"Yes," I said huskily; "but from the moment I drew my sword and we charged, I never thought about the poor fellow till you spoke." "Advance at a walk!" was the next order; and as we started, the Colonel came up to where Denham and I rode at one end of the leading troop. "Here," cried the Colonel; "where's that Matabele fellow? He may lead us out of this crowd." "Gone, sir," said Denham quietly. "We lost him in the gallop." "Tut, tut, tut!" muttered the Colonel; "he would have been more useful than ever now. Forward at a walk! They can't see us, nor tell us from one of their friendly troops riding about the veldt. Silence in the ranks!" "He needn't have spoken," said Denham in a low voice, as the Colonel drew rein and let us pass. "We shall get through yet, as you say." However, the odds seemed to be terribly against us, for whichever way we turned large bodies of the enemy were evidently in front; and after changing our direction again and again during the next two hours, the Colonel at last halted the corps. "It's of no use," I heard him say to one of the senior officers. "We're only tiring out the horses and men. We must stand fast till daybreak, then select our route, make for it, and try what a good charge will do. We shall clear ourselves then." Directly afterwards the order was passed for the men to dismount and refresh themselves with such water and provisions as they had, and silence once more reigned among us; for, not far off, large bodies of the mounted Boers were in motion, and twice we were passed at apparently some two hundred yards' distance, our presence not being detected. "We ought to be able to get through," whispered Denham to me soon after the second body had gone by. "They must be thinking by this time that we have got right away. Where do you think we are facing now? North, I should say." "East," I replied, pointing away straight in front. "That's the morning breaking." "For the beginning of another day," said Denham softly. "Well, I shan't be unhappy when this one's work is done." "Nor I," was my reply. "I half-wish we had stayed among the ruins." "To be starved," said Denham bitterly. "No; this is far better. It gives us something to do." "Yes," I replied; "and there's some more, for the Colonel's coming up." CHAPTER TWENTY. WHAT PEOPLE THINK BRAVE. The Colonel was coming up, and it was quite time, for day was breaking fast, and the black darkness which had been our friend during the night was gradually dying away.