Chapter Ten.

Chapter Ten.“Farewell, Gungana!”“To that night of dreamless sleep there came an awakening at last. The sun was pouring down upon my naked shoulders, and, wounded and exhausted as I was, it seemed that I had awakened in the fire. We had begun the fight at daybreak, but now, as I lifted my head and looked about, the sun was within an hour of his rest. A silence as of the dead reigned around, and from the lofty height where I lay I could see other mountain-tops, some flat like this one, others rent into jagged peaks, rolling around in a confused sea.“A shadow swept between me and the sun, followed by another and another. I looked up. They were vultures. Then came a flap, flap of wings as a number of them rose from the corpse of a slain Baputi upon which they had already been feeding. A little longer of sleep, of insensibility, and the horrible creatures would have begun upon me likewise!“Then I rose to my feet. I was covered with blood, and stiff and sore. I ached all over from the blows I had received, but as I stretched my limbs I knew that not a bone was injured, although my bruises were many. But now—to get away from here.“I looked around. There was no sign of life on the flat summit of the mountain. I looked over the brink of the cliff, which fell straight and sheer to a great depth. There was no sign of life beneath. Ourimpiwould long since have departed, driving before it the spoils in cattle and women, and yet, as I looked down, I seemed not to be looking into the defile by which we had advanced. I, of course, would not be much missed. I should simply be reported as one of the slain.“And now, as I took in thoroughly the situation, I reckoned that I must have covered a long distance in pursuit of the flying Baputi; for I could not find the outlet by which I had emerged, though more than once I nearly fell headlong into a black fissure or hole which, well-nigh hidden in the long grass, yawned for the bodies of men. These pits,Nkose, were ugly to look upon, so straight and black did they go down. And the depth!Whau! I would drop a stone in and listen, but it seemed long before any sound was heard, and then so far down. Nor was that all; for again I would hear it farther down still, and yet again, till it was enough to chill a man’s blood to listen, such was the depth of these black and horrible holes. And so many of them were there that the difficulty of finding the one by which I had come up would be very great.“Yet this must be done, for by the flat formation of the mountain, and the height and straightness of the cliffs that belted it, I feared there was no way hence but that by which I had come; and could I even find this, now that the heat of battle was over, I relished not the task of creeping back alone through that gruesome cavern in the darkness, treading over those stark and piled-up corpses both of our warriors and of our foes.Hau! that would be a feat of terror indeed. And then came back to me the visions I had beheld in themútibowl of old Masuka, and I, who feared no man, nor any number of men coming against me with spear and shield, now trembled. For had not his magic so far proved true—the mountain, the dark crowd of men swarming like ants up the slope, the crash and splitting of the rock, the towering cloud of dust?Ou! it was terrible. The first vision had been fulfilled exactly as I had beheld it in the bowl. In the heat of the assault, the fierceness of the battle, I had lost sight of this; but now it came back with renewed force. As to the other visions also, my memory was strangely beclouded, yet that they too would befall I doubted not.“Now, as I explored the summit of the mountain, I did so warily, and not showing myself over-much at the edge, for it might well be that some of our enemies had escaped and called together others of the tribe, if others there were, and these, catching sight of me from beneath, might well waylay and kill me by whatever way I might manage to descend. Also I proceeded cautiously, with my broad-bladed, short-hafted assegai in my right hand and my large war-shield in readiness in my left, and thus was prepared for any enemy who might spring up, as it were, out of the ground. Yet, if I would find my way down that night, it must be quickly, for the sun was already touching the mountain-peaks opposite, causing the great ironstone cliff faces to glow like fire.“Suddenly, rounding a large rock, I came upon a man—a tall man—armed. Up went his shield and assegai in readiness, even as did mine, as I stopped short. Then I saw he was one of ourselves.“‘Greeting, son of Ntelani,’ he said. ‘What do you here?’“‘Greeting, Gungana,indunaof the King,’ I answered. ‘What doyouhere?’“‘Au!’ he cried, springing up from the rock against which he had been leaning, his eyes flashing with anger. ‘Is it in that tone thou talkest to me, thou jackal-whelp—tome, dog-cub?’“‘Spare me, father,’ I answered in mock fear, for I had a design in deceiving him, ‘spare me! My head has had a hard knock. It may be that.’“‘In truth, thou speakest only just in time to save thy head from a far harder knock,umfane, for the knobsticks of the King’s executioners come down hard upon the skulls of rebellious soldiers who disobey and insult their commanders.’“Now,Nkose, my blood boiled within me. The sneering ‘umfane’ to me, who, although not ringed, was yet aninceku, was too much. Gungana should pay for that sneer. Moreover, self-preservation called out loudly within me. For nothing less than my death would satisfy this chief, the deadly import of whose words struck full upon my mind. A charge of mutiny and disobedience brought against me by a commander of Gungana’s standing, the King, reproaching me as he often did with rashness and lack of judgment, could hardly discredit, and would certainly not pardon. It was my death or that of Gungana. But I answered with deference:“‘How is it you are all alone here, my father? Have all men gone away and left their chief?’“‘They have, but they shall mourn for it,’ he answered. ‘I followed thoseabatagatidogs up here alone, but so many and so perilous are the holes that I know not by which one of them we came up nor by which we shall go down.’“‘By none of them shallwego down, my father,’ I shouted. ‘By none of them shallwego down, for one of us shall remain up here for ever!’“‘Truly that knock on the head was a hard one,’ he said. ‘Theumfanehas gone mad, quite mad!’“‘Not so,indunaof the King,’ I answered. ‘It is your death or mine. Now—stand ready!’“I could have rushed upon and killed him in his first surprise,Nkose, and this was my original intention, yet, much as I hated him, he was a brave man, and had led me to battle almost ever since I was able to fight. Nor, though I have slain many, did I ever like to strike a man unprepared. Wherefore I called upon him to stand to his defence.“I had not to call upon him twice. As soon as he saw that I meant my words, no time did he give me, for he came at me with his spear uplifted. But I caught it on my shield, and at the same time the stab which I aimed at him glanced off the surface of his. Not a moment did we thus remain together, for, withdrawing, we sprang at each other again. Still, each was so dexterous in the art of handling his shield that we could not hurt each other. Our chests heaved and panted, and our eyes glared, yet not a word did we speak, not a sound did we utter; in silence we fought, for this was a combat to the death.“As we charged each other for the third time, I hurled my heavy knobstick with all my force at Gungana’s forehead. But so quick was his eye that he just moved his head and the kerrie went whizzing away into the grass behind him. Then once more we closed. Ha, I was wounded! The keen flash of the blade ripped and seared my shoulder like hot iron, but, regardless of risk, I now became impetuous, and struck down wildly over his guard. But this the chief easily parried, uttering a short contemptuous laugh, which angering me, I pressed him so hard that he began to fall back step by step, nor could he get in a fair stroke at me, so close put to it was he to defend himself from mine.“And now it seemed that his age was beginning to go against him, for, skilful fighter as he was, Gungana was long past the flower of his youth, and in a protracted struggle my strength was bound to tell. Yet even then I know not how the matter might have ended but for what next befell.“I had pressed him back further and further. He was on higher ground than myself.Yau! sometimes I see him now in my thoughts as he stood that evening, thrown out blackly against the heavens, which were flaming blood red where the sun had just sunk down. I myself had drawn back a few paces to make a feint before rushing in at him again, when suddenly he disappeared feet foremost as he stood; disappeared into the earth, flinging his shield and assegais wildly on high as he clutched at the grass and roots in vain.“I sprang to the spot warily, for I knew what had befallen. He had sunk into one of those chasms or fissures of which I have spoken as gaping half concealed by the grass. Kneeling at the brink, I peered in, and doing so I thought I could hear the sound of laboured breathing.“‘Are you alive, my father?’ I called out. ‘Is the hole deep?’“‘I have not reached the bottom, Untúswa,’ he answered. ‘I am holding myself up where the chasm narrows. There are some bushes growing where we met. Go, cut some, that you may draw me out.’“But at this I laughed.“‘I am young, O my father—only anumfane, as you said just now—but I am not completely a fool. The knobsticks of the King’s executioners come down hard upon the skulls of rebellious soldiers, O Gungana,indunaof the King,’ I mocked.“‘I was but angry, Untúswa. Thou art young, and hast fought right well. I will name thee to the King, and will “point at” thee in the nextTyay’igamadance.’“‘Not so, my father. It is Kalipe who will do that—Kalipe, who will now be in chief command of the King’s troops; Kalipe, who doesnottry and rob one of the King’s brave soldiers of more than half the praise due to him; Kalipe, who doesnotrob the soldier of the chance of obtaining his head-ring, who doesnot lobolafor the girl that soldier wants. So now, Gungana, I will promote Kalipe to command the King’s army—I, Untúswa theinceku; I, Untúswa theumfane—and I will do thisby making the post vacant.’“‘Thou jackal whelp!’ he snarled, disdaining further to ask for mercy, realising, too, that it was useless, for he knew he had intended my death, and that I was fully aware he had. ‘Thou jackal whelp! I would that I had not spared thee all this while!’“‘It has been a day too long, my father,’ I jeered. ‘Now I shall go back, and the King will allow me totunga, for he has promised it. I willlobolafor Nangeza, and soon I shall be aninduna, and she shall be my “great wife.” Then, O Gungana, I will not rest until I have all your sons and kindred “smelt out” asabatagati, and “eaten up.” Old Masuka will see to that; so you may soon expect them in the world of shades.’“Whau, Nkose! It was not well done, thus to mock and taunt a brave man and anindunaof the King, being helpless. But I was young then, and I hated Gungana beyond describing. I thought of Nangeza, and how he would have robbed me of her; I thought of his continual designs to compass my ruin and death, and I knew there was not room in this world for him and myself together, and my heart became hard and ferocious as that of a wild beast.“‘Is it comfortable down there,indunaof the King?’ I jeered. ‘Ha! It is not much of a death for a warrior, for a brave commander of the King’s armies, to die like an ant-bear in a dark hole. Oh no, it is not much of a death!’“‘Yet shalt thou die a worse one, O dog-whelp!’ he answered. ‘A worse one—forget not that!’“‘Ha-ha!’ I laughed. Then I arose and went a little way, and soon returned with some large stones. Bending over the hole, as soon as my eyes became accustomed to the blackness of its depths, I could just make out the shimmer of Gungana’s head-ring some way down. I took the largest of the stones in both hands, and, poising it over this, I let it fall. There was a crunching sound, and a deep, convulsive groan; then the noise of a heavy body rolling and sliding further and further.“‘Hlala gahle, Gungana!’ I shouted mockingly. ‘Hlala gahle!’ (‘Rest in peace.’ Zulu form of farewell from a person going away.) Then I got up to go away.“But as I rose from the spot, I did not feel glad. The sound of the stone as it struck Gungana’s head, that quavering groan which shot upward into outer air, seemed to awaken other feelings within me but those of rejoicing. No, it was not well done,Nkose—yet it was to be my death or his. Still—it was not well done.“Now the night drew on, and there was a rush of stars out into the blackness of the heavens, and I dared not move because of the holes and pitfalls which lay around. So I crouched down beneath the rock beside which I had first met Gungana, and shivered; for it was cold high up on that mountain-top, and my light war-adornments were of no use against the cold. Moreover, I was very hungry, having eaten nothing since before the attack—that is to say, before daybreak. Then a soft wind sprang up and wailed mournfully in the long grasses, and again I shivered, but not only with cold, for it seemed to me that the whole of that wild mountain-top was haunted—was peopled with the ghosts of those who had been slain that day, crying and whispering around me in the darkness; and ever and again I would hear the crunch of the stone upon Gungana’s shaven skull, till I would fain stop my ears to shut out the sound; but that was of no use, because the sound was in my brain. And it seemed that Gungana’s ghost had come up out of the earth, and was standing over me with hollow and blazing eyes, till at last I could bear it no longer, and rose up, resolved to get away from that spot, at any rate. So I walked on cautiously, and singing softly to myself to drive away these evil shapes of the darkness, and, wearied as I was, I preferred movement, for it warmed me.“But towards morning a thick mist sprang up, and now I knew no longer what direction I was taking. I snuffed the wind, but it was coming in fitful puffs equally from every direction. Fearing to walk over the cliff, I returned to retrace my steps, and then—Au! that is a moment I can never forget, even now, old as I am. The ground failed beneath me, and I shot downwards feet foremost into the earth. For one sickening moment thus I fell, then stopped with a jerk. The stick of my shield, my hold of which I had not relaxed, had wedged somehow crosswise and arrested my fall; and there I hung suspended in this black chasm, even as Gungana had hung suspended.“But the straight drop seemed to end here, for I could now feel the rock with my feet sloping obliquely down. However, it was all the same, for I could not climb up; I had fallen too far and the sides were too straight for that.Whau! Gungana had spoken truly when he had predicted for me a worse death than his. For no merciful hand was there to crush in my skull with a stone from above, and so end my sufferings at once. No! I was destined to hours of horror down in my living tomb, holding on by a most frail support, to leave go when exhaustion should overpower me, and sink, buried alive, into the awful heart of the earth. Did ever living man feel as I felt,Nkose, as I clung there, realising that never again was I to behold the light of day? Surely not.“And then a most unutterably fearsome thing happened. Strange, uncouth whisperings seemed to sound beneath, rising upward from the blackness of the pit. Then something grabbed me by the leg in a firm and bony grip. The stick of the shield gave way, and, with a last awful cry of wild terror and despair, I felt myself being dragged down—down!”

“To that night of dreamless sleep there came an awakening at last. The sun was pouring down upon my naked shoulders, and, wounded and exhausted as I was, it seemed that I had awakened in the fire. We had begun the fight at daybreak, but now, as I lifted my head and looked about, the sun was within an hour of his rest. A silence as of the dead reigned around, and from the lofty height where I lay I could see other mountain-tops, some flat like this one, others rent into jagged peaks, rolling around in a confused sea.

“A shadow swept between me and the sun, followed by another and another. I looked up. They were vultures. Then came a flap, flap of wings as a number of them rose from the corpse of a slain Baputi upon which they had already been feeding. A little longer of sleep, of insensibility, and the horrible creatures would have begun upon me likewise!

“Then I rose to my feet. I was covered with blood, and stiff and sore. I ached all over from the blows I had received, but as I stretched my limbs I knew that not a bone was injured, although my bruises were many. But now—to get away from here.

“I looked around. There was no sign of life on the flat summit of the mountain. I looked over the brink of the cliff, which fell straight and sheer to a great depth. There was no sign of life beneath. Ourimpiwould long since have departed, driving before it the spoils in cattle and women, and yet, as I looked down, I seemed not to be looking into the defile by which we had advanced. I, of course, would not be much missed. I should simply be reported as one of the slain.

“And now, as I took in thoroughly the situation, I reckoned that I must have covered a long distance in pursuit of the flying Baputi; for I could not find the outlet by which I had emerged, though more than once I nearly fell headlong into a black fissure or hole which, well-nigh hidden in the long grass, yawned for the bodies of men. These pits,Nkose, were ugly to look upon, so straight and black did they go down. And the depth!Whau! I would drop a stone in and listen, but it seemed long before any sound was heard, and then so far down. Nor was that all; for again I would hear it farther down still, and yet again, till it was enough to chill a man’s blood to listen, such was the depth of these black and horrible holes. And so many of them were there that the difficulty of finding the one by which I had come up would be very great.

“Yet this must be done, for by the flat formation of the mountain, and the height and straightness of the cliffs that belted it, I feared there was no way hence but that by which I had come; and could I even find this, now that the heat of battle was over, I relished not the task of creeping back alone through that gruesome cavern in the darkness, treading over those stark and piled-up corpses both of our warriors and of our foes.Hau! that would be a feat of terror indeed. And then came back to me the visions I had beheld in themútibowl of old Masuka, and I, who feared no man, nor any number of men coming against me with spear and shield, now trembled. For had not his magic so far proved true—the mountain, the dark crowd of men swarming like ants up the slope, the crash and splitting of the rock, the towering cloud of dust?Ou! it was terrible. The first vision had been fulfilled exactly as I had beheld it in the bowl. In the heat of the assault, the fierceness of the battle, I had lost sight of this; but now it came back with renewed force. As to the other visions also, my memory was strangely beclouded, yet that they too would befall I doubted not.

“Now, as I explored the summit of the mountain, I did so warily, and not showing myself over-much at the edge, for it might well be that some of our enemies had escaped and called together others of the tribe, if others there were, and these, catching sight of me from beneath, might well waylay and kill me by whatever way I might manage to descend. Also I proceeded cautiously, with my broad-bladed, short-hafted assegai in my right hand and my large war-shield in readiness in my left, and thus was prepared for any enemy who might spring up, as it were, out of the ground. Yet, if I would find my way down that night, it must be quickly, for the sun was already touching the mountain-peaks opposite, causing the great ironstone cliff faces to glow like fire.

“Suddenly, rounding a large rock, I came upon a man—a tall man—armed. Up went his shield and assegai in readiness, even as did mine, as I stopped short. Then I saw he was one of ourselves.

“‘Greeting, son of Ntelani,’ he said. ‘What do you here?’

“‘Greeting, Gungana,indunaof the King,’ I answered. ‘What doyouhere?’

“‘Au!’ he cried, springing up from the rock against which he had been leaning, his eyes flashing with anger. ‘Is it in that tone thou talkest to me, thou jackal-whelp—tome, dog-cub?’

“‘Spare me, father,’ I answered in mock fear, for I had a design in deceiving him, ‘spare me! My head has had a hard knock. It may be that.’

“‘In truth, thou speakest only just in time to save thy head from a far harder knock,umfane, for the knobsticks of the King’s executioners come down hard upon the skulls of rebellious soldiers who disobey and insult their commanders.’

“Now,Nkose, my blood boiled within me. The sneering ‘umfane’ to me, who, although not ringed, was yet aninceku, was too much. Gungana should pay for that sneer. Moreover, self-preservation called out loudly within me. For nothing less than my death would satisfy this chief, the deadly import of whose words struck full upon my mind. A charge of mutiny and disobedience brought against me by a commander of Gungana’s standing, the King, reproaching me as he often did with rashness and lack of judgment, could hardly discredit, and would certainly not pardon. It was my death or that of Gungana. But I answered with deference:

“‘How is it you are all alone here, my father? Have all men gone away and left their chief?’

“‘They have, but they shall mourn for it,’ he answered. ‘I followed thoseabatagatidogs up here alone, but so many and so perilous are the holes that I know not by which one of them we came up nor by which we shall go down.’

“‘By none of them shallwego down, my father,’ I shouted. ‘By none of them shallwego down, for one of us shall remain up here for ever!’

“‘Truly that knock on the head was a hard one,’ he said. ‘Theumfanehas gone mad, quite mad!’

“‘Not so,indunaof the King,’ I answered. ‘It is your death or mine. Now—stand ready!’

“I could have rushed upon and killed him in his first surprise,Nkose, and this was my original intention, yet, much as I hated him, he was a brave man, and had led me to battle almost ever since I was able to fight. Nor, though I have slain many, did I ever like to strike a man unprepared. Wherefore I called upon him to stand to his defence.

“I had not to call upon him twice. As soon as he saw that I meant my words, no time did he give me, for he came at me with his spear uplifted. But I caught it on my shield, and at the same time the stab which I aimed at him glanced off the surface of his. Not a moment did we thus remain together, for, withdrawing, we sprang at each other again. Still, each was so dexterous in the art of handling his shield that we could not hurt each other. Our chests heaved and panted, and our eyes glared, yet not a word did we speak, not a sound did we utter; in silence we fought, for this was a combat to the death.

“As we charged each other for the third time, I hurled my heavy knobstick with all my force at Gungana’s forehead. But so quick was his eye that he just moved his head and the kerrie went whizzing away into the grass behind him. Then once more we closed. Ha, I was wounded! The keen flash of the blade ripped and seared my shoulder like hot iron, but, regardless of risk, I now became impetuous, and struck down wildly over his guard. But this the chief easily parried, uttering a short contemptuous laugh, which angering me, I pressed him so hard that he began to fall back step by step, nor could he get in a fair stroke at me, so close put to it was he to defend himself from mine.

“And now it seemed that his age was beginning to go against him, for, skilful fighter as he was, Gungana was long past the flower of his youth, and in a protracted struggle my strength was bound to tell. Yet even then I know not how the matter might have ended but for what next befell.

“I had pressed him back further and further. He was on higher ground than myself.Yau! sometimes I see him now in my thoughts as he stood that evening, thrown out blackly against the heavens, which were flaming blood red where the sun had just sunk down. I myself had drawn back a few paces to make a feint before rushing in at him again, when suddenly he disappeared feet foremost as he stood; disappeared into the earth, flinging his shield and assegais wildly on high as he clutched at the grass and roots in vain.

“I sprang to the spot warily, for I knew what had befallen. He had sunk into one of those chasms or fissures of which I have spoken as gaping half concealed by the grass. Kneeling at the brink, I peered in, and doing so I thought I could hear the sound of laboured breathing.

“‘Are you alive, my father?’ I called out. ‘Is the hole deep?’

“‘I have not reached the bottom, Untúswa,’ he answered. ‘I am holding myself up where the chasm narrows. There are some bushes growing where we met. Go, cut some, that you may draw me out.’

“But at this I laughed.

“‘I am young, O my father—only anumfane, as you said just now—but I am not completely a fool. The knobsticks of the King’s executioners come down hard upon the skulls of rebellious soldiers, O Gungana,indunaof the King,’ I mocked.

“‘I was but angry, Untúswa. Thou art young, and hast fought right well. I will name thee to the King, and will “point at” thee in the nextTyay’igamadance.’

“‘Not so, my father. It is Kalipe who will do that—Kalipe, who will now be in chief command of the King’s troops; Kalipe, who doesnottry and rob one of the King’s brave soldiers of more than half the praise due to him; Kalipe, who doesnotrob the soldier of the chance of obtaining his head-ring, who doesnot lobolafor the girl that soldier wants. So now, Gungana, I will promote Kalipe to command the King’s army—I, Untúswa theinceku; I, Untúswa theumfane—and I will do thisby making the post vacant.’

“‘Thou jackal whelp!’ he snarled, disdaining further to ask for mercy, realising, too, that it was useless, for he knew he had intended my death, and that I was fully aware he had. ‘Thou jackal whelp! I would that I had not spared thee all this while!’

“‘It has been a day too long, my father,’ I jeered. ‘Now I shall go back, and the King will allow me totunga, for he has promised it. I willlobolafor Nangeza, and soon I shall be aninduna, and she shall be my “great wife.” Then, O Gungana, I will not rest until I have all your sons and kindred “smelt out” asabatagati, and “eaten up.” Old Masuka will see to that; so you may soon expect them in the world of shades.’

“Whau, Nkose! It was not well done, thus to mock and taunt a brave man and anindunaof the King, being helpless. But I was young then, and I hated Gungana beyond describing. I thought of Nangeza, and how he would have robbed me of her; I thought of his continual designs to compass my ruin and death, and I knew there was not room in this world for him and myself together, and my heart became hard and ferocious as that of a wild beast.

“‘Is it comfortable down there,indunaof the King?’ I jeered. ‘Ha! It is not much of a death for a warrior, for a brave commander of the King’s armies, to die like an ant-bear in a dark hole. Oh no, it is not much of a death!’

“‘Yet shalt thou die a worse one, O dog-whelp!’ he answered. ‘A worse one—forget not that!’

“‘Ha-ha!’ I laughed. Then I arose and went a little way, and soon returned with some large stones. Bending over the hole, as soon as my eyes became accustomed to the blackness of its depths, I could just make out the shimmer of Gungana’s head-ring some way down. I took the largest of the stones in both hands, and, poising it over this, I let it fall. There was a crunching sound, and a deep, convulsive groan; then the noise of a heavy body rolling and sliding further and further.

