round on three sides, were within seventy yards, and now from every
waggon broke tongues of fire. Over rolled a number of the Umtetwa,
but the rest cared little. Forward they sped straight to the laager,
striving to force a way in. But the Boers plied them with volley after
volley, and, packed as the Zulus were, the elephant guns loaded with
slugs and small shot did frightful execution. Only one man even got on
to a waggon, and as he did so I saw a Boer woman strike him on the head
with an axe. He fell down, and slowly, amid howls of derision from the
two lines on the hill-side, the Zulus drew back.

"Let us go, father!" shouted the soldiers on the slope, among whom I
was, to their chief, who had come up. "You have sent out the little
girls to fight, and they are frightened. Let us show them the way."

"No, no!" the chief Sususa answered, laughing. "Wait a minute and the
little girls will grow to women, and women are good enough to fight
against Boers!"

The attacking Zulus heard the mockery of their fellows, and rushed
forward again with a roar. But the Boers in the laager had found time to
load, and they met with a warm reception. Reserving their fire till the
Zulus were packed like sheep in a kraal, they loosed into them with the
roers, and the warriors fell in little heaps. But I saw that the blood
of the Umtetwas was up; they did not mean to be beaten back this time,
and the end was near. See! six men had leapt on to a waggon, slain the
man behind it, and sprung into the laager. They were killed there, but
others followed, and then I turned my head. But I could not shut my ears
to the cries of rage and death, and the terrible _S'gee! S'gee!_ of the
savages as they did their work of murder. Once only I looked up and saw
poor Hans Botha standing on a waggon smiting down men with the butt of