Introduced him.

Gideon Barnard put his weight at two hundred and ten pounds, the same as

Sean's. Sean shook his hand and from the touch of it knew he was not

going to be disappointed. Glad to know you. The American's voice was

as soft as his grip was hardY our servant, sir, said Sean and hit the

air where the man's head had been an instant before. He grunted as a

fist slogged into his chest under his raised right arm and backed away

warily. A soft sigh blew through the crowd and they settled down

contentedly. This was what they had come to see.

The red wine was served early; it flew in tiny drops every time a punch

was thrown or received. The fight flowed smoothly around the square of

trampled grass. The sound of bone on flesh was followed immediately by

the growl of the crowd and the seconds between were filled with the

hoarse breathing of the two men and the slither, slither of their feet.

Yaaaa! Through the tense half silence ripped a roar like that of a

mortally wounded foghorn. Sean and the American jumped apart startled,

and turned with everyone else to face Candy's Hotel. Fernandes was with

them again; his mountain-wide hairiness seemed to fill the whole

Veranda. He picked up one of Candy's best tables and holding it across

his chest tore off two of its legs as though they were the wings of a

roasted chicken. Francois, the bag! shouted Sean. Francois snatched it

up and threw it high over the heads of the crowd. Sean held his breath

as he followed its slow trajectory, then he blew out again with relief

as he saw Mbejane field the pass and vanish around the corner of the

Hotel. Yaaaa! Femandes gave tongue again. With a table leg in each

hand he charged the crowd that stood between him and Sean; it scattered

before him. Do you mind if we finish this some other time? Sean asked

the American of course not. Any time at all. I was just about to leave

myself Duff reached through the ropes and caught Sean's arm. There's

someone looking for you, or had you noticed? It might just be his way

of showing friendliness. I wouldn't bet on it, are you coming?

Fernandes nimbled to a halt, braced himself and threw.

The table leg whirred like a rising pheasant an inch over Sean's head,

ruffling his hair with the wind of its passage. Lead on, Duff. Sean

was uncomfortably conscious of the fact that Fernandes was again m

motion towards him, still armed with a long oak, and that three very

thin ropes were all that stood between them. The speed that Sean and

Duff turned on then made Mr Blair's earlier exhibition seem like that of

a man with both legs in plaster, Fernandes, carrying top weight as he

was, never looked like catching them.

Francois came up to the Candy Deep just after midday with the news that

the Portuguese, after beating three of his sponsors into insensibility,

had left on the noon coach back to Kimberley.

Duff uncocked his rifle. Thanks, Franz, we were waiting lunch for him.

I thought he might call on us. Have you counted the takings? Yes, your

commission is in that paper bag on the table. Thanks, man, let's go

down and celebrate. You go and have one for us. Hey, Duff, you

promised - Sean started. I said later, in three or four weeks time. Now

we've got a little work to do, like digging a trench fifty feet deep and

three hundred yards long. rWe could start first thing tomorrow. You

want to be rich, don't you? asked Duff.

Sure, but You want nice things, like English suits, French champagne

andYes, butWell, stop arguing, get off your fat arse and come with me!

The Chinese use firecrackers to keep the demons away.

Duff and Sean applied the same principle. They kept the mill running;

as long as its clunking carried across the valley to the ears of their

creditors all was well. Everyone accepted the fact that they were

working a payable reef and left them alone, but the money they fed into

the front of the mill had halved its value by the time it came out of

the other side in those pathetic little yellow pellets.