When I arrived at my hut
I found a messenger sent by the queen, with a present of a
Goat,
called "fowls for Bana, my son," and a load of plantains, called
potatoes, waiting for me; so I gave the bearer fundo of mtende
beads, and told again the reasons why I had not been able to call
upon the queen, but I hoped to do so shortly, as the king had
promised me a house near at hand. I doubt, however, whether one
word of my message ever reached her. That she wanted me at her
palace was evident by the present, though she was either too
proud or too cautious to say so.
At night I overheard a chat between Sangizo, a Myamuezi, and
Ntalo, a freed man of Zanzibar, very characteristic of their way
of chaffing. Sangizo opened the battle by saying, "Ntalo, who
are you?" N. "A Mguana" (freed man). S. "A Mguana, indeed! then
where is your mother?" N. "She died at Anguja." S. "Your mother
died at Anguja! then where is your father?" N. "He died at
Anguja likewise." S. "Well, that is strange; and where are your
brothers and sister?" N. "They all died at Anguja." S. (then
changing the word Anguja for Anguza, says to Ntalo) "I think you
said your mother and father both died at Anguza, did you not?"
N. "Yes, at Anguza." S. "Then you had two mothers and two
fathers - one set died at Anguja, and the other set at Anguza; you
are a humbug; I don't believe you; you are no Mguana, but a slave
who has been snatched from his family, and does not know where
any of his family are. Ah! ah! ah!" And all the men of the camp
laugh together at the wretched Ntalo's defeat; but Ntalo won't be
done, so retorts by saying, "Sangizo, you may laugh at me because
I am an orphan, but what are you? you are a savage - a Mshezi; you
come from the Mashenzi, and you wear skins, not cloths, as men
do; so hold your impudent tongue"; - and the camp pealed with
merry boisterous laughter again.
9th. - Early in the morning, and whilst I was in bed, the king
sent his pages to request me to visit his royal mother, with some
specific for the itch, with which her majesty was then afflicted.
I said I could not go so far in the sun; I would wait till I
received the promised palace near her. In the meanwhile I
prepared to call on him. I observed, in fact, that I was an
object of jealousy between the two courts, and that, if I acted
skilfully and decidedly, I might become master of the situation,
and secure my darling object of a passage northwards. The boys
returned, bringing a pistol to be cleaned, and a message to say
it was no use my thinking of calling on the king - that I must go
to the queen immediately, for she was very ill.
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