“‘Hlala gahle, Gungana!’ I shouted mockingly. ‘Hlala gahle!’ (‘Rest in peace.’ Zulu form of farewell from a person going away.) Then I got up to go away.

“But as I rose from the spot, I did not feel glad. The sound of the stone as it struck Gungana’s head, that quavering groan which shot upward into outer air, seemed to awaken other feelings within me but those of rejoicing. No, it was not well done,Nkose—yet it was to be my death or his. Still—it was not well done.

“Now the night drew on, and there was a rush of stars out into the blackness of the heavens, and I dared not move because of the holes and pitfalls which lay around. So I crouched down beneath the rock beside which I had first met Gungana, and shivered; for it was cold high up on that mountain-top, and my light war-adornments were of no use against the cold. Moreover, I was very hungry, having eaten nothing since before the attack—that is to say, before daybreak. Then a soft wind sprang up and wailed mournfully in the long grasses, and again I shivered, but not only with cold, for it seemed to me that the whole of that wild mountain-top was haunted—was peopled with the ghosts of those who had been slain that day, crying and whispering around me in the darkness; and ever and again I would hear the crunch of the stone upon Gungana’s shaven skull, till I would fain stop my ears to shut out the sound; but that was of no use, because the sound was in my brain. And it seemed that Gungana’s ghost had come up out of the earth, and was standing over me with hollow and blazing eyes, till at last I could bear it no longer, and rose up, resolved to get away from that spot, at any rate. So I walked on cautiously, and singing softly to myself to drive away these evil shapes of the darkness, and, wearied as I was, I preferred movement, for it warmed me.

“But towards morning a thick mist sprang up, and now I knew no longer what direction I was taking. I snuffed the wind, but it was coming in fitful puffs equally from every direction. Fearing to walk over the cliff, I returned to retrace my steps, and then—Au! that is a moment I can never forget, even now, old as I am. The ground failed beneath me, and I shot downwards feet foremost into the earth. For one sickening moment thus I fell, then stopped with a jerk. The stick of my shield, my hold of which I had not relaxed, had wedged somehow crosswise and arrested my fall; and there I hung suspended in this black chasm, even as Gungana had hung suspended.

“But the straight drop seemed to end here, for I could now feel the rock with my feet sloping obliquely down. However, it was all the same, for I could not climb up; I had fallen too far and the sides were too straight for that.Whau! Gungana had spoken truly when he had predicted for me a worse death than his. For no merciful hand was there to crush in my skull with a stone from above, and so end my sufferings at once. No! I was destined to hours of horror down in my living tomb, holding on by a most frail support, to leave go when exhaustion should overpower me, and sink, buried alive, into the awful heart of the earth. Did ever living man feel as I felt,Nkose, as I clung there, realising that never again was I to behold the light of day? Surely not.

“And then a most unutterably fearsome thing happened. Strange, uncouth whisperings seemed to sound beneath, rising upward from the blackness of the pit. Then something grabbed me by the leg in a firm and bony grip. The stick of the shield gave way, and, with a last awful cry of wild terror and despair, I felt myself being dragged down—down!”

Chapter Eleven.The Eaters of Men.“In that short flash of time I must have died a thousand deaths. In my terror I made no attempt to arrest my downward course. Stones and dust rattled past my ears, flashes, as of sparks, in front of my brain; then I stopped.“At first I hardly dared open my eyes, but, feeling the grip on my leg relax, I looked beneath, shuddering, fearful as to what my glance might rest upon—I who had boasted that I knew not fear.“As my eyes became accustomed to the gloom, I made out little slanting rays of light penetrating from somewhere. I could see a vaulted rock wall above, around. But beneath?“The black darkness of another pit, wherein voices were murmuring, shapes were moving. Ha! the vision of the wizard’smúti! And as I looked, claws shot upward to seize me. All the old horror which had overwhelmed me in Masuka’s hut came back to me now—the vision of the living creatures; shadowy, shapeless, hideous; mouthing and gnashing to draw me down. That frightful grip was again upon my legs, and, struggling, gasping, amid a cloud of dust and falling shingle, I was dragged down with a violent crash to the bottom of the pit.“And now I could see I was beset by a number of the most grisly and horrible shapes the eyes of man ever beheld, for it was not quite dark in this evil hole. Frightful heads, with flattened skulls, and huge, champing jaws and horn-like ears, were wagging over me as I lay, and a bony claw put forth gripped me by the throat in the iron grip of strangulation, and with a growling, worrying snarl more than one pair of teeth seized me in different parts of the body.“Then, desperate at the prospect of being torn in pieces and devoured by these foul and loathsome creatures, with the very despair of terror I put forth all my strength, and whirling my knobstick, it met and crashed against what felt like a head. There was a most blood-chilling yell of wild dismay; then these hideous ghosts flung themselves from me and fled shrieking.“As I leaped to my feet, shivering with the horror of this awful fate, my eyes becoming more accustomed to the darkness, I made out that I was in a great square chamber, on the floor of which lay several skulls.“The odour which rose up from this was unspeakably fearful, and as the shafts of light came in stronger I could make out six or eight shapes—human shapes, I was going to say; but they were as the skeletons of baboons with dry bags of skin hung around them, and they had huge heads. They were huddled together on the opposite side of the hole, staring, pointing at me with their bony claws, moving to and fro their hideous heads, while whispering together in a hoarse and uncouth tongue of which I could gather not a word. Then, while some still watched me, others bent down, and there was a sound as of tearing of meat, of cracking of bones; but what they had got before them I could not at first discern, for the ground was almost in darkness. But while I watched I heard a loud crack, and then two of them raised something from the ground—something large and heavy—each holding one end in his claws and teeth, tearing and growling like a beast. Then,Nkose, those unheard-of terrors predicted by the witch doctor were upon me; for the thing they held up and were thus devouring was the arm of a man, and I could see the fingers of the dead hand as though about to clutch their faces. What were these who haunted this gloomy hole of death? Were they indeed evil spirits, or were theyIzímu, or man-eaters, such as in times past had been said to inhabit the country whence we had come out? Some, indeed, were said still to live there, hiding away in holes and caves; and such, you must know,Nkose, were held by us Zulus in the utmost detestation, as practising the vilest form oftagati.“While I was thus gazing upon them in horror and disgust, one of the creatures, giving a frightful croak, as though to draw my attention, held up something towards me. It was against the light, and was round and shiny. I had not to look at it twice, for I knew it at a glance. It was a Zulu head-ring.“But whence had it come? Had these vultures been hovering over the scene of the battle in order to drag away our brave dead to glut their own foul and loathsome carcases with? In my fury and loathing at the sight, I gripped my knobstick—for while falling I had not once lost hold of my weapons—and was about to spring upon them and batter out their miserable lives, when in the rapidly-increasing light I beheld that which caused me once more to sicken and all my blood to turn to ice. For in the torn and mangled body these carrion ghosts were devouring, the battered skull and swollen features, I recognised what had once been Gungana. This, then, was the very hole he had fallen into! What sort of omen was it that had caused me to fall into it likewise? In truth, his prediction that my death should be a worse one than his had nearly been fulfilled, might even yet be fulfilled.“Things looked plainer now. One unexpected meal had come down to these wizards through the pit into which we had both fallen. On hearing the noise of my descent, in their eagerness for that which should yield another, they must have climbed up to drag me down.Au! it was fearful, the thought of such a fate; and, lest fear should again overpower me, I resolved to act. So with a shout I leaped across the floor of the pit. It crackled with bones.“Thoseabatagatidid not rise; they sat there and screamed.Au! that was a scream—one to come back to a man in his sleep, and cause him to start up trembling! It rang through that frightful den as though to pierce the very rocks. Something was hurled at me, but I stepped aside, and it shivered against the rock behind. It was the skull of a man. Another flung a weighty object which struck me full in the chest, nearly overturning me.Whau, Nkose! Then was horror indeed! That which had so nearly overthrown me was a human leg freshly torn off, and was that of Gungana himself. What an omen, that the man whom I had killed should even in death continue to fight against me!“Then in my fury I sprang at them, crashing their brains out with my heavy knobstick till I had killed several. The others threw themselves on the ground and screamed dismally. No attempt at resistance made they; indeed, it seemed as though they were hardly able to rise. And then through my rage it flashed upon me that, were I to slay them all, there would be none to reveal the way out; for a way out there must be, and that a secret one; for, save the hole by which I had fallen down, no passage of any kind was there to be seen. So, standing over the three that yet remained alive, I held aloft my great knobstick, all dripping with blood, and bade them show me the way forth.“They screeched and chattered, not understanding a word I said. So I made signs by pointing to the hole I had dropped down by, and then making as though I would walk through the rock. This they understood, and with much head-shaking and gesture pointed high above their heads. But all I could see there was solid rock.“Yet—there was a crack; then two or three, letting in the light. It seemed to me, on looking long at this, that a flat, irregular hole was there stopped up by a slab of rock, and it was from the ground about twice the height of a tall man. Still, what could it mean? How could these miserable beings have entered by that—still more, how could they get out by it? More and more wonders were here.“Not one word of their chattering could I understand. But at length, after trying all manner of signs, one of them seemed to convey to me two things—that they entered and went out by means of a thong, and that I must sit down and wait. Again I threatened them with death, but it was of no use. They could do no more than they had done—they still could only sign to me to wait and watch.“Au, Nkose! Truly indeed did the old Mosutu speak when he predicted that I should pass through horrors which the imagination of man could not invent. For as the long watches of that awful day went by, and I sat there in that darksome den lighted by a crevice here and there in the rocks, sat there among skulls and crackling bones, while opposite me cowered the three evil shapes of those hideous beings among the corpses—more hideous still—of their kind, while on the ground in front of them lay the mangled and torn remains of my own countryman, whom I myself had given over to this fate, then indeed it seemed as though I were one already dead and passed away.“Sometimes I would sing to drive away the awful thoughts which were crowding upon me, but then theIzimuwould sign wildly for me to desist, pointing above their heads to the supposed doorway.Au! I would not live through that day again—no, not to reign as King over the Amazulu or over the Amandebili for twice the life-time of a man. For that long day came to an end at last, and then, instead of the bright threads of sun-dart through the crevices, there came greyness as though the shades of evening were falling. Think of it,Nkose! The day had been bad enough. But night, black rayless night, spent down there among theseabatagati, among all the foul horrors of theseIzimu—eaters of men!“I had risen, and was preparing in my rage to slay those who were left, lest they should bind their magic around me and fall upon me in the darkness, and my fate should be even as that of Gungana, when I perceived them making quick signs to me to sit down, at the same time pointing to the stone overhead. Then I heard sounds above.“With all the blood in my body tingling, I crouched in the shadow at the further end of the den, and sitting upon my shield to hide it, I fixed my eyes upon the stone which had been pointed out to me. I saw it move—move away with a rasping noise—and there was a hole wide enough to give passage to a man’s body. Two or three heads appeared against this and were withdrawn, amid mutterings in an unknown tongue.“I saw something drop down the rock till it reached the bottom of the den. It was a line. Immediately a man, passing himself backwards through the hole, slid down this. I, crouching in shadow, was unseen by him, and, gripping my weapons, I gathered myself for a spring, for I could see that deliverance was to be now or never, and resolved with all my might that it should be now.“He dropped upon the rocky floor, and stood upright. He was entirely naked, and in build and feature very like the mountain tribe against whom we had been fighting. He was armed with an assegai and battle-axe, and as he stood there rolling his eyes around, I could see the three miserable wretches shivering and speechless with fear.“He made one spring, and drove his assegai through the body of the foremost; then, not waiting till the wretch was dead, he knelt upon the still struggling carcase, and with the axe hacked off the head, flinging it with a laugh across the horrible hole. It bounded over the crackling bones, nearly striking me where I sat. Then, dragging the spouting carcase to the line, he began to make fast the feet preparatory to the hauling of it up.“Now, I began to see clearly where I was, and all manner of tales heard in childhood crowded back. Not these miserable beings, who were shut up in this place, were eaters of men—though probably they had been driven by hunger to devour the corpse of Gungana. Those who kept them there were the cannibals, and now I remembered wild and hideous legends of just such practices current among certain of the mountain tribes, and how their captives were shut up in caves or hollows and eaten one by one as they were required. I saw, too, how it was that the place was strewn with skulls. For some dark reason or other the heads were flung away here as I had seen this one flung. Those whom I had first found here were ‘cattle.’ It was the slaughterhouse of theIzímu.“As the man bent down to knot the feet of the corpse to the line, I stepped lightly up behind him, and with one swift blow of my heavy knobstick shattered his skull to atoms. Then, tying around me the end of the line, which was of raw hide and strong, I signed to the two still alive that they should call to those above to draw up the line. This they did, being crafty enough to hope that my escape was to compass their own.“Fortunately for me, the aperture was not large enough to admit the passage of more than one body at a time, wherefore, when my head rose above the surface, the only things I saw were the backs of eight or ten men who had hauled me to the surface by the simple plan of walking away with the other end of the thong! They must have thought that the slayer and the ‘ox’ were being drawn up together, from the weight of it. How they were tugging and straining!Au, Nkose! you would have laughed aloud to have seen the scare on the faces of those men when they turned round to behold—not the dead carcase, their expected cannibal feast, but a big live Zulu warrior, fully armed with shield and weapons, charging upon them like lightning, roaring out the war-shout with all the power of his lungs!Hau! Did they run? Did they scream?Hau! I saw nothing but their backs as they leaped away among the rocks in all directions, and, indeed, it is little to be wondered at if they did. And I,Nkose—having sufficiently frightened them, I did not linger either.“When I emerged from the hole into the broad light of day—the shades of evening, rather, for it was growing dark—I saw that I was in a small rocky hollow, in the middle of which a fire was burning, doubtless for cooking the expected meal of theIzimu. But having given those who fled a sufficient fright, I lost no time in doing as they did, and fleeing myself. The growing darkness, too, was in my favour, and as I gained the outer ridge of the hollow, I saw beneath, a long rugged slope falling into the far depths of the defile up which ourimpihad marched the day before, and then my heart felt light again, and I began to sing softly to myself for joy, for now I could find my way back to Ekupumuleni. My enemy Gungana was cleared out of my path, I had fought well and bravely, and Kalipe, the war-chief who would succeed him, and who was kindly disposed towards me, would ‘point at’ me at theTyay’igamadance. Then, after all I had gone through and my strange experiences, the face of the King would soften towards me, and I should obtain my heart’s desire. And, as though it were a good omen, I almost stumbled over a young buck crouching on the mountain-side, to send an assegai through which was as a flash of time. But I dared not light a fire, lest scattered bands of enemies should still be lurking about; yet, as I was nearly starving, in any event I could not have waited. So I devoured great portions of the animal raw, as I walked, carrying the remainder with me. Then a great weariness came upon me, and, crawling into a hole among the rocks, I slept until the next sun was very high.

