On Entering His Palace Enclosure, The First Thing We Saw
Was A Blaue Boc's Horn Stuffed Full Of Magic Powder, With Very
Imposing Effect, By K'yengo, And Stuck In The Ground, With Its
Mouth Pointing In The Direction Of Rogero.
In the second court,
we found thirty-five drums ranged on the ground, with as many
drummers standing behind
Them, and a knot of young princes and
officers of high dignity waiting to escort us into the third
enclosure, where, in his principal hut, we found Rumanika
squatting on the ground, half-concealed by the portal, but
showing his smiling face to welcome us in. His head was got up
with a tiara of beads, from the centre of which, directly over
the forehead, stood a plume of red feathers, and encircling the
lower face with a fine large white beard set in a stock or band
of beads. We were beckoned to squat alongside Nnanaji, the
master of ceremonies, and a large group of high officials outside
the porch. Then the thirty-five drums all struck up together in
very good harmony; and when their deafening noise was over, a
smaller band of hand-drums and reed instruments was ordered in to
amuse us.
This second performance over, from want of breath only, district
officers, one by one, came advancing on tip-toe, then pausing,
contorting and quivering their bodies, advancing again with a
springing gait and outspread arms, which they moved as if they
wished to force them out of their joints, in all of which actions
they held drum-sticks or twigs in their hands, swore with a
maniacal voice an oath of their loyalty and devotion to their
king, backed by the expression of a hope that he would cut off
their heads if they ever turned from his enemies, and then,
kneeling before him, they held out their sticks that he might
touch them.
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