one of the most refreshing things imaginable, and everyone felt cleaner and more cheerful after this ablution, and ready to attack the poor little armadillo, which had been cooked; this meat tastes very much like sucking pig.  The rain, which was coming down heavily by this time, was powerless to damp the spirits of the party as they sat down to dinner.  They were only troubled because they feared this would be their last evening meal in camp, and that Civilisation might again claim them for her own to-morrow, for a great deal of the enjoyment of this trip has been due, undoubtedly, to its incomparable freedom.  So they spent the time in eating, and holding a mutual admiration society meeting.  Each decided (between the mouthfuls of mutton and armadillo) that every other member of the party was just the nicest person that he or she had ever met, and, as there was no one there to contradict the obviously erroneous statements, all were satisfied and content, and drank each other’s healths with enthusiasm, and—­whatever else was left.  Someone even tried to murmur something kindly about The Kid.  Above all, the Instigator was eulogised, and rightly, too, for his genial influence helped everything to go well; no one could have grumbled at the little inconveniences which they had had to put up with at times, while The Instigator was so cheerful and anxious for others’ comfort and careless of his own through all.  His interest in, and enthusiasm for, his Company know no bounds.  Get him to hold forth, and he will tell you how, in the early days of the Company, matters were quite different from what they are to-day.  The shares stood then at five shillings each, and the bankers refused to allow an overdraft of L2,000, and when it became absolutely necessary to have money he actually made advances out of his own pocket to supply the requisite funds.

Shortly afterwards matters began to improve, and when he visited the property in 1900 he was able to send this reassuring message to the General Meeting:—­“I honestly believe the worst is past, and that in future we shall progress.”

He always appraises the work of others whether the result of their operations is successful or not, and he will appreciate the mental and manual exertions expended on the undertaking by the employees of the Company at their true worth.  All he asks of his colleagues and subordinates is that each one shall “play the game” in every sense of the word to the best of his ability.  He never paints the prospects of a beginner in rosy hues; in fact, he has been known to speak of the hardships and privations which a young man must be prepared to go through on first joining the Company as being comparable to “the life of a dog.”  To-day the men who have been through those first years of necessary self-denial and hard work are grateful for the training they have received and anxious to work their best for the Company.