This Was For The Purpose Of Making Us His
Tools In His Conflict With His Brothers.
I complained that he
had, without consulting me, ordered away the men who had been
sent, either to fetch
Me back to Uganda, or else get powder from
me, although they had orders to carry out their king's desire,
under the threat of being burnt with the fire logs they carried;
and all this Kamrasi had professed to do merely out of respect
for my dignity, as I was no slave, that Mtesa should order me
about. I argued, founding on each particular in succession, that
his conduct throughout was most unjustifiable, and anything but
friendly. He then produced an officer, who was to escort my man
Msalima to Karague, giving him orders to collect the sixty men
required on the way; five of Rumanika's men could go with him,
but five must stop, until other Karague men came to say the road
was safe, when he would send by them the present he had prepared
for Rumanika.
Then, turning to us, he said, "Why have you not brought the
medicine-chest and the saw? We wish to see everything you have
got, though we do not wish to rob you." When these things came
for inspection, he coveted the saw, and discovered there were
more varieties of medicine in the chest than had been given him.
This he was told was not the case, because the papers given him
contained mixed medicines - a little being taken from every
bottle. "But there are no pills; why won't you give us pills?
We have men, women, and children who require pills as well as you
do." We were much annoyed by this dogged begging; and as he
said, "Well, if you won't give my anything, I will go," we at
once rose, hat in hand; when, regretting the hastiness of his
speech, he begged us to be seated again, and renewed his demands.
We told him the road to Gani was the only condition on which we
would part with any more medicine; we had asked leave to go a
hundred times, and that was all we now desired. At last he rose
and walked off in a huff; but, repenting before he reached home,
he sent us a pot of pombe, when, in return, I finished the farce
by sending him a box of pills.
30th. - I gave Msalima a letter in the Kisuahili or coast language
to convey to Rumanika, ordering all my property to be sent here,
his account of the things as they left him to be given to Msalima
to convey to the coast, while I sent him one pound of gunpowder
as a sort of agency fee. Msalima also took a map of all the
countries we had passed, with lunar observations, and a letter to
Rigby, by which he, Baraka, and Uledi would be able to draw their
pay on arrival.
31st. - I sent Frij with a letter to the king, containing an
acknowledgment that, on the arrival of the rear property from
Karague, he would be entitled to half of everything, reserving
the other half for any person I might in future send to take them
from him. He accepted the letter, and put it into his mzungu -
the tin box I had given him. He said he would take every care of
the kit from the time it arrived, and would not touch his share
of it till my deputy arrived. An inhabitant of Chopi reported
that he heard Bombay's gun fire the evening before he left home,
and was rewarded with the present of a cow.
1st. - I purchased a small kitten, Felis serval, from an Unyoro
man, who requested me to give it back to him to eat if it was
likely to die, for it is considered very good food in Unyoro.
Bombay at last arrived with Mabruki in high glee, dressed in
cotton jumpers and drawers, presents given them by Petherick's
outpost. Petherick himself was not there. The journey to and fro
was performed in fourteen days' actual travelling, the rest of
the time being frittered away by the guides. The jemadar of the
guard said he commanded two hundred Turks, and had orders to wait
for me, without any limit as to time, until I should arrive, when
Petherick's name would be pointed out to me cut on a tree; but as
no one in camp could read my letter, they were doubtful whether
we were the party they were looking out for.
They were all armed with elephant-guns, and had killed sixteen
elephants. Petherick had gone down the river eight days'
journey, but was expected to return shortly. Kamrasi would not
see Bombay immediately on his return, but sent him some pombe,
and desired an interview the following day.
2d. - I sent Bombay with a farewell present to Kamrasi, consisting
of one tent, one mosquito-curtain, one roll of bindera or red
cotton cloth, one digester pot, one saw, six copper wires, one
box of beads, containing six varieties of the best sort, and a
request to leave his country. Much pleased with the things,
Kamrasi ordered the tent to be pitched before all his court,
pointed out to them what clever people the white people are,
making iron pots instead of earthen ones. Covetous and never
satisfied, however, instead of returning thanks, he said he was
sure I must have more beads than those I sent him; and, instead
of granting the leave asked for, said he would think about it,
and send the Kamraviona in the evening with his answer. This,
when it came, was anything but satisfactory; for we were required
to stop here until the king should have prepared the people on
the road for our coming, so that they might not be surprised, or
try to molest us on the way. Kamrasi, however, returned the
books of birds and animals, requesting a picture of the king of
Uganda to be drawn for him, and gave us one pot of pombe.
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