The readers of "The Albert N'yanza" may remember the "Satanic Escort,"
with which I was furnished by Kamrasi for my journey from M'rooli to the
lake; these were bonosoora. I could never learn the exact number that
formed Kabba Rega's celebrated regiment of blackguards, but I should
imagine there were above 1,000 men who constantly surrounded him, and
gained their living by pillaging others.
Any slave who ran away from his master might find an asylum if he
volunteered to enlist in the bonosoora. Every man who had committed some
crime, or who could not pay his debts, could find a refuge by devoting
himself to the personal care of the young king, and enrolling within the
ranks of the royal guards. The general character of these ruffians may
be easily imagined. They lounged away their time, and simply relieved
the monotony of their existence by robbing passers-by of anything that
attracted their cupidity.
Umbogo belonged to this celebrated corps, and he informed me that hardly
a night passed without some person being murdered by these people, who
would always kill a man after dark, unless he yielded up his property
without resistance. The great number of vultures that continually
hovered over Masindi were proofs of Umbogo's story, as these birds
generally denote the presence of carrion. My men had, on several
occasions, found bodies lying in the high grass, neatly picked to the
bone, which had only recently died.
There was much to be done before the brutal customs of Unyoro could be
reformed: and I was by no means satisfied with the conduct exhibited by
Kabba Rega. He had promised faithfully that he would send a large force
to clear away the high grass by which our station was surrounded; this
was never fulfilled, neither could I engage the natives to work for
hire.
I had observed for some time past that his people were rapidly extending
the town of Masindi, by erecting new buildings upon both our flanks,
which, although only a few yards from our clearing, were half obscured
by the high grass; thus it appeared that we were being gradually
surrounded.
Since the departure of the post with my escort and the irregular levy,
nothing was done by the natives, except the usual lounging by day, and
drinking and howling, with drums and horns as an accompaniment,
throughout the night.
Kabba Rega had always declared that the natives would work for me and
obey every order when the slave-hunters should have been expelled from
the country. Although the people who were lately a portion of the
slave-hunter's company had now been enlisted in the service of
government, not one man remained in Masindi, as I had sent them all away
to Fatiko, at the particular request of Kabba Rega.
