I Pressed About Two Hundred Pounds Of
Grapes In The Large Sponging Bath, But Procured So Little Juice, And
That So Thick, That Winemaking Proved A Failure; It Fermented, And We
Drank It, But It Was Not Wine.
One day, hearing a great noise of voices
and blowing of horns in the direction of Katchiba's residence, I sent to
inquire the cause.
The old chief himself appeared very angry and
excited. He said, that his people were very bad, that they had been
making a great noise and finding fault with him because he had not
supplied them with a few showers, as they wanted to sow their crop of
tullaboon. There had been no rain for about a fortnight.
"Well," I replied, "you are the rainmaker; why don't you give your
people rain?" "Give my people rain!" said Katchiba. "I give them rain if
they don't give me goats? You don't know my people; if I am fool enough
to give them rain before they give me the goats, they would let me
starve! No, no! let them wait - if they don't bring me supplies of corn,
goats, fowls, yams, merissa, and all that I require, not one drop of
rain shall ever fall again in Obbo! Impudent brutes are my people! Do
you know, they have positively threatened to kill me unless I bring the
rain? They shan't have a drop; I will wither the crops, and bring a
plague upon their flocks. I'll teach these rascals to insult me!"
With all this bluster, I saw that old Katchiba was in a great dilemma,
and that he would give anything for a shower, but that he did not know
how to get out of the scrape.
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