The covenant - James A. Michener [238]
'Does your father know who God is?' Hilary asked the little girl.
'No.'
'Then he does not know what hell is, either?'
'No,' the girl said. 'But he knows what true is. There was no murder.' Saltwood went to the door and called to Van Doorn: 'I'll ride with you.'
The Black Circuit at Graaff-Reinet was an explosive affair. Inspired by Simon Keer's incendiary reports, a score of indictments had been issued based on the accusations of missionaries, Hottentots and Coloureds, all charging the Boers with gross abuses. Granted, there had been serious evils: Hottentots had been forced to work on after their legal contracts had expired; their women and children had been threatened with violence if they left; slaves had been excessively flogged; there had been murder.
But many of the charges were wild, without foundation, so that what should have been a serious judicial inquiry became a shambles. The countryside rallied so strongly in support of the Boers, and perjured itself so willingly, that no demonstrable lawbreakers could be found guilty, while dozens of reasonably honest frontiersmen like Lodevicus van Doorn were publicly humiliated by being forced to stand in the dock and answer to preposterous accusations.
Three Hottentots were brave enough to testify against Van Doorn, but what they said was so chaotic that the court had to be suspicious, and when Reverend Saltwood stepped forward to defend him, the court had to be attentive. The verdict was 'Not guilty,' but this absolved nothing, for the
Boers who had been so abused by the English courts would never forget their humiliation. Thus the Black Circuit joined that growing list of grievances, some real, some fancied, which would be recited in every Boer family for the next century and a half.
The English were mortified that one of their own ministers had given testimony enabling a Dutchman to escape punishment: 'He was guilty as sin, you know. Indictment said so.' A rumor was floated that Saltwood had defended the Boer in anticipation of favors to come: 'Perjured himself, of course. They're taking up a collection for him right now, among the Boers.' It was agreed that Hilary Saltwood must be ostracized insofar as the English community at the Cape was concerned: 'From now on he's the darling of the Boers.'
How wrong they were! The Van Doorn-Saltwood armistice lasted only two days, for when they rode back to De Kraal, Wilhelmina van Doorn met them at the gate, crying, 'Lodevicus! Emma's run off.'
'Get her back.'
'We don't know where she's gone.'
'Set the Hottentots tracking. They'll find anything.'
Saltwood found it difficult to visualize that little child in her gray dress running anywhere, but if she was indeed gone, he was fairly sure why: 'Probably went to the mission.'
As soon as he uttered these words he knew they were ill-advised, for Van Doorn's look of petty irritation turned to one of hatred: 'She cannot do that.'
'But if she wants to know about Jesus.'
'I teach my slaves and Hottentots all they need to know about Jesus.' 'But, Mijnheer van Doorn' 'Don't Mijnheer me!'
'Obviously, this child hungers for Jesus. It's been four years since she heard about him and still she' 'Where did she hear about Jesus?' 'At the other farm. From Simon Keer.'
What a sad mistake to have spoken that name! Van Doorn began shouting Dutch phrases so fast that Hilary could not follow, then jutting his white-whiskered face forward and growling, 'Any slave of mine has dealings with Simon Keer, I'll beat her till she's'
He stopped, aware of the dreadful thing he had been about to say, and aware also that his new friend, Saltwood, knew how the sentence would have been completed. It was then, at the moment of their triumphant return from the Black Circuit, that the veil dropped between these two men.
Saltwood was first to speak: