22d. - We Resolved To-Day To Try On A New Political Influence At
The Court.
Grant had taken to the court of Karague a jumping-
jack, to amuse the young princes; but it had
A higher destiny,
for it so fascinated the king Rumanika himself that he would not
part with it - unless, indeed, Grant would make him a big one out
of a tree which was handed to him for the purpose. We resolved
to try the influence of such a toy on king Mtesa, and brought
with us, in addition, a mask and some pictures. But although the
king took a visiting card, the gate was never opened to us.
Finding this, and the day closing, we deposited the mask and
pictures on a throne, and walked away. We found that we had thus
committed a serious breach of state etiquette; for the guard, as
soon as they saw what we had done, seized the Wanguana for our
offences in defiling the royal seat, and would have bound them,
had they not offered to return the articles to us.
23d. - Early in the morning, hearing the royal procession marching
off on a shooting excursion, we sent Bombay running after it with
the mask and pictures, to aquaint the king with our desire to see
him, and explain that we had been four days successively foiled
in attempts to find him in his palace, our object being an eager
wish to come to some speedy understanding about the appointed
journeys to the Salt Lake and Karague. The toys produced the
desired effect; for the king stopped and played with them, making
Bombay and the pages don the masks by turns. He appointed the
morrow for an interview, at the same time excusing himself for
not having seen us yesterday on the plea of illness. In the
evening Kahala absconded with another little girl of the camp in
an opposite direction from the one she took last time; but as
both of them wandered about not knowing where to go to, and as
they omitted to take off all their finery, they were soon
recognised as in some way connected with my party, taken up, and
brought into camp, where they were well laughed at for their
folly, and laughed in turn at the absurdity of their futile
venture.
24th. - Hoping to keep the king to his promise, I went to the
palace early, but found he had already gone to see his brothers,
so followed him down, and found him engaged playing on a
harmonicon with them. Surprised at my intrusion, he first asked
how I managed to find him out; then went on playing for a while;
but suddenly stopping to talk with me, he gave me an opportunity
of telling him I wished to send Grant off to Karague, and start
myself for Usoga and the Salt Lake in the morning. "What! going
away?" said the king, as if he had never heard a word about it
before; and then, after talking the whole subject over again,
especially dwelling on the quantity of powder I had in store at
Karague, he promised to send the necessary officers for escorting
us on our respective journeys in the morning.
The brothers' wives then wished to see me, and came before us,
when I had to take off my hat and shoes as usual, my ready
compliance inducing the princes to pass various compliments of my
person and disposition. The brothers then showed me a stool made
of wood after the fashion of our sketching-stool, and a gun-cover
of leather, made by themselves, of as good workmanship as is to
be found in India. The king then rose, followed by his brothers,
and we all walked off to the pond. The effect of stimulants was
mooted, as well as other physiological phenomena, when a second
move took us to the palace by torchlight, and the king showed a
number of new huts just finished and beautifully made. Finally,
he settled down to a musical concert, in which he took the lead
himself. At eight o'clock, being tired and hungry, I reminded
the king of his promises, and he appointed the morning to call on
him for the Wakungu, and took leave.
25th. - Makinga, hearing of the intended march through Usoga, was
pleased to say he would like to join my camp and spend his time
in buying slaves and ivory there. I went to the palace for the
promised escort, but was no sooner announced by the pages than
the king walked off into the interior of his harem, and left me
no alternative but to try my luck with the Kamraviona, who,
equally proud with his master, would not answer my call, - and so
another day was lost.
26th. - This morning we had the assuring intelligence from Kaddu
that he had received orders to hold himself in readiness for a
voyage to Karague in twenty boats with Grant, but the date of
departure was not fixed. The passage was expected to be rough,
as the water off the mouth of the Kitangule Kagera (river) always
runs high, so that no boats can go there except at night, when
the winds of day subside, and are replaced by the calms of night.
I called at the palace, but saw nothing of the king, though the
court was full of officials; and there were no less than 150
women, besides girls, goats, and various other things, seizures
from refractory state officers, who, it was said, had been too
proud to present themselves at court for a period exceeding
propriety.
All these creatures, I was assured, would afterwards be given
away as return-presents for the hongos or presents received from
the king's visitors. No wonder the tribes of Africa are mixed
breeds. Amongst the officers in waiting was my friend Budja, the
ambassador that had been sent to Unyoro with Kidgwiga, Kamrasi's
deputy. He had returned three days before, but had not yet seen
the king.
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