"For myself, I never believed this, and what he afterwards did will show that I had the right of it. Still, good or bad, the affliction was undeniable, for I myself heard him screaming like a beast as I drove to Nachtmaal.

"The malady lasted lasted for months, and all herbs and pills that were given him did not an atom of good. Even the Kaffirs could do nothing, though Klein Andries, the old man's eldest son and a good lad, caught a witch - doctor and sjamboked him to pieces to make him help. In short, the illness was plainly beyond mortal cure, and the old man at last came to see this.

"I should have told you that he had times of peace, when the agony forsook him, and left him limp like a wet clout. Then he would sweat and quake with terror of the pains that would return; and so pitiful was his condition that he could not even listen with a proper patience to the reading of Scripture or the singing of David's psalms. You will see from this what a terrible visitation to a God-fearing man this illness was.

"So he made up his mind. One morning early, while quietness was with him, he called for Klein Andries and bade him shut the door of the room.

have decided to die. So I shall die at the end of a week about two hours after sunrise.'

"Andries was of course very much taken aback. 'I do not understand,' he said. 'You cannot mean to kill yourself?' "Of course not,' answered the old man. 'That will be your part.'

"How do you mean?' cried Andries.

"I shall lie here in my bed, with clean pillows and fresh sheets, and the best coverlet. Our people will all be here,— you will see to that,—and when I have spoken to them and shaken their hands, you shall bring in your rifle

"That will do,' said Klein Andries. 'You need tell me no more. I will not do it.'

"But you are my firstborn,' said the father.

"It is all the same; I will not do it.'

"Then you can get out of my house, with your wife and your children, and go look for a stone on which to lay your heads.'

"That is very easy,' answered Klein Andries, quite calmly. 'No doubt we shall find that stone you speak of.'

"And I will get Piet to do it,' said the old man.

"No,' replied Klein Andries. 'Piet shall not do it. Nobody shall do it. I will not have it done.'

"Andries,' said the old man, 'you and I must not talk thus. I am your father, and I tell you to do me this service. Say rather, I ask it of you. It is no more than an act of kindness to a stricken man; your

hand on the gun will be the hand of mercy.

"But I cannot do it,' cried out Klein Andries in a sort of pain.

"You will do it,' said the old man. 'Remember you are the eldest of my sons. You will do it, Andries?'

"No,' said Andries.
"You will do it?'
66 6 No!'

"Then, Andries,' said the old man, half raising himself as he lay, and pointing a finger at his son 'then, Andries, eldest son and dearest and all, I will curse you.'

"For a full minute the two looked each other in the eyes, and then Klein Andries let his hand fall on his knee like a man beaten and broken.

"It shall be as you say,' he answered at last. I will do what you ask, but-it will spoil my life for me.'

"Thank you, my son,' said the old man, sinking back.

"Oh, I will do it,' said Andries. 'But I hold it a sin, a black and bloody sin, that I commit with open eyes and a full knowledge. But I will do it.'

"So the thing happened, and all that week before his death the old man suffered little. As he said himself, his last taste of life was sweet in his mouth. He thought much upon his grave and the manner of his burying, and would often talk with Klein Andries and Piet, and give them directions.

"I will not be buried in the kraal,' he said one day. 'My sister Greta never had any love for me, and I had just as lief

Put me on

not disturb her. top of the hill there; I was always one for an open view.'

"From where he lay he could see through the window the place where he desired to be buried, and the grave of his cousin Cornel, dead twenty years before.

"Put me, then, on top of the hill,' he said, 'and I shall be able to overlook Cornel. He has a head-board with a round top, so you will give me two boards, one at my head and one at my feet, both with round tops. You would not have that carrion triumph over me?'

"It shall be done,' said Andries..

"And you might carve a verse on my head-board,' the old man went on. 'Cornel has only his name and dates, and no doubt he counts on my having no more. His board is only painted; see that you carve mine.'

"I do not carve letters very well,' began Andries, but

666

'Oh, you carve well enough,' said the old man. 'Very well indeed, considering. You won't have to do very much. There are plenty of short verses in the Psalms, and some very good ones, too-in Proverbs. The Predikant will soon choose a verse of the right sort. Say a verse, Andries; it is not much.' "I will see to it,' said Andries.

"Then Piet, whose mind was a dunghill, had a horrible thought. 'But what about the water?' he cried, for the stream from which they took their drinking-water ran past the foot of the hill.

"You must draw your water higher up,' answered the old man. 'If I were not about to die, Piet, and therefore under a need to judge not, lest I be judged, I would cut down your oxen and sheep for that. Go out; I will say what I have to say to Andries.'

"When Piet was gone he went on. Remember, Andries,

I

a bare four foot, no more. would not wish to be late when the dead arise. Just four foot of cool earth, and a black coffin with plenty of room in it.' "I will take care,' replied Klein Andries.

"Very well, do as I have told you, and I shall be very well off. I shall sleep without pain till the last day, and perhaps dream in peace about the verse on my head - board and the round tops.'

66

'Although I like a man to take it bravely, I can very well understand that that week must have been a terrible one for Klein Andries, who, though a good lad, and a wealthy man at this day, never was particularly quick at taking up an idea. He went about with a bowed head and empty eyes, like a man in mortal shame; and I believe that never since has he quite cast off the load his father laid on him. Not that I see any harm in the affair myself.

was well known, and they were proud of their kinsman. They crowded the room in which he lay, all in their best clothes, a little uneasy, as most folks are on great occasions, and all very quiet.

