- I again urged Lumeresi to help on Grant, saying
it was incumbent on him to call M'yonga to account
For
maltreating Grant's porters, who were his own subjects, else the
road would be shut up - he would lose all the hongos he laid on
caravans - and he would not be able to send his own ivory down to
the coast. This appeal had its effect: he called on his men to
volunteer, and twelve porters came forward, who no sooner left,
than in came another letter from Grant, informing me that he had
collected almost enough men to march with, and that M'yonga had
returned on of the six missing loads, and promised to right him
in everything.
Next day, however, I had from Grant two very opposite accounts -
one, in the morning, full of exultation, in which he said he
hoped to reach Ruhe's this very day, as his complement of porters
was then completed; while by the other, which came in the
evening, I was shocked to hear that M'yonga, after returning all
the loads, much reduced by rifling, had demanded as a hongo two
guns, two boxed ammunition, forty brass wires, and 160 yards of
American sheeting, in default of which he, Grant, must lend
M'yonga ten Wanguana to build a boma on the west of his district,
to enable him to fight some Wasona who were invading his
territory, otherwise he would not allow Grant to move from his
palace. Grant knew not what to do. He dared not part with the
guns, because he knew it was against my principle, and therefore
deferred the answer until he heard from me, although all his
already collected porters were getting fidgety, and two had
bolted. In this fearful fix I sent Baraka off with strict orders
to bring Grant away at any price, except the threatened sacrifice
of men, guns, and ammunition, which I would not listen to, as one
more day's delay might end in further exactions; at the same
time, I cautioned him to save my property as far as he could, for
it was to him that M'yonga had formerly said that what I paid him
should do for all.
Some of M'yonga's men who had plundered Grant now "caught a
Tartar." After rifling his loads of a kilyndo, or bark box of
beads, they, it appeared, received orders from M'yonga to sell a
lot of female slaves, amongst whom were the two Wahuma women who
had absconded from this. The men in charge, not knowing their
history, brought them for sale into this district, where they
were instantly recognised by some of Lumeresi's men, and brought
in to him. The case was not examined at once, Lumeresi happening
to be absent; so, to make good their time, the men in charge
brought their beads to me to be exchanged for something else, not
knowing that both camps were mine, and that they held my beads
and not Grant's. Of course I took them from them, but did not
give them a flogging, as I knew if I did so they would at once
retaliate upon Grant. The poor Wahuma women, as soon as Lumeresi
arrived, were put to death by their husbands, because, by
becoming slaves, they had broken the laws of their race.
22d to 24th. - At last I began to recover. All this exciting
news, with the prospect of soon seeing Grant, did me a world of
good, - so much so, that I began shooting small birds for
specimens - watching the blacksmiths as they made tools, spears,
ad bracelets - and doctoring some of the Wahuma women who came to
be treated for ophthalmia, in return for which they gave me milk.
The milk, however, I could not boil excepting in secrecy, else
they would have stopped their donations on the plea that this
process would be an incantation or bewitchment, from which their
cattle would fall sick and dry up. I now succeeded in getting
Lumeresi to send his Wanyapara to go and threaten M'yonga, that
if he did not release Grant at once, we would combine to force
him to do so. They, however, left too late, for the hongo had
been settled, as I was informed by a letter from Grant next day,
brought to my by Bombay, who had just returned from Kaze after
six weeks' absence. He brought with him old Nasib and another
man, and told me both Bui and Nasib had hidden themselves in a
Boma close to Lumeresi's the day when my hongo was settled; but
they bolted the instant the drums beat, and my men fired guns to
celebrate the event, supposing that the noise was occasioned by
our fighting with Lumeresi. These cowards then made straight for
Kaze, when Fundi Sangoro gave Nasib a flogging for deserting me,
and made him so ashamed of his conduct that he said he would
never do it again. Bui also was flogged, but, admitting himself
to be a coward, was set to the "right-about." With him Bombay
also brought three new deoles, for which I had to pay 160
dollars, and news that the war with Manua Sera was not then over.
He had effected his escape in the usual manner, and was leading
the Arabs another long march after him.
Expecting to meet Grant this morning (25th), I strolled as far as
my strength and wind would allow me towards Ruhe's; but I was
sold, for Ruhe had detained him for a hongo. Lumeresi also
having heard of it, tried to interpose, according to a plan
arranged between us in case of such a thing happening, by sending
his officers to Ruhe, with an order not to check my "brother's"
march, as I had settled accounts for all. Later in the day,
however, I heard from Grant that Ruhe would not let him go until
he had paid sixteen pretty cloths, six wires, one gun, one box of
ammunition, and one load of mzizima beads, coolly saying that I
had only given him a trifle, under the condition that, when the
big caravan arrived, Grant would make good the rest.
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