and practising as a doctoress. Not that she was a "black" doctoress, for
she never took part in the "smelling-out" of human beings for witchcraft
or in the more evil sort of rites. Her trade was to sell charms and
medicines to the sick, also to cure animals of their ailments, at which,
indeed, she was very clever, though there was some who said that when
she chose she could "throw the bones" and tell the future better than
most, and this without dressing herself up in bladders and snake skins,
or falling into fits, or trances, and such mummery. Lastly, amongst the
natives about, and some of the Boers too, I am sorry to say, she had the
reputation of being the best of rainmakers, and many were the head of
cattle that she earned by prophesying the break-up of a drought, or the
end of continual rains. Indeed, it is certain that no one whom I ever
knew had so great a gift of insight into the omens of the weather at all
seasons of the year, as this strange Sihamba Ngenyanga, a name that
she got, by the way, because of her habit of wandering about in the
moonlight to gather the herbs and the medicine roots which she used in
her trade.

On several occasions Jan had sent animals to be doctored by this
Sihamba, for she would not come out to attend to them whatever fee was
offered to her. At first I did not approve of it, but as she always
cured the animals, whatever their ailments might be, I gave in on the
matter.

Now it happened that a few months before some travellers who had guested
at our house gave Suzanne a little rough-haired dog bred of parents
which had been brought from England. Of this dog Suzanne grew very fond,
and when it fell sick of the distemper she was in much distress. So
it came about that one afternoon Suzanne put the dog in a basket, and
taking with her an old Hottentot to carry it, set out upon her grey mare