Under instruction from Sean, Dirk had assembled a rabble of those males
who were too young to handle shotguns but too old to stay with the
women. These were making no effort to hide their excitement.
Armed with sikelav (the Zulu fighting sticks) they were showing every
indication of getting out of hand. Already one small boy was weeping
loudly and massaging the welt he had received from a playful sikela.
' All right, shut up, all of you,' Sean shouted. 'Dirk will.
take you up to the beaters. But remember! Once the hunt starts, keep
in the line and listen to what you're told. If I catch anybody of you
running about or getting ahead of the line, I'll personally wallop the
tar out of him. Do you understand? ' It was a long speech to shout
and Sean ended with his face flushed ferociously. That gave weight to
his words and resulted in a respectful chorus of
'Yes, Mr. Courtney.'
'Off you go, then.'
Whooping, racing each other they poured away through the trees and a
comparative peace descended on the camp.
'My God, let alone bush buck, that lot would drive elephant buffalo and
lion panic, stricken ahead of them,' observed Dennis Petersen dryly.
'How about our positions, Sean?'
Aware that he had their complete attention, Sean drew out the nmoment a
little.
, We are going to drive the Elands' Kloof first,' he announced.
'Mbejane and two hundred Zulus are waiting at the head of the Kloof for
the signal. The guns will take station at the tail of the Kloof. '
Sean paused.
'How about our positions?'
'Patience. Patience. ' Sean chided them. 'I know I shouldn't have to
repeat the safety rules, but . . . and he immediately went on to do
so. 'No rifles, shotguns only. You'll shoot only in an arc of 45
degrees directly ahead of you, no passing shots to either side.
Especially you, Reverend.' That gentleman, who was notoriously
trigger, happy, looked suitably abashed. 'My whistle will mean the
beaters are too close, all guns up and unloaded immediately.'
'It's getting late, Sean.
'Let's get on with it.'
'Right,' Sean agreed. 'I'll take centre gun.' There was a murmer of
agreement. That was fair enough, the plum to the man who provided the
hunt, no one could grudge that. 'On my left flank in this order,
Reverend Smiley, since the Almighty will obviously send most of the
game his way, I might as well profit by it.' A burst of laughter as
Smiley wavered between horror at the blasphemy and delight at his own
good fortune.
'Then Ronny Pye, Dennis Petersen, Ian Vermaak, Gerald and Tony Erasmus
(you two fight it out in a brotherly fashion), Nick. ... Sean read
from the list in his hand. This in strict order of seniority was the
social register of Ladyburg, a proper and exact balancing of wealth and
influence, of popularity and age. Apart from placing himself in the
centre of the line, Sean had not taken much part in the preparation of
the list, quite correctly Ada had not trusted his sense of social
