My Own Men, Although Indolent, Were So
Completely Disciplined That They Would Not Have Dared To Disobey An
Order, And
They looked back upon their former mutinous conduct with
surprise at their own audacity, and declared that they feared to
Return
to Khartoum, as they were sure that I should not forgive them.
I had promised Ibrahim that I would use my influence with the King of
Unyoro to procure him the ivory of that country; - I had a good supply
of beads, while Ibrahim had none; thus he was dependent upon me for
opening the road. Everything looked fair, and had I been strong and well
I should have enjoyed the future prospect; but I was weak and almost
useless, and weighed down with anxiety lest I might die and my wife
would be left alone.
The rains had ceased, and the wild grapes were ripe the natives brought
them in great quantities in exchange for a few beads. They were in
extremely large bunches, invariably black, and of a good size, but not
juicy - the flavour was good, and they were most refreshing, and
certainly benefited my health. 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. It was a common freak of the tribes to
sacrifice the rainmaker, should he be unsuccessful. He suddenly altered
his tone, and asked, "Have you any rain in your country?" I replied that
we had, every now and then. "How do you bring it? Are you a rainmaker?"
I told him that no one believed in rainmakers in our country, but that
we understood how to bottle lightning (meaning electricity). "I don't
keep mine in bottles, but I have a houseful of thunder and lightning,"
he most coolly replied; "but if you can bottle lightning you must
understand rainmaking.
"What do you think of the weather today?" I immediately saw the drift of
the cunning old Katchiba; he wanted professional advice. I replied,
that he must know all about it, as he was a regular rainmaker. "Of
course I do," he answered, "but I want to know what YOU think of it."
"Well," I said, "I don't think we shall have any steady rain, but I
think we may have a heavy shower in about four days." (I said this as I
had observed fleecy clouds gathering daily in the afternoon). "Just my
opinion!" said Katchiba, delighted; "in four or perhaps in five days I
intend to give them one shower; just one shower; yes, I'll just step
down to them now, and tell the rascals, that if they will bring me some
goats by this evening, and some corn tomorrow morning, I will give them
in four or five days just one shower." To give effect to his declaration
he gave several toots upon his magic whistle. "Do you use whistles in
your country?" inquired Katchiba. I only replied by giving so shrill and
deafening a whistle on my fingers that Katchiba stopped his ears; and
relapsing into a smile of admiration he took a glance at the sky from
the doorway to see if any sudden effect bad been produced. "Whistle
again," he said; and once more I performed like the whistle of a
locomotive. "That will do, we shall have it," said the cunning old
rainmaker; and proud of having so knowingly obtained "counsel's opinion"
on his case, he toddled off to his impatient subjects.
In a few days a sudden storm of rain and violent thunder added to
Katchiba's renown, and after the shower, horns were blowing and nogaras
were beating in honour of their chief. Entre nous, my whistle was
considered infallible.
The natives were busy sowing the new crop just as the last crop was
ripening. It did not appear likely that they would reap much for their
labour, as the elephants, having an accurate knowledge of the season,
visited their fields nightly, and devoured and trampled the greater
portion. I had been too ill to think of shooting, as there was no other
method than to watch in the tullaboon fields at night; the high grass in
which the elephants harboured being impenetrable. Feeling a little
better I took my men to the field about a mile from the village, and dug
a hole, in which I intended to watch.
That night I took Richarn, and we sat together in our narrow grave.
There was no sound throughout the night.
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