CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN.
ROUGH WORK.
It was the sound of a deep breath which put an end to West's slumber, and he opened his eyes to lie staring at two more, big, brown, soft, and peaceful-looking, not a foot away from his own.
It was some moments before full wakefulness came and he realised where he was, and that it was his pony, well-fed and rested, mutely asking him whether he was not going to mount and ride off again.
It was then that the thought of danger asserted itself, and he raised his head and looked sharply around, to see that they were amongst stones and bushes where; the bank went precipitously down to a beautiful winding river flowing amongst abundant verdure.

Close by him lay Ingleborough, still fast asleep, and beyond him the other pony, still cropping away at the rich green growth which sprang up among the stones.
Then, as far as he could see, West made out nothing but the beauty of the spot upon which they had stumbled in the darkness of the night.

He rose to his knees stiffly enough, and was in the act of getting upon his feet, realising that the beautiful greenery formed a riband on either side of the river, beyond which was the open veldt, when he dropped down again to reach out and grasp Ingleborough's shoulder, for in his rapid glance he had caught sight of a party of mounted men out in the full sunshine about half-a-mile away.

They were walking their horses, and it seemed for certain to be the whole or a portion of the enemy of the previous day, for he recalled, what had not struck him at the time, that one of the Boers was mounted upon a grey horse, and one of the others he could see from where he watched was similarly mounted.
"Plenty of grey horses about, of course!" he muttered; "but this seems to be the one I saw yesterday." "What's the matter ?" said Ingleborough.
"Hist! Keep quiet!" replied West.

"The Boers are upon us! Look!" Ingleborough rose cautiously, took a long earnest look through his glass, and put it back.
"Yes, there they are," he said coolly; "there's that chap again on the white pony.