“In that short flash of time I must have died a thousand deaths. In my terror I made no attempt to arrest my downward course. Stones and dust rattled past my ears, flashes, as of sparks, in front of my brain; then I stopped.

“At first I hardly dared open my eyes, but, feeling the grip on my leg relax, I looked beneath, shuddering, fearful as to what my glance might rest upon—I who had boasted that I knew not fear.

“As my eyes became accustomed to the gloom, I made out little slanting rays of light penetrating from somewhere. I could see a vaulted rock wall above, around. But beneath?

“The black darkness of another pit, wherein voices were murmuring, shapes were moving. Ha! the vision of the wizard’smúti! And as I looked, claws shot upward to seize me. All the old horror which had overwhelmed me in Masuka’s hut came back to me now—the vision of the living creatures; shadowy, shapeless, hideous; mouthing and gnashing to draw me down. That frightful grip was again upon my legs, and, struggling, gasping, amid a cloud of dust and falling shingle, I was dragged down with a violent crash to the bottom of the pit.

“And now I could see I was beset by a number of the most grisly and horrible shapes the eyes of man ever beheld, for it was not quite dark in this evil hole. Frightful heads, with flattened skulls, and huge, champing jaws and horn-like ears, were wagging over me as I lay, and a bony claw put forth gripped me by the throat in the iron grip of strangulation, and with a growling, worrying snarl more than one pair of teeth seized me in different parts of the body.

“Then, desperate at the prospect of being torn in pieces and devoured by these foul and loathsome creatures, with the very despair of terror I put forth all my strength, and whirling my knobstick, it met and crashed against what felt like a head. There was a most blood-chilling yell of wild dismay; then these hideous ghosts flung themselves from me and fled shrieking.

“As I leaped to my feet, shivering with the horror of this awful fate, my eyes becoming more accustomed to the darkness, I made out that I was in a great square chamber, on the floor of which lay several skulls.

“The odour which rose up from this was unspeakably fearful, and as the shafts of light came in stronger I could make out six or eight shapes—human shapes, I was going to say; but they were as the skeletons of baboons with dry bags of skin hung around them, and they had huge heads. They were huddled together on the opposite side of the hole, staring, pointing at me with their bony claws, moving to and fro their hideous heads, while whispering together in a hoarse and uncouth tongue of which I could gather not a word. Then, while some still watched me, others bent down, and there was a sound as of tearing of meat, of cracking of bones; but what they had got before them I could not at first discern, for the ground was almost in darkness. But while I watched I heard a loud crack, and then two of them raised something from the ground—something large and heavy—each holding one end in his claws and teeth, tearing and growling like a beast. Then,Nkose, those unheard-of terrors predicted by the witch doctor were upon me; for the thing they held up and were thus devouring was the arm of a man, and I could see the fingers of the dead hand as though about to clutch their faces. What were these who haunted this gloomy hole of death? Were they indeed evil spirits, or were theyIzímu, or man-eaters, such as in times past had been said to inhabit the country whence we had come out? Some, indeed, were said still to live there, hiding away in holes and caves; and such, you must know,Nkose, were held by us Zulus in the utmost detestation, as practising the vilest form oftagati.

“While I was thus gazing upon them in horror and disgust, one of the creatures, giving a frightful croak, as though to draw my attention, held up something towards me. It was against the light, and was round and shiny. I had not to look at it twice, for I knew it at a glance. It was a Zulu head-ring.

“But whence had it come? Had these vultures been hovering over the scene of the battle in order to drag away our brave dead to glut their own foul and loathsome carcases with? In my fury and loathing at the sight, I gripped my knobstick—for while falling I had not once lost hold of my weapons—and was about to spring upon them and batter out their miserable lives, when in the rapidly-increasing light I beheld that which caused me once more to sicken and all my blood to turn to ice. For in the torn and mangled body these carrion ghosts were devouring, the battered skull and swollen features, I recognised what had once been Gungana. This, then, was the very hole he had fallen into! What sort of omen was it that had caused me to fall into it likewise? In truth, his prediction that my death should be a worse one than his had nearly been fulfilled, might even yet be fulfilled.

“Things looked plainer now. One unexpected meal had come down to these wizards through the pit into which we had both fallen. On hearing the noise of my descent, in their eagerness for that which should yield another, they must have climbed up to drag me down.Au! it was fearful, the thought of such a fate; and, lest fear should again overpower me, I resolved to act. So with a shout I leaped across the floor of the pit. It crackled with bones.

“Thoseabatagatidid not rise; they sat there and screamed.Au! that was a scream—one to come back to a man in his sleep, and cause him to start up trembling! It rang through that frightful den as though to pierce the very rocks. Something was hurled at me, but I stepped aside, and it shivered against the rock behind. It was the skull of a man. Another flung a weighty object which struck me full in the chest, nearly overturning me.Whau, Nkose! Then was horror indeed! That which had so nearly overthrown me was a human leg freshly torn off, and was that of Gungana himself. What an omen, that the man whom I had killed should even in death continue to fight against me!

“Then in my fury I sprang at them, crashing their brains out with my heavy knobstick till I had killed several. The others threw themselves on the ground and screamed dismally. No attempt at resistance made they; indeed, it seemed as though they were hardly able to rise. And then through my rage it flashed upon me that, were I to slay them all, there would be none to reveal the way out; for a way out there must be, and that a secret one; for, save the hole by which I had fallen down, no passage of any kind was there to be seen. So, standing over the three that yet remained alive, I held aloft my great knobstick, all dripping with blood, and bade them show me the way forth.

“They screeched and chattered, not understanding a word I said. So I made signs by pointing to the hole I had dropped down by, and then making as though I would walk through the rock. This they understood, and with much head-shaking and gesture pointed high above their heads. But all I could see there was solid rock.

“Yet—there was a crack; then two or three, letting in the light. It seemed to me, on looking long at this, that a flat, irregular hole was there stopped up by a slab of rock, and it was from the ground about twice the height of a tall man. Still, what could it mean? How could these miserable beings have entered by that—still more, how could they get out by it? More and more wonders were here.

“Not one word of their chattering could I understand. But at length, after trying all manner of signs, one of them seemed to convey to me two things—that they entered and went out by means of a thong, and that I must sit down and wait. Again I threatened them with death, but it was of no use. They could do no more than they had done—they still could only sign to me to wait and watch.

“Au, Nkose! Truly indeed did the old Mosutu speak when he predicted that I should pass through horrors which the imagination of man could not invent. For as the long watches of that awful day went by, and I sat there in that darksome den lighted by a crevice here and there in the rocks, sat there among skulls and crackling bones, while opposite me cowered the three evil shapes of those hideous beings among the corpses—more hideous still—of their kind, while on the ground in front of them lay the mangled and torn remains of my own countryman, whom I myself had given over to this fate, then indeed it seemed as though I were one already dead and passed away.

“Sometimes I would sing to drive away the awful thoughts which were crowding upon me, but then theIzimuwould sign wildly for me to desist, pointing above their heads to the supposed doorway.Au! I would not live through that day again—no, not to reign as King over the Amazulu or over the Amandebili for twice the life-time of a man. For that long day came to an end at last, and then, instead of the bright threads of sun-dart through the crevices, there came greyness as though the shades of evening were falling. Think of it,Nkose! The day had been bad enough. But night, black rayless night, spent down there among theseabatagati, among all the foul horrors of theseIzimu—eaters of men!

“I had risen, and was preparing in my rage to slay those who were left, lest they should bind their magic around me and fall upon me in the darkness, and my fate should be even as that of Gungana, when I perceived them making quick signs to me to sit down, at the same time pointing to the stone overhead. Then I heard sounds above.

“With all the blood in my body tingling, I crouched in the shadow at the further end of the den, and sitting upon my shield to hide it, I fixed my eyes upon the stone which had been pointed out to me. I saw it move—move away with a rasping noise—and there was a hole wide enough to give passage to a man’s body. Two or three heads appeared against this and were withdrawn, amid mutterings in an unknown tongue.

“I saw something drop down the rock till it reached the bottom of the den. It was a line. Immediately a man, passing himself backwards through the hole, slid down this. I, crouching in shadow, was unseen by him, and, gripping my weapons, I gathered myself for a spring, for I could see that deliverance was to be now or never, and resolved with all my might that it should be now.

“He dropped upon the rocky floor, and stood upright. He was entirely naked, and in build and feature very like the mountain tribe against whom we had been fighting. He was armed with an assegai and battle-axe, and as he stood there rolling his eyes around, I could see the three miserable wretches shivering and speechless with fear.

“He made one spring, and drove his assegai through the body of the foremost; then, not waiting till the wretch was dead, he knelt upon the still struggling carcase, and with the axe hacked off the head, flinging it with a laugh across the horrible hole. It bounded over the crackling bones, nearly striking me where I sat. Then, dragging the spouting carcase to the line, he began to make fast the feet preparatory to the hauling of it up.

