"Umbopa,or Ignosi,"I said,"I don't like revolutions.I am a man of peace,and a bit of a coward"(here Umbopa smiled),"but,on the other hand,I stick to my friends,Ignosi.You have stuck to us and played the part of a man,and I will stick to you.But,mind you,I am a trader,and have to make my living;so I accept your offer about those diamonds,in case we should ever be in a position to avail ourselves of it.Another thing:we came,as you know,to look for Incubi's (Sir Henry's)lost brother.
You must help us to find him."
"That will I do,"answered Ignosi."Stay,Infadoos;by the sign of the snake round my middle,tell me the truth.Has any white man to thy knowledge set his foot within the land?""None,O Ignosi."
"If any white man had been seen or heard of,wouldst thou have known it?""I should certainly have known."
"Thou hearest,Incubu?"said Ignosi to Sir Henry;"he has not been here.""Well,well,"said Sir Henry,with a sigh;"there it is;I suppose he never got here.Poor fellow,poor fellow!So it has all been for nothing.
God's will be done."
"Now for business,"I put in,anxious to escape from a painful subject."It is very well to be a king by right divine,Ignosi,but how dost thou propose to become a king indeed?""Nay,I know not.Infadoos,hast thou a plan?""Ignosi,son of the lightning,"answered his uncle,"to-night is the great dance and witch-hunt.Many will be smelt out and perish,and in the hears of many others there will be grief and anguish and anger against the king Twala.When the dance is over,then will I speak to some of the great chiefs,who in turn,if I can win them over,shall speak to their regiments.I shall speak to the chiefs softly at first,and bring them to see that thou art indeed the king,and I think that by to-morrow's light thou shalt have twenty thousand spears at thy command.And now must I go and think and hear and make ready.After the dance is done I will,if Iam yet alive,and we are all alive,meet thee here,and we will talk.At the best there will be war."At this moment our conference was interrupted by the cry that messengers had come from the king.Advancing to the door of the hut,we ordered that they should be admitted,and presently three men entered,each bearing a shining shirt of chain-armor and a magnificent battle-axe.
"The gifts of my lord,the king,to the white men from the stars!"exclaimed a herald who had come with them.
"We thank the king,"I answered;"withdraw."
The men went,and we examined the armor with great interest.It was the most beautiful chain-work we had ever seen.A whole coat fell together so closely that it formed a mass of links scarcely too big to be covered with both hands.
"Do you make these things in this country;Infadoos?"I asked;"they are very beautiful."
"Nay,my.lord;they come down to us from our forefathers.We know not who made them,and there are but few left.None but those of royal blood may wear them.They are magic coats through which no spear can pass.
He who wears them is well-nigh safe in the battle.The king is well pleased or much afraid,or he would not have sent them.Wear them tonight,my lords."The rest of the day we spent quietly resting and talking over the situation,which was sufficiently exciting.At last the sun went down,the thousand watch-fires glowed out,and through the darkness we heard the tramp of many feet and the clashing of hundreds of spears as the regiments passed to their appointed places to be ready for the great dance.About ten the full moon came up in splendor,and as we stood watching her ascent Infadoos arrived,clad in full war toggery,and accompanied by a guard of twenty men to escort us to the dance.We had already,as he recommended,donned the shirts of chain armor which the king had sent us,putting them on under our ordinary clothing,and finding to our surprise that they were neither very heavy nor uncomfortable.These steel shirts,which had evidently been made for men of a very large stature,hung somewhat loosely upon Good and myself,but Sir Henry's fitted his magnificent frame like a glove.
Then,strapping our revolvers round our waists,and taking the battle-axes which the king had sent with the armor in our hands,we started.
On arriving at the great kraal where we had that morning been interviewed by the king,we found that it was closely packed with some twenty thousand men arranged in regiments round it.The regiments were in turn divided into companies,and between each company was a little path to allow free passage to the witch-finders to pass up and down.Anything more imposing than the sight that was presented by this vast and orderly concourse of armed men it is impossible for one to conceive.There they stood perfectly silent,and the moonlight poured its light upon the forest of their raised spears,upon their majestic forms,waving plumes,and the harmonious shading of their various-colored shields.Wherever we looked was line upon line of set faces surmounted by range upon range of glittering spears.
"Surely,"I said to Infadoos,"the whole army is here?""Nay,Macumazahn,"he answered,"but a third part of it.One third part is present at this dance each year,another third part is mustered outside in case there should be trouble when the killing begins,ten thousand more garrison the outposts round Loo,and the rest watch at the kraals in the country.Thou seest it is a very great people.""They are very silent,"said Good;and,indeed,the intense stillness among such a vast concourse of living men was almost overpowering.
"What says Bougwan?"asked Infadoos.
I translated.
"Those over whom the shadow of death is hovering are silent,"he answered,grimly.
"Will many be killed?"
"Very many."
"It seems,"I said to the others,"that we are going to assist at a gladiatorial show arranged regardless of expense."Sir Henry shivered,and Good said that he wished that we could get out of it.
