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Excerpt

Excerpt from Prester John, by John Buchan

The two were seen at midday going down the road which leads from
Blaauwildebeestefontein to the Lebombo. Then they struck Arcoll’s new
front, which stretched from the Letaba to the Labongo. This drove them
north again, and forced them to swim the latter stream. From there to
the eastern extremity of the Rooirand, which is the Portuguese
frontier, the country is open and rolling, with a thin light scrub in
the hollows. It was bad cover for the fugitives, as they found to their
cost. For Arcoll had purposely turned his police into a flying column.
They no longer held a line; they scoured a country. Only Laputa’s
incomparable veld-craft and great bodily strength prevented the two
from being caught in half an hour. They doubled back, swam the Labongo
again, and got into the thick bush on the north side of the
Blaauwildebeestefontein road. The Basuto scouts were magnificent in the
open, but in the cover they were again at fault. Laputa and Henriques
fairly baffled them, so that the pursuit turned to the west in the
belief that the fugitives had made for Majinje’s kraal. In reality they
had recrossed the Labongo and were making for Umvelos’.

All this I heard afterwards, but in the meantime I lay in Arcoll’s tent
in deep unconsciousness. While my enemies were being chased like
partridges, I was reaping the fruits of four days’ toil and terror. The
hunters had become the hunted, the wheel had come full circle, and the
woes of David Crawfurd were being abundantly avenged.

I slept till midday of the next day. When I awoke the hot noontide sun
had made the tent like an oven. I felt better, but very stiff and sore,
and I had a most ungovernable thirst. There was a pail of water with a
tin pannikin beside the tent pole, and out of this I drank repeated
draughts. Then I lay down again, for I was still very weary.

Explanation

**Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Prester John by John Buchan**

Context of the Source

Prester John (1910) is an adventure novel by Scottish author John Buchan, best known for The Thirty-Nine Steps. Set in South Africa during the late 19th or early 20th century, the novel blends colonial adventure, political intrigue, and survival themes against the backdrop of the Zulu and Boer conflicts, British imperialism, and the myth of Prester John—a legendary Christian king believed to rule a lost African kingdom.

The protagonist, David Crawfurd, is a young Scotsman who becomes entangled in a revolt led by Laputa, a Zulu warrior and prophet claiming to be the descendant of Prester John. The excerpt describes a pursuit sequence where Crawfurd’s enemies—Laputa and Henriques—are being hunted by Arcoll’s police force, while Crawfurd himself recovers from exhaustion.

Breakdown of the Excerpt

1. The Chase: Laputa and Henriques as Fugitives

The passage opens with a tense, cinematic pursuit across the South African veld (open countryside). Buchan’s prose is swift and precise, mirroring the urgency of the chase.

"The two were seen at midday going down the road which leads from Blaauwildebeestefontein to the Lebombo."
- Setting: The names (Blaauwildebeestefontein = "Blue Wildebeest’s Fountain," Lebombo = a mountain range) ground the scene in real South African geography, reinforcing the novel’s colonial adventure genre.
- Movement: The fugitives (Laputa, a Zulu warrior, and Henriques, a Portuguese or mixed-race ally) are tracked, suggesting they are desperate and exposed.
"Then they struck Arcoll’s new front, which stretched from the Letaba to the Labongo."
- Arcoll is a British colonial officer leading the pursuit. His "new front" refers to a military cordon, a tactic used in Boer War-era policing to trap rebels.
- Rivers as barriers: The Letaba and Labongo (likely fictionalized versions of real rivers like the Limpopo) force the fugitives to swim across, slowing them down.
"It was bad cover for the fugitives, as they found to their cost."
- Irony: The open rolling scrubland (sparse vegetation) should make escape easier, but Arcoll’s tactics (a flying column—mobile, fast-moving troops) turn it into a deathtrap.
- Laputa’s skills: His "incomparable veld-craft" (expertise in navigating the wilderness) and physical strength save them—highlighting his indigenous knowledge vs. colonial military discipline.
"They doubled back, swam the Labongo again, and got into the thick bush on the north side..."
- Evasion tactics: The fugitives mislead pursuers by re-crossing the river, exploiting the Basuto scouts’ weakness in dense bush (Basuto = Sotho people, known for open-plains tracking).
- Deception: The scouts assume they’re heading to Majinje’s kraal (village), but they’re actually going to Umvelos’—showing Laputa’s cunning.

