‘Well, I only hope that Jameson and the Uitlanders will succeed in chucking the whole lot out, then a man who has received an English education will be able to get a Government situation too. I hope to see the British flag flying once more over the Transvaal in a week or so.’ ‘Hurrah for Jameson and the British flag!’ cried Steve’s cousin. This young man had been in the habit of running the English down ever since he had come to the Transvaal, because he thought it good policy, but now that he believed the English were going to be victorious, he thought it was high time to put on his Anglo-Saxon coat and go with the winning party. It is all very well to be an Afrikander while Afrikanderism is popular, and while Afrikanders hold the handle of the knife. But now it seems England is going to wrest the handle out of the hands of the Boers, so ‘British I will be now,’ was his philosophy--ugh! Keith and Harrison did not say a word; they seemed to be stricken dumb at what they heard. ‘Oh, so you are taking a fit of Anglo-mania, too, now--you--cur, you--dog, you coward.’ ‘And I am a Britisher too, and I also say Hurrah for Jameson,’ cried Nande. Steve stood with clenched hands, pale as death. ‘And I say that the man who turns his coat and stands away from his countrymen in their time of need is worse than a _dog_, is worse than a Kaffir, for even a Kaffir will stand by his people in time of need. You are both dogs--_curs_, and worse than curs, you mongrel Afrikanders.’ ‘Look here, young man, you must be careful what you say; you must remember we are four against you alone; we will soon take your gas out of you,’ said Nande. ‘Come on then all of you. One true Afrikander can always _down_ half-a-dozen cowardly curs like you. I do not believe a hundred like you would have the pluck to tackle one single Boer. Come on, I am ready for you.’ He stood with his back against the wall, with clenched fists, fierce set face, and gleaming eyes. Nande snatched an axe handle standing near, and crying to the other three to ‘come on and let us silence this miserable Boer,’ he walked in a threatening way to within three paces of Steve. Steve stood calmly but determinedly awaiting the attack. When Nande stopped three paces in front of him, Steve looked him full in the eyes. Nande could not stand that look; he trembled with fear, and looking away, he turned to the others and said,-- ‘Are you fellows not going to help me to give this Boer a good thrashing?’ Keith and Harrison looked contemptuously at him, the former remarking that,-- ‘If any help were required, we would certainly give it to Steve. _He_ is a _man_. You are a cowardly renegade. I would be ashamed of you, if you really were an Englishman.’ ‘Thank God there are very few Afrikanders such as these two,’ said Steve. ‘It would be a bad lookout for us if there were many such.’