“Now, I began to see clearly where I was, and all manner of tales heard in childhood crowded back. Not these miserable beings, who were shut up in this place, were eaters of men—though probably they had been driven by hunger to devour the corpse of Gungana. Those who kept them there were the cannibals, and now I remembered wild and hideous legends of just such practices current among certain of the mountain tribes, and how their captives were shut up in caves or hollows and eaten one by one as they were required. I saw, too, how it was that the place was strewn with skulls. For some dark reason or other the heads were flung away here as I had seen this one flung. Those whom I had first found here were ‘cattle.’ It was the slaughterhouse of theIzímu.

“As the man bent down to knot the feet of the corpse to the line, I stepped lightly up behind him, and with one swift blow of my heavy knobstick shattered his skull to atoms. Then, tying around me the end of the line, which was of raw hide and strong, I signed to the two still alive that they should call to those above to draw up the line. This they did, being crafty enough to hope that my escape was to compass their own.

“Fortunately for me, the aperture was not large enough to admit the passage of more than one body at a time, wherefore, when my head rose above the surface, the only things I saw were the backs of eight or ten men who had hauled me to the surface by the simple plan of walking away with the other end of the thong! They must have thought that the slayer and the ‘ox’ were being drawn up together, from the weight of it. How they were tugging and straining!Au, Nkose! you would have laughed aloud to have seen the scare on the faces of those men when they turned round to behold—not the dead carcase, their expected cannibal feast, but a big live Zulu warrior, fully armed with shield and weapons, charging upon them like lightning, roaring out the war-shout with all the power of his lungs!Hau! Did they run? Did they scream?Hau! I saw nothing but their backs as they leaped away among the rocks in all directions, and, indeed, it is little to be wondered at if they did. And I,Nkose—having sufficiently frightened them, I did not linger either.

“When I emerged from the hole into the broad light of day—the shades of evening, rather, for it was growing dark—I saw that I was in a small rocky hollow, in the middle of which a fire was burning, doubtless for cooking the expected meal of theIzimu. But having given those who fled a sufficient fright, I lost no time in doing as they did, and fleeing myself. The growing darkness, too, was in my favour, and as I gained the outer ridge of the hollow, I saw beneath, a long rugged slope falling into the far depths of the defile up which ourimpihad marched the day before, and then my heart felt light again, and I began to sing softly to myself for joy, for now I could find my way back to Ekupumuleni. My enemy Gungana was cleared out of my path, I had fought well and bravely, and Kalipe, the war-chief who would succeed him, and who was kindly disposed towards me, would ‘point at’ me at theTyay’igamadance. Then, after all I had gone through and my strange experiences, the face of the King would soften towards me, and I should obtain my heart’s desire. And, as though it were a good omen, I almost stumbled over a young buck crouching on the mountain-side, to send an assegai through which was as a flash of time. But I dared not light a fire, lest scattered bands of enemies should still be lurking about; yet, as I was nearly starving, in any event I could not have waited. So I devoured great portions of the animal raw, as I walked, carrying the remainder with me. Then a great weariness came upon me, and, crawling into a hole among the rocks, I slept until the next sun was very high.

Chapter Twelve.A Wild and Desperate Scheme.“Not until I was clear of the mountains did I dare to travel daring the light of day, for it seemed certain we had not entirely stamped out thoseabatagati. Now and then I could see them in small parties creeping warily about the mountainside, and though I was well armed, yet I was but one man and they were many. So by day I lay in some safe hiding-place and rested, travelling only at night.Whau! but I liked it not. Those great mountain ranges seemed full of ghosts and the whispers of wizard voices in the darkness. But I had got rid of my enemy Gungana, who was ever striving to turn the King’s ear against me, and it seemed that now things would go well. So I sang softly to my guardian serpent as I stepped through that shadowy place, and my heart felt strong again.“At length I came in sight of Ekupumuleni, lying fair and proud in its immense circle, and I loved the sight, for it spake to me of all that makes the life of a warrior glad—of our nation’s greatness, of the mustering ofimpis, of the war dance and the beer-drinking, of our tales and songs round the fires on cold nights, of adventure and of love. I stretched out my hands to the kraal Ekupumuleni, and I cried aloud the praises of the Black Elephant who sat therein.“As I drew near I met no one at first, for our herds were all feeding on the other side. Then I came upon a group of oldamakehlawho had just sat down to take snuff, and among them was my father, Ntelani, who, as I have said, loved me not overmuch. And when he saw me he cried out in astonishment, bringing his hand to his mouth and spilling the snuff from his spoon.“‘Ha, it is his ghost!’ he said; ‘for was he not killed?’“‘No ghost is it, my father,’ I answered, sitting down among them. ‘I was not killed, but lost myself in the pursuit. The calf of the cow has come home again.’“Then they questioned me, but I parried all their answers, telling them nothing, for I had determined to keep what I had seen for the ears of the King first, though I was not sure whether I ought not to bury it entirely, and place a flat stone upon it for ever, lest I opened a way to theizanusiat any time to lay a charge against me of having brought foulmútifrom among theabatagatiof the mountains. But my reserve angered them, and my father said:“‘This calf bleats overload. Perchance he will bleat still louder before long, but not with delight.’“I liked not his tone as he said this, and his look was one of malice. Immediately my heart felt heavy again, as though some evil awaited, so I bade them farewell and sped on to the kraal gates.“Here I was hailed by many, for all thought of me as among the dead, several days having elapsed since the battle. But I spoke to none, pushing past all until I reached the entrance to theIsigodhlo, and there I threw down my shield and weapons, and called loud to those who attended within that the calf had returned to the kraal after strange wanderings. This I was bound in duty to do, for Umzilikazi made a point of being immediately informed when anything occurred; indeed, no event was too trifling and insignificant to be unworthy of his notice, although nine times out of ten he would appear to know nothing about it.“I had not long stood thus without the fence before I received a summons to enter. Umzilikazi was seated upon a lion-skin in front of his house, and I thought he looked pleased as I drew near and shouted:“‘Bayéte, ’Nkulu, ’nkulu! The calf has returned to the kraal of the Black Elephant.’“‘Welcome, Untúswa!’ said the King. ‘I had thought to find another chief-runner—anotherinceku.’“And then he bade me sit down and tell all that had befallen me.“Now,Nkose, while I was beginning to tell my story, I thought, and thought hard, and, as a consequence, I determined to make no mention whatever of Gungana. If I should narrate his loathsome end, always suppressing how he had got into the hole, there were not wanting those who would assert that I had brought about his death. Even the King himself might suspect it. Indeed, I would have avoided all mention of the slaughter-cave of theIzimu, but my serpent whispered to me that one day it might come about that some of theseabatagatiwould be taken alive and brought before the King, and the whole story would come out. And then where would I be? Apart from the deadly crime of concealing aught from the King, should I not by my reticence have laid myself out to a charge of wizardry of the worst kind? So, except in the matter of Gungana, I told my story to the King, even as I have told it to you,Nkose. He listened with the deepest attention, but when I told how my appearance at the end of the line had scared theIzimu, who had expected to haul up dead meat, the King laughed as I never heard man laugh before or since.“‘Whau! That is a great tale!’ he cried. ‘In truth, Untúswa, thy doings have been strange. But these Baputi—they fought well! Think you that theIzimuare of their tribe?’“‘That I know not, O Great Great One. They seemed to me of the same race.’“‘Ha! I like not these wizards who hide behind rocks. I lose too many warriors for their wretched cattle and women, and their own miserable carcases slain. I have a mind to leave them in peace now.’“Thus the King talked on familiarly with me, as was his wont. At last he bade me depart. But I, noting his good-humour, and that he seemed glad to see me once more, reckoned the moment a favourable one, and renewed my request to be allowed totunga. Immediately the countenance of the Great Great One grew stern and his speech changed.“‘What was the condition I named the first time you asked this, son of Ntelani?’ he said. ‘What was my “word” to you then?’“‘The “word” of the King was: “Perform some act bolder than any act I have ever heard tell of.”’ I answered. ‘Thus did the Great Great One speak.’“‘Thus did I speak, Untúswa. And it seems to me that the condition has not yet been accomplished. Now go.’“I was of a different opinion, but not another word did I say. I cried out ‘Bayéte.’ and left the King.“Then those among whom I moved hailed me joyfully, and would have heard my story; but in truth I was ill inclined for mirth and chatter. I felt sore at heart and revengeful. Thrice had the King put me off, and who had fought his battles more bravely than I—who had slain more of his enemies in open fight? So I left my comrades, being minded to wander alone.“‘Greeting, son of Ntelani!’“I turned quickly at the harsh, quavering croak. I was passing the hut of old Masuka. He it was who had hailed me.“‘Ha-ha!’ he chuckled. ‘Do you desire to behold moremúti, O traveller through the heart of the earth?’“I answered him roughly, for he seemed but to mock me.“‘Aninduna’shead-ring upon a floor of bones,’ he went on, speaking softly as though to himself. ‘The deadwithinthe living.’“‘Hau!’ I cried, bringing my hand to my mouth and fairly leaping, so astounded was I. But the old man met my glance with ever so faint a grin as I stared wildly at him. This was too marvellous. What did not this terrible old wizard know? The grim secret of Gungana’s end could not have been more exhaustively described.“‘What is not possible to thee, O my father!’ I exclaimed. ‘Help me to gain my heart’s desire, thou who didst promise that I should obtain it. For again has the King refused it.’“‘What was the condition the King attached to the fulfilment of his promise, Untúswa?’ he said, fixing his snake-like eyes upon my face.“‘That I should perform some act braver than any he had ever heard tell of.’“‘Then—perform it. Perform such an act, son of Ntelani;’ and, laughing softly, Masuka turned and went into his hut.“Angry that he should mock me, yet dreading his knowledge and power, I left him. Then, for solitude, I wandered out of the kraal, and unconsciously directed my way towards where the cattle were being herded—unconsciously, because in my then mood I had no desire to encounter Nangeza. Of what avail was it, since my head-ring was as far distant as ever?“Soon I came upon one I recognised. This was Nangeza’s little sister, Sitele. But she was alone, and it seemed to me that on beholding me she wished to avoid speech with me, for she immediately began driving calves in a direction where it was not in the least necessary, or even desirable, they should go. So I called out to her, and she stopped.“‘Why are you alone, Sitele?’ I said. ‘Where is Nangeza?’“‘Can I see people at a distance?’ was the answer. ‘She is not here.’“I could see her manner was full of confusion, and now I began to fear I knew not what.“‘Where is she, Sitele?’ I cried again.“‘Au! I know not. She dwells in my father’s house no more.’“That was quick work! Who could have sentlobolaand taken her away in those few days during which I had been absent?“‘Who has taken her, Sitele? Gungana is dead.’“‘There is a greater than Gungana.’“‘Kalipe?’ I cried, my thoughts flying to the King’s favourite war-chief. ‘Is it Kalipe?’“‘There is a greater than Kalipe.’“‘Ha! the King!’“‘She is in theIsigodhlo,’ said the child, fixing her eyes in fear upon my face. And well she might, for I forgot all control, and my eyes blazed furiously as I gripped my assegai and poured forth words which had any man heard, I should have seen not another sun to set. For I was mad. Not only had the King been making a mock of me all this time, but now he had put forth his hand and taken her upon whom my heart was set. I was young then,Nkose, and therefore a fool, and did not reason as I should have done that there were other girls among the Amandebili as good as Nangeza.“‘Hau! Do we not all lie beneath the foot of the Elephant, and his tread is light!’ I said, remembering myself. ‘Farewell, Sitele. The Great Great One has chosen well.’“And I walked away.“But although I thus spoke before the child, I was full of rage in my heart, and pondered over plans of deadly vengeance, wherein, of course, I was a fool, as an angry man ever is. And he who ponders vengeance against kings may well ponder also on the land of shadows and perpetual sleep, for into it must he soon assuredly fall.“As this was borne in upon my mind, I threw off my recklessness, and went among my fellows and laughed and feasted. TheTyay’igamadance had been held before my return, so I missed that opportunity of making my deeds known in the sight of all men. Yet what mattered it, since the King still turned a deaf ear to my prayer, whatever brave acts I might perform? And no more war expeditions were then sent forth, our time being passed in hunting game and exploring the country far and wide.“At last I saw Nangeza. She was walking in a long file of other girls carrying bowls of the King’s beer, for although he had taken her into theIsigodhlo, Umzilikazi had not yet taken her to wife, though he might at any moment do so. No speech dared I obtain with her, but she understood my glance, and it would be hard but that I would find some opportunity. And this at length occurred.“She was hoeing a corn-patch bordered by thick bush which lay along the stream. It was the middle of the day, and there were few people about; wherefore I thought, ‘If I neglect to seize this opportunity when shall I find another?’ So, while the other girls who were with her had their backs turned, I showed myself and beckoned her. She understood, and after I had waited some time, she joined me.“She was hurried and rather frightened, which was not in the least surprising, for every moment she passed with me she was risking her life. But I whispered to her the tale I had not told the King, namely, how I had slain Gungana in pursuance of the plot we had laid together previously. She looked at me, and her face was full of admiration, of awe at my daring.“‘You are indeed great, Untúswa, and dare all things,’ she said. But still she shook her head. Things were different now. The King had taken her.“Then I reminded her of her prediction, that I should one day do great things, and that I meant to do them. Still she said that we had better speak with each other no more, lest we both lost our lives, for in a matter such as this the King would be merciless.“‘Attend now, Nangeza!’ I said at last, when we had talked for as long as we dared. ‘I have served the King well, and he has requited me ill. Now I will bear it no longer. I will leave, and seek out some other tribe beyond the mountains or elsewhere, and of that tribe I will make myself chief. And you shall accompany me. So shall the plan you proposed but a short while back find fulfilment.’“‘Are you going to move the world, Untúswa?’ she asked, laughing.“‘I will do great things,’ I answered. ‘How many tales have we among the people about men like myself who have made themselves into chiefs and kings! Well now, let us throw our lives into the venture, and strike a blow to be great or to fall in the attempt.’“‘We are very much more likely to do the last, Untúswa,’ she said, laughing again.“Now, when I looked at her I felt as though I would dare anything. She looked finer, handsomer than ever, and, being one of the King’s girls, had begun to do her hair up into the reddened cone, such as our married women wear, and which corresponds to our head-ring. This added to her height, and as I stood there I vowed she looked every inch aninkosikazi, and swore that she should certainly be one, did she but trust herself to me. And, although she laughed and shook her head, I knew that the thought, once implanted in her mind, would obtain firm root, for she was full of daring and ambition. Then we bade each other farewell.“After this meeting with Nangeza all manner of wild and ambitious plans took possession of my mind. I pictured to myself strange tribes among whom I would arrive, and to whom my prowess and valour should ensure me a welcome. Then I would seize the chieftainship, and federate a great nation, even as Tshaka had done, and Nangeza should help me to rule it. Day and night this idea was before me—by day I thought on it, by night I dreamed of it. But I did more. I secreted by degrees stores of provision at intervals between Ekupumuleni and the mountains, and even well into the mountains, with which my former experiences had rendered me familiar. This I did, knowing that in our flight we could carry but little; nor was it done all at once, but took many days, for little indeed could I take away at a time, and suspicion was easily aroused.”

