The war did not directly affect us, but indirectly it did. By the siege of Kimberley, and later that of Mafeking, and the destruction of the railroad our line of supplies from Cape Town was cut off, consequently prices in Rhodesia rose very rapidly. Sugar was soon two shillings (48c) per pound, flour about three guineas ($15) per one hundred pounds, and other groceries in proportion. With little money on hand, and the prospects of receiving more under such conditions uncertain, famine might have stared us in the face. There was no need to be uneasy, however; the Lord and the forethought of Father and Mother Engle prepared us for such an emergency. Shortly before this the Charter Company had placed some cattle on the mission farm, and we had the use of milk. Butter, eggs, and vegetables for a time brought a very high price in Bulawayo market, and with all these the mission was supplied. The little spring wagon, drawn by four donkeys, went to Bulawayo nearly every week for a time, taking in produce which brought a high price, and we were in turn able to pay a high price for groceries and food for the table; so that, during the darkest days of the war, all our needs were supplied. Occasionally disquieting rumors would reach us that the Boers were about to force their way through and come into Rhodesia. The natives themselves were not a little interested in the outcome of the war. They had no newspapers or system of telegraphy like the white people, but they had a means of gaining news which to them was much more effective. This was by means of communication among themselves. How they so quickly secured news of the various engagements in the south and the result of each engagement was a mystery. We on our part, situated among them as we were, and conscious that there were many who were still seething under British rule, could not avoid wondering what might be the outcome were the British defeated. On the other hand, many of the natives seemed to prefer British rule to that of the Dutch. They chose to remain as they were rather than change masters. CHAPTER EIGHT Extension of the Work Followed by Dark Days Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.--St. John 12: 24.