deceive him, I pretended not to attend to him, and turned my back to the
bush where the hen was cackling, upon which he immediately sprang to the
place. I ran after him, and came up to him at the moment when he had
broken the egg, and was swallowing it. Having caught the thief in the
fact, I gave him a good beating upon the spot; but this severe
chastisement did not prevent his soon stealing fresh-laid eggs again. As
I was convinced that I should never be able to break Kees of his natural
vices, and that, unless I chained him up every morning, I should never
get an egg, I endeavoured to accomplish my purpose in another manner: I
trained one of my dogs, as soon as the hen cackled, to run to the nest,
and bring me the egg without breaking it. In a few days the dog had
learned his lesson; but Kees, as soon as he heard the hen cackle, ran
with him to the nest. A contest now took place between them, who should
have the egg; often the dog was foiled, although he was the stronger of
the two. If he gained the victory, he ran joyfully to me with the egg,
and put it into my hand. Kees, nevertheless, followed him, and did not
cease to grumble and make threatening grimaces at him, till he saw me
take the egg,--as if he was comforted for the loss of his booty by his
adversary's not retaining it for himself. If Kees had got hold of the
egg, he endeavoured to run with it to a tree, where, having devoured it,
he threw down the shells upon his adversary, as if to make game of him.
In that case, the dog returned, looking ashamed, from which I could
conjecture the unlucky adventure he had met with.

"Kees was always the first awake in the morning, and when it was the
proper time he awoke the dogs, who were accustomed to his voice, and, in
general, obeyed without hesitation the slightest motions by which he
communicated his orders to them, immediately taking their posts about
the tent and carriage, as he directed them."