"They want my precious 'Vierkleur.' What shall I do?" "Take it off!" "Never!" Here they were joined by Mr. Cinatti, who waved his arms and stamped his feet when he heard the story, and got so excited and indignant that he spluttered even more than usual in his broken English. "What meant it all? What impudent impertinence was dis? It was nothing but one big mean trick, a prying trap," etc., etc. When the storm was over (and his storms were usually of brief duration) he asked Hansie, with a gesture of comical despair: "What are we going to do now?" "I don't know." "Will you take off dat ribbon?" "I will not." Hugely delighted, he clasped his hands in well-assumed agony of mind. "Stay here and go home in de dark?" "No," Hansie laughed. "I'll tell you. Celeste will give you anudder ribbon to put over dat one." "Thank you very much," Hansie said. "Yes, that is a good idea." Miss Cinatti fastened a broad white ribbon over the "Vierkleur," and Hansie bade her an affectionate farewell. The Consul escorted her to the gate, where they found one of the mounted soldiers guarding the entrance, while the second had been stationed at the side gate into which Hansie had been seen to disappear. The man who had addressed her first was nowhere to be seen. Mr. Cinatti glared at the soldier, who backed away from the entrance, and allowed the girl to pass. He did not look triumphant--on the contrary he saluted respectfully; but the other Tommy at the side gate laughed when he saw the white ribbon on her hat, and I am afraid that Hansie felt very much inclined to say, "I've got my 'Vierkleur' on still!" But she wisely refrained, walking on stiffly without so much as a glance at the man. That night she slowly and sadly took off her 'bit of ribbon gay,' replacing it by a black band in token of mourning and bereavement. There was too much at stake, and she felt it would be better to keep the ribbon in safety at home than to run the risk of being deprived of it by force. A sympathetic friend afterwards painted two crossed flags, the flags of the Transvaal and the Free State, on her band of black, and this she wore unmolested until the end of the war. CHAPTER VI PASSES AND PERMITS At this time the procuring of passes and permits became the order of the day, and it is inconceivable the amount of red-tape that had to be gone through in the process. For women living alone and having no menfolk to send to the offices, this was especially annoying. Hours were spent in waiting, and applicants were frequently sent from one official to another, and from one department to another, on unimportant matters. This brought Hansie into touch with the very men whose society she had resolved to avoid.