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Show tH I The Hero of Petticoat Pass I H ssH By J. O. Fagan H ' a aaaa "" J - - 1 Copyright l) Sliiifiniory l'iit "o Tho shortest milto hot wren the high .-oldt nnd tho Leydenbing gold fields winds through a long kloof or gorge which, once upon n time, was the scene of n very remarkable battle. On account of tho sulphurous smells fioni numerous hot springs nnd the weltd eloctrlcul discharges, vlslblo nt night between its Ironstone clIITi nnd pin nnclcB, the kloof ItRelf wns oilglnalh known ns Satan's Firebox. Hut later when. In tho war with tho MuontooH, tho Hoors weie united and one night upwards of 100 women and ehlldieii, hotly puiHiteil by a leglinont of Knllis. tied screaming through the kloof, the name was slgnlllcantly changed to 1'ettlcoat pass. Hut, although the pass was usually Interesting, Its Inhabitants were vastl more bo. Hetween tho southern gateway gate-way at Steelpoort and Us northern out lot, nenr Ix'ydenburg. a wonderfully Intelligent race of baboons lias llted for centuiles high up among tho Ironclad Iron-clad precipices. In course or tlmo the white hunter enmo along with his dentil) rlllo and occasionally picked ono of them off the rooks, Just for the fun of the thing, nnd when Iho Kallrs took a notion to poison them for the Bake of their teeth, then tho baboons In I'ettlcoat pass wore dilven to tie-fend tie-fend themselves. In a word, they bo-gnu bo-gnu to tluow stones So long ns the I 1 wagons and Iho horsemen kept nitiv-1 nitiv-1 lug nil was well, but when they lot , tered or stopped tho whining of poh I bios thiotigh tho air, and nccuHloualt) I tho nppearnnce of emu limits bowldorn cut loose from tho crags above and shot down through tho air Ilka can non bnlls, never failed to remind the loiterers that limy wero trespassers. In their Intercourso with tho outside out-side woild tho baboons made no distinction dis-tinction between bliicU nnd white until ono day an ox out took plneo that practically prac-tically closed tho pass to tho black races forever At tho Steelpoort end of the pass tho Knllrs began to encroach. They built huts and planted gardens on tho foitllo slopes near the portal. With ungry demonstrations the hahoons protested, pro-tested, but tho Kafirs wero Indifferent to the clamor. Hut when tho sugar cano ripened the ImbooiiB In tho night time swooped down from tho crags mill helcd themselves to whnt they considered their rightful shnro of tho harvest, whereupon tho KallrB. nlio 1 thoiottghty understood tho pocullnrl- tlos of baboon nature, plaed upon ! them a vlllnlnous trick. dno dny, In plain Hlght of their enemies, who wero watching them from tho heights ubovov tho Katlrs brought a number of large calabashes filled with a poisonous lltpild and placed them In a row In one of tho Snrdens. Then they went through the form of piotendlng to wash their faces with the stuff, nfter which they left tho calabashes In tho gardens nnd departed. Watching their opportunity, tho baboons camo down to Investigate the business and, being tumble t strain their lterdltary Impulse to Imitate Im-itate tho pioccciliiigB of others, the forthwith washed their faces In the poison and Bc.impered away again. In n short tlmo tho venom began to work tho llcsh roll from their facoH. anil filially a number of them died In great agony. For many das nlterwiuilh tnmdms through the kloof repotted nn ex traordtnnry state of affairs. There was much excitement nnd Jabboilng and much pitiful crying and calling to each other from rllff to cliff Hut when the period of mourning was oei tho baboons settled down to business tho busluoKS of war. The piepara tlons they made for hostilities with the Kntlrs wero astonishing. llabootts wero summoned from fur and near, nnd tho population In tho kloof was soon doubled. They divided them M'lvos Into companies under lenders 1 They worked like hoaxers, nnd befoto , long huge calms of stonoh appeared at Intervals along the route, and nt j places whoio the crags rose almost 1 perpendicularly from the roadway groat bowlders weio rolled to the edge i of tho precipice, and oven lodges ' worn nndei mined ami made ready to I slldo down anil overwhelm the In Xlldi'lH. From tho day when those nrrange moiits wore completed tho baboons paid no attention whatoxer to white men, and nftor two or three titifoi ' Itmnte Knllrs hnd boon stoned to donth and lorn to pieces the Mack race gave I'ettlcoat puss un extieiiioly wide beith. ('onsetpieiitly. tho spldor-llke , watchers up In their fastueMHos hsid a j long 'lino to wait, but the whirligig or time brings about Its opportunities for 1 revenge, men to bahooiiK. i Just outside the Steelpoort end of ' the pass Max I'lncus, n (iormnu trader, conducted a small store for tho