“Not until I was clear of the mountains did I dare to travel daring the light of day, for it seemed certain we had not entirely stamped out thoseabatagati. Now and then I could see them in small parties creeping warily about the mountainside, and though I was well armed, yet I was but one man and they were many. So by day I lay in some safe hiding-place and rested, travelling only at night.Whau! but I liked it not. Those great mountain ranges seemed full of ghosts and the whispers of wizard voices in the darkness. But I had got rid of my enemy Gungana, who was ever striving to turn the King’s ear against me, and it seemed that now things would go well. So I sang softly to my guardian serpent as I stepped through that shadowy place, and my heart felt strong again.

“At length I came in sight of Ekupumuleni, lying fair and proud in its immense circle, and I loved the sight, for it spake to me of all that makes the life of a warrior glad—of our nation’s greatness, of the mustering ofimpis, of the war dance and the beer-drinking, of our tales and songs round the fires on cold nights, of adventure and of love. I stretched out my hands to the kraal Ekupumuleni, and I cried aloud the praises of the Black Elephant who sat therein.

“As I drew near I met no one at first, for our herds were all feeding on the other side. Then I came upon a group of oldamakehlawho had just sat down to take snuff, and among them was my father, Ntelani, who, as I have said, loved me not overmuch. And when he saw me he cried out in astonishment, bringing his hand to his mouth and spilling the snuff from his spoon.

“‘Ha, it is his ghost!’ he said; ‘for was he not killed?’

“‘No ghost is it, my father,’ I answered, sitting down among them. ‘I was not killed, but lost myself in the pursuit. The calf of the cow has come home again.’

“Then they questioned me, but I parried all their answers, telling them nothing, for I had determined to keep what I had seen for the ears of the King first, though I was not sure whether I ought not to bury it entirely, and place a flat stone upon it for ever, lest I opened a way to theizanusiat any time to lay a charge against me of having brought foulmútifrom among theabatagatiof the mountains. But my reserve angered them, and my father said:

“‘This calf bleats overload. Perchance he will bleat still louder before long, but not with delight.’

“I liked not his tone as he said this, and his look was one of malice. Immediately my heart felt heavy again, as though some evil awaited, so I bade them farewell and sped on to the kraal gates.

“Here I was hailed by many, for all thought of me as among the dead, several days having elapsed since the battle. But I spoke to none, pushing past all until I reached the entrance to theIsigodhlo, and there I threw down my shield and weapons, and called loud to those who attended within that the calf had returned to the kraal after strange wanderings. This I was bound in duty to do, for Umzilikazi made a point of being immediately informed when anything occurred; indeed, no event was too trifling and insignificant to be unworthy of his notice, although nine times out of ten he would appear to know nothing about it.

“I had not long stood thus without the fence before I received a summons to enter. Umzilikazi was seated upon a lion-skin in front of his house, and I thought he looked pleased as I drew near and shouted:

“‘Bayéte, ’Nkulu, ’nkulu! The calf has returned to the kraal of the Black Elephant.’

“‘Welcome, Untúswa!’ said the King. ‘I had thought to find another chief-runner—anotherinceku.’

“And then he bade me sit down and tell all that had befallen me.

“Now,Nkose, while I was beginning to tell my story, I thought, and thought hard, and, as a consequence, I determined to make no mention whatever of Gungana. If I should narrate his loathsome end, always suppressing how he had got into the hole, there were not wanting those who would assert that I had brought about his death. Even the King himself might suspect it. Indeed, I would have avoided all mention of the slaughter-cave of theIzimu, but my serpent whispered to me that one day it might come about that some of theseabatagatiwould be taken alive and brought before the King, and the whole story would come out. And then where would I be? Apart from the deadly crime of concealing aught from the King, should I not by my reticence have laid myself out to a charge of wizardry of the worst kind? So, except in the matter of Gungana, I told my story to the King, even as I have told it to you,Nkose. He listened with the deepest attention, but when I told how my appearance at the end of the line had scared theIzimu, who had expected to haul up dead meat, the King laughed as I never heard man laugh before or since.

“‘Whau! That is a great tale!’ he cried. ‘In truth, Untúswa, thy doings have been strange. But these Baputi—they fought well! Think you that theIzimuare of their tribe?’

“‘That I know not, O Great Great One. They seemed to me of the same race.’

“‘Ha! I like not these wizards who hide behind rocks. I lose too many warriors for their wretched cattle and women, and their own miserable carcases slain. I have a mind to leave them in peace now.’

“Thus the King talked on familiarly with me, as was his wont. At last he bade me depart. But I, noting his good-humour, and that he seemed glad to see me once more, reckoned the moment a favourable one, and renewed my request to be allowed totunga. Immediately the countenance of the Great Great One grew stern and his speech changed.

“‘What was the condition I named the first time you asked this, son of Ntelani?’ he said. ‘What was my “word” to you then?’

“‘The “word” of the King was: “Perform some act bolder than any act I have ever heard tell of.”’ I answered. ‘Thus did the Great Great One speak.’

“‘Thus did I speak, Untúswa. And it seems to me that the condition has not yet been accomplished. Now go.’

“I was of a different opinion, but not another word did I say. I cried out ‘Bayéte.’ and left the King.

“Then those among whom I moved hailed me joyfully, and would have heard my story; but in truth I was ill inclined for mirth and chatter. I felt sore at heart and revengeful. Thrice had the King put me off, and who had fought his battles more bravely than I—who had slain more of his enemies in open fight? So I left my comrades, being minded to wander alone.

“‘Greeting, son of Ntelani!’

“I turned quickly at the harsh, quavering croak. I was passing the hut of old Masuka. He it was who had hailed me.

“‘Ha-ha!’ he chuckled. ‘Do you desire to behold moremúti, O traveller through the heart of the earth?’

“I answered him roughly, for he seemed but to mock me.

“‘Aninduna’shead-ring upon a floor of bones,’ he went on, speaking softly as though to himself. ‘The deadwithinthe living.’

“‘Hau!’ I cried, bringing my hand to my mouth and fairly leaping, so astounded was I. But the old man met my glance with ever so faint a grin as I stared wildly at him. This was too marvellous. What did not this terrible old wizard know? The grim secret of Gungana’s end could not have been more exhaustively described.

“‘What is not possible to thee, O my father!’ I exclaimed. ‘Help me to gain my heart’s desire, thou who didst promise that I should obtain it. For again has the King refused it.’

“‘What was the condition the King attached to the fulfilment of his promise, Untúswa?’ he said, fixing his snake-like eyes upon my face.

“‘That I should perform some act braver than any he had ever heard tell of.’

“‘Then—perform it. Perform such an act, son of Ntelani;’ and, laughing softly, Masuka turned and went into his hut.

“Angry that he should mock me, yet dreading his knowledge and power, I left him. Then, for solitude, I wandered out of the kraal, and unconsciously directed my way towards where the cattle were being herded—unconsciously, because in my then mood I had no desire to encounter Nangeza. Of what avail was it, since my head-ring was as far distant as ever?

“Soon I came upon one I recognised. This was Nangeza’s little sister, Sitele. But she was alone, and it seemed to me that on beholding me she wished to avoid speech with me, for she immediately began driving calves in a direction where it was not in the least necessary, or even desirable, they should go. So I called out to her, and she stopped.

“‘Why are you alone, Sitele?’ I said. ‘Where is Nangeza?’

“‘Can I see people at a distance?’ was the answer. ‘She is not here.’

“I could see her manner was full of confusion, and now I began to fear I knew not what.

“‘Where is she, Sitele?’ I cried again.

“‘Au! I know not. She dwells in my father’s house no more.’

“That was quick work! Who could have sentlobolaand taken her away in those few days during which I had been absent?

“‘Who has taken her, Sitele? Gungana is dead.’

“‘There is a greater than Gungana.’

“‘Kalipe?’ I cried, my thoughts flying to the King’s favourite war-chief. ‘Is it Kalipe?’

“‘There is a greater than Kalipe.’

“‘Ha! the King!’

“‘She is in theIsigodhlo,’ said the child, fixing her eyes in fear upon my face. And well she might, for I forgot all control, and my eyes blazed furiously as I gripped my assegai and poured forth words which had any man heard, I should have seen not another sun to set. For I was mad. Not only had the King been making a mock of me all this time, but now he had put forth his hand and taken her upon whom my heart was set. I was young then,Nkose, and therefore a fool, and did not reason as I should have done that there were other girls among the Amandebili as good as Nangeza.

“‘Hau! Do we not all lie beneath the foot of the Elephant, and his tread is light!’ I said, remembering myself. ‘Farewell, Sitele. The Great Great One has chosen well.’

“And I walked away.

“But although I thus spoke before the child, I was full of rage in my heart, and pondered over plans of deadly vengeance, wherein, of course, I was a fool, as an angry man ever is. And he who ponders vengeance against kings may well ponder also on the land of shadows and perpetual sleep, for into it must he soon assuredly fall.