2. David Crawfurd’s Perspective: The Hunter Becomes the Hunted

The narrative shifts abruptly from the external chase to Crawfurd’s internal state, creating dramatic irony.

"All this I heard afterwards, but in the meantime I lay in Arcoll’s tent in deep unconsciousness."
- Unreliable narration: Crawfurd wasn’t present for the chase—he learns of it later, making the reader privy to more than he is at this moment.
- Contrast: While his enemies flee for their lives, he is safe but helpless, emphasizing the reversal of fortune.
"While my enemies were being chased like partridges, I was reaping the fruits of four days’ toil and terror."
- Metaphor: Comparing Laputa and Henriques to partridges (game birds) suggests they are prey, reinforcing the hunter-hunted reversal.
- Biblical allusion: "The wheel had come full circle" echoes Ecclesiastes 1:6 ("The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits"), implying fate’s cyclical justice.
- "Woes of David Crawfurd were being abundantly avenged": Crawfurd has suffered, but now his persecutors suffer in turn—a moral satisfaction common in adventure tales.
"I slept till midday of the next day... the hot noontide sun had made the tent like an oven."
- Sensory detail: The heat and thirst emphasize his physical exhaustion, contrasting with the action outside.
- Symbolism: The tent as an oven could suggest purgatory—he has endured trials and now rests, but the heat hints at unresolved conflict.
"I felt better, but very stiff and sore, and I had a most ungovernable thirst."
- Realism: Buchan, who served in South Africa during the Boer War, writes from firsthand experience—exhaustion, dehydration, and muscle pain are authentic details.
- Foreshadowing: His recovery suggests he will soon rejoin the action, while his thirst may symbolize unfinished business.

Themes in the Excerpt

Colonialism & Resistance
- The pursuit reflects British colonial control (Arcoll’s police) vs. indigenous resistance (Laputa’s evasion).
- Laputa’s veld-craft represents native ingenuity against European military tactics.
Reversal of Fortune
- The "wheel coming full circle" theme shows how power dynamics shift—Crawfurd, once hunted, now sees his enemies on the run.
Survival & Endurance
- Both the fugitives (physically) and Crawfurd (mentally/physically) are tested by the land, a common adventure novel trope.
Fate & Justice
- The biblical and cyclical imagery suggests a moral order—those who wrong others will eventually face consequences.

Literary Devices

Device	Example	Effect
Metaphor	"Chased like partridges"	Dehumanizes the fugitives, making them seem like prey.
Irony (Dramatic)	Crawfurd is unconscious while his enemies suffer.	Highlights the unexpected twist of fate.
Allusion	"The wheel had come full circle"	Reinforces cyclical justice and fate.
Sensory Imagery	"The tent like an oven"	Makes the heat and exhaustion visceral.
Foreshadowing	Crawfurd’s thirst and stiffness	Hints at future struggles despite his rest.
Contrast	Action (chase) vs. stillness (Crawfurd’s recovery)	Creates tension between external conflict and internal state.

Significance of the Passage

Narrative Tension
- The chase scene is fast-paced, while Crawfurd’s recovery is slow, creating a rhythmic contrast that keeps the reader engaged.
Character Development
- Laputa is shown as resourceful and resilient, reinforcing his role as a formidable antagonist (or antihero).
- Crawfurd’s vulnerability (exhaustion, thirst) makes him more relatable—he’s not just an action hero but a man pushed to his limits.
Colonial Critique (Subtle)
- While Buchan was a British imperialist, the passage acknowledges indigenous skill (Laputa’s veld-craft) in outsmarting colonial forces, adding nuance to the power dynamic.
Adventure Genre Conventions
- The pursuit, reversal of fortune, and hero’s recovery are classic elements of adventure fiction, influencing later works like Indiana Jones or The Fugitive.