accommodation ac-commodation of IrnvolciH On the day the liabomii) w ro poisoned, Mux was tiding through the kloof, and ' came acioMS a little boy baboon. t whote fnco was terrlbb binned by the action of the acid The lltllo fellow wns crying plleoutdy. and Max took him up In his nrms and curried him to tho store, whore Max's mother, who had sonic knowledge of remedies, doctored doc-tored him so successfully thut his sight was sax oil. For sex oral months her curious little patient was vor) shy nnd wild, but tho good womun was IndoftitlKUble In her effoits 'o tame him. nnd dually sho was rewarded with astonishing success. As III xoiitig baboon grew up ho became verj H much attached to his bouefnetrnss, m H tlteio was no mistaking his gratitude. Hut one morning, to tho great stir- prise of Mother Hiiem, a oung l.uly H h.ilioon eattio down from tho hills ami H begun to make luxe to Stoffol Ncnrlr a week passed before sho finally (r)- H uniplied and led him awav. BH The following morning, hownver. he ' tctiirncd, and after watching him for J a tbiv or two Mother I'lncus concluded that oen-i.'ei.ilil.. tluslnos.i was mixed sbbI up with his love afTiilr. Indued, tho H liners, who relate utmost Incredible J stories about the Intelligence of those H enloied baboons, claim that the em- H tiassy of tho maiden was mciely a- H ti Irk to seduce him from his tit- H leglnnce to his hnneractress and thsit, H on his llrst visit to the kloof. Stoffc) Hh was linnieilhileh appolntid to thr. H leadeishlp nf tho baboon army on ar- H eotiiit of his pri'emliiont Intelligence H and knowledge of tho outside world. One day a hmxcinnii galloped up to J the stoio and loported that war had BH In okon out between tho Hoors and Die H Miu'iitees and that the baboons In tin. H pass wero evidently aware of the fact, H for swat ins of them were coming down H from the heights und wont preparing for fronble. Ten days later thu Hoors ,i ,H were dofoated with ootislderublo lost H nt Jidianuos Kop and. encouraged by H the tidings, Hie Mapock Kallrs Hew la j H arms and lushed up tho vnllny towards H Sloolpoort, huinliig und Hlaylng. At bbH their approach the women titnl chlV H droit on tho farms Hod In terror, ami B Just befoio nightfall nearly 100 of 1 those panlc-Htrlckon refugees enteml H the pass, with n large comuiuuihi ol H Kallrs close at their heels. H The story of the eneoutiler that fol H lowed between tho baboons and tht H Katlrs Is derived partly from the an M count of thu liner w onion, but prln H clpally from a survey of tho brittle , H field on the following da A few ol r bI W'lJf rJa& iTJ'dliR to lijH m Reported That War Had Broken Out. IB tho hindmost of tho refugees hnd dl- H ready been enptiiii'd when, In passlne H through n narrow defile, the Kafln H weio nssalloil by n llerco rain ot H stones from the siirtoiindlng cliffs, 1)n- H illmimvcil, the Kadr horde pressed on, H lint the 1-oatlway beneath thorn had H boon underniliied. and when euorniout . iH bowlders, falling hitudroiU of feet H ihiough the nlr, smtiHhod through the H thin crust, great pits were laid bare. " H Into which the Katlrs ilotmdored, and H wore then metcllessly ielled with H fusillades of sharp pointed rocks, lint H Iho real lighting occurred when thr 'H Knllrs. tilled with dlHittay at the H caitiiigo that ensued In the pits, es ' H doiivored to retreat. H On the following inorulug a very H palhotlc seipiel to the battle oi-ourri'd H when HlolTel. grlevmii-lv woundeil. H dragged hlmsolf lincl. t tils old home H at the store. It wns a pnlnfiil n-id mte H less Journey, for the liulldliiRS had H been hut tied to the giolind ami nolhlnc H remained Imt the smouldering omhi'ra. mm Hut KlofTcl had come homo Inr a H dotliilto purpoio. He at unco lieg.m H to scrupo nnd dig among tho ruliu H until lie siKctetlod In llndltig a few H lags und a niiiuII liollio eontiilninj; Ikfl fume lltpild Tenileilv ho stanched H the How of blood with iho rags and 1W omptled somo of tho fluid Into Ibn K wound. Feeling no bettci froiu the H npidlcatloti, ho sought ottHir iuri xai H another hoillo ills tatili in the rem -H dy was htiitenie. In this wuy Ids oyc H bail been cured, and In many nllicf i H cases he had witnessed tlie succoisfci H application of rags and bottles. Hut. H growing wetiker and weaker, hli H thoughts naturally turned to ht4 Use H foster mother. Despairing!), h M glanced from side to side. Many H tlmo ho had watched for her home H coming. Then ho tucked his pltlfn. aH face under his foreium nnd curled mW himself up. Just like a doa going tc H hleep. lAioklng down upon lilmyuuroiiW B have counted the nlmost Imperceptlblt W heart beats under the gray, slug? Bj covering one, two, thiee and thrs HJ Stotfel, the hero of I'ettlcoat pass, wn B I deu1' -BJ ' - ! ii mf |
