IN A REBELLIOUS COLONY--VISIT TO VRYBURG DURING THE BOER
OCCUPATION--I PASS OFF AS A DUTCHMAN'S SISTER

"The days are so long, and there are so many of them."
DU MAURIER.


During the weeks I remained at Mosita, the only book I had to read was
"Trilby," which I perused many times, and the lament of the heroine in
the line quoted above seemed to re-echo my sentiments. For days and days
we were absolutely without news. It is impossible after a lapse of time
to realize exactly what that short sentence really means. I must ask my
readers to remember that we talked and thought of one topic only; we
looked incessantly in the one direction by which messengers might come.
Our nerves were so strained that, did we but see one of the natives
running across the yard, or hear them conversing in louder tones than
usual, we at once thought there must be news, and jumped up from any
occupation with which we were trying to beguile the time, only to sink
back on our chairs again disappointed. As for knowing what was passing
in the world, one might as well have been in another planet. We saw no
papers, and there was not much prospect of obtaining any. Before the war
we had all talked lightly of wires being cut and railway-lines pulled
up, but, in truth, I do not think anyone realized what these two
calamities really meant. My only comfort was the reflection that, no
matter how hard they were fighting in Mafeking, they could not be
suffering the terrible boredom that we were enduring. To such an extent
in this monotony did I lose the count of time, that I had to look in the
almanack to be able to say, in Biblical language, "The evening and the
morning were the sixth day."