Then, having washed, I ate a splendid dinner, though in this respect Hans, who was seated on the ground nearby, far outpassed my finest efforts.

“Baas,” he said, “things have gone very well with us when they might have gone very ill.  The Baas Red-Beard is dead, which is a good thing, since a madman would have been difficult to look after, and a brain full of moonshine is a bad companion for any one.  Oh! without doubt he is better dead, though your reverend father the Predikant will have a hard job looking after him there in the Place of Fires.”

“Perhaps,” I said with a sigh, “since it is better to be dead than to live a lunatic.  But what I fear is that the lady his daughter will follow him.”

“Oh, no!  Baas,” replied Hans cheerfully, “though I daresay that she will always be a little mad also, because you see it is in her blood and doubtless she has looked on dreadful things.  But the Great Medicine will see to it that she does not die after we have taken so much trouble and gone into such big dangers to save her.  That Great Medicine is very wonderful, Baas.  First of all it makes you General over those Amahagger who without you would never have fought, as the Witch who ties up her head in a cloth knew well enough.  Then it brings us safe through the battle and gives strength to Umslopogaas to kill the old man-eating giant.”

“Why did it not give me strength to kill him, Hans?  I let him have two Express bullets on his chest, which hurt him no more than a tap upon the horns with a dancing stick would hurt a bull-buffalo.”

“Oh!  Baas, perhaps you missed him, who because you hit things sometimes, think that you do so always.”

Having waited to see if I would rise to this piece of insolence, which of course I did not, he went on by way of letting me down easily, “Or perhaps he wore very good armour under his beard, for I saw some of those Amahagger who pulled his hair off and cut him to pieces, go away with what looked like little bits of brass.  Also the Great Medicine meant that he should be killed by Umslopogaas and not by you, since otherwise Umslopogaas would have been sad for the rest of his life, whereas now he will walk about the world as proud as a cock with two tails and crow all night as well as all day.  Then, Baas, when Rezu broke the square and the Amahagger began to run, without doubt it was the Great Medicine which changed their hearts and made them brave again, so that they charged at the right moment when they saw it going forward on your breast, and instead of being eaten up, ate up the cannibals.”

“Indeed!  I thought that the Lady who dwells yonder had something to do with that business.  Did you see her, Hans?”

“Oh, yes!  I saw her, Baas, and I think that without doubt she lifted the cloth from over her head and when the people of Rezu saw how ugly was the face beneath, it did frighten them a little.  But doubtless the Great Medicine put that thought into her also, for, Baas, what could a silly woman do in such a case?  Did you ever know of a woman who was of any use in a battle, or for anything else except to nurse babies, and this one does not even do that, no doubt because being so hideous under that sheet, no man can be found to marry her.”