The Creditor Says He Has Called Repeatedly At
Kiva's Village, That Notorious M'fetta, And Kiva Has Never Been At
Home; And Moreover That Kiva's Wife (One Of Them) Stole A Yellow Dog
Of Great Value From His (The Creditor's) Canoe.
Kiva says, women
will be women, and he had gone off to sleep thinking the affair had
blown over and the bill renewed for the time being.
The creditor
had not gone to sleep; but sat up thinking the affair over and
remembered many cases, all cited in full, of how Kiva had failed to
meet his debts; also Kiva's brother on the mother's side and uncle
ditto; and so has decided to foreclose forthwith on the debtor's
estate, and as the estate is represented by and consists of Kiva's
person, to take and seize upon it and eat it.
It is always highly interesting to observe the germ of any of our
own institutions existing in the culture of a lower race.
Nevertheless it is trying to be hauled out of one's sleep in the
middle of the night, and plunged into this study. Evidently this
was a trace of an early form of the Bankruptcy Court; the court
which clears a man of his debt, being here represented by the knife
and the cooking pot; the whitewashing, as I believe it is termed
with us, also shows, only it is not the debtor who is whitewashed,
but the creditors doing themselves over with white clay to celebrate
the removal of their enemy from his sphere of meretricious activity.
This inversion may arise from the fact that whitewashing a creditor
who was about to be cooked would be unwise, as the stuff would boil
off the bits and spoil the gravy. There is always some fragment of
sound sense underlying African institutions. Kiva was, when I got
out, tied up, talking nineteen to the dozen; and so was every one
else; and a lady was working up white clay in a pot.
I dare say I ought to have rushed at him and cut his bonds, and
killed people in a general way with a revolver, and then flown with
my band to the bush; only my band evidently had no flying in them,
being tucked up in the hut pretending to be asleep, and uninterested
in the affair; and although I could have abandoned the band without
a pang just then, I could not so lightheartedly fly alone with Kiva
to the bush and leave my fishes; so I shouted Azuna to the
Bankruptcy Court, and got a Fan who spoke trade English to come and
interpret for me; and from him I learnt the above stated outline of
the proceedings up to the time. Regarding the original iniquity of
Kiva, my other Fans held the opinion that the old Scotch lady had
regarding certain passages in the history of the early Jews - that it
was a long time ago, and aiblins it was no true.
Fortunately for the reader it is impossible for me to give in full
detail the proceedings of the Court.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 155 of 371
Words from 81097 to 81613
of 194943