“As this was borne in upon my mind, I threw off my recklessness, and went among my fellows and laughed and feasted. TheTyay’igamadance had been held before my return, so I missed that opportunity of making my deeds known in the sight of all men. Yet what mattered it, since the King still turned a deaf ear to my prayer, whatever brave acts I might perform? And no more war expeditions were then sent forth, our time being passed in hunting game and exploring the country far and wide.

“At last I saw Nangeza. She was walking in a long file of other girls carrying bowls of the King’s beer, for although he had taken her into theIsigodhlo, Umzilikazi had not yet taken her to wife, though he might at any moment do so. No speech dared I obtain with her, but she understood my glance, and it would be hard but that I would find some opportunity. And this at length occurred.

“She was hoeing a corn-patch bordered by thick bush which lay along the stream. It was the middle of the day, and there were few people about; wherefore I thought, ‘If I neglect to seize this opportunity when shall I find another?’ So, while the other girls who were with her had their backs turned, I showed myself and beckoned her. She understood, and after I had waited some time, she joined me.

“She was hurried and rather frightened, which was not in the least surprising, for every moment she passed with me she was risking her life. But I whispered to her the tale I had not told the King, namely, how I had slain Gungana in pursuance of the plot we had laid together previously. She looked at me, and her face was full of admiration, of awe at my daring.

“‘You are indeed great, Untúswa, and dare all things,’ she said. But still she shook her head. Things were different now. The King had taken her.

“Then I reminded her of her prediction, that I should one day do great things, and that I meant to do them. Still she said that we had better speak with each other no more, lest we both lost our lives, for in a matter such as this the King would be merciless.

“‘Attend now, Nangeza!’ I said at last, when we had talked for as long as we dared. ‘I have served the King well, and he has requited me ill. Now I will bear it no longer. I will leave, and seek out some other tribe beyond the mountains or elsewhere, and of that tribe I will make myself chief. And you shall accompany me. So shall the plan you proposed but a short while back find fulfilment.’

“‘Are you going to move the world, Untúswa?’ she asked, laughing.

“‘I will do great things,’ I answered. ‘How many tales have we among the people about men like myself who have made themselves into chiefs and kings! Well now, let us throw our lives into the venture, and strike a blow to be great or to fall in the attempt.’

“‘We are very much more likely to do the last, Untúswa,’ she said, laughing again.

“Now, when I looked at her I felt as though I would dare anything. She looked finer, handsomer than ever, and, being one of the King’s girls, had begun to do her hair up into the reddened cone, such as our married women wear, and which corresponds to our head-ring. This added to her height, and as I stood there I vowed she looked every inch aninkosikazi, and swore that she should certainly be one, did she but trust herself to me. And, although she laughed and shook her head, I knew that the thought, once implanted in her mind, would obtain firm root, for she was full of daring and ambition. Then we bade each other farewell.

“After this meeting with Nangeza all manner of wild and ambitious plans took possession of my mind. I pictured to myself strange tribes among whom I would arrive, and to whom my prowess and valour should ensure me a welcome. Then I would seize the chieftainship, and federate a great nation, even as Tshaka had done, and Nangeza should help me to rule it. Day and night this idea was before me—by day I thought on it, by night I dreamed of it. But I did more. I secreted by degrees stores of provision at intervals between Ekupumuleni and the mountains, and even well into the mountains, with which my former experiences had rendered me familiar. This I did, knowing that in our flight we could carry but little; nor was it done all at once, but took many days, for little indeed could I take away at a time, and suspicion was easily aroused.”

Chapter Thirteen.In Outlawry.“Just at this time there arrived chiefs and headmen, delegates from distant tribes, desiring tokonza(Acknowledge as suzerain) to Umzilikazi, for the terror of his name and the sound of our arms had gone forth far and wide. These were received in great state, several of our regiments’ being drawn up under arms, a sight which struck such awe into the envoys as to make them declare that, now their eyes had beheld the great King and had looked upon his might, they only desired to lie in his hand. The King accepted the cattle they had brought, and fixed the tribute they should from time to time pay in girls and cattle; also he ordered them to send contingents of youths to Ekupumuleni, that he might inspect them and see if they were good enough to form into regiments, or only to be employed in menial labour. All this the chiefs promised to do, and in truth were they only too glad that they and theirs should be suffered to live, for they had long feared being swept off the face of the earth, stamped flat in the path of this warrior nation moving on towards them.“But Umzilikazi was a wise and far-seeing ruler. Even as Tshaka had built up the Zulu power by federating kindred tribes into a whole, so did our King intend to consolidate a nation. These subject races would go towards augmenting his sway when their youth should be trained to arms as ours was. Indeed, I have heard it whispered that he even dreamed of one day pitting his forces against the mighty Tshaka himself, and reigning King over the whole Zulu race. So it was his policy to spare these chiefs and the tribes they represented, and to receive them as vassals.“When these terms had been arranged, the King said:“‘It seems to me that some are wanting here, that the places of some who should be here are empty.’“The chiefs looked at each other. There was a tribe to the north, they said, which was not represented. As to it, however, they could say nothing, for they knew nothing, they declared, trembling in their hearts lest Umzilikazi should hold them responsible.“‘Attend, then,’ he replied. ‘Lose no time in sending to the chiefs of this tribe, that they come and talk with me here before the second moon is full. Failing that, I will send and talk with them.’ And his glance wandered meaningly to the armed regiments. The envoys promised that this should be done, but that if the tribe failed to send delegates it would not be their fault. Indeed, that people was a fighting race, and one with a good conceit of its own power. It might well be that in its blind ignorance it would refuse to hear the word of the Black Elephant who trumpeted at Ekupumuleni.“‘Then let them beware of the Elephant’s tread,’ answered the King shortly. And then he dismissed the envoys.“Now, I, standing behind the Great Great One as his shield-bearer, was listening with large ears, and before the delegates departed I strove to have speech with them on the matter of that tribe, its numbers and powers, for it seemed to fit in with my purpose. What if I fled to it, and by my knowledge of the art of war gained a place and position among it? But these men, fearing a trap, spoke as with closed lips, and I learnt little.“As time went by, certain of those tribes who had sent tokonzato Umzilikazi neglected to fulfil the conditions laid upon them. So the King’s ‘word’ went out to them in the form of animpi, which fell upon them unawares and utterly destroyed them. None were spared save three of their chiefs and certain of the women who were young and well-favoured. For the rest, the ashes of their flaming kraals were soaked in their own blood. The three chiefs were brought to Ekupumuleni and there put to death by torture in the sight of all the nation, that all men might know what it meant to break faith with the great King.“This expedition I did not accompany, for it was composed of very young regiments and almost untried. But now and again, when I would meet or pass old Masuka, he would mutter: ‘Why do you not perform what the King requires, son of Ntelani? Where is the bravest act ever yet done?’ And he would nod, and leer, and chuckle in such wise that in my anger I found myself wishing in my heart I had not saved his life.“There was at this time anotherinceku, a ringed man named Njalo-njalo, and this man I hated, for he, suspecting something, used to declare that he would beg the King to give him Nangeza to wife. This he did in malice, for he, too, was jealous me as having the King’s ear, and what made it worse was that I dared not chastise him, for that would be to betray myself completely. But I made up my mind that he should travel the way of Gungana, for the man who would meet with success must suffer no enemy to rest in his path. So I laid numberless traps for him, but he was too crafty to walk into any one of them.“At length I found Nangeza alone, even as before, at work in the cornfield, and this time she was accompanied by only two young girls who were almost children; and this made things easier, for she bade them continue their hoeing while she herself entered the bush to collect fire-sticks. Ha! then were we together again. The moment was ripe. I told her of all the preparations I had made for our flight, and for long had only been awaiting an opportunity. Such an opportunity had come. There were few if any people about. In a short time it would be dark, and by travelling all night we should soon reach the mountains, where we could easily elude pursuit. She listened, but even then I know not whether she would have consented were it not for an accident.“Looking out from the cover of our hiding-place, we could see a good distance. The ground on the other side of the cornfield was a gradual slope sprinkled with stunted mimosa, and now something moving over this caught my eye. It was the receding figure of a man, but what seemed strange was a certain stealthiness in his movements as he flitted from bush to bush as though anxious to avoid observation. Even at that distance I recognised Njalo-njalo.“‘Hau! we are dead already!’ I cried. Not that I felt any real consternation, but I deemed it an excellent opportunity of obtaining through her fears that consent to my plan which fear had up till now withheld. ‘Do you see that man? It is Njalo-njalo. He has been watching us, and has gone to bring an armed force upon our heels. But we shall have a long start, and it will be a swift-travellingimpithat will overtake us. Delay not,’ I went on, seeing her still hesitate. ‘To go back now is death, and worse. Remember the fate of the three chiefs.’“That decided her. She called out to the two girls to continue their work and wait for her—that she had not yet found what she wanted. Then she returned to me, and said: ‘I am ready.’ Thus we began our flight.“Carefully keeping concealed—and the country on that side was thickly wooded—we travelled rapidly for some distance. Then, as the sun was beginning to sink, we sat down to rest for a moment, and look around.“We had now reached the top of a long hill of some little height. Looking back, we could see afar off the corn-patch where Nangeza had been working, and—we could see more: shields and the glitter of spear-points. An armed force was moving down the slope upon which I had descried Njalo-njalo, in the distance looking like a swarm of black ants. Already were we pursued.“But we had a good start. As we rose immediately to continue our flight, I laughed aloud, for I felt as though I could keep on for ever. Not a man in our nation was there who could overtake me, the King’s chief runner. But what of Nangeza? In her lay the weakness. For her I feared. Yet I need not have. Her powers were magnificent. I soon found that she had it in her to travel as fast as I could, and as far. And then we laughed together, for we would lead the King’s messengers of death a long journey indeed. But fast as we fled, still they pursued us; and as we sped onward in the darkness, we could ever and again, when we paused on some high ground to listen, hear the sounds of disturbed animal life behind us, which told of the passing of man.“Suddenly a lion roared, so near in front of us that the thunders of his voice seemed to shake the ground, rolling in echoes among the hills. Another answered, and then the two mighty beasts kept up such a roaring chorus as to make a man’s heart melt away for fear, situated as I was—as we were—the jaws of the ravening beasts before us in the darkness, the spears of the King’simpifollowing on behind. There was just the chance that the latter would halt until it grew light, but none whatever that the lions would refrain from springing upon us, having us in the darkness for an easy prey. So we climbed each into a tree, to be beyond that peril, any way; and, indeed, hardly had we done so, than we heard the light tread and deep-toned snuffle of the great beasts ramping beneath. Then they lifted their voices and roared again, and now others replied from afar, and it seemed that the whole land was filled with roaring lions.“We remained all night in the trees, but with morning, lo! such a mist lay upon the earth that from where we crouched we could hardly see the ground beneath, and our hearts sank; for, not seeing our way, we might walk backward instead of forward, or we might run right upon the spears of those who pursued us. Yet we were not without some hope that the latter, doubting not but that we had been devoured by the lions, might return to the King and report accordingly.“We were about to descend from our trees, thinking that the mist had lightened, when a sound fell upon our ears; and it was a sound there was no mistaking, for it is like nothing else that I know of—I mean the soft rattle of assegai hafts which a man carries bunched in his hand.Hau! We dared hardly so much as breathe. The sound drew nearer and nearer, and we could hear the rustling as of men forcing their way through bushes. Then we gave ourselves up for lost, as they came immediately beneath, conversing in a low hum.“‘If the lions have eaten them, they will not have eaten theirmútyas, nor Untúswa’s shield and spears,’ a voice was saying. ‘These, at any rate, we must find.’“I recognised the voice as that of Njalo-njalo, and expected instant discovery. However, they seemed so intent on examining the spoors of the lions that their eyes were all upon the ground, and it never seemed to occur to them to look up; though, indeed, had they searched for us on such a plan in that forest country, their eyes would have been gazing upward all the time; and at length they passed on, yet little comfort did we take to ourselves, for in the mist we knew not which way to travel, whereas, did it lighten, we should be discovered to the messengers of death.“We waited a little while longer, and then came down from our trees. Yet we decided not to follow on the line we had first intended to take, and which took us into that defile through which theimpihad passed to attack the Baputi, because those who sought us would be certain to make for that place first, reckoning that I would surely go there, where the land was already known to me. So we struck off nearly in the opposite direction to that taken by the pursuers, although this brought us back too near to Ekupumuleni. However, we saw them no more, and after three days—for travelling was slow and cautious, and at night we had to climb trees because of the lions—we got among the mountains.“And now it seemed as though we had left the abodes of men, and were setting forth into an unknown land stretching away beyond the confines of the world; for here were great gloomy valleys and towering cliff-walls, resounding with the deep bark of the baboon and the scream of the eagle. But of man there was no sign. At night we would creep into some crevice or hole in the rocks, but it was seldom we dared make a fire, lest its light should be seen afar. Sometimes, however, we would find a deep cleft where the light would be screened by the rock in front, and then we would rejoice in the warmth while we roasted our game at the comforting blaze, for the mountain—side abounded in several species of small buck, which I had no difficulty in obtaining at any time with assegai or knobstick. But there was other game more fierce, more formidable. Once, indeed, when we were about to take possession of such a cave for our night’s quarters, we found it already tenanted by a fierce and growling leopard. We could see the brute’s glittering eyes in the darkness as it retreated to the back of the hole and crouched there, uttering savage snarls; but that was all we could see of it, so we were fain to leave it in peace. Now and again, too, we would hear the roar of a lion hard by, but this was seldom, for there were few lions among the mountains. They preferred to hunt for their game in the lower country, where it was larger and better, and, indeed, our armies were wont to provide them with not a little prey.”

