The King Waived The Point, And We All Started,
Carrying As A Present The Things Enumerated In The Note.[FN#24]
The Union Jack Led The Way.
At the ferry three shots were fired,
when, stepping into two large canoes, we all went across the Kafu
together, and found, to our surprise, a small hut built for the
reception, low down on the opposite bank, where no strange eyes
could see us.
Within this, sitting on a low wooden stool placed upon a double
matting of skins - cows' below and leopards' above - on an elevated
platform of grass, was the great king Kamrasi, looking,
enshrouded in his mbugu dress, for all the world like a pope in
state - calm and actionless. One bracelet of fine-twisted brass
wire adorned his left wrist, and his hair, half an inch long, was
worked up into small peppercorn-like knobs by rubbing the hand
circularly over the crown of the head. His eyes were long, face
narrow, and nose prominent, after the true fashion of his breed;
and though a finely-made man, considerably above six feet high,
he was not so large as Rumanika. A cow-skin, stretched out and
fastened to the roof, acted as a canopy to prevent dust falling,
and a curtain of mbugu concealed the lower parts of the hut, in
front of which, on both sides of the king, sat about a dozen head
men.
This was all. We entered and took seats on our own iron stools,
whilst Bombay placed all the presents upon the ground before the
throne. As no greetings were exchanged, and all at first
remained as silent as death, I commenced, after asking about his
health, by saying I had journeyed six long years (by the African
computation of five months in the year) for the pleasure of this
meeting, coming by Karague instead of by the Nile, because the
"Wanya Beri" (Bari people at Gondokoro) had defeated the projects
of all former attempts made by white men to reach Unyoro. The
purpose of my coming was to ascertain whether his majesty would
like to trade with our country, exchanging ivory for articles of
European manufacture; as, should he do so, merchants would come
here in the same way as they went from Zanzibar to Karague.
Rumanika and Mtesa were both anxious for trade, and I felt sorry
he would not listen to my advice and make friend with Mtesa; for
unless the influence of trade was brought in to check the Waganda
from pillaging the country, nothing would do so.
Kamrasi, in a very quiet, mild manner, instead of answering the
questions, told us of the absurd stories which he had heard from
the Waganda, said he did not believe them, else his rivers,
deprived of their fountains, would have run dry; and he thought,
if we did eat hills and the tender parts of mankind, we should
have had enough to satisfy our appetites before we reached
Unyoro. Now, however, he was glad to see that, although our hair
was straight and our faces white, we still possessed hands and
feel like other men.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 338 of 403
Words from 176621 to 177144
of 210958
