off. Becky in her haste to load the gun got the ram rod fast in it and had to fire it through the window into the sand. The gun kicked so that it nearly knocked her down. There was no rest for them that night. The lion of course got his supper. The wolves and jackals were making a noise near the house the whole night. I suppose they had got scent of the cattle carcass. Next morning the man went to collect the scattered cattle and mother and Becky had to consider about the coffin and grave. My mother’s trunk became the former and the corner in the side of the kraal was thought the safest spot for the latter, though it was a sort of rocky ground like that the house was built on, and it was dreadful hard work to make a grave in it. Mother tried to help poor Becky but could not – so she sat and encouraged her and well she did it. She worked from early in the morning and it was only deep enough by the afternoon, indeed one corner of the trunk was still to be seen when we came. Just as the grave was finished, the man came with the cattle and he helped mother, Becky and Richard to carry the trunk coffin to the grave. Tom following.[78] Mother tried to read a little burial service, but broke down so they concluded the ceremony as best they could. On their return to the house the Hottentot said he would not stay any longer, he would leave at once and, as there was no persuading him to remain another night, mother asked him to take a letter to father but he refused saying, if he did, he was afraid of getting punished for leaving them quite alone. Next day Becky and Tom went with the cattle as Richard was laid up with a bad foot, a poisonous thorn had pricked him. On the third day Richard’s foot was better and mother said she was so anxious about Becky and Tom, and so miserable alone at the house that she preferred going with the children to mind the cattle. Thus they had all gone every day since with the work and books – Becky with the gun of course, taking care first to see which way the lions had gone – up or down. The corn was looking beautiful – there was more than one hundred stalks from one grain and the ears so heavy that they hung down. I have never seen such a cornfield again – the reason was that it was sown on soil over which the river had overflowed and left rich deposit. A troop of buffaloes walked through it one day but did not eat a single ear. I suppose they did not know what it was.

We only stayed two days after we heard mother’s account as none of us cared to remain where we were constantly reminded of our lost little pet, who was just 15 months old[79] when he left us, besides we were rather tired of the lion for a neighbour. He had killed in nine months, one horse, a donkey, four calves, and thirty-one of our and our neighbours cattle, besides I don’t know how many sheep and goats. We reached “Rooibank” safely and as we could not get the lazy Hottentots to work, Becky and I had again to set our minds to make the house. Frank B. helping us to put it up – but we did not take the trouble with it we did with the other. We only made two rooms and nothing pretty about them. They were useful and tolerably comfortable. For one thing the materials were much more difficult to get and another I think we were a little disheartened. We had nice kind neighbours in Mr. and Mrs. Bam and we liked their baby. The Stewardsons[80] were also living here. We again made a garden and sowed a little corn. Mr. Bam also tried some but it did not grow half as good as it did in the Swakop and then we had the trouble of fencing it in. Becky and I chopping down the trees and Ben and James making the donkeys pull them to make the fence.

We went to see how the corn in the Swakop was, but it was not yet ripe. We stayed one night at the old house, and not long after we had retired to rest there was our old torment again. The oxen made a rush and just as they ran past the end of the stoep the lion caught one. As we thought Ben[81] now big enough to fire a gun, I held the door open while he fired out and shut it quickly as we heard our enemy close at hand - one of the bullets must have hit him for he left. The ox he had killed and we got it next morning lying a few yards below the stoep with the mark of the lion’s claws in his neck and the spoors of an immense spring off the ox – I suppose when he got the shot. We left that afternoon. In about three weeks father again started to reap the corn as he had succeeded in getting a couple of men to go with him, Becky and the two boys[82]. The lion was fortunately not there. Not having any sickles they were obliged to pull up the corn and beat it out on the buikplank of the wagon. It well repaid our trouble as we got more than fourteen muids from less seed than a half bucket. It kept us in bread till we again reached the Colony, of course using it sparingly. The corn at “Rooibank” was very little – they tried to tramp it out with the donkeys. I forgot father and mother made another visit to the Swakop, I think to bring the remainder of the corn and the lion actually followed their wagon spoor or their scent. They had gone round by Sandfontein and then home to Rooibank – the lion went round the house at Sandfontein, then up along the River Kosep[83] and came on to Rooibank and several days after and killed a cow belonging to a Hottentot or Mr. Bam I forget which.
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