“Just at this time there arrived chiefs and headmen, delegates from distant tribes, desiring tokonza(Acknowledge as suzerain) to Umzilikazi, for the terror of his name and the sound of our arms had gone forth far and wide. These were received in great state, several of our regiments’ being drawn up under arms, a sight which struck such awe into the envoys as to make them declare that, now their eyes had beheld the great King and had looked upon his might, they only desired to lie in his hand. The King accepted the cattle they had brought, and fixed the tribute they should from time to time pay in girls and cattle; also he ordered them to send contingents of youths to Ekupumuleni, that he might inspect them and see if they were good enough to form into regiments, or only to be employed in menial labour. All this the chiefs promised to do, and in truth were they only too glad that they and theirs should be suffered to live, for they had long feared being swept off the face of the earth, stamped flat in the path of this warrior nation moving on towards them.

“But Umzilikazi was a wise and far-seeing ruler. Even as Tshaka had built up the Zulu power by federating kindred tribes into a whole, so did our King intend to consolidate a nation. These subject races would go towards augmenting his sway when their youth should be trained to arms as ours was. Indeed, I have heard it whispered that he even dreamed of one day pitting his forces against the mighty Tshaka himself, and reigning King over the whole Zulu race. So it was his policy to spare these chiefs and the tribes they represented, and to receive them as vassals.

“When these terms had been arranged, the King said:

“‘It seems to me that some are wanting here, that the places of some who should be here are empty.’

“The chiefs looked at each other. There was a tribe to the north, they said, which was not represented. As to it, however, they could say nothing, for they knew nothing, they declared, trembling in their hearts lest Umzilikazi should hold them responsible.

“‘Attend, then,’ he replied. ‘Lose no time in sending to the chiefs of this tribe, that they come and talk with me here before the second moon is full. Failing that, I will send and talk with them.’ And his glance wandered meaningly to the armed regiments. The envoys promised that this should be done, but that if the tribe failed to send delegates it would not be their fault. Indeed, that people was a fighting race, and one with a good conceit of its own power. It might well be that in its blind ignorance it would refuse to hear the word of the Black Elephant who trumpeted at Ekupumuleni.

“‘Then let them beware of the Elephant’s tread,’ answered the King shortly. And then he dismissed the envoys.

“Now, I, standing behind the Great Great One as his shield-bearer, was listening with large ears, and before the delegates departed I strove to have speech with them on the matter of that tribe, its numbers and powers, for it seemed to fit in with my purpose. What if I fled to it, and by my knowledge of the art of war gained a place and position among it? But these men, fearing a trap, spoke as with closed lips, and I learnt little.

“As time went by, certain of those tribes who had sent tokonzato Umzilikazi neglected to fulfil the conditions laid upon them. So the King’s ‘word’ went out to them in the form of animpi, which fell upon them unawares and utterly destroyed them. None were spared save three of their chiefs and certain of the women who were young and well-favoured. For the rest, the ashes of their flaming kraals were soaked in their own blood. The three chiefs were brought to Ekupumuleni and there put to death by torture in the sight of all the nation, that all men might know what it meant to break faith with the great King.

“This expedition I did not accompany, for it was composed of very young regiments and almost untried. But now and again, when I would meet or pass old Masuka, he would mutter: ‘Why do you not perform what the King requires, son of Ntelani? Where is the bravest act ever yet done?’ And he would nod, and leer, and chuckle in such wise that in my anger I found myself wishing in my heart I had not saved his life.

“There was at this time anotherinceku, a ringed man named Njalo-njalo, and this man I hated, for he, suspecting something, used to declare that he would beg the King to give him Nangeza to wife. This he did in malice, for he, too, was jealous me as having the King’s ear, and what made it worse was that I dared not chastise him, for that would be to betray myself completely. But I made up my mind that he should travel the way of Gungana, for the man who would meet with success must suffer no enemy to rest in his path. So I laid numberless traps for him, but he was too crafty to walk into any one of them.

“At length I found Nangeza alone, even as before, at work in the cornfield, and this time she was accompanied by only two young girls who were almost children; and this made things easier, for she bade them continue their hoeing while she herself entered the bush to collect fire-sticks. Ha! then were we together again. The moment was ripe. I told her of all the preparations I had made for our flight, and for long had only been awaiting an opportunity. Such an opportunity had come. There were few if any people about. In a short time it would be dark, and by travelling all night we should soon reach the mountains, where we could easily elude pursuit. She listened, but even then I know not whether she would have consented were it not for an accident.

“Looking out from the cover of our hiding-place, we could see a good distance. The ground on the other side of the cornfield was a gradual slope sprinkled with stunted mimosa, and now something moving over this caught my eye. It was the receding figure of a man, but what seemed strange was a certain stealthiness in his movements as he flitted from bush to bush as though anxious to avoid observation. Even at that distance I recognised Njalo-njalo.

“‘Hau! we are dead already!’ I cried. Not that I felt any real consternation, but I deemed it an excellent opportunity of obtaining through her fears that consent to my plan which fear had up till now withheld. ‘Do you see that man? It is Njalo-njalo. He has been watching us, and has gone to bring an armed force upon our heels. But we shall have a long start, and it will be a swift-travellingimpithat will overtake us. Delay not,’ I went on, seeing her still hesitate. ‘To go back now is death, and worse. Remember the fate of the three chiefs.’

“That decided her. She called out to the two girls to continue their work and wait for her—that she had not yet found what she wanted. Then she returned to me, and said: ‘I am ready.’ Thus we began our flight.

“Carefully keeping concealed—and the country on that side was thickly wooded—we travelled rapidly for some distance. Then, as the sun was beginning to sink, we sat down to rest for a moment, and look around.

“We had now reached the top of a long hill of some little height. Looking back, we could see afar off the corn-patch where Nangeza had been working, and—we could see more: shields and the glitter of spear-points. An armed force was moving down the slope upon which I had descried Njalo-njalo, in the distance looking like a swarm of black ants. Already were we pursued.

“But we had a good start. As we rose immediately to continue our flight, I laughed aloud, for I felt as though I could keep on for ever. Not a man in our nation was there who could overtake me, the King’s chief runner. But what of Nangeza? In her lay the weakness. For her I feared. Yet I need not have. Her powers were magnificent. I soon found that she had it in her to travel as fast as I could, and as far. And then we laughed together, for we would lead the King’s messengers of death a long journey indeed. But fast as we fled, still they pursued us; and as we sped onward in the darkness, we could ever and again, when we paused on some high ground to listen, hear the sounds of disturbed animal life behind us, which told of the passing of man.

“Suddenly a lion roared, so near in front of us that the thunders of his voice seemed to shake the ground, rolling in echoes among the hills. Another answered, and then the two mighty beasts kept up such a roaring chorus as to make a man’s heart melt away for fear, situated as I was—as we were—the jaws of the ravening beasts before us in the darkness, the spears of the King’simpifollowing on behind. There was just the chance that the latter would halt until it grew light, but none whatever that the lions would refrain from springing upon us, having us in the darkness for an easy prey. So we climbed each into a tree, to be beyond that peril, any way; and, indeed, hardly had we done so, than we heard the light tread and deep-toned snuffle of the great beasts ramping beneath. Then they lifted their voices and roared again, and now others replied from afar, and it seemed that the whole land was filled with roaring lions.

“We remained all night in the trees, but with morning, lo! such a mist lay upon the earth that from where we crouched we could hardly see the ground beneath, and our hearts sank; for, not seeing our way, we might walk backward instead of forward, or we might run right upon the spears of those who pursued us. Yet we were not without some hope that the latter, doubting not but that we had been devoured by the lions, might return to the King and report accordingly.

“We were about to descend from our trees, thinking that the mist had lightened, when a sound fell upon our ears; and it was a sound there was no mistaking, for it is like nothing else that I know of—I mean the soft rattle of assegai hafts which a man carries bunched in his hand.Hau! We dared hardly so much as breathe. The sound drew nearer and nearer, and we could hear the rustling as of men forcing their way through bushes. Then we gave ourselves up for lost, as they came immediately beneath, conversing in a low hum.

“‘If the lions have eaten them, they will not have eaten theirmútyas, nor Untúswa’s shield and spears,’ a voice was saying. ‘These, at any rate, we must find.’

“I recognised the voice as that of Njalo-njalo, and expected instant discovery. However, they seemed so intent on examining the spoors of the lions that their eyes were all upon the ground, and it never seemed to occur to them to look up; though, indeed, had they searched for us on such a plan in that forest country, their eyes would have been gazing upward all the time; and at length they passed on, yet little comfort did we take to ourselves, for in the mist we knew not which way to travel, whereas, did it lighten, we should be discovered to the messengers of death.

“We waited a little while longer, and then came down from our trees. Yet we decided not to follow on the line we had first intended to take, and which took us into that defile through which theimpihad passed to attack the Baputi, because those who sought us would be certain to make for that place first, reckoning that I would surely go there, where the land was already known to me. So we struck off nearly in the opposite direction to that taken by the pursuers, although this brought us back too near to Ekupumuleni. However, we saw them no more, and after three days—for travelling was slow and cautious, and at night we had to climb trees because of the lions—we got among the mountains.

“And now it seemed as though we had left the abodes of men, and were setting forth into an unknown land stretching away beyond the confines of the world; for here were great gloomy valleys and towering cliff-walls, resounding with the deep bark of the baboon and the scream of the eagle. But of man there was no sign. At night we would creep into some crevice or hole in the rocks, but it was seldom we dared make a fire, lest its light should be seen afar. Sometimes, however, we would find a deep cleft where the light would be screened by the rock in front, and then we would rejoice in the warmth while we roasted our game at the comforting blaze, for the mountain—side abounded in several species of small buck, which I had no difficulty in obtaining at any time with assegai or knobstick. But there was other game more fierce, more formidable. Once, indeed, when we were about to take possession of such a cave for our night’s quarters, we found it already tenanted by a fierce and growling leopard. We could see the brute’s glittering eyes in the darkness as it retreated to the back of the hole and crouched there, uttering savage snarls; but that was all we could see of it, so we were fain to leave it in peace. Now and again, too, we would hear the roar of a lion hard by, but this was seldom, for there were few lions among the mountains. They preferred to hunt for their game in the lower country, where it was larger and better, and, indeed, our armies were wont to provide them with not a little prey.”

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