Conclusion: Why This Passage Matters

This excerpt is a microcosm of Prester John’s central themes:

The struggle between colonial order and indigenous resistance.
The cyclical nature of conflict and revenge.
The physical and psychological toll of survival.

Buchan’s vivid descriptions and strategic shifts in perspective (from external action to internal reflection) make the scene both thrilling and thematically rich. The passage reinforces the novel’s adventure roots while hinting at deeper moral and political questions—making it a key moment in the story.

Would you like a deeper dive into any specific aspect, such as Buchan’s imperialist views or how this compares to other adventure novels?

Questions

Question 1

The passage’s depiction of Laputa’s evasion of Arcoll’s police most strongly suggests that Buchan views indigenous tactical ingenuity as:

A. a transient advantage, ultimately doomed against disciplined colonial force.
B. an exotic but morally ambiguous skill, tainted by its association with rebellion.
C. a formidable counterpoint to European military strategy, rooted in deep environmental mastery.
D. a primitive but effective method, contrasting with the superior technology of the pursuers.
E. an accidental success, dependent on the incompetence of the Basuto scouts rather than skill.

Question 2

The phrase "the wheel had come full circle" functions primarily to:

A. invoke a cyclical view of justice, where suffering begets reciprocal suffering.
B. underscore the inevitability of colonial dominance reasserting itself.
C. highlight the futility of resistance in a predetermined historical trajectory.
D. suggest a supernatural intervention in the fugitives’ misfortune.
E. contrast the linear progression of the chase with Crawfurd’s static recovery.

Question 3

The narrator’s description of Crawfurd’s physical state ("stiff and sore," "ungovernable thirst") serves chiefly to:

A. humanize the protagonist by emphasizing vulnerability after endurance, foreshadowing renewed agency.
B. critique the toll of colonial conflict on the individual, framing exhaustion as a moral failure.
C. establish a parallel between Crawfurd’s suffering and that of the fugitives, equating their plights.
D. underscore the futility of revenge, as physical recovery dulls the satisfaction of vengeance.
E. symbolize the aridity of the veld, linking personal dehydration to the barrenness of the pursuit.

Question 4

The Basuto scouts’ inability to track the fugitives in thick bush most plausibly reflects Buchan’s broader attitude toward:

A. the limitations of indigenous expertise when displaced from its optimal context.
B. the inherent superiority of Zulu guerrilla tactics over Sotho traditional methods.
C. the randomness of survival in wilderness pursuits, where luck outweighs skill.
D. the corrupting influence of colonial service on native tracking abilities.
E. the inevitability of technological progress rendering traditional skills obsolete.

Question 5

The structural juxtaposition of the fugitives’ frantic evasion with Crawfurd’s passive recovery primarily generates:

A. a sense of narrative inevitability, as Crawfurd’s rest predicts his eventual triumph.
B. a critique of colonial lethargy, contrasting European inertia with African dynamism.
C. an allegory for the futility of resistance, as even the hunted find no true respite.
D. a meditation on the relativity of suffering, where physical and psychological trials are equated.
E. dramatic irony, as the reader’s awareness of the chase amplifies the tension of Crawfurd’s unawareness.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: C

Why C is most correct: The passage emphasizes Laputa’s "incomparable veld-craft and great bodily strength" as the decisive factors in evading capture, framing his skills as not just effective but superior in their context. The fugitives’ ability to "fairly baffle" the Basuto scouts—who excel in open terrain—highlights a strategic adaptation that counters European-style policing. Buchan’s wording ("incomparable," "doubled back") conveys admiration for indigenous cunning, positioning it as a legitimate rival to colonial methods rather than a primitive or accidental success.