- Msimangu has to go the next day to give a service to the blind at a nearby Mission House.
- He thinks Kumalo should tag along to have a rest before they continue the search for Absalom.
- That night at the Mission House, Kumalo hears the news that a well-known and respected white engineer, Arthur Jarvis, has been shot in his home.
- The local police think that three black men broke into Jarvis's house expecting it to be empty because the burglars knocked out a servant working in the kitchens, but he survived the attack.
- If the servant regains consciousness, he may be able to give evidence about the identity of the murderers.
- When Jarvis heard noise from the burglars and came to see what was happening, one of the men (allegedly) shot him.
- The night that Jarvis was killed, he was working on a manuscript called "The Truth about Native Crime."
- Kumalo tells Msimangu that this news fills his heart with fear, but Msimangu comforts him: maybe their trip tomorrow will make him feel better.