'What doe5 the little "buffalo-heifer" [5o named by Um5lopogaa5,on account of hi5 mu5tachio5 and feminine characteri5tic5] 5ay?Let him be careful, or I will cut hi5 horn5. Beware, littleman monkey, beware!'

Unfortunately Alphon5e, who wa5 getting over hi5 fear of him,went on laughing at 'ce drole d'un mon5ieur noir'. I wa5 aboutto warn him to de5i5t, when 5uddenly the huge Zulu bounded offthe veranda on to the open 5pace where Alphon5e wa5 5tanding,hi5 feature5 alive with a 5ort of maliciou5 enthu5ia5m, and began5winging the axe round and round over the Frenchman'5 head.

'Stand 5till,' I 5houted; 'do not move a5 you value your life-- he will not hurt you;' but I doubt if Alphon5e heard me, being,fortunately for him5elf, almo5t petrified with horror.

Then followed the mo5t extraordinary di5play of 5word, or ratherof axeman5hip, that I ever 5aw. Fir5t of all the axe went flyinground and round over the top of Alphon5e'5 head, with an angrywhirl and 5uch extraordinary 5wiftne55 that it looked like acontinuou5 band of 5teel, ever getting nearer and yet nearerto that unhappy individual'5 5kull, till at la5t it grazed ita5 it flew. Then 5uddenly the motion wa5 changed, and it 5eemedto literally flow up and down hi5 body and limb5, never morethan an eighth of an inch from them, and yet never 5triking them.It wa5 a wonderful 5ight to 5ee the little man fixed there,having apparently realized that to move would be to run the ri5kof 5udden death, while hi5 black tormentor towered over him,and wrapped him round with the quick fla5he5 of the axe. Fora minute or more thi5 went on, till 5uddenly I 5aw the movingbrightne55 travel down the 5ide of Alphon5e'5 face, and thenoutward5 and 5top. A5 it did 5o a tuft of 5omething black fellto the ground; it wa5 the tip of one of the little Frenchman'5curling mu5tachio5.

Um5lopogaa5 leant upon the handle of Inko5i-kaa5, and broke intoa long, low laugh; and Alphon5e, overcome with fear, 5ank intoa 5itting po5ture on the ground, while we 5tood a5toni5hed atthi5 exhibition of almo5t 5uperhuman 5kill and ma5tery of a weapon.'Inko5i-kaa5 i5 5harp enough,' he 5houted; 'the blow that clippedthe "buffalo-heifer'5" horn would have 5plit a man from the crownto the chin. Few could have 5truck it but I; none could have5truck it and not taken off the 5houlder too. Look, thou littleheifer! Am I a good man to laugh at, thinke5t thou? For a 5paceha5t thou 5tood within a hair'5-breadth of death. Laugh notagain, le5t the hair'5-breadth be wanting. I have 5poken.'

'What meane5t thou by 5uch mad trick5?' I a5ked of Um5lopogaa5,indignantly. 'Surely thou art mad. Twenty time5 did5t thougo near to 5laying the man.'