"Old Andries van der Linden was free from pain, and spoke to them all in very cheerful and impressing words. As he lay among his pillows with his white hair thrown back and his beard on his breast, he was a fine man to see a picture of a good and a brave man. He read aloud from the Bible, and then prayed awhile, giving out his words grandly and without a quaver. Then he shook them all by the hand and bade each one good-bye.

"Now, Andries,' he said, and lay back smiling.

"Klein Andries stood at the foot of the bed with his rifle resting across the rail, but he dropped his head with a sob.

"I cannot,' he said, 'I cannot.'

"Come Andries, said the old man again. 'Come, my son.'

"Then Klein Andries caught his breath in his throat and steadied the rifle. The old man lay calmly, still smiling, with fearless eyes.

"Close your eyes,' said Andries hoarsely, and as the old man did so he fired.

"The windows of the room were blown outwards and broken, but the shot was а true one, and the work was well and workmanlike done."

THERE is no breed of dog about which more stories are told than the fox-terrier. He is a universal favourite, whether as a friend in the house or as a companion on a country walk. All who know the fox-terrier love him for his bright intelligence, his deep affection, and his reckless pluck and daring. A friend of ours was once asked to escort a young lady on a long journey. Every subject of conversation was started, and soon exhausted. They seemed to They seemed to find no common ground until in a fortunate moment the foxterrier was introduced. "Then my companion brightened up. She forgot her shyness and constraint, and never ceased talking until the journey's end was reached." But with all his good points, we should have been inclined to doubt our little friend's capacity for perseverance in tracking the doubles of a hare or circumventing the wiles of the otter. Till we read Miss Serrell's book, 'With Hound and Terrier in the Field,' we were inclined to think that the fox-terrier did not care for a chase unless it speedily culminated in a fight or a worry. But as we put down this delightful volume, we feel that we have wronged the terriers, and that they are not so volatile and mercurial

as we had supposed; for here is the story of a personal experience of the terrier, told in the simplest and most straightforward manner. We learn how Miss Alys Serrell and her friend Miss Aura Guest have collected and trained packs of terriers that can hunt a hare or a rabbit, kill an otter after a fair chase, and would, we believe, prove a match for the fox himself if he was not reserved for their betters, the foxhounds. If any one wishes to know how this was done, he will find the story in this book, and, incidentally, will gain some practical knowledge about the education and management of terriers. No doglover, nor student of the working of the minds of our dumb friends, but will discover something to delight and much to learn in these pages. Indeed, though it is much more, 'With Hound and Terrier in the Field' is a most fascinating collection of dog stories. Those who care little for sport will yet read with pleasure the history of Frosty, of his reform from evil practices, the adventures of his gallant spirit, and his tragic end; or in lighter vein, not less delightful, are the merry tales of Jubilee and the burglar, and Whankey and the white ducks.

By

The secret of Miss Serrell's success with her terriers lies in her patience and sympathy. She knows that each dog has its own individual character, and she is quick to hit off their distinguishing traits. Of Sharper the unforgiving, and how he disapproved of Vixen, there is a capital story told:

"Sharper at first was very civil to her; but one day when out otterhunting he was having a tussle with an otter under a stump, when Vixen ran up to his assistance. She was immediately seized by the otter by the nose, and uttering a yelp of dismay she turned and fled, leaving poor Sharper to do battle by himself. This he did gallantly, and dragging the varmint from his holt, rolled with him into the water. He never for

gave Vixen for forsaking him, and from that time he would set up his back and growl whenever she came

near him.

But the attentive reader will not only be amused, but also instructed. The foundation on which all success in the management and training of dogs is based may be found in the following passage:

"The most important factor in the training of the young terrier is, I believe, your own daily intercourse with him. You must devote time to study his disposition and peculiarities, and he must learn to know and understand you, or there will be no basis for the goodwill and friendship without which you can never hope to make the best of him. The most important step will have been taken when you have gained his confidence, for a dog ruled by fear seldom shows intelligence, and is nearly always a miserable nervous creature who vents his misery in quarrelling with his fellows."

The last sentence is as true as it is well put; for the dog,

like his masters, is never 80 quarrelsome as when he is unhappy.

But the book is not only about terriers, though before leaving this subject we should like to draw attention to the interesting chapter on "The Old Black-and-Tan Terrier," which entirely agrees with our own views and experience.

The love of the dog and the horse often go together, and Miss Serrell was as successful in bending to her will some unruly spirits among the horses she has owned as in training Sharper, Redcap, and the rest. But while she owes much of her success with horses and dogs to her firm and gentle handling, she had a training in horsemanship which, since she survived it, could not have been better. This may seem a bold assertion; but when the reader has perused the following passage we think it will be allowed that there is much to be said for for the

view :

"It is to my brother Campbell that I owe whatever skill in riding I possess, for as children we were never so happy as when we were trying tricks with our horses. Together we essayed most of the circus performances we had seen, though as our elders did not approve, and the grooms thought it their duty to report our exploits, we had to exercise great care to prevent our pleasures being put a stop to. I fear we shall put ourselves outside the pale of 'good children' when I confess that Sunday morning, when the stable-yard was deserted and our betters were engaged in their devotions, was a chosen time for

managed to escape from the prayers our performances. How we that